It was an in-water start, and my first OW swim, so I gained a lot of experienced. Most notably, I decided to start on the very outside of the group, that way I would angle towards the buoy. Since the first leg was about 350m, I thought avoiding people would be the better answer. Would have been a great strategy...except for the mudbar that grabbed me! Got free and continued, but I couldn't even see my hand during my strokes, much less the feet coming for my head. Kept running into people, and didn't do well sighting. Learned that I can side-stroke very well to get oxygen and sight, but didn't feel like it was that good of a swim. Imagine my surprise, then, when I finished well under my expected time! I had decided that anything under 18 minutes would be acceptable, and I believe I was out in under 16 (official results pending). So, I was suprised how well it went given that it didn't feel that good. My competitive instinct, however, was at a 5-year high...I forgot what this feels like!

UPDATE: Now that I have the official time, I am amazed. I did not think I would be that fast, I was really happy with how this went!

Get used to this starts, and swimming with other people, but that just comes with more races.

There was a long, grassy downhill that was quite slick...but I remembered my hill running, and just let my legs go. The key is controlled falling, and I did it to perfection. Passed about 15 people that way. A competitor actually said "Wow", and another exclaimed "My God!"...that was pretty cool. Did okay in the transition, could be faster, but wanted to make sure I did everything right.

UPDATE: Took longer than I expected, but it was a LONG way! The run plus the size of the transition area swallowed at least 2:30 of this time.

Hm...put a water bottle on my bike so I don't feel the need to gulp water during transition. That was about it...couldn't have gone much faster without risking forgetting something or tripping or something.

I had thought the bike would be my weakness...we'll see what the tale of the tape is, but I felt very, very strong here. I passed people going up hills, and then would scream coming down them...all on a mountain bike, baby! I could feel the crushing of spirits as I skimmed by people on uphillls...still seated since the bike ate the distance. I was also not nearly as out of breath or have the soreness of quads that I expected. I'll be able to slice time off of my bike in large portions, but I was very, very happy with how this first one went. Every time I heard a blow-out, though, I thought my race was over...did not realize how loud other people's blowouts sounded.

UPDATE: Averaging 19 miles per hour on my bike is ridiculous. I haven't been able to go that fast ever in practice. Very happy with this...but now know that I have to bump up my training!!! 19mph on HILLS!?! GET AFTER IT!

A different bike for speed, plus more training with changing gears on hills. A major key to this race is who does that better. Definitely need to get a water bottle for the bike, felt the lack on the run.

There was a pile-up of people right where you had to get off the bike...but I flew off and ran right by them. The advantages of not caring if your $400 mountain bike gets a scratch or two. :) Just put the bike on the rack, already had my running shoes on, so I was off!

UPDATE: Whereas my T1 was mediocre, this one was middle of the pack. Good.

Had just a tiny bit of trouble putting the bike on the rack...hadn't ever done it before in a hurry, so I had about 10-15 seconds of wasted time there. But that's just inexperience.

I have rage in my heart over the stupid volunteer sending us the wrong direction. I knew at the time that it was the wrong way, but everyone else was doing it, so what can you do? I estimated, right afterwards, that the difference would be between a half and a full kilometer. They are giving it .64 of a km.
My legs were not wanting to do this at all! I felt like I was barely above a walk pace for the first mile, so it surprised the hell out of me when I was at 7:33. Coming through the second mile in over 10 minutes was a clue that there was a screw-up...and they also added a part that they had indicated on the map was only for the 10k people. Therefore, I was too tired, and started my kick earlier than I should have, and was exhausted. However, I passed probably 50 people on the run. One person that I passed passed me back, but if someone actually passes me on the run, I will be very surprised.

UPDATE: I SAID I was a runner! This went well for me; I passed two people in my age group. They say 3.5 miles, but the average times they give mean it would have to be a 3.6...so it was .4 or .5 miles farther. I'm quite happy, especially since conditioning will drop this time like a stone.

Drink more water during the bike, train more. Really, just having enough energy, and having my legs ready for the hard workout of the bike, followed by the hard workout of the run is important. I had done bricks and thought I was ready, but getting enough oxygen is what I need to work on.

Drank tons of water, sat around talking with the other people, ate some bananas, almost threw up when they brought pizza around (could not imagine eating it right after the race!). Stretched a little, not enough, and just enjoyed the moment! I AM A TRIATHLETE!

UPDATE: I can, without too much trouble (just training right and practicing transition), take 13 minutes off my time at this course. There's no doubt that's what I could do if I decide to do the sprint again next year. That would put me in the hardware department.


Swim: Just have to fight past people. Have more confidence that I am a faster swimmer than I give myself credit for. Work in open-water swims.

Bike: The bike I was riding, and not having aerobars or water.

Run: Total fitness level, as I was exhausted by the time I got here.

UPDATE: Here's where time will fall away:
Swim: Could be up to a minute faster by next year, no doubt. Especially with more race and OW experience.
T1: Pick up 2 minutes here, that's what the other guys in my age group did.
Bike: Drop 5 minutes. More time in the saddle, more overall conditioning, more water, and a better bike. Good as done.
T2: Pick up half a minute with racking the bike better, but maybe lose overall if I go with biking shoes.
Run: Will drop 4 minutes at least. Ain't nobody faster than me on the run!
So there's 12.5 minutes, just by planning on doing a triathlon more than 2 months beforehand...however, next year it's a harder age group, so I'll be glad to be in the Olympic!


The race gets an average, because I loved competing again after such a long hiatus, and nothing could really damp my enthusiasm...but that one volunteer screwing up the course was a real bummer. Worse, not everyone took the turn, so some people will have faster times because of it, and there's nothing they can do. People will know for themselves, but it just makes it harder to figure how I really did. Everything was backed up a little at the beginning because of road construction, so I can't hold that against them. This race is going to be a Regional next year, apparently, and while I think it would be a good race for it, I think they have a lot of work to do. I would straighten out the bike course (instead of having 13 separate turns including 4 U-turns on a 12.4 mile course, but that's just me), and have a more detailed map, but it was an amazing first race experience.