My First Sprint Triathlon

Well I have to say I had a blast at my first ever Sprint Triathlon.

This was the first annual Denville Triathlon.

You can get more info and like the Facebook page here https://www.facebook.com/DenvilleTriathlon and check out the results and course information including maps here http://www.denvilletri.com/

I will definitely be signing up again next year and hopefully for some other triathlons in the area as well.

Here are the specifics of this Sprint Tri:

Sprint Tri – .35 Swim, 9 Mile Bike, 5K Run

I believe there were 300 participants in the race. I placed 61 overall. Not bad!

Here were my results:

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I have to say that I was pretty happy with my results. My goal was to get it done in under 1:15 and I accomplished that. Looking back there are a few things I would have done differently, but hey it was my first time!

Things I Would Have Done Differently

• I would have swam more during training!
• Thought about the transition more…
• Been more comfortable on the bike..
• Pushed harder on the run!

With all that said I still feel good about it, I just hate the fact after the race you can see your time and know where you could have shaved off a few minutes. I never expected to win the race, but hey the competitive spirit creeps in and I starting thinking about the next time 😉

Swimming – Total Time: 13:29:09

• Let's face it, unless you have a place to practice swimming often or did any sort of competitive swimming in the past, the swim part is going to be the most difficult part of the race. For myself, I was not using correct form, and I think I only did about 4 or 5 practice swims before the race where I swam for about 10 minutes taking a lot of breaks.
• My wife tried to show me correct form, but years of no form at all took over and I just did not put in the time to get the correct form down.
• I wish I had warmed up a bit more before the swim started, but everyone around me was standing around so I felt strange if I just busted into jumping jacks or running in place. Once the swim started I felt good, but people were kicking and splashing and about 3 minutes in I took a few gulps of water. At the point people were way ahead of me and I knew I was not going to KILL the swim so I decided to just pace myself and get through it. I did a lot of breast stroke as well which slowed me down.
• I did see people here and there grabbing the kayaks that were out in case you needed help, so I felt good that I did not need that!
• Next time I will swim more for sure, and practice my form. Maybe even get a few real swim lessons.

Transition 1 – Total Time: 2:54

• I had read a few articles about being quick in your transition so that was my goal. I have no clue how 2minutes and 54 seconds passed, but it did! I guess part of it was that I was just plain tired from that swim!

Bike – Total Time: 30:16

• The bike course was pretty flat and I wasn't really worried about it to much. I have always been comfortable on a bike and had trained a decent amount with the bike.
• I will say this… if you are trying for time you need a road bike. If you have some junky old mountain bike you are going to be slowed down big time. Luckily I borrowed my buddies Trek so I did not have to go and drop $500-$1000 on one. I did see some people with extreme bikes at this race. Def want to go shopping now 😉
• It was fun cruising on the bike and I managed to pass about 8-10 people as I went, but was also passed by a few as well. This one guy had the biggest calves I have ever seen. MR Huge Calf guy if you are out there… WOW!! Something hit me though as I saw this guy fly past me…. he had experience and had prob been riding/racing for years. I tried to keep up, but my legs would not go as fast and it hit me… try as I might I am just not as in good of shape as some of these guys. A lot of these guys were way older then me too. I am talking in their upper 40's and 50's so kudos to you fellas.
• The great thing seeing older people fly by me is that I know with more training and consistency I will be there some day as well. This was my first Tri and I really only started the training in late May.

Transition 2 – Total Time: 00:33:06

• I actually just remembered hopping off the bike wayyyy to early. There was a sign that said get ready and I saw others getting off so I did as well… no worries
• I remember racking my bike back up and going for the run… my legs felt heavy… I stopped for a minute and just stretched a bit and was on my way!

Running – Total Time: 25:41

• I have to say I was proud of myself with the run. Running has been something I was never into. Last year I started running to train for the Spartan Race, and that was the first time I had ran in prob 10 years!
• Where I live it is really hilly and the loop I run on ends with a really long hill, so my running time is never fast, but I figure it is great training. I usually never break a 9 minute mile, but I have been getting better building up to the race.
• This is why I was surprised when I did just about 8 minute miles in this 5k. The first mile of this run was hilly. I ended up taking at least 4-5 10 secondish breaks up the hill and maybe 1 or 2 more later in the run.
• I wish I had pushed a bit harder and not taken the breaks, but I guess I needed them

Overall Feelings??

• Like I said I was happy with my results and now I know what race day is really like and what I have to work on. Fitness wise this past 12-16 months has really been amazing. I am at the lowest weight “210ish lbs” that I have been at in a long time. I know with more consistency in my training I will get better and better.
• This point in my life the training is not just a fad or phase I am in, but a lifestyle change for the better.
• When I saw guys in their upper 40's and 50's passing me a “35” year old “young guy” it motivated me to keep on going.
• See ya next year Denville Tri in a finishers spot!! 😉

Oh…. Nutrition

• Thought I would mention nutrition for this race. I was not that worried about it. From what I was reading most people said anything under 2 hours and you should be fine without taking any gu gels or anything else.
• Normally I run early in the morning and have a scoop of whey protein so I knew eating anything would be better then what I usually do.
• The night before I had a plate a pasta with some meat sauce and made sure I drank a lot of water all day. Before bed I had my usually whey protein drink.
• In the morning I woke up at 4:50Am, I had half of scoop of vanilla shakeology with some milk to get me going and a banana.
• When I got to the event I checked in and got ready at the transition area. At about 6Am I had a white macadamia cliff bar…. mmm sooo good!!!
• At about 6:45AM I had my Energy & Endurance pre-workout drink. The idea was it would kick in during the swim and into the bike. I feel it gave me a nice edge during the race.
• I had some GU gels with me and a Hammer Nutrition Gel that was given in the goodie bag. I decided to bring the hammer gel in my pocket on the bike. On the second loop of the bike I decided to have it. It was huckleberry and I ate about 3/4 of it.
• After that it was a few sips of water then onto the run.
• They had some goodies at the finish line… I grabbed a few oranges and a bottle of water. I had another cliff bar on my way home..
• Lunch Consisted of the Hamburger below… MMMM…. Burger, cheese, bacon, taylor ham, curly onion fries… hey and a side of veggies lol
• For dinner we just had Denville Dairy