Tri4Life Triathlon - TriathlonSprint

Not sure about the swim distance on this. It was advertised as 1/3 mile but was much shorter. The chip timing web site said 250 yards - I'm going with that since there's no way I could've swam 500m in 4:19. That said, the swim was ok. I had no problems navigating since there was only one turn. I did have to breath to the left more than usual b/c the bouys were on the left. The T1 mat was way off shore so it skewed the times a little.

You can always go faster, right?

A little slower than I'd like. Mary was on my heels during the swim and met up with me at the rack. I can't go sockless b/c my shoes are a little too big and the socks help with that.

Train sockless, get shoes that fit better so I don't need the socks.

I thought the roads were smooth for the most part but pretty rough in the few places where it wasn't smooth. I didn't like the way it sounded going over some of those rough sections. Anyways, good bike for me. I think the course was shorter than advertised - my computer said 11.6 - which would explain the unusually high avg mph. I drank more than I usually do for a ride this distance and felt pretty full coming off the bike, a little sloshy. The gel around mile 9 may not have been necessary, either.

Drink a little less.

No official T2 time for everyone due to chip timing malfunction. T2 went well, the new iBungee shoelaces worked great. Just slipped them right on.

The course started out going through the woods on a trail marked with orange ribbons and volunteers. Not a huge fan of this, it provided lots of chances for rolled ankles and a missed turn (which I witnessed). I'm a little disappointed in my time, I was really gunning for a 20:XX. I had no problem keeping the pace up but can't help but feel like I could've picked it up a bit.

You can always go faster, right?

Fluids. Lots of fluids. And cheering Mary on at the finish for her 1st tri ever! She got 1st in her AG, congratulations! I ended up with 2nd in my AG. Great day for Team Mashmead!


Still think I'm holding back some b/c I'm afraid of wearing myself out too soon. Very happy with the results but I know I could've done a little better.


The location is perfect for a race. Well organized and plenty of great volunteers. However, the course was not ideal. The swim and bike legs seemed shorter than advertised. The trail running coming out of T2 may not appeal to some, either. But overall, the race was fun and we'll likely do it again next year!