Geek Speak – LoveLansing: the Hawk Island Triathlon

by Daniel

LoveLansing is a blog series on what makes the Lansing area a fun and unique place to live.

After months of training, I took part in my first ever triathlon this past Sunday (which I talked about in yesterday’s podcast). It was the annual Hawk Island Triathlon, right here in Lansing. For those unfamiliar with this extreme sport, it is a three stage race: first a swim, then a bike ride, followed by a run.

The Hawk Island Triathlon is geared more toward beginners, so it is a “sprint” triathlon–meaning shorter distances for each stage. The swim is 400m (about 1/4 mile), the bike ride is 16k (about 10 miles) and the run is a 5k (a hair over 3 miles). How did I do? Read on. 

The only portion of the race I was worried about was the swim. It was an open water swim, meaning not in a pool, so if I drowned it would be a big hassle to find me. but, I was prepared. I had a XTerra wetsuit (which I received 50% off of thru the the race), and after I did the test swim on Friday (a good idea for beginners) I quickly realized there was no way I would sink or drown–unless I was kicked in the face and knocked out cold.

NOTE: Not Batman.

Which could happen in a swarm start. But, I signed up for the individual start. I was one of the last five or so folks, out of over 700, to get in the water. Sunday’s swim was the opposite of Friday’s. I was calm, relaxed and having a lot of fun. The pre-race beginner chat by Jef Mallett helped ease my fears. It was Jef’s book Trizophrenia which inspired me to get into 5k running and then eventually triathlons. Give it a read. Very inspiring, informative and funny.

With the swim behind me, I took my sweet time getting out of my wetsuit and on to my bike (more on that later). The ride was pretty smoothly and I did not push myself too hard. Ten miles later, I was back at Hawk Island and started the 5k run. I kept an even pace and before I knew it, I was done.

I was now a triathlete.

Inked.

Here’s my triathlon results -

• Swim 16:05
• 1st Transition (from swim to bike) 7:09
• Bike 43:19
• 2nd Transition (from bike to run) 4:23
• Run 25:13
• TOTAL 1:36:07

Needless to say, I did not break any records.

But, my goal was to finish, and I met my goal (and my time was OK for a rookie). The swim went way better than I had feared (I was expecting north of 20 minutes). I took it easy during the swim since my technique is so bad. If I tried too hard, I would tire myself out, and as Jef told us, I wouldn’t win the race in the swim. To compare, a “good” time for a 400m swim is 8 minutes.

I also did not push myself too hard during the bike ride, but I cranked it up for the run. I even beat my previous 5k time, 25:18 (at May’s Race for the Cure) by five seconds–and after swimming and biking. I was pretty happy about the run. It makes sense the run was my best part, as that was where I had the most training.

After my swim, the biggest areas for improvement are my transitions. It took me seven minutes to get from the water to my bike. That is pretty terrible (but there is an art to removing a wetsuit). Likewise, my second transition time can be improved. But–these are all aspects of being a rookie in his first race. I learned a bunch, and the next time I will be better prepared.

Now, the big question: Will there be a next time?

Count on it. I’m considering doing another one this summer.

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Daniel J. Hogan is the geek half of Ginger and the Geek. He is also a photoblogger and host of the Magic of Eyri Podcast. He is aware he does not look good in that wetsuit. Follow him on Twitter, @danieljhogan.