Second season in triathlon. My first race ever was the Pacific Coast Triathlon last year.(1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike, 3 mile run). As expected, all 3 were pretty slow. Since then I have done 2 more sprints, 2 Olympics, 2 half marathons, and a number of 10ks.
I have been training much more than last year and was looking forward to the Pacific Coast Triathlon this past Sunday to compare my time vs. last year.
Well, the big swell in Southern California caused them to cancel the swim, so they made it a duathlon - 1/2 mile run along the beach, 12 mile bike and 3 mile run.
My bike improved by 10 minutes and my 3 mile run improved by 5 minutes.
My question is this - How much did not skipping the swim have an impact on the rest of my times?
Same equipment as last year (Older Litespeed Saber on 650 wheels) but I’m about 8 pounds lighter.
I was BOP (65 out of 76 in AG) last year and MOP (48 out of 111) this year. I also lost about a minute in T2 by going to the wrong rack and wondering where the heck my shoes went (stupid mistake and it cost me 8 or 9 places. I wasn’t going for a podium spot, but for me it is a pride thing and I hate giving up time for mental miscues).
Next race is in 9 weeks - The Orange County Triathlon. This will be my second time on this course and I will be anxious to see how much I have improved.
You answered your question:
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1/2 mile swim or run is not going to have that much of an impact for the bike or run.
Fred.
Let me re-phrase and simplify:
Did I really gain 10 minutes on the bike or was some of this the result of not doing the swim?
This is not a comparison between a duathlon and a triathlon. You merely ran about a three minute warm-up before getting on the bike. Did this short run vs a much longer time in the water help? Probably, but not by ten minutes. I think it has already been stated that you answered the question yourself. Sign up for a similar distance du with a 3-5 mile run up front and see what happens to your times. BTW, nice improvement!