We left for the one hour drive to Playa Del Rey beach from the Anteater Recreation Center at 5:30 am. Well, actually more like 5:45 by the time Brody showed up good things I was on time. So far, waking up was the hardest part of race day. Brody, Jesse, and I headed out from campus and made our way to Dockweiller beach which was right next to LAX.We lucked out with the price of parking and surprisingly we managed to get to the race with a reasonable amount of time to spare (it was the perfect amount of time for the consumption of all the pre-race bananas that were brought with us). We waited in line very shortly but we were able to get our packets and start our set up in transition. Since our race started at 8:30 we had enough time to get a small warm-up in. Every step I ran on the beach (remember – just for the warm up) I was constantly reminded of how I am glad the season was just starting because I need to get my fitness back up. By the end of the warm up I was feeling fresh and all three of us put on our wetsuits (and Brody sported a wonderfully vibrant tattoo on his arm of 2011’s Thor played by Chris Hemsworth).
With Jesse, Brody, and Thor by my side we lined up facing the ocean to get ready for our swim…we are pretty much the Avengers. Even though we were evidently starting, the swim start caught me off guard as I was almost completely trampled when everyone ran off and jumped into the water. As I come from a running background I can say two things about the swim: First off is that waves look MUCH calmer from a distance. Second is that when everyone is wearing an orange swim cap, and the buoys are orange, swimming in the right direction comes down to pure luck. All in all, while tiring, the swim was still enjoyable and a good challenge. I then went to find my bike and took off my wetsuit more efficiently than ever before – likely due to the wetsuit butter thing that was graciously provided to me by Brody before the race. I hopped on the bike and proceeded to follow the cones on the course. Immediately my legs hurt. It was a pretty course in my opinion and on my way to the turn around, I see Brody and Jesse very close to each other on the way back – they were putting down some serious Zotts out there. I came in from the bike and started the run thinking I would be in tip-top shape. Immediately my legs hurt. But I was able to flow into the run a little bit better as I maintained pace and finished strong.
In the end, although not any personal best, I was satisfied with my performance. As a team I believe we did an amazing job with Brody getting 4th and Jesse getting 6th for the WCCTC race (and despite the large gap between those two and I, I managed to sneak in to get 9th for WCCTC race). I think all three of us had solid performances today and with the season just starting, I can confidently say I am excited for the future and I can also say there is a 99.783% chance that we will improve from this point on.
Ps Disappointed Jesse didn’t sport the speedo for this race
-Drew Helmers
Squire Skittles