Race Report- Niantic Bay Triathlon

I drove down on Saturday – both to scout the bike course and to not have to worry about getting up to early and having to drive an hour down to the race.

When I saw some people from my training class on Friday who had ridden the bike course they made a point of saying it was not flat and that there were a few steep hills. Before I left I ran the course the computer on America’s Running Routes and then tried to compare it to the Terramugus course. I saw two steep hills on at mile 4-5 and one at mile 8-9. The last one scared me the most as it was a hill following a descent. When I drove the route – twice – I was a bit intimidated by the hills and was worried I couldn’t make them without getting off the bike. I was annoyed that here it was the night before the race and I was classically unprepared. I hadn’t trained enough in hills and I hadn’t tried the course. In the back of my mind I remembered reading something about the bike course being flat. I went back to the web site and here is what it says:

This event is a flat, sprint distance race. Swim is a point-to-point course in Niantic Bay, an ocean bay with no waves or strong currents.
Bike: 12-mile loop through scenic East Lyme with water views and shaded streets.
Run: 3.5-mile distance through the beach community of Niantic. Mostly paved roads with a spectacular run across the Bluff to a beach finish. Entire race is at sea level.

Not:

According to America’s Running Routes the Total Climb is 641 feet with a total elevation change of 1275 feet.

Now that may be flat for biker people, but for me that is if not the Alps, then the Pyrenees.

Still, I should have gone down and ridden at least once to see if I could do it.

I also drove down to the center, thinking I would walk the run course, but my knee was killing me from the drive down. I walked about thirty yards and then turned around.

I went to the Stop and Shop and bought some spinach, bananas, a yogurt, and some cough drops, and then went to Quizno’s and bought a mesquite chicken sub.

I spent the evening in the motel ( I had to turn down the AC which was polar when I walked in). I watched The Godfather on TV which I could watch every year (It was either that or Discovery Channel’s Shark Week), and worked some on my laptop, and then after watching the first inning of the Red Sox game, went to bed a little after ten.

I tried to go over in my head my race plan for the morning. Swim steady, but easy, take my time in transition, bike easy, try to get down into 1st gear for the two big hills, take my time in transition, and then run easy, and try not to walk too much.

I slept okay, waking a couple times to eye the clock. When my wakeup call came at 5:00, I was already eating a banana and cliff bar, but at the same time had a desire to go back to bed. I made a couple bottles of my Gatorade and whey protein concoction. At the store I had bought some stuff called HEET that is supposed to be way better than Gatorade, but since I hadn’t tried it before I decided to go with what I was used to.

Before I loaded my bike—I kept it in the room overnight, I rode around the parking lot, practicing riding in 1st gear, which I had never used in the a race before. You go very slow and your legs whip around. It seemed to work okay.

I got down to the race early, got a good parking spot, and then wheeled my bike down to the transition area. You were assigned a spot – that have these trough type things with holes for your bike, but with my fat tires, my bike wouldn’t fit, so I just used the trusty kickstand. I hung out with some people from my class, and then went up and got marked on the left bicep and right calf. #183. The race director had suggested we leave our sneakers or flip-flops on the beach so when we got out of the water, w e could put them on and then run up the path and across a park to the transition area. But when I went down to the beach, I saw they had dumped a lot of sand on the rocky path so sneakers wouldn’t be needed. But when I did do was on the grassy hill, I laid out my One Love Jamaica towel, set out my sneakers and sock and heart rate monitor and put them by a trash can than was on its side. I figure after I came up the path and went over the timing matt, getting my swim time, I could sit down on the trash can, and put my sneakers on and then run the rest of the way and into the transition area which was a parking lot.

We all went down to the beach. I figured out that they were using the 4th wave for the Clydesdales too, so I didn’t feel too singled out as a newbie. I got wet, and then watched the first three waves go off. Normally I go wide right, but this time since the course turned left, I positioned myself to the left. The race starts with you on the beach, and then you charge into the water. The beach was wide enough that there was no banging. I swam well, nice and well-paced, no hurry. I was sighting very well. I held a pretty straight line. Also, because I breathe on the right, I was able to view swimmers off to my right. I had to make a few minor adjustments, but nothing too serious. I passed many people from previous waves (each wave was four minutes apart.

The water was great, cool, clear, not choppy at all. We had to swim around a number of buoys and lane markings. We basically started on one beach, went around a point and came out on another beach.





The last quarter I finally kicked into a faster rhythm. Even when I swim in the pool, it takes me a good ten-twelve minutes until I really start smoking, but then I was flying – easy too, I felt like a racing yacht slashing silently through the water. As we got within a 100 yards of the beach I was swimming over a seaweed patch and catching it with my hands, but it didn’t slow me. A lot of people were out and walking, but I kept flying in like a torpedo. I was almost on my knees when I stopped swimming. I got up quick and tried to go as fast as I could up the bluff and over the matt – I wanted a good swim time. I was a little out of breath, but not too bad.

My time was 17:06 for 130th place. Not bad – I swim 17-18 in the pool for the half mile, and this had some walk-running added on.




Once I crossed the matt, I slowed to a walk and then strolled over to the trash can, sat down on its side and took my time toweling off my feet and putting on my socks, which was hard because I use the double friction free socks, which is like putting two pairs on. I then fast walked to the transition area, put my helmet on, had a quick gulp of my drink, and then was off.

My transition time was 4:55, which was probably on the slower side. The top people were doing it in 2 minutes, the middle 3, and the back 4-5. I didn’t care. I had those hills looming ahead.

All the way up the park walk and through the transition area, people were whipping by me.

The transition area opens right out on a short hill. I just ran right up the hill, which is what our coach told us to do, and mounted the bike at the top.

I rode easy, and was getting passed pretty regularly, but my goal was just to get through the bike and finish before the 1 hour 30 minute swim/bike cut off. I got up in the big gear a few times, but didn’t press it.




It was a very pretty course and they had traffic down to a minimum. If you came to an intersection, the state police stopped traffic and waved you through.

When my odometer hit 4 miles, I started getting ready, and got the gear down to the 1st one, and managed to make it up the hill, even passing two people, one who was walking, and one going very slow. After the hill, the guy who was walking his bike passed me.

Everyone who passed me I checked the tires on and as long as I didn’t get passed by a mountain bike or hybrid, I felt okay, but then about mile seven a mountain bike passed me, and it was back to not the bike, but me being the problem.

I kept waiting for the other big hill and hadn’t come, and was wondering if maybe I hadn’t missed it – maybe it was just a slow steady climb, and then I was barreling down a descent, and then all of a sudden there it was. I tried to get down in the gears real quick, but by now I am going uphill and the bike won’t shift to first gear. I figured I was screwed. I had to stand up , and so there I am like the guys in the Tour de France going what feels like straight uphill. I don’t if anyone lived on the stretched – I was too busy watching the road, but my peripheral vision memory thinks there were some houses, in which case, I hope there were no children. I started out cussing with every push of the pedal, the closer I go to the top, the less able I was to enunciate. I was just making guttural sounds – loud grunting like a dying ape like King Kong after he just beaten Godzilla, but at the same time suffered a mortal wound. The woman on the bike behind me was grunting also, but she was also laughing at me. As I neared the crest I wasn’t even registering a speed. I was absolutely stopped, then I would force all my weight down on the pedal and move another bike length. I was fighting a serious battle. I’m going to have to get off. No, you can’t – you’d be a suck. But I can’t make it. Its just a little further. Yeah, but the bike is not moving. Com’on. One more hey good one. I moved six inches. Com’on. That was the conversation in my head. Out of my mouth were strictly ape sounds. Hooogh! Uuuhhh!. Mooooah!. Aaaarah!

But I made it. One of the volunteers who was up head, confirmed, its all downhill from here.

I started down another decent going pretty fast, when suddenly I read in the pavement “Go Slow! And see a big turn. I had to hit both brakes pretty hard and even then barely made the turn. Just then I see a police man standing over a down biker, lying supine in the grass. It looked like she had whipped out. I could hear sirens in the distance. I could see her eyes were open and she was moving and that was good enough for me to keep going. I didn’t press it on the way in. I had made the hills, I was going to finish.

Bike time 51:29 (374)

The course ended up back in the center of town, and then turned in to the park where the transition area was. I dismounted and walked my bike in. I went to my spot, kicked the kick stand, took off my helmet, put on my Red Sox hat, took a drink and then walked out of the transition area, accepting water on the way out.

Transition Time 1:48

I started out running, but I was only going about four miles an hour. I felt a little lightheaded. It was hot out and the sun was very bright. Fortunately after only maybe half a mile, then had more water and I took one glass, and dumped it over my head. My back was feeling very tight, so I gave up and started walking to see if I could stretch it out. The last two races my back has felt tight, which may have to do with lowering the bars. I walked and ran for awhile. One little girl had a hose and let her blast me with it and that felt good. The course was through quiet beachside streets lined with cottages. It was a loop course and half way, they had more water – I drank two glasses and then poured two over my head. Running back it was nice to see all the people still behind me. I ran most of the way. The course ends up running along the beach and then up a trail along the bluff. I was feeling fine now and basically cruised on in.



The finish was on the beach – they had these pillars set up that you ran through and everyone from my class was there cheering for me, which was nice.





Time : 35:27 (367)

Total Time: 150:44 (357 out of 389)

I was happy to finish. I drank two bottles of water and then took a dip in the ocean with derrick from my class. I told him that I was considering retirement. He said I’d be back next year, which is probably right. It was his fourth year taking the class. We would have stayed in the water there longer – it was great, but we got called out by other class members who wanted to take a group picture.



Afterwards we tailgated and I drank another four bottles of water along with the rest of my Gatorade/protein drink before I could have a beer. I had one Coors Light and it tasted great, and then I had another water.

On the way home, I stopped at Burger King and had a whopper combo large size.

I tell you I feel great (tired), but I feel I accomplished my goal for the year. This race went just right according to my plan. I probably could have pushed the run more, but I don’t really have that killer instinct. I’m competitive to the point that I want to reach my goals, but not every second or minute counts. I’d rather cruise across the line, then drop on finishing.

I think my plan now will be to concentrate on conditioning, getting more bike experience and lengthening my run, as well as getting back in the weight room for some upper body work.

I’ll need to pick a running race to train for.

I am going to volunteer at the next Terramuggus race (they are good races and they need volunteers so I thought I would show my appreciation by volunteering.) I probably won’t do the last one either. I just want to train.

Next year, maybe I’ll get a road bike, do a couple sprints and aim for an Olympic distance as the highlight. I would love to do this race again. Hopefully my brother can join me next year. We'll run the race, and then spend the rest of the day at the beach.

At home, I’ve been drinking more water, and sitting on the couch watching the Red Sox. Later I will have a steak and a few beers.

Triathlete.

***

Finish: 1:50:44
Place: 357 of 389
Division: 21 of 24 Clydesdales

Swim: 17:06 (135)
T1: 4:55
Bike: 51:29 (374)
T2: 1:48
Run: 35:27 (367)

Results