I came into this race off of a great training camp in Spain. I was confident and ready to put it all out there.
I lined up for the swim start in the middle of the bunch. Off the start I was able to pull ahead and swam pretty much untouched to the first buoy. Along the backstraight I was sitting pretty in third position. The pace wasn’t super hard, which had me worrying a bit. I did a backstroke just to gauge the situation and I could see that everyone was bunched together and there was minimal separation.
Shit.
As we ran onto the pontoon to begin our second swim lap I dove in and immediately began
leading the swim.
Shit.
It’s not like I don’t enjoy leading. I’m able to control the race and swim untouched. But the effort required is much higher than following feet.
At that point I said to myself that I would commit to the next set of buoys, then take another look.
So for the second time in the race I did a backstroke. It had strung out a bit more and I was a little more optimistic.
After rounding the buoys at the far end I just decided to take the race into my hands and continue to push the swim. I knew if I could pop a few more guys than I might have a chance to get away.
As we came close to the swim exit I did another backstroke. I could see there was a bit more of a line so I was pleased with that and began to prepare for the bike.
Ended up leading the swim in a World Championship race. Did not anticipate that, so it was a nice surprise.
After a poor T1,in which my hamstring cramped removing my wetsuit I hopped on the bike and started the effort to establish a lead group.
With a number of us driving the train we actually had a very functional paceline with about 8-10 guys rolling turns. Unfortunately there just wasn’t enough of a gap out of the water and we had about another 10 guys in the bunch who were along for the ride.
I went to the back a couple of times to air my frustrations. You can’t really control a group of 20 so I mainly wanted to rip into a few guys. Nothing was accomplished from that other than losing out on a few post-race pints.
As the bike descended into release and catch (guy or two goes off the front, group reels them in) we began to lose our gap to the second pack. What began as a 60” lead eventually fell to 30” as we entered T2 and headed out for the run.
Shit
After learning my lesson in Karlovy Vary I was keen on sticking to my race plan of even splitting the 10k. Out of T2 most of the group flew by and I put on the blinders and hoped that many of them would come back to me.
Few did.
In the end I was able to maintain my effort for the run and when I crossed the line I knew I couldn’t have put in a stronger effort.
Unfortunately, this resulted in an 33’ 10k split which is unacceptable in a World Championship race.
In the end I placed 24th. Obviously, this result is not something I’m proud of and it does bother me that it’s all I could manage. However, this year I was able to lead the swim and establish myself as a leader on the bike. Moving forward I have a lot of confidence in my situation and the direction of my training.
I gave myself a couple of minutes post-race to beat myself up. It’s a good exercise. But not much more than that, not healthy otherwise.
I really owe this experience to my support team.
Coach Jamie, my employer Libby Burrell and all the Triathlon Canada staff did an amazing job of ensuring everything was in place to perform well.
My family and friends were all very supportive leading up to, during and after the race and I have to thank them for keeping me a strong a stable mental state.
My sponsors, Running Room, Eload, Nineteen Wetsuits, Suunto and Fort Street cycles all assist me in their unique way and I cannot thank them enough for their unwavering support.
As I’ve missed a number of races this year due to setbacks I will return to Spain for another spell and continue to build what I’ve started this summer. I will race again in a month in San Juan, Puerto Rico. I will be looking for a win there to finish off my season.
I’m excited for the future. I’ve built a solid foundation for success. What is required now is simply time.
I’m not ready to write my obituary.
nice report Matt! good luck with the training