Finger Lakes Tri

Well last Saturday was supposed to be my big comeback. I trained hard all summer and really thought I was going to beat last year's time. The water was pretty rough, but I was able to beat my swim time from least year. I was 9th of 52 in my age group out of the water. I'm pretty proud of that. I was feeling pretty strong as I climbed on my bike. Unfortunately, my bike wasn't feeling the same way. I had taken my bike in for a tuneup the previous week because it was not shifting smoothly. This turned out to be a big mistake. As I climbed the first hill of the bike ride, I began to drop gears. I am not sure how much time I lost with this equipment malfunction, but I am pretty positive that I lost a bit of time. By the time I got to the run, I was steaming mad and really frustrated! The run did not go as well as it should have. I blame my emotions for getting in the way a bit, but I also believe that I would have performed better if I'd puffed on my trusty inhaler at this point. I ended up finishing 30 slower than last year, but ranking higher for my age group. I came in 24th out of 52. Not bad overall considering that I am still recovering from my injury in February - just disappointing because I had a goal of 1:30 and ended up finishing 1:42. Next year I will do better - I would like to compete at the Olympic distance at least once next year. However barring any further injuries, I think I should be able to complete at least 2 if not three outdoor tris in 2010.