CapTexTri - smoked it!

Just 24 hours ago I was standing on the banks of Town Lake in Austin, nervously wating for the start of the race. Several hours later I was as high as a kite, and the euphoria got better as the day went on. Once again I’d made a few mistakes, but I still had a super race. This was the result I’d hoped for after 9 months of training. Here is a brief recap:

There was a sign near the start warning of increased bacteria in the water due to recent rains. It ended with “swim at your own risk”. I could have done without seeing that sign! At 68 the water was cold, even with my wetsuit. Another deep water start meant we had to tread water for 5 minutes before the race started. I think that was the worst part of the swim, because once I got going I didn’t notice the cold too much until the end when my lips weren’t working as well. The water was pretty clear, but had junk floating in it. Several times I got seaweed caught in my goggles. Note #1: This lake has several areas with large submerged boulders. When I came across the first set I thought I’d drifted too close to shore. The second time I knew better, and then proceeded to run right into a swimmer standing on the rocks to adjust his goggles. A quick appology and big gulp of water and I was back on my way. I felt like I was passing more people than were passing me, so I was satisfied with my progress. As I stumbled out of the water, climbing up the ramp I was unable to unzip my wetsuit. It took me a minute to realize it was already unzipped. Just how long it was like that I don’t know, but if I was swimming like that I’m sure it slowed me down a bit.

Glancing at my watch I was way behind schedule, and knew then that my target time was shot. That was a good thing, as it helped me put time and the swim out of my mind and focus on the task at hand. I tried to be quick in the transition, but my feet were muddy and I knew I wouldn’t be comfortable on the run with all that junk in my socks. I don’t know why, but the bike mount was a long way from the racks, and running with cleats on isn’t all that fun.

Finally, I was on the bike. It was four loops around the city. With the elite racers somewhere ahead of my I knew I would get passed a bunch in the beginning, and I did. You can tell those guys because they are just so much faster than the rest of us mortals. Instead of getting down on myself I just put my head down and rode hard. There were a couple of small hills, but nothing like the rollers I’ve been training on. Each time I would stand up and pass a couple of people struggling to get up the hill. By the third lap I was passing a LOT of people. Passing is a kind word, I flew by them like the elite riders had flown by me. I didn’t think about this at the time, but I’m pretty sure I had more bike left in me. I don’t think I could have ridden double the distance at that pace, but I bet I could have done another loop without much decline in my pace.

Getting off the bike I was again excited about my potential time. I’d done much better than I’d dreamed, and more than made up for my slow swim. A sub 3 hour race was once again within sight, all I needed was a 1 hour 10K. I laugh as I write that, I should be able to do that without breaking a sweat! Not so in a triathlon. My legs weren’t all that tired, but I was. Throw in that it was hot and not a lot of shade and that makes for a long run. There were a bunch of water stops, so I dumped cold water over my head each time. I also managed to drink double my normal amount of GU/water mix. Still, there was one section I found particularly brutal: a long trek, in full sun, and a hill around the corner. It almost stopped me the second time around, but I continued to the aid station up the hill where the douse of water gave me renewed energy. The other memory I have is of seeing my wife as I finished the first of two loops. At the last second I decided to run over for a hug and kiss. She might not have appreciated the sweaty hug, but I did, and it gave me something to think about. She told me everyone thought it was so sweet, but it was an entirely selfish gesture, stealing energy from a spectator! I remember later looking at my watch and seeing that I had 15 minutes to make it to the finish to break 3 hours. I thought that if there was less than 2 miles left I had a shot (that’s right, there were no mile markers on the course!) Somehow I’d decided that I could run two 8 min/miles to finish the race, clearly the thoughts of a delirious person! I passed a tall guy with about 400 meters to go. I don’t think he liked it, so he passed me back with about 100 meters left. I’ve always thought my reaction was tacky, but with the finish line in sight I decided to pass him back. I don’t think he heard me because he had no reaction as I passed him two steps from the finish.

I ended up finishing the race in the top 1/3, beating my target time and setting a new personal record by 20 minutes! This was a far cry from last year where I finished next to last and then almost collapsed at the end. At the end I knew I could have run another 5K if I’d needed to, but 10K would have been pretty ugly. I really enjoyed this race and this distance. We will see how the rest of the year goes, but next year I might cut back to focus on the Olympic distance. Who knows, I might someday get on the podium!