2012 Tribute Triathlon Report

Carolynn and I ventured over to the little town of Windsor, MO.  I like this little town located in West Central Missouri. It only has one bar, but has 8 churches and is surrounded by a large Amish community.   I always stop there when I am riding on Katy Trial.  This was also the first stop of  the Katy Trail  Ride back in 2007.  I still remember Christopher riding the entire length of the Katy by himself.  Damn he has grown a lot during the last 5 years....

This time we visited so I could race in the 3rd Annual Tribute Triathlon.   I tried to get Carolynn to do the event with me as her First Triathlon.  The swim is fairly short and is held in a small lake.  The bike is 18 miles long which would suite her cycling background.  The run is 5K.  She opted to just ride the Katy as I raced.  For me this event was a "B" level event so I put a little pressure on myself to do well.  I like this event because it has a longer bike leg in relation to the swim/run legs and all the profits from the event go to a charity.  The community really supports this event and the volunteers are great.

Awaiting the start in my new Hammer Nutrition kit.  I am very happy that I picked up Hammer Nutrition for a triathlon sponsor.  I have used their products successfully for the past several years and they have always supported the events I have promoted.  A great company with proven products that I am proud to support.

The reason we are all here.  To pay tribute to Fred Overton, II

Everyone getting ready for the start.  First event up is the swim.  The announced the distance was only 350 yards.  .  However, the swim was the same as previous years when it was 500 yards. 

Some nervous folk getting ready.

A newer trend is starting with some triathlons.  Single file starts instead of starting in waves.  I kind of like it.  10 seconds between participants.  It is safer and to an extent may be more fair to everyone considering that another swimmer does not interfere with your swim. 

I caught my 10 second man :-), but my 10 second man caught me :-(

I liked the green carpet.  My feet are tender and I dislike running barefoot on pavement.  My swim was o.k.  Shoulder giving me some concerns so I have not swam much as of late.  Plenty of PT instead. 

Carolynn hit the Katy trail for a ride after I got out of the swim so no pictures of the bike nor run.

I had a very solid bike.  My setup is very comfortable to me which is most important in my opinion.  The course was an out/back with rolling hills.  It was a bit windy, which kept the temps down, but made the bike hard at times.  One of my goals was to bring my effort up to my current threshold and keep it there.  I did not want to push so hard on the bike that I fell apart on the run.  I have learned the hard way to hold back some on the bike so I can have a more successful run and a faster overall time.  I continue to be impressed with the Kenda Volare tubular tire.  This tire just rolls fast and continues to perform even on the rough country roads we had today.  I am sold on tubular and tubeless on the road for sure.

My run was o.k.  I really need to get my run times down.  I would be happy with just running a 6:45 average after my bike leg.  I plan to add a weekly brick workout to my schedule.  I normally do one the week of the triathlon, but that is just not cutting it.  Adding more running miles would help also.  I only get out once or twice a week if I am lucky and it shows. 

Results were really quick thanks to Ridge Runner Sports.  They have been timing for 20 years and they have their act together.  

I was a little surprised by my race times this year.  Two years ago, when I believe I was in better shape, I had a finishing time of 1:27.  This year I came in at 1:21.  Even with a (reportedly) shorter swim this year having a 6 minute improvement is rather substantial.  Two big improvements was a faster bike (22.1 mph average this year) and a much improved T1 time.  The bike time is a little deceptive because you time begins when you exit transitions and includes your run out to the start of the bike.  The last improvement came on the run which really surprised me.  This year I did not have any cramping issues and my energy level remained high throughout the event.  I contribute this to a well thought out pacing plan and proper nutrition prior to the event, especially on race morning.  Check out Hammers Top 10 Biggest Mistakes Endurance Athletes make. The 10th mistake is over eating the night before and eating at the wrong time.  I used to always overeat before and during events.  No more. 

The results of hard work.  I got overall win in the Masters Male division.  Here I am with Overall winner Brad Cope.  Brad actually lives just a few miles from my house in Riverside, MO.  It is a small, small world after all. 

I really like the award I received. It is custom made from a slate of stone and comes with a stand.  I will put this up on the trophy case for sure.  This is what I was talking about last week.  Awards are indeed special and should be nice and worth keeping on display.  I will be back next year to see if I can add another one to the collection.