Let me start by saying it was flippin’ HOT out there today.  96 degrees (we call that a heat wave here in Seattle).All in all, a great race and I was happy to finish and feel as well as I did.

Someone already asked if I’ll do another.  Right now, I say NO and my legs agree!  Ask me again in two weeks tho

The RESULTS:

Swim (1.2miles): 35:11

Bike (56 miles): 3:18:07

Run (13.1): 1:42:59

Total Race Time: 5:40:34 (the longest I have ever raced)!

I hate to admit this, but I actually kind of enjoyed the race.  Or, maybe I’m just saying that now that I’m home, showered, and relaxing with some good food and beverage.

It definitely was a challenge, especially because of the heat and the rolling hills course.  The other awesome part was all the pro and incredible triathletes racing this race.  This race is a qualifier for other tri races, so it was cool to see the fast and furious out there on the course.

Here is the breakdown of the race:

The Swim: It never fails for me to get so ANXIOUS for the swim. I was in wave #7 so it was a lot of time standing around, but before I knew it my turn was up.  This swim start was new to me.  We started at the end of a dock in deep water.  In fact, my entire wave had to be in the water for 3 minutes before the start.  I suppose treading water this long is a good warm-up.

The swim was exactly what I expected.  Lots of swimmers all gathered in the same area and all trying to swim the same line.  I did my thing and started on the outside so i could avoid all the mess.  And, i did.  I do have one funny story though.  After I hit the turn around and swam for what I thought was a long time and figured I must be close to the water exit I noticed how shallow the water was.  So, I thought “yay” I’m close to the finish.  I looked up to spot the water exit and there I was so off course I was by the shoreline and a good 30 yards from the buoy line.  Whoops!

Good swim overall.  I was happy to be out of the water and ready to ride.

The Bike Biking is not my strongest leg of the triathlon and I know that, so I don’t have high expectations for myself on the bike leg.  I did not do a training ride on this course, so I didn’t know what to expect, although I was forewarned this course was hilly.

I did the best I could and tried hard not to worry about being passed by many people.  I knew I could get some of them on the run   Some of the hills were so steep and long that I stood up on my bike (never done that in any race ever).

On the flip side, the downhills were just as steep and bikes were flying.  I was going so fast I actually got nervous.  But, it was awesome because I went fast enough to coast up the next smaller hill without any pedaling on my part.  That was awesome.

the bike was two loops.  It was nice to know what to expect on the second loop.  I was doing ok and feeling like I was working hard, but I was getting really ticked at ALL the people passing me.  I do not have a tri bike, in fact not even a great road bike, so I kinda have an excuse.  Anyhow, I had to tell myself to quit worrying about it and focus on ME (I’m too competitive, so even though I say that, its hard for me to do)

I enjoyed the bike, but it does take a long time to ride 56 miles.  I was so ready to be off the bike by mile 40.  As we got closer to the finish I could feel myself picking up the pace.  I passed mile 51, shifted gears and my damn chain fell off!  Not a big deal.  I fixed it in a quick minute.  But it was annoying and nerve-racking.

thank goodness I had no tire blow!  I rode in the last 3 miles with all my effort.  I was sooooo looking forward to the run as that is my strongest.

The Run I was so happy to finally be running.  As soon as I got out of the transition area to begin my run I said to myself “It’s GO TIME” As i said, running is my strongest and this is not the case for many triathletes (at least in my experience). I was so looking forward to hitting the pavement.  Besides, I had some bikers to catch.

I hit the pavement and started running and actually felt good. It took until mile 3 until my legs felt normal from the bike to run transition.  The run was hot, hot, hot!!!!  Thank goodness for the volunteers and kids who sprayed us with water.

I was passing others and feeling strong.   The run course was fairly flat until mile 4. BAM!  Here’s a nice hill.  ughh, it was awful and especially at this point in the race.  Most were walking it.  Oh, and double bonus is we get to do it twice as the run course is two loops.  I put my head down and ran up that sucker as best I could.

Loop #2.  Still going strong but definitely feeling the effects of dehydration.  I decided for this loop I would stop and walk through all the water stations, and I did.  Lots of water and gatorade.  I even had some cola and that tasted great!

I was in the last two miles and the finish area could be seen.  I just kept looking in that direction and telling myself you only have to get there!  Plus, I could hear the announcer’s voice get louder and louder so I knew I was getting closer. As soon as the finish line was visible, I hit all gears and took it home.

Thank Goodness this is OVER!  I’m happy I did this race and it definitely was a challenge.  But, what I love about doing this type of stuff is how much I grow from it.  Every race I learn new lessons and I learn more about myself.  Guess this is why I do it!

This entry was posted on Monday, August 16th, 2010 at 2:59 am and is filed under Fitness, Running, Success Story. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Posted by admin | in Fitness, Running, Success Story | 13 Comments