Each had an assigned lap counter and we were told it would be 20 lengths (10 full laps) of the 25 yard pool (more on that later).The lanes were seeded by estimated swim time. When the seeding was announced I checked my lane partner and noted his time was about 30 seconds faster than me so it would be a close swim. We wished each other a good race, counted down to the start, and we were off!

For the first couple of laps I was keeping pace with my lane partner and the competitive spirit was urging me to push the pace faster than normal. Reason, fortunately, won out over competition and I settled down into my usual pace and he gradually pulled ahead. Once again I lamented my inability to do kick turns as I burned a couple seconds with each open turn.

I was keeping a mental lap count and as I finished length 19 I looked up at my lap counter confused the kick board signal was not in place. She said "you are on 17, almost there!" and I shook my head in disbelief as I saw other swimmers in neighboring lanes getting out of the pool. Not to argue with an official I swam the extra 50 yards.

Kick turns!

Quick climb out of the pool and jogged out to the transition area. My lane partner was putting on his helmet and we quickly confirmed our suspicions that the lane counter miscounted. The rest of transition went quickly as our rack was right near the bike exit.

The way out of transition had a couple of tight turns so I started with the crank set on the small ring for easier pedaling at slow speeds for maneuverability. After turning on to the street I up shifted and (knowing the non-indexed front derailleur was prone to tossing chains) tossed my chain. Fortunately, through practice, I've become adept at re-seating the front chain so I was back in the race after about 30 seconds or so. Unfortunately, this gave my swim lane partner an extra lead and my hopes of catching up and passing him dwindled.

The bike route was pretty much flat, so I my goal was to push hard for the first 8-9 miles then relax my legs a bit so they wouldn't be dead on the run. Conditions were good and I was feeling fast, holding a 20 mph pace and passing a couple others. As I passed the first timer I met in transition I gave her a few encouraging words and she responded with a cheer. At the turn around the road was barely two lanes and it was a tight U-turn. After tossing the chain at the start I didn't want to down shift and stayed in a rather high gear, making for a slow acceleration out of the U-turn.

On the way back there was a light head wind which slowed me down a little. I let up on my pace a bit and did some calf stretches as I neared the transition area.

Better shifting!

Small transition area makes for fast transition! On my way out I spotted my wife cheering and taking a picture. Always nice to have a fan in the crowd!

Heading out of transition my legs felt the usual post bike heaviness and as usual I resisted the urge to walk them out. My pace was brisk (for me) and I kept it up as my legs got back into run mode. At the turn-around there was an aid station and I poured some water over my shoulders as the sun was finally warming things up after burning off the morning gloom. In my last mile I saw the first timer heading out on her run with a determined look and I shouted out "you got this!" which out a smile on her face. With the finish line nearing my legs felt good so I kicked in and finished strong.

Stretched out my legs and enjoyed some fresh fruit. As I was packing up my transition area I saw the first timer heading towards the finish so I cheered for and congratulated her. It was good to see the "triathlon bug" being caught by a new participant.


Fun and easy sprint.