Race Coverage

Capitol Reports...

Saturday, 25 June 2011 03:00

(Photo - A swimmer in the Potomac who is probably not Patrick Parish.)

ED. Patrick Parish and DKT reached their respective podiums at Washington DC 5150 last weekend. Here are their stories:

ADMIRING THE SIGHTS...

By Patrick Parish

DC was a fun race. I stayed with a couple in Alexandria, which allowed me to bike commute to and from the race venue. They were also avid cyclists and went out of their way to show me around, which made all the difference in my experience.

Leading up to the race, I was worried about the swim in the Potomac. The horrified looks from the locals I asked about it didn't help. Fortunately, my most recent collection of cuts and scrapes healed or scabbed over before the race. As a precautionary measure, I've been pounding vitamin C since the Friday before the race and I have yet to come down with the plague, so hopefully I'm out of the woods in that regard....

It was overcast and muggy on race day. I sweat through my shirt just setting up my gear in transition at 4:30 AM. The water was 77.6F, so it was wetsuit legal, but hardly refreshing. The water clarity was zero, so the sightseeing didn't start until T1.

The transition area was massive. They had large row number signs at the end of each row. It was necessary. The bike course started near the Lincoln memorial, then curved around the Washington monument toward the White House, up and down the side of the National Mall to the Capitol, and across the river to Arlington & back. It was very scenic and somewhat technical (2 laps with 4 U-turns each). The roads were closed, but the second lap was hairy at times dodging slower cyclists still on their first lap.

I admired the sights a bit on the bike and I caught myself breathing easy a few times. By the time the run came around, however, I was in no mood for tourism. The run course was spectator friendly at the expense of the competitors' momentum. It included 7 U-turns, mostly out & back spokes radiating from the Capitol. Most of the spectators were still watching the cyclists at that point, so it was surreal to run down the center of large, deserted boulevards. I passed one guy in the first mile of the run and saw Brian Duffy way ahead of me on one of the switchbacks, but that was it; solo run the rest of the way. I went for broke with the finish line in sight only to be turned away for one last out & back section before the real final stretch. What a tease.

Duffy took the lead on the swim and never let off the gas. He was my teammate at Duke and I'm happy to see him back in top form. I know I can outrun him, but with about a three minute head start out of T2, he left me scrambling to control the damage. It's going to take something special to win against that level of competition and I'm not there yet. I had a great spring with many new personal records in running and swimming events. The summer started with a few setbacks, but I've worked out most of the kinks and the fitness is slowly coming back. I can't complain about my progress to date. My 2nd place was sufficient to qualify for the 5150 championship in Des Moines, which was my goal for the weekend.

I FELT LIKE CRAP THE ENTIRE RACE, BUT MY RESULT WASN'T TOO CRAPPY.

By David Thompson (From Thompsontri.blogspot.com)

I finished 3rd at the DC Triathlon Sunday. I had a good swim for me, which probably saved the day. I came out just 30 seconds behind the leaders, excect John Kenny. He was off the front. The bike ride was a struggle. My legs felt weak and burned the entire race, but I did ride to the leaders. Paul Matthews rode of the front gaining a 2 minute advantage going into T2. I came into T2 in 3rd, 30 seconds down on Jordan Jones. Tim Reed ran up to me and we ran together until mile 4 when we both passed Jordan Jones. Tim slipped away and finished 20 seconds up on me. Paul was 90 seconds ahead. My run was okay, but slightly off pace. I was happy to cross the line.

This result puts me in 8th for the 5150 series, so I should make it to the Championship race in Des Monie.

Men's Results

Paul Matthews 1:49:58

Tim Reed 1:51:05

David Thompson 1:51:24

Jordan Jones 1:51:50

Holden Comeau 1:52:38

(Photo Above - L - R - Becky Lavelle, DKT, Nicole Kelleher, Tim Reed, Alicia Kaye, Paul Matthews, Rebeccah Wassner, Jordan Jones, Laurel Wassner, Holden Comeau, Tenille Hoogland.)