Powell3 Triathlon Challenge - TriathlonSprint

Wow. This was pretty awful.

My wave (women's sprint) was the last to start the race, and by the time we were beginning, a good chunk of the olympic men and some of the olympic women had already completed their swims. So I'd been standing around on the cold sand for over 30 minutes, watching other people swim. I kept telling myself, "It really doesn't look that far between those buoys" and "everybody seem to be having a really easy time with this swim". Ha. Ha. Ha.

I'm glad that I have always been really comfortable in the water, because otherwise, this swim might have really freaked me out badly. I had a few 'oh shit' moments during the swim, but luckily I was composed enough to know that all I needed to do was flip over to my back and concentrate on breathing regularly again. I know a lot of people lose track of that when they start to get anxious in the water. And I'm pretty sure at least once person had to be pulled from the swim. That being said, I was miserable for the entire time I was in the water. My wetsuit felt all wrong-- too loose in some places and way too tight in others. My arms felt like they weighed 50 pounds each. I was having trouble breathing whenever I tried to swim freestyle. I got progressively more and more frustrated. Regardless of all my problems on the swim, I still managed to beat a pretty large number of women back to the boat ramp and get what I think is a pretty decent time for a first-timer. I'm not sure which was greater: my refusal to be in last place, or my sheer determination to get out of that damn wetsuit as quickly as possible.


Try out my wetsuit *before* the race. Swim in open water a lot more. Swim a lot more in general.

This time seems super long, but considering that the time includes running all the way up the boat ramp back to transition, I'm not too worried about it. I didn't have much trouble at all getting my wetsuit off or my bike stuff on, and I took a minute to make sure I drank some fluids and ate a Clif blok. As soon as I got onto my bike, my mood raised like 200%.

Not much... but having done it once now will surely make future transitions more smooth.

This bike route was a really nice one, and the scenery was fantastic. I really wish I would have had a better idea of what the route was like, because if I had known, I would have pushed it a lot more. I feel like I took a quick-yet-conservative pace for the ride, mostly because I was thinking ahead to the run and having no idea how my legs were going to feel. The first third of the route was pretty flat and easy, the second third all uphill, and the third portion mostly all downhill. I battled back and forth with an 18 year-old girl on the hilly section of the route- I would pass her on the uphill, then she would pass me on the flats, then I would pass her again on the uphill, etc- but when we got to the downhill, she just blew past me. I still have a bit of a complex about going downhill too fast. It's really aggravating, but I know I just need to practice more. Anyway, in general I managed to pass a few people on the bike, and I really enjoyed the ride.

Not a lot... probably just try to push myself harder, and not be freaked out by downhill segments.

I felt pretty good coming into T2, but wasn't sure how my legs would feel after I hopped off my bike. After unclipping, I actually felt really springy and great and even ran my bike around to my transition spot. Took another minute to drink water and eat a Clif blok, then I was off for the run.

Nothing.

I was definitely feeling the heaviness in my legs when I started running, but in general, I was pleasantly surprised by the run. I got passed by quite a few people (but most of whom I'm pretty sure were racing the olympic distance), but actually managed to pass a couple of people too. I walked for about two minutes after about a mile, but knowing that I was almost to the turn-around point was encouraging enough to make myself run again. As soon as I could see the turn-around, I picked up my pace until I reached it, and then once I turned around I realized that the second half of the run was all downhill. Score! I ran the whole way back to the finish line, picking up my pace for the last quarter mile. I got passed right at the very last second by a girl in my age group, which made me a little grumpy, but hey- I just finished a triathlon! Who cares!

Try not to walk. Maybe carry some water with me, because the stupid aid station on this route was out of water and I was pretty dried out.

Ate some orange slices and ice cream sandwiches. Checked my times. Hung out and waited for Josh to finish (he was racing olympic). There was no real after party or anything for this race, and to be honest, the organization of the event was a bit lacking. So we didn't hang around very long after we were finished. Went back to camp, ate some lunch, and then went for an afternoon hike. Came back to camp and drank champagne and ate macaroni and cheese around the campfire. It was good.


I really, really, really should have tried out my wetsuit prior to this race. Big mistake. And attempting to swim in open water at least once would have been a huge help. In general I really just need to work on swimming. But hey, for a first race, I'm pretty pleased with myself.


I was a bit disappointed by the organization of this race... they didn't have electricity at the finish line, so couldn't keep up the inflatable arch... water stations ran out of cups and water (!), not very many employees or obvious people in-the-know around to help out. But, the location is beautiful and the race course itself really fun.