Brutal.
Instead of being a nice end of summer/beginning of fall day it was a middle of July day with all of the heat and humidity to go along with it.
That said, I finished. And as brutal as the race was it was still a great time. This was the first race this season where my family was able to come watch. So instead of doing the race without knowing anyone along the sides I had friendly faces well positioned to greet me four times during the race.
Swim:
This was my first real open water swim in the ocean and my first in the water start. Considering I haven't really trained for the swim at all this summer I was really pleased with it. I was only kicked in the face a few times but nothing too bad.
Unfortunately coming out of the water was a harbinger of things to come. Running into transition it was tough to stand up completely because of a pain in my middle chest. I'm pretty sure I swallowed either too much salt water or too much air. Either way it was an issue I wasn't really able to overcome the whole day.
T1
My transition time was pretty decent and I was ready for tackling the bike.
Bike:
The beginning of the bike was not auspicious. I have been attaching my shoes to the bike so I can run barefoot to the mount line. I've never really had a problem before. Yesterday I took about one or two strokes and my left shoe popped out of the cleat and since I didn't have my foot in yet the shoe went flying.
After going back to get my shoe and finally getting going I tried to see how the bike would go. If you just look at my average speed (19.3 mph) then it was a good ride. I just wish it felt like a good ride. The first half was tough and things almost fell apart on the back half.
In addition to how I felt physically, I also had trouble with the hills on the route. On my road bike I don't have too many issues with hills but there's something about my tri bike that makes hills that much harder. I don't know if it's the bike, the gears, or just me. Thankfully I was able to regain (some) time on the downhills and flats.
T2:
I needed some time in T2 to regain myself a bit and steel myself for the run. There were also a few quick conversations with fellow competitors about how hot and humid it was.
Run:
Of the three disciplines, the run was the toughest. My normal pace is somewhere in the 7:30-8 minute mile. For the 10k I shuffled along closer to 10:15 mins per mile. And it was shuffling. My normally long strides were reduced to about two or three feet. By this time Mother Nature decided to add to the woes addition to the physical issues I was having from not having trained correctly, probably not having the right nutrition, and the issue coming out of the water. The sun was out in full force and it brought its friend humidity.
I'm normally not one to stop at every water stop but I had to this time. In fact, I just focused on getting from one water stop to the next. It was equally for hydration and to cool myself off by pouring cold water over me. I was also very thankful for the two families that were hosing people down along the route.
The best part of the run, by far, was seeing my cheering section.
My personal cheering section.
The kids were well behave while waiting for me (unfortunately they had to wait longer than normal because I was that slow). Both of them got a kick out of the leaders, especially the guys with the disc wheels on the bikes, and ringing the cow bell.
Keeping a lookout for Daddy.
The best encouragement I could ask for.
As tough as it was to do the race I'm glad I did it. To date I've raised over $2,500 for research into multiple myeloma. Combined with Nate's fundraising efforts earlier in the year, ME Against Myeloma has raised over $8,000 year-to-date. I would like to thank all of you for your support, both emotionally and through donations. It means a great deal to our family.
I would also like to thank my sponsors: namely my wife and kids. Without their support, encouragement, and understanding I would not have been able to do any of this. Thank you.
