Emerald Coast Triathlon Series #4 - TriathlonSprint

Swim couldn't have been more perfect. Waves were non-existent and the water was warm and crystal clear. Saw a sting ray (or was it a skate?) on the way to the first buoy. Swallowed a good amount of salt water but took it in stride.

Maybe not "sightsee" so much during the swim. Guess you could say I was relaxed though, so that's a toss up.

Went well.

Just get faster.

Nice strong ride, felt good until I got between some of the skyscrapers and felt the tunnel effect of the wind. Talk about some strong cross-winds!!!! I thought they were going to push me over. When not stuck between two buildings the wind was almost non-existant. Did not grab water bottle at turn around and later cursed self as I ran out of fluids about 4 miles from T2, but still felt well.

Learn how to grab water bottles on the go. Was afraid I'd crash and ruin a perfectly good race day.

Had a bit of an issue racking the bike as the rack was shorter than my seat and I had to tip the bike to rack it. Finally just leaned the bike between the rack and DH's bike.

Not fiddle around with racking the bike by the seat or else rack it by the brake levers like I normally do... I know... NOTHING NEW ON RACE DAY....

I have NEVER felt legs like this before. I know the normal "ick" legs from the bike, but my legs were a combination of rubbery "ick" legs along with something of a stiff, frozen, painful feeling from my hips downward. The first mile was horrendous. I wanted to cry (but didn't). I guess they thawed around then though because I kept my feet moving with relative ease after that. Main motivation for my run was my friend that was breathing down my neck. Probably wouldn't have run so hard if she'd not been there.

Work on my running base some more. My running seems to be my weakest link and where I suffer the most.

Walked around, drank some gatorade.


Training... felt I wasn't totally prepared for this race, even though I did well. Had done very little serious training since the previous race, but am satisfied with the overall results and look forward to next season.


Race course itself was good, but the event was poorly organized, the event t-shirt had the wrong date on it, the event packets were lacking, and the price ($60) for a sprint distance was a bit steep. Only thing that sort of made the price worth it was the "real" food (hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, etc.) and free beer during the after party.

We met up with DarrellC during this race and had a great time spending the weekend with him and some other friends from Marianna, FL.