Foe many years, the Rockwall Y has hosted the "Dirty Rock" Tri, an off-road Tri. I've skipped, as I don't really do the mountain bike thing. This year, they switched their race to a road race that would start and end at the Y.
I'd planned to ride in the Cow Creek Classic on Saturday and perhaps run in the Jalapeño Half on Sunday, but, we opted for a fun family weekend. The family plans would allow for me to race in Rockwall on Sunday.
Lindsi and I took Friday as a PTO day and played golf at WhiteStone in Benbrook. After golf, we picked up the boys from camp and headed to The Hilton Lincoln Center in Dallas. A little pool time and room service, and we were ready for bed. Room service again on Saturday morning, then a trip to Lil Ninjas for the boys. From there we headed to Rockwall. We hung out at the Bailey's for a bit, but went to the Johnson's for the night to sleep.
On Sunday, I was up at 5 to allow for me to eat, prep gear, and get to transition that opened at 6. I left the house just after 6, rode the bike to the Y, and began to set up transition. I appeared that it would be a smallish race, and, from the research I had done the night before, that I would have a small AG. Thoughts of the podium began to creep into my head.
The format: 300 yard pool swim, 9.5 mile 2 loop bike course, 5k run. My race plan was to target 1:10. I planned to finish the swim in under 6 minutes, keep my transitions under 2 minutes each, average 19 mph on the bike (30 minutes), and finish the 5k in under 30 minutes.
I saw a few folks that I knew before we started, and found my pace in line for the swim.
Swim: no issues here. The volunteer did a nice job of keeping enough space between swimmers. I encountered no traffic, and passed a few people at the wall that were catching their breath. 300 yards in 5:53. Less than 2:00 per 100 yards. I'll take it.
T1: 1:23. This would be the 1st time in a race setting with new, upgraded bike and new giro air attack shield helmet. With no socks, and new helmet, T1 was fast.
Bike: I wanted to average 19 mph on the bike. I got off to a fast start, but, found myself sucking air on the 1st small climb. I dialed back a bit to get my HR down, and finally began to push again when I turned onto John King Blvd. I found some speed on the straights, but, there were several turns on this route, making it difficult to hold speed for long. Heading into the 2nd loop, I passed the parking lot turn-in (why the hell were we being routed back through the parking lot?!?), and had to stop and double back. 2nd loop was much the same as the 1st. When it was all over, I was only 17.6 mph on the bike. I'd lost 2:16 of my planned race time.
T2: 1:22. I went sockless for the run, and used "hickies" in my shoes to avoid having to lace them up. I was curious to see how they would feel.
Run: I needed to be under 30 minutes. Much like the bike, it took me a few minutes to find rhythm, but, I booked a 9:32 mile 1, and felt good. 9:33 for mile 2. I slowed to a 9:58 for mile 3, as it was getting hot. It was looking like I might miss my 1:10 race goal. I pushed the pace down the stretch and finished the run in 29:46. Total race time: 1:10:38. Not bad. What I lost on the bike, I'd made up in transitions, and on the run.
My time was only good for 4th in my AG, and, it appeared, based on results, that there were some fast folks out there. I was 32 of 91 overall.
Not a bad day. I need to continue to work on my cycling, My run speed will improve throughout the summer.
I suspect I'll be back for this race in '17.
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