We Race Together: Escape from Alcatraz

I can thank my infatuation with Alcatraz island to my dad (and Jerry Bruckheimer and Michael Bay). Circa summer of 1998, we watched The Rock almost daily. It is easily the best Nick Cage movie ever, and a great extension of Sean Connery's Bond persona. I hoped one day to visit.

I'm lucky enough to participate in Triathlon events with my wife. Because of this, I pick some races and she picks some. Escape from Alcatraz was my choice from the beginning. I found out about it shortly after we learned about triathlon, and after four years of practice and training at varying distances, we decided it was time to hit the West Coast.

Wow, what a view over-looking the bay, bridge and city.

San Francisco was a great place to visit. With family in the area, we had an awesome place to stay, knowledgeable tour guide, and efficient chauffeur. Much of the usual stress of being in a new place melted away. The climate was a lot nicer with cooler temperatures and virtually no humidity. The only complications seemed to be STEEP HILLS and COLD WATER. We did a swim days before the event to get acclimated and honestly, the water was not as bad as I expected. Yes. It was cold, but it was comfortable in a wetsuit.

We were on the perfectly good boat.
The island was about all we could see,
and we were swimming away from it.

Swim: The morning of the race we climbed aboard the big boat and set out toward Alcatraz. As we were standing by the windows enjoying the view of the water and listening to the National Anthem, thick fog rolled in and covered most of our landmarks for sighting. The crazy current was still visible. We were in line to jump off the bow, but that line wasn't moving so we were directed toward the stern where there was literally NO LINE, NO WAITING. Teresa jumped first, narrowly avoiding an athlete who decided to NOT swim immediately. I jumped next and we were off.

Swim exit to a short 1/2 mile run to transition.

Coming into transition.

I'd argue that the swim could have been done without boots. I decided against a thermal cap and went with only the silicone swim cap. The first plunge was cold, but the wetsuit did it's job. This was the weirdest swim I've ever done. The entire time I would sight something on shore and swim my heart out toward that landmark while the current pushed me parallel to the shore. It was like being in an infiniti pool. Forward movement was hard to discern, but I kept going and before I knew it, I could see the exit. I "skillfully" beached in the correct place without assistance. It was a great swim and my favorite part of the race. I didn't get the view of the city or the bridge I had hoped, but I did see Alcatraz Island while swimming in the bay. It was mysterious and spooky as it was shrouded in fog.

Top of Legion of Honor hill going out.

Bike: The rest of the race went slowly. I was confident on the bike through the first hill, then, not-so-much. This was the longest, slowest 18 mile bike I've had, literally. I fought every mile. I stayed ahead of the SAG wagon and finished in the allotted time. My performance was not pretty. The views of the city, bridge, bay, and Alcatraz Island were breathtaking. A lot of the other cyclists missed this part. As I was at mile 13, the fog started to clear. The Golden Gate Bridge appeared as I was cresting Legion of Honor Hill and making my way back to transition. WOW. As I got closer to transition, the rest of the weather burned off. It was great for the scenery but made my run hotter. It was completely worth it. I made it back to transition without assistance.

Coming out of Golden Gate Park, checking for a sharp turn.

6.5 miles to go.

Run: I wanted to catch up with anyone so I set my sights and worked my way up a little. Everyone was in great spirits. Volunteers and support stations were AWESOME. My hamstrings were on the verge of cramping for the entire run. If one twinged I would walk a little. This began on the bike and plagued me the entire run. I worked my way across Chrissy Field, up some stairs by Golden Gate Park, up some hills, along some trails. I crested the main climbing section at Baker Beach and headed down toward the beach. For me, this section was the worst and made the Sand Ladder seem easy. After the Sand Ladder, it was down hill. Again the views were breath-taking. My hamstrings didn't like the downhill at all. I had to take all the stairs down very slow or I would cramp. I was taking in salt and electrolytes at every opportunity. I even had one woman offer to "call someone" for me at mile 5.5. I told her I only had 2 miles to go. I'd be fine. I was until mile 7 of 7.5. I was feeling good and wanted to finish so I was quickening my pace. I tripped over a rock and the jolt locked up my leg. I couldn't move forward or stand up straight. I worked it out and got moving again. I finished just under the wire.

2 Miles to go.

It was the hardest Triathlon I've ever done physically, but the easiest mentally. I had a great time and would do it again in a heart-beat. I would also train a lot more on the bike, but that is normal for me as the cycling is my weakest event. I will say this, the atmosphere of the race was spot on. The staff and volunteers were top-notch. If you ever have the chance, DO IT.