Anthem, Arizona
I couldn’t believe how warm it was today. The bike portion of
this race and I have a history. Last time I did this race I was directed by a
Sherriff working the race to go the wrong direction.
I had a good swim. In fact, the fastest I have ever swam that distance. I bested my personal best in a 400 meter pool swim by 2 whole seconds.
A few minutes into the bike course as I began to scream down this downhill portion of the course, I flatted. In almost three years of racing I have never flatted. All things considered I felt pretty lucky. The tire flatted slowly enough for me to slow down and bring the bike under control. I certainly did not need another crash, especially at that speed. That is pretty scary. Front wheels are easier to fix and it was a nice morning. I had a luxurious side walk to sit down and fix my flat. In fact I was actually joined by and English woman and her nephew who were out on a morning walk. They took great interest in the goings on and asked me a bunch of questions.
I took my time changing the tube. I wanted to get it right, especially since I wanted to build some positive history and confidence for the future. I do hope I go another 3 years however. After about what seemed like 20 minutes I was under way. I had to stop again because I was experiencing front brake rubbing issues. I followed the fastest swim split in my division with the slowest bike split in my division. I was just happy I was able to fix the flat and finish. My history with the bike portion of this race continues. Next time!
The run leg of this race is a slightly more difficult than average 5k. I remembered that from last time I did the race. I remembered right. It has a steady uphill grind for the last two miles of the race.
