Race Coverage

Normalcy & Supportiveness...

Thursday, 06 August 2020 23:10

By Steven Wert

Big Lake Sprint Race Report - 2020 has been anything, but normal. On Saturday, August 1st though, some normalcy was brought back to triathletes and spectators at the Graniteman Big Lake Triathlon.

You couldn’t ask for a better day to kick off the 2020 Triathlon Season. Perfect temperature, no wind, and sunny skies made the day perfect. The nerves that I had coming into the race quickly went away seeing the excitement in everyone to race again and just the sense of normalcy again.

The Swim: Two and a half months of no pool access, for someone who just really picked up swimming last year, was not good, but Saturday at Big Lake things started to feel good again. Maybe it was just being in the competitive environment, but my swim felt strong once again....

The Bike: With the swim not being my strong suit, the bike is where I started to make up ground. I had a game plan in place for the bike and with no wind, it made keeping the game plan in place perfect. Once getting past some of the small rolling hills near the start, you can really hammer it out. Sticking to the plan and not getting overexcited in the race atmosphere helped me gain some ground.

The Run: Getting to the run for me is always the best feeling as this is where I feel the strongest, comfortable, and know I can make up the most ground. With the multiple wave start, you really don’t know where you stand overall. You just know that you have to go fast. However, right as I neared the turn around, I recognized someone who started in my wave and knew I needed to go after it. With about a mile to go, I was able to make my pass and just kept pushing to the end to get my new Big Lake Sprint course PR.

Overall, I am very grateful for the Graniteman Series to be able to put on a safe and socially distanced race that could bring back some normalcy in all of our lives. It was so great to see so many familiar faces and see the support from the triathlon community. If there is one thing I learned in my first year of triathlon last year, it is that the triathlon community is one of the most supportive groups of people around. Even though you are competitors, it’s the support before, during, and after that makes this group strong!