2005 Armed Forces Championships World's Trials by Brian Grasky There aren’t many things that incite hostile debate in triathletes as much as the mere mention of ITU draft legal racing. I was among the purists, adamant that sucking wheel on the bike isn’t triathlon. Now having raced in one, I can tell you that drafting definitely changes the dynamics of the race, but it is still triathlon. I recently traveled to Pt. Mugu Naval Station in Ventura, CA, for the U.S. Armed Forces Triathlon Championships, a qualifier for the World Military Championships, and an ITU race. This year USAT decided to try something new and made the qualifier ITU sanctioned and draft legal like the World games. This was also a test case for USAT: This was the first time the USAT sanctioned an age-group draft legal race in the USA. And it was a blast! The race venue was great. The transition area was right off the beach and although the two-lap swim course was a couple hundred meters long, the roads were fast and wide and the run course incorporated the only sand dune for miles. The Pacific was a cold 56 degrees and the 2-loop swim was split with a short run on the beach, then we jumped on the bikes for 4 loops and 40km before a triple out-and-back for the 10km run. Although the previous week was overcast and drizzly, race morning the sun burned bright and lifted the mercury to 80 degrees. The wind was about 10 mph out of the southwest. In ITU tradition, the whistle blew and we were off. I got a decent swim start but the uneven currents and light swells took their toll. I got a bit fatigued, then lazy, and lost my draft. After the run on the beach I caught back on, but not before I got bowled over—I timed my proposing wrong and took a face full of wave entering the Pacific the second time. This lap I stayed on the draft and came out of the water in a very average 26:41. After I got my wetsuit zipper unstuck it was time to bike. Being an ITU event I had my road bike here. About half of the athletes had aero bars and like me, half did not. My plan was to go hard solo for 2 laps, and then try to ease into a group at about halfway, or catch on if any groups passed me. I did just that. Approaching æ the way through lap two I began to work with a couple of Army guys. We stayed together the rest of the ride, picking up and dropping other groups as we worked our way up toward the front. I began to realize on the fly there were things I hadn’t thought about that I ended up winging out there. On the last two laps I made sure I was on the point before the turn into the wind so I could relax on that section, even if that meant a long pull to get there. Also, I had to watch for other guys jumping on the not taking their turn up front. No free rides here. And I decided it was best to come into transition at the front of the pack to avoid the traffic jam. After a lot of learning and 54:38, I was in transition ready to run. Surprisingly, running off that kind of bike split went well. I think my mountain biking and its constant changes in power and cadence lend to a strong bike leg in this format. I was able to keep a fast turnover for most of the run, but faded a bit in the last 2 miles. I tried to hold off the chargers and move up, but I stayed even over the 10km. Still, the 35:47 was a PR for me I crossed the finish line in 1:58:27, a PR by over 8 minutes. That was good enough for 13th overall and third for the Air Force. I was ecstatic about the race, even though I missed a slot to the World Games by a couple of places and a minute—There are some fast military people here. In the team competition, the defending champions Air Force Team placed second to Army by a mere 9 minutes over a combined time of over 24 hours. Most importantly, it opened my eyes to draft-legal racing and convinced me it is a viable form of triathlon and an asset to our sport. I’m most definitely looking forward to next year’s race. Brian is CpC coach and can be contacted at brian@counterpartcoaching.com       All content © Copyright Counterpart Coaching Unless Otherwise Noted.