2014 Cartersville Duathlon Race Report
Cartersville Duathlon April 6, 2014
This was my first Duathlon and my first race after joining EN. I completed 8 triathlons last year and I think this was tougher than any of them since the swim portion of a triathlon is replaced by a 5k run. For me, this means 10 minutes of swimming is replaced with 28 minutes of running on pavement.
The race was at Dellinger Park in Cartersville, GA. I woke up at 4:15, took a hot shower, dressed, ate and was out the door by 5:15 for the 75 minute ride to the race site. Lots of volunteers were waiting to help with parking, registration, etc. I parked, unloaded, pumped tires and headed to packet pickup. There were not many people in line, so it only took a few minutes to get my packet with race numbers and goodie bag. Then I headed into the transition area and setup. I then went to body marking where they put my bib number on my arms and legs with a marks-a-lot and also my age on my calf. Then I picked up my timing chip and strapped it to my ankle. I saw my good buddy Curtis from Cannon Cyclery and chatted with him. He provided bike support for the entire event. Too bad I only talked to Curtis and didn’t have him take a look at my bike since there was a problem with it that would cause me lots of aggravation in the race. I also met up with my good friend Tony in the transition area. We attended almost every race together last year, but this year will be different and this is our only scheduled race together.
The weather was not great – it was cold and drizzling rain. But the rain never got worse and it stayed cool for the whole race.
My plan for the race was to run about an 8:50 per mile pace for the first 5K, ride the bike at near my FTP and run the second 5K at best effort (hoping I could hold sub 9 min miles).
After the national anthem, the race began in waves. First were the wheelchair athletes, then the pros, then the men, and finally the women. Each group was separated by a few minutes.
The 5k was mostly a flat route with only a few small hills. It was a nice route near the park. According to my Garmin 310xt, I was hovering around a 9 min mile, so all was good – on plan. I finished the 5k in 28:20 for a 9:08 per min pace – a little slower than desired, but still ok.
I ran into transition and transferred to the bike in 1:05 – happy with that. Interestingly, one of the pro women (Meghan) transitioned in 11 seconds! Wow!
On the bike, I made the mistake of not bringing toe covers for my shoes. By the end, my toes were frozen. This was my first race on my tri-bike as well as my first race with a power meter and trying to hold a certain effort based on watts instead of heart rate. Well, I still have some work to do. I did succeed in not going too hard, but I also did not go hard enough.my goal for the bike was about 190 watts but my average watts for the bike leg was 158, normalized power was 166 for a VI of 1.04. My IF was 0.84. One thing I did not do was zero my wheel at the race. I wonder if that could have caused a problem with the numbers being reported. My wheel was zeroed last inside at 70 degrees and it was in the 40’s and humid outdoors. The reason I wonder this is because it seemed at times like I was working pretty hard and the watts were reading pretty low. Anyway, the bike route was nice with some scenic areas. It was pretty hilly – not an easy course. I averaged 17.7mph for the entire course and finished it in 57:35.
I entered transition again and exited in 1:08.
My legs felt heavy and my toes really bothered me due to the cold air hitting them on the bike for an hour. The run course was the same as before and I did not have to walk, so that’s a plus. One goal I had for the race was to run the entire course. I finished the second 5k in 28:44 for a 9:17 pace.
Total time for the event: 1:56:50 for 17th out of 22. 15th and 16th place were less than half a second ahead of me…three of us pretty much ran through the finish together.
I felt good about the race overall. It was a “C” race for me. I was not targeting it with my training. I took no days off of my training schedule in preparation for it and perhaps the 26 mile bike ride and 3 set tennis match on Saturday did take a little out of me. Overall it was a success: I had a good time, got to test out my new bike and power meter in race conditions, try out my new running shoes (Hoka Conquest) and getting in a good workout. BTW, my legs feel great the day after - I think the Hoka's make a difference.
Comments
congrats on the Du. I remember that weekend and you did the weather report a disservice. It was nasty. Cold & wet? you can have it! more power to ya. Showed great toughness.
Managing the watts around here is a bit tricky but you'll get better at it. Don't make judgements based on that day. Du's are tough and that weather makes it miserable. You did good to grind that out.
C