2012 Tuesday Night Time Trial Review - Review of Previous Years

The 2012 Tuesday Night Time Trial season is over and I am pretty happy with my overall results.  It is my second fastest season.  Nothing can compare to my 2008 season, maybe someday I will get back that speed. 

The TT is considered the toughest type of race in cycling, because it is the rider against the clock.  You go as fast as you can, there is no drafting.  It is a true test of fitness and cycling strength and ability.

I would contend the TNT course is one of the most challenging 11 miles you will ride, especially if you are going to do a TT on it.  The course is not flat, the hill on the turnaround is a killer.  The hill is long and the grade increases as you go.  There are shorter steeper hills on the course and there a low grade long runups.  There is really no flat section on the course. 

The people who ride this are fast, very fast.  I will never be competitive on this course, so it is a great training ride for me.  It is also a good measure of where I am in terms of my cycling ability.  I think TTs are excellent for working on form.  They teach, and help you work on form while riding as fast as you can.  I also use this race as an opportunity to get in a run after a really hard ride.

The race has been put on for the last 3 years, I think it has been 3 years, by the Twin Cities Spoke of the International Christian Cycling Club.  They have done a very, very good job.  I will definitely continue to do this race.

Onto results, comparisons, and some thoughts.  I started doing the TNT in 2006.  I did two that year on my new Lemond Sarthe road bike with clip-on aerobars.  I also did a four Black Dog TTs that year.  In 2007, I had my tri bike and I did five TNT and two Black Dog.  After 2007 I only did TNTs.  In 2009 I did only two TNT races due to my stress fracture.

Out of curiousity, let's look at the time I spent cycle training each year from Jan-July, last race is typically in August.  In parenthesis is the total time swim, bike, and run training for the same period, and in bold is my average speed for the year and standard deviation.  2006 has two races and 2009 has two races.

Jan-July 2006 Total Cycle Time = I did not log in 2006 - Ave Speed = 19.3MPH and Std Dev = 0.4455MPH)

Jan-July 2007 Total Cycle Time = 26.65 (80.35 hours) - (Ave Speed = 21.46MPH and Std Dev = 0.3474MPH)

Jan-July 2008 Total Cycle Time = 65 hours (194.5 hours) - (Ave Speed = 23.03MPH and Std Dev = 0.3239MPH)

Jan-July 2009 Total Cycle Time (injured season) = 55.8 hours (153.2 hours) - (Ave Speed = 21.49MPH and Std Dev = 0.6239MPH)

Jan-July 2010 Total Cycle Time = 79.5 hours (175 hours) - (Ave Speed = 22.08MPH and Std Dev = 0.2475MPH)

Jan-July 2011 Total Cycle Time = 82.3 hours (179.6 hours) - (Ave Speed = 22.17MPH and Std Dev = 0.7249MPH)

Jan-July 2012 Total Cycle Time = 55.5 hours (152.7 hours) - (Ave Speed = 22.26MPH and Std Dev = 0.362MPH)

The years where I had my two fastest average speeds are 2012 and 2008, which have some of the least amount of time spent on the bike during the main part of the year.  If you look at the standard deviation from 2010 -2012 and look at my average speed, there is actually no real difference in my average speed during that three year period.  So there appears to be no correlation between the amount of time I spend on the bike training and my average speed.
There is a large difference between 2008 and other years, about 1MPH.  That was the year I was coached and I raced a lot.
I would think that for an 11 mile TT, intensity is more important than time on the bike.  This year I have tried to concentrate more on intensity and form.  It is very interesting to look at these things and think about any type of correlation they may have.  There are so many variables to look at with racing and training.  I think that for me to make a large gain in speed I would have to concentrate on improving my form, intensity, and time on the bike.  This is kind of a "duh" statement, but it is probably the truth.  I think it would help to add more strength work and work with a coach.  Not sure any of these things will happen in the future.
At some point I will put my average run times per year against my training time at the run and see how they compare.
Below are the summary tables for each year

2006 TNT Results

2007 TNT Results

2008 TNT Results

2009 TNT Results

2010 TNT Results

2011 TNT Results

2012 TNT Results

2012 Brewhouse Triathlon

In this race I had my fastest run split of the last 4 races, I also had my slowest bike split in a non Half-IM race since St. Anthony's Tri in 2010.  This as my 3th attempt at Brewhouse and it was my slowest, due to the bike split.  That being said, I am happy with my results.

Jackie and I drove up to Duluth on Saturday and went straight to packet pick-up.  In 2010 packet pick-up was horrible, they had the pick-up in a small building at the park and the line was long and it took forever.  This year it was in a tent and it was fast. Thankfully.  After the horrible hotel experience we had in 2010, a stinky and dirty AmericInn, we decided to stay in a nice hotel in Duluth.  We stayed at the Sheraton in Duluth and ate at a decent Irish Pub across the street from the hotel.  We had pasties with mashed potatoes and gravy that were pretty good.  After that we walked down to Canal Park and met some of Jackie's friends who were in town for a family reunion.  It was a nice evening.

The next morning was a bit of surprise.  The air temperature was about 55 and it was windy, it seemed very windy.  It was nice and sunny.  We got to the race site, Jackie slept in the car until about race start time, and I set everything up.  Set up went pretty smoothly.  There were no issues getting body marked or chips.  I took a short ride to make sure the bike worked ok and to warm up a little.  It was chilly outside.  There were people wrapped in blankets, people with stocking hats, jackets, etc.  I was relieved once I was setup and could go down to the water and wear my wetsuit.

There is a long wait time for the start of the "long" course.  The short course started and once all the waves were off, we had to wait about 15 minutes for the long course waves to start.  The water was choppy and definitely warmer than the air.  Jerry later, after the race, announced that the water temperature was about 63 degrees.  The swim course was reversed this year, because the exit is a boat launch and apparently it was covered with Zebra mussels and they are sharp.  So to avoid cut feet they reversed so we could enter and exit on the beach.  Anyway, the swim was choppy and most of the back half was right into the sun.  I was all over the course.  The first half because of the choppiness, the second half because of the sun and the chop.  On the second half I stopped and bobbed for a second or two to find the bouys, it has been awhile since I have been that disoriented on the swim course.  I don't think I was the only one, since when I looked around people were swimming all over the place.  My time compared to previous years was not that different, so either the course was shorter or I swam pretty fast.

I did not feel too bad coming out of the water.  The course is not too crowded since there is a large buffer between the sprint short and long.  The long course bike is two 10.3 mile loops.  When you come out of transition you go up a mile long hill, not terribly steep, just long.  Once you right turn at the top, you get a nasty head wind.  The wind this day was by far the worst of any race this year, and it showed in my time.  It was a tough bike, besides the headwind, there was the road conditions.  I did this race in 2008 and 2010, after 2010 I said I would not do this race again because the road is so bad, in general, and then has a ton of bad potholes and cracks.  Well, this year I needed a 5th race to qualify for the Midwest Multi-Sport Series, and the website has thess statements:
"Is the bike course smooth?

The bike course is 75% good, smooth tar. This course is fast and has some rolling hills, but nothing too challenging!"

and

"The race pace is sure to be fast and furious with a newly redesigned bike course for 2012!"

If memory serves me correctly, this was the same bike course from previous years and about 50% was new.  The rest was frightenly horrible, still some of the worst road conditions I have been on during a triathlon.  Ick.  Anyway, between the wind and riding cautiously, I had a slow bike, which might have helped me have a faster run.

 

It was sunny, windy, and cool which made the run a lot easier.  It was warm, but the cool temp and the wind helped.  The first mile is all uphill, then it flattens briefly, and goes uphill again, and the rolls a bit.  The good thing is that coming back is mostly downhill.  I did not think a ran under 41 minutes, but I did.

 

So, even while meandering all of the swim, I had a good swim.  I had a bad bike, partly my fault for not being more aggressive on the rough parts of the course, and then the wind.  If you look at my previous bike splits, on the same course, the times are fastest.  A lot faster.  So, I guess I am being a baby about the road conditions and it was the wind that kicked my ass.  I am pretty happy with my run.  Especially since it was my fastest run since Lake Minnetonka, in mid-June.

 

The packet pickup was good, the food and refreshments at the end were good, the course is good overall, I just really dislike the bike course surface.  It is so terrible.  Not sure I would do this race again. I say that now, but I probably will end up doing it again to see if I can better my time.

 

I have two Oly distance races left.  My goal is to go under 2.5 hours in one, or both, of them.  I think that goal will hinge on my run.

 

After the race on Sunday, Jackie and I drove up to Bluefin Bay Resort for a couple of nights vacation.  It was a great way to spend a few days with her and spend some time out-of-town.

 

2012 Brewhouse Results

Swim (1408 yards) = 24:37 (1:40/100yards)

T1 = 2:28

Bike (20.6 miles) = 1:02:14 (19.9MPH, this is disappointing)

T2 = 1:38

Run (5 miles) = 40:42 (8:09/mi)

Total = 2:11:37

Overall = 74/184

AG = 11/20 (1st place in AG was fourth overall, he probably should have gone elite.)

Pace =  4:59/mi

 

2010 Brewhouse Results

Swim (1408 yards) = 24:17 (1:39/100yards)

T1 = 2:26

Bike (20.6 miles) = 58:29 (21.1MPH)

T2 = 2:18

Run (5 miles) = 40:39 (8:08/mi)

Total = 2:08:06

Overall = 61/154

AG = 9/12

Pace = 4:51/mi

 

2008 Brewhouse Results

Swim (1408 yards) = 25:39 (1:44/100yards)

T1 = 2:55

Bike (20.6 miles) = 57:27 (21.5MPH)

T2 = 2:39

Run (5 miles) = 38:53 (7:47/mi, wow that is fast for me)

Total = 2:07:29

Overall = 86/188

AG = 14/23

Pace = 4:50/mi

July 2012 Triathlon Training and Racing Summary

This July I had two triathlons and a TT.  Both triathlons were longish sprint triathlons.  I am happy with the swim and bike for both races, the run I am a little disappointed with.  I have mentioned this in past posts.  I think that I am going to have to live with the fact that this is going to be a slow run year, for reasons I have mentioned previously.  I just did not put in enough time early in the year, and I have not done enough speed work.  I think a good thing to start with this fall and winter will be to do some strength training.  I think, I know, I need to build strength in my core and back, along with legs.  I need to start running longer in the winter into spring, with speed work starting in the spring.  I think thought I could start later this year and be ok.  Turns out, I was wrong.

OptumHealth Performance, OHP, is closing at the end of August.  I have worked there part time since the day they opened.  I have swam in the pool before it was OHP, worked out in the studio since it started, and I have competed in the races they have sponsored.  I am a little sad that they are closing the facility.  It was a good place to workout.  They are trying to work out something to keep Masters swim going.  I hope they do, it is close to work and at a pretty good time of day.  If they don't keep it going, I will have to find a new place to swim, and a new place to workout.

The workouts this July are about average, a little low on the bike, ok run, and ok swim.  Not sure what else to say about July.  It was hot.  I had some ok races, some ok workouts.  I can't think of much to say today.

One TNT this month, on the July 31.  11 miles = 29:30 = 22.38MPH, this is slightly faster than my average for this year.  Still not 23MPH.  One more TNT left in the middle of August.

I am reading an article on sports drinks, Gatorade, Powerade, etc in a British medical journal.  Once I finish it, I might link to it with some thoughts.  See what I can get done. 

July-to-July Comparison

Totals and Averages Since 2007

YTD and Totals Since 2007

2012 Chisago Lakes Sprint Triathlon

The picture of at the top is taken by Nick Morales at trijuice.com and the picture above is taken by Kerry Yndestad.  Both do a great job taking pics at triathlons.  The top picture makes me look faster than I actually I am going.  I think I am passing one guy and being passed by another, either that, or both are passing me.  In the bottom picture I look like a might explode.

First of all, both the Sprint and Half-IM had amazing fields.  They would have been a great races to watch.  Second, Jackie, her cousins, and her aunt and uncle were there to cheer me and others.  Which also made it a great day.  I had a good swim, my fastest bike of the year, and another run that was disappointing.

Jackie's aunt and uncle recently purchased a lake home in Chisago, about a 5 minute bike ride from the start line of the Chisago Lakes Triathlon.  So, we stayed at thier place the night before the race.  We went there early on Sat afternoon to enjoy some time on the lake and to hangout with Jackie's family.  We had a nice big pasta dinner the night before. Staying with us was Jackie's cousin's boyfriend and his buddies, who did the Half-IM distance as a relay.  More about thier race later.  I had a disorienting night of sleep, being in a strange place, in a strange bed, and I am not sure I slept that well, but I did get to sleep in, so that helped.  I was the first one up and out of the house on Sunday morning.  You can get to the race a little later, since your transition spot is by number, so I did not worry about getting a good spo

I setup up my stuff and chatted with some people.  The transition area is large, but there are a lot of people so still crowded.  The race was wetsuit legal, barely.  The temperature was right at 78, according to the measurement.  I waffled on wearing a wetsuit, much like last week, but like last week, if you have the option to wear a wetstuit and don't wear one you lose a possible advantage.  I went with the wetsuit for the very short swim.  I got a short warmup and then waited about 40 minutes for my wave to start.  I did not get too warm waiting.  I would occasionally go down to the water and fill my wetsuit.

The starting area is narrow, even more so when they cram 100 people in it per wave.  As usual, I started wide and worked my way in to the first turn bouy.  It worked well and I stayed out of the crowd.  The only issue came at the finish when the spring and half finishes merge and a lot of people are getting out of the water at once.  Midwest Sports Event races, which this is a part of, do mixed/random waves. They mix thier waves with AG and sexes, so it is kind of strange. 

Once out the water there is hill to run up and then into transition.  Jackie and her family were on the hill to cheer, which was great.  I got through transition without issue and then out on the bike.  The bike was very crowded until about the last 5 miles out or so.  A lot of dangerous riding out on the course. People riding 2-3 abreast, people riding down the middle of the lane for no reason, etc.  So, a lot of the bike is yelling, "On your left!" and trying to stay safe.  I did not feel too bad overall on the bike.  I tried to concentrate on my form and I think it payed off, I ended up with my highest average speed this year.  Two weeks in a row I have a had very good bikes.

It was nice to come into transition and get cheered by Jackie and her family and get cheered on the way out on the run course.  It is nice to have people you know cheering for you.

There is a short up and down out of the park and then a longish uphill, course goes flat for awhile, and the has a steady low slope uphill.  It is out and back, so the run back is mostly downhill.  Luckily, it was overcast most of the run, but still uncomfortably humid.  Like past races this year, my leg turnover is slow.  I just can't get them to turn fast enough.  They feel heavy.  So, I just try to concentrate on form and to keep moving.  It must be conditioning.  This was my slowest 5k in awhile.  It did not feel terrible, I just could not turnover.  Anyway, I finished and then we hungout for awhile and cheered.

My overall pace, which I calculate for each race by dividing my total time by total distance.  By pace, this was the fastest of all my previous attempts, due to the fast swim and bike, and the longer bike, which helps offset the slower run.

A little bit about Jackie's cousin's boyfriend half-IM relay team.  They won the relay.  After the bike they were down almost 15 minutes! And they came back to win.  The came back because thier runner, Jackie's cousin's boyfriend, ran them back into to it by running ~5:56 miles for a half-marathon, I think the next fastest runner was about 7+min/mi.  Just amazing.

For a race that is this large, about 1500 for the sprint, half, and relays, in a town that small, they do a very good job of putting on a race.  Course is well marked, they have enough volunteers, they had plenty of cold water, they had fruit and some small wraps, chicken and turkey that were good, at the end, and the cost of the race is reasonable.  I think that the cost is part of the reason that that so many people come out and do the half.  I will probably be back to do this race again, I would really like to redeem myself on the run.

Overall it was a very good day.  It was great to have Jackie and her family out there.
Only 4 races left this year, Brewhouse, Maple Grove, St. Croix Valley, and Dousman Du.  A long sprint, two Oly, and a Du.

2012 Chisago Lakes Sprint Triathlon
Swim (440 yards) - 8:30 (1:56/100yards)
T1 - 1:59
Bike (22 miles) - 57:55 (22.8MPH, fastest average speed of the year)
T2 - 1:17
Run (3.1 miles) - 26:17 (8:29/miles, slow....)
Total - 1:35:59
Overall - 89/647
AG - 15/45
Pace - 3:47/mile (fastest per mile pace at this race)

2010 Chisago Lakes Sprint Triathlon
Swim (440 yards) - 8:44 (1:59/100yards)
T1 - 1:59
Bike (21 miles) - 56:23 (22.3MPH)
T2 - 1:40
Run (3.1 miles) - 25:03 (8:04/mile)
Total - 1:33:49
Overall - 59/808
AG - 5/57
Pace - 3:51/mile

2008 Chisago Lakes Sprint Triathlon
Swim (440 yards) - 9:18 (2:19/mile)
T1 - 1:54
Bike (17 miles) - 45:39 (22.3MPH)
T2 - 1:09
Run (3.1 miles) - 24:25 (7:52/mile, fastest run at Chisago also shortest bike before)
Total - 1:22:25
Overall - 68/779
AG - 7/51
Pace - 4:03/mile

2007 Chisago Lakes Sprint Triathlon
Swim (440 yards) - 11:47 (2:41/mile)
T1 - 2:56
Bike (20.1 miles) - 57:16 (21.1MPH)
T2 - 1:27
Run (3.1 miles) - 25:37 (8:16/mile)
Total - 1:39:02
Overall - 142/801
AG - 17/55
Pace - 4:09/mile

2012 Heart of the Lakes Triathlon

I am not sure what is going on with my legs this year.  Is it the heat, the humidity, did I not put enough time in earlier in the year?  I am not sure, but I don't feel strong coming off the bike this year.  Basically, the only race I felt strong coming off the bike was Lake Minnetonka, which has probably been my best race of the year, up to this point.
 
I am not a fast runner, I would never claim to be, but I know how I feel when I run faster, over when I run slower.  This year my legs just feel tired coming off the bike.  I think I am well conditioned for a 10-15 mile race pace bike and then a fast, for me, 5K run.  Anything longer and my legs feel cooked off the bike.  I have never been a fast distance runner, but this year I feel more sluggish than years passed.  I would chalk it up to the fact that I spent less time in Feb - April, on both the run and the bike.  Not much I can do about it now.  Just something I had been thinking about this year.

I waffeled on two things before the race started on Sunday.  The first thing was my disc wheel and the second thing was wearing a wetsuit.  I got a flat on my disc at some point after the Lake Minnetonka Triathlon.  I noticed the flat while walking my bike back to my car.  It has taken me a few weeks to buy a tire and get around to changing it.  I finished changing the tire on Saturday night and I was a little unsure about the mounting job I did.  I was a little leary about riding on the wheel.  About an hour before HOLT started, I walked my bike back to the car and swapped the 808 for the Sub-9 Disc.  Everything worked out ok, so it was not a bad decision to make the change.
The other decision, the wetsuit, I made about 20 minutes before start time.  HOLT is not a USAT event so there are no rules about wetsuits.  An informal temperature measurement gave the temp to be 82!  I was concerned about overheating, but if I don't wear the wetsuit, when others can, I am losing a possible advantage.  I went with the wetsuit.  It was warm, but not as bad as I thought it would be.  I think I was hotter running the long run from the swim exit to my bike with the wetsuit halfway on.

I think the wave I was in, Wave 5, consisted of both male and female age group 30-34 and 35-39.  It was probably about 100 people.  I got on the outside as usual and avoided most of the traffic.  I had an uneventful swim, which is good thing, and was 5th fastest in my AG, out of 17.  More on my AG later.

The bike had more hills than I remembered.  There are some decent climbs on it.  The temperature during the ride did not seem too bad until the last half or so.  I felt pretty decent for most of the ride.  I pushed it hard and it was my fastest ride of the year.  I do believe that some people in my AG took advantage of the fact that it was a non-USAT team race.  It appeared that there was some drafting on the course.  I don't care if it is a USAT or non-USAT race, I don't like drafting.  I think it is cheating.  Unless it is an ITU race and it is in the rules and ok, it is cheating.

Now to the run, I got off the bike and I was already hot and my legs felt heavy.  The run course is around Lake Pleasant with very little shade.  It is not flat, it has longer climbs that are low grade, so they are draining.  It was a tougher run than I remember.  Luckily, and thankfully, they have a number of water stops and they have COLD water.  Some cups even had ice in them.  A couple of stops also had sponges with cold water.  Having cold water, and sponges, made the run possible.

I felt like I barely finished the run.  I was cooked.  Luckily, this race has a great supply of cold beverages and food at the end.  They also have "showers" setup.  Basically, a wood structure with some water spraying out, but it provides some relief.

As you can see below, I was a little slower than 2008, mostly due to the run.  23.2MPH remains, to this date, my fastest average bike speed in a triathlon or duathlon.  The 22.7MPH average this year is my fastest average this year. 

As I finish this post, I have already finished Chisago Lakes Sprint Tri.  I am running a little behind.

2012 Heart of the Lakes Triathlon Results
Swim (880yards) - 14:42 (1:40/100yds)
T1 - 3:00
Bike (21miles) - 55:37 (22.7MPH)
T2 - 1:40
Run (5.3miles) - 46:07 (8:42/mi, see my run from '08.  This run was slow.)
Total - 2:01:03
Overall - 102/292
AG - 7/17
Pace - 4:31/mi

2008 Heart of the Lakes Triathlon Results
Swim (880yards) - 16:42 (1:54/100yds)
T1 - 2:57
Bike (21miles) - 54:13 (23.2MPH, fastest average in a triathlon)
T2 - 2:02
Run (5.3miles) - 40:58 (7:44/mi)
Total - 1:56:50
Overall - 151/460
AG - 14/39
Pace - 4:22/mi

June 2012 Triathlon Training and Racing Summary

June 2012 consisted of four triathlons and one TT.  My weekends were busy.  I would say that I had two good/very good/great races, and two ok/not too bad races.  Lake Minnetonka Tri and MinneMan were the better ones and Manitou and Waconia were good races.  I really cannot complain.

I think I had a pretty good month of training, and racing.  I had to dial it back during the week, especially close to races, so that I had legs to race.  As always, I would like the run to be faster, but for the amount of time I have put in this year I cannot be too disappointed.

This is the halfway point of the year, it is also the halfway point of the season, in terms of the number of races.  I have completed 6 of 12 races, 5 triathlons and 1 duathlon.  At the bottom I will put my average pace/speed up to this point in the season.

July, August, and September each have two races, so I can focus a little more on training with some extra time between races.  I am going to try to focus more on the run so that I can get my 10K time down below 8min/mi for the last two triathlons of the year, which are Olympic distance.  Also, my very last race of the year is the Dousman Duathlon, which has two 2 mile runs, so I also want to work on my speed. 

I did one Tuesday Night Time Trial in June.  It was not my slowest of the three this year, it was also not my fastest.  It was right in between.  Hopefully, in June I can do two of the TTs.
June 5th TNT (11 miles) - 30:09 (21.9MPH)

June-to-June Comparison

Totals and Averages Since 2007

YTD and Totals Since 2007

Here are the averages paces, and average distances, for the 5 triathlons I have done so far this year.  In parenthesis is the average from 2011 for all 10 races.
Swim - Average Distance = 1204.8 yards - Average Pace = 1:38/100 yards (1:39/100 yards)
T1 - 2:28 (2:21)
Bike - Average Distance = 21.4 miles - Average Speed = 21.08MPH (21.37MPH)
T2 - 1:28 (1:12)
Run - Average Distance = 4.81 miles - Average Speed = 8:12/mile (8:01/mile)
Average Pace - 4:40/mile (4:29/mile)

2012 MinneMan Race Report - Olympic Distance

Picture of me near the finish courtesy of Kerry Yndestad

This race was last Saturday, 6/30.  I am a little late getting this out.
It was a hot day, I think there are going to be a lot more race days like this the rest of the summer.  I think there are going to be a lot more hot days like last Saturday, for the rest of the summers, for the rest of my life.  That is a different topic. 

Anyway, I had a surprisingly great race.  Waconia, the weekend before, was hard on my legs, so the week before MinneMan I took it a little easier.  Especially, since Waconia was on a Sunday and MinneMan was on a Saturday.  I figured I could use a little extra rest.
In the past MinneMan was a Sprint only race, this year they added an Olympic distance event.  They lengthened the Sprint swim, from a third of a mile to a half mile, and then doubled it for the Olympic. They doubled the bike for the Olympic, and doubled the run.  The bike is longer than 40K, 40K is about 24.8 miles, this bike was about 26.7 miles, two 13.3ish mile loops.  The run was two 3 mile loops, a little shorter than typical Olympic distance.  Normally the Olympic distance should be a 10K, 6.2 miles.  I like the two loop format, also I think it is good for spectators.
The field for the Olympic distance was about 144, less than half the number in the Sprint (300+).  The Olympic distance did have some of the biggest names in female and male, Elite and Pro, triathletes in MN, some might say in the nation, participating.  It made for a very cool environment.
As usual, I got there early, got setup.  There was plenty of room.  I did a short bike warmup, no run warmup.  Chatted with a few people, made sure to hydrate, but not too much, I did not want a belly full of fluid sloshing around.

The water was reported right at 78 degress, making it just wetsuit legal.  As Jerry, the announcer, said, "At 78.1, no wetsuits".  The lake is shallow and I was pleasantly surprised it was wetsuit legal. The water felt good.

Getting to the race.  My wave, 35-39 males, was small.  Only 13 guys.  The course goes counter-clockwise, bouys on your left.  The course was basically a rectangle.  Your first left turn and short swim across the top of the rectangle was right into the sun.  After the race it became apparent that some people had issues with the sun and missing the left turn that takes you back to shore.  I didn't have too much trouble.  I just sighted more frequently. so I would not miss the bouy.
At the swim start I started far over on the right, I usually start wide and swim across toward the first bouy, to stay out of traffic.  As usual, when the gun went off I was near the back at the start.  Something surprising happened.  About halfway to the first turn bouy, there was clear water in front of me.  I could see one person swimming out in front of me, and it was the same color cap.  I took a quick look over my right shoulder and saw one guy.  I believe I was in 2nd place in my AG.  I swam this position all the way to the end and into transition.  Later, when checking the results, I was indeed the second fastest swim in my AG.  I thought that was pretty cool.  I had never swam in so much open water.  I passed a number of people from waves that started before, which is typical, but swimming in so much "clean" water was nice, and different.  I was worried that without people around I would swim slower, but I did not.  I think I was worried about swimming slower, so I didn't swim slower.

Once out and through the long transition run, I did see that I was the second one to the bike in my AG.  Excellent.  I got out for the long bike.  Two things I wanted to work on were, hydrating and keeping good form.  I think I did a pretty good job on both.  The bike course is mostly flat, with a few climbs on it, if I remember correcty.  There was more wind than I expected.  The last few miles of the bike loop goes through a residential neighborhood that is flat.  I like this part of the course.  It is a part of the course that allows you to really haul some ass.  Going through the second loop I could start to feel the heat.  Mostly I started to feel it coming at me from the road.  The pavement was heating up and you could feel it on your legs and chest.  The run was going to be hot.

The longest bike of the year, turned out to be my fastest bike split so far this year. Hooray!

Coming into T2 I felt pretty good.  Got off the bike and got out on the nearly pancake flat, nearly shadeless, run course.  I was worried about going out too fast in the heat and blowing up.  My goal for this year is to do an Olympic distance race under 2.5 hours.  I had a chance to do that today.  It would be especially sweet to do it on this course, since the bike is longer than your typical Oly.
The run became just another battle in the heat.  It was mostly mental, as it frequently can be.  My goal was to not walk at all during the run, like the 30 second walk I took near the end of St. Anthony's this year.  I did not walk.  My focus became maintaining my form on the run, trying to ignore the heat and fatigue. 

Through the first loop I was running in front of, next to, and behind a girl, probably high school age, who was cheering for everyone she passed and people coming the other way.  It was really great and I think it helped me get through the run.  She was very upbeat and I think her attitude was an example of how all triathletes should be out on the course.  I saw her after the race and thanked her for her attitude.

Well, I made it through the run, of course, and my time was surprisingly good.  The last mile or so I thought I was going to vomit, but once I got some water in me, and on me, and in the shade I started to feel much better.  Typically, I do St. Anthony's in late April/early May and I don't do another Olympic distance race until late July or August, so having an earlier race at this distance earlier in the summer gave me a better idea of where I am at. I am happy with where I am at.

This was another OHP race.  Very well run, as far as I could tell, everything went off without a hitch.  My only criticisms are that the water on the course and after the race is warm/hot and the only thing to drink is water, something besides warm water would be great.  Otherwise, the races they put on are extremely well executed.  Full disclosure again, I am a part-time staff member at OHP.

I think the most important thing I can do when fatigued, is concentrate on form, whether it is the swim, bike, or run.  Typically, not a problem on the swim.  This is kind of a "duh" statement.  Everyone knows how important form is to going fast.  Some people can "muscle" there way through different legs of the race.  I am not fast enough or enough of a natural athlete at any part of triathlon to do that.  So, if I can remember, when fatigued or not fatigued, to concentrate on form, I can have really good race results.

Since this is the first year for the Minneman Olympic distance race, I put a few of my last Oly distance race results for comparison, along with my 2011 MinneMan Sprint results

2012 MinneMan Olympic Distance Triathlon Results
Swim (1760yards) - 25:53 (1:29/100 yards), 2nd fastest in AG
T1 - 2:59
Bike (26.6mi) - 1:12:41 (22.1MPH)
T2 - 1:21
Run (6mi) - 49:56 (8:20/mi), I would like this/need this to get under or around 8:00/mi
Total - 2:32:47, oh so close
Overall - 66/144
AG - 5/13, the first two guys in my AG were under or around 2:15
Pace - 4:32/mi

2011 MinneMan Sprint Distance Triathlon Results
Swim (587yards) - 8:20 (1:35/100 yards)
T1 - 2:51
Bike (13mi) - 36:15 (21.5MPH)
T2 - 1:10
Run (3mi) - 24:30 (8:30/mile)
Total - 1:13:03
Overall - 68/342
AG - 5/28
Pace - 4:29/mi

2012 (April) St. Anthony's Olympic Distance Triathlon Results
Swim (1640yards) - 29:03 (1:47/100yards)
T1 - 2:18
Bike (24.85mi) - 1:12:54 (20.4MPH)
T2 - 2:42
Run (6.2mi) - 55:04 (8:53/mi)
Total - 1:41:51
Overall - 977/2689
AG - 124/236
Pace - 5:04/mi

2011 (Sept) St. Croix Valley Olympic Distance Triathlon Results
Swim (1640yards) - 29:00 (1:46/100 yards)
T1 - 2:22
Bike (24.85mi) - 1:10:31 (21.1MPH)
T2 - 0:51
Run (6.2mi) - 49:36 (7:59/mi)
Total - 2:32:17
Overall - 40/103
AG - 12/19
Pace - 4:46/mi

2011 (August) Maple Grove Olympic Distance Triathlon Results
Swim (1640yards) - 27:26 (1:44/100 yards)
T1 - 2:26
Bike (26mi) - 1:13:32 (21.2MPH)
T2 - 1:12
Run (6.2mi) - 50:15 (8:06/mi)
Total - 2:34:49
Overall - 44/216
AG - 9/33
Pace - 4:41/mi