Firebird Sprint Triathlon - TriathlonSprint

I've neglected both my swim and bike training lately, so I was a little bit anxious about this swim. Fortunately it was only 600m and the water temp was actually pretty decent for all the rain and overcast conditions we've been having. I got off to a decent start past the first two bouys but had to stop and sight for the third bouy for a few seconds to make sure I was on track. After I rounded the third and started heading for the 4th I looked up and realized I was swimming almost perpendicular to the path I should have been swimming. Fortunately I didn't do that for very long and got back on course. Came into the boat ramp and dorked around trying to decide when to stop swimming and when to start walking. Found myself climbing over a big underwater rock and then having to swim a little bit more to get into shallow enough water to walk. Trotted up the boat ramp and jogged to transition, passing several people that were walking. There was a lot of speculation of the condition of the water in Firebird raceway. It was very salty, but I didn't notice any 'jet boat' fuel odor or grease slicks on the surface. It was actually quite clear. It just took a bit to get used to the salt content. I haven't done any ocean OWS, but I never remember ocean water being that salty. However, I've never really plunged my face into ocean water and taken in a large mouthful. I wouldn't let the water in that lake prevent me from racing there again.

Spend a little more time in the pool in the weeks leading up to the race. One day in the pool so far this year probably isn't enough. Although my swim times are improving from my first couple of tris last year. Just need to sight a bit better. Oh, and learn to swim so that my left shoulder isn't sore for a week afterward too.

My wetsuit came off my right leg very fast, but got hung up on my left leg a bit due to the timing chip. Tossed the wetsuit on the rack and then decided to move it due to the guy that thought I had crammed him in on the rack before the start of the race. Since it was a bit cool, I took a few seconds to towel off. Sat down and put shoes and socks on, then glasses and helmet. Started jogging with my bike through transition and realized my race belt was still hanging from my seat. Stepped aside to put it on and then went out of transition. Not sure why I was so spacey on this transition. First race of the season perhaps. I'll be a little more focused on the next race.

Show up earlier to ensure a good setup in transition and leave the wetsuit on the ground. And don't forget the race belt...duh.

The bike didn't get too much work for the past couple of months with busy weekends and the short days. It showed up in my bike performance. I didn't ever think that my bike would be the weak spot of a tri for me, but on this day, it was. Not too much to say other than time to start hitting the bike a lot more.

On the course, nothing. Maybe wear the Garmin so I'm at least aware of my current speed. Just need to do a whole lot more bike training in the months to come.

This was much better than T1. Bike got a little bit hung up in the rack because of the aerodrink bottle. Shoes off no problem, maybe invest in non mtn bike shoes to save a few seconds, but not a huge issue.

Not much, one day learn to take shoes off on the bike and leave them on the pedals.

Legs were really dead as I started running through transition and it took a good half mile to loosen up. The course was altered from what was shown on the event website. They were running crotchrocket motorcycles next to the run course (seperated by a concrete wall and fencing) and you could taste the exhaust that was blowing over onto the run course. Not exactly pleasant. Got past that wondering when I'd ever get to the turnaround point. Next you have to run past the motocross track and suck in more exhaust and finally hit the turnaround point. Grabbed a quick drink of water while running and headed back. Felt like the longest 5k I'd ever run, but it seemed true when I mapped it out. Again, wish I had my Garmin with me on the run. Managed to pass a handful of people on the run, so at least that was good.

More bike/run bricks. I had been running quite a bit more earlier in the year in prep for my half mary at the end of Jan, so 4th out of 9 in my AG was much better than my bike AG rank. Again, the lack of decent training in the month of Feb was a problem.

Grabbed an orange and a bagel and that was it. Had to get home quickly to relieve the inlaws who were on babysitting duty. As I was packing up transition, the rain started to fall, so it was good that we were done.


Lack of any serious bike/swim training for months and a slacker month for everything leading up to the race.


Photos posted at: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2054279&id=1125210883&l=b8582...