Tri the Wildwoods in North Wildwood, NJ. Billed as a classic New Jersey triathlon. Ok, there’s a lot a lot a lot to love about this race. There’s also kind of a ton that gets your goat a little bit. Is that even the right expression? What if I don’t have a goat? I don’t even have a goatee? Should I get one? Do people even goatee anymore? Maybe that’s all the more reason I should grow one?
Anyway, the race. Up at 2am. Yes, 2 freaking am. I went out for my customary one mile jog and there were still people coming in from the bars…this was me not that long ago. Ok, seven years ago, I'm old, leave me alone to my prunes and oatmeal. Speaking of which, when i came back from the hog, I ate oatmeal, loaded up the car, and pulled away at 3. Two hours to Wildwood.
I got there. Did all that setup stuff…seriously, why does it take me so long to set up? I see some people just pop some stuff out of their bags and then they’re done. Not me though. I’m like doing my hair and putting on my face or something.
After I was finally finished primping, I walked down to the beach. I headed into the ocean…surprisingly brrrr-worthy for August…I got in a few strokes and then heard, “The race will begin promptly at 630. Everyone get out of the water, you’re holding up the race.”
So we all got out to start. I mean wait. And wait. And wait. And wait. “Gotta make sure the roads are safe.” I think the sprint went off at 7:19. That’s a very long time to be standing around. (This is the second time I did this race and the second we waited for at least 45 minutes). Also another little irksome bit is self-seeded swim starts. In theory I like them. But do folks really self seed? I was the 7th faster swimmer on the day, yet there must have been 50 people in front of me who I had to swim around, which is cool, but be honest with yourself…are you really one of the fastest swimmers in the race. At a 5k race, I wouldn’t put myself in front of the fastest runners…it’s dangerous and it would make me feel weird getting passed so much so early. Yet, here we were, people moving to the front of the corral who perhaps shouldn’t be there. I honestly don’t care if you’re fast or slow, just be honest about where you are.
Alright, finally the race started and we had to run a quarter mile to enter the ocean. I was debating whether or not to wear a wetsuit because of this quarter mile, in a wetsuit I just find it hard to breathe, but I went with it anyway. The surf was a little choppy and navigating the waves was challenging. But kinda fun. In a weird I'm getting thrown around kind of way.
Ocean swims tire me out. I guess I’m just not used to it. Or I’m a wuss. Maybe the latter.
Onto the bike. There was a lot of traffic throughout the bike course from the Olympic. That coupled with a lot of turns and a couple of bridges with big grates, led for a little slow bike. My preference is flat and straight. What? I started riding in Florida, that's what we got there.
And oh yeah, I got a flat with a mile left that I just powered through at 16 miles per hour. Awesome.
Because my last mile was a little slower than the rest, I got caught by two guys as I was headed into transition. One guy had about a hundred yard lead on me. The other guy a few feet. As soon as we made our way through the soft sand and onto the surf line I passed the first guy (I dig that my run has come along so much) and with a football field between me and the other guy, I felt confident I would catch him by the end. And sure enough, I inched up on him and by the time we were on the boardwalk, I was just 20 feet behind. I could sense him sensing me. I was just going to time it and pass him towards the end. I got him. I totally got him. It was pretty exciting.
Crap. You gotta go down some twisty ramps to get to the finish line. No opportunity to pass. I totally forgot.
Crap. 20 yards of soft sand.
Completely completely completely mishandled finish on my part.
I could have passed him with a mile to go, but chilled. Never ever chill. Shoot.I played games and it backfired, I should have just went for it, instead I was being cute. Lesson learned universe. Bah.
He got 4th Overall. I got 5th. The dudes who finished 1-3 were so far in front I never even saw them on the beach. They weren’t even little dots. They just weren’t even there. WOW. They. Fast.
After the race, I talked to some good people and pretty much procrastinated, not wanting to drive home.
So overall, the good:
-Fun people. Lots and lots of fun people.
-Good production value…Delmo certainly puts on an event. From the timing tents to the awards ceremony to check in, they don’t miss a detail (well, except when it comes to time and distances)
-Good food and plenty of it.
-The free photos are pretty awesome. They have kind of an artistic approach to them that makes them really stand out. So…yeah…DOPE. Nice shooting Game Face!
-The run is awesome. Boardwalk. Sand. Soft sand. It’s all fun. And it really mixes things up. I
-Nice swag. The trucker hat was pretty dope.
The not-so-good
-I wish there were more straightaways on the bike. It’s a lot of turning and then you’re on bridge and then another bridge and then you head back. There’s really no opportunity to let is fly.
-Self-seeded swim…until people can be honest with themselves I just think it’s dangerous.
-Start time…it’s cool if you’re going to start that early….really really cool…but if you’re really not going to start that early, don’t do it. People are driving from all over down there, take that into account. Make it a 7 start and call it a day.
-I don’t understand why the 5k isn’t a 5k. It was off by at least a quarter mile, it’s not a big deal (physically I can certainly handle it), but it messes with your mind a little. Where is the end? Like where do I start to kick? The fastest 5k of the day shouldn’t be over 20.
Ooh yeah, my name made the newspaper. Cool. That's a tri first I think for me!
And double ooh yeah, technically I finished 2nd in Masters...I'm a master now. Unfortunately, t's not like a ninja, it just means you're old.
Anyway, the race. Up at 2am. Yes, 2 freaking am. I went out for my customary one mile jog and there were still people coming in from the bars…this was me not that long ago. Ok, seven years ago, I'm old, leave me alone to my prunes and oatmeal. Speaking of which, when i came back from the hog, I ate oatmeal, loaded up the car, and pulled away at 3. Two hours to Wildwood.
I got there. Did all that setup stuff…seriously, why does it take me so long to set up? I see some people just pop some stuff out of their bags and then they’re done. Not me though. I’m like doing my hair and putting on my face or something.
After I was finally finished primping, I walked down to the beach. I headed into the ocean…surprisingly brrrr-worthy for August…I got in a few strokes and then heard, “The race will begin promptly at 630. Everyone get out of the water, you’re holding up the race.”
So we all got out to start. I mean wait. And wait. And wait. And wait. “Gotta make sure the roads are safe.” I think the sprint went off at 7:19. That’s a very long time to be standing around. (This is the second time I did this race and the second we waited for at least 45 minutes). Also another little irksome bit is self-seeded swim starts. In theory I like them. But do folks really self seed? I was the 7th faster swimmer on the day, yet there must have been 50 people in front of me who I had to swim around, which is cool, but be honest with yourself…are you really one of the fastest swimmers in the race. At a 5k race, I wouldn’t put myself in front of the fastest runners…it’s dangerous and it would make me feel weird getting passed so much so early. Yet, here we were, people moving to the front of the corral who perhaps shouldn’t be there. I honestly don’t care if you’re fast or slow, just be honest about where you are.
Alright, finally the race started and we had to run a quarter mile to enter the ocean. I was debating whether or not to wear a wetsuit because of this quarter mile, in a wetsuit I just find it hard to breathe, but I went with it anyway. The surf was a little choppy and navigating the waves was challenging. But kinda fun. In a weird I'm getting thrown around kind of way.
Ocean swims tire me out. I guess I’m just not used to it. Or I’m a wuss. Maybe the latter.
Onto the bike. There was a lot of traffic throughout the bike course from the Olympic. That coupled with a lot of turns and a couple of bridges with big grates, led for a little slow bike. My preference is flat and straight. What? I started riding in Florida, that's what we got there.
And oh yeah, I got a flat with a mile left that I just powered through at 16 miles per hour. Awesome.
Because my last mile was a little slower than the rest, I got caught by two guys as I was headed into transition. One guy had about a hundred yard lead on me. The other guy a few feet. As soon as we made our way through the soft sand and onto the surf line I passed the first guy (I dig that my run has come along so much) and with a football field between me and the other guy, I felt confident I would catch him by the end. And sure enough, I inched up on him and by the time we were on the boardwalk, I was just 20 feet behind. I could sense him sensing me. I was just going to time it and pass him towards the end. I got him. I totally got him. It was pretty exciting.
Crap. You gotta go down some twisty ramps to get to the finish line. No opportunity to pass. I totally forgot.
Crap. 20 yards of soft sand.
Completely completely completely mishandled finish on my part.
I could have passed him with a mile to go, but chilled. Never ever chill. Shoot.I played games and it backfired, I should have just went for it, instead I was being cute. Lesson learned universe. Bah.
He got 4th Overall. I got 5th. The dudes who finished 1-3 were so far in front I never even saw them on the beach. They weren’t even little dots. They just weren’t even there. WOW. They. Fast.
After the race, I talked to some good people and pretty much procrastinated, not wanting to drive home.
So overall, the good:
-Fun people. Lots and lots of fun people.
-Good production value…Delmo certainly puts on an event. From the timing tents to the awards ceremony to check in, they don’t miss a detail (well, except when it comes to time and distances)
-Good food and plenty of it.
-The free photos are pretty awesome. They have kind of an artistic approach to them that makes them really stand out. So…yeah…DOPE. Nice shooting Game Face!
-The run is awesome. Boardwalk. Sand. Soft sand. It’s all fun. And it really mixes things up. I
-Nice swag. The trucker hat was pretty dope.
The not-so-good
-I wish there were more straightaways on the bike. It’s a lot of turning and then you’re on bridge and then another bridge and then you head back. There’s really no opportunity to let is fly.
-Self-seeded swim…until people can be honest with themselves I just think it’s dangerous.
-Start time…it’s cool if you’re going to start that early….really really cool…but if you’re really not going to start that early, don’t do it. People are driving from all over down there, take that into account. Make it a 7 start and call it a day.
-I don’t understand why the 5k isn’t a 5k. It was off by at least a quarter mile, it’s not a big deal (physically I can certainly handle it), but it messes with your mind a little. Where is the end? Like where do I start to kick? The fastest 5k of the day shouldn’t be over 20.
Ooh yeah, my name made the newspaper. Cool. That's a tri first I think for me!
And double ooh yeah, technically I finished 2nd in Masters...I'm a master now. Unfortunately, t's not like a ninja, it just means you're old.