The Giant Acorn Triathlon
Lake Anna, Virginia
October 6, 2012
Setting the Stage:
Over the year planned competitions dropped off my schedule like nuts falling from an oak tree, until finally the Giant Acorn Triathlon was the only one left; by default, my A Race. It is held in Bumpass, Virginia, and on the way down my wife and I stopped in Cincinnati to see two of our children and watch the first presidential debate at their apartment. What at great way to start the trip! Our guy won, and we had the entire next day to hear about it over and over again on talk radio while we drove the rest of the way down to Charlottesville.
Over the year planned competitions dropped off my schedule like nuts falling from an oak tree, until finally the Giant Acorn Triathlon was the only one left; by default, my A Race. It is held in Bumpass, Virginia, and on the way down my wife and I stopped in Cincinnati to see two of our children and watch the first presidential debate at their apartment. What at great way to start the trip! Our guy won, and we had the entire next day to hear about it over and over again on talk radio while we drove the rest of the way down to Charlottesville.
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| Goal: do the race like Romney did Lehrer |
Son #2 was registered for the event, but a shoulder injury
put him on the disabled list.
We rendezvoused with my parents as planned in Charlottesville, and spent
a few days with Brian at the University of Virginia before heading off to the
race. Charlottesville is a great
town, and we had a fine time with him and his friends.
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| Carb-loading is essential |
We got the competitive juices flowing with a few games of corn-hole:
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| The winning corn hole team |
And my son had an opportunity to test his shoulder just before the race (no dice):
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| Live to race another day |
I spent the weeks leading up to the race training in
Michigan, running and rolling over the thousands of acorns on the roads. I love the crunching sound they make
beneath my wheels, and their feel as they are crushed beneath my heels. I especially love when I catch an acorn
just right on my bike and I send it flying sideways at high velocity. I felt the organizers implied I would
find some particularly massive nuts at the Giant Acorn Triathlon, but that was
one of the only ways the race disappointed. Virginia’s acorns were small and forgettable. I did see a few giant nuts at the swim
start, but I think they were hickory nuts, and there were a few 6 year old boys
scouring the grounds for all the best specimens to throw in the water. I had no chance of finding a decent
whole acorn, giant or otherwise.
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| Acorn? Hickory Nut? |
The Drive In:
Onward to Bumpass! If we hadn't had a GPS I would never have thought we were going in the right direction. This race takes place deep in rural territory, and I could hear the Deliverance banjos playing. It was a beautiful drive in, and the countryside was spectacular as we headed out of the mountains and down in to the rolling hills. The weather was wonderful: 74 degrees and sunny was predicted and delivered. The race was sold out, but there was plenty of room in transition. I kept my bike set-up tight and tidy but there was no one edging into my space and everyone had plenty of room to move. The 10am start was very nice also. No darkness, no anxiety, and plenty of time to drive in and even get lost.
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| See all the empty space? |
In set up I recognized Cort the Sport from her blog: http://unblob.blogspot.com/2011/10/race-report-giant-acorn-sprint.html, which I read to prepare for the race. She was setting up right across from me in the corral, and seemed fit and ready to go. I never did see her on the course, but she did great -- 5th overall.
The Swim:
How can you be disappointed with a heated lake? The organizers promised warm water (the effluent from the adjacent nuclear power plant is discharged into the lake near where we swam) and they delivered on their promise. Water temperature was 79 degrees -- indoor pool temperature -- and wetsuits were not allowed. That's a bit of a problem for me as I rely on the wetsuit to improve my body position, but it was nice stepping in water that was warmer than the air.
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| Downhill on gravel. We'd run this later. |
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| Miss Campbell was the eventual female winner |
There were six waves, and no bumping or thrashing that I could see. I left in the 5th wave, and for a short time I was able to follow the feet of a faster swimmer from the final wave, but he shook me eventually. At some points the water level was so low my fingers dragged in the mud and I had drifted so close to shore once that I stood up and walked about ten yards to deeper water. A few other swimmers did the same I could see.
- My swim time: 31:20. Age Group Rank: 5/22
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| Why am I wearing my shirt? |
T1:
The run up to transition from the lake was carpeted and a smooth ride. There was so much room in transition that you could post a great time if you wanted to, and there were plenty of volunteers directing traffic.
The Bike:
The bike route was two loops on a road that was closed in our direction. There was some oncoming traffic, but very little. The scenery was nice and the road was smooth. We passed over a bridge, and up one very steep hill. There was one tight turn, but again it was well marked and there were volunteers to warn us early on. I went as hard and fast as I could and being in the fifth wave meant there were plenty of cyclists on the road ahead of me. One guy on a Quintana Roo tri-bike passed me five times... but I passed him six times. Our back-and-forth helped both our times, and we both knew that any lead on the other wouldn't last too long. My average speed was 23.1 mph, which is way faster than I have ever gone before. I was hammering as hard as I could, and I even passed a car that made its way onto the course. Still, there were three people that went harder and faster, and one was the age group champ.
T2:
About a hundred yard walk from the road to transition, then out the chute to hit the run.
The Run:
The run is always my weakness, but this was a nicely laid out route so the pain wasn't too bad. We did two loops, and the out-goers were side by side with the in-comers. I always prefer a two loop course to an out-and-back. I prefer to get familiar with the trerrain. Many of the cyclists I had put behind me were happy to pass me on the run, but you get used to that. Near the end of the loop we ran down the gravel road to the swim start, then back up out of the pit. Most of the spectators were there, and it was a fun section.
The Summary:
All-in-all this was a great race. Well run, fun, and worth the trip. I would certainly recommend it to anyone in the area. The next day I found out that I was fourth place and only two minutes off of the podium. Maybe someday....
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| Always glad to get out alive |
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| About to begin the bike |
The Bike:
The bike route was two loops on a road that was closed in our direction. There was some oncoming traffic, but very little. The scenery was nice and the road was smooth. We passed over a bridge, and up one very steep hill. There was one tight turn, but again it was well marked and there were volunteers to warn us early on. I went as hard and fast as I could and being in the fifth wave meant there were plenty of cyclists on the road ahead of me. One guy on a Quintana Roo tri-bike passed me five times... but I passed him six times. Our back-and-forth helped both our times, and we both knew that any lead on the other wouldn't last too long. My average speed was 23.1 mph, which is way faster than I have ever gone before. I was hammering as hard as I could, and I even passed a car that made its way onto the course. Still, there were three people that went harder and faster, and one was the age group champ.
- My bike time: 1:04:26. Age Group Rank: 4/22
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| I'm thinking about getting a tri-bike |
T2:
The Run:
The run is always my weakness, but this was a nicely laid out route so the pain wasn't too bad. We did two loops, and the out-goers were side by side with the in-comers. I always prefer a two loop course to an out-and-back. I prefer to get familiar with the trerrain. Many of the cyclists I had put behind me were happy to pass me on the run, but you get used to that. Near the end of the loop we ran down the gravel road to the swim start, then back up out of the pit. Most of the spectators were there, and it was a fun section.
- My run time: 57:53. Age Group Rank: 14/22.
The Summary:
All-in-all this was a great race. Well run, fun, and worth the trip. I would certainly recommend it to anyone in the area. The next day I found out that I was fourth place and only two minutes off of the podium. Maybe someday....
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| The goal |
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| (Special thanks to the photographer) |
