Winston-Salem Duathlon

The Winston-Salem short course duathlon was held this past Saturday in Lewisville, NC. It was put on by Finish Strong (www.fsseries.com), a relatively new company out of Raleigh that has, over a short time, developed a series of duathlons, triathlons, and other multisport events in NC. This duathlon was the second of their early-season duathlon series, which also includes races in Greenville, Charlotte, and Cary. FS puts on a great event that is well-organized and efficient. The W-S short course consisted of a 3-mile run, 14-mile bike, and 2-mile run.

Temperatures at the 9am start were still around freezing, despite the promise of spring-like weather by mid-day. I quickly became warm during the first running leg. The running course was a 1-mile loop that went 1/2 mile down hill, then back up. Not being much of a runner, it was a challenge to say the least. My still-aching calves and ankles reveal that the punishing part was not the uphill part but the downhill. Despite the course profile, I was able to avoid both an asthma attack and being the last male runner into the transition area for the bike leg.

The bike course was fantastic. 14 miles of gently rolling hills through the wine country of the Yadkin River valley. Coming off the first run leg at the back of the field, I had nowhere to go but up. I steadily regained lost ground on my TRC Surly, which I kitted out with a pair of shorty aero bars for some comfort and aerodynamics. I rode my tank-like behemoth past featherweight time trial machines with smug satisfaction, and I hurled insults at my competitors as I left them behind on their delicate bikes. Actually, I think I hallucinated that whole part due to oxygen deprivation. But, I did enjoy my ride on my bike with 80s-era technology and 60s-era weight.

Heading into the transition area for the second run leg, I actually had overtaken several people over the course of the bike leg, and my spirits were high. I racked my bike, reached down to unstrap my cleats, and bam - calf cramp. A bad one. I had to stand for what felt like several minutes until it loosened up. Although it was only a few seconds longer, the first mile of the second run leg was agonizing. But, things loosened up, and I was able to finish without too much complication.

Out of the 94 competitors, I did not finish first. My time of 1 hour, 32 minutes, 45 seconds was well behind the overall winning time of 1:07:40 and my age-group winning time of 1:10:30. But I both survived and avoided debilitating asthma, which wasn't too bad considering that I didn't prepare for the duathlon in any way, shape, or form other than cutting back on candy for the week. I think it served as an excellent training race as I prepare for my 2009 goal of finishing higher than last or next-to-last in my age group in something at some point.