Race Day

Yesterday was a big day for me, RACE DAY.  I've been training for a sprint-length triathlon for the better part of the year, and yesterday was finally the time to see if all the work-outs paid off.  I did the Patriot Triathlon held in Bath, PA.  The race was a 650-yd swim, 13.3 mile bile, and a 3 mile run, and I entered with one of our close friends (and Scott's long-time buddy from grade school), Kevin.  I have only ever raced one other triathlon, the New Jersey State Triathlon, way back in 2006 (pre-Ben), so it took some doing to wrestle my body back into triathlon shape.  

Overall, I am really pleased with how the race went.  I completed the course and received a neat finisher's medal (and also a cool vented running hat and wicking T-shirt -- excellent race goodies!).  It was brutally hot on the bike ride, even though the race started at 7:30am.  Fortunately, the run portion of the course was held on a shady road.  The bike course was described as "gently rolling hills", which were far from gentle as far as I am concerned, although maybe they would have seemed gentle if the temperature or humidity had been lower. 

After studying the race results in more detail, I was surprised and happy to learn that I won the swim portion of the race for my age group and also came in 5th overall for women on the swim.  However, even with a slick road bike, I dropped considerably back in the rankings in the bike portion (which I knew as I saw people whizzing by me during the race), so I will have to train harder and/or more frequently on the bike if I do another triathlon in the future.  The run went as well as I hoped it would, a pace 8:45 minute miles.  I ran a little faster back in 2006, but a lot has happened to my body since then!  After the race I even got to enjoy a fun family picnic up in the Allentown area, and after racing in the morning, I ate the best fried chicken of my entire life. 

So, what to do now?  Sign up for another race?  Kick back and relax?  I have to admit that I'm tempted to race again, even as painful as the bike ride was.  The Marshman Triathlon looks tempting (although a "moderately hilly" bike course sounds a wee bit terrifying after experiencing "gently rolling").  Hmmm.