Whew! Olympic race and really tough. Wind, wind and more wind. They are pretty used to it here but I am NOT... at least not like this. Pristine, clear water at the McDowell Dam. Not too cold once you got going but brisk to start. Out and back on the bike for 40K. Saw an average of 25 mph on the way out. False sense of security because barely could keep it at 13 mph on the way back. There is no place for the wind to stop so it just gains momentum and literally almost knocked me over. I couldn't even drink as much as usual for fear of taking my hands off the handlebars. And then the run.... well, the run is never my favorite part. Two loops, solid sunshine, grin and bare it.
Looks like I took 3rd. The interesting this to note is how small the event was. There were two races happening, a sprint and an olympic and the total number of participants was 50. Yep, that's not a typo. So the olympic race only had about 20 participants total. There was supposed to be 100 but with the flooding, a race was not foremost in some folks minds. The devestation here really is something.
A great shout out to Dennis and Brian and Epic Sports but putting on a good race. Regardless of size, a race is logistically a challenge to put on. These guys did a great job and with a venue change at the eleventh hour, really pulled it off nicely. Super people too. North Dakotans (is that what they're called?) are very friendly.
Home tomorrow, lots of work at all my jobs to catch up on and New Jersey next weekend. Yes, if you know my map, I don't "need" New Jersey again but that's for another post. Stay tuned.
