Since I was feeling confident, I moved my way to the front of the group as we prepared to start. At the gun, I burst out into a sprint and was among the first 2-3. I was breathing every stroke (as I do when I am not relaxed).

After about 200 meters, I started to fade a bit and focused on settling in. At this point, I think was #3 in my wave so I just focused on keeping a steady effort.

Nothing.

I did not get my shoes buckled immediately so let one of them dangle a while. I was testing myself to see if noticed my foot slipping. No slipping. I could have rode the entire leg without the strap. Eventually, I did it.

i jumped on the bike and started to hammer. Since the staggered waves were all over the place (in terms of talent) it was hard to tell where I stood overall. But I was chasing riders down very quickly. No one passed me. After the first lap, I started catching some faster looking bikes, so I figured I was doing ok.

At one point, I got caught behind a car that was creeping along (evidently unaware of a triathlon going on). In front of the car was 3-4 bikes that the car was trying to figure out how to handle. This slowed me down, as it was curvy and I did not want to pass the car, before overtaking 4 other riders (I didn't know if the car saw me and didn't know if they would be moving left to pass). So, I waited a bit and eventually the car pulled over and I jetted past.

I forgot to put my watch in multi-sport mode, but based on the data I have, I think I averaged about 21.5mph. Not bad considering the curvy course that required me to come out of aero frequently.

Nothing more to do. I had a solid effort but without anyone specific to chase, it was mainly just a matter of riding hard.

Good T2

Nothing

I had a good transition and started my run with another athlete already in my sights. I quickly ran by her before I felt a pull in my right calf. The start of a cramp! It didn't catch fully so I slowed a bit and tried to relax. I wished I had drank a bit more on the bike. Since it was such a short course, it was tough to remember to drink!

My watch beeped at the 1 mile mark, and I glanced down to see that the split was 7:45/mile. Not bad for me. That's a pretty quick mile. I tried to relax and keep the same effort.

At the turnaround point, I hit my "lap" button. I was concerned about getting run down by my buddy who was running his first triathlon.

After about 6 minutes I saw him. Knowing I was nearing the end of the run, and about 11-12 minutes ahead, my concern quickly went away.

Shortly after, I saw Jamie running. She was doing great.

In the closing quarter mile, I spotted two more runners. I knew I would run down the lady but wasn't sure about the other. Sure enough, I passed her but finished about 50 yards behind the other guy.

I think I finished the run averaging just under 8 minute miles.

Better hydration during the bike may have helped me run a little better without worrying about a cramp.

I crossed the finish line and quickly went to put a t-shirt on (that wasn't soaked with sweat). Then I headed to the finish line to watch everyone finish. My wife and friends soon crossed and I enjoyed watching tons of kids run across the finish line too.

After that, we had a pancake breakfast and we sat around and ate.

They gave awards and unsurprisingly, Josh finished 1st overall. As they announced the 3rd place athlete at 57min, I started to wonder. I started my watch at the beginning and at the finishe it showed right at 56 minutes. Hmm...did I somehow finish 2nd?

My name wasn't called. I checked the official results later and it showed 58:39. Not sure how my watch was so far off. No clue. And considering there was no chip timer or split times, it's tough to say were the difference lies. No big deal. I officially finished 8th overall.


There's not much I would change. It was mainly a fun race.


We had a great time at this race. It was a small-time, community affair. Most people knew each other. While I don't live in the gated community, it was fun to be a part of it. While it lacked many things bigger races have (trophies, medals, timing chips, better overall competition, swag) it offered some things those other events do not have that made it alot of fun. While not a big time event, lots of fun and a really nice "training" event.