They called our wave and I went into the brown and somewhat choppy waters without hesitation. As I was treading water waiting for the horn, I flet like a bobber out there - I'm still not used to wearing wetsuits - it feels like you are cheating! Once the horn sounded I started off in the pack and there was a lot of kicking, swimming over other swimmers and the like. The water was very murky and I really couldn't see more than a foot or so in front of me underwater, so I had no idea if there were others around me except when I brought my head up to sight.

I didn't like swimming with the crowd all that much so I decided to hang a bit to the right of the pack. I probably got a bit off course a couple of times because of this, but when I was swimming very close to others I couldn't develop a good rythm. Once I got around the far buoys, I stayed a bit closer to the race line and also caught myself veering to the left of the buoys a bit, but I was sighting more often and better at that point and was able to correct myself quickly.

Before I knew it I spotted the dock again and the final turn-around-buoys, and I started to pick it up a bit. Shortly thereafter - voila! - it was done. It seemed very short and I wasn't all that taxed exertion-wise. As I went up the ramp I started to get a twinge of a leg cramp, the kind which has forced me to use the ladder when exiting the pool after a swim workout. Luckily, once I stood up all the way I was OK. I jogged gingerly toward the transition area so as not to aggravate the cramp.

My time was much better than I thought I would do - within 2 minutes of my in-pool best. Some of the 2 minutes can be accounted for by getting off-course a bit, but part of it was probably the current. Although I didn't feel it at all during the race, as I watched and listened to the pro race later I heard that their times were 2 min off the normal pace due to the current.


Practice sighting, do practice OWS. Not many regrets though - still happy with the result.

24/50

What I worried about most going into T1 was not being able to get my wetsuit off fast. To help things out, I really slathered the ol' Bodyglide on my shoulders, not just to help get the suit off but also because I got the kind that's also sunscreen. The top of the suit came off without much resistance on my second grab, and the rest followed pretty quickly as well. Whew.

I got my socks, helmet, sunglasses and bike helmet on quickly, put my wetsuit back under my bike and out the way of my running stuff, grabbed my bike and was off. Overall, I was very happy with my time here, not too bad given the wetsuit and socks.


Nothing - if I had tried to speed things up I would have made some kind of mistake.

Having learned my lesson about trying to get in the clips too quickly, this time I calmly straddled my bike, carefully put one shoe in, pushed off and then put the other one in.

As I started pedaling I realized how cool it was going to be to have the wide streets of DC devoid of traffic. I was about to have some serious fun! Independence Ave, Constitution Ave, Virginia Ave, The Whitehurst Freeway and Canal Rd. - all OURS!

One the first loop (there were two), I felt unusually well. My heart rate was in control and where I needed it to be (158-164), no nausea, no cramps. I was maintaining an average of 20-21 MPH which I was happy with and it felt like a sustainable pace that would leave me some legs for the run. The only thing unusual about that loop was the sheer number of speedsters blowing by my as if I were standing still. I didn't let it get me down "just race your race" I kept saying to myself. I was in a great mental state and I was determined to stay there.

On the second loop I definitely felt stronger and was picking up the pace a bit, particularly on the hills. Once I got to Canal Rd, however, I was keeping up my pace but there was a LOT more traffic - from the sprint-distance athletes who had just come onto the bike leg. I was able to weave in and out fine, but as I heard the sound of a race official's motorcycle approaching from behind I worried that the traffic might make differentiating traffic from drafting violations difficult. In the end I got no penalty, however.

Canal Rd. was definitely the best part of the ride. For some reason it was just as fast going out as it was going back, and for some reason (optical illusion?) it looks like you are heading downhill no matter which way you are going. Both ways I was able to crank out 22,23,24 mph and keep it for long stretches.

As I came down the ramp from the Whitehurst freeway to Rock Creek Blvd I noticed large potholes in the cracks in the road. About 200m up there were several bikers working on flats and one being attended to by paramedics. I think the big potholes knocked some racers' water bottles loose and someone must have wrecked on them. I felt bad for that person, I hope she was OK.

In the end I finished 5 min faster than I would be able and also didn't feel totally drained as I had after the bike leg of the Reston Sprint several weeks earlier. I think the difference was finally getting over my sickness from that time and also putting in some longer rides last weekend.


nothing - very pleased with this result

if anything - win the lottery and buy a Cervelo P3 with Zipp wheels...

18/50

Nothing much to report here. Very smooth in and out. I already had my socks on, so changing shoes and racking the bike was a breeze. I put my race belt and hat on, grabbed my running bottle with Perpeteum + Endurolyes and was off.


nothing

As I started out I again felt fantastic. I didn't drink or eat anything right away given my T2 experiences of the last two races (where I felt nauseous right after T2). Instead, I worked myself into a comfortable rythm, only sipping my sports drink when I was ready to. I decided to run with my running-handle-bottle thing so that I could control when I hydrated, thinking that I would be better able to manage any stomach issues. The plan worked well.

It started drizzling a bit at around the 2.5 mile mark which felt great - lucky for me I was done with the bike at that point! At around mile 4 I felt a tad weak and decided to gulp down a Hammer Gel. No nausea afterwards luckily.

I was able to pick up my pace on all of the downhill segments without issue.

As I came down the last hill heading toward Constitution for the last time I still felt good and picked up my pace even more. Once at Constitution the volunteers were saying 'last turn, you will see the finish line when you turn!" and I was confused. I had forgotten that Constitution intersects with Pennsylvania close to the Capitol, and sure enough when I made that turn I could see the finish line about .5k off in the distance. At this point I felt compelled to pick things up and I did, holding on until the end. I wasn't able to make out the numbers on the clock until I was about 25m from the end, and when I did I could hardly believe my eyes - it read 2h 30 min and change. Given I started in the third wave I knew that meant I had broken 2h 30 min, a time I didn't think I would be able to achieve. I was thrilled! Woo-hoo!


nothing - could not have gone better

Drank a glass of Hammer Recoverite as soon as I could (yes, I'm turning into a Hammer Nuitrition billboard...)


not having a kick-ass bike

In retrospect, I think the biggest factor contributing to my better-than-expected performance was the weather conditions. If the temp had been even 5 degrees warmer I think I would have had a much tougher time on the run, and I think that is leg where I most exceeded my expectations (my best time in a fresh 10k is 44:50).




Regarding the race itself, this race was very well run. The organizers, I believe, thought through every last detail. Also, it was just big enough to make it exciting, but not so big that it was annoying. I've heard that the Nation's Triathlon - which has 2-3x more competitors - can be very crowded, to the point where everyone's times suffer. This race felt just right.

I hope they come back again next year, I'd do this race again in a heartbeat.