Pleasant Prairie Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic

Usually the sun is glaring in your eyes on the second leg of the swim during this race, but the overcast changed that so sighting was much easier than in previous years.

Nothing really. Maybe start closer to the front.

The wet weather slowed things down a little, since I had a lot of my stuff wrapped in plastic bags.

Nothing really.

I intended to ride this a little slower due to the wet conditions. 46:50 into the ride I flatted on some glass. Apparently a streetlight had blown, there was glass all over the street and quite a few people were stopped changing tires. It took me 8:49 to change mine...a little longer than I would have liked. But I got it partly in and realized I hadn't checked the inside of the tire for glass...I didn't want to get it all done just to flat again! So taking it apart and checking, then starting all over didn't help. A lot of people were asking others for CO2, etc. One girl with a nice looking tri-bike didn't even have a spare tube. She didn't even have a saddlebag on her bike...just a bento box. I had two tubes - I always have two - so after changing mine I still had one. In the wet conditions though, a second flat - or a pinch flat from changing the first in a hurry, tho I tried to be careful - didn't seem out of the realm of possibilities, so I didn't offer up mine. On the one hand I felt bad, she had to quit the race and I actually passed her walking her bike in later. But on the other hand, it seems pretty common sense to me to carry what you need so as not to rely on others.

Shortly after I got going again there was a bit of a gaggle, with people riding 2 and 3 abreast. I was trying to pass the group-with the obligatory "on yer left!", when I hear this voice behind me blaring "MOVE OVER! MOVE OVER!" The people in this group - and I use the term loosely, I didn't see any intentional drafting or anything - seemed inexperienced, when he came blaring up behind us I saw a couple of them wobble. He passed us, but I was...well, kinda annoyed by his attitude. After a little while I got a visual on him just ahead and couldn't resist...I pulled up to pass and sang out "on your left" in my most cheerful voice, then when I pulled up next to him I said "Or maybe I should just yell move over?" He sputtered some stuff about people riding 3 abreast. I wish I could remember the rest of this conversation, because it ended with me actually saying something witty (a rare occurence), he said something about his position, and I said something about mine being in front of him, then I put down the hammer :) He caught up to me a little later, apologized, and said he just didn't want people to wreck. I said that was totally understandable, but when there are newbies on the course yelling just startles them and could cause a wreck, and that he "LOOKED experienced enough to know that". And that I didn't want to see anyone go down either. The conversation ended on a friendly "no hard feelings - have a great race!" kinda note. Then he caught me on the run and actually complimented my bike skills, a compliment I returned with sincerity.

My time without the flat was 1:15:38.2, which works out to just under 20 mph, so I didn't slow down as much as I'd planned.

Had I known I wouldn't need my tube, I'd probably have given her mine.

Change tires faster!

Again, everything was wrapped in plastic. Also, I changed socks cuz the ones I wore on the bike were soaked.

Biked without socks, probably.

I am SO thrilled with this run!!!! The cooler weather and overcast was a real plus. My mile splits:

Mile 1 - 7:50.9
Mile 2 - 8:31.7
Mile 3 - 8:19.0
Mile 4 - 9:08.8
Mile 5 - 8:51.3
Mile 6 - 8:35.4
Last .2 - 1:33.8

Not sure how this happened. I think the break my legs got changing tires contributed. But I've also been running faster all summer :)

Nothing :)

Watch my friends, both BT and local, cross. Congratulate Terry, the owner of our local tri - shop and tri-team captain, who won the race and will begin his pro career at Accenture next week!


Wet conditions, flat tire. This race would have been a PR without the flat. I came in solidly MOP even with it though :)


This is still one of my favorite races. We started a little late but that was due to weather. They could use one more aid station on the bike course. I'll be back next year :)