Waseca Recap

First, my thanks to Mario Minelli for his taper plan. Worked like a charm. Legs felt dead earlier in the week but were in great shape when it came to race-day. I have full confidence heading into Detroit Lakes on 8/15!

Time for the Waseca Triathlon recap. Drop dead gorgeous day with light winds, fast course, and nice venue. OK, the lake IS a little green and you can't see your hand in front of you. That's my only rip.

My goals heading into the Waseca tri, and results. I'm pretty pleased.

My targets were:

Swim (0.26 miles)
Gear: Tyr Solid Lycra® Square Leg; Tyr Nest Pro googles (clear)
Target - 8:23
Unofficial Result (my watch) - 9:10
Official Result - 9:21
Overall Place - 23rd (134 total)
Age Group Place - 2nd (6 total)

Notes - Yes, it was the tri-suit. Recall that I had been experiencing breathing issues leading to full-blown panic attacks in my last two events during the swim. I suspected it might have to do with the tri-suit I had been wearing. Let's just say wearing a girdle across your chest does not help a person's swim. Today, I raced in a swim brief. I was fine. I felt great, comfy, and in control. My time was off my goal, but it is rather hard to judge these open water distances. Heck, after the disastrous swims of the last two events I was content with this swim.

T1
Target - 1:30
Unofficial Result (my watch) - 2:14
Official Result - 1:57

Notes - As anticipated and spoken about in my pre-race video, the run from the beach to the bike corral was pretty damn long. Add to this putting on my tri-suit (my lucky orange!) and I'm also content with this result.

Bike (13.82 mi)
Gear: Cervélo P3/ZIPP 404 front-rear disc by Gear West. Retul bike fit by Curt Wood (Gear West). Giro Filter sunglasses with ZEISS certified lenses. Giro Advantage 2 aero helmet.
Target - 38:34 (21.5 MPH)
Unofficial Result (my watch) - 38:38 (22.2 MPH)
Official Result - 38:47
Overall Place - 8th (134 total) 21.4 MPH
Age Group Place - 1st (6 total)

Notes - Man, what a great bike course. I just got in a groove and hammered. At the turn-around I was averaging 22.6 MPH with a slight tailwind/crosswind. The wind seemed to pickup and start to be more into our faces than a crosswind on the return so I lost a bit of time there. But I felt very good. Unofficially, this is my fastest bike split ever for a individual bike event. Previously, I had gone 24.5 MPH over 40-miles but that was 20-years ago for a USAT CAT 4 in Houston....and that was all peloton. Again, unofficially as the official time posted a wee bit of a different number which....no surprise!...I am questioning. I think the bike course was longer than advertised. Since I was not wearing my Garmin 405, I can't say with certainty. Nonetheless, I'm very happy with the result. (Mario - mind checking with Jesse and see what he thought on the bike course length?)

T2
Target - 1:30
Unofficial Result (my watch) - 1:08
Official Result - 1:06

Notes - Should have been faster but I ended up dismounting too early. My bad, and no fault of any of the great volunteers at the race. But it was a great T2 as I had no cramps....no worries....and plenty of baby powder in the Luna Racers.

Run (4.4 mi)
Gear: Nike Luna Racers
Target - 32:16 (7:20/mi)
Unofficial Result (my watch) - 29:36 (6:43/mile)
Official Result - 29:37 (6:44/mile)
Overall Place - 7th (134 total)
Age Group Place - 1st (6 total)

Notes - Wow. I simply did not expect this kind of effort on the run. Now, as I thought the bike course was long, I think the run course was short. Without the Garmin..I just don't know. But I came through at 6:40 at mile 1, under 14 at mile 2, almost 20 flat at mile 3...so, who knows? And best of all, I was able to actually KICK IT the last 1/2 mile. I should always be running sub 6:50's for any running event. Maybe the Achilles is finally mending (NO PAIN!) and maybe I can get under 6:30's at Detroit Lakes.

Total
Target - 1:22.13
Unofficial Result (my watch) - 1:20.47
Official Result - 1:20.46
Overall Place - 4th (134 total)
Age Group Place - 1st (6 total)

Notes - I knew I was having a great day, but to see myself end up top four overall was special. Yeah, maybe the field was a little weak overall but still there were some very good athletes in attendance. My hats off to race director Bill Nevala, the volunteers, and the town of Waseca. I hope to return in 2010.

Sprint Results
1/3 IM Results