One week removed from Austin...I'd felt some soreness this week, and my workouts had been limited to 3 swims and 1 run. However, I felt great going into today's race. I suspect it was the confidence built after finishing last week's race coupled with fresh(er) legs after a light week of workouts.
I've raced this route a number of times, and know what to expect: a short, crowded swim, a challenging bike course, and an easy run.
Best of the Best is an invitational tri, and, in order to qualify, you must place in the top 16 of your AG at a race in this calendar year. As a result, the field is smaller, and quite fast.
Last time I raced in Best of the Best was 2014, and, I came in dead last in my AG with a SLOW 1:42:46. I've improved on the course since.
The race start is at 9:30, so, the early morning drive and transition set up isn't a factor.
I was out the door by 7, and to the venue by 7:35...earlier than planned. I took my time picking up my packet, setting up transition, and visiting with all of my tri buddies that raced today. I even swam a 100 yard warm up to kill time.
I was in line between several FWTri and Trident friends, so, it was nice to visit while we waited. I estimated 4:57 for my 250 yard swim, which matched my swim the last time I was in this pool.
Swim: When it was my turn, I hit the water and felt good. The swimmer in front of me was fast, so I had no traffic to deal with. At about 150 I got passed by a couple people (including one that I knew), but, no big deal. Total swim time: 5:10. Slower than I'd planned, but no big deal. Even with the slower time, this was my 2nd fastest swim in this pool in 6 attempts.
T1: uneventful. 1:38.
Bike: As usual I got out to a fast start and averaged 20 mph for the 1st 5 miles. Unlike the norm, we actually had a bit if a headwind on the way out. Typically, we get a tailwind. I cranked hard and felt pretty good at the turnaround point, although, my legs did feel a bit dead after last weekend's race. I made the turn into the school parking lot for the turnaround and attempted to brake. I realized that my rear brake was not working. I gently applied my front brake and stopped. I dismounted, flipped the bike over, and fixed the brake issue. I mounted the bike again and headed back. At about mile 8.5, I realized I had an issue with my right contact lens. I was hoping that it would correct itself along the way, but, at about mile 9, I felt it fly out of my eye. So...theres that. Another 7 miles to go without a contact. To add insult to injury, I heard my Garmin beep at about that time...apparently, I had inadvertently paused it in the school parking lot. I restarted it, but, had lost about 1 mile worth of data. At that point, I considered mailing this one in, but, was too far along in the race to quit. I finished the bike route in 54:38, or 17.6 mph. Even with all the issues, that is my fastest bike split ever on this course. If only I hadn't had so many issues...
T2: uneventful: 1:31.
I headed out on the run attempting to focus with one eye. The weather was great for a run, and I dialed in a steady mid 9s pace. 9:41, 9:41, 9:29. However, to round out a crazy day of racing, I ran into a small tree branch on the run and sustained a few scratches on my arm...awesome.
Overall time: 1:32:27. My fastest time ever on this course, and, a full 10 minutes faster than my miserable Best of the Best race 2 years ago. Still, only good for 15th out of 20 in my AG and 84 out of 123 males.
I hung out a bit with my buddies, many of which took home hardware. It's cool to be surrounded by so many talented athletes.
Last Tri for the season. I'll race at Bronda's Du next week, and settle into running season for a few months.
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