Cable poking through
I was not willing to back off my week at all to rest for the Music City Triathlon. It was not a priority so I was training through it. Shannon and I went out for 36 miles on Saturday morning. It was her longest ever ride. We were blessed with a cloudy, cool morning as we rode out to Adams, TN. We picked the wrong day to ride to Adams. The town of about 100 people was hosting a festival called the Thresherman Show, which brought in several thousand people. The show is for antique farm equipment including old tractors and horse-drawn buggies. They also have a tractor pull and mule pull. We were riding in the traffic of everybody heading into town. Most were pulling tractors behind big trucks. Others were riding in horse-drawn buggies. It was cool to see, but a little chaotic at the same time. More than once I thought we might die.
Shannon cruising through a tunnel
Going up a small, wooded climb near Adams
I felt great after we got home so I went back out and logged in some more time to end my day with over 4 hours of riding. We then did yardwork in the hot sun most of the afternoon. I tried my best to stay hydrated, but it was nearly impossible in the heat. We worked hard all evening, going to pick up a new freezer and installing it in the house. That was easier said than done. I had to take off the front door to get the thing to fit inside. I am pumped to have more room for berries! I also had to put on my aero bars, fix my shifter cable and change out tires. Needless to say, I was very fatigued by the end of the evening. We didn't have much time for dinner and ended up eating ice cream. What an awesome pre-race meal.
As usual for a triathlon, it was an early morning, departing the house well before sunrise. We had some construction traffic to negotiate, but made it to the race in plenty of time. I brought two bikes so I could get in a warm-up after the transition area closed. Sprint racers always start first at Music City, followed by Olympic distance. They also seed everyone based on expected swim time. So, with me being Olympic distance and not exactly a fast swimmer, I was going to be waiting a while before my chance to start.
Registration took longer than expected. They red-flagged my registration because of my new USAT license. I don't know what the big deal was. I've already raced on it twice. I had to go through three different registration lines before finally getting my numbers and packet. I had to hurry a little to get my stuff into transition in time. The transition area closed 30 minutes prior to the start, so everything had to be in place early. They announced that the swim would be shortened from 1500 meters to 1000 meters due to excessive river current from recent rain. I was a little disappointed as my main motivation for this race was to get in a long swim at race speed.
After getting things set in transition, it was back to the car to change. It was already hot standing in an open parking lot letting the sun bake you. We could hear the announcer at the river and I actually thought they were already starting people. I didn't think I had time to warm up on the bike. I honestly didn't even feel like getting it out. I was hot and tired already. I just wanted to get in the water and cool off. We hurried down to the river to find out that the first swimmer hadn't even gone off yet. I could've gone back and got the bike out, but I decided to save my energy and just relax for the next hour. I was worried about being able to make the full distance. Last year I had a hard time with the run and I was well-rested.
Racers lined up on the dock awaiting the start of the swim
Swimmers heading upstream from the dock in the Cumberland River
Finally, it was my time to get in line. The line slowly worked down onto the dock. The dock is a hectic time to me. I like to get my face wet before I put on my goggles just to help them seal a little better. I always put on my swim cap over my goggles so that there is less chance of them getting kicked off my head should I run into some feet. I splashed my face, got the goggles set and put on the swim cap just as we were told to slide off the dock into the water. The past two years the water was deep by the dock, but this year it was only about 3 ft deep. It was a sudden jolt when I hit my feet on the bottom, which was made of sharp, cragly rocks. I got stabbed in my right foot, just in front of my heel. It felt like a piece of wire poking me rather than a sharp rock. My first thought was of infection from the river water or tetanus from the wire. I only had about 10 seconds to worry about that before it was time to start.
Me in the middle on the dock
About to reach the starter and get the race underway
Swimming away from the dock for 1000 meters of fun
The swim began against the current. I hit it as hard as I could, pretending the first buoy was the finish line. I wanted to use my strength to pass the weaker swimmers while we were pushing against the current. If I overdid it, I could always coast back with the current. My foot burned like fire the first 5 minutes and then began to ache. It was annoying, but I don't think it slowed me much. I passed quite a few people in the first half of the swim. The toughest part of the swim was the last 100 meters where we crossed the current back to the dock. The current was pushing people downstream way past the exit point. I made sure to look up often and keep myself pointed as straight as possible toward the ladder on the dock. The guy ahead of me was slow getting up the ladder so I gave him a helpful shove in the butt. I got out of the water with a swim time of 20:38. I was seeded 295th based on my expected swim time, but my time was 164th fastest. I definitely had some proof to go with my argument than I should've been seeded a tad higher.
Looking down on the swimmers from the Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge
Racers head from the river toward the transition area
It was a painful run from the river for me after cutting my foot
There was a lot of traffic on my run up from the river to the transition area. All the people were walking! I was trying to run without touching my heel on the concrete because it was still smarting from the cut. I had to run through the grass to pass a pack of walkers and that got the foot to hurting even more. It was killing me by the time I reached the transition area. I got a quick glance of the wound as I slid on my socks. It was a nice round little hole at the edge of my heel and arch. It looked like somebody stabbed me with a pencil. There was some swelling around it and it was bleeding slightly. I jammed on my socks and struggled to run out of transition. I was gritting my teeth and limping, but I managed to keep running and moving fast in a big line of riders exiting transition.
Changing into my bike gear in transition
The right foot was not feeling good at this moment
Putting my shoes on while they were attached to the pedals was tougher than I remembered. I haven't practiced it in a while and it showed. I got the tongue of the shoe all smashed up around my toes and couldn't get it out. I gave up after a a few tugs. It was only 24 miles. Comfort shmumfort. My foot ached for the first few minutes, making me wonder how it was going to handle the run, but then all of a sudden it stopped hurting. I settled into the best rhythm I have ever had during a time trial. Sometimes it's just nice to not care what your time is. I concentrated on riders ahead and picked them off a few at a time on the out-and-back course. We were to do 2 laps of the 20km course. It's mostly uphill on the way out, then downhill coming back. There was a headwind coming back that took away from the fun of the downhill.
Bike course heading out of Nashville on Ellington Parkway
Me passing by LP Field to begin lap 2 on the bike
They had to add a few turns in the early part of the loop due to construction. I took full advantage of my cornering skills on both laps and ripped the turns at full speed like a crit. I was cruising on the second lap. I found a good cadence on the climb and was able to stay in my aero bars until the very top. My legs were tired from all the training recently, but they were strong. I finished in 1:06:22 with a 22.9 mph average speed. That was 24 seconds faster than I did it last year. Not bad for riding with tired legs! I went faster and did it with much less effort. I was 16th quickest out of 355 on the bike. I love coming into the transition area a seeing all the bike racks around my area empty. That's when you know you passed a lot of people.
LP Field in the background on the bike course
Rider comes into transition at the end of the bike segment
These two almost piled up just ahead of me during dismount from the bike
Me coming into transition following the bike
It crowded and dangerous going in and out of transition
Video of the bike segment
Run course mapped from my Garmin 305
Running up the Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge
Nearing the end of lap 1 on the run
Still smiling at the end of lap 2
Turning up the speed as I near the final turn and finish line
This week is a rest week. I've been healing up my foot and giving the legs some much-needed rest. And it has been a good time to catch up on things around the house. We lost a lot of our flowers around the house with the drought, but the garden is growing well now that it has rained a few times. I have been tossing around the idea of making a riding video for some time. Now that I have the GoPro and a few new accessories, I'm putting the plan into action. The first segment is in progress and I should have it finished soon. I can't wait to finally finish one and share with everyone.
Got an extra battery for the GoPro so we can film for longer
New LCD screen with battery indicator so we can play back the video and make sure the shot was good
Joby Gorillapod Tripod with GoPro Mount
The Gorillapod can attach onto anything...including the skinny metal hook atop a flower pot.
The morning glories are finally taking over the stump in the backyard
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