Katy Triathlon at Firethorne - TriathlonSprint

This is where all the mornings in the pool paid off. Last year on this same course I swam 12:33 without a wetsuit. This year I was almost 5 mins faster with significantly less effort. Even a crappy swimmer like me can make improvements.

Nothing. Easily my best swim ever.

Couldn't get the wetsuit off over the disposable chip. I like the concept behind them, but those disposable timing chips are huge, and cause issues with the wetsuit. Also, due to the cool temps, I struggled a little with putting on a jacket. Attempted to put on gloves, but had to give up after one.

Practice getting into gloves, etc with wet arms.

I didn't realize there was much wind until I made the final turn to the south and noticed how much easier things got. I felt like I was pushing throughout this ride, especially on the out/back on Hwy 90. The road conditions on 90 aren't the greatest, but not too bad. Received one warning about passing too far to the left, but it was either that or get a drafting penalty.

Not much here. I felt like I was going slow, but it turned out to be a good ride.

This T2 time is deceiving. What it doesn't show is the crash that I had at the bike dismount. Came in too fast, and had to brake in a short distance. The bike got a little sideways, my shoe hit the pavement, and bike bounced up in the air. The seat hit me in the back of the head, and we did a "yard sale" at the dismount line. I collected my shoe, water bottle and pride, and hurried into transition.

Slow down on the dismount. I ended up losing at least a minute on the ride time due to the crash. Also ended up with a swollen hand (could be fractured but I don't want to see the doctor). Not a good way to build confidence going into a 1/2 Iron race this weekend.

Only issue with this run was the break stations. They used the clear plastic solo cups for water, which don't crush down well when you are trying not to spill water everywhere. I like this course much better than previous ones.

Nothing really here, except run faster.

Got some food, medal and water. No warm down to speak of.


My ability


2nd year doing this race. Both years the weather takes a turn right before race day, resulting in cool/cold weather. I generally like the course. The run and swim are great. The bike course isn't as good as some other races, but that is due to the width of the riding area on the highways.