This course would have been extremely fun except for three factors:

1 - The chop: Due to the wind the water was whitecapping up until about 3 minutes before my heat went off, and afterwards was still really choppy and wavy. Having never done a choppy swim before, I struggled. However, I overcame!

2 - Navigation: Every other swim I've had has utilized a buoy line between buoys, and I kind of followed that line. However, today I was faced with having to sight frequently due to drifting buoys and bad water.

3 - Breathing: Due to the waves I had some trouble timing my breathing, especially on the portion to where the waves were crashing into my right side, which is the side I breathe to.


Umm, let me list:

1 - Get more practice in choppy water.
2 - Learn to sight better.
3 - Breathe between waves.

All in all, it was my hardest swim yet.. but also my favorite.

Coming out of the water from that rough swim I felt like I was going to lose my pre-race meal. I jogged up the chute, and past the courtesy water buckets for feet washing and right to my bike. My neighbor let me use his stool to sit on, which I think actually slowed me down. I also struggled a bit with my socks and nearly forgot my shirt (modesty, hehe). However, all in all I was mildly happy with the transition.

1 - I'm going to start fore-going socks.
2 - No sitting on stools, just plop down on my ass.
3 - Put my shirt on top of my helmet so I remember it.

Well, where should I begin? Coming out of transition I quickly got up to my desired race pace of 19mph and held it deep into the first hill. However, as soon as I shifted down to my climbing gear my chain began to slip. This would only happen in this specific gear, which made hills either mashed like crazy or spun very fast. I ended up switching to the big cog up front (I'm on a double) and using it for most of the smaller hills. I got passed quite a bit and passed only a few people. I was happy with my pace since I had recurring chain problems. Had I not had the chain issue I know I could have pushed at least a 17.0 average.


Not have my brand new bike screw up on me? Aside from that I really need to learn to ride aero as I did not drop into aero except as a recovery tactic on a few downhills. However, I did break 30mph while in aero on one decline.

The setup on the transition area put me at the best bike rack coming out of the water and the WORST POSSIBLE for coming back from the bike. I had to run (ie I walked due to some extreme ankle issues) the bike nearly 250 yards. Once I got to my rack I racked my bike one handed while grabbing my race belt and hat with the other hand. I put on the belt, hat, grabbed my polar bottle and endurolytes and was off. My actual time outside of the transporting the bike had to be under 20 seconds.

Despite the ankle pain I should have ran this portion.

Well, lets just face the facts. I'm a very slow runner, in fact most people would call what I do jogging, or maybe shuffling. However, my heart rate was running high and hard for the entire run and I never stopped my patented run. I think that will be the key to my future success, while I may be slower the most.. I am consistent!

The initial 1.5 miles out was definately a lot harder than the return trip, due to being past by tons of runners and even a couple of the Olympic athletes. I hit the turnaround in decent time, and grabbed two cups of water.. ready for some relief. However, the ice water I sought was actually HOT water. So instead I relied on my Gatorade to get me through.

On the way back I only got passed by a few people and focused on my run and cheering on those who were on their way out. At a quarter-mile away from the finish I was passed by two females in the same age-group as me, and I knew then that I needed to pace with them and make a finish line showdown. As dorky as it sounds, I was stoked to know that I was going to have a finish where I was with other people. Normally, I'm fairly alone at the finish line. I saw my car alongside the road, which marked only a few hundred yards left to go, and so I began to increase my pace even more. At this point I was running at least 8mph, and making ground. We entered the final chute of people and I was still 10 yards behind the girls. The rear girl slowed just a tad and that was my queue. Beginning with a patented grunt I went into a full on sprint, and blew past the rear girl. The girl up front must have heard my grunt because she too kicked it into gear. However, after another (louder) grunt and a HUGE cheer from the crowd, I passed the lead girl only a few yards from the finish. The announcer made some comment about, 'Look at that guy go, he did NOT want to be outdone at the finish."

That was the truth, it wasn't about beating those girls, it was about giving the crowd what they want, a finish line showdown! It was my best run EVER.

I think my speed will continue to improve as I log more and more miles, so I'm not too worried about that. I think I just need to learn to pace myself better so that I ensure I leave nothing out on the track. At one point I was 'running' at a 14 minute mile, and truth be told I can speedwalk that fast. So I need to pace better.

After almost collapsing at the finish line onto the lady who wanted my chip I walked over and hugged my wife. I went back to the patio and got two bananas, trail mix, and some water. After awards we ate at Perkins and then drove the 3 and a half hours home.


The choppy water and slipping chain were my biggest enemies of the day. However, my goal for the day was a 1:45 finish, and I beat that by a few minutes. I have another Sprint in 6 days, and I want to top the time from this weekend.


The race was very well run except for the fact that it seemed the race sponsor 'Melvin's on the Lake' was focused on making money off of concessions more than anything else. In addition, the single aid station was full of nothing but hot water and only two volunteers to handle over 250 sprint athletes. Aside from that, it was a great race!