Thinking of flat: Burnham!
Finally broke my race duck for 2010 with Burnham tri, which is a 500m pool swim, 20km flat square bike, 5km beach and trail run. While the Speedy Boys were towel-flicking each other for supremacy, I'd decided to take this one mellow. KISS is the mantra of the day.
The off-season's injury rota meant that this was a very un-trained race. About two weeks ago I decided that this was going to be a blag: a race that I do off base fitness and whatever the result, so be it. This meant that (1) I was mellow and (2) I immediately stopped bothering to train, which was kinda counter-productive. At least I was well-rested (!).
The swim's always my most feared part, but it was okay. Took it easy, and apparently looked okay from the gallery. The swim biff was trivial - 4 in the lane, the same slow boys as always. At about 350m, I even found my rhythm. And then out...
I'd decided to skip the tri shoes and clever transitions because they need practice to get right, else hilarity ensues. Last year I kicked my shoe off the bike and clean over the road, so this time the tri shoes stayed at home and I went out with the MTB shoes, which are easy to run in. T1 was therefore smooth: Helmet, race belt, shoes, shades, and go. The organisers have changed transition so it's a straight-through section of road, which was even smoother.
Off on the bike and with the stiff onshore breeze, it was aero tuck and just turn over the pedals. Again, no drama: a good strong ride, being careful to keep my cadence up and my effort held back a tad. This year I'd even worked out that 20km = 13 miles, so my energy was budgeted right.
Energy was the first change in this year's strategy: according to the bible (Anita Bean (her beans are very neat), Complete Guide to Sports Nutrition), it takes about an hour to get energy from carb intake into useful power. My time is more like 90 minutes, so I can benefit from carbs in the first half hour of the race.
Since the swim is not in delicious tasty custard, that means taking carbs in the first half of the bike leg. I duly made up a bottle of strong carb/electrolyte and had most of it by the turnaround, and it worked brilliantly: energy was steady, gluemouth was avoided, and guts were happy as clams. I'd add a bottle of plain water or electrolyte if it was hot, just to sip.
Thus fortified, I scorched into T2, slammed on the anchors, didn't bother with any fancy footwork, and got into the talced Vibram Fivefingers for the run. No disasters here either.
The VFFs are the second big change. I've been working all Spring to build calf strength and technique up to 5km in 'em, because the running style they promote doesn't set off the scrag-end of the Auld Knee Trouble. Never used them in a race before, and I was pleasantly surprised. They were just fine on the hard sand. The loose sand was trouble to everyone. They're glorious on trails (and Burnham is 1km beach, 2km trail, 2km beach, with soft sand transitions across zones).
As I started to tire I was more midfoot striking, and had to pay attention to that or get quite flat-footed. About k3 I had to stop to stretch out my calves and hamstrings before carrying on. Both of these are direct lack-of-training-runs issues, so I know how to sort those and there's no angst. Apart from a sand-ladder or two, it was run all the way. Toward the end, I was actually in a nice state of flow, reeling in the cones one by one, and a final death-or-glory sprint at the end iced the cake.
I took the swim easy, biked with some reserve and ran my legs out. That I still didn't redline my HRM - TE 4.5 - indicates the level of condition I've got: I wasn't run-fit enough to max my CV system.
Last year in good shape and hot weather, with some drama; 1:26:00. This year in bad shape and cool windy weather, with no drama: 1:26:11. I think the lesson here is: get in shape and then KISS.
A big thank-you to the marshalls and organisers - exactly the right number of bods on the road and I love the new transition (a bit crowded, but otherwise awesome).
Oh! And as I was packing up, another competitor approached me. Turns out she and I both did our first triathlon at Wellington Novice in 2006, and we both got hooked the same way. Small world.
