Mixed emotions about the swim. The first 100-200 yds were good. I felt relaxed and focused. Then something weird happened. My chest felt tight and I got that same feeling as last year, like I just couldn't do it. I kept telling myself that this was nonsense, and I tried to slow down. I already had an OWS under my belt for the year, so I couldn't blame it on a lack of preperation. Fortunately, a straight line from the start to the first buoy hugs the shoreline. In addition, I tend to veer to the right, which put me right next to dry land. When I realized this... I hate to admit it, but... I stood up and started walking. I figured I needed some kind of break to get my head together. When I dropped off an edge, I knew it was time to get back to business. That respite must have worked because I didn't have any more trouble the rest of the way. In fact, after I got to the first turn buoy, I had settled into a rhythmn and felt pretty strong.
My navigation was possibly the best it's ever been. Whenever I'd pop my head up to sight I was headed toward the next buoy. For most of the second half of the swim I was right along side another guy from my wave. On occassion, I'd pass somebody, which felt pretty good.
Even with the first 20% of the swim being kind of weird, the rest of the swim felt so good, that I was a tad disappointed that I was only 3 min better than last year's time.

Warm up, get my face wet before the start.

Not happy about this. T1 is a real weak link for me. Today, the suit got caught on my leg and I had to sit down to get both legs out. Had a few leg cramps and that slowed me down as well. Glasses were covered with rain spots, so I had to ditch them. I dislike riding without something protecting my eyes.

Practice, practice, practice.

Never got comfortable on this ride. And I mean that you can hurt and still be in focus, but today I didn't have total focus. A big part of it was the rain. I was wet and got chilly, which took some of the edge off. I'm uncomfortable on the steep descents, and that was compounded by the wet pavement. I just didn't have the nerve to get loose, so I lost alot of speed braking on the bigger downhills. I also wasn't in full attack mode on the uphills. Part of it was knowing that I was loosing time on the downhills, and part of it was not knowing what the run was going to be like (why pop an artery when I'm may just be cruising on the run?). I got passed by way too many people - not fun.
There were several spots where bike traffic was a real issue. I was descending and passing people where cyclists were three wide ahead of me and 2-3 wide on the other side of the road. In addition, a USAT motorcycle was in the mix. Not a safe situation.
I'm also not 100% confident in my equipment, specifically the Renn 575. There were several climbs where I believe I could hear the brake pad rubbing the rim. The 575 rim is much wider than the Easton Vista wheels. I really need to look into that so it doesn't cost me time in another race.
I had considered myself a decent to good hill climber, but I think that's where it ends. I'm not a very good hill rider, as in descending and putting hills together.
Of course the most unnerving moment came on a flat section. As I was approaching a roundabout, I decided to get a drink. Well, I couldn't find the bottle holder in time and had to get my hand back on the handlebars. But, with the bottle in my hand, I couldn't reach the brake lever. I hung on and got through the turns on the wet road, and didn't spill too much drink (I was holding the bottle upside down).

More hill training. How on the Eastern Shore? I dunno.

Seamless transition. I had a primo spot in TA, which aided my time immensely.

Nothing, I nailed it. Top 10 AG - I'll take my victories where ever and whenever they come. Woohoo!

I really surprised myself here. I had no idea what I would be able to do. My longest run in the month or so leading up to this race was 5.5 miles, and I strained my calf muscles on Thursday. I didn't think the hills would be too kind to me. I actually got kind of comfortable starting out, so I was able to get into a racer's mentality - looking for somebody ahead to pass, searching for those 40-something's. I never really raised the intensity to all out, but I pushed the run at a reasonably hard pace.
There was some discomfort in the calves, and I had to be mindful of how I'd plant my foot. I could never really run on the balls of myfeet going uphill or else I'd hear about it. About mile 5.5, I got a bit of a twinge in each calf, and thought it might be the beginning of the end, but the pain never re-surfaced, for which I was quite thankful. Despite the lack of run training this year, I finished pretty strong. A very good run, considering.
Passed Paul M (knew he wasn't having a good race - sub 2:30 for him last year) and Chuck P on the outward half. I was about amile from the finish and gave Dave a high five as he was headed out of the park.

Not much today. More rest during the winter, perhaps.

Got done and Brenda/kids were headed my way as I was starting to look around for them. Happy to see them there for support. We grabbed some bananas, then met fellow-BTer, Noony, and hung out near finish to wait for Dave and Shelly to finish. Chatted with some CMS members.


Injuries (run), willingness to take risks (bike), warm up (swim), experience on hills (bike).


Analysis:
2007 2006
Time Place Time Place
Swim 26:53 67 29:50 100
Bike 1:16:39 36 1:15:48 25
Run 46:00 21 45:28 22
Overall 2:34:00 25 2:35:40 35
My biggest gain came from the swim. Happy, but I feel like I could have done better. Yards in the pool paid off.
My biggest loss came from the bike, which is a bit frustrating because, like the swim, I've put in more miles this year than last. The bike was mostly mental.
I was only 32 seconds slower this year? And a place higher? Go figure. This training stuff is way over-rated.
I gained time during transition. Even T1.
HR-wise I definitely pushed harder last year: swim HR was 133, bike 139, and the run was a few beats higher as well.
Overall I'm satisfied with the results. I bettered my overall time by 1:40, and finished 10 places higher in my AG. I also feel like I left a little time on the course. Next year's goal: <2:30!