National Junior Series Race # 1 - Super Sprint Race Weeeknd

Australian Junior Triathlon Series – Runaway Bay Super Sprint Race Weekend
Date - 14 – 16/12/18
Result – 25th in the ITU Junior Female / 6th "B" Junior Female Final

The first round of the Australian Junior Triathlon Series for 2018 kicked off at the Runaway Bay Sports Super Centre. What a weekend of racing it was with six races in four days. This was my third year competing at the Centre and there was no doubt that this year would be challenging like the previous two years. Leading up to the event I felt extremely excited and with every day that drew closer came the nerves. This was going to be a tough year, stepping up a category into the ITU Junior Females but I was excited for the new challenge ahead.

Day 1 was a 1500 metre time trial on the Thursday night. I did my usual ten minute jog with a few run drills and run throughs to warm up. I was happy with my start getting into fifth position and away from any carnage but I knew I wouldn’t be able to stick with the top four by the end of the first ¾ lap. The girl behind me had moved up in front of me giving me the perfect opportunity to tuck in behind her, especially going into the head wind. I sat comfortably behind her for the next two laps. The last 400m we picked up the pace and in the last 100m she slipped away, finishing two seconds in front of me. I ended up finishing 21st overall out of the three heats on time, just missing out on points.

Day 2 consisted of an Ultra Sprint Triathlon and an Aquathlon. The Ultra Sprint Tri was first with the distance of 300m/6km/1.2km. My legs were feeling a bit heavy in this race and after not having the best swim it made the rest of the race a lot more difficult, especially after having no one to work with on the bike. I went home, recovered and refuelled for the Aquathlon in the afternoon. I came back refreshed and feeling a lot lighter than the morning. The Aquathlon was a 400m swim and 1.2km run. I managed to swim a PB in the 400m and was happy with how I ran. I was feeling a lot better about the weekend after the Aquathlon and a lot happier with how my body was holding up and performing.

Day 3 was a Mixed Team Relay Tri (300m/6km/1.2km) and a Hyper Sprint Tri (200m/4km/800m). The mixed team relay was hard being the third person in the team as all of the teams were spread out and there was no one to work with on the bike. I was really happy with my swim after I caught up to a team but felt a little heavy in the run. I was happy with my cornering on the bike in this race compared to the first tri and using my gears a lot more at the turn arounds.

After the relay I was feeling really tired and fatigue after the past few days and knew I had to go home and rehydrate and refuel for the Hyper Sprint that afternoon. I was really happy with how I went in the Hyper Sprint Tri after managing to push past feeling extremely tired.

Day 4 was Grand Final Day with the Super Sprint Tri (400m/8km/1.6km). I was in the B final and was pumped to end the weekend on a high note. I always get excited for the final as the atmosphere is always so uplifting and makes me want to perform at my absolute best. I started the swim off at a comfortable pace as I spoke to Toby before the race and just wanted to settle into a nice rhythm and bring it home in the second half. I managed to swim faster than the previous 400m in the Aquathlon and come out in eighth position, side by side with another girl.

I had a good transition and mount and managed to stay on the back of someone on the bike. I worked in a group of two for the first lap and then we caught a girl in front, creating a group of three. I was extremely happy with my ride as this was the first time on the weekend that I had the chance to ride with a pack, making it a lot easier on my legs for the run. On the run I felt a bit tired from pushing on the bike but I still felt good when I was running and was happy with my performance, managing to run into sixth position, closely behind fifth. I was hoping to run a few more places down but I couldn’t be happier with my final as it was my best swim for the weekend, the best ride getting to finally draft and cornering well and a well controlled run.

Overall, I was very happy with my weekend of racing coming sixth in the B final and 25th overall, making it my best performance so far. Although I was not at the top of the age group in results, I was extremely happy with how much I have improved from last year, especially my swim and how much I learnt just over the weekend. I appreciate this weekend as it gives me a chance to talk to my coach (Toby) and debrief about the race and allows me to try and implement the tips that he gives me into the next race on a short turn around. I want to thank Toby and the SCTA team for all their support this weekend as well as my family, as it makes a hard race like this weekend when you’re tired, a lot easier when you have people to cheer you through. Without these people around me it would be very hard to keep performing at my best.

A big part of this weekend was recovery. To help with this I used Normatec Boots for the first time and boy did they work a treat. After each race I would place these on to help speed up my recovery, paired with stretching and the roller. A big part of my nutrition this weekend was a lot of hydration and CLIF Bars Australia. Big thanks to CLIF once again for the pre and post race fuel.

Also huge shout out to Mizuno. First time this weekend racing in their new Wave Sonics and I felt a huge difference. They are extremely light weight and perfect for the intense fast pace race this weekend put up. Thank you to Vorgee for supplying me with race perfect goggles, and Cannibal for the extremely cool and bright club shirts and race suit. Always a big thank you to all of my sponsors, your support is always appreciated.
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Lastly, I would like to say a huge well done to all the SCTA juniors who raced, you all had an amazing weekend of results and congratulations to my fellow scholarship holder Peyton Craig, taking out the win. Well deserved by everyone!
Now time to recover :)

Cheers Macey