Week 16 Recap / Smithfield RR

Instead of training through the Smithfield Sprint I decided to let my IT Band relax for the week before the race. I did 30 minutes of easy spinning, which brought my total cycling mileage for the year up to an anemic 81 miles. Then I hit the track one day for 800s and 400s to get my 5K pacing set. This brought my total running mileage for the year to 256 miles. My final workout was a quick tune-up at the pool that featured a few intervals with 300 yard recoveries. By Friday I had a hard time trying to keep my legs still. I was ready.

Virginia's beautiful weather in the 70s and 80s turned into low 50s and windy on Saturday. Not exactly what you want to ride your bike in after swimming.

Swim 300 Meters - 5:27 (1:49/100m)
Being my first in-pool start I wasn't sure how this was going to work. I was however optimistic I could pull off a great swim based on the times I do while training. I conservatively seeded myself with 1:40 per 100 meter. It turns out SetupEvents needed a 100 yard time. Regardless, I felt I was in the appropriate time range and wouldn't clog up the lane. Starts were staggered every :15 and ordered by race number (predetermined by submitted swim time). I was 232. The race officially began at 10:00:00 and I hit the water at 11:08:00. It became abundantly clear I was in for a terrible swim when I caught my first swimmer within the first 100 meters. Apparently the mix of my conservative/screwed-up time and other athlete's optimistic times created a traffic jam in the pool. I wasted a good deal of time waiting for the right moments to pass while swimming under lane lines. By the end I passed five swimmers, two of which finished 2:13 and 3:14 after I left the water. Yes, after! This guy even cuts me off after I passed him in the water.



T1 - 2:39
I'll admit my transitions need work. I opted for warmth and decided I'd spend an extra minute drying off and putting on pants and a windbreaker.

10 Mile Bike - 30:58 (19.4mph)
I figure I got what I put into bike training and that wasn't much. The course was relatively flat and windy at a few points where the road opened up to fields. My legs didn't warm up until mile three and I wasn't pushing it. I was still pretty steamed about the swim and began thinking this was going to be a training race, thus lacking the intensity I wanted to bring. Overall I was pleased with the time all things considered. I might reconsider the jacket idea though.



T2 - 1:36
The transition was pretty uneventful. I took an extra moment to take off the windbreaker and throw on my Coastal Racing shirt.

5K Run - 20:32 (6:37/mile)
I approached the run with a moderate effort. My legs were a bit rubbery, as would be expected coming off the bike, so I didn't have a good understanding of my pace. My first mile split of 6:39 felt good so I settled in. I glided into the second mile at 6:51 and capped off the race with a 6:23 mile split plus :39 for a tenth.

Total Time - 1:01:11
This race turned out to be somewhat of a disaster for me. It hurt my pride because I know I am capable of so much more. I'm thinking Smithfield was a good learning experience. And if nothing else, this race has certainly renewed my desire to train hard for Timberman.