Port Dickson Triathlon (Olympic Distance) 12 July 2009

On the 11th July morning,I left for PD. Had a break at Pagoh and took some durians!
Check-in at PD Chorus Resort at 2pm. Simple and nice resort with sea view. The weather was good with clear blue sky. Drove over to race site for race kit collection and took a peep at the race site. I had a lump in my throat when i saw the swim route; the water was choppy with lots of waves! Can make it tomorrow??? It didn't help when the organiser said that tomorrow would be worst b'cause of the high tide (in fact it was so bad that 20% of abt 900 starters gave up)! This time kana con by on-line forum; they say the swim here was easy like in the pool! This year they decided to move the start point out to the sea :(
Joined the carbo loading session cum briefing in the evening. The organiser told us the sea would be rough but 'feel free to call for help, they would throw us floats to hold on for a while n would not disqualify us". Small consolation : ( . Thrughout the entire night, the swim, bike n run thinggi kept running thru my mind. So bad that I woke up at 4am when dreamt that I missed the starting time!
6.30am - The time has come, drove over to race site for the usual prep. The weather was cooling with light rain. Perfect for a race (just like KL marathon)
7.30am - Took a good look at the sea n die liao! High tide, strong wind n very choppy sea! Took a warm-up swim out n don't really like the water temp, too cold n too choppy to see ahead. Was in fact a little panicky. I was not alone, many were already grumbling at the beach and filled with self doubt;"Can I do it?" Many were trying to cheer up n boost the confidence of their intimidated friends. Glad to meet Robin & co n exchange some best wishes.
8.15am - My veteran wave starts. In no hurry to plunge into the water. Did some froggie before using front crawl. The wave was so choppy that I could hardly see ahead at times; can see only the wall of waves coming! Funny, somehow I felt much better with all those trashing limps around, its like feeding on the confidence of others. There were some jokers who relish the waves; like little kids making joyous cheers everytime we ride the crest of the waves. It was a great help to take my mind off my fears! So I tell myself to enjoy the waves too and don't fight the sea. Finally reached the 1st turning buoy after some hard pulling and head into the harbour. With the calmer waters, I could concentrate on my strokes but reserved my strength for the choopy sea later. Goggles got fog up n the U-turn buoy never seems to arrive! Finally u-turn n made it out to the sea again. This time it was much easier as the waves pushed us towards shore. Was a very relief and happy man when I felt the sand under my feet; I did it! Never mind that I was 8mins behind targetted schedule.
Swim Time: 48mins
Cycling: Smooth transition at T1 n head out asap. Again kana con!; someone said the route is flat but it is far from the truth! Up n down, up n down! Quads started to hurt at 13k so I tell myself to enjoy the occasion. So took some time to admire the surroundings...saw this fuuny tree that stood out like a sore thumb...then incredibly, I spotted this dark brown hairy worm trying to cross the road infront in a hurry n was right in line of my path! Hope that it lives to tell his friends of his close shave with the twin" Flyers"! :) Then I saw one of the worst bike accident; this pro n very fast Cervelo rider was on the way back facing me. He suddenly lost focus n went onto the dirt path beside the tarmac, then man n machine did a 360* somersault in the air! Landed, sat up then laid down again holding his chest. Luckily, the race official was near by to help. Reached u-turn point and took some fluid from bottle while cycling. Error in putting back bottle onto rack n lost the entire bottle #@!%^ stupid! My speed ranges from 30+km/h for flats, 40+ for downhills n 12km/h for uphills. Trying to pump up the hills but my quads really hurts. So play safe n reserve strength for the run. Glad to finish it w/o accident and managed to cut 6mins off my targetted cycling leg : )
Bike Time: 1hr 30mins
Run: Transition at T2 is faster than T1. As expected, need to shuffle my leaden legs for 1k b4 picking up speed. Met Eddie from Keypower at 1k n he was alread heading back! Told myself to let loose n flow; so losen my hip n stride. The slopes here r not as bad as in KL n the cool weather helps. Quads were about to cramp after all the slopes n was glad to make it thru the last one; another one more slope would be disastrious. Very satisfied with my run (esp overtaking those bikers who overtook me!) and was 5mins within my target.
Run Time: 55 mins
Total Time: 3hrs 20mins (targetted 3:30)
Lessons Learned:
1) Weakness in quads n lower back
2) Cycle with spare tyre n pump; handful of cyclist with punctured tyres
3) Service bike to prevent broken chain, gear hub, etc
4) Keep away from motor boat/jet ski! The desiel smell made me want to puke! It threw my rhythm & focus off course

Conclusion: It was a marvelous feeling at the finish line; one that would not forget; First for overcoming the fear of the sea, then to finish the race w/o incidents or injuries. It is especially sweet to know that all these months of training paid off and it dawn on me that lots of factors could hv derailed the quest; weather, logistic, body & mind, accidents,...we can train like mad but have to quit b'cause of broken bike (which i saw a few), injured body n surrendered will. Like the Chinese saying it requires"Timing, Material/Logistic & Human" factors to succeed, thus all must come together in unison on the race day to achieve the single minded purpose of crossing that finish line and that I think is what makes the Triathlon so challenging and gratifying! We truly deserve every gram of that silver medal that we proudly hang around our necks!