The Dirty Du

Smithville, TX 11/23/2008 The Dirty Du was a special event on a special weekend, not only because it was an off-road duathlon that Lisa also attended, but it also fell on the weekend that Lisa and I got engaged.

This weekend started early on Saturday. Lisa and I left the house at 5AM and drove to Smithville, TX. Lisa competed in the 12 mile trail run, and I did the 5k trail run. Basically, the 12 mile trail run followed the bike course for the duathlon, and the 5k was the actual 5k for the duathlon.

I was not going to run the race very hard, but everyone in the race was also starting out slow, so I just decided to take off. I was actually leading the race for the first mile before I was finally passed. The trail we were running started strait up hill, then down hill, then up hill, then down hill. You get the point. Anyway, it was the hardest 5k I have ever run. The climbs were so steep that my calves burned like never before.

Eventually, when the smoke had cleared, I finished the race in third place. After the race, I hung out talking with the other racers waiting for Lisa to finish the 12 mile race. She ran a great race, and finished 15th in 1:56:37.

After the race, Lisa and I checked into the Hyatt at the Lost Pines Resort, then headed to Austin to visit her friend from medical school, then went out to diner at Roy's in downtown Austin.

Sunday morning was Dirty Du morning, so once again we were up early and off to Rocky Hill Ranch. At the ranch, our presence was graced by Rick Morris of Sage Cycles, who competed in his first duathlon.

The first run went very well for me. I was somewhere around 30th place when I finished the run, and my time was very close to what I had done the day before. The transition was very smooth, and uneventful.

Since I had just ridden most of the bike course a few weeks prior during the TMBRA race, the bike leg was great for me . I passed a lot of people, and felt strong the entire ride. There was one rider that hung with me for about 8 miles, but he could not quite hold on to the end.

The second 5k would be best described as brutal. Since it was such a hard 5k, I had to take a quick breather at the top of Fat Chuck's Revenge.

Overall, I had a great race. I finished 21st overall in the indiual, 15th in the 40 and under category, and had the 14th fasted bike split in the entire race. It sure was a great weekend.