Marlton Lakes Sprint Triathlon

Member

swim .25M / bike 11M / run 3M

Lucky for me the only drama at this race was getting to the start line. After a stop at DD for breakfast, I got on the road at 530 to drive to NJ. A few wrong turns through Kensington Shocked

, a phone call to The Paramedic who said "get out of there - NOW!", and a stop at a WaWa for directions and I found the bridge to NJ I needed. The directions to the race start were vague, at best, and I only found it by driving around a lake. Scored great parking, though, and a great transition area. Met up with a few people who had done this outfit's spring tri, and everyone chatted about their season to date. A few newbies, spotting me in my wetsuit, said "you're a real triathlete - can we ask you some questions?" I said "I'm just a runner who plays triathlete at races, but I'll try to answer you." Luckily the questions were simple ones. thumbs up

Great weather - low 70s, overcast, though the humidity was in the mid seventies.

SWIM: After walking a quarter mile on hardpacked sand riddled with pebbles, we got to the swim start. A clear quarter mile across the lake (LAKE!

) through a tunnel of buoys, and a shallow lake that you could stand up in if you needed to. Not too scary for me.
I got in the water and picked up my silt-covered arms, then said HELL NO to putting my face in that muck. I have a paralyzing phobia of lakes, and I saw no need to freak myself out even more. Luckily my wave, the third one comprised of women 39 and younger, featured only 3 "real" swimmers. I backstroked and sidestroked with the rest of the strugglers. I overtook a few in the 2nd wave and even the 1st (both were all guys). Was happy to reach the beach. T1 uneventful and swift for me.

BIKE: felt great despite minimal cycling training. A few hairpin turns on this rolling hill course. I overtook a lot of dudes, and was passed by a few fastio guys and only 2 women. Most importantly, I discovered my fear o' the bike is no more. T2 OK.

RUN: felt great! The run followed the walk-to-the-swim path from before (hardpacked sand riddled with pebbles) and then a bit through deep, heavy sand on the beach until we reached the asphalt of the neighborhood. Ran evenly and confidently. Walked for 45 seconds at the first water stop to catch my breath, and 15 seconds at the 2nd. The second traverse across the beach I slid a bit, and crossing the teeny tiny bridge wasn't fun. The first crossing no one was coming at me; this time there was and I had to run sideways to avoid getting hit. Crossed the finish line with a huge smile and laughing, so great a time I was having and so surprised at the time I finished in.

FINAL: 1:21:36 (263/336)
swim: 10:45 (279/336), T1 2:51 (269/336)
bike: 35:55 @ 18.4mph (210/336 Very Happy

), T2 2:38 (328/336)
run: 29:28 @ 9:49 pace (274/336)

Compared to my first sprint (a bit longer than this): longer swim, bike same exact pace, faster run. I'm OK with that. Too bad I don't like cycling too much; I apparently have a natural ability for it since I can apparently go pretty fast on minimal training. I like this distance - nice and short swim, and I feel like I can go-go-go without that death feeling creeping in. All in all an even paced, well strategized race. I had a lot of fun, and I was glad because that was my only real goal for the race in the first place.

Here's hoping I'll have more of the same at the half ironman next week.