Best Day Ever?

Possibly.

First, the race: pretty damn good. It was raining HARD all day, and was quite windy, so not the best conditions for a fast race. I did the first run in 20:00 flat which is definitely one of my best times. I was even "trying" (read: not really) to keep a little in reserve, but that didn't go so well. Between the speed I was going and race nerves, my HR went as high as 191 in that first 20 minutes; pretty fecking high, considering my theoretical max is 194.

The bike was more like a canoe trip down some crazy rapids, but I made good time. The wind was against us moving downhill and at our backs coming back up which made for a nice balance. I kept thinking that superior aerodynamics would win the day here so I tucked in and rode hard. I don't think I passed anyone in my heat, but I absolutely blew past several other competitors like they were standing still. That's a nice feeling

(Funny moment of the day: me on my 2006 Dual passing a guy on a Cervelo One, then another guy right in front of him on a 2005 Dual. Somewhere, a cash register in Cervelo's head office is going "Ka-Ching!")

I went into the 2nd run feeling pretty good. Had one small calf cramp tweak, but that was it. I did have a problem feeling like I was giving it my all cardiolarly (new word), but not moving very fast, but my 2nd run split was 21:30 or so, so I definitely was moving pretty good.

This run was the first time in this sport where I went truly competitive against another individual. A man running behind me had passed me on the first run, so I knew he was a little faster than me. I dug deep trying to stay ahead of him, knowing that any slowdown would cost me a position.

I beat him by 20 seconds. Pretty f-ing cool!

So, the results: Race time about 1:24, 20th overall, 2nd in my AG. I GET A MEDAL FOR THAT SHIT!! WOOOOOOOOO!

I've decided I don't want to have to scroll down after a race to see my name, so I'm just going to finish all races on the first page of the results. I think it's better this way.


Today I fired off two emails, one to the ITU and one to the WTC asking about jobs. Both responded. The WTC forwarded my email to NA Sports, so I hope something good happens there. The ITU linked me to some volunteer work for the Vancouver World Cup happening in July, something I had totally forgotten about.

In any case, I'm stoked. I'm hoping to get a ton of experience from the ITU people (and maybe a job!) and see where my future goes from there. Racing or planning, it sure is looking bright right now.