This is my first tri after my injury at the Scenic 17 Tri seven weeks ago. I bruised tendons on my right foot stepping off the road on the run leg. I didn't do any activity (did RICE) for a week after and my right foot turned purple. I resumed swimming and cycling cautiously as it healed and did a few 1-2 mile runs in the last 2 weeks. I thought the Clermont Sprint would be a good first race back.
I've done Clermont Sprints for years starting in June of 1994, five months after we moved to Florida. The big surprise today was that the old, cramped Highland Hut had vanished, replaced by a huge new pavilion and building; very nice! Another surprise was that there were over 600 competitors.
I was in Wave 4 which was surprisingly crowded including 1 guy who decided to do the backstroke in the middle of the 400 yard swim. The bike was nice and hilly and I averaged 20 mph for the 10.6 mile course with a max speed of 40.2 on a downhill. My main concern was the run because of my foot so I started slow with the idea of taking it easy. Well, that went out the window after about 100'. At the first quarter mile one of the many collegiate team members passed me and I hung with her. Her name is Allison, a Junior from USF, and this was her first triathlon. She was complaining of cramping so to get her mind off of it, we started chatting. The miles rolled away and I finished at 1:08:12; my mile splits were 8:40 which is a pace I was happy with. I finished 5th out of 13 with Ken Junkins winning and Jim Mayer taking second in Male 55-59. These guys are really fast! Allison finished 4th out of 6 in Collegiate Female, a great first race.
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