Albert Lea Triathlon

Well the first race of the season is now over. Thank god, because I was dreading the 58 deg water. It actually wasn't that bad after I went numb in a minute or two. Albert Lea was very well done and has one of the more beautiful run courses I've been on. The bike course was also nice and allowed me to try out the new ride. After my crash last year at Square Lake the woman who was involved was very generous and did pay for the damage. I then threw in a little of my own money in and pieced together my new ax, a P3C with Sram components and ceramic bearings to go along with a 909 rear disc. I was very anxious to try it out. Unfortunately I had a flash back to Mankato last year, only this time a volunteer was making a gesture to take a right when we should have been going straight. I partially blame myself as my fiance and I drove the course the night prior and new the route so I was puzzled when he pointed us in that direction. I should know better than to follow the guy in front of me over my gut instinct but human nature is to follow and I payed the price for it. I still managed the second fastest bike split behind a dominant Matt Payne who I talked with after the race. Matt is the raining Tri MN Champion and an ultra nice guy. It was good to finally meet him as we had raced a few times last year but never met. In the end the detour I took made no difference as he had a fantastic race and dominated me by nearly five minutes. I figure the detour only cost me a minute to a minute and a half. It was still a great race and would recommend it to anyone, especially someone who is trying out the sport. Just don't let the cold water ruin your race. Next up is Buffalo and I am hoping to redeem myself against Matt there. Although it looks like Matt is going to be tough to beat this year if he continues to perform like he did at Albert Lea.