Hawk Island Triathlon - TriathlonSprint

The first hundred yards or so were a bit rough as I tried to make my way through the crowd. I was kicked in the goggles once which caused one side to partially fill with water. It didn't negatively impact the swim and certainly wasn't a big deal. Overall I thought it was a good swim though I was just getting settled in when we were getting to the last couple hundred yards.

Not knowing how to do a good flying mount, I had to stop to mount the bike. It only took a couple seconds but it could have been faster.

Figure out how to more quickly mount the bike.

Overall I was very satisfied with the bike. I was passed by four people, most of whom were on tricked out expensive TT bikes. I passed quite a few people and felt very strong through the whole ride. There were a couple hills which made the beginning portion of the bike challenging. I wasn't sure how hard I could push the bike portion and still perform well on the run. I think I could have gone a little bit harder, particularly since there was a nice downhill to cool down on before the finish. Riding the course ahead of time would have been a good idea. I probably would have had a better idea of how hard I could go.

Push a little harder, at least for a short sprint race. Ride the course ahead of time.

Running in bike shoes is no fun but it wasn't too bad. I made it back to my rack without any problem. I am glad I took the time to scout my position from the bike finish as it made finding my spot easy. My feet were still damp enough that putting on socks was going to be difficult. After a couple seconds I decided to run sockless. I started to run away without my race number but remembered within twenty feet or so. After grabbing the number, I jogged to the transition exit despite legs which felt a bit leaden.

Skip socks altogether for short races.

This 5k was actually a PR for me. I was more than a bit surprised, particularly since all the others have been standalone events. My pacing was much better than normal and, though the end was challenging, I did manage a last burst of speed at the finish. The crowd in the finish chute was awesome.

Walked around with Jen and then did some brief stretches.


Hawk Island was an awesome race and was the perfect start for someone that hasn't done a tri before. It was very beginner friendly and the organizers did a great job of keeping everything running smoothly and on-time.