This was my first salt water swim, and I enjoyed it. The 35-39 AG was late middle wave, so we had some waiting to do. As we got closer, my heart started to pump, and my teeth began to chatter. I wasn't nervous, just excited. My feet hit the water, and I positioned myself in the front to the right. When the horn sounded, I took a few running steps, than just dove right in. The first few hundred yards were a little tight, but as soon as I hit the first buoy, I was clear of my wave. Each time I would site, I saw no more lime green caps (the 35-39 color), and began to catch the other waves. The swim was quite nice, and I was never really pushing the pace at all, but perhaps should have. Just kept telling myself: reach, pull, extend..



Not much, siting went well. Drafting could have been better, but to be truthful I really couldn't find a good draft.

Good T1. long run to bike out, so having shoes clipped in helped.

nothing.

Very good bike, I just hammered away. Last year, I descended into my bike efforts, as I just wasn't sure how I would hold up throughout. This year is going to be a more consistent effort, and this worked much better. I made the decision to shoot for 300 watts, as based on training that was very attainable. However, I would also make the decision on the fly to ease off or push more it if felt right and resulted in more speed. There was definitely some wind out there, as the course was flat and my speed would change big time when we changed direction.





Push more. I think I could have hit 24 mph....I was actually there at one point, and lost it...I definitely gave it a good go. I'll hit 24 before the season is over for this distance.

Awful T2. First, the guy in front of me came to a screeching stop at the dismount line. Than I went down the wrong rack row. Big mistake and one I should not be making. 30 seconds just thrown away.

spot my rack better.

This was a good run, though I left some out there. To be honest, I didn't know I could hold 6:40's for this....I mean, I've never done it before. We were just going off training numbers, and we expected 6:30-6:45.

After racking my bike, I knew I was in good position. I came out of the water and saw no green caps in front of me during the swim, and only one person passed me on the bike. So I knew I was in a very good spot in the AG race. So I just ran, slightly holding back, but mainly just went. The trail was very tight, and traffic was going both ways. I just kept passing people, and each person in my sights in front of me was my enemy. Mentally, it was my job to catch them, and if I couldn't, there would be consequences. The first mile came in around 6:48 or so, and I knew I could go faster, so I did. The next few were high 6:30s. Final two were around 6:40s and I was just holding on. I looked at my watch, and set my carrot of 2:10, and just pushed for it. I could hear the chips ringing off in the distance, and knew the finish was close. I gave the final push, and hit the line at 2:11:07. One person passed me on the run.


Push more and go. Trust myself more. I need to fall back blindly into my training and trust it. I could have gone 6:35 if I wanted it....Next olympic I will.

Got some water, and walked around. After 10 minutes, all of a sudden, BOOM...threw up. Luckily there was a palm tree and I just tucked under it and let it go. I smiled to myself...I had given it a good go. My body had been defeated...and that's the goal. To beat yourself.


Not much. Awful T2 and not pushing the run to my potential.


This is a good race that can test your ability early on in the season. Also, this is very early in my training, and now I know that I am hitting race targets based on training. Huge confidence builder.

In the end, I can look at the results two ways. Age group results. 3/110 in my AG and 13/965 Age group overall. Or 72/1112 including everyone, guys like Matt Chrabot, Chris Lieto and Matty Reed. Elites who have been doing this for years.

The AG results give me a sense of accomplishment, like I achieved a lot. The overall results forces me to see I actually got my ass kicked. For a day, I allowed myself to enjoy the AG finish of 3/110. It's good, but no where close to great. I want great.

Now, the 72 becomes the focus. Can I chip away at that?

There is only one way to find out.