Devilman
Mark Elky’s Noobie Race Report for the New Jersey Devilman Triathlon
|
I am writing this race report the day after finishing my first triathlon, so some of these comments may be no-brainers for the more experienced triathletes. But at least I can say, been there, done that… and smile.
Getting there (and back):
· Get (or borrow a friend’s) easy pass http://www.ezpassmd.com/en/signup/facility.shtml
· Tolls - $5 and $4 on the way there and $3 and $4 on the way back. It’s good to have exact change to help speed you through the toll booths.
· Parking was at Myron L Powell Elementary School, 225 Main St., Cedarville, NJ. (helps if you navigate by Garmin). Arrive early if you want to park on asphalt. After the parking lot is full they open up the fields to park on. I arrived about 5:30 as I didn’t exactly know what to expect.
Pre-race:
· Race Packet Pickup opened on time and was on the morning of the event rather than the day before
· There was a place to rack your bike as they asked that you not bring your bike through the small packet pickup tent
· Race bag schwag consisted of a running hat (actually pretty nice – I’ll have to fight my daughter for it), a tech t-shirt, a hammer gel pack (never tried Montana Huckleberry – and still have not. Don’t experiment with your stomach on race day!), a magazine, and a few fliers for other races.
· They said in the pre-race information that they had running race belts for sale at packet pickup but I didn’t see them out anywhere (I didn’t look hard as I already had one)
· Make sure you bring your USAT membership card and photo ID with you to packet pickup
· Make sure you check that all your numbers match in the race packet (Helmet sticker, Bike, Running race belt, and especially, the timer chip) - There was actually an issue with this as they kept announcing over the loudspeakers for everyone to check their timer chip number as the wrong person had #20… they eventually found it.
Transition Area:
· Big transition area with plenty of room
· Decent security with lots of race officials around
The Swim:
· The swim was in Cedar Lake – The sprint was one lap and the half-light 50 was two
· The start had everyone heading down a dock using a set of metal stairs at the end to enter the water (It felt a little like getting off a plane)
· Once everyone from your wave was in they started (actually they started the wave on time so if you were at the end of the line getting into the water you may have started a few seconds late)
· Water seemed clean enough, although you couldn’t see more than a few inches
· Mirrored or shaded goggles would have been better as the buoys were a pain to sight with the sun still rising.
· The big orange buoys were easily sighted across the water (other when looking into the sun’s glare)
· The run back from the water to the transition area was a little gravelly
The Bike:
· First thing… hit the spot-a-pot before you head out if you need to as you will not see another one for 40 miles (or 20 if you did the Sprint). There are none on the bike course.
· The course was flat. Garmin tells me that it was 2,355 feet ascent and decent overall. There were no real hills just some long gradual inclines/declines.
· The wind was a bit brutal. As the course was an out and back (once again, twice for the half-Light 50), the “back” part was into the wind. …but wind and flat beats hills any day.
· There were a few sharp turns along the course but nothing that wasn’t on the course map that was a surprise
· At mile 10 (and 30 on the second out and back) they handed out bottles of Gatorade, water, and gel packs
· There was little vehicular traffic during the race
· The shoulders and marked bike lanes were fairly broken glass and other debris that would cause flats
· Only one road kill (poor kitty) was spotted on the trip (I also spotted wild turkeys and a snake)
· Once warning… there were a few spots with sand deposits. STEER CLEAR!
· The truck that drives around the course and picks up any bikes that can’t make it the “draggin’ wagon”
· The mount/dismount line is about 150 yards away from the transition area (and add another 25-50 yards until you can rack your bike as the transition area is large)
The Run:
· Lots of sun (make sure you put on the sunscreen)
· The run went past some farms, so did the bike for that matter)
· There were 2 spectators for the run. A couple little girls sitting in folding chairs in their front yard that would get up and run with the runners for a little bit before going back to their chairs.
· I saw a few MP3 players on runners, there was even one guy I say running out of T1 with a MP3 player (A race official was on-the-ball to spot that and tell him “No”)
· About every mile they handed out cups of Gatorade, water, and gel packs
· Pretty flat run course. Garmin said there was 633 feet of ascent/descent overall
Other Comments:
· The race was low-key and had a great small-town flavor. This is a great event to start the season with and a good tune up to the ½ Ironman I’m signed up for later this season. (Hey – I may be new at this but when you aim high the payoff is that much sweeter).
· The BATC had 3 racers (their times are below). Bob finished second in his age group!
· The finisher medals were cheap. Just a little medal that says Piranha Sports. The ribbon has http://www.piranha-sports.com on one side and 2011 NJ Devilman on the other. It would be nice if the race name and year was actually on the medal. They actually had nicer medals that they gave to the winners.
· I would like to come back next year
| Club Place | Overall Place | Name | City | State | Race Age | Gender | Division | Time | GACC Points | Bib# | |
| 1 | 50 | Villanueva, Robert | Cockeysville | MD | 38 | 3:26:48 | 4 | 555 | |||
| 2 | 149 | Poray, Michael | Ruxton | MD | 38 | 3:54:27 | 1 | 442 | |||
| 3 | 262 | Elky, Mark | Reisterstown | MD | 40 | 4:39:02 | 1 | 452 | |||
| Points: 6 |
