Monday, October 29, 2012

Anderson, SC...70.3 first-timer

Although the thankfulness of the big picture was present after gettting hypothermia in MD, it was disappointing knowing that my next triathlon would be in March...The only 2 options for racing were 70.3 races. I wrote them off until Stephen suggested that I jump in another well-organized, hoppin' Rev3 race in SC the next weekend, encouraging me with "C'mon, you can do it!"... I thought about it for the next 4 days alternating extreme fear with optimism...and finally Thursday night, I registered. At that point I accepted that it was going to be a huge challenge, but I knew I would regret if I didn't at least try.

We got there Friday night. Saturday was completely full - I feel like I'm still in the stage that there are (more than a few) things new that go wrong the day before the race. We left the room at 10am, and by 6pm we were finally back in the hotel.

Swim: Fine...Will I ever enjoy a wetsuit swim? hmmm...not yet but soon perhaps!
Bike: Long! The last 6 miles I was like, get-me-off-this-crazy-saddle! I drank 2 waterbottles with EFS along with half a waterbottle that a wonderful volunteer handed me, ate 3 Gu's, & carried an entire big, full waterbottle on the back of my seat the entire ride. Ohhh, first-timer.
Run: Before this race, my longest run since foot surgery was 6.5 miles. Of course you're supposed to be able to go in a race double what your longest training run is....and that would get me collapsing ~100m before the finish line...awesome! haha. Not to mention biking in aero position 56 miles right before that. ;) I never felt like I was going hard on the run, I was just trying to keep chuggin'. Within the first half mile, my legs felt like they were about to cramp at any moment which sort of put a damper on the fun of running. I knew I needed to be careful! I walked and drank at every aid station which felt wrong and odd yet it was also a little treat - I'd never walked in a race before. (PS: I probably wouldn't have been as cramp-prone if I drank that other waterbottle on my bike!)

And last but not least I need to figure out how to protect my feet! In the past I have always painted them on race morning with Newskin, and I haven't gotten blisters....not so in a 70.3! At the end of the race, my feet looked like hamburger meat. It took a full 10 days of babying them 24/7 to heal enough to put normal shoes on, no jokin'. I'm not sure if the race itself was more painful, or the first shower I took post-race...or perhaps a 3-way tie with the first time I soaked my feet in Epsom salt and could feel each heartbeat in them...

The exciting result was that I finished first amateur, requalifying me as a pro triathlete. Yahoo! So thankful!!! I had a lot of fun! It was a great way to kick off a base for the winter. Oly distance races will feel so speedy compared to that madness...but excited to know that I can do it. Maybe more in the future, but I will continue to focus main goals with the Oly races. My mom couldn't make it but it was fun to have Stephen & my dad there! Here're some pics...

Trying to hike up my wetsuit to make it 3/4 length sleeves & capris! ha
Readddddddy.....
Energy spent getting a wetsuit off >energy saved wearing it...(!?)
That didn't work...grrr
Putting on a shirt when wet while taking off a wetsuit is harder than rubbing my tummy and patting my head ;)
Dismounting...(thanks, Eric, for letting me borrow your aero helmet since mine is back in Tulsa!)
Start of run, telling Stephen & dad that I think I'm still in first...
Always nice to have fans! :)
Bloody achilles and 19 blisters...but almost finished!
Met some fun new friends!

Ellicott City, MD

The next triathlon was the Rev3 MD - the race I was gearing up for and wanted to requalify to be a pro triathlete. Stephen and I drove up to Ellicott City on Thursday. (Next time we will be sure to avoid DC at rush hour! ha.) The drive was gorgeous, as was the weather...until race morning! 80 degrees on Friday, but 40 degrees & raining by the time we entered the bike course. At the briefing on Saturday, the director mentioned we might want to take the time in T1 to put on arm warmers. Check! I put on arm warmers and had booties on my cycling shoes...yet I still literally froze on the bike. I felt like Lloyd & Harry in Dumb & Dumber, with my snot freezing down my face - ha.
A guy crashed right in front of me and I was so thankful to avoid him! I went down the next steep hill & at that point, my hands didn't work so I couldn't brake nor shift. At mile 15, I wasn't even half way (this Olympic bike course was 32 miles) and had a lot more hills to go down in the rain. I rode up to a policeman and asked him to stop me and hold my bike so I could get off. Ain't nuthin fun about quitting a race(!!!). I knew there was no way I could finish safely, so I told him I was done for the day. He told me to sit in his truck and turned on the heat. I shivered uncontrollably for 30 mins...and was soon joined by another lady. We stayed in his truck for 1:45 & and munched on my 2 Gu gels I taped to my bike (civilians, hotel shuttles, and rev3 vehicles were all picking up the serious hypothermia cases first). I felt bad for Stephen - I knew he'd be worried about me but there was no way to contact him. After 2 hours, a van with other shivering athletes made it back to the start line and I got some warm hugs from Stephen. Lessons learned for me: 40 deg + rain = full clothing including gloves next time. The big picture was that I was so thankful to return without injury/crash...and time spent with Stephen during the long weekend was fun and adventurous. Also, it was neat to be part of a race that so many cancer survivors were racing! Constant reminder of how thankful we all are to be able to just show up at the start line! Pics of Rev3 MD...


Warming my hands...
Yes my hands are in my armpits to stay warm! haha. I think she was telling me how crazy we all were! ha

Louisville, KY

The middle of September, I did the Louisville Landshark triathlon. It boiled down to a really good workout and a long, hilly course. I might've been the only person who wasn't in the LL Tri Club, yet everyone was very welcoming and cheered for me, even offering "more cowbell!" haha.
Here are a few pics:
Getting ready

Swim course - 2 laps! Any course with laps is a great thing!

Dad of course has the right shirt on! ;)



 


Sighting the finish

Should have slithered up to the water's edge - so slick!

Love the TYR Sayonara speed suit!



The TYR race suit feels great with compression down to my knees!