login
 Swim
Comments: I meant to take off slow and try to stay smooth and work myself into a good pace. This didn't happen. When the horn went off, Mr. Testosterone took over. I took off with the "fast" swimmers without any regard to pacing myself, got a nice fat lip, (which felt good because it shook the nervousness out of me) and by the 2nd buoy had to stop and slow my heartrate down. I was very upset at myself for taking off the way I did. After settling myself down, I got into a slow pace because my arms were already tired. From the last buoy to the finish was terrible. I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone. The bridge before the exit never seemed to get any closer and my arms were completely spent I finally made it to the exit and flopped onto the first landing step like a dead fish. I felt totally spent thanks to my not-so-smart start. What would you do differently?: Settle myself down in the beginning and swim MY race. Keep my form and try to swim smooth.  Transition 1
Comments: My friends from the ESCKTC were there to root me on! Tanya and Jen were awesome and Josh came in from the bike on his race. I basically took my time so I could recover from the swim and mentally prepare for the bike. What would you do differently?: Pretend I was in a race and hurried a little. Done a better job laying my things out so I could get ready faster.  Bike
Comments: I don't have clipless pedals yet, so when I got new running shoes, this changed the elevation of my feet. I hadn't thought to test them on the bike and immediately knew I'd made a mistake. They had much more cushion on the bottom and I didn't feel as though I was extending my legs as far as they were supposed to. Once riding, I immediately found I didn't have any leg strength and quickly set into "survival" mode. I definitely felt like I was the guy set on the course to make everyone else feel good about themselves. If you were on the course, I got to watch you pass me and disappear into the distance. Even though I'd practiced on hills bigger than the small one on the race, the hill on the course was killing me. After the 2nd time around, I seriously wondered if I could get over it again w/out getting off and walking. The 3rd lap was a surprise because I actually felt good! Unfortunately, on the 4th lap, I was back to struggling and just happy to finish. What would you do differently?: Check my seat positioning after getting new shoes. Spend much more time on the bike. Transition 2
Comments: At this point, I was trying to figure out what drugs I had done to make me sign up for this race, and if I could trade my new bike in for bowling lessons. Seeing Josh and Jen at the transition made me forget about feeling sorry for myself, and made me start thinking about how I was going to finish this race. They lied a lot and told me I looked great and was doing an awesome job. It worked. What would you do differently?: Nothing  Run
Comments: This should have been an easy course but the heat and lack of any gatorade-type drink made it a killer. Every time I got myself into a pace, my left quad would start to cramp up and I'd have to walk. To keep going, I just watched the guy in front of me. When he jogged, I jogged and when he walked, so did I. I saw Harry pass the other way and it sparked me up. I finally passed the guy I was following and tried to go alone. Mile 3 had Tanya there rooting me on. This was great because I thought she left a long time ago. Finally, I found a "lets get this thing done together" buddy to finish the race with. Tanya, Harry and Robin were all there cheering us on when we rounded the corner. It was awesome! What would you do differently?: Not get an injured foot so I could run more before the race. Bring my own gatorade. Post race
Event comments: Two months ago, I was an overweight smoker who spent his evenings and weekends laying around watching T.V. My only goal in life was to make it through the next day. Things have changed immensely in a very short amount of time. I have met some wonderful, positive people who I enjoy training with and talking with on this site. I feel energetic, have lost a lot of weight, and haven't even thought of smoking. Sunday May 20, 2007 was a very good day for me. Now I want more! Last updated: 2007-05-22 12:00 AM
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
View profile
Add to friends
Go to training log
Go to race log
Send a message
View album
CONNECT WITH FACEBOOK
United States
Tucson Racing Inc.
Sunny
Overall Rank = /
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 0/
I got up at 4:30, ate some oatmeal, a banana, and some coffee. After I ate, I loaded all my stuff up into the vehicle and drove to the race.
Once there, I saw Josh setting up for his race and got ready next to him. I didn't recognize Jen because I'd never seen her without an orange swim cap on. I felt sorry for her because I kept asking her to help me with things and she was there to help Josh. She was great though.
Harry came and set up next to us. Everyone pretty much dropped their jaw and stared when he whipped out his big, pink Barbie bike pump. The white hawaiian flowers added the winning touch. He tried to play it off by saying it was the only pump left at some triathlon he went to. Tanya made it with her family and helped me with my race number and much needed advice.
We then went to the staging area and listened to a once-in-a-lifetime rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. I then proceded to put my wetsuit on backwards and walked around with my zipper in the front for a good 10 minutes.
Stretched legs to keep from getting foot/calf cramps during swim