Leadman Bend 85 Triathlon Race Report
- bradleyhaag
- Sep 23, 2014
- 3 min read
Background
If you haven't already please check out all my training (or lack of training) prior to this race in previous posts. Although my training was far from ideal, I must say I was really excited for this race and the days leading up to it I was in a nice place mentally to race. I was grateful for the fact I was injury free and was even able to compete in triathlon.
Race Morning
Unlike last year race this race morning was quiet pleasant temperature wise. Given the fact I had done this race before (although I would be racing a shorter distance this year) my mental state of calmness matched the beautiful atmosphere. Before the swim I had about an hour to kill which was spend visiting other triathletes and double checking all my gear. I did take a few minutes once the wet-suit was one to visualize once more the events that were about to unfold which helped bring my focus into the moment.
1k Swim: The race director instructed all the 85k distance triathletes to enter the water and swim (or walk in the shallow water) about 100m to the starting race buoy. After I did short warm-up swim I lined up right up front and the horn went off! To my surprise I was leading the swim, at least I was for a few minutes before being pasted by 2 other swimmers. I happily held the 3rd place position all the way to the swim exit.
75k Bike: After a lightning fast T1 I started the bike course leading the race (believe me, I was surprised at this)! Once again I held the lead for a good amount of time (about 20 minutes) but was pasted by another triathlete putting me in 2nd place. Soon after being past by the first triathlete another one pasted me however, I would soon find myself passing him. This back-and-fourth passing went on for about 10 more miles until we hit the dreaded sparks hill climb where I was able to put a pretty big gab on him. Physically I was hurting pretty bad, my back was tight and my legs were sore but as always I just kept on pedaling, all the way into T2.
12k Run: I left the run still holding onto 2nd place and felt confident I could maintain my position till the finish. The first few miles of the run I was pushing along at a pretty good pace but soon myself feeling pretty fatigued, my heart rate was rising and my pace was slowing down. Given my training though, I was expecting this and did my best to just keep moving forward, even if that meant walking. Unfortunately my paced slowed down enough that I was past just 2 miles from the finish by the triathlete I had gabbed previously on the bike course. Although I tried, I just couldn't match his pace without blowing up. I cruised into the finish in 3rd place overall.
Overall thoughts
In the end I was very happy with this race, by no means did I hit any personal best numbers or meet my potential performance. I did however, enjoy the experience of a race that is in my beautiful backyard here in Bend, OR. Additionally I should note that my goal was a top 10 finish, I wasn't expecting to race for first overall until I exited T2 and realized I was in the lead so really have nothing to complain about. In conclusion I got the Belt Buckle and smile just as shiny to match!
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