Wendy's International Triathlon - TriathlonSprint

Started slow and out of breath but got going after 10 min. Putting in the yards at the pool and doing speedwork has made a huge difference on my swim performance. On the other hand I had bad navigation problems and kept veering to the left. At one point I looked up and realized I'd gone way past the swim area marker buoys. Had I stayed on course I could have shaved off 2-3 min from my swim time putting me in the top five swimmers in my AG.

I also lost 30s looking for my goggles after I dropped them out of my wetsuit sleeve without pulling the sleeve in a little to catch them ... it turns out someone had picked them up. That was counted as swim time, not T1 time.

Navigate better (more OWS practice). Better warmup.

41/50 AG, 333/465 overall. Wetsuit got stuck on my heels, and I had to sit down to pull it off and roll on my socks. Also I didn't wear my jersey under the wetsuit which was a mistake as it took way too long to get it on wet. I'm getting better but my T1 time continues to be a weak point.

More practice. More lube on my ankles. Wear the jersey under the suit, or get a real tri top or sausage casing. Learn how to mount with shoes on the bike.

Their posted speeds are incorrect because they used the wrong distance.

Rode hard. Slowed down a bit in the second half to conserve energy for the run. Stayed on the drops most of the time, which by now is quite comfortable for me. Had problems shifting again; my drivetrain just won't handle shifting under torque.

Did have one "oh s**t" moment when I countersteered hard into a corner at 21mph and my inner pedal (at 12:00 position) kissed the pavement. The whole bike skipped out a few inches ... but fortunately the tire caught. That could have been unpleasant. It's time for a set of Looks; my current clipless pedals are too wide.

I'm consistently gaining speed thanks to training with a racing group. On the other hand I'm starting to see the limits of my equipment. I'd love a TT bike but what I really need is something that can handle a modern drivetrain ... STI shifters would be nice too, I'm getting sick of the DT friction shifters.

Oh, and I need to drop 15lb.

24/50 AG, unknown overall (had to count myself). First time getting feet out of my shoes while riding and it went just fine, despite zero practice. Slow getting running shoes on. Much faster than last race's T2.

Find a speed lacing system I can live with. And get new shoes, mine are trashed.

Running is clearly my weakest sport. This is partly inexperience, partly a desperate need to HTFU and put in the miles, and partly some sort of knee issue. My right knee and hip started giving me trouble halfway through but then calmed down once I got going. Still, I'm getting faster.

Put in the miles. Consistently.

Stretching, recovery drink


In terms of time lost, based upon my current experience level:

1. Navigation problems during swim
2. Inadequate running training, partly due to injury and partly due to lack of consistency on my part
3. Poor T1 performance

Overall though I'm improving fairly quickly; this is now two races coming in front of MOP.


The course itself was a bit on the easy side for me, though probably very accessible to novices (of which there were many). I tend to prefer hillier rides. Still fun and I'm glad I went.

I do tend to feel that Wendy's sponsoring a triathlon is a bit like Genghis Khan sponsoring a peace conference, but at least they weren't serving cheeseburgers at the finish line.