Old College Tri - TriathlonSprint

I liked how they didn't use a mat to start your chip time, but had a guy entering your chip number into his "computer." That way, you could get in the pool, get situated and push off the wall, instead of having to do the running leap. I am not used to swimming in a 50M pool, so there were several times when I looked up expecting to be near the end of the length and I was only about 2/3 of the way through. And I still can't get into a comfortable groove swimming at events...always looking around for people, for the wall, pushing a little too hard. Never relaxed into a rythmic mode or got comfortable breathing.

Try and glide more. Felt really choppy and like I was trying to hard, which made me short of breath. I was relatively happy with my time (especially since I haven't been in the pool much the last three weeks), but felt like I expended too much energy to get that time.

Glad to see my work on the transitions paid off. Had the second-fastest T1 in my AG...primarily because I have the shoes already snapped in to the pedal. I finished 5 seconds ahead of the guy behind me in my age group, all because my transitions were a total of 52 seconds faster. I still haven't figured out what to do with my glasses...stick them in the helmet, etc. My helmet and glasses fell to the ground, so I had to pick them up which cost me a few seconds. And I started running before I buckled my helmet, which made me have to stop and buckle.

Buckle helmet before heading for exit. Hook glasses into my tri top and put them on during ride.

Best bike yet. This is usually my weakest leg, but I tried to hammer it pretty hard and get a good bike time. Course was fast, with only a few hills. I still have lots of work to do and can get much better on the bike, but for me this was a good bike split.

Another good transition. The first-place finisher in my AG was the only other one who had both transitions under 1:00. I got my feet out easily and rode quickly right up to the dismount line. Had a nice pace through transition, slipped my shoes on and was off. Was in such a hurry that I totally forgot to grab my race belt, and didn't realize it until about 1/2 mile in. Was worried about whether it was a violation and whether I'd be penalized, but wasn't.

Uhhh...don't forget my race belt.

I'll take a sub-24 5k any day, especially after pushing on the bike pretty hard. I was a little surprised that my time was only good for 13th in my AG. I got a good laugh on my way back in when I saw a lady jog by about 1/2 mile in...with her bike helmet still on! I've seen some people have to turn around in transition, but haven't seen someone that far in to the run with the helmet still on! LOL. This course had a few segments on grass, which I like, but the recent rains made it muddy. The end was also goofy because it wound around the back of the high school and just when you kept thinking you were going to turn to the finish line, they'd loop you around something else (tennis courts, etc.). So I started my finishing kick a little too early.

Become more familiar with the end of the course so I can time my finishing kick accordingly.

Well-organized race. Fun post-race crowd.