Jack's Generic Triathlon, Race re-cap

I started the day by lazily rolling out of bed at a quarter to 6am at the Motel 6 in San Marcos.  The wife and I were both tired as we had driven in late from San Antonio the night before.  A friendly reminder of the Indian food dinner started to settle in.  Needless to say, I was not optimistic about performing well today.
I arrived to the race site in plenty of time to get set up and conduct one last potty break.  The swim was 500 meters around a small island......with goats!  Anyhow, I felt pretty good in the water and finished in about 11:30.  T1 was fast as I was in and out quickly on the bike course.  This was a 13.8 mile course with some rolling hills in the middle.  I was averaging 20+ miles an hour and so, now, was feeling optimistic.  Finished the bike in just over 41 minutes.  T2 was very fast.  The run was an out and back 3 miler mostly on pavement.  I think I only averaged about 7 min flat for the first 1.5 miles, however, I was able to knock it down to 6:30's for the last half.  Total time= 1:15:51.  I placed 9th in my division out of 77, I think.  My run time earned me the #1 spot in the age group....something I've always prided myself in accomplishing.  All in all, this was a solid effort for the day.
Next race up is the Austin Triathlon on Labor Day.  That one will be the first of 3 longer and more technical races with the Kerville Half Ironman and Ironman Cozumel to follow.

End of Week 4

Swim: 4500meters
Bike: 71 miles
Run: 20 miles

Week 4 was the last of the volume preparation phase.  Week 5 will be an easy recovery week as race #4 is next Sunday....the Jack's Generic Tri. During the month of August, I'll really start to increase my weekly volumes with a goal of swimming 7000meters, Bike 110 miles, and Run 30 miles. 
We'll see how it goes! 

Couples Triathlon

Week 2 ended with the Couples Triathlon, an 800 meter swim, 11.1 mile bike, and 3.1 mile run.  Jess and I arrived at the race site just after 6am and thus, I was able to get a good spot in the transition area.  The bad part was, my wave didn't start until 8:30am!  We walked around a bit, said hi to some people, and watched the waves before mine, start. Then it was my turn. 
The swim was steady and I felt pretty comfortable throughout, exiting the lake in a slow time of 20:06. I'm always relieved to finish the swim as for me,  my race doesn't start until I reach land!  In and out of T1 and on the first gear shift on the first turn, my chain comes off!  Luckily, I was able to pull over and fix the problem rather quickly.  The bike course at Decker lake is really hilly and having ridden it before, I knew what to expect.  I felt strong and was able to finish about a minute faster then last time.  T2 was fast and Jess pointed me in the right direction from the sidelines to the run start.  The run was mostly on grass trail around the lake area and for the first 2 miles, I was feeling a bit sluggish.  On the last mile, I developed a side cramp coming up a hill and it was all I could do to try and stay focused on finishing strong.  I came across the line in just over 1:19 for the race. An average day.  
Week 3 begins today with the next race being in 3 weeks.

Week 1 review

Swim:1000 meters
Bike: 80 miles
Run: 21 miles

Week 1 turned out to be somewhat of a lazy week as I skipped 2 swim sessions and an easy bike day on friday.  I've seemed to redeem myself this weekend as I ran a solid 10 miler on Saturday while on Sunday, I cycled 53 miles followed by a 2 mile run.  As I begin week 2 of my 22 week journey, I realize I've got to be more consistent with my swimming during the week.

Next Sunday I'll head back out to Decker Lake for the Couples Triathlon, though, I'll be racing solo.
Time for a nap!