Monday 18 August 2014

St. Albert Triathlon 2014

Just over a week ago I participated in my third sprint triathlon of the year, the St. Albert Triathlon.  I do love this race, not only because it starts about six blocks from my house, but because it is so well organized!  My training up to this race has been pretty consistent, been spending a lot of time on the bike and in the water.  My main goal was to finish in under an hour and a half, and I did that!  My official time was 1:25:05, a personal best for me! Lets break it down.

Woke up at the crack of dawn and was pleased to see a blood sugar of 6.2.  Ate my usual breakfast and was off.  Got to transition around 6:15am to set my stuff up.  There were mosquitoes everywhere!  My swim heat was not due to take off until 9:10am so I had lots of time to relax.  I watched my friends start their race, had a small snack and stretched out.  My blood sugar starting the race was 8.4 with a 50% basal decrease for 1.5 hours.  I was ready to roll.

The Swim - 750m - 14:58

I had decided to seed myself into the 15 minute heat wave, faster than the other heats I have done.  In my last couple of races I have had to pass people which takes up energy so my thinking was I would rather be passed than do the passing.  I ended up in a lane with only two other people and it worked out well.  Swimming with faster people than me gave me the push I needed and I came in under the 15 minute mark.  I felt relaxed and controlled the entire time. I know I had a huge grin on my face coming out of the pool!  I ran out of the pool area and to my bike.  Quick blood sugar checked showed a 6.1.  Wolfed back some Nuun and a shot bloc and got ready to ride.

The Bike - 20km - 43:07

I really did enjoy the bike, it is a 10km out and back.  You start off on a flat and then about 2.5km's in there is a huge hill you get to fly down.  I loved it!  From the bottom of the hill there are some rolling climbs and small downhills.  Very scenic as well.  I passed a few people and was passed by some of the crazy fast people.  The hardest part was climbing back up the hill, I know I lost time there.  I have made a mental note to do more hill repeats on my bike.  The bike felt like it was done before I knew it.  I dismounted, ran a ways to transition and got ready for the run.  Blood sugar was at 9.3, climbing a bit which is not unusual due to my adrenaline.  Swallowed my Nuun and some water and was off.

The Run - 5km - 27:01

This run is hilly.  It is a 2.5km out and back and there are hills the entire time.  The climbs are steep and the downhills are steep.  I did enjoy the run, but again I need to incorporate more hills into my training.  The final 1km was my fastest and I felt great sprinting over the finish line!

I am very happy with my race.  I came in 5th out of 30 in my age group which makes me very happy indeed!  I know that with more training I can shave more time off for sure.  The weather was great and the event was just fantastic!  This is definitely one that I will do each and every year.  I finished with a blood sugar of 10.8 which climbed up to 15.4 within the hour.  It did come back down nicely however.  I was overall happy with my diabetes management throughout.

Next up is the Banff triathlon in September which is an open water swim.  I cannot wait for that!  Oh....and on September 1 I shall be registering for a half ironman taking place next summer.  It may be a bit ambitious, but hell, what do I have to lose?