Rarely post race reports but seeing how there wasn’t a lot out there (at least not much I could find) for this race I hope this will provide some good info for others interested in this race.
Pre-race: location is hands down best spots I’ve raced at. Many hotels located beachfront where the race starts/ends with the transition and race expo walkable within minutes. I stayed at Casablanca Hotel where I could literally see the swim start from the window. I arrived Friday and Buoys were set up already for a quick dip in the ocean. Race package pick up was a breeze and if you forgot something you could probably find it at the expo.
Santa Cruz is warm but quite windy later in the day. It is also cool especially if the sun ain’t out so bring a light jacket.
Morning of: standard 4am wake up for the 7am start. Stretch, snack, bathroom and off I went to the transition to set up. 5 min walk from hotel and set up took 20min or so. Temperature was cool and a light jacket recommended. Went back to hotel to drop off my pump and stuff and had breakfast and used washroom again. It’s awesome to have your own washroom vs lining up!
Warmed up with some light exercise and stretches and put wetsuit on 6:35am. Walked over to start but opted not to warm up in ocean. If walking barefoot over to the beach is an issue (cold feet, want to make sure no chance of getting a cut) make sure to bring a pair of disposable slippers or a pair of old socks you can ditch. Slotted into 30-33min group.
Swim 33:52 : this was the part of the race that gave me the most anxiety before arriving. My last 4 races have just been cold and a few with thunderstorms forecasted (Victoria70.3 2018-Cultus Lake 2018-Great White North-Calgary70.3) and I do not do well in cold weather. With the swim being forecasted at 58-59 degrees I was a bit worried. So worried I bought another wetsuit; the Blueseventy Thermal Helix. Would’ve bought this eventually anyways with Oceanside on the roster for 2020.
The water was fine. Even for me and I’m a wimp for cold. I swam in San Francisco enroute to Santa Cruz and already knew the water was good but it was nice to jump into the water a couple days before race and know I wasn’t going to freeze on race day. I was very comfortable with my Thermal wetsuit and probably would’ve been fine in my regular wetsuit too.
Once in the water, it took all 10s to adjust to the temperature and I was swimming comfortably. A little chop but nothing bad. The swim is clockwise around the pier and I breath left mainly. A tip would be if you breath left like me and it’s sunny, wear dark goggles. Mine were mirrored cobalt and I was blinded on occasion. I swam quite straight, almost too straight as I kept grazing the buoys hahaha! Didn’t feel like a tough swim overall probably due to the extra lift I was getting from the salt water. Didn’t really have the experience or skills to draft in ocean swims with the chop and swells so mainly swam solo with some people in front on and off. Out of the water and was feeling pretty good. Swam 1 min slower than my anticipated time but many unknowns here (current, chop, etc) for me to determine how I swam. But close enough.
T1 5:04 Looooong run ~500-600m but barefoot is fine as route to T1 was flat and relatively clean. Many people opted to wear shoes. Once you grab bike it’s another longish run out to mount line ~ 150m?
Oh, and no shoes allowed to be clipped onto bike so you need to run in your bike shoes but can do flying mount just make sure to run a little past the mount line before doing so as it’s a very narrow lane and I had like 2 people stopped and mounting right at the line.
Bike 2:30:02 : make sure to preview the first 4-5k of ride as it is narrow and twisty. Race organizers posted a very informative video on Facebook but I’d recommend doing a short ride to check out the first bit of the course especially if you plan on going fast in aero from the start.
Once you’re past the twisty turny section and out onto the highway, it’s usually a headwind. I didn’t find it bad but it’s reflected in a slow first 45km. It’s definitely a course of rollers with a few where I got out of aerobars. There’s really only one big climb but it wasn’t bad just longer than the other rollers. A few sections going downhill you could feel crosswinds. I’m used to riding aero in winds but I can see where one may be uncomfortable going downhill with these crosswinds. Roads were beautiful with exception of a short section that was a little rough I think 30-35km into ride that lasted maybe 1-2km.
After turnaround I was flying. First 45k I avg 33.2km/hr last 45km I avg 39km/hr on less overall power for a 36km avg ride. Not the fastest but this course isn’t a fast course due to the first few km and the return onto those kms. Made sure to save the legs for the run and tried not to burn too many matches trying to punch up the rollers. Spot on for target time and power. Would’ve been a bonus if it was any faster.
T2 1:32 : uneventful. Oh, forgot to mention the transition is in a soccer field with super soft turf.
Run 1:30:55 : goal 1:27 so wasn’t super stoked with the 1:30 but the terrain was also not conducive for a fast run. Starts with a quick short run into course then you have a short steep climb. Next few km are through the twisty roads you biked out and that was good. Then you head into rougher roads and eventually onto dirt/compact sandy trail that goes out and around to some beautiful lookout points. Mixed in are some short climbs and descents but definitely not really flat overall. The terrain will slow you down, at least it slowed me down. And it’s not the type of run where you just zone out and run since there’s so much change in terrain and enough undulations to break up that “zoned in†feeling. Lots of aid stations and they provide ice too which was nice. Last 3 km just felt long but lots of cheering. Last 250m you bomb down the hill you started at and sharp turn onto the beach for last 80m or so.
I’m hindsight I may have chosen a different shoe to run this course on mainly due to the terrain. I ran in Saucony Type A8 racing flats and normally would be fine but maybe something with just a touch more material for the sake of the bottoms of my feet would’ve been nice.
Overall finished 6th in my age with 5th place 10min ahead so I didn’t even feel “bad†like “oh, I could’ve caught him†hahahaha!
Great event and well run with very nice weather. Some may find it hot but it wasn’t bad as I enjoy the heat and race better in heat than cold.
Hope this helps some people looking to race this awesome event.
Cheers