We have three mascots

This blog actually has three mascots:

Max
Smokey

and Peanut

This blog's mascot

Max the Cat. Just needed an excuse to show you this pic of Max last year when he was little.

Another Tri: Escape from Fort Delaware, June 10

When will there be sleep on the weekends? :( We're both card carrying USAT members now. I still don't want to belong to any club that would have me as a member, but you get a discount on races, so... We're doing our 2nd triathlon in a couple of weeks. June 10th: Escape from Fort Delaware in Newark, DE (Olympic distance).

Weekend races

Two Races. Two Days. What was I thinking?

Saturday was the Germantown 5-Miler and Sunday was the Capitol Hill Classic. One of these days I am going to catch Binni, and I thought Saturday could be the day, as she ran by not too far from the turnaround I was about to make. Sadly, it was not to be, as I just couldn't go any faster! The Cap Hill Classic 10K on Sunday was a great course, winding around RFK and through the Cap Hill neighborhoods. The reward afterwards was brunch at our friend Joe's house (he's hosted CHC 10K brunches for several years).

More St. Anthony's wrap-up

We had to get up at 4am that morning, as you had to get to the transition area and setup all your stuff by 6:50am. This made for a long wait afterwards, as our swim waves didn't leave until 9am. I took a nap on the beach, after which I felt much better.

Here's Binni's transition setup, which was alot more organized than mine. The transitions are pretty hectic and you're not really thinking too much, so my strategy was to put everything I needed for the bike in my bike shoes (gels, sunglasses, etc..) and put everything I needed for the run in my running shoes (race number, sunblock, etc...). That way I wouldn't get out on the course and realize I forgot my sunblock or was naked or whatever...

With 4,000+ people, it took quite a few waves to get everyone in the water. The pros were off first, then it was by age group and gender. Team in Training were the last waves to go and I think I may have literally been the last person in the water. I saw no point in tiring myself out at the beginning by elbowing and jostling to start the swim. You move to a holding pen of sorts with your wave, wait a few tense minutes, there's a blast of the airhorn, and then you're off!

Here's what the water looked like. Those buoys seemed awfully far away!

Battle of the Boulevard

We ran the inaugural Battle of the Boulevard 10K this Saturday. "Not Your Typical Racing Experience" turned out to mean "There Are Lots of Big Hills in the Final Two Miles and It Will Be Really Hot Out for That Early in the Morning". I forgot what Wilson Blvd was like coming up towards Clarendon. Here's the report and results.

Race wrap-up

Binni and I, along with many others on the team, were most nervous about the swim. Luckily the waters were calm that day, unlike last year. But the swim ended up being the easiest part of the race. After getting away from the initial crowd and taking a few elbows, I was actually enjoying myself as I swam from buoy to buoy. I'm still somewhat slow, but I guess all the training paid off. For some reason, swimming in the ocean makes me dizzy when I get out. Climbing the exit stairs, I was on my hands and knees, swaying back and forth as some of the race officials there to help with the swim exit gave me a hand and asked if I was ok.

As I came into the transition area, I heard the announcer say "The pros are reporting that it's a bit breezy out on the bike course". That was quite an understatement, as it was downright windy out there (and it always seemed like a headwind), making it a tougher bike ride than I anticipated.

The run was brutal, as by that point it was around 90 degrees out. After getting off the bike, the thought of running a 10k was not a pleasant one. Thankfully, as the route wound through some of St. Pete's neighborhoods, spectators were out with hoses to cool us off.

We're already signed up for another one: Escape from Ft. Delaware, June 9.

Binni
Total 3:24:09
Swim 41:26
T1 2:46
Bike 1:33:35
T2 3:07
Run 1:02:13

Chris
Total 3:27:49
Swim 34:40
T1 2:19
Bike 1:31:24
T2 3:52
Run 1:12:40

Triathlon Footage

Some nice footage of the triathlon here, and the amazing story of Ed Sanford, who spoke at dinner the night before the race.

Team Picture

Here's the team at the beach in St. Pete's (after a practice swim). I'm like the palest guy in this picture! Can you spot me?

Finish photo

A wrap-up and more photos on the way.

And stay tuned to the blog, as we've got some other adventures coming up, possibly including RAGBRAI...

We Made It!

Binni is only talking about how she beat me by 3 minutes. Photos soon...