This swim started out good. I was drafting nicely and had a pretty easy swim to the first turn buoy. Then the turn and there was the sun in all it's glory. I lost my draft. I lost everything. I had no idea where I was in the lake. Had to go into breaststroke to find the rest of the field. When I finally made it to the turn buoy, I put my head in the water and swam! I felt like I was picking up speed, but when I got out of the water, I was surrounded by men. I lost the fast chics again!

Polarized goggles to minimize the sun? Even though my placement is low (for me) I feel like my OWS is improving. That sounds backwards, but my HR stays calm and I finish the swim with energy!

I was off-balance in T1, so it took me a little longer than normal, but still not too bad.

Nothing

I felt good on the bike. But as the course went on, I felt REALLY good. I passed lots of girls in the first 4 miles. Then I started passing guys. I only got passed twice. I used gears that I could keep up a high cadence. Didn't have any traffic or congestion problems. And for the first time in a large race, I had the No. 1 bike split of ALL the ladies (including the elites!) Woot!!! If the course was indeed 16 miles, I averaged over 22 mph!!!

Nothing!

Turned one aisle too soon in transition so I had to shove Sir Velo under the rack and limbo under it myself. Had to move someone's wetsuit that was draped over my spot then I could get down to business.

Count the aisles more carefully.

I started off feeling great on the run and passed about 5 people, then the little rollers kicked in and I could feel myself slowing down. Rather than push it and suffer like last week, I relaxed and ran at a comfortable pace. I had a smile on my face and I felt like I probably could have pushed myself harder. This is how I typically feel when I run. Last week, I pushed and suffered and had a slow run. Decided that suffering is far too overrated. I finished and felt good!

More hill training. I suck at running hills. As far as pushing myself, I don't know. This wasn't a bad split for me. Actually, it is pretty average. I do want to improve my run. But I'm not sure how to do that. I guess just keep running.

I almost caught my husband at the finish. So we walked and cooled down together. He had been sick with a mild stomach bug on Thursday and Friday, but was feeling better until just before the race start. But he toughed it out and raced anyhow.


Getting lost on the swim and my lack of running prowess.


I really like this venue. I loved the bike course. The run course was nice because the majority of it was in the shade. Got to meet Tigerrocker and we chatted after the awards ceremony. I would like to do this race again next year. It was a lot of fun.