Race Recap - Cranberry Trifest Oly

I know, I know.  I said I wasn't blogging anymore.  A decision I stand by (for now).  But since yesterday's race, I've had a few people tell me they were going to miss reading my recap.  More importantly, Coach Sheriff got my in the habit of writing race recaps as a way to digest and learn from every race.  In fact, my recaps are how this blog got started.  Writing a summary of the good bad and ugly has become part of my process - I feel like I don't get "closure" until it's down in print.  So, without further rationalization, here it is...

Pre-Race

How far back to go?  Well, my kids school starts this Wednesday - three days after race day.  My baby goes to kindergarten, my oldest to full-day for the first time. We went backpacking as a family two weekends ago.  After the trip, I got sick for several days (not related to our vacation - just the office bug and another bout of TMJ).  The semester at Northeastern University is wrapping up (final grades due the day after the race, final exam due the night before the race).  If you add all this up, I've had a lot on my mind.  I haven't neglected my training though.  Gypsy and I had a fabulous brick workout a week or so before the race.  My run paces were firmly in the 9:00s.  Last OWS with Gill a few days before and everything seemed good.   I even had a massage the Friday before the race, though to be fair, the therapist had to spend the entire hour trying to release my TMJ so the actual triathlon-related body parts didn't get much benefit.  Still, not having throbbing headaches and the ability to chew solid food is only ever a good thing.  

True, I did have a panicked moment when the athletes guide was released and I realized that I never registered for the blessed race in the first place!  (downside of doing everything way in advance - I had assumed I'd signed up at Christmastime with the rest of my schedule for 2014.  Not.)  But aside from that, I was pretty well prepared. 

Cranberry Trifest is down toward Cape Cod, so to cut down on driving time, we decided to stay at my parents house the night before the race.  This was to be a family affair - after the kids being upset they missed cheering for Mommy at NE Trifest in June, I had told them they should come to this one.  There is a playground right next to transition, and the race has the reputation of being family friendly.  

Feeding the parakeets at the zoo

Saturday morning I did a final 2 mile shakeout run.  Negative splits, pacing well - feeling good.  We packed up the car and the kids and spent the afternoon at a zoo near my parent's house (critter watching is a good way to stay loose) with friend Legos and her kids.  Then on to my folks house for dinner.  My mom even made me my traditional pre-race tuna pasta, which is a pretty big sacrifice for everyone else since I'm the only one that likes it.  Thanks mom!

Race Morning

I turned in early and managed to sleep the night before.  The logistics of a destination race get a lot more complicated when two bikes, two athletes, two husbands, and six kids get thrown in the mix.  The plan was that Gypsy (whose family was also spectating) would drive to my parents in the wee hours, we'd switch to my car (which had our bikes), and the husbands would bring the kids later.  I woke up before the alarm at 5 am.  So did my daughter, who begged to come with me and help set up.  Sorry kiddo - this is gonna be challenging enough.  Gypsy arrived right on time, and we got to the race venue about an hour before the race start.  Which should have been enough time to get our packets, get marked, set up transition, pee, practice swim, etc.  And yet, it wasn't.  It's a big race, and the time seemed to just slip away.  No time for the last potty stop, barely time to figure out the layout (bike in, bike out, etc.).  We wandered over to the lake just as the official were pulling all the swimmers practicing out of the water to get ready for the elites start.  

Still, the weather was perfect, the skies clear - not too hot.  It was a perfect day for a race.  I was rested, I was fueled, hydrated... except for my nagging feeling that something was off, I should have been fine.  My physical therapist Laura was volunteering in transition - I got one extra hug from her before going over to the start.  I said, "I don't want to do this!"  She said something encouraging.  I should have listened better. We also saw my swim coach Gill before the race.  He asked if we were ready - similar hesitation.

The Swim - 0.9 miles in 31:55

Cranberry has a reputation of being a shallow swim.  Shallow enough that last year, athletes were forced to get up and walk parts of it.  This year, the officials addressed this by moving the buoys into a zig-zag line around the perimeter of the lake, which added up to barely 0.9 miles.  Standing on the bluff overlooking the water, the effect was similar to my a toddler throws a handful of cheerios from a high chair tray.  Lots of orange dots everywhere in no particular shape.  But the theory was simple enough.  Swim around the edge of the lake.

The start format for the age groupers was a time trial start - with two athletes allowed into the water every five seconds.  I was thrilled with this, after the beating I took at NE Trifest I was not in the mood for another washing machine swim.  The men 40-45 and Clydesdales were in the wave behind ours, though, so I decided to aim for the middle of my AG.  Hopefully I wouldn't see those guys for at least part of my swim.  Gypsy gave me one more hug and went up to the front, as she's really come into her own as the competitive swimmer this summer.  Unbeknownest to me, the Jedi and my kiddos were there by this point and actually saw me go into the water.  That man is a miracle worker to mobilize two kids at 5:30 am for a 7:45 wave start.  Seriously.

The swim was shallow.  The depth ranged from "omg my hand just hit sand again...." to "oh look a fish" to barely able to see the bottom.  I kind of liked having something to look at, even if it did force everyone to kind of bunch together and then swim apart in places.  The buoy placement also made sighting an adventure - instead of a more or less straight line, every time you passed a buoy you had to change direction for the next one.  The men behind me did, indeed, catch up with me about half way through the swim.  The water was crowded (it really wasn't a big lake!), but I have to just say that, as a gender, men are jerks.  I'm sure there are some exceptions, and guys don't take offense if you are them, but in general where women seem to at least try to avoid hitting eachother somewhat, men seems to seek out opportunities to swim right over you.  Seriously guys.  It's not necessary.  Chances are that you're not sighting so perfectly straight anyway, and the speed you lose hitting me to should a deterrent.

The swim seemed to last a long time.  While overall pleasant, the constant looking for where I was supposed to be got old.  Plus, almost as soon as I hit the water I realized that I had never had to pee so badly in my life.  And that I am incapable of peeing while actively swimming.  An ability you think you'll never need, but.....

Finally came out of the water mid-pack of the pink caps (my AG).  Gave Laura a double high five (she was standing at the waters edge at this point), and walked up the very slippery steps, holding the handrail, to all the volunteers yelling "Walk!  Hold the rail!  People are falling!!"".  My watch when I left the water said 30:44, so the timing mat must have been at the top of this flight of stairs.  I saw my family (yay!) and trotted over to transition.  I had hoped to finish the swim in under 40 minutes, so was very happy with my time.  A PR, for sure.

Transition 1 - 3:43.08

This took a while.  Again, I'm not really sure where the timing mats were.  I was waaaaay on one side of transition.  The side away from the bike out.  I also didn't really run to transition like usual, and I seemed to be confused by my gear.  I remember saying out loud, "Put your shoes on", as I was about to leave barefoot with my bike.  I don't remember being winded from the swim at all.  So not sure what the explanation for this time is.

The Bike - 26.2 miles in 1:31:48 (17.1 mph)

The bike course for Cranberry is mostly flat, and very scenic.  While the "mostly flat" part sounds good, I actually had some concerns going in.  Where I live is very, VERY hilly.  Consequently, all my training has been done on hills.  Both uphills and downhills - obvious, but periods of intense effort followed by breaks is not the same as pedalling all out for hours at a time.

I'd incorporated a lot of flat sections into my recent training rides, and I'd set the goal of 18 mph for this race, based on my efforts in the weeks prior.  I felt good starting out on the bike.  Not too cold, not tired.  I still had to pee beyond reason (side note - I also can't pee on a bike, and really don't understand people who can.  Or choose too.  Around mile 3 I passed a guy who had gotten off to pee in the woods and was intensely jealous of that male ability....), but otherwise great.  

If I could have ended this race at the Mile 20 mark, I would be writing that this was my best race ever.  That I did everything I wanted.  I PRed the swim, and up until mile 20, I was pacing above 18 mph.  I hit all my nutrition, I drank all my water. 

But alas, the bike of an Oly in 26.2 miles, not 20.  My legs stopped wanting to turn over, and fairly suddenly.  My speed dropped.  I wasn't sick, I wasn't injured, my blood sugar was fine... I just couldn't get my legs to move.  I finished the bike knowing that I wasn't going to make my goal after all, and that I was in a world of trouble for the run.

Transition 2 - 3:11.4

Gypsy coming into T2

I know exactly why this transition took so long.  I could barely walk off the bike.  Laura was in transition again - I said "I signed up for the aquabike, right?"  I staggered the length of transition (again - I was at the end).  My kids beat me running from one end to the other.  I asked the Jedi how the kids were - great.  They had made signs for me, that they vigorously shook at me while telling me how great Mommy was doing.  I told my husband that I hoped he'd brought extra toys, bc it was going to be a while.  He asked if I was ok - I told him I was fried.  I paused to give each kid a big hug over the fence and kiss my husband.  Not sure if that counts as assisting your athlete, but I would have been cheerfully DQed for a hug from my kids at this point.  I heard my daughter yell as I ran away from them, "It's ok to run slow if you need to Mommy!!!!"

The Run - 6.2 miles in 1:11:34 (11:33 minutes per mile)

The BEST part of the run was that I knew there was a portapotty on the Run Out.  I've never stopped in a race before, but man.... that extra time was worth it.  The second best part of the run was Laura screaming my name as I was running out of transition.  Things like that really do make a difference.

I tried, buddy!

That ends anything positive I have to say about the run.  My legs would. not. go.  I tried to walk a little to pep them up.  Nothing.  I tried to focus on my form - I have a tendency to sit back on my heels when tired - if I lean forward I usually pick up at least 20 seconds on my pace.  Nothing.  My first mile was around 12:00.  Okay, that's including the potty stop.  Second mile 11:30ish.  As was the third.  I knew going into the run that my goal of 1:05 for the run wasn't going to happen, but somewhere after mile 4 my watch switched over an hour and I knew it was just terrible.  I never got faster - there was no second wind.  I gave up walking and just shuffled along.  I heart rate wasn't crazy high.  I started to get dizzy around mile 5.  I don't remember much else.

Oh thank god the finish line.....

 Results

Post-Race

My family was right there at the finish line.  Once I crossed it, I ran straight into Gypsy and Gill, who had been waiting for me.  Gypsy finished about a half an hour beforehand, and Gill did the aquabike so was there goodness knows how long.  Although I couldn't verbalize it at the time (or even really speak), I was so grateful that they had waiting so long for me.  They were right there at NETrifest when I finished.  I remember telling them before this race that that had been nice - I'm so happy they took my casual comment/request to heart.  Gypsy parked me in a chair, told me to put my feet in the really gross ice water kiddie pool.  Jedi and kids came over to the fence to ask if I was ok.  Some time passed.  We walked over to get some food, which I couldn't eat.  Laura checked in with me and high-fived the kids.

Gypsy and I at the finish.  

For the rest of the day I was sick, sore, and mostly a mess.  Ditto today, though starting to feel a little less so.  I haven't been this beat up in months.  I have very mixed feelings about the race.  I'm super happy with my PR on the swim.  I'm very happy with the first part of the bike, but I'm frustrated and frankly confused as to what happened.  Should I have biked longer in training?  20-30 miles is well within my usual comfortable distance.  Did I just truly give the bike all I had, and then there was nothing left?  I had been hoping for a much stronger run, based on recent training paces.  I'm used to having nutritional problems, but I've never experienced my body just politely refusing to move in the middle of a race.  I'm really just not sure what happened or what I could conceivable done differently in the last month or so to change the outcome of the day.  So.... simultaneously a really nice and really disappointing end to the season.

In the car on the way home, my daughter told me, "Mommy, you're a true triathlete.  It's not just about what you look like or how fast you are.  You keep going when it's really hard.  Plus you try to not bump into people on the swim, so that makes you a true triathlete". 

I swear I do not make these things up - the same kid says things like this and then immediately goes back to fighting with her brother over crossing of imaginary lines in the backseat.  Mystery of parenthood.  But still - that was pretty profound.  Yesterday and this morning my kids showered me with so many "Mommy you did great"s! and "I love you Mommys"!  I had great friends and cheerleaders yesterday.  I am glad I did the race.  I still don't know what is next - I'm still planning on hiking and relaxing this fall.  I can say with complete confidence that I have no desire to do a 70.3 or longer in the next few years.  I may have to come back to try this race again though, because the course really is beautiful.  I'd like a second chance to appreciate it, under better circumstances.

Race Recap - IronGirl Sprint Webster

 

Sometimes, races sneak up on you.  As I wrote in my post before vacation, the Irongirl Sprint triathlon in Webster two weekends ago was one of those sneaky races.  Side note for concerned citizens, I did find my best goggles, but not in time for this race....

The mantra, "work hard, play hard" seems to have been chosen for me lately.  Just as I was working seemingless endless hours before this race and my trip to Lake Placid, I have slammed back into the workweek with the force of a train hitting concrete.  Long hours in the office, followed by a quick tuck in for the kids and more hours at the computer for my class and odd jobs until late into the night.  I've now also come down with the same stomach bug that my daughter got at IMLP.  (So forgive me if this is even less coherant than usual).  The chances of me getting any training in any time soon seems to be dwindling...

That might be okay though, if my result of IronGirl are any indicator.  I did, in fact, crush the race.  After hardly any workouts in the week before.  After almost forgetting about it.  After resolving to just have a good time and do the best I could on that day.  Let's hope Cranberry Oly at the end of August will be similar...

I'm getting ahead of myself.  Rewind back a few months, when my good friend Legos asked me to race this sprint with her.  This would be her first triathlon, and after being a spectator at Title 9 last fall (best sherpa friend!) she was interested.  Of course I was going to be there with her!  Title 9 was also an all-women's race.  Truthfully, I don't usually go into the "girl power" type athletic events, but I have to admit that IG had a great vibe.  Women of all shapes, sizes, and ages being awesome.  That is a powerful thing.  Plus, after being swam over by ever male age grouper there was at New England Trifest, I was ok with being closer to the middle of field based on my gender alone.

Webster is close to where I live, so it was a short drive and an early morning to get there and get set up.  This is the largest race I've done so far, with over 500 participants.  So many, in fact, that athelete check-in was mandatory the day before or the Friday before the race.  I went on Friday to get my race packet and bracelet, which I then got to sport the rest of the weekend.  I also had to park about a mile away from the race venue, and then ride my bike with my gear to the start.  I followed another woman that knew where she was going, but didn't pay enough attention (that becomes important later).

Race bling.
At least it's pretty

I got set up and had plenty of time to wander around.  I am chronically early.  Legos was coming down with her husband, who gets the credit for all these lovely race photos.  The morning was unseasonably cool (we love using the phrase "polar vortex" now), however the water was above 78 degrees, so wetsuits were not permitted if you times were to count toward rankings.  It was really crazy how much warmer the water was than the air.  So much that after a half an hour of standing in my tri kit on the cold beach, the start of my wave was a relief.  I usually like to warm up in the water, but it was so cold that I decided against it so I wouldn't be both cold AND wet while waiting for the race start.

Swim course at Lake Chaubunagungamaug.  Really.  That's it's name.

The Swim: 1/3 Mile in 13:01

I was just a touch nervous about the swim.  My last couple of open water swims with no wetsuit hadn't felt great.  My back was still tight and painful.  But I had no great troubles on the swim leg, and came out of the water firmly in the middle of my wave.  My wave was the first half of my age group (split alphabetically), so I felt like I was in good shape.  In reality, my time was a bit slower than I'd like, which I attribute to swinging a little too wide around the buoys and other swimmers.  I think I was still a bit shy after the pummeling I took at NE Trifest, which slowed me down just a bit.  Two days after the race I checked my paces in the pool just to be sure - right on target.  So I must have simple taken the long way around.

Running to T1

Transition is so much easier without a wetsuit.  2:58, with a decent run from the beach.  'Nuff said.

The Bike: 45:59 (15.7 mph)

The bike course was rolling hills (maybe one big hill) over 12 miles around the lake.  I felt great.  Two people total passed me, only one of which was in my age group.  I passed nearly 100 other riders.  I do not have delusions of being a super biker, but it is my strongest sport of the three, and I will admit that it did feel good to pick that many people off.  T2 was also quick and smooth at 2:26.

The Run: 3 miles in 27:18 (9:06 pace)

Here's the part where you'll all start to laugh at me.  As I started the run, I decided that I was winning.  Okay, maybe not winning, but close to the top of my age group.  After all, Lego's husband had told me as I came out of the water that I was fast, and I had only lost a single person in my AG on the bike.  That's not bad!  If triathlon is primarily mental, I decided it couldn't hurt to convince myself that I was in the lead.  Giggle.  I am never in the lead.....

Anyway, it seemed to work, because the run leg of this race is the fastest I've ever ran a 5k.  I can't even blame a short course, because my watch agreed.  It was cool, it's wasn't very hilly, but still a 9:06 pace is much faster than anything I've ever run before.  It felt great.  I lost a few women in my age group (no longer winning), but in the chute another woman tried to pass me and I sprinted, leaving her behind.  I wasn't going to drop another slot in the rankings!

I ended up being 22 out of 86 in my AG.  I'm not sure exactly where those other 21 women were - I didn't see most of them! - but I'm still very happy with how I did.  It feels gratifying that, after a year of training, I could do well in a sprint without too much trouble.
 

The verdict

Legos is a Triathlete!!!

Perspective is a curious thing.  I'm writing this recap after watching IMLP.  There's no way to watch an IM and not feel small.  To feel humbled.

Just as I'm questioning my abilities as an athlete, I'm also questioning the pointfulness of this blog.  I'm struggling to keep perspective that a year ago I couldn't run a single mile.  To remember how far I've come.  I don't see myself as doing anything particularly noteworthy or inspirational, especially compared to others.  With work being so heavy, with my family responsibilities, I'm going to have to make some decisions.  Decisions about training, about maintaining this blog, and about what is next for me.  My last triathlon of the season is in three weeks, and I can't help but worry that I will not be ready.  I am feeling exceptionally unready for large chunks of my life responsibilities.  I've already had to shut down our bakery business this year.  There just isn't time for everything....

So stay tuned (or don't).  Once I sort it out I'll let you know....

Have you ever done a race with very little prep?  How did it go?

Race Recap - New England Trifest Olympic Triathlon

As days in my life go, Sunday June 29th, 2014 is up there with the best of them.  I finished my first Oly-distance tri strong, smiling, and with good friends and family.  What else can you ask for?





Gypsy and I at the finish with our medals!

Backing up a bit, I was headed into the race slightly undertrained.  With only a few weeks of running happening since my cortisone shot in my hip, and some life interference, I knew I could finish, but was uncertain on just what sort of hot mess shape I'd be in when I did so.  Sun MultiSports puts on a great race - it was first in their series and despite a challenging bike course (with a hill described as "epic") I was looking forward to taking it on. 

Good advice...

I was also very happy to have friends doing the race with me.  My swim teacher Gill and my best tri-buddy Gypsy were going as well.  Gypsy and I left our houses just after lunch on Saturday and headed up to Fairlee Vermont to pick up our packets and drive the bike course.  We got there just in time to see the kids duathlon, which was very cute.  Always great to see kids (even other than mine) getting active and moving their bodies.  We drove the bike course and agreed that the Epic Hill didn't look too too bad.  After all, we got to ride through a very scenic covered bridge right beforehand.  What could be more Vermont?  Following a nice dinner out with Gill, we went back to our hotel for a reasonably terrible night's sleep.  (I couldn't stay asleep.  Nerves, weird place... who knows.  It was my first time travelling overnight to a race.  As Gypsy said as we were tucking in - "I've never slept so close to my bike!")

Testing the waters at Lake Fairlee

 

Race Morning



All set up

Alarms at 5:45, breakfast that we'd brought from home (continental breakfast didn't start until 6:30!  puh-huh!) and we were off.  We arrived in time to set up our transition zones, listen to the race announcements, hit the portapotties one last time and then it was pretty much time to start.  Originally the swim out had involved a 0.2 mile run along gravel - for which the Jedi had made me custom glitter glue decorated flip flops with my name and race number.  Could he be more adorable?  BUT the tunnel we were to run through (?) was flooded, so that was nixed in favor of a shorter, non gravel jaunt back into transition.





Bling-ed out flip flops.... and my name!!!







The Swim:  20:43

Much as I would love to take credit for a 0.9 mile swim in 20 minutes, in reality all the athletes agreed that the swim course must have been measured short.  Which, for me, was just fine, as I spent the entire swim being pummeled.  For reasons I don't understand, the first Olympic wave was the Elites and women under 45 (me), and then 4 minutes after us all the men under 45 were sent.  The result of which was every man (and some women) swimming on top of me, punching me, kicking me, the entire way.  Just as the chaos of the women's start was beginning to spread out, then men caught up.  It was a washing machine.  If anything I am proud that I kept my head and wasn't phased or panicked by that much physical contact in the swim.  There were several points I got a wave in the face and coughed, and one spot were I kicked someone and my foot connected with something hard - enough that it really hurt my foot (and probably them as well).  Ouch.

Upon exiting the water, I got a really nice surprise.  My sister in law and 4 year old niece had come to cheer me on!  That (and being out of the crazy water!) was the reason I was so excited in this photo:



Jazz hands!!

T1: 3:17

My cheering section couldn't be cuter!

Transition was uneventful.  It was still a bit of a run, and I fumbled with my race belt a bit, to which I attribute the slightly long time.  Onto the bike!

Bike: 1:42:17

I had a lot of fun on the bike.  Truly.  The first 16 miles were mostly downhill or flat, and I pulled a good pace - 18 mph or higher - for the whole thing.  The course goes by some of the most pastoral landscapes you can imagine.  The cows and horses were definitely cheering me on! 

Then the Epic Hill hit.  It was tough.  My speed crawled to 8 mph for the 2 mile climb.  Following the big hill the road was badly cracked and I couldn't get my speed back up.  This hurt my overall bike time, but I still finished fairly strong and feeling good with an overall pace of 15.5 mph.  Not what I had secretly hoped for, but I'm looking forward to working on my hill climbing in the weeks coming up.  I also drank an entire bottle of Nuun and ate 2 GUs while in motion, which a critical part of my nutrition plan.  Another element I nailed!

Biking out

 

T2: 1:52

Second transition was also uneventful.  Helmet off, switch shoes, flip belt around.  Around mile 20 on the bike I had a premonition of the run not being fun (my legs were wobbly!).  As I ran out I saw my SIL and niece again, this time with a great big "Go Miranda!" sign.  I asked my SIL (who is an amazing athlete and runner) if she would do the run leg for me.  Sadly she declined and we both laughed....






Run out of T2 - SIl will you run for me???

The Run: 1:08:21

The run was hot.  And sunny.  I had sweat crystallized on my sunburned skin and was itchy and uncomfortable.  It was a rolling out-and-back, which the Olys had to run once and the HalfIrons twice.  Which means I got to watch a lot of people really not having fun.  Truly - I didn't see a single person with a spring in their step at this point.  I stuck to my plan of running/walking 4:1 intervals, with the occasional exception of when water stops fell in the middle.  I was not the only one with this strategy!  Close to the turnaround I finally saw Gypsy coming back the other way and we got to do our customary high-five in the middle of the road.  Races really are more fun with friends.  Ate my peanut M&Ms at the turnaround (last element of my nutrition plan success!).  I ate ice at every mile.  God bless to race organizers for having ice on the run!  To make matters a little more interesting, the foot I'd hurt on the swim (the same that landed me on crutches for most of last fall) started to really hurt on the run.  By mile 4 I was seriously wondering if I was headed back into the boot after the race.  But I more or less just toughed it out, remembered my coach's advice to "not be afraid to hurt" (check, Sheriff!) and just stuck with it. 

 

In the chute!

Waving to my niece

The Finish!  3:16:02

13 out of 14 in my age group and 133 overall.  I was very happy.  It's not the most impressive finish in terms of rank, but I was midpack until the run, where I watched at least 4-5 women in my AG pass me.  There's nothing I could have done short of risking injury.  Way more important that any numbers though is that I had a great time, and I had good friends and my family there at the finish line.  Gill (who competed in the Aquabike) and Gypsy (who finished within seconds of the three hour mark!) were waiting for me at the finish, as was my SIL and little niece.  Photos were snapped, I immediately plunged my foot in the waiting ice bath, and it was great.  So so great. 

The Afterparty

I jumped back into the lake to cool off and clean off, we had a yummy bbq lunch and then hiked Queechee Gorge as a cooldown before the drive home.  I even won one of the raffle prizes (I'm the proud owner of some new goggles, an extra waterbottle, and some arm warmers).  My foot is just fine - it must have just gotten bruised and then annoyed by a shoelace or similar.  Having a destination race was a lot of fun.  Any chance to get away, although truthfully I missed my kiddos so much I think they will be coming with me to Cranberry Olympic Tri in August!

Gypsy, Gill and I at the bottom of the gorge

This is what tired (ok, really relaxed) looks like after my first Oly!

Race Recap - Greendale Sprint Triathlon

This Sunday marked the start of triathlon season!  Whoot whoot!  My first race of the year was the Greendale Sprint Triathlon.  This was a particular fun race, because it was held at my gym.  In the lake that I do most of my open water practice in.  With all my friends.  Overall a great day, with results I was not at all expecting.

The week leading up to the race was not spectacular from a training perspective.  I got a cortisone shot in my hip last Thursday and was on enforced rest since.  So aside from some yoga, mostly rest.  By rest, of course, I also mean my crazy life schedule of kid activities and work commitments.  I just wrote a post on pre-race jitters - needless to say I didn't have any time to even get nervous about this race.  Moreover the doctor had told me to take it easy on the race (no PRs, please), and I had already switched my entry to a relay, with my friend Spark's wicked fast sister taking over the running leg for me.  My biggest goal was just to have fun!

Most of my concern was logistical.  My runner was also watching Spark's 3 year old son at the race, which meant that I need to bring my gang and the Jedi along to take over childcare for Spark Jr. once I came into T2.  Can you have children in transition?  Not sure....  While I love having my family there to cheer for me, the little circus that is my kiddos does invariably make things more complicated.

I also had never done a triathlon as a relay before, and wasn't quite sure how all that worked.  Plus packing with weird, and setting up my prep transition felt funny as well, since I didn't have anything running-related to remember.

Night before transition setup/packing.  Kitty mandatory

Morning of, I needn't have worried.  The Jedi's packing and prep is thorough that he had the kids dressed and in the car as I was still blinking sleep out of my eyes.  He even brewed my coffee and then put it in the car to get me to hurry up and get a good transition spot (which turned out to not be necessary since they were assigned by bib number).  I got set up, got drawn on, and had a good amount of time to take photos with friends.  Plus a random stranger wearing a "Running Sucks" tshirt that I just HAD to document.

Spark, me and Hummingbird ready to go!

Running does suck.....

The Swim: 1/2 mile in 17:31

I was very excited to test out my new Total Immersion skills in a race for open water.  I even used my tempo trainer (it's like a metronome in your cap) to keep me calm and focused, with steady pacing.  One of the common drills I do in the pool is to vary the pace on my tempo trainer, while making sure to maintain my stroke per length count.  Faster tempo with same SPL = faster swimmer.  

My TI skills did not disappoint.  I was calm and steady the entire swim.  My only complaint was that one leg of the "square" we were swimming was stright into the sun, and for the life of me I couldn't even see the buoy.  So I just kind of followed along.  I also had the new experience of bumping into several swimmers as I passed them.  I definitely hit a few feet and even a couple of bums - it's hard to apologize while swimming.  I exited the water feeling great and like I could have swam quite a bit longer.

Coming out of the swim was my favorite moment of the whole race.  My kids were right there at the swim exit.  From there you have to run up a short ramp and into the transition area.  My kids ran the whole length with me, yelling "Go Mommy Go!!!" while several other spectators said "Aww!  Look at that!" and similar expressions of cuteness.  I loved having my little cheerleaders to run me up!

Swim out

Transition 1: 1:52

Transition was uneventful.  I had a bit of a wardrobe change from my usual trikit - choosing to race in a sports bra and then throw over my favorite cycling jersey for the bike leg.  I can only attribute my relatively quick transition time to practice and getting more comfortable with racing.

The Bike: 16.5 in 1:00:32

I'd ridden the bike course a week prior (again, the advantages of a home-town race!) and was pretty familiar with it.  Moreover, a big portion of the course overlaps the Monday night group rides I often do as training, so I was feeling good.   Despite the doctor's admonitions to take it easy, my hip felt great.  There were a lot of turns on the course, but they were all very well manned, so I was able to keep my speed well above 16 mph for most sections.  The course was more or less a gradual climb up for the first half, then a nice fun downhill and some rollers at the end.  I was flying.  It was gorgeous weather, I felt great.  I went for it.  Towards the end I realized I might be about to bring it in under an hour, so I sprinted.  I came in so fast that my husband barely got a picture of me.  I came into T2 about 5-10 minutes before I'd told my runner to expect me, and yelled for her as I crossed the timing mat, since she was down the far end chatting.  Turns out I missed the hour mark by a few seconds.  But still.  I walked over to where my husband and kids were, and he told me that I was one of the first 10-20 women in on the bike. Really?

Coming in hot

T2: 19 seconds.  Much faster for a relay!  Chest bump and go!

The Run (not me): 2.5 miles in 19:10

Before the race my swim coach Gil, who was racked near me, asked if I was feeling disappointed about not running.  I answered honestly no - not even a little bit.  Especially since my runner did a lightening-fast 7:40/mile pace!  She was back before I missed her.  I ran with her the last 1/2 mile or so to the finish.  She still left me in the dust, but I was happy to run with no pain!

Total time for our Relay Team: 1:39:25

While they don't mix your scores in with the age groupers when you do a relay, if I had been, I would have been 3rd in my AG for the swim and 4th for the bike leg.  I was also the 12th female overall on the bike leg.  That feels pretty darn good.

All my friends did well, with my swim coach Gill winning the relay division, friend and coach Jill taking 1st for her age group, and Hummingbird and Spark putting in excellent times as well.

At the finish - Hummingbird, me, Gill, and Jill

I feel like this was an excellent start to the tri season.  That truthfully came out of nowhere, since I've had a lot of health issues and life conflicts in the last month.  I'm looking forward now to the New England TriFest Olympic distance triathlon at the end of the month.  Just keep swimming, try to keep my bike legs strong, and even maybe get my running legs back a bit.  I've started the Galloway-style run/walk intervals to get moving again.  Ironically, the day after the race (yesterday), I ran/walked 2.5 for myself.  So who knows how the next one will go? 

My coach Sheriff asked me what I attributed my performance to.  In the swim - definitely the hours in the pool and the Total Immersion training.  On the bike... honestly those few days of rest!  I know that many taper while still working out... I seem to do the best with a few days completely off in the days before a race.  More rest!  Magical.....  

Irony - 2.5 miles day after race!

This race definitely stands out as one of the most fun I've ever done.  Good clean tri fun with all my buddies.  What more can you ask for??