Nanticoke Sprint Triathlon May 2, 2010 Race report!

My 2010 race season started on Sunday May 2, 2010 with the Nanticoke Sprint Triathlon. I did this race 2 years ago and at the last minute decided to do it in 2010.

I arrived early for the race since this is the only race I have done that does not have assigned spaces to rack your bike. I wanted to get a good spot and I did. When I got there the wind was blowing, it was cold and the waves were huge.....

Ok, the weather and conditions were great, it just sounds tougher if the conditions are bad.

I eventually saw Gus Curtin. It is always nice to see a familiar face and have someone to talk with when you are by yourself at a race. I also met Brian (new crab), his brother and another friend. Wearing the ATC race jersey makes it easy to find some friends. Anyway onto the race.

Swim

The water and conditions were really pretty good. Nothing like it was two years ago when there were waves rolling in. Pretty flat water and about 65 degrees. I am a slower swimmer in a pool and it seems to always take me a while to get going at a decent pace. This race was no different and when you add 75 men in a narrow channel it can get physical. The swim out to the turn around would have seemed pretty straight forward but the channel is pretty narrow so on the way out we actually encountered the first wave coming back to the swim exit. So I had about 100 yds I had to swim with my head up to avoid a collision. Once I made the turn around I had the same problem with the wave after me heading towards me. So I again was swimming with my eyes ahead of me. Once I got to about 30o yds to go I was able to get into a nice groove and pass a bunch of other swimmers. I am sure I had a negative split on the 2nd half of the swim. Even with the oncoming swimmers it was still a decent swim and nothing like my swim the first time I did the race 2 years ago. Swim time 18:08

Bike

This is a flat fast course. I have grown to really like the bike leg of the races. I have also spent a bunch of time on the trainer this year hoping to improve my cycling. I felt great on the bike and after about a mile or so just put my head down, kept my cadence up and just peddled as fast as I could. There was a bit of wind on a couple of sections but nothing to bad. My goal was to try and complete the bike in under 45 minutes. I was close to that but I also got past the elusive 20mph barrier in a race. Bike time 45:07 @ 20.2mph

Run

Awe yes, the run. The fear of every big man. I have been working at getting faster on the run. I have very modest running goals, less than 10 minutes per mile. I came off the bike and was having some cramping in my calves and it took a few minutes to get loosened up. The run was pretty flat but there was no shade. As Gus mentioned in his report the sun was out. Yes you can get a sunburn in only 30 minutes of running. I have a red ring around the top of my head (were the visor didn't cover) to prove this. I saw Gus on his return loop of the run and he was moving! I normally get passed by a bunch of people during the run and this race was no different. But I did finish at a 9:55 pace. That is slow by many standards, but for this 41 yr old 250lb man it was a blistering pace. Run time 29:43

Total race time 1:37:03

Overall I am glad I did the race and I was pleased with my result. I took off over 25 minutes from my total time from two years ago and I felt much better after the race. For the first race of the year it felt great!