In line, the guy in front of me was obviously nervous. More than once, he said to me and the guy behind me that if we needed to pass him, just clock him and he'd get out of the way. I responded with "If I try to pass you within the first 200 meters, clock me back, because I am going out too fast."

I say this because I was seeded at number 155 of about 500. I knew that the guys around me could swim, and that I was hoping that I could just swim in a clear pool and keep my breathing under control.

I started the swim feeling great. My stroke felt nice, I was just streaming through the water without feeling like I was exerting myself too much. Then, at about the 125 M mark, I noticed that the guy in front of me passed the guy in front of him, and I was right on the toes of both of them. I saw the lane was clear coming the other way, and being way overconfident after my clean start, I decided to pass midlane. And boy did I blow by them. I hit the wall about 2 lengths before either of them and the adrenaline was pumping, but so was my heart - and lungs. By 225M, I couldn't exchange enough oxygen during my stroke and by the time I got to 270M I had to flip on my back to catch up on my breathing. I was passed by one of the guys I had passed, but I quickly regained my composure and restarted the swim.

I had to seriously focus on my breathing and control to make it to the end, but I did it - barely. My head was mildly swimming and my heart and lungs were flying out of my chest.

I did get about the time I was expecting - so on that front, I am happy.

Kept my pace. I should have drafted a bit until a space broke between the two swimmers and just passed one, and then recover and settle into my stroke again. I was overexerted myself sprinting for as long as I had to pass those two mid-lane.

As per advice from my wife watching, I think I need to work on breath control. Being able to breath every 3-4 strokes with the option to go every 2 could give me a lot of options to catch up on oxygen instead of always going 2 strokes. That and overall volume training so that I can weather those occasional sprints.

There was a decent run from the pool to the transition area, which I had to walk part of to recover from the swim. When I got to my bike, I was slower than I should have been because I was still reeling. Eventually, I got everything together and off.

A lot of the time in this transition was getting to my bike. Once I got there, I was pretty happy with my transition. It was a pain to get my bike off the rack, though, because it was too big to fit as intended, so I had to manhandle it a bit.

Practice the transitions. Have a procedure that I can do quickly and without thinking much.

Everything was laid out well this time, which made things go a little faster.

I was so happy to get on the bike. I was still breathing too hard and a little anxious from the swim, but as I started riding and just focusing on my cadence, I calmed down fast.

The ride was a really nice ride. I didn't let the fast people on racing bikes lure me into overdoing it. The first several miles is either a slight downgrade or a severe downgrade, so I rode with a high cadence and didn't really grind, knowing there were some good hills later in the course.

I was following some people (well back from the draft zone, but I kept the same distance) for a few miles until we started to go up the hill. Then, feeling a little like Lance, I made my move. On the big, long hill, I passed 5 people (4 on road/tri bikes) and was not passed. Once I got back onto the flat, some people passed me. However, I can put a feather in my cap that people on swanky road bikes watched a guy with hairy legs, reflectors, and a hybrid bike pass them on the hill. :) Even though I have griped over and over about how I have to train in a hilly area, all that work showed on that hill.

I pushed for the rest of the ride, keeping a nice pace for me, but was definately limited by my bike. It just has a speed it likes to sit in, and I have to work really hard to push it faster. I didn't want to completely kill my legs for the run, so I kept a high-ish cadence and kept my speed where I could comfortably hold it.

I was passed by some and passed some, but didn't get reeled into trying to keep up with people.

Have a road racing bike and more speed training.

Dismount went cleanly and I made it to my place quickly. I tried to rack my bike but it didn't fit on those racks because it was too tall. So I wasted a few seconds there. Also, I started to run on with my helmet on, but I caught myself about 10 steps from my bike, turned around and took it off.

Have a process. Things were set out nicely, but I was slow actually _doing_ the transition.

The run was pretty long. It was starting to get a little warm, and my legs were a little mushy from the bike.

I kept a slow pace and then pushed the last half mile or so with a sprint at the end. I barely kept up to the finish line, so I feel good about using all the energy I could. However, I am not that happy with my performance on the run. I think it is a pure volume thing, more than anything else. I never trained a brick and didn't run longer than the 5k distance in training. I shouldn't expect to run well at the end of a race if that is how I prepare.

However, I did pass about 4 people on my sprint to the finish, which felt good.

Train bricks, and put in a lot more run volume training.

Met up with my wife and son and walked around, stretching for a few minutes while I cooled down. Had a bagel, some watermelon, and lots of water as I cooled down.

After the results were posted and we were certain we could leave, we packed everything up and started the trek home.


Volume training, mostly. I felt better than in May, but I still have a long way to go to be even close to competative in my age group.


Finishing was very unceremonious compared to my race in May.