My right knee had been bothering me after an over aggressive brick followed by work-related flights to LA and Chicago. Advil, ice and rest meant it felt okay on race day but it still prevented me running or biking during the two weeks prior.
While sitting aboard the San Francisco Belle discussing nutrition, I realized I left my Thermolyte capsules buried in my transition bag. This explained earlier misgivings about my empty-looking inverted bike helmet (that I ignored in my rush to get on the bus). The dumb mistake cost me valuable time in T1 and T2.
Swim: This was my inaugural event wearing my Sailfish one. An Aquatic Park test-swim led to chafing so I was especially careful to seal the neck correctly this time.
I was racing in the 30-34 age group but I jumped off the boat soon after the Elite athletes. (If you're close enough to the doors, the eager crowd's pushing leaves you little choice!) Weather conditions were good. All the major sighting landmarks were visible, the wind was light and the Bay was only a little choppy. However this didn't prevent most swimmers, including the pros, having problems. Swim times were about 6 minutes slower than 2008 or 2007.
I encountered a few other issues. About halfway across the channel, my right hand plunged into what I initially hoped was seaweed but turned out to be a jellyfish...I was lucky my wetsuit was long sleeved so only my hand was mildly stung. Closer to shore I received a vigorous elbow to the face. Fortunately my pride was all that was injured.
T1: I decided not to leave running shoes at the post-swim transition area and instead jogged barefoot directly to the bike transition. The half mile on pavement worked out fine and the choice paid dividends - my split time was in the top 10 in my age group despite having to rummage in my bag for the forgotten salt pills. Getting out of the water relatively early also allowed me to run at my own pace - the route to bike transition became packed as more swimmers arrived...
Bike: Most triathlons start each wave 5 or more minutes apart. However, one of the many cool things about Escape is that everyone starts within 6 minutes of the pros - you get to race with people you would never otherwise. This is especially fun (for me anyway) when the field includes athletes like Jenny Fletcher and Kathy Winkler. I found it a little difficult to focus on my biking and was loathe to overtake either of them! Winkler acquired an entourage of a half dozen other guys before they all dropped me on the return to Legion of Honor. She also inspired a female spectator to scream "1836 [Winkler's number], come back! My neighbor loves you!...[Something unintelligible]...He has a new job!!" (Both women won their age groups and Fletcher was fastest female amateur).
The Clif Bar DJ was absent so I tuned to head music and filled the void with Leftfield's Phat Planet while descending Lincoln Boulevard.
Run: My right hamstring felt tight while running past the same spot. This passed but both my quads locked up as soon as I stepped onto the sand stairs.
My mental and emotional reserves were low going into this race. In spite of awesome support throughout, my mood deteriorated until I was truly miserable by the end. Crossing the finish line gave me no sense of accomplishment or even relief...In retrospect, maybe I bonked a little in the second half of the run but there are definitely other issues I need to work on too...
My bib number was 426.
Results. My time was 2:48:10, about 6 minutes slower than 2:42:18 in 2007.
Photos. Some favorites.
PS I've completed 7 Alcatraz crossings:
2 Escape from the Rock +
2 Alctraz Challenge +
2 Escape From Alcatraz +
1 Alcatraz 100
but some Bay Area locals are close to 600!
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