I was originally slated to be a Race Official for this race but they cancelled all officials so I was free from that job. I thought about just spectating but finally, only 4 days out, decided to do this race. They had a variety of race options and I finally decided that the heat and humidity would be pretty bad that day and running would be miserable so elected to do the Sprint Aquabike. The race at Fort DeSoto had quite a few Aquabikers but it turned out that they only had 4 racers in all categories for this race. I did not know this when I set out. I had decided I'd do my best but would focus on having fun for this race instead of being fastest.
I had my new Garmin watch with the multisport function all primed but when I pushed the button just as I jumped in, it did not start. Somehow I had hit the button that locks the garmin unintentionally so that was a big fail. I did have my little Fenix set up and it did a find job keeping track of my time. I also had my old 910XT on the bike as a bike computer and I had my data for riding just fine. Next time I'll know to check my garmin with more time before I hop in the water.
I got out of the water in about 19 mins. It was 850 meters so I wasn't unhappy with that time. I would have liked to do a bit better because there's a current in the channel between Towhead Island and the shore but I had to dodge a few beginners and work around some slower folks at the exit. The trip to transition was pretty long and I had to walk most of it although I might've been able to do some running, the ground was pretty rough and my feet are more sensitive than they used to be so I was walking carefully to my bike.
So transition was pretty long, but I took my time and got myself set up.
I had decided I'd push myself on the bike more since I didn't need to save anything for a run. I had a grand time on the bike. There wasn't much in the way of winds or hills, some false flats, but there were lots of turns. This bike course for the sprint was two laps with about 3 180 turns along the way. That required that I slow for the turn and then pick up speed each time. I was surprised that I was able to get a pretty strong avg speed regardless.
I didn't even check my finish position. I knew I had finished in about 1:02 or slightly less but wasn't too worried about a podium position. I was surprised to learn I had finished second and figured it was of a field of 65-69 year olds. They did not give out age group podium awards for the aquabike and once I checked the results I realized why. Here's the whole field of people racing the sprint aquabike.
I had a great time. The weather was great and my decision to skip the run was a good one I think. I might've done the Olympic aquabike but really I had a good quick race and was happy with the outcome and during the event. I recovered pretty quickly, but by Tuesday I needed a long nap before my swim training with the masters at 6:30 PM.
