One of the worst 10 minutes slices of my life. It ranks right up there with having braces adjusted, being poked in the eye with a sharp stick, and colonoscopies (from what i hear).
i just couldn't relax, so the breathing thing was a big struggle.

there's just no substitute for experience!
if i could have been more relaxed, and confident, the outcome would have been different.

Nailed it!
Ran straight to my bike, and wasted no time getting glass and helmet on. Velcroed the shoes easily, and ran with the bike out of T1. I couldn't have done it any more smoothly.

Nothing.

Helluva bike effort for me. When i got out of the pool, my HR was at 180. Yikes! So I was pretty warmed up - haha! I settled into a 170's HR right off the bat. I attacked all the hills - both up and down. I made the decision that I would aim for a sub 1hr bike time. I knew there was a good chance of getting a good time by pulling off that feat. and since I knew I spent about 2 minutes longer in the pool than I had budgeted, I had to stick to my goal on the bike.
I felt awesomely strong the last 3 miles of the bike leg, which is where the major hill was. I picked two cyclists ahead of me, and told myself I would beat them no matter what. I caught them on the hill while one was passing another. I walked them both like they were standing still. That gave me a great boost heading into the turn at the top of the hill. I made my goal by 5 seconds. Those would prove to be important, precious seconds later on.

Maybe I would drink less?? I never felt extremely thirsty, and I never had to pee, so I was right in that sweet spot, in theory. But I may have overdone it a bit because I got the sloshy, full stomach feeling right away on the next segment.
Otherwise, I am very proud of myself for this effort.

Again, nailed it! Just like I practiced. Unbuckled my helmet with one hand, while guiding the bike with the other. Racked the bike and dumped the helmet. Got the velcro off quickly and switched shoes in a matter of seconds. Took off running with gel/water bottle in one hand, and race belt in the other.

Absolutely nothing.

OUCH! From the second I hit the run course, I was afflicted with a nasty side-ache. Usually, I'm able to run them off in a mile or so. not this one. It lasted every step of the way. The look on my face during the run couldn't have said anything other than PAIN. It was one of the most miserable 5M of my life. Giving everything I had on the bike definitely played a part in my not being able to accomplish my running goal. I don't want to be too down on myself here, because I learned some things that will be valuable in my next tri, but good lord this was a difficult run! I will say that I had a very nice finish, out-sprinting several other racers to the finish. It felt good to reach top speed for a couple hundred meters at the end.

finish the bike leg more in control of my HR, so i could be poised to attack the run, rather than suffer through it.

walked deleriously around the site, talking with the wife and friends. did a few basic stretches, too. Every few minutes, I went through bouts of feeling viciously ill, and then feeling fine. I'd feel hungry one second, and nauseous the next. I was starving, but couldn't eat anything. This continued for the next 8 hours. I felt pretty shitty all day, as a result of pushing myself so hard. For 5 hours post-race, I was only able to injest 3 saltines. And they weren't even salty like I hoped. So I just called them 'tines.'

In all of my pre-race preparations in the days and weeks before the event, I looked at previous race results. I compared them to how I thought I would do. Who would I have to beat? Whose time could I match? etc. I chose one name, the 5th place name, in fact, that would be a great goal for me. I figured if I put up those kinds of times, I would be very happy with my race. Well, he and I went head to head. We didn't know eachother. We still don't. But I do know that I beat him by 3 seconds. 3 Very precious seconds. :)



nearly drowning was a limiting factor. it was not the start i had hoped for. but i bounced back nicely.


Seems like there was a great turnout. A lot of competitors signed up in the very last week. THe course is great, and the volunteers are helpful.