Dublin Duathlon Series 3

christeb

It's Duathlon Wednesday again! Anyone else doing this tonight? Looking forward to it?

Weather is clearing up nicely out there, my poor bike didn't thank me for cycling her in to work in the rain today, but I cleaned her up so she's looking nice and shiny again for this evenings events!

Hoping to go sub 43 after last time which was 43.06, although I have been training / racing quite hard in the interim....

Bambaata

im in, was just about to post. feeling very tired and drained so i wont be beating my time tonight. haven't trained since Saturday either but still looking forard to it. the rain seems as tough it'll stay away too!

hawkwing

I'll be there to watch as usual,seems to me to be 2 starts at 715 and 730 from what i can find.Best of luck to all.

christeb

hawkwing wrote: »

I'll be there to watch as usual,seems to me to be 2 starts at 715 and 730 from what i can find.Best of luck to all.

Yep, on the night entries start later. Kinda wish this was my group, I'd love to be battling it out at the very front with the chicks

jlang

On the other hand, I'm glad to have the 15 minutes headstart on the leading ladies.

Kelter

I'll be there for some guy on girl action... probably not leading girls... but I doubt they will all leave me behind!

I do like the three events in sucessive months. Gives you a nice sense of your improvement... or a terrible slap in the face about your decline!

hawkwing

Maslova won the ladies easily enough and also took the first run this time,good turnout and a cheap nights entertainment

christeb

42.28 for me, 39 secs faster than last year. Match report / Garmin link here

jlang

After the race I thought I was 90 seconds faster than last month but on checking the records it was only about 30. Still any improvement is good. My bike was a minute faster this month so I was a bit slower on the runs (and maybe T1; I know T2 was super-smooth tonight). I'm actually surprised the runs weren't worse as I was swimming last night and again this morning. Also, if I need another excuse, I started next to christeb and knowing I'd never even see his dust on the bike I had a little hope I could retain some pride by hitting T1 before him. Alas he passed me on the last straight and all I could do was fall back - I knew I'd overdone it. Bike felt great. Much smoother cornering, down on the drops a lot more and far less braking. Didn't have as much race fun on the second run as last month and had no sprint left at all. Really looking forward to the 4th race.

MadHatter

That was an, eh, interesting experience to say the least. Slowest time of the year by a long shot but just glad to have finished it in the end. Cramps, cramps, cramps :mad:

Only back from holidays so I'd 2 weeks of no cycling and very little running. Cycled into work the last 2 days and did a short-ish run yesterday and could feel the legs heavy before the start. So overall I had no real expectations of a performance, I was only there because I'd already paid my entry!

A conservative first run had me at bang on 10mins coming under the clock, but then, just like last month, I couldn't find the bike in the transition zone. I must have looked comical wandering back and forth trying to remember where I racked it. Note for next time - need an easily identifable marker that I can pick out from a long way off.

Eventually got going and was motoring well until mid-way through the second lap, then the cramps started, first the right calf and then the left. Ended up soft-pedalling for much of the rest of the lap. By half way through the third lap I thought I had worked through it and was over the worst. Then I reached dismount, jumped off bike and tried to run up the bank when both calves seized up again! Ended up strolling through transition to back to my rack point. Racked the bike, reached down to undo the straps on the left shoe and bang!, the left calf went completely, couldn't move, couldn't straighen up, nothing. Had to fall back onto my arse and sit grimacing on the grass. Sat their for what seemed like an eternity, as everybody else just streamed in and out, wondering would I even bother getting up. In the end I didn't fancy a DNF so when the pain subsided I got the trainers on, walked gingerly out of tranisition and gradually broke into a jog. I was half way round the lap before I was running anyway freely again.

Finished in 45:15 or so, barely out of breath tbh because I couldn't actually run fast over the last leg! More than 2.5 mins down on last month, but just happy to have finished at all. I'm putting the cramps down to a combination of the lay-off from training and dehydration on the night, so hopefully I'll be better prepared for next months formula one event.

Bambaata

Last night went fine. The weather was fantastic and the entry was enormous!! I noticed a guy that has been finishing just ahead of me all year in run 1 so i stuck with him the whole way around. It meant i did the first 2.7km in about 9 mins. I've noticed this past while my concentration is terrible while running and i get easily distracted which slows my pace so keeping with him steadied me and i was well able for the pace.

I decided against leaving the shoes on the bike in T1 and instead clipped in. I did this because i almost creamed myself at Kilkee trying to mount the bike so i didnt want a repeat. It meant i lost the guy i was trying to keep with but i didnt mind too much. I didnt push the bike too hard and made sure the legs weren't being overstretched. My bike confidence is definitely improving in the Tri bars and i attacked the S-bends much more than last time, almost too much at the second bend on the first lap as i clipped the grass bank! I think i passed about 5 or 6 on the bike and didnt have anyone pas me.

T2 went fine, actually better than two guys that were just ahead of me as i caught up to them going out on the run. My running isnt great so i was not going to stay with them but i dug in and caught 1 guy with them. At the halfway point i was caught by 1 guy but had nobody near me for the rest of the run. Again though i got distracted by watching some teams train and when i looked back infront of me the two guys i was in T2 with were about 15m's further ahead than they had been (about 10m)! I really have to sort that out as i felt i was able to stay with them and possible had a kick towards the end to try catch them.

In the end i came in at 40:23 which is my fastest on that course yet by about 40 seconds. Happy enough but i know i had a sub 40 in me if i had focused more on the final run. All in all i was pleased as i havent done anything since Kilkee and still felt very drained starting the race last night.

daymobrew

43:02 for me, a few secs faster than last month.

I hope the 3D-Tri guy who fell during lap 2 of the bike is okay. He wasn't there when I came around for lap 3 so he probably was. It was on the last of the S bends.
In the same location on lap 3 I saw a Pulse Tri club guy run into the grass - the bike was wobbling quite a bit on the bend. He recovered okay.

Wow it was humid out there!

My wife and 18 month old son were there for the first time. He got upset when he saw me head off at each bike and run lap

christeb

Pics and Results up now.

Some great shots: here's me coming into T2 and on the last run.

The pain seems so distant today!

Dowee

Finished just in front of you christeb, was struggling on the last stretch but was determined I wasn't getting passed again!!

911sc

Same story as race1...i am again not listed in the results:mad:
Number (#32) was very visible & at the front. I was pre-registered, so my name was properly printed on their sheets. Looks like the organisers don't like me:rolleyes:
Anyway, no big deal, i would have finished 97th & enjoyed the race.

MadHatter

Hmmm, seems they left me out of the results as well. My number was clearly visible too (there's a photo of me to prove it). However, given my performance, that's no bad thing, perhaps they were feeling sorry for me!

The pre-entry list had 216 men, and I'd guess another 50+ men on the night. There's only 189 men in the results. Granted not all pre-entries would have showed, but I'd guess there's quite a few others missing from the results.

Looks like daymobrew is one of them.

ChickenBalls

Me too - my name is missing from the results (#130) did 43min 15sec so 35th place was good for me on my new Cervelo.

At least the results are posted much faster this time

MCOS

Bambaata wrote: »

Last night went fine. .

Better than fine! Well done on top 10 Bambaata!

christeb what in the bejeezus kind of bike is that?!

christeb

MCOS wrote: »

christeb what in the bejeezus kind of bike is that?!

Giant MCR, got it from eBay in '05 when I got one of my first paychecks, I always wanted sometihng like Indurain's bike he used in the TdF TTs!

Great yoke, it was designed as a "one size fits all" effort, but at 6'4 I'm stretching it a bit. I used to work with a world class Ironman who was quite intrigued by it, although he did inform he that it's banned to use in any UCI events, which I wasn't aware of, butu of course the design ensures that. In saying all the above, it's fast as hell given that it's 10+ years old

Only get her out for the Duathlons and the odd spin around Howth, so if anyone wants to make me a bid I can't refuse, take it to PM!

Bambaata

MCOS wrote: »

Better than fine! Well done on top 10 Bambaata!

christeb what in the bejeezus kind of bike is that?!

Thanks MCOS. I dont think i'll ever be happy :P I'd only be happy with 1st but i think that's an unlikely result unless the top guys dont show up.

Cadex

Well done all on what was a pretty hot and humid evening!

Ended up in the second race as hadn't succeeded in pre-registering - it was pretty interesting to be at least near the 'sharp end' for once (came into first Transition in 8th or 9th - would never manage that in the main race)! Overall, a good evening, pity I'll miss the one in August - it sounds really mad - run, bike, run, bike, run - I think! Good luck to those doing it.

Bike Stats: Dist: 11.537km, Time: 20:53, Max: 50.9km/h, Ave: 33.2km/h
Position: 27th/ 189men, 30th/ 264 overall.

@Madhatter - sorry to hear your tale of woe (cramps). I'd a dirty stitch myself on the second run and couldn't put in the speed at all, just hung on.

Diary entry below:
01/07/2009 Event: Dublin Duathlon 2. Dist 2.7km run, 13km cycle, 2.7km run. Beautiful evening, still sunny and warm, bit humid. This was going to be hot work! Hadn't pre-registered so turned up early for this again (about 18:00). Heard the plan was to do registered men, then ladies and all who registered on the night, 15 mins later. This sounded a bit mad, I was used to running with the big race and now was going to be in the second race so I'd no idea what the pace would be like. Cycled around the course to see what conditions were like. Had a bit of a chat, registered then stretched and did some short runs. Felt a bit like the running was not going to be easy, don't know if it was the humidity or what but was getting out of breath just warming up. Met Madhatter (just back from holidays) and had a chat. He had pre-registered so he was going to be in the first race. Met Bronagh (from Clonliffe Harriers) again too.

After the briefing, the first race was sent off. It was interesting to be stood on the line watching the others start. The first back (in about 8mins!) was a chap representing Ireland in Mountain Running this weekend. Saw Madhatter come through (a bit short of 10mins I reckon). Next thing we were off. It was a bit strange being in the second race as I found myself running around close to the front with the group including two of the elite women, and was into Transition in 8th or 9th place. Fairly quick change (transition area was quite long) and onto the bike. Thankfully, this was well marshalled as the second race people were mounting their bikes and the first race people were cornering in the same spot. It was a bit confusing as the bike section included people from both races. Met Madhatter just as he was finishing his bike section. Anyway, put in a decent enough time with no real problems. Then into Transition for the second run. Felt pretty rough getting going but managed to keep my position (lost one and gained one). Got the mother of a stitch shortly after the start of second run which was hard to ignore. I knew I was slower than the first time and had to 'dig in' just to keep going. Heard a guy coming up behind me so put in a bit more pace and just managed to stay ahead. Was absolutley knackered when I crossed the line but fairly pleased too - I'd made it anyway. Met Madhatter at the finish who told me he'd had some problems too (cramp), so I wasn't the only one to struggle. Quick chat with Bronagh (who was in the top 10 women, maybe 5th) and Caroline_ie who happened to be going through the park when she saw the event was on.

After that, sorted my gear out and headed home to the much needed and very welcome bath, beer, dinner and family.

Pics:
Me on bike: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wheelworx/3681486644/in/set-72157620707418503/

Me looking like someone about to get a 'stitch' (#303)!: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wheelworx/3680833859/in/set-72157620707418503/

http://www.dublintri.com/results/2009-07-01julyresults.xls
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wheelworx/sets/72157620707418503/

Andrewf20

keith123 wrote: »

Me too - my name is missing from the results (#130) did 43min 15sec so 35th place was good for me on my new Cervelo.

At least the results are posted much faster this time

Keith are you the guy who had a white Eddy Merckx bike at the rock duathlon in Ashford in April that I was racing against on the bike stage? If so I think I spotted you on your new blue & black Cervelo yesterday - nice machine.

My result is missing too. Finished 44:30 after a 100m sprint finish with another guy. Was right behind Christeb at 1st transition, I got out ahead of him, but he was past me by the bottom of the hill. I overtook him again at the end of the 1st lap coming out of the last corner, but I died a death and he was gone off ahead of me after that. New zip lock laces a mixed blessing - a faster 2nd transition but I was way more knackered on the 2nd run versus the previous event. And so an identical time to the last event. Hmmm.

ChickenBalls

Andrewf20 wrote: »

Keith are you the guy who had a white Eddy Merckx bike at the rock duathlon in Ashford in April that I was racing against on the bike stage? If so I think I spotted you on your new blue & black Cervelo yesterday - nice machine.

My result is missing too. Finished 44:30 after a 100m sprint finish with another guy. Was right behind Christeb at 1st transition, I got out ahead of him, but he was past me by the bottom of the hill. I overtook him again at the end of the 1st lap coming out of the last corner, but I died a death and he was gone off ahead of me after that. New zip lock laces a mixed blessing - a faster 2nd transition but I was way more knackered on the 2nd run versus the previous event. And so an identical time to the last event. Hmmm.

Hey Andrew, yeah thats me - where you the guy in Ashford on the Specialised bike? That was my first race on the Cervelo, got it from racycles in the states. Only realised the other day the brakes where setup the wrong way round! Didn't bother me too much in the race thou. Had a little problem with the low gears clicking slightly, only happened during the race never a problem when out for a spin. For the 2nd transiton the guy who had his bike next to me had the same runners\lock laces as me! I put his on and knew they where too small (probably a size 10, mine is 12) then I had to look for mine. Found them thrown over by one of the trees, I suspect the guy tried my runners and threw them off thinking his where gone going bare foot! Lost about 10 seconds I'd say so not too bad. Strange how your time is exactly the same as before, at least it wasn't slower thats what you want to avoid.

daymobrew

Brian has updated the results again.

Andrewf20

keith123 wrote: »

Hey Andrew, yeah thats me - where you the guy in Ashford on the Specialised bike? That was my first race on the Cervelo, got it from racycles in the states. Only realised the other day the brakes where setup the wrong way round! Didn't bother me too much in the race thou. Had a little problem with the low gears clicking slightly, only happened during the race never a problem when out for a spin. For the 2nd transiton the guy who had his bike next to me had the same runners\lock laces as me! I put his on and knew they where too small (probably a size 10, mine is 12) then I had to look for mine. Found them thrown over by one of the trees, I suspect the guy tried my runners and threw them off thinking his where gone going bare foot! Lost about 10 seconds I'd say so not too bad. Strange how your time is exactly the same as before, at least it wasn't slower thats what you want to avoid.

Ha ha, yep that was me alright. It was hard work staying with you on the bike phase during the rock duathlon in April, no wonder I was half dead on the second run!

Sounds like a bit of drama for yourself there at the duathlon last week. Congrats tho on a good result.