Athlete Name: Mark Parascandola
Race Name: Clash Miami Triathlon
Year: 2024
Recap from CLASH Miami: My main goal here was to enjoy the experience and also have a chance to test myself in race conditions early in the season. This race came in the middle of my outseason, so not the ideal buildup (thanks to @matttlimbert for flexibility in making adjustments to my plan!). I did have chance to train in Florida some over the winter and am familiar with the bike portion of the course (which follows local roads popular with cyclists). But the main attraction here was that this is such a unique race around the Homestead Miami NASCAR racetrack.
A full weekend of races: Thursday and Friday included U23 and youth championships and the Americas paratriathlon championship. Saturday was the inaugural PTO T100 race. It was exciting to witness some of the T100 race up close. Though sorry to see there weren’t more spctators given the world class field (Milwaukee had a much better crowd last summer). The temperatures had risen in the days before the race and the pros were definitiely suffering in the heat, which gave a taste of what to expect Sunday.
Swim: 1 mile swim is in a small spring-fed lake literally in the middle of the racetrack. Crystal clear water but the middle drops 65 feet into a black hole. The surface heats up and race day water temp was 83 degrees! 1 mile swim (2 loops). I enjoyed the swim and took it at my own pace (slow).
Bike: 30 mile bike starts on the track and heads out around nearby roads. Lots of out and backs and one very narrow u turn. Flat with moderate wind. I have started using Maurten 160 gels, which was helpful heading out of the swim onto the bike. Overall bike felt good.
Run: Another Maurten gel heading out to the 8 mile run run. This is where I started to suffer. By this time the sun was out and the temperature almost 90 degrees. The run goes around the NASCAR race track and then winds around the stadium area. The whole time you are out in the open with no shade and the heat radiates off the track. It was brutal. I just tried to stay hydrated, taking Gatorade at aid stations and grabbing ice where available to cool off. Mile 6 I started to feel faint. After ice and walking a bit my body cooled down and I ran the final mile into the finish.
Nutrition: 3 Maurten 160 gels; 1 Clif bar on bike; Nuun hydration tablets and Gatorade
Overall this was a tough course in those conditions, but a unique experience.
