TRIATHLETE TIM: July 2008

I was quite relaxed heading into the race in part because my focus was to see how fit I was rather than to qualify or achieve anything else. [My first triathlon since Kona.]

The swim was two laps with a short run on the beach. The day before we got a few swim tips from Tom Evans which were helpful in particular one about taking a breath first and then looking up for a position check.

I swam the first lap in 16:58 and I exited the water in 34:05 - so a good consistent effort to start the day. And there were wetsuit helpers to strip the sucker off me - the first time I've made use of this service. Highly recommended!

The bike was going to be a challenge not so much because it was up and down Richter Pass, and then back again but because I've been so slack in training these past six months because the weather has been so discouraging. Having had such great weather to train in Sydney the least bit of cold and rain has kept me inside - and it was the coldest winter and spring here in three decades. Talk about timing.

For the bike, I opted to monitor two things: my heart rate and my overall time. Cadence wasn't going to be useful nor was average speed because of the hills.

As I was cycling, I realized that I didn't actually bring much, any, nutrition. I had my liquids covered but I hadn't thought much of normal gels. I had two caf gels with me and it was all about when I would consume them for the best benefit.

There was a slight headwind heading out on the course - which was one lap, pretty much from Osoyoos to Keremeos and then back.

I didn't find Richter Pass to be too difficult though I was initially rethinking my decision to ride a 23-12 on the back instead of the 25-12 on my training wheel. But I didn't have it and so I simply had to be patient and spin as best I could.

As expected, I caught a few people and a few flew by me too.

After the turnaround, I took my first and double caf gel. It woke me up. There was a section which roughly could be described as flat - it's all relative. But I had a tailwind here and I decided that I was going to go for it. I do like dropping into aero position and cranking up the gears and just pushing. I was flying and it was great.

The hills slowed me down but that was OK.

As I reached the top of Richter heading back into town I realized that I could make it sub3. Having grabbed a few gels from the aid stations along the way, my energy level was good and I kept moving. 2:57. I haven't looked at all the details on my bike computer yet but 2:57 was enough to make me smile.

Out onto the run, with a bottle of Red Bull, I kept a steady pace. No records were going to be set today. There is a definite value in practicing running off the bike. Still, I had a solid and even paced run and I was a happy triathlete at the finish line.

5:22 .. Given the bike course, it was a good overall time for me. Half irons have never been all that fast for me so it was roughly in the ballpark of previous races.

It wasn't until later that I saw I was 11th in my age group out of 44 and 80th out of about 400 competitors overall. Both indicators that I held my own.

What I hadn't expected though was to see myself in a new age group .. I thought that was a bit early - a good six weeks early actually.

Oh well.

*photos: margreet