Buckner Mission Man Triathlon - TriathlonSprint

I mostly swam sidestroke, some breaststroke. I relaxed and was comfortable but pushed as hard as I could. I was surprise by how hard I was breathing. I either swam slower than in a pool or I swam farther than the 820 yards. I felt like I swam as fast or faster than usual. I turned close to the bouys and found myself briefly off-course once. During the final 5 -8 min I was hit pretty hard by a man's arm and kicked a few times but was OK, just paused and got out of the way.

I have a TI DVD and book and would like to master a comfortable freestyle with bilateral breathing. With current skills, there wasn't much I could have done differently. I put below average because I ranked 139 of 154.

At T1 I needed a break! Already! I ran/walked up the hill from the lake, was organized but struggled to get dry and get on biking shorts. I forgot my gloves, took time to drink some Hammergel in water. I ran part of the way with my bike, had a little trouble clicking into my pedals but then was OK riding. I was surprised I felt as comfortable as I did when starting the ride considering how tired I felt after the swim.

If I were more fit, I could move faster and wouldn't need to stop and breathe.

I breathed really hard for the entire segment and it felt good to finish. Since I've only ridden 15 miles, on mostly flat terrain, once before and 8-9 miles only 3 times, I was pleased that I never stopped and managed to finish. I tried to focus on my pedaling form, relaxing my neck, shoulders and arms, and managing my gears. I was concerned about my heart rate and also wish I'd watched my cadence on the computer. After starting, I decided my best strategy was to pedal until the end and not think about how far I'd gone or had to go. I never saw the 5 and 10 mile marks. I drank a bottle of Cytomax slowly during the bike leg. I rode as hard as I could. I appreciated some encouraging comments by some who passed me.

Clearly I will have to bike a lot more before doing this again. I want to find out what is healthy for my heart and work to lower my HR during strenuous exercise. I put "bad" because of my rank but really I feel pretty good about accomplishing this.

Really tired at this transition but still I hurried, got my running shoes on quickly and drank some more Cytomax. I was 152 of 154. Looking at pictures, I wondered how I managed to put my race belt up so high--it looks ridiculous, but then I guess I was focused on just making it to the finish.

Not be as tired after the bike so I could go faster. I'm not at the place where I can imagine clipping my shoes on the bike in advance.

I usually can walk 1.7 miles in 27 minutes, so to complete 3.11 miles in almost 43 minutes, considering the course, was good for me. I've had heat exhaustion and was concerned about overheating so I dumped a cup of water on my head at each aid station as well as drinking a cup. I felt really hot but was able to jog periodically, even on hills. Very few people were left in the woods, and if I hadn't been concentrating so hard on making it to the finish line, I would have enjoyed the beautiful scenery. This was the only part of the tri that my stomack felt slightly queasy for a moment. I ignored it and it went away. My original goal was 2 hours but during the run I increased it to 2:20.

Run.... I haven't jogged out doors for years. I tried one day and got shin splints and didn't try again. So I will work on this. In March I practiced running on the treadmill and I also jog-in-place at Curves. I have read articles on running form and will practice. I put "bad" because I was 151 of 154, but I finished and that was good. I kept thinking it was nice to be off the bike!

After jogging across the finishing line, I walked around for a few minutes and then talked with my daughters, son-in-law and in-laws. I felt surprising good except for a muscle on my inner left thigh that kept me from being able to bend down to get anything off the ground. I remembered it pulling when I was running down a hill.


Training, or lack thereof, carrying an extra 30 pounds, and not having learned the freestyle stroke.


It's probably not good to choose a moderate difficulty course for a first tri, but my daughter and son-in-law were doing this one. Although I didn't come in last in any of the races or transitions, my over-all time was last...or as my daughter says, last of those who entered. I'm really glad I made this effort and thankful for all I've been able to learn through BT. Now I am ready to keep gaining in my training and losing in my weight. I put a capsaicin patch on my strained muscle and the day after the tri I'm a little tired but with no sore muscles. I appreciated the encouraging words from so many volunteers--they all did a great job. I put "4" for the race because of the spectators on the running course despite the announcer asking them to stay out of the way. I think this may be changed next year. My funniest memory will be of my telling a young boy at the 3/4 mile run station I wanted water for my head and he dumped the cup on me! That made me laugh and carried me up the next hill. My best memories of this day will include the very nice beginning prayer, the echo of the sax "Start Spangled Banner" bouncing across of water, competing with my daughter and son-in-law and being cheered on my by other daughter and son-in-law. All-in-all, a good day and good memories.