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 Swim
Comments: The first 3-5 minutes a definite rush. I was sighting very frequently to make sure I didn't get turned around. The water was very choppy, but manageable. Probably b/c of the adrenaline, I wasn't as cold as the day before when I did a 25 minute practice swim in Aquatic park. I never got that intense pain on my head from the cold like I have all of my 4 previous ocean swims. I couldn't feel any current, but the choppy waves were definitely moving me up and down. After 10 minutes or so, I stopped and did a 360 in the water. The skyline of SF was incredible from this rare perspective as was the Golden Gate Bridge. Man, what a sight. THE highlight of the race. However, when I turned around to look at Alcatraz, I was a little disappointed to see it look so big! I was hoping I had swam further and it would look a little smaller. Oh well... just keep at it, David. I stopped and took in the incredible view 2-3 more times and each time Alcatraz was a little smaller and the golden dome of the Palace of Fine Arts was a little bigger. So I knew I was making progress. Not once was I afraid of sharks or sea lions. I took a good swallow of water once, but didn't panic. Never got too cold or tired. Overall, a great swim for me, probably my favorite to date! What would you do differently?: Nothing  Transition 1
Comments: This T1 includes approximately a half mile run to the transition area. I was so happy to have seen my wife as I ran up on the beach. I knew she'd be worried about me, and she'd be happy to see me. I found my shoe bag, stripped my wetsuit, put on my socks and shoes, and started running to transition area. I made the transition fine to the bike fine. Nothing to eventful.  Bike
Comments: The bike started out great with a nice 1.5 mile flat stretch where I was doing about 23 mph. Despite being cold, this was a blast, but unfortunately that 5 minutes or so would be the extent of my fun on the bike. We hit the first hill and it was littered with people slowly climbing it. I still felt really good so I spun up the hill quickly, staying seated, and passed a bunch of people. After a minute or so of sustained climbing, I started to tire a little. We just don't have long, sustained climbs in the DFW metroplex, so I didn't quite know how to handle this. Plus, I never bought a 12-27 cassette, so I was using my 11-25 and I could not keep my cadence up. I'd have to pedal a very painfully slow cadence on many of the climbs, and I'd stand up on most of them too. I'm just not a great climber. I also found out that I'm not a great descender as I'd consistently get passed on most of the descents. I guess I'm not quite the fearless BMX-er I once was. Mainly, the combination of rough, pot-holed roads, 1500 other riders, and an unfamiliar course with some sharp turns caused me to be a little conservative on the downhills. Had I know the course better and had a little more descending experience, I would have love to have just bombed down these hills. To top it all off, I got a flat at about mile 16 coming down a moderate hill. I noticed my rear tire wobbling around and I looked down and I could tell it was flat, but fortunately not completely. I decided to try to ride it out as I knew I was almost done. I slowed down drastically, and took all the remaining turns super slow. I stayed out of the aerobars and tried to shift some more of my weight to the front tire. I was getting passed left and right on the last 1.5 flat stretch because I was probably only going 14-15 mph. That sucked, but I tried to keep a positive attitude b/c at least I was able to ride it in and I didn't have to stop and change it. And more importantly, I didn't get a complete blow out on steep descent where it could have been dangerous. After the race, I looked at my tire and I found a very tiny sharp stone that appeared to have pierced the tire and tube, causing a slow leak. Overall, this bike leg was not my favorite for a variety of reasons. Not the least of which was the sheer # of racers. I had never done race this big before, and when you have all those people on a short, technical course it gets crowded fast. We were 4-5 wide at some points. Plus, the rough roads and my flat tire made for a tough day on the bike. What would you do differently?: 1) 12-27 cassette on a road bike, instead of a 25 on tri-bike. 2) Practice sustained climbs somehow 3) Practice descending 4) Oh yeah, Not get a flat!!! I guess it had to happen in a race sometime, and overall it could have been much, much worse. Transition 2
Comments: Nothing eventful.  Run
Comments: This run was a blast. My HR had come down nicely after my 2 mile coast on a flat into T2, so I was ready to run. I didn't realize that most of this race was on trails, and I love trail running so I had a ball! It was tough on the narrow sections of trail b/c of all the people, but it's easier to manage this on foot than on the bike. Some of the climbs were difficult, but I have much more experience run hills than biking, so they didn't really get to me. I didn't really enjoy running on deep sand on Baker Beach, but that's all part of the challenge I supposed. The infamous 400 steps of sand ladder at mile 4 weren't so bad. Everyone just walked'em and it was nice to use a different set of muscles. After the sand ladder and the climb that followed it, I somehow got a second wind and picked up the pace as I knew the rest of the course was either downhill or flat. I passed quite a few people in the last 3 miles, and that always feels good. Plus, it felt really awesome to be feeling halfway descent at this point of the race, so I let it all out. Giving it my all this last 3 miles was another highlight of the race. I saw my wife waving from the bleachers as I was about to finish and that was a special moment. I was great to have her there with me. What would you do differently?: Not much really. I was a great run for me. Post race
Warm down: Talked with my wife, and ate some of food they provided. The food was descent and hot. But it would have been nice to got back for seconds, but they only allowed you to go thru once. What limited your ability to perform faster: Not enough hill training. Event comments: This was a great race. It was my first time flying with my bike and it was definitely worth the hassle. Despite the cold, windy, and overcast weather, my wife and I had a great time in San Francisco, walking along the coastal bluffs and taking a 2 hour sunset cruise. A great trip! I finished top 39% in my AG and top 28% overall. I would have love to have finished top third of my AG, but I must remember that this is very popular race and many of the top AG'ers come to it. Plus, I had a flat. In the end, I had fun and that's what's really important! Last updated: 2007-06-04 12:00 AM
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United States
55F / 13C
Overcast
Overall Rank = 432/1545
Age Group = M30-34
Age Group Rank = 63/163
I ate a bagel and drank some gatorade at the hotel. My wife snapped a few pictures, and then we drove up to SF. We stopped near transition, and my wife wished me good luck and then dropped me off. I would have loved to have spent more time with her pre-race, but the logistics of this race didn't really permit it.
I racked my bike and setup transition pretty quickly. I walked a little closer to the water, and I could see the light from the lighthouse on Alcatraz circling the bay. It was kind of eerie since it was so dark you couldn't really see the island just this ominous light, highlighting the cold, choppy water. I was slightly nervous thinking that in 2 hrs, somewhere out there in the middle of that darkness, I'd be jumping into that unknown from a perfectly good boat.
I caught one of the many buses from the transition area to the pier with the boat. At the pier, I got body marked and walked around a bit before getting on the boat. I also put my wetsuit on up to my waist. The boat was leaving at 6:15, and I got on at about 5:50 and it was already pretty crowded. I looked around a little bit, and found spot along a wall to sit down and try to relax. After 5-10 minutes, Matt Reed (last years winner) and Joanna Lawn (a top pro) sit down close to me, and I thought that was pretty cool; to be competing in an event along side the best in the world. Amateurs don't get do this in most sports! I also saw Andy from the Bachelor. I didn't know who he was until I saw him in Triathlete magazine, but I guess he's pretty famous b/c he was signing some guy's (yes, a guy) t-shirt! At about 6:30, I found out that I was in the pro-only section of the boat, so I got up and walked into the main cabin where it was really crowded. I found just a little space, put on the rest of my wetsuit, and bagged my sweats.
At about 6:50 or so, the pros started walking outside to get ready to jump off. A nice prayer was given, the national anthem was sung, and before I was ready the pros dove in. I thought we were going to in waves, about 1 minute apart, but everyone was pretty much just rushing out the doors. As I went out the door, a volunteer was guiding some of us to go right on the walkway outside the cabin. I did this and I'm glad b/c there was more room and people weren't pushing you from behind. I got to the edge, but I hadn't quite composed myself yet. I took a few moments to gather the courage and prepare mentally for what I was about to do...and then, I jumped.