One Last Tri - Post Race Report
An Olympic distance triathlon typically consists of a 1500 meter swim, a 40 kilometer bike, and a 10 kilometer run. On this mid September day it was expected to be a bit more blustery and cold than it happened to be and the decision was made to shorten the swim and lengthen the bike ride. This was not an issue for me as the bike is my strongest sport and the swim is most definitely what I am least confident at. Never-the-less, I was still feeling my nerves and struggled to get down my overnight oats that were prepped the day before. I have run marathons, raced my bike over a 100 miles, and continually trained my body to be prepared for something like this. Yet, the idea of putting all these sports together in one giant effort seemed as much terrifying as it did exciting.
I am glad that I allowed myself so much time to get fully set up in the transition area, as I kept forgetting little things and needing to run back and forth to the car for them. First the towel, then sunglasses, then realizing I didn’t have my hat, or heart rate monitor, it just seemed to keep going. I was visualizing coming out of the water and what I would need, getting off the bike and switching shoes, and so forth. After about an hour of running around making sure everything was really ready I finally started to settle down and mentally prepare to enter the water.
My wetsuit fit a little snug, maybe from the massive amount of pesto pasta that I was treated to the night before, or possibly just because I was so nervous I had it on crooked. In the last few minutes of preparation I began visualizing coming out of the water. I had no idea what I was getting myself into or how hard it would be to swim that distance in open water.
Approaching the start I told the race director my number and she repeated it back to me, my cue to cross the line and begin. I jogged a little ways and then dove head first into the water, as was the way I typically approached most tasks, the water was warmer than I expected and as I began swimming I knew instantly that I would finish. I had everything going for me, a self seeded start meant that I would not have to deal with a ton of other swimmers around me and I was free to go at my own pace. My heart was racing so fast I was having difficulty catching my breath. I knew that I needed to calm down so I went to a side stroke almost instantly. Although it is not very fast, I found myself catching the person in front of me by simply trying to stay calm in the water. I was also amazed to see how many other people were gasping for air and having difficulty breathing. It was my sign that I was not alone, and people with fears of the water and inexperience still do this. It was my sign that I was going to fall in love with this sport.
Rounding the last turn of the swim I began to feel a little more confident in my stroke and my heart rate was beginning to come down. Seeing the shoreline, what I imagined would be the most difficult portion of the race was nearly over.
The first transition was very quick, I was just happy to have the swim behind me and looking forward to hopping on my bike and going for a ride. I started off very slow on the bike, as my heart rate was racing in the high 170s, and it probably took me around half the race till I was able to gain control of it again. As I expected, the second half of the bike was about 2-3 miles an hour faster than the first when my heart was racing. Since I had spent the first half of the bike trying to go slow enough for my body to catch up I had felt behind and over taxed. pushing through that I started hitting a little wall near the end of the bike. That is the beautiful thing about triathlon! As I started hitting the wall on the bike it was time to get off and head over to the run.
The second transition took considerably longer, After slinging by bike and switching shoes I proceeded to stare at my area, wondering what to do. It took me a good 30 seconds before I finally realized that I have everything and all that is left is to run to the finish!
The run felt like the most difficult section, but it was still not at hard as I had imagined. I believe this is because of not pushing it hard enough on the bike. In the future I will be working even more on long ride followed by immediate runs after. The run course was very flat and had a fun combination of racers, spectators, and fans cheering. I did my best to get lost right off the line but thankfully had someone point me back onto the race course. The rest of the way I worked to have an even pace. The run was an out and back, and on the return I started pushing my legs more and more. A little shy of 2 miles from the finish line I looked at my time and was blown away to see 2 hours and 28 minutes. I felt like I was flying, and the rush I got from that carried me back into a 8:30 pace till I broke the tape in 2:45:38
Success. The training, the stressing, all of it was done. It was an incredible feeling that left me excited and wanting more! I am already plotting out my next race and strategizing what I will do to get there. The process of training and working towards a goal is something that I need in my life. Whenever it seems to scary, or I worry that I couldn’t accomplish it, that’s when I just need to.
If you think you can, you will.
