Bicester Sprint Tri 2017
April 2nd 2017
400m swim, 20k bike, 5k run
First tri of the season! I picked this one because it was cheap. And flat. Entering fairly early on a discount, my predicted swim time was not representative by the time I came to race. However, when I saw the start list I was a bit confused as to why I was starting almost four hours after people with similar swim times. Nevermind the inconvenience of a 1pm race, this seemed a little unfair as conditions can change dramatically throughout the day. I readjusted my swim time to make it representative (06:50 rather than 07:30) and was now starting at the beginning of the day.
In fact, I was the second wave, which was weird as I had no chance to watch how T1 worked (I had missed the briefing due to it being 15 mins late and when I needed to be at poolside). When I queued for the swim I realised I had ended up in the 06:15 wave, which was a little worrying as I was nowhere near that fast. However, it turns out everyone in my lane had been rather optimistic about their swimming ability, and frustratingly I ended up being very held up.
Out of the pool and it was a long walk/shuffle along poolside and through the kids pool onto the even longer run to T1! Wiping gravel of my feet, I made a mediocre transition and got myself out onto the bike. The bike route was an uneventful two laps, with minimalist signage (I was glad there were a few in front to follow!). I felt alright but went a little conservative on lap 1, probably losing me a couple of minutes or so.
Back into transition and my T2 was slightly smoother, leading me out onto a very lappy run course. I'd had bad problems with my calf over the last two months, so wasn't even sure I'd be able to complete the course. However, the grass surface really suited my as it was soft and more comfortable for my leg. Once over the "start of run" feeling, I made a consistent effort at the run, picking up slightly in the last lap to give an OK 5k time.
Overall this was a decent but uninspiring course, which provided me with an opportunity to get back into race mode and test out my leg under race conditions. I had a couple of friends join me on the day for their first ever triathlon, and they seemed to really enjoy it. I also treated myself to a post race massage to try to limit further injuries - and the company giving them out (for free) were excellent, I only wish I could remember who they were!
Times
Total time: 01:15:40
Swim: 00:08:36 (long walk/run to T1)
T1: 00:01:25
Bike: 00:41:43
T2: 00:01:06
Run: 00:22:50 (dodgy calf)
Standings
Age category: 2/15 13%
Gender category: 10/79 13%
Overall category: 70/255 27%
Swim 8/79 10%
T1: 21/79 27%
Bike 14/79 18%
T2: 15/79 19%
Run: 14/79 18%
400m swim, 20k bike, 5k run
First tri of the season! I picked this one because it was cheap. And flat. Entering fairly early on a discount, my predicted swim time was not representative by the time I came to race. However, when I saw the start list I was a bit confused as to why I was starting almost four hours after people with similar swim times. Nevermind the inconvenience of a 1pm race, this seemed a little unfair as conditions can change dramatically throughout the day. I readjusted my swim time to make it representative (06:50 rather than 07:30) and was now starting at the beginning of the day.
In fact, I was the second wave, which was weird as I had no chance to watch how T1 worked (I had missed the briefing due to it being 15 mins late and when I needed to be at poolside). When I queued for the swim I realised I had ended up in the 06:15 wave, which was a little worrying as I was nowhere near that fast. However, it turns out everyone in my lane had been rather optimistic about their swimming ability, and frustratingly I ended up being very held up.
Out of the pool and it was a long walk/shuffle along poolside and through the kids pool onto the even longer run to T1! Wiping gravel of my feet, I made a mediocre transition and got myself out onto the bike. The bike route was an uneventful two laps, with minimalist signage (I was glad there were a few in front to follow!). I felt alright but went a little conservative on lap 1, probably losing me a couple of minutes or so.
Back into transition and my T2 was slightly smoother, leading me out onto a very lappy run course. I'd had bad problems with my calf over the last two months, so wasn't even sure I'd be able to complete the course. However, the grass surface really suited my as it was soft and more comfortable for my leg. Once over the "start of run" feeling, I made a consistent effort at the run, picking up slightly in the last lap to give an OK 5k time.
Overall this was a decent but uninspiring course, which provided me with an opportunity to get back into race mode and test out my leg under race conditions. I had a couple of friends join me on the day for their first ever triathlon, and they seemed to really enjoy it. I also treated myself to a post race massage to try to limit further injuries - and the company giving them out (for free) were excellent, I only wish I could remember who they were!
Times
Total time: 01:15:40
Swim: 00:08:36 (long walk/run to T1)
T1: 00:01:25
Bike: 00:41:43
T2: 00:01:06
Run: 00:22:50 (dodgy calf)
Standings
Age category: 2/15 13%
Gender category: 10/79 13%
Overall category: 70/255 27%
Swim 8/79 10%
T1: 21/79 27%
Bike 14/79 18%
T2: 15/79 19%
Run: 14/79 18%
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