Playtri Triathlon - TriathlonSprint

Went out way to hard but managed to pull back after about a minute. Adrenaline rush got me, but nothing I couldn't recover from. Felt pretty good at the first buoy. Push hard after the turn, then relaxed on the way back in. Only had a couple of collisions the entire swim, which wasn't bad.

Worst part of the whole thing was that when I got to shore, I was about 10 feet to the right of the boat landing. When I tried to stand up, I sank about a foot and a half into suck mud. That was not cool. Thankfully my timing chip strap didn't come off my ankle.

Felt nice and relaxed the whole time (other than the beginning sprint). Just needed to spot my exit a little better and avoid the suck mud. This was a good open water swim for me.

Saw David and Aaron as I came up the boat landing. Gave a little muscle flex and a grin.

Finally remembered to dry my feet off this time. No pruning today baby! Got my helmet, sunglasses, race belt, socks, and shoes on in no time and I was ready to roll.

Nothing.

Super fast ride! Got up to speed quickly after turning on to the dam. Our swim wave was first, so it wasn't crowded the first lap. Got passed early by a couple of guys, then I started passing people. Experimented a little bit with cadence, trying to keep it in the big ring but in a lower gear. Wanted to save my legs a little for the run. Seemed to work.

The road was a bit rough, but the bad part was the amount of loose gravel on it. Every 20 seconds or so I would hit hit a pebble and hear it "ping" off the guardrails. Begged VIP for no flats. I got lucky to not have any.

Slowed way down at the first turn and expected to hit a strong headwind on the way back. Not much there. Cool. Saw one rider pulled over changing a flat. Not cool. Again begged VIP not to have one. Started playing tag with a guy on a Cervelo. I'd pass him, then he'd pass me. Shifted way down on the uphill and I slowed way down before the turnaround for the end of lap one. He didn't. He crashed about 15 feet in front of me, right on the timing mat. Managed to dodge him when I passed him but still crossed the mat. Felt sorry to pass him, but it had to be done. He was ok.

Lap 2 there were a lot more riders. The 39 and over men and the women were on the dam now. Lots of motivation to pull people in and pass them. Tried to keep my pace even and not go overboard when I was passing all the mountain bikes. That was tough. For some reason, "Good Night Ladies" was in my head. Guess that could be a sexist thing to do. Sue me. Saw two people pulled over with flats on the first half of lap 2. Still lucky.

On the way back on lap 2 I saw Shannon for the first time. She was riding as well as I'd ever seen her. The headwind had picked up a little bit on this lap, but it was still tolerable. On the way back on lap two I passed 2 Felts and 1 Cervelo. VIP was definitely kicking it.

The turn for lap 3 was nice and slow. Stayed with a high cadence the last lap. Lots of traffic on this lap. Had one girl riding in the left, but she scooted over. (Lots of first timers doing this one. I think they said 40 or so.) Saw Shannon again on her way back to finish lap one, still looking good.

The wind had definitely picked up on the way back in lap 3. Legs were screaming at me, so I relaxed on this segment. I figured anybody who passed me I would catch on the run. It was pretty slow (about 16mph), but I was still catching people, mainly mountain bikers. Surprisingly, nobody passed me. Saw a couple more people with flats (although I could have been seeing the same people over and over again). I thanked VIP for no flats.

Made the final turn and coasted down the hill to the transition area.

Absolutely nothing. I was passing guys on Tri bikes for crying out loud! This was the fastest ride I've ever had.

Racked by bike by the brake levers instead of the seat. I didn't have the energy to lift it up. Helment and bike shoes off, running shoes on, race belt turned around. Let's fly!

Nothing.

What can I say about this run? It was awesome. Sure didn't feel like it when I started out. Legs were whiny but I made them hush. There was a little kid whose mom was working transition. He was having a good time. Got some skin from him when I went past. The I remembered my Accel gel. Slurped it out pretty quickly. Yummy. Saw Manny, the event photographer. Flashed him a Gig 'Em sign. It's posted below.

Felt very sluggish going up the first hill in the grass. The next stretch was some pretty good rolling hills. I like hills. I can catch people on them. I spotted a target about 100 yards up. Passed him. 2 more at the top of the next hill.

Finally saw Mom and Dad coming down the road pushing Drew and Houston in the stroller. They were just a bit late. Yelled hi to them as I passed. Houston saw me (which is surprising since he's not a year old for another week) and said "Da Da", but Drew missed me. Looked completely the wrong direction. Too much going on for a 4 year old I guess. Seeing them helped wake my legs up. I passed another runner at the aid station. Actually stopped for water at the aid station, which I never do. The chocolate Accel Gel wasn't bad, but I needed something to wash it down. Chugged half a cup of water and took off. That's better.

Missed the 1 mile marker so I had no idea what my pace was. Turns out the mark was painted on the ground. But I was always looking ahead for someone else to pass, so I didn't see it. Hit the turnaround point and checked my split. 11:28. "Not bad," I said to myself. "Now can you go faster?"

Yes, I can. Second half was easier. More on the downhill side. Passed 4 guys up, including one in my AG, before the aid station. Skipped the water this time. Then it was time to hit the hills. Passed 3 more people on the rollers. At that point there was nobody left in front of me that I could see. Relaxed when I hit the grass. It was all downhill from there. Mom and Dad and the boys were right before the finish line. Gave them a wave as I came in. Drew saw me this time.

Stopping for water cost me a few seconds. Nothing major.

I had a negative split on the run! Can't complain there. Only 30 seconds from my 5K PR and 9th place run leg overall. Best tri run leg so far. Rock on!

Grabbed some water from my little high 5 friend from earlier. Then I walked up to play with the boys. Saw Shannon come in on the bike and we all cheered for her as she left to run.

Houston was starting to get fussy so I took him on my shoulders up the road to the dam to watch the Olympic bikers. Found Haley and John (jcagg90). Houston just about fell asleep on my shoulders, so after a few minutes we walked back.

Gave him to Dad and then took Drew up the road on my shoulders to see Shannon come in. Only got halfway up the hill when we saw her coming. Much earlier than I expected. She had a great run. Drew yelled "Go Mommy Go" about a dozen times. He had a good time.


Nothing.


This would be a 5 except for the conditions on the bike course. Way too many people got flats on it. Lots of DNFs on the Sprint, and I saw several on the Oly as well. Bad bull.

As for me, this was my best race ever. My swim was great, my bike was my fastest ride ever, and I top 10'd the run. Couldn't be happier.