Battle Scars from San Diego

Cool Awards from the Race!

So seeing as I was going to be in San Diego from 9-15 Sep for a Aircraft Structures Course I figured I would take the opportunity to do some racing. I had planned to race the San Diego Classic – Olympic Distance on the 8^th and the Tri San Diego – Intermediate (Olympic distance with ~33km bike) on the 9^th. I of course wasn’t planning on tapering or anything of that sort for the race but was intending to use the two racing more as training days with some intensity.

I flew into San Diego on Thursday the 6^th of Sep and checked into the Marriott in Mission Valley. I was excited to be in a warmer climate and excited at the opportunity to do some racing. Friday morning I hit up De Anza Cove (in Mission Bay Park) for a light swim then followed that up with a ride around Fiesta Island and finally finished off with a quick run to make sure the legs were firing. I had been feeling sick for most of the week with a stomach bug and honestly didn’t feel too great. I was however very thankful for the opportunity to cycle around Fiesta Island as the scenery was awesome and all I could think about was how much Ruthie and James would have loved playing in the sand and water. Remainder of the day was spent picking up my race package at Moment Cycle and then relaxing in the hotel.

Saturday morning was an early start. I was up by 4 a.m. and out the door and onto the Trolley at just before 5a.m. I cycled from the Old Town Station to the Transition Area (~3kms) and quickly setup my stuff. For the first time going into the race I didn’t really feel nervous after all I was really just here to enjoy the experience and get a solid workout in. 

My wave was one of the last to depart and at 0630hrs the horn went and we were off. I settled into a good rhythm and tried to focus on a good pull, a long stroke, and swimming a straight line. The swim was very uneventful with the exception of passing many people in the earlier waves. I was quite pleased to see 25:07 on my watch as I scrambled up the stairs at the end of the finish…a superb swim for me.

Transition was uneventful and then it as off onto the bike. We were unable to pre-ride the course as it went through the Naval base however we had been warned that there were a couple speed bumps near the base. I was putting out a solid effort until disaster struck. As I was passing by the main gate at the base the gentleman to my right began slowing down I wasn’t sure what he was doing and then scanned ahead and quickly saw a massive speed bump. I handled the bump fine but my aero water bottle went flying. I wasn’t concerned with the loss, but was momentarily distracted as I hit the second speed bump at a slight angle and down I went. It was a hard fall onto my left side with my head, back, butt, and wrist absorbing most of the fall. I quickly got up scanned over my bike realized it was fine. A volunteer came running up with my aero bottle handed it to me and I took off again. I probably only lost a couple minutes throughout the ordeal. I was sore but tried to push the discomfort out of my mind and finish the race strong. The remainder of the bike was uneventful, but I do have to comment that climbing the “Hill” was definitely fun! Bike 1:06:XX. 

Note: The bike wipe-out was my fault. However, it would have been nice for there to be some caution signs or volunteers yelling to slow down.

Through T2 with minimal effort and then it was onto the run. I decided to ignore my watch and just run by feel. I went perhaps a little conservative on the first loop and then tried to push more on the second loop. My left hip was a little sore, but I can’t say that it really affect my run. I finished with 39:52. A lot slower then I would have liked but content to still have run sub forty minutes. 

Total Time 2:14:59. 14^th OA (out of 700+ athletes) and 5^th in my AG.

Had an opportunity to meet Kosuke Amana, an Elite athlete coached by Brian Grasky, post race. He had put a solid race in and finished in 3^rd. I hung around the finish until the awards getting to know Casey Mckinney, a US Marine. That’s probably the part about racing I like the most…getting to know fellow athletes after the race.

Battle Scars taken on Sunday Afternoon!

 I was planning on racing the Tri Rock Intermediate on the Sunday. I had picked-up my race package and applied my TriTats in preparation for racing. However, when I woke up Sunday morning my shoulder was very sore, I had limited mobility and realized that swimming was probably not an option. Additionally my left butt check was swollen making even waking a bit painful and my wrist well it was still swollen. So I made the tough call that I wasn’t going to race the Tri Rock San Diego. I really really wanted to race, but sometimes you’ve got to make the right call. Instead I took the trolley to the start area turned in my racing chip and picked up a volunteer shirt. I figured if I can’t race then I’ll give back. So I spent the morning with Frank’s crew directing bike traffic at the U-Turn onto Harbor Boulevard and finished the morning by handing out water in the finishing area. 

Hopefully my injuries heal quickly as I want to enjoy the beautiful weather here in San Diego.

Up next…Leadman Tri Bend 125 in two weeks!