2. GHI Itzehoe - Regionalliga Event

A great weekend came to an end with a 3rd place individual finish at the second Regionalliga Event in Itzehoe. All started with a Swim & Run on Saturday to determine the team times for a pursuit sprint triathlon on Sunday. This format called for a exciting and super fast race on both days.
We, Tri Michels Hamburg, did finish in third place on Saturday and had a time deficit of 56 seconds to Triabolos Hamburg and 25 seconds to Hannover 96 going into the Sprint on Sunday.

We arrived well rested and much better prepared in Itzehoe on Sunday morning, looking for a Top 3 finish. So, we waited anxiously on the beach while the first team and then the second team went off in the water. Finally, 56 seconds after the lead team we were allowed to jump into the water and chase the first two teams. It was Freddy taking the lead with Bruno and myself right behind to take advantage of the position in the back. Once we hit the turnaround buoy I went by Bruno to give him a breather and have him rest behind me. All worked out excellent as we three came to transition with only few second apart. Enno and Christian also stayed close by and managed about the same swim time.

So, once we left the water it was all over with the team competition – no drafting and no more team work was allowed. I managed a quick transition, best of the year, to jump a few spots before the bike leg and started the chase of the top swimmers of the other teams, as well as Jan Raphael from Hannover 96. First ride with my new Hawk Racing bottom bracket, so I was excited to see what it might do for me. Much quicker than usual I was able to find a good rhythm and push a big gear. Within the first of two laps I jumped into third position, just behind Winkler (North Germany’s Time Trial Champion) and Jan Raphael (Ironman Florida winner). Finishing the second lap, I lost a little ground to Winkler, but managed to keep about the same distance, even closed the gap by 11 seconds to Jan Raphael. Once I hit transition I was able to see Jan and Winkler just leaving. Therefore, I tried to focus on another quick transition, to be able to close the gap as soon as possible.

Of course, it was a little unrealistic to close the gap to Jan, but a second place was insight. Winkler was still 30 seconds in front as I passed by the first turnaround after 2 kilometers. His second place came to an end at the 3.5k mark as I managed to close the gap. However, it wasn’t just me, also Lukas Kampkötter from Hannover 96 came from behind. We ran and had a short fight for second which he won with about 700 meters to go. His run split of 16:35 was the fastest of the day and gave him a good second place finish behind Jan Raphael. I did hold on to the podium and finished in third with a 17:22.

All in all, this was probably my best performance of the year, 6 seconds behind Lukas and 1:23 behind Jan, who both started for Hannover 96 and therefore had an advantage of 25 seconds starting the swim. Coming up are four weeks of hard training for the 70.3 qualifier in Antwerp. During this training I will participate in the Tour de Wendland, 3 day road-race event and put a big focus on my run performance.

http://www.stgk.info/Ergebnisse/2010/13/rl-m.pdf

Stadtpark Triathlon Hamburg - State Championships

Just one week after the weak run performance in Vierlande, everything was set for the Sprint Triathlon State Championships in Hamburg. I felt much better the morning of the race then last week, maybe it had something to do with the 15c temperature change since then. We are back to standard summer temperatures here in northern Germany.

The swim consisting of two 250m loops with a steep climb back to the transition was key for a good placement today. Several good swimmers were in the field and I hoped for some fast feet. Well, it all came different once again, as I couldn’t hang on with a 60 second opening 100 m. Around the first buoy I’ve dropped about 20 meters, back in 5th place.

I managed a 5th position out of the water, but the distance increased to roughly 45 seconds to the leading group. My transition was a little better than last week, but still far away from excellence.

So, starting the 5 loop 20k bike in 5th position I felt pretty confident to reach at least the top 3 after the bike. It was a fast and super course, with each lap consisting of 2km head-wind and 2km down-wind. I pushed a hard gear and felt strong all the way through, as I managed to hold my aero position the entire time and hydrated much better than last week. Once again I clocked the fastest bike split and moved into third position coming off the bike. Still in transition I passed Mathias Heineke, who had a superb swim and controlled a good bike.

I started the flat and fast 5k run in second place, with Andre Stübs just 20 seconds in front. It helped mentally to have him right before me, but my run felt 100% changed to last week. I was able to push a pace of about 3:20 per kilometer and controlled the distance to Andre well. With 2k into the run I had managed to pick up Andre and ran right next to him. You could tell running side by side that we didn’t know each other and nobody wanted to push the pace to early. So, we cruised a long, with Mathias coming closer and closer, probably wondering what was going on in front of him. Once we reached the 3k mark I knew I could try to attack as I felt well rested and strong enough to push a 3:20 again for the last 2k. I accelerated around a corner and Andre was obviously surprised, or exhausted has he didn’t have anything to answer.

Winning this race and coming to the finish in 57 minutes with a controlled 17:40 run felt amazing! State Champion feels huge, but the run performance feels even better coming of the weak performance just a week before. This motivational boost should help myself, but also the entire team for this weekend’s Regionalliga Sprint Triathlon in Itzehoe.

Trionik Vierlande Triathlon - Regionalliga

Finally, after several months of training, training and more training it was time for the first triathlon of the season. Vierlande Triathlon, just outside of Hamburg, wasn’t only my first of the year, but also the start into the Regionalliga North for our team. Well prepared and with the goal in mind to start in the 2. Bundesliga next year, we were all ready to go.


Of course, Hamburg’s weather was once more a disaster, but we all could have expected that. Still cold temperatures leading up to the race made us believe of a shorter swim, or even a duathlon.
However, it all came different and we had the hottest day of the year with temperatures above 30c degrees.

So, it was all set for an Olympic Distance race with a 1,5k swim, 40k bike and 10k run. I found a good rhythm during the swim and was able to stick in the second swim group until the last buoy.
Somehow I lost the orientation just a little and got slightly of course. Not as bad as expected, but still dropped about 20 seconds to this group leaving the water in just over 20 minutes.

Still in transition I saw the swim group and knew that the race wasn’t lost yet.
Transition itself was a little rusty, hope this will get better as the season progresses. Just a few kilometers on the bike I was able to pick up Freddy and Bruno, who managed to finish the swim with this second group. Once I passed these guys I had a tough time getting away, as about 10 riders formed a group just behind. I stayed close to this pack almost to the 20 k mark, as I decided to try a breakaway.

It took about 10 hard kilometers to reach the second and third guy that were pushing a hard pace and working of each other. With a few kilometers to the transition I dropped these guys to give myself a good position for the run. Entering transition in second place, clocking the fastest bike split of the day, just 20 seconds behind Ulf Bartels gave me and our team a good position.

Starting the hot run I tried to focus on a good and solid pace, which I should’ve been able to hold during the run. However, it all came different and I couldn’t even hold this “controlled” pace, as the heat and conditions killed me. My pace dropped rapidly and I lost position by position. At the end it was a 7th place, definitely not the best start into the season as hydration was my weakest link.

Tri-Michels Hamburg finished this first Regionalliga Race in first place, with Freddy in 10th, Bruno 11th and Ben in 21st position. Next team race coming up on June 19th and 20th in Itzehoe.