Capital of Texas Triathlon - Olympic - TriathlonOlympic

This was my first race with a wetsuit, and only my 2nd swim ever with one. I used a borrowed shortie from a friend, and I'm really glad I did because the water was cold enough to take my breath away for a second when I first jumped in! I warmed up pretty good after 10 minutes or so however. I really liked how the wetsuit kept me high in the water. A little before the bridge, I peaked up to see if I could see my wife and Dad, and sure enough I heard my wife cheering me on. I waved and flashed the OK sign with my hand as I swam to let them know I was fine.

Overall, the swim was good but the last 5-10 minutes were pretty tough for me for some reason, probably just my lack of swim endurance. BUT THEN, I violently stubbed my toe on the exit ramp. I was pretty disoriented from being horizontal for 30 minutes, so I was just trying to stand up and walk upright, much less watch for wood boards across the joints of the ramp. I JAMMED my left index toe right into one of those suckers, and immediately the pain hit me. I limped for a couple of steps, gained balance, and continued on the best I could. More later...

Not stub my stupid toe!

OK, this was the longest transistion I've ever had. I decided to wear socks b/c I got really bad blisters in my last OLY. So, I had to wipe off all the dirt and grass b4 I put them on, and that took time especially with my throbbing toe. Plus there was a long run in and out from the racks.

Learn to go sock-less.

Absolutely the most fun I've had on a bike in my short 2.5 yr career. Hammering downhill on Congress and Cesar Chavez in my hometown past hundreds of spectators including my family and friends was a good as it gets. Sheer exhilaration. The course was crowded but the entire width of the road was closed to traffic so there was plenty of room to pass and be passed.

My wife, Dad, my friend Jason and his family were so kind to come watch me the whole race. My Dad picked out a great spot that I passed 3 times on each of the 4 laps, so it was pretty exciting for them as well as me each time I'd pass. I even buzzed them once, coming with in a foot going 22+ mph. I was also fun seeing my friend Brad from work a couple of times on the bike.

The fact that my butt didn't hurt from the almost non-existent padding in my tri-shorts is a true sign that I must have been having fun. My jammed toe however was throbbing pretty good, and I was a little worried how well I'd be able to run on it.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with my 21.6 mph average as I've been averaging 17.5 on my long IM training rides, and I haven't done any speed intervals on the bike yet.

Learn to corner more aggressively.

As I'm jogging w/ my bike down the path between the racks, this jerk tries to sprint past me right as I'm going to my rack and ends up clobbering me in my back with his bike. He barely missed falling over onto my rack. Pissed me off something royal.

So ironic that given the frigid water, crowded and curvy bike course, and humid run, I end up getting hurt in T1 and T2!!!

Watch my back for speeding jerks.

My toe hurt some at first, but the adrenaline of the race really minimized it's impact. I ran the first couple of miles around 7:45 pace, but I had to back off that pace a little as I fatigued and started to feel the heat. I took in water frequently and would pour the cold cups on my head which felt great.

Again it was great to see my family and friends and I gave them Hi-5's as I passed. I saw Aaron and Sal looking strong on the run. This was a huge race, so I was getting passed and passing more than normal. I liked this better than being almost alone on some of the smaller tri's I've done. The dozens of nearby racers along with all the spectators really give you an energy boost that doesn't exist at smaller races.

I'm really happy I didn't have any side stiches b/c I had them in both of my tempo runs earlier in the week. Overall, I'm happy with my 8:06 pace.

Chatted with friends and family. Ate a couple of slices of pizza, and left pretty quick as I had to drive back to Dallas for work on Tuesday.


I had a great time despite either breaking or severely jamming my toe. It is COMPLETELY black and blue from my joint up to my toe nail. I iced it when I got home and took some Advil. It doesn't really hurt any more, and it was never really swollen, just a really ugly dark purple color! I hope it's not broken, and I can resume my IM training soon. I need to ride 100 this weekend!!!! We'll see.

Despite the toe problems, I was still able to set an olympic distance PR by 22 minutes!