Race:
Masters swim meet (scy)
Date:
October 7, 2012
Location:
Edinboro, Pa
Second meet of the season is in the books, and I set three more personal
records! After a 700-yard warmup, I did four events:
Event #1: 100-yard freestyle.
Time: 1:09.44
Age Group Rank: 2 out of 2
My personal best set last year was 1:09.28. I did not
beat that time, but I was close: 1:09.44. The actual records submitted to the
Masters organization read 1:06.85, but I believe that is an error. The timing
strips were set up wrong for the first few events of the meet and the 1:06 time
was someone else's time. The person who got my 1:09.44 time might not know that
he actually got 1:06.85. Fortunately, it made no difference in the age-group
rankings for either him or me. Apart from that issue, this swim of mine was OK
but not stellar. I know I could have done better. I had three turns and none of
them were close enough to the wall to provide much thrust. Had I done my turns
better, my time would have been 1-2 seconds faster. Oh, and a fellow team member
pointed out that I didn't attack the wall at the end; I coasted in and got
out-touched by my nearest competitors.
Event #2: 50-yard freestyle.
Time: 29.66
Age Group Rank: 3 out of 3
My goal was to break 30 seconds, and I did! I was
smiling for a good 30 min after this race was done, because I did it in 29.66
seconds. My old time was 30.4 seconds. In a race so short, this 0.74-second
improvement is considerable. I had a great turn at the far wall to make up for
the lousy ones in my last race.
Event #3: 50-yard breaststroke.
Time: 38.62
Age Group Rank: 2 out of 2
I have gone a year without improving my breaststroke
times. But now I finally made progress. I swam this in 38.62 seconds, breaking
my old record of 39.40. Again, a 0.78-second improvement is quite meaningful. I
had a good dive, pull-out, and turn at the wall. I can't say that I was thinking
about any other of my coach's pointers during the race; for example, I am pretty
sure my head was up too high.
Event #4: 25-yard butterfly.
Time: 14.81
Age Group Rank: 1 out of 1
These short events are just pure fun and no one takes
them very seriously because they are so short. In fact, I don't even breathe
during a race like this. Anyway, because I did set another personal best, I'll
make a big deal out of it. I swam this in 14.81 seconds, improving from my old
record of 15.60. I may have shaved off some time due to a rather extended
underwater series of dolphin kicks at the end of my dive.
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Pittsburgh Great Race 10K
Race:
10K run
Date: September 30, 2012
Location: Pittsburgh, Pa
Time: 52:19
Overall Rank: 2487 out of 8207
Age Group Rank: 236 out of 517
Results: http://results.active.com/events/city-of-pittsburgh-great-race-5k-10k/10k
This is a huge race with 8,172 particpants in the 10K and countless more in a concurrent 5K race. Due to the size of the event, we had to wait at the starting line for about an hour before the 9:30am starting time. The temperature was only 51 degrees. This made me very cold--shivering, in fact. The actual run was easy for about 3 miles. I wasn't even breathing hard. But after that, the race lost some of its fun. Despite some heavy breathing and painful calf muscles, I enjoyed the various bands that played for us along the route and the cheering spectators. It was raining some of the time, so those spectators were just as dedicated as the race participants. Well, almost.
My pace was not as fast as my 5K personal record, but it is very, very good considering the distance and my poor training regimen these last few weeks. In fact, I ran faster than 54% of men in my age group. This is my first 10K race, though I did do a 10K run as part of a triathlon earlier in the summer.
Date: September 30, 2012
Location: Pittsburgh, Pa
Time: 52:19
Overall Rank: 2487 out of 8207
Age Group Rank: 236 out of 517
Results: http://results.active.com/events/city-of-pittsburgh-great-race-5k-10k/10k
This is a huge race with 8,172 particpants in the 10K and countless more in a concurrent 5K race. Due to the size of the event, we had to wait at the starting line for about an hour before the 9:30am starting time. The temperature was only 51 degrees. This made me very cold--shivering, in fact. The actual run was easy for about 3 miles. I wasn't even breathing hard. But after that, the race lost some of its fun. Despite some heavy breathing and painful calf muscles, I enjoyed the various bands that played for us along the route and the cheering spectators. It was raining some of the time, so those spectators were just as dedicated as the race participants. Well, almost.
My pace was not as fast as my 5K personal record, but it is very, very good considering the distance and my poor training regimen these last few weeks. In fact, I ran faster than 54% of men in my age group. This is my first 10K race, though I did do a 10K run as part of a triathlon earlier in the summer.
 |
| Pittsburgh Great Race 10K official certificate for finishing. |
Sunday, September 16, 2012
AMYMSA Swim Meet
Race:
Masters swim meet (scy)
Date: September 16, 2012
Location: Sewickley, Pa.
First swim meet of the season at Baierl Family YMCA:
Event #1: 200-yard freestyle relay
Time: 2:12.23
Age Group Rank: 1 out of 1
Great to have a new team member who appears to be one of the top 3 fastest people at the whole meet. I am not as fast as him, but my dive was awesome.
Event #2: 50-yard butterfly
Time: 33.53
Age Group Rank: 5 out of 7
I beat my personal best by >1 second, had a great dive and a great turn, and I only swallowed one mouthful of water (oops).
Event #3: 100-yard butterfly
Time: 1:21.78
Age Group Rank: 2 out of 2
I beat my personal best by almost 2 seconds despite having to pause at the midway point. I pulled myself together though, and finished the last 4 strokes without breathing.
Event #4: 200-yard freestyle
Time: 2:41.57
Age Group Rank: 5 out of 5
Arms still burning from the butterfly, I had a great dive and kept neck-to-neck with everyone in my heat for 125 yards. Then the guy next to me took off. This depressed me for 50 yards or so and then I went all-out at the end. I did not beat my personal best but it was a good swim and I'm happy.
Event #5: 25-yard breaststroke
Time: 17.16
Age Group Rank: 1 out of 3
No great expectations here since I knew I'd be tired. But I covered the distance in 17.16 seconds, beating my old time of 18.5.
Date: September 16, 2012
Location: Sewickley, Pa.
First swim meet of the season at Baierl Family YMCA:
Event #1: 200-yard freestyle relay
Time: 2:12.23
Age Group Rank: 1 out of 1
Great to have a new team member who appears to be one of the top 3 fastest people at the whole meet. I am not as fast as him, but my dive was awesome.
Event #2: 50-yard butterfly
Time: 33.53
Age Group Rank: 5 out of 7
I beat my personal best by >1 second, had a great dive and a great turn, and I only swallowed one mouthful of water (oops).
Event #3: 100-yard butterfly
Time: 1:21.78
Age Group Rank: 2 out of 2
I beat my personal best by almost 2 seconds despite having to pause at the midway point. I pulled myself together though, and finished the last 4 strokes without breathing.
Event #4: 200-yard freestyle
Time: 2:41.57
Age Group Rank: 5 out of 5
Arms still burning from the butterfly, I had a great dive and kept neck-to-neck with everyone in my heat for 125 yards. Then the guy next to me took off. This depressed me for 50 yards or so and then I went all-out at the end. I did not beat my personal best but it was a good swim and I'm happy.
Event #5: 25-yard breaststroke
Time: 17.16
Age Group Rank: 1 out of 3
No great expectations here since I knew I'd be tired. But I covered the distance in 17.16 seconds, beating my old time of 18.5.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Presque Isle Triathlon
Race:
Sprint Triathlon
Date: August 25, 2012
Location: Erie, Pa.
Time: 1:24:47.10
Overall Rank: 100 out of 356
Age Group Rank: 12 out of 25
Results: http://www.runhigh.com/2012RESULTS/R082512FA/AgeGroups.htm
This was my last triathlon of the season and I had a blast. Not only did I do well athletically but I was in the company of many friends. The location was on a peninsula extending several miles out into Lake Erie from near Erie, Pennsylvania. The date was Saturday, August 25th, which is significant because if I wasn’t doing this with friends, I would have missed the event completely. On my calendar, I had entered August 26th and was not even aware of my mistake until the afternoon before the race! Good thing I still had time to eat a big dinner and start drinking a lot of water to manage my hydration.
SWIM segment, 640 yards
Time: 13:34.10
Age Group Rank: 7 out of 25
The swim course was laid out as a 640-yard triangular course in Presque Isle Bay. This shallow body of water is located between the peninsula and the mainland, so it was supposed to be warmer and calmer water than if we were swimming on the Lake-facing side. Key phrase here is “supposed to be.” The wind was stiff (14mph gusting to 18mph) and the waves were significant (for swimming). Water temperature seemed to be in the mid 70s, which wasn’t too bad. However, the water was murky with visibility measured in inches and there was some floating, stringy seaweed. Except for the challenging wave action, I have swum in these conditions before. But one more thing made the swim a challenge: the swim was run as a time-trial start in alphabetical order of the swimmers’ last names. This means a slow swimmer with a last name starting with ‘A’ would be quickly overtaken by a faster swimmer with a last name listed later in the alphabet. This is an inconvenience for the fast swimmer and something really terrible for the slower swimmers, as they might be inadvertently pushed around by surrounding swimmers in addition to the nasty waves. The waves were really terrible, even for me, a fairly strong swimmer. I swallowed lots of water in the beginning but soon adjusted by rotating far to my side to take breaths between strokes. My biggest challenge was staying on course. I think I naturally swim to the right of center, and after the first turn of the triangular course I veered far to the right. A lifeguard on a Sea-doo watercraft intersected me and pointed the way. I looked up and saw about two dozen swimmers at least 25 yards to my left. That’s where I was supposed to be! I think I lost a lot of time being so far off course, and I got discouraged a little. Plus, with the heavy wave action, I found I was kicking with my legs a lot more during my freestyle than normal. So with some concern for lost time and wasted energy, I pushed hard to finish the third side of the triangle and I exited the water and ran to the transition area near the beach. I passed at least 10 people as I ran to the transition area. These folks were clearly fatigued by fighting that choppy water and seeing their distress made me feel a lot better about my own condition (sorry for them, though). My swim time was 13:34.10, which ranked 7 out of 25 in my age group.
T1 TRANSITION
My transition time between swim and bike was 2:25.95, which ranked 191 out of 356 non-relay race participants.
BIKE segment, 13 miles
Time: 37:09.00
Age Group Rank: 10 out of 25
My pre-race strategy was to swim and bike as hard as I could and
then run with whatever energy I had left. Running is my weakest area and in past
triathlons I think I have held back on the bike segment so that I wouldn’t
fatigue on the run. For today’s race, I was just going to go all-out and risk
fatigue on the run. I can’t say that I swam as hard as I could on the swim
segment because I simply wasn’t concentrating on my pace. I was concentrating on
beating those terrible waves. So now that I was on the bike, I pedaled hard and
didn’t stop until the end of the 13-mile course. The wind was still a problem at
the beginning; a headwind made me work hard to maintain my average 21 mph speed
on this flat course. The wind was the only challenge though; Presque Isle is
basically a giant sandbar and the highest point on the whole peninsula is 7 feet
above the Lake’s surface! I passed a bunch of folks on the bike and was only
passed by racers who wore the teardrop-shaped bike helmets that have become
popular among the top triathletes. No offense to anyone who wears one of those,
but I think they look dorky and wouldn’t shave enough time off my race time to
warrant wearing one (or warrant buying one at $175). Nevertheless, those folks
passed me, so something has made them fast. I just doubt it’s the helmet.
Within the first mile on the ride I passed a friend of mine with a last name starting with ‘A.’ This didn’t mean I was going to beat him in the end, since he is a much faster runner. So I kept charging on that bike. About a mile before the end of the bike segment I passed another friend with a last name starting with ‘K’ (just like my last name!), so now I knew I was competitive and I tried to stay ahead of him the rest of the day. My bike time was 37:09.00, which ranked 10th out of 25 men in my age group.
T2 TRANSITION
My transition time between bike and run was 1:44.15 and ranked 276 out of 356 participants. One of my friends asked me later why I took so long to change into my running shoes. I have no good answer to this. I think I just go slow because I’m mentally preparing for the run (a big challenge for me) and that occupies my thoughts. I was never good at multi-tasking.
RUN segment, 3.5 miles
Time: 30:09.90
Age Group Rank: 14 out of 25
The 3.5-mile run course was out-and-back on a paved road for most of the way. My legs felt great but I was out of breath in the beginning. I consumed a GU for fuel and by the time I was done I had gotten into a sustainable rhythm. For a short while I was running pretty fast (for me), but I slowed down just a bit in order to manage my energy and be sure to complete the race. In hindsight, I wish I hadn’t done this because I still had energy to burn as I crossed the finish line.
Just before the turn-around point, my ‘A’-named friend that I passed on the
bike segment passed me on the run. I expected this, but because he started the
race earlier than me, it wasn’t clear how much he would have to beat me in the
run in order to beat me overall. Since this was an out-and-back course, I looked
at people who were racing in the opposite direction. I was both looking for my
friends as well as the peoples’ race numbers, which indicated their placement in
the alphabet and thus their start time in the race. I saw a satisfying amount of
people behind me that had race numbers below mine. This meant that I was going
to beat them in the overall race. I hate to admit that I am such a competitive
person, but knowing I am beating somebody (anybody!) helps me keep going. For
example, I saw my friend ‘C’ and then my friend ‘K’ and they were both behind
me. I was beating them. Yay!
At the finish line, my friend ‘A’ called out and said “Jim, this is where you can sprint!” and since I still had energy left, I followed through with the advice and sped up. I finished the run in 30:03.90, which ranked 14 out of 25 in my age group. Overall, I finished the sprint triathlon in 1:24:47.10, which ranked 12 out of 25 in my age group and 100 out of 356 overall. I beat all my friends, and I am surprised that I feel less jubilant about that than I thought I would. I’m pleased about it, but beating them was really not that important. We finished the race; we supported one another; we bonded in the experience. That’s why I’m happy tonight.
Date: August 25, 2012
Location: Erie, Pa.
Time: 1:24:47.10
Overall Rank: 100 out of 356
Age Group Rank: 12 out of 25
Results: http://www.runhigh.com/2012RESULTS/R082512FA/AgeGroups.htm
This was my last triathlon of the season and I had a blast. Not only did I do well athletically but I was in the company of many friends. The location was on a peninsula extending several miles out into Lake Erie from near Erie, Pennsylvania. The date was Saturday, August 25th, which is significant because if I wasn’t doing this with friends, I would have missed the event completely. On my calendar, I had entered August 26th and was not even aware of my mistake until the afternoon before the race! Good thing I still had time to eat a big dinner and start drinking a lot of water to manage my hydration.
SWIM segment, 640 yards
Time: 13:34.10
Age Group Rank: 7 out of 25
The swim course was laid out as a 640-yard triangular course in Presque Isle Bay. This shallow body of water is located between the peninsula and the mainland, so it was supposed to be warmer and calmer water than if we were swimming on the Lake-facing side. Key phrase here is “supposed to be.” The wind was stiff (14mph gusting to 18mph) and the waves were significant (for swimming). Water temperature seemed to be in the mid 70s, which wasn’t too bad. However, the water was murky with visibility measured in inches and there was some floating, stringy seaweed. Except for the challenging wave action, I have swum in these conditions before. But one more thing made the swim a challenge: the swim was run as a time-trial start in alphabetical order of the swimmers’ last names. This means a slow swimmer with a last name starting with ‘A’ would be quickly overtaken by a faster swimmer with a last name listed later in the alphabet. This is an inconvenience for the fast swimmer and something really terrible for the slower swimmers, as they might be inadvertently pushed around by surrounding swimmers in addition to the nasty waves. The waves were really terrible, even for me, a fairly strong swimmer. I swallowed lots of water in the beginning but soon adjusted by rotating far to my side to take breaths between strokes. My biggest challenge was staying on course. I think I naturally swim to the right of center, and after the first turn of the triangular course I veered far to the right. A lifeguard on a Sea-doo watercraft intersected me and pointed the way. I looked up and saw about two dozen swimmers at least 25 yards to my left. That’s where I was supposed to be! I think I lost a lot of time being so far off course, and I got discouraged a little. Plus, with the heavy wave action, I found I was kicking with my legs a lot more during my freestyle than normal. So with some concern for lost time and wasted energy, I pushed hard to finish the third side of the triangle and I exited the water and ran to the transition area near the beach. I passed at least 10 people as I ran to the transition area. These folks were clearly fatigued by fighting that choppy water and seeing their distress made me feel a lot better about my own condition (sorry for them, though). My swim time was 13:34.10, which ranked 7 out of 25 in my age group.
T1 TRANSITION
My transition time between swim and bike was 2:25.95, which ranked 191 out of 356 non-relay race participants.
BIKE segment, 13 miles
Time: 37:09.00
Age Group Rank: 10 out of 25
 |
| Triathlon bike segment was along a park road |
Within the first mile on the ride I passed a friend of mine with a last name starting with ‘A.’ This didn’t mean I was going to beat him in the end, since he is a much faster runner. So I kept charging on that bike. About a mile before the end of the bike segment I passed another friend with a last name starting with ‘K’ (just like my last name!), so now I knew I was competitive and I tried to stay ahead of him the rest of the day. My bike time was 37:09.00, which ranked 10th out of 25 men in my age group.
T2 TRANSITION
My transition time between bike and run was 1:44.15 and ranked 276 out of 356 participants. One of my friends asked me later why I took so long to change into my running shoes. I have no good answer to this. I think I just go slow because I’m mentally preparing for the run (a big challenge for me) and that occupies my thoughts. I was never good at multi-tasking.
RUN segment, 3.5 miles
Time: 30:09.90
Age Group Rank: 14 out of 25
The 3.5-mile run course was out-and-back on a paved road for most of the way. My legs felt great but I was out of breath in the beginning. I consumed a GU for fuel and by the time I was done I had gotten into a sustainable rhythm. For a short while I was running pretty fast (for me), but I slowed down just a bit in order to manage my energy and be sure to complete the race. In hindsight, I wish I hadn’t done this because I still had energy to burn as I crossed the finish line.
 |
| Near the finish line of the triathlon run segment. |
At the finish line, my friend ‘A’ called out and said “Jim, this is where you can sprint!” and since I still had energy left, I followed through with the advice and sped up. I finished the run in 30:03.90, which ranked 14 out of 25 in my age group. Overall, I finished the sprint triathlon in 1:24:47.10, which ranked 12 out of 25 in my age group and 100 out of 356 overall. I beat all my friends, and I am surprised that I feel less jubilant about that than I thought I would. I’m pleased about it, but beating them was really not that important. We finished the race; we supported one another; we bonded in the experience. That’s why I’m happy tonight.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Janney and the Y North Park Triathlon
Race:
Sprint Triathlon
Date: August 12, 2012
Location: Allison Park, Pa.
Time: 1:26:23
Overall Rank: 154 out of 410
Age Group Rank: 12 out of 26
Results: http://www.runhigh.com/2012RESULTS/R081212AD.HTML
Swim Segment, distance = 700m
Time: 17:09
Overall Rank: 119 out of 410
Part of the North Park sprint triathlon. I'm happy with this pace. I was ranked 119 out of 410 athletes. Time includes running a fair distance out of the pool to the T1 transition area.
Bike Segment, distance = 12 miles
Time: 40:26
Overall Rank: 148 out of 410
Part of the North Park sprint triathlon. I'm happy with this pace. The 40:26 time includes the T2 transition. I ranked 148 out of 410.
Run Segment, distance = 5K
Time: 28:48
Overall Rank: 203 out of 410
Part of the North Park sprint triathlon. Not proud of this pace but it's normal for me. My run ranked 203 out of 410, so I'm about average.
Date: August 12, 2012
Location: Allison Park, Pa.
Time: 1:26:23
Overall Rank: 154 out of 410
Age Group Rank: 12 out of 26
Results: http://www.runhigh.com/2012RESULTS/R081212AD.HTML
Swim Segment, distance = 700m
Time: 17:09
Overall Rank: 119 out of 410
Part of the North Park sprint triathlon. I'm happy with this pace. I was ranked 119 out of 410 athletes. Time includes running a fair distance out of the pool to the T1 transition area.
Bike Segment, distance = 12 miles
Time: 40:26
Overall Rank: 148 out of 410
Part of the North Park sprint triathlon. I'm happy with this pace. The 40:26 time includes the T2 transition. I ranked 148 out of 410.
Run Segment, distance = 5K
Time: 28:48
Overall Rank: 203 out of 410
Part of the North Park sprint triathlon. Not proud of this pace but it's normal for me. My run ranked 203 out of 410, so I'm about average.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Pittsburgh Triathlon
Race:
International distance triathlon (1.5K swim + 40K bike + 10K run)
Date: July 29, 2012
Location: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Time: 2:59:15.
Overall Rank: 278 out of 358
Age Group Rank: 27 out of 29
Results: http://www.piranha-sports.com/Results/EntryDetail.aspx?RegistrationID=60611
Swim Segment: 1.5K distance
Time: 27:21
Overall Rank: 158 out of 358
First segment of Pittsburgh International-distance Triathlon went well. The
swim was in the Allegheny River as it flows downtown past Heinz Field and PNC
Park. We entered between the two stadiums and swam directly upstream to the
Clemente Bridge. Then at a yellow bouy, we turned 90 degrees and swam to another
bouy halfway across the river. Then we swam downstream past the entry point and
on to Heinz Field. I did a similar swim course a couple weeks ago, but today's
race was very different. First, there were 135 men in my heat (crowded!). We all
piled into the water, treaded water for a few minutes behind the start bouy, and
started swimming after a countdown. Obviously there were lots of inadvertant
contacts with other swimmers, and I felt trapped by not being able to pass
people ahead of me while at the same time being bumped by people behind me. I
suppose I could have been more aggressive by squeezing in between bodies, but
the underwater visibility was zero and I had no idea what was ahead of the
people I wanted to pass. One good thing about this race was that orientation was
made easier by where the rising sun happened to be. We couldn't see the bouys
marking the course, but if we swam toward the sun, we'd be heading in the right
direction. The second thing that made this swim different from my last was the
roughness of the water. A couple weeks ago, this river was as lazy and flat as a
pond or pool. Today (after heavy rain all week), the water was more rough, and
the current much stronger (16-fold increase in cubic feet per second). There was
also a fair amount of flood debris. I'm making this sound bad, but it wasn't
really. The water was still warm (78 degrees) and I swam at a speed comparable
to my times in a pool.
There were two instances where I almost got off course. First, I was swimming a little farther in the middle of the river than I should have, and I nearly missed a bouy. Swimmers were supposed to keep all bouys to his or her right, and I was nearly upon a bouy when a kayaker patrolling the race yelled at me. I couldn't hear what she was saying, but it was enough for me to look up and see that I needed to make a quick adjustment to my swimming direction to stay to the right of the bouy. I made a similar mistake a little later, as well. The bouy was marking a 90-degree turn and I cut off the corner. Realizing my mistake, I turned around and headed back toward the bouy so I could round it on the correct side. No race officials seemed to be nearby, so no one would have known. But I would have, and I didn't want to cheat.
Overall, my swim time was ranked 158 out of 358. Being below the median, I am happy with this time.
Bike Segment: 40K distance
Time: 1:24:21
Overall Rank: 265 out of 358
My T1 time between the swimming segment and cycling segment was 3:04. Looking at the results, I see that 76% of the partcipants did this faster than me. Oh well, I'm not that competitive. To save time I skipped my cycling gloves and I also didn't eat anything. I did get a swig of water.
Once on the bike, I started strong and quickly realized that the one other
person I knew doing this race was just ahead of me. That's quite a coincidence,
and I appreciated racing immediately behind him for the first few miles.
Drafting was not allowed, so I kept a few bike lengths behind him. At one point
I passed him going up a hill, but he soon passed me, and then maintained his
lead for the rest of the race.
The bike segment consisted of two identical loops. The course wound around a few city blocks, then climbed an entrance ramp onto a highway HOV lane (closed to car traffic). We followed the HOV lane to its first exit (at Perrysville), looped around a park-and-ride lot, and then followed the HOV lane back into downtown. Then repeated the loop. Going into the race I was not concerned about the bike segment at all. I can charge up the (steep) hills around my home without much trouble, so when I looked at the bike route for the race I didn't see anything I couldn't handle with ease. However, what I maybe didn't prepare myself for was the continuous incline that the HOV lane features from the downtown entrance ramp to the Perrysville Exit (approx. 3 miles). So while the slope of this hill wasn't bad, its length tired me out. I maintained a speed around 10-11 mph going up hill and then 22-24 mph going downhill. I was expecting a faster descent but the wind was a headwind, I didn't pedal on some parts just to give my legs a rest, and on the second descent I even stood up on the pedals (not aero!) to stretch some really sore back and hip muscles. My max speed was 34.3 mph.
The part of the loop downtown featured a lot of brick crosswalks that I had to be careful on as I rounded corners. I saw one person had crashed taking a corner too tightly on the brick surface (he was OK).
Probably my favorite part of the bike segment was at the park-and-ride parking lot where volunteers were there handing out water and Gatorade. Instead of handing us paper cups, they handed us plastic bottles that fit into our water bottle cages. Since I was having a hard time on the bike, I elected to take one of these bottles. I simply put my hand out, and grabbed it as the volunteer held it out. I felt like "yeah, he's on my team." It felt so natural and practiced, but I can't think of any other time that I've grabbed something from someone while riding past them at 15 mph (except maybe when I was a juvenile deliquent purse-snacher...just kidding). BTW, I had purposely left my water bottle off my bike during the race, so when I was done drinking, I slipped it into that vacant spot on my frame. I had decided against bringing water with me because I expected to complete the bike segment in about an hour. I figured I'd be fine for an hour without water. However, it took longer than an hour and I was glad to have a drink.
My total time on the bike ranked 265 out of 358 participants. Obviously, this isn't very good, and I knew that as soon as I started the bike segment. I passed almost no one, and it seemed like nearly everyone passed me!
Run Segment: 10K distance
Time: 1:01:12
Overall Rank: 296 out of 358
Given how tired and hurting I was from my bike ride, and given how
challenging running is for me, I decided as I pulled into the transition area
that I would walk my bike there, rather than run with the bike to my assigned
rack. I felt a little embarrassed to walk, as everyone else was rushing around.
But I needed to rest and re-group for my run. I sat on my towel, changed my
shoes, grabbed some food and drink, and started the run. And run, I did. It
actually felt easy. My leg muscles were not complaining and any discomfort I had
from the bike ride dissolved. I was worried about cramps, but no cramps! Several
things caused my run to go really smoothly. First, the aforementioned walk in
the transition zone. Second, I knew that a ton of people had passed me on the
bike, so I no longer had the illusion that I would have a competitive finish
time. Therefore, I allowed myself to just go slow. Third, I drank orange juice
in the transition area. No, not orange-flavored Gatorade. This was 100% pure
orange juice left over from my breakfast that I kept in a cooler. Oh, did that
taste and feel good going down! Real OJ has a lot of sugar and potassium, too,
so it's just as good as the artificial Gatorade stuff. Speaking of artificial
stuff, the last thing I can think of that led me to have a good run was GU
packets. My triathlon shorts have a zippered pocket in the back, and I stashed
three packets there. GU is really gross. Containing several types of sugar and
some vitamins, it's like consuming flavored honey or drinking maple syrup. It
doesn't feel or taste good. But it really worked for me. It gave me the calories
I needed to keep going without putting solid food into a bouncing-around
stomach. I haven't used GUs before, so I felt a bit like those early astronauts
that had to eat tubes of food paste. (this allusion probably sounds strange to
you, but for a moment I was pretending to be an astronaut eating paste, and that
was a pleasant distraction from my run!).
The run course was on the riverwalk that runs along the Allegheny River north from downtown (on the North Shore). Half of it was paved and half was crushed stone. We ran 3.1 miles north, turned around, and came back. Having runners using the same trail to go both directions was useful because as a runner going the opposite direction would approach, I'd glance at him or her, and wonder about who the person was: how old they were, what they did at work, whether they had families, how rich or poor they were. Just people-watching stuff to keep me entertained.
Like every other out-and-back race I've done, the first half seemed to take forever. This is because I didn't scout out the trail ahead of time and didn't know where the turn-around was. But once I had turned around, I knew that I was halfway done. Of course, I knew pretty well where I was along the course, first because there were volunteers handing out water at every mile, and second because I was wearing my HR monitor and it was telling me what my pace was.
Speaking of heart rate, I am truly surprised that I kept it so low. When I run (up hills) near my home, my HR regularly goes above 160, and sometimes higher than 180. But on this flat course, I had a steady 150-155.
With 1 mile to go, I decided to pick up the pace. After a pair of folks passed me, I thought maybe I would increase my speed to keep up with them. That worked for a while, but ultimately they were going too fast. Nevertheless, I was running faster and maintained a quickened pace until the finish line. As I crossed over the finish mat, I saw the time was 2:59:15 and my spirits raised considerably because I realized that despite my slow biking and running segments, I still acheived my goal. I wanted to finish in under 3 hours, and that's what I did. Amazing!
Moments after crossing the finish line, I experienced something that has never happened to me. My eyes started to tear up. This sensation lasted only a minute, but it was a curious experience. Were these tears of exhaustion, or tears of joy, or...what? To be honest, I wasn't all that exausted, but still, with the cesation of exercise, I imagine certain neurotransmitters and hormones started to change in their rates of secretion. But even though I am a biologist, I don't think I need to come up with a physiological explanation here. I think these were tears of joy. This was my first olympic-length triathlon (the ones I did last year were shorter), and I have been looking forward to this day for months. To complete the race--just to finish it--is a great feat that five years ago I never would have imagined I could do. I am a confident person in many areas of my life, but a race like this helps me realize that I can do great things in many more areas than I previously thought. Joy. It feels good.
Oh, and just so you don't think I'm a sap, I want you to know that no tears were actually shed. I only felt the sensation of wanting to cry. The only thing running down my cheek was sweat.
Date: July 29, 2012
Location: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Time: 2:59:15.
Overall Rank: 278 out of 358
Age Group Rank: 27 out of 29
Results: http://www.piranha-sports.com/Results/EntryDetail.aspx?RegistrationID=60611
Swim Segment: 1.5K distance
Time: 27:21
Overall Rank: 158 out of 358
 |
| The triathlon swim segment was in the Allegheny River in downtown Pittsburgh. |
 |
| Exiting the water after the 1.5 km swim triathlon segment |
There were two instances where I almost got off course. First, I was swimming a little farther in the middle of the river than I should have, and I nearly missed a bouy. Swimmers were supposed to keep all bouys to his or her right, and I was nearly upon a bouy when a kayaker patrolling the race yelled at me. I couldn't hear what she was saying, but it was enough for me to look up and see that I needed to make a quick adjustment to my swimming direction to stay to the right of the bouy. I made a similar mistake a little later, as well. The bouy was marking a 90-degree turn and I cut off the corner. Realizing my mistake, I turned around and headed back toward the bouy so I could round it on the correct side. No race officials seemed to be nearby, so no one would have known. But I would have, and I didn't want to cheat.
Overall, my swim time was ranked 158 out of 358. Being below the median, I am happy with this time.
Bike Segment: 40K distance
Time: 1:24:21
Overall Rank: 265 out of 358
My T1 time between the swimming segment and cycling segment was 3:04. Looking at the results, I see that 76% of the partcipants did this faster than me. Oh well, I'm not that competitive. To save time I skipped my cycling gloves and I also didn't eat anything. I did get a swig of water.
 |
| Pittsburgh triathlon bike segment |
The bike segment consisted of two identical loops. The course wound around a few city blocks, then climbed an entrance ramp onto a highway HOV lane (closed to car traffic). We followed the HOV lane to its first exit (at Perrysville), looped around a park-and-ride lot, and then followed the HOV lane back into downtown. Then repeated the loop. Going into the race I was not concerned about the bike segment at all. I can charge up the (steep) hills around my home without much trouble, so when I looked at the bike route for the race I didn't see anything I couldn't handle with ease. However, what I maybe didn't prepare myself for was the continuous incline that the HOV lane features from the downtown entrance ramp to the Perrysville Exit (approx. 3 miles). So while the slope of this hill wasn't bad, its length tired me out. I maintained a speed around 10-11 mph going up hill and then 22-24 mph going downhill. I was expecting a faster descent but the wind was a headwind, I didn't pedal on some parts just to give my legs a rest, and on the second descent I even stood up on the pedals (not aero!) to stretch some really sore back and hip muscles. My max speed was 34.3 mph.
The part of the loop downtown featured a lot of brick crosswalks that I had to be careful on as I rounded corners. I saw one person had crashed taking a corner too tightly on the brick surface (he was OK).
Probably my favorite part of the bike segment was at the park-and-ride parking lot where volunteers were there handing out water and Gatorade. Instead of handing us paper cups, they handed us plastic bottles that fit into our water bottle cages. Since I was having a hard time on the bike, I elected to take one of these bottles. I simply put my hand out, and grabbed it as the volunteer held it out. I felt like "yeah, he's on my team." It felt so natural and practiced, but I can't think of any other time that I've grabbed something from someone while riding past them at 15 mph (except maybe when I was a juvenile deliquent purse-snacher...just kidding). BTW, I had purposely left my water bottle off my bike during the race, so when I was done drinking, I slipped it into that vacant spot on my frame. I had decided against bringing water with me because I expected to complete the bike segment in about an hour. I figured I'd be fine for an hour without water. However, it took longer than an hour and I was glad to have a drink.
My total time on the bike ranked 265 out of 358 participants. Obviously, this isn't very good, and I knew that as soon as I started the bike segment. I passed almost no one, and it seemed like nearly everyone passed me!
Run Segment: 10K distance
Time: 1:01:12
Overall Rank: 296 out of 358
 |
| Run segment of Pittsburgh Triathlon, international distance |
The run course was on the riverwalk that runs along the Allegheny River north from downtown (on the North Shore). Half of it was paved and half was crushed stone. We ran 3.1 miles north, turned around, and came back. Having runners using the same trail to go both directions was useful because as a runner going the opposite direction would approach, I'd glance at him or her, and wonder about who the person was: how old they were, what they did at work, whether they had families, how rich or poor they were. Just people-watching stuff to keep me entertained.
Like every other out-and-back race I've done, the first half seemed to take forever. This is because I didn't scout out the trail ahead of time and didn't know where the turn-around was. But once I had turned around, I knew that I was halfway done. Of course, I knew pretty well where I was along the course, first because there were volunteers handing out water at every mile, and second because I was wearing my HR monitor and it was telling me what my pace was.
Speaking of heart rate, I am truly surprised that I kept it so low. When I run (up hills) near my home, my HR regularly goes above 160, and sometimes higher than 180. But on this flat course, I had a steady 150-155.
With 1 mile to go, I decided to pick up the pace. After a pair of folks passed me, I thought maybe I would increase my speed to keep up with them. That worked for a while, but ultimately they were going too fast. Nevertheless, I was running faster and maintained a quickened pace until the finish line. As I crossed over the finish mat, I saw the time was 2:59:15 and my spirits raised considerably because I realized that despite my slow biking and running segments, I still acheived my goal. I wanted to finish in under 3 hours, and that's what I did. Amazing!
Moments after crossing the finish line, I experienced something that has never happened to me. My eyes started to tear up. This sensation lasted only a minute, but it was a curious experience. Were these tears of exhaustion, or tears of joy, or...what? To be honest, I wasn't all that exausted, but still, with the cesation of exercise, I imagine certain neurotransmitters and hormones started to change in their rates of secretion. But even though I am a biologist, I don't think I need to come up with a physiological explanation here. I think these were tears of joy. This was my first olympic-length triathlon (the ones I did last year were shorter), and I have been looking forward to this day for months. To complete the race--just to finish it--is a great feat that five years ago I never would have imagined I could do. I am a confident person in many areas of my life, but a race like this helps me realize that I can do great things in many more areas than I previously thought. Joy. It feels good.
Oh, and just so you don't think I'm a sap, I want you to know that no tears were actually shed. I only felt the sensation of wanting to cry. The only thing running down my cheek was sweat.
Saturday, July 14, 2012
USMS Search for Monongy Swim
Race:
1.2 mile open water swim
Date: July 14, 2012
Location: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Time: 38:31.16
Overall Rank: 7 out of 15
Age Group Rank: 1 out of 1
This was my first open-water swim race. It was sanctioned by U.S. Masters Swimming. Going in, there were a number of things I was worried about, but today turned out great and none of my fears were realized. In fact, I could have easily swam farther or faster than I did today.
Basic facts: 45 swimmers, adult males and females of different ages.
Water temperature of Allegheny River: Listed officially as 78 degrees, the water felt much warmer to me--probably 82 degrees.
Water current: About 0.1 mph, so swimming upsteam was negligibly harder than swimming downstream.
Air temperature and weather: 69 degrees with light rain and a 3 mph wind.
I was in the fourth heat: men (all ages) swimming 1.2 miles. The earlier heats were for more experienced or crazy swimmers doing two loops and going 2.4 miles. We started between two buoys about 20 yards off from the riverwalk at Heinz Field (where the Steelers play). With the bullhorn, the eight men in my heat started swimming. I overtook 4 of them immediately but had no idea that three took off far ahead of me. So during the whole race I was thinking I was swimming first in my heat. I'm not that fast a swimmer so I wondered as I swam past the first turn bouy at Ft. Duquesne Bridge whether I should slow down a bit and conserve my energy, as "everyone" else in my heat was behind me and they must know something more about pacing themselves than me. So I slowed down.
Soon after circling around the turn-around-point buoy, a couple women zoomed past me. "Who are they?" I wondered (I'm still not sure). At that point I worried that others would start passing me, so I sped up a little. Besides those two women, I swam this whole thing without seeing another swimmer. That was fine, except it didn't encourage me to swim fast. I need a competitive event to push me beyond my perceived limits, as that is how I get better and stronger physically, and how my self confidence is reinforced.
Soon after the turn-around point at PNC Park I saw my friend Dan watching me from a pier. I waved slightly (so as not to disturb my stroke) and kept swimming, thankful for having someone watch over me.
I started to tire a little bit as I swam past the Del Monte Foods headquarters. But at no time was I worried that I wouldn't finish. This race was easy! Water was warm, water was flat, current was very slow, the river water was a foggy green color but not impenetrable to light, and there were so few competitors that I didn't have to worry about anyone accidentally hitting me in the face.
As I neared the finishline, I felt I had some extra energy left and I debated when and how to use it. "Is this the point where I should go all-out?" I kept wondering. But distances were hard to judge and I didn't want to burn out before I got to the finish. So I never did go all-out. I had joked earlier about swimming a portion of the race using the butterfly stroke, but as I approached the shoreline I had to make sure I was swimming to the proper target. So I just swam straight to the finish line, proud to have completed another new experience in my rich life.
I was the 7th person to finish out of a field of 45, but since some folks were swimming two loops and I swam only one, this is not the best comparison to make. All I can say is that I placed 4th among the 8 men that swam in my heat. Not bad for a first try. Not bad at all.
Date: July 14, 2012
Location: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Time: 38:31.16
Overall Rank: 7 out of 15
Age Group Rank: 1 out of 1
This was my first open-water swim race. It was sanctioned by U.S. Masters Swimming. Going in, there were a number of things I was worried about, but today turned out great and none of my fears were realized. In fact, I could have easily swam farther or faster than I did today.
Basic facts: 45 swimmers, adult males and females of different ages.
Water temperature of Allegheny River: Listed officially as 78 degrees, the water felt much warmer to me--probably 82 degrees.
Water current: About 0.1 mph, so swimming upsteam was negligibly harder than swimming downstream.
Air temperature and weather: 69 degrees with light rain and a 3 mph wind.
I was in the fourth heat: men (all ages) swimming 1.2 miles. The earlier heats were for more experienced or crazy swimmers doing two loops and going 2.4 miles. We started between two buoys about 20 yards off from the riverwalk at Heinz Field (where the Steelers play). With the bullhorn, the eight men in my heat started swimming. I overtook 4 of them immediately but had no idea that three took off far ahead of me. So during the whole race I was thinking I was swimming first in my heat. I'm not that fast a swimmer so I wondered as I swam past the first turn bouy at Ft. Duquesne Bridge whether I should slow down a bit and conserve my energy, as "everyone" else in my heat was behind me and they must know something more about pacing themselves than me. So I slowed down.
Soon after circling around the turn-around-point buoy, a couple women zoomed past me. "Who are they?" I wondered (I'm still not sure). At that point I worried that others would start passing me, so I sped up a little. Besides those two women, I swam this whole thing without seeing another swimmer. That was fine, except it didn't encourage me to swim fast. I need a competitive event to push me beyond my perceived limits, as that is how I get better and stronger physically, and how my self confidence is reinforced.
Soon after the turn-around point at PNC Park I saw my friend Dan watching me from a pier. I waved slightly (so as not to disturb my stroke) and kept swimming, thankful for having someone watch over me.
I started to tire a little bit as I swam past the Del Monte Foods headquarters. But at no time was I worried that I wouldn't finish. This race was easy! Water was warm, water was flat, current was very slow, the river water was a foggy green color but not impenetrable to light, and there were so few competitors that I didn't have to worry about anyone accidentally hitting me in the face.
As I neared the finishline, I felt I had some extra energy left and I debated when and how to use it. "Is this the point where I should go all-out?" I kept wondering. But distances were hard to judge and I didn't want to burn out before I got to the finish. So I never did go all-out. I had joked earlier about swimming a portion of the race using the butterfly stroke, but as I approached the shoreline I had to make sure I was swimming to the proper target. So I just swam straight to the finish line, proud to have completed another new experience in my rich life.
I was the 7th person to finish out of a field of 45, but since some folks were swimming two loops and I swam only one, this is not the best comparison to make. All I can say is that I placed 4th among the 8 men that swam in my heat. Not bad for a first try. Not bad at all.
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