Sprint Triathlon Series Race 2

Hi,

last Sunday was a very important day for me as I had to take part in the Birkirkara St. Joseph Sprint Triathlon Series Race 2 of 4 and wanted to check if I have improved over the last 5 weeks. The venue was changed to the usual Coast Road just opposite the Coast Line Hotel. A friend of mine, Keith Galea gave me some important tips on how to tackle all the things one has to do on race day so I gave it a shot.

I was there earlier than usual. This made me relax and prepare one thing a time without rushing through transition preparations and warm up. In fact I was intent to warm up properly for the swim as well; something which I had never done before.

The race had some delays to start - it was the only time I was getting nervous. At the start there was the usual chaos of hitting people and getting hit but today it was much worse - I could tell there were much more competitors as I could not get past some athletes till the first buoy. However, I was relaxed drafting behind some swimmer's legs to keep fresh for the remaining part. I was also trying to keep as straight as possible as I had noticed I have some difficulty in going straight during this past week of frequently training in open sea. I was very happy when I finished as apart from not being tired, my watch showed 14:29: a Personal Best by 11sec.

 

Large Number of Participants in this Race

Swim Leg Details 

 Transition was quite smooth and quick and on the bike I felt strong. I was not sure about speed or cadence; I just went by feel. Looking back at the data now it was a very good feel - great bike finish time of 32:59, very good average speed and an average cadence of 94RPM. By finishing the bike in such a time I beat my previous Personal Best of 37:16 by an astounding 4mins 17sec.

Bike Leg Details

 

Transition 2 had only one hiccup - I could not get my right running shoe in properly but on the whole it was still less than one minute total. I was close to feeling some cramps as soon as out of transition but the last gel I had helped a lot. Still my first kilometre was difficult after pushing so much on the bike but I knew I was trained to overcome that feeling. Beginning the second kilometre I had an athlete dashing past me and I knew I had to step up a gear. I increased the pace as much as I could sustain. I could not plan ahead till the last kilometre as I was out of breath in no time with the increase. I was finishing each kilometre in an average of 4:30/km - much better than my usual race average of 4:40-4:45 and somehow I was sustaining that pace even though I had found it difficult to keep during training. The last kilometre was very difficult - my form broke down to manage that kind of pace and when close to the finish gantry I looked back and saw someone trying to run past me. That was the kick I needed to sprint the last few metres and finish the run in 22:31.

Run Leg Details 

I was extremely happy because I knew I had made a great time of 1hr 11mins 5sec. I threw myself on the nearby pavement breathless but proud of my improvement of 6mins 31sec over my Personal Best of 1hr 17mins 36sec obtained in the previous race at Kalkara 5 weeks ago. However, upon comparing my best time on the Coast Road course (which was of 1hr 19mins 20sec), the improvement is 8mins 15 sec.

I finished 20th out of 59 triathletes and placed 14th in my category and very happy with the result obtained today. I want to continue improving as much as I can - now I have 6 weeks of hard work to prepare for the next one. I also wish to thank all those who helped me in my training and those who supported me during the race especially my wife Maria and baby Elena.

Sprint Triathlon Series Race 1

Hi,

On the 9th of June I took part in the Birkirkara St. Joseph sprint Triathlon Series Race 1 of 4. Contrary to the previous 2 races I have done this year, this was one of my 'A Races' for this year; meaning that my training since last December was geared for this race.

This race was a very particular one for all the Triathlon community as a sudden change in venue was announced two weeks before from Salina Coast Road to Kalkara close to Rinella bay. On one hand I was worried as I did not know anything about the new place and wanted to train there (Kalkara) as much as I could to familiarise myself. On the other hand I saw an opportunity as being a beginner I would always be at a disadvantage when it came to confidence on the route. Adding to that were different opinions from fellow triathletes about the actual transition place, swimming buoys and turnaround points; together with colder than usual weather and sea temperature. These doubts were not helping me at all.

 

On the day I was a bit later than usual so I had to manage my time much more to allow myself time for registration, setting up of transition area and warm up. I managed everything just in time to hear the race briefing so that any doubts about the course would be cleared. It was a bit more confusing than I had anticipated but I could notice that it was a common feeling as the number of questions were endless so we did not start at 7 as planned. I went in the cold water trying to clear out the initial shivers and also clear my mind to concentrate. I was telling myself that I was prepared no matter what.














I had a good start in the water. I had plenty of space to move although I could not find anyone to draft behind. Close to first buoy I had some trouble with goggle and had to switch to breaststroke for a couple of seconds to adjust and help to lower a bit my heart rate as it was skyrocketing due to the excitement and cold. However, after the fist buoy I lost my orientation and could not see the next buoy. Thankfully a friend of mine called my attention to adjust my course. At that point I decided to make up for all that lost time so I pushed on. I knew I could do it as swimming is my strongest area. I finished my swim in 14:40 - a Personal Best by 19sec.

Swim Course

Transition was much longer compared to Salina Coast Road. I was a bit slow as I feared slipping but when I took the bike I managed to insert my feet in the shoes pretty fast. Now the biggest hurdle of the race was a slope which separated the bay from the bike and run courses.

Once I went up the slope I tried to settle in the bike by taking a gel but for the first kilometre the course was slightly uphill and I struggled. At the first turn, however, I settled and began finding opportunities to push as much as I could. I was particularly effective especially in the turns. I felt quite good as I practiced the route and knew what needed to be taken care of especially gearing choices. Speed and cadence were exactly as anticipated although heart rate was high. I finished the bike course in 38:02.

Bike Course

I had to descend the hard slope to get back to transition. I slowed down as I had already managed to take out my feet from the shoes before descending. T2 was much faster. My feet were aching a bit from pushing so much on the bike. I kept telling myself that I had to push on. It was really hard getting up the slope again and settling at the pace of 4:40min/km and for the first kilometre (being all uphill) I was close to 5:00min/km. However, the last 4 kilometres were pretty good and I finished the run in 23:14 - a Personal Best by a whooping 2:20 over last year's Sprint Races.

                                Run Course






I finished the total race in 1hr 17mins 36sec (Full Results here) with a good placing and an improvement of almost 2mins over last year's best time of 1:19:20 in Race 4 of the Sprint Series. I am also very happy that I got a Personal Best in both the Swim and Run. Considering the course is new and less fast than last year, I noticed that everyone slowed their time by an average of 4minutes; thus making my improvements much more meaningful. I am determined to get better and improve on my time for this course - now it's just 5 weeks for the next race.

I wish to thank my wife Maria and baby Elena for coming to support me :)

Thanks
Anatoly