I remember checking into my first triathlon in Austin at the 70.3 Ironman Austin.  It was nerve-racking.  All those bags to fill and you had to drop most of them off the day before.  No room for mistakes for a guy who was a first timer alone with no veterans along to guide him.  It was tiring.

This time, I had the drill down and pre-sorted all my things before we even left the house.  I didn’t even want to think about it even though I did the entire 600 miles to make sure I didn’t forget anything.

Dropped the appropriate bags.

Bought the appropriate memorabilia gear assuming a successful finish.

Drove out and racked the bike by the lake.

Walked down to the lake to check it out and feel the water.  I saw no reason to go for a swim.  I was going to do 2.4 miles the next day and I wasn’t going to win.

However, one thing I really wanted to see was the infamous boat ramp I had heard about.  The rumor was that after you exited the lake, it was a quarter mile run up the boat ramp to get to the changing tent before you got on your bike.  Sure enough, the rumor was true and it was all uphill!