i did my first sprint tri on 9/6 at freeport with no training and did the backstroke the whole time just to get thru the swim...i was hooked after that race and have been training ever since for this one. this was technically my first real experience in an open water swim. it is TOTALLY different from the pool, that's for sure...i knew that but didnt think it would be that much different due to the fact it was in fresh water that would not have any waves or be choppy....OH YEAH...EARTH TO JASON, THERE ARE 54 OTHER GUYS AROUND YOU GOING THE SAME DIRECTION...THIS IS NO SOLO STROLL IN THE POOL!.....i felt really good entering the water and the course was not intimidating at all...i started in the front of the pack and started out well..not used to getting hit and pulled and pushed down yet but should get better with more events under my belt. First 200m felt good, felt like i had sort of gotten my breathing under control and was getting my stroke down and was feeling ok....wasnt really used to have to look up to find out where i was so i feel that having to lift my head up every once in a while had an effect on my rhythm and was also fatiguing me little by little...rounded first bouy and kind of felt like "man i feel like i am running out of steam, but i swim 1500m in the pool with no rest"...well, i think that was my first big mistake, thinking to myself and letting it get to my head that i was feeling tired...WOW, what a difference anxiety makes in the water...i have heard from different training vids and people saying that "if you get anxious or nervous in the water you will not float as well" ....that is 100% true!...i felt like i was pointing forward, pulling, and kicking not just to move forward, but also to just stay afloat...rounding second bouy....stretch to the finish..."WOW i am really not feeling this now....cant get my breathing under control, and letting the voices in my head get to me and my goggles are fogged up, OK Jason, get it together" the only thing i knew to do at this point was to pause for a second, flip my googles up to clear them and regroup...ok goggles clear...."put your head in the water and swim like you do in the pool, dont think about anything but what you have done the past 6 weeks while training"....well that worked because before i knew it i was coming up to the finish and i put my feet down and proceed to hit the mat and pull my googles off and off to the bike we go...little more fatigued than i thought i would have been but the swim was over..

practice more in open water with other people training around me. practice more in the water doing sprint swims right off the bat to get out ahead and then fall into my race pace that i know i can sustain for the rest of the race.

My T1 was slower than i would have liked....everything went really well except for getting my shirt on...i didnt swim with a top on and had trouble getting it on during transition...got stuck right under my right shoulder...arms were a little tired and being wet didnt help...should have ditched the shirt the first sign that it wasnt going on as fast as i wanted...quickly dried feet, got socks on, shoes on, helmet and sunglasses and here we go!

left the shirt and rode without it...

this is my weakest of the 3 sports but getting better every training session....i felt really good on the bike...just need more time in the saddle and it will get better...

hydration was just right....36oz of Orange Flavored Gatorade(Bottle and 1/2) during the ride...none the last 10 min. so not to have too much liquid in my stomach for the beginning of the run to prevent stomach cramps....

not much...i probably could have pushed it a little bit harder but wanted to save my legs as much as possible because i knew i could make up some time on the run if i needed as long as i didnt wear myself out on the bike..

not much to do....sunglasses off,helmet off, hat on, sunglasses back on....

nothing

run felt good.legs felt good right off the bike..got my breathing rhythm under control about 1/2 mile into it...settled into my 8:30-9:00min/mile running cadence and relaxed..i liked started out on the trail around the swim course...the crushed granite is easier on the legs and then around the bayou on the compacted dirt and then out on the road.....i wish they would have had Mile 1 and Mile 2 marked somewhere to be able to get my split times...made it a little difficult to know exactly what my pace was but not that big of a deal...its just nice to know....took a GU Energy Gel Tri-Berry flavored at 2nd water station which was roughly around mile 2....

nothing really......

grabbed a water and banana and streched....hung out with our group and drank some complimentary Michelob Ultras :)


nothing really....


my first sprint i did 7 weeks ago was i freeport with a 500yd swim compared to this one that was a 500m swim.....did that one with about 2 weeks of training mainly running and biking some and did it in 1hr 53min...since then condensed the sprint training plan that had bike emphasis here on BT and shaved off 24min from my time...my goal was to be under 1hr 30min and i beat my goal by 55 sec......felt really good....time to start training for the next one!