I Passed Matt Reed (a.k.a., the quick race report)

Well the Kona debate turned out to be of no consequence (though I appreciate everyone's advice), as once again my swim was clearly lacking. Here's a somewhat quick recap, and then I'll post my power file and run HR & pace file later.

Swim:
The water felt very cold for the first two or three minutes (during which time my wave was moving into starting position and then treading water), but was fine thereafter. I wore a silicone cap under my race cap. The first half of the swim went great. I spotted frequently and kept my effort right where I wanted it. After the turnaround (see swim map for more details) the sun was so bright I couldn't see anything. I spotted based solely on nearby swimmers, as my best option was to assume that those swimmer could see other swimmers that in turn could see other swimmers that could hopefully see where they were going. I dropped my effort a tad as I considered how to best navigate the course. (I do not mean to imply that the sun was the cause of my slow time; I know that much, much more work in the pool is necessary!) The swim went by fast and I felt strong exiting the water.

Bike:
The 35-39 AG males were on top of me within five miles of the start of the bike. I really do not like how most AGers ride. As an example, I'm riding uphill at 315 W, which is too much for me and most other AG riders, while passing another AGer. All the sudden, the dude I'm passing takes off, putting out what must have been 400+ W. That means I have two options: (1) put out 450 W for 30 seconds to complete the pass or (2) give up on making the pass and put myself at risk for a drafting penalty (even though I never entered the dude's slipstream and we were only going 12 miles per hour). It's a lose, lose situation because the guy I'm passing doesn't know how to ride at an even effort. Repeat that scenario in various forms about 15 times and that was what my ride was like, and that's especially surprising because I was riding with some fast and experienced AGers. (I'm trying to keep this short, but I have a lot more to say about this in a future post. Also, I don't mean to be negative because there are some positive things to take from those scenarios.)

Anyhow, the course's hills made for a tougher than expected ride. The steepest hill was similar to Old Stage Coach in Boulder and required 315 W or so just to get up. I put out 250, 260, and even 270 W during the beginning and mid stages of the ride and felt great. By mile 45 or so I was getting tired and started using my power meter as a carrot (just as outlined in my race plan). The great thing was that even though my fatigue caused my output to drop to 200 to 220 W at my standard HIM perceived exertion, I had a tailwind and was cruising at circa 25 mph. As a result, there wasn't much of a need to really push myself to try to keep my wattage around 240-250 W at the end of the ride. Overall a solid ride. I need my riding to continue to improve to shave 2-3 minutes or more per year in order to reach the level I want to reach.

Run:
I usually feel good at the start of the run, and this race was no exception. I was cruising absolutely effortlessly for the first 3-4 miles. I glanced at my watch to check my pace and HR occasionally, and my HR was mid to high 160s and my pace was fast. The first time I looked it was 5:10/mile. Okay, I thought too fast despite the low HR. I slowed a bit and looked again a few moments later. 5:25/mile. Hmmm, I needed to ease off a bit more. Next check: 5:40/mile. Now I reasoned that since my PE was low, since my HR was in check, and since this is a very competitive race that I should just go for it.

As an awesome aside, as I approached the turn around at about mile 3.25, Matt Reed was running the other way maybe an 1/8 mile to a 1/4 mile ahead of me (just to be clear, he was ahead of me by that distance plus a full 6.5 miles since he was on his second lap and I was on my first). After passing the turn around and running another 1.5 miles, I could see that I was gaining on him. This was too great of a situation not to pick up the pace a bit and try to make a pass. Slowly I gained ground and at about mile 5.5 I passed Matt Reed. I repeat: I caught and ran by Matt Reed. For a second it seemed like the #2 place sign holder (you know, one of the guys on bikes carrying signs showing the current position of the top pros) was staying with me and pulling away from Mr. Reed. I said, "Hey, I'm an age grouper." The guy said something like, "I know. You're running really strong." We chit chatted for another half minute before the sign holder dropped back. That was the highlight of my race. (Yes, I know Matt Reed is a faster runner than I am. Yes, I know he tweeted that he had a bad race. Yes, I know that he was probably just cruising because his finishing place was secure. It was still cool...one of those moments that makes racing with pros on the course so fun.)

At mile 7 I approached a few AGers that were hauling, and one of them was in my AG. It took me a while to catch them and then make the pass. I was worried they'd hang with me and sprint by at the finish. My plan was to keep the pace tough but steady until a downhill, and then pick up the pace to try to discourage either guy from trying to stay with me. For a while I could hear one of the guys running with me, but he seemed to drop back once I picked up the pace. Still, I ran the last 3 miles with the sole intent of not being re-passed. (As an aside, I think I learned a lot of racing and having the proper racing mentality at this race, and that will come in handy in the future.) The last two miles were tough. By this stage the concrete running surface was taking its toll and my legs were telling me to stop. Fortunately, the crowd support for the last mile along with the adrenaline that comes with being nearly finished allowed me to keep pushing the pace.

Overall:
I have too much to say to summarize here. I am not satisfied with 4th in my AG regardless of how competitive the race was. I think I need to concentrate on swimming for the next several months (years?) even if it means not on racing well. That doesn't mean not race, as racing experience is valuable, but to train for long term peak performance instead of race-to-race peak performance. Otherwise, I want to ride faster. I want to keep working really, really hard on the bike to gain some time there. I'm actually really enjoying trainer sessions with killer intervals. My run is great, but I need to cut off 1 to 2 minutes per year for the next two years to have a world class run (and hey, why not shoot for world class?).