OSIT 2011 Race Report

The day finally arrived! After 13 weeks of preparation since my previous race, and 104+ hours of training, my A race of the year came! With a 10.45am flagoff for my wave (M18-19, 20-24 AG), I didn't have to wake up at ungodly times and crept out of bed at a more humanly 7.40am. Ate my breakfast, packed my everything and made sure I didn't miss out anything essential.

We reached the race venue (boring East Coast Park) at around 935, giving me just enough time to set up my transition area and swim a few strokes. The waves were incredibly choppy and I knew the swim wouldn't go well. What an understatement.

At approximately 1045am I found myself at the start line of a multisport race for the 3rd time this year, hungry for another podium spot.

The last photo of the CC...

When the horn went off, everyone rushed in and it was chaos all the way until the first buoy. People were climbing over me, kicking me, groping me...I tried my best not to do the same to others, tried being the keyword.

Just after the first buoy, some hand grabbed my left ankle and the next thing I knew my ankle felt a little empty. The worst thing had happened - my Championchip (the thing which records your timings as you cross the electronic mats and makes sure you actually complete the required number of laps) had come off. Immediately I was faced with a decision to make; try to find my ChampionChip amidst the murky waters of ECP with tons of other swimmers who would try to swim over me, or just swim on, do my best and not worry about it for now. Within that split second I decided the sensible thing would be to swim on because I didn't even know if the ChampionChip would float or sink. With hopes of podium slipping away from the first 5 minutes of my race, I wasn't really happy with how things were turning out at that moment...

From the start till the second buoy we were swimming against the current, which was really difficult and the choppy seas made it worse. I came out of the first lap feeling fine physically but mentally I was in quite bad shape. As I came to the first buoy of the second lap I contemplated asking the people on kayak if they had seen my ChampionChip, but decided that it would probably be futile. This lap was much worse and my lack of swim training showed. After the first buoy my left foot started cramping a little and I had to swim breaststroke once in a while so as to not aggravate the cramp. I was really afraid it would explode into a full blast cramp which would end my race before I even got to the bike, but thankfully the foot held up and I completed the swim, albeit very slowly and with a stomach full of sea water.

I ran into T1 and my dad signalled to me that I was about 5 minutes down on the first person in my age group. I found my bike in the transition area pretty easily, and ran about 200m to the mounting line. I hammered hard on the bike to make up time on my competitors and caught quite a few of them on the first lap of the bike. I was going at around 37+kmh, which was in line with what I wanted before the race. My stomach didn't feel that great probably because of the sea water, and the extremely strong sun made me sweat buckets. I was thirsty but couldn't drink too much 'cos my stomach might not be able to take it.

Notice the missing CC :(

While the bike course wasn't ideal, it also wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. There was enough space to pass people, and there was only 1 sharp turn at the turnaround point per lap. Throughout most of the bike I was passing people and few were passing me, none of them with bib numbers starting with a 6. Starting the last lap, I passed another guy in my age group (bib 6010 if I remember correctly) who I think was the leader up till that point, which meant that I was leading! Coming into T2 I didn't see any other bikes racked at my row, but I can't be 100% sure when there's so much adrenaline in me and the heat just makes everything fuzzy. But I was pretty damn excited to see so few bikes!

Bike time (according to cycling computer): 1h08min. Amazing!

The run didn't feel that fast, and I walked quite a bit to drink/dump water on myself to cool off. The heat was really terrible and I think everyone suffered quite a bit. I was a bit conservative because my stomach still wasn't feeling that great and my suit was too tight which hampered my breathing. I reached the 2.5km mark at around 11 minutes or so, which meant that I was still on pace for a sub 45. I think I must have slowed quite a bit coming back because I only completed my first 5k in around 23min. My dad told me that I was still in the lead, and I certainly didn't see anyone in my age group anywhere near me while running. The second lap didn't go as well as the first. I was a little dehydrated because of the excessive sweat loss, but couldn't drink much if not I would vomit. I felt like barfing a couple of times on the second lap and had to walk to make sure that didn't happen. I don't think anyone would like to see my race nutrition by the side of the running pathway.

Just starting on the second loop

With about 1.5km to go, I sped up slightly and still didn't see anyone from my AG ahead of me, so I was pretty sure I had this race in the bag (disregarding the CC issue). I completed the 10k in around 46:50, which was a decent timing considering the terrible heat.

Volunteers also need to makan...and sms

After rehydrating, I went over to enquire about my situation and whether there was anything that could be done. Along the bike and the run there were volunteers who were recording the bib number of participants as they went by, so there was a little bit of hope for me. Thankfully they have manual timing, so I appealed for them to check that (deposit of $50 which will be forfeited if appeal unsuccessful). I'm still waiting for the results of the appeal which would take a couple of days, but I know that I finished in around 2h30min.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Analysis of training

Here are some interesting data from my training from Sprint Series Triathlon till now (a total of 13 weeks)

Overview
Average number of activities/week: 7
Max number of activities: 12
Min number of activities (exclude taper week): 5

Average time spent/week: 8h14min
Most time spent: 12h28min
Least time spent (exclude taper): 5h10min

Running
Average time/week: 3h24min
Most time: 2h30min
Least time: 5h16min

Average distance/week: 38.3km
Furthest distance: 54km
Shortest distance: 27.5km

Average pace/week: 5:21min/km

Total number of speed workouts in 13 weeks: 8

Cycling
Average time/week: 4h22min
Most time: 6h57min
Least time: 1h39min

Average distance/week: 146km
Furthest distance: 228km
Shortest distance: 56km

Average speed/week: 33.1km/h

Swimming
Total time in the pool in 13 weeks: 9h40min

Goals for Osim Tri

With 3 days to go to OSIT2011, it's time for me to review my goals for this race and my race plan. Best case scenario would be A and I would be super happy for the next 1 week. Next best is B where I would be pleased with how well I did but secretly pissed that I couldn't get A. If I get C I wouldn't be too happy but still accept it. If D...haven't thought of how I would feel and I hope I don't have to feel it anyway.

Overall goals:

A) Top in age group (18-19 yo)

B) Finish in 2:25

C) Finish in 2:30

D) Cross the finish line in one piece

Swim:

A) <30:00

B) 30:01-31:00

C) 31:01-32:00

D) >35:00

Bike (excluding T1):

A) <1h:05min (36.9kmh)

B) 1:05-1:07 (35.8kmh)

C) 1:07-1:10 (34.2kmh)

D) >1:15 (32.0kmh)

Run (excluding T2):

A) <44:00

B) 44:01-45:00

C) 45:01-47:00

D) >50:00

As for race plan, I plan to take it easy during the swim and not push myself unnecessarily because I know I am undertrained for it and don't want to risk the rest of my race for a few seconds that I can easily gain back elsewhere.

I plan to start pretty easily on the bike, maybe around 35kmh and start pushing the pace after the first lap (total of 4). I will also take a gel (which will be taped to the top tube) at the start of the bike. Hopefully there will be people for me to pace off (not draft off!), but seeing as how my wave is one of the last (last before the elite wave actually) I think I will spend most of the time avoiding people from the earlier waves. Add to that the narrow bike course and I predict that it certainly wouldn't be an ideal bike ride. On the start of the last lap I will take another gel depending on how my stomach feels at that point in time. Note to self: don't take in too much fluid in the last 5-10km or else the same thing would happen as in the Singapore Sprint Series.

Once off the bike I hope to be able to go straight to ~4:30 pace. For the first 5km, unless I am feeling superb and high on drugs, the goal pace is 4:30. Then from there its all out until I cross the finish line.

One important thing I must remember to do: Cross the finish line with a nice pose! Zip up my suit, make sure the race belt is at an appropriate level (if you get the drift), and smile for the cameras!

All the best to everyone racing this weekend, and let's pray for good weather :)

Weekly Consolidation: 12/13 weeks

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Run - 3x2km

Wednesday: Cycle -41km easy

Thursday: Run - 16km long run
Friday: Swim - 1 hr

Saturday: Brick (Cycle - 93km solo, Run - 5km)
Sunday: Cycle - 80km group

The start of the taper. Not too many hard workouts, and had a good confidence booster with the brick on Saturday.

Tuesday's track session went really well. Completed the sets in 8:18, 8:14 and 8:05, which was equivalent to 4:09, 4:07 and 4:02 pace. I was pretty surprised with the time that I put in for the last set.

Thursday's long run was a little slower than I expected at a 4:54 pace, but still good nonetheless to have put in the miles alone. I negative splitted the run (8km out and back route) as I wanted to train my legs to run fast even when they are tired.

At first I didn't have anything planned for Saturday and during my swim on Friday I just decided to do a long ride and a fast brick run to see how fast I could go off a ride. Instead of riding really hard I just replaced it with distance, hoping to mimic the fatigue I would feel on race day. The 90km went pretty easily, and I put in a solid pace of 34.1kmh with no breaks or draft. My "transition" took a little more than 5 minutes or so, so not really ideal. For the run I just focused on going out as fast as I could especially in the opening km because during the race I did not want to have to "warm up" for the first half of it. Rather I wanted to be ready to go fast right off the bike.

I was rather surprised to be doing ~4:15 pace, and when I finished in 21:02 I couldn't believe that I had almost set a 5k PB on a pretty tough route after a 90km bike. With this performance I'm quite sure that a 45 minute 10k is certainly possible, and I may even break 20min in an open 5k (or at the MR25 TT!)

Ideally I would have loved to do 1 more swim this week, but it was not to be. I have reduced my expectations of the swim to within 35 minutes, which should be possible. If I go below 30 it would be a pleasant surprise. No expectations at all for the swim, just hoping to come out of the water alive and ready to own the other 2 disciplines.

On Saturday I also collected my race pack. Bib number 6004. All those whose bib number starts with 6, watch out cos I will be looking out for you! There are about 35 competitors in my age group; a little more than I thought there would be, but I still remain optimistic about my chances!

Weekly Consolidation: 11/13 weeks

Monday:
AM: Run - 12km trail

PM: Swim - 45min

Tuesday: Run - 10x400m
Wednesday: Cycle - 55km easy

Thursday: Run - 17km long run

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Brick (Cycle - 58k TT, Run - 9.6km)
Sunday:

AM: Cycle - 76km solo

PM: Swim - 1 hour

Even with a rest day, I managed 11 hrs this week. Legs were starting to feel tired and could not hit paces as easily, so decided to take a day off before any injury came about.

The track workout on Tuesday was pretty tough, and I was struggling quite a bit to complete the sets. Still managed to hit the timings though, but no improvements from the last time. Long run on Thursday went pretty well after last week's failed long run, and the 6km of tempo with all out effort at the end really helps.

Also took a break from intervals for cycling this week because it was just too boring and I decided to cut myself some slack. But the ride this morning was tough because I was trying to chase down the Joyriders 640 train but could not do so. In the process I set my fastest ever average speed for a ride at 34.8kmh. Along the way I was going at >38kmh without much effort, so I guess I must be doing something right in my cycling training!

The brick on Saturday felt awesome. The weather was superb and I cruised through the run, completing 6km in the middle in 4:29 pace. If the weather is like this on race day, I may just be able to run a sub 45 10k.

My speed for swimming is pretty much about the same since the start of the year, but I'm quite worried about my endurance. Have not really been doing any long sets, so I'm not sure if I will be able to maintain the same pace for the whole 1.5km. Another thing I worry about is my sighting, which usually isn't very good and I end up swimming more than I have to.

With 2 weeks to go, there's not much I can do that will help with my performance, but a lot that I can do to screw it up. The next 2 weeks will be slightly easier, and volume will also cut back. I will probably do more race/distance specific workout, and practice transitions. I still haven't really gotten used to running fast right off the bike, so a few more brick sessions are needed where the rest time is minimal.

Weekly Consolidation: 10/13 weeks

Monday:

AM: Brick (Cycle - 5x5min interval, Run - 2.3km)

PM: Swim - 1 hr

Tuesday: Run - 5x800m
Wednesday:

AM: Run - 4km easy

PM: Cycle - 2x20min
Thursday: Run - 14km run
Friday: Swim - 1hr

Saturday:

AM: Brick (Cycle - 40k TT, Run - 5.3km)

PM: Run - 8km easy

Sunday: Cycle - 77km group ride

Biggest training week this year! Total of 12h, although the workouts weren't exactly the best. The Mercury also got a nice service, and hopefully will remain clean and quiet until after the race.

The main highlight was the 40k Time Trial on Saturday, which I completed in 1:05, which meant an average of 36.8kmh. I did not have any expectations at all, and just went into it hoping to hold 36kmh and above. I think I gave it almost everything I had. Considering the fact that this was done on a loop without stops, and OSIM bike course is really technical, I'll be really surprised if I can beat this timing. I would be happy with anything <1:10 come race day.

The track workout on Tuesday felt harder than it should be. I came within the same timings as the previous time I did 800m intervals, but felt much more laboured and had to push much harder than before. This didn't really help my confidence much, but it was probably because of the fatigue from the hard efforts.

The long run also did not go as well as I had hoped. Without a running partner this week, trying to hold the same pace became impossible. Halfway through the run it also poured, which was probably the first time I got totally drenched (from rain, not sweat) during a run.

The 2 brick runs went pretty decently. Pace was quick (4:37 for the 5k run) although I find that off the bike even though my cadence is high, my stride length is pretty short. Hopefully a few more brick sessions will help with that, and I can get into 4:30 pace quickly enough.

Swimming has been, surprisingly, going well! Somehow I feel that I have better hip rotation now, and comparing the times I'm doing in my pool with those in April, there certainly is improvement! This is a real shocker because the number of hours I spend in the pool every month can be counted with my hands.

With 3 weeks to go to race day, and 1 week of taper, that leaves me with 2 weeks of workouts left. I need to plan my quality workouts properly and space them out evenly. These will probably include one brick session of ~50km ride and 10km run, a 1.5km swim time trial, and a couple of longer track sessions.

Can't wait for race day to come!

Weekly Consolidation: 9/13

Monday: Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Rest
Thursday: Run - 17km long run
Friday:
AM: Cycle - 2x20min intervals followed by a short swim
PM: Run - 3x2k intervals
Saturday: Cycle - 92km long ride
Sunday: Run - 10k time trial

First few days of the week was off because of school exams. Not ideal considering the race is in 4 weeks, but studies come first.

Running wise I am still improving. The long run on Thursday was much better than last week's, as my left calf stopped hurting while running now. I attribute it to lots of rolling with the tennis ball which really helps a lot. My pace for the long run was 4:43, which meant that I unofficially had a new 10k pb.
Friday I decided to do some longer intervals at goal 10k pace, which was 4:30 and a 45min 10k. The sets went well considering the ride earlier that day and the long run the day before, and I went comfortably under 4:30 pace.
Sunday was the 10k TT and went perfectly. If you haven't done so you can read about it here.

The past couple of weeks I haven't been cycling much because of holiday and exams, so this week I didn't want to waste any sessions. Jumped right into a 2x20min set which, according to the folks at Slowtwitch, is one of the better workouts. Saturday was a long ride to get some saddle time, but it didn't go that well and I almost bonked around the 60km mark. It was probably because of the hard workouts the past few days that was taking its toll on my legs. But no worries because I managed to refuel in time and completed the ride, averaging 32.6kmh which still isn't too shabby. But compared to the long ride I did in May averaging 34.9...

Swimming has once again been neglected. I know I should spend more time in the pool with the race coming up real soon, but I keep prioritising cycling and running over swimming. Just hope I don't pay too badly for this during the race.

The next weekend I may do a 40k TT with aero helmet just to get used to the feeling and set a benchmark for myself to beat. Not really looking forward to doing 13 loops or so, but once its done and out of the way I will feel much better. Just like the 10k time trial.

There will also be more bricks to get my legs used to the jelly feeling. Hopefully with so many training sessions packed so closely together my legs are already used to feeling tired and running off the bike won't seem that tough.

10K Time Trial

Since this month there isn't a MR25 5k TT, I decided to do a 10k time trial just to see where my fitness is at and also set a new PB for a 10k. The last official open 10k I did was also my first, which was in 2008. My time was around 1h1min. Earlier this year in the Singapore Biathlon I ran about 49:08 for the 10k after a 1.5km swim. And earlier this week my long run pace was enough for a 47~ 10k. Hence I was pretty curious to see what I could do, and also set a benchmark for my race (in 4 weeks!)

I ran relatively late in the morning and the sun was already up. The stadium did not have much cover from the sun, so all 25 laps were done in the open. After a short jog to the stadium and 1 lap of strides, I was off in my 1 man race. My plan was just to break 45 minutes, so that meant 1:48 per round.

The first km, as always, started off too quickly. Actually it wasn't so much the first km, but rather the first lap. Think I covered it in about 1:40, which was 8 seconds faster than what I wanted. I passed the 2.5 lap mark in 4:22 and still felt quite good at this point. The next 2 km I made an effort to stick closer to my goal pace even though I could go faster because I didn't want to pay for it in the final few km. KM 2 and 3 both passed in 4:28, which was slightly faster than what I wanted but I was fine with it.

The next few km got really tough, mainly because the thought of running for another 7km around a 400m loop got to my head, and the sun didn't really help things. I tried not to focus on how many laps were left but rather how many km I had left. After all 6km sounds much less than 15 rounds. I was also checking my splits every 200m to ensure that I was on the right pace, so much so that now I remember what timings I should be going through every 200m in (:54, 1:48, 2:42, 3:36, 4:30).

KM 4, 5 and 6 all went by in 4:27. I would say that's near perfect pacing :) However I was really starting to suffer already, and started to doubt if I could keep at this pace or even finish the time trial. I thought of bailing out after 5km, but decided to HTFU and get on with it.

KM 7 was my slowest one, in 4:29. I decided to slow down just slightly to ensure I wouldn't die later on. From then on it was more mind over matter. I was thinking to myself its just another 7 laps to go, very soon it will all be over. KM 8 and 9 went by in 4:28. At this point I was pretty sure I could go under 45 min even if I slowed down quite a bit at the last km because of the "buffer" time I had accumulated over the last 9km. Now the question was how much below 45min I could go.

Usually at the last km of a race we push the most because after that it will be over, but this time I really couldn't do it as much as I tried. I finished with a 4:24 final km, and a total time of 44:31. The feeling I had when I crossed the line was indescribable. I was SOOO glad it was over because I doubt I could have lasted even 1 more round, and also really happy that I managed to hit my goal. After a quick drink, I sat down on the track and just let the sweat drip for a good 5 minute. Think I left quite a big puddle there.

In about 3 years, I managed to improve my 10k timing by 16 minutes. Not a lot, but also not a shabby amount. Hopefully some day I will see my PB start with a 3, but for now I'll gladly take a 44:31. I probably could have gone sub 43 if I ran in nicer weather and did a proper taper, but my race will take place in the late morning and by the time I start running my 10k it will be around 12pm. Not ideal, but what can I do except train in hot weather as well?

Comparison between exams and races

The past few weeks I have been studying pretty hard for the exams, I at one point I was thinking that actually training for a race and studying for an exam is pretty similar!

1. Both require months of preparation. More so for major exams than the minor ones.

2. Both require consistent work and are consolidation of the preparation. If in school you miss one or two lessons its fine, but if that happens every week then it won't reflect well on your grade. Similarly for triathlons. If you miss one workout its fine and there won't be an adverse effect on your overall fitness, but if every week you miss your long run then it becomes a problem come race day.

3. Training for both requires periodization. In triathlon, many people train in segments or periods relative to when the racing season is. It always starts with base building which are easy workouts that are designed to get your base up. Then as the race approaches the intensity and distances of workout changes to suit the race. I think if we were to study in the same way, it would produce pretty good results. For example between exams would be base building time where we just read our notes to understand the subject. When the exams near its time to apply those knowledge, or the base, to answering questions and to practice more.

4. "Race day" execution is extremely important. Just because your training has been going well does not mean every thing will go well come race day. Similarly, studying intensely for an exam does not guarantee an A grade. You need to race smart and do an exam with smart techniques/tricks. And when things don't go according to plan, don't panic and try to salvage what you can.

I'm hoping to apply these to my next exam especially point 3, which means I should be studying right about now to build my base. However, there is one key key difference between the two. In races, you taper to ensure that you are in the best shape come race day. In exams, if you do that, good luck to you!

Weekly Consolidation: 8/13

Monday: Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Run - 8km easy
Thursday:

AM: Swim - 40 min

PM: Run - 17km
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Cycle - 57km easy
Sunday: Run - 8km

An easy week last week. First few days were off because I was somewhere over at Kota Kinabalu.

Main workout was the long run on Thursday. It was both long and fast, with an average pace of 5:06 for the whole 17km. However, my left calf finally gave in after the run and I couldn't walk properly after the run. With a bit of rolling using the tennis ball, it became much better but still hurt slightly. Hence the rest of the week I took it a bit easy, plus with exams coming up I couldn't devote that much time to training.

This was posted about 5 days late because of exams as well. As of now, the race is in 30 days! That's just slightly more than 4 weeks. Things have been going well training wise, despite 2 very short weeks. Still keeping my hopes of a podium spot in the age group!