Soma Quarterman Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic

Even though I didn't completely panic, I never got comfortable in the water. It was cold, and every time my face touched, I pulled it out. As soon as I started to get tired, I looked ahead at the first buoy and it looked like it was mile away. I was unsettled that there were no intermediate buoys to grab onto if I needed one. It was as if I forgot everything I have learned about swimming in the pool. I was slower than usual, less comfortable, and splashing instead of using smooth strokes. Just call me Bob, because what I was doing was not swimming. It was a disaster. By the time I got out of the water, I was second to last in my age group, and there were only 23 people overall behind me. I have to think that the one person from my age group who finished behind me must have drowned. Where was the preparation and training? I really thought that my open water swimming had improved, but here I was again, having expended a bunch of physical and mental energy on the swim with a lot of ground to make up. My HR was consistently in the mid-150s, which is ridiculous for a swim (it generally stays in the 120s) - something was wrong.

I am going to need swim coaching. I need to find a way for my overall training to translate into results in open water. In the pool, I have come a long way and improved a lot over the past six months, but it escapes me on race day. I have some mental challenges to overcome.

No complaints about the transition. I was a little woozy from the swim, so I wasn't particularly fast, but I remembered everything I wanted to do before getting on the bike and didn't waste too much time.

Nothing, really.

I felt good about the bike. I was boxed in for a good bit of the time, but at a comfortable pace, so I didn't feel the need to push past people, only to have them catch me a few minutes later. There was a short hill toward the end of the first lap which slowed me down, but that reflects my need for more hill training. I drank properly, ate my Clif Blox on schedule, and kept a steady cadence and solid pace. I think if I had been able to get out of the water faster, I could have been riding with a faster group and improved some.

I should have pushed the pace a little harder. Since I was burned by the time I got to the run anyway, I could have at least picked up a couple of extra minutes on the bike. Strategically and physically, though, it was a good effort.

Decent transition, but I was not as focused as I would like to have been. I didn't forget anything, but I was lacking balance so I had to sit down to get my running shoes on. The fatigue from the swim had caught up to me and I was struggling.

Sit down immediately to change shoes since I couldn't change them standing up anyway.

This was a beastly run. I would like to blame my performance on the rising heat, but I can't. I just wasn't on. I simply could not get my body to do what I had trained it to do. Everything was out of synch. I felt lethargic, unfocused, and queasy. It was a struggle from start to finish. I didn't even have a speed burst left as I approached the finish, so I know that what little I had, I had left on the course, which at least provides some consolation.

I felt that I hydrated well and went at the pace I was capable of going - no regrets.

My stomach was feeling upset and I was a little out of it after the finish, so I didn't eat anything immediately for fear of not being able to keep it down. I drank some water and Gatorade which helped a little. I saw Jerry at the end. He had a good race and had finished some time before me. I met up with Jenna, who was waiting at the finish - she tried to get me to eat something, but I knew my stomach couldn't handle it.


Open water swim problems cost me greatly. I think if I could have gotten out of the water in tact, I would have had the energy to finish stronger and have less time and distance to make up with the rest of the field.


The organizers did a fantastic job with the race, with a couple of exceptions. I would have liked to see more buoys on the swim course. However, this is a personal preference and not a necessity (more importantly, perhaps, I would like to be less dependent on the buoys being there!). Also, the bike course was a little confusing to some. I am probably nit picking here. Soma is peropbably the best organized, best supported race in which I have participated, and it will be a staple in my race schedule. I am already planning to sign up for the half ironman race next year. With proper training, I will be ready.

Despite a lot of this report, the race was not all bad for me if I put things in perspective. Overall, I finished a half hour faster than I did last year. I also finished much higher in the field than I did last year. Looked at that way, I have improved a lot overall in a year. However, I am disappointed in some specifics. Soma is my big race, the one that I want to do my absolute best in. It is my Super Bowl, my World Series, my National Championship, and I wanted to be at my best. Having such a bad swim set the tone for a disappointing day. It was not the race I had hoped for, and even more discouraging, trained for. I said in a race report at the beginning of the season that the best I can hope for in a race is that I don't have any outside factors (weather, mechanical issues) limit me, and that I perform as I trained. My results on Sunday were not indicative of my training. I am a stronger swimmer than that. I am a better runner than that. I am mentally tougher than to let a bad swim dictate the rest of the day. I wish I had done better, but I am proud of how far I have come in the past year. My expectations for my performance alone indicate improvement. Last year, I was satisfied just to finish - now I want to do better. That said, the season finale this year has left a lot for me to think about (and work on) this winter. Triathlon is build for the anal retentive - no matter what, there are plenty of things to pick apart and improve on - it never gets boring. I will not dwell on this race - marathion training for January starts now...