My alarm was set for 3:30, but I was up and moving by 3:15. I went through the usual pre-race routines. I wrote down the initial of a special baby boy I've been dedicating my races to, my nephew. God called him home before he ever took a breath. He reminds me to live life to the fullest, so he has become a huge source of inspiration throughout this triathlon journey. I had my usual breakfast of coffee (a must on race day for several reason), whole wheat English muffin with almond butter (the fresh kind you grind yourself at Whole Foods)and sliced bananas drizzled with a little Texas honey. Since it was going to be a HOT race day here in north Texas, I went ahead and popped a salt tab too.
The race start time was moved up to 6:30 AM due to the extreme heat, so I had to leave my house around 4:15. Throughout the hour plus drive, I had a sinking feeling that I left something. Is my bike in the car? Did I pack my swim cap? Did I remember to grab my water bottles from the freezer? Are my shoes in my bag?It was all there.
After unloading my bike from the car I noticed a line of racers with bikes in toe walking quietly in a line to transition, so I slipped in. It was still dark, and I couldn't help but notice how quiet it was...the calm before the storm. Everyone was either deep in though about their race plan or scared to death. I think I was the latter. I got my body marking and set up my transition area. I had socks and my Sweat Gutr packed, but I wasn't sure if would use them. I went ahead and placed them on my transition mat (old towel). I made small talk with a few other racers who were setting up next to me. They seemed a little more relaxed than I. I grabbed my timing chip and ran into some of my NTM friends. Seeing them did help me to ease my nerves a little, even though one of them mention that I looked pretty nervous. He was right, but if they weren't there I'm not sure I could have started the race. After squeezing a packet of Gu into my mouth I made my way down to the beach.
I stood with my feet in the warm sand looking out over the lake. Boy, were those turn buoys FAR. My stomach was doing flips, and I was praying I wouldn't throw up before hitting the water. It was finally go time! A guy with an big wild wig, disco pattern polyester bell bottoms, and chunky white high heel shoes gave us the swim direction. He looked very official! The horn blew for my wave and we were off. I positioned myself toward the back of the pack since I'm not a particularly fast swimmer. This wasn't my first open water swim, but I was still scared to death. The first few hundred meters felt like swimming in a washing machine. Luckily I didn't get pushed under water, but there sure was a lot of contact. Arms, legs, heads, and other unidentifiable body parts grazed and grabbed my body. I wanted out of the water! 1500 meters seemed too long. Why did I sign up for this? Why was I thinking when I signed up for the half-Ironman? I had to relax and remind myself of the hours of training I put into this race. Did I really want to quit? Did I really want to to admit to people that I couldn't finish the swim? Absolutely not. But my biggest reason for continuing was the initials written on my ankle. This was HIS race! I couldn't quit, so I just kept swimming. A few minutes into the swim I got a welcomed break. We hit a sand bar which gave me a few seconds to stand up and take a few good breaths and try to find my turn buoy. It was hard to see, so I followed the yellow swim caps. By the time I made that first turn I was feeling better. I tried to think of everything my swim coaches told me, but I could only focus on good form a few stroke at a time. The pack was thinning out and I was trying to image how long I had been in the water. My concept of time was gone, while the after taste of my morning Gu and organic vitamins were not. Finally, the second turn buoy came into view, but it felt like I was swimming in place. It just didn't seem to be getting any closer. At this point my right shoulder was beginning to feel fatigued, but I knew I could make it. I finally made the last turn and knew the end was near. The excitement began to build. I thought, "We made it baby boy!" I swam until my hand hit the bottom. I was grinning from ear to ear when I emerged from the water. I saw lots of red NTM shirts and they were shouting my name. It was a wonderful moment.
I began making my way to T1, which was a nice little hike up a hill. Volunteers were stationed along the way spraying down our sandy feet. Rather than running, I opted to walk, quickly of course, to try to get my heart rate down. It was in the 180s when I got to my bike. I decided to throw on my Sweat Gutr, and I'm glad I did. I felt great throughout the bike. I couldn't get my heart rate down, but my perceived exertion wasn't that high so I didn't worry about it. I got passed a lot, and I did my share of passing on the bike. My friends and I cheered each other on throughout the ride. I was feeling good and having fun. I savored the moment. At this point, the rough swim start was a distant memory. Before I knew I was at mile 18. "We did it baby boy," I called out. I knew that sweet baby boy was with me and that he was proud. There was one big climb (by Texas standards anyway) in the last few miles. I dropped to the lowest gear I could and tried to keep my heart rate down. I finished up my last few miles and made it back to T2.
I quickly racked my bike and prepared for the 6.2 mile run. My socks were sitting on my pink running shoes so I grabbed them and put them on my feet. No doubt, this was the best decision I made all day. I have to thank my friend Lorenzo for this one. A few months ago he didn't put socks on for the run portion of his half Ironman, and it turned out to be a huge mistake. His feet got wet and were bloodied and blistered by the end. Lesson learned! Wear socks! I made my way out of T2 grabbing as much water as I could. My pace was fast and my heart rate was high. I slowed things down a bit, but I couldn't get my heart rate down. My legs were feeling good, but aerobically I was struggling a bit. I found myself walking for 10 to 20 seconds every few minutes. I was beginning to feel the heat, but it still wasn't quite as bad as I was expecting. There was a fair amount of shade on the course, and my salty sweat was staying out of my eyes thanks to the less than fashionable Sweat Gutr hiding hiding under my visor. I had my own cheering section on the course. My friends were volunteering at the aide station I passed through 4 times on the run. Their voices and encouraging words kept me going. They even poured cups of cold water on my head as I ran through. There's nothing like VIP treatment at the aide station. I pushed as hard as I could on the last mile. As I approached the finish line I became a little emotional thinking about the little angle I was racing for. I felt him with me the entire race. He got me through it, and I know he was proud. This was, after all, his race.
My overall time was 3:07:33...35:31 on the swim, 1:21:36 on the bike, and 1:05:13 on the run. I was hoping for under three hours, but that may have been a lofty goal for my first Olympic distance. I took home a cool finishers medal and a third place trophy for my age group. At the end of the day I'm happy with my performance and was able to fix the nutrition issues I had during my previous race. Being able to overcome a stressful swim start was a victory in itself. This race reminded me just how big of a challenge my upcoming half Ironman will be. As much as it scares the hell out of me, I'm looking forward it.
"Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did." Newt Gingrich
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