Race Report: Mach Tenn Triathlon

First race of the season! First race in a wetsuit! First race on my triathlon bike!

Ah, the excitement surrounding last weekend’s Mach Tenn Triathlon at Andrews Air Force Base in Tullahoma, TN. Mach Tenn is in between sprint and olympic distance, with a 0.6 mile swim, 16 mile bike, and 4 mile run. The short distance allowed me to approach the race as an actual race, rather than a battle of survival in which my only mission is to cross the finish line.

I had my best race to date, setting a personal best in all three events. The swim and bike were really outstanding, as I finished both in the top 20% of my age group. I also improved greatly on the run, though my placement was a bit lower. My pace of 7:17 put me at the 38th percentile in my age group.
Here’s a breakdown of my progression up the age-group ranks (M 25-29) over the last twenty months:

Music City Triathlon, September 2007: Finish time (83%), Swim (100%), Bike (76%), Run (76%).

Rocketman Triathlon, August 2008: Finish time (58%), Swim (92%), Bike (58%), Run (50%).

Music City Triathlon, September 2008: Finish time (31%), Swim (cancelled), Bike (37%), Run (31%).

Mach Tenn Triathlon, June 2009: Finish time (19%), Swim (19%), Bike (19%), Run (38%).

Granted, the competition at these races may be uneven. I suspect that Mach Tenn had a somewhat weaker field than Music City. However, rankings aside, my pace times are improving more rapidly than they ought given my sporadic training regimen.

Lessons learned:

1. My swim training is paying off huge. Those investments were multiplied by the fact that I wore a wetsuit for the first time.

2. That said, I could have probably shaved another minute off my swim if I had known how fast I’d go. I wasted a lot of time maneuvering around slower swimmers.

3. The investment in a dedicated tri-bike was a big help, but I’m suspicious about the value of additional investments, such as wheels, helmets, etc. I think that sort of stuff is left to people who are just shy of reaching the podium and need a small boost to get there. Not that I wouldn’t love some new Zipps…

Also, I should mention the overall race experience. The course is great. The swim was well-marked for easy sighting. The bike course had very little traffic and few turns. The run was challenging, but not so much that one wanted to curse the race director.

Mach Tenn is decidedly low budget, with one of the lowest entry fees around. There isn't much swag. They give a free technical t-shirt, but it's not the most attractive race shirt I've seen. They nail it on the important details--plenty of hydration, road markers, volunteers, and after-race food and beverage (alcoholic and otherwise). I particularly liked the black eyed peas. If I were in Nashville next year, I would definately race this course again.