This morning was the race I've been waiting for since January. Playtri Festival was the first race I signed up for, but it ended up being my third triathlon. I did the sprint distance: 500 meter swim, 12 bike, and 3mile run. The run actually ended up being 2.8 miles. I placed 5th out of 10 in my age group. My swim time was 9:27, bike was 40:14 (average 17.9 mph...I can do better), and the run was 28:43. Not to toot my own horn, but I did have the fastest T2 (this is the bike to run transition time) time in my age group. I would rather have the fastest bike or the fastest run.
The swim! I was a nervous wreck thinking about the open water swim. My wave started over an hour after the first wave. This gave me a lots of time to sit and think about this part of the race, and that is not a good thing. I watched other swimmers start and finish. I saw one guy stop and stand near the wall for a while after he panicked. This was not what I needed. I finally made it into the water without throwing up. We had to tread water for a few minutes before starting. I thought about moving over to the side where I could stand, but decided that treading was the closest thing I would get to a warm up. The official yelled "Go!"
and we were off. Within a few seconds my nerves calmed down and I realized that this would not be a repeat of the Tri For Humanity swim 4 weeks earlier. I swam straight, was able to sight, and kept contact with other swimmers to a minimum. Other swimmers swam on my feet a few times, but they seemed more bothered by it than I was. It was a very comfortable swim. I didn't "race" it. My pace was steady and I was even able to think about my form. At one point I even let myself think about what might be in the water. No, I wasn't thinking about the creatures living in the water. I figured the other swimmers had long scared them off. I was thinking about the fact that some people "relieve" themselves during the swim. Luckily, I didn't hit any warm patches, so I wasn't too grossed out. As the green steps at the swim finish came into sight I got really excited, but I was careful to keep my pace and heart rate steady. Finishing the swim without freaking out was a huge victory. My swim time was about 2 1/2 minutes faster than the last race, and it was 100 meters longer. I didn't have time to celebrate, though, because I needed to shift my focus on the bike.
The bike course was pretty good. There were slight elevations on the course, but nothing too bad. For every ascend, there was a descend, which gave my legs a little break. I tried to keep my heart rate under control, but I think I let it stay a little higher than I should have. About half way into the ride I felt like I could use a little boost, so I downed a pack of Stinger gel and chased it with some Accelerade. This, I believe, hurt me later. I was passed by many people, but I also got to do a little passing. I even exchanged pleasantries with few racers. Several pretty fast guys passed me toward the end on their decked out tri bikes. I loved it! I always enjoy watching them. They were obviously finishing up their second loop of the Olympic distance. One even called out, "Good job number 856 (that was my number)" while passing me. As I made my way back to T2 I heard a couple of people call out my name. One was a guy from my tri group and another was a friend from work, Thuy. I had no idea Thuy would be out there watching, so it was a very nice surprise. She was there supporting a friend doing her first triathlon, but I'm hoping that she'll stop supporting and start racing. I think there's a triathlete in her soul.
As I ran out of T2 I had to climb a grassy hill to get to the road. This was not a fun way to start. I wasn't feeling great as I began my run. My legs didn't want to move, and my stomach was not happy with the Stinger gel inside of it. I made the mistake of letting myself walk a few times. On a long run this probably isn't so bad, but on a sprint you should just suck it up and go. My pace ended up being over 10 minutes. I don't think I've ever had pace that slow. The run course was pretty hot. I took only water at the aide stations, even though my muscles were screaming for the Poweraide. My muscles and my stomach were having a nutrition battle and my stomach won. The course was an out-and-back. There were runners running in the opposite direction from me the whole time. I usually like to cheer on my friends when I see them on the course, but I couldn't muster up the energy. Some got a weak sounding "Good job," while others just got a thumbs up.The heat definitely made the running more challenging. My body is no where near acclimated to the heat. I crossed the finish line knowing I had a bad run, but I didn't let that take away from the other successes of the day.
I have the next 10 weeks off work for summer vacation. This is the perfect opportunity to build my strength and endurance and allow my body to acclimate to the heat. My next race is Disco on July 16, just 6 weeks away. This will be my first Olympic distance triathlon, and I'm pretty sure the weather won't be any cooler than it was today. Hopefully I can find a race nutrition plan that makes my muscles and my stomach happy.
"You can quit and they won't care... but you will always know" John Collins-Ironman founder
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