70.3 World Championship Race Bike & Run

56 mile bike – 3:03:47

Normally I’m excited to get on the bike but I was not looking forward to becoming even colder. I had dried myself off as much as possible but my legs were mostly exposed and my tri kit was wet. This was certainly not how I’d normally dress for riding at 40F. I accepted the situation for what it was, knew my goosebumps weren’t going anywhere and that my feet would be numb the whole ride despite the socks and toe covers.

A mile or two into the course, I passed a woman lying face down in the middle of the road getting medical attention. My biggest concern on the bike course is not that my legs will feel horrible or that I’ll get a flat. My concern is that I’ll crash. This was a strong reminder of that concern and that I had a bike failure only a week ago. But I got back into a positive mindset and told myself “it’s going to be a good day” because I truly believed it would be.

I like a challenging bike course. I’ve done flat courses and they just don’t have the same appeal to me. This course was right up my alley. There were a few sections where you could settle into a nice rhythm but also lots of short climbs and descents. My legs were feeling good or maybe they were just feeling numb so I didn’t notice if they were feeling bad. I rode stronger when I needed to for hills and conserved my energy when I could.

Honestly, had I not known it was a women’s only race, I would have thought there were a bunch of dudes on the course. Somewhat because I was surrounded by a lot more strong female riders than you would typically see at any 70.3. But mostly, it was because everyone was so layered up that we all looked bulky. Visuals aside, it was such a unique and fun experience only racing against women. The women’s race didn’t have as many participates so the course was never crowded. There was always room to pass and I never saw any drafting. It was the most civilized racing course I’ve ever seen which made me laugh. It didn’t matter if we had one, two or even four lanes of road to use, everyone rode in one lane the majority of the race. No one ever rode three abreast while passing. The course even seemed quieter.

The other enjoyable part about the two-day event was that it allowed the men to spectate while we were racing. I think there’s something different between someone supporting their crazy athlete spouse/daughter/friend vs someone spectating who does triathlons as well. They understand what you are going through. Like normal, most of the bike course didn’t have spectators. The few sections where there were, it was mostly fit looking men. There was even a group that were loudly cheering in only speedos which was good entertainment.

The miles ticked by quickly. There were several times where I stopped thinking about racing and instead focused on being grateful. I took the time to look around at my surrounding and soak up the experience of racing in such a beautiful place. I was there to have a good race but mostly to have a good experience. I stayed on top of drinking and eating. I never did anything stupid with my effort, nor did I take it easy other than when descending or trying to pee.

Around mile 40 we hit the Snow Canyon climb which is about 1000ft gain in just under 5 miles. It was slow as I knew it would be from riding it a few days prior. But I was happy to have an excuse to sit up and take in the surroundings some more. I took my gloves off and unzipped my jacket because I was starting to heat up at that point. There was a guy in running shoes and a cowboy hat, holding a sign that said “ride faster or I drop the sign”. I told him maybe I wanted him to drop the sign, to which he did (obviously had underwear on) and said he’d find me on the run. It was a good distraction. By the top of the climb, I could tell my legs were starting to feel tired but I knew the long descent to transition was coming soon. I passed my friend towards the end of the ride and told her not to worry because she should run at least 20 minutes faster than me. I struggled to pull my gloves back on and zipped my jacket back up as we rounded the corner at the top.

The final 10 miles were mostly downhill, reaching up to 40mph. I made sure to take in extra fluids during the climb knowing I wouldn’t want to drink as much during this last section. We turned left onto Diagonal and saw the runners on the other side of the road. The crowds started getting thicker as we got closer to the roundabout with the Ironman statue. There was a lot going on rolling into transition, with the cyclists, running and tons of spectators all in one area.

T2 – 3:21
 
I said a little thank you to the bike gods for getting me safely to transition. They had bike catchers at this race which I am always thankful for. I quickly grabbed my bag and sat down to start delayering. I took the time to change my socks since I knew my cycling pair would be a little pee soaked and I wanted a lighter pair. I had to take the time to put on my watch since I couldn’t do it while running and holding a bottle.
 
13.1 mile run – 2:07:02

I finally got feeling back in my feet as I started to run. However, I could tell within the first mile that my stomach felt off. I waited over 10 minutes before I tried drinking from my bottle.  A few minutes later I ate some chews. Big mistake. As I was afraid, there was air trapped in my stomach. I had been so careful during my last race to eat and drink slowly and only while sitting up while riding and this race I threw caution to the wind. I paid the price. I’m sure people think I’m crazy when I say I have a tendency to swallow a lot of air, especially while racing and that it can cause a lot of sharp pains in my stomach. There’s nothing I can do but either try to burp it up or wait for it to work its way out the other end. Sometimes at home I’ll go into down dog or a handstand which helps but that didn’t seem like a good mid-race solution. The problem is the air blocks anything else in my stomach from passing into my intestines.

Less than two miles into the race I was walking a bit to see if that would help at all. It did not so I went back to trying to run through the pain. While running uphill was not enjoyable to my fatigued legs, the downhills were actually more painful on my stomach from the harder pounding. I was determined to never walk downhill though since I wanted to take advantage of the gravity assist. I wasn’t concerned about my pace as I was only thinking about my stomach. The occasional walk gave my stomach the break it needed to get a burp out here or there. Around mile 5 it was starting to feel better so I risked drinking a little from my bottle. It was ok for a bit but then it started to revolt again.

When I passed Bill, I tried motioning to him that I had a stomach budge since he would know exactly what I was dealing with. Most other people probably thought I was motioning to being pregnant. At this point it was midway through the run, I was starting loop two and in the 4 miles uphill portion. My stomach pains were taking away any drive I had to worry about hitting a certain pace. I always knew I wouldn’t place well at this race given it was the championships. I also knew the terrain would make for slower times. My main goal was to have fun, and the sharp pains were taking that away.

There was a lot of walking breaks during those uphill miles since my legs were feeling very fatigued as well. After a while I threw away my bottle, accepting I couldn’t take anything else in. I continued to grab water cups at each aid station to pour on myself to keep cool. In the end I drank maybe 12oz and took in 1/3 of the calories I normally do during the run. Once I got back to the downhill miles, I kept running steady. Certainly not fast, but I was moving. 

Could I have pushed harder? Absolutely. No question. The desire or drive wasn’t there though. And I’m ok with that. It was honestly amazing to simply be surrounded by so many strong, fast women, fighting their hardest out there. When you think about it, the majority of people will never be in the presence of that kind of determination. As a triathlete, it’s easy to think we are normal but we are the exception. Most people try to keep life as easy as possible so it’s a gift to be surrounded by people trying to make it as hard as possible.

I eventually made it to the finish chute and I made sure to enjoy it versus sprinting to the finish. My run time was several minutes slower than I would have liked but as I like to tell athletes, no one really cares what your time is other than yourself (and hopefully your coach). This was the hilliest run course I've done, so all things considered, it wasn't horrible. It was firmly in the middle of the fastest and slowest run times I've had in the past.

Overall – 5:55:10
 
A volunteer met me at the finish line and walked with me through all the different stations making sure I got everything and was in decent shape to send me on my way. St George really does put on an amazing race. I like to race in different locations but I could see myself returning one day. As soon as I found my family, I laid down on the ground for a while trying to get my stomach to settle. I didn’t manage to eat anything until about two hours later.

Overall, I’m happy with the day despite a bad run. It was a great experience and that’s what matters. I did manage to squeak by with a small swim PR so that’s something. As always, I’m thankful for my family and friends who support me at the race and from afar. I always feel the love and think about it while racing. 2022 racing season is now officially over and I’m recharging to start prepping for 2023!

70.3 World Championship Race Week & Swim

Race week excitement began mid-ride, the Friday before the race. I was becoming re-familiarized with my carbon wheels and making sure the bike was running smoothly after a tune up. I road over a poorly patched up pot hole, heard a snap and then my upper body dropped. My aero bar assembly broke off my bike and was being held on by the shifter cables. Luckily, I stayed upright and was only a few miles from home. After many rounds of feeling surprisingly calm and then swearing out loud about “why did this have to happen three days before flying out for a race”, I made it home. I quickly showered, ate and went to the bike shop, assuming the worst. Turns out a bolt had snapped and the other half of the bolt was stuck inside a small piece. It took a few hours, help from a random guy who went home to get tools, a few broken drill bits, and me going to my father-in-law’s house desperate for help, to carefully drill out the bolt and remove it. The bike was put back together and I felt saved. I rode the bike later that weekend to confirm the bike was once again in working order, before taking it apart and packing it up for the flight.

Monday, I flew to Las Vegas with Bill and his dad, then drove to St. George, where my dad had already arrived. Tuesday morning I went to the lake where Ironman was holding a practice swim with a shortened swim course. I tried to quickly shimmy into my wetsuit in the parking lot while watching other swimmers shaking post swim. The water was 65F which was chilly but felt warm compared to the air. A lap was less than 700m and I was feeling good each time I came back to the start. I ended up swimming five laps with some stronger efforts mixed in. My body was warm enough minus my hands and feet. By the time I made it back to the car, both were numb, I was struggling to get my wetsuit off and I was starting to shake. It was a good preview for race morning.

Later that afternoon, I rode about 22 miles of the bike course, including the main climb up Snow Canyon. Utah is probably the state I’ve visited the most in my life, between visiting family and sisters in college, and attending weddings and funerals. This was my third trip to Utah in a year and I’ve hiked in all the “big 5” parks over the years. I love the varying terrain and climate of Utah. This park was no exception. While I’ve hiked all over the state, this was my first time riding and it was such a great experience. In many parts of Utah, it feels like a different planet, perhaps Mars. The slow climb up Snow Canyon really gave me a chance to soak in the surrounds and feel appreciative for the opportunity to race there.
 
Wednesday, I met up with a friend, Sarah, to do athlete check-in and do a run on part of the run course. I ran down Diagonal on a trip earlier this year but it was good to run both up and down to get a feeling for the elevation. Rest of the day was spent doing mobility work and relaxing, knowing that Thursday would be more hectic.

On Thursday, I met back up with Sarah to do a swim at another part of the lake. This time, it was windy which made me even colder and made for choppy water. We were both miserable during our slow 20-minute swim. I was so cold on the return walk to the car, that I drove back to the rental with my wetsuit on. After drying off and changing, we rode straight from my rental which was located on the bike course. The ride confirmed which layers I wanted to pack for the race. In the afternoon, I made a stop at Walmart to buy throw away layers for race morning. There were probably a dozen other athletes I saw holding a variety of blankets, sweaters, socks, slippers and gloves. I decided on a cheap pair of gloves, fuzzy socks and koala bear slippers. I dropped my bike and bags off at T1 and T2, then tried to relax as much as possible rest of the day.

Race morning, Bill and I got lucky with a parking spot near the run course. Following the swim and shuttle schedule, I got on a shuttle bus for my age group, about three hours before I was supposed to start. It didn’t take long to get my bike set up with nutrition and then there was nothing to do for almost two hours than sit and freeze as the temperatures continued to drop. Eventually my family made it on the later shuttles, arriving after I hit the point of shaking when it was 39F. I waited long enough to go the bathroom one last time, did a short run to get warm and loosen up, and then de-layed half my body at a time to get my wetsuit on. I did another short run to warm up again, then put my koala slippers on and said goodbye to my family. I loaded into the swim start chute with my age group and after several minutes, we started loading into the water, 10 athletes at a time.

1.2 mile swim – 31:51

I think this was the first time I got to do a running start into the water which was fun. The water was around 63F and I was happy to get in it and get this show started. As I knew it would, the sun came right over the mountain around the time I started. It made sighting the yellow buoys a little more difficult, but I didn’t have any issues staying on the simple course. Given I was going to be dealing with pulling on and off layers later in the race, I decided that having a watch on my wrist would just get in my way. Based on that, I didn’t wear a watch for the swim and instead had it packed in my run bag. I’ve done other races including an Ironman without a watch, so while it doesn’t bother me not knowing my time when I’m finished, I don’t like that I have no sense of time while swimming. I finally resorted to counting buoys to at least gauge my distance.

This was the first 70.3 World Championship race where they split the men’s and women’s field across two days. Having women only, made the course a lot less congested with only about 1,900 racers. I rarely felt like I was fighting to hold my space in the water. I felt like I was moving well through the water and passing plenty of swimmers. Towards the end, I was swimming side by side with another, each of us holding our ground. I didn’t feel the need to be competitive and beat her, more like use her as a way to hold a steady, strong effort. I was truly enjoying myself during the swim and honestly didn’t want it to be over. My feet were numb, but I felt good otherwise and wasn’t looking forward to the cold air that awaited me. I got to the boat ramp with a herd of other swimmers and up we ran.

T1 – 9:20

This was a long transition due to the temperature. I debated before the race if it was worth using the wetsuit strippers. On the one hand, I knew from my practice swim that I would struggle getting it off with not fully-functional hands. On the other hand, it meant my body would be fully exposed to the cold for longer. In the end, I could tell how quickly my hands were going numb so I decided to use the strippers. This was not a good race to have Reynolds syndrome. There was a warming tent which I skipped and a changing tent which is unusual for a 70.3. Before the tent were lines of chairs which I decided to use since I wasn’t changing. This was the one place I was really hoping there would be volunteers helping but there weren’t any nearby while I was struggling to pull on layers. Most female triathletes know the difficulty of trying to pull on a sports bra while wet. It was a similar struggle but trying to pull on quickly socks, arm warmers and a jacket with useless hands. I had hand warmer packets I wanted to shove in the back of my gloves which I couldn’t get open. Luckily, a volunteer was finally standing idly nearby and I asked for help. I eventually got everything on, got my bike and made it to the mount line.