2025 National Senior Games Results
HIGHLIGHTS: One of my cycling goals has been winning a national championship by age 100. Well, I did it 24 years early, on Thursday, July 31, 2025, at age 76. I raced two other competitors in my 75-79 age-group for three-wheel recumbents at 5 kilometer/3.1 miles and 10 kilometers/6.2 miles. I took second place in the 5 kilometer race, but won the 10 kilometer race.
5 KM Time Trial, Male, 75-79 Age-Group, Three-Wheel Recumbents, Wednesday, July 30, 2025
- Leamond Stuart, Stockbridge, GA, 00:11:15.110
- James DeGoey, Fitchburg, WI, 00:12:00.280
- Thomas Nelson, Clermont, FL, 00:12:16.690
10 KM Time Trial, Male, 75-79 Age-Group, Three-Wheel Recumbents, Thursday, July 31, 2025
- James DeGoey, Fitchburg, WI, 00:23:47.700
- Leamond Stuart, Stockbridge, GA, 00:23:59.010
- Thomas Nelson, Clermont, FL, 00:25:18.920
DETAILS:
My first participation in National Senior Games was 10 years ago. The host city was Minneapolis/St. Paul in 2015. I was living in Virginia, but had family in the area. I drove 15 hours to visit my father in Wisconsin, then drove another five hours to stay with my brother who lived an hour south of the Twin Cities. I remember racing the 5 km time trial with high expectations, but finished in 11th place, fractions of a second out of the top 10. Disgusted by my performance, I didn’t race the second time trial the next day. Instead, I drove back to Wisconsin, staying the night at my father’s house before heading home to Virginia.
My participation in the 2025 National Senior Games in Des Moines, IA, was a three-day road trip. My brother again joined me as a curious spectator, pit crew member, and photographer.
Tuesday, July 29, 2025: Des Moines, IA, was roughly a five-hour drive from Wisconsin. I left home at 10 AM. My SUV was jammed with a big suitcase, various cycling gear bags, a couple of canvas chairs, and my trike. I arrived at the MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex, West Des Moines, IA, at approximately 3 PM to complete check-in and pick up my race bib numbers. I met my coach in-person for the first time and one of her other athletes competing in the cycling events. I spent the night at a local hotel near the race course.
Wednesday, July 30, 2025: The first day of competition started out with high anxiety because of a forecast of severe thunderstorms overnight through midday. The organizers emailed everyone that the day’s competition would be held “rain or shine.” Fortunately, the rain moved out of the area just before dawn. I departed the hotel for the race parking lot less than two miles away, arriving just before 9:00 AM. My start time was 9:48:00 AM.
Competitors in cycling time trials are typically started at 30-second to 1-minute intervals. We’re racing against the clock, not in a mass start like a road race. The 3-wheel recumbent age-group competitors like myself were started after all of the male and female standard bike and 2-wheel recumbent competitor age-groups.
I completed a 15-minute warmup and departed the parking lot for the start line, roughly two miles away via a local bike trail. Unfortunately, I missed the entrance to the bike trail due to conflicting roadside signs. I led my brother into the countryside for several miles encountering steep hills that forced both of us to dismount our bikes and walk. By the time I realized my error, it was obvious that I was going to miss my start time.
Backtracking, we found the bike trail and hurried to the start line. I was 15 minutes late. I found a race official and explained the situation. He graciously arranged for his crew to stay in place so I could race. I rushed to the start line and departed at 10:09 AM with absolutely none of my usual pre-start preparation. This was also my first actual look at the course, which was a series of shallow rolling hills that were not apparent from Google Street View.
And I had no idea of the times posted by my two competitors. I just pedaled as fast as I could maintain to the finish line. When I returned to the start line, my brother excitedly informed me that I had finished in second place.
Thursday, July 31, 2025: Not wanting to repeat any of the mistakes of yesterday’s preparation, I arrived at the parking lot at 8:30 AM. My start time for the second race was a bit later at 9:50:30. The weather was overcast, cool, and windy. (The 12 mph wind would be a tailwind outbound and a headwind inbound.) I completed my 17-minute warmup on a kinetic trainer and departed for the start line around 9:00 AM.
We easily found the entrance to the bike trail, which had been more clearly marked overnight, and arrived at the start line with plenty of time to complete my race preparation. I had installed carbon fiber aero wheel covers on the outside of my two front wheels before I left the parking lot. I even had time to meet and chat with my two competitors who started 30-seconds and 1-minute behind me.
After discussing my previous day’s result with my coach, we agreed to be conservative with my effort outbound with the tailwind. That would save energy for the return leg into the 12 mph headwind, which would negate the shallow downhill slope back to the finish line. As I started my run, I noticed that the sun’s glare was blocking my view of the data on my bike computer that showed me my wattage, heart rate, and speed. I was going to have to race with Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE).
RPE is a scale (typically 1-10) used to measure how hard you feel you are working during physical activity. It is a subjective assessment that considers factors like breathing rate, heart rate, muscle fatigue, and sweating. I was clearly at level 9 or 10. Though in hindsight, I could argue that it felt like I was at level 11. As I approached the turnaround point, I wondered how close behind my two competitors would be. Would either of them have closed their respective 30-second and 1-minute (yesterday’s race winner) time gaps?
As I started the return run, I could see that my 1-minute competitor had passed my 30-second competitor on the outbound leg. He was the one I had to beat. The headwind proved to be stronger than I expected, not helped by the fact that I forgot to zip up my speed suit vest. The purpose of the speed suit is to allow the wind to flow smoothly around one’s body more aerodynamically. With my vest unzipped, it became a mini-parachute, catching the wind and slowing my speed. I considered easing my effort to zip it up, but decided that it might cost me the victory if the result was close.
Then, with less than a mile to go, the aero cover on my right front wheel flew off. I didn’t stop to retrieve it. Turns out that I finished in first place, but only by 12 seconds over yesterday’s winner.
BY THE NUMBERS:
5 KM Time Trial, Male, 75-79 Age-Group, Three-Wheel Recumbents
- Distance: 3.16 miles
- Time: 00:12:00 (h:m:s)
- Average Heart Rate: 117 bpm
- Maximum Heart Rate: 125 bpm
- Average Speed: 15.8 mph
- Maximum Speed: 22.7 mph
- Average Power: 134 watts
- Maximum Power: 346 watts
- Calories: 104 kJ
- Intensity Factor: 1.10 (110%)
10 KM Time Trial, Male, 75-79 Age-Group, Three-Wheel Recumbents
- Distance: 6.20 miles
- Time: 00:23:47 (h:m:s)
- Average Heart Rate: 113 bpm
- Maximum Heart Rate: 131 bpm
- Average Speed: 15.6 mph
- Maximum Speed: 25.1 mph
- Average Power: 124 watts
- Maximum Power: 348 watts
- Calories: 253 kJ
- Intensity Factor: 1.08 (108%)