Westside Y Tri - Triathlon

The mat was a little bit of a run from the pool, so my out of the water time was 3:40 or a little better, which is great for me. I felt like it was going well, stroke count was pretty consistent, breathing was good, wasn't spent at all, so I was excited to see 3:40 when I looked at the watch. I had a brief moment of "did I go the wrong way?" when I jumped out of the pool and there wasn't a mat, then I saw that it was a little ways from the pool, so I took off.

Nothing, just keep getting better. They did a good job spacing us out, and the people around me did a good job of estimating out times, because I never got close to anybody in the pool, front or back. That's perfect, and almost never happens, so I was very grateful for it.

This is a long, downhill run through a rough asphalt parking lot under less than ideal conditions.

The good: I was 4th fastest overall
The bad: I slipped off the shoe/pedal when mounting the bike, and ended up on the ground/on my bike with my hand scraped/cut/bruised by my spokes and the ground
The ugly: The cuts/bruises on my left thumb, left ring finger, left side, left foot, and the biggest bruise of all, my ego. I was wondering if I would really start to hurt when my adrenaline wore off, especially my thumb which I bashed pretty good, but I never did.

Um, let's see, not faceplant on my bike pedal. I did jump right up and got going, but it was not a good way to start the bike. Other than that, 4th overall is pretty much killing it.

The road wasn't too wet, but wet enough to use some caution, especially on the corners. I was 1 second slower than last year, but that's pretty good considering the conditions. Last year my time was only 40th fastest, so clearly conditions were just slower this year. And of course after the faceplant at the beginning, I sort of wanted to stay upright the rest of the way. It also seemed like there was always somebody around on the corners, so I was extra cautious.

I would have had a much better start without the faceplant, so there's that. I pushed about as much as I felt I safely could, so even though I wasn't as fast as I expected to be (sub-20 min), I probably rode it about like I should.

The bike dismount is uphill, so jumping off a moving bike wasn't really an option. I had planned to get my feet out before the last downhill and pedal in with my feet on my shoes on the uphill to transition, then slide off, so to speak, when I got to the dismount area. I pretty much did what I planned, so I guess that was good. Better than the bike mount, anyway.

Nothing. It's just not set up for a good bike dismount. Hop off, run in, throw on the running shoes, and go.

I had hoped for 17 minutes, which is basically an 8 minute mile pace. I struggled at the start, fought the urge to walk, but was behind pace at 1 mile. Did a little bit better the second mile, and got some encouragement from a couple guys as we passed in opposite directions. I stopped for some water at the junction on the way back, and tried to muster up one last push. I gave it all I had the last quarter mile or so, and managed to hit my run goal, and beat my overall goal by 2 sec. I don't think I would have had the last push without the goal out there in front of me.

Just keep improving. I really struggle, mentally and physically, on the run. I was a minute faster than last year, but it's a struggle.

Laid down in the grass, drank some water, and poured some water over my head. Went to congratulate a couple guys as they finished, then grabbed a snack and waited for awards. Found out I was second in my age group.


Wet conditions on the bike.
Inability to get on the bike without eating spokes.



This is a short race, but it's a tough little race. I enjoy it every year.