The swim looked long and felt long -- and based on the top times with how good the field was, I would probably put it closer to 2100 yards. Was able to work my near the front before the start. Jump off the dock into the muck was not fun. Got out good but found myself stuck between the lead back and another group, which was fine, but I really struggled with sighting. After the first turn, it was nearly 1000 yards to the next turnaround buoy, which I couldn't see because it was directly in the sun.

Did my best to find it and heading back to the finish was fairly easy after the turn. Swam in the 18" inches of water and pulled myself onto the dock to avoid stepping into the muck again.

Refocus faster. I was still a little unnerved about nearly missing transition and pissed at the ignorance of some of the athletes while the paratriathletes were swimming. I need some more OWS swimming where I focus on just pushing myself harder.

I felt like I had too much left after the swim compared to usual.

Although the time was 'respectable' for T1, this was a disaster. I felt slow and sluggish getting into my gear and the cold and wind didn't make it any easier. To make up for it I tried to run a little faster with my bike. Kept getting caught up on it, so I picked it up and ran... and then I fell.

Yep, I caught my feet in my pedals or my wheel and basically flipped myself and my bike over in the middle of transition. Thank goodness it was grass but as I found out later it still left a pretty solid war wound on the back/shoulder/hip. I would like to thank the two competitors who passed me while I was sprawled out for NOT asking me if I was ok...it's ok, I passed them again on the bike and then beat them overall. I'm not saying stop and help, at least ask if I'm alright.

Got up quick, ran to the exit (slower this time) and spent a few seconds fixing my chain which had popped off in the fall.

learn to run with bike. Getting Velcro bike shoes in 2015 so will no longer be putting shoes on in T1

Collected myself quickly and refocused (AGAIN) at the start of the bike. The bike was going to be tough due to the strong winds (approximately 15mph) and the cold temps (50s). Biking in those conditions with wet gear sucks, but it gets you to push it. Slow and hard heading out 19-20 mph heading into the winds, 24-28mph heading back with the winds. A fair amount of crosswind as well.

I got comfortable early because of the wind, but realized I had to bike harder to try to hit my goals. I tried to get as low as I could on my bike and just pedal like hell -- take advantage of the winds as much as possible. I got energy each time I passed one of the guys that passed me in T1. Came back as hard as I could. The finish was a little frustrating because there was a no passing zone to finish and I got caught behind some sprint bikers. Used it to spin out my legs and get ready for the run.

Maybe push harder earlier. Last race with a standard road bike (no aero handles) so getting lower is going to be possible to do. Looking to buy a Tri Bike in the near future. Super excited because I'm sure it will help drop my biking times and get my a little more competitive in this discipline.

A much smoother transition. Got in and out fast and without incident. T2 was nearly a half mile long before hitting the running mat.

Nothing. Next year with the new gear I will be able to actually get my shoes off on the bike so will save some time there. Looking forward to eliminating another action in the transitions

Run was changed from 10k to 5 mile, so I knew this would work in my favor. Pushed hard to make up as much ground as I could from the swim/bike legs. I was pushing for sub 6:00/mile pace for the run. Hit first 2 in 11:43 and the 5k in 18:00 and was still feeling strong. Saw two guys in my age group at the turnaround way ahead and figured I would make a go at trying to catch them.

Just kept hammering it and listening to my body and was reeling them in slowly. Pushed as hard as I could the last half mile (down to 5:40 pace) and passed the one and got close to the other. That last surge proved to be crucial in my final AG/OA placement. Since the guy who got first in our AG was 3rd OA, he was out of the AG awards. I ended up winning the AG by 1 second (to the guy I passed) and 3rd was 6 seconds behind me (the guy I was close to at the end). I knew it was going to be close just didn't know until the results were final.

Not much, I pretty much left it out on the course because I knew it was my last race this season. I messed with my nutrition leading up the race, and it made a difference in not messing with my stomach on the hard run.

In the end I need to run more and keep working on my speed workouts. 20 miles a week is not enough to feel comfortable in the olympic distance.

Sat on my butt, ate, drank some beers, checked results.


mostly fitness, some mind games. This was the first triathlon I have had where things didn't go as planned -- I knew it was coming, but this was a lot at once. I was happy with how things went overall and how I responded. Looking forward to Season 3 in 2015


Normally I always give Delmo a 5, but the traffic situation getting into the venue was out of control. I spent nearly 45 minutes by the venue in traffic trying to enter. Besides that, it was an awesome race as usual. Safe, fun, fast.