First off, apologies, as this post is quite delayed.  There should be several coming up in the near future as I catch up on some late blogging action.

The race in Steelhead was billed as “flat,” with all new pavement (courtesy of a friend riding a few weeks prior) in several different sections.  I was pumped, as I had been working on my swimming and felt like my biking and running were there.

Unfortunately, the race would not go as planned.  After my best swim of the year (28:08 and 65th fastest overall) I jumped on the bike and felt great.  Averaging about 25mph, doom would come about at mile 40, as I felt some bouncing on the bike.  “Bouncing?” I thought.  Looking down, I saw my rear tire was flat.  After multiple expletives, I stopped and had the worst time ever changing a flat.  Here is what I am NOT:

Correct.  I am NOT a world tire-changing champion.  This put me out of the race, and I ended up with a slower-than-usual bike split.  As such, I jumped on to the run just focused on enjoying the day, and not crushing myself.  Four porta-potties (it was NOT my day) and 13.1 miles later, I crossed the finish line with a smile on my face, a seldom seen occurrence in contrast to my usual face of “twisted pain.”  Case-in-point, the 2009 San Francisco Marathon:

Before I sign off, a couple of mad props:

• Timex Teammate Eric Bean, who finished 12th overall among a tough pro field
• Timex Teammate Andrew Hodges, who made the trek up from Alabama but unfortunately also had a disappointing race
• Good buddy (and my de-facto swim coach) Jace Hopper, who was the world’s greatest fan.  He drove Hodges and I over from Chicago and also imparted his former Division I swimming expertise on me pre-race (hence the awesome swim race)

Though it was a well-organized race, it ultimately ended up being a disappointment for me.  Something to look forward to “besting” at Timberman, a race report which will come shortly.

Until next time, peace…