To Disqualify Or Not To Disqualify. That Is the Question.

Imagine a scenario in which you knew you would be disqualified from a race before you ran it.  The race organizers would simply put a "DQ" next to your name, and your times would not count for anything.  In fact, they may not even record your time.  And imagine that you were in the shape of your life, and that you felt confident that a PR was right around the corner.

Would you still run it?

This is the dilemma I'm facing right now.  Triathlon rules are tricky.  And among the trickiest are the wetsuit rules.  Whether you can wear a wetsuit depends on the water temperature:

78 degrees or colder = wetsuit legal.
78.1 degrees to 83.9 degrees = wetsuit optional, but you are disqualified.
84 degrees or warmer = wetsuit illegal.

48 hours before the race, this email showed up in my inbox:

80 degrees = disqualification for a wetsuit. 

This Saturday's Patriot's Half-Ironman is supposed to be a "tune-up" for Florida, in conditions as similar as possible to the real deal.  In theory, I'm not racing for a PR, and my time shouldn't matter at all.  It is, after all, a "B" priority race I entered to practice swimming in brackish water (presumably in a wetsuit), ride on flat roads, and run a flat half-marathon.  In fact, the course is longer than regulation distance, so I would have to carve an additional 8 minutes or so off my previous best time to actually PR.  It's like a long workout in race conditions, but not a race.  Right?

But THERE ARE NO "B" PRIORITY RACES.  The thought of disqualifying myself from the start causes me real anxiety.  It's a mark of shame.  It's as if I got caught drafting 3 times and got the maximum penalty.  I should simply ignore my pride and stick to my training plan, even if it means being the only one in a wetsuit at the start line.  But I can't get over the thought of choosing to disqualify myself in any race, and especially when I'm in the shape of my life.

Monday I went for my 73 mile ride on the Assassin and totally crushed my previous best time.  Tuesday night I swam the fastest mile of my life -- 30:42, a 90-second improvement over my previous PR.  I am possibly in better run shape than when I ran marathons.  And to top it off, I'm not battling any injuries.  I was really looking forward to this race before that email hit my inbox. 

So what now?