Last Chance to Run on the Floating Bridge! - Amica Seattle Marathon RR

There were a bunch of justifications I made, some of them silly, to do this race.

1. My last race in Victoria was a race in Canada for the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, and hence now this brings us to Seattle for the American Thanksgiving.
2. A bunch of friends from Adidas Runners Vancouver and our Cambie Run Club were going down, so it was a bit of a no brainer for Jen and I to tact on this race to end the 2016 season with them. Also a chance to visit my good friends in Seattle, Michael and Daniel.  
3. Also, mostly it was my last chance (eh hem…my first and maybe only chance) to run on the I-90 scenic floating bridge, which was my excuse for choosing the marathon over the half distance. The half marathon version goes near but doesn't actually go over the floating bridge.

Morning Start @ 5th Ave + Harrison St

Bonus: Also I guess there’s some added symmetry to do an east coast US marathon in Boston earlier in the year and now a west coast US marathon in Seattle to end the year.   

YES, I’m a bit of race snob when it comes to these minor details in race destinations planning. I’m all about the patterns.

• Double heartbreak hills for my races in Boston and Zurich for 2012.
• Double canyons from Grand Canyon in Arizona and the Canyon on LaSalle Street in Chicago for 2013.
• Double marathon races in Toronto for 2014.

The Race:

Some great opportunities to pose under the Space needle prior to race start. We were lucky to have perfect conditions - dry not too warm, not too cold. It was raining heavily the day before. It was a casual late start for the marathon peeps at 8:15am. The half was originally scheduled for 7:30am but got changed to 7:45am. I got to watch Jen prep for her half race just a little bit earlier and afterwards, I mimic her exact pre race stretch spots and warm-up drills to get ready.

The anthem got played and we were off. My strategy was to run a little faster on the flats and then coast up the killer hills near the end. This means positive splitting more than what I would normally do. It also didn't help that the timing mat was at 13 miles instead of 13.1 miles.

This was a fun race, a scenic but brutal course. The elevation grade changes are steeper than I had hoped.

The course starts near the Space Needle and heads east towards Lake Washington in a generally giant counter-clockwise loop, with a twist to get on and off the floating bridge. Most of the hills are at the start and near the end.


It's like a scene from King Kong, we ran away along the hilly streets of Seattle towards these highway on-ramps. Seeing the mono-rail cars above was really cool! 


6-7km We run across a large tunnel to escape the downtown traffic


8-12km Flat and floating bridge! We head towards and back from Mercer Island, and a second tunnel. Too cool and fun!


The course settles down and is mostly flat with minor turns, also completing a loop around Seward Park (about half way). To my surprise, I wasn't sure if I was off course as there wasn't a half way timing mat. Of course, I later realized the 'halfway' mat was actually earlier at 13 miles.

Madrona Park view along the route

Now to the business end of the race...


31-35km welcomes the deadly hills. A cheer zone was at the bottom. Lots of people started to pass me! I was running until that point before approaching the big hill on Madison Street. Instead of an acute angle turn, Darn you Galer Street was taken to short-cut onto the big hill, which is steeper than the actual big hill. My jaw dropped. My legs without much hesitation came to a grinding screech. My pace band was thrown out the window. It was just getting to the finish line at this point. Many mountain goats such as Alan from our run club at Cambie were flying up those hills, making me feel like I was moving backwards! Gravity was also no help! Thank you.


The final 7km which is the portion I like to race the race within the race. I had nothing. Unlike Boston where I was charging. I was slowing down. Please end the suffering!


Over positive 5 minutes split, I ran 3:03:47. Not pretty style points, but not bad. I'll take it! The evil pacer for 3:05 marathon did it by half relays, so he was just charging towards the line. Curse his fresh legs! :) There's a race photo of us just before reaching the stadium finish, one of us in clearly more pain than the other.

Here's the nerdy graph of my recent marathon compilations. As you can see the obvious last 7km in general aren't so pretty.

After the race, Jen helped me grab my bags as I couldn't walk.

No passing outs! :) 

She also won some prize money for one of the top ladies to spend at the EXPO, superstar, I know! But the lady at the expo cashier heard about her generosity and wouldn't let her 'just' buy gifts for her friends, instead she ended up getting 8 more free shirts along with the original gifts. I don't think Jen wanted shirts initially, but now ends up getting more than she bargained for. Sharing is caring. :D

Memorial Stadium @ Finish area

Thanks for reading. Until the new year! Happy New Year, sad old year. Merry Christmas too.

 

Chasing an inch, losing a minute - Goodlife Fitness Victoria - Half Marathon RR

One year passed by so fast!

Perfect conditions race morning!

Reading last year’s race report on the 8K sunrise run, I was reminded that I just moved in with roommates Brendan and Jon this time last year. Poor Jen is out for this race too this year, so I had to go at it alone and roadtripped with some friends, Eric and Katrina.

A DJ rocking fat beats at the race expo

Running is a cruel sport. I’m not going lie, this will be a pretty boring update. I held 6^th in age division spot pretty much the entire way. Feet were numb, lungs were going, and steps were shuffling. And I did the half marathon. I forgot how much running really hurts!

Beautiful course with nearly perfect conditions on race day. Considering the Saturday before was pouring rain, I’ll take it!

Honestly, I was chasing the coveted sub 1:21 NYC qualifier, but realistically the body could only handle a little over 1:22 on this day.

Nerdy graph alert!

I faded pretty quick near the end while others were gearing up for a sprint finish. But that didn’t matter much since 1:21 was out of the question already early on. On a positive note, a great result leading up for the Seattle Marathon! Until next time!

Community Festival Fun at Edmonton - Standard Du RR

Edmonton is known for its many summer festivals.


The ITU World Triathlon Edmonton weekend was a festival for not just athletes but for the community as well. Little BMX bike course for kids to kill time, beer garden for adults and of course festivities for the athletes. A distance for everyone, and a fun 5k run goose chase.


I chose the Duathlon standard distance to qualify for next year's event in Penticton. But let's be honest, the sprint and standard Triathlons were the big ticket main events - i.e. if I were to do this again, I'm choosing those ones. Even their finisher's medals were bigger. :P The elites raced the sprint distance.


It was a fun, not-very-competitive event unlike the atmosphere we are normally accustomed to. The TV commercials even promoted that the super humans are coming. You can tell the city gets behind this event with the all road closures.

Scenic morning at William Hawrelak Park

 

 

 

Not much information was given to us before the race other than the distances were 10km-40km-5km run-bike-run. The athletes guide didn't have much to go by other than Pokémon Go was not to be played on course, (probably a joke). :)

For us it was 3.5 out-and-back loops inside the park, we started at the end of the loop along the road. Then 4 laps of a challenging course consists of hills, twists and turns.

Up Emily Murphy hill, down back residential street Saskatchewan Dr, and then follows Groat road over the bridge for a second gradual hill and turn around on 107 Ave NW overpass, back on Groat road and into the park. Amazingly all of the roads were closed for us. We finished it off with a 2 loops inside the park again.

The first run was a touch short (9.1k) and the second run was a touch long (5.1k). The bike was close (38.7k). I was chasing after my friend Irvin, tri-veteran and former run coach of UBCTC, the entire time as he finished 5minutes quicker than me. Candy bars and fresh fruits was served at the finish with a nice heated tent. I was impressed by the huge finishing towels. Since the duathlon was the first to start and transitions wasn't going to be opened for another few hours, we were kind of forced to mingle with the others to share our glory stories. :)

The next day, we were treated with the elites putting on a show! It was fun to witness the action on the big screen in the grand stands and see the battle between series leader first place Mola against second place Johnny Brownlee. The sprint favours Johnny Brownlee, he was giving high fives! I think we might be back next year to do this again. :)

Multisport Fun - Aquathlon Nationals in Penticton Challenge RR

Last month, Jen and I went to participate in the smaller events of the multisport festival weekend. I got the watch her compete in the Duathlon, which was a run, bike, and followed by a shorter run. Basically no swimming involved however you split/spin it. :) 

Rolling into transitions in single-speed style

One of the simplest multisport is the Aquathlon, basically a triathlon minus the bike for cold weather conditions. For warmer conditions it would be run, swim, and followed by a second run. I decided to opt for my first one and hey how often are there going to be aquathlon national championships in your back yard province.

Transitions consisted of a little flag with your number on it.

As breezy and bare bones as I thought the Aquathlon was going to be for transitions set up, of course I would forget my body glide. Lucky for me, a few minutes approaching the transition area, we found out among the whispers that there was going to be a no wetsuit swim! Body glide problem solved for me. For the better or the worst this was happening...

Earlier in the morning, the opposite end of Lake at Gyro Beach Park was super calm in contrast.

Late afternoon start

The Aquathlon:
Swim 1km (one triangle in clockwise, the buoys looked way further than I liked it).
Run 5km (two loops mini 2.5km loops)


The swim was choppy and adventurous. I didn't have the fortunate of the floatation from the wetsuit. I.e. I forgot how much open water swimming sucked compared to being with wraped with the nice feeling of neoprene around your body. I averaged 2:15 per 100m pace, which wasn't pretty but at least I didn't drown.


T1 had this little pool! Jen captured it in style!





During transitions, another mishap worthy of being forgotten, was I dared tried putting on socks with wet feet, especially after tipping them in the little wash pool. Doesn't work! 38 seconds later, I decided it was now go-time with no socks.


Jeff Symonds, aka 'get ugly' superstar of the weekend, was about to lap me as I entered the run course. He had nothing but really nice words for me as he passed me and gracefully made me looked like I was running backwards. Two more guys would lap me eventually, but it was super fun seeing everyone racing from end to end action. 


I was a small handful of athletes that had the distinction of a slower time for the swim compared to the run. Not sure if this was good or bad, but it certainly was a more evenly distribution of the different disciplines unlike triathlon where biking is a heavy component of the event.

Overall, I finished in just under 42 minutes. Despite the simplicity, it was probably one of the most fast and furious pain and suffering I had to endure.

How to finish an IM with grace despite being given an unfair penalty - IM Canada Whistler RR

This was my 8th Ironman in total, 4th one branded as IM Canada, and 2nd one located at Whistler. Having raced the inaugural race in Whistler back in 2013 and volunteered in 2014, I had a pretty good idea of what to expect, atmosphere wise. It was exciting and a huge home field advantage for me unlike any other destination races I've done before. The whole triathlon community was up here it seemed.

I got suckered into signing up with Flo, a newbie to the sport, and I was lucky to experience a good chunk of the race rollercoaster emotions with him along the entire road trip. Eric and Katrina also kindly offered their place for us to stay, so the decision to do this race this year was a no brainer.

This was a truly international field in my age category, only a third (39 of 115) are representing the home country. Because this race attracted a male Pro only race, the race was also a male-dominated field, I finished 74^th overall, and yet surprising 73^rd male. Cracking top 100 was my 'realistic' goal and this was my second time achieving this. My 'dream' goal was to crack sub 10 one day...maybe this day was today?

Two big differences from 2013 and this year was the self-seeded swim roll out start instead of the mass open one in 2013. The exact run route also changed slightly, but the general two loops concept with the final stick leg around town to the finish was the same. In addition, a new 70.3 distance was added to this race this year. This did created a little confusion for placing and who was or wasn't competing against you. In the end, most of the 70.3 athletes did beat me to the massage tent (as they should be). :)  

I hope this doesn't come across as too much sour grapes, but there has been one issue that's leaving a small distaste in what was a very positive experience this race weekend.

Given a penalty for blocking is one item of discussion, but to be told to serve an incorrect penalty and at the wrong location is another. Fortunately, at least I think I tried my best to handle the uncomfortable situation with grace and hope this is a good lesson for all of us, and accept that sometimes mistakes do happen in officiating our sport of triathlon. Many riders also said some encouraging words to me, that that call could have easily been called on any one of them.

The Blocking Call

Between kilometres 100km and 140km known as the Pemberton Meadows is a mainly flat section of the otherwise hilly terrain on the bike route. I was riding without problem until this flat section when riders were catching me only by the masses. I would try to open a gap to avoid drafting when they do catch me and then accelerate to get some "open" breathing room and ride individually again. 

Near the 140km at the end of the meadows, an official shake his head at me and asked me to serve a 5 minute penalty at the next penalty tent. I was a little curious to what had happened and he said I intentionally blocked someone trying to pass my front wheel. The gap I had intentially left opened with the rider ahead of me was an invitation for others to try to pass me. When one rider struggled to pass me, I accelerated again from the group and hence, blocking, was called by the official. There was plenty of road, I think maybe it was seemed as unsportsmanlike trying to prevent someone from passing your own front wheel, but of course you don't need to ease on the gas until the passer do pass your front wheel.

Trying to not argue with the official, I accepted the 5 minute penalty and asked the official where the next penalty tent was. He said the next one was in Whistler back in transition 2. I think this was disheartening knowing your at the time fast bike split was going to be tainted with a penalty. It also throws your game mentally because this was my first penalty at any race. Luckily there was a tent just before the hill back to town, and the 5 minutes was happily served. I had a good laugh with the race official there in the tent which shaded the hot conditions.

Only after the race, I also checked out the official TriBC rules, and it seemed to me that blocking is in fact a smaller penalty a stop-and-go violation. Anyways, I've taken a closer look at the rules with a bit more clarity now and know better for next time. In the end, I got a little break and ended up catching a lot of the riders with my flury of fresh-er legs up the hill back into town.    

By the time I got to the run, friends were cheering and I had forgotten what had happened. I walked most of the aid stations due to the extreme heat. The aid station near the golf course, I got a great boost in energy seeing Rob and Karen giving water and encouraging me. It wasn't a PB result but it was a overall PB for this course on a hot day. I applied sunscreen and yet still managed to miss some spots, which were too painfully made obvious the next day...sigh and ugh and double ugh.

Here's a graph recap to compare my efforts in 2013 and this year: 

   

Thanks for reading and until next time.

A Comeback to this Distance - GWN Half-Iron RR

It's been a busy month! Over a month ago (nearly 2...oh boy), a few friends and I did a little road trip to this cute town called Stony Plain to do the Great White North race, which is a popular half-iron in the Edmonton area (approx. 20-km west). If you were like us, coming all the way from BC, you were almost likely competing for those automatic worlds qualifiers spots for Penticton. Unfortunately for me, I was just outside those spots, but didn't go without a killer PB in this distance. At the end of the day it was a great set-up for my full Iron in Whistler and a very solid result for me coming back to this distance which I haven't done since 2014. I was sporting the new TRS Team Racing tri kits (yes, I'm excited to be part of an international triathlon team :) ) and it was cool seeing representation from several others out there!


PS - thanks to the race's director didn't feeling right to charge us for our great results, we were given the right to download these pictures for free! :)

I enjoyed the PhD nutrition drinks.


The race was pretty simple and straight-forward. The 2k swim started on Allan Beach, with a mass start single loop in Hubbles Lake. Two transitions race with one-direction-stick-and-two-loops-lollipop bike course and two out-and-back run loops. It was neat counting what position I was in until I realized on the run course that pretty much everyone ahead of me was also in my competitive age group (haha rats)! ;/


Here's my half iron race results in graphs. GWN was my first time cracking under top 10% in this distance!

Thanks for reading.  Until next time. Cheers. :)

We had some time to check out some Canadian Olympic Trials action!

Pace Bunnying Around for the Vancouver Scotia Half

I got to say, my first time being a pace bunny was super fun!

I was very lucky to be selected for the Asics Team squad pacing the 1:45 half marathon group. Despite the summer heat conditions, I did hit my target kilometre pacing with nearly military precision. One of the Asics Reps even ran right next to me. Feeling like a rockstar! :)

I was in the thick of the race atmosphere minus the usual intense pre-race jitters. Instead that void was replaced with some pre-race bunny jitters, as runners were coming to me (ME!) with questions about pacing and tips. A lot of blind trust was placed on this newbie pace bunny.

Pace bunnies do come with super responsibilities. People are safely tucking away their watches so that they can just solely follow you. Me! That is their complete focus. If only I had an evil laff, but I decided it was best to run a solid race for everyone to hit their goals.

My strategy was simple. Steady on the flats. Easy, higher turnovers at the downhills. Try to hit each kilometre on 1:44 pace.

http://www.marathonguide.com/fitnesscalcs/PaceBandCreator.cfm

This pace band helped.

Some highlights:

While going downhill on NW marine, a lady told me that we were doing it right, taking it slower on the downhill.

My co-worker Nelson at the Running Room ran with me the entire way. It was super satisfying knowing he was happy with his result. We ran 1:43:45 with plenty of time for people to reach their sub 1:45.

I got comments from people thanking us for being able to hit their goal times! “What a beast!” someone say to me!

Of course coming into the finishing line, you got comments like “Wow, such perfect timing!”

Dimitrios was pacing a friend too, and said “A long career of pace bunnying ahead of you, my friend!” I had my nerdie pace band on one wrist and TomTom GPS watch on the other wrist and gulped, “Yup!”

 

Outclassed by Fast Runners at a Duathlon – Point Grey RR

Well race day was a wet miserable day for a race. The theme was wet, wet, and more wet for the run, bike, and another run respectively. Last year we had similar wet conditions, maybe a touch worst. We were joking that the 5-10mm rain conditions we got this year were relatively better at least.  

Jen and I competed in the BC Duathlon Championships again this year. Up for grabs was world qualifier for Penticton 2017. We needed to win our respective age category to get it. Last year, we had little intention to go to 2016 Worlds in Spain, but this year the marbles counted because the Worlds will be coming here!  

Click on Image to read more!

The first run I was holding a bit quicker pace than I would had liked. The loops around the stadium was reversed in the opposite direction this year, making it slightly steeper for the ascends. Last year, I ran about 3:50s per km compared to 3:40s per km this year. Going into T1 in 8^th, I had my work cut out.



The transition was smooth, and I was careful on the bike for the first hill down to NW Marine. Two loops, I caught a few runners, but the top three was out of reach. Strong field, which made it fun. 




I had less energy to push on the bike as I was still recovering from the run. Slightly slower than last year's bike but still happy for the result. My calves last year died. This year, my calves were relatively fresher and could actually work.




I was one of the slower runners in the field despite the strong run performance (likely would had been a PB on both runs had it not been 400m longer). I got passed by a runner in a puffy jacket and was impressed. I still held on just barely sub 4minute per km pace but realized it wasn't enough to catch the top contenders. It was more just surviving this race at this point.  


Luckily 5th overall secured the top spot in my age category this time. Jen won her age category too. Super stoked. A small monkey is off our backs. :) Next up is long course and aquathon qualifiers for me.

 :0

Familiar faces and fabulous company at the race :)

 

My 100th Race - Boston Marathon RR

What was my time?
3:01:18.

I went into this year’s big 120^th Anniversary of the Boston Marathon with one of my own big milestones, as this race marked my 100^th race, since I started the sport twelve years ago. As well, the race celebrated the 50 years anniversary of women participating in this race. A lot of big miles for another big major marathon.

Me, Johnson, and Baiyun

In 2012, the year of the extreme heat, I ran Boston quite a bit slower and raced to ‘enjoy’ the experience. My time was 3:25-something in the 30 something degrees Celsius weather and it had given me a perspective for dealing with the heat on this particular famous course.

I’m extremely proud of my time, achieving another personal best time; however, I’d be lying if I said I haven’t dreamed of breaking that epic 3 hours barrier coming into this race. I raced a great race, and it was one of my strongest personal achievements, running smoothly for most of the way.

I got an Asics Boston-course adjusted pace band, which really helped. I followed it to the tee until 35km.

There was some breeze late in race but the damaged was done early with 20s C heat. This course is a unique monster and really punishes those that don't pace well.


5K: I took the downhill extremely easy for the first 4k. First few kilometers was slower than my overall run average pace.  

10K:
My left calves started cramping first, as the chamber of road made my hip rotate more towards the right side. There was a couple occasions when I had to aggressively tap the shoulder of other runners who suddenly started walking 1m ahead of me in the packed crowds after grabbing water from the aid stations.


16k: I don't sweat often, but I did by this point. I knew it was going to be a tough day ahead!  


1/2 way: 
Wellesly scream tunney could be heard a mile away. They take shifts to scream for 6 hours. Nothing beats this!


There were several mini trampolines with kids jumping and cheering us on, that given me a bit of a boost in energy!

30-35K Heartbreak Hill:
Race redemption to run sub 3 fell apart at about km 35. I knew I was about a minute off pace.  Mostly hips flexors were thrashed with bruising to the toenails. Easier on the cardio after Heartbreak Hill.

Katrina and family cheered us on at heartbreak Hill. I managed to grab a freezie stick from someone off the side of the course as my body was over-heating.


After 35K:
I dared not to look at my watch again and just poured all my effort to finish the race. I knew I was going to be about 1 minute off from reaching my goal time. At that point, I just muster all the strength I had.


Near the final stretch:
Once I hit the Citgo sign, I knew it was the home stretch. So much emotions coming down the final right on Hereford Street and left on Boylston Street. A bit bittersweet experience to see the time tick away and the finishline only hundreds meters away from cracking sub 3. Despite this, I had a great time. As Baiyun says, and dare I say it, it's another reason to come back to Boston one day.


Source: http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3001/3027055789_3b055afec8_z.jpg

Time for the Lobsters Rolls and Boston Crème Pies. A huge thank you to Johnson and Baiyun for their warm hospitality! And Breakfast Courier for contributing to my trip!


Congrats to my travel buddy Eric for his first Boston!

Lastly here's some nerdy graphs and splits:

 

 

 

Race #99 - First Official 5K - BMO St. Patrick's Day RR

In 2004, I completed my first official 10K race. Since then I've been tracking all my races of various lengths of single or multi-sports races on a neat little excel spreadsheet.

 

Fast forward 98 races and nearly 12 years later, I completed my first 5K race (race number big nine-nine) at the BMO St. Patrick's Day 5K. Haha yes Winston, it's about freaking time. :)

 

Credit: Keith Dunn

 

 

Jen and I drove down to Burrard Bridge and parked near the neighbourhood, and mainly because I was too cheap to pay for parking. We ran a 5k warm-up, which was a distance equalling to the length of the race. I tried keeping up to Jen but she was too quick.

 

As we approached Stanley Park, it was nice bumping and brushing shoulders with so many stars. The local triathletes sure stuck out to me like sore thumbs.

 

Start time was 9:30am. The weather just cleared up as we start. We did a small counter-clockwise loop, which consists of the start on Pipeline Rd and around the Stanley Park Dr, and back onto Pipeline Rd and turn up a nasty hill to the finish. The terrain was quite rolly with a downhill start and an aggressive first turn. I liked the course, as it was challenging and fun.

 

 

Per unit kilometre of the race, I felt more pain than ever in my 12 years. A lot of hurt. I'm a bit like a truck and require a gentle ease into a good steady rhythm.  

 

The miles splits were recorded. I was surprised that my placement was pretty consistent, despite my speed gradually getting slower and slower as the hills rolled in.


Here they were:

• Mile 1 – 84th 5:28
• Mile 2 – 87th 11:24
• Mile 3 – 82nd 17:35
• Overall – 81st 18:09

I fell short of my overly-ambitious expectations of 17-something-something, however given my training, I don't think I can be too disappointed. Damn my slow-twitch muscles. Too slow and steady for this 5K stuff. 


Jen finished with 1 second ahead of me. I like to say I let Jen beat me, however that couldn't have been more far from the truth.  


PS - Running Room was an organizer of this event, which contributed to the reason why I wanted to sign up and represent! Great post race food from chips to cupcakes and beer! :)


Next race on the calendar is the big kahuna Boston Marathon...dun dun dun!! I'm getting excited, but also a little nervous for that big sub 3!


Well, epic cliff hanger, we'll see what Boston holds. 'Til next time!

Race morning cartoon drawn by one of my roommates. :)

 

Try the Tri, Do the Du - UBC Tri/Du RRs

Yup, the double.

Photo Cred: Jensen Tung

I was inspired from both of my current roommates, as I was the last (ehem i.e. underachieving) roommate to attempt the double, which was doing more than one individual multisport event at UBC Tri/Du. A few years ago, Jon completed the Olympic and Sprint in style and also beating me in the Olympic event. Last year, Brendan signed up for both the Olympic and Sprint events! He finished 2nd in the Olympic but then got too caught up chit chatting with friends to start the sprint.

Now it was my turn.

Left: Standard, Photo Cred: Steven Durfee

Right: Duathlon, Photo Cred: Vickram Sidhu

The Standard Tri

I knew I could finish the standard in around 2 hours 15 minutes. My concern was finishing before the Duathlon start at 11am. To add to the excitement, parked cars on the run coursed delayed the race start by 45 minutes (we were waiting for the cars to be towed). That meant about a 15 minutes buffer time.


I started in the second heat in order to make the duathlon heat. I painfully watched the first heat begin swimming inside the 50m pool.

Photo Cred: Jensen Tung

Standard results:
- swim, pretty much same result as usual
- bike, 2 minutes improvement from same course last year
- run, 2 minutes improvement despite a slightly longer course.


Here's a update to the graph:

The Duathlon

After crossing the finishline from the standard event, I had about 14 minutes to get ready. I ran to get my bike moved from the standard rack to the duathlon rack. I also ran to get my race bibs switched and ate a Sweet Potato Cliff jel.

I paced myself pretty much the same as the standard. I was running on pretty tired legs. The bike I felt no push, and then a big cramp just getting off into T2. A few athletes were just behind me including my good friend Kevin, luckily I was able to run off the cramps and held on the last 5km without any more people passing me (I was 3rd overall as I got off the bike).


Good news sometimes come with some mishaps, I managed to squeak out a 9th in the Standard and 3rd in the Duathlon before being told that I wasn't allowed to race the two multisport events in a period within 36 hours by a TriBC Official.


Oh silly gee whiz, I wished somebody told me earlier, as I didn't have a clue.


Here's a little snippet from the ITU rules updated very recently...

Regardless, I was pretty happy with both of my results. Nobody can take that away from me at least. The double DQ is something I never would had thought was possible. A DQ for being a little too awesome. Ironically, the official was feeling generous and let me DQ an event of my choosing. Next year, maybe I'll just stick to something simple and just TRY sticking to DOing one multisport event. ;)

Well, keep on being awesome! :)