Whining or Pro-Testing
By Dan • Aug 4th, 2008 • Category: Dan's Training LogThe results were posted from the Canton Sprint Triathlon. The winner… Pro Triathlete Chris Riekert, from Chicago. I checked out his website www.chrisriekert.com, which says he is a “pro triathlete” so he must be a pro triathlete.
My question is when and how do races start mixing the pros with the age groupers? In cycling you have a pro division. Races may have combined categories like Pro/1/2. When I was at the Evergreen Lake Triathlon, they had an “Elite” division.
So can pros mix in with the age groupers?
Let’s examine his splits.
- 500 yard swim in 5:59. Sound pro like to me.
- T1: 18 seconds. Are you kidding me?
- 12 mile bike averaging 25.3mph. Hmmm…
- T2: 24 seconds. Is this guy running barefoot?
- 3 mile run with a 5:37 pace. Smoke em if you got em…
We should have given him a handicap and tied his shoe laces together or glued his helmet strap, or flattened his tires…. Ok, you get the point.
So after this close exhamination. I decided to change the results and move myself up from 8th place to 7th.
That gives me Triple 7’s and a payout in Vegas.
Does anyone else agree? Or am I just whining?
Well… those were my thoughts on my 6 mile run today.
In cycling it is like that–If your a cat 1 then you are basically a Pro–so I could figure on any given weekend there would be a pro or 50 in the field. the only race you cannot do is USPRO–shit why would I want to do that????? My thought was I can only get better when I race with them. You spend all year every year racing with the same guys–so how do you improve or gauge yourself? You dont really unless you race with the big dogs. Either way I think its a good thing–Im not sure how the triathlete categories are? Your either age group or pro?
Well… cycling also has cat 3,4,5… I am not sure how the USTA does it. But i am guessing they gave a Pro cat and eveyone else is a 9 to 5 age grouper….
Lol, I like your reasoning Dan. I think you should move your self up to 7th, and that makes me 28th.
either way I would welcome the opportunity to see what kind of time a “pro” can do. Unless they start flooding the fields! so you ran yesterday??? I did at noon but I was toast–Never felt that bad before.
Ouch. I went at 8:00am and was completely soaked afterwards. I might stop wearing shorts.
I agree with you. Lets look at the springfield tri, olyimpic distance that is, this years winner was a pro that also happened to get 4th overall in the Kansas half Iron man, he also was the winner last year and the second place guy was also a pro. My only problem with this is that these guys are cashing in on smaller races that have cash prizes. Theres no compatition for that guy here, but there is $500. on the line. I thought pros couldn’t except money from ameture races. Maybe i’m wrong but i still don’t think its right for them to cash in on small local races where they know theres no competition for them. Yea being around a pro would make you faster…… if you could keep up, I know I can’t.
One thing with triathlons, if you are fast, you are by your self from the gun. So there is no competition for that person. When they come out of the swim they are alone. It is just another workout for them.
I think they need to have an Elite/Pro category at the smaller races. Let them start in the first wave, with the age groupers, but exclued them from the overall results. Handle them separate.
Its the same in the marathons correct? Fast guys up front then back from there according to estimated finish time? Maybe you could have a seperate category but how many pros are gonna show up with a small payout? Unless you can get more $$ Im not sure it would work.