Brian's Next Blog Attempt

Yesterday was a great day! I competed in the San Diego International Triathlon. I was worried about this race because I feel like I haven't been training. But in the end, I ran my best triathlon! I finally did one where I felt competitive with my peers (even though I still didn't come as close to beating them as I would have liked).

I felt rushed for the start of the race and didn't get to do my warmups and stretching or even listen to my pre-race music mix. Fortunately the water start forced me to do a swim warmup which was really helpful since I was having problems with my goggles that I managed to fix just before the start.

The swim portion went much better than I expected. Last time I swam race distance with Jay, it took me over 21 minutes and I was exhausted trying to keep up with him. For the race, I managed to finish in 19 minutes thanks to a tri-club guy I drafted off most of the race. The bike went pretty well--I pushed harder than I did at Wildflower. I was still passed by quite a few people, but I also passed a bunch myself too. It helped a lot that this course was one I'd ridden many times before, so I knew what to expect.

The run was the part that scared me the most because it's where I've fallen apart in the last two races. Based on an article I just read, I decided to try walking some during the run instead of forcing myself to run the whole time. Then, wouldn't you know it, but the first time I started a 60 second walk, Greg caught me. Of all the times for him to catch me, it just had to be when I was walking. Grrr... But I was pretty happy that I held him off that long this time. I kept going pretty conservatively on the run, taking a 30 second walk every 10 minutes. This allowed a ton of people to pass me on the run, but I didn't want to push it too early. I was just trying to keep my heartrate at 80% the whole time. Once I hit the 5 mile marker, I decided it was time to go, so I picked up the pace enough so I'd be above 90% by the time I crossed the finish. This part of the run actually felt the best--I was breathing harder, but I got in a really good rhythm and it felt great to finally be passing people. I really could have started that earlier and done much better on the run.  Looking back on it now, I should have known I could push it harder--Erin had me up above 90% for a mile and a half during the Devil Dog Duathlon.  I wish I had remembered that sooner.

So it looks like one of the things holding me back from doing better in my tri's is that I'm scared. Of what, I'm not entirely sure. Maybe I'm scared of failing, maybe of looking like a unprepared idiot for totally bonking. Probably most likely I'm scared that a total bonk will make my final time look even worse compared to my friends than my times where I don't give 110% do now.

But, I am getting this dialed in now. This race was the closest yet that I've come to beating Greg, so pretty soon now, he and I will have some really close races. And watch out DenDen--you're next! :) And then Marty--well--nevermind, I've got no chance of beating you. :)