The start was on land going down a very slippery boat ramp into a narrow launch and then out into the lake after a sharp left turn. The first buoy was easy to sight since it lined up with a huge power plant behind it. However, I was too far back to get clean water and I had to fight through some slower swimmers until the first turn. I never could find someones feet to draft on and the sightings after the first turn were really hard. The long section of the "triangle" was into the sun and I just had to trust the people in front of me to get to the turn buoy in a good line. The last turn had us going back to the dock and I seemed to be weaving on the return trying to find the right dock. Not a bad swim for me but I never really turned on the after burners and pushed. I just got into a zone and swam. I do think the course was a bit long based on my effort and the time. I kept wondering how Kari was doing as I swallowed water from some waves. It's hard to tell when everyone looks the same.

Train more? I haven't really been training enough to put forth a race effort.

Long run to transition uphill and in the grass.

Run faster

This is a hard bike course and I was not nearly trained enough to race on it. I struggled to get into my shoes on the bike and had to slow down at the beginning to re-strap once I got my foot into the shoe. Then I just tried to spin up to a nice 90-95 rpm cadence and go with what I had. I guess it's hard to expect much when I took the race number from my previous race off my bike the day before this race. That should tell you how much I have been riding lately. The hills were tough and I had problems with my derailler again. So, I have to take the bike into the LBS to get it fixed. It's hard to climb a hill when you gears switch to a lower gear. It sounded pretty funny as I was riding and my gears were just moving up and down randomly. I did switch the gearing on the shifters but it still happened. The only highlight was reaching 40mph on a great section of downhill. Going uphill, I had a hard time. I can't imagine what Kari was going through. I just hoped that she didn't pass me!

Lot more training, weight loss and hill repeats. I know where I should be, fitness wise, I just haven't put in the work to get there. I have riden this course 9 minutes faster before, so I know I can do the work.

I came into T2 with Stephan Schwarze (4th overall) but let him go ahead of me on the run. Of course, he started 5 waves behind me!

Nothing but wear socks

I walked most of the course trying to catch sight of my wife on the bike. I probably could have run more but mentally, I had too many excuses. It was hot, I was tired, I hadn't trained, I was getting blisters from no socks, I wanted to see my wife and chear for her on the bike, I wanted to wait for her (and rest) and do the run course together. I just kept going, slowly jogging and walking looking for her at all the open spots. Finally, I got to the back part of the course and decided it was time to finish so I ran the last mile (even up the killer hill) to the finish. Then I turned around and went back on the run course to find my wife.

Too many things to list.

Walked back on the run course in search of my wife. Then I found her coming up the big hill and gave her a big hug as we jogged/walked to the finish line together. I actually got to finish twice. It wasn't PACING!
It was nice to see some BT folks out again. Dennis had a good race, Bonnie and Tami were jamming on the course and I think I saw April but wasn't sure. Great job to everyone. We need a BT Flag.


Lack of training, heat and weight


I knew coming into this race that I was not prepared to "race-it". However, I was really looking forward to doing this race with Kari (wife). She was even less prepared than I was and I was concerned that she would not have fun, especially with the course being tough. The good news is that she has done this course 3-4 times (Austin Danskin) and she knows the course. I can't describe how much fun I had from the early wake-up and race prep to the final steps as we crossed the finish line together holding hands and arms up like we won the Olympics. It was really fun to be out there with her. Thanks to the grandparents for coming in to watch the kids as we got to spend some valuable time together doing something that we both love but have not had time to do together.