Rev3 Anderson - Half Rev - Triathlon

This is just not acceptable for me. 37 minutes....really?

I realize I'm not specifically trained for a half and I haven't done much in the last couple weeks but this just won't cut it. Very upset at myself for the time but looking at all the times in my AG the fastest was only 30:xx.

I felt like I was going pretty hard to start it off and thought my pace was somewhat decent. My left leg got grabbed so many times that my chip came out from under my wetsuit. If I didn't have it safety pinned on as well it would have been gone.

Second part of the race wasn't any better. Because the chip was now on the outside of the wetsuit it made for a real pain to get the suit off. I was fighting like crazy with the stupid thing.

I decided not to do a flying mount for a couple reasons.
1. Speedbumps leaving T2
2. Hadn't done one all year at any other races.

Took this too hard and used up a lot of energy on it...paid for it a bit on the run.

About 4 miles in I hit a bump so hard it took me off the aero bars...I thought I was going down and I'm not sure how I didn't! Around mile 6.5 my back tire started acting a little funny and I couldn't tell if it was a flat or if the roads were just THAT bad. I asked a guy I was passing if it was flat and he told me it was. Pulled over and started to get my stuff out but realized I should just check the tire first...it was FINE! Got back on the bike and off I went. ARGH! Wasted time.

At one point the roads were so bad that it launched my last bottle of nutrition and I didn't know it. A guy behind me told me about it...after my little hissy fit the guy next to me said his whole computer came off his bike because of the roads.

It was a water bottle cemetery for 56 miles. They were in the grass, rolling down hills....just every where.

By time I got back to T2 I felt like crap, my back was crazy tight and I wasn't able to do my flying dismount. I did the granny dismount instead.

Not as hard.

For my position this was a bad transition. Was hard to run with my back so tight to get to my spot. Once there it took a little bit to get the socks and sneakers on.

Grabbed my stuff and out I ran.

Was pretty sore coming out of T2.

Took left went a couple hundred feet and another left to start going up a hill and that was the theme of the run. Hills.

I knew I was in debt from losing my nutrition so I hammered a GU shot right away and stayed on pace for every 20 minutes for the run segment.

I had to walk the aid stations to get water in my system and dump some over my head as well. It was starting to heat up pretty good and my body was dehydrated.

Wanting to qualify for worlds so bad but I was starting to fall apart around mile 7. About mile 9 the energy started to flow a bit again as my body was starting to catch back up.

About 3/4 of a mile from the finish a kid passed me with the age 36 on his calf. This was the AG I was going against for Worlds and I couldn't let him get away. So I started to go with him....asked him what loop he was on. He said 2.

CRAP...how was I going to keep up. I decided to stay shoulder to shoulder with him and push. I encouraged him to keep going...keep fighting for it...don't quit. We rounded the corner for the finish and I just punched it for all I had left in and beat him by 6 seconds.

Come to find out that those 6 seconds made all the difference in me going to Worlds as I took the last qualifying spot for the Long Course Championships in Weihai, China.

The suffering was worth it.

Chugged some gatorade and sat down!