Doing the Las Vegas Triathlon was a game time decision. Renee and I signed up for it at the expo the day before the race at packet pick up and I decided I would do the Olympic distance instead of the sprint, because I felt good about it and the course would be just a little longer than Rage was earlier in the year on about the same course.
The morning of the race was beautiful. The temperature was nice and the water was cool and calm. My wave was scheduled to go off before Renee's, so I got in and swam around to get used to the water. I didn't wear a wetsuit and the water felt great. I had been practicing at about 2,500 meters in open water for the last few weeks at the lake, so I was pretty confident that the swim would be a good one. My wave went off and I started off smoothly. I didn't have any anxiety issues and it was pretty smooth sailing for the entire course. I just took it easy and relaxed, bringing in a time of 39:41 for the 1500 meters.
My transition was smooth also, grabbing something to drink and a gel, then hitting the bike course. I practiced this roadway course several times while training, so I was able to get into a good groove for the 25 mile trek to the Ranger station at the Lake Mead blvd entrance to the park and back. I didn't have alot of issues, just made my way steadily to the turnaround without any problems and had alot of energy. I had to force myself to drink and take a gel after 30 minutes on the bike though, even though I still felt strong because it was beginning to heat up and I had to hydrate and get some calories in me for the run, which was 10K this time, a little longer than I had done before and in the heat.
At T2, my transition was quick and I was running within a couple minutes. I felt a little sluggish when I hit the dirt trail leaving transition. I generally dislike running trails.This course featured the first couple of kilometers on a trail until the pavement came into play. It was the only flat portion of the course, and then a very warm, uphill grind to the turnaround at the 5K mark. I was definitely feeling the heat and I was at a pretty slow pace, around 10:30 splits. Normally I come in around 1:00 to 1:05 on a 10K (I'm a slow poke), so I knew that I would probably finish around 1:20ish today since it was hot out and I would be going alot slower.
After the turnaround, I went through the first run aid station and the gal said "I'll jog next to you with the water so you don't have to stop running". I replied "what the hell makes you think I want to keep running??" She laughed, even though it wasn't that funny. That point in the run signalled the beginning of the downhill back to the finish, so I picked up my pace and found myself running with a fellow about my age. We were talking a little and I started to get my competitive juices flowing and told myself that he would not beat me back. I found the energy to take off a little and lengthened my stride, pulling away.
I hit the finish at 3:37:54, which I liked for my very first Olympic triathlon. At the finish, Renee and the boys greeted me and after I got my medal and made my way to the water. I was burning up, so I stripped off my shoes, socks and hat and immediately plunged into the cool waters of Lake Mead to get my body temperature lowered again. I layed there floating like a slug for a few minutes, relishing the cool water over my skin and the thoughts of completing my first Olympic distance triathlon. Never being fully satisfied, I thought I could have done better, but I realized that I did leave it all on the course.
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