Wildflower...Tents, Tri-bikes, and one dumb Voly..

[velogirl]

I raced the Olympic relay on Sunday. Granted, I'm a bike racer and this is only the 2nd tri I've done since 2002 (and that was also a relay). One of my teammates has done Wildflower a number of times so we didn't need to rely on the organizers for vital information (since my teammate had the real 411). But I will say I had a positive experience overall. I was able to find everything I needed and my questions were all answered by a staff or volunteer.

We didn't go for the camping but camped because it was a better option for us than a hotel (given the road closures and our late start time). There was a space on the ground and water and a bathroom -- all we needed.

Wildflower is a HUGE tradition for many tri clubs and a big party. If you're not part of the party, you can make your own fun (or join the party).

From a racing perspective, I too had a few concerns, but all-in-all I thought it was well-organized and safe (or as safe as it could be with 8,000 participants and so many newbies from TnT).

The course is definitely HARD. It's billed as one of the toughest courses in the world and I believe it. The ride and run are both hilly mofos! And the heat and wind can contribute to a challenging day.

We'll do it again just because we don't have very many opportunites to do a race like this within a half-day drive.

Lorri

ps -- we won our relay in the masters women age group (and beat the winner of the non-masters women's relay by 10 minutes). see, old ladies can be really fast! I'm not a climber, but I got a 1:24 on the bike leg, the fastest women's relay bike split and one of the fastest women's times of the day, so I'm just thrilled!

[Tri Girl]

Great job Velogirl!!! Congrats on winning the relay. Way to go!!

[Running Mommy]

Great job velogirl!
Yeah, not an easy course AT ALL!! Esp. the first mile of the bike which is pretty much verical! Or for this zonie flatlander anyway!
It's WAY out of my league. I'm not a hill girl!!

I'm glad you enjoyed it. Like I said, if you were with your club then you could make your own fun. But I tried chatting up our neighbors and they just weren't very friendly. Maybe because we had our mtn bikes?? I figured it would be fun with everyone there for a common interest. And something that I'm passionate about nonetheless. But no... I guess we got the duds or something?? Or maybe I still have that warm fuzzy feeling from Ironman, where everyone is SOO welcoming and friendly to one another.

[velogirl]

I wish I'd known you were going. You could've joined our party. We had a big Cinco de Mayo dinner on Saturday night (complete with Pinata) and grabbed all the single campers around us to join us. It was a fun group.