I won the  Top Notch Triathlon for the third time on Saturday, August 2nd.  The race has a very untraditional format.   It starts with a 6.5 mile uphill mountain bike which is followed by a half mile swim in the ice cold echo lake, and finishes with a 2 mile run up alpine trails to the summit of Cannon Mountain.

The starting line is in the town of Franconia NH.  Because I never know if the race will fit into my schedule I always register on the day its held.  My procrastination puts me in the second of two wave starts.  The waves go off two minutes apart.  Usually this is not a problem for me because the first two and a half miles of the bike are on pavement which gives me enough time to make up the two minutes on most riders in the first wave before we hit the single track trail.  Unfortunately, this year a rule change allowed cyclo-cross bikes into the race for the first time.  The narrower wheels on these bikes allowed more riders to reach the woods before me.  I race on a full-suspension Gary Fischer XC mt bike with slick tires.  I was the first rider from my wave to make it to the woods but I had about six cyclo-cross riders to get by on the muddy single track.  One of the riders fell right in front of me and took me out on a descent.  I bruised my IT band pretty severely and broke the strap of my swim goggles in the crash.  I made a quick recovery, cursed the cyclo-cross guy in m customary fashion, and got back on track. 

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