Scott Mazon

I participated in the 3rd annual Grand Rapids Triathlon on June 9. The event offered athletes a half Ironman, Olympic and sprint triathlons with over 1500 participants.  Each division had a large number of athletes competing with all different skill levels.

This race was to be my first HIM of the season but with continuing knee issues I decided to compete in the Olympic distance.

The swim took place in the river but resembled more of a reservoir; nonetheless, the water slightly chilly (71 degrees) and calm.  The swim course was perfectly marked and easy to sight. When the announcer started us, the furious wave of arms, elbows and feet was overwhelming. It is one of the few times I got punched, kicked and participated in the full contact sport of swimming. It WAS AWESOME! It took about 100 yards to settle out in front of the mayhem. The rest of the swim was uneventful and I was able to exit the water near the front. P.S. They had wet suit strippers!!

The transition area of this race was HUGE. It climbed up a street and was nearly a .35 long (per my GPS).  So after I got to my steed, I quickly took off to the bike course.

The bike course was an “out and back” consisting of mostly flat terrain with a few rollers. I experienced some headwind going out with a nice tailwind on the return (doesn’t always seem that way).  While on the course there was a group of three teammates that were not adhering to the “no drafting” rule and hopefully they got penalized by one of the four USAT officials. It so noticeable a few of the fellow riders were commenting on it while we passed one another.

A quick transition and it was out onto the run course. The tree-lined streets offered much needed shade as the sun and heat began to rise. There were a ton of aid stations offering gels, Gatorade, water and ice (sorry Mark – no Heed). As for my run, I took off conservatively with the hopes of increasing the pace – to monitor my issues. Good news – never experienced pain within the knee area. Bad news – the run was much slower than I would have liked. I pushed the last mile in; however, too little too late.

I guess I just left room for improvement.