Dan Oryall: USA Triathlon Collegiate Nationals #3

Here is Dan Oryall's third entry as he prepares for Saturday's USA Triathlon Collegiate Nationals in Lubbock, Texas. You can also read #1 and #2 here.

Today is my first day in Lubbock. I rolled over in my amazingly comfortable bed and was tempted to never get out. As I peeled back the curtains I saw the one thing that I didn't want to see...rain. The rain was fairly light, but the wind was pushing it around pretty steady. I again braved the cold rain and went out for another short bike ride to get my legs under me. I figured that if it rains on Saturday I will have to be prepared for the worst. Again, my little side note is that race wheels aren't really too big of fans of the rain. I saddled up and launched into the rain just as a pack of USA Triathlon officials were coming out of the hotel. They passed and wished me luck on my ride, while passing I noticed a nice patch on the back of their backpacks. Beijing 2008, USA Triathlete. So a little giddy that I was wished luck by what I assumed was part of the USA Olympic Triathlon team, or their entourage, I pushed off into the rain. Outside of the coldness factor and the fact that the rain smeared the lenses of my sunglasses, the rain didn't really suck too much. My wheels behaved, and I was back before you knew it.

When I returned to my hotel room, I had to remove my wheels to emtpy all of the water that had collected in the wheel. It has been raining so much here that the roundabout outside my hotel is almost under water. I plan on doing some homework for the remainder of the day, and hanging out. I will pick up my packet later tonight, this will tell me what wave I will be in, and all the other raceday goodies.

until tonight...

Thanks,
Dan
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