Anthem Sprint Triathlon - TriathlonSprint

This was a reverse tri so the swim was last. It was less of a swim than a water wrestling match with the aqua joggers and breast strokers. Some guys from the wave in front of me weren't letting me pass after a tap on the foot. Then I just pulled past them hoping I wouldn't be kicked. A couple of times I propelled myself forward by pulling on a guy's leg. :)



Wear a helmet and full body armor?

This was really T2, between the bike and swim at the end. I'm taking 1:30 off the bike split for it since the mats were placed at the end of the run and beginning of swim.

None, I hardly remember it.

Hot! I had Hammer Gel and water in the aero bottle which tasted like hot soup by the time the ride started. I also had a bottle of water in the frame holder to squirt myself. That worked okay on the first loop. By the end it was like taking a hot shower. Yuck. But better than nothing.

I really pushed hard on the bike because I knew I could always swim afterwards. No need to save energy for the run. I also tried to catch Tanya whose pink saddle bag I could see 100-200 yards in front of me the whole time. But she was way too fast. :)

I took a wrong turn towards the very end when I misread a cop's hand signs. He was signaling a car, not me, to take that turn. 200 yards into the side street I realized I was off course. The extra distance for that is not figured into the pace.

Duh. Not make a wrong turn.

This was T1 between the run and the bike. I'm taking 1:30 off the bike split for it since the mat was placed at the end of the run.

Wow! Because of the heat I had anticipated having to walk some or most of this run. The hottest I've ever run in before was 85 degrees and that sucked.

I started really slow, getting passed by lots of sprinters--which is what I'm used to now from all my run races. The first mile was a slight downhill and had some shade. By the time we got to the first aid station I realized that this run was going much better than I had expected and that I was feeling pretty good. My heart rate was still down, I was breathing on every third step.

So, after waiting for 10 seconds for some ice water at the aid station (they couldn't keep up with all the runners...) I kicked it up a bit and from then on started passing people. So many girls ended up not just walking but resting on the side of the road. They had gone out way too fast.

I also realized that a flat course is a lot of fun! All of my training runs are pretty hilly compared to this race.

Nothing.

Right out of the pool I collapsed in the first lounge chair I could find and rested for a few minutes to get my heart rate down. Then I inhaled ten cups of the watered-down electrolyte drink they had in the recovery zone. Ate a banana and 1/2 bagel. And I tried to regain my voice! The hot dry air had really irritated my throat.


The heat, the wrong turn, and the slow swimmers blocking the lanes.


Good race course. The reverse order and late afternoon start were also a nice change. Can't do much about the swim, maybe have even more waves next time.

Just two complaints: the girls at the aid stations were way too slow and there were no porta potties. 134 women racers and guests had to share 2 toilets at the nearby tennis courts.

Check out that funky bobble-head running girl trophy we got!