on the 18th of May I took part in the Malta National Duathlon Championships held for the first time at the Zebbug Bypass.
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| Bike Setup for 3athletes doing the full distance |
Although the weather in the morning was fine, dark clouds and quite strong winds characterized the afternoon. However, the atmosphere among the participants and the excellent setup from the Malta Triathlon Association made it very encouraging to race.
Although I had never done a full Duathlon and actually never trained for it, I wanted to do the best I could in the splits, especially the first run and bike segment. My weakness has always been the run and today I had to do it twice. On the start line I was feeling a bit nervous - not something normal for me. Since I have only done Triathlons with deep water starts I do not usually look at other people's faces as they are waiting for the signal to start and seeing that made the difference.
My target for the first run was 4:50min/km-5:00min/km and was determined to stick to it. At the start everybody rushes out at a higher pace than usual due to euphoria or nerves getting to them but then settle in their natural pace. When settled, I could see that the pace I had targeted was a bit slow compared to the rest and decided to increase even though I had been telling myself to stick to the plan as the race was the longest I have ever done and did not know how my body would respond to that increase. I finished the 8.5km in 42.02 - a very good time for my standards.
Entering in transition area was a very different feeling as this was the biggest area I have ever been in but I spotted the bike immediately. Transition to bike was the smoothest ever (probably because it was on a descent). However, after the first 3K of pedaling I felt the first cramp - not the usual one that locks your muscle until you stretch, but one which enables you to continue but not push harder. The bike segment, which should have been my strong area was agonising - constant cramping, winds picking up, numbness in whole hip area and I almost gave up at a certain point. The bike seat was extremely uncomfortable and I had to get up from the aero bars and from the seat a couple of times to alleviate the pain. I finished the bike split of 38km in 1:13 - not the best but still close to my target.
At the end of the bike, I made the mistake of forgetting to take out my foot from the shoes and ended up losing a couple of seconds at the dismount area before entering transition. My morale was very low as I was seeing a lot of athletes who had finished. This transition was not as smooth as the previous one. I was also afraid to push I felt my legs really tired and had been cramping all along. However, in retrospect, I am happy with the second run as although I had to stop for a few seconds due to heavy cramping, I managed to gain a good pace and increase throughout every 1K split. I finished the 4.5km in 21.20, just 20sec away from my previous competitor.
My target for the whole completion time was 2:20 and I managed to finish in 2:16:42. My placing was not that good but considering that it's my first Duathlon I am quite confident that I'll get back stronger next time. Now back to training to successfully compete in the Birkirkara St. Joseph Sprint Triathlon Series Race 1 on the 9th of June - just 3 weeks apart from this race.
I wish to thank my wife Maria and baby Elena for being there to support me and all others who encouraged me on the day.
Anatoly
