Clare L. Deming

Here’s a quick write-up on my last triathlon event for the season (back in August). This was something that just sounded like a lot of fun to all of my fast-twitch muscles – a super sprint! Even shorter than a traditional sprint triathlon, maybe I could truly manage to sprint in this one?

The Vincentown SuperSprint was held in southern New Jersey in the small town of Vincentown. The event was also on a Thursday evening, which meant it was easier to manage it around my work schedule. The race distances were: 200-yard swim, 5.75-mile bike, and a 1.3-mile run.

Packet pick-up was that evening, and they were also taking on-site registrations. The atmosphere was low-key and beginner-friendly. There was plenty of parking at the fire house (this was also where packet pick-up was hosted), and the transition area was just across a small bridge from there. I set up my transition area, choosing to go with the no-sock approach again for speed in transition. The race also allowed you to choose your own place in transition, so I got a good spot – pretty close to the bike in/out, but right next to the run out.

I spent some time walking around and looking at the water next. The swim was going to be in a small lake, and there were already markers set up to mark the exit point. However, while standing there, it became quickly obvious that a horde of wasps was in the process of building nests in the mud at the shoreline. I brought this to the attention of one of the volunteers, and he had the fire department take care of the wasps.

It turns out that the swim start was in-water, but everyone had to wade in through the swim exit to get into position. The event was so small that rather than age groups, they just divided the competitors into two groups – men and women. The men started first and were quickly away with the women starting two or three minutes later.

Wading in, the water temperature was reasonable (not sure I ever heard what it was though), BUT the bottom was rather unpleasant and mucky. So while the course and distances were otherwise beginner-friendly, this part of the day was not. If you’re squeamish at all about murky water, this may not be the race for you. I tried not to think about it too much and figured I’d be out of the water soon enough.

The swim course was a short rectangle with two left turns and a return back to shore. The race director had said that we would probably be able to touch the bottom and stand if we were nervous in the water. One one turn, I did reach down and found the bottom before changing direction and continuing. I didn’t have any problems and came out mid-pack. The run to transition was very brief (just across the street), and I easily found my bike and headed out on the bike course.

I did hear of one person crashing at the beginning of the bike section. There was some type of plastic grate on the shoulder of the bridge just after turning out of transition. I believe the athlete who crashed was focused on clipping in and hit this grate with his front tire (at least it was at low speed). I think a few people got lost on the course too, but I didn’t have any problem following the directions from the volunteers.

The bike was a single loop, and as usual, I passed a lot of people on this part. I tried to race this more like a time trial, and harder than I probably should have. My heart rate was pegged around 175 – 180 for most of it. The road surface was mainly smooth and there was little traffic, although the roads were not closed.

I rolled back in to transition, stashed my bike, and ran out for a quick sprint. My legs felt better than they usually did at this point, maybe because the entire course was so short? The run course took me through town, up a slight incline, and out on a dirt road to loop around a field.

A couple of other women passed me on the run, but I knew I didn’t have much more speed to give. After coming around the back side of the field, the course retraced the outbound section, going downhill. When I knew I only had a short distance left, I was able to push harder for a strong finish.

The firehouse had snacks and drinks – pizza, bananas, and water. I don’t remember what the other offerings were. I hung around for a bit afterwards to find out my results, and yay – I ended up first in my age group!

See all my race reports here.