A fitting sendoff

It's well documented that I enjoy the West Kennebunk Fireman Triathlon. It's equally well understood that I wasn't happy to hear that this year would be the last for the event. So naturally when I saw a forecast calling for a hurricane to hit on race day, I was nervous that we'd miss out on our final opportunity to spread our sport across the streets of Kennebunk. Word eventually arrived that the event, in some shape, was a go if it was at all possible. When I read that, I knew I had to be there no matter what the conditions. If Jeff was going to find a way to hold the race, I'd be there to race in it one last time. By packet pickup on Saturday, we'd learned a few things: a) the weather shouldn't be TOO bad during the hours we'd be at the venue, b) the triathlon would now be an aquarun (a swim-run event) with the shortened swim taking place in the relative protection of a cove. Sounded good enough to me. Time to race...

The weather, given set of circumstances, was perfect. The wind was blowing, but only mildly. The rain came and went during the pre-race hours, but stopped before the start and didn't pick up again until I was on my way home. True to Fireman tradition, the atmosphere around the race was fantastic. Sure, the turnout was reduced rather significantly, but everyone was extremely upbeat and just happy to be there. It was weird. Even the best, most enjoyable races aren't this laid back. I didn't hear a single complaint the entire time I was there (including anything negative from myself, which, I believe, is a personal record for longest stretch of positivity in it's own right!). The people that showed up were just happy that Jeff and his crew were able to pull this off one last time. It wasn't really what we train for (more on the not-so-subtle difference between transitioning from swim-to-bike and swim-to run in a moment), but nobody cared. Everyone was there to participate in an event we'd all come to enjoy over the years. The racers, the staff & volunteers, and the few supporters that turned up all demonstrated everything that makes an event like this special.

Of course, there was actually some business to take care of this morning. It was, after all, a race. And being the final edition I felt compelled to win (now, I feel compelled to win in absolutely everything I ever do, so take that for what it's worth!). The swim was short, which wasn't great news for me as I enjoy putting as much distance between everyone else and myself while in the water. The bike, as I said, was cancelled so that was a non-factor other than it didn't provide for an opportunity to break away from any strong runners. And the run remained the same as it has been for a few years. So essentially it was a 5k (read: 3.25mile) road race that happened to start in the ocean.

When the horn sounded to start the Sprint swim, people went crazy. Most burned through everything they had and faded back before we even reached the turnaround, though. Going into today I planned on getting out of the water in first and by myself, so I was a little surprised to be in so much company early on. Buy by the turnaround point I was sitting in 4th place and moving up easily. Actually, in the time it took to make the 180 degree turn I worked my way into first. It's now or never, I thought. So I threw some gas on the fire and took off. Before I knew it, I had reached the exit point and scrambled over the rocks and sea wall in an attempt to get away on my own. While I'd done some damage on the back half of the swim, there were still a handful guys that I hadn't totally eliminated from contention. One actually passed me in transition as I was attempted to avoid throwing up. Transitioning from a swim to a run is entirely different than getting onto a bike. Your heartrate skyrockets and I felt pretty sick for a few seconds. And I'd apparently hit my foot pretty hard on a rock while getting out of the water. But things settled down quickly and I started hunting first place. I made good progress early on and eventually made up the gap by the first mile marker. Unfortunately, my catch coincided with being caught by a third contender. And he could run. Fast. As in 17:30 out of the water for 3.25 miles. So the hope of brining home a win in the last edition of this race was gone, but I was still doing well and figured I'd do my best to solidify second while running a good split. I accomplished both with relative ease. I ran 19:54, good for just under 6:10/mile and cruised into the finishing chute for second.

Today was fun. Often I leave races disappointed, regardless of the outcome. Even on my best days I find something to pick apart - but not today. Today I just enjoyed the experience and executed to the best of my abilities. It was a success on both fronts. Again, I thank Jeff and his entire support team for making the event happen today. It would have been very easy to just cancel the event and sleep in this morning, but that wouldn't have been the way to say goodbye to a race like Fireman. What took place this morning, however, was the perfect way to celebrate what this race has always been about.