BC Long weekend tradition at Elk Lake RR

The next stop in my triathlon schedule involved another road trip, this time to Vancouver Island.  I convinced Jen to join me for the trip, and tricked her into registering for the standard distance triathlon.

The Elk Lake triathlon was recently added to the Dynamic Series as a way to keep the Self Transcendence triathlon alive.  This is the longest running triathlon in Canada (38 years!) and has always taken place on the BC long weekend.  Despite its long history, this would be my first time racing, though I did volunteer at it once several years ago.

Having done the earlier race at Elk Lake I've not seen the grass this golden brown, it's always been green. 

I chose to race the sprint in preparation for Super League two weeks later.  The course was a single 800m clockwise triangular loop in Elk lake, an out-and-back loop along the technical old Saanich road, and an out and back loop on the east side trail of Elk lake.

The water temperature was a comfortable 24oC, which meant another non-wetsuit swim.  The race was a floating start.  And by floating, I mean waist deep water.  We were told at the pre-race meeting to watch out for the stump on our way back onto the beach, which was marked with a small orange buoy.  The sprint heat was smaller, but I found a good group to work with on the first two segments.  The standard distance races started 10 and 20 minutes before we did.  By the time I rounded the second buoy, the lead men from the standard distance race came flying past us.  It was humbling to know that they were covering double my distance, yet swimming so much faster.

The bike course started fast as we rounded the lake and onto the scenic Old Saanich Road.  The course was technical with several punchy hills and blind sharp corners. Even though we drove the course the day before, I still felt uncertain about what was coming. This is the type of course that rewards athletes with good bike handling skills and has familiarity of the route.  The non-wetsuit swim tips the favour for swim-bike specialists, since the punchy nature of the bike course made it more difficult for bike-runners like me to estimate the gap.  

The bike course had amazing support with the help of at least 50 local cadets. Huge shout out to them for doing everything they can to make us feel inspired. Passing by the roundabout with a group of them cheering felt like a little turbo boost of energy. 



Kudos credit to Judah Paemka catching this photo! Riding the legal distance just behind Jeff.

Coming back into transition, I knew that there were a couple guys just ahead of me.  I didn't know how many of them were in my age group, but knew that I would have to run hard to catch anyone I could.  For the second time in two weeks, I watched the winner of my age group cross the finish line.  This time the gap was only 9 s!  And to add to the pain, Brendan Robinson from the UBC triathlon club just edged me by 1 s.  These finishes make the race exciting!  And also illustrate the importance of practicing your transitions and pushing right through the finish chute.  I struggled to put on my socks in T2, which might have put me just out of reach of catching Jeff. Pretty sure Jeff ran without socks! :P  Lesson learned.

I was happy that Jen decided to extend her triathlon season to eight days and compete.  We saw her enter T2 during our cool down and take off on the run.  She knew that she was in fourth and looked focused on reeling in the girls ahead of her.  She ended up finished second female overall.

 Brendan Robertson right beside me 1033 and 1035.

Photo credit to Judah Paemka: Jeff, winner of my AG, Me, and then Brendan Robertson eventually edging me down by 1s at the finish

A chance to learn from the Superhumans - ITU Edmonton Standard Triathlon RR

The next race included a road trip to Edmonton for the WTS event.  I have done this race the last two years and feel that it is underrated.  You get to watch the best triathletes in the world duke it out (twice this year!) and get a better perspective on how they approach each aspect of the triathlon.  Edmonton is known for it's event organization and it really shows.  They have been credited for writing the manual for future cities wishing to host a WTS series race.  This year, the WTS introduced three mixed team relay events.  One of them relays was in Edmonton, so we got to watch the elites compete in a sprint distance triathlon Friday night, and then in the team relay Saturday after the age group races.

Before I get into my race report, I wanted to mention some of the unique things Edmonton did.  Edmonton has hosted a WTS series race or a World cup event multiple times in the last two decades.  Hosting an event of this stature requires that the community is willing to embrace the event. For instance:
- They brought in over a hundred volunteers (including hair braiding)
- Closed down all the roads on the bike course.  They are repaving Groat road and Groat road bridge for the 2020 grand final.  Not many triathlons can get support from the City to do this.
- Technical officials are situated along the entire course to ensure everyone followed the rules.  It was interesting to see how precise they were for the elite races when it came to the mount and dismount lines.  In a couple cases, they would review the dismount on a tablet to see if they needed to assess a penalty.
- They offer an official swim familiarization for age group athletes with boats and kayaks to help with navigation.

The AG standard triathlon course includes two clockwise loops of Hawrelak lake (purple), six loops of the bike course (red), and two out and back loops around Hawrelak park for the run (blue).

With the elites tackling the sprint Friday evening, the age group races started a little later.  It was nice to sleep in race morning and casually make our way to the start line at a reasonable hour (the standard race started at 10:15 for the men's heat and 10:45 for the women).  The water temperature was 22.8oC an hour before my race started, so wet-suits were not allowed.  This wasn't good for me since Paul Tischelaar (Olympian from Beijing 2008) was in my heat!

At 10:10 AM, all the age group men lined up behind a number on the starting block (it was self selected based on first come first served).  And with the cue 'on your marks', we run up to the front of the pontoon and wait for the horn.  It was cool to start the race just like an elite!  The swim was warmer than the air temperature, which was nice for a non-wetsuit swim.

Coming out of the water, we had to run about 400m to transition (the hidden discipline).  I hammered it trying to make up ground with 8th fastest T1 split. 

The bike loop was challenging with 6 climbs up Emily Murphy hill and a couple technical sections at the turn around points.  This style of course suits my strengths as you require good handling skills and use of all gears. There was a steady stream of motorbike officials patrolling the course, which made it a little intimidating as they were passing on the right side. To prevent cyclists from crossing over one another, the bike actually runs clockwise on opposite side of road. Good thing the roads were closed circuit. :)

By the time I got to the run, it was getting hot.  Luckily they had three aid stations on the course and a sprinkler set up at the 1K mark of each lap. I posted the 7th fastest run split, something I've been improving on this year. Jen posted the 2nd fastest split of the day, going sub 40 minutes! 

Despite our quick run splits, I witnessed my age group winner crossing the finished line 10 seconds ahead of me.  I was gaining on him over the last 2K, but ran out of distance.  Similarly, Jen also watched her age group winner finish 11 seconds ahead of her. Regardless good to represent our home province BC in the mix!

The pro race mixed relay was exciting to watch. The order sequence is female, male, female, and male, each completing a mini-triathlon (300m swim, 7K bike, and 1 mile run). A new skillset required for the mixed relay is a clean tag-off with officials carefully ipading your tag at the transition line. The women's approach was orderly like penguins al lined up tightly before diving. In contrast, the men's approach was much more leisurely hiding in the shade until the very last moment until they had to get up and sprint for the tag-off. This might actually maximize your momentum.   

The exchange area is complete carnage! You really know each nation is giving every bit of energy as some weren't keeping it together and puking and fainting after each exchange. 20 minutes of intense action for each. The commentator was figuring that 11-12places qualifies you for the Toyko olympics in 2020. It's a super exciting format, one that I'll be keeping an eye on! 

Round 2 in Penticton - One Giant Hill Seen Twice, once on Bike and another on Shoes - Peach Classic Sprint RR

After a short month off, I eased back into racing with the shorter Sprint distance in the Peach Classic. This was my first time doing the Peach, and marked its 36 anniversary, which is the oldest triathlon continuously held in BC. There were lots of familiar faces here from UBC Tri, TSJ cycling and Abbotsford Tri Clubs. World qualifier spots were available for aquabike, and provincial champions for standard tri.

Swim was a CCW loop along the warm beach. Temperature was 22 C making it wetsuit illegal. 

Transition racks for Sprint was rotated perpendicular in the upper section as compared to the Standard racks in the lower section, making it an obvious separation between the two traffic flows.

The bike was a one tiny out and back along Lakeshore, and then a larger out and back to and from Vancouver Ave hill. Coming back there's a slight detour to the other side of the hill along the cemetery. The turn was tricky to spot and did catch some riders off course.

The run was a short out and back, however a couple killer grades connecting to Vancouver hill, and then the rest of Vancouver hill to the Kettle Valley Trail. 

I enjoyed the scenic view during a warmup run - but not so much during the race as the elevation kept changing to make it hard to get a good rhythm going.

The Sprint was an exciting beach mass start. No wetsuits. No style points. I usually hand a few minutes to the strong swimmers. Out of the water in 28th, I had my work cut out. 

My power to weight is favourable for this kind of course. My bike was 8th fastest split and caught a few stragglers. 

It was hard seeing the hill again but with shoes. I think the lack of wetsuit swim did tire me out on the bike, and with the technical bike, my fatigue was kicking in for the run. Still a solid 8th fastest split on run and 9th overall.

I feel like the swim without wetsuit is something I do need to work on for next year. The energy distribution of a wetsuit legal swim/bike/run feels like 10%/40%/50%. For a wetsuit illegal swim/bike/run feels a lot more like 30%/40%/30%, making it a bit more of a strugglefest by the time you get to the run. 

Sharing the podium here with Scott.

The BBQ certainly didn't disappoint! Thanks to Jen for making this trip and friends Vanessa and Matt for hosting us. Sometimes I wonder why I bother with the longer distances. I enjoyed this race, the friends, and the perfect distance (before waiting to get food). I hope to be back next year now that I know the course.

Short Course Training for Long Course Racing...oops - IM Boulder RR

My goals the last two seasons have focused on building speed and power with short course racing.  After all, you cannot race faster in the longer distance races if you're weak in one of those areas.

I learned last year that my friend Andrew and his friend were racing IM Boulder this year, and figured I would give long course racing another shot.  My cousins in Fort Collins have wanted me to come visit them, so this felt like the perfect opportunity.

This race in Boulder Colorado was an eye opener. The mile high city for endurance athletes along the foothills of the Rockies. Despite doing short course training, it was neat to see my fitness still carried through for the long course. The altitude and heat (above 35 deg C) definitely killed me. 

The course:

The swim was in the scenic Boulder Reservoir almost equilateral triangle in a CCW loop. The start was self seating. 

The bike was a two loop course. This is the fifth year of the race and fifth consecutive year with a different bike course. The first stretch on the highway was mostly flat and you work your way into the foothills with 3 small climbs.

The run course is a reference to the flux capacitor from back to the future. One stick and then 3 legs and repeating 2 of the 3 legs for a second lap.

I was within touching distance from my friend Andrew in the race and he's in the next age group. I was placed near the back of mine. What luck!

In a bit of a rush to the start line, my wetsuit zipper broke as I tried to zip up. A fellow athlete tried but had given up. I ran further down the self seating crowds and luckily eventually another athlete was able to zip me up. 

The half way mark of the swim, I felt the zipper from the bottom come off with water slowly penetrating in. I got to T1 and luckily a volunteer helped me with unzipping the wetsuit. It felt like a long minute before I could move. 

The bike was baking hot. I applied sunscreen on an hourly interval. I also put on the Dynamic Race Events series pass jersey on for good measure. The first 3 hours I was holding back and trying to maintain 180 watts. The latter half I could feel the quads burn. It was a complete sufferfest. The 3 climbs did help break things up. 

Flying along Hwy 36 was a fast and single file stretch. An athlete involved in a tragic event on this stretch two years ago, I knew to take this section easy. The narrow shoulder and heavy vehicle traffic were things to watch for.

I tried hydrating as much as I can to the point of puking water out. I can tell my body was rejecting the fluids. I asked myself why I do this? 

Getting into the Reservoir was a relief. I could feel the legs cramping up. Running into T2, my feet was cooking on the asphalt. It was a scorcher. Quads were still dead and ended up hobbling along at one pace 5:40per km. The Boulder community has a bike highway system, once getting off the roads from the reservoir, the bike freeway was nice. Lots of volunteers and spectators to support. I was walking through most aid station drinking as much ice water as possible.

Slowly but surely I was able to gain a rhythm. I picked the heavy cushion new balance 880s for good measure. Finishing the run in a PW but I didn't care. I was happy to finish. My back was saltier than the ocean!

I was happy with my execution despite my lack of training for this distance. I knew my strengths and weaknesses. This wasn't something I would enjoy without my cousins and friends coming to do this race with me.

Six Big Carrots!! - Oliver Wine Capital of Canada Sprint RR

Photo credit: Dynamic Race Events

Coming back to Oliver for the sprint this year was fun. I knew the course. A clockwise swim. A quick T1 with the big sign to mark my bike rack. A two legs out-and-back bike. And a gentle roller out-and-back run.

I'm definitely better at chasing people than running away from them. I was 19th out of the swim. 

Photo credit: Dynamic Race Events

The bike had a little hill on the first out and back, the gas station junction had to take it carefully, and then you can see your competition again coming back. I saw Stan way up ahead and I knew I was about 3 minutes back from most of the pack. Coming off the bike at 8th place, I chipped my way at the positions. 

Photo credit: Dynamic Race Events

Race commentator Steve King planted a seed of confidence in me. As I worked my way up the first hill out from transitions, he provided a little brief commentary with his deep knowledge of the sport.

One by one I put on the hurtsville factor going close to my standalone 5k time. I was wiping off about 15s off each km and only a matter of simple linear math before I caught more. Mikey was a bit further ahead this year when I caught him, simply because he got faster and wearing a wetsuit definitely made him harder to chase down.

Within 100m from the finish line I caught 2nd and 3rd places, finishing about 3 minutes behind the leader Stan. That's just racing sometimes, an ITU finishing sprint in my favour. The flat and asphalt run terrain really suited my strengths.

Thanks to Angie and Joe for putting on another great event.

A PB effort!

Photo Credit: Dynamic Race Events
Great shot of Mikey and Me

Photo Credit: Dynamic Race Events

First Tri of Year, Chain-Drop Hill, & Tough Punchers - Westwood Standard Tri RR

Dynamic Race Event's Westwood Tri in Nanaimo BC was my first triathlon of the year and probably one of the first open lake triathlon here on the west coast racing scene. A good bang per buck for a challenging hilly course on the bike/run with ideal weather conditions. We got ideal weather conditions for this third annual event and better than the rainy one from last year.

I decided to go test the standard distance. A - to build fitness for Boulder long course, and B - since last week I did a accumulation of 32k bike, 10k run in the standard du, adding 8k more for bike and a small 1.5k swim component can't be too bad right?   

For standard, the swim is a two CCW loop course in the calm waters. There was a little more contact in the main than the sprint distance. I seem to get my fastest swim splits with more contact, which means more drafting for me. 

Credit: Dynamic Race Events

Swim

Coming out of the waters and into T1, we go down the infamous known chain-drop hill. 

The bike is similar to the Sprint with a little extension tail to the out-and-back. At the flux Capacitor, we do a little ziggy section only on the outbound.

The little extension took a little detour into the new residential area. After that was some significant hills. I had to shift down to small ring 4-5 times throughout the bike. I was counting the leaders. Jeff Symonds and a few others putting on a clinic. The honest hills definitely favours the all-rounded cyclists and not just big power outputters. I really enjoyed it, and especially chain-drop hill on the way back to the lake.

Bike

The run is definitely challenging and one of the more hidden ones. You don't realize if anyone is behind or ahead unless you can remember the positionings from the bike. Two CCW loops around the perimeter of the Westwood lake. Just a few 100 metres before the finish is a killer puncher hill which ruins your rhythm.

Run

Credit: Dynamic Race Events

Credit: Dynamic Race Events

I ease my legs into gear for the first 2k. Maybe it was a bit too conservative? But I wasn't comfortable in the standard distance yet. Lessons to learn for next time. Some yummy pancakes and sausages at the finish. This one was hard earned but a good build to the season's opener. Just missed the AG podium, but definitely a good challenge with the standard distance. :) Overall another great race with fabulous company and race support. It's becoming a must on my annual race calendar! :)