Race Coverage

Three Reports in One...

Saturday, 08 August 2015 00:10

DuTri Men Sweep Minnewaska Podium: A Tri-Perspective:

An intertwining tale of caffeinated tweenage bribey, bike mechanicals, and running scared;

aka a perfect day of racing.

By Ryan Wippler (and Andy Zabel, Jesse Shaw

Jesse Shaw (photo on L):  The morning of the 2015 Minnewaska Triathlon started like any other race morning... early!  After a short 45 minute drive I peaked the edge of the hillside into Glenwood and could see wispy fog blanketing the fields around town.  It was going to be a fast race: the sky was clear and there was zero wind.  The last time I raced Minnewaska was in 2012 and the waves were so bad during the swim it felt like an ocean swim; on the bike, we coasted uphill but had to pedal down it!  Ok, maybe it wasn't that bad, but it appeared the weather was going to cooperate this year.  As I parked and unloaded my gear, I found myself wondering who would be showing up to the race this year....

Andy Zabel (photo above on R):  Anyone who knows me can attest to my constant haggling of my "non-tri" friends to get out and experience a triathlon.  My strategies usually do not work well and most of these friends just give me the same "yeah...maybe someday" line.  Last weekend was different though! I somehow managed to sweet talk my 12 and 13 year old daughters, Kayla and Skylar into doing a relay triathlon.  All I had to agree to was Starbucks and Caribou Coffee as prefueling and a reward.  Apparently tweenagers love chocolate sugary coffee drinks more than anyone.  Who knew?!  Fearing they might back out I brought them to Starbucks and hurriedly signed them up for the next available sprint triathlon I could find.  It happened to be the Minnewaska Triathlon.  A very easy and doable 400y point to point swim in "shallowy" water, gentle rolling hills on the 11.1 mile bike, and a flat 2.5 mile run that followed the lake.

Ryan Wippler (photo above - center):  Rolling into Glenwood MN on Hwy 28, the first thing I noticed was that the very large hill I was descending toward the sun shimmering off of Lake Minnewaska in the distance below.  That’s a long way down. Hope I don’t have to climb this.I thought, but then remembered that the course follows the lake shore, couldn’t possibly be hilly.  I parked, claimed my transition spot, registered, port potty-ed, and more meticulously set up my gear.  My DuTri teammate and friend Jesse was able claim the transition spot next to me, which was perfect as he had convinced me a few days earlier to register for this event.  When it’s for a good cause, its an easy choice.  I told him I was already looking forwards to drinks and dinner with him later that night.  At that point I noticed another DuTri teammate Andy Zabel setting up a few spot down the rack.  AZ is fast, 2nd only to Larry Hosch on our team.  This was going to be a race.  This was going to hurt.

Jessie Shaw:  I set up in transition near the bike exit next to friend/DuTri teammate, Ryan Wippler, who has proven to be an incredibly capable athlete.  He's a meticulous planner: performance is measured, each transition step well-rehearsed, everything that can be controlled is.  Also racing this year was DuTri teammate Andy Zabel. Like Ryan, Andy has proven numerous times what he's made of.  However, Andy's approach to planning for a race is nearly opposite of Ryan's; he once forgot his running shoes and had to borrow a pair from a race spectator.  Enough said.  Organization skills aside, both guys are incredibly fast and I almost wanted to be a spectator to watch this shootout go down.  Almost.

Andy Zabel:  We arrived at the lake just 45 minutes prior to race time. It is hard getting tweenagers out of bed, let alone at 5:00am. This gave me exactly enough time to set up their transition, explain how the race was going to go down and give them as many pointers as I could to make them enjoy themselves and race well. Then I remembered I had to set up my own transition, but the race was starting and was pretty much out of time.  

Ryan Wippler:  The three of us briefly discussed whether or not to use a wetsuit.  Jessie and I decide to dawn our wetsuits figuring although any gains in speed would be likely offset by loss of time in transition, it would be good transition practice for longer races.  Andy went sans speed (wet) suit.  

Andy Zabel:  There was no time to put on my wetsuit and I really wasn’t too concerned about racing today in a wetsuit given the short distance. I figured the slightly faster swim would be negated by the 20 seconds I typically spend wrenching my suit off in T1. Skylar and I ended up in wave 2, which was great, and I think it helped with her seeing the other swimmer go out first.  The water was very clear and you can see the bottom the entire swim, perfect for beginners or people who don’t care for the swim portion.  I usually start towards the front but at this race I elected to be a little back so that she could be near me.

Ryan Wippler:  Our swim wave [2] started fast and furious.  I did my best to stay calm and not sustain too much damage from the flailing arms and legs around me.  For the first 150 yards I was getting pinched between the churning lower extremities of two swift swimmers; the one on my right seemingly heading towards the beach, and the one on my left apparently heading out to sea.  I left them pull ahead another half body length, slipped in their streams behind, and let them pinball off each other for a minute or so, enjoying the free pull and demolition derby style entertainment ahead.  They began to tire, I swam clear, and it was relatively smooth stroking for the remainder.

Jesse Shaw:  Minnewaska is the perfect race for first timers due to the short and shallow point-to-point swim along the beach.  The water was clear and calm.  With each handful of water, I could see lake plants and fish moving below me.  It was the most peaceful swim leg I've ever experienced.  Not that I was lollygagging - I turned in my best 100m pace on Saturday.  With about 50 yards to go, I could see Andy and Ryan hitting the beach entering T1.  As I was running to my transition spot I saw Ryan leaving, meaning Andy must have made it out first.  Both guys are incredibly strong bikers, so again I found myself envious of the spectators who could witness the battle for first place.  Nonetheless, I felt compelled to try to chase after them.  

Andy Zabel:  When I exit the water, I usually have no idea where I am relative to position in the race.  I just try to get on my bike as soon as possible.  I rarely look to see who is around me.  In this case, I said "Hi and have fun sweetie!" to Kayla who was nervously waiting in transition with her bike for her sister to come in.

Ryan Wippler:  Although I was ahead of Andy out of the water, the extra time it took to get my wetsuit off (ankles and feet!) meant I was trailing him out of T1.  While he didn’t do a flying mount, his transition appeared very smooth and fast.  I need to work on that.  I thought as I clip-clopped my bike shoes, running past the Mount/Dismount line, and saddled up.  It took a few extra seconds to clip in, but before I knew it I was pedaling strong and smoothly.  I was right in my sweet spot with power output and had caught up to Andy at about mile 1.5. Gotcha!I thought,This is going to be my day…  But then we both hit a deep crevasse in the concrete and unbeknownst to me, my seat dropped 4 inches!  Andy started to pull away, and as he did I thought,Curious, he seems very tall today-even in an aggressive aero position.  It took me a minute to figure out what had happened.  To my dismay, because my seat dropped so significantly, I couldn’t extend my knee normally, or engage any hip/glut drive into my pedal stroke, and my power output even with an increased effort dropped 15%.  $#@%!!!  It’s going to be all quads today.  Things just got interesting.  

Andy Zabel:  You follow the lake for a mile and then you get nice rollers that are short enough to not be painful. The bike felt pretty fast.  Within about 2 miles the crowd of cyclists had thinned out and I started to get lonely.  But I spoke too soon as Wippler was hot on my tail. We traded places a few times throughout the bike portion. I actually love being in a race and having a well matched cyclist challenge me on the bike. I think it keeps me focused and makes the race more fun. This is my second year doing the Minnewaska Tri and last year I took a wrong turn on the bike which totally sucked and I ended up losing a few minutes and a win. I now had the course seared in my brain.

Ryan Wippler:  Throughout the remainder of the bike leg, Andy would pull away climbing the hills (I had earlier hoped didn’t exist) as I couldn’t generated any power in the seated or aero position.  I had to get out of the saddle for each climb, which was a relief to my over taxed quads, but then lost such a significant aerodynamic advantage that I couldn’t maintain Andy’s fierce pace.  On the flats and declines I would make up ground by using core strength to hover my butt above my seat, where my seat should have been.  That, my friends, was physically taxing.  So glad this was a super-sprint.  After yo-yo-ing the bike course with Andy I was able to pull away slightly before entering T2.  

Andy Zabel:  Wippler and I arrived into T2 at the exact same time. I chose the flying dismount which got me out of T2 just a little ahead of Ryan. I needed these precious seconds as my run has been slower this year after fracturing my fibula over the winter.

Ryan Wippler:  As I unclipped, braked before the M/D-line, and dismounted, this blur of a frickin’ textbook flying dismount swooped passed me on my left.  $#@% that was slick!  And fast.  We both racked our bikes, dawned running shoes, shades, racing belts, and were off.  Andy was only 25 yards ahead, but my legs did not feel right.

Jesse Shaw:  The bike leg is a tricky one as there is some climbing involved and if you lack experience in using gears efficiently it'll beat your legs up.  My bike felt a bit slow but I managed to not have any mechanical issues and even sustained a 30 MPH mile on the return!  Heading back into transition, I saw two bikes and immediately thought, "Crap, the guys are gone."  Then, after performing the T2 dance moves (racked my bike, slipped on my shoes, grabbed my belt and took off running), my legs felt a bit heavy but no cramping or twitching.  In between thanking race volunteers and focusing on my cadence, my self-talk was "Mile 1 always sucks, it'll get better."  I'm not sure it works, but as I passed the Hobie sailboat my watch chimed mile 1 was done and I was feeling pretty good.  It was a quiet morning and I was all by myself.  Had I not been able to see the water stop ahead, it could have been just a hard training session and not a race.  I had found a quiet, little hole in the race crowd where I could torture myself with thoughts of: "Where are Ryan and Andy?" and "How far back is the next runner?"  My first question was answered as Ryan and Andy passed by not far after the water stop.  With a mile to go, they were hammering, and I could tell the sprint to the finish had already started.  

Ryan Wippler:  The altered mechanics of my pedal stroke had not only slowed down my bike leg, but was now also compromising my ability to run.  I was hoping to quickly catch Andy with an early burst, perhaps dispirit him a bit-taking away that second wind he didn’t know he had.  My stubborn legs would not respond!  The prolonged quad burning and inability to extend my knee properly during the last half hour was making itself dually felt.  Although, I was only a long stone’s throw away, I could not gain any ground on him.  This frustrating status quo went on for most of the first mile.

Andy Zabel:  The 2.5 mile run is flat and is entirely exposed to the sun so it’s hot. I chose not to look back and see where Wippler was. I just ran scared and assumed he was 10 feet behind me the whole time. 

Ryan Wippler:  At that point, I started to make up some ground, but my breathing was quite ragged and frankly, worrisome.  By the time I pulled neck and neck with Andy my breathing was out of control while he appeared eerily calm.  Creepy cal(a)mity?  I thought, being not quite clever.  Soon, the turn-around was upon us, which was not well marked, and the nice young girls manning the site were unsure if this was in fact the turn around.  I checked my GPS watch-it was.  We both staggered a bit at the abrupt and unexpected change of direction, but I found I was hitting my stride a bit stronger than before, getting my glutes to engage, which had been asleep most of the morning.   Although, I didn’t think Andy would wait to sprint for the finish, I kept pressing the pace to hopefully give me a bit of a buffer if he decided to come in hot.  About that time I passed and high-five Jesse, who was running a strong third.  Wow, could we (DuTri) sweep this race?

Andy Zabel:  Right before the turn around Wippler had caught up to me. Shoot! This was going to be a close race. 

Ryan Wippler:  That last mile was brutal as I could hear Andy’s footfalls behind and nagging self-doubt crept in. If you ease, even a bit, he will catch you. If he catches you, it will haunt you.  Every time you are out on the road…you will think about this… it will haunt your dreams…&@#$! Running fast, but with fear, I tried to distract myself from the physical and mental discomfort.   I thought about some particularly ruthless 5:30 a.m. training sessions I had endured this past year-some especially nauseating 400, 800, 1600 meter repeats with minimal active (running) recovery between.  I thought about how much they hurt, how sick I felt, and why in the world I had engaging in such abnormal behavior when everyone else I knew was in bed.  For times like these, Damnit!  That steeled my resolve and I pounded the rest of the race.  I kid you not, someone yelled, “He’s coming in hot!”, as I sprinted through the shoot to collect my third “W” of the year.  Andy followed shortly behind.  We both crushed the course record by almost 1:30!

Andy Zabel:  In the end he passed me and crossed the finish 17 seconds sooner. I was very pleased with my race and having such a cool guy win the race.

Jesse Shaw:  I wouldn't know this until later, but Andy turned in 5:51 miles to Ryan's 5:42s.  The sprint distance is savage.  Their pace difference during the run was essentially the seconds between first and second.  Ryan came in only :17 before Andy.  Brutal.  Once my imagination had cleared of watching the finish, I turned at the water station and saw my pursuers.  Uneven pavement threatened to collapse my legs - I was getting tired.  I hadn't looked at my watch, but I could tell I was running faster than usual and it seemed the racers behind me looked fresh compared to how I felt.  I pushed on until my watch chimed.  Mile 2: 6:28, my watch confirming I was running :15 faster per mile than my normal pace.  Up ahead, I could see I was to cross the road onto the path that would take me to the finish line.  I no longer had the capacity to thank volunteers; all I could do was focus on breathing.

Ryan Wippler:  Andy and I congratulated one another on a great effort and raucously cheered as our friend came in a commanding 3rd overall! 

Jesse Shaw:  I crossed the finish line at 52:03 besting my 2012 time by 3:20 - a huge improvement!  Andy also shaved off about 2:30 from his effort in 2014.  Both Ryan (48:09) and Andy (48:26) broke the course record set in 2014 by Jacob Braaten (49:47).  For DuTri, it was a podium sweep - a first in the club's history.

Andy Zabel:  After Wippler and I chatted about how fun the race was and waiting for our friend Jesse to cross the finish line, I went back to transition to cheer my daughters on.  It was perfect timing as my daughter Kayla was just coming in on the bike.  She had taken a fall when a fellow biker bumped her but she was in high spirits and happy to be finished with her portion.  She handed off to her other sister Skylar who finished up the run portion.  I ended up running beside her the entire way and felt super proud of my girls for accomplishing there first tri!  After we packed up I asked them what they wanted to do next.  They both said Starbucks in unison, of course.

Despite the unfortunate death due to water-borne amoeba earlier this summer, the 2015 Lake Minnewaska Triathlon was a safe and fun race benefitting local sports programs.  We look forward to racing Glenwood again! RESULTS