NYC Triathlon 2014

Race Report

FAT OR CARBS?

A l(not so short) look at the two main options for fueling in endurance sports

My Famous Fails

A little recap of my accidents

Race Recap of the Demi-Marathon des Microbrasseries

Race report for this new race, complete with multiple distances, and BEER!!!

Wednesday 7 January 2015

Lifetime Fitness Indoor Tri 2015 Race recap




We're not even a week into the new year, and I've got a triathlon in the bag!
This past Sunday in the Lifetime Fitness Indoor Triathlon, which is a national race series that they are putting on in partnership with Ironman. The cool thing about this race series is that instead of any traditional distances, this race is based on time. So the way it breaks down is

10 minute swim
10 minute transition
30 minute bike
10 minute transition
20 minute run.

Distances are measured at each stage , and points are allocated  base on how far you went compared to everyone else. So if there were 100 athletes, then the person who goes the farthest in the swim would get 100 points. second place 99 points, third 98 points and so on, for each stage.

When I heard about this race, I forwarded it to the Central Jersey Tri Club, and we actually managed to work with the organisers to get our own wave, so that the CJTC would be racing as a group.
Everything at the Lifetime Fitness we went too was beautiful. Great facility, from the lockers, to the 2 indoor pools, cycling studio, and massive cardio equipment room.

Here's how my race went;

Swim;  16 lengths, 50 points
In the 10 minutes of the swim, I managed to eek out 16 length. Ok, I'm slow, but having only swam twice since Princeton, it was good enough for me. I also grabbed 50 points (out of 97 athletes), so in truth it was right in the middle of the pack.

Bike: 10.3miles, 76 points


Just warming up
The bike was done in the cycling studio. We had time to figure out our positioning prior to the race, so in the 10 minute transition we had to hustle over to the studio, get everything set up, and grab a quick warm up. With the sound of a bell we started. The hardest thing about this stage was the lack of air and apparent lack of proper air conditioning. It got HOT. And I'm a sweater (one who sweats, not a type of clothing). My strategy was to warm up for the first 10 minutes, push for the next 10, then take it a bit easier on the end to help my legs prepare for the run. I think I maybe could have pushed a bit harder but overall I'm pretty happy with my position among the field with 76 points. Video of the bike portion

Run; 2.71miles, 89 points
The run was obviously done on a treadmill. We were given the bell to start and from there we could control our own speed or incline (though I don't know why anyone would add incline for this kind of race). Employees were helpful and offered towels, water, or gels as we ran. My strategy for this was to start "easy" at 6mph and increase it steadily every minute or so until I found a good pace. i really wanted to hit 3 miles total. By midway I was running at about 8mph, but I was realising that it would be tough to hit 3 miles so I kept increasing the speed. for the last 5 minutes or so I was zipping along at 9.5mph, watching my distance climb. Unfortunately I had probably been too conservative at the start, and ended just shy, but still good enough to grab 89 points.

Overall; 215 points, 18th overall (tied for 17th technically)

WOOHOO! First race of 2015!!!
After the race there was a complimentary massage/stretch table offered to athletes, along with some snacks and water. Really, I think everyone had a great time at this race and I personally would do it again in a flash. No medals handed out, but did I mention that every participant got to  snag an awesome "I'm a Triathlete" shirt? Yup. Totally worth it

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CJTC Representing!
*All photos courtesy of http://photos.rnvillaphotography.com/