My goal was 4500; I went 4550, holding 1:19s. My training partner pulled away at 3000 and finished with 4625; I didn't try to stay with him. The first 2500 felt great (effortless?), but after 3000 I began feeling hungry and didn't want to bonk (we swam at 7am so there was no prerace meal other than my usual latte). Surprisingly, my time at the 3000 mark was only 15 seconds slower than my 3000 Postal time in November. My breathing pattern for the first 3500 was two breaths on the left, one on the right--which worked well. Looking forward to tapering (and shaving) at the end of the month for the Charlotte meet where I'll be squaring off with the Geek (and my training partner) in the 500. One of my college coaches used to say that the 500 is a sprint. Now I believe him.
I think I have adequate conditioning. I need to focus on technique and race pace swimming.
