Pic Spocket

Last weekend, I participated in the Windsor Triathlon, which actually happened in the town of Tecumseh, ON due to the previous strike of city employees earlier this summer.

The event had a big turnout with about 500 participants between the different races (Triathlon, Team Relays, Duathlon (run-bike-run). After a rainy Saturday, Race Day was a very nice and sunny morning. It was however very hot and humid, which was almost fatal for one of the Duathlon participants, as outlined in the Windsor Star story below:

>> Windsor Star: Duathlete nearly dies due to heat!

While I found it was hot especially during the run leg, it did not feel as bad as the race I did in Michigan in June (Triceratops) where the thermometer was hovering in the 37 degrees C.

While I had some big problems in transition, I still ended up with a very good time for the race. I finished 18th overall, with 143 entrants in the race. I was in the top 14% of the 125 finishers. There was an ELITE race category separated from the Age Group race, which definitely helped my overall ranking. The length of the race was a bit longer than a traditional SPRINT distance: 50% longer on the bike (31 km) and 20% longer on the run (6.2 km). My time: 1:42:38. Results are found in the link below.

>>Windsor Triathlon - Résultats

The swim was kind of weird because the water was very shallow for a good section of the course. A lot of the racers (me included) used a lot of the “Dolphin Jump” to move faster in the water.  I had a great time for the leg, but it really did not go smoothly. I resorted to a lot of alternative swimming style to get through.

The bike transition is where I had most problems. Somehow, my helmet was not on my bike anymore. I lost 1 min 40 secs looking for it. I found it a few bikes away, on the ground. I guess somebody knocked it off and did not know where it came from. Once I got going, it went well but the wind was very strong, preventing me from a better average speed. Click here to see the bike map and graphs || Click here to replay the bike leg

I ran a lot slower than my expectations of 4:30/km. It must be a combination of the heat that day, and exhaustion from the longest bike leg I did so far during a race. Click here to see the run map and graphs || Click here to replay the run leg

Despite the small technical problems, I am quite happy with my results considering I am just starting in multi-sports. I improved at each race so far. My progression can be followed in the Race Results section of the Fitness Log.  My guess is that I will now be reaching a plateau if not reached already.

My friend Craig also participated and also improved on his precedent results. Way to go Craig! I am really happy he does these things with me.

Next race: T-REX, in Brighton Michigan Wednesday 8/19/2009 for the 3rd and last part of this series.
 

Windsor Triathlon

This entry was posted on Friday, August 14th, 2009 at 6:08 am and is filed under Sport and Races, Our news. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.