Triathlon de Montreal - TriathlonOlympic

I had the best race swim I've ever had. It's a pretty narrow course and the water was cold, but I got in and just swam my race. I wanted to stay in the water for longer! The second 750 metres I had nobody bumping into me, so I was just out for a little swim.

Nada. I felt good.

I got out of the water feeling strong and stable, I had no dizziness, loads of energy for the run to T1. I'd put body glide in liberal quantities around my ankles and that really helped to get the suit off.

I was having a blast. I got out quickly.

Nuthin.

Okay, I felt like superman for this ride. I was averaging between 18 and 20 miles per hour (29 - 32 kph) and had no trouble with this pace. I knew that the run was going to be the hard part for me so I took it relatively easy here.

There was one group of riders who were clearly violating the no drafting rule. They passed me like a freight train. Also I saw the aftermath of a wipeout between 2 riders. Both were getting up in stunned silence.

Things were going great, they give the racers 8 stickers that you remove as you do a lap so you know when to get off. Here's where the wheels fell off my race.

On my last lap I decide to check my distance and I see that I'm at 21.1 miles. Also, my timer says 1:09 and change. So, I'm thinking there's no way that I did 40 km in 1:10. At this point I'm spinning just to prepare my legs for the run. I know I have 25 to do, but I used all of my stickers and did the extra lap. So now I have a dilemma, do I do the extra lap then get off, or do I get off and take my chances. Instead of doing one or the other, I decide to do both.

I get off, pass the end line for the ride and ask an official. He says that, according to my odometer, I have to do another lap (which I knew already, so why bother asking?). This all takes some time. So, I then run back to the start line, do one more lap at a faster pace and come into T2.

Did I do one lap too few? If you think so, consider this: I had 9 laps to do. My Mom, who was watching, figured my single lap time to be around 7:30. That would bring me in at about 1:07:30. Tack on my slow last lap and that makes 1:09 correct.

I think the only way I can know for sure is to go back and do 9 laps and time myself.

I don't know. Get somebody to count my laps for me?

Okay, T2 was another fun part of the race.

I ran in with my bike and my shoes on. Going down a slight hill I slip but don't fall. Then when I have to turn to go down my row, I fall for real. Nice scrape on my leg. I'll have to post a picture.

This maybe throws me off a bit, but I felt ok. I got out very quickly, just slipped my shoes on and I was gone... without my race number. So, about 100 metres in, I turn around, again thinking that without my number I'll be disqualified.

Tack on another couple of minutes for my stupidity.

Put my race number OVER my shoes, not under them!

In spite of the other problems that I faced, I was still positive. I thought that I could still finish below 3 hours if I just run out the 10k at a relaxed pace.

I made it through the first 5k at a constant slow run. At about 5.5k at a water station I stopped to take some water. Then I started again. Some time along there something happened to me. I started to really have trouble, even though my legs still felt ok. My breathing felt different, like I was breathing swimming pool air. I kept having to stop and walk. It was pretty funny, I stopped at one point and then just started right away again, unwilling to give in.

Others were suffering along the course. I ran by a guy who was walking and I said "c'mon, let's go". He ran with me for maybe 500 metres and then said "keep going". I did, but not for much longer. I was walking again at the 8k mark, and then I started up again when I guy passed me. I had to stop again, and he stopped too. His thighs were fried from the cycling. At about 1500 metres, I said, "we've gotta run this in." and he said, "we have to, all our friends are watching!" Let me tell you, if it hadn't been for that guy not stopping, I wouldn't have been able to continue.

It took everything I had to keep going at the end. I was done. I hit the finish line and took some gatorade and started looking through the crowd for a place to sit.

I need to do many more 10k runs to prepare for my next race.

I sat in the shade of a tent and my wife and Dad joined me. I managed to croak out "it was hard" and then I couldn't talk for at least 2 or 3 minutes. I was physically and emotionally wiped out.

I may sound like a wuss, but that was the hardest physical thing I've ever had to do.


Poor training.


Once I recovered sufficiently I went to get my meal ticket only to find the line for food to be longer than I was willing to tolerate.

My Dad insisted that I get my scraped leg looked at, and further insisted that I get a tetanus shot. The medical people cleaned the wound, then I packed up and left.

I met Katherine at the end of the race, some of her friends were talking to my parents and she was standing right next to them. It was very cool to meet my first US BTer.