Lake Marion Tri Preview - Race TOMORROW!

I headed down to Lakeville with Henry yesterday morning for an open water swim (only my 2nd open water training swim of the year) at the park where the Lake Marion Triathlon will be taking place tomorrow. I stopped at Justin and Kelly's house so Kelly could watch Henry (along with her 3 boys) as Justin and I went to the lake.

If you've been reading my blog for at least 2 years, you might remember Justin from my 2011 Lake Marion race report where he was doing his FIRST triathlon:

Justin running out of T2...


... and running to his FIRST triathlon finish!

Now, Justin is getting ready to taper for IRONMAN WISCONSIN in just a few weeks!! It seems crazy that his first race was just 2 years ago and now he's ready to do an Ironman, but I guess I did my first (and only) Ironman just a year after my first triathlon. It's been so long, I've nearly forgotten...

Anyway, Justin and I got to the lake, and we found some mysterious, unguarded cupcakes:

We didn't touch them. But we wanted to.


A group of about 6-8 hit the water just before we got there.

This was going to be my first OWS withOUT a wetsuit in about 3 years!! I planned to bring it along, but I forgot it in the basement. Oh well. It's August, so the water's nice and warm.

We swam a similar route to the group in front of us, and we swam "out" for about 15 minutes. I treaded water for a minute as Justin caught up, and then we headed back for shore. I finished up and snapped a photo:

I tweeted this: "First non-wetsuit open water swim in about 3 years!
1700 yds in Lake Marion 2 days pre-race."


Justin swimming parallel to shore to get in a longer swim.
(30 minutes for an Ironman-in-training is NOTHING.)


Justin starting to come back towards shore in the distance.


My Garmin pace data (with treading water in the middle).
I swear I do NOT swim that sporadicly!


Heading "out" closer to shore, and coming "back" more towards the middle of the lake.
(858 yards in 14:56 out, and 811 yards in 14:23 back.)


A street sweeper cleaning the lot (where transition will be) for Sunday. Thanks city of Lakeville workers!

On the way back to Justin's to pick up Henry, Justin took me on a tour of the ENTIRE 17 mile bike course. I didn't remember most of it from 2 years ago. We make a few turns through town first, then head south on a big, wide, open road with just some gentle hills:

Heading south.

There's about 2 miles of "actual" hills at the farther south point (as we're heading west for a while), and that section is WORSE for the athletes doing the Oly who have to go farther south and have BIGGER hills (so Justin tells me). Gotta be ready for those hills in the middle! Then there are still a few smaller hills heading back to transition, with a speedy downhill followed by some flats for a mile which drop us right off back at the lake.

Tomorrow will be Matt and Angela's FIRST OLYMPIC DISTANCE TRIATHLON!! You all know Matt (recently seen in the Time Trial that we did a few weeks ago), and Angela is his fiancée. Can't wait to race with them and see them finish!!!

Keep an eye on my Instagram and/or my twitter page for updates pre- and post-race tomorrow. Here goes nothing!!