As part of my own sprint series, I did the GFT Super Sprint this past Sat. Julie didn't join me like she did last year since she's training for Ironman Arizona so I went solo. The race is a 1/4 mi. swim, 8 mi. bike, and 2 mi. run.

I got to the race site early since there were half and full iron distance races that started at 7:30 AM. I bummed around in the dark trying to spot my friend Adam who was doing the half until it started raining a bit. I moved under a tree until is started raining even harder so I found shelter near the restrooms under an overhang.

The race started about 30-40 mins. late since we had to wait for the last swimmer from the iron distance race that started at 7:30 AM to get out of the water. We ended up starting a bit after 10:00 AM.

The water is so low in Lake Minneola that the first bouy that is about 20 yards past the swim area was probably only in head deep water and the edge of the swim area was waist deep. This meant you had about 60 guys running to within about 20 yards of the buoy and trying to start swimming and make the turn. Total chaos. Luckily, I got a bit ahead after that and had a straight shot to the final buoy and the finish.

This year, the transition from the beach was better since we went in the transition area at the end near the beach and didn't have to run on pavement but had nice, soft grass. I spent too much time in T1 and hopped on the bike.

I don't know why I don't remember how much the first few hills at the beginning and end of the course take it out of your legs, but they do. I passed a bunch of people on the bike but didn't see anyone in my age group that remembered. Only one guy passed me toward the end and he was in a higher age group so I hung on for a bit but let him go.

Since the run is so short, I tried to go all out and keep it up as long as I could. I slowed down a bit toward the last half mile but ended up at a 6:50 pace so I was happy. The run course was a bit different and definitely better than last year and bit flatter.

I ended up 2nd in my age group and had a good time at the race talking w/people doing the half and full prior to their race and with a bunch of people doing my race in the transition and swim area before the race. I didn't hang out for the awards since they didn't even have the preliminary results posted after I had packed my stuff up and put it back in my car. Hunger won out over pride :-)

My stats:

Finish time: 49:19
AG Place: 2nd out of 9

Swim Time: 5:13 (calculated off finish time since posted time was 2:35)
Swim AG Place: 2nd

T1 Time: 2:53
T1 AG Place: 6th

Bike Time: 26:08
Bike Pace: 18.4 MPH
Bike AG Place: 9th

T2 Time: 1:25
T2 AG Place: 2nd

Run Time: 13:40
Run Pace: 6:50 min./mile
Run AG Place: 2nd

Due to the heat of summer, I decided to only do a few sprints this season after the half in May. The second one of these was the Buttar Fall Triathlon Festival on Sat. 10/6/07. I did this race last July and it was a great course and put together really well. This race is a 0.75K swim, 20K bike, and 2.75 mi. run.

The weather when I left my house was rain with thunder and lightning but it cleared up by daybreak. I went for a short run after racking my bike and did a swim warmup in the dark. The bugs were thick so I stayed in the water for as long as I could.

The swim went by quickly and I felt good throughout and tried to pull hard the last 50-75 yards. The run to the transition is long and a mix of sand, rocks, twigs, and other assorted foot hazards. I kept up an OK pace and hopped on my bike.

The bike was great since the course is flat, nicely-paved, and has only a few wide turns. I felt good on the bike and tried to keep my form in check to get some more power and speed.

I tried to do like last July and go off fast on the run and try to hold my pace for 2.75 miles. I did pretty well but slowed down a bit on the last 3/4 of a mile. As part of my workout plan, I had to run for 30 mins. after the race. I felt better than I thought I would on that part but I forgot to put my socks back on for it so had to stop about 20 minutes into it due to blisters on my arches. Live and learn...

Overall, I had a good race and came in almost four minutes faster than last year--almost all on the swim portion.

My stats:
Overall time: 1:11:51
AG Place: 3 of 9

Swim: 11:30
Swim AG Place: 3rd

T1a (beach to transition area): 1:59
T1a AG Place: 3rd

T1b: 1:12
T1b AG Place: 3rd

Bike: 35:33
Bike Pace: 20.98 MPH
Bike AG Place: 5th

T2: 0:52
T2 AG Place: 6th

Run: 20:36
Run Pace: 7:29 min/mile
Run AG Place: 3rd

I finally did the Gulf Coast Triathlon, a half iron distance race (1.2 mi. swim, 56 mi. bike, half marathon). It feels like I've been training forever for a half since I decided to put this distance off until this year since trying for the end of last year took its toll with training in the heat.

Julie and I drove up on Thursday and Kirby and Bev met us there that night and Adam met us there on Friday. My new camera came in handy and Kirby took some great pics.

Speaking of heat, now I know why this race is affectionately called the "Gulf Roast". It was hot, hot, hot! Here's my race recap:

Race Morning
Wake up at 4:00 AM and eat, take some Endurolytes and other vitamins and supplements I normally take, and start hydrating. Our bikes were already in transition and we stayed at the host hotel, so we just had to walk down and get our stuff ready.

I go to pump up my tires, and my rear is flat. I pump it up and can hear the air escaping and even in the darkness can spot the hole in my tire. I don't have any spares so I ask the guy manning the Dragon Sports tent for bike repairs if they have a tire or patch kit. He says he didn't pack the stuff so he's not sure and the guy that did will be back soon. I head to the room to grab a dollar bill in case I need to rig a patch. I get back down and they had a few tires. Most of them are the Continental Grand Prix 4000s I wanted to get anyway. They are all red which works perfectly since my new bike has red on it.

I grabbed my bike and tossed it over the transition fence and they picked it up and had it ready to go by the time I got back from the room with cash to cover the tire/labor. Had to go back to transition to rack my bike and then get all my stuff laid out for the bike and run. Back in the room, we all got suited up and wetsuited up and went down to wait for the swim start.

The Swim
The ocean was fairly calm and the wind wasn't too bad. The Course was a long out, short over, and long back. The current was going to be with us for the over section. The water was 75 which was perfect for my sleveless wetsuit.

About 150 yards out, there were jellyfish a couple feet below the surface which made swimming fun. Got stung a bit and had to go through them again on the way in. Luckily, the itching wasn't too bad.

I don't carry my Garmin on the swim so I didn't know my swim time. I had planned on 40-45 mins. and ended up doing it in 36.

T1
An uneventful, yet slow as usual, T1 which is a good thing.

The Bike
The bike course is flat and runs along the beach for a bit and then out into the woods where the heat picked up and the road alternated between nice and crappy. I skipped the first bathroom stop which was a mistake since I was dying about 5 miles before the next one. Stopped at the next one and leaned my bike up against a post. When I got out of the port-o-let, one of the volunteers handed me my bike. I told her she rocked and went on my way. My rear tire was in the gravel so I peeled out which probably didn't look at all cool.

My butt was feeling sore by about mile 35 when I took another bathroom break. This one was preemptive. The last 20 miles, I had to get out of the bars and lean back to get rid of the butt pain. Luckily it didn't slow me down too much. My goal for the bike was 18 MPH average and I was at about 17.7 according to my computer and my Garmin which I didn't think was bad considering I had two stops. My new bike rocks and made it easy to keep that pace. Still, I was happy to get off the bike and start running.

T2
The port-o-lets next to my rack were occupied so I had to jog over about 100 yards away from the transition exit to get to an open one. Still, uneventful.

The Run
Ah, the run... I felt great coming out of transition and had to slow myself down to keep a 9:00 mile pace which was my target. That lasted for a couple miles and then the heat got me. Miles 3-7 really sucked. Hard. 8-10 were better and the last three were tough. I walked all the aid stations and took water, gatorade, and sponges at each one. I got a bit of chaffing in an area I didn't want chaffed and had to deal with that for a couple miles which wasn't too fun. I was going to stick a sponge down my tri shorts to try to stop it but the next aid station was out.

The Finish
I was very glad when I was done and very happy to get a nice cold beer after a recovery drink. A swim after that in the pool felt really good. They were out of pizza when we went back down to get food so we had another beer and then showered up to go to Carraba's for dinner.

My Results
Swim: 36:21
AG Place: 103 of 221
Gender Place: 379 of 919

T1: 5:18
AG Place: 173 of 221
Gender Place: 664 of 919

Bike: 3:07:29
Pace: 17.9 MPH
AG Place: 198 of 221
Gender Place: 793 of 919

T2: 2:36
AG Place: 107 of 221
Gender Place: 406 of 919

Run: 2:26:59
Pace: 11:11
AG Place: 151 of 221
Gender Place: 541 of 919

Overall Time: 6:18:10
AG Place: 168 of 221
Gender Place: 640 of 919
Overall Place: 824 of 1239

I didn't do this race, but a group of us went up to Panama City (sing the opening to Van Halen's Panama for fun) to watch Bev do her first Ironman. First, here's the photos.

Since we watched Adam do his iron distance race a couple weeks ago, we were better prepared this time. We had plenty of water and beer. The weather was clear, cold, and windy. When we left the hotel on race morning it was 45 with a wind chill of 39. But, we couldn't complain since we weren't the ones that had to don a wet suit and get in the cold ocean.

The swim was a mass start with the pros starting a few minutes ahead. The sea of swim caps was quite impressive. So was the number of spectators.

Swim start

The ocean was a bit rough with two opposite currents running parallel to shore. From talking with one of the lifeguards, they pulled at least 13 swimmers out. Julie volunteered as a wet suit stripper so we hung around to watch end of the swim until she was done. She was covered in pee water but I still love her :-) She said she had a great time and would definitely do it again next year.

The last swimmer

We were just trying to get around the crowd of spectators when we caught Bev leaving on the bike:

Bev (in orange) leaving on the bike

The bike was one loop so we had some time to kill waiting for Bev to come by the hotel. Tracy and I went for a run (I managed to get in almost 10 miles before I felt like crap) before lunch and then met up with the rest of the crew that was crazy enough to go swimming in the Gulf without wetsuits while we were gone. We ate lunch outside on the race route so we could cheer people on.

Julie, Jessica, and Adam pondering lunch

After lunch we hung out at the corner by our hotel which was on the route to cheer and caught Bev finishing her bike. We packed up once again and went back to the race site in time to catch the first finishers coming through. We went out to the run course and saw Bev finishing up her first lap and then a few minutes later starting her second lap. We had a prime spot since there was a convenience store across the street to provide beer and a bathroom and a Pizza Hut a few hundred yards away to provide yummy pizza.

A bit before her expected finish time, we moved back to the finish area to get a good bleacher spot and cheer her on. The wind was picking up (if that was even possible) and it was cold so I was glad when I saw Bev round the corner for the finish. We greeted her with a beer.

Finished!

Bev kicked ass and we had a great time. Can't wait to do it again next year.

Date: 10/21/06
Location: Clermont, FL

Since we were watching the Great Floridian and the Florida Challenge full and half iron races that day, Julie and I decided to do the super sprint: 1/4 mi. swim, 8 mi. bike, 2 mi. run. Since we got there early and it was a short race, my mind wasn't really in it and I wasn't as hydrated as I would have liked and forgot to eat as much as I should have. But, the race was still fun.

The swim wasn't too crowded so I got a pretty good line without much thrashing. The bike was just one loop around the lake and only a couple of really small hills at the beginning, but otherwise a flat course. The run was an out and back with another out and back, all on the trail at the lake. It would have been nice if there was a mile marker for the first mile but I felt good a bit before then and picked it up. When a guy ran by me and told me I had four mins. left at my pace, I told him I'd try to keep up with him for two mins. I managed longer than that and at the end was in a sprint with him and a girl from the Tri Knights team that was walking when I passed her and said "Go Knights!" just a few seconds earlier. I came in second in that mini battle.

Overall, my time was 52:22 and I was 3rd in my age group. Julie took first in her age group pretty handily. If I was trying in the transitions, I could have shaved a couple minutes off my overall time and possibly come in second. The pizza after the race and the 3rd place plaque made the entry fee worth it :-)

Julie, Bev, and I went over to Melbourne on Saturday for the Healthfirst Olympic on Sunday. We were staying with my parents so we dropped our stuff off at their place first and then drove over to the packet pickup and to drive the run and bike courses.

The bike course did two loops--one larger and another that was half of that--that goes over the Banana and Indian Rivers on the Pineda Causeway and then the Indian River again on the Eau Gallie causeway. Total, you go over the big bridges four times on the bike. The course was all on well-paved roads with no real hazards to speak of. Between the bridges it is flat other than the speed humps on S. Tropical Trail.

The run course took you through downtown Eau Gallie (if there is such a thing :-) and then over the causeway to the other side of the river and back. The odd part of the course is that the last half of the run course and the last part of the bike course coincide from the east side of the river back to the transition area on the other side. This made finishing up the bike course a bit trickier than normal since we all had to share a lane of the road and shoulder.

The swim looked really long but didn't feel too bad. The red bouys were hard to see and the sunrise didn't help at all since it just put a nice glare on the water to the east. At times going to and from the turnaround bouy to the north, it was hard to tell if the swimmers in front of you were coming or going. I went out at a nice, steady pace and kept it for the whole race with a bit of a faster pace for the last 50 meters or so. Getting out of the water was fun since they had built a plywood and outdoor carpet ramp to climb up to get over the coquina rocks there for erosion control. Thankfully there were volunteers on either side of the ramp to help people out. Of course, I didn't need any help since I am a super bad ass. A photographer from Florida Today captured us as we were getting ready to warm up--that's me in the foreground.

Photo credit: Kathleen Hinkel, FLORIDA TODAY

My goal pace for the bike was 18MPH. Unlike my last race, I had a fresh battery in my bike computer so I actually knew my speed. However, I did manage to forget to reset it from our ride the day before so I couldn't rely on it for time or avg. pace. I figured if I tried to keep a 20MPH pace that should average out to about 18. I felt good on the bike and was able to keep my pace for an actual average of 18.2 MPH. This is going off 40K but from Julie and Bev's computers it may have been a mile or so longer. At one point on S. Tropical Trail a peacock decided to cross the road in front of the guy in front of me. Luckily he was able to brake enough to avoid it and it kept moving unlike the squirrels that kept darting in front of me and then freaking out.

I felt good on the run for the first four miles which was about the time when I had to turn around to come back over the bridge. I ended up walking a bit at the water stop at the turnaround while I chugged a couple waters and then a bit more on the way up the bridge. On the way down I felt better and was able to pick up the pace for the finish. It was hot on the run and there wasn't much shade. Even though I took water at all the stops I still felt dehydrated.

Photo credit: the kid that was still hanging around the racks after almost everyone had cleared out

This was a fun race and it was good to see my old hometown again. I definitely want to do this next year. Maybe the sprint though...

My stats:

Finish time: 2:48:36
AG Place: 6th out of 14

Swim Time: 28:37
Swim AG Place: 6th

T1 Time: 2:30
T1 AG Place: 8th

Bike Time: 1:21:38
Bike Pace: 18.26 MPH
Bike AG Place: 9th

T2 Time: 1:17
T2 AG Place: 8th

Run Time: 54:36
Run Pace: 8:47 min./mile
Run AG Place: 7th

This race was fun! Julie spectated and took photos while I tried to punish myself for a 1/4 mile swim, 10.6 mile bike and 3.5 mile run. The best part was the finish in Wall Street Plaza where they had food an plenty of beer (the third keg was being tapped before the award ceremony started). View the photos.

My stats:

Time: 1:07:15
Age Group Place: 7 of 37

Swim Time: 8:14
Swim AG Place: 7th

T1 Time: 1:52
T1 AG Place: 4th

Bike Time: 29:04
Bike AG Place: 13th
Bike Pace: 21.9 MPH

T2 Time: 1:11
T2 AG Place: 15th

Run Time: 26:56
Run AG Place: 9
Run Pace: 7:42 min/mile

OK, so I'm only about three weeks late on posting about this race. It has been crazy at work and with training so I'm a bit behind. Anywhoo...

I met up with Adam and Tracy and warmed up for a bit before the race. It was warm but not too terrible. We went out at a pace of 8:45 and were able to keep it up until the end. Adam left me with about half a mile to go and I had nothing left to even try to catch him. I finished in 1:21:45 for a pace of 8:42.5.

I did much better than I thought I would so I was very happy with my time. Last year this race killed me and I did 1:27:32 for a pace of 9:23.4 so I was glad I did better this time.

Julie, Bev and I (and about 200ish others) did the Moss Park Sprint on Saturday. We were up at 4AM and out the door about 5:10 so it was still dark when we got to Moss Park. On the drive in to the park, a deer crossed the road in front of us but we didn't hit it, so I think that's a good omen. That deer's friend was a bit smarter and waited on the side of the road until we passed to make a run for it. Finding your way around in the woods at a race site you've never been to when you are still half-asleep is fun. I need to remember to bring my headlamp to the next race so we can see.

The swim was a triangle route and the second buoy was a buoy you'd use on your boat not the big, visible inflatable triangles you're used to seeing. From the shore it was almost invisible. Luckily, in the water it was much easier to see and they posted a boat nearby to help with sighting. As we were waiting for the swim start, the announcer announced three minutes until the horn. Next thing I know, I hear "three, two, one" followed by the horn. I wasn't the only one caught off guard so the start was a bit slow with most everyone still putting their goggles on while walking in the water. I got a good line on the inside and most of the swimmers that were slower than me were off to the outside so I didn't have but a couple people that I had to pass to get free of the chaos. I felt good during the swim and tried to catch my breath but still keep a descent pace on the long jog to the transition area.

In T1 I spent more time than I should have getting the dirt and grass off my feet so I was a bit slow. I hopped on the bike and got up to speed and kept a steady pace throughout. At one point, a group of four people drafting of each other passed by. I was tempted to ask them if this race was draft legal but figured it would be better to just keep doing my thing and not worry about them but try to pass them on the run. The bike course was nice with only a couple cars and no bad road hazards.

T2 went off without a hitch and I started the run in the pace I wanted to try to hold since I have a hard time speeding up once I get settled in during a race. The run was nice since it was on hard packed dirt roads with pine trees all around for shade. I missed the mile marks so I didn't have any idea how fast I was going or how much longer I had to run. I passed more people than passed me on the run and felt like I was doing a good job keeping my pace up. The course was only 2.75 miles, but it felt longer. At the end, we ran through a grass trail to get to the finish and it looked just like the scene from Meatballs where Rudy "the Rabbit" is running.

After the race, we hung around for the results and found that Bev and I both took third in our age groups. Third only got you a medal that looked a bit cheesier than the participant medals with a barely-legible badge stuck to the back to tell you what it was for. That's fine by me since I hate keeping things like that since I don't really have any place to put them. One of the funnier moments was when we were standing at the finish after the race and the announcer was announcing that the My First Triathlon was starting and if you were doing that race, it was "time to strap it on". Sophomoric humor is even better when you've been up since 4AM and just got done with a race. Of course, the rest of the day and on our ride on Sunday, we were telling each other to strap it on. Julie thought he was referring to putting on your chip ankle band. I only hope that is what it was.

The event was run by Buttar and I've heard people complain about them in the past that the courses were either short, long, or mismarked. We didn't have any problems at all and I'll definitely do this race again. The photography was done by Gray Quetti Photography and these are the first race photos I've seen that were actually worthy buying. I wish more events used them. Here's the photos I took.

My stats:
Overall time: 1:15:06
AG Place: 3 of 6

Swim: 14:25
Swim AG Place: 2nd

T1a (beach to transition area): 2:16
T1a AG Place: 4th

T1b: 1:49
T1b AG Place: 3rd

Bike: 35:31
Bike Pace: 20.99 MPH
Bike AG Place: 4th

T2: 0:52
T2 AG Place: 4th

Run: 20:10
Run Pace: 7:20 min/mile
Run AG Place: 2nd

Julie and I arrived in Sarasota on Friday in plenty of time to get unpacked, check out the swim course, go to the expo, and drive most of the bike route. We stayed at the Lido Beach Resort since we had stayed there a couple years ago and liked it and it was also close to the race start. The location was perfect since it was right next to the park where the race starts. We met up with the Fritz family (Jason did the race), Adam, Tracy, and Keith and Pam.

We woke up at 5:00 AM to have time to make breakfast and get in a quick run and bike before dropping off our stuff at the transition area and heading down to the swim start for a warmup. The transition was ordered by age group not race number so I was a little confused at first. The transition racks were packed. I was just going to put my bike at the end off the rack since I couldn't get a spot but the guy next to me was nice enough to offer to squeeze me in.

We walked down to the swim start just in time to get in a quick warmup and then line up for the start. The swim start was pretty much chaos and I was in the middle. I just kept my mind on keeping going whether someone was climbing on me or vice-versa which helped to keep my rhythm. The swim went out a few hundred yards then south for the bulk of it and then a turn back to shore for the finish. The swim felt long. When I talked to Jason after the race, he said when he rounded the last buoy to head to shore, the lifeguard was moving the buoy back in toward shore. It felt like that last buoy to shore leg took forever. Marty estimated is was probably about 2/3 of a mile instead of 1/2 a mile. Regardless, I felt good during the swim.

The bike was nice and flat with only a couple turns at the beginning/end and a turnaround in the middle. I heard people that were on the bike course after me complaining about traffic, but I didn't have any problems with it when I was riding. They had plenty of volunteers at each intersection which was impressive considering all the sideroads on Longboat Key. I felt good during the ride and tried to keep my pace on the way back but there was a bit of a headwind so I dropped about a mile per hour.

The run was advertised on the web site as 2.6 miles. On the race guide at the race, it was 1.9 miles. On the course map, it looked like about 2+ miles so I wasn't sure what to expect. When I saw Marty as I started the run (he was finished already, of course), he said it was short and I thought he said it was 2.6 miles. When I saw my run time, I figured it couldn't have been 2.6 but had to be more than 1.9. Since I didn't wear my 305 during the race, Julie and I walked it with me wearing the 305 the next morning. Turns out it was 2.2 miles. It would have been nice to know for sure so I could have planned my pace a little better. I would have liked to have done 7:30 for that distance.

I felt good after the race and really like the race setup and location. We'll definitely be doing this one next year and staying a few extra days like we did this time. We skipped the ocean mile swim which according to Adam turned out to be about 1.25 miles. We had already decided not to do the 5K on Sunday, but I wish we had since from what we heard there was a low turnout--about 40 people. Full photo album. Thanks to Tracy for being our official photographer.

Stats:

Swim time: 22:40
Swim age group place: 7 of 17

Trans. #1: 2:14
Trans. #1 age group place: 15 of 17

Bike time: 40:53
Bike pace: 20.8 MPH
Bike age group place: 10 of 17

Trans. #2: 1:18
Trans. #2 age group place: 10 of 17

Run time: 17:22
Run pace: 7:53 min./mile
Run age group place: 6 of 17

Total time: 01:24:28
Age group place: 8 of 17