Before I go shower and pass out...

Tri the Creek - Cherry Creek Res, CO - Sprint distance
They said it was an 800m swim, 20k bike, and 5k run, but people were thinking the distances were a bit off. Some guy with a Forerunner thought the run was short and the bike was a bit long. People seemed to think the swim was a bit short as well. Who really knows?

I left the house at 5:15 this morning hoping to get a good spot in the transition area. It opened at 5:45 and I was one of the first 10 bikes in there. Got my spot nailed and all set up and was getting things ready for the swim when I realized I'd forgotten my goggles at home! So, I drove home to get them and made it back in about 20 minutes. Then, before getting all wetsuited up, I wanted to hit the can. Some genius decided it would be a grand idea to have four porto-potties for a crowd of 400+. Brilliant! By the time I get done in there, I have just enough time to get my BodyGlide on and hoof it down to the swim start with my wetsuit.

The swim had 5 waves starting 5 minutes apart. They pushed back the start from 7:00 to 7:05 or so when they realized that people were still waiting to pee. I was in the 4th (second fastest) wave. I had no time to warm up and I could feel it as the swim started. Got a few kicks to the shoulders and sides and kicked a few people myself. Then, my goggles fogged up. I'd forgotten to prep them! So I end up sighting every 10 strokes or so, but it takes me a good 10 seconds to figure out where the huge orange buoy is because I can't see a thing. I had to take the goggles off at one point to see the turnaround buoy. Ended up with a 12:3x swim split and headed up to the beach with an HR of 180. :eek:

The bike course was much better, although my transition sucked. I was averaging around 23-24 on the flats with the new bike and the Zipps. The course had a few short climbs, but nothing significant. It was CROWDED, though. There was absolutely no way to avoid drafting off of people. Also, the Bontrager rear bottle mount I installed last night SUCKED. It vibrated so much that it rotated downward and I lost both my water bottles and my microflate. I now have no way to hydrate and no fuel to get ready for the run. The final turn left no time to get the shoes off, so I came in with one shoe off and one unstrapped. Then a woman falls right in front of me as I'm dismounting. Doh! I made it around her, pulled my shoe off and headed out on the run. Bike split - 35:xx. Total time elapsed - 51:xx

The first mile was rough. I was still hammered from the bike and had no chance to refuel because of the lost bottles. Once I got past the first mile marker I started to settle in and relax. There was a water station just past the 2 mile marker and that helped immensely. Even so, lugging around a clyde body isn't easy! I barely had anything left to make the final sprint home. Run split - 25:xx

My goal for the race was to break 1:20.

Overall finish - 1:16:55.15! Clydesdale POWAH!

Post race refreshments included more of that horrific Pickle Juice (which I avoided like the plague), some darn good NY-style pizza, loads of high-class bottled water, and this interesting drink called Gleukos that I really enjoyed. I'd actually recommend it if you can find it anywhere.

So there you go. Not enough toilets and a bit of a dirty course, but overall, I'm happy. With a better set of transitions and some hydration on the bike leg, I'm pretty sure I have a sub-1:15 in me. I'll just have to find out next time.