Timberman Vacation
This past weekend, Sarah and I embarked on our 2nd triathlon adventure/destination race of the year, Timberman 70.3 in Lake Winnepausakee, NH. Our first destination race/vacation was the Escape from Alcatraz triathlon in San Francisco where it was cloudy and cold. The 70/50 weather for this trip however was an awesome break from the 105 degree heat in Dallas.
On our way up to NH from BOS, we drove most of the 56 mile bike course and I got my first glance at the steep and semi-long hills that I’d be stuggling up in a few days. A little intimidating, but I was glad to have seen them before race day. Later this day, we went on scenic hike up to the summit of Mt Major in Alton Bay. The description of this hike said it was only moderately difficult 1.8 mile trip to the summit, but we soon found out otherwise. It had some really steep sections with large boulders to climb. However, the effort was well reward at the summit with incredible 360 degree views of of the lake and surrounding mountains.
On Friday morning, I went for short swim to get used to my wetsuit again and Sarah went for jog. After cleaning up, we boarded the famous M/S Mount Washington cruise for a 2.5 hour trip around the lake. After getting over my anger for forgetting my camera, we really enjoyed ourselves. The cruise offered an unique perspective of the lake and its 272 habitable islands! We also met an interesting local who told us all about how they’d ice fish on this lake in a few months when it’d be completely frozen over. After the cruise, we drove to the other side of the lake to visit the Castle in the Clouds. On the road up to the house, we stopped by this wonderful waterfall and snapped a picture. Once at the “castle”, we were treated to brief, but informative history of the house and then permitted to tour its unique interior. The views from the garden outside however were the real draw. You could see much of Lake Winnepausakee and many of its gorgeous islands, and the skies were clear and the temperature perfect.
On Saturday, Sarah went for another jog while I assembled my bike and went for short ride and run. Afterwards, I went to the triathlon festival at the Gunstock Ski Resort to pick up my race packet, check in my bike, attend the pre-race meeting and listen to a Q&A session with some professional triathletes. This was fun for me as I’ve never seen a ski resort in the summer, but Sarah opted to stay at the condo and study for her upcoming GRE. After the festival, Sarah and I went to a wonderful dinner in the Shaker Village about 30 minutes away.
Sunday was race day. It was pretty cold at the start and Sarah went for a run to warm up while I waited for my wave to start. Once I got going, I had blast the whole day. The lake was crystal clear and swimming in it was a completely wonderful and different experience from the murky lakes here in Dallas. The bike was challenging with some steep and long hills, but the cooler temps made a for a very enjoyable ride. The run was the toughest part as it too was hilly, but I pushed through and finished 27 minutes faster than my previous best for this distance. If you want to know more details about my race, you can read my race report. I later found out that if I would have stayed for the “slot allocation” procedure that I would have qualified for a slot to the World Championships for the 70.3 mile distance triathlon! I’m not too upset as I probably wouldn’t have paid the $295 fee to enter it because I’ve already done 2 destination races this year and I’m doing another 70.3 race in Austin in October.
Overall, Sarah and I had great vacation. She was wonderful the whole trip and really makes these adventures so much easier and enjoyable for me. I think she genuinely had a good time and enjoyed this wonderful area of New England. I have to agree with Triathlete Magazine that Timberman is the #1 “must-do triathlon adventure”. The event itself was really organized and a blast to compete in, but the true highlight of the trip was the area itself. This lake region was really spectacular.
More pictures here.
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