Des Moines Triathlon

So the day finally came, and not only did I survive, but I crushed it. Everything went very smoothly, especially for my first race. With the exception of dropping my bottle with Gatorade on the bike route, I can't think of anything that even remotely went wrong.

Erin and my dad rode down to the race with me and we made our way to transition around 5:15 am in the pitch dark. After getting marked, I got my transition area all set up with plenty of time to spare. I checked out the bike in/out as well as the swim in and the run out before making my way around Gray's Lake to the swim start.

Heading into transition before the race

Erin and I before the race

Dad and I before the race

My brother rode his bicycle down and joined us just before the start of the race. 

Me and my bro before the race

Staring out at the lake, the buoys all seemed so far away and the total distance seemed like 10 miles instead of just under 1. I tried my best not to let my nerves get to me and before I knew it they were starting the race and then shortly after calling for my swim wave.  

Lining up for the start of my swim wave

And I'm off!

The water temperature at the start was just above 76 degrees, which is below the 78 degree threshold that makes the race wet suit legal (by USA Triathlon standards). Since I don't own a wet suit (nor have I trained in one) I knew the water would be cold without it. However, when I entered the water it actually felt warm compared to the air temperature that was around 60 degrees. 

Just keep swimming

Well, you can see the first buoy in this picture...

No matter how many times I read about it, nothing actually prepared me for swimming in a lake with a bunch of other people. For starters, I couldn't see more then 12 inches under water. On top of that, it took awhile for me to get used to being hit and kicked by fellow swimmers. After the first buoy, I made sure to take the rest of the corners plenty wide to avoid the traffic jams.

Based on my training, I had expected to finish the 1,500 meter swim in around 50 minutes. That is a really slow time, but considering that I taught myself to swim freestyle and just began swimming last December, finishing the swim would make me plenty happy. Boy was I surprised when I stood up out of the water, looked down at my watch and saw a time of 44 minutes. That feeling of excitement was amplified when I reached the top of the hill to see a huge cheering section waiting for me!

Coming out of the swim

My VERY creative cheering section

Transition 1 went about as well as I had expected. I took a little under 4 minutes to get dried off, put my socks and shoes onto my wet feet, and get ready for the bike course. T1 is definitely one place that I could improve on as many people complete it in 2 minutes or less. 

Heading out of T1

 Once on the bike, it didn't take long for me to realize how well I was riding. Going in, I thought if I rode very well, I might be able to break 1:25 on the bike. Never did I ever think I would be able to break 1:20, but what I lacked in swimming skill, I more then made up for on the bike with a time of 1:16:39. I averaged just under 19.5 mph! 

Finishing loop 1 of 2 on the bike

I was feeling awesome as I came into transition 2. I quickly racked my bike, swapped my helmet for  a visor and headed out on the run course. I had trained hard on the bike to run transition, so the heaviness in my legs didn't surprise me. I could tell that my legs didn't have enough left to push it too hard during the run. Knowing that I had banked over 15 minutes of unexpected time through the first 2 legs, I settled into an easy pace and finished the run 1:03:21. About a minute off of my PR 10K pace, set at the BIX about 1 month ago, but pretty impressive considering that I had swam and biked first. 

Heading to the finishline

Because of the rolling start, I had no idea what my actual time was until I retrieved my results printout...

Results card

3:09:46!!!! I couldn't believe my eyes. At first I was also excited about a 4th place finish as well, but when looking up the official results at home, I realized there were only 4 people in my division. That didn't bother me though. When I started the race, I was guessing/aiming at a finishing time of 3:30 with the thought that I just wanted to finish. I had just crossed the finish line more then 20 minutes faster then I had hoped for and to top it off, I felt great!

Best cheering section of the day!

This is what success looks like

 To all of those who came out to support me and to everyone who kept me in their thoughts and prayers, thank you all for your love and support on this journey. Most importantly, I want to thank my wife, Erin, and my 2 little girls. Not only for their love and support, but for the sacrifices that they all make that allows me to continue on this journey. None of this would be possible without them. 

Me with my #1 fan

I'm happy to say that my journey is still just beginning. I have a lot of goals and a long way to go, and although it isn't always easy, I'm loving every minute of it. 

Next up is a half marathon with my wife, her first, in the Quad Cities at the end of September.