all3 in the Races - Fernandina Beach

 

Race Report: DRC Sports Olympic Triathlon

Location: Fernandina Beach, FL

Date: 6/22/2013

We planned a week-long family vacation in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, starting on June 22^nd.  Imagine my wife’s surprise when I ‘discovered’ there was a triathlon taking place just a few miles away.  Once I admitted to her that it wasn’t a complete coincidence, she gave me her full support just as she has always done – what a great wife!

The morning of the race was a ‘seasonably cool’ 80 degrees at 7am, with about 90% humidity.  You gotta love Florida in the summer, but at least there were some overcast skies to offer a little respite from the blazing sun.  I arrived on site about an hour before race start, and was impressed by DRC Sports’ ability to get about 500 athletes ready for two simultaneous events (an Olympic and Sprint triathlon) with such great efficiency!

The 1.5k swim was in the Atlantic Ocean, and the water was glassy and warm.  I started up front and sprinted out into the breakers at the gun.  I’m accustomed to lake swims, as most of my races are in Georgia, so the feeling of leaping over those breakers makes for a pretty fun start.  I quickly found some toes to draft, and settled into a strong pace.  I came out of the water in just over 23 minutes, putting me in the top 10 overall. 

The bike segment was flat and fast, which is a nice change from the hills of North Georgia.  I came out of transition a little fast, and tried to back off but was just enjoying the speed.  At about mile 16 my quads started feeling the effect of coming out too fast, so I backed off just a bit to be ready for the 10k run.  Despite my efforts on the bike, it was difficult to keep up with the ‘fasties’ in North Florida!  My average of over 24 mph (fast for me) wasn’t even good enough to get me into the top 20 overall.  But a strong swim and fast transitions set me up for a pretty good position going into the run.

The 10k run was probably the most beautiful part of the race, as it took place entirely within the shaded paths of Ft. Clinch State Park.  Shade was good, but the temps and humidity were taking their toll.  I have a bad habit of going out too fast on runs, so I consciously backed off the pace to something I figured I could maintain for the entire distance.  My strategy paid off, as I was able to pass several competitors on the run and finish with a PR of 2:06 and climb to 6^th place overall.  I can’t think of a better way to kick off a beach vacation.

 

 Thanks to DRC sports for putting on a great race, and a huge thanks to all3sports.com for all the support in helping me get to the finish line every time!