Hickory Knob International Distance Triathlon 2008 Race Report

Men Place 147-169
Number 57
Age 32
Finish Time: 3:21:13


Pre Race: The night before we drove from Lawrenceville to Lincolnton to stay close (13 miles) from Hickory Knob State Park. We were up at 6:30 am to get ready and to get on the road by 7:15. I ate a Nutrigrain bar, water, and a banana for breakfast. At the park at 7:45 and I went in to pick up my race packet, setup transition, spend some time with Mary Ruth and Eyrleigh, and to head down to the water for the swim. Took some sportlegs an hour before, and Hornet Juice 5 minutes before entering the water.

The 1500m Swim: 44:12 (goal 38:00)
The swim was in a dammed area of the Savannah River. It was a SLOW swim. I did not get a chance to swim as much as I wanted to, and get to crawl stroke more. The water was 73 degrees, but choppy, with the Sprint and International events being held at the same time there were 700 people in the water. I conservatively could shave 12:00 off of my time by working to the swim. This will be my main focus this winter, and this will be an issue in the Half Iron distance if I don't get better.

T1: 00:02:11
My best transition yet! I attribute this to not having to take off a wetsuit and I have a T1 routine that works after racing 5 races. Took in some water and a gel.

The 28 mile Bike: 01:35:27 (goal 1:30:00)
First, let me say the bike course should be 24.8 miles in an International Distance Triathlon. This bike course was 28 miles long! My nutrition goal was to take in 2 bottles of Accelerade during the bike, and this worked perfectly. The ride was all uphill on sub standard pavement for the first 16 miles. Nice fast downhills the last 12 miles, with an unscheduled "chain drop" at mile 20. It was into transition again for the run.

T2: 00:02:50
A kind of slow transition, but not bad. took water.

The 10k Run 56:35 (goal 1:00:00)
My goal for the run was to treat it as a marathon training run, and it worked! It was all uphill the first 5k, and at the turnaround it was all downhill! Took gels at miles 2 and 4.2. The last 2/10 mile I sprinted and reached 6 min mile pace. I DID IT I FINISHED!

End Result 3:21:13 (goal 3:00:00)

So I came up a little short, but I never stopped. I never stopped swimming, never walked my bike, and never walked on the run. I am proud for that. The swim killed me... I need to FOCUS on the swim. I just need to look at early season (March) Int. Dist. race as a litmus test for the work I will put in this winter. The extra effort needed in the swim was the difference in this race. My next race time will be 2:xx:xx. Considering I have never raced this distance I FEEL great about my endurance.

Photos Here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hambrick/sets/72157608002834416/

Now, who wants to run a Marathon in 2 months??