Three month ago I asked the ST community for some help on how to get my 5:11 HIM time to below 5 hours. https://forum.slowtwitch.com/...on%2520attack%2520tt
After I made some of the proposed changes I went off to RĂĽgen to end my first serious season in triathlon. The goal of sub 5 hours was set and I felt really comfortable after some good training results.
Before the race:
I and my girlfriend, we arrived the day before the race and RĂĽgen is really beautiful.
This was my first race organized by WTC/Ironman and it was great.
After checking in the bike we watched the final of the Triathlon Bundesliga. It was exciting to watch this high class sprint triathlon.
After some good Thai food with a bunch of white rice I went to bed early.
Race day morning was relaxed with a pro men start at 10.00 am and AG roling start beginning at 10.15.
After checking the bike in transition and a short warm up swim I was ready to go.
The Swim:
The plan was to swim steady but relaxed. The weather was really nice with 20°C/68F, sun and almost no wind. So I was not afraid of too much waves in the Baltic Sea.
I felt confident and found my rhythm. Even the jelly fish couldn’t get me unsettled. I found some fast feet but the person wasn’t good at sighting so I decided to find some better legs. In total a steady swim with not much variation in speed. When I reached the beach I expected a 33 minute swim and believed it could be even at 32. (Did a 32:30min 1.900m swim in the pool).
But when I looked at my watch it said almost 39 minutes. Not the best start to a race where my main goal is not to beat others but to beat the clock.
T1:
This transition is long. My watch says 1.2k until I was on the bike. That I had to use the port a potty didn’t help for a fast T1 either. After 10 minutes I left T1 and I was already down a good 10 minutes on my race plan.
Bike:
The first 10k it was hard for me to find a good rhythm. I was nervous about my time goal and a lot of passing happened. My PM showed stupid values (again) and I paced my feel. I did a hand full of training rides were I hold race power or a little bit more for 60-90 minutes so I knew what it feels like.
After 30k the roads were emptier and I could keep my hand down, keep taking in nutrition and pedal like I used to train. My nutrition was a gel bottle with 9 gels + electrolyte drink and water from aid stations.
I finished the first of 2 laps after 1:14 and tried to pick it up a little bit for the second lap without risking a blow up on the run. I was really surprised during the second lap that the course was pretty empty sometimes. At some point I couldn’t see anyone in front of me for a straight 1k stretch I’d say. Also really fair race for what I have seen.
My second lap was also a 1:14 and so I racked my bike after a 2:28 bike split.
T2:
T2 went a lot better and I didn’t have to bother with nutrition because I have put 4 hydro gels in my trisuit before the race.
After 3 minutes I was out which is fine for the quite long transition zone.
Run:
I came out of T2 after a total time of 3:20 and I knew I had to run a sub 1:40 HM.
The race plan said to run 4:30/km for as long as possible and go slower on this nasty short climb you have to get over four times. I also wanted to take a gel every 4k, take water at every aid station and at 10k I wanted to take Red Bull for extra caffeine and sugar.
So I went out of transition and my legs felt great, but I kept calm and started with a 4:35. I followed my pace and nutrition plan for the first 10k and my legs were still feeling great. At my last HIM in June I had stitches and had to walk at km 17 and I ended up with a 1:45 so I played it conservatively.
I kept passing more and more people and I promised myself to give everything I have. Nutrition wnt well and I took a sip of water at every aid station. I also cooled myself down with water and sponges. The crowd near the finish line (which you have to pass several times) was so amazing it still gives me goose bumps. Or people yelling my name at me and cheering me on this nasty hill.
So I finished the run in 1:36:30 witch a really nice steady run:
I didn’t expect to keep that pace and I could not have gone any faster.
Finish:
I finished in an overall time of 4:56:39
This made me 15/98 in my M25 AG and 159/1201 overall.
(Is this already FOP?)
After the race I found out that the swim was too long and no one, not even the pros, swim below 28 minutes. In 2017 Patrick Lange swam 4 minutes faster than this year. My watch also showed 2200m.
To be honest I hoped for more but now, 3 days after the race, I am happy and thankful for a great season with constant training and no injuries. I didn’t even have a cold the last 12 months. I lost more than 10 kg, set a new 5k, 10k, HM PR, set new PRs over all swim distances, did a 150k bike ride and enjoyed most of my workouts.
I tend to be more of a silent reader, but I want to use the opportunity to thank you as a community for your feedback and information. All this knowledge which is shared here is a great help for new athletes like me.
After I made some of the proposed changes I went off to RĂĽgen to end my first serious season in triathlon. The goal of sub 5 hours was set and I felt really comfortable after some good training results.
Before the race:
I and my girlfriend, we arrived the day before the race and RĂĽgen is really beautiful.
This was my first race organized by WTC/Ironman and it was great.
After checking in the bike we watched the final of the Triathlon Bundesliga. It was exciting to watch this high class sprint triathlon.
After some good Thai food with a bunch of white rice I went to bed early.
Race day morning was relaxed with a pro men start at 10.00 am and AG roling start beginning at 10.15.
After checking the bike in transition and a short warm up swim I was ready to go.
The Swim:
The plan was to swim steady but relaxed. The weather was really nice with 20°C/68F, sun and almost no wind. So I was not afraid of too much waves in the Baltic Sea.
I felt confident and found my rhythm. Even the jelly fish couldn’t get me unsettled. I found some fast feet but the person wasn’t good at sighting so I decided to find some better legs. In total a steady swim with not much variation in speed. When I reached the beach I expected a 33 minute swim and believed it could be even at 32. (Did a 32:30min 1.900m swim in the pool).
But when I looked at my watch it said almost 39 minutes. Not the best start to a race where my main goal is not to beat others but to beat the clock.
T1:
This transition is long. My watch says 1.2k until I was on the bike. That I had to use the port a potty didn’t help for a fast T1 either. After 10 minutes I left T1 and I was already down a good 10 minutes on my race plan.
Bike:
The first 10k it was hard for me to find a good rhythm. I was nervous about my time goal and a lot of passing happened. My PM showed stupid values (again) and I paced my feel. I did a hand full of training rides were I hold race power or a little bit more for 60-90 minutes so I knew what it feels like.
After 30k the roads were emptier and I could keep my hand down, keep taking in nutrition and pedal like I used to train. My nutrition was a gel bottle with 9 gels + electrolyte drink and water from aid stations.
I finished the first of 2 laps after 1:14 and tried to pick it up a little bit for the second lap without risking a blow up on the run. I was really surprised during the second lap that the course was pretty empty sometimes. At some point I couldn’t see anyone in front of me for a straight 1k stretch I’d say. Also really fair race for what I have seen.
My second lap was also a 1:14 and so I racked my bike after a 2:28 bike split.
T2:
T2 went a lot better and I didn’t have to bother with nutrition because I have put 4 hydro gels in my trisuit before the race.
After 3 minutes I was out which is fine for the quite long transition zone.
Run:
I came out of T2 after a total time of 3:20 and I knew I had to run a sub 1:40 HM.
The race plan said to run 4:30/km for as long as possible and go slower on this nasty short climb you have to get over four times. I also wanted to take a gel every 4k, take water at every aid station and at 10k I wanted to take Red Bull for extra caffeine and sugar.
So I went out of transition and my legs felt great, but I kept calm and started with a 4:35. I followed my pace and nutrition plan for the first 10k and my legs were still feeling great. At my last HIM in June I had stitches and had to walk at km 17 and I ended up with a 1:45 so I played it conservatively.
I kept passing more and more people and I promised myself to give everything I have. Nutrition wnt well and I took a sip of water at every aid station. I also cooled myself down with water and sponges. The crowd near the finish line (which you have to pass several times) was so amazing it still gives me goose bumps. Or people yelling my name at me and cheering me on this nasty hill.
So I finished the run in 1:36:30 witch a really nice steady run:
I didn’t expect to keep that pace and I could not have gone any faster.
Finish:
I finished in an overall time of 4:56:39
This made me 15/98 in my M25 AG and 159/1201 overall.
(Is this already FOP?)
After the race I found out that the swim was too long and no one, not even the pros, swim below 28 minutes. In 2017 Patrick Lange swam 4 minutes faster than this year. My watch also showed 2200m.
To be honest I hoped for more but now, 3 days after the race, I am happy and thankful for a great season with constant training and no injuries. I didn’t even have a cold the last 12 months. I lost more than 10 kg, set a new 5k, 10k, HM PR, set new PRs over all swim distances, did a 150k bike ride and enjoyed most of my workouts.
I tend to be more of a silent reader, but I want to use the opportunity to thank you as a community for your feedback and information. All this knowledge which is shared here is a great help for new athletes like me.
Last edited by:
chrissie1993: Sep 12, 18 16:14
