2013 Fairport Harbor Triathlon Race Report

The Fairport Harbor Triathlon is a local sprint race close to home. They do a nice job with this race and the cost is crazy cheap $20-30 depending on when you sign up. Not the mention that it is now chip timed and for that small entry they gave away a tech tee and vouchers for free pizzas!

This was the second year that my husband and I raced at Fairport and while I was disappointed to have a slower time this year, with the longer run course and being sick for a couple days before the race that is to be expected. Still it was a decent day out there as the weather held out and I was happy with how I placed. Also, this is my last triathlon in the 30-34 age group as my birthday is right around the corner!

Prerace:

All setup in transition and ready to race!

With this race being 10 minutes from home and not starting until 8am, I was able to sleep in until 6, which is great for a race morning! After the usual routine of shower, coffee, breakfast and loading up the car we left home around 6:45 and arrived at Fairport and parked by 7. We had plenty of time to get our bikes and gear setup in transition and to warm up in the water before the race start. The water was definitely warmer this year than last but I still opted to wear my sleeveless wetsuit.

Swim & T1:

I actually felt pretty relaxed before the swim start. As I mentioned the water temperature was comfortable and I headed towards the front left of the women 34 & under wave. Starting out as usual it took me a couple minutes to settle in to the swim. I'm definitely not a sprint swimmer so I didn't expect to be very fast in a 500m swim. It was hard to see with the sun in my eyes the first 250 of the swim and for such a short swim it seemed to take a while. I was hoping for a time around 10-12 minutes but exiting the water I was disappointed to see 14. I got my wetsuit half way off and there was a good bit of a run ahead before the bike. My transition was 3:44 for a total time of 17:44. Surprisingly I didn't do as bad as I thought placing 5/16 in my ag division here and 41/112 in the female division.

Bike & T2:

The bike was fast and fun - pretty flat but also very windy in some sections by the lake and heading back to the beach. I like the course for the most part except a section where we went through a little park - that just seemed to slow me down. There were also some instances where I had to pass bikers that were riding way left two or three people next to each other. This was annoying but I just yelled and went around them.
There was also a bad bike accident as one of the athletes was hit head on by a cyclist making a wide turn from the opposite direction. This is always sad and scary to see and I hope the athletes are okay!

My goal for the ride was 36 minutes. My bike computer said 36:30 (average just under 20.4 mph) and with T2 at 2:31 ended up at 38:51. I'm not sure why T2 was so slow for me. There is a little bit of a run so that could have added a little bit. My bike split was 2/16 in my ag division and 8/112 in the female division.

Run & Finish:

New hardware for 3rd in 30-34 AG

My run started off a bit sluggish. I was able to power up the hill at the start but my legs didn't seem to be moving as fast as I wanted them to. It probably took me a mile to warm up and then I am sure that I had a negative split. Not much to say about the run. Short and sweet. Not my best run but a decent time of 24:48 (7:59 average pace). My goal was 23-24 minutes so I was a little slower than planned but I'm glad I was able to sneak in a sub 8 run by the skin of my teeth! My run was also 2/16 in my ag division and 10/112 in the female division.

I wasn't super happy at the finish as my time was 5+ minutes slower than last year. At the time I didn't realize the run course was longer by maybe .30. That coupled with a bit of a slower swim and second transition probably made the difference. My finish time was 1:21:22, good for 3rd in my AG division and 10th overall.

Postrace:

Postrace with my awesome hubby and training partner

After the race we chatted with some of our athlete friends and hung around for the awards. Then we headed home for a well-earned lunch and IPA!

Thanks to Team rev3 sponsors Powerbar for the fuel, Pearl Izumi for the kit and shoes and Blueseventy for the googles and SBR Sports Tri-slide!

Adventure Runs, Long Rides and Things to Come

An Adventurous Run:

It's been a fun season so far and the training continues! Steve and I had signed up to race an adventure trail run in Ashtabula last weekend but were unable to race. We ended up having our own "adventure" trail run at Girlded Rd Reservation!

Friday late night and Saturday morning we had gotten bad storms and rain in Lake County. That translated to a mess Saturday morning. Luckily our house had not flooded but the pool was a different story. It was a freaky deaky green color! We decided to leave the pool that morning and headed to Girdled to run the trails.

The trails were very torn up as the river had flooded - carving out whole areas of the trail and replacing crushed stone with a muddy, mucky mess. Trees and branches were down and it was mud puddles galore. Needless to say it made for an interesting and challenging hour and a half run Saturday. Later that afternoon we bought a bunch of chemicals for the pool, which is never fun.

Sunday Riding and Pool Time:

Sunday we headed out for a 50-mile training ride. Some of the roads were strewn with debris from the storm and the entrance to Headlands Beach was closed due to flooding so there was some rerouting that had to take place. The ride went pretty well but the heat and humidity were getting to me in the afternoon. I was quite happy to get home to have a cold IPA post ride! A few minutes of relaxing by the pool and it was time to get to work. Steve vacumed the pool and I skimmed for what felt like hours but was probably an hour. Does that count as an arms workout? Finally a little time to float around on our rafts. Ahhh, I wish that I could say this was all we did for the rest of the day but we were soon back to reality of more chores. Yuck!

Things to Come:

This week we have some more mild temperatures than 90s, which is okay by me. Lots of swim, bike, run training to get in and a fun weekend ahead including a beer tasting Friday night and we're racing the Fairport Harbor Sprint Tri Sunday. This race is 10 minutes from home at most so I will get to sleep in a little...maybe! Next weekend Steve is racing the Greater Cleveland Triathlon Oly and I get to relax and cheer with the kiddos! Then the weekend after that we are running The Perfect 10 Miler, our anniversary race! And of course Rev3 Cedar Point is just around the corner...can't wait! I am hoping to PR the half course again this year!

Making a Come Back Again at Fairport Harbor Triathlon

Sunday I raced the Fairport Harbor sprint triathlon. What a great little race! A lot of local talent came out to race and/or work or spectate at the race. I had a blast and was just so thrilled to be able to race again given the ups and downs with my foot. With the ankle sprain a couple weeks ago and only running once before the race last week, I was not sure how the running portion of the race would go. Fortunately it went pretty well.

It was a fun day and my goal was to finish in my age group and top ten females in the race if possible. Reasonable goals given my strength on the bike and assuming my run would be par. The swim I would not count on to get me to where I need to be in the race. If anything it is usually to my detriment and I spend the entire race catching up and passing people.

Pre-race:

Because Fairport Harbor is so close (about 10 minutes away) we went up to ride the course and swim the course Saturday. We also picked up our packets with everything we needed for the race. I think this made Sunday a little easier/smoother. 

As of late I have been getting myself ready to race the night before. This race was no different. Hubby switched out my bike wheels to my race wheels and I cleaned up our bikes since they were a little dirty. We had our bikes and kits and all of our gear ready to go for Sunday morning. We were able to sleep in until almost 6AM, which was a real treat on a triathlon race day! 

Chillen with the hubby pre-race

We woke up, made some multi-grain waffles with peanut butter and nutella, packed up and headed out by 6:45 arriving at the race start around 7. It was pretty packed already. We grabbed our bikes and transition bags and headed to the transition area. Because this wasn't a USAT race, we were able to rack anywhere so the hubby and I racked next to each other a row or two back from the bike out/run out area. We were set up and ready by 7:30 and were able to talk with some of our friends.

The start:

The Kayak triathlons went first. Steve's wave was to start at 8:10 and mine would start at 8:15. We got in the water around 8 and it was cold. Brrr! Neither of us had brought our wetsuits since the swim was just 500 meters but I was wishing I had brought my sleeveless. It was difficult to warm up with the Kayakers and Lake Erie being so shallow in the Harbor so we just got wet and waited. They called for Steve's wave and they started. They called for my wave and I was off.

500M Swim:

Finishing the swim

In true sprint fashion, the start was a complete feeding frenzy. I lined up near the front right but had a difficult time with my stroking and breathing the first few minutes as people settled in. The swim is shallow enough that people can touch so some were walking or running versus swimming and that made it more difficult to get around some folks. After 3-4 minutes I found my breathe and as I rounded the buoy to swim back I was on the left just next to the swim lane markers. I felt much more relaxed swimming the 250 back. Finally I saw the people ahead walking/running out as the water got very shallow. I stood and started running while I took off my swim cap, googles, etc. My Ironman watch said my swim was about 10 minutes but it took me a good minute or two to run out of the water and the transition was long so likely another minute to get to my bike.

T1:

As I said it was a long transition running from the beach up through a parking lot then through a grassy lane into the transition area. I reached my bike and dried off a bit, put on my socks and cycling shoes, sunglasses and aero helmet and grabbed my bike. I was running it out and thinking again that it was a long transition running up the grassy part to reach the bike mounting area. I would estimate at least 2+ minutes in transition here.

12.4 mile Bike:

start of bike course just before the hill!

The bike course is pretty flat and easy. One negative is that there is a hill at the start! It's not very long but sometimes those short, steep ones are tough! I had set my bike into a low gear to make the climb easy. As I mounted and started to pick up speed I was yelling at some of the newbie riders who were not clipped in on racing bikes to get to the right so I could pass. Then I was off. I enjoyed the ride. Some parts more than others. I passed people the entire race. The female who ended up in 9th overall passed me on the bike the last 1/2 mile or so. I felt pretty decent since my average speed was around 20.5 mph for a split of 36. It wasn't my fastest ever effort but not bad considering the winds on the last few miles of the ride back in. On the bike I had fueled with the Powerbar Perform and also took in a chocolate PowerBar gel around the halfway mark.

T2:

T2 was pretty basic. Run the bike in, rack. Switch shoes to my Pearl Izumi Transitions, throw on my Rev3 visor and go! I was probably around a minute here.

5K Run:

The run started with the same hill as the bike so that was a bit challenging but nothing too crazy. I felt strong from the beginning. I passed people the whole race and was just passed by a couple of guys the last mile and one 15-year old female who was 10th Overall with maybe 1/2 mile to go. I liked the course being a loop versus and out and back. I felt it was easier. I was laughing, joking and smiling for the whole run. It was a good feeling. I did not wear my Garmin but based on my IM watch splits I estimate my run at around 24 minutes so likely a 7:45-7:50 pace.

The Finish:

Excited to finish!

I love finishes! Then again who doesn't? This was a fun finish but I was a little nervous since it finished uphill in the grass. I did not want to hurt my ankle AGAIN! I finished in 1:15:36, 11th overall female and 3rd in my age group. Really 2nd after looking at their results since the woman who took 2nd overall was in my age group too. I am pretty happy with the result given where I am with my injury, training, etc. As usual it was nice to have Steve cheering me on as well as some friends throughout the race and finish!

Post race:

Wrapping up awards before the winking lizard with friends

After the race we hung out for the awards then headed over to the Winking Lizard in Mentor with friends for food and beer. That was a lot of fun! I was pretty exhausted after the race and it was a real treat to be able to use the NormaTec MVP compression boots for recovery!

Closing:

Special thanks to the race director, my husband, friends who cheered and/or raced too! And of course to my awesome sponsors: Rev3 Triathlon, PowerBar, Swiftwick, Blueseventy, SBR Sports and Normatec!