I am a detailed scheduler. If you look at my calendar, there is a ton written on it every day. And even if it's not written on the calendar, I have a daily schedule in my head which includes family, work and training responsibilities.
The problem I've had this past weekend is that my schedule and my family's schedule didn't align so that I could fit everything in. Unfortunately because of childcare issues, the training portion has suffered and I did not get in my long run this past weekend. On Saturday, I was supposed to run 13 miles according to the official plan. Since I haven't hit a double digit long run yet, MY plan was to do 10 miles. However, I did none since I didn't have anyone to watch the little ones while I ran.
Since I couldn't run, I made it my rest day which is normally Monday. So the idea was to get a long run in today (Monday). Well, last night when I was looking at the schedule for the day, I realized why I originally made Monday the rest day...it's jam packed with stuff already! When am I going to find 2 hours to run? It just isn't there.
This is crunch time in the training plan. These next 3 weeks are the crucial time to get the mileage in. I know that one missed run is not going to ruin my entire training, however I need to make sure that one missed run does not turn into more missed runs.
I have no doubt that the training I've done so far has put me in a great place physically and mentally for the race. I'm trying really hard not to freak out about the missed run and the fact that when I run today, I probably won't have time to run the full 10 miles. I need to realize that one training session does not make or break the race results. Plus my running has been feeling really good lately which has boosted my confidence. Since my running performance has always been very dependent on my mental state, it's great that I've had positive runs lately.
I can do this. I will be fine. OK, mental pep talk is over. You may return to your own daily schedules now!
Read along with my blog as I discuss weight, schedule and life challenges as I try to get my triathlon training back on track. I will also discuss what I've learned along the way and what new goals I'm setting for myself.
Monday, September 30, 2013
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Tour de Talbot
On Saturday I rode in the Tour de Talbot. There were 2 route options - 55 miles and 100 miles. (Actually there was also a 25 mile "family ride", so I guess there were 3 options.) I originally signed up for the 55 miles, however after finishing my first Century I was toying with the idea of riding the 100 miles for this event. But as I studied my training plan and thought logically about what my real goal is (the Half IronMan "HIM"), I realized that it would not be wise to push myself to do the Century.
I was running just a few minutes late. It was not a mass start, but there was quite a mass of people ready to go at 7:30 am. Daryl kindly waited for me to get myself together and we set out about 10 minutes after the mass.
Talbot County is pretty and flat. I was looking forward to riding 55 miles of flat...this would be good training for the HIM. I didn't have any goals for the ride except to just see how taxing the flat ride would be. I originally thought that a flat HIM was a good idea, until I realized that flat means that there is no break. At least with hills, you are working different muscle groups going uphill and you get a break going downhill. With flat it's just constant pedaling. So I was anxious to see how I would feel at the end of 55 miles.
Daryl and I started out at a fast but comfortable pace. We rode with his wife for a little bit. She said she was good and we pushed on. We ran into more people that Daryl knew and chatted with them as we passed. We were passing quite a few people. At the first rest stop we talked with more of his friends. This was turning into quite a social ride. As we left the first rest stop, he saw someone else and headed back. He told me to keep going and that he would catch up with me.
I linked up with an older man and we played leap frog for a little bit. I realized that I was going 19-20MPH and Daryl would not be able to catch up quickly if I kept that pace...so I slowed down to let Daryl catch up. It wasn't long before he caught up. He was riding with a guy named Marcus who he introduced as a triathlete extraordinaire. So our little pace line of Daryl, Marcus and me quickly caught the older man I was riding with before. He jumped in on the line.
I took a turn leading the group through some fields. The wind was pretty strong at this point and it really zapped my energy quickly. I tried to keep the same pace that we had been going (18-19 MPH) but it wasn't long before I was exhausted. I dropped off the lead and let someone else pull for a bit. I was able to recover almost immediately.
It wasn't long before we had gathered a group. I don't know if we joined another pace line or they joined ours, but we were in a peloton of about 10 people. It's always amazing to me at how I can be riding at 21 MPH with minimal effort in groups like this. Drafting makes such a difference...it is illegal in triathlons...so while it was really fun to ride in a big group like this, I knew that it was not good training for my HIM.
I only have a few complaints about this event. First, we had to travel on several roads that had loose gravel. This is dangerous and definitely slows down the pace. Second, the road markings were really good except near the rest stops. We missed the 2nd and 3rd rest stop because they weren't marked well. This meant that we were not stopping to take fuel...and I know that those who rode the 100 miles suffered because of it.
At around mile 44, it was time to split up. Daryl was riding the 100 and I was going 55. At this point, we had separated from the peloton. When we realized that we had missed the 3rd rest stop, we pulled off to the side to get fuel and water while the rest of the group pressed on. So at the split, Daryl went left for the 100 miles and I went right for the 55 miles. I was very excited to have this last segment to do alone. This would be the best training for the HIM...flat, wind, and no drafting. I dropped down to my aero bars and set out to finish this thing strong.
I pulled into the parking lot, quickly racked my bike and put on my running shoes. My training plan called for me to run for 20 minutes after riding 50 miles. I wasn't sure where to run so I decided to just circle the parking lot and the drive where we came in. I realized that I could run around the buildings and get an even larger loop in. I ran past where the free lunch was taking place and smelled the food...my stomach growled but I kept going. I was running at a pretty fast pace and it felt really good. That was very encouraging!
Overall I am feeling like I'm in great shape for the HIM. I still have 6 weeks left and I'm feeling good. My swimming is coming along nicely, my bike is very strong and my run is finally starting to feel good again.
I was running just a few minutes late. It was not a mass start, but there was quite a mass of people ready to go at 7:30 am. Daryl kindly waited for me to get myself together and we set out about 10 minutes after the mass.
Talbot County is pretty and flat. I was looking forward to riding 55 miles of flat...this would be good training for the HIM. I didn't have any goals for the ride except to just see how taxing the flat ride would be. I originally thought that a flat HIM was a good idea, until I realized that flat means that there is no break. At least with hills, you are working different muscle groups going uphill and you get a break going downhill. With flat it's just constant pedaling. So I was anxious to see how I would feel at the end of 55 miles.
Daryl and I started out at a fast but comfortable pace. We rode with his wife for a little bit. She said she was good and we pushed on. We ran into more people that Daryl knew and chatted with them as we passed. We were passing quite a few people. At the first rest stop we talked with more of his friends. This was turning into quite a social ride. As we left the first rest stop, he saw someone else and headed back. He told me to keep going and that he would catch up with me.
I linked up with an older man and we played leap frog for a little bit. I realized that I was going 19-20MPH and Daryl would not be able to catch up quickly if I kept that pace...so I slowed down to let Daryl catch up. It wasn't long before he caught up. He was riding with a guy named Marcus who he introduced as a triathlete extraordinaire. So our little pace line of Daryl, Marcus and me quickly caught the older man I was riding with before. He jumped in on the line.
I took a turn leading the group through some fields. The wind was pretty strong at this point and it really zapped my energy quickly. I tried to keep the same pace that we had been going (18-19 MPH) but it wasn't long before I was exhausted. I dropped off the lead and let someone else pull for a bit. I was able to recover almost immediately.
It wasn't long before we had gathered a group. I don't know if we joined another pace line or they joined ours, but we were in a peloton of about 10 people. It's always amazing to me at how I can be riding at 21 MPH with minimal effort in groups like this. Drafting makes such a difference...it is illegal in triathlons...so while it was really fun to ride in a big group like this, I knew that it was not good training for my HIM.
I only have a few complaints about this event. First, we had to travel on several roads that had loose gravel. This is dangerous and definitely slows down the pace. Second, the road markings were really good except near the rest stops. We missed the 2nd and 3rd rest stop because they weren't marked well. This meant that we were not stopping to take fuel...and I know that those who rode the 100 miles suffered because of it.
At around mile 44, it was time to split up. Daryl was riding the 100 and I was going 55. At this point, we had separated from the peloton. When we realized that we had missed the 3rd rest stop, we pulled off to the side to get fuel and water while the rest of the group pressed on. So at the split, Daryl went left for the 100 miles and I went right for the 55 miles. I was very excited to have this last segment to do alone. This would be the best training for the HIM...flat, wind, and no drafting. I dropped down to my aero bars and set out to finish this thing strong.
I pulled into the parking lot, quickly racked my bike and put on my running shoes. My training plan called for me to run for 20 minutes after riding 50 miles. I wasn't sure where to run so I decided to just circle the parking lot and the drive where we came in. I realized that I could run around the buildings and get an even larger loop in. I ran past where the free lunch was taking place and smelled the food...my stomach growled but I kept going. I was running at a pretty fast pace and it felt really good. That was very encouraging!
Overall I am feeling like I'm in great shape for the HIM. I still have 6 weeks left and I'm feeling good. My swimming is coming along nicely, my bike is very strong and my run is finally starting to feel good again.
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
I'm On a Team!
For the past few weeks I've been debating whether or not to sign up for the Baltimore Half Marathon. I have done this race several times in the past and really enjoy the challenging course. (Well except last year...I had knee issues and really DIDN'T enjoy anything.)
Anyway, in my training plan for the Half IronMan, I only need to run 10 miles that day. I was thinking that if I could find a relay team to participate in, that would be perfect. In steps Andi. She sends me a Facebook message asking if I'm running. I said no and was hoping she would say she needed a relay team member. Guess what she said...she needed a relay team member!!! (Can you tell that I'm excited?)
So I will be joining Andi, Chad and Gwen on a relay team. I don't know which leg I will be running, but most of the legs are between 6 and 7 miles. So I'll add on a few miles after my leg is over to get to my 10 miles. I am looking forward to meeting Chad and Gwen.
Anyway, in my training plan for the Half IronMan, I only need to run 10 miles that day. I was thinking that if I could find a relay team to participate in, that would be perfect. In steps Andi. She sends me a Facebook message asking if I'm running. I said no and was hoping she would say she needed a relay team member. Guess what she said...she needed a relay team member!!! (Can you tell that I'm excited?)
So I will be joining Andi, Chad and Gwen on a relay team. I don't know which leg I will be running, but most of the legs are between 6 and 7 miles. So I'll add on a few miles after my leg is over to get to my 10 miles. I am looking forward to meeting Chad and Gwen.
Monday, September 16, 2013
You Know You Have a Problem When...
I took my oldest daughter to South Carolina on Friday to do a college visit. We had an amazing time and both loved the school. What does this have to do with triathlons you might ask...
Well on Saturday morning when we were checking out of the hotel, we saw a cyclist go by. He was fast so he was really just a blur. Then I saw another and realized that the cyclists had body marking! It had to be a triathlon! I got so excited...I was like a little kid. I wanted to go see where they swam, how big the transition area was, where the run was taking place...I wanted to cheer them on! Unfortunately all I had time to do was to check out of the hotel and head to the airport.
But this little encounter just shows me that the multi-sport world is everywhere. I guess it's like when you just buy your car and then everywhere you look, you see the same car. Because I'm involved in triathlons, I am more prone to notice when I see one...but isn't it funny that I was only there for 1 night and I happened to stumble upon a triathlon?
Now if my daughter decides to go to school down there, I have another event I can add to the calendar! (As if I need another event on my calendar. I know Stephen will groan if I tell him I'm ADDING to my race schedule next year.)
Well on Saturday morning when we were checking out of the hotel, we saw a cyclist go by. He was fast so he was really just a blur. Then I saw another and realized that the cyclists had body marking! It had to be a triathlon! I got so excited...I was like a little kid. I wanted to go see where they swam, how big the transition area was, where the run was taking place...I wanted to cheer them on! Unfortunately all I had time to do was to check out of the hotel and head to the airport.
But this little encounter just shows me that the multi-sport world is everywhere. I guess it's like when you just buy your car and then everywhere you look, you see the same car. Because I'm involved in triathlons, I am more prone to notice when I see one...but isn't it funny that I was only there for 1 night and I happened to stumble upon a triathlon?
Now if my daughter decides to go to school down there, I have another event I can add to the calendar! (As if I need another event on my calendar. I know Stephen will groan if I tell him I'm ADDING to my race schedule next year.)
Sunday, September 15, 2013
My Competitive Nature
I have been trying to challenge myself by working out with groups that are faster/stronger/better/more experienced than I am. I figure the best way to improve my performance is to surround myself with people who can challenge me.
The swimming class that I take every Tuesday and Thursday has some VERY fast swimmers. I'm not the slowest in the class, but I'm pretty close. The instructor (Pam) has been telling me that my stroke is good; I just need to get a little more efficient. But the class shows me that I am in the bottom percent of swimmers...at least in that class.
Today I rode with the Crofton Bike Doctor group. They ride every Sunday. The last time I rode with them, the lead pack left me in a few miles. Today I made it about 8 miles before I had to drop off their pace. I was fine when they were just warming up, but once they hit their true riding pace, I was left in the dust. Now I consider myself to be a decent biker...almost good...but I'm no match for this group.
Honestly it was a bit of an ego crusher today. I knew that these guys keep a fierce pace, but I really didn't expect to fall off that quickly. I wanted to see how long I could keep up with them and I was disappointed that it wasn't longer.
Yes, all of this is a direct result of my competitive nature. It's very hard for me to go into a situation and be one of the worst. But when I'm knowingly putting myself into these situations in order to improve, I need to learn to take my lumps...because I am improving...a lot.
The swimming class that I take every Tuesday and Thursday has some VERY fast swimmers. I'm not the slowest in the class, but I'm pretty close. The instructor (Pam) has been telling me that my stroke is good; I just need to get a little more efficient. But the class shows me that I am in the bottom percent of swimmers...at least in that class.
Today I rode with the Crofton Bike Doctor group. They ride every Sunday. The last time I rode with them, the lead pack left me in a few miles. Today I made it about 8 miles before I had to drop off their pace. I was fine when they were just warming up, but once they hit their true riding pace, I was left in the dust. Now I consider myself to be a decent biker...almost good...but I'm no match for this group.
Honestly it was a bit of an ego crusher today. I knew that these guys keep a fierce pace, but I really didn't expect to fall off that quickly. I wanted to see how long I could keep up with them and I was disappointed that it wasn't longer.
Yes, all of this is a direct result of my competitive nature. It's very hard for me to go into a situation and be one of the worst. But when I'm knowingly putting myself into these situations in order to improve, I need to learn to take my lumps...because I am improving...a lot.
Monday, September 9, 2013
Race Report: IronGirl Rocky Gap
The short version: (Just the Stats)
Total time: 1:46:02
Swim: 20:04 (2:30/100 yd. Good swim for me, but still an area that has huge potential for improvement)
T1: 2:50 (I really need to work on my transition)
Bike: 56:56 (16.9 MPH average - 55th overall on bike. Yay!)
T2: 2:10 (I blame the long run with bike from dismount line to the farthest rack, but again need to work on transition)
Run: 24:03 (9:37 min/mile pace. Not bad especially when compared to my lousy run at IG Columbia, plus I felt great during the run)
121st overall (out of 901)
35th in age group (out of 202)
The long version: (Don't say I didn't warn you...it's long)
I was inspired to sign up for this race when Stephen and I stayed at the Rocky Gap Resort for our anniversary. It rained the entire weekend that we were there, but it didn't diminish the beauty of the area. I looked out over the lake and thought "I'd really like to swim in that lake." So sitting in the hotel room back in March, I signed up for the IronGirl Rocky Gap race.
Upon getting to the area, we drove directly to packet pickup. Our hotel was only about 10 minutes from the packet pickup so we went there to check in before heading to the race site to rack my bike. The girls were excited about the hotel's pool so we let them play in the pool for about an hour. There was a pre-race meeting at 5 pm. We left the hotel at 4. It was enough time for me to rack my bike, drive the bike course and get back in time for the pre-race meeting.
Driving the bike course was good and bad. I always like to see the course before the race, however I got really intimidated by the hills. There seemed to be many challenging climbs and it was relentless...constantly up and down. I walked into the pre-race meeting with my first bout of nerves after seeing the course. The first person I saw was Heidi. We chatted and she told me that the bike course was perfect for me. She also said that the course was easier than Columbia. I still wasn't convinced. Here is the elevation for the bike course: It's an out and back so that's why it's a mirror image:
Race morning! I hate getting up early except on race morning. It's the only time that I jump out of bed instead of groaning and rolling over. The girls got up relatively easily and we were off to the race site. I took my stuff over to transition but realized that I had forgotten several things. So I had to go back to the car and get them. I also forgot to pump my tires so I grabbed my pump. I felt completely out of sorts at this point. Transition set up has always been easy for me...why was I struggling so much to remember basic things?
After getting everything set up and my tires pumped, I went to get marked. I saw Elliott who was my lucky charm at the IronGirl Columbia race. So I got in line for her to mark me. We hugged and she wished me luck. She recommended no wetsuit even though it was announced to be wetsuit legal. The water temps were reported to be 76.5 which sounded really warm to me. I was still on the fence about wetsuit/no wetsuit. It always takes me so long to get out of my wetsuit. I wasn't sure that I would gain enough advantage during the swim to make up for the additional time I would take in transition.
I walked back to the car and realized that Stephen and the girls were not there anymore. We had said to meet back at the car but I figured one of the girls probably had to go to the bathroom or something. I stood there for a few minutes but realized that I had to go to the bathroom. With an armload of stuff...bike pump, wetsuit, TriSlide, goggles, swim cap and watch...I wasn't sure what to do. So I left the bike pump next to the car, put on the watch and carried everything else. I waited in the porta potty line and realized that my swim cap was gone. I must have dropped it somewhere! I immediately panicked. I got out of line and tried to re-trace my steps but found no pink cap anywhere on the ground. I went back into the transition area and tried to find Elliott thinking that since she was a volunteer, she would know who I needed to talk to. She wasn't there anymore but I looked over and saw a pink swim cap laying on one of the bins in the volunteer area. I figured it was mine but didn't want to just take it without letting someone know. I found a volunteer and explained my situation. He said that someone had turned the cap in to them and it was probably mine. I literally jumped for joy and thanked him profusely.
Crisis averted, I now had another crisis in the making. I still needed to use the bathroom and the porta potty line was triple the size it had been previously. But I got in line and prayed for it to move quickly. Thankfully it did and there were no further crises.
I walked down to the beach area since they were about to start the race and I wanted to see the pros. I finally found Stephen and the girls. I finally started to calm down once the race started. I was enjoying watching the initial waves come out of the swim and run into the transition area. I saw Heidi and cheered for her but she was very focused and I don't think she heard me.
Finally it was my turn. I put on my recovered swim cap and headed down to the edge of the water.
I saw my friend Joan who was in my swim wave. She was doing her first triathlon. We hugged and wished each other good luck. Then it was time for my wave to get in the water. There were 8 minutes between waves and they invited us into the water with 5 minutes left before our start. I wanted to take advantage of that full 5 minutes to get used to the water and to warm up my muscles. I did several breathing bobs and treaded water. Then I heard the announcer say "Hey Karen, I have Ella here and she wants to say something to you". Then I heard my sweet little Ella say "Good Luck Mommy!" I threw my arm up in the air and said "that was my girl!" I was teary eyed. Here is a photo of Ella on the shore while I'm one of the pink caps out there treading water waiting for the start.
The announcer started counting down and then we were off. I typically get a panicky feeling at the start of a race and have to work through the panic in the initial portion of the swim. But not on this day. I started swimming and immediately felt comfortable. I had decided to not wear my wetsuit which was definitely the right decision for me. The water was not cold at all. I was breathing well, although I was not able to breathe bilaterally. I can do that in the pool without a problem but when I try to do it in a race I start getting dizzy.
As I rounded the final turn buoy and headed for the swim out arch, I tried to pick up the pace a little bit. I normally only have one speed when swimming, but I purposely pushed the pace on the finish. As I got out of the water and started running to transition, I checked my watch. It said 20 minutes. Wait, what??? I was planning on finishing the swim in 25 minutes. As I ran into transition, I noted that I didn't see Stephen and I figured it was because I finished a full 5 minutes ahead of when I thought I would! Wow...a good start to the day!
Transition was slow although I can't figure out why I took so long. I sat down and dried my feet (yes this is part of why it was slow), put on my socks and bike shoes, quickly ate a Stinger waffle, took 2 big gulps of Gatorade, put on my helmet and took off. I had forgotten to put my bike goggles in my transition area, so I had to ride without them. Grr...again, why was I so out of sorts with my transition set up? I had a great rack spot...the first spot on the rack closest to the bike out and run out.
At the mount line, I pushed off and thought "well here we go". I was determined not to let my head beat me on the hills. If there were hard climbs, that's fine, but I wasn't going to mentally get freaked out. I did that enough yesterday.
The bike course was fun. There were only 2 hills that I struggled to keep my speed above 8 MPH. However, there were a lot of really fun downhills. I got my speed up to 35 MPH at one point and wasn't scared at all! I have definitely come a long way with my comfort on the downhills. Just like IronGirl Columbia, I passed packs of other bikers at a time. I definitely had to holler for some people to get over...there were so many women riding in the middle or the left side of the lane.
However, the most frustrating part of the ride was an encounter with a car. The road was closed to traffic except residents who lived on that road. So other than the USAT officials on motorcycles, I only saw 2 cars the whole time. The 2nd car was the problem. The driver refused to try to go around a slow biker. The biker was probably going 10 MPH and the car just took up the lane following her at her speed. I was going around 20 MPH at this point so I came up on the situation pretty quickly. I couldn't cross the yellow line and there wasn't room on the right side to try to pass on the right, since the car was really close to the biker's tire. I yelled for the driver to move to the middle of the road so I could pass. The driver didn't move so I slowed down to try to assess the situation. What to do? Ugh...gotta get around this guy or else I'll be going 10 MPH for the rest of the ride. Finally the car moved slightly to the right side of the lane. Knowing that this was absolutely the wrong thing to do, I passed the car on its left but avoided crossing the double yellow line. Thinking back, I really don't know how else I could have handled it. I will need to talk with some more experienced triathletes to see what they think.
The bike course was an out and back. At the turn around, I must have bumped something because my cadence meter was no longer working when I started heading back. Knowing what good cadence feels like, I wasn't too concerned about it. I switched my computer over to the mileage counter so that I could see how much farther I had to go. With 1 1/2 miles left, I switched over to my average speed. It was 17 MPH. I knew I had one more decent climb to go and hitting an overall 17 MPH average was going to be a challenge. So I focused on climbing as quickly and efficiently as possible. Unfortunately my average dropped to 16.9 and I couldn't get it back over 17 even though I was going 25 MPH on the final downhill. Oh well. That's still a good average for a challenging course. The last half mile I focused on just spinning my legs out so that I would have an easier transition to running.
The longest part of T2 was the run from the dismount line to the transition area. And my rack was the farthest away from the bike in point, so that definitely slowed me down. Actual transition was pretty quick. As I jogged out of transition, I threw on my visor and smiled. I still felt great!
Another item that I forgot to put in transition was my running watch. I was wearing a watch where I was tracking the overall event time, but it doesn't have GPS so it can't tell me my running pace. I felt a little bit uncomfortable not knowing if I was going too fast or too slow...but once I started running, I actually felt really free not constantly worrying about my pace. The run course had a few hills but nothing like the IronGirl Columbia course. And this course was only 2.5 miles, which mentally was really good for me. I went into it thinking it was a short run.
About 3/4 of a mile into the run, I was settling into a comfortable pace when I saw John Hughes from Spin90. He was volunteering and doing support on the run. He was in his Spin90 gear and on his bike so he was easy to spot. I waved to him and briefly told him that I was really happy with my performance on the bike. He told me good job and commented that I looked like I was holding a nice steady pace on the run.
I hit the turn-around and knew I only had a little more than a mile to go. I was feeling really, really good. When I passed John again, I was chatting with a woman running next to me. (I would probably run a lot faster if I didn't talk so much while I was running! But what fun is that?) John started riding along next to me and I felt myself subconsciously pick up the pace to match him. This was good! He rode next to me for a little bit and encouraged me to go get the pack of women that were a short distance ahead of me. He knows I like a challenge, so I steadily picked up the pace again. He had to turn back and I waved and thanked him. I focused my attention on the pack of women. One by one I went by them until there was only 1 woman left in front of me from that pack. As I crossed the finish line, I also passed her. It was a great feeling. I heard the announcer say my name and I raised my arms in victory. What a fun race!
Finally I was able to see Stephen and the girls. They had missed me at every point in the race because I was going so much faster than I had originally estimated. Stephen was disappointed that he didn't get any action shots from the race, but I loved that I was faster than he expected!
Total time: 1:46:02
Swim: 20:04 (2:30/100 yd. Good swim for me, but still an area that has huge potential for improvement)
T1: 2:50 (I really need to work on my transition)
Bike: 56:56 (16.9 MPH average - 55th overall on bike. Yay!)
T2: 2:10 (I blame the long run with bike from dismount line to the farthest rack, but again need to work on transition)
Run: 24:03 (9:37 min/mile pace. Not bad especially when compared to my lousy run at IG Columbia, plus I felt great during the run)
121st overall (out of 901)
35th in age group (out of 202)
The long version: (Don't say I didn't warn you...it's long)
I was inspired to sign up for this race when Stephen and I stayed at the Rocky Gap Resort for our anniversary. It rained the entire weekend that we were there, but it didn't diminish the beauty of the area. I looked out over the lake and thought "I'd really like to swim in that lake." So sitting in the hotel room back in March, I signed up for the IronGirl Rocky Gap race.
Upon getting to the area, we drove directly to packet pickup. Our hotel was only about 10 minutes from the packet pickup so we went there to check in before heading to the race site to rack my bike. The girls were excited about the hotel's pool so we let them play in the pool for about an hour. There was a pre-race meeting at 5 pm. We left the hotel at 4. It was enough time for me to rack my bike, drive the bike course and get back in time for the pre-race meeting.
Driving the bike course was good and bad. I always like to see the course before the race, however I got really intimidated by the hills. There seemed to be many challenging climbs and it was relentless...constantly up and down. I walked into the pre-race meeting with my first bout of nerves after seeing the course. The first person I saw was Heidi. We chatted and she told me that the bike course was perfect for me. She also said that the course was easier than Columbia. I still wasn't convinced. Here is the elevation for the bike course: It's an out and back so that's why it's a mirror image:
Race morning! I hate getting up early except on race morning. It's the only time that I jump out of bed instead of groaning and rolling over. The girls got up relatively easily and we were off to the race site. I took my stuff over to transition but realized that I had forgotten several things. So I had to go back to the car and get them. I also forgot to pump my tires so I grabbed my pump. I felt completely out of sorts at this point. Transition set up has always been easy for me...why was I struggling so much to remember basic things?
After getting everything set up and my tires pumped, I went to get marked. I saw Elliott who was my lucky charm at the IronGirl Columbia race. So I got in line for her to mark me. We hugged and she wished me luck. She recommended no wetsuit even though it was announced to be wetsuit legal. The water temps were reported to be 76.5 which sounded really warm to me. I was still on the fence about wetsuit/no wetsuit. It always takes me so long to get out of my wetsuit. I wasn't sure that I would gain enough advantage during the swim to make up for the additional time I would take in transition.
I walked back to the car and realized that Stephen and the girls were not there anymore. We had said to meet back at the car but I figured one of the girls probably had to go to the bathroom or something. I stood there for a few minutes but realized that I had to go to the bathroom. With an armload of stuff...bike pump, wetsuit, TriSlide, goggles, swim cap and watch...I wasn't sure what to do. So I left the bike pump next to the car, put on the watch and carried everything else. I waited in the porta potty line and realized that my swim cap was gone. I must have dropped it somewhere! I immediately panicked. I got out of line and tried to re-trace my steps but found no pink cap anywhere on the ground. I went back into the transition area and tried to find Elliott thinking that since she was a volunteer, she would know who I needed to talk to. She wasn't there anymore but I looked over and saw a pink swim cap laying on one of the bins in the volunteer area. I figured it was mine but didn't want to just take it without letting someone know. I found a volunteer and explained my situation. He said that someone had turned the cap in to them and it was probably mine. I literally jumped for joy and thanked him profusely.
Crisis averted, I now had another crisis in the making. I still needed to use the bathroom and the porta potty line was triple the size it had been previously. But I got in line and prayed for it to move quickly. Thankfully it did and there were no further crises.
I walked down to the beach area since they were about to start the race and I wanted to see the pros. I finally found Stephen and the girls. I finally started to calm down once the race started. I was enjoying watching the initial waves come out of the swim and run into the transition area. I saw Heidi and cheered for her but she was very focused and I don't think she heard me.
Finally it was my turn. I put on my recovered swim cap and headed down to the edge of the water.
As I rounded the final turn buoy and headed for the swim out arch, I tried to pick up the pace a little bit. I normally only have one speed when swimming, but I purposely pushed the pace on the finish. As I got out of the water and started running to transition, I checked my watch. It said 20 minutes. Wait, what??? I was planning on finishing the swim in 25 minutes. As I ran into transition, I noted that I didn't see Stephen and I figured it was because I finished a full 5 minutes ahead of when I thought I would! Wow...a good start to the day!
Transition was slow although I can't figure out why I took so long. I sat down and dried my feet (yes this is part of why it was slow), put on my socks and bike shoes, quickly ate a Stinger waffle, took 2 big gulps of Gatorade, put on my helmet and took off. I had forgotten to put my bike goggles in my transition area, so I had to ride without them. Grr...again, why was I so out of sorts with my transition set up? I had a great rack spot...the first spot on the rack closest to the bike out and run out.
At the mount line, I pushed off and thought "well here we go". I was determined not to let my head beat me on the hills. If there were hard climbs, that's fine, but I wasn't going to mentally get freaked out. I did that enough yesterday.
The bike course was fun. There were only 2 hills that I struggled to keep my speed above 8 MPH. However, there were a lot of really fun downhills. I got my speed up to 35 MPH at one point and wasn't scared at all! I have definitely come a long way with my comfort on the downhills. Just like IronGirl Columbia, I passed packs of other bikers at a time. I definitely had to holler for some people to get over...there were so many women riding in the middle or the left side of the lane.
However, the most frustrating part of the ride was an encounter with a car. The road was closed to traffic except residents who lived on that road. So other than the USAT officials on motorcycles, I only saw 2 cars the whole time. The 2nd car was the problem. The driver refused to try to go around a slow biker. The biker was probably going 10 MPH and the car just took up the lane following her at her speed. I was going around 20 MPH at this point so I came up on the situation pretty quickly. I couldn't cross the yellow line and there wasn't room on the right side to try to pass on the right, since the car was really close to the biker's tire. I yelled for the driver to move to the middle of the road so I could pass. The driver didn't move so I slowed down to try to assess the situation. What to do? Ugh...gotta get around this guy or else I'll be going 10 MPH for the rest of the ride. Finally the car moved slightly to the right side of the lane. Knowing that this was absolutely the wrong thing to do, I passed the car on its left but avoided crossing the double yellow line. Thinking back, I really don't know how else I could have handled it. I will need to talk with some more experienced triathletes to see what they think.
The bike course was an out and back. At the turn around, I must have bumped something because my cadence meter was no longer working when I started heading back. Knowing what good cadence feels like, I wasn't too concerned about it. I switched my computer over to the mileage counter so that I could see how much farther I had to go. With 1 1/2 miles left, I switched over to my average speed. It was 17 MPH. I knew I had one more decent climb to go and hitting an overall 17 MPH average was going to be a challenge. So I focused on climbing as quickly and efficiently as possible. Unfortunately my average dropped to 16.9 and I couldn't get it back over 17 even though I was going 25 MPH on the final downhill. Oh well. That's still a good average for a challenging course. The last half mile I focused on just spinning my legs out so that I would have an easier transition to running.
The longest part of T2 was the run from the dismount line to the transition area. And my rack was the farthest away from the bike in point, so that definitely slowed me down. Actual transition was pretty quick. As I jogged out of transition, I threw on my visor and smiled. I still felt great!
Another item that I forgot to put in transition was my running watch. I was wearing a watch where I was tracking the overall event time, but it doesn't have GPS so it can't tell me my running pace. I felt a little bit uncomfortable not knowing if I was going too fast or too slow...but once I started running, I actually felt really free not constantly worrying about my pace. The run course had a few hills but nothing like the IronGirl Columbia course. And this course was only 2.5 miles, which mentally was really good for me. I went into it thinking it was a short run.
About 3/4 of a mile into the run, I was settling into a comfortable pace when I saw John Hughes from Spin90. He was volunteering and doing support on the run. He was in his Spin90 gear and on his bike so he was easy to spot. I waved to him and briefly told him that I was really happy with my performance on the bike. He told me good job and commented that I looked like I was holding a nice steady pace on the run.
I hit the turn-around and knew I only had a little more than a mile to go. I was feeling really, really good. When I passed John again, I was chatting with a woman running next to me. (I would probably run a lot faster if I didn't talk so much while I was running! But what fun is that?) John started riding along next to me and I felt myself subconsciously pick up the pace to match him. This was good! He rode next to me for a little bit and encouraged me to go get the pack of women that were a short distance ahead of me. He knows I like a challenge, so I steadily picked up the pace again. He had to turn back and I waved and thanked him. I focused my attention on the pack of women. One by one I went by them until there was only 1 woman left in front of me from that pack. As I crossed the finish line, I also passed her. It was a great feeling. I heard the announcer say my name and I raised my arms in victory. What a fun race!
Finally I was able to see Stephen and the girls. They had missed me at every point in the race because I was going so much faster than I had originally estimated. Stephen was disappointed that he didn't get any action shots from the race, but I loved that I was faster than he expected!
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Catching Up
So I have not written a blog post for quite awhile. Initially I didn't write because I took a few days off from doing anything after the century. Then I just got busy and lazy. So I'm sorry to anyone who has been checking this page looking for new posts and haven't found any. Here's what I've been up to:
RUNNING
I've done a few runs and still find myself struggling. I am having difficulty running at what used to be my "normal" training pace. I find myself running about a minute to a minute and a half slower than before. I can't seem to run any faster. Is it who I'm running with? I'm not sure. I ran alone on Monday and still couldn't get to a decent pace. I actually had to cut my run short because of stomach issues. I seem to have that problem pretty often when I'm running. That never happened before. I need to figure out if it's a nutrition issue, timing issue or what else it could be.
BIKING
I went to Spin90 class on Thursday which met at Folly Quarter Middle. I've never done the Thursday class so these roads were new to me. The class was new to me too. While I knew a lot of the students, I hadn't ridden with them for awhile. The first group was really fast. There was no keeping up with them. I started in the middle of the pack and quickly realized that I was "stuck" behind some slower riders. I passed them and finally found a comfortable pace. I was riding in between the first and second packs...kind of on my own, although I would play leapfrog with a couple other riders. It was fun to do something different.
Saturday I rode the Betterton to Chestertown loop that I had done with Daryl and the Cross Court riders a few times. I knew the roads so I wasn't too worried about going out alone. However, it was a lot harder to ride alone than I had expected. The course had some rolling hills but nothing too challenging. It wasn't the terrain that was my biggest challenge...it was my head. Without anyone else to judge myself against, it was really easy to just slack off. I wouldn't even realize that I was doing it...until I looked down at my computer and saw how much I was slacking off. Otherwise the ride was not bad. 42 miles with an average of 16.9 MPH...not too bad.
SWIMMING
We went to Betterton for Labor Day weekend, which was really good for my swim. Saturday night I was talking with Maureen (my swimming buddy) about when we were swimming. I suggested that we swim double what we normally do...swim from Evergreen Knoll to the public beach and back again. To my surprise, she agreed! So Sunday morning we met Helena and Mary for the longest swim of the season. I am constantly humbled by this group of women. They are not training for anything...they are just enjoying swimming...and they kick my butt every time. Maybe some day I will be able to swim faster (or even as fast) as they do. But for now, I'm just happy to have their company. Sunday we swam about 1.2 miles. Monday I ran and then met them for our normal distance swim which is .6 miles. And again they kicked my butt.
This morning was the first class of the swim clinic that Anne told me about through the Y. Pam is the instructor. I've worked with her in Anne's indoor classes as well as the open water swim clinics I've done this summer. So when I showed up at the class, I wasn't feeling like the newbie. I jumped in and started the warm-up. Pam pulled me aside and told me that she was going to stop me if and when I needed specific instruction. Nice! Several times during the class she pointed out things that I needed to work on...mostly my feet. They were either not close enough to the surface or they were doing a scissor kick instead of the flutter kick I was supposed to be doing. After class she told me that there wasn't really anything that I needed to do to perfect my stroke. She said that I could expect huge improvements by the end of the session...which is right before my Half Ironman! YAY!
Overall I am pleased with my week's training work. This weekend is the Rocky Gap IronGirl. I'm looking forward to this but I really don't want to do anything to hurt myself for the Half Ironman. That's my main concern at this point. Although I am excited to see how I do on a new course.
RUNNING
I've done a few runs and still find myself struggling. I am having difficulty running at what used to be my "normal" training pace. I find myself running about a minute to a minute and a half slower than before. I can't seem to run any faster. Is it who I'm running with? I'm not sure. I ran alone on Monday and still couldn't get to a decent pace. I actually had to cut my run short because of stomach issues. I seem to have that problem pretty often when I'm running. That never happened before. I need to figure out if it's a nutrition issue, timing issue or what else it could be.
BIKING
I went to Spin90 class on Thursday which met at Folly Quarter Middle. I've never done the Thursday class so these roads were new to me. The class was new to me too. While I knew a lot of the students, I hadn't ridden with them for awhile. The first group was really fast. There was no keeping up with them. I started in the middle of the pack and quickly realized that I was "stuck" behind some slower riders. I passed them and finally found a comfortable pace. I was riding in between the first and second packs...kind of on my own, although I would play leapfrog with a couple other riders. It was fun to do something different.
Saturday I rode the Betterton to Chestertown loop that I had done with Daryl and the Cross Court riders a few times. I knew the roads so I wasn't too worried about going out alone. However, it was a lot harder to ride alone than I had expected. The course had some rolling hills but nothing too challenging. It wasn't the terrain that was my biggest challenge...it was my head. Without anyone else to judge myself against, it was really easy to just slack off. I wouldn't even realize that I was doing it...until I looked down at my computer and saw how much I was slacking off. Otherwise the ride was not bad. 42 miles with an average of 16.9 MPH...not too bad.
SWIMMING
We went to Betterton for Labor Day weekend, which was really good for my swim. Saturday night I was talking with Maureen (my swimming buddy) about when we were swimming. I suggested that we swim double what we normally do...swim from Evergreen Knoll to the public beach and back again. To my surprise, she agreed! So Sunday morning we met Helena and Mary for the longest swim of the season. I am constantly humbled by this group of women. They are not training for anything...they are just enjoying swimming...and they kick my butt every time. Maybe some day I will be able to swim faster (or even as fast) as they do. But for now, I'm just happy to have their company. Sunday we swam about 1.2 miles. Monday I ran and then met them for our normal distance swim which is .6 miles. And again they kicked my butt.
This morning was the first class of the swim clinic that Anne told me about through the Y. Pam is the instructor. I've worked with her in Anne's indoor classes as well as the open water swim clinics I've done this summer. So when I showed up at the class, I wasn't feeling like the newbie. I jumped in and started the warm-up. Pam pulled me aside and told me that she was going to stop me if and when I needed specific instruction. Nice! Several times during the class she pointed out things that I needed to work on...mostly my feet. They were either not close enough to the surface or they were doing a scissor kick instead of the flutter kick I was supposed to be doing. After class she told me that there wasn't really anything that I needed to do to perfect my stroke. She said that I could expect huge improvements by the end of the session...which is right before my Half Ironman! YAY!
Overall I am pleased with my week's training work. This weekend is the Rocky Gap IronGirl. I'm looking forward to this but I really don't want to do anything to hurt myself for the Half Ironman. That's my main concern at this point. Although I am excited to see how I do on a new course.
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