Kinetic Sprint, Race #4 - TriathlonSprint

I was scared to death..at first. I'm terrified of the water. Glad I did a short warm up to get used to the water conditions. Things started out and I fought to stay calm. I usually psych myself out in the first 100 yards and have a very difficult time finishing. I focused on exhaling under water, lengthening my stroke, and relaxing. I had to breathe every other stroke because of the cold and elevated HR in the open water. I would sight every third breath. I stayed on track, paused a few times to get myself under control, and just kept at it. I kept telling myself that if I just focused on my pattern, I would be at my destination before I knew it. Bummer part was, I forgot to start my watch at the horn. I remembered 1/2 way through the swim. The second half was better than the first. I was really surprised to find that the second half or so only took me about 10 minutes. It sure felt like longer. I came out of the water relaxed and happy. It was a nice change.
My thought for the day was "I'm so proud of myself for that swim!"


Keep working on race day breathing pattern in the pool and sighting drills. It really helped to know what to expect of myself when I'd reach open water. Still need to learn to relax more and not freak out, then I'll worry about getting faster. I'm happy with my progress. I'm still slow, but I've made HUGE strides from not knowing how to swim and being terrified of the water.

T1 was longer than I would have liked. Couldn't get wetsuit off my feet! I couldn't stand and not slip in mud long enough to take off the suit and put my shoes on. Had to use road shoes since my tri shoes haven't been set up yet. Shoes gave me issues and I had to redo the left one. Running with cleats in mud was NOT easy. I had to stop to walk a few times out of T1 so I wouldn't fall.
Looked like I did better than I thought in T1...even with mud and road shoes. 8th!


Given the conditions, not much.

Had issues clipping in with all the mud. Took first 10-15 min of bike easy. Focused on spinning and lower gears to get my legs going. There were more climbs than I've been used to, so it was fun to use gears I haven't used much. I could have made better gearing choices a few times, but mostly things were good. Fun course. Finally got my legs about halfway in. Not soon enough. Some day I'll be worthy of the bike. Got a few "odd" looks from others passing me early on. I'm still learning my ride.


Practice hills and spinning more. I'm really disappointed with this bike considering how well my training rides have been.
Not drink so much given the conditions. I paid for it during the run.
And practice lots with my new shoes/cleats. The shoes I used have had the cleats on/off/changed at least 6 times in the past 3 weeks.

The rain really showed here. There was a river near my transition area. I had to sit down again to wipe some of the mud off my shoes.
And I really, really, really had to... you know, GO!


Again, considering the conditions, nothing. 34/46 AG

Terrible. My most disappointing 5k in a long while. I've really backed off my running because of my knees. Been focusing more on swim and bike. Felt winded at first. The uphill was a little rough coming off the bike. Knees started to feel swollen and hurt. It just wasn't worth pushing the run to ruin my knees this close to my race. Walked a lot. Bladder hurt the whole way as I really had to go!

Work on bike/run brick more. Heal my knees.

Stretch. To med tent immediately to ice knees.


Patellar tendinitis and other knee issues.


Awards ceremony cancelled due to risk of hypothermia for athletes. Free pasta, rolls and salad for athletes. I usually can't eat the other stuff that is at these events because my stomach can't handle it. This was easier.
All in all, I had a GREAT time! I'd like to do this race again.
I really felt for the volunteers though. At least we were out there warmed up. They were cold, soaked, and freezing! I always try to say thank you when I pass.