It was my first Triathlon and my inexperience showed in the beginning of the swim. I started in the middle of the pack and got caught up in a sea of humanity as we approached the first buoy. It was difficult to get a decent stroke going because I kept hitting people and getting hit. It was difficult to get a breath because of the splashing water and I ended up taking in quite a bit. After the first turn, I had to stop and clear myself of the water and catch my breath. After that, I settled into a comfortable pace and thought I finished strong.

I will either start at the front row or off to the side in my next race to try to avoid that same situation.

Once I crossed the transponder on the beach I slowed down to let my HR settle. I picked up the pace entering the transition area.I had everything organized, thanks to the great info available on this site, and felt I did a pretty good job of getting glasses, helmet and shoes on efficiently.

I am going to practice keeping my shoes clipped to the pedals. I found running with the bike wearing bike shoes was a little difficult, and then it took my 2 tries to get clipped in. Other than that, my T time can be reduced with more experience.

I had only done one session where I did a short swim and then got on the bike, just to see what it was like to cycle while wet. I was surprised at how difficult it was to initially get going, as the course started with a slight uphill segment. My stomach was upset, probably from swallowing so much salt water at the beginning of the swim and it definitely affected my performance. I felt stronger during the last half of the ride than I did at the beginning.I just started training 2 1/2 months ago and have not accumulated much saddle time. Did not do any structured workouts, as I was just trying to get my butt used to being on the bike. Got my clipless pedals and shoes the week before the race.

I was a little disappointed in my bike time, but feel that I can definitely improve it with more formal training. Now that this race is behind me I will concentrate on a more structured training regimen. I have signed up to do the Tropical Triathlon in Lake Worth in September and look forward to having a much better pace during the bike.

This was a relay, with my 11 year old son doing the running leg. After 2 surgeries on each knee, my running days are long gone, so I'm thankful for my excited little buddy to help me do something I've always wanted to do. I entered the Transition area and saw my son standing at the rack with a huge smile on his face, ready to go. I slapped his hand and told him to take off and he reminded me to rack my bike and give him the ankle chip!! Just a minor thing, especially with a guy in a striped shirt standing right there! He took off running, with goal of beating his mom, who was about 1 minute behind me. He achieved that goal, finishing about 30 seconds ahead of her.

Not a thing. The look on my son's face when I entered the Transition area was priceless.

See comments above

Lot's of water available, courtesy of a local church.


Definitely inexperience, but I was not expecting to do much better due to limited training time. My goal was to complete the event.