Ft. Collins Triathlon (#7)

Sometimes I feel like I have a secret life. I got up two Sundays ago at 4am, got my tri stuff together, drove to Ft. Collins for a triathlon, and was back before the kids were even awake. I sat at the dining room table with my coffee when they come down the stairs like I’ve been there all morning

I did this race last year and love it.  Even though it’s an hour away, the people are friendly, the course is flat and well-marked, and I like how they set up the indoor swim.  Instead of being in a lane with three other people, you start at one end of the pool, swim to the other end and instead of swimming back in the lane, you dunk under the lane markers and swim the next length in different lane.  You continue to dunk under the lane markers at each end and work your way to the other end of the pool.  I like it because once you pass someone, you don’t have to pass them again, which sometimes happens if you are in the same lane with a slower swimmer for the entire swim.

My bike had a funky thing going on with the tire and it thumped with every rotation of the front tire.  I had taken it in to Full Cycle in Boulder two days earlier and they found nothing and assured me the bike was fine.  The bike course was the same as last year – three loops around a fairly flat route.  I became obsessed with the thump-thump of the tire and babied it around potholes, train tracks, gravel, probably going slower than I needed to but I would much rather be cautious than deal with a flat.

The run was an uneventful, flat and quite route through residential neighborhoods and I took my time.  It was a beautiful morning, I felt strong, and was in no hurry (yes, I often forget its a race).

My finish time was 9:17 (swim), 47:29 (bike) and 35:14 (run) for a total time of 1:38:03.  My new goal is to look into getting a coach and get some professional assistance improving my running and biking times.  I’ve read a ton about best practices and things other athletes do to improve but I’m at a point where I need to know how to customize that information for me and my unique goals. I suspect there are even little changes I can make that will help. Will let you know how that goes!