Nation's Triathlon Penultimate Day

I started the day with breakfast at McDonald's which I don't recommend but it seemed like everyone in line was entered in the triathlon.  I had the sausage egg McMuffin and the Mango Pineapple Smoothie so I'd like to think I had the good and the bad but I doubt a nutritionist would agree with me.  I really need to figure out what to eat for my pre-race meals.  It hasn't been an issue with the sprint distance events but it will become more important for the longer distances.

The transition area opened up at 10 AM so I put my running shoes in my backpack and rode my bike down the trail.  The trail ran along the Potomac river and I was glad they cancelled the swim.  The river was a chocolate brown color and there were many tree branches floating down the river.  The trail wan't very wide and there were many people running so it was a slow ride to transition.  The trail was muddy and rocky in spots as I would have expected after all that rain.  There were just a handful of people lined up waiting for the transition area to open when I arrived.  The racks were marked by swim wave and it was first come first serve as to where you placed your bike.  I was the first person to place my bike on the rack so I took the spot next to the main aisle.  I let air out of my tires so they wouldn't over expand in the sun and I put a bag over the bike seat to keep it dry.  I saw people bagging their handlebars and one person was bagging their tires.  I don't know if it's necessary to do all of that so I'll have to ask my coach the next time I see him.  The main aisle of the transition area was already getting muddy and should be a real mess on Sunday morning.

I was the only person to take the bus back to the hotel so I sat behind the driver and we talked.  The bus driver had those long fingernails that  curl and look like the talons on an eagle, she was holding a cell phone in one hand and a piece of paper in the other hand.  It was an interesting ride back to the hotel.

Carol and I spent the rest of the day at the National Zoo.