I have been racing triathlon for over 20 years. I did my first in NJ (an Olympic distance
race) when I was 17. There are only a
few races that have been around as long as I have been racing, and only fewer
that I would put on my “bucket list” of races I want to do before it is all
said and done. Number one is Kona…which
has been accomplished. The others, in no
particular order, Wildflower, Roth….and Alcatraz.
Well, Alcatraz was accomplished this past
weekend. Originally, I was scheduled to
do this last year. But, following my
surgery, I was able to defer to this year.
Originally, Jenn and I had planned to hit wine country after this race.
But, since I am racing Buffalo Springs 70.3 in two weeks, we decided to keep
this trip short.
We arrived on Thursday
night (late). We checked in and, after
about 4 hours of sleep, woke up early on Friday and started to get
acclimated. We did some walking around
and sightseeing during the first day, knowing that Saturday would be more of a
race-prep day. We had an early dinner
and got to sleep early on Friday. On
Saturday morning, I got up and headed out on the bike for a 40 minute
warmup. I rode part of the course….and
realized just how difficult and technical this course was. There were many steep climbs and hard
turns…most coming off screaming downhills.
Definitely not to my advantage.
Oh well. I also got in the water
for a short swim….holy crap….55 degree water is COLD.
I woke up at 4am on Sunday and got my
nutrition in and headed down to transition.
One thing that surprised me about Alcatraz….a race that has been around
for 32 years is that for one, registration was a mess. With 2000+ people racing…there should be two
days for packet pickup, not one. The
line was ridiculous. Two, the transition
area on race morning was mostly dark….and no bike pumps. You would think that with people coming from
all over the country (and world) for this race, there would be pumps throughout
transition…..there was one. I wound up
grabbing a CO2 and guestimating air pressure in my tubulars. Not something I would do for an “A”
race. Anyway, after setting up
transition, I headed to the shuttle to the Hornblower boat to take us out to the
Rock. There are two levels on the
boat. Joe Kurtz had given me some good
tips on what to do and not to do. One
thing he told me to do is make sure I was in a position to get off the boat
quick. Well, as I boarded, the race
official directed me (my age group) to the second level….so I did….and
proceeded to walk to the back of the boat…and down the stairs and seeded myself
“properly”. I started asking the people
around me to make sure I was in good position….and apparently I was. Joe had also told me that he spent some time
talking with pro Andy Potts while he was on the boat. So, I thought it was only fitting (maybe even
ironic) that Andy sat down right next to me.
After about 40 minutes of sitting on the boat, the pros got ready to
start. The adrenaline kicked up a notch
with everyone on the boat. Once the pros
went off, the age groupers pretty much went off as a free for all…..over the
timing mat and off the boat. You really have to get off quick and out of the
way, or risk being landed on by another athlete. I positioned myself well and was off the boat
about 15-20th in my area (two exit areas). The swim was very interesting. Joe had mentioned that with 2000 people in
the water, there’s never anyone directly around you. Well, I know what he meant….but I always had
a few people around me…which helped.
But, other than my small pod of swimmers, it was few and far
between. There were buoys out on the
course….at least a couple. But, what
always amazed me is that while I could always see the buoys way in front of
me….. I don’t think I ever actually passed one….if that makes sense. I just swam…and figured I’d hit the finish at
some point. Finally, I could see the
swim finish.
Out of the water…and into
T1. T1 is different than all normal
T1s. There are actually 3 transitions at
Alcatraz. The first transition is actually a place where you can grab a pair of
shoes for the ¾ mile run to the bike transition. Although I left shoes at T1, I wasn’t sure I
was going to use them….I figured I might run barefoot…ala the pros. BIG MISTAKE! After about 200 yards of
running, all I could say was ”ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch….F me, ouch,
ouch” (my feet hurt for 2 days!).
Finally, onto the bike. The first
2 miles are flat and fast. After that,
it’s a lot of climbing….not exactly my strength. I realized on the first big downhill that I
was not into this ride. I just wasn’t
aggressive. I just didn’t have enough
invested in this race to let it all hang out and take risks. That’s not to say I didn’t ride hard….but I
just didn’t ride hard enough on the downhills.
There were some really, really hairy turns on the course….some coming
off of scary downhills. This is a course
that you should know before riding, which I didn’t. Again, not my “A” race….and I rode like
it.
Off the bike and into the run. Funny thing happened while I was in San
Francisco. I found my run, which had
been lost for some time. For me, I just
haven’t been my normal self on the run.
Also, I have been doing some hardcore track workouts with teammate Sean
Sullivan…and my legs have been a bit dead lately. Well, as soon as I started the run, I could
tell immediately that my legs were there.
The Alcatraz course is a bit funky.
You think…..Alcatraz….long swim (1.5 miles), short bike (18 miles), long
run (8 miles). But, that’s
deceiving. The run is 2 miles of flat….4
miles of technical, climbing, beach, single track running…and 2 miles of
flat. So, it’s not a runner’s
course. I took the first 2 miles fairly
controlled. What I had failed to mention
is that my Timex Global Trainer (gps/hr) stopped working during the swim….so I
was working without HR, pace or distance….only perceived effort. However, I was running well and reeling
people in…so I just made sure I didn’t blow up.
I hit the infamous sand stairs about 4.5 miles in and ran right up
them. I had the fastest sand stair time
in my AG. I was feeling good….but it was
hard to get going with such a technical course.
Finally, I reached the end of the technical part….with two miles to
go. I turned on the burners and was
passing anyone in sight. I hammered home
and finished down the finish chute solo.
It’s a great finish line.
I wound
up finishing 40th overall, 17 amateur, and 4th in my Age
Group. I went into the race hoping to
place in my AG and I missed it by 1 spot….but in actuality, about 4 minutes. The three guys in front of me in my AG smoked
me in the swim. As I mentioned, this is
a swimmer’s race. The swimmers get out
front and never look back. If the run
course wasn’t so technical, it might be a different story….but, that’s
Alcatraz.
Jenn asked me if I would race
it again….probably not. At least, not
anytime soon. Don’t get me wrong. I loved the race and San Fran. There’s nothing like it. But, I don’t normally travel across the
country for a race this short…..especially one that puts me at a competitive
disadvantage. I did it more for the
experience…which I got. What this race
did for me was get me pumped for Buffalo Springs 70.3. I liked how the bike felt (when I was
actually in the aero bars)…and really liked how my run felt. So, I’m hoping for bigger and better things
in two weeks. Next stop…Lubbock, Texas.
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