Bike
56 miles, 2:53:59, 26/106th AG
I’ve spent a lot more of this training cycle riding based
on feel. I haven’t done a power test in a long time, but I had a good idea of
what my FTP was and would do intervals around that number while taking into account
perceived effort and heart rate. I took the same approach for race day. I had a
general power range I wanted to start in and a cap I didn’t want to go over
with the exception of a few hills and passing people. Otherwise, I wanted to ride
fairly steady, check in with myself often, keep an eye on heart rate and ride
using my best asset, my brain. Years of racing and coaching would tell me more
than numbers on my bike computer.
The first few (and last) miles of the bike course are the
least appealing going through town. My legs felt snappy but I kept the cork in
the bottle and didn’t make the mistake so many people make of starting out too hard.
I was worried with so many athletes that the course would feel congested. It
was during those early and later miles, but majority of the course wasn’t as bad
as I was expecting. I was happy I didn’t see any blatant drafting.
Once we got out of town, I settled in to a steady effort.
Steady being the theme of this race. I waited about 5-10 minutes before
drinking OSMO to make sure my stomach was in good shape from the swim. About 15-20
minutes into the ride, I started eating bars. I’m a fan of hydration in my
bottle, fuel in my pockets. I tried to time my eating and drinking with uphills
as much as possible since I would already be sitting up. I find I swallow more
air when I’m in aero position. Any time I felt like I had to burp, which was often,
I immediately sat up for a few seconds then got back into aero. I took a Gas-X half
way into the ride as a precaution to break up any air in my system. Aside from
swallowing air, I can handle a lot of calories and fluid. However, I decided to
stop eating earlier in the ride than I normally would since I didn’t want to
push it. I also knew with it being a warmer day that my stomach would have a
harder time digesting, especially once I got to the run. I still managed to eat
about 850 calories. Unfortunately, I did not do as good of a job staying on top
of hydration. For a warmer day, I normally drink at a minimum 1 bottle an hour,
pressing up to 32oz an hour if it’s really hot. While racing I drank a little
over 2.5 bottles. Not horrible, but I should have drank more.
Normally I try to increase power during the second half
of the ride. However, it didn’t seem like the smart decision. My legs felt good
but I knew I had a hard run ahead of me and I could tell it was starting to warm
up. Instead, I held strong with the steady game and was conservative with my
effort. There have been races where I’ve chased times or placements but that
was not what I was looking for that day.
To me it was a fast course. There were some head and
cross winds but nothing bad. It has 2,200ft elevation gain but it was mostly
rollers, nothing too difficult. There was one punchy, but short hill halfway
through on Andrews. Unfortunately, I saw some people on the side of the road
and people walking their bike. People tend to not downshift in preparation of
the hill and end up dropping their chain. I saw a ton of bottles on the course
that were ejected from bikes on bumps or simply dropped. One dropped right in
front of me which I missed by probably an inch from riding over.
The back half of the ride had some smooth downhills and a
fast return into town on the highway. This is when I could tell people were
starting to fade, while I still felt good and was passing more people. The last
few miles got congested again and there was a lot of soft pedaling trying not
to draft and get around people. Even though I didn’t feel like I had to, I made
myself pee a bit so I wouldn’t have to stop on the run.
Since I didn’t have a time goal, I told my family 3 hours
+/- 20 minutes and if it’s closer to +20 minutes, something went wrong. I happily
rolled in under 3 hours feeling strong and ready to run! More importantly, my
stomach felt great!
3:35
I had my running shoes and socks inside a bag, easy to
pull out, in case it rained. Which it did not. I quickly transitioned my gear
and a few steps in the run I looked down at my shoes to make sure they were on
the right feet since they felt weird. Which they were.
Run
13.1 miles, 2:04:51, 33rd/106th
AG
The run started with an awkward little out and back, down
to the river, back up, then continuing up the highway for the two loops. It gave
me the opportunity to see my family twice before heading out. Every time I saw
my family I wanted to be smiling, actually running and looking strong. I did
not want a repeat of the last Ironman they spectated where I was falling apart
on the run. Luckily for them, unlike that Ironman and the 70.3 before that, it
didn’t rain on them at all. The rain forecast got pushed out until late afternoon.
Good for them, not so much for me.
This run had the three H’s: hills, heat and humidity.
None of which my body enjoys. I enjoy running hills but if I run them too much
it gives me lower leg issues from being on the balls of my feet so much and
then knee issues from the downhills. Oh my special, skeletally twisted body. Although
it wasn’t HOT, it was very warm and humid. You’d think after living in South
Carolina for over a decade I’d be used to warmer weather and a lifetime of humidity,
but sadly my body still doesn’t handle it well.
I felt good in the beginning of the run and I kept
telling myself to hold back. But the first two miles came at 9:12 and I knew I
was going a bit too fast for the conditions and terrain. My plan was to walk
aid stations when I needed fluids and use some of the hills as resets when my
form started deteriorating. I carried a throw away bottle of OSMO (thanks to my
husband’s duct tape skills to create a handle) and chews. I started slowly
sipping on my bottle which took me almost 9 miles to finish. I ate half a bag
of chews starting around 15 minutes into the run and every 30 minutes afterwards.
My main focus was trying to keep myself cool. I overheat
very easily and am a heavy sweater. At aid stations I would maybe take a sip of
water and then dump the rest on my hat. A few times, I tried to dump ice in my
hat but it mostly ended up on the ground or stuck between my face and
sunglasses. Then I resorted to the typical ice down the shirt approach. Occasionally
I would unzip my top a bit to grab some ice to chew on or hold in my hands. A
skipped the first aid station but pretty much every other time I passed one I
grabbed at least one cup of water and/or ice.
With the exception of brief walks at aid stations to grab
cups, I didn’t walk until I hit a steep hill around mile 5 which I always assumed
I’d walk a portion of. It was around the only part of town I walked during the
end of my half marathon last year. It didn’t seem worth the extra energy
expenditure to slow jog myself up it rather than try to recover my form a bit.
That mile was 10:16 but then I got back to work and my miles all were in the 9s
again. I took advantage of the downhills running in the 8s and said sorry to my
knees.
We ran over Veterans Bridge then back across on Walnut
bridge which is for pedestrians only. I knew I’d see my family so I decided to walk
a tiny bit of the uphill so I’d look fresher running when I passed them. Mentally
I was in a good place and just so happy to be racing again. My family spread
out across different points on the bridge so I got a few mental bumps of
energy. I heard someone yell my name at one point but had no idea where it came
from. Afterwards I found out it was my sister and her family who were able to
spectate for a short bit. I was bummed I didn’t see them but appreciated them
coming.
Then it was back out for loop two. On two loop courses I
normally look at the arrow pointing towards the finish with longing while I begrudgingly
drag myself towards the 2nd lap arrow. I didn’t feel that way this
time. Sure, I was starting to really feel it and was fading but I was ready to
take on the last part of the race. At this point it had been a few miles with
almost no shade so I was looking forward to eventually getting to the path where
I could get a short break from the sun. I was really starting to warm up. The
ice was melting quickly but nothing was evaporating. My shoes were soaked and
my feet were not happy about it. The water dumped on my head would always feel
amazing but that feeling was fleeting. More and more people were starting to
walk and I could tell I was spending a bit longer walking at each aid station.
By the time I hit the biggest hill on the second lap I
was really starting to feel the fatigue in my legs. I walked that hill for longer
than intended which made for my slowest mile by far at 11:05. It’s easy to give
into walking, it feels so good after all. But I had a race to finish so I
pulled my pace back into the 9s and then into the 8s by the end. By the last
two aid stations I decided, having finished my bottle of OSMO, that it was time
for Coke. And I forgot how absolutely amazing cold Coke tastes towards the end
of a race. I wanted to chug the whole cup and mostly did.
When I hit Walnut bridge again, I told myself one last little
walk so I could finish strong. I started thinking of when I ran on that bridge
a few months ago with my group of friends, the last time we were all together. I
thought about my mom and wondered if she would have been proud of me and if she
ever would have done that sprint triathlon we talked about. I thought about how
thankful I was to be able to race again and have a loving, supportive family
cheering me on. All those positive feeling gave me a little bump of energy all
the way to the finish line.
Overall – 70.3 miles, 5:39:30, 21/106th AG
It was a happy race. It was everything I wanted out of
the day. I’d like to think I have a new perspective on training and racing,
that I’ve grown as an athlete. I didn’t try to race hard or to the best of my
abilities. I raced in a way that kept me happy the entire time. I dug in when I
needed to and I made mostly smart decisions. And I genuinely smiled often.
While the time on the clock wasn’t my primary focus, of
course it did play a part in the day. This is my first season back to racing while
being self-coached. It was my first big race after a less than ideal time frame
to train for it. Yet it was PR for overall time, swim and bike, with a second fastest
run time for a 70.3. I am proud of how I raced. Some might look at my times and
expect more out of me, especially as a coach. I am not genetically gifted in
any way. I was gifted with some body issues I’ve had to learn to work around. I
did not grow up swimming competitively or running on the track team. I am your
average person who had no endurance background and fell in love with this
sport. I’ve worked my ass off for many years to get to where I am and I know
there is more in me, as long as I continue to train smart. Maybe one day I’ll want
to get back to chasing numbers, but for now I’m happy with my approach to
racing.
A huge thank you to everyone who supported me on the day
and through this journey. My in-laws who have seen me race almost as often as
my husband, who take lots of photos and deal with my crazy dog. My dad who had
always told me how proud he is of me. My dog who developed anxiety issues from
COVID lockdowns (I’m not joking) and is a ball of annoying stress while I race.
And especially my husband who supports me in every way possible, who makes all
of this possible and who puts up with my triathlete lifestyle. If you or your
spouse is a triathlete, you know what I mean. I hope everyone else had a
wonderful race and that there are many more to come!
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