Nantasket Race Scouting Trip

So I am over in Boston for the weekend...

Besides getting out of Albany and visiting friends, the main reason for the trip over here was to checkout the course for my upcoming race.

The original plan for yesterday was for me and a friend to do the Brewster Brew Run, which is a 5.2 mile run then go down to Hull on Sunday. However, after much thought we decided that driving ~2 hours or so and the thought of having to deal with all the people down at the Cape then it would have been more of a headache then fun.

So instead we headed over to Hull yesterday afternoon. The first thing we did was drive the bike course which looks like it is going to be a super fast one. The word "flat" is kind of an understatement, and there are only two small and short inclines which should be no problem...especially after biking in Conn. The only thing that concerns me is that the roads are really not that great in some places with cracks and grooved pavement. Other than that it is a very scenic route and should be fun.

After we drove the course we went for a run on the beach so I could get a feel for what the run is going to be like. It was not as bad as I thought it would be and actually found it better than running on the pavement. We only did about a mile or so because there were people on the beach which turned it into an obstacle course...I almost got clocked in the head with a football.

So after the quick run on the beach it was time for the main reason I wanted to check out the course: the Ocean Swim. Now I hadn't swam in the ocean since I was 13 years old and have never really been a big fan of the ocean anyway...maybe it was seeing JAWS at a young age or something like that.

Anyway...so I got my wetsuit and swim gear and headed down to the beach. After suiting up( Sorry battery ran out on camera) I ventured out into the water. I was hoping to have a chance to do some more reading online about proper technique for an ocean swim. So my goal was to get used to the feel of the water and surf. I swam out a bit to get the feel of swimming hrough the waves and looking in the water which is perhaps the most uncomfortable thing for me. I guess I kept expecting to see a shark or something but nothing. I went back to shore and got a drink of Power ADE to get the salt taste of of my mouth before going back in to the water.

So I think that I still have a lot of work to do but I think that come race day I will have no problem with the swim.

As I was on the beach taking my wetsuit off this guy asked me why I had a wetsuit on so I explained to him what I was doing and talked to him for a bit about before we left and came back to the house for dinner.

Overall the trip calmed some of my apprehension about the race but I still a bit nervous ...hopefully they won't chum the water before teh start of the race.