2016 Rock N Roll Dallas went off yesterday with 12,000 participants in the 13.1.  Dallas based California Triathlon coach Sergio Arias led 11 cyclists at our 2nd cyclist supported event of the year.  The course featured running through Deep Ellum, past Dealey Plaza and across the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge with a  loop through West Dallas’ Bishop Arts District and a return downtown via the Houston Street Bridge.

Our next RNR supported event is San Francisco on Sunday, April 3 with 12 Cal Tri cyclists from our San Francisco Chapter.  If you live close to one of these races please check out our VOGO Calendar.

2016 RNR Calendar
Mar 12 - RNR Washington DC
Mar 20 - RNR Dallas
Apr 03 - RNR San Francisco
Jun 18 - RNR Seattle
Jul 17 - RNR Chicago
Sep 18 - RNR Philadelphia
Oct 02 - RNR San Jose
Oct 08 - RNR Brooklyn
Oct 16 - RNR Denver
Oct 30 - RNR Los Angeles

What is a good method to determine how hard to pace the bike/run?
by Thom Richmond

That is a great question and one I get all the time.  Typically this question arises after a race where the athlete has had a good bike but a bad run or their legs locked up out of T2.  To answer this question we need to perform a baseline test to determine the best pacing strategy.

5-10 PERCENT.  For the purposes of this exercise, we will look at an Olympic Triathlon gold medalist Alistair Brownlee.  Alistair and his brother Jonathan are absolute freaks.  Alistair is a crossover athlete and raced on the track at the 10,000 meter distance.  He ran a 28:32 at Stanford in 2013.  As a comparison, he ran a 29:30 at the San Diego World Triathlon Series as part of a 1:47.16 Olympic distance triathlon and this included a lot of high fives down the finishing shoot.  There is a 3% difference when comparing his standalone 10K time and his 10K time as part of an Olympic distance triathlon.  The assumption is that this is as good as it gets and for us mere mortals we would target a 5-10% decrease in our run time as part of a triathlon.

TESTING IT OUT.

1. Run a 10K at race pace and record that time.
2. Race a 40K distance and run the same 10K and record the 10K run time.
3. Step 3.  Compare the results from Step 1 and Step 2.

ANALYSIS.  For the purposes of this example, lets assume Step 1 [10K Only] is 50 minutes.  You should expect that Step 2 [40K bike + 10K run] is 52.30 - 55:00 minutes or a 5 - 10% increase.  If your 10K time as part of the 40K + 10K test is 60 minutes or 20% more than your standalone 10K time, you should look at easing up a bit on the bike to leave more for the run.  The opposite is true.  If you see no change in your run time than you would want to work a bit harder on the bike you sandbagger.

FINAL TIP.  It takes our muscles a bit of time to transition from the bike to the run.  I typically recommend adding 30 seconds to your run pace for the first mile to allow the body to get rid of that brick feeling.  Better to give up 30 seconds than to have your legs lockup a couple miles down the road.

CALIFORNIA TRIATHLON - SAN DIEGO.  California Triathlon would like to welcome athletes in San Diego to join 3,000 others from around the U.S. who enjoy a premium no-fee membership.  Founded in 2010, California Triathlon’s mission is to make the sport of triathlon more affordable & accessible by providing the resources, coaching and support needed for athletes to accomplish their goals.  California Triathlon is a 501c3 charity.

California Triathlon’s San Diego Chapter has an active 2016 calendar and some great resources to support our athletes.

EPIC RIDES.  Enjoy SAG supported rides previewing the Tour of California Stage 1 on May 15 or ascend Palomar up both East and South grades on Aug 13.  The Mar 12 Epic Ride - Angels & Demons - from Anaheim to Solana Beach is already sold out.

RACE SUPPORT.  If the SD Tri Series is your thing, our volunteer USAT certified coaches will be leading simulations for all 5 of the SD Tri Series races including the Chula Vista Challenge on August 14 which features a half distance.  Find a 10% discount code on our calendar.

GEAR.  Performance Bike is California Triathlon’s national bike shop with 107 locations in 19 states.  The San Diego Chapter has 6 locations in Bonita, Kearny Mesa, La Mesa, Oceanside, San Diego & Sorrento Valley.  California Triathlon members get free Performance Bike 25 Point Inspections which includes derailleur and brake adjustments.  We also benefit from a steep discount on select Fuji & Kestrel road and triathlon bikes.

Finally, we would like to thank XTERRA Wetsuits for their partnership.  Since our founding, Xterra Wetsuits has been our exclusive wetsuit partner.

2016 California Triathlon - San Diego Chapter Featured Events [Races in Bold]
Mar 12   Epic Ride #3 - Angels & Demons
Apr 01   Oceanside PreRace Dinner & San Diego Chapter Social
Apr 02   Oceanside - 100 Cal Tri Athletes On Course
Apr 24   SD Tri Series – Spring Sprint Triathlon & Duathlon - Simulation
May 01   SD Tri Series – Spring Sprint Triathlon & Duathlon
May 15   Epic Ride #5 - Tour of California
Jun 19   SD Tri Series –  San Diego International Triathlon - Simulation
Jun 26   SD Tri Series –  San Diego International Triathlon
Jul 17    SD Tri Series - Solana Beach Triathlon & Duathlon - Simulation
Jul 31    SD Tri Series - Solana Beach Triathlon & Duathlon
Aug 13  Epic Ride #8 - Palomar Perfection
Aug 7    SD Tri Series - Chula Vista Challenge - Simulation
Aug 14  SD Tri Series - Chula Vista Challenge
Sep 25  La Jolla Cove 10 Mile Relay
Sep 18   SD Tri Series - Mission Bay Triathlon - Simulation
Oct 2    SD Tri Series - Mission Bay Triathlon
Oct 22   Epic Ride #10 - Bike MS:  Bay to Bay 2016
Oct 29   Trick or Tri