Cranberry Trifest - Olympic
Lakeville, MA - August 2019 - 10th OA
I woke up this morning feeling surprisingly fresh. I had some nervous energy about potentially blowing up during the run and tried to shake it off by jogging aimlessly around transition. At this point, my pre-race ritual was still under construction and I didn’t see the value in warming up before a race. 10 minutes before the elite wave started, I suddenly realized I was wetsuitless next to my bike chatting with teammates who were getting ready for later race waves. In my haste to suit up, I put my wetsuit on backwards and nearly decided to toss on my swimskin to avoid missing the elite start. I finally decided, as I hoofed it to the start while pulling up the sleeves of my wetsuit, that this would be the last race I approached without a solid pre-race strategy outlined.
Swim
I had a solid start and burned a few matches trying to stay in the draft of a former pro. This swim course is interesting because it hugs the perimeter of the lake, so you’re frequently swimming through reeds and in shallow enough water that dolphin dives could possibly be an option for next year. My year-over-year sighting was noticeably better. Swimming in Mystic Lake and Walden Pond three times a week helped develop the necessary shoulder strength and being more comfortable in open water and in a wetsuit allowed me to focus on swimming rather than feel like I was drowning. I exited the water in 5th and got to work on the bike.
T1
Over a minute better than last year! Consistent wetsuit practice and Body Glide helped it slide right off. I messed up my bike mount coming out of transition (my cleats sometimes slip right over the top of my pedals). Not my favorite way to start a ride, but oh well.
Bike
This ride was lonely! I got passed twice around the halfway point but didn’t see anyone else until I was riding back into transition an hour and 9 minutes later. Overall, I’m a fan of this course. My friends hear me constantly complain about hilly race courses, but I’ve made an exception for Cranberry’s Olympic course. The rollers are the perfect size for carrying speed, the roads are smooth and well maintained, and one portion of the course spits you onto a narrow strip of land going through the middle of a lake. I wasn’t sure how my legs would feel so soon after the sprint, but they responded well to power. My goal for this weekend was to maintain even power across the two days (and also match my run pacing). My power was pretty spot on to the sprint which I was pumped about. I saw a huge uptick in my bike performance this season, stemming from a 230 mile training weekend in May of this year. My legs felt pretty fresh and I probably could have gone harder during the sprint. This was the first weekend of racing where my power didn’t fade towards the end of the bike and I hopped off feeling ready to run.
T2
Also an improvement from last year. Would have loved to take my shoes off and hop right off the bike, but that’ll be next year’s project. I tossed my bike on the rack, took 3 years to tie my shoes, and then headed onto the run course.
Run
Feel good, look good, race good! My legs felt strong and I quickly settled into a rhythm. I hung right around 6:18 pace and got to work on the gently rolling course (oh, well except for that last hill at the end). I knew Chris, my friend from Whaling City, was somewhere behind me and, if he had a good run day, would chase me down at some point. I managed to hold him off until just past the 5k mark but he cranked out a 35 minute 10k and I don’t have that type of speed yet. I’m happy with my run progress during the season – I ran close to 1,000 miles in 2019 (or nearly 700 more than the prior season) and knocked over a minute off my 10k pace while also biking faster. The hill towards the end still hit me hard, but I had the energy to hold both my form and my speed over it and cruised down the back side to find my coach directing traffic at the final intersection. I fed off of his energy as I made the turn into the home stretch and felt myself approaching my threshold. I crossed the line completely spent and, per usual, made a beeline to the ice bath to cool off.
