Race Report: Crystal Lake Sprint Traithlon 2010

The Crystal Lake Triathlon is a sprint distance triathlon near Albany, New York. It is put on by the Capital District Triathlon Club.

Let me tell you, this club knows how to put on a race. I am still thinking about how great this race was! If you live in the area I can't recommend it enough. Why? Well, the better question would probably be why not? Since the race is put on by a tri club they know exactly how to run an event. The volunteers were excellent - they were mostly club members and they did a great job from start to finish. The course could not have been better! The swim was a single loop in Crystal Cove and was very well marked. The bike course was an out and back, 18 mile ride, with rolling hills. The roads were in great condition and one volunteer mentioned that people were out sweeping the bike course before the race! The run was a well marked and filled with volunteers and spectators.

But, the one thing that really makes this race stand out? A women's specific race shirt. This is my ninth triathlon (+ countless running races) and the first women's specific shirt I've ever received. Finally a shirt I can wear out of the house with pride. I love it!

My feelings for this race might be slightly influenced by the fact that I had an excellent race day. I felt like all my training came together: first out of the water, a strong bike and and 8:43/mile pace on the run got me 2nd in my age group!

Swim Start at Crystal Cove

Race Morning

We drove up to Albany on Friday night after work and stayed at a Holiday Inn Express about 10 miles from the race. Our room was more than adequate and we were sound asleep by 9:30. We were up and at'em by 5:30. After a quick stop at Dunkin Donuts for some coffee and a bagel we arrived at the race site at about 6:30. We missed the packet pickup the night before so we headed parked the car and went to check-in. There was no wait and we quickly picked up our packets, chips and t-shirts. Registration set the precedent for the day - women's specific t-shirts!!

We headed down to transition and set up our gear. The morning was quite chilly, only about 50 degrees, so everyone was bundled up and trying to stay warm. At 7:40 I finally stripped off my layers, pulled on my wetsuit and headed into the water for warm up.
The Swim - 800 Meters (1/2 Mile)
13:54
1 of 12 Age Group (F25-29) / 3 of 111 Females / 14 of 236 Overall

The swim was great. I was in the second wave with women under 40. It was a counter-clockwise, square swim. I positioned myself in the front, and slightly to the right. It was an in-water start and I immediately ducked down and started swimming. I breath to my left and I could see the other lead swimmers to my left. I watched them as I breathed and sighted and I could tell I was pulling away. About a 1/4 way into the swim I started running into the men in the wave in front of ours. I swam around them and continued to sight on the giant buoys and the buildings on the opposite shore. I rounded the corner of the first buoy, dodged a few more men, and rounded the second buoy. I was keeping tight corners and pretty sure I was leading the swim. I set my line on the large buoys at the exit and just kept swimming, focusing on a long stroke, steady kick and a strong pull. I swam as far up to the shore as I could then jumped up and ran for the exit. There was a little concrete step out of the water and there was a volunteer there to pull me up. He confirmed my suspicion - I was first female out of the water.

Transition 1
1:40
4 of 12 Age Group / 31 of 111 Females

I pulled off my suit and kept an eye on the swim exit to check for new woman. I was just clipping my helmet when I saw the next woman come out of the water. I ran my bike out of transition and jumped on.

The Bike - 18 Miles
1:04:34 / 16.7 mph average
2 of 12 Age Group / 15 of 111 Females / 92 of 236 Overall

This is the second time this year that I have been the first out of the water for my wave. The best way to describe this feeling is like you are being hunted. I knew the next woman was not far behind so I was pushing hard on the bike, although I was also trying to be smart and not blow up. The first woman passed me about 2 miles in, but then I did not get passed again until mile five. As usual a lot of men passed me and I passed a few men myself this time.

This was an out and back course so it was nice to be able to see the racers going in the other direction. I saw Sam heading back when I was about a mile from the turn around point. The turn around is at the end of a decent so I had to slow down quite a bit to make the 180 turn. I turned a bit wide and I had a moment where I was off-roading into the broken edge of pavement. For a moment I thought I was going to crash after I regained control I thought I would flat, but luckily nothing happened and I was able to finish the ride without any issues.

On the way back I played leap frog with another guy and a girl. One girl passed me on a climb and I was able to pass her back on the following decent. This was a big triumph for me since sometimes I get a bit freaked out on descents. My fastest speed was 32.9 mph and my average cadence was 84.2. Heading into transition I was passed back by one of the women. She was 23 and I was not sure if age groups were 5 or 10 so I decided my goal was to try to catch her on the run. She was wearing a bright pink top so I figured she would be easy to spot.

I am really proud of my ride. I pushed myself hard and my times are comparable to the other women. 

Transition 2
1:29

9 of 12 Age Group / 42 of 111 Females

I got my bike on the rack, switched shoes, grabbed my hat/beans/Garmin and headed out of transition. The T2 course was long because you had to run to the opposite side and then run along the outside of the transition area back to the front of transition.

The Run - 3 Miles
Race Data: 3 miles, 25:28, 8:30/mile average
Garmin Data: 2.92 miles, 25:29, 8:43/mile average
Garmin Run Splits: 8:58 / 8:36 / 7:53 (.92)

3 of 12 Age Group / 28 of 111 Females / 98 of 236 Overall

As I took off on the run and started looking for the girl in pink. I didn't see any girls in pink but I did pass a few men. About a 1/2 mile in the first woman passed me on the run. As she pulled ahead I saw the big 28 on her leg. I decided I would not let her drop me. I picked up the pace and hung on. She knew I was right behind her (she looked back a few times) and I followed about 20 yards back for the rest of the run. It was a great motivation and resulted in a fantastic run for me. In the end I couldn't catch her and she beat me across the line by about 15 seconds.

Final
1:47:02
2 of 12 Age Group (F25-29)
10 of 111 Females
62 of 236 Overall

The post race food was delicous. They had oranges, Luna Bars, Chobani Greek Yogurt, and Mu Mu Muesli. I LOVE greek yogurt so this made me very, very happy!

As we waited for the awards ceremony to start we took a few pictures... some silly...

The race officials waited until the last people had finished the race and then they got started with the awards. The top 3 overall winners won baked goodies from a local bakery and the top 3 of each age group won a coffee mug.

Me & My "2nd Place Mug"

Sam also had a great race and took 3rd in his age group!

Again, I cannot tell you how great this race was. They really covered everything from the big stuff to the smallest details. If you are looking for a small sprint race for next year I cannot recommend it enough. It was worth the 3 hour drive and the hotel stay!