Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Lakes Country Triathlon- Race Report

Confession: before breaking down the data I was feeling somewhat pouty/discouraged upon first viewing my times from this race which made me less ambitious about sharing them with you all. Now that I've gotten over that....

Swim- 21:45 (1/2mile)
T1- 2:02
Bike- 1:06:13 (17 Miles)
T2- 00:42
Run- 40:55 (3.9Miles)
Total- 2:11:37

Getting to Baxter, MN in time for packet pick-up and body marking meant being on the road at 4:30 a.m. Ouch. Thankfully what sleep I did get was solid. The drive there was beautiful. Cold morning temperatures lead to stunning fog lifting off of the lakes that seemed to blanket everything around us. Other than the risk of being hit by a motorist due to reduced visibility, I would love to bicycle in fog like that. Maybe sometime this fall.

Once we arrived it was readily apparent that this race was larger in attendance than any of the other triathlons we took part in this year. That only added to the excitement & opportunities to drool over more pretty tri-bikes.

Jeremy's dad helped us unload and took pictures as we went through our ritual of laying out transition gear and checking tire pressure. After that we headed across to the beach for the usual pre-race meeting in which we used the time to "test" the water and visit with a few of the guys we've gotten to know from other races.



Swim- My Beloved was in one of the beginning heats so I stood on shore shivering and trying not to worry about how far the buoys were out there until the ladies 35 & under wave was ready to go. As the minutes passed I started to realize I was hungry. Bummer, I had made the mistake of eating breakfast too early on the trip over. At least I had shot-bloks waiting for me on the bike.

The gun went off and I positioned myself in the best spot I could find. Closer to the middle then I would have preferred,but it was okay. For about the first 1/8 of a mile I was struggling to find a breathing pattern and getting focused. Feeling the weeds that had been churned up by the other heats getting caught around my neck as I swam didn't help. On the upside being in the water and actually swimming made the distance of the buoys seem a lot more attainable.

The swim was tiring, the ladies almost petting me as they passed was weird & the weeds were annoying, but alas I made it. Woohoo!!! I can swim 1/2 mile in open water. :)


T1- The pirate flag Jeremy got for us was perfect for helping me spot our transition site. As I headed over I could tell that I wasn't going to transition as fast as last race, but that was to be expected given the distance of the swim. The idea of shot-bloks never seemed so appealing. I popped one in my mouth and headed out for the ride.

Bike- Within the first few pedals outside of T1 my shot-bloks went flying. I hadn't placed them as securely in my trip-top as I thought. Hearing the packet hit the ground made my stomach cry and freak out the riders around me.

After that the ride felt decent and I was able to keep at a good clip until the soreness I had felt in my hip earlier last week started to nag me and send a few sharp pings down my thigh. Between needing fuel and the muscle cramping I knew my hopes to hold to the 17.5 average I had kept last weekend just wasn't possible this time around. It was disappointing to see so many people pass, but I didn't leave anything on the table and still managed to pass a handful of people
on the uphills.

T2- On the way into T2 Papa Rick was there shooting pics with his spiffy Nikon and cheering me on. This lifted me up. All I can say is a huge thank-you to Hammer Nutrition for donating the raspberry gels (the backup fuel I almost didn't set out) to this tri. Another great t2 and I was off to the run.

Run- It was a bit of a slog at first. Always is until your body decides that, yes, those muscles truly do exist and you can use them now.
A 1/2 mile in I met up with Jeremy and we cheered each other on. :) Once I reached the firstmile mark I took the gel figuring it would settle best then. It tasted awesome and helped energize me. Eventually I locked into what I felt was a maintainable pace and despite my right toes thinking they needed to curl their way under my foot (Yeah, that was a wee bit painful) I was able to hold to it. Toward the end of the run two deer came out of the woods and ran beside me for a few yards. That was unexpected and delightful.

Finish- I didn't kill myself sprinting like a mad-woman this finish as I typically do. Honestly, I didn't have the energy. I definitely picked up the pace though and was able to finish strong.

As I said earlier, I had hoped to have a stronger race to end this tri-season. That being said I'm still thrilled that I was able to accomplish as much as I have in my first year of participating in triathlons. They were three great races and I enjoyed them all. Each one for different reasons.

What's next? Well, foot races are just starting for us now. I head to my hometown tonight and plan to do a 7mile training run tomorrow morning in prep. for the Dick Beardlsey 1/2 marathon on the 6th of Sept.

As a side note: I'm sure there will be some fun photos of this race to share once my hubby and father-in-law get back from sailing and I'm able to upload them from his camera. :)

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