Ben's Chaparral race report

Lake Chaparral Race Report

Pre-Race:
Woke up at about 6a.m, got all my stuff together (that pre-race checklist you had sent me last race comes in VERY handy!), mixed together a quick shake in the blender (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, barley seed, chocolate protein powder, yogurt, milk, and granola). Set up my transition area from 6:30 to 7:15. Also stopped to get my bike tuned as my brakes and front derailer needed some adjustment. In regards to selecting a transition area, I chose to put my stuff at the far end of the rack on the rack closest to the run exit. That way I could be sure to remember where my stuff was, as I had some issues going to the wrong rack last race.

After setting up my stuff and attending the pre-race meeting it was only 8:00 and I didn't race until 10:05. I went back home, had an omelette with about 4eggs and veggies. Kept drinking water, filled out my Race Plan form, which helped to keep me focused and get me into "race mode".

Got back to the race site by about 9:30, put on my wetsuit, visited with some friends who were out to watch. Kept drinking water. Got into the Lake ~15mins before start, splashed around, did a quick warm-up. I found being in the lake really helped to calm me down, and get rid of any last minute nervousness.

Swim:
The swim was awesome. As it was my first open-water, I had a lot of fun. I positioned myself about mid pack, as I don't consider myself to be too fast a swimmer. Having to fight for a position is a lot of fun. Adds a whole new dynamic to racing, and it really gets the adrenaline pumping. Managed to fight my way to the front of the middle of the pack. Settled into my stroke and just swam. Got into a rhythm of swimming 3 strokes, breathe, 3 strokes breathe, 2 strokes, sight; then just focused on swimming my own race.
Pre-swimming the course the day before was a major help, as coming out the lake the boat ramp is really slick with algae. They had people there helping to pull you out, and it's not worth it trying to stand up. It's better to just swim right up to the person's hand, then have them pull you the rest of the way.

1st Trans:
Came out of the water running, already had my wetsuit off to my waist. Little bit of an issue trying to get the suit over my timing chip, but managed to eventually get it off. Having a Tri top underneath my wetsuit would've saved me a couple seconds, but I didn't have too much of an issue throwing my jersey on. Had my HR belt with me too, I used it as a race belt and had pre-pinned my number to it when I was setting up my transition earlier. I prefer to carry my bike as I find it easier to run, ran to the mount line, hopped on, and I was off.

Bike:
Bike was fun. Really fun. I had mounted my cadence sensor on my handlebars before the race, tried to keep my cadence >90 the whole bike leg. I was flying past people. There was another guy, race number #113, he was on a tri bike, and for the first half of the course we were racing neck and neck. Eventually I managed to pass him on the inside of the first corner, I find riding on the drops really easy to corner at speed. Got going pretty fast down the hill, and I remembered from riding the course earlier that there were some pot holes to watch out for. Took in some water on the bike. Going up the hill #113 managed to pass me, and I wasn't able to catch him for the rest of the race. Did both laps at about the same pace, made sure cadence was high, glad I had my brakes adjusted before the race as it enabled me to do some good cornering.

2nd Trans:
I slid my feet out of my shoes while still on the bike, although I think I may've done it a bit too early. I should've pushed harder and waited another block before doing it. Hit the dismount line running, easily found my transition zone. Had a tiny issue sliding my feet into my running shoes as I left my elastics a touch too tight, but managed to get them in, cinch the elastic laces and I was off.

Run:
Run off the bike was rough. I had a bit of a stitch in my right side, and after taking in some water from the first aid station it only felt worse. Kept running through it though, as I knew eventually it would fade. Took me awhile to find my legs, and there was a group of about 4 guys who passed me right off the first loop of the park. Then at about 1.5km a girl flew past me, that's the pace I want to run at eventually. She was FAST! Kept going at my own pace waiting for my leg muscles to remember how to run. It wasn't until the next aid station, the stitch was gone, I had another cup of water. Another man passed me but we were going at about the same pace, so I stayed right behind him for the next 400m. Finally my legs returned ~3km? and I was gone. I stepped out to pass the guy in front of me and as I was going past him he must've seen my tri shorts:

Man: "Hey you train with Todd too? Have a good race buddy! Finish strong!"
Me: "Thanks man! You too!"

It's amazing what a little encouragement does...I was really moving after that. Flew through the next 600m to the transistion zone/final park loop, then increased my pace even further as I knew I was almost done. Last loop of the park I burned through and I made sure to finish strong and sprinted the last 100m to the finish line. I ended up catching 3 of the 4 guys who had passed me right at the start (I never caught the girl, she was quick), and finished only about 5m behind the 4th guy. Definitely ran a very strong negative split.

It was a good race! I had a lot of fun and I can't wait for the next one!