now that we've done that, i can actually describe the race.
total time: 2:35:33
my splits are in parentheses; the percentages there are what percentile my time was according to that split's rank out of 253 total racers.
THE SWIM/ 0.9 mi (26:26; top 21%)
i didn't have much time to get acclimatized to the water; they called 'athletes out' before i was suited up and i thought, crap i better run in there! i got wet quickly and then stood around with my wetsuit top down, trying to avoid overheating since we had a good half hour before our wave. then i decided i needed to pee, but had no time to go to the portapotties. so i waded to my knees, figuring i could get away with that, and peed in my wetsuit (yes we all do it). unfortunately, i forgot i wouldn't be able to rinse it out by submerging myself and letting water in the suit. so i walked out and pulled the suit away from my skin at the ankles, letting loose a flood of fluorescent greenish vitamin B-tinged pee. it was pretty obvious.
i'd had a whole wheat peanut butter sandwich and a banana with 1% milk and espresso between 4:30 am and 6:30. i decided to have a lara bar and a sugar-free redbull at 7:45 (wave start: 8:20). never again! no more redbull! i think that's part to blame for my iffy stomach.
my friends john and erin surprised me around the swim start before my wave lined up, and it was awesome!! i was so excited that they came. our wave was second to last. i picked the same 2nd row inside line positioning as i did at mooseman for the in-water start. these chicks were more aggressive, though. i knocked a lot of limbs at the start and had serious mowing-over traffic for about the first 5 minutes. i got kicked in the left arm and felt the girl's foot knock apart the velcro of my road ID, which drifted off my wrist. the water was murky and tea-colored, so i couldn't even see it; but i made a lucky grab into the dark depths and just managed to save it and stuff it into my bra under my wetsuit. that cost me a little time. we thinned out a bunch, and i did pretty well out through the first 1/3 of the course. i was ahead of maybe 80% of my wave. then the course got weird; it was kind of diamond-shaped and hard to figure out what the line was. then i began to feel like my timing chip was loosening on my left ankle; i was thinking jeez, if that falls off i'm done for, could i even just keep racing and time myself? would i? so i stopped about 3 different times and floated, reaching down and trying to smooth the velcro together and make sure it was holding. that cost some time too. i veered off course a bunch in the last half of the swim, though i didn't realize it much; i think i sight less when i get into a rhythm. my swim was not as strong as it was at mooseman; i think something about the extremely cold water there made me swim faster because it was so painful. this was easier but felt more relaxed. the time was similar (i think 27ish minutes as opposed to 26?) but i felt like i could have, and should have, gone out harder and found a better rhythm. i swam breathing on my right side every other stroke, so i should work on my other side in practice. i caught up with a bunch of the male wave ahead of me, which made me feel pretty good.
i exited the swim ready for the noise and crazy scene, and had to get my suit off myself since there was no stripping station. i managed just fine and ran into T1 with more wits about me than last time.
T1: (2:26; huge improvement!)
felt quicker; i was way less confused because i began thinking about it as i ran from the beach to the transtion area, and i had rehearsed it in my head the night before.
THE BIKE/ 20mi (1:03:00; 19mph; top 38%)
i'd hoped that the warmer water would mean no leg cramps on the beginning of the bike leg. wrong: i still felt like i head leaden limbs. nothing as bad as mooseman, but this tells me that i really need to do some swim/bike bricks in practice. i kept the cadence high for the first couple of miles and tried to figure out when to eat a gel. i knew we had some false flats and small quick climbs until the big hill at mile 4.5, so i decided to wait till after making it up that climb before eating. nothing worse than doing a hard climb with a fresh gel sitting in your belly. especially when you already feel like you kind of need to use the potty. the hill was a decent one; the grade wasn't as rough as mooseman, but it was a 3/4 mi long climb that seemed endless. luckily, i'd been up it the day before on my course preview, so i wasn't afraid of it. i also knew i'd be doing it a second time when we came through on the second loop, so that made me determined to greet it the first time with a mix of enthusiasm and respect (kind of like dealing with a hotel receptionist when you're going to a be a guest for the whole week. no sense in starting off on the wrong foot; it'll only make your life miserable later). i also knew that my husband would be waiting at the top, so that helped. i settled in and just accepted that plenty of people who were lighter, fitter, and had better hill-climbing experience would pass me. i kept my cadence higher than i would have in the last tri, and wound up climbing between 8-10 mph. i waved at my husband, and took off to make the most of the downhill. i didn't spend quite as much time in aero as i might have, both because this course was rolling and required a bit of shifting, so i made more use of the drops than i used to; and also because the road was wet and i wasn't sure how slick it would feel. i ate a hammer gel and worked my way through half of my endurox just before the start of the second loop. my guts were beginning to bug me even more; i really felt like i could use about 5 minutes in a portapotty with a good magazine. i was noticing that i wasn't enjoying this race nearly as much as mooseman; i was thinking about my splits, about my average speed, about whether i could win my class or not. i couldn't get my focus; i just felt uncomfortable. i still had fun trying to crank out on the bike, and trading spots with a friendly middle-aged gent who was one of the few other racers who seemed willing to interact with human beings. he'd pass me on the hill, i'd pass him on the descents and flats. we cracked occasional jokes, and eventually he settled in somewhere behind me. the climb was easier on the second go; i knew what to expect and although i feared my legs would be more tired, i ran into the same thing i notice in my training: i always do better when i'm warmed up. i can't seem to crank out solid bike speeds until i've already got 5 or so miles under my belt. i can't hit the same min/mile averages early in a track session as i can after a few sprints. the only place this isn't true is swimming; my early 1500m sets are always the fastest. anyway, i decided the climb was the perfect place to rehydrate with my nuun electrolyte-laden water, since i was pretty sweaty from the humidity. i nursed more endurox up to the top of the hill, where i got another wave from my husband. my intestines were really grumbling now, so i tried to just turn out some speed on the last couple of miles back to transition, thinking maybe i could let some gas loose on the run to help me feel better or something.
T2: (1:49)
went fine; took extra time to spray some OFF to prevent bugs from being a factor in the run, since they were out and vicious.
THE RUN/ 6.2 mi (1:01:55; 9:59 min/mi; top 77%, haha)
ok, i won't wax poetic here: this really sucked. i had been thinking that i would be significantly quicker in this 10k than the last, since i'd done all this great speedwork at the track and been torturing myself on neighborhood hills since mooseman. my pace had definitely improved and i had intended to let that shine in this race. but it wasn't to be; my stomach and guts were so unhappy, it was all i could do to keep my rear clenched and legs moving foward. every patch of woods looked like a great place to go let yesterday's dinner loose behind a quiet shrub. i was running with the same friendly chap i'd traded places with on the bike, and we began to chat. we were both in a state of discomfort, me with my abdomen screaming in protest and he with his new run shoes causing foot pain. talking about kids and grandkids, triathlons and distances, how much we hate running, the summertime and heat, etc. made the whole run go way faster. did i run slower because i was keeping pace with someone and chatting with them? absolutely. do i wish i hadn't? no. if you'd asked me going into the race if i would sacrifice a quicker run time to have a more pleasant experience, i would have said no way. but i made a conscious choice during the run that as long as i kept to a 10 min/mi pace, i was going to hit my 2:40 time goal and could afford to share this man's company. when he asked me if he was holding me up and if i wanted to go ahead, i heard myself saying, "no, there are more important things in triathlon and in life than a time goal." was this me talking? yeah, and i'm glad it's who i am deep down. i might have these external goals, but i'm glad i can see what really matters when i'm faced with it. we stopped at nearly all of the water stops and i alternated with water and gatorade. i had taken a second hammer gel at mile 2, but couldn't bear the thought of having any more; i already felt like i might unleash digested food out both ends at any moment. the last mile took forever; but in the final few hundred meters i picked up the pace a little and crossed, as planned, around 2:35. my run pal was just behind me, and we hugged after the finish line. he told me i made his run, and that he would have stopped to walk long ago if it hadn't been for my company. hearing that made me so glad i had decided to put my time goal secondary to other, more important things. at that moment i thought to myself, even if i don't win my stupid class, this was more important.
but i did win it. and i felt good about it, but i definitely hated having to stick around in the heat and with the annoyingly loud and terrible DJ until i could get my award. i had choked down 1 clif shot just after finishing, and drank some water; while my stomach was still killing me, i found i couldn't even use the bathroom until hours later. i don't know what those cramps were, but they cast a shadow of discomfort over the entire race.
in the end, i'm glad i did it, i learned a lot, and i think i proved what i needed to myself. i'm kind of bummed they didn't have medals, since i like to have something tangible to remind myself that i'm halfway decent at things when i start getting down on myself.
my hamstring held out, which made me so happy; and perhaps if i had pushed harder during the run, it wouldn't have. it was hellaciously sore and tight for the rest of the day, but i iced the whole drive home and stretched, and it felt pretty great the next day.
for next time:
-i will never eat so much for dinner the night before again. nor will i drink beer for at least 2 days prior.
-i will eat a bigger breakfast earlier before the race.
-i will never drink sugar-free redbull 20 min before a start again.
-i will stretch the day before. rather than go out drinking. it'll pay off in the end.
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