Category Archives: Triathlon

Tri United 1 RACE REPORT

Posted on April 16, 2012 | 2 Comments

TriUnited 1, Playa Laiya, Batangas, Philippines. April 14, 15 2012

1k-30k-7k

Tri United 1 is the first race of a three race series including a long distance race at the beginning of April. The series is staged by the people behind Unilab Active Health, who really are supporting the running and triathlon scene here in the Philippines and helping to raise the bar of these sports to professional standards. The races contained about 250 people including around 10 teams and was set over the friendly distance of 10-30-7.

I raced in the mens race on the Sunday and it was a very fun day out. The weather cooperated well with a clear, warm morning and little wind. My goal for the race was to get a hard bike in and have a good lead so I could have an easier run so I could spend time encouraging others and have a relaxed day out. Things went well to plan. I tried to swim with super Olympian swimmer Guy Concepcion and it worked for about 200 metres! Before I worked my way into 3rd position swimming by myself keeping a steady tempo focusing on keeping my core engaged and keeping my body position nice and high in the water.

I came out feeling good and after a long t-run I had a good transition and got set for the 30k bike leg. The Playa Laiya bike leg was 2 loops out and back and pretty fast and I reeled in the 2 guys in front within the first few k’s and put the hammer down for the remainder of leg. The goal here was to push a big gear and keep the power consistent and rpm @ around 75 or so. I have had more chances to put in some big k’s on the new Vellum TT bike and it is turning out to be a real advantage for me which is awesome. On the second lap I noticed I had a 4 minute lead so was set to enjoy the rest of the race. Only problem was that I ate lots of toxic fumes from the lead bike and police escort! The course was pretty fast as my average speed was around 40kph.

The run leg was fun with plenty of shade and time to say hi and some encouragement to other friends out there on the course. The Quicky blades as usual were feeling light and dependable throughout. I kept my position well and finished 1st overall in 1.36.

All in all it was a great weekend and if you are a lover of an organised professional race with lots of added touches including roaming Enervon HP recovery drinks and hydration, a stretching tent, great sponsor products like Times Watches etc., then this is for you.

Congrats to Next Step Athletes out there on course also: Clinton Hess, Mike Vaca, Marge Buot, August Benedicto, Carlo Pedregoza, Team Greentennial Relay and Ani De Leon Brown. Fantastic job guys and great start to the year also!

Thanks and see you at the races soon.

Dan

Sponsors and Partners:

Unilab Active Health, Vellum, K Swiss, Rudy Project, Detec, Timex, Hed, Hammer Nutrition, Pico De Loro Beach Club and Resort.

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Posted in ATHLETE UPDATES, RACE REPORT, SPONSORS AND PARTNERS, Triathlon

Pico Invitational Wrap

Posted on April 2, 2012 | Leave a comment

The Pico Tri Invitational was held at the Pico De Loro Club in the Batangas, Philippines. It is a truly stunning members only resort set amongst mountains and a beautiful swimming cove. It is the perfect backdrop for training and competing in a triathlon race.

The race was held over the distances of 1.2k swim, a 35k bike and an 8k run. Due to the technical course the race was limited to a field of around 213 participants including a strong international pro field of 8 athletes. Race day was clear and fine untill just after lunch when the clouds rolled in and treated everyone to a sharp rainshower and spectacular light show just before the 2.30pm start.

The swim start was a little more competitive and hard fought than I expected and I found myself drop just off the front pack after around 400 metres till Aussie vet Stu Fitch came by me and shouted me the rest of the way. The crystal clear water was a nice distraction! I got out onto the bike course just as the rain was clearing up. Within the first 1k there is an impressive climb out of the resort at around 14-17% gradient which certainly had many athletes feeling nervous about pre-race.

I passed a few athletes in the first few k’s of the bike and set about addressing the damage caused by the leaders in the swim. For the most part the bike was flat and I got to get in a good hard workout on my new very fast Vellum Uno Elite carbon TT bike. I carefully descended the steep downhills and entered into T2 and held that position over the 4 loop run course which allowed great spectator viewing and a chance to see the other athletes in the race which was good fun.

It was particularly inspiring to see my wife having a great race after giving birth only 4 months ago (1st overall age grouper). We are always a team effort and I certainly cannot do the things I do without her support and organisation!

I was very happy to finish on the podium in this race as it is definitely a memorable course and a much-anticipated weekend getaway for all. There really isn’t a more spectacular venue around than this one and we cannot help but feel a special energy here. The after party had 3 bands, a great buffet, free flowing beer and and a great impromptu singing performance by good friend Doc Adel! Perfect!

Thank you to the fantastic ongoing support of our sponsors and partners who always go out of their way to help us in our endeavours. UNILAB ACTIVE HEALTH, VELLUM, K-SWISS, RUDY PROJECT, HED, DETEC, HAMMER, GATORADE, TIMEX, and PICO DE LORO CLUB/HAMILO COAST

Photo by Glenn Colendrino:

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Posted in RACE REPORT, Triathlon

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Update on The Next Step Tri Camps for 2012

Posted on January 31, 2012 | Leave a comment

The Next Step Camps for Tri United

A. Feb 25-26 Next Step Camp 1 for Tri United

Focus: Starting It Right Camp
Venue: Pico de Loro
Coaching Fee: Free
Cost of Accommodations: P5,000/ hotel room
How to Register: Just email nextsteptri@gmail.com to confirm your slot, first come first served
A great fitness booster for the 2012 racing season and educational weekend for both beginner and experienced triathletes. Partner bike shops, mechanics, and bike-fit systems present.

 

B. March 10-11 Next Step Camp 2 for Tri United

Focus: Sprint Olympic Training Weekend
Venue: Pico de Loro
Coaching Fee: Free
Cost of Accommodations: P5,000/ hotel room
How to Register: Just email nextsteptri@gmail.com to confirm your slot, first come first served
Join this camp and be race ready for the first few sprint and Olympic distance races of summer! Partner bike shops, mechanics, and bike-fit systems present.

 

C. June 9-10 Next Step Camp 3 for Tri United

Focus: Long Distance Weekend
Venue: Pico de Loro
Cost of Accommodations: P5,000/ hotel room
How to Register: Just email nextsteptri@gmail.com to confirm your slot, first come first served
For triathletes who want to work hard and prepare well for their long distance race events. Partner bike shops, mechanics, and bike-fit systems present.

 

D. July 21-22 Next Step Camp 4 for Tri United

Focus: Long Distance Race Prep
Venue: Pico de Loro
Coaching Fee: Free
Cost of Accommodations: P5,000/ hotel room
How to Register: Just email nextsteptri@gmail.com to confirm your slot, first come first served
A great tune up weekend specifically designed for the 70.3PhilippinesinCebu. We want to help you have an awesome race! Partner bike shops, mechanics, and bike-fit systems present.

 

E. October 13-14 Next Step Camp 5 for Tri United

Focus: Beginners Camp for Tri United 3
Venue: Alabang
How to register: Available only to registrants of Tri United Race Series.
Triathlon 101 for those who are new to the sport and want to arm themselves with practical lessons in swimming, biking, running, transitions, nutrition, etc. Partner bike shops, mechanics, and bike-fit systems present.

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Posted in TRAINING CAMPS, Triathlon

CANBERRA 70.3 RACE REPORT: BLAKE EASTWOOD

Posted on December 16, 2011 | Leave a comment

I had a good week leading upto the race with training and massages etc… I got to Canberra on Friday and drove over the bike course. Saturday was hot, about 25 degrees. I had a 40 minute ride in the morning and then went to registration and briefing in the arvo.

Race day was interesting…it started hammering down with rain as I was about 300m into the swim leg and I had 212 people in my age group wave too which made it a bit interesting. Lake Burley griffin is extremely muddy and visibility was very poor, though the water temp was 19.4 degrees which was alright. I was a little slower than usual in the swim with a time of 37:42 for the leg.

There was about a 300m run then from the water back to transition. I jumped onto the bike and it was still raining for the entire first lap (30km) The course was challenging with some good hills and rough roads on Coppins Crossing Drive. I really focused on nutrition through the bike legs having carbs every 20 mins and getting through 75gm of carbs per hour with gels and bars.

My bike leg split was 2:57hr which I was happy with. I’ve never held an average above 30km/hr in a race of this length. The 2nd and 3rd laps of the bike were hot and steamy and the road dried up which was much safer to ride obviously.

The best part for me though was the run leg. Previously, I have never got through a 21.1km run in a triathlon without having to stop and walk several times. I headed out from transition and took the first 2km rather steady, sitting on about 6:30min kms. I found my running legs and started to get into stride. I managed to run the entire way and my run split was 1:57hr. I was stoked with this because previously my fastest run leg has been 2:10hr and that was at Huskisson which is only a 20km run. I felt strong the whole run and the final 3km of the run it started bucketing down rain again which wasn’t a bad thing!

So overall time was 5:39:17 with my previous half ironman time being 6:12hr in Port Macquarie last year, so a 33 min improvement.

It was good to see that all the brick training you have had me doing has really paid off.

If you want to check out all my splits and positions etc…. jump onto www.multisportaustralia.com.au and search for ‘Eastwood’ or number ‘257’.

The next race for me now is Huskisson in February which is a long course 2/83/20.

 

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TIMEX 226 RACE REPORT: BONG PIMENTEL

Posted on December 16, 2011 | Leave a comment

The Venue:

Anda, Bohol is located at the Eastern tip of Bohol and 99 kilometers from Tagbilaran City. Coming from Tagbilaran City we hired a van and on our way to Anda we already passed the 50% of the bike course and 100% of the run course. The road from Tagbilaran to Anda is 98% concrete and mostly in good shape with some rough parts specially from Guindulman to the Town of Anda. We stayed in a newly built lodging house near the venue. Thanks to my best friend Peter who is from Bohol who arranged for our place to stay. Its absolutely fantastic because it is like 300 meters from the venue.  The lodging house that we stayed in had their own mini groceries where you can find everything that you need from cooked food, canned goods, frozen foods, to medicine and garter. Yes garter, the rubber thing. Good thing that they have because if not my speedfill might fly away during the race…

The Swim

December 2 our second day in Anda at exactly 6:45 am, Ric and Glenn who were my teammates were already on their way to the swim venue which is in front of the town plaza. The beach is a beauty with white sand and crystal clear water. But one thing we noticed is that tide is really low and that you have to walk like 80-100 meters before you can reach the swim course. This worried us because some of the parts where you will walk has some coral that can hurt you if you will accidentally step on the sharp ones. One loop is like 1200+ they said. The swim course is divided into deep part which is around 8-10 feet, this is the outer part and the inner part which is around 5-8 feet. Both of my teammates are good swimmers so when they say that we will swim one loop I hesitated first. I ask them that we will just swim slow and they agreed. So we started slow. The water is really clear and the corals are awesome with lots of tiny beautiful fish you can see. I really have a problem with my sighting technique so I concentrated on following the bubbles of one of my teammates who is ahead of me and the other one is on my side. I can see them clearly and this is awesome. But because of the scenic view under the water I begin to lose them, I can’t find the bubbles already. So that’s why Nemo lost his way!!! My teammates are already 50 meters away from me. But my feeling of nervousness is already gone and I even tried to up my tempo. I’ve notice that there are area where current is really strong. It helps in the deep part because it pushes forward but upon turn around it holds you back. So I already made a plan where to use my breastroke and rest… I was able to finish the loop in 28 mins which already made me happy. This is my target time actually…

They made some changes during the race. Instead of us getting out of the water and run to a loop, we will continuously swim for 3 loops then we will run-walk for about 80-100 meters until we reach transition 1. During the swim same thing as what I did in Camsur I stayed in the outer area because I don’t want to be a part of the washing machine and although were just around 65 crazy athletes out there I don’t want to mess up my plan and my confidence. Everything as I planned I found a group of swimmers to tail and follow their bubbles. I have no problem from the first 600 meters but upon reaching the shallow part where the current is on reverse, I felt a sting or like a lot pricked in both my arms and face. Its definitely not a jellyfish sting but this happens so many times to me. I just really don’t know why this unknown sea creatures love to sting me… So I began to slow a bit and try to look to my arms if there is something sticking but nothing. So I continue with my swim but beginning to worry a little. My second loop was the same thing. Got stung this time in my face and torso… Yes torso even I’m wearing a speedsuit I have still have marks in my body now. This really made me slow because I’ve notice that I always felt the sting when I am near or pass this kind corals. So my last loop is like cris crossing just not to pass this corals. Finish my swim 1hr 41mins including the run to the transition 1.

The Bike

Out from T1 to like 8 km to artery of the loop is really rough and its a slow climb. Worries came to my mind again because I don’t know if I can maintain a 30 km per hour speed with this kind of course. Upon reaching the main road, its all or nothing so I begin to speed up. I was able to maintain around 33-35 km per hour most of the time and tried to push more when I find the road straight and rolling. It made me suffer upon reaching my 110km mark. Oh my God I am beginnning to cramp I thought… Ok, I tried to check my nutrition and I am doing everything right. I guess I am pushing too hard. So I relax a little bit anyways I can see in my cyclometer than that I am a few minutes ahead on my target time. The entire bike course is mix of flat, rolling, a bit of steep climb and a very nice sea view portion. I was able to finish the 180km in 6hrs 2mins. I am still on target but I am already suffering from cramps on my left tie. Upon reaching T2. I tried to manage it with some menthol spray…

The Run

I told to myself that I will be strong during the run but I don’t know now with my current situation. Plus its noontime and the sun is on top of us. Run course is somewhat rolling but you can feel the difficulty in your legs because it is really slowly going up until you reach the turning point and this time you are going fast. I was able to finish 1 hour on my first loop which is exactly 10.5km. But I slowed down for 5 mins on my next loop. One reason is pieces of sand were stuck on my foot which is already hurting me ( no water or shower when we get off from the swim to wash ourselves that why). Local crowds on both sides of the road is cheering idol idol!!! I ask a favor to a group sitting beside the road if I can have a sit and remove my socks. So I remove my socks and left it on them. Well I left actually on a table and told them I will get it back on my next loop. My 3rd loop is already dark so upon reaching the transition I got the flashlight the organizers provided. I even change my shoes put on a new socks.  Also I got a piece of power bar to manage my crumbling stomach. Few people still there along the way and most of them is asking the runners if this is there last loop or how many loops to go. I really slowed down because I can feel blisters on different part of my foot already. Cramps on both my thigh. Suprisingly my calves is still holding on… Thanks to the water stations who provided ice that most of the runners place under their cycling shorts to lessen the pain of cramps… I tried to push hard on my 4th loop for the first half which I did in 30mins but the last half made me suffer. Its a mistake… So I walk and run for 3.5km and run continuously to the last kilometer to the finish line…

Thank you Lord for giving the strength… Guiding me through the entire course of the race… And protecting from any danger… To my coach Dan Brown, I don’t know how thank you but I think you made the right program that really suits me and really appreciate it. Since I started my program last May for the Camsur race I thought that I won’t progress at all because you can’t check of what I am doing or checking my progress if there is any. I told to myself that I have to follow whatever is stated in the program or else no one will suffer but me. Just to let you know I cheated sometimes but I made sure that during the crunch time of training I stuck to the program… And that’s why I was able to finish the Camsur 70.3 in 6 hours 4mins and the TIMEX 226 in 12 hours 49 mins…

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TIMEX 226 RACE REPORT: AUGUST BENEDICTO

Posted on December 16, 2011 | Leave a comment
  • Sa swim naiwan na ako agad ng 27mins.  Pag ahon sa swimming di muna ako nag madali na nag habol para mag stick lang sa goal na 5hr.20mins, para makatakbo ako sa last 42k.  Pag dating sa last 80k nag habol na ako sa bike.  Nag moderate muna ako sa 22k run at last 20k lumapit na ako kay Arland kaya pinilit kong mag habol sa kanya at sabi ko sa sarili ko, kailangan kong manalo, di bale ng mamatay, huwag lang mapahiya yon kasi ang moto ko coach tnx!
  • AUGUST PLACED 2ND OVERALL IN HIS FIRST EVER ATTEMPT IN THE IRONMAN DISTANCE. HIS TIME WAS 10:27MIN

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IM 70.3 TAIWAN RACE REPORT: DAN BROWN

Posted on November 19, 2011 | Leave a comment

The race venue for this race was Kenting, on the southern tip ofTaiwan. This is a very pretty place with mountains and clear ocean water. It is always nice to do a pre race swim and see marine life down there! There is a lot of wind here as it on the coast but the temps are a balmy 26-27 degrees which is perfect. I stayed at the Yoho hotel, the race official hotel. It is a sprawling resort style hotel on the beach which was great for pre race preparation, resting and a super brunch buffet!

Race day dawned perfect weather. The sky had a fantastic mix of reds and oranges which made for a great start. I lined up with the other 13 pro athletes at the start line at 6.30 and we got underway some 20 mins before the rest of the 1300 other athletes. Apparently the biggest ever triathlon field inTaiwan.

The wetsuit swim went ok but I spent most of the time alone. An unfortunate part of racing with only a small amount of people! No draft to be had here unfortunately for my swim time.

Onto the bike and I was off on the 90km bike which contained a ‘bit of everything’. There was 2 climbs, some very fast downhill sections @ 75+ km/h and a lot of wind. Once again I was cycling along for most parts but it was ok and scenic especially the coastal sections.

I passed 3 other athletes on the bike leg and I felt surprisingly good on the second lap. I finished with 2.21 on clock so a good time for riding alone on this sort of ‘strength’ oriented course.

By the time of the run the temps were heating up and my goal for the race was really just to get my run back together and finish strongly considering all the back trouble I have had the past year! From 5-15k I actually ran really well. I was using all aid stations to walk and get in lots of coke and just focused on letting the ‘urge’ to stop go away time and time again. I got to about 16k when things started to go downhill but got a lot of confidence out of this race and finished in a respectable 9th position male pro. I have 15-20 mins improvement still in my run so am excited to put it all together next year!

The race was really well organised and run. Kudos to Renny Ling and his Ironman team. I was really looked after well and will be back next year with Ani to race again no doubt. The area is a superb destination race for individuals and families and a is a real honest test of endurance.

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ASIAN TRIATHLON CHAMPIONSHIPS 2011 RACE REPORT: NIKKO HUELGAS

Posted on November 19, 2011 | Leave a comment

Here in Shandori Hotel, Taiwan.

Had a good swim that gave me a bike pack of 6 athletes. With that, we managed to get all of the other athletes in front of us, collecting about 5 athletes that had built a fast chase pack to try to get the 4 Japanese who were leading the bike by 1min 30secs.

Unfortunately, we didn’t reach them, so they really had a great breakaway…. Tacticians huh…

We managed to get to t2 by 1:28mins, so that left us to a time above 2 hours in over-all.

4 loops in the run, including a 100m hill that would help me with a breakaway in the last loop which I did after having 2 athletes with me all throughout the 10km run.

Swim was long, bike was fast, and run was a bit long.  Total time, 2:09

Japan got 1st to 4th place

Kazakstan got 5 and 6

Then me…7th over-all

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2011 SUBIC BAY ITU TRIATHLON PHI NATIONAL TEAM RACE REPORT

Posted on November 18, 2011 | Leave a comment

The Philippine National team competed in the Subic Bay ITU Asian cup triathlon event on April 30 and May 1.

On April 30 the Junior Elite male race was held and Epoy Jurolan competed in this competition. It was held over the format of a sprint distance. After surveying the results of the last 2 years I saw that the competition is of a high standard in this race and that a very competitive bike time would have to be achieved to win this race. The previous year Epoy had not placed in the top 10 overall. The plan for this year was for Epoy to push the bike as best as he could. We as a team have done a lot of biking and I think this helped to propel him to an excellent 2nd place overall with the fastest bike split. His run at 4 min p/k showed a lot of improvement as well. I think he put together a very smart and focused race.

The next race for the weekend was the women’s elite race and the team had LC Langit and Kim Mangrobang racing. Kim is only 19 years old and in the U23 division but raced in the elite division.

The field for this year was very strong with a host of Australian, Japanese and European girls competing. LC and Kim worked together during the swim and came out of the water together. They both missed a very strong group of girls who went on to ride together and put in a very strong lead before the run leg. The 2 PHI girls both biked together and hit the transition together to start the run. Kim had a very strong bike ride which showed huge improvement and reflected her focused training the past 3 months. She was also able to put together a solid run off the bike. Kim (2.22) and a (1.16) bike time has a very strong stand alone run and I think when her times for running off the bike and her times for stand alone run get closer together she will go a lot faster.

LC did not perform to her best potential today which was reflected in her slow bike time. She is most definitely capable of a much faster split than on the day. She was well prepared but was very flat on the day. This was a shame but I expect her to carry on her training form and to excell in races in the near future. I think perhaps she might have felt some pressure also as this is a home race and she also had family watching and some considerable expectation. This will be something to work on in the future no doubt.

On the Sunday the men’s race was held and the PHI was represented by Nikko Huelgas and Neil Catiil. Nikkohas had very little preparation this year as he has been studying and has only been in the training camp for 3 weeks. The bike leg isNikko’s weakest leg so I basically putNikkothrough a stack of bike orientated training as I could into his programme and I think it paid off well in this race. I did not hold high hopes for a solid performance from him given the prep but he once again showed a lot of fight in this race coming out of the water well and with a small but strong group of bikers. He was surprisingly able to hang in his bike group and then run a solid 37 low min time to finish a strong 2.03.30. I was surprised at his quality overall time after 3 weeks of training and wonder what could become of this young man given a long and continuous build of full time specific training.

Neil has been in very good shape coming into this race and I expected a fast swim fast bike and competitive run from him. Neil did not push hard enough in the swim and was well back from the leaders at the end of this leg. He subsequently had to cycle by himself and this is very difficult when competing in a draft legal format. His bike time was good but not outstanding and he finished with a strong run and a 2.05.15 time. Neil needs to really take his race pace swimming to a higher level which can reflect his overall improvement in his pool swim times this year. He still underachieves on race day in the area which is most important. It is as much a mental obstacle to be overcome as much as anything else. Once he believes more in his ability in the water then his overall times will lower by a big margin. He will get there if he persists and his results will be v diff if this is achieved.

I was very happy overall with Epoy, Kim andNikko’s results. Neil had a solid race and LC can and will achieve better results than this.

For the future I think the bike and run training are going very well, but improvement must be made in the swimming and on the mental side of racing. International experience and a stronger swim squad would also help to improve this. A higher quality of nutrition would also improve strength, body composition and improve overall energy levels.

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Posted in RACE REPORT, Triathlon

SUBIC INTERNATIONAL TRIATHLON RACE REPORT: MELVIN WONG

Posted on November 17, 2011 | Leave a comment

Pre-Race

Did the weekend just fly past in a wink? I was pumped up for a great weekend @Subic(my fav place since i clinched 2009 Asian Duathlon Age Group Champs 2 yrs ago). The flight seemed long (3hrs) but the drive was even longer. Aircon broke down halfway through the ride to Subic Freeport and it didn’t help with 4 koreans, 2 aussies and another irish dude (and Carol plus mr balwant singh) on board the seemingly tiny bus!

Met Dan and Ani @ Travellers’ Hotel for race pack collection before heading to my nice apartment along Antipolo street in Subic Homes. Really appreciate Dan’s help together with Fitness First for allowing me a chance to race for them. Wayne, Paolo, Patrick, Anton, Marc, Doray, Rizzo, Stella, Pat, Marichu (is this how you spell it?), Raffi and many more fitness first folks – A great fun bunch to be with!

After a short intro to the swim start and part of the bike course, I was all set for a nice race @ Subic Triathlon. Of cos, I felt motivated with the ladies putting up a great show on sat.

Swim

I had a short and sweet warm-up in the waters. nice and warm. And alot of shoulder rotation / dynamic warm-up to get the arms ready. Whistle blew and off we went. I positioned myself nicely to just about a tangent of the front pack and getting some draft. I felt confident when I was still within contact with the first pack till the first turn around point. Thereafter, I just followed an athlete infront of me for the 2nd loop. All was good and under control. I felt more confident of my swim than inMekongand it clearly showed in terms of confidence of exiting the waters. I clocked 25’57 (may have included transition). Thought I could lower abit more on the time but not too bothered by it.

Bike

I took dan’s advice on not going out too hard in the first 14-15km. I pop in a gel after securing my shoes on. All this while my HR is still pretty much controlled (unlike some other races when I had to catch a group just in front of me and HR just sky-rocketed!) I was just going up moderately and trying to spin it up like how I would clear the rolling hills on my long rides rather than grinding it out on my big gears. My cadence quickly brought me up to the leaders of the age group and just after the U-turn, I think I reeled in most of the age groupers in front of me and probably out in the lead. Big Gear it was as I cruised along the return slopes of the Ocean Adventure down towards to main Rizal highway. However, an athlete from Team Camsur (Benjaman Rana) came by just before we hit the cobbled section of the route and he was grinding out those big gears. We rode together for awhile before I told myself to focus on my race and keeping a rhythm instead of smashing myself. August came along side me, really pushing the pace as we approached the rizal highway. From then, it was clearly established that it was going to be a tough running race! As I rode towards the end of the highway making the left turn, heading towards the transition, i could not see august in front of me anymore. I approached the first junction and all I was facing were a row of cones and a security guard standing in the middle of the lane. I shouted to him on whether I should go straight (risk hitting him) or turn left. I decided to turn left (wrong move) when he just smiled at me. Eventually, I found that I did not pass by the transition area and realized that i have taken a wrong route! What a bummer! Nonetheless, I wasnt going to let this affect me. I joined back into the eventual route after asking another security guard on the directions. Then I just time trialled myself the last 10km. My legs took a sting from the initial hilly course and I could not sustain the big gear. I played around with the gears and got onto the small chainring but maintain high cadence. Surprised to still see 38-40kmph on this gear combination.

Run

The 2nd time i entered the boardwalk area was with many other age groups and when I was approaching T2, I knew I made the wrong turn but decided to carry on. The lead bike followed me as I ran for the first 700m myself before being joined by August and Benjamin. We ran together for the next 3 laps, each one taking turns to put in surges along the way. In the last lap, he put in one decisive surge just 200m before the finishing lane area and my legs had nothing left. The heat was a major factor and i did not take in alot of fluids along the bike. Eventually, I finished about a min behind Benjamin with August close on my heels. I knew that it was probably irrelevant as I made the wrong turn but it was definitely a great training session (lots of lessons learnt). Abit worried on pulling Team Fitness First down with my DQ but am so delighted when they won it eventually! Great Stuff to the folks @ Fitness First!

Lessons Learnt:

1. Keep head position still in the water and maintain flat horizontal position. I used to look around every 2-3 strokes which may be the reason why i got no rhythm in the open water swim.

2. Not to be affected or worried when im passed on the bike. I know the bike is my weak link at the moment but if i can maintain good form without smashing myself, I am set for a better run.

3. In times like making a wrong turn, think positive and carry on with the race until the end. Never know what may happen.

4. Learnt to run in a group and respond / react to surges without absolutely killing myself.

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