I started off in the front even though I'm not a front of pack swimmer. I like to let the faster swimmers go and try to draft off some of the 2nd tier swimmers. That didn't really work out either. After we rounded the 1st buoy, I lost the feet of the 3-4 guys in front of me and swam alone the rest of the way. They probably finished 30-40 seconds in front of me.

Included in the swim time is a 50 yard uphill run to the transition area. Actual swim times are probably about 30 seconds less.

Overall, I think I had a good swim. Much better than last year. The course seems like it might have been a little shorter. Not sure.

Try to stay with my group after the 1st turn.

I felt pretty slow in T1. I felt slow taking off my wetsuit. I had trouble getting my shoes on. I had some gels in my helmet and I had troubel putting them in my shirt pocket. I even had some trouble clicking in to my pedals after crossing the timing mat. Overall, a pretty lousy performance.

I guess I need to work on swim/bike transitions.

I exited transition feeling pretty good. But it always takes me a few minutes to get comfortable on the bike after swimming hard. You don't have much of a chance to get your legs back before you hit "the hill" for the first of three times. The first time over that hill is always the worst. I'm a MOP swimmer so there was alot of carnage on that hill during my first lap. A little revenge on the faster swimmers is always nice. I think I passed about 8 people and I was only going 8-9mph. After the hill, I slowly started getting into a rythm. The back side of the bike course is smooth and fast. A really fun ride. It doesn't last long before you start on lap 2 and find yourself at "the hill" again. I slowly started picking up the faster swimmers during the bike. It was tough to tell whether I was passing the duathlon or triathlon bikers until I realized the du guys all had numbers in the 500s. The 2nd and 3rd times over that hill aren't nearly as bad. I think I passed the 3rd place guy on the bike course somewhere around the end of lap 2. We did a couple passes and re-passes before I went out in front for good after getting a gap during the 3rd time tackling "the hill". I finished about 30 seconds ahead of him...I think he may have started to pick up time during the flat back section. A pretty decent bike overall and I set myself up for a nice run.

Not sure really. I think I paced pretty well.

I think I had a pretty solid T2. Jumped off the bike and made it to the rack very quickly. I removed my helmet while running to my transition spot. Hat on. Shoes on. Number on. I usually grab my hat and race number after my shoes and put them on while I'm running....so I guess that's the only thing I could have done to make things faster. I'm not sure why I didn't do this...

Put on hat and race belt while running instead of putting them on in T2.

I finished the bike well behind the leader and about 30 seconds ahead of the guy in 3rd. I started off with a decent pace and was trying to judge how my running legs felt. Last year, I had a fast first lap and died on the 2nd lap. I didn't want to have a repeat. I even took a bottle with me this time to grab a few drinks during the first mile or so. I ditched the bottle by my families picnic table to retrieve after the race. After a mile or so, I started to feel pretty good and picked up the pace a little. I realized that the guy behind me was falling back so I didn't have much pressure to run fast. I took the one big hill nice and easy on the first lap. I finished the 1st lap in about 19:30. I saw a time of 1:57:30 on the race clock. I still felt really good and picked up the pace some more. I realized that nobody was catching me but I still wanted to break 2:20. This time, I really pushed the last couple of miles and started lapping people. I ran much harder up the hill this time and sprinted past a few people still on their first lap on the way down the other side. Finished strong and high fived my 4-year old on the finshing stretch. Definately a good run.

Not much really. It would have been nice to have somebody running with me to push the pace a little.

No warm down. Hung out with the family and waited for Matt to finish.

I stuck around for the awards ceremony to pick up my age group award. I ended up winning the series competition. I don't feel like I really deserved it though. There was a guy that was a couple minutes ahead of me through the first two races that didn't show up for the Pinchot Oly. I guess I'll take it though. It's actually quite a nice plaque for such a small race.


There really isn't a nicer place in the area to have a triathlon. The swim is nice, challenging bike course and a great run. The people are friendly and there is a good vibe. It's the perfect place for a family to come and watch a triathlon up close. I hardly even see my kids during some of the big events...but you can pass you wife/kids/family several times during this tri.