Unleash the Beast Triathon 2011

For the second year in a row we eagerly packed up bikes & boats and headed down beautiful, Pacific Northwest back roads, across a few islands and onto a small ferry

 to take us to the Olympic Penninsula, for the 2nd annual Unleash the Beast Adventure Sports Festival in the historically lovely lumber town of Port Gamble on the Kitsap Peninsula.

This year we excitedly cross-trained for months for a new addition to this two day, adventure sports demo & racing bonanza line up, an adventure sports triathlon. 

The first leg, the Paddle the Dragon 6 mile kayak race. 

Then those brave enough could opt to go on solo or switch out with teammates

for two more muddier than muddy legs in the nearby Port Gamble trails- jumping out of their wet kayak gear and onto their bikes to get dirty on a 14 mile sport class,

single track slip & slide mountain bike leg followed by a 5km run... 

With the grand finale finish line bringing the hardcore multi sport racers back to the waterfront to finish amongst rain sodden & windswept crowds with vendor booths

proudly displaying colorful array of kayaks & SUPs.

Ambitiously we both pre-registered in the iron man/woman solo triathlon divisions-

 with Jim using this as a warm up for his super endurance solo efforts in next month's '100 miles in 1 day' Mountains to Sound race and I as the next major fitness challenge goal I'd hoped to check off while still cautiously on my own personal spinal injury rehab journey...

 Unfortunately two weeks before race day I frustratingly got struck hard by case of acute bronchitis.  Even though I'd brought all my gear along  just in case I miraculously began feeling better overnight, at registration I had to stubbornly admit defeat and follow doctors orders to scratch my race and save my health...On the bright side, it then left my day open to be Jim's personal cheerleader and support person at every transition :)

While Jim had also been fighting a spring cold all week, luckily it didn't take him down nearly as hard, and with what he attributes to super hydrating the week before, Jim had the race of all races, months of training paying off as he led the way to an incredible
 *ironman* 1st PLACE OVERALL finish!  

  Proving that he and the skies could both be beasts that unleashed, Jim held a sweeping lead from the kayak leg all the way through each of the following sport legs in the triathlon race- beating the 2nd place finishing team by nearly 12 minutes!  AND in and through some pretty unforgiving weather conditions at times-

Sea kayaking across the Hood Canal  against 10 knot and increasing gusts o' headwinds while fighting ebbing currents on the return.  Then onto mountain biking and running along super-soaked trails...

Doug in a super beautiful, kevlar Necky Looksha 2

finished the Paddle the Dragon kayak race in first place overall,

 Followed by a Mens Double Sea Kayak with Jim close behind in third place overall, in his older & not-as-beautiful but definitely his most favorite boat, a kevlar Necky Looksha 3. 

 Jim then took over first place in the triathlon as he ran outa the cold Puget Sound salt water up the rocky beach, down a few hundred yards along rain-wetted grass to the kayak-bike transition zone to quickly change into biking clothes, while simultaneously refueling with Gu and downing gulps of Gatorade.   

Oblivious to the passing spring rain squall that was not helping his shivering as it turned briefly into even more unforgiving sideways hail,  Jim grinningly took off in a screaming first place solid lead on his next most favorite piece of gear, a tested, tried true & trusted, old school GT Zaskar LE mountain bike. 

By his time estimations, I made sure to be at the next  bike-runner transition zone, in a grassy field just outside of town about an hour and a half later.  Again it was awesome for a small crowd of us to see Jim come flying out of the forest this time, covered in mud from head to toe to the point of being nearly unrecognisable...except for that grin! 

 

With one final, quick shoe change again, a few sips of water & a few Power Gel gummies he was off again, to next be seen until he came cruising down the trail just under the flagpole back in Port Gamble, 20-something minutes later, still looking as happy & strong as when he started, as he came down onto the waterfront and around a final loop in the race course that hid him briefly out of sight behind a building before a final 200 yard straightaway sprint to finish at 3 hours 16 minutes...

 As the endorphin high still fuels that grin, he's already looking forward to next weekend's endurance cross-training plans, a 60 mile open water, kayak camping island adventure.~