Wildcat Sprint Triathlon Top 5 List



5. Live Music
The sound of music is never so sweet as when it signals your proximity to the finish line. While many races feature a DJ, FIRM Racing went one step further with a live band to keep the spectators entertained and the athletes pumped. A very nice touch.



4. Shady , Low-Traffic Bike Course
In Arizona, cycling in the summer means baking in the sun. The well-shaded roads of Massachusetts have been an unexpected perk of our recent move. The website describes the bike route as “a single loop, fairly flat eleven mile course on beautiful roads that make you feel you are in a rural setting.” I’ll give them everything but the “fairly flat,” as this holds true only for the first 6 miles.



3. A 400-Meter Swim
The swim takes place in the Merrimack River, a body of water which, unlike a pool, is known to have a current. Visions of swimming in place (much like in an endless pool) almost kept me from signing up. But, then, I saw that the swim was just 400 meters – half the distance of a typical sprint swim. Some might feel that it’s not even worth getting wet for a swim THAT short. I am not one of those people.

2. Racing with a Tri Girl
In my few years of racing, I have never competed in a triathlon without a fellow Tri Girl. Despite taking place in Massachusetts, this race was no different. Spending a few weeks in the area for work, Keli was actually the one who found this race. We didn’t have a whole TTG rack or hordes of purple-clad cheerleaders. But we had each other!



1. My Own Personal Cheering Section
I admit it – guilt tactics were employed. Nonetheless, it was fantastic to have most of my immediate family present and accounted for…and waving homemade signs.



Despite some rather sporadic training due to the recent acquisition of a job, Paul still managed to take first place in his age group. He didn’t walk away with any hardware, however, as a computer glitch prevented the results from being posted until 2 days later. But we hear it’s in the mail. Well done, Paul!