Racing Xterra is a crazy fun experience. Last year I raced my first off road Tri at the Jersey Devil and had a great experience. So when registration opened up I absolutely knew I wanted to race again. I also was supposed to race on Saturday doing the High Point Hill Climb TT. However Friday night, I ended up coming down with a fever. Unfortunately that meant that Saturday's race was off. But I felt well enough to race on Sunday.
This year I decided I wanted to camp at the race- both because it was free & it meant I could pre ride the bike course - which had some changes on Saturday. This was my second time camping for a race-last year I camped before HITS and I loved the experience. The weather forecast for Saturday Night was relatively nice- about 40 degrees and no rain. So after spending the morning with the Smith Kids, I packed up my gear and drove down to the Jersey Shore to the race.
Once I arrived I picked up my packet and set up my tent. The weather was gorgeous - about 70 degrees and sunny. Perfect for a couple of laps of the bike course. The course is pretty flat, but very sandy and has a couple of technical sections that are very narrow. So after a first easy lap, I opened up a bit and rode at 90% of race pace for the second lap. I wanted to get a sense of challenge spots at speed and bookmark them in my mind as to what line would work best. The plus side is the course was free of rock gardens. Now I like rock gardens, but for a 2 loop race they can be a nightmare since they often serve as choke points and crashes.
After riding two laps I decided to shut it down and get some food. The camp we raced and stayed out is a Boys Scout camp and has rudimentary facilities including showers. However they were cold water showers. So after riding I took a very cold shower and then drove into town for dinner. I ended up finding a burger bar and had my usual- plain burger with sweet potatoes and a beer. The food was okay, but they had Curious Traveler Shandy on Tap. Pretty cool summer beer. If I wasn't racing I might have stayed for a while...
Once I got back to the camp, the race organizer had set up a dvd player and we watched the 2012 Xterra World Championships from Maui. One of the guys racing with us had raced there a couple of years ago so it was really cool to chat with him about the experience. I definitely want to race in Maui someday- perhaps do a Hawaii Double- Kona & Maui...
As it got dark I went to my Tent and very quickly fell asleep. I woke up a couple of time- once I was sweating, but given that this was a pre race sleep I was pretty happy. I got a good night sleep and felt great compared to Friday. My plan was to wake by 6 and rack my bike then prep for the day. As usual I woke up early and ended up having my bike racked by 5:50. I did not lay out my gear- just racked the bike and decided to pack up my tent. Why wait for post race. As camping goes this was a great success- easy setup & tear down, good warm sleep and relaxed & ready for race day.
As the sun came up, the air temp really warmed- I think by race start it was 60+, which race start was 9 AM. For a lot of road Tri's, 9 AM is the start of Awards so Xterra is definitely more relaxed! I got my gear set- I decided to wear my Sparta Tri One Piece tri suit, no socks but I did decide to wear gloves. Not sure if I needed the gloves or not, but I felt great on the ride and run in just the tri suit.
About 8:30 I got into my wetsuit. I am definitely leaner this year- my weight is about 168 vs 175 last year and putting on my wetsuit I noticed that it was a bit easier to zip down. I use a Blue Seventy Helix which zips from the neck down to the back (most wetsuits zip up). And it can be a pain to get the zipper aligned at your neck and zip down. Being a few pounds lighter meant it was a bit easier to zip down. I am right in the weight range for my suit- 165-180 so it was definitely not loose, but sure did feel good. Once I was suited up, I walked the 1/4 to the water and did a quick warm up swim. While the water was cold- about 60 degrees, it was much warmer than last year. Plus the lake was full- last year the lake was only half full meaning we walked most of the swim and the water temp was below 50...
After a couple of safety briefs, we sang the National Anthem Boston Bruin style- acapella. I love the National Anthem and singing it is very cool to start a race. And then the 3,2,1 horn and we were off. The course was supposed to be an 800 meter swim, with 2 400 meter loops. It was definitely long- at least 1000 meters, likely a bit longer but we all had to swim on the same course so it was fine. The first loop was a washer machine for sure and the second was pretty close to the first. I felt very good in the water- swam easy and had no issues. I exited the water in the main pack. Garmin time out of the water was about 13:00
Official Swim Time was 14:31 including the 1/4 mile run to T1.
T1 Sucked. My hands were numb and I could not get the wetsuit over my feet- A guy in my bike row did a quick pull for me- which was very cool. I got my mtn bike shoes on- they are not T1/T2 friendly, glove glasses and helmet and got going. Total time 3:55- hello sucky. But I have to take it for what it was- slow, cold fingers & gear not designed for fast transitions.
On to the bike. I quickly passed a bunch of guys and settled in for the first couple of miles. There was only one technical section- a very narrow stretch with trees on either side of the trail, and while there were some sandy sections, staying on the edge of the trail meant fast riding. Very soon, I was at the first real technical section- a half mile storm cut filled with a mix of packed and loose sand. The cut was about 2 feet deep and 2 feet wide- so single file and slow as the first 200 yards were slightly uphill through loose sand. That was a leg sucker for sure, but spinning in a small gear made it passable. Once I cleared that section I passed a couple more guys and hit the second storm cut- this was much easier since it was muddy and slightly down hill. Having time on the course the day before really worked since I knew where I could hammer and where I needed a bit more control. I quickly finished the first lap and started on the second. There were fewer folks on the start of the second lap and I did pass a couple. There were a couple of times in the single file storm cuts where slower riders actually hopped of their bikes to let me pass- which again highlights the cool & relaxed vibe of Xterra racing. Before long I was back at transition having ridden a solid bike.
Bike time 57:40 (1 minute 25 seconds faster then last year). T2 was fast, although I am not used to taking shoes off. If this Xterra thing gets more serious I will be investing in better tri specific racing shoes. T2 time 0:49.
Heading out on the run is crazy- within the first 100 yards you are in the woods dodging obstacles. This is not a trail run, instead it is a run through woods, swamps, streams, sand and lots and lots of low hanging trees, stumps and other assorted debris. Up and down some short be steep ridges. I felt relaxed, got passed by one guy, but passed a couple of others. Before long I emerged from the woods and had a quick out and back loop to complete the race. I crossed the finish line in 1:42:20 in 25th place overall and 5th in my AG. The time and place is better than last year (1:44:00, 41st OA and 10 in my AG). And my run was faster too- 25:24 for the 3.5 miles of mud, sand and lots of scrapes on my arms & legs.
I am happy with the day- Xterra is just crazy fun. And I am racing another one in mid may...
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