Due to the Triathlon on Sunday, it's been a relaxful weekend.
Friday - worked all day, no training.
Saturday - wine tour in Niagara with some good friends. Lots of walking, but no training.
Sunday June 5
The day is here! My first triathlon. The day started off horribly. I only had 3.5 hours sleep, because of traffic and weather getting home from Niagara the night before. The morning was hectic, trying to make sure my bike tire pressure was filled and everything was packed on the car.
It was an easy drive out to Milton, and arrived an hour before race time. Which was plenty of time to park, check in and get ready. For breakfast I had a protein shake, didn't want to eat anything big before the race. I also did not do any warm up. It's a short race, so I figured no need to try and get lubed up. I did however do some stretching.
Swim - 375 m, 9:16.3, 2:28/100m
The swim was horrible! I felt that I was claustrophobic, I could not get breathing under control. I could not gain my breath the entire swim. I did breaststroke majority of the swim just to attempt to catch my breath. Did not work. But I kept pace with the pack and could sight the course easily. I exited the water 3rd in my category.
Transition 1, 2:45
I took my time onto the bike. Trying to catch my breath at the same time as drying my feet and putting on socks. I wasn't worried about timing, just completing the course. Unracking the bike was easy, and a moving cyclocross mount was easy as well. I took time to put my bike shoes on first, since they're recesse cleats and easy to run in.
Bike - 10km, 22:13.9, 26.99 km/hr
The bike was fairly flat, and I made up time passing some people. Turns out I finished the bike 2nd in my category. I wish I had my heart rate and gps set up for the bike, but did not want to get a penalty for using phone. So just did without. Next race I'll make sure to use it. The bike was scenic along county roads near Kelso Conservation and Quarry.
Transition 2, 1:49
Again took my time. I noticed my wet suit was on the ground so re hung it on the rack. Also re racking my bike turned into an effort. I loved the elastic laces though, made switching shows easier.
Run - 2.5 km, 15:31.5, 6:12/km
The run really slowed down my time. It's slower than my 5 k pace, but my calves were burning right after the bike. I need to work on the neuromuscular retention on shunting blood quickly and do more brick workouts. I only did 1! I placed 4th in my category, only missing podium by 30 seconds.
Overall:
I can't wait until my next race. I am doing a sprint triathlon in Kingston at the end of July. I am thinking of doing the short tri in Niagara in middle of July to see if training has impacted my timing. And who knows, maybe I'll be able to make a podium finish!
