Sunday, September 20, 2015

RACE REPORT - One More Tri for Special Olympics


Me at One More Tri on Sept. 20, 2015, Asbury Park, NJ
One More Tri was the best small, local New Jersey race of the season for me.

Race results say there were 252 finishers including 34 Special Olympics athletes, which created a friendly, intimate vibe.

The volunteers were vigorously cheerful. During packet pick up they read my name and one older gentleman kept up a steady stream of supportive chatter: "We have high hopes for you today, Holly! Why I just saw your name here and I said to myself, 'This is going to be a great day for Holly.'"

I'll have what he's having.

And the guy was right, because I showed up at the race thinking no one I knew would be there, and then the first thing I see is my friend Patti and her superman, John. He's the most upbeat, goofy triathlete supporter I have ever met, and he comes right up and wraps me in a bear hug. John works for the Department of Public Works in East Windsor, and looks exactly like what you'd expect of someone who digs, lifts, hauls and builds things all day long.

Somehow Patti got the nickname "Cooter" - so John wears this bright pink "Team Cooter" T-shirt to every race. He takes photos and carries all Patti's stuff (flip-flops, water bottle, sun screen) in his cargo shorts. He always shouts "Go Cooter!" in his deep voice of his, as Patti goes by during the race, and people look around like "Did that guy just call this lady a 'cooter'?"

I racked my bike, set up my gear, ate a PB&J and slugged back some Diet Coke because I didn't get any coffee on the way out the door at 5am.

Then I had an hour and a half to kill before the race start. So I joined "Team Cooter" and took a walk down to the water to see about the temperature and conditions.

Right away I realized two things: first, I should have brought my wet suit because the water temp was well below the 73 degrees they anticipated. And second, they said the swim distance was 250 meters, which is the shortest tri swim I have ever heard of, but as they were putting out the buoys it was clear that it was a typical 500 sprint distance.

As 7:15am finally rolled around we had a few comments from the race sponsors, then a the national anthem, and down we went to the beach to see off the first wave of racers -- the Special Olympians.

"Team Cooter" at One More Tri in Asbury Park, NJ, 
Sept. 20, 2015.
It was an "in water" start, meaning we swam out to the first buoy and waited there, treading water for a few minutes before we were given the command to go. I was with the rest of the women in the third (and last) wave and all I can say is that the water was mighty brisk getting in. I'm not easily daunted where water temperatures are concerned, but I think I had my hopes up for a balmy 73, so I felt a twinge of jealousy looking at other people's wet suits. I'd be surprised if the temperature was above 70.

While treading around with the others, I looked at the line of buoys and could swear the final one, which was yellow, had begun to drift out a bit. Based on swim finish times, I'd say the course ended up being about 600 meters. That's not a bad thing, just one that requires those race day adjustments you make in your head as you try to come up with a strategy for using energy wisely.

Okay, I had no strategy.

I have not been swimming at all lately so I put my trust in my innate swimmer's build to get me through, which it did.

In transition I pulled a clutz move and knocked over the bike next to mine. So I took some time to deal with that, then more time dusting sand off my feet and putting on my Super Grover bike shirt. I usually wear my Skratch Labs shirt, but sometimes I switch it up.

The carousel at Asbury Park, NJ at sunrise before 
One More Tri triathlon for Special Olympics on Sept. 20, 2015
This was only my second race using clipless pedals on the bike, but I've been bike commuting to work and feel more confident in them now. I took off smoothly, discovered there was a headwind on the outbound leg of the two loop course so was conservative on each out leg, then pushed more on the way in. The 11 miles seemed to pass quickly and the volunteers on the course were great. Three of them stood together at one corner and did one of those football stadium style waves and cheered loudly for every single biker.

At around mile 9, some nut job in a silver Prius pulled into the middle of the road and started doing a K turn because she saw the police blockade up ahead. She nearly hit me with her car but I used my catlike reflexes to both save my skin and shout at her like a real Jersey Girl. That was the low point of the day, but it had nothing to do with the race.

My nominee for "Best Racked Bike of the Season" award.
The water bottle in the basket is perfection.
Go you, whoever you are that rides this cruiser. 
For the run I stuck to my mantra of "slow and steady," which got the job done. Yesterday Diane and I went for a long evening walk on the tow path in Lambertville, and I think I didn't leave quite as much energy in my legs as I should have, but my run time was about what I had expected. My overall finish time was good enough for 8th out of 15 women in my age group. Since I wasn't focussed on time, but focussed on having a good time, it was just right.

I was greeted at the finish line by a little blonde boy with Down Syndrome who put my finisher's medal around my neck. That was a nice touch. Most triathlons aren't used to support good causes, and I wish more of them were.

[Note: Patti came in first in the Grand Masters division. Someday she'll have to show me how to get a 45 second transition time when you are wearing a wet suit. Amazing! Congrats, Patti!]

RACE RUN DOWN

Pros:

  • Friendly to all skill levels
  • Supports a good cause (Special Olympics -- Overall more than $63,000 were raised!)
  • Easy-going vibe
  • Good weather (cool and overcast -- my favorite race weather) 
  • Smaller than average race size, good for people who get stressed out by the mega races like the ones from CGI and Delmo
  • Swim angels available to those with open water swim issues
  • Well marked course (with some inconsistencies from course maps on the web to reality)
  • Enthusiastic volunteers
  • Organized finish and post race food (though the water with minerals was gross)
  • Race results posted quickly and awards ceremony held in a timely manner
  • Transition area secured and staffed correctly

Cons:

  • Colder water than expected
  • Plastic race medal was kind of chintzy (the clip doesn't go through correctly, so it hangs funny)








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