Turkey Triathlon today! It was my very first triathlon! I had a good experience, and definately learned a few things. The swim started out pretty good. I did it in 8:30.643, including running across the pool room, losing my goggles on the dive in and having to stop to readjust them, and running outside to the transition area. First transition time was 2:17.728. I think I could definately knock a bit of time off in transition, now that I know how it goes. Messing with cycling gloves took a lot of my time. I also wan't quite sure what to do with the soaking wet hair. The bike was a double loop out and back. I did it in 35:43.198, which was the fastest time in my division! My first loop was okay, but I really picked it up on the second loop, and I passed a lot of people. Then another slow transition, with a time of 1:38.675. I ended up taking my cycling shoes off when I got off the bike, because they were too hard to run in. Then one of my friends asked to borrow my helmet, since he forgot to bring his. That took a little more time. And trying to get the gloves off took FOREVER! Next time I'll just run with them on, or remove them while I'm running and fasten them to my belt. The run was what really surprised me. The muscles in the front of my shins were REALLY tight! I've never had to run that way before, and I felt like I was barely moving. I would have pushed it a little harder, but I was thinking about the marathon next weekend, and decided it wasn't worth it. Anyway, with a few walks thrown in, I was a full 30:34.057 on the run - shameful! But most of the other participants weren't much faster. I ended up finishing third in my division and 15th overall, with a total time of 1:18:44.30. I'm happy about the race, and looking forward to the next one! :-) | 