Race Report: Subic International Triathlon 2010

2010 SUBIC INTERNATIONAL TRIATHLON

The Subic International Triathlon is the oldest and most prestigious ITU ( International Triathlon Union ) sanctioned triathlon race in the country, and this year's edition has attracted more than 600 participants including delegates from 23 countries and the who's who in the local triathlon scene. This edition also hosted the 2010 Junior and Under 23 Asian Triathlon Championships, the highlight of the 2-day event.

May 1 was the staging of the Adult Sprint ( 750m swim - 20kms bike - 5K run ) and the female Olympic Distance ( 1.5K swim - 40K bike - 10K run ). The male Olympic distance was held on May 2.

I was registered to race in the Olympic distance category and drove to Subic on May 1. Had lunch with my teammates and did a short recon of the swim course. Normally, my nerves would start racking up a day before the race, but, this time around I was unusually very relaxed. I have raced the Philippine Ironman 70.3 in Camsur last year where the distances were crazier and I survived, so I thought this race would be easier.

Race Day

I woke up around 3:30 a.m. on race day. My teammates and I informed the admin, in the hotel we were staying in, that we would be up early and would need to be served breakfast around 3:00 a.m. Teammates doing a triathlon for the first time hardly slept due to nervousness and anticipation of what was in store for the day. I slept like a baby and needed to be woken up by my wife after getting my wake up call which, unfortunately, only she heard.

The whole race course of SubIT 2010 was different from other triathlons I joined. The transition areas were in different locations: T1 was at Dungaree beach where the swim was going to be held, and T2 was at the Boardwalk just in front of our hotel where the run part was going to happen. After depositing our T2 bags, we proceeded to Dungaree beach for the start of the swim.

The SWIM : 1.5 Kilometers

The race started at exactly 6:00 a.m. with the Elites, then the Juniors, then the 29 below and 50 above...then us.

Waiting for the horn start, I could see different facial expressions among my co-age groupers. Some were obviously nervous, others look focused. I was a bit tense but nowhere near nervous. I had visualized the distances weeks earlier and was ready for this race. It was just a matter of charging into the water and finishing the swim.

Then the horn went off, and all of us attacked the ocean...

My game plan was simple: stay at the back of the pack during the swim, attack on the bike, and then hold them off in the run. I am a poor swimmer so in order for me not to be last, I need to make up lost time in the bike.

Upon diving into the water, I immediately saw bubbles from the kicks of the swimmers in front of me. 50 meters into the swim and I got kicked in the face, my goggles knocked off. I held onto the buoy, released the water from my goggles and swam back into the race.

The swim part of a triathlon is always the most dangerous. In 2008 alone, on the 9 deaths recorded in triathlon races around the world, 8 occurred during the swim portion. Some were caused by cardiac arrests due to the sudden change in body temperature upon diving into the water, the rest were due to drowning and mostly claimed the lives of those who were new to the sport. Last year, in Philippine Ironman Camsur 70.3, Miguel Vasquez, a CEO of an insurance company, suffered a stroke during the 2^nd half of the swim portion and drowned. His body was only discovered after all the other participants got out of the swim portion. He was seen floating near the banks of the river, lifeless.

Swimmers on both sides of the swim course. A great sight to see!

The Subic shoreline is a trench, where there is an immediate deepening of the ocean floor after around 200 meters from the beach. Once we reached this, some swimmers panicked and swam towards the buoy line where I was swimming comfortably. There were a lot of contacts. There was one particular swimmer who stayed on my left for quite some time. He was annoyingly hitting my left shoulder every time he stroked and I pushed him to my left so he would stop hitting me. He came back and hit me again. Pissed off, I intentionally hit the back of his head with my left stroke. He held on to the buoy, and so did I. We stared at each other for a second then I yelled at him to go. We hit the water again and never saw each other throughout the duration of the race.

Finished the first lap of the swim in 20 minutes and dove again to complete the swim portion. At about 200 meters to my swim finish, I was overrun by two faster swimmers to the right. Good thing me and my teammates practice situations like this in the pool so I was kind of used to it.

Finished the swim in +/- 42 minutes. Not fast but definitely my fastest 1.5 kms in the water. I was grinning from ear to ear with my swim time, also relieved that the swim was over for me.

Getting out of the water with two Polo Tri members. Grinning from ear to ear, relieved that I was done with the swim portion

The BIKE: 40 kilometers

I was at T1 with Hans Pe, a former teammate, and Poch, a forum colleague. Whatever part of triathlon I was good at, it was in transitions. It only took me 1min 33seconds to transition from swim to bike. As a practice, I always psyche myself up upon mounting my bike. I am a cyclist and whatever time the other participants had on me in the swim, I always try to get back at the bike.

At T1, trying to transition fast to catch the guys who got out of the water ahead of me

Leaving T1, I was with two other cyclists who got dropped within the first kilometer. Going up the bike course, I saw a group of around 7 cyclists doing the same pace climbing the hills.

Caught the group in front of me in less than two minutes and hung on with them for about a minute. Thinking their pace was slow, I excused myself and tried to pass to their left, but, four of the cyclists were blocking the road and wouldn't let me , so I did the next "bad" thing: I passed these four in the middle without excusing myself which caught them by surprise.

I caught a lot of participants on the bike, mostly going uphill. Some even walk their bikes on the climbs. In all modesty and surprisingly, I never felt it was that hard of a climb, or I probably was used to climbing steeper roads, or probably my adrenalin was pumping so hard. Whatever the reason maybe, it served me well in this race.

Going back down was fast, as in 60kph fast. It was nerve-wracking. I crashed on descents before so I know how it feels sliding down the road using your palms as brakes. I pressed on the brakes gently while negotiating the downhill turns, it was better to be slower and safe than fast and crash.

When I reached the flats, I pushed on the pedal harder. I felt my eyes turn red and all I could think of was to pedal faster than the one in front of me. I caught several participants again, but other stronger cyclists also passed me. I caught someone I look up to in triathlons and that actually surprised me big time, or he was just probably having a bad race. Whatever the reason was, it boosted my confidence so much. I adjusted my saddle height two days prior to this race and I think the risk I took paid dividends.

Pushing the pedal harder upon reaching the flats

I reached T2 in after 1 hour and 25 minutes on the bike. I wanted it faster but miscalculated my speed. My cyclo computer conked out in the middle of the bike leg! My hopes of doing sub-3 hours seemed to become hopeless! I was at 2:07 of the race already and running 10K in 53 minutes, including transition, was something I haven't done yet. My 10K PR stands at 56 minutes!

The RUN: 10 kilometers

I transitioned in less than two minutes in T2, had an energy gel then ran. The run course was to go 4 loops at Boardwalk then a short 600-meter loop going into the finish line. I would normally be struggling to get my running legs after biking for more than an hour, but this time, its different.

My position in the bike has changed. I now sit at a 78 degree angle which makes me use my quads more than my hamstrings while biking. As a result, I could run fresher off the bike.

I had a good run on the first 3 loops. I was at 2:55 of the race going into the final 1 1/2 laps. I pushed and pushed until my legs hurt hoping I could finish even in sub-3:10.

I was at 3:03 of the race with one full lap to go. I gave up hope of going under 3:10. I relaxed my stride but going slower meant feeling the heat more. I maintained a steady pace of about 6:30-6:45. My legs felt like burning and my mind was telling me to walk even just a bit. I didn't. There was a water station at the turn going to Waterfront road, I thought I'd pour water on my legs there.

Upon reaching where the water station was, it wasn't there anymore. Shit! Now I felt my burning legs more and had to walk a bit. It felt good. So I walked more than I needed to and did the shuffle before reaching the final water station leading to the finish.

Running towards the finish line

No matter how you raced a triathlon, whether you're the first or the last to cross the finish line, it always feels good. You forget all the pains and agony you went through during the race, leaving you with a euphoric feeling that will last for days.

Finished the race in 3 hours, 19 minutes. It will do for now.

Deo P.