Azalea Triathlon

The first tri of the season is in the books and I am very satisfied with the results. I finished first overall, though only by six seconds. However, with Azalea being a pool swim with a staggered start, there was no exciting neck in neck battle for the line. In fact, we finished about 3 hours apart due to a flat tire that caused Paul to have to start over at a later time. I would have liked to win by a little more, but its hard to be dissatisfied with a win.

Leading up to the race, I was getting flash backs from three years ago when the event was a total washout. Fortunately, the rains that had soaked the roads all day Friday and Saturday morning held off for the entire race. The sun even came out later in the day which made breaking down a little more tolerable. However, the weather still played a major role, as racers had to battle sustained 20-25 mph winds with gusts of 30-40 mph all the way up Wrightsville Ave.

Breaking down the race, I accomplished exactly what I set out to do. I had a strong swim to lead things out, fading a bit towards the end, but still my fastest split in this race to date. Being out of competitive swimming for more than a year now, I was very pleased with this result. I have been working hard to get back into swim shape for the ITU races I will do this season, and it has clearly payed off. T1 went very well, as I was using my new Lake tri shoes. This was the first time I had ever left my shoes clipped in for T1, so I was a bit nervous. However, I had practiced this many times in the weeks leading up to the race and had no trouble at all. Even though I was a bit slower getting in then I had practiced, I had one of the fastest T1 splits. It is amazing to think that if I had used my old shoes, and put them on in transition, I may very well have gotten second. On the bike, I felt very strong even when we hit the vicious headwind on Wrightsville. I was pushing it pretty hard on the bike, so I think that may have cost me a little bit of speed on the run. I really wanted to split under 17 minutes, but was 4 seconds shy. I have not done much speed work at all lately due to some nagging pains, so once I get back on the track, I should be in good shape.

So, in all a very successful day, and a great way to kick off the season. My confidence is high, and I'm ready rip it up this year.