The alarm went off way too early the next morning. Hoping to get a parking space inside the park we were on the road before 4 AM. John & I knew that if the park’s parking lot was full we would have to ride down the valley & take a shuttle bus back to the park. The realization that a highly prized space would mean we could avoid the nightmare of trying to bring all of our gear back & forth in the bus made getting up early a little easier to tolerate.
We were ushered into the gate & quickly found a parking spot near the swim start & more importantly the port-a-johns. As every athlete knows the only line longer than the starting waves is the line to the bathroom.
With the start of the race over 2 hours away, John & I took advantage of the time to get some more rest & quickly fell asleep. The second alarm of the morning went off & it was no easier to get moving the second around.
As race time approached, pre-race jitters kicked in. We began pulling our gear out & making the trips to the transition area to set up our gear. The professional triathletes were set to go off at 7–after a brief opening ceremony.
Soon enough, the transition area was set up, the sunscreen was on & the bike tires were pumped up. At 6:30 AM we got into our wetsuits & began the journey down to the water to wait in line for the bathrooms & the wave starts that would begin shortly.
The opening ceremony was beautiful. The national anthem played as a parachutist floated in with a large American flag in tow. It was quite a sight to see as the sun rose & the flag fluttered in the wind. The parachutist executed a perfect landing on the beach.
The professionals went into the water and the first horn sounded a few minutes later. The fury of the start was amazing to watch as they quickly sliced through the water & around the course. The next wave included Team Hoyt. It was inspirational to watch Mr. Hoyt pull out the raft with his son aboard & wait for the start. When the horn sounded they were off & he swam out into the lake. The raft bobbed behind Mr. Hoyt as he was working his way through the water. They quickly made the turn & more waves of swimmers followed.
While waiting in line at the drink table I ran into a friend that I used to work with at Lancaster General Hospital. I couldn’t get over the odds of running into someone else I knew in a field of almost 2000 athletes. I spoke with Jarrod briefly & wished him well prior to filing into the water.
