Hueston Woods Triathlon - Sprint Course - TriathlonSprint

The gate and first buoy of the triangular course were in waist-deep water - most of my heat and I waded through the gate and likewise waded around the first buoy. Water was very calm and it was a beautiful clear morning, easy to find the buoys and maintain a good pace

Not much - based on my time compared to previous this course was either shorter than 750M or you really save time by walking/wading around a buoy or two

I have a ratchet-type closure on my cycling shoes, and I thought I would save some seconds by getting the closure started and having it ready in the transition area. Unfortunately, I didn't try putting them on ahead of time, and as it turns out, I couldn't get the shoes on this way. After a few seconds of struggling I had to give up and start over

Between pulling on my bike bibs, toweling, pulling on socks, strapping on cycling shoes, and running across the parking lot in cleats, this is always going to be a 2-min transition. All I can do is practice the process.

Having read previous race reports and after checking out the elevation profile, I knew to expect two fair-sized hills out and again on the way back. While no l'alp d'huez, the first hill evidently took some riders by surprise, including someone in the age group ahead of me who helpfully left his breakfast on the road. About 3/4 through I had about half a gel packet which was pretty nasty (tasted like vanilla gatorade) but improved my worldview immensely

I spun up each hill in an easy gear and tried to both gain some ground on the downhills and allow my HR to settle at the same time. Not my fastest 20k but pretty proud of the effort considering the hills

Typical run across the pavement in bike cleats transition - rack the bike, strip the helmet, swap the shoes and go.

Fastest bike/run transition yet (and fastest in my age group). Made sure my shoes were laced just right before the race which always helps.

After walking the first hill in my previous Tri I was determined to, at a minimum, shuffle up this trail at a jog, which I managed to do. Didn't have a very fast pace when I got to asphalt but picked it up a bit at the turnaround and then bombed back down the trail at a dead run letting momentum and the shock-absorbers that are my knees do all the work. Glad nobody got in my way or that I did not encounter a hidden rock or root.

I get passed a lot during the run, often by crazy fast runners in later age groups but sometimes by folks with just a slightly faster pace than my own. Next time I will try pacing one of the latter runners to see if I don't have a faster time in me.

Drank a couple bottles of water and snarfed a banana while walking around a bit. Good amount of easy stretching in the shade with a view of the lake.


At 40 seconds off 3rd in my AG and less than a minute off 2nd (the guy in 1st creamed us), I think only a smoother swim/bike transition and faster pace in the first half of the run could have bettered my overall performance. To give any more on the bike would have sabotaged the run, especially with the hill right out of transition.


An all-around good race with an easy-to-follow swim course, a cycling route that suits my modest climbing abilities, and an interesting run that features some much-appreciated shade during the initial climb.