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 Swim
Comments: After jumping off the dock I had a serious "Oh Crap" moment. Got out to the starting bouys and waited a few minutes for the start. Once the horn sounded I waited a few seconds for some room. I could not get comfortable with my stroke. I had to rest a lot and did a lot of backstroke. Seriously wondered what the hell I was doing out there. After about 1/3 of the swim I saw a HarborMaster boat with two people already out of the swim. Thought about joining them, but no way was I giving up. I got passed by almost everyone in the wave behind us and a fair number of people in the wave behind that. I kept going. The kayakers kept asking me if I was ok, did I need help. Nope, I'm good. Just kept going. Finally got to the last bouy and made the turn for the dock. Once I got out of the water, my legs were junk. I was wobbling around like a drunken sailor. I could barely make it up the ramp from the exit dock but I did. Took me 2-3 minutes before I could run, the transition area is about .2 - .25 miles from the swim exit. I ran some walked some until I started to feel ok. Also, not used to running on pavement with barefeet. Pretty sure I was the last one in my wave to finish the swim :) What would you do differently?: Much more swim training before I do another one of these.  Transition 1
Comments: I don't have clipless pedals nor biking shoes, I rode in my running shoes. Had to try twice to get my left leg out of the wetsuit, but overall not too bad. I was really exhausted from that swim. I put on my racebelt, sunglasses, helmet, had my socks rolled up and they went on ok, shoes slipped right on. Grabbed my bike and off I went. What would you do differently?: Maybe some more body glide around the ankles. I had the wetsuit down to my waist before getting into T1 so that was fine.  Bike
Comments: I started out easy but then started feeling pretty good. I began to pass a few people. I just tried to keep a consistent cadence and not go too hard, this being my first tri. One guy I kept passing and then he'd pass me, he got in the way a few times but I just sat back. When I tried to get by him he'd fight back but then get in the way again. I just didn't want to kill myself to get by him and get away. We had gone back and forth for probably 6-7 miles so his pace wasn't that much different than I would have gone. He just coasted a lot on the downhills and some of them were hard to pass due to auto traffic. What would you do differently?: Not much, I didn't want to push it because I didn't really know what to expect on the run. Transition 2
Comments: I already had my running shoes and race belt on so it was just rack the bike, get helmet off, grab cap and go. What would you do differently?: Nothing.  Run
Comments: My legs felt like lead bricks. I've done brick workouts and usually after 1/2 - 1 mile they loosen up and I feel fine. Not this time. I just never felt like I could get them moving. I used them a lot in the swim and I'm sure that had a big impact on my ability to run. Having said that, I only walked up the stairs. Otherwise I ran the whole course. What would you do differently?: I can't think of anything run specific I'd do differently, I had nothing left. Post race
Warm down: None, walked to the food tent and grabbed some water, fruit, and cookies. What limited your ability to perform faster: Swim ability and not knowing how much to push on the bike. On the run I didn't have anything left so maybe not pushing too much on the bike was the right decision. Event comments: I had a good time, it was my first Tri and it was in my hometown. I really just tried to enjoy myself and aside from the swim, I did. Did I mention the swim didn't go so well? :) Honestly, I did this because a year ago I set it as one of my 5 fitness goals. In September of 2010 I set out 5 fitness goals: 1. Lose 21 lbs. by the end of the year (goal met 11/10/2010) 2. Lose 42 lbs by Sept 1. 2011 (goal met 8/24/2011). 3. My job requires a PT test that I've always struggled with so I wanted to pass (goal met 8/4/2011) 4. Run a 5K (goal met 11/21/2010) 5. Complete a triathlon. (goal met 9/3/2011, so what if it was two days late :) Life circumstances got in the way of training, at least the swim portion. I did a lot of my running when Dee went to bed at night and the biking while she was in therapy. My plan was to survive the swim any way I could and see what I could do on the bike and run. This is what two months of bike and run training can get you :) A year ago I was not an athlete, I was overweight, smoked, and ate fast food most meals. Today I'm down 45+ lbs, I quit smoking 11 months ago, I eat a much healthier and more nutritious diet, and now I can say I'm a triathlete! Last updated: 2011-07-19 12:00 AM
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Fast Forward Race
65F / 18C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 303/352
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 35/38
Early start to the race so I planned on getting up at 4:45 to get myslef ready and then help get Dee ready. She ended up not getting up until my sister got here so I didn't have to get her ready. As a note, this was my first triathlon, I had come to watch this event last year and decided I wanted to try it. I had almost talked my girlfriend, Dee, into doing it as well. We got bikes, joined a gym with a pool, and started running. Then in November she had a severe stroke. I didn't train for almost 7 months while I sat beside her bed, then as she began to recover I helped her through rehabilitation, and eventually home. She remains severely disabled, she is in a wheel chair and I provide a significant amount of her care, so I can't leave her for long. I started training again in July but had a hard time finding the time to get much swimming in, but I really wanted to do this. Honestly, I didn't do any swim training. I think I swam twice this summer.
Back to the morning of the race, I double checked my bags, I had packed a swim bag and a second bag with running / biking gear. Then I had some oatmeal with strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries and a cup of coffee.
I live about 2.1 miles from the transition area and arrived there at about 6:15. The first thing I tried to figure out was the body marking. Then I got my transition area set up and generally just mingled around talking to other competitors. Got on the bus to go to the swim start at about 7:10. I was in the second wave and we got in the water about 7:40am
None. I got my spot set up and spent some time just talking to people and looking around.