Kansas Oread 70.3 Race report

All in all it was a good race.  The stats

Swim           35:41
Bike          2:57:55
Run           2:23:26

Overall     6:07:11

Marble Falls

Swim          35:22
Bike         3:07:36
Run          2:54:27

Overall    6:47:41

40 minute improvement!

The Swim:

The course was a simple, out quick left and a return.  The biggest issue was the wind and cold.  The wind produced a bit of a wake.  Other than that, the swim was close to text book.  I still had trouble holding on to a draft.  I was able to pick up one soon after losing one.  However I felt that I could do better if I concentrated more on holding a consistent draft.

The Bike:

It was a nice bike course.   It had a some tight turns, some hills and some straights.  It was a good mix of everything. One the best experiences was that the stretch from mile 40 to 50 was smooth and over quick.  In the past I have had some trouble along this stretch.  On a couple of past 70.3's the 10 mile stretch from mile 40 to 50 seemed take for ever.  It was nice to have a ride during this stretch.

The Run:

As one can tell from the results this is where I made the most improvement.  From 2:54 to 2:24.  A 30 minute improvement!  The run course wound through Clinton State park.  There was one significant hill that we ran up and down twice.  I was able to run strongly up it both times.  It felt great to put in such an improved time.  Most of the improved time was due to better management of the bike leg.  The bike leg was almost as hilly as Marble Falls.  This time however I was able to concentrate and keep the heart rate under better control.  This left me much more energy for the run.

Over all:

I was very tired for a week or so after this race.  I had Monday off from training but I was back in the pool Tuesday doing a light swim.  The week continued with short light workouts.  The common trait of all these was a general sluggishness in the legs. Actually I thought that this was a good thing.

If my race strategy was designed to get the most out of me on a particular race that would mean that I left it all out on the course.  If it was all left on the course it would then it is only natural to be tired for an extended period of time.  So the fact that I was tired means that my race strategy was spot on and I followed it well.  That along with a lot of hard work lead to a 40 minute improvement!