Race Report: Boulder Sprint

Boulder Sprint - Transition Area

Today was one of those days when I almost didn’t get out of bed.  It took the second snooze for me to convince myself to make the go/no-go decision over a cup of coffee that was already brewing.  The fatigue from the EK Training camp that ended last Wednesday still had it’s arms around me, my gut was churning from not eating the best, and I was beset by paranoia of getting sick because the wife and girls have all been under the weather this week.  Despite one of the worst race mornings I’ve had, I’m pleased with how it all turned out.

Racing with the BTC crew and my EK Endurance teammates is a double provided a great deal of motivation and inspiration.  On one hand, I know that I’m going to see my friends almost the second I land at the Boulder Res and on the other, I know I’m going to have to explain to a bunch of people why I thought it would be a better idea to sleep in.  The accountability is almost as important as the shared community of pain.

The Boulder Sprint was a new event for me, so I knew going in that I would PR today.  The bike is a whopping 17.29 miles while 13 is more normal for a sprint, so the times are higher than you would normally think.  No one came close to going below the 1 hour mark.

Swim

The swim sucked.  As soon as we got away from the dock, a jetski whizzed by and kicked up some huge waves.  I tried to keep my pace steady, but missed out on breathing for about 4 strokes due to poorly timing the waves.  I also managed to inhale a lot more water than one normally should.  After that, I never really settled in and the swim was a struggle.

Bike 

I’m always relieved to make it to the bike.  Though it’s my first time racing the Boulder Sprint, I’m very familiar with the course and it’s one of my favorite short “blaster” rides, and man is it fast.  I was really pleased with a 21.7 mph average pace, even with my power number coming in a little low.  At that blister pace, I also had a great time passing people the entire ride which is one of the benefits of having a slow swim.  I got a big hug from the girl I spent most of the bike passing back and forth and we chatted about how much it helped both of us.  I was also impressed that she followed the rules to a T and made sure to drop back the required 3 bike lengths before re-passing each time (Note: Bib #501, Tribella kit). Update: Finally found the results page and it turns out my friend from the bike stage was none other than super age-grouper Temple Hayles!

Run

The run was by a wide margin the highlight of the day.  After a quick 54 second T2, I plodded off for the run and was pleasantly surprised that I was able to come up to speed fairly quickly.  Once up to speed, I slowly pressed the pace and was able to negative split.  Upon making the turn, I was motivated by making a pass and actually got the tempo in the 6:30 min/mile range for a minute or two and then cruised home.  About a quarter mile from the finish, I got a big boost from my buddy Marty who was heading out for his run and that was enough to get me across the line.  I didn’t have much of a kick, which tells me that I was able to leave it all out on the field instead of holding back to much early on.

Overall, this was a fun event and I continue to learn in each race.  Only 2 weeks, and it will be time for the IM Boulder 70.3!

The numbers:

  • Swim: 16:47
  • T1: 1:50
  • Bike: 47:33
  • T2: 54
  • Run: 22:44
  • Total: 1:29:48

 

Boulder Sprint - Results

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