Castaic Tri II

The first tri had 104 people competing - the second had 214 - a vast difference!

It was most evident in the swim portion, where over 100 guys ran into the lake at the same time, all going for the same point/turn. I decided to swim with my new wetsuit (provided by LLS) and within 100 yards was in a full-blown panic attack. It was tough to breath, I was getting pummeled and kicked while swimming, and forward motion was very difficult with all of those bodies in the water. After hanging onto a lifeguard's board for a few minutes, I was able to resume and complete the swim portion. Whew!

My transition to the bike wasn't bad and I flew - my recent training was having the desired effect.

I also did much better in the run this time, walking far less.

Overall, I completed the race in just over 1 hour and 14 minutes, 4 minutes better than my first race. This would have been better by a few minutes if I didn't freak-out in the swim.

Alas, I did not beat Kevin this time. He overtook me in the run and beat me by 24 seconds, a stinging defeat for sure!

The next day, Sunday, I joined the team for an open water ocean swim in the wetsuit and things were a bit better. I've taken to putting on the suit for 30 minutes every couple of days around the house to try and get used to it - hopefully I'll be ready to go for another swim this weekend.

Also on Sunday I participated in a "transition clinic" put on by the LA Tri Club. Very cool stuff - I can now get my T1 transition (from swim to bike) done in under a minute, as opposed to the 2-3 minutes it was taking me before. Really great clinic and great tips.