PTO US Open

I still own the throne.

Introduction

Unaffiliated report as if written by Jan Frodeno.

It was a perfect day for racing in Milwaukee, and I was ready to give it my all in the second last dance of my career. The PTO US Open was a new challenge for me, with a 100km distance that suited my strengths and experience. My trisuit only arrived the afternoon before and was tighter than I liked which wasn't ideal but it was too late.

I knew I had some tough competition, especially from the Olympic champion Kristian Blummenfelt and Magnus Ditlev who have both been on fire this season.

My fitness wasn't anywhere near my peak at the European Open in Ibiza but training has gone well since then and I knew I was a much fitter athlete.

The Tools

Category	Brand
Trisuit	Ryzon
Wetsuit	DeBoer
Bike	Canyon
Helmet	Oakley
Sunnies	Oakley
Bike Shoes	Bont
Run Shoes	Hoka
Hydration	Maurten drink
Nutrition	Maurten Gels

The Swim

Some Drama

Time: 00:25:45

The swim was fast and furious, with a group of eight of us breaking away from the rest of the field. There was a bit of drama at the first buoy where I was smacked in the face by another swimmer - my suspicion is that it was Kristian.

Once past the buoy and managed to find my rythm again and I felt comfortable in the water. The long Aussie and dive back into the water was a great opportunity to view the other swimmers and see where I was.

The second loop of the swim was uneventful even though the pace set up front was very fast. As expected, Aaron Royle and Ben Kanute lead out the water but they were very closely by Josh Amberger, Kristian Blummenfelt, Marc Dubrick, Daniel Baekkegard and Matt Sharpe. I was comfortably on the back of that group but needed to make haste as I swam with my trisuit down under my swim skin and needed to still put that on in T1.

The Bike

The boy who cried wolf

Time: 01:44:38

The bike was almost a disaster before it even started! I still think I may be a bit rusty from not racing much, and, as I approached the mount line I realized I was still wearing my swin skin! The head referee spotted my panic and suggested I take it off and toss it to him...and absolute life-line but that definitely rattled me. Not the start I wanted.

Uncharacteristically, Blummenfelt had rolled straight to the front and pushed on to almost a minutes lead. He rode out unprotected and by himeslf for almost half the whole bike. I had hoped something like this would have happened as I had egged him on during an interview a few days before saying he never takes the race by the horns and always tends to follow. Bait taken!

The freight train that is Magnus Ditlev came rocketing past our main group at the 50km mark - eradicating the 90s deficit he had after the swim. Even though he had now hit the front of the race I still suspected he wasn't the same athltete we had seen at Roth a few short weeks ago.

I was surprised to see the French athlete Margirier with us at the end coming into T2 as he was keeping some very elite company! Dismounting our bikes together, it was myself, Margirier, Ditlev and Blummenfelt and the prospects of an epic run battle.

SEE YOU IN THE DOŪCHES

Wild card to champion

The Run

In control

Time: 01:01:13

I quickly put on my shoes and started running, feeling confident and strong. The run course was four laps of 6.25km each, with some hills and turns to keep it interesting. I settled into a steady rhythm and focused on my form and breathing.

What I hadn't expected was that Blummenfelt was not in touch with the three of us. I knew he was fatigued at the end of the bike but I hadn't realized it was to this extent. He's arguabaly the strongest runner out of the top contenders so this is a golden opportunity. Magnus is also feeling a big laboured and I have a sense I can crack Margirier. Time to push the envelope!

I made an acceleration and quickly found out my suspicions were true...no one could stay with my move. I kept the pace up for a few km's but then settled knowing the last thing I wanted to do was risk blowing up.

I was getting frequent time splits and knew that Kristian was still out on the course and running well despite his cramping. Unsurprisingly Ditlev had pulled out - jeez he looked cooked! The biggest risk was Jason West who was closing in fast but my calculations had him just finishing up short and I had enough in the tank to push more if I needed to keep a gap.

US Open Champion - that sounds good!

Closing Thoughts

General Satisfaction

I'm extremely satisfied with the race. Coming back from the year I had in 2022 was never going to be easy so I'm grateful to have made it to the top step against the worlds best again. This is just the validation I need before the big showdown at the World Champs in Nice in a few weeks time.

What Went Well

I was very happy with how I was able to utilize my current fitness level and race to its potential. Overall I feel I was able to bike hard enough while still leaving enough in the tank to race with the best on the run.

Need to do better

The small things are where I can improve. Starting before the race, I need to make sure all my race equipment is tested and with me well before the gun goes off. And that bloomin swim skin in T1...let's hope that never happens again! I have a few big weeks of training coming up and I know I will need to fine-tune my fitness to take the win in Nice.

Results

Category	Result
Overall Time	03:14:11
Overall Position	1
Swim Time	00:25:45
Bike Time	01:44:38
Run Time	01:01:13