Gatorade Race 3 - Brighton

The lead up

2011 ended with an awesome Hell Week and 2012 started with the TA Queenscliff camp and finding my running mojo last week -  I couldn't ask for a better race lead up!  So things were already looking good and I was feeling relaxed and ready pre-race - which is the key really, don't you think?! Or perhaps it was the home made GF spag bol and glass of red I chose as my Saturday evening meal? :)

Race Day
The first actual triathlon of the year (with Race 1 & 2 having the swims cancelled due to the weather) was the race of my career! I felt strong in the swim, I cut 4 minutes off my Race 2 bike time (and rode a 2 minute PB!) and my run time was out of control. For me to run a 25.38 is unheard of and you know what that means?! My long-term goal of running 5min/km is getting closer by the minute! Happy days!!

Results
Official time -1:18:39.4
Splits - 11.21  1:48  38.27  1:23  25:38


What I learned
- I need to start wider in the swim. Yesterdays swim start was not my best (gotta love mass swim starts!) and I had a lovely lady swimming diagonally in front of me for the first 100m or so. I stayed (relatively) calm but let's just say it was far from ideal...
- I need to succumb to wearing a race suit. A 1.48 T1 is just ridiculous.. and all because I was putting a singlet on so as to not subject the rest of the field to me in a crop top and knicks! I would of gone sub 1.18 had I not spent that extra time getting dressed!
- 90rpm is the key. It seems so logical now I've put it into practice but prior to yesterday, I had never actually raced to cadence. A 2 minute PB and I'm obviously on to a winner here. Imagine when I get my new bike!!!
- My new Garmin rules (that lead to finding my running mojo) are here to stay. From now on I only check my pace at each km interval and if I absolutely need to in the first km if I feel I am going out too hard.
- Run intervals are the key. I broke yesterdays run into a 2km "warm up", 2km of 200m on/200m off and a 1km sprint to the finish. And it worked! I really like the on/off intervals as I can run comfortable at 5.40min/km, but that won't lead to a run PB... so a few sprints certainly help to pick the overall speed up. And for the first time this season, I really enjoyed the run. Don't get me wrong, it still hurt, but I'm pretty sure that spinning at 90rpm for the bike leg contributed to the fresh(er) legs than in previous races. What an epiphany (insert sarcasm :))!


Race of the season: check! There is now only 2 weeks to my first OD race in Sandringham and I couldn't be happier with that lead up!