SJMB is a small race with less than 200 competitors. The tone of J.A Productions for this one is informal. It is far less intense and competitive than the SJIT that is held the next day. That means it is easy to find a parking spot for your car and a spot in the transition zone for your bike and gear in the transition zone.

The swim is 500 meters in scenic Lake Almaden. Unlike the swim at Wildflower, the water is relatively flat. The swim is run in four waves, first a small group of men under 30, then a much larger group of mature men followed two age group waves for women.

Here I am preparing for my first solid year of Triathlons. The sport is fun and exciting, but the swim portion is a thorn in my side. If there was a race as exciting as a Triathlon without requiring a swim cap and goggles, I would jump at the chance. Well, enter Muddy Buddy. It is almost a triathlon - Bike, Run, and slop in the mud.

I was lucky enough to win the entry at the SVTC monthly meeting. I now have the entry, who is going to be my Buddy? It didn't take long to find someone willing to join me in this mini-adventure race.

I really didn't even want to go to Wildflower this year. After last year's race, I thought, OK, four years in a row is enough, surely there must be something else to do in May besides camp next to 10,000 people in the heat. When signup time came around in December, I checked with my inner demons: sure enough, still don't want to go to Wildflower in 2005. Good deal, let's move on. Unfortunately, my husband Rob's inner demons were singing a different tune, to wit, he really needed to go to Wildflower and break 7 hours on the long course. Sigh. Might as well sign up for something.

The NCMS was the first year of the event and the race directors (ByTheBeachProductions.com) pulled off a great job. It was located in beautiful Lake Sonoma and the landscape was really amazing. Since it was there first year, they did a wonderful job. Especially considering there was a Adventure Sport race, Dualthon, Sprint and Olympic Distance race. I was very grateful to the club for the free race entry. I choose this race because it was between the Wildflower training weekend and race weekend.

There are few places in the world where we can witness a sheer mass of humanity without some of the usual suspects behind a mass congregation. This wasn't a protest, it wasn't a riot, there wasn't an exploding volcano. There were other things.

There was a tiki bar. There were Kenyans done with the race before my friend and I had even reached the start line. There was a group of rejected Pope-fuls contemplating their future. There were salmon swimming upstream. There were people who had forgotten their clothes. This was Bay to Breakers.

It's May and I still haven't registered for another marathon yet. The "plan" is to run California International Marathon in December. Until then, I have to keep in shape. I've found that I need races to motivate me. So while on Active.com I came across the Quicksilver Endurance Runs on May 7, 2005. This would be a great opportunity for me to get to know this park as it is near where we moved last December. The only problem is that the race was two weeks later by the time I discovered it and I had not run more than 7 miles since the Napa marathon in March.

Well, this race entry was the third or forth I've won this year, but the first I was interested or had free time in doing. Actually my son Taro won this raffle and had we gotten our first choice Alcatraz swim it would have been his, but he did not want to do a marathon. I was looking for a mid summer long run in preparation for this September's half ironman.

This race takes place at Lake Berryessa, less than an hour from Napa. The area is scattered with many privately run boating, fishing and camping sites. Headquarters for the race is at the Putah Creek Resort. You can get a campsite minutes from the transition area, which is wonderful for those of us who dislike rising early and facing an hour drive to the race. Be aware though, these are not exactly premium camp spots - your car on one side of your tent, a picnic table on the other side, and mere inches to the next site.

The Tierra Bella would be my longest ride so far. My husband, Al, had done this ride a long time ago and we wanted to do it since it originates at Gavilan College in Gilroy about a mile from our house. We had ridden on parts of the course for shorter rides so I wasn't looking forward to the second hilly part of the ride, I wished I was doing the 35 mile ride. The ride heads out toward Uvas reservoir where the first rest stop was. The ride continues toward Morgan Hill and our second rest stop was at the Machado School. Both stops had a nice assortment of snacks to eat.

This was the first-ever Stanford Treeathlon Triathlon held on the Stanford University Campus in Palo Alto, CA. The redwood tree is their mascot, hence the "treeathlon";)

It was a sprint race to kick off my 2005 season and let me know whether or not my training is progressing appropriately for Wildflower in May. I have to say that I've got some work to do, but I had a blast nonetheless.

500 Meter Pool Swim
12 Mile Hilly Bike
3.1 Mile Flat Run
Total Time 1:47:38

This was my first pool swim and I have to say I now prefer it.