The Scoop
Ok, here is the report from Sundays Tri. As you've probably read earlier in my blog, there have been some issues with this race director. Two weeks prior to the race, there was a 100 mile move to a new venue. I knew things were probably going to be a bit ugly. I watched the swim and T1 of the Saturday race. It had 30 people in it. Sundays Olympic distance race had about 20 people and my Sprint race had about 20 people in it. I was really disappointed! To make matters worse, I over heard the race director say that it wasn't worth setting up the timing chip equipment for this few people. That, along with the fact that there were no safety boats on the swim, no security at the bike racks, only warm bottled water, and shortened bike course all for a $70 entry fee! I think regardless of how many people show up, he should have put on a quality race with at least the basics provided! But, enough of that! On with the report!
Swim: My plan was to hit the water first in defiance of my fears of open water. That seemed to work out pretty well, as I led the swim the whole way. The swim was two laps around the buoys. The water was pretty nice in between the buoys, but the buoys themselves were anchored in pretty shallow water, so at one turn, seaweed was growing just below the surface and at the other, the water was thick and brown from people stirring up the sediment on the bottom.
It was quite odd being in the lead and not being able to see any other swimmers. I thought maybe I had a false start and they called everyone back to start over! I could envision everyone standing on the shore and someone saying, "Will someone get her out of the water so we can start this race?" HA!
I have to say, the swim was not an easy one. I never did calm down, and getting my heart rate and breathing under control was very difficult. The good parts of the swim were that neither the seaweed or muddy water freaked me out at all! And, unlike my first tri where the water was so choppy that I couldn't swim with my face in the water, I actually got in a section here and there of some decent swim strokes. I ended up breast stroking around the buoys to catch my breath. It's odd that last week I swam 500 meters in a pool at 90% effort with no problems, but felt like I was floundering after 100 meters in the lake. I guess open water swimming is something that gets easier with experience. Who would have ever thought I would be first to exit the water? Not me!
T1: The transition area was really small, so that helped my T times be faster than normal. I sprayed my lower legs with Pam cooking spray prior to putting on my wet suit, and it slid right off me! Fast! The only place I really lost any time was when my bike jersey hung up on my wet back (just like last week). I was initially going to swim with it under my wet suit, but it was cold enough out that I wanted to have something dry to put on. I think I've decided to break down and get a tri specific top. I think red and black would be hawt! :)
Bike: I was first out of transition and led the bike for about 9 of the 11 miles. I hammered it as hard as I could while remaining in the aero position. It was a rolling course and the small up hills had me huffing and puffing. I really had to focus on slowing my breathing down. The coolest part of the whole race was after I hit the turn around of the out and back course. As I passed the other cyclists on the other side of the road, they all hooted and hollered for me, cuz I was da lead-da! Woo-hoo!
T2: I was 3rd into transition and I blazed through it! One thing I've learned is that you can waste valuable time dinking around in the transition area, so I've focused on making them smooth and fast.
Run: Oh my god this is HARD! No freakin' wonder! I ran something like a 7:56 pace! That's a PR for me! (So it IS true! It doesn't get easier, you just get faster!)
I was so glad I didn't wear a heart rate monitor, cuz it would have burst into flames trying to keep up with my HR. I kept thinking that I wanted to stop and walk... yes, this is where the mental games start. I just kept pushing myself... go, go, go! I realized that my legs felt strong! It was my damn heart rate that was out of control! Go, go, go! Now a mile left, and I get passed by some young buck. THAT almost made me stop. NO! How would I feel if I walked and got passed by a woman? I'd feel like crap and I'd hate the fact that I was so weak to give in to this temporary discomfort!
About 100 yards before the finish line I came upon James Hicks. (See my blog dated June 7th about this guys incredible weight loss!) James was about to finish his Olympic distance race, which started two hours prior to my sprint. It was very inspirational to see him and I patted his shoulder and told him how great he looked! (He had crossed the finish line right in front of me last year at my first triathlon, so I kind of thought it was coincidental that here we were again, crossing the line within seconds of each other... and we weren't even in the same race!)
It's amazing how the mere sight of the finish line can make the pain of the run disappear! One moment I'm questioning my fortitude, and the next I'm somehow conjuring up a sprint!
I recorded my own splits on my watch, but forgot to record it at T2, so I hit the button twice at the start of the run. Between my watch, bike computer and race clock I came up with the following times.
Swim 400 meters - 7:21 (Wow! Course was short?)
T1 - 1:24
Bike 11 miles - 37:58
T2 - :29
Run 3 miles - 23:49 (7:56 pace)
Overall: 1:11:19
1st female / 3rd or 4th over all
I know it wasn't exactly a real competitive race, but I had a lot of fun, and I'm very pleased with my times. There is another race next weekend at the same lake... but the last two weeks have been h*ll around here (more about that later) and I feel like I haven't been around much lately. Starting Thursday, the RV Park will be over flowing with people attending the local University's graduation. As much as I would like to repeat this performance, and get back into the lake while I still feel confident, it might be time to give it a rest for a while. Although... there is always race day registration! :)
Swim: My plan was to hit the water first in defiance of my fears of open water. That seemed to work out pretty well, as I led the swim the whole way. The swim was two laps around the buoys. The water was pretty nice in between the buoys, but the buoys themselves were anchored in pretty shallow water, so at one turn, seaweed was growing just below the surface and at the other, the water was thick and brown from people stirring up the sediment on the bottom.
It was quite odd being in the lead and not being able to see any other swimmers. I thought maybe I had a false start and they called everyone back to start over! I could envision everyone standing on the shore and someone saying, "Will someone get her out of the water so we can start this race?" HA!
I have to say, the swim was not an easy one. I never did calm down, and getting my heart rate and breathing under control was very difficult. The good parts of the swim were that neither the seaweed or muddy water freaked me out at all! And, unlike my first tri where the water was so choppy that I couldn't swim with my face in the water, I actually got in a section here and there of some decent swim strokes. I ended up breast stroking around the buoys to catch my breath. It's odd that last week I swam 500 meters in a pool at 90% effort with no problems, but felt like I was floundering after 100 meters in the lake. I guess open water swimming is something that gets easier with experience. Who would have ever thought I would be first to exit the water? Not me!
T1: The transition area was really small, so that helped my T times be faster than normal. I sprayed my lower legs with Pam cooking spray prior to putting on my wet suit, and it slid right off me! Fast! The only place I really lost any time was when my bike jersey hung up on my wet back (just like last week). I was initially going to swim with it under my wet suit, but it was cold enough out that I wanted to have something dry to put on. I think I've decided to break down and get a tri specific top. I think red and black would be hawt! :)
Bike: I was first out of transition and led the bike for about 9 of the 11 miles. I hammered it as hard as I could while remaining in the aero position. It was a rolling course and the small up hills had me huffing and puffing. I really had to focus on slowing my breathing down. The coolest part of the whole race was after I hit the turn around of the out and back course. As I passed the other cyclists on the other side of the road, they all hooted and hollered for me, cuz I was da lead-da! Woo-hoo!
T2: I was 3rd into transition and I blazed through it! One thing I've learned is that you can waste valuable time dinking around in the transition area, so I've focused on making them smooth and fast.
Run: Oh my god this is HARD! No freakin' wonder! I ran something like a 7:56 pace! That's a PR for me! (So it IS true! It doesn't get easier, you just get faster!)
I was so glad I didn't wear a heart rate monitor, cuz it would have burst into flames trying to keep up with my HR. I kept thinking that I wanted to stop and walk... yes, this is where the mental games start. I just kept pushing myself... go, go, go! I realized that my legs felt strong! It was my damn heart rate that was out of control! Go, go, go! Now a mile left, and I get passed by some young buck. THAT almost made me stop. NO! How would I feel if I walked and got passed by a woman? I'd feel like crap and I'd hate the fact that I was so weak to give in to this temporary discomfort!
About 100 yards before the finish line I came upon James Hicks. (See my blog dated June 7th about this guys incredible weight loss!) James was about to finish his Olympic distance race, which started two hours prior to my sprint. It was very inspirational to see him and I patted his shoulder and told him how great he looked! (He had crossed the finish line right in front of me last year at my first triathlon, so I kind of thought it was coincidental that here we were again, crossing the line within seconds of each other... and we weren't even in the same race!)
It's amazing how the mere sight of the finish line can make the pain of the run disappear! One moment I'm questioning my fortitude, and the next I'm somehow conjuring up a sprint!
I recorded my own splits on my watch, but forgot to record it at T2, so I hit the button twice at the start of the run. Between my watch, bike computer and race clock I came up with the following times.
Swim 400 meters - 7:21 (Wow! Course was short?)
T1 - 1:24
Bike 11 miles - 37:58
T2 - :29
Run 3 miles - 23:49 (7:56 pace)
Overall: 1:11:19
1st female / 3rd or 4th over all
I know it wasn't exactly a real competitive race, but I had a lot of fun, and I'm very pleased with my times. There is another race next weekend at the same lake... but the last two weeks have been h*ll around here (more about that later) and I feel like I haven't been around much lately. Starting Thursday, the RV Park will be over flowing with people attending the local University's graduation. As much as I would like to repeat this performance, and get back into the lake while I still feel confident, it might be time to give it a rest for a while. Although... there is always race day registration! :)
posted by Barb at 6:39 PM
5 Comments:
WOW!!! That's smokin' woman!!! Nice job!!! I'm so impressed... I find actually that the smaller races tend to be MORE competitive because they're full of die hards... so COOL that you were the FIRST woman!!! Way to get out there and push. I'm inspired. One of my main goals this year is to start RACING rather than just showing up and finishing. Now I know it's totally possible. And LOOK at your run time!!! HOLY COW, BATWOMAN. That's amazing. Great job, nice report and kudos to your expert photographer!!!
Jeez! You ROCK. Those are smokin' times!
Barb,
WAY - TO - GO!
Those are some great times.
So, now the question is, will you return next year to defend your title?
Stay tuned...
Thanks you guys! How do people ever do these things under an hour? When I add up the splits, it just doesn't seem physically possible!
Don't think I'll be defending my title. I don't plan on racing with this company again. It truely is billed as a beginners race, and I think I can only be considered a rookie for my first two seasons! (Although it is amazing how many seasoned triathletes use beginner races as season warm-ups!)
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