July 26 was my first actual triathlon event since moving to Colorado. It was the State Games of the West, in Colorado Springs. This being a sprint race (750m swim, 13mile bike, 5k run), I was utilizing it for some speed training getting ready for the 5430 half-iron coming up in 2 weeks. The shorter races aren’t exactly my forte, and I think it is because I actually have to spend some time warming up!!! I wasn’t expecting to have much turn-over speed but I ended up surprising myself a bit, especially in the run. I was able to get myself on the podium, 3rd overall, narrowly missing 2nd by 2 seconds in a 2-up sprint to the finish, getting edged out by ITU racer Haven Barnes.

 Swim:  The swim was on the long side for a sprint race, but I was happy to see that. My wave was the last wave, resulting in at least an additional 100m having to weave through a ton of people. Aside from that, I just didn’t seem to have much kick, as I struggled to stay on the leaders feet. With having to weave through the traffic and sight the bouys I felt like I spent have the swim with my head out of the water. Coming out of the water I was about 1minute down on the leaders, which is an unusual position for me.

 Bike:  The bike was a 4-loop affair, very nice because it was completely closed to traffic and great for spectating, but with the down side being that I again would be weaving in and out of a ton of people. The course was pretty quick with 2- tough little climbs per lap. I didn’t really know where I was positioned throughout the bike ride with the waves all mixing together and I was unable to know where the 3-4 people that came out of the water in-front of me were at. But I actually felt really good and just hammered, leaving everything out there knowing the run would be pretty short. I ended up passing 2 of the 3 leaders putting me into 2nd place off the bike. After the race I found out I had the fastest bike split of the day (by over 1 minute), 24.5mph.

Run:  Onto the run in 2nd position, about 15 seconds down on the leader. I tried to mark him initially, but he was absolutely flying, and I put my focus to staying just at red-line, and holding onto my 2nd place, knowing that there were 2 other people quick on my heels. I held this spot the first 2 miles, but with a couple turn-arounds on the course I could see third place closing in. It was ITU racer Haven Barnes (http://www.havenbarnes.com/). Knowing that he was a short-course racer, I knew it would be tough to stick with him. We ran shoulder to shoulder for the last mile, and I knew I had to do anything to prevent a sprint, so I threw down an attack with 500m to go, and did actually get a 5m gap. This I held very shortly though and Haven countered with a good kick at 100m, and was able to hold it at the line. Despite being on the short end of this battle, it was great fun, and a good confidence booster knowing I could hold some speed with some quick guys. Run time:15:53 for 5k.

OVERALL WINNERSPlace Name                    Age City/state            Total      Swim    Trans1 Bike    Trans2 Run     Penalty No.   Cat
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    1 James Bales              29 Usaf Academy CO       1:03:01.10   11:46   1:16   34:07   0:42   15:09           310 MI 
    2 Haven Barnes             32 Manitou Springs CO    1:03:50.00   11:42   1:18   34:47   0:32   15:31           302 PR 
    3 Brian Schaning           26 Manitou Springs CO    1:03:52.40   12:52   1:18   32:59   0:50   15:53           287 AG 

    1 James Bales              29 Usaf Academy CO       1:03:01.10   11:46   1:16   34:07   0:42   15:09           310 MI     2 Haven Barnes             32 Manitou Springs CO    1:03:50.00   11:42   1:18   34:47   0:32   15:31           302 PR     3 Brian Schaning           26 Manitou Springs CO    1:03:52.40   12:52   1:18   32:59   0:50   15:53           287 AG