The Escaping Alcatraz (Triathlon) in San Francisco.
Larson was one five women selected from Michigan to participate in the 2,000 person race.
“I got lucky and got in the first time I applied to the lottery, but met some people out there who had been waiting six to eight years to get the opportunity to do this race,” Larson says. “I have only been doing triathlons for two years, and running for about three; this definitely was not a beginner triathlon but such a cool place to do a race.”
The race began at 5:30 in the morning and participants had eight minutes to jump from a boat into the San Francisco Bay before the current changed. Larson said the current is so strong that if swimmers don’t sight the correct landmarks they could end up under the Golden Gate Bridge, where boats were waiting to pick up those who were swept out. In the 35 minutes it took Larson to swim to shore, 365 other participants had already passed her.
Next came an 18 mile bike ride along the San Francisco Bay and through Golden Gate State park.
“After about two miles on the bike I started hitting the San Francisco Hills. The elevation for the ride was intense!” Larson said. Next was an eight mile run. “Running for me is not my strength but I was excited to get off my bike after all those hills.”
The run started on coastline, taking participants through a wooded trail and finally to Baker Beach and its 400-step sand ladder.
“They told us in race meetings that once you get to the top of the sand ladder the rest of the run is pretty flat and downhill, so I was excited at the point because I felt great and knew I would be finishing soon,” Larson explained. “My goal was to finish in under four hours and I made it in 3:42:30.”
“Overall the experience was awesome,” Larson said. “The training was a lot but well worth it to be able to cross off this race from my bucket list! I believe that anyone who wants to do something like this can achieve that goal!”
Larson does have one final piece of advice for those who may not be interested in triathlons… “If you ever visit San Francisco, I highly recommend renting a bike and riding around the city ... however I never want to do a bike race out there again!”