Bigfoot Triathlon - Sprint Distance - TriathlonSprint

WOW - this was a crazy swim due to the high wind and extreme chop. I was glad I had done the Ozark Valley Tri the weekend before, as I felt it really helped me with the OWS. I think the wet suit really helped keep me floating high enough to avoid massive water intake as the waves were pounding into me. I really didn't have much anxiety about the conditions...I was just trying to get through it. Realized about 2/3 of the way to the turnaround buoy that most people were standing up and jogging the course. I did this a little, as it was actually more productive than swimming in the crazy waves, but it just didn't feel right, plus I didn't want to blow out my legs before the rest of the course.

One of these days I am actually going to take swim lessons! The swim continues to kill my time the most at these events. Definitely need to be in the pool more in general as well. However, considering the rough conditions, I felt like I swam to the best of my current ability.

This was my first experience racing in a wet suit, so it definitely slowed me down a bit in transition. I also felt like I wasn't pushing it as hard as I normally would because I was trying to catch my breath from the pounding I took on the swim. But overall the wetsuit came off relatively easily and transition was ok.

Pick up the pace!

The wind gusts definitely kept things interesting! I felt like I was pushing it pretty good, but it was definitely a challenge with the wind. I can start to feel my biking strength return as I spend more time on the road. Looking forward to seeing my speed increase as I put more time in. The bike is definitely my favorite event of the three. I actually get to pass people on the ride, due to the fact that I am so slow in the water and basically starting at the BOP.

Not slack off with my training for two months! Aside from that, I really felt like I biked to the best of my ability for where I am right now.

I was definitely not pushing it hard enough here. Not sure why, but I really felt a bit mellow in both of my transitions.

Pick up the pace!

I did not realize until we were on our way to the race that it was a trail run! Not very prepared in that regard, but I figure it only slowed me down a bit. It did however give me a nice big blister! I had considered doing my first "sockless tri", but was very glad I didn't for this one with the trail run. There were definitely some uneven spots I had to watch out for. The temp was GREAT compared to the OVT the prior weekend where the temp was in the 90's. It felt good to have some shade at the start and cooler temps.

I definitely did not push my run hard enough! I kept thinking to myself, "gee, I don't even feel like throwing up" ... which is how I usually feel during the run on most races. Then after I crossed the finish line I felt just fine. All of which indicates to me that I needed to push it harder!! I think I was just so busy enjoying the cooler run that I didn't kick it in to high gear. A little disappointed with the run effort.

Ate bananas and french toast!


Should be logging more training hours. Still need to take a swim class.


I think I felt a little lackadaisical about this race. My transitions and my run were a little lazy. There were several times when I thought to myself, "gee I'm just groovin' along, enjoying the race" rather than really pushing myself to the best of my ability. Shawn has said to me before the race that the course was a tough one, and it wouldn't be the place to PR. Perhaps that is why I didn't push it harder? Anyhow I definitely enjoyed myself despite the tough wind conditions. There were definitely a few things missing from the race, but overall I'm glad I did it.