Triathlon: The start of the triathlon on Sunday was staggered the same as the duathlon was the day before, so I again had to wait until 9:30 to start. The group of athletes was the largest of any of the races. The swim was again very fast. I was able to count the riders ahead of me on the first turn of the bike and I figure I was 16th coming out of the water. There was a big peloton behind me in this non-drafting race. I saw them again after the second turn, as I headed out on my second lap of the four lap race, and they were gaining. They eventually caught up to me as I was headed back in on the second lap. I made the turn with them and headed out on the third lap. We were nearing the turnaround when the guy on my left started drifting toward me. I had someone on my right so I started coasting back, but he kept coming and his rear wheel and my front wheel met. The collision broke six of his spokes and one of mine. A second spoke of mine was bent. Without the spokes, the tire rim went crooked and could no longer spin past the brakes. The race was over for both of us. We both managed to stay upright and avoid the rest of the riders in the peloton, so nobody was hurt. We picked up our bikes and started walking back in.
On our way, another racer that wasn't able to race due to illness was riding by and asked what happened. We told him and he offered the use of his bike. The other guy declined, but I said I would use it, if possible. Since his clipless pedals were different than mine, it meant I had to use his shoes if I was to ride his bike. They were a little small, but I could use them, so we traded bikes and I was off to complete my third and fourth laps on the borrowed bike. I handed his bike back to him in the transition and headed out on the 10k run. (My bike was already racked. He carried it back on the back of one of the motorbikes that had come out to get the two of us who crashed.) I was quite far back in the field and was therefore able to pass a bunch of other runners, just as I had passed a couple of other bikers earlier in the race, before making my way to the finish line.
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After the race: Peep and I hired a Jumbo to take us seveal kilometers north of Chiang Saen to where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet. This area is known as the Golden Triangle. The Golden Triangle is in the approximate shape of a triangle and is ideal for the cultivation of opium. It is Golden due to both the large amounts of gold made from the sale of the drug and the fact opium is often referred to as "black gold". We learned all this at the House of Opium (Museum), which we visited after our buffet lunch at one of the hotels.
That evening, we went to the awards ceremony. Apart from the awards presentation, they had song and dance performances and lots of food from the local merchants, with water or beer to drink, all free for the contestants and their families. It was very nice.
Returning Home: We reversed our route to get back to Vientiane on Monday. On Tuesday, I got my bike fixed at the local bike shop. There is a French guy who owns a small bike shop and trains the Lao national team, so there is some expertise at bike repair in Vientiane. It cost 50,000 kip (less than $6) and he had it ready that evening. Better than the local bike shop could do back home.