9/26 - 10/2/2011 Scott Tinley's Adventures

This week I was just doing maintenance and recovery work to keep things together for one more week. Five days turn around was not a lot but being the last event of the year I knew I could grit my teeth and get it done.

My friend and I got a ZipCar friday and drove to San Louis Obispo for Scott Tinley's Adventures on saturday. This was one of the most beautiful venues for an event that I have ever been to the hills and valleys are picturesque and the lake is pristine. The aesthetic quality aside though this was a very tough course...I would put it on par with wildflower in terms of difficulty but the ride and run are shorter.

The swim was a really long one and the water was a perfect temperature which was great for me. By the first turn buoy I already had a small gap on the next guy and I was feeling good so I decided to put as much time in as I could. I put in a hard swim and came out of the water first in 42 minutes and I knew with that long of a swim there would be a good gap back to anyone chasing.

Out onto the bike the road rolls around the lake then descends off the dam and spends a long time on the flat, perfectly paved county roads. I don't know why exactly but my legs were definitely hurting and tired so I just tried to keep my heart rate under control and push the gears over. I rode alone for a long while until just before I reached the climb back up the dam when Nicholas Thompson caught me. He went through and I stayed a short way back from him the rest of the ride. I exited the second transition just behind him but he was flying! On my best day I could not have kept up with him but I was really hurting and I was totally cracked after a few miles. I tried to keep up a decent speed the rest of the way and keep hydrated. Although this race totally broke me the area and course are amazing and I am totally glad I went.

This was the last race I am planning on doing this year other than some cyclocross and cross country in the winter. I am going to take a couple of weeks easy and start working on a season plan for next year. This year turned out some great progress and I have learned so much...it is a really good feeling to be finishing the season with a positive mindset.


Swim  12,750 yds
Bike   9 hrs
Run   23.5 mi