The Bald One: Last weekend, Team Balsaque takes on Vashon Island.

I think I may have found the most fun way to do Triathlons. I raced last weekend in the Vashon Island exterra. Swim, Mtn. Bike, and trail run. Good fun, good times. In brief spent the weekend as the only dude on team Balsaque. (Just say it, you will get it, Bal-saque.) Yes, I was the mascot for obvious anatomical reasons. We were slightly inebriated when we came up with that name. Not sure how it came about, one of those buzzed conversations you have and you strike upon something funny and bam it sticks.

Saturday morning Lindsay, Megan and I start out for Vashon Island. Arrive at the ferry in good time. I have not been on a ferry in sometime nothing like the pudget sound in the summer.

Short ride to the island, met our comrades in crime, oh I mean, partners in athletic pursuit, Carly and Jenny on the ferry. Instead of heading to set up camp we head into town to check out the much heralded Strawberry Festival. Where hardly a

strawberry can be found. But first we head to what is considered the best Mexican restaurant around. Good food and even better margaritas. We pursue the meal alternately waiting for food and margaritas, mostly just waiting for the ritas. They are essential pre-race "nutrition" . They are good and go down way too quickly. The ladies anxiously keep ordering their margaritas, due in part to wanting to see more of the young attractive latin waiter. See, they are all very happy. Soon the last of team Balsaque arrives, Lora, a college friend of Lindsay's. The group and team are complete.

We meander through the festival wondering why they call it a strawberry festival because there don't seem to be any... Oh, wait, I see the Rotarians are selling Strawberry shortcake, of course I

have one with ice cream, thank you. The strawberries are at least from Washington, I hear, but not from the Island. HMMM. It is your usual Street Fair thing, lots of hippy clothing, the odd water saving device, an electric car, food booths, arts, crafts, and topless mannequins.

Anyway off to set up camp. The campground is a hostel and has the only campground on the island. We have a tee pee or rather some have the tee pee and I have brought my tent.

Oh wait the office is closed we call, "someone will be along shortly' we are told. They obviously are on 'island time". That is okay, good time to take a post rita nap on the lawn. Anywho the someone shows up and we are assigned the whale tee pee. Where we set up camp eat lots of grocery store snacks, beer, cantelope, salami, potato salad and the like. Ah camping and racing. I know I read this was how you are supposed to do it in a tri book somewhere. Well time to sleep, race early.

Up at 5 am, break camp nosh on peanut butter sandwiches and eat a few bananas, Megan made some awesome cowboy coffee and we are out of camp by seven and off to the race. We had done a pre ride of the mtn. bike course the day before. It was going to be tough but fun. I really have

not rode on Mtn. bikes that much and the weekend before went out on a single track ride. Just to get in a little practice. this course was going to be tough. The first part was up hill and loose dry dirt which meant I walked, ran, the bike up the hill. After the steep up hill it continues climbing through very narrow single track, which is fine, pretty twisty and technical but I faired well for a novice. The latter part was a gentle, sometimes steep, descent on single track, open gravel road or asphalt. 6.5 mile course done twice. For a novice all went well and I have the Mtn. Biking bug now.

I am getting a head of myself all tri's start with a swim. This one was in the Sound, Quartermaster Harbor. Now swimming is something I have really come to appreciate, but I am a sinker, mainly due to being male and slender. I have very little body fat, I am in shape and have no boobs and very little ass. But in the northwest you wear wet suits, it helps keep you warm. But mainly it gives you buoyancy. I need it. In fresh water I still have to tread water a bit with the wet suit to keep my head above water. Well, let me tell you salt water is a whole other story. I was like a cork in in water. I floated. I jumped in and the water level came just above my cest and I did not have to move. Just a geeky observation. The swim was good all the men took off first and I bested my previous 800 yard swim by 2.5 mins. I came and headed for the bike on the aforementioned bike course.

After the bike it was time to run. The run course begins with a steep uphill pitch. Followed by continuing up hill, yet gentler. We weaved our way through a beautiful trail system dotted with awesome looking trails, ramps, dip, and jumps that can only be too much fun on a Mtn. Bike. The run went really well, I mainly run on trails these days, and I was able to catch some people who passed me on the bike course and some I had not seen. The latter part of the run was mainly down hill ending with flying down the same hill we climbed in the beginning. Good times.

I was first in from the team mostly due to the fact that the men started first. I was shortly followed by Jenny, Lindsay, Megan and Carley, who has to be one of the funniest women I have met outside of Lindsay. I don't mention Lora as a finisher because she was there to swim for Lindsay, who has a shoulder injury, so Lora took care of the swim for her, go team LL, and did it well. I am sure I would have been caught by Jenny and Lindsay if it had not been for the head start of the men.

The crew, Team Balsaque;

It was probably the most fun race experience of the year. Really all the stuff I have done has been great. But, the competitors are chill and excited. The group I was with was amazingly fun. I was out there to have fun, nothing to prove, just check it out, relax and see what happens.

After the race we loaded up cleaned up and headed out. As did everyone else. There was a line on the ferry road, so it was time to stop have lunch and a beer while we waited.