This race has been turning into an annual tradition for me, since living in Hermosa Beach. The beauty of it is that it's a walk down the hill from my house. Lisa and I both signed up for it, but this year was a little different than years past because there wasn't a group of friends doing it with us. My brother has done it with me in the past, and even my roomate JJ and his then-girlfriend woke up early one year to check it out.
The race itself was fun. I was in the first wave of the day, and the water was calm and clear. It had rained on Friday, which meant the water was pooey. Having gotten sick from being in the water in the past, I was a little leery when the race announcer told us "we've had the water tested and it's clean, even though it rained this weekend." But either way I had already paid the money, so I definitely wasn't going to skip it purely because I had to stick my head in the water for 10 minutes at the start. Let's be honest, I've gotten in the water for far less.
After the ten minute swim, the bike was relatively painless. The only blip was when a group of cyclists rode onto the course. I was on my second lap, and seeing a group of people riding in a pack while there was a bunch of newbie triathletes riding by them not able to pass infuriarated me. I don't know what my problem is, but for some reason I get fired up about this kind of stuff. Hence, why Lisa calls me the "Hermosa Beach Vigalante." Anyways, I rode up to these cyclists and gave them an earful. "What the hell are you guys doing? Are you guys racing or what?" One of the cyclists replied "No, we're just riding." So I yelled back "Well, get the hell off the course! There's a bunch of us trying to race here!" With that, they rode off the course so people could pass. Right before I was going to ride off, I leaned over to the triathlete riding next me and muttered to him..."I really told them, didn't I?" I thought I was hilarious, but he gave me a look like I was nuts. Oh well.
After the bike, I felt like I got passed by half the field on the run, but ended up catching a few of them at end. I timed it perfectly at the end and made sure that there was no one directly in front of me. The announcer read of my name and hometown for the crowd. Ah...it's the little things that make me happy, isn't it?
The timing worked out well. I finished the run, got a water, and then walked over to see Lisa just getting out of the water (her heat was the second to last one to go.) I then had time to run home, drop off my bike, and run back to see Lisa come in from the bike and then go out on the run. I yelled at a few more pedestrians strolling on the strand to get out of the way (the Vigilante coming out again) and then waited for Lisa to come in. Overall, it was a great time. I would love to do it as long as I live here...
