Alcatraz race report
Brief report:
First of all, I loved this race!
Someone asked me today which part of it I liked the best and honestly it was difficult to pick. The scenery was fantastic! the beach is beautiful and in general, San Francisco is close to my most favorite places to go!
Okay: 1. I had an Iolite and a Garmin. Neither one of them worked due to hitting the buttons to start the devices while still on the boat. (searching for satellite and auto shut down for the power save on the Iolite
2. I love swimming but got befuddled by current. I have done this swim before in 40 minutes so I even knew what I had to do but followed the cps in front of me instead of going towards the tower. lost at least 10 to 15 minutes fighting the current.. meaning swimming and not going anywhere. (swam without the Iolite which I probably didn't need... just needed to swim across the river!) No freaking out at all.. the water was 58 to 60 degrees. Balmy compared to the 2013 experience of Attila. I used booties and neoprene cap. no problem and although the cap keeps your head a bit high, it's not such a bother. Also, purple ear plugs, the Christmas tree kind
3. ran to transition in my booties... no problem. I would recommend not having a third pair of shoes... you don't need them
4. Transition was terrible! My fingers were too cold to put on my socks and to put on the Bolero... next time, lots of tri slide will be used in transition. I also had these cool Mickey Mouse like yellow gloves for comfort before getting on the bike and even those were hard to put on
5. I was grateful for the warm clothes once on the bike. the ride was cold until I was almost done. I used my Trek Madone with a compact set up and was able to climb and descend in awesome comfort. (I love my bike 
) The 810 was on and functioning but I never used it although I'll look at it later...Very technical ride, lots of turns and fast descents and short climbs... and awesome scenery!
6. Second transition was better. stripped off bolero, gloves and jumped in my shoes. I wore Altras due to the course being mostly off road and they served me extremely well.
7. The run was great fun. I passed almost everyone in the age group at that point... although the 15 minute time in transition and the swimming against the current an extra 15 minutes was too much to make up to win. I won the sand ladder (use the ropes, come up on the right away from the TV crews and do one step at a time) and the run (enjoy the downhills, uphills always suck so follow the EN rules and save it for the downhills), and the bike and ended up with a podium finish of #3.
Final impressions: SWIM ACROSS the RIVER! Head to the Fontana towers until someone tells you you have to turn... then enjoy the ride to the marina. Don't turn on your electronics until the last minute when getting off the boat and jump off earlier than later if at all possible. Have glide or trislide in transition and don't expect to put on stuff with ease. your hands will be cold, your feet will be numb and your brain will be confused... just the nature of cold water. You won't notice the coldness during the swim.... but you will when you stop moving.
San Fransisco is cold! I live in Austin and couldn't find cold water after April.... and it's 70 to 90 degrees and higher in June. I bought a couple of long sleeved sweat shirts when I was there just to be comfortable, and wore compression tights every day.
The bike is a climb and the run is a climb, but certainly manageable. Use a road bike. It's only 18 miles and you'll never get to go aero. My road bike is so much more steady than my tri bike and it served me well on the descents... AND on the climbs. never had to get out of my seat.
I love this race. I want to do it again. I do want to conquer that swim. It is an incredible experience
One note: I forgot to take the purple Christmas tree earplugs out and did the whole race with them in... Ha! I could still however, hear the crowd and my husband which is all that matters
Comments
Are you sure you;re not retired? You're on a triathlon bucket list quest for sure. "Do it 'till you can't".
Hey Al, I'm not retired, just a consultant
(unfortunately still pulling about 8 to 10 shifts a month in the ER .... at least 3 more years of that stuff) See you in Lake Placid!
I skipped Cap Tex due to: a minor sprain in my calf.... It turned into a duathlon because of the dumpsters that ended up floating in lady bird lake; and I wanted to get volume in on my training for Lake Placid... (rode a good 96 miles that weekend as it wasn't raining AND I wasn't working!
I missed seeing you! I hope you had fun! I will most definitely be there next year! what's your next adventure?
congrats.
wife and i did it around 2008. has a hoot.
yes the tower sighting is cruicial for the swim. otherwise could get swept out to sea.
You have more guts than me for even taking on Alcatraz, knowing in advance that it would be cold for sure. I had been hoping for 60-62 at Motala but it looks like I lost the gamble. Tough luck for this Florida boy.
Again, congrats on your achievement. I'm well behind you on the bucket list.
sounds awesome. some of my Austin friends are freaking out at the temperature..... You won't notice it once you get started although you will feel it on your face.
be sure to use a lot of trislide spray under your chin and the back of your neck before the swim... and have some in T1 as the cold will impair your ability to pull on socks, arm warmers, etc... that was the only really rough thing about the cold water... I never had any water in my wetsuit around the legs.... be sure your wet suit slides off easily over your booties. booties on the inside of your suit will prevent water from getting in, I promise you...
Best of luck, Paul!