Thanks Mom for everything you did for us this weekend!This is one of those early season races that you can find out just what I have and haven't been doing in the off season. I can think of at least 10 other things I would rather do that Sunday than drive to Florida and race in 36 degree weather on Super Bowl Sunday. But I was able to see Mom and Taylor so that made it worth while for me.
We, Michael Gallow, and I drove to Palatka, FL on Saturday to stay with my folks the night before the race. It is always nice to get a home stay as they are free, you get a home cooked meal, and you get to sleep in a house rather than in a hotel bed. All a bonus if you ask me.
We got to the race site a little early since we didn't check in early and needed to get set up for the race. All went rather smooth. People sizing you up and staring down your bike. Makes no sense to me but I have seen it is as much as part of this sport as is the swim, ride, or run.
The water temperature was about 55 degrees with the air temp hovering at 38 and rising by the hour, or so it seemed. We got in the water and the gun went off. The swim was just 750m and I started off on the left side headed directly for the first buoy. As far as I could tell, I was in the lead until the halfway point of the swim when some fella thought that he needed my line more than I. So I let him get by me and grabbed on to his feet to draft a little coming in. It is also nice that I didn't have to continually spot the buoy as I was following him now. We turned what I thought to be the last buoy and headed into shore. Upon arrival, the race director told us that we missed a buoy so we had to swim out to the last one, touch it, and swim back in. I knew that there wasn't a way for me to get back into the hunt with the additional swim leg us two idiots tacked on. Got back in and headed into transition.
It is now about 40 degrees and I am soaking wet out of the water running into transition. I yanked off my wetsuit grabbed my gear, my bike, and headed out for what was now to be a 12 mile sprint as I am currently in last place. I turned myself inside out trying to catch anyone. And one by one, they started to come back. A half mile before the turnaround, I saw the leaders and found out I was in third place. The bike was going well until the halfway point when I turned around and was directly in a headwind. That tailwind is why I felt so good on the way out. I kept after it trying to catch a glimpse of the leaders and only saw them once, and it was out in the distance. I came into T2 ready to see what the run had in store for me.
The run was rather uneventful and actually went pretty well. I had a goal of coming in under 22 minutes and accomplished just that. I finished my run in 21:30 and averaged just under 7 minutes a mile. Quite a feat for me! I thought that if I let up on the bike a little more, I might be able to get faster on the run. Either way, my running has been coming along and I couldn't be happier about it.
The race was over and we had to shag back to Atlanta for the Super Bowl festivities. I was excited and disappointed all at the same time. I was super excited that my Mom came out to watch me race! Once she saw Ironman, the race and not the movie, she has been hooked on triathlon ever since. Disappointed because I took the overall win last year but this year I was 3rd Overall but 1st Age Group. That is great as I qualified for Age Group National in September but I wanted to win with Mom watching. I am certain that she doesn't even know that I took 3rd. She made some new tri friends that day.
Gainesville is a fun race with a great support crew. There aren't any timing chips, wetsuit strippers, or chicken broth at the aid stations. But there is a man and a woman, who just happen to be the Mother and Father of the staff that is out helping the athletes in 30 degree weather. It truly is a family affair and a great kick start to anyone's triathlon season.
I listed my times at the top from 2009 and 2010. A year in and I can finally compare myself to myself at these races. Aside from the extra swim, the rest was better than 2009. I beat my 2009 total time even with being an idiot. Not too shabby!
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