Race Report: Pine Barrens Sprint Triathlon 2009

I know you've all been on the edge of your seats waiting for my triathlon recap. I have so much to say about the race that it has been hard for me to get started.

I guess the best place to start is the night before the race. Do you remember that I told you we had tickets to the Twins vs. Yankees? Well, it was a great game and the Yankees managed to score a walk off run in the bottom of the 9th. It was the first Yankee win we had seen this season! But, with any good baseball game it didn't end until around 10:30 so by the time we got home and hit the road the clock was nearing midnight.

We were stuck in traffic in two separate occasions (only in NYC is there traffic at midnight) and we finally made it to our hotel at 1:45am. We got a restless four and a half hours of sleep and then we were up and moving by 6:30. Getting less than five hours of sleep is probably not a good way to start a race, but I was so nervous I doubt I would have slept much better even if I was in bed by 10.

Race morning found me with a very nervous stomach. I was so excited/nervous for the race that I was having a hard time keeping anything down. I managed to choke down a half a bagel and a small coffee. It was about a half hour drive from the hotel to the race and I used the time to try to relax and drink a bottle of Gatorade.

We arrived at the race site at about 7:45am so we had plenty of time to pick up our registration packets, get marked with our race numbers and set up transition.

Here is our stuff side by side in transition.





This is the transition area and everyone setting up their spaces. The race was relatively small with about 80 people doing the triathlon and 20 in the duathlon (run, bike, run).

After the pre-race meeting we suited up for the swim. Here is Sam with his wetsuit and awesome swim cap!

Here I am showing off my guns (don't worry, you'll see them again later).

Together before our first race!

Swim: .5 miles, 16:40, 26/79

The swim was done in two heats with 3 minutes between. Men under 40 in the first heat and all women and men over 40 in the second heat. It was an in-water start so we were able to get into the water and warm up a bit before starting. The water was cold and dark, just like our open water swim in Connecticut. I started at the back of the second heat so I could reduce the amount of kicking and drowning that is often seen in the swim start. The first half of the swim was tough. I was cold and nervous and having a hard time breathing. I swam most of the first half with my head above the water. I felt like I was going really slow but I was actually passing quite a few people (and nobody was passing me). At the turn around point I passed Sam (I smoked him on the swim) and headed back towards shore. I was getting more comfortable at this point and I was able to swim for much longer periods with my head in the water. I did really well on the swim with 16 minutes and 40 seconds and placed 26 out of 79!

Transition 1: 4:18, 75/79
My transition didn't feel slow but compared to everyone else it was super slow (I "placed" 75 out of 79 in transition 1. I wasn't rushing (obviously) and wanted to make sure I had everything I needed before heading out on the bike. I think this time will definitely improve next time since I won't be so nervous.

Bike: 24 miles, 1:26:42, 67/79

The bike was fairly uneventful. Unlike the swim, everyone was passing me on the bike. At mile 8 Sam came whizzing by (he didn't drown in the lake) and that was the last I saw of him until the end of my run. The course was marked well with state troopers at each turn. The roads were not closed but traffic was minimal so it didn't present a problem. I saw a lot of racers with flats and I was nervous about getting one myself (since I've never fixed one) but I was lucky and never had any problems.

I think the bike is where I have the potential to improve the most this year. I need to get a women's specific seat as my generic (code for men's) seat is presenting some serious problems with restricted blood flow and pain/numbness in my girly regions. I also need to learn to drink out of my water bottle on the bike. Sounds simple but I have not mastered it yet and I think this will help refresh and energize me on the bike.

Transition 2: 2:18, 76/80

I was even slower in transition two (in ranking) than transition one. Part of this was because I took a minute to drink my water since I couldn't drink on the bike. Again, with more practice I think I can speed these up a bit.

Run: 4 mile trail, 43:23, 68/80

The run went pretty well considering I had just swam a half mile and bike 24 miles :) It was a beautiful trail run through the woods. The path was well marked but there were a lot of ruts and sand. A lot of people complain about the sand but considering I'm a slow runner anyhow it didn't really seem to affect me too much. I had a GU at the start of the race and it was really disgusting. I don't know how people eat those. Then I ate the Cliff Shot Blocks and those were much better. I would definitely get them again.

After Sam finished his race (2:15:52, 58th of 80!!) he went and got my camera and then came back out on the course to find me and make sure I hadn't died :) He met me with about a 1/2 mile to go.


I'm smiling in this picture. Probably because Sam is running backwards and taking pictures!

Almost there!

The end! My final time was actually 3 minutes faster - 2:26:44 - because I was in the second heat of the swim.

Here I am walking it off after the finish. I think the guy behind me might be puking...

I look like I might pass out in this picture... Talk about bad posture!

We headed back to our transition area to start packing up. I'm loving my bike for not breaking down or flatting!

I told you the guns would be back!!

After we packed up we grabbed bagels, fruit and coffee and watched the awards ceremony. I was 4th in my age group and just short of medal :( - the third place winner was 12 minutes faster than me though so I never really had a chance.

All in all it was a great race and I'm officially hooked! I'm looking forward to a larger race with a little more competition to keep me motivated. Next up - Massachusetts State Triathlon on July 26th!