"Like Fish in a Barrel"

Yes indeed all these people, all 465 of them, jumped into Guelph lake at the same time. Much to my surprise it was a mass start which is very unusual for a race of this distance. They also choose not to mark out a complete 1500 metre swim course, but rather just do 2 loops of yesterdays race. This doubled the "fish in a barrel" problem that occurred at every turn. Even though the swimmers would spread out a bit over time, as you can imagine everyone would press back close together at the turns in order to swim the minimum distance. It was a bit frustrating. The good thing is that I didn't feel any stress from the swimming itself. I felt like I could go on for a long time.

The rest of the day went fairly well. I only have to learn to manage my expectations. I actually rode the same pace as yesterday(32 kms/hr) and was a bit slower on the run(4;42/km as opposed to 4:30) which was to be expected. In the end I finished 160th overall and 18 out of 36 in my age group. Not as many amateurs as yesterday, which is simply a reflection of a longer race

Here's what I mean by managing my expectations. My first ever race of the olympic distance was at that exact same course 16 years ago and I was almost as fast that day as today. My mind tells me that with all my experience I should now be a whole lot faster. It's hard to acknowledge that I'm not any faster simply because I'm 16 years older.

I also need to remember that all of this is only training for the big day, and that it's all about endurance, not about speed!

It was a fantastic day for a race, especially compared to yesterday. Clear skies and warm temperatures.

I had a great fathers day as well. I spent most of it with Jon and got greetings, cards hugs etc. from all the rest

I wish to dedicate day 277 to my Dad...enough said...

"Life is so constructed that an event does not, cannot, will not, match the expectation."---Charlotte Bronte

"Unhappiness is best defined as the difference between our talents and our expectations."---Edward de Bono

love
peter