First Race in Korea, first race after kids, first race in 10 years! Sejong Triathlon was a great race to start with.
Sejong is a great little area that seemed clean and spacious. Apparently Sejong is a new government and admin. acting capital of South Korea, who knew. Anyways we raced in an open area/park. The 2 lap swim was in a man-made lake, the bike was 5 laps around the lake and on a few local roads and with one stretch of cobblestone...ouch; I don’t know how those guys in the Tour de France do it! The run was then a 2 lap run on an inner loop around the lake. It was awesome for my support team, wife and boys, to capture many pictures and help to motivate me to push forward.
We went down a day early to check-in and just get settled; in Korea, races are held on Sunday mornings, typically starting around 7am, so traveling the day of would just be crazy. We stayed in a small motel just inside the city, about 15 minute drive from race-site. We had everything set up by Claire, Coach Oh’s extremely generous and helpful wife (she speaks English very well, so we have come to rely on her for a lot).
Back to the race, I was anxious at the start. It felt great to be back into triathlons and I had no idea what to expect of myself. When the buzzer went I pushed myself to the front of the pack, I knew I would have a strong swim and there would lye my chance to gain a lead. My 2nd lap into the swim I had my first experience of an OVER-crowded swim. My goggles broke a few meters from the finish because someone kicked me, but I was not going to let it slow me down. My exit time was 20:41.
T1(transition 1) went smoothly and everything felt natural like it had so many years ago. I was first off on the bike and gaining confidence each second. The bike was flat, flat, flat, and I don’t mind that! I had a small misunderstanding in the middle of my bike with a race official; I did not know that you had to wear a shirt on the bike. I was stopped by officials after the first lap and had to return to transition and get a shirt! (Check out Since When were shirts required for Triathlons for more on this story) Oh and those cobblestones! There was a 500m stretch each lap of pure cobblestone. When I reached them I just had to come off my saddle a bit and push through it; it slowed me a little and ran my legs down, but what else could I do. The bike course was also crowded and I quickly realized that no drafting was just a suggestion in Korean age-group races. I looked back to see a train of 5+ guys sucking my wheel. Bike Split - 58:53 (touch short~39km but had a few mins arguing with official and running back to transition to get a shirt after the first lap, lol!)
Just like T1, T2 went well, I slipped on my shoes, grabbed my race belt and water bottle and was off. After a few yards I tossed my water bottle to my wife and was gone. Well, in reality I’m sure it was more like I was trickling away. I felt sluggish and heavy, just focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. As with every triathlon after a few kilometers my legs came back to reality and I was able to focus on the finish. My run split was slow, I think I walked at most water stations, but it was to get me on the podium, my final run time was 43:17; I think it was just short of 10km though.
I took 3rd in my age-group and won a delicious box of fresh peaches; I think my wife was more excited than me.
