Race details:
Castaic Lake, California
Swim: 0.25 mi - open water, lake swim
Bike: 10 mi - road, out and back, hill climb, sprint around the prison
Run: 3 mi - run, out and back around local park
Race Summary:
What a race! This race always has a special place as the Mark Nakamaru Classic. Although Sanjay and his calf cramping at the prison fiasco tried to steal the thunder, this was always the Mark race. And it was a bummer a shoulder injury kept him out of this one! He didn't wanna doggie paddle the swim and claim his 1st place medal as the only guy in his age group like I suggested. Ha!
There really are so many reasons to love this race tho. Let's see if we can catch most of them here:
-Grassroots race put on by the local high school track coach as a fundraiser for the team, so def a good cause!
-As a grassroots race, exclusively organized by volunteers and safety upheld by volunteer police officers
-Since it lacks a big budget, the race is really old school with no timing mats (aka hand timers) as well as low tech signage and markings
-Small race + 5 spot podium = Prime opportunity to race glory!!! :D
-Lake swim is so amazingly calm and awesome for beginners, fast for experienced racers
-Bike can be treacherous due to potholes and speed bumps, but generally well protected by the police and the lap around the prison is perfectly flat and awesome
-Park run is surprisingly tough with some "hills" given that it's a sprint and you're going all out
-Post race awards ceremony where the RD always shouts out Dave as Bob's Big Boy and that he's "giving away free fries after the race"
As far as how I ran this race, I just went all out. I wanted to beat Dave. Kim even dubbed the race Pokey v Pablo. A very fitting title with Mayweather v McGregor later that night. But given that it was just the two of us and our families for spectators, I wanted to win. Well really, I had to win. Dave is still nursing is achilles injury so it was very critical for me to win.
I killed the swim coming out of the water around 6:40ish (based on what I heard the RD scream at me). The bike was a bit tougher. I didn't have my watch for this race, so I couldn't break down splits from previous races. The new bike felt faster almost the entire time... except for the climb. But the climbs never feel good. Dave caught me here on the only downhill. I kept him in my sights on the way back, but I was definitely a little mentally defeated that he caught and passed me given my huge swim lead and my new bike... :(
Then I just ran him down with my heart attack run. I mean every step I literally thought I was gonna have a heart attack. It was tough to keep going like that, but I did. I had to. I needed to catch him and I didn't want him to suddenly "turn it on" without my knowing and blowing me away to the finish line. So I just kept running and running and running. It got me 2nd place, but it was BRUTAL! LOL!
Historical Race Breakdown:
2014 aka The N00B aka Year 0 of Triathlon - 1:16:31 - 13th/55
2015 aka The Flat Tire Race - 1:17:12 - 5th/22
2015 aka Finally Podiumed - 1:00:58 - 3rd/17
2017 aka Finally Cracked 1Hour - 0:59:55 - 2nd/21
Given how close the race is, I haven't ran it as much as I would have liked. And that's a bummer because it is one of the few that make it easier to podium due to awarding the Top 5 spots instead of Top 3. Since it's a community race, there's no timing mat and so it's all hand timed. I nicknamed each race just for kicks and giggles. The only rough one was The Flat Tire Race. And I still kicked butt doing it, but I definitely had a chance at 1st place if I didn't flat out. Biggest bummer for this one is missing out on 1st place by just 20s... Aye... I think this was my best shot...
Map and Stats Plot:
No Forerunner 920xt so I had to just use my Vivofit which just gave me time and pace... No GPS, No HR, No sport splits... :(
Heart Rate Zones:
No Forerunner 920xt means no Heart Rate... A sad clown to consequence... :(
Swim:
No GPS and No swim split. I put a Google maps snapshot just for kicks and the "approximate" swim finish based on the race coordinator yelling at me out of the water lol
Bike:
Same deal, will stop repeating. Really couldn't get much info about the bike leg.
Run:
Vivofit gives the most info for the run. Without GPS, it just takes into account time and pedometer/accelerometer data. Based on that, it looks like my average pace for the run swung between 8 and 10:30 min/mile.
Pics:
Pre-race talk and Mark egging us on
Pokey v Pablo... Who needs Mayweather v McGregor
We look less awesome without swim gear on, but the high up shot makes the background look cooler
Getting out that water quick! Def top 10 according to the spectators haha
Fewer pics on the bike, but spectators still got a few!
Heel strike or mid-foot strike? Apparently both?
And Dave just trying not to strike his recently recovered achilles!
Worn out from a big battle, Dave and I were stoked to both medal!
So happy to medal!!! And first race with the new ride!!!
My little cousin's name is Rhiannon and I've never seen that anywhere else but on this menu lol
Post race breakfast at Egg Plantation where I made my own Elvis French Toast!!! (PB filled french toast with banana topping and side order of bacon haha)
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