Yes, I won another National Championship! Two years ago some of the fastest guys were hurt and unable to race. I jumped on the chance and won. This year was so much sweeter. The big guns were out and I pulled of an awesome win!
Here's my race report:
Race morning it rained, the roads must have been pretty slick because shortly before the highway was to be closed for the race a car hit the gard rail and over turned. Fortunately everyone was ok, however the race start was delayed so that the oil and gas could be cleaned up. No one wants to race on a slick surface and then go down.
The New York City Triathlon race is a bit trick as far as the start times go. This year with the delayed start and the new starting procedure I wasn't quite sure when the start would be. I timed my warm up a little late so only got in about 10 mins instead of my normal 20-30. Also because of the current there is no swim warm up.
The swim was pretty rough (see video of an age group wave). The wind was going against the current producing significant swell. I had a very hard time finding my rhythm until the last 500 meters. Eventually I figured out how to swim up one side and ride the swell back down and still be able to breath.
Unlike last year I had good transitions. T1 was fast and efficient. My handler was super great and helped with my wetsuit and helmet.
The first 5-10 kilometers of the bike I found it hard to generate power. It wasn't until the first climb that the legs started to really kick in. This is a bit odd because usually I get out of the water ready to kill it on the bike. About 1 kilometer from the first turn on the bike I spotted the Willie Stewart who I thought was in the lead. Willie is a fast runner so I knew I needed to attack him on the bike. I passed him on a short steep climb and then kept building my lead. At the second turn I had almost 2 mins on him.
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| On the bike at USA Nationals |
When I hit T2 I was a bit surprised to find out that there was another athlete ahead of me. I'd never raced Daniel before so I missed him on the bike. That happens when there are 4000 age group racers out there. Worse I had no idea how well he could run.
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| Look at those awesome Nike Streak XC shoes! |
My plan for the run was to build it from the start. As it started a woman ran next to me asking "what are you doing." To which I replied, "Running." She thought I was a pro. She wanted to pace me but had to drop off after the first mile. By this time is was hot and humid 90+ degrease and 90% humidity. My TYR carbon suit which normally dries in about 3 mins was soaked with sweet the whole run. I kept pushing knowing Daniel was out there and worried about the fast runners behind me. With 1.2 kilometers to the finish I passed Daniel. I was so deep in my own personal pain cave that I didn't realized it was him until i heard him swear as I went by.
The last few meters of the race were totally amazing. I may have enjoyed them a little bit too much as you can see in the picture.
After the race I spent time in the medical tent getting ice and cooling down. This always seems to happen to me after hot races. In the finnish area there was a Muscle Milk tent which I took advantage of. Then went to the Accenture VIP tent for food and to wait for the podium.
Special thanks to: Coach Lara, USA Triathlon, PACE, Athletes Lounge, Muscle Milk, Trigger Point and many others who have helped me this year!
On a sad, rather serious note, there were two deaths in the swim this year. One of them was the sister of one of my coworkers. These things are a strong reminder that sports are dangerous. Things can happen quickly that are often out of your control, no matter how in shape you are or how good of a swimmer you or how good of a skier you are. My heart and prayers go out to the families so effected my this tragic loss of life.
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