Patriot Games - TriathlonSprint

the path is thin and i was caged in for the first 1/4 mile. it finally opened up and tim and i settled into a fairly fast pace. there looked to be some decent runners this year including a team from tim's tri team highroads, so we didn't need to lead out, but we wanted to limit any losses and avoid a crowd at the canoes.
run .7 miles 4m02s 5:46/mile pace.

we made it to the canoes ~5th place. tim had his oar and vest on in 1 second and was already seated in the front of the canoe. it was like a magic act. i got mine together and started to get in. last time, the volunteers pushed you off. this time they were yelling to launch yourselves, so i tried push us off while tim hopped up and jown in his seat, but we being out of sync resulted in the canoe sliding just an inch at a time on the cement. i was less worried about speed than i was about tipping though, so we finally got it together and made it onto the lake.

once going we actually made a respectable go of it. there was some fish tailing here and there and we were passed by a few, but we made it around the course without tipping and without losing too much time.

i have to point out how amazing the volunteers are. organizing 50+ canoes is really above and beyond the call of most tris and they do it flawlessly. very impressive and appreciated.
canoe 1.25miles 16m 16s

launch a bit better, but very happy with the canoe!

we made a quick transition and started the run with my sister yelling that we were 8th place and ~1:45 back from the leaders (team highroad).

nothing.

our goal at the start of the bike was to get as close to the front as we could before the single file trail section. i thought i heard my sister say we were 18th, so i was wanted to get up front fast. it turned out were 8th, so it worked out ok. you are allowed to draft off your teammate, so tim did a lot of the early pulling and put us in good shape. the first loop was hard, but fairly uneventful. by the end of the loop we climbed into second place and were catching glimpses of the leaders on straightaways. as we passed the midpoint, sis called out the we closed the gap to :25 seconds.

now that other athletes were on the loop, i was again worried that we would be gapped from the leaders in the trail section behind someone. tim came up front for what is becoming his trademark pull. in no time he made up the :25 seconds and then dropped the leaders.

once safely past the trail we settled in for the final climb. the highroads team came past us, but i was pretty much on the limit and were making all our time when aero on the flats and downhills so i wasn't worried. we made it to the top and after a few seconds of recovery i was ready to get as big a gap as we could in the final 2 miles before transition.

we made the pass and started to drop them immediately. we came around a tight turn and came up on some other athletes. one was wide left and swerving a bit. tim hesitated a second and then made his move left. unfortunately the pass happened right in line with a giant pothole and flatted his rear tire immediately. he yelled "fuck" loud enough for transition to hear a mile away and started to slow. i came along side and thought we had ~.5 miles left so i questioned whether he thought he could ride it in. he said "i guess we'll find out" and kept riding.

it ended up being 1 mile back. he had to brake on some of the downhills to stay in control and push 300 watts on some uphills just to hold 14mph, but he was able to limp it in. it was an amazing piece of riding that definitely saved our day. highroads passed us back, but they appeared to be relieved for the break and didn't seem to be attacking at the time. they were really a class act. we encouraged each other at every pass and seemed to be genuinely enjoying the competition.

miss that pothole. other than that, almost a perfect ride.

time included in bike. we were efficient, but i think we took an extra 5 seconds to get under control after the hectic bike finish.

we started in 2nd with my sister calling out that we were back :43 seconds. i knew that highroads could run, but i also know that we can too, so no need to panic yet. one of them was clearly stronger than the other, so we tried to stay calm and run our run hoping they were hurting.

we made it steady through the winding trees of the first half mile and when we popped out at the dike, we had reeled them in within 100 ft. we took a deep breath and eased up so we could make a solid pass. they congratulated us on a strong run and we pushed to the turn-around. when we saw them on the way back, they reminded us that the male-female teams started 5:00 back and had a team strong enough to challenge for overall so we better not let up. again, an incredibly classy move.

we cruised to the finish exchanging encouragement with the teams on their way out. tim remarked that sissy getting so excited is half the fun of this race. that is so true. she supports us all the time with the same enthusiasm when we walk it in at the back of the pack, so it's fun to be able to give her a win to cheer for. we heard her before we even saw her and came around the final turn with big smiles and high fives. it's a small whacky race, but that finish line has a special place in my heart.

nothing.

we cheered on other finishers, donated to the raffle, and then changed tim's car tire.

the people at that race really care about the cause and just having as much fun as possible. it was all started as a memorial to a family member that was in one of the towers on 9/11 (the trophy is actually a replica towers) and now benefits kids with ms. the people there don't care about any other races. it's an event to get together, raise money, and have a ton of fun. it's pretty cool to be part of it.

we know that two people faster than us can show up and beat us at any point, so we are happy to give it our all and get a win. it's not something we get to do every day. in fact part of the fun is that we are never the fastest people there. there are always fast cyclists, runners and certainly paddlers, but we happen to have the fastest team together.


tim's flat.


a great fun race for a good cause and a good time.
i wouldn't recommend it if you are a serious triathlete though. :)