This was the first event of the new season for me so I was approaching it as sort of a tester to see where I was at. My preparation for the race had been pretty good besides from a few issues with shin splints, but I was confident that I could have a good race on the day.
The day started well with excellent weather for racing, only a slight breeze in the air meant that the cycle would be a quick one.
The 20-24 age group which included fellow Tribros Will and Kieran started at 7.25am after the first few waves. At the hooter I quickly found the front few swimmers and settled in behind them for the first 700m. When we turned I managed to lose sight of the front group and ended up swimming a tad further than planned, no thanks to the current which managed to push me further off course.
I came out of the water in 4th place about a minute down on the front few competitors. Now equipt with my new Specialized Transition Pro and Specialized Aero Helmet I knew I could catch them. The ride was challenging with a few hills but this was little to worry about with the speed of the new bike. The only issue on the ride was having to contend with other age group competitors on the course. I had an awesome ride and made up two places to sit in second off the bike only a mere 150m behind the leader.
Now onto the business end of the race the run, my legs felt good and pain free so there was no excuses now. I was gaining ground on the leader with every k and eventually overtook him with about 4k to go. I just had to make sure I held the pace for the last few k’s for the win. In the last k my legs really started to cramp up but I had enough of a gap to take the win. I finished in 2hours flat. A very solid first hit out and good indication of what should be expected in the coming races.
Thanks to my mum and sister for making the trip up to support me. Thanks to Crankit Cycles and Specialized for kitting me out with the new ride. Thanks also to Blue Seventy and R-Line which provided me with the best race products for peak performance.
Bring on the next race in Whangamata!!!
Cheers Hamish
No comments:
Post a Comment