Last Updated on September 10, 2024 by Cory Kawa
With only three sleeps to go to the 2024 edition of the Multisport Canada Lakeside Triathlon, it’s safe to say that this report on the 2023 edition is coming out fantastically late.
As late as this post is, thanks to the magic of Evernote, the recap remains true.
Read on for my review/race report of the 2023 edition of the MultiSport Canada Lakeside Olympic Triathlon and how a strong run and fantastic transitions powered my way to a second age-group podium finish in 2023.
Why Race Lakeside
🏕️ – The event is hosted at Lakeside Family Camping, with trailer camping available mere steps from the start.
🌊 – Lake Sunova offers a great swim on a warmer-than-normal lake for an early September swim.
🍲 – Soup Surreal in the Town of Stratford is only twenty-five minutes away and is definitely worth the visit. Bring a cooler, as you may want to stock up.
🏁 – It’s the last MSC race of the year, hosted at a great venue with clean/warm water, and offers a fantastic bike course.
👩👧👦 – Spectator-friendly two-lap run course.
Goals for the 2023 Kingston Triathlon
Looking back, my goal in 2023 was to stand on the podium for my age group at least once. I tasted success with my first-ever bronze medal at KTown, followed that up with a tough fourth-place finish at Wasaga, and was looking to cap off the year with another podium finish at Lakeside.
My goals for Lakeside were:
⌚- Break 2:30 by swimming under 30, bike less than 1:10, run in less than 45, and take no more than 5 minutes in transition.
🔨 – Nail transition for the first time in ’23.
🍽️ – Leave nothing on the table. To truly race like it’s my last race of the year, and outperform my wildest expectations.
Lake Sunova Swim – 6/9 – 31:28 – 2:06/1,500m
The swim at Lakeside follows a two-lap loop in the shallow waters of Lake Sunova.
With race day nerves shooting through my body, I came out flying for the first 100 meters and was burning out 200 meters later. As I approached the end of loop one, 500 meters in, I was desperate for the short opportunity to walk in the shallow waters between loops one and two.
The brief walking recovery was exactly what I needed as I finally started to find my groove at the start of lap two.
As I neared the one-kilometre mark, I felt fantastic, finding the perfect balance between overexertion and a nice hard pace. All that said, I was surprised to look back and see that the balance was actually an overall slowing my pace, with five hundred-meter splits of 2:04 – 2:04 – 2:10.
My goal was sub-30, and I came in at 31:28. Not the best, not the worst, far from where I wanted to be. As I look back at my training leading in, I had only a couple of open-water swims a week prior and no pool work in the previous two weeks. It’s safe to say that my 31:28 was better than where I deserved to be.
Swim Notes:
🥇 – The swim start was determined by your expected finishing time, putting me in the lead group with the best swimmers. As is usually the case, I couldn’t hold anyone’s feet as the lead group quickly outswam me.
🧭 – The two lap loop course looked mildly confusing but was quite easy to navigate.
🐌 – I need to remember to start slow, find my rhythm, and finish strong.
Top Male 45-49 Swim Times: Jason Moore 23:36, Craig Andrew 26:39, Michael Telpner 27:03, Owen Charters 29:57, Jonathan Atkinson 31:04.
Perth County 41.1km Bike – 4/9- 1:12:52 – 201w / 210w NP
The Lakeside bike course follows a rectangular route through relatively quiet county roads, with a few small rollers to keep things interesting. This year, the course came in a bit long, measuring 41.1km, with 130m of elevation gain.
I came out giving what felt like my all, averaging 196w for the first 20km and finishing the first half in 35:35, already thirty-five seconds off my 1:10 pace. With pain, frustration, and a negative mindset, I dropped to 189w for the next five km, luckily managing not to lose any more time on this slightly downhill section.
Thinking back to KTown and the few seconds that separated a podium finish from a non-podium finish, I decided to do what I came in thinking: leave nothing on the table, give it my all, and hope I still have something left for the run, and I went for it, with a final 15km at 205w.
Even that final push didn’t help, as I fell a further twenty-six seconds back, of a 1:10/40k, on this generally uphill return.
My goal was to bike under 1:10 by pushing as close as possible to 210w throughout. I came in at 201w, or 210np. Looking back, the training had been generally on point for the lead-in. As unimpressed with the result I was, Lakeside was my second-best 60-minute race performance for the year, following just behind Gravenhurst.
A few quick notes:
⌚ – 40km bike time of 1:11:01, on a course that measured long at 41.1km, giving me a Garmin time of 1:13:04.
🍼 I brought two bottles. I only needed one.
🌧️ – Was cool and misting for the first half before drying out on the second.
📌 – Second-half success came from pushing hard on the downhills and coming out of my seat on most of the uphills.
Top Male 45-49 Bike Times: Michael Telpner (1:07:12), Craig Andrew (1:11:41), Jason Moore (1:11:46), Cory Kawa (1:12:52), Owen Charters (1:21:05).
Country Road Run 1/9 – 44:03 – 4:25/km
The two-lap course runs south from Lake Sunova before turning east for a short but painful climb up a dirt road. It’s not a relatively flat, not-so-hard run, but that one hill is painful.
As I ran out of T2, I felt alone, with only a few runners far ahead of me. I focused on running my race, targeting and holding a sub-4:30 pace, and slowly started to catch up to the fast bikers/swimmers.
With pace times for the first six km of 4:19, 4:29, 4:13, 4:37, 4:24, and 4:35, it’s safe to say the lactate was burning, and my mind was desperate to slow down.
I was fighting those demons and thinking back to KTown, where a hard push and a final sprint were the difference between 3rd and 4th. I knew I was running well, that despite a subpar swim/bike, my transitions were on point, feeling it in my bones that a podium finish was possible.
I had four kilometres to go, and every part of me was desperate for the race to end but sad to see the season end with it. I didn’t know if a podium was within reach, but I knew my only chance was to give it my all. I desperately fought to chase every single person down in front of me, treating everyone like they were what stood between me and a podium finish. With final splits of 4:25, 4:26, 4:26, and 3:58, it’s safe to say it worked.
My goal was sub 45, and I ran a fantastic time of 44:03. I was first overall in my age group and had the 14th-best run on the day.
A few quick notes:
🏃♀️ – Chasing down the runner ahead worked. My last split was powered by trying to chase down a runner about 200m ahead of me who appeared to be similar in age, with only 1km to go. I came just shy of catching him at the finish, running my best split on the day.
🗺️ – A spectator-friendly, fast and flat, two-lap run course.
🏔️ – Watch out for that second hill at the turn, it’s more painful then it should be.
The Top Male 45-49 Run Times: Cory Kawa (44:03), Michael Telpner (46:01), Brian Whalen (49:20), Jason Moore (50:00), Craig Andrew (51:30).
Transition – 2:48 (T1 1:46, T2 1:02)
For the first time in my life, I nailed transition.
🚻 – Despite being desperate to go, I managed to skip the bathroom break.
🧦 – No socks.
📏 – All shoes, glasses, and helmets were undone, lined up and ready to go.
🚼 – I slid out of my wetsuit without issue.
💪 – My power meter was calibrated, set up, and working well.
🍌 – The only time wasted was spent getting gels into my pocket. Next time, swim with them.
The Result – 3/9 – 2:31:11
I came into the year determined to stand on the podium at least once and managed to do it for a second time.
My swim and bike were lacking, but a strong run and my best-ever T1/T2 were truly the difference maker. I think it’s safe to say that you won’t win a race in transition, but today, I just might have stood on the podium because of them.
Top Male 45-49 Finishing Times: Michael Telpner (2:22:28), Jason Moore (2:27:22), Cory Kawa (2:31:11), Craig Andrew (2:32:32), Brian Whalen (2:49:31)
Thanks for reading,
Cory
