Lactic-Haze

It was WP Triathlon Champs on the weekend, but the nice folks at TSA allowed non-TSA members to enter and just take out temp licenses for the day. Only thing was that we would need to start at the back of the groups and would not be eligible to get chosen for SA’s…not that this bothered me in the least since I was bound to be in the back half of the finishing field anyway. They also had different starting groups, and I would be in the 20-39 male group.

Another day in the washing machine!

The route was nearly a copy of the one in December, except that they put an extra marker in the water, lengthening the swim by maybe 50m, and the bike route was a little different. The run, a tough 3.3km loop would be the same as the last time. The previous time at Mykonos was a learning experience. I had a few duathlons under my belt but not a triathlon, and I made a lot of mistakes. Those were all files for experience and I promised myself I would improve on those mistakes.

The water was about 2′C colder on Saturday and I made a point of actually swimming out to one of the markers on the course as a warm-up and not just jump in the water like last time. Warmed the right muscles and got used to the cold. Swam out with another competitor and showed him the markers etc. We got out, went to the briefing spot and jumped back in the water again. I felt much calmer and soon the whistle went. I found a pair of feet to follow and had a really good swim, getting through the first lap without getting hit, dunked, swum over or anything. By lap two of the swim the field had spread a little, but I was in a steady stream of bodies, instead of being out there on my own at the back like last time. I just concentrated on getting my stroke right, breathing correctly and soon I was out of the water trying to get my wetsuit off.

In the transition there was still folks changing, and people coming in behind me. Big confidence booster vs last time when I was on my own there. Strip the wetsuit off, pour some water over me to rinse off and get my cycling shoes and helmet on. Another mistake I didn’t make was being in the right starting gear this time (53×21 this time), and soon I was out on the road on the bike. The course was a bit windier than last time but I just put my head down, checked my heart rate and did my thing. My heart rate was lower than last time, and I was doing the same speed. This is good. As per last time I started catching people soon, and just powered through the wind. On the second lap it was starting to get a bit noticeable, but being my strength, I had to put it to good use. Two laps done, turn in to the Mykonos Casino again down to the transition area and park the bike. Running shoes on, grab a gel, and start my run.

The run was a tough bugger and I just tried to follow as many feet as I could before letting them go. There are some really fit people out there! I love my Garmin 310XT! I just kept checking the pace and would force myself a little faster if I started fading. Greeted a few familiar faces on the course like the Urban Ninja and kept going at 5min30sec/km. On the 3rd lap, Mari Rabie (winner of the 70.3 in East London) came running past me like I was standing still and I just had to chuckle. Amazing talent in this country! The run felt a lot better than last time, and before I knew it I was running down the finishing chute having done another proper ITU triathlon.

Total time: 2h40m (7mins better than December via improved transitions+better performance in the different disciplines)

Swim: 32mins (1min improvement, while the top guys took 2mins longer)

Cycle: 1h06min (my HR was lower than in December and I shaved a minute off the time)

Run: 56mins (cut down 4mins from time in December)