Decent swim but the bouys were fucking tiny. Really only about the size of a beach ball. I was just a lemming and followed eveyone else. I was able to draft fairly well for about 200 yds and then lost the feet I was following. After that it was time to just relax and swim my own race. I knew I need to conserve for the bike. I actually swam in a fairly straight line most of the course.

Nothing really, I'm a slow swimmer. I just need to train more and learn how to swim faster.

Cap and goggles off while running. Helmet and glasses on, socks and shoes on. Grab bike and run/walk through transition.

Nothing. I really like riding with socks. I know I could save a few seconds, but they're really not worth it to me.

Really hilly course with the first hill 1/10 onto the bike. Polar HR monitor says 1045 ft of climbing. Shot my HR up to 179 on the first hill and i realized that I was going to have to just take it easy on the uphills and hammer over the crests and down. I passed a lot of people by doing this and never got passed on the bike (all the fast people were well ahead of me). I drove the course in my car the day before and missed the only point where there was a dead turnaround in the road. It was right at the bottom of a long gradual hill, so I'm hammer the shit of the downhill thinking that I'll have plenty of time to recover on a flat before coming back up. Damn I was WRONG. That was the only hill I really struggled on and it was my own fault.

Mechanical issues:
My rear tire was rubbing my seat tube most of the ride. I thought I had that issue worked out, but I guess not.
Along with my rear tire rub, the rear hub is having some problems. It feels like the bearing are going bad and once during an uphill the freehub completely lost engagement. I thought I was going to DNF for about 10 seconds and just as I was about to stop it picked up again. Really made me tentative for the rest of the ride though.

Hill repeats over and over to prep for this course, but even though it was a local race I didn't put much priority on it.

Shoes off, helmet off, shoes on, grab belt and hat and take off.

Nadda.

My legs were pretty shot from the bike so I took it easy on the out section which by the way was all uphill. At the turnaround I picked things up and negative split the shit out of the run. My watch says I was 4:30 faster on the second half. There was about a 2 minute additional section on the out, but I really picked it up on the way home. I've still got to work out my hydration issues. My stoamche was too full again to drink any water on the course.
There was one water station at about the 1 mile point.
Conversation as I'm approaching the high school girls working it.
HSG's: Water or Gatorade?
Me: Throw the water on me.
HSG's: What?
Me: Throw the water on me.
HSG's: Are you serious?
Me: Hell yes.
So one of them threw water on me as I was running by, it was cold but damn it felt good. I couldn't have forced any down and really didn't want to slow down to grab a cup.

Saw my wife, my daughter and my dad as I was coming in to finish and it really made my race.

My run training has been slacking lately. I really need to run more.

Got a bottled water and sipped on it as I walked around with my daughter. I won my AG but that didn't even come close to seeing the smile on her face as she walked around with me and her saying "Daddy ride bicycle" over and over.


Chest cold all week and newness to swimming and running.


No beer truck after the race so everyone that didn't place headed home, but overall a pretty good time. I'll do it again next year.