92 seconds: Greeley Triathlon RR

Headed towards the finish line!

Ninety-two seconds.  That was the difference between this year and last year at the Greeley Triathlon, which is the only triathlon so far that I've done two times (I was faster this year).  Rather than a standard race report for this event, I'm going to hit on some Highlights.  Kind of a top ten list if you will:

1. The Weather Gods were watching yesterday. At 3:30 on race morning, I was awakened by the sound of gusting wind.  At 5:30 when I actually got out of bed, it was cold, windy, and cloudy.   An hour later we were waiting on word about the race.  By seven O'clock the wind was gone, the sun was up, and it was race time. Quickest race day turn around I've ever seen.
2. A time trial start is an aesthetically pleasing site in triathlon.  Seeing the racers spread out across the water in their multicolored caps, their arms rising up and falling back into the water is reminiscent of whale watching. It's a much calmer start than the usual thrashing that takes place at a mass start, and a definite highlight of this race.
3. Strippers at triathlons are pretty cool.  No, not that kind of stripper, but the ones who help you get your wet suit off quickly.  Took advantage of that option this year and that definitely saved me a lot of time in T1.
4. Longer, slower training pays off, especially for recovery.  I raced hard yesterday, and felt like I gave it my all in each aspect of the race.  That said, I felt fine last night, and even better today. The aerobic conditioning I have has definitely helped me to get back to normal, much more quickly.  Instead of needing two to three to four days to recover, I was able to do some strength training this evening, and I'm ready for swimming and riding tomorrow.
5.  Post race lunch at Mom's house.  Although we missed dad (he went up to help with radio communications at the fire evacuation sites), we managed to have a great post-race BBQ at my folks house.  Bratwurst, Sausage, Hamburgers, Potato Salad, Brownies, and of course beer.  I even managed to knock back a few Coors originals, something I haven't had in a long time.
6. Athletes in Tandem are awesome.  It reminds you of the kindness and decency of many athletes whether they're professionals or just your average age grouper.   As described on their web site the group . . ."is a non profit organization that actively participates in relationships with challenged athletes to enhance the quality of their lives by competing together in triathlons, running, biking and swimming events."  Awesome to see them out there working together, and making a meaningful experience for everyone involved. 
7.  Ken Whitney is eighty-three years old, founded the original Greeley Triathlon club, and competed this weekend.  I hope to God that I'm still doing triathlons when I'm his age!  
8. Running remains my strongest event.  Coming out of T2, I felt good.  A little tired, but still pretty damned good.  I was quite happy to produce a 21:49 5k run considering that just a few years ago, I couldn't have done that in isolation, let alone after a swim and a ride..  I'm curious to see how I do with the L2L in a couple of weeks.  I'm hopeful to produce another solid ride followed by a strong 10K as well.
9. My brother had an awesome race, besting his previous time by eight minutes.  No, that's not a typo.  He was eight minutes faster this year!  That is an incredible improvement for such a short distance.  Congrats, Paul! (Check out his Race report here).  In fact, we went 2nd/3rd in our age group!  Our next race together is in about 7-8 weeks at the HITS 70.3 distance.
10. And last, sitting back on the grass, by the lake/pond after the race and enjoying the sunshine, the company (wonderful wives to come out and support us), and the sense of accomplishment that you can only get from endurance sports.  Makes it all worth it!

Post race