I scouted the course the day before with my family and figured I would be okay. Not much had changed from the previous year, except a bike leg and the lack of water buckets to carry, both that could be an advantage. A swim shortcut and an expanded mud area were changes that could be problems for me.
I did very little warmup as I hadn't worked out for the previous two weeks and didn't want to waste my energy. Plus I was hiding from my surgeon, who managed to catch and scold me a little bit before the race start. Conditions were decent for an April with a good amount of wind but nice temperatures. Turnout was not as good as the prior year. The race started after the kids and the double racers finished.
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| The cars and the half pipe |
I started out slow, hoping to at least finish the race. I had decided I would stop racing if there were any issues. First obstacle was a couple of cars to climb over, which were easy enough. That was followed by hay bails, over-unders, and the a-frame wall. The running and obstacles thinned the herd and I was running in the top 5, while keeping a manageable pace. A rock wall/half-pipe was a cool feature and after a run on a sandy peninsula, I had to decide on going for a short cold swim or suffer a big time loss running back. I opted for the swim because it seemed short enough. I about changed my mind when a volunteer in a kayak said I was half-way across. That was enough motivation for me to keep going. Canoes were next and then the next big surprise; a tire drag that wasn't there the day before.
It turned out it wasn't too bad (still the second toughest obstacle after the swim) and I was running third and second depending on the obstacle at hand. A few other obstacles were tires, low crawl, rope bridge, and cargo net. The bike leg was fun and I made up some time and was in second place solid but willingly surrendered it, sticking with my plan that I wouldn't overly exert myself.
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| The first mud pit |
The mud pits were next and were the highlight of the race. The majority of the spectators were there and it was messy but still fun. I moved into second but once again, let the guy pass me and finished roughly 10 seconds back. It turns out that he was racing in the team pairs and so I ended up in second overall, behind my good friend John Burpee. Not too bad.
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| Second for me and first for John |
20/20 HINDSIGHT: More swim training.
HIGHLIGHTS/FUNNY NOTES:
- Running into my appendectomy surgeon was a little of a shock
RDRR REVIEW: 4 stars out of 5.
Would I run it again? Yes.
Would I recommend it to a friend? Yes.
Good
- Great course
- Excellent volunteers
- Finisher's medal
- Snacks/Beer at the end
- No prizes except first place
- Didn't get a t-shirt because they were all taken
FINAL THOUGHTS: Great first race, all things considered.
