Out of hibernation and into the race season!  IronBear Sprint at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine was a great way to work out the bugs in your race routine and try out the new gear you got for Christmas.

The Swim:
525 yds in one of the best pools in Maine.  They ran waves of 30 people, 2 per lane with a 9 min. delay.  Transition to the bike was a safe carpetted run out of the pool house and 50 yds on grass to the bike.

The Bike:
A flat fast bike course was well marked with hardly any of Maines signature potholes and frost heaves.  There were several sharp turns that were clean and safe but did require a slowdown to get through.  Every intersection was marked and manned by volunteers.

The Run:
A flat shaded trail course, with 3 laps around the Bowdoin athletic fields.  None of it on asphalt, half on grass the other on a XC trail with the finish back at transition.

Recap:
The first ever IronBear was small (about 120 total) but very well run.  Signups on Sat. and race morning was trouble free.  The field house was available for lockerrooms along with good snacks and free massages afterward.  Weather was fantastic. Cold, with frost on the grass during set up had me scared about a very cold ride but warm sun and nearly no wind made for great race conditions.  It was my first race in aerobars, a new bike seat and a bike fitting and the course was easy to get comfortable on the new gear.  It was a great course to get out and race, work out the transition bugs and stoke the fires for "A" races that are coming up fast.