My overall goal was to finish 46 minutes sooner than last year, giving me a sub 7hr race. Last year I focused on bike skills because it would give me the biggest improvement since only tri-ing for 10 months. Now 1 yr 10 months later, I have focused on swim technique, run endurance, and bike/run brick endurance loaded with hills. I also needed to dial in my race nutrition so I felt better during the race.
PRERACE:
The weather was so different than last year. Since we were blanketed in fog for a week it seemed to have heated the water. I was very comfortable at 5am in T1 which made me concerned about the run. I didn't notice much wind either so I probably wasn't going to need extra heat for the bike. The announcer said the harbor water was 61 degrees which is actually so much warmer than the average 58 degrees. I still wore my triple cap, arm coolers, calf compressions, and booties this time because it was how I trained and "nothing new on race day" rules applied. I did change wetsuit brands this year from Xterra to Aquasphere Racer level and I just love the suit's flexibility. I also put the toe warmers inside my bike shoes again but not on the hoods of the bike. I had some oversized bike gloves this time which provided warmth and cushion. Unfortunately I forgot my bike shorts to wear over my tri bottoms. I missed this comfort. New lesson: write down anything unusual that you want for race day. I use a tri checklist to pack but I need a "special needs" list too which is unique for each race.
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| Pre-swim group hug - We are all turning 50 this year! |
SWIM:
I have been swimming in the pool and Bonita cove this year. The pool has been a new addition to my training. With the new 910xt watch counting my laps, it allowed me to focus on technique lessons received from many coaches and swimsmooth online. I have gradually seen great improvement in my efficiency and speed. Again, I carried a small disposable water bottle with me right up to the ramp and ate a GU. Since I aged up to 50-54 this year, my wave time started later. This time I had the pleasure of trying to catch Marcus on this route. I had a new goal! He started 10 minutes ahead of me! I studied the swim map because I wanted to swim the shortest route based on buoys and not follow the masses which may be going in any direction. Please note the map below shows yellow first, then red on the corners, then orange on the return. This was my plan.
The water felt great, and I casually swam to the start line, stopping closer to the buoy but a few rows back. I had practiced swimming in a packed start position at the club tri and superseal so I felt I could handle the bumping to get a better start position as long as I didn't copy another person's pace. I learned I could go out hard to find my spot and then slow down without hyperventilating. It worked well, I found my pace and rhythm quickly. I had learned to focus. I could tell I was swimming well and quickly saw the red buoy. I thought WOW that was amazingly fast! I can't believe it is time to turn already!! I turned and all went quiet very quickly...I kept swimming and then I heard Steve Tally's voice in my head.."if you don't see anyone around you, it's probably NOT because you are in 1st place" So I paused and looked up...OMG I am off course! this isn't the turn!!! WHY the hell is this buoy red?? I turned back and swam as fast as I could to get back in the pack. It wasn't long until the next wave of swimmers were on my tail because I had lost time. I just refocused on the new buoys in front...yellow right? or was it orange? Crap...follow the pack! I felt lost, confused in my direction and started sighting often which creates drag. Finally another red buoy, I looked up and said YES they are really turning this time. I rounded the corner looking for the yellow buoys...WAIT not yellow, follow orange!!! UGH another correction. OMG I have drown my brain cells... I kept swimming my pace so I wouldn't panic and did my best to swim steady to the ramp. I checked my watch...42 minutes. DAMN I knew it could have been sub 40! I know 2 or 3 mintues isn't a big deal since I am not a podium finisher but I really wanted to show my improvement. I beat last year's swim time by 11 minutes which is still awesome but I was pissed at myself for the errors in sighting as shown here
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The next "Steve Tally" thought was "get a better swim time by running through transition" so I gave it all I had running on the rigid asphalt skipping the carpet so I could pass as many swimmers as possible. Had I realized "hey you have no foot pad on! this will really hurt", I probably would have walked but the adrenaline was amazing and I never felt any pain!
T1 to Bike:
TCSD always has their own bike racks. Last year, we were all together by the bike out exit, 1st row near the elites. This year, we were the very last row by the swim out. This bothered me because I didn't want my wave to be closer to bike out than me. I think it is easier to run from the swim than run with bike shoes on so I opted out of the team rack and went to my own wave's rack. We were not crowded this year and I parked my stuff on the end of a rack by a blue flag so it was super easy to find. Everything went smooth in T1. I wasn't cold at all and felt no wind. So, no extra clothing was needed. I popped 2 Bayer Back n Body pills and sped off to conquer the Camp P hills! I let go of my swim disappointment.
BIKE:
My plan was to focus on my speed and avg speed. Push just out of my comfort zone the first 25 miles because I will lose speed on the back hills. I didn't have a huge bike improvement goal this time. Improve by 6 minutes and attack all hills. Walking is not allowed. I had had 2 flats on my last 2 rides so I replaced my tires so I felt my equipment was solid. I had changed my tires many times over the year and knew if I had a flat that I could handle it now since I found the Speed Lever. Previously I couldn't get the tire bead edge over my carbon rims but the Speed Lever helps me use leverage to roll the edge over. Thank you Darryl MacKenzie for this awesome tool! I packed 3 Roctane GUs planning to eat one every 45 mins to an hour. I carried 2 bottles with 1000 calories and planned to pickup water at SAG 3 which is after the hills so I didnt' have excess weight. I found liquid calories suited my stomach better and with my front bottle, I drink often. It was a great formula.
I ate Roctane 15 mins before hill 1. I walked half of hill 1 last year. This year, I'm ready to attack it. I saw more people walking the hill this year and just in front, a rider fell over. I said to myself that I'm stronger, better, and well trained for this. So I just focused on my cadence and I drove hard, my breathing labored, and I passed riders of all ages and sizes. I just kept cranking over the pedals pulling up hard with my knees, push, pull, push, pull was my mantra. When I reached the top, I took a huge breath and probably eeked out my first smile of the race. A thin male racer came by me and looked over.."job well done!" I nodded in agreement and smiled in return. yea.. it was a proud moment for me. My confidence soared and I chased down the other hills watching my avg speed closely. I had dropped less than 1mph on the first hill but at the end of teh 3rd hill, I had dropped another mile per hour. Suddenly I rode into strong headwinds. I stayed low but it was exhausting! I had to push and pull hard through the last 10 miles and just at the end, my average flipped to 17mph. It was a tough ride with the wind but I finished 3:17 improving by 14 minutes over last year.
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| Surfrider hill, the last one just before T2 |
T2 to Run
I felt pretty good. My neck pain was manageable, no achilles issues, but the back of my leg/hammy was pulling and my quads were stiff. I lathered my neck and leg in muscle ointment, took more pain meds, added my foot pad to control my hammertoe pain, grabbed my PBJ and took off to run. I stopped at the portapotty and hoped I could make it my last stop. I jogged while I ate. I knew this time I would need "lunch" not just more GU to start my run so the PBJ/250 cals was a nice fuel charge. It also helped me start off slow to control my breathing.
RUN
My goal was to hold an 11 minute pace. My last big brick was 56 miles/10miles and I held 11 on the run. I wanted to finish in 2:25. That would be tough but would be a 43 minute improvement from last year when I had incredible foot pain and walked the last 5 miles aka "death march". I watched my average closely, but by mile 4, I couldn't hold the 11:00 min pace any longer. My legs just wouldn't go any faster. I thought about how hard I pushed on the bike. Did I push too hard?
Then I realized the 56/10 brick training ride was not as hard as this. The 56 miles didn't include 3 difficult hills and loads of headwind so it was unrealistic to expect an 11 min pace for the run. I could do that under easier conditions so I gave myself a break. Try to stay in the 11 range. I ate a couple banana halves and alternated water and powerade at the aid stations. It really started to get hot so the sponges and ice were great on the course. These were not needed last year. I poured water over my head, down my back, ice in my shirt, packed cold sponges.. I don't run well in heat. I would have melted on the 2nd loop without these cooling remedies on the course! The ramps on the pier are difficult on the first loop but on the 2nd loop nearly unbearable. They hurt whether running up or down!
I finally had to enter a portapotty at mile 9 but it was my only stop and there was no waiting! Last year I stopped 3 times so yea for another improvement! Along the run it was so encouraging to see TCSD shirts and cheers from everyone. I have met so many new people over the last year and they encouraged me when I didn't even see them! I would never wear anything else but a TCSD jersey in a race. This support is priceless. It was awesome when Rachel Wills said I looked strong! I tried to smile and take in her energy. She is such an amazing athlete and taught me a lot about swimming. She is one of my favorite mentors so her compliment was gold to me.
However the last 3 miles were mentally tough. I had to beg myself to keep running. I kept looking for the next aid station and other markers. Just over the last hill was Wisconsin Rd. Then finally a downhill, then the final chute along the ocean...I looked past the last aid station to see the TCSD banner. The tent would be full of members cheering me to the finishline. It was amazing to slap their hands. I gave it my best to sprint through the chute. I looked for my son at the end and I couldn't hear him cheer my name but he met me at the end and it was awesome to share my PR finishtime with him. My run took 2:32 with an 11:40 min pace, 7 minutes longer than I had planned but 36 minutes faster than last year. I finished with a smile as my ironman friend Sef was there to hug me with congrats. I finished in 6:42, which was 63 minutes faster than last year. I worked hard and it showed. I felt pretty good at the finish, so much better than last year, and I did wonder about a full ironman in my future. Could I do double this distance? Still, my mind said no... ok let's think about that later.... I ranked 18th of 47 finishers in my age group. It was a great race for me overall. I look forward to my foot surgery next week so I can see more improvement in my run at SOMA 70.3 in Tempe AZ in October. Then let's revisit the Ironman possibility again ok?
Now I was able to wait for my closest friends and Marcus to finish their run as well! Sharon and Elwyn have been my most consistent training partners. It was such a pleasure to see others finish their journey!
