Tips For Your First Race
Jarrett Pflieger
So you signed up for your first triathlon in 2010; that is a great first step. Now it is time to put in the work. The first thing you need to do is accept you will not have a perfect race, or set any course records your first time out. Too many athletes go into their first few races with their hopes set too high, which creates excessive nerves and a bitter feeling when they don’t live up to their own lofty expectations.
If you are the opposite and are afraid of being the last one across the line, I can guarantee that will not happen if you train hard and prepare yourself. Even if you are last across the line, think of all the people that didn’t finish. Even if you are unable to finish, think of the millions of people that don’t even have the ability or will to get out there and do this in the first place.
There is nothing wrong with not finishing, being slow, or not reaching your goal times. Once you stop thinking about that and concentrate on going out there and racing to your abilities, you will have a lot more fun and probably be faster as well.
Here are a few more tips on how you can have a successful race:
1.Train how you race
If you are racing a sprint distance, train for a sprint distance. If you train around an eight minute/mile pace, don’t expect to sustain a seven minute/mile pace in your race. Know the distances of your race and first make sure you can make it that distance. Only then should you concentrate on increasing your speed.
2. Relax
You are going to be nervous on race day; it is inevitable. Just make sure your nerves don’t overwhelm you and affect your performance. Always picture success in your mind and visualize your perfect race. This is supposed to be for fun, enjoy the day and don’t get too caught up in the competitiveness just yet.
3. Practice
If your first race is also your first day of training, you are probably not going to have much fun, unless you are already an experience swimmer, cyclist, or runner and/or in excellent shape. You need to practice everything you will be doing or could experience on race day including transitions, mounting/dismounting your bike, changing a flat, and of course swim/bike/run.
4. Don’ try anything new
Don’t try anything that you haven’t already done in training. That goes for pacing, race nutrition and fluid intake, equipment, technique, etc. Even experienced triathletes struggle with this, always looking for the last minute edge. More often than not, it ends up hindering performance.
5. Prepare for mistakes
You will probably make mistakes. Just prepare for them and accept them when they come. So what if you swim off course, just get your bearings back and head for the next buoy. Who cares if you go out too fast on the run and have to drop the pace a bit. Just be ready to correct any mistakes you make or just forget about them and move on.
IRONMAN NUTRITION
Larry (Lar-Dog) Davidson
Lar-Dog, a member of Triathica, and a good friend, recently enlightened us with some of his Ironman nutrition secrets.
According to Davidson, “It’s no secret, really. I simply use Infinit Nutrition’s Ironman formula with a few minor modifications (a calorie and caffeine boost). Inifinit’s regular Ironman formula contains 280 calories but I mix it to three times the normal strength in a 20-ounce bottle. I stir it with a knife or straw to help keep the foaming to a minimum (the protein causes it to foam-up if shaken) and I’m ready to rock!”
While on the bike, Davidson, sips the Infinit blend and chases it down with water from his aero bottle. At aid stations he replenishes the water in the aero bottle and keeps on cranking. He has another bottle waiting for him in his special needs bag and he’s got another 840 calories to help him complete the 112 grueling miles.
In addition, he’ll keep his Gu bottle, caffeine pills and salt tablets handy in the event he needs them. According to Infinit all of your nutrition needs for your endurance event can be satisfied with the Ironman formula – nothing else is needed, other than water.
On the run Davidson takes a Gu early on because as the race wears on it becomes harder to eat solid food. He alternates Coke, Gatorade Endurance and water between the aid stations on the run and takes lots of salt to avoid cramping.
Take it from one of the strongest age group Ironmen, Lar-Dog Larry Davidson if you’re looking for the elusive secrets to an Ironman PR.
FREE GROUP WORKOUTS (WEEK OF JUNE 20th)
All of our group workouts are free to all members and non-members, so come on out!
This week we’ll be swimming the Pacific Coast Triathlon course so if you’re registered for this great event come on out and practice with us. We’ll be happy to help you with your swim and transitions strategy. You will have to pay for parking which is $10.00. Park at the Reef Parking Lot. If that lot is full you can walk from Los Trancos.
All of our group workouts are free to all members and non-members, so come on out!
Week of July 13th
Event: Group Swim
Place: Triathica flag at Crystal Cove (NEW LOCATION)
Day: Wednesday, July 22nd
Time: 5:30 p.m.
Planned Workout: Swim the PacCoast Tri course
Event: Group Ride
Place: Triathica HQ
Day: Saturday, July 25th
Time: 7:30 a.m. (NEW TIME)
Planned Workout: 1 loop around Santiago Canyon
Event: Group Run
Place: Triathica HQ
Day: Sunday, July 26th
Time: 7:00 a.m.
Planned Workout: 9 miles through Whiting Ranch
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Triathica – Triathlon Training Center From the 5 Freeway: Exit Bake Pkwy and head east for about 4 miles Make a left on Rancho Pkwy South Turn right at the 3rd driveway 2nd building on your right Triathica is in Suite B on the right side of the building |
PETE & CORRINNE UPDATE #3
Kelli Whittaker
Pete and Corrinne have had another busy week “training like triathletes”.
Corrine started the 12-week training camp last week and says, “she was really impressed with what she learned about triathlon essentials and is really looking forward to the future lessons”.
She has also really enjoyed the group swims stating, “I’m glad I learned how to transition faster. Ron taught me how to get into the ocean water quickly and how to get out of it quickly”. He taught her to pop up when her hand touched the sand instead of getting up early and fighting through waist deep water. She explains, “the group swims have helped me tremendously because everyone is out there learning together”.
Pete started the training camp this past Saturday and is looking forward to the experience. He says, “I am eagerly anticipating the training camp and the free 9-week training plan we all get for being in the camp”.
Pete and Corrinne’s week of training went “fantastic”. They rode the Orange County Triathlon bike course and then ran part of the run course. They were both pleasantly surprised with their performances. Pete said, “we discovered that the run was very hilly and it was a challenging course, but I’m very happy that we did it because now we know where we are and the next time we train there we will be able to gauge our progress”.
Pete also led the group bike ride for Triathica Saturday. He took the riders through Santiago Canyon and had a blast leading the group.
Corrinne and Pete both continue to use Triathica’s facility and attribute much of their training success to the equipment inside the training center as well as the knowledge of the USAT certified coaches that work there. According to Pete, ” Triathica just makes training easy, everything is here at your disposal”.
PACIFIC COAST TRIATHLON “COURSE TALK” WITH RUSS JONES
Russ Jones is one of the nation’s top ranked sprint course triathletes in the men’s 50 – 54 division. In 2001 he was the winner of the national sprint championships at the Pacific Coast Triathlon. In 2005 he was ranked number one in the country in the USAT rankings for men 50 – 54.
Russ has offered to do a “course talk” here at Triathica to help you have the best race of your life. Russ has raced, and won his age group, multiple times at Pacific Coast. His knowledge of this course and enthusiasm for the sport will help you have a great day at the Pacific Coast Triathlon.
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Topics Russ will cover include: – The course – Pre-race strategy – Race strategy – Transitions Russ will also be available to take your questions about training, nutrition and anything else triathlon related. This is your chance to learn from one of the best in the business so we hope you’ll join us for this great opportunity. |
Date: Friday, July 24th
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Place: Triathica, 26475 Rancho Parkway South, Lake Forest, CA 92630
Cost: FREE!!!
Contact: Jarrett Pflieger, 949.273.6201 or jarrett@triathica.com
RACE REPORT: PETERS CANYON SUMMER TRAIL RUN SERIES
Ron Saetermoe
I’d heard about the Peters Canyon Summer Trail Run Series put on by Jonathan Pauley of Renegade Racing (renagaderaceseries.com) but had never competed until Thursday, July 9th. If you haven’t done this race, you should.For $30.00 you get a great trail race and either a burger or hot dog meal or a series T-shirt. Either way it’s a great deal!
The three races take place on various Thursday evenings at Peters Canyon Wilderness Park in Tustin. The event is very well organized and is located at the park so it’s a great place to bring the entire family.
Since this was my first time to the event I had no idea what to expect. I made my way to the starting area a bit late and heard one of my Orange County Triathlon Club buddies, Stan Gertler, call my name. I elbowed my way into the starting corral alongside Stan and we were off.
I understand the race may circle through Peters Canyon from either direction, but both are challenging. Stan assured me that this was the “easier” way. Didn’t seem like it to me!
Essentially, the majority of the course is run on the trails open to hikers, mountain bikers, coyotes, and anyone else that wants to use them. We encountered everything, short of the coyotes.
The first half of the 5-mile run was very challenging with lots of climbing. At one point I was contemplating walking but didn’t. It was tough!
The second half of the run was mostly downhill. What a relief!
I got a side-stitch at about mile three that didn’t go away but felt like I was pushing a pretty good pace. I passed a few other runners as we neared the finish. One guy in particular was in my sights. I let the younger runners and women pass me without a fight (that’s right, I don’t mind being “chicked”) but anyone near my age group will be challenged.
Good thing I mounted the challenge because I found out later that the guy I passed with about 200 yards to go was in my age group and had been in 1st place.
I won my age group with a time of 37:16 (7:27 pace) and Lamar Sepulveda finished in 2nd (M50-54) with a time of 37:17! A great race I’ll remember for a long time.
SELECTING YOUR RACE
Ron Saetermoe
Southern California is really a Mecca when it comes to triathlon races. We are very fortunate to live in an area where there are so many fantastic races. The only thing we don’t have anymore is a full Ironman.
With there being so many races how do you choose which one suits you best? Here are some ideas that may help:
– Are you a strong swimmer? If so, you should look for races that have relatively longer swims like the Redondo Beach Triathlon, which is a ½ mile swim, six-mile bike and two mile run. You could also consider races that include an ocean swim as opposed to a lake swim, for example.
– Are you a strong cyclist? If so, you should consider races with lots of hills on the bike course. If you’re like me (a slower cyclist), you look for courses that are more flat. I’m doing Ironman Arizona in November because the bike course is flatter than most.
– Do you like to travel? Last summer I had business in Detroit and just for fun decided to see if there were any triathlons in the area during the time of my trip. There was, so I signed up, borrowed a bike and raced (took 2nd place). That was a very memorable race for me.
– Do you like to socialize? I did my first Ironman last year at Coeur d’Alene because I had so many friends doing it. It was a blast because I kept seeing them around town and on the course. It was very motivational.
– How did you do last year? I tend to do a lot of races over and over again because I want to better my time from last year.
Whether you’ve got a great reason, or no reason at all, racing is fun and I hope to be doing it for a long time to come.
LAKE FOREST 4th OF JULY 5K
Jarrett Pflieger
Is there a better way to celebrate our nation’s birthday than with a quick 5K before lunch on the 4th of July? Besides kicking back a few beverages and barbequing, I don’t think there is.
I planned to head down to the Lake Forest 5K on the 4th to market Triathica’s membership specials and hand out some free training zone assessment coupons. The day before the race I realized it would be hard for me to not participate in the festivities, so I signed up.
Not wanting to run alone, I tried to find some people to do it with me. The best I could get was a “maybe” from one of my friends who is not exactly the most athletic person I know — no worries. When I called race morning, I was able to change the maybe into, “Sigh…I’ll meet you at the parking lot in 15 minutes…grumble…grumble.”
I arrived at the Ralphs parking lot next to the race a little after 6 a.m. After a few Triathica marketing activities, I was ready to head down to the starting line to get my bib and race chip. I saw a few people I recognized, but not as many as I thought I was going to see having lived in Lake Forest my whole life.
Jarrett
I think I underestimated how slow my friend was. After a few seconds moving at a snails pace I couldn’t take it anymore. I decided to just go for it and turned it into a workout and a good time-trial benchmark. I darted to the outside and began passing people. The first part of the course was just under a mile long and slightly downhill. I love downhill.
I felt great for the first mile, I think I easily ran sub-6 and the only people ahead of me were all the 120-pound cross-country kids from El Toro High School, one or two girls, and a dude in a dog costume.
He had to have been a cross-country runner because the dog was flying. I’m pretty sure he ended up beating me, which is pretty embarrassing, oh well.
The rest of the race went pretty well. I slowed down a bit on a long uphill section, but made up most of the ground I had lost on the downhill. There was a girl in front of me most of the time that I was determined to pass, but didn’t want to make my move too soon. Typical man, right?
We came around the last turn on what I thought was the home stretch. I kept looking ahead to see if there were any more turns or detours we had to make. Then it looked like some people were veering right onto another detour from the finish line. I didn’t have a watch on, but it felt like it should have just been straight to the finish line from there.
My eyes must have been playing tricks on me because there was no turn, just about 800 meters until the finish. Time to turn on the boosters. I managed to pass probably around 10 people in the final stretch. One guy I recognized from high school tried to match my speed. I knew for a fact he was a cross-country runner back in the day and he still looked in good shape, but somehow I was able to hold him off.
I crossed the finish line but did not get a look at the time and had no watch. A guy came up behind me and thanked me for pushing him hard. I guess we had gone back and forth the whole race and my final surge helped him push himself harder. He said his time was around 19:40 so I figured I was in the 19:30 range.
After more marketing duties, I left to go run some errands. I kept thinking about my time and knew I wouldn’t be able to wait for them to post the results online. I decided to swing back by the race and check it out. They were already halfway through the award ceremony and I strolled over to look at the standings.
Jarrett Pflieger – Div (3)
3rd place? Could this be right? This was my first 5K, how could I possibly have made the podium? I waited around for the ceremony to end and walked up to the announcers. I asked to see the award standings for 20-24 year olds. Somehow the winner’s time didn’t show up on the initial results printout I was looking at. I ended up taking 4th and missing out on a medal by less than 30 seconds. Bummer.
Overall I was very happy with my time (19:33) and pace (6:18). I plan to ramp up my training for the Pacific Coast and OC Triathlons and hopefully improve my run splits. Can’t wait for my next 5K to test how my training is coming along!
PETE AND CORRINNE UPDATE #2
Kelli Whittaker
Pete and Corrinne
Although the path to becoming a triathlete is exhilarating, it has been challenging for Corrinne because of her history as a long distance runner. Accustomed to four to five hour runs, she now needs to break up her training into three very different sports. The change has been challenging, but she says that it has been well worth it. She loves the fact that you get to change things up. One challenge she has recently faced is changing the way she runs. Now she takes short, fast runs instead of long, slow runs, so that her body starts to adapt to the new fast pace.
She also just completed her first ocean swim this past Wednesday at Triathica’s group swim at Big Corona. After the swim she said that she was ecstatic. She is normally deathly afraid of swimming in the ocean because of her extreme fear of sharks, but she put the fear behind her and did very well. She realized that she actually is a much stronger swimmer than she had thought and believes that with a little more training she will be comfortable in the water.
Pete a “returnee” to the sport of triathlon just completed the Breath of Life Triathlon in Ventura. It was his first triathlon in awhile and he really enjoyed the race. He said that it was a “flat, fast race.” He finished 8th in his age group and was happy with his overall performance. He was pleasantly surprised with his biking and attributes some of his success to his training on Triathica’s CompuTrainers. He also realized that he needs to focus on getting a faster 10K split.
Pete will be joining Corrinne in the 12-week training camp hosted by Triathica and looks forward to seeing the improvement and knowledge he gains form the experience. Look for an update on Pete and Corrinne’s training progress in next week’s newsletter.
SOCIAL NIGHT
Indoor CompuTrainer Race
Every week we’re going to try to put together a social event for all of our members, and non-members just to promote the great sport of triathlon. Last week we enjoyed watching the 2008 Ironman World Championships. This week we’re going to try something a little different.
Triathica is excited to offer a chance for you to race the Orange County International Triathlon bike course this Friday, July 17th. Just one little twist, we will do it indoors, at the Triathica triathlon training center in Lake Forest.
With our CompuTrainer MultiRider system, we can have up to six riders at once set up their own bike on a computer simulated course that mimics what will be experienced at the actual race. The computer controlled trainer will simulate climbs and descents in the course by increasing or decreasing the resistance applied to your back tire. Seriously, it feels like the real thing, maybe even a little bit harder.
During the course you will be able to see your cadence, heart rate, watts, speed, and tons of other data on the screen while you race. This is an incredible tool to help you monitor how your body performs under race conditions.
This is a great opportunity for a fun and competitive training session, practice for the actual OC Triathlon, or a way to prove you are as good as you think you are on the bike.
Even if you don’t really want to compete and just want to try out the CompuTrainer, definitely feel free to come in and ride the course for a good workout. No pressure whatsoever.
We will be giving out prizes to the fastest male and female of the day. Its only $5 to race, so hurry and reserve your spot today. Call 949.273.6223 or email Jarrett.Pflieger@triathica.com to RSVP.
Date: Friday, July 15th
Time: Starting at 5:00 p.m. and going until?
Cost: $5.00 each
RSVP: Jarrett@triathica.com
