So...I stayed loose going into the swim. Talked with people, tried to smile a whole lot, you know. In my experiences, if I think about something too much, I blow it. What I don't do is prepare for the unexpected. When I jumped into the water, my left goggle fills half way with water. Immediately, I'm not thinking about the swim but my goggles! I think to myself, "do I stop at the end of the pool and drain it out, or do I make the best of it". I'm worried about being passed. At this point, I have no idea if I'm swimming correctly, how my breathing is going, or even how far I've swum! After about 150 yds, I get passed by BOTH of the women who were behind me. So, I decided to calm down and just concentrate on my stroke, breathing, etc and just close my left eye and it'll all be over soon. Good news is, 20 guys finished behind me and I know I could have shaved 30 secs off of my swim if I hadn't freaked out.

GET BETTER GOOGLES! And be prepared for the what if's.

Getting the googles off was the easiest thing I've ever done. I couldn't wait to get rid of them. I got to T1 in pretty good shape. I was breathing hard, but that was almost entirely due to stress. I put my shoes on, and instantly decided to go shirtless, which I think saved tons of time, took a gel shot, rinsed it with some Cytomax and put on the helmet. I positioned the bike to within 15 feet of where I could get on my bike and that saved time too.

Nothing, it went as well as could be expected.

I definitely could've gone hareder, but I wanted to hold back so I'd have something for the run. Passing was hairy on the narrow lanes, so I just didn't. I passed the really slow folks, but after a while the field became crowded as more people left the pool. Some riders didn't let you know they going to pass you and I saw a lot of close calls as someone would drift just a little to their left not knowing someone was on their shoulder. I just sat up when I got behind someone slower and waited until the lanes opened up. Also, the laps were counted by marks on your arm. So, we were routed into a parking lot off the road, and were asked to slow down and get the mark. This too was an accident waiting to happen, as people would get their mark and then jockey for position to get back on the road. I had waved a couple by me one time only to pass them on the wide street, but they seemed anxious so it seemed to be the right thing to do.

Not much in that situation, but when I did open it up, I poured it on. My max speed was 26.7 according to my computer.

This transition I needed a little more time. Luckily, I remembered to get into an easier gear and shake my legs loose before I got off the bike, so my legs were in better shape than they otherwise would have been. I got my running shoes on, and my shirt and off I went.

Nothing

So, I'm in the 70's overall in the swim and the cycling and finish in the 40's in the run. Who knew? That just blows me away...I don't know what to make of this. I kept a good pace and I did pass some people, but...anyways, I'll take it. Sub 8's was a pipedream for me and I just made it, so I'm way stoked over that. It goes to show I may have been going too easy on the bike. The second half of my run was better than the first so I don't know what that pace was, but it had to be pretty quick for me.

Not a lot! I need to work on it just a tad more, and I can really improve my times.

Kissed the wife and looked for water.


Nerves, inexperience, passivity, inexperience, and did I mention inexperience.


My first tri is under my belt! 6 weeks ago when I started this I figured I'd come up with some lame excuse not to do it, but surprisingly, I followed through. Not my strong suit either. Hopefully, this will begin a new trend for me. I can't wait until my next one, which I have my eyes on a Memorial Day event. 10 weeks and counting.