We started on the beach and although there were only 29 in my wave, we managed to bang into each other a lot. Not sure how that happened. Once I found clear water, I started to drift to the left a lot. Had to keep correcting the whole time. Once I corrected too much and ended up in oncoming traffic. Oops, sorry. After the turn, I cleared my goggles and started back. The return trip was easier, but I still had trouble staying straight. This time I was drifting to the right. It was then that I realized the wind was pushing me around. That wind would surely come back and push on me again on the bike. Lovely.

I wasn't sure how hard to push the swim knowing that I still had 42 miles to go, so I kind of took it easy. Not as easy as my time shows, as that makes it seem that I was floating around on a raft with a cold beverage. Really, I was trying to swim at a reasonable pace. I've been putting a lot of effort into my swim and have not seen the results I'd like. Next step is to focus some weight training on the upper body in hopes to build up my wimpy arms.

This was an average T1 for me. For some reason I could not get my R foot clipped in. I was probably a half mile down the road before I got it sorted out.

Maybe hustle a bit more.

My strategy continues to be go all out on the bike and this is what I did. After getting my pedals straightened out, I started hammering it out. Yea, I know I'm not that fast, but I feel like I've made good progress and the bike is now my strongest leg. Once I got out of town, I started on my food. A piece of Clif and some Gu20. Picked off a few people and then I was all alone. The whole ride, only 2 people passed me; I think I passed about 7. Along the way there were residents cheering. One lady was sitting on the porch ringing a cowbell. How cool is that? The wind was picking up and I knew I had to use it to my advantage since it would be my enemy on the return stretch. At the turn by the church, there were 2 guys ahead of me, but not by much. The volunteers cheered as I approached and I yelled, "Think I can catch them?" They cheered and I took off. Yes, I caught them both. One was that guy that we met last week when we rode this course. I kept rolling along and having a great ride. The bottle exchange was easy and I took a water, just in case I ran dry. I'd already drank all the Gu20. Switched to gel about halfway through. I happened to look at my watch as it rolled to 1 hour and my odometer read 19.3. If only I could have held on to that. When we turned south, the wind killed me. The last 10 miles or so were much harder. Still, it was a great ride and I'm super pleased with the effort.

Not a thing.

This was my first time trying the flying dismount. It worked! My shoes are actually too big, but that means I don't have to reach down and undo velcro. After that, I forgot my ITB strap and had to go back. Grrr. Bad planning.

Remember that strap.

Let the suffering begin! Really, I tried to banish the negative thoughts. I was trying to tell myself that running was fun and I was just floating along. My body called BS on that. So I settled for neutral self talk along the lines of "You can do this. Just don't quit. No, you can't sit on that bench. Keep shuffling. At least you're still moving forward." My ITB strap kept sliding and I had to adjust it three times. I haven't run in the heat and sun because we haven't had any of that weather this summer. Ironic that somehow summer landed on Aug. 2 this year. Nice. The heat really started to get to me and I tried to hug the left side to find some shade, but there wasn't much to be found. The wind that had battered me on the bike helped a little, but it was still pretty brutal. I just kept slogging along and finally finished.

My run training wasn't adequate to get me through this. Plain and simple lack of training. I haven't been running enough and didn't have enough long runs. I'm planning on a half marathon in Oct, so I will have 11 weeks to think about running.

After stumbling across the line just ahead of a guy I'd been trailing, I got a water bottle and found Jeremy. I tried to stretch a bit, but was afraid of falling over. Got some lunch and hung around waiting for results and awards.


1. Swim- sheer lack of arm strength. I've worked on the technique, now I need the power.
2. Run- training. Plain and simple, need more volume.
3. Weight- still looking to drop another 7 pounds.


Super race! Nothing more to say. Waseca will be penciled in with HOLT as soon as I buy a 2010 calendar. Thanks Bill and Wendy!