Brief intro... I'm a novice triathlete who participated in the Escape from Alcatraz triathlon on Sunday, June 5th, 2011. I entered into the lottery in September and was notified that I was selected in December. I paid the fees and officially entered. At that point in time, I had never done a triathlon and overall was not in the best shape. The purpose of this website is to tell my story, and to try to offer some useful information and tips to athletes who will be participating in the Escape from Alcatraz for the first time.

Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon Race Tips

My Story
I'd been watching the forecast for a few days before the event; it wasn't looking good. 70% chance of showers changed to thundershowers, then back to showers, then scattered thundershowers. Race officials said that they might shorten or cancel the swim and/or the bike. It was possible that it might turn into an 8-mile footrace... We took off from Los Angeles on Thursday morning, stopped at Casa de Fruta for some carousel and train rides (we have a 2-year-old girl), then had dinner with some family in San Jose. We took off the next morning for the city and went through the neighborhood we'd lived in eight years ago. Our old house actually looked quite different – the place was for sale when we moved out, so the new owners must have made some changes. We drove up to Sutro Heights park and walked around. Such a nice place. We checked into our hotel at Ghirardelli Square, the baby took a nap, and I went for a jog. I went down to the Marina Green, where everything would be happening in the next couple days. I checked out the swim exit and the run back to the main transition area. We had some wine with a good friend that evening, then picked up my mom from SFO.

On Saturday, we went to the Exploratorium, I picked up my race packet, and attended the race briefing. In the afternoon, we took the ferry out to Alcatraz and took the tour with the kids. As we were leaving, I looked at the water rushing past the ferry dock on the island – a very strong current, indeed! We had a nice carb-heavy dinner at Scoma's on the wharf, and I got to bed around 9:30pm. There's another TIP - Scoma's. Delicious. Know, though, that they don't take reservations, but if you get their early, you won't wait long.

The next morning started at 4:00am with a wake-up call. I ate a little, drank some electrolytes, and headed out the door. It was funny – at 4:15am, there were four athletes waiting with their bikes for the elevator. I got out onto the street. It was completely dark and there were no cars on the street, but there were hundreds of cyclists silently gliding through the city toward Marina Green. I joined the procession. The transition area was all lit up and there were busses lined up along Marina Boulevard to transport athletes to the pier. I'd already checked the position of my transition area assignment, so I found it quickly. I racked the bike, laid out a towel, and arranged my running and bike shoes, and headed out. I got on a bus, and we took off for the pier. On the pier, I put on the wetsuit and put my sweats and shoes in a bag that would be returned to me after the race. I got on the ferry barefoot, wearing my wetsuit and carrying my goggles and swim cap. We sat on the boat for a while before taking off, but the time passed quickly. When the engines fired up and pushed us away from the pier, everybody cheered. People started standing up and preparing. I went next to a big window and looked out at the Bay Bridge, the Ferry Terminal, the Transamerica Pyramid, Coit Tower... The sun was rising and city looked so beautiful. Pretty soon, Ghirardelli Square and Fort Mason came into view. The boat turned around, and we were right next to Alcatraz Island. People were starting to get excited. I was getting excited. They played the National Anthem and everybody cheered. We could see the boats getting into position, lining a "corridor" for the swimmers. There was a big Coast Guard cutter, police and fire department boats, and lots of kayaks. The professional athletes began assembling outside the boat – lining up along the rail. There was a woman outside the window that I was looking out of. A voice came over the loudspeaker "two minutes to race start." Then "less than one minute to start; athletes get ready." 30 seconds. 10, 9, 8, 7... At the sound of the horn, I saw the woman outside the window jump off the boat. I watched for a few seconds as that group of 40 or so elite athletes sped off away from the boat. What a sight! At that point, everybody started moving toward the exits. Goggles and swim caps were getting put on. I looked out the last window before the exit and saw a giant group of swimmers moving toward Fort Mason. Amazing. Right in front of the exit, there was a timing mat (I was wearing a timing chip around my ankle, so the clock started for me as soon as I stepped over that mat). I stepped outside and there was an opening in front of me with about 12 people getting ready to jump. About 12 feet to the right, there was another opening with just a couple people about to jump. I ran over, saw a patch of open water and launched myself as far away from the boat as possible. Not a moment's hesitation. I sank into the blue-green water and popped back up to the surface. I got myself horizontal and went like hell for about 15 seconds. My biggest fear of the race was getting jumped on. I was in the clear! I settled right into my pace and was moving comfortably. I was aiming for the two big apartment towers next to Ghirardelli Square. In previous races, I'd experienced a lot of crowding on the swim course – lots of elbows and feet in the face. Not here. People were fairly spread out. As I got a little further along, I started aiming for Fort Mason, then the Palace of Fine Arts. At the race start, there were definitely a lot of people around me, but as I got further, there were very few; I think my aim was a little off... I ended up undershooting the swim exit fairly significantly. If I'd aimed differently, I think I could have taken better advantage of the strong current, but the one thing I didn't want to do was overshoot the target and have to swim back against the current. As I got closer to the St. Francis Yacht Club, I could see the crowd at the shore. I could see the exit beach, and it started getting crowded again as all the swimmers were going for the fairly tight exit. There were hundreds and hundreds of cheering people there – what a sight to see! I kept swimming until my hand hit the bottom. I stood up and started wading toward the beach. I stripped off the top part of my wetsuit along with my cap and goggles and climbed the few stairs off the beach. The swim was done! What an incredible start! I'd just swum a mile and a half in just 31 minutes and 58 seconds. I ran to the "mini-transition area" set up in the parking lot. Here, we were to pick up the bags we'd packed with shoes for the ½-mile run to the main transition area (along with a small towel and some water). I was expecting to see the bags arranged in an orderly way, but they weren't. It took me a few minutes to find my bag. I threw my shoes on, packed the wetsuit into the bag, and took off running. I drank some water along the run. As I entered the main transition area, I saw my family cheering. It makes such a big difference to have people there cheering you on. I found my spot quickly, took off my shoes, put socks on, put the bike shoes on, sunglasses, helmet, unracked the bike, then ran with it toward the exit.

There was a blue line across the road, after which you could mount the bike. I did, and started pedaling down Marina Boulevard. The street was lined with spectators – such a great feeling. We went from Marina Boulevard into Crissy Field and spectators started thinning out. Then, we started climbing, up near the Golden Gate Bridge and through the Presidio. Then descending – in a big group of cyclists going about 40 MPH. There were volunteers waving flags at the bottom of almost every descent with bullhorns yelling "sharp turn, sharp turn!" It was a very exciting bike course! We went up through the Seacliff neighborhood where I used to walk Molly as a puppy. We went through Lincoln Park Golf Course, where Molly used to run through the fairways. It was here that I saw the person who would win the event – Andy Potts – pass me going the other way. There were two official race SUVs speeding past ahead of him telling us to "stay right, stay right!" He cruised by, a good minute or two ahead of the second place cyclist. We passed the Palace of the Legion of Honor. We passed the VA Hospital, then started descending – really steep grade down past the Cliff House right by where Laurie and I used to live. Then, it flattened out at the beach on the Great Highway. Surfers were finishing their mornings. We entered Golden Gate Park near the Dutch Windmill – some gentle ascents and descents in the park. I noticed the buffalo near the turn-around point. Back out through the park, and along the Great Highway to follow almost exactly the same route we took in. It was so cool to see the crowds again near Marina Green. I came in fast hoping to look good for the family, but we missed each other. I dismounted, ran the bike back to the designated spot, popped on my running shoes, and took off down the road.

Your legs feel funny when you start running after having just been cycling hard for 18 miles. It took some time to get into the rhythm. I ran along the coast of Crissy Field and got passed by a few people. Another guy that was running at the same pace I was turned to me and said "those guys going fast here have no idea what's ahead." Yeah, "those fools" I said. Actually, I had no idea what was ahead, either. First thing was a lot of stairs. I hadn't read about that part... We climbed quite a bit and then ran on a very narrow path that was quite overgrown with wildflowers. This would have been nice except for the fact that there was two-way traffic. The super-fast people started appearing coming the other way (the winner actually passed me down at Crissy Field). After that, we passed through a Civil War-era tunnel – I had to duck. Then, we passed underneath the Golden Gate Bridge. Now we were on the Land's End trail, and had great views of the cliffs and the crashing surf. Then it was downhill on a road, and onto a trail that led to Baker Beach. I lengthened my stride and really flew down this part. Near the bottom, I got my first view of the beach – I could see a long line of runners making a big loop of the beach. The first part was high up on the beach in deep sand. Brutal. It was a half mile to the turnaround point, where there was a water station, then back along the packed sand near the surf. There was a big wave that took some people by surprise – I had to run fast to avoid it; the guy in front of me wasn't so lucky – probably not a fun 3.5 miles to the finish with soggy feet. After the beach was the much-hyped and dreaded "sand ladder." It was basically a very steep sand dune with a cable and wood "ladder" that you use to climb it. There were also cable railings. Everybody was walking it, so I followed suit (when in Rome...). As I approached the top of the sand ladder, though, I decided to finish in style and ran up the last quarter of it. Everybody said "go get ‘em!" At the top, though, I could feel my heart rate reach redline. There was a gentle ascent on the road there to another water station, then it was all downhill. I remember thinking to myself at that point – oddly – I wish the race was longer... I thought to myself – I'd spent so many months building up to this, and in a few minutes, it was all going to be over. Back through the narrow path – downhill this time – sometimes wanting to pass, but it was impossible because of all the runners coming the other way. Down to Crissy Field and knowing the finish line was right around the corner. The crowds starting to build. The finish itself had about a 200 yard flat and straight line. I could see all the banners and signs and tents. There were grandstands with thousands of people all cheering and yelling. What a rush! I was fairly burnt out, but I still had enough in me for an all out 100-yard sprint. I finished with everything I had left. I remember seeing Ron in the grandstands yelling. I finished.

Somebody took the timing chip off my ankle and a few steps later, a woman put the "finisher's medal" around my neck. I walked through a tent with a buffet of food. I couldn't imagine eating a plate of pasta at that point! I grabbed a bottle of water, some Cytomax, and a bottle of Muscle Milk, then I saw Laurie and Emilia. "Yay, Daddy did it!" I exited the athlete-only area, and gave my wife and 2-year-old a big hug. We hung out for a while, then I grabbed my stuff and we headed back to the hotel.

They open the transition area for you to get your gear as soon as the bike course has been closed. You'll pack up your stuff, grab your bike, then proceed to the "bag corral," where your bags from the swim exit transition and the ferry boarding are waiting for you. TIP - like the swim transition bag, you'll want to make this one easy to find. There is fenced-in area with several rows of bags 100-199, 200-299, etc. You ask one of the volunteers to hunt for your bag. They'll need all the help they can get, so you should do your best to look for the bag, too. Go to a spot near the fence that's close to your group of bags so you can see more easily.

I met up with some friends later, drank some wine, then the next day, took the family to the California Academy of Sciences and hit the road back to Los Angeles. Quite a weekend! So, the summary of all this is that between January and the Escape from Alcatraz, I went from 173 to 150 lbs, and was probably in the very best shape I'd ever been in. It wasn't long after the end of Escape from Alcatraz that I'd started planning my next event - I'd gotten hooked on this triathlon thing.