Success!

6/23/2006

While playing with my dog tonight, I twisted my left knee and felt a twinge. Great! My knees have been solid throughout my training, and two days before the event, one of them gets unstable. Oh well, ice and rest for the next 36 hours...

6/24/2006

Went to pick up my race packet today. My number is 1066, which is my birth month and year. Could this be a harbinger of good luck?

The packet included a number for the bike, one for my jersey, and not much else. One thing about this particular triathlon - there no information overload. I think the organizers assume participants have done this before, or are doing it with a buddy who has.

Knee is still a little sore. Packing some ibuprofen, just in case.

6/25/2006

Woke up bright and early at 4:30. I had packed everything the night before, so was ready to eat a bowl of cereal and a banana, drink a glass of juice, and head out into the darkness. My lovely and patient wife bundled herself into the car with her eyes half-closed to be my support crew/cheering section.

We arrived at the beach at about 6:00. The schedule was for the first wave to go off at 7:15 (I was in wave 10). I found the transition area and racked my bike and set up my towel. The day was cloudy and cool so far. There was a briefing for the racers where we were given last minute instructions and rules. With fifteen minutes until the first wave, I changed into my trunks and wetsuit. Des and I walked down to the beach, where the swim waves were staging behind volunteers holding numbered signs. We mingled on the beach and watched the lifeguards and organizers tow buoys into position to mark the swim course. There were several different size and color buoys, so it became a game of guess which ones are for us (the olympic and sprint courses were different).

The way the waves were scheduled, wave 9 was Sprint men 0-35, then mine was Sprint men 35-44. Next was Sprint men 45-up, and two waves of Sprint women. I told Des it looked like I'd be getting passed by fast women and old guys all day. >;-]

We all cheered as the gun went off and the first wave hit the water about 7:30. Each wave started about 5-7 minutes after the preceding one. We were the second sprint wave, so once the last olympic wave went out, the safety personnel re-aligned themselves, and wave 9 hit the water. The sun was just starting to come out and beat on our black neoprene-covered backs, so we began to warm up. The cold water wouldn't be nearly as bad now.

Wave 10 got the one-minute warning; goggles on, ready to go. The gun went off, and I started my chronometer and jogged to the water. I knew I wasn't going to be one of the fastest swimmers, so I stayed toward the back to avoid having the fast guys swimming over me. My goggles were fogging up a bit, so I pulled them out and dunked them in the water to clear them – much better! I swam a variety of strokes, but without much 'form'. It was mostly about moving forward, keeping my breathing under control, and using my legs as little as possible (I would need them for the next two events). I rounded the last buoy and stroked for the shore. My wave was mingling with a couple of the olympic waves that were technically coming around the outside of us. Traffic got a little heavy close to shore, but there was no major contact. I watched one guy in my wave swim off to the right repeatedly. Apparently he missed the lines on the bottom of the pool. >;-]

I bodysurfed a wave to the shore, and jogged up the beach. I was winded, but not exhausted. My unofficial split by my watch was about 12:00. I reached the transition area, peeled off the wetsuit, rinsed off my feet, put my socks, helmet and bike shoes on, and grabbed my bike. I lost a little time here as I put on my cycling jacket, then decided it was warm enough and took it off again. Doh! I took a quick slug of accelerade from a bottle, and brought a bottle of H2O on the bike. I could tell this was a slow transition, but the next one would be faster.



I ran the bike to the mount area, got on, and pedaled off. I anticipated the bike would be my strongest event. I started at a brisk pace, and passed a few riders on the way out of the park. On the nearby neighborhood streets, we were riding in a small 'lane' marked by cones, so passing wasn't easy. Once we got to the main artery (Harbor Blvd), things opened up considerably. I was spending as much time as possible in the aero position, and was maintaining a pace of 21-24mph on the southbound leg. I passed several riders, and for the most part was only passed by guys on full-aero TT rigs with disk rear wheels and such.

I made the U-turn and headed back on the northbound leg. Oh joy, a headwind! It wasn't too strong, and could be mitigated by staying aero, so I spent most of my time tucked in. I was concerned about using too much of my legs and having nothing left for the run, so I worked on pedaling more on the upstroke as I got closer to the transition. I pulled in to the dismount area and could hear Des yelling 'go Jimi' or words to that effect. >:-]

When I got off the bike and tried to run to my rack in my bike shoes, I felt like I had borrowed someone else's legs! Wow, call me Linguine Legs! I stumbled to my towel, racked my bike, swapped the bike shoes for the running shoes, and was off on the run.

I ate a gel as I was starting the run, washing it down with water. I felt pretty good, and was starting at a decent pace (for me). The sun was out, so that made things look a little better. The run course followed a bike path up to Surfer's Point in Ventura, where I've spent many, many days floating on a plank of fiberglas and foam. This time, I couldn't stop to survey the swells and determine if it was a Good Surf Day. As it turned out, I got my answer at about the 1.5 mile point of the run, when I spotted my good friend Ward standing by his car, getting ready to peel off his wetsuit. He gave me a shout of encouragement, which helped boost me along. At one point, I had to slow to a fast walk to catch my breath, and another runner unknown to me shouted 'Don't stop! Keep on going!' as she passed in the other direction. This was a recurring theme on the day. The encouragement from the volunteers and the other competitors was amazing, and one of the best things about this event.

As I passed the last water station on the return leg, I felt like I needed one more drink, but all they were holding out at that moment was gatorade. Oh well, I would be OK for the last .25 mile.

As the finish line came into view in the distance, I kept telling myself 'Don't walk, it's just a little farther. Keep turning them over. Keep turning them over.' The volunteers, family, friends and other competitors surrounding the finish were clapping and cheering for everyone as they came home. I was running faster now, trying to finish strong, and carried along by the wave of support leading up to the finishing gate. As I stepped on the timing pad to stop my race clock, I was all at once elated, drained, and proud. I had set a goal to finish the race and make a decent showing, and other than my pitiful running, I had done it. Des tells me they announced my name at the finish, but I didn't hear it.

I found Des in the crowd, and she gave me a big hug and told me how proud she was and how great I did. She also heard them announce my time of 1:27-something, which was pretty close to the time I had on my watch: 1:28:11.

I grabbed some water and found a place to sit down. The emotional effect of completing this little race was surprising. After a few minutes, I stood back up to walk around and stretch a bit. We watched and cheered for some of the incoming racers, then wandered over to the food/drink/exhibitors area.



We partook in some of the amenities, then headed for home. The sun had gone back into hiding, and the day was cooling off a bit, so we went chasing the sun and found it back in Simi Valley.

All in all, this was a phenomenal experience, and I'll definitely do this race next year. I may try to work in another one this year, also. I'm not sure my knees could take the abuse of a regular triathlon schedule, but one or two a year sounds doable.

I’m already thinking about several areas where I can improve my time, particularly in transitions.

Official result:
SexP Name Home Bib Div
159 Jim Chestnut Simi Valley, CA 1066 M40-44
Time Div/P Plc Swim T1 Bike T2 Run
1:27:39 M40-44/33 225 13:05 3:52 37:15 1:36 31:55

Deciphering the above:
SexP – My place among all the male racers
Div/P – My place in my age group
Plc – My place among all racers
T1, T2 – Transitions between events

For the rest of the pics: http://seamus.exposuremanager.com/g/boltri