Breaking it Down 

So here's how it started. I was at my cousin's place last night (and by cousin I mean distant relatives that are 3rd something or another twice removed... you get the idea). I was in the basement bedroom which they have, trying to sleep with an annoying ticking clock, a dehumidifier which kept going on and spiders (that's plural folks). But it was only 20 minutes from the race, and they're really nice.

This morning I got to Devil's Lake and it was an absolutely gorgeous day. Sunny with a perfectly blue pristine sky... and very windy. After prepping my transition area and getting suited up, the race started. Stupidly, I started in the back of the wave which meant I had to try to swim through people. What happens when you swim through people? You get kicked, and pushed, and lose your rythm. Then after making the first left turn, every time I took a breath, I got a splash of water in my face and I swallowed some water (remember the wind I was talking about before?) Somehow though, I managed to cut 35 seconds off my best swim time in any triathlon.

Enter the bike leg. For those who have never done the Devil's Challenge, the bike leg demands respect. If you don't respect the bike leg, it will make you it's bitch. Last year I was it's bitch (and I have no shame when I say this). The first thing you do is a mile long climb. I had swallowed so much water during the swim, that by the top of the hill I had run out of gears and had to walk up the last 30 feet of the climb. That was the only part of the bike leg I walked, though there are several more, very difficult climbs. I cut 13 minutes off my last years bike time.

Finally there is the run. I had some calf cramping again which sucked, but I was able to run through it better. I was wearing my bike jersey during the run. I actually got a hold of a Microsoft Jersey which I think looks pretty cool (not only that, it declares my geekness). With a 1/4 mile left in the race I suddenly hear behind me, "See that Microsoft jersey - he's ours!". Without a word I was gone... I just took off. I cut 2 minutes off my previous best run in any triathlon. Afterwards the guys who yelled that came up to me to give me shit, because they really wanted to beat me. They were in their 40's in the Clydesdale Division. They laughed, and I shook their hands and thanked them for the motivation.

As I'm walking around after the race, I suddenly felt something that had to have been bothering me for some time. My nipples were raw. That jersey may not have been the best to run in after all. Anyway here are the overall results for the race and here are my specific results. Overall I cut almost 20 minutes off of my time from last year. Can you see me grinning?