Cancun

Almost 2 months ago (I know, I know super late as usual) I went to Cancun for my first World Cup race. I was excited about this race for a number of reasons; first off, I wanted to redeem myself after Buffalo. Also, it was a sprint race on a fast course, and most importantly, it was in Cancun!!

I don’t need to sit here and rub it in your face with fall already here and winter well on its way… but I am going to anyway! Cancun is gorgeous if you haven’t heard, I literally felt like I was in a postcard the whole time. White sand beaches giving away to clear blue water, palm trees, and warm breezes welcomed us as we landed.

The airport proved to be a lot nicer than Mazatlan (go figure!) and my parents were tempted by some slippery dude trying to give us a tour of his hotel, as well as like 7 bottles of tequila, a free day at a spa, and a free stay there next time we come. Do you smell that bull sh*t? Maybe its just our generation who has been getting spam emails from the time we were 14, but I am so skeptical of anything like this that sounds too good to be true… Find some other white people to scam, dude. Traveler’s tip: When in Cancun, if anyone asks, tell them you’ve already been there, and that you don’t want to tour their damn hotel! Ok, done ranting.

Spiderman was our concierge

We stayed at an all-inclusive resort, which was very nice and perfectly located, if the room was a bit musty. The pre-race meeting was on Friday, and as always it was good to see my triathlon buddies. Saturday I swam the course, got a step count on the entry, walked transition, and took a couple laps on the bike course. The water was very clear and not very deep. Watching fish swim away as my shadow passed overhead, I now know how hawks must feel when they fly over mice.

This course familiarization is always an important preparation for me. I like knowing where I am going to race, even more than who I am going to race. To quote Frederich the Great, “It is pardonable to be defeated, but never surprised.” I definitely do not want to be surprised by the course on race day, although your opponents will always surprise you, one way or another.

She always takes me to such nice places...

After an easy bike to the hotel (which was only about 2 miles away!) and an easy jog, we ate dinner and were actually able to watch the Huskers play Ohio State! And it wasn’t even in Spanish! Tragically, Nebraska did not execute as they should have.

Their head coach, Bo Pelini, always talks about “executing,” which to me means focusing on doing your job and letting the chips fall as they may. I like this idea, control what you can and don't dwell on what you can't.... and fortunately for me I do not have to rely on 10 other guys on the field to also execute!

Race day I was actually up early since the race started at 11. I had breakfast and biked down to the course. After watching the women (but mostly Flora Duffy, whom I’ve realized I have a huge junior-high crush on…) swim I took a light jog and did a few strides. I watched the women finish and headed down to the water to double-check my step count and warm up.

This was such a gorgeous race venue 

Since I have no WTS points, I my number was 50, and I had to start way off to the right. This meant I had to fight the current to get to the first buoy, and was not ideal. It also means you can see me at the start, I am the big gringo in red! Click below for a 3 minute video recapping the race, I've got a couple nice cameos in there, but *Spoiler Alert!* I don't win....

Cancun World Cup 2012

My step count proved solid and I had a great swim to the first buoy.  I was leading the group to the right, you can see me in like 2^nd or 3^rd place in the video, but coming into the buoy the current pushed everyone into me and I got tangled in the melee. After this, I stuck with the pack and finished out the swim just hard enough to make the pack.

And make the pack I did! I executed, Bo Pelini would be so proud! The first kilometer out of transition I pushed my way up to the front of what had become a massive group. I found myself behind Joe Maloy, and figured that meant I was in pretty good position.

I think of Joe sort of like my triathlon older brother, largely because he has been at all the ITU races I have, so he’s been there for my “growing up” in the sport. I remember the first time I made a pack, in Dallas, and I caught up to him, grinning like an idiot. Just like my real older brother Will when I told him I'd lost my virginity, Joe gave me a nod and a smile like, "Yeah, its pretty cool huh?"

So there I was, grinning like an idiot again, racing in paradise, taking a few pulls at the front in a pack loaded with Olympians and WTS racers. How do you know when you’ve made it? I don’t know, but I feel like I could see it from there. I was living the dream.

Yes, the run was decent, but it was not what I should have gone or even close to what I wanted to go. Sure, it was hot and humid, but what it really came down to was losing position into transition (say that 5 times fast!) and not packing up with the right guys. Still, I look at this race as a success. I executed everything to plan. I placed top 40 at my first World Cup which means I got points, and I PR’ed on a sprint course (56:28) and it was in freakin’ Cancun!

After a couple more days relaxing on the beach drinking Dos Equis we came home, back to fall weather, and back to training. I did one more race this season, a Rev3 in Florida. I will give a brief recap on that, and then a season recap and a plan for next year! Until then, FOLLOW THE PACE RABBIT!!