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The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz
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The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz - TriathlonOlympic
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 Swim
Comments: Plunging into the water, it was chilly, but not frigid as feared. It was, however, very wavy. I was rocking back and forth and the water was coming midway over my head every few seconds. It was a little disconcerting but I wasn't in a panic. I also knew that my normal swim stroke wasn't going to fly today. I kept my head up and paddled so I could keep my face above the swells and continue to see where I was going. It was somewhat slow going but I could see that I was making progress and there were plenty of other swimmers and kayaks around, so I wasn't drifting completely back. I did try to look around at a couple of points during the swim to see the Bay Bridge, Golden Gate, and Alcatraz. Unfortunately, I was distracted by the swells in the water, so I didn't get to appreciate the perspective as much as I would have liked. About 20 minutes in, I asked a kayaker how I was doing on direction and he said that I should start turning toward the third building at Fort Mason, so I changed direction slightly to the west and kept going. I think that is when I started veering off course. About 28 minutes in, another kayaker approached me and told me that I was going too far west and would need to be repostitioned. If I kept going, I was going to miss the cove we were aiming for and end up beyond the land mass that created the cove at Marina Green. A boat picked me and two other swimmers up and put us back on course. I was disappointed, but they told us that repositioning wouldn't penalize us but refusing to get repositioned would result in a DQ. Of course, I knew they were there to look out for our safety and I was going to do whatever they said regardless of the result, but I was relieved to know that I would be able to continue. We reached the reposition point and they asked if we wanted to get back in and continue - the answer, of course, was absolutely! I jumped off the back of the boat and continued to swim. This time, I was aiming directly for the platform. I hit it and exited the water, hearing the announcer call my name. I was relieved and happy - I don't think I will ever be afraid of a swim again. I found Jenna as I headed into transition and told her about the swim. We were both relieved that I came out okay. What would you do differently?: I think that if I kept heading even further esat than recommended, I would have stayed entirely on course. Since I was moving slowly, I should have overcompensated. I am disappointed that I had to be set back on course, and I think that aiming really far east would have prevented that.  Transition 1
Comments: Slow transition, but after getting out of the water, the rest of the day was icing on the cake. What would you do differently?: Nothing - I knew the bike would be chilly, so I took the time to put on arm warmers and a vest  Bike
Comments: The bike course was beautiful and challenging. It goes through the Presidio, along the coast, to the SF Zoo, back through Golden Gate Park, and back through the Presidio to transition. The views were phenomenal, but since the course had a lot of hills and I needed to be on my guard, I didn't get to take them in as I would like. I rented a bike for the event since I didn't want to have to transport my bike and do the disassembly and re-assembly. I rented a Specialized Roubaix Expert road bike. I was able to pick it up on our way from the airport to the hotel on Friday. While it was a nice bike, it was still an unfamiliar bike and I was on roads I had never ridden before. I took the course as conservatively as possible. It was very hilly and there were turns at the bottom of most downhills - not a situtaion in which to take any chances. Besides, I knew the run course was also going to be tough. I just cruised through most of the course - burned my legs on the uphills, used caution on the downhills, and tried to take in some fluid on the flats (there weren't many!). After battling the hills for an hour and 45 minutes, transition was back in view and it was time to start the run. I was glad to be done with the bike - I didn't want to have an accident, especially on a bike that isn't mine. What would you do differently?: Nothing - my goal was to finish in one piece and stay well above the course cutoffs. I was in great shape. Transition 2
Comments: Took my time and got ready to run. I decided to leave the arm warmers but keep the vest on.  Run
Comments: After an already challenging morning, I knew that the run had a few more challenges in store, and my running has been off this year, to say the least. I just wanted to get through as efficiently as I could. I started with a light jog, hoping to maintain it until I got under the bridge. When I got to the tunnel, which you have to duck to get into, I started to walk a bit, and then when I hit the stairs, I walked a bit more. I walked the uphills and ran the downhills, picking up the pace on the downhill leading to Baker Beach. When I got on the sand, I slowed back down to a walk. I knew the sand ladder was coming up and it was the last big challenge of the race. Having already climed some stairs, I knew my legs were starting to tire. I got to the ladder (it is a series of logs tied together and laid up a sand dune - there are 400 'stairs'). I grabbed the cable that goes along it and pulled myself up, one at a time. I refused to look up and see how far I had to go until I counted 100 steps. I glanced up after each 100 or so and could see the progress. Finally, I hit the top and the ladder section was complete. Only about a 5k left to the finish, and a lot of it was either downhill or flat. I struggled to get along the trails and down the stairs to mile five. Along the way, I met a guy named Andy. He was from Georgia. We passed the time by talking a little and reflecting on the evnt so far. We agreed to start into a run - a slow run, but running nonetheless. He went ahead for a bit, but I caught up to him at the mile six aid station. We ran together a little more. When we got about a half mile from the finish, I told him I wanted to see what I had left and broke into a faster run. I was emptying the tank as the finish chute came into view. It was exciting to enter the chute. I started clapping and taking in the moment. I raised my arms as I crossed the line and the announcer called my name again. I saw Jenna and after crossing the, circled back around to find her. I felt better on this run than I have all year. I ran a good bit of it and didn't fall into survival mode. I felt strong approaching the line and even had a little bit left to pick up the pace toward the end. This was one of the better run efforts I have had recently - the time doesn't relect it, but that is more a result of the course and the competition. What would you do differently?: Nothing - I knew that the sand ladder section would be tough and wanted to conserve a bit to get through it. Post race
Warm down: We collected my things, and Jenna showed me some souvenirs she bought at the store. They offered a nice finisher's jacket for $20 if you showed your medal, and that was too good a deal to pass up, so I bought one. I wanted to get returning the bike out of the way, so I decided to ride it to the shop and take a cab back to the hotel. I should have checked the map for the most direct route, because I made an error in routing. I turned south too early and ended up on Russian Hill. I climbed the first two steep blocks, but finally gave in and walked the bike the rest of the way up the hill....then I saw the downhill. There was no way I was taking the chance of riding down a hill that steep and trying to stop at the bottom for a stop sign - so I walked it down. Finally, I made it to the shop and returned the bike. I took a cab back to the hotel and started to get cleaned up. Jenna went next door to a pizza place and ordered for us. When I got clean and went next door, the food was on its way. We had a nice lunch and then resteed for a while. That night, we went to Fisherman's Wharf and had dinner. Our table had a beautiful view of the Bay and Alcatraz. It was the perfect end to a great day. What limited your ability to perform faster: Limited experience in choppy water, trepidation with an unfamilar bike and roads, and limited run training due to injury in July Event comments: Tri California did a first class job with this race. It was extremely organized, on time, and the athletes were well taken care of and looked after. They thought of every little detail to make it a great experience for the participants and keep us safe. I am sure it is an extremely difficult event to coordinate and they did an unbelieveable job. I would highly recommend this or any of their other events. Last updated: 2009-12-17 12:00 AM
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 2010-09-02 10:02 AM |
Master  1696     Surprise, Arizona |  Subject: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz |
| 2010-09-02 10:38 AM in reply to: #3078248 |
Regular 439 Tempe | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Way to go Brian! I'm so glad you had a fun experience out there and one not to be forgotten anytime soon. Great job and I can't wait to see you up at Silverman. |
| 2010-09-02 10:57 AM in reply to: #3078248 |
Elite 2645 Phoenix, AZ | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Congrats, Brian! That's one helluva a race and report. That's on my bucket list for sure. |
| 2010-09-02 11:09 AM in reply to: #3078248 |
Veteran 163 | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Congratulations on your fantastic race! |
| 2010-09-02 11:39 AM in reply to: #3078248 |
Champion 5781 Northridge, California | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Good job...thanks for sharing your report. Funny to see someone else mention both the reaction to the announcement of the water temperature and the tunnel on the run...both were definitely memorable moments from the day. |
| 2010-09-02 3:15 PM in reply to: #3078248 |
Master 2411 Goodyear, AZ | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Congrats Brian! Sounds like an all around great experience and a fun getaway with Jenna! I have known you since we got into this crazy tri stuff, and I know how big of an issue the swim was for you. To hear about you complete one of the toughest swims in triathlon is just so awesome! I hope you are very proud of yourself!
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| 2010-09-02 3:35 PM in reply to: #3078248 |
Master 2210 Columbus, OhioCoaching member | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Congrats! Some of my friends did this race .. glad to hear it was a good experience! |
| 2010-09-02 9:23 PM in reply to: #3078248 |
| Pro 3715 AZ | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Awesome!!! You just continue to push yourself to, and past, amazing goals! I never doubt you will surpass them! |
| 2010-09-05 1:01 PM in reply to: #3078248 |
Extreme Veteran 435 Phoenix, AZ | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Nice work Brian, great job not letting your brain hold you back about the swim!! It is an amazing course to race on, glad you had a good experience! |
| 2010-09-06 8:06 AM in reply to: #3078248 |
Veteran 536 Long Island, NY | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Brian, Great Race! I know it's a funny feeling to jump off a perfectly good boat in the middle of the water but what a cool way to start a race. |
| 2010-09-26 5:47 PM in reply to: #3078248 |
Extreme Veteran 611 Casa Grande, Az. | Subject: RE: The San Francisco Triathlon at Alcatraz Great, detailed race report! Would love to do this race...look forward to "running" into you at Prospector! |
| General Discussion-> Race Reports! |
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I am a worrier by nature, and I tend to worry about things that can go wrong in races to the point of obession. As a result, being anxious going into a race is nothing new. However, the anxiety before this race was new - it was beyond the norm and was actually fear. I was scared about the swim and if I would be able to complete it. Two nights before the race, I even had a five minute conversation with myself about DNSing. I convinced myself that I was just being silly and I would take baby steps on Sunday morning. First, get on the bus to go to the pier. Second, get on the ferry to go to Alcatraz. Third, jump off the ferry. Fourth, start the swim - so on and so forth, and see how far I could get.
My friend Rick had sent me a bunch of great advice regarding the event and how well monitored the swim course was. This helped to put my mind at ease. I knew deep down that I was physically prepared, that I would be safe, and that my mind was my only limiter. There were three possibilities once I jumped off the ferry - finish, give up, or get pulled from the course. If I removed giving up from the equation, I would either finish or it would be out of my control. I made this deal with myself.
The day before the race, I walked down to the transisiton area and checked out the swim. It looked far, but I am used to swim 'courses' - out and back or around bouys, not one point to another. I knew that 1.2 miles was well within my capabilities and there would be no turnaround - just swim from there to here. The issue was the conditions - on Saturday, the winds were high, and the water was really choppy. It was pretty intimidating to look at. At the pre-race meeting, they did a test swim - they reported four foot swells and out of the 11 swimmers they took out, they only let 4 make the swim. Needless to say, my fears remained. They said that Saturday's conditions were unusual, and hoped for better conditions on Sunday for the race.
We settled in pretty early at the hotel, but I only got about 3.5 hours of sleep.
We walked to transition and I got set up. I was done in plenty of time to get on the first bus to the pier. Even though there was a lot of idle time, it passed quickly - chatting with other athletes, running back and forth to the restroom and getting the wetsuit on properly. Before we knew it, the boat started up and we were on our way to the island. We put our morning clothes into the race bags they had provided us (which would be returned to us back in transition - they really thought of everything!) and took in the sights of the Bay as we made our way to the start.
They announced that the water temp was 59 and conditions were much calmer than they had been on Saturday - a relief. They also told us to sight toward the ship that was in front of the Ghirardelli sign and then change course toward the west as you made progress.
On the boat, I met another athlete named Sylvia who was also pretty nervous. She asked if I wanted to jump into the water at the same time and start the swim together. The thought of having a 'swim buddy' to keep an eye out for me was really appealing, so I agreed.
The boat arrived at Alcatraz and everyone started to make their way downstairs to the jump off platform. Rick had already told me there was no time when you get to the platform to think - once you get there, you need to jump - no pausing. Knowing this, I approached the platform and jumped into the Bay. It was underway.