We were supposed to start at 7:00 but went off late. The tide was going out so it felt like we waded half-way to the first buoy. Normally I would be out in front, but between not swimming much this season and hoping that people in front would push any jellies out of the way, I started in back. This turned out to be a mistake because I could have started swimming much sooner, but it was too hard to get around all of the women who were continuing to wade. So I just kept strolling until we all got started.

I had a hard time seeing the buoys with the chop in the water. In fact, I really couldn't see them at all until I was maybe 25-50 yards away from them. I asked a few lifeguards along the way if I was heading in the right direction, and finally one of them suggested that I just follow everyone else. That seemed to work out well, and in retrospect I should have just done that instead of struggling to see.

The Endurance Nation DVD talks about staying within the box, and that was translated in my mind while I was swimming to "Stay within your head, stay within your head." About half-way through the swim my hand hit something substantial - in my mind it felt like what a jelly should feel like. I popped up, gasped, actually said out loud, "Stay within your head!" and dove back into the water. In retrospect, I believe said jellyfish was actually a ziploc baggie.

Ultimately, the swim ended up being much easier than I imagined it would be. I was VERY glad, however, that we had gone open-water swimming in Sandbridge. I know it would have been much more difficult, with the chop and also the "mental" aspect of it, if we hadn't.

Bottom line, I was really proud of myself for sucking it up and facing my fears about the jellyfish. I put some mental fortitude in the bank for the future.

Position myself in front. Don't blow off 50% of my swim workouts. Stop freaking out about the jellyfish.

AG: 3/20; Gender: 21/95

Wow! Finally a good transition! These seem to be getting faster for me, but I know a big factor is stripping it down to the basics (i.e., no gloves.)



I can't think of anything - 3rd in my AG. I do want to practice taking off my wetsuit more, however. I should be able to get my leg out in one-fell swoop instead of going back and forth a bit.

This course is advertised as flat, and with the exception of a few small false flats it lives up to its billing. I thought it might get congested, but it was actually fine for the most part. I only had one incident where a guy passed me and decided to cut in front without making sure he had completed the pass, and another time there was a group riding three abreast which was making it hard to pass. A loud, "Move over, Cervelo!" took care of that situation.

I was hoping to average 20 mph but after taking stock (the false flats, the wind) I realized I would have to be happy with the 19 range. I made a point of standing up every three miles (Garmin beeped to remind me), and it made a huge difference in how my hamstrings felt when I got off the bike.

My inexperience at this distance showed in that I wasn't sure how I should pace the bike. I didn't think a sprint pace was appropriate because of the longer run, but I didn't want to lollygag either. I ended up averaging a high Z3 for a 19.47 mph average, and I think I could have pushed it a bit more.

Another way my inexperience showed was that I should have been carrying more fluids on the bike. I figured with approx. 1:15 on the bike, one large water bottle and one small one would be fine, but I didn't realize how thirsty I would be after swimming for almost 30 minutes first. It didn't ultimately end up being a big deal, but next time I'll bring two large bottles.

Bring two large bottles on the bike. Push a bit harder - maybe low Z4?

AG: 7/20; Gender: 42/95

Another good transition. I could speed this up with a flying dismount. Need tri shoes first, though.

Tri shoes so I can do a flying dismount.

I really enjoyed this run. The view of the sound was a great distraction, and since I knew several other people who were racing it was fun to keep an eye out for them and cheer as they came down the other side of the loop.

I made a point of trying to learn from others (Run along the inside of the turn? Great idea!) and spent some time wishing I had more fluids on the bike. It was hard to take in fluids on the run as evidenced by my Gatorade nasal rinse, but it was better than nothing.

As I approached the finish line I started thinking about what I had accomplished, and felt really proud and excited. In all of my finish line photos I have a gigantic smile on my face which reflected how happy I truly was. I can only imagine how it will feel to finish a HIM next year.



Again, I wasn't sure how hard to push the run, and looking back I know I could have run harder because I still felt pretty fresh when the race was over. However, I was thrilled with how good this run felt, particularly when I could see that others were having a harder time. Olys appear to have more people doing a death march than sprints!

Learn how to drink from a cup.

We had cold-water soaked towels at the finish line which felt great! I signed up for a post-race massage per Deb's suggestion, and that was a great idea! Jeff said that the difference in how freely I moved when I got on the table vs. when I got off was like night and day.

Overall, I was thrilled with my results in this race. I beat my "if everything goes perfect" goal by 4 minutes and took 5th in my AG, so I was really psyched.

I am 100% hooked on the Olympic distance. I think sprints are great, but for me I really loved the fact that this race was longer. It felt "weightier" and my sense of accomplishment was HUGE! In fact, I highly doubt I will do a sprint distance race again. My focus now is going to be on Oly and above.


Lack of swim training. I still don't have all of my running speed back from my knee injury over the winter. I should have done more interval work on the bike.


Given how concerned I was going into this race about things like the jellyfish and how crowded the course would be, I was surprised as to how smoothly it actually went and how much fun I had.

Nice long-sleeve tech t-shirt, and good post-race food. The loops also made for a very spectator-friendly race (I was able to see Jeff multiple times), and the crowd support was good. I will definitely do this race again next year.