RR: New Jersey State Triathlon (Sprint) - OMG Hardware!!!

Friday
I went to my sports doctors (Advanced Sports Chiropractic) to have my neck worked on at 2:15PM Friday afternoon.  It had been bothering me for the past week and a half and I needed some relief before the race on Saturday.  I suppose that it helped a bit, but nothing dramatic.  From there I had to pick up my girls and head over to Mercer County Park to pick up my race packet.  Nothing too exciting to report, just picked up my number, chip and actually was gifted a dry-fit t-shirt that I didn't pay the extra cash for (score!). 

Friday night was uneventful which was a good thing.  I was in bed by 10:30PM, probably a little late, but I wasn't able to get in bed any sooner....too many last minute things to remember to pack.

Saturday
Up at 4:30AM and out of the house by 5:00AM.  I ate a package of Pop-Tarts on the way along with a bottle of Powerade.  At the race site, I was body marked by a 10-year old boy who apparently just learned how to write his numbers, and write them really BIG.  I laughed it off, racked my bike and set up transition.  Again, uneventful morning leading up to the race start.  I did manage to get in a decent warm-up which helped to loosen up my neck (yeah!)

Swim - 500 meters
The swim was a little rough, and I mean that in the literal sense.  There was a lot more contact than I have had in any other triathlon.  I was dragged under twice, swam over twice, pulled back a few times, and generally man-handled for the first 300 meters.  Once I made the turn to shore I was able to start swimming in a nice groove and cruise.  I think because of all of the contact, I was more tired than I expected to be getting out of the water.  Luckily I immediately saw/heard my wife, girl, parents, and mother-in-law which gave me a boost of energy and I flew up into transition.  There is a good 100 meter run/climb out of the water to transition that goes towards the swim time, so my actually time is a bit skewed. 
Swim time - 11:12 (2:14/100m) - 275th out of 1,357

T1 - 1:28 - really happy with my transition, only about 20 seconds off the fastest (one of the race leaders).

Bike - 11.5 miles
After getting on my bike and getting into my shoes I thought I was just start flying.  That was not the case.  I think my heart rate was really high and I was having a bit of a problem with my breathing.  It took about two or three miles before I felt better, but I never felt really good on the ride.  I think the heat and humidity definitely played a part in that.  It was just after 8:00AM and it was already 85F+ and really humid, conditions that I don't do well in.  I plugged along as best as I could constantly picking off cyclists from the earlier waves.  I tried to keep my cadence up around 100 RPMs and just pedalled hard.  I don't have good ride stats because my Garmin got all messed up about a 1/2 mile out of transition.  I was never passed on the bike and I never saw anyone from my age group the entire ride.  It was definitely odd, but I didn't think much of it.  I finally made my way back to transition doing pretty good, but definitely feeling the heat.  I saw my family as I was racing down the shoot to transition and again got another boost of adrenaline.  Bike time - 31:59 (21.6 MPH) - 56th out of 1,357

T2 - 1:11 - Again, really good transition, only mistake was almost forgetting my race number belt, luckily I was only about 10 feet away when I remembered.

Run - 3.1 miles
One word....HOT!!!!  Even as I was running out of transition I could tell how uncomfortable the run was going to be.  I saw my wife running along side of me down the exit shoot, she was yelling to everyone that I was coming.  I was able to give my daughter (oldest) a high five as I ran by, so awesome to see her and everyone there.  I felt like crap for the entire run, never once feeling like I was running smoothly.  The whole time I felt like I was slogging along through the heat and humidity.  The first mile took forever, but I was only passed by one guy from an earlier wave and I must have passed at least 20.  At least 1/4 of the people I passed were walking, it was just so friggin' hot out there.  I continued to check out the numbers of the guys coming the opposite way to see if there was anyone in my age group that I might be able to catch, but I never saw anyone.  I thought it was odd, but I never thought much about it.  About half-way through the run (at the turn around) I was passed again by a guy I had no chance of catching...that was it for me being passed.  I continued to make my way through the field of runners in front of me and watching what looked like a walk-a-thon for the rest of the folks out there.  Finally, I saw the finish chute and I pick up the pace a bit.  I could hear people calling my name (thank you Lynch family!), then I heard my wife and family yelling for me; I gave them a wave and a smile and made my way to the finish.  I didn't have anyone to catch ahead of me so I just cruised in.  Not a great run, but considering the conditions (and the walking wounded out on the course) I am OK with it.  Run time - 23:24 (7:33) - 86th out of 1,357

Final Time - 1:09:19
Overall:  48th out of 1,357
Gender:  43rd out of 755
Age Group:  3rd out of 123


Post-Race Comments
It was a brutal day, with temps in the mid-90s when I finished.  I would have like to have gone a bit faster in every leg, but conditions just wouldn't allow it.  I was about 30 seconds slower than last year, with my swim time about 1:10 slower (wetsuits were permitted last year).  I wanted to stick around for the post-race festivities and see about awards but I had Daddy-duty (youngest daughter had a birthday party at 10:00AM) and had to leave by 9:30AM.  When I got home around 1:00PM, I checked the final results from the race and BAM!  there it was:

I placed 3rd in my Age Group (M 35 - 39)

Holy Crap!  Granted my time was not even close to the top two guys, but still, 3rd in my age group!  This is only my second award ever (the first an AG 3rd place in a tiny 5k).  I thought back to the bike and the run, and how odd it was that I didn't really see anyone in around my age.  I guess I know why now, they were all behind me.  What a great way to end the day.  Now if I can only find out how I am supposed to get that darn award (I have emailed the race director already).

What's next?  Back to training with my next race either Saturday, August 7th (Born to Tri in Asbury Park, NJ) or Sunday, August 29th (Riverstock in Sunbury, PA).  I am signed up for Riverstock (Olympic distance), but not for Born to Tri (Sprint) as it doesn't really fit into my training, but we'll see.  Stay cool!