Swim
Comments: I felt OK prior to the start, I got in and warmed up a little. The water felt very cold. I started to the outside and in the back and got caught in a melee. It was very hard to get a rhythm going, I got bumped a lot during the first 100 meters or so. When I tried to sight, I felt like the sun was right in my face, it was low on the horizon and I really couldn't see anything. I swam way right of the buoy, I didn't even see the buoy until I was almost past it. After the first turn I did better but still couldn't see very well as I would get blinded during each breath. I felt a little better after the 3rd buoy and actually got a rhythm going but it was too late! What would you do differently?: Get some mirrored goggles, get better at breathing on my left side, that could have solved a lot of my problems. After watching the video, I think I should have started in the back on the inside, I think I could have found some cleaner water there. Good lesson learned. Transition 1
Comments: T1 was good, I was happy to get out of the water actually. My feet were very numb while running on the concrete. Wetsuit came off easily as always, then put on the shoes, helmet and glasses and took off. What would you do differently?: Running barefoot with the bike while having tri shoes already clipped in would have saved some time. It was kindof a long run out of transition to the bike mount line. Bike
Comments: Very cold in the beginning, I was a little worried but then warmed up quickly. The course was very confusing on the map but was marked very well and staffed well, navigation was no problem. There were a lot of hazards, puddles, potholes, gravel, etc. Navigating through traffic was difficult at times due to it being a multi-lap course. A lot of faster people were passing on the right. What would you do differently?: Just go a little faster! This is a good course for a road bike. Transition 2
Comments: Long transition chute on slippery concrete. I tried to remove my shoes at the dismount line but couldn't so I just ran in the them. Had to go really slow, it was wet and slippery. What would you do differently?: Tri cycling shoes would have been nice here, there was a wide slow section prior to the Bike-In chute where I could have gotten out of my shoes. Run
Comments: Legs felt very heavy in the beginning. I felt like I was barely moving. I felt better the second lap and was able to negative split the run so I think I paced myself well. This is pretty much my regular pace for this distance. What would you do differently?: Just get faster on the run, I was passed by a lot of people, I probably lost at least 20 or 30 positions. It was nice to have the aid station at the turn-around. Post race
Warm down: Water and walk, light stretching. What limited your ability to perform faster: Lack of sleep really took it's toll. I didn't have the swim I expected to have and I was a little disappointed in my performance and that brought me down a bit. Overall, I thought I should have done better but I'm thankful to be able to to finish the race in the middle of pack. This time last year I was just starting to run again and trying to swim 25 yards so I'm happy with what I've accomplished this year. This is my third race, I've made good progress. Event comments: Good race, good volunteers, well staffed and well run. It's a good event. I would like to do it again next year but I think they're moving the date from Nov to July which is too bad, there are a lot of races around here in July. Last updated: 2008-11-10 12:00 AM
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United States
TriCalifornia
54F / 12C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 188/445
Age Group = M 40-44
Age Group Rank = 20/32
Left the house at 4:45 AM, after about 4 hours of sleep. I had everything packed up the night before. I arrived on-site at about 5:45 and walked down to the transition area by around 6:00. I had plenty of time to eat, drink, set up and get marked. Tired but otherwise feel OK, ready to go. A little nervous, but not bad.
Walked down to check out the swim area, checked the buoy locations, walked back to transition stretched, ran about 1/2 mile very slow, stretched a little more. Started getting ready for the swim, got down to the water in plenty of time. Felt OK.