It's been quiet here for a few days here on the blog, but that's not because I haven't been busy. I did enjoy a nice day off after last week's Stroke & Stride but then it was back on the run Saturday followed by another long ride in the country on Sunday (hence the new header on the site).
Monday was my usual day off but yesterday I was back at it with the first race in the Aquaman Series.
This is essentially the same format as the Stroke & Stride with a few subtle but important differences. One of the pluses is that this series is at Cherry Creek so rather than a 90 minute drive through lousy traffic I had 20 minutes....still through lousy traffic but it was a lot closer and I didn't have to go through the usual rush before the race.
Cherry Creek State Park, I'm sure, goes back to a time when it was well outside the city limits. Nowadays it's bordered on one side by an interstate spur and a very busy thoroughfare on another. Nevertheless, the park is peaceful and a great venue for a race.
Unlike the Stroke and Stride, there are no timing chips. Your number is written on the back of each of your hands and your are instructed to tell it to the timers at various checkpoints such as between swim laps (you get out of the water briefly) after the swim, exiting transition and finishing the run. In essence, you are the timing chip. It works though I'd be curious about how well if things got bunched up.
I felt pretty good as I swam the course. I'm getting used to the washing machine and it was very present as we started. Even well into the first lap I was still bumping or getting bumped.
The run course was an out and back with the benefit of being mostly downhill on the return.
Overall I had a really good swim at 26:03 and a pretty good run at 27:48. I opted to swim with my jersey on and I think that saved me some good time.
Today I brought my bike with me to work. I didn't ride it, just loaded it in the back of my car and after work I drove out to Bennett which if you don't know sits out on the eastern plains about 30 miles east of Denver. It's a good place to ride because there is minimal traffic. It's also nice and flat which is nice after all of the hills I ride around home. I managed to hit 18.1 average which is as fast as I've gone on a long ride.
Tomorrow I'll be back on foot for a long run. Then it's back in the pool on Friday for a swim and then bricks resume on Saturday morning.
Yep, pretty busy.
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