Patriot Sprint Triathlon

Sunday morning, 9 Sep 2012, I completed the sprint tri in Yorktown, VA.  The start was at 0730, and I woke at 0400 to leave by 0430.  The early start was a bit of a shock to wake up to, but I truly enjoyed completing the event and traveling home, all before noon.  Prior to the race I had a nice large cup of coffee and a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich, heavy on the peanut butter.  About 45 minutes before the race I was feeling a little dry and guzzled some water from one of the water stations.  Throughout the race I didn't feel overly dry, famished, or lacking for food.

The swim portion was in the "brakish" James river which had a slight current headed downstream with the falling tide.  The Clydesdales were lumped in with the 40+ men.  This made our swim start group a little smaller than earlier groups which were populated by college aged kids and other go-getters.  My least favorite portion of the tri is the begining of the swim where everyone is climbing over each other to begin swimming, so I positioned myself near the front and sprinted at the begining of the race.  I think I sprinted a 50m-75m distance before I got exhausted and had to slow down significantly to catch my breath.  At this distance I was still able to see other participants wading energetically in waters around me.  By one third of the way in, I felt like I was in a grove and was able to keep that up for the rest of the distance.  I thought the markers were a little small and sometimes I struggled to see them when I popped me head up for a look.  Other than that I thought I did a pretty good job of aiming for the halfway buoy and ending marker ashore.

As I got out of the water I felt very heavy.  There was a long jog through the transition area to the bike racks.  I thought my transition was pretty quick, no real wasted effort.  I did struggle a little with my socks, but I don't think it ended up being a great big time suck.

The bike was out and back on the same path.  I did not have my Garmin with me to give me an idea of how fast I was riding.  I would like to have one of those bicycle mounted gizmos to give me an alert when I fall below 20mph, or 19mph, or whatever seems to be my cruising speed for the day.  The course had a few gradual hills that are more significant than what I experience in Norfolk and Pungo, but nothing that threw off my time. 

Transitioning from bike to run I also thought I went pretty quickly, though my times indicate I did not.  I had a gel pack of energy-goo that I fumbled with as I ran out of the transition area and grabbed a water from the volunteers.  I suspect this was where my extra time came from.

The entire portion of the run I felt as if I was lifting 200 pound logs with my legs.  My worst performing event.  I saw a brief glimmer of hope prior to the race because I had increased the amount of running I was doing in training but not in an organized or structured manner. 

In the Clydesdale category I was 4th out of 8.  Had I participated in my age group, 30-34 I would have been 9th out of 16.  Overall among men I was 183rd out of 314, bottom half.  Though this performance is similar to my results and output in the Breezy point triathlon, I think my relative placing in the Overall category was so low because of all the college aged kids participating in this event.

My overall swim rank was 120, not bad, but I'm usually a lot higher ranked.  I think this was due to all the college aged kids participating.  The first transition I was 154, top half, but I thought I would be higher because I made an effort to run quickly to the transition area.  The bike portion I was also 154, top half, and this is normally where I fall out, somewhere in the middle.  The second transition I was 215 which is the most puzzling.  I thought I was pretty quick through the transition area, but trying to eat some energy and waiting for water may have been my downfall.  The run portion ranked me out at 244, which isn't suprising but still disapointing.

http://www.setupevents.com/files/PatriotsSprint_Clydes_2012.html

Place	Bib	Age	Sex	Code	NAME	CITY/STATE	College	Rank	SWIM	Rank	T1	Rank	BIKE	Rank	T2	Rank	RUN	PENALTY	TIME	DQ
1.	463	35	M	C	John Dragseth	Washington DC		1	19:30	2	2:56	1	34:45	2	0:54	2	23:58		1:22:01
2.	467	38	M	C	James Dillon	Chesterfield VA		5	22:12	1	2:40	2	35:53	3	1:07	1	22:28		1:24:18
3.	465	35	M	C	Benjamin Harrison	Manassas VA		3	20:05	4	3:46	5	42:17	7	1:48	3	24:44		1:32:37
4.	462	34	M	C	Jacob Braun	Norfolk VA		2	19:58	3	3:18	3	39:54	6	1:31	4	28:42		1:33:22
5.	461	32	M	C	Adam Heming	Sterling VA		4	22:02	6	4:27	4	41:17	5	1:28	6	30:19		1:39:32
6.	464	35	M	C	Brad Poore	Centreville VA		6	22:52	5	3:53	6	43:20	1	0:51	7	30:25		1:41:18
7.	466	35	M	C	Leon Simms	Arlington VA		7	26:24	8	5:13	7	45:35	8	2:56	8	32:29		1:52:37
8.	460	31	M	C	Jas Carter	Williamsburg VA		8	28:59	7	4:52	8	50:23	4	1:28	5	30:18		1:55:58

2012 Franklin Omnium

The 2012 Franklin Omnium was the most difficult bicycle experience I have encountered on my journey to fitness through Hokie Respect.  The Omnium was held in the city of Franklin, approximately 1 hour from Norfolk, and consisted of a 9 mile time trial, 30 min criterium, and 28 mile road race. 

I received last or second to last in each event.  I'm proud of myself for completing each one of the events but also humbled that of the lowest class of riders I performed the worst.  That's just more motivation during my rides.

In my defense I had a couple of things working against me, a sore neck that has yet to heal and I doubt I had put in the same amount of hours that the other riders were.  I overheard one guy saying he put in 80 miles the day prior to the road race.  That's insane, I don't think I've ever completed 80 miles on a bike.

I was happy with my performance during the time trial, I was tired but not exhausted during the event.  It was about 9.4 miles and I averaged just over 21 miles an hour.

The criterium was the most frustrating of the events.  So far this year the criteriums that I have participated in have been in race-track like courses.  This one weaved through downtown Franklin and included a right hand turn at the bottom of a hill. I'm confident that for the 2 or 3 laps I was with the main group I was frustrating any riders who were behind me.  I did have to brake going into the turns and did not have "a line" as I went through each turn.  It became a $20 workout after the third lap, I only got lapped twice, which I good I think.

I lasted 3.4 miles on the road race before I fell off the main group.  At one point we were going 29 miles an hour, even while drafting I do not have the legs/lungs to keep up with that pace for an extended amount of time.

I managed to finish the road race in under an hour and 30 minutes, averaging around 19 miles an hour. 

This year I've been very adventurous about entering races, for the time being I might see if I can put in some long rides on the weekend so my next performance isn't "last place" across the board.

http://www.franklinomnium.com/

The results are posted below.

Time Trial: Cat 5

1       270 Chris Karmilovich Celerity Cycling p/b Brooks Systems/Celerity Cycling 22:48 M 364916

2       268 Peter Foytik           unattached 23:10 M 369515
3       260 Stefan Blomkvist   unattached 23:11 M 382490
4       279 Bob Zywiak             MVBC/Mohawk Valley Bicycling Club 23:46 M 64488
5       276 Daniel Spagone     Fat Frogs Racing 23:56 M 261092
6       264 Larry Dean             JRVS/American Pride/James River Velo Sport 24:14 M 367487
7       263 Robert Brewbaker VTV Outreach Team 24:20 M 374611
8       267 Reed Foster            unattached 24:20 M 383847
9       273 Nick Mossing         Maumee Valley Wheelmen 24:28 M 367918
10     278 Carl Frankenfield   unattached 25:22 M 384118
11     277 James Bradley       unattached 25:27 M 192922
12     266 Tim Ellenwood      Evolution Cycling Club p/b Long & Foster 25:45 M 343384
13     261 Jacob Braun          unattached 26:26 M 282728
DNF 269 Robert Kaiwi          unattached 26:27 M 331578
         274 Eliud Omollo          unattached M 383433

Criterium: Cat 5

1 260 Stefan Blomkvist unattached M 382490

2 263 Robert Brewbaker VTV Outreach Team M 374611

3 268 Peter Foytik unattached M 369515
4 270 Chris Karmilovich Celerity Cycling p/b Brooks Systems/Celerity Cycling M 364916
5 264 Larry Dean JRVS/American Pride/James River Velo Sport M 367487
6 273 Nick Mossing Maumee Valley Wheelmen M 367918
7 276 Daniel Spagone Fat Frogs Racing M 261092
8 275 michael prewitt Tri Power M 329896

9 271 Matt Keiper Atlantic Velo Virginia p/b Walt's Racing M 37136

10 266 Tim Ellenwood Evolution Cycling Club p/b Long & Foster M 343384

11 269 Robert Kaiwi unattached M 331578
12 261 Jacob Braun unattached M 282728

Road Race: Cat 5

1 260 Stefan Blomkvist unattached M 382490

2 284 Jeff Moulton Richmond Velo Sport M 361041
3 273 Nick Mossing Maumee Valley Wheelmen M 367918
4 270 Chris Karmilovich Celerity Cycling p/b Brooks Systems/Celerity Cycling M 364916
5 263 Robert Brewbaker VTV Outreach Team M 374611
6 268 Peter Foytik unattached M 369515
7 285 Gregg Palmer Team 3Sports/Richmond Velo Sport M 362388
8 286 Matthew Balderston unattached M 384084
9 264 Larry Dean JRVS/American Pride/James River Velo Sport M 367487

10 281 Christopher Clark unattached M 381958

11 267 Reed Foster unattached M 383847
12 287 Leslie Newman unattached M
13 275 michael prewitt Tri Power M 329896
14 271 Matt Keiper Atlantic Velo ‐Virginia p/b Walt's Racing M 371360

15 276 Daniel Spagone Fat Frogs Racing M 261092
16 269 Robert Kaiwi unattached M 331578
17 282 Adam Croft Slipstream‐Craddock Junior Development M 306523

18 280 Marc Fly unattached M 378645

19 299 Brandon Nero unattached M
20 261 Jacob Braun unattached M 282728
DNF 266 Tim Ellenwood

Peter Teeuwen Mem TT #1 Virginia AGE-grade
This Time Trail took place on a lollypop course in the Great Neck area of Virginia Beach. This is the third time overall that I've participated in this event, I do not recall any of my previous times.  I did not use my aero bar, and I kept the bag under my seat with emergency tire repair gear in it.  Maybe that weight would have made a difference, maybe not.  Before the race I did clean my chain and re-grease it.

I should probably warm-up more than I did.  I think I maybe bicycled a mile prior to this event.  I achieved a small about of perspiration, but the begining of the ride felt awful.  I even had some pain in my stomach, never had that before.

I also found that I was pedaling in a lot lower gear than I was used to.  I was way out of breath at the begining of the ride and found myself panting to try to regain my heartrate.  It wasn't until the last six miles that I realized how low a gear I was using, and promptly started to use the three most difficult gears.  I'm not sure if that affected my time. 

I managed to pull out a 12th place beating four actual people.  This was in the CAT 5 race though.  All 5 of the Women 40 + beat me.  I guess that is my goal for the next race.

	1		Stefan Blomkvist		0:53:04.25		139
	2	543.33	Jeff Moulton	Glen Allen, VA	0:53:10.65	361041	150	Richmond Velo Sport
	3	546.67	Brad Onofrio	Glen Allen, VA	0:53:58.43	358585	152	Richmond Velo Sport (RVS)
	4	550.00	Christopher Kurtz	Chesapeake, VA	0:54:36.02	337828	148	Team Kainer
	5		Paul Talbot		0:54:54.96		155
	6		Michael Wolfe		0:55:57.97		157	Fat Frogs Racing
	7	560.00	John Dragseth	Washington, DC	0:57:45.96	375133	145
	8		Christopher Clark		0:58:27.35		144
	9	566.67	Daniel Spagone	Moyock, NC	0:58:44.61	261092	154	Fat Frogs Racing
	10	570.00	Ben Nippert	Virginia Beach, VA	0:59:25.12	276715	151	Fat Frogs Chesapeake p/b Timba
	11	573.33	Erik Petzing	Lynchburg, VA	1:00:21.93	60820	153	Dire Wolf Racing
	12	576.67	Jacob Braun	Norfolk, VA	1:05:16.20	282728	141
	13	580.00	Paul Lucha	Salisbury, NC	1:05:38.00	130812	149	Team Portsmouth Cycling
	14	583.33	Anthony Bream	Norfolk, VA	1:09:05.46	337926	142	Celerity Cycling p/b Brooks Systems
	15		Chuck Hollowood		1:10:59.70		147	fat frogs racing
	16	590.00	Edward Torres	Norfolk, VA	1:11:07.26	333880	156	Fat Frogs Racing
	DNS		Mark Braithwaite		DNS		140
	DNS		Jon Cencich		DNS		143	Blue Ridge Cyclery
	DNS		Matthew Haralson		DNS		146	Fat Frogs
	DNS		Kenneth Spence	Chesapeake, VA	DNS	356686	158	Team Kainer
http://www.usacycling.org/results/?permit=2012-1973

Breezy Point Triathlon

Today I completed the Breezy Point Sprint Triathlon.  The event eas held on Norfolk Naval Station at 0800.  This is the first triathlon I've competed in that had the swim in open water.  The bay was sheltered, but I did have to deal with murky conditions, eating saltwater, and swimmers colliding with me.  The bike was on most of the same course that the Tue/Thu bike rides (from East Coast Bicycle in Ocean View) travel through.  I felt like it was my home court.

In the Clydesdale Category I finished 9th out of 37.  Had I competed in the 30-34 Age Group I would have finished 10th.  Though I can do relatively decent in each of the events individually, I still don't think I'm in the elite group of triathlete's (Clydesdale style) who continually finish in the top three.

Results below.

http://www.breezypointtri.com/bpt12.htm

Langely Speedway Criterium

15 April I raced in a Criterium on the Langely Speedway, a .4 mile oval.  Wind was strong going into turns 3 and 4.  I was able to stay with the main group four about 4/5 laps before they stopped their warmup and took off.  I rode by myself for the majority of the race, occasionaly hooking up with the back tire of a group that was passing me.  I was still exhausted from the previous days half marathon, but the main group was going faster than I am comfortable going for an extended period of time.  Still, it was fun and I look forward to doing it again.  If I lost 20-30 pounds I'd probably be a lot faster.

PLACE	BIB#			MEN 5
1	527	JIMMY	PICARD	RICHMOND VELO SPORTS- RVS	RICHMOND	VA	27	5	361553	ACTIVE	CAT 5
2	525	JAMES	NICHOLSON	FAT FROGS CHESAPEAKE	CHESAPEAKE	VA	36	5	305776	ACTIVE	CAT 5
3	514	CHRISTOPHER	GOYNE	CELERITY CYCLING P/B BROOKS SYSTEMS	HAMPTON	VA	34	5	365001	ACTIVE	CAT 5
4	523	COTY	MILLS	TEAM TRI POWER	NORFOLK	VA	25	5	368191	ACTIVE	CAT 5
5	526	JARRED	ORFF	EAST COAST BICYCLES	VIRGINIA BEACH	VA	33	5	273938	ACTIVE	CAT 5
6	508	ROBERT	CARTER	CELERITY CYCLING	CHESAPEAKE	VA	23	5	355676	ACTIVE	CAT 5
7	517	CHRISTOPHER	KURTZ	TEAM KAINER	CHESAPEAKE	VA	46	5	337828	ACTIVE	CAT 5
8	518	CHRIS	LLOYD	FAT FROGS RACING	CHESAPEAKE	VA	14	5	332566	ACTIVE	CAT 5
9	515	BRADLEY	GRESHAM	FAT FROGS RACING	CHESAPEAKE	VA	42	5	368172	ACTIVE	CAT 5
10	521	ANDY	MCKAY	FAT FROGS RACING	CHESAPEAKE	VA	35	5	304012	ACTIVE	CAT 5
11	512	PETER	FOYTIK		PORTSMOUTH	VA	30	5	369515	ACTIVE	CAT 5
13	532	FRANCISCO	ZARATE	FAT FROGS RACING	VIRGINIA BEACH	VA	42	5	364883	ACTIVE	CAT 5
14	513	SEAN	GILMARTIN		GLOUCESTER	VA	46	5	ONE DAY		CAT 5
15	516	MATT	KEIPER	HILTON CYCLING CLUB	VIRIGNIA BEACH	VA	40	5	371360	ACTIVE	CAT 5
16	510	ALAN	DAWKINS	JRVS/ AMERICAN PRIDE AUTOMOTIVE	HAMPTON	VA	37	5	276653	ACTIVE	CAT 5
17	511	LARRY	DEAN	JRVS/AMERICAN PRIDE	FORT EUSTIS	VA	36	5	367487	ACTIVE	CAT 5
18	507	JIMMY	BRUCE	HILTON CYCLING	VA BEACH	VA	44	5	374709	ACTIVE	CAT 5
19	529	KENNETH	SPENCE	TEAM KAINER CYCLING	CHESAPEAKE	VA	40	5	356686	ACTIVE	CAT 5
20	524	JAMES	MORTSON	THE BIKE LANE	FALLS CHURCH	VA	43	5	357983	ACTIVE	CAT 5
21	528	DANIEL	SPAGONE	FAT FROGS RACING	MOYOCK	NC	27	5	261092		CAT 5
22	506	CHRIS	BRENNAN		ALEXANDRIA	VA	24	5	369115	ACTIVE	CAT 5
23	505	JACOB	BRAUN		NORFOLK	VA	34	5	282728	ACTIVE	CAT 5
24	522	JOSEPH	MERCURIO		YORKTOWN	VA	46	5	285686	ACTIVE	CAT 5
DNF	509	JOSHUA	CHANDLER		NORFOLK	VA	24	5	374684	ACTIVE	CAT 5
DNF	519	CHUCK	LONG	FAT FROGS RACING	VIRGINIA BEACH	VA	45	5	368917	ACTIVE	CAT 5
DNF	520	THOMAS	MARKLEY		VIRGINIA BEACH	VA	28	5	351480	ACTIVE	CAT 5
DNF	530	EDWARD	TORRES	FAT FROGS RACING	NORFOLK	VA	40	5	333880	ACTIVE	CAT 5
DNF	531	MARK	WOOLERY		CHESAPEAKE	VA	60	5	222226	ACTIVE	CAT 5
DNF	504	CREGEN	BRADY	HILTON CYCLING CLUB	HAMPTON	VA	23	5	298386	ACTIVE	CAT 5