Phony Loggerhead

Today Linda and George created a holiday workout largely aimed at allowing beginners to practice a triathlon on some of the same grounds as next month’s Loggerhead Triathlon. We met at 8am to swim the full course of 3/8 mi.  The water was warm, calm and clear. I finished the swim in 10:20, probably behind good swimmers and ahead of most of the other beginner people. I saw one guy swim past me at what appeared to be double my speed. My technique has a flaw, not sure what it is but I will look closer. Also uninterrupted ocean swimming is better than pool practice. Just sayin’.  We all waited at the Lazy Loggerhead Cafe for the final swimmers then took to our makeshift transitions by our cars. John was taking some pictures of me and those he thought he knew. I rode one lap of the course, Carlin to Loggerhead and back, perhaps averaging in the 22 mph range. There was an indirect headwind going south. My gear booty bag almost ejected from the seatpost, too, but I positioned it such that it wouldn’t fall off. I made a good transition, seeing several good cyclists launch out on the road ahead of me, they were mine to chase. I parked far away from the start area, so I had longer to run in and out of the transition area. I used the Garmin with the velcro strap, good experience being able to see my pace. I started running with quick step turnover and let my stride lengthen as it wanted to. I tried at each glance to keep my pace near 6:30 – I passed a few people and lined up behind Brandon LeBar for the run from the Inlet to the Finish. I beleive I was the thrid person across the line, most of the people were beginners. And most of the starters were pecked away by attrition, less bikers than swimmers, less runners than bikers. It was a good warmup and benchmark. I have to swim uninterrupted more. I have to ride fast more often, and the spin class helps with lungs. I had a slower run time than real Loggerhead Tri last year, finishing at 20:30 vs last year’s 20:25. Close!