At 3:15 am, my alarm reminded me of how stupid this sport is sometimes. But then again, I'd rather arrive to transition with plenty of time versus being rushed and not find parking and miss my wave start (I know, I'm soo dramatic), so 3:15 am it was. I changed, sunscreened, Body Glided, Booty Buttered, internetted, coffeed, and breakfasted. I decided 2 days prior to the race that I would (again) change my pre-race breakfast and stick with the tried-and-true: oatmeal, a scoop of BiPro protein and 2 Tbs. ground flaxseed. Arriving at Johnson's Beach at 5 am gave me first dibs at my transition rack position and plenty of time to pump tires, encourage the first-timers who were racked next to me, get body-marked, and visit the portapotties like 12 times. I sucked down an Accelerade gel 30 minutes prior to my wave start at 6:44 am and sipped on MRM.
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| Everyone's favorite part of triathlon. Clearly. |
Swim: 2.4 miles (1:06:47) 4th place
We were ushered into the swim corral and had 45 seconds to line up. I was scanning my competition to see who looked fast. I was having major decision paralysis since no one caught my eye, then all of a sudden, everyone started swimming! I didn't even hear the horn! I started my Garmin and put my head down and started swimming. Soon enough, I was swimming over the earlier waves. I was swimming through pink caps, then caught up to blue caps, gray caps, green caps and orange caps. I kept running into people and getting kicked, so I resorted to a semi-breastroke/freestyle swim that allowed me to sight without getting my goggles knocked off. I knew this was wasting energy, but it was my only choice! Imagine driving fast on a highway and getting cut off by cars who are going 30 mph, where you have to screech to a sudden stop, adjust positioning, and continue driving. This is how the swim was. I remember looking up at the colored caps all around and thinking, "This is the picture of MASS CHAOS." Why weren't our wave starts separated by more minutes?? I accidentally kicked someone hard and felt really bad. My foot hurt badly, so I can't imagine how their face felt! Sorry! I exited the swim and saw my time. Considering how congested that river was, I was happy to be out of that water. I saw my parents and Roena as I ran up the ramp, and that made my day!
I'm the white cap in the center. I think hearing my parent's commentary is even more entertaining.
T1: 6:10
This was a real sh*tshow. I thought I had counted racks correctly, ran down the aisle, and couldn't find my stuff. I heard someone else screaming, "Where the F is my bike?" and all I could do was laugh because I was thinking the exact same thing. I ended up running back to the main aisle to check signs, found my bike, but I was positioned on the opposite side. I stripped off my wetsuit and managed to shimmy between my bike and the girl's next to mine without knocking it over, and got my stuff on. There was so much dirt and gravel and mud everywhere, so I spent extra minutes wiping off my feet well so I didn't have rocks in my shoes for 112 miles. T1 and the finish are miles apart (don'tcha just love a logistical nightmare?) so I threw all my stuff into the bag they provided, cinched it shut, and prayed it would make it back to the finish. I grabbed my bike and went on my way.
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| Ready to roll! |
Bike: 112 miles (6:15:45) 5th place
I settled into a nice groove and found my rhythm. I love this course- the rolling hills, the wineries- but man, there are some roads on that course that need some serious work! Ever since my crash, I am now hyper-vigilant about scanning the roads for potholes that can potentially take me out. There were areas that were so bumpy that my CO2 cartridge came unscrewed and I lost a water bottle after hitting a hard pothole. The whole time I stayed at a steady and harder-than-normal pace. Sometimes I got distracted by the wineries, and then would have to refocus and remind myself that I was racing! Thinking back to what what going through my mind is quite comical- I remember telling myself, "You didn't come all this way to chalk this one up as a training ride!" and "Don't phone this one in!" (This is a total Jillian Michael's line, for those of you who are also "Ripped in 30"...lol). Also, lines from friends' emails were running through my head that kept me focused and strong. When I found myself relaxing a bit in my pace, I would look down at my wristband and see "FEARLESS" and then I'd pick it up again. It was about risk; I went out harder and faster than I normally ever would on the first loop, and I had to be fearless and trust that my body wouldn't cramp on the second lap. The second time climbing up Chalk Hill at mile 102 was hard, I won't lie. Everything hurt and it seemed longer and steeper than it did the first time around. It was silent around me and some people were even walking their bikes up. One guy shifted down and it didn't sound good. He shifted again, and his entire chain broke. His race was over. My heart went out for him; I knew he had sacrificed so much to be here, and now he couldn't finish. I just hope he comes back one day and completes it. We were slogging along, and I said, "C'mon boys, let's make this hill our b*tch!" (I know, this is more comical coming from a girl). When I first started riding, this was a line someone told me everytime I saw a hill and would freak out. Something about that made me want to conquer the hill, like I owned it. The guys around me laughed, and we did eventually crest the top of Chalk Hill. The rest of the miles flew by. On the course, I had only seen 2 girls in my age group ahead of me, but their pace was blistering and I knew I could only do what I was capable of doing. I guess there were 2 others who snuck ahead of me (maybe when I stopped to refill nutrition/use the porta-potty at mile 57??). But at the end of the day, I was pleased with the performance I had put together, knowing that I had finished strong, finished smiling, and finished fearlessly.
Bike nutrition was spot-on and I had no issues:
-1.5 bottles customized Infinit Nutrition mix (450 calories)
-3 Accelerade gels (300 calories)
-1/2 sleeve Clif Shotblocks (100 calories)
-Udi's blueberry muffin (250 calories): This was so good, but so messy to eat while riding aero! I smashed it up as much as possible, but it still crumbled and blew all over the rider behind me. Sorry! Better than snot rockets, though, I'd imagine!
-2 mini Clif Bars (200 calories)
Total: 1300 calories
Finishing time: (7:48) 5th place AG
All I could think of when I got off the bike was, "Thank God I don't have to run a marathon after that!!" I suppose Lake Tahoe IM training/motivation will come in due time. But for now I was happy to be done, and to have beat my previous time by over an hour. I guess this proves that we can get faster with age.
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