# 193 Crystal River Triathlon #1

 Triathlon #193 today at Crystal River, Florida! Cool start, with 62’f and 15 mph winds at dawn. I’ve done this race before, so I was looking forward to a good time. After last week’s race in the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico was a welcome change with the water temp at 82’f.

All Males were the first wave, and the light chop and strong tidal current made it interesting. I got pushed off the swim line and worked hard to get back. OK swim time, so I pushed hard on the 15-mile bike. The twisty course was made tougher by the headwind I kept encountering during the direction changes. I knew I was in Third on the bike and wanted to catch Michael Chance before T2.

Despite my averaging 18.16 mph, I spotted Michael putting on his shoes as I racked my bike, and he got out of transition about 1.5 minutes ahead of me. I focused on him, determined to chase him down. I could see I was closing so I kept pushing and caught him with a mile to go. AT that moment, my right hamstring cramped slightly so I backed off. I caught him again about 200 yards from the finish and felt the pain again. I stayed with him but couldn’t catch him and I was 8 seconds behind at the line. I did post a faster 5k run time than him; 27:33 with 8:51 splits.

My final time of 1:32:03 was over 17 MINUTES behind the 70-74 winner, David Morrow (USA ranked #1 and 4th in the world), who was 20th Overall. Happy with Third and really enjoyed the challenge today!

Sunrise over the marshes

David Morrow and I

70-74 Podium

You get the first parking spot when you're early.

# 192 Vero Beach Triathon

I arose at 2:00 AM Sunday morning and drove 2+ hours to the Vero Beach Triathlon, on the Atlantic Coast. Sprint Triathlon with a longer swim; .46 mile. I’ve never done this race before so for my 192nd triathlon, this looked like a good challenge. Only knew a few people there which made it great to make new friends.

Ocean looked nice before sunrise, but a big swell developed by race start. The swim was a bit tough, and the rise and fall made sighting the buoys difficult. Bike ride down Route A1A along the water was fun as I pushed hard, passed a lot of people, and averaged 18.9 mph over the 12+ miles. The 5k run was hot and humid and I definitely need more heat training; time of 31:21 with 10:07 splits.

Final time was 1:38:08 for a fourth place out of seven in 70-74. Long time friend Matt Mahoney passed me at Mile 1 on the run to win 65-69. On to the next race!