GWRT Race Report - Good Start to the 2015 Tri Season

Yesterday I raced the Great Western Reserve Olympic Tri put on by Champ Racing. I will admit that I was nervous going into this race. I am always a little worked up about the first OWS of the season and I was not really sure that I was tri-ready with so much focus on the run this season and not as much focus on the bike. I have been pretty good about my swimming and gotten in as many bike miles as I can around a very run-heavy schedule. I just had to give it my best and see where I am right now.

West Branch State Park was the venue for the race. I really liked this venue. The swim was in a calm and warm inland lake and for the most part the bike roads were good and the run course was a nice setup. In addition to the olympic race, there is a sprint, a half and a half aquabike option so that brought out some good people to race. It was nice to see so many friends and fellow Cleveland Tri Club members at the race. Many of which had a great day at the races!

Steve and I both raced the olympic and we are racing an olympic again this weekend at Challenge Williamsburg (formerly Revolution 3 Williamsburg). I love the course there and it's my first team race of the year so that's pretty exciting. Racing GWRT was a great way to test my fitness before Williamsburg.  I am pleased with how things turned out yesterday and looking forward to giving it another go Sunday!

Prerace: We arrived at West Branch around 6:30am to pick up our packets and setup our transition areas. The olympic was scheduled to go off around 8am. The start was delayed about 30 minutes due to the other waves starting later. This was actually not a bad thing for me because I had time to relax and chat with friends as well as get in a nice warm up swim. The water temperature was 71 and my sleeveless Blueseventy wetsuit was very comfortable.

Swim (1500 meters):

Start of one of the swim waves

The olympic men's wave went off and then olympic women were 5 minutes later. We were the last wave. This again was okay with me. I like a relaxing swim where I am not crowded with people. It was a double loop course and the second loop really felt like it went quick. I looked at my watch leaving the water and I was around 26 minutes and change. Once crossing over the timing mat I was at 27:31 (about a 1:50 pace), which is not bad for me in open water. I am working on my sighting as I have a tendency to get off course.

T1:
I felt wobbly in T1 but got the wetsuit off pretty fast, dried off a bit, put on my gear and got in a Powerbar energy blend gel before heading for the bike mount. My 1:52 was a little slow but I'm just getting back into the swing of things.

Bike (26 miles):
I liked the bike course. It was mainly flat with a couple sections of rollers. It was a straight forward course so not too technical. The best part I think was riding along the dam. It felt like flying through that section and I got to see Steve and some friends here. My goal for the bike was to average between 19-20mph. I knew that my bike fitness was not as good yet as it was during some of last year's races where I was close to averaging 21 for this distance. I felt pretty strong on the first 13 mile loop and through the first half of the second loop but started to labor toward the end of the ride and had some pesky low back pain as well. I haven't spent too much time in the aero bars yet this season so I am sure that I will build up my tolerance to this again. My new Lazer aero helmet worked great. It was light and comfortable and well ventilated. My bike time ended up at 1:20:16 (19.4 mph average) so for where I am right now this was decent. I will be switching my focus to the bike in early July after I recover from the Charlevoix Marathon.

T2: 
Again I felt a little slow here with a 1:23 but as the season goes on hopefully I will be quicker with my transitions. The one thing that annoyed me in T2 is that my GPS signal for my run watch did not come on right away so I just had to start the run without it.

Run (6.2 Miles): 
The run was pretty straight forward and flat. Leaving the park was hot but most of the olympic run was shaded, which was nice on a hot day like yesterday. It was an out and back, 2 loop 5K course with 2 aid stations on each loop. It was nice to see so many friends on the course and I got to see Steve a couple of times as well, which was a nice boost of motivation. I ended up running a negative split for the second loop, which allowed me to move up at least a handful of spots in the race. I ended up running a 46:08 10K (7:41 average).  I was glad to have my run working for me with all the miles I have been logging training for my marathon June 27.

Post race with my hubby

Finish & Post Race:
It was nice to have Steve cheering as I finished. I am happy with my time of 2:37:12. It was good enough to win my age group and place 6th female. In looking at the results the swim is really what killed me for this race along with not having my bike legs at 100% yet. I am okay with that. I will get stronger as I change my focus to multisport! Steve had a solid race too and placed 3rd in his AG. We stuck around to hang out with friends and eat. Champ does a great job with the post-race food especially the pizza! Mmm! Many of our friends set PRs and placed so it was a good day at the races!

Closing Thoughts:
I liked this race and will plan to do it again - possibly the half too. Champ did a nice job with the course, volunteers, food, and I loved the race shirt! Today is a recovery day and then I get back into a hard week of training followed by the Challenge Williamsburg olympic tri this Sunday!

Cool shirt & my AG medal

Looking Back - The 2014 Running & Triathlon Season in a Nutshell

It's hard to believe that in a couple of days it will be 2015! This year went fast between work, kids and training and racing. It was a good year and I accomplished some new goals, made some new friends and shared a lot of ups and downs with my family. Here's a quick recap of all my racing in 2014:

Dirty Love - As all my Cleveland friends will recall last winter was a real doozy. My first race of the year was the Dirty Love Trail 10K. On that particular day old mother nature had dumped a fresh foot of snow for us. Needless to say it made for difficult race conditions. I had my slowest 10K time ever and still managed to win my age group but I learned a valuable lesson here: always have fuel with you even if you don't think you will need it because if you're out there working for a long time you will in fact bonk at an inopportune time like at the end of the race. Post race we went with our friends Mark and Phil to Willoughby Brewing for some much needed food & beer.

Fools 25K trail race - With the race being at the end of March the weather is definitely a major variable. For this particular year much like the Dirty Love race we received a gift of 6+ inches of fresh snow. From previous melting and the new snow this turned out to be a cold, wet and muddy race. I absolutely loved the race - especially the first 10 miles. It was a lot more difficult than I expected. The last hour or so I pretty much hated my life as I was cold, tired, wet and hungry. I nearly fell running the hilly pasture leading to the finish but luckily I did not. I was very happy to be done with this one and spent much of the day feeling sick afterwards. I managed to place in my AG and my husband had an awesome race, coming in 2nd overall! We did manage to hit up the Winking Lizard in Peninsula for some post race food & bevs on the way home.

20 Mile Drop - While preparing for the Cleveland Marathon I decided to run this little gem as a 20 miler as part of my prep. It ended up being a gorgeous, sunny day in the 60s and the race went even better than I expected, Partly because I was not supposed to be racing it according to my coach at the time. So, I started off slow for the first 3-4 miles and felt so good I decided to go for it. I'm glad that I did because I won my age group and made a new friend (Jillian). After the race my coach was pretty confident I would qualify for Boston at Cleveland.

Flapjack 15K - A little speed work the week before Cleveland, this race is down in the Valley on the Towpath so it is flat and fast. It was pretty competitive also. I barely snagged 3rd in my AG! I think we celebrated this race with a visit to Ray's Place after. Love that place!

Cleveland Marathon - We had perfect weather this year and a terrific new course and I was on pace to BQ until about mile 22 where I cramped up and lost my opportunity. I did however manage to have a PR and got to celebrate my husband's first BQ with him. We had a great time hanging with our friends Jillian and Bryan and ate the most delicious burgers ever at Luxe and they had Bodhi on tap. Complete post race bliss!

Blossomtime Run - This was our first time running this race in downtown Chagrin Falls and it definitely will not be our last! Loved this race. Starts and ends downtown and is a challenging 5.25 mile course. With this being a week post marathon I wasn't as fast as could but I managed to place in my AG and got to see many of my Cleveland Tri Club friends as well as some of my Team in Training friends as well.

Twinsburg Duathlon Relay - I had a blast racing the relay this year. My friend Laurie was not able to run due to a stress fracture so we paired up and she did the bike and I ran. We ended up placing in the relay and it was fun just to watch the competition at this one. This may be thee most competitive duathlon in Cleveland and the race director Mickey is my pal!

Girls With Sole Lula 5 Miler - I just love Liz Ferro. She is such a great person. I was happy to run this race to support her. It ended up being a soggy, rainy day but I almost think that made me run faster. I ended up setting a new PR and winning my age group, got the most adorable custom made trophy ever and had brunch afterwards at Sweet Melissa with my friend Jillian.

Rev3 Williamsburg 70.3 Tri - I just love this race and with the improved swim course this year going with the current and the updated run course with much of it on trails I was in heaven. I set a new PR and managed to place 3rd in my AG. I had a blast hanging out with my Rev3 teammates and made some new friends.

Milton Man Olympic Tri - This is one of my favorite local triathlons and I try to do this one every year because Greg and Julie from Champ racing are the coolest! The weather pre race was bad but fortunately it cleared up and we had good conditions albeit some wet roads on the bike course. I ended up setting a new olympic PR and winning my AG so it was a good race. After the race we got to visit Ray's Place and we met up with our friends Bill & Lynn, Tony & Nate.

Bay Days 5 Miler - Running in July you know it will be a hot race. This one is flat and fast. and competitive as I wasn't even able to place in my AG! The hubby did manage to place though! Afterwards we enjoyed a post race ride with some of CTC and Snakebite Racing friends and then headed over to Fatheads for some amazing beer and food!

Johnnycake 5 Miler - Another hot July race! This one in our backyard and also competitive. I was a little slower but I think the humidity zapped me. Was able to snag 3rd in my AG as was my friend Jillian. The hubby won his AG as well so after the race we went to Burgers & Beer in Willoughby for some food & beer.

Challenge New Albany 70.3 Tri - Loved this course! The swim was mellow, rollers for the bike and it was tougher than I expected and it was a scenic, hot run. Manged to PR and place 3rd in my AG despite some GI issues. I had forgotten my salt tabs and ended up drinking gatorade, which did not agree. Fortunately was able to work through it. After the race we got to hang with my teammate Maggs and checked out a restaurant called The Goat, which had good, hoppy beer!

Rev3 Cedar Point 140.6 Tri - This was my first full and it was humbling! I had quite an emotional week with my baby brother's accident. My main goal was just to finish but of course I had "ideas" about what my time should be. With a turbulent swim those goals quickly evaporated and I went into survivor mode. My bike time was not what I had wanted either as I bonked from lack of nutrition and over-exertion on the swim. My run was decent and I was happy with my effort there. I was so thankful to have my Rev3 teammates and Cleveland Triathlon Club friends and of course Steve there to cheer me on. Although this was a tough one I am proud of myself for sticking it out on a tough day. This race definitely taught me that attitude is everything and an iron distance race is just as much mental as it is physical.

Lakeland Clocktower 5K - For about 3-4 weeks after the 140.6 I just felt sluggish and slow but I wanted to see if the legs had anything in them so why nor run a 5K? I surprised myself with this one by running a new PR of 21:17 and taking 2nd place. Steve also PR'd by about a minute so it is nice to see that the longer stuff does not necessarily slow you down and that you can in fact convert endurance into speed.

Lake Health Northern OH Half Marathon - This was a toughie. With having bronchitis I pushed myself to the limit to try and PR. I ended up with a 1:40 and change so no PR but it was a PR for the course and I won my age group despite feeling miserable for the rest of the day. Lesson learned here is to know when to back off. I should have ran this easier as a training run or just sat it out. It was nice that a group of my friends were there and all did well and PR'd including my hubby.

Buckeye Half Marathon - Only ended up doing 1 loop of the 2 due to lingering bronchitis and foot pain. They can't all be wonderful, right? On to the next one!

Autumn Leaves 5 Mile XC Race - I love this race! It is a tough one too. Guaranteed to be muddy and slippery, part trail, part pasture, part pavement, part corn maize. This one is not a boring race and it is challenging. I was a bit slower than last yr but the course was harder. Placed 2nd in my AG and won a sweet pint glass that was filled later with some delicious beer!

Salt Fork 10 Mile Trail Challenge - When the words "trail" and "challenge" are in the race name you can expect it will in fact be a challenge. I fell very early in the race but luckily caught myself and got back up quick. I gave it all I had and definitely labored towards the end for a 2nd place AG win which got me a very cool cutting board. That combined with my "Built salt fork tough" hoodie and pint glass were probably the best swag I got this year! We also purchased a growler which we promptly filled after we got home but first we had to attend my cousin Michael's funeral.

Painesville Turkey Trot 5K - Crappy, cold, snowy, slippery weather conditions for a road race... Good thing it was a short race! Steve and I both managed to win our age groups and for that we won pumpkin pies and some sweet insulated travel mugs.

NERC Interclub Relay at Westwoods - Ending the season with a relay sounded more fun than another serious race so I put together a co-ed team "Blood, Sweat and Beers" with my friend Jillian, husband Steve and myself. The race consists of an 8, 5 and 3-mile leg. Steve ran the 8, I ran the 5 and Jillian ran the 3. It was a tough course! I definitely worked hard and still came in slower than I anticipated. Fortunately Steve and Jillian both did great and we placed 2nd in the co-ed division. It was a fun way to end the year.

Special thanks to my 2014 sponsors!!!

• Revolution 3 Triathlon (now Challenge Triathlon)
• Powerbar
• SBR Sports (Tr-swim, Tri-slide and Foggies)
• Blueseventy
• Pearl Izumi
• Waves Gear
• Polar Bottle
• Enduropacks

Now it's onto 2015! Just putting the finishing touches on the race calendar and will posting that in the next week or two. Already busy training for the first race of the year, which is the Run for Regis trail half marathon. My original plan was to do the 50K but decided to run the Green Jewel 50K instead!1

Challenge New Albany 70.3 Race Report - Edited!

I'm feeling good about my performance at Challenge New Albany last weekend. It could have went better if I had not made some silly mistakes and suffered from some significant GI issues during the run. Staying focused on my goal of going for a PR helped me push through on a tough day. I was able to walk away knowing that I did my best for that day, I am improving even when I get in my own way and I was able to enjoy the experience of the race. This was my 5th half iron distance race and I really am starting to enjoy racing the 70.3 distance. While this will be my last 70.3 this season I will definitely be excited to take on some more next season!

Prerace:

Steve and I had packed up a lot of our stuff already and just had a couple things left to do including taking our bikes out for a little 30-minute test ride followed by a short transition run and then pack up our cooler, put on the bike rack, etc. We were packed up and ready to head out for the race expo by 10 after a quick stop at Pulp to get some road trip smoothies.

At the expo with Rev3 teammate Maggs

We hit a little traffic heading into Columbus but were on schedule to meet my teammate Maggs at the expo at 1:00. After picking up our race bags we took advantage of the complimentary chiropractic services. I had tore up my shoulders last week from the combo of higher swim mileage and attending yoga class after not doing it for a while. The Dr. really helped stretch things out and I felt some instant relief.

After that we headed over to Alum Creek where the swim start would be to check in our bikes. The wind was getting pretty intense and it was clear a storm was rolling in. Fortunately we were checked into our hotel at the Courtyard Marriott New Albany before things got nasty.

Steve and I after racking our bikes at T1

We headed out for a relaxing prerace dinner at The Rusty Bucket and it was perfect as the restaurant was literally right by the race finish! We enjoyed a tasty dinner then headed over to the finish to check it out. After that it was back to the hotel for a little reading, snacking and bedtime around 10. Unfortunately I tossed and turned for a couple of hours so didn't have the greatest night of sleep but I slept well the week leading up to the race.

Race Morning:

It was an early start to the morning with the wake up call at 3:45am. Our plan was to be on the way to New Albany High School where T2 and the shuttles would be by 4:30. We were on schedule and arrived at the High School around 4:40 to drop off our T2 stuff. The only downside here was it was still dark, which made it difficult to find our spots in the TA. We ran into Maggs and took a quick team pic and then off to the shuttle it was. The shuttles were actually school buses, which made for a bumpy 30-minute ride to Alum Creek.

Prerace Rev3 girls!

We arrived to Alum Creek around 5:40 and had ample time to setup our T1 stuff, use the restroom and get a swim warmup in.

The Swim - 1.2 Miles - 

The water was very calm on race morning, which was nice. The swim was a run in from the beach and it was shallow for a minute or two so I did a long run in and a couple dolphin dives and waited for the crowd to thin out a little before settling into a freestyle. We had to swim out to the right for a short distance before turning around a couple of square buoys and then it was pretty much a straight shot down with the buoys on our left until we reached the square buoys at the opposite end and then after turning around the remaining buoys were on the right. I enjoyed the swim for the most part except the section where the sun was blinding us. I was able to stay calm even when I ran into someone's feet with my head. I think I could have been at least a few minutes faster here but I am not very aggressive with my swim. I tend to move out of the way when people are passing or bump me as I like to position myself away from others. I know this is inefficient so as I build my swim confidence I need to get more comfortable with swimming in a pack. My time of 42:29 was not a PR but a decent time for me. My goal for next season is to get that number down to
somewhere in the high 30s.

T1 -

I had an unncessarily long T1. I don't know how but I went to the wrong spot in transition and then was just confused until a friend saw me and said hey aren't you close to me on the rack. Between that and being slow to get the wetsuit off, etc I lost a minute or two. I can do better than a 4:26 T1!

The Bike: 56 Miles - 

The bike course was nice overall but more challenging than I expected. According to the race elevation map there was only supposed to be about 1,000 ft of gain so I thought it would be a pretty flat course. According to Garmin data the gain was actually 1545 although it still felt like more to me. The beginning 10 miles or so were flat and fast but from mile 12-48 or so there were a good amount of rollers including a couple good climbs. I was definitely in my small ring more than I anticipated.  I was not super happy with my time of 3:00 flat, which is slower than my average 2:55 or so. This brought my average pace down to 18.67 versus my normal 19.1 or 19.2 for a half distance. There was also a fair amount of wind during some of the hilly sections so the resistance was a bit intense in some sections. Up and into the wind is not fun. Overall I enjoyed the bike but was ready to get on with the run! My goal for next season for the bike will be to get faster. I'd like to average 19.5-20+ mph for this distance.

T2 - 

T2 went pretty smooth but still a little long at 1:51.

The Run: 13.1 Miles - 

I felt strong starting the run. My first few miles were between 8:15-8:25, which is a nice pace for me in this event. Unfortunately around mile 4 I started to feel some GI troubles as well as some hot spots on my feet. I had done two stupid things here (forgot my personal stash of salt tabs and so had to take in Gatorade at the aid stations for the electrolytes and wore a new pair of socks). Needless to say I paid for these mistakes. By Mile 6 I had to stop and relieve myself in the porta potty. I lost a good 2-3 minutes here at least but it made the rest of my run more tolerable. I then stopped about a mile later to remove my socks and just ran sockless. By then I had a couple of blisters but it actually felt better without the socks.

I almost threw up a couple of times from the Gatorade but was able to slow down a little and continue on. The run was actually at least .4-.5 mile long as the oly course was actually 6.75 versus 6.2. My split time of 1:58:56 was okay but I had hoped for lower 1:50s. If I deduct the time I lost from the potty break and sock issue I may have been around 1:54 or 1:55 which would have been better. I think my actual split would be better if the course was accurate I would have been at 1:54 or 1:55 and with the adjustments I should have been close to my goal pace of 1:50-1:52. The last couple of miles I felt strong and I was pumped for the finish. My teammate Maggs was able to get a nice finisher shot of me bringing it home. My goal for next season will be to get that run time down. I'll be shooting to break 1:50.

Finish & Post Race - 

Sprinting to the finish!

I finished in 5:47:41, about 2.5 minutes faster than Rev3 Williamsburg so I managed a little PR despite a tough day. I finished 3rd in the 35-39 AG and 11th female. I'm not unhappy with my progress I just should have done better. I think based on my fitness now I should have been closer to a 5:40. My goal for next season will be along those lines somewhere between 5:30-5:40.

Maggs and Steve were waiting for me at the Finish and it was nice to be able to enjoy a post race IPA with them. After we got our gear we headed out for a post race meal at a place in New Albany called The Goat. After that it was time to hit the road and head back to Cleveland.

Post race with Maggs!

Overall I think that Challenge and HFP Racing, who managed the race did a nice job with the inaugural race. There are a few things that need to be improved for next year but it sounds like from their post race email that they are already addressing those things. I would definitely consider doing this one again based on how close it is to home and how well it fit into my training schedule. It was nice to see so many Cleveland Tri Club folks representing at the race as well!

Thanks to my sponsors: Rev3 Triathlon, Powerbar, Pearl Izumi, SBR Sports and Blue Seventy for helping me succeed in another 70.3 race!

Celebrating another 70.3 with a hoppy beer! Mmm!

2014 Rev3 Williamsburg 70.3 Race Report - Two Out of Three Ain't Bad

My first triathlon of the 2014 season is officially in the books and it was a success despite some challenges. I was pumped to make my first tri of the season a destination race in beautiful Williamsburg, Virginia with my awesome Rev3 Triathlon Team! Last year Steve and I had done the inaugural olympic distance race and both enjoyed it so we were both looking forward to racing the half distance this time around.

Prerace:

setting up my bike for her maiden voyage!

Last year we had combined our race with a family vacation and the kids loved it so much so we decided to bring them again. We arrived in Williamsburg and checked into our condo on Thursday evening. Friday we spent the day with the family in Virginia Beach. Saturday we did the Rev3 practice swim at Jamestown Beach Park while the kids hung out and then went to the expo to pick up our packets and goodies with the kids. It was nice to see some of the teammates at the practice swim and expo. After packet pick up we dropped the kids off at the condo and headed out to check our bikes in at T1 and then headed out for a prerace beer at the Dog Street Pub. Later that evening we made a big pasta dinner and enjoyed another beer...along with a lot of water. We turned in around 9:30 to get a good night's sleep before the race.

Race Morning:

Prerace with Steve...all smiles!

With the two transititon setup, we knew we had to arrive at T2 (where the finish was) at the Warhill Sports Complex between 5:45-6am. We set the alarm for 4:45 and were dressed, ate breakfast and out the door by 5:30. We arrived at T2 around 5:45 to setup our running stuff. We ran into some of my teammates and got to sit by each other on the shuttle bus to the swim start and T1 located at Jamestown Beach Park. The shuttle ride took about 15-20 minutes so we arrived around 6:30 to set up our T1 area and get the bike all ready with drinks and fuel, helmet, shoes, etc and then hit the restroom before walking down to the swim start, which was about 1/4 mile walk. Steve's wave was first starting at 7:05 so I gave him a kiss and wished him goodluck and then hung out with my teammates Meghan and Laura until our wave (women under 40) started about 20 minutes later.

The Swim (1.2 Miles):

Race officials had already announced the day before that with the water temperature being 80 degrees wetsuits were not legal. Rev3 still allowed a final wave of those athletes wishing to use their wetsuits but I opted not to use mine as if would make me ineligible for any awards. I had practiced the day before without it and knew I would be okay swimming with the current so I just lined up in my tri kit with my cap and googles and my trusty noseplugs.

The start was very relaxed as the water was shallow for a while - maybe as much as 400 meters was shallow enough to run so many of us did just that and saved the arms. I dophin dived a couple times just to get used to the water but this relaxed approach really helped keep my heart rate down and when I did start to freestyle I felt relaxed and ready. I freestyled the majority of the swim and felt great and I did use my breaststroke at times to sight around buoys or just to give my arms a break. I was able to stay calm and even somewhat on course despite the counter clockwise swim. The swim seemed to go faster than usual and I actually enjoyed the experience more than most of my prior races. My time of 40:51 was actually pretty good for me in the open water so I was happy with this leg of the race and was at 8/14 in my division after this leg.

T1:

My T1 was long for a few reasons: first we all had to run the 1/4 mile back to T1. Second, I stopped to use the restroom and then third I struggled to get my transition bag into the swim to bike dry bags that were provided to get our T1 stuff back to the finish. In hindsight I should have just put my # on the transition bag as well as the plastic bag provided. I took in a Powerbar energy blend just before the bike and was off through the trails leading out of the park to the road. My T1 time was 6+ minutes versus the 3-4 minutes most people had so I definitely could have shaved off a couple minutes from my time here.

The Bike (56 Miles):

First race with the new QR was a success!

This was my first race on the new Quintana Roo tri bike so I was even more excited than usual to race this leg, which is often my favorite part of the race. There's nothing like flying on your bike to make you feel alive! The bike course started out flat and fast for the first 20 miles or so. I felt great and made sure to hydrate as it was already getting warm. I did my first fuel around an hour, which was one of the new Powerbar chocolate wafers. I just love those! I hit an aid station and refilled my aero drink as I was out of water.

Right around 20-25 miles it started to get more hilly as we traveled on 60. That stretch of rollers on the highway seemed to go on for miles and miles. Slowly climb and pass people and then hammer the downhills. There was a turn around on the course around mile 40 with some good climbs coming back and there was a bumpy section where my straw for my aero drink went flying. I just left it because we were starting a climb. There was one big hill that I recall but most were just rollers and then things started to flatten back out as we approached the Warhill Sports Complex.

Overall I loved the bike. It was more challenging than I expected from racing the olympic last year but it kept things interesting. My goal was to average 19-20mph and I ended up with a 2:55 or average of 19.2 mph. This moved me up to 6/14 in my division.

T2:

T2 was pretty straight forward but slow at 2:56. After changing into running gear and downing a Powerbar energy blend I think I just casually strolled through the transition area to start the run so again this could have been a minute or two faster for sure. Guess I will have to work on this is my shorter races especially where every minute is precious!

The Run (13.1 miles):

The run was definitely challenging but I also loved the course. It was hot and humid and the 4-loop course was about 2.25 miles of wooded trail with some nice hills with a mile of ashphalt paved trail. It was more shaded on the trail but definitely not as fast going as the asphalt part of the trail. This definitely slowed things down on the run for a lot of people. I know for me personally I am usually 30 seconds to a minute slower per mile in trail running than road running. That coupled with the heat and fatigue and my run just not really being there for me left me with a slower than anticipated run time of 2:05 versus my last 70.3 run, which was 1:54. Not happy with the 9:30 pace as it is nowhere near my running ability for a half marathon, which is normally 1:39-1:45 on a decent day.  After the run I finished 3/14 in my division.

The Finish:

Happy to finish 3rd in my AG with some fast ladies!

I was pumped for the last loop of the run - especially that last mile on the asphalt where I knew I was almost there! I felt strong through the finish and the people cheering including Steve pumped me up and I sprinted past a woman in front of me at the finish to grab 3rd in the 35-39 age group. If I didn't I would have been 4th so thank god for my ability to kick at the end. My final time of 5:50:32 was not a huge PR but still a PR by 2 minutes and I was happy to end up on the podium at one of my team races.

Considering my running season has been going so well this year I find it a little disappointing that my run failed me Sunday but I did the best that I could do and at least two of my sports went well!

Post Race:

My sweet dual medal!

Steve had a huge PR of 30 minutes, finishing in 5:07 so I was really excited for him. We hung around with the team and had some food and a couple IPAs and picked up my award. The age group medals clip on to the finisher medals and make one bigger, cooler medal. We headed back to the condo to shower and take the kids out to eat for Father's Day.

Later I went out with the team for another drink to celebrate. It was an absolute blast and I am so glad to be able to race and celebrate with people that are just so easy and fun to be around. I just love them! Kudos to Rev3 for another fabulous event and looking forward to doing my first full with them this year at Cedar Point! Being on the team is awesome and we are so lucky to have great sponsors like Powerbar, Pearl Izumi, Quintana Roo, Blueseventy, etc.

post race drinks with my teammates!

Next up is Champ Racing's Milton Man Olympic Tri in 12 days and I'm excited to see how hard I can push the intensity there given it's a shorter distance!

Looking Ahead - the 2014 Season Schedule & Plan

After a successful 2013 season, I am super excited to build on my success and grow as an athlete in 2014. My plan is to be more strategic in 2014 so my spring build will be a little more conservative than last season and my big goal for the season is to complete my first 140.6 distance triathlon at the Rev3 Cedar Point! I am debating being coached again for the full distance this season. I am in talks with a few different coaches. I may also self coach so stay tuned for details.

Once again I am excited to represent the Rev3 Triathlon Age Group Team and will be planning a number of their races as well as some local running and multi-sport races.

My *tentative race calendar is as follows:

2/9/14 - Dirty Love Trail 10K - Willoughby Hills, OH

3/15/14 - St Malachi 5 Miler - Cleveland, OH - maybe

3/30/14 - Fools 25K Trail - Peninsula, OH

4/13/14 - 20 Mile Drop - Mentor, OH

5/10/14 - Nordonia Sprint Duathlon - Nordonia, OH - maybe

5/18/14 - Cleveland Marathon - Cleveland, OH

6/1/14 - Twinsburg Sprint Duathlon - Twinsburg, OH - maybe

6/15/14 - Rev3 Williamsburg 70.3 Half Triathlon - Williamsburg, VA

6/29/14 - Milton Man Sprint or Olympic Triathlon - Lake Milton, OH

7/27/14 - Fairport Harbor Sprint Triathlon - Fairport Harbor, OH

8/3/14 - Rev3 Morgantown Olympic Triathlon - Morgantown, WV - maybe

8/17/14 - Machinehead Sprint or Oly Triathlon - Ravenna, OH

9/7/14 - Rev3 Cedar Point 140.6 Full Triathlon - Sandusky, OH

Races below TBD based on recovery after the 140.6***

9/28/14 - Believe & Achieve 5K Trail - Kirtland, OH

10/12/14 - Northern OH Marathon or Half Marathon - Fairport Harbor OH

10/18/14 - Quick & Dirty 8K Trail - Kirtland, OH

11/2/14 - Autumn Leaves 5 Miler - Kirtland, OH

11/?/14 - Twinsburg Turkey Trot 5 Miler - Twinsburg, OH

12/?/14 - Ohio Outside Trail Race #3 - Munroe Falls, OH

*race calendars are always tentative pending fitness level, injuries, family conflicts etc.

My Plan & Upgrades:

My old running coach (and good friend) Peter and I have been working together a lot to plan the season and in his view there is no such thing as the "off season" because at all times I must retain at least a base level of fitness. So, right now I am "conditioning"  for the 2014 season.

I purchased a new Quintana Roo bike and have been enjoying riding it (albeit inside on my bike trainer). My running is going well and I have just one more 5 mile trail race left in 2 weeks. I am planning to start masters swimming with Liquid N'durance within the next four weeks to get to work on my mediocre swim. In addition I will be purchasing a new sleeveless Blueseventy wetsuit, which should help with race performance.

I also plan to upgrade my garmin this season to make it easier to track my workouts in all three sports. Finally, I will stay actively engaged in yoga as this has helped me tremendously with my strength and flexibility.

More details on the season to come soon but I am very excited about where I am now and where I want to go this season!

2013 Fairport Harbor Triathlon Race Report

The Fairport Harbor Triathlon is a local sprint race close to home. They do a nice job with this race and the cost is crazy cheap $20-30 depending on when you sign up. Not the mention that it is now chip timed and for that small entry they gave away a tech tee and vouchers for free pizzas!

This was the second year that my husband and I raced at Fairport and while I was disappointed to have a slower time this year, with the longer run course and being sick for a couple days before the race that is to be expected. Still it was a decent day out there as the weather held out and I was happy with how I placed. Also, this is my last triathlon in the 30-34 age group as my birthday is right around the corner!

Prerace:

All setup in transition and ready to race!

With this race being 10 minutes from home and not starting until 8am, I was able to sleep in until 6, which is great for a race morning! After the usual routine of shower, coffee, breakfast and loading up the car we left home around 6:45 and arrived at Fairport and parked by 7. We had plenty of time to get our bikes and gear setup in transition and to warm up in the water before the race start. The water was definitely warmer this year than last but I still opted to wear my sleeveless wetsuit.

Swim & T1:

I actually felt pretty relaxed before the swim start. As I mentioned the water temperature was comfortable and I headed towards the front left of the women 34 & under wave. Starting out as usual it took me a couple minutes to settle in to the swim. I'm definitely not a sprint swimmer so I didn't expect to be very fast in a 500m swim. It was hard to see with the sun in my eyes the first 250 of the swim and for such a short swim it seemed to take a while. I was hoping for a time around 10-12 minutes but exiting the water I was disappointed to see 14. I got my wetsuit half way off and there was a good bit of a run ahead before the bike. My transition was 3:44 for a total time of 17:44. Surprisingly I didn't do as bad as I thought placing 5/16 in my ag division here and 41/112 in the female division.

Bike & T2:

The bike was fast and fun - pretty flat but also very windy in some sections by the lake and heading back to the beach. I like the course for the most part except a section where we went through a little park - that just seemed to slow me down. There were also some instances where I had to pass bikers that were riding way left two or three people next to each other. This was annoying but I just yelled and went around them.
There was also a bad bike accident as one of the athletes was hit head on by a cyclist making a wide turn from the opposite direction. This is always sad and scary to see and I hope the athletes are okay!

My goal for the ride was 36 minutes. My bike computer said 36:30 (average just under 20.4 mph) and with T2 at 2:31 ended up at 38:51. I'm not sure why T2 was so slow for me. There is a little bit of a run so that could have added a little bit. My bike split was 2/16 in my ag division and 8/112 in the female division.

Run & Finish:

New hardware for 3rd in 30-34 AG

My run started off a bit sluggish. I was able to power up the hill at the start but my legs didn't seem to be moving as fast as I wanted them to. It probably took me a mile to warm up and then I am sure that I had a negative split. Not much to say about the run. Short and sweet. Not my best run but a decent time of 24:48 (7:59 average pace). My goal was 23-24 minutes so I was a little slower than planned but I'm glad I was able to sneak in a sub 8 run by the skin of my teeth! My run was also 2/16 in my ag division and 10/112 in the female division.

I wasn't super happy at the finish as my time was 5+ minutes slower than last year. At the time I didn't realize the run course was longer by maybe .30. That coupled with a bit of a slower swim and second transition probably made the difference. My finish time was 1:21:22, good for 3rd in my AG division and 10th overall.

Postrace:

Postrace with my awesome hubby and training partner

After the race we chatted with some of our athlete friends and hung around for the awards. Then we headed home for a well-earned lunch and IPA!

Thanks to Team rev3 sponsors Powerbar for the fuel, Pearl Izumi for the kit and shoes and Blueseventy for the googles and SBR Sports Tri-slide!

Rev3 Cedar Point 70.3 Race Report...Love me Some Rev3!

Last Sunday's Rev3 Cedar Point 70.3 triathlon was my biggest race of the 2012 season. I'm happy to say that it went well - in fact better than I expected given the setbacks I have experienced this season! I had planned to attempt the full 140.6 earlier in the season but after suffering a series of injuries to the left foot (see earlier posts), I decided completing the half was more realistic for me this year.

Prerace:

Just arriving at Cedar 

Steve and I were super excited to arrive in Sandusky on Saturday afternoon! We had packed most of our gear Friday night after work and planned to just get moving in the morning, drop my daughter off at a friends and get on the road. The drive went smooth. We arrived at the Rev3 expo around 1:00. We bumped into some teammates including Heather Oravec and her other half Matt in line to have our bikes checked out one last time by Bike Authority's Sean Gilbert. We picked up our bibs and headed over to the timing chip area where we were greeted by teammate Jen Small's smiling face. We also spotted Laura Mount who was hard at work though I did get a quick hug!

Rev3 Teammate Lauren Bogenberger & Me

We got our goodie bags and were greeted by Rev3 owner Charlie Patten and teammate Laura Veeden Wheatley. Then we ran into some of other friends: Laurie, Alex and Collen that were all doing their first 70.3s! On the way to the bike check-in we ran into teammates Jeff Vanis, Ryan Heisler and Heidi Austin. We chatted for a few minutes and got the details of where the team house was so we could meet up for dinner that night. While setting the bike up in my area I bumped into teammate Lauren Bogenberger. Talk about a Team Rev3 presence!

Steve and me checking in our bikes

Following the expo we checked in at the host hotel, which was Hotel Breakers. We could literally see the swim start from our room! We headed over to the grocery store to pick up food and headed over the Rev3 team house and had an awesome dinner and couple beers with the Team. Got to hang out with Ryan, Jeff, Lauren and her beau, Heidi, Tim Andrus and meet Elizabeth Wittmaack Kaplanis and her beau and Anthony Beeson. We headed back to the hotel around 8 and stopped there at the Perkins for some French Silk pie! Mmm, you gotta love the guilt-free carb coma before a big race! We played a little scrabble on the iPad and called it a night around 10. Sleep was off and on as is usually the case before a big race.

Race Morning:

The alarm went off at 6. We got to sleep in a little since Rev3 let the 70.3 racers have until 7:30 to be out of transition. The triathlon gods were again kind to us as we awoke to learn that the normal swim was on and Lake Erie was again very calm for the race as it was last year. That was a relief. We arrived at transition around 7, got setup and headed back to Hotel Breakers to finish getting ready. I had a hard time eating due to nerves but was able to have one multi-grain gluten-free waffle with peanut butter and a good bit of watermelon.

The Swim (1.2 miles):

Our waves started at 8:45am for Steve and 8:50 for me. We headed out to the beach around 8:20 for a swim warm up. The water was nice at just under 75 degrees and wetsuit legal for us age groupers, which was also a good thing! I cheered for Steve as his wave started and headed in with teammate Lauren B for our wave (female 34 and under). Next year I believe I will be in the older wave, which maybe will help me in the swim ranking (one can hope). We started and I took a very relaxed approach of letting the fast swimmers go for it and running in for a bit since the water is shallow for quite a while. Finally diving in, I felt good. The sun was shining, the lake was calm and I actually had a peaceful feeling. The swim was clockwise about 800 meters out, 800 meters over to the right and 400 back to the beach. I felt good but really dragged the last 400. This is likely due to my lack of discipline with swimming late season. Aside from Rev3 Wisconsin olympic, which was 1500m I maybe did two other 1600-1800m swims. Additionally I was slow getting out of the water. This showed in my time of 49:24 versus my time last year of 45:22.

T1:

I was super hungry coming into T1 and a little discombobulated as T1 is always tougher for me than T2. I grabbed a gluten-free cinnamon doughnut, got all my gear ready, grabbed my bike and headed for the bike exit. I figured I would need to make up some time on the bike to compensate for my lackluster performance in the swim. In total T1 was 3:36. A bit lengthy but I just hate getting that wetsuit off!

The Bike (56 miles):

My bike affectionately known as Roxanne

I love the bike course at Cedar Point! For the most part it is flat and fast with a total elevation gain of just 600ft. Race temperatures were comfortable and I felt pretty strong on the bike averaging 19.97 mph for the first 22.5 miles and 18.42 for the back 33.5 (this includes a stop off road to pee as I could not try as I might pee off the bike). Total time according to my bike computer was 2:53 but that didn't factor in my break so my time per Rev3 was 2:56:43 (19.01mph) whereas my computer said I averaged 19.42mph. I enjoyed the ride and all went smooth. I felt more fatigued after mile 40 and especially for the last few miles heading back in. The bike was definitely my favorite and best performing part of the race!

T2:

By T2, I was tired of course and again starving so racked the bike, changed into running gear, grabbed another gluten-free cinnamon doughnut and ate on the way out to start the long run ahead. T2 time was sluggish at 2:59.

The Run (13.1 miles):

What is there to say about the run besides the fact that it hurts to run long after being on one's feet for around 4 hours? Quite honestly I was most afraid of the run, which is often one of my best events. With a lot of off-running time this year due to injury I was afraid I wouldn't make it to the half to begin with. I had gotten in some decent 7 milers and one 9.5 mile run a couple weeks before the race. I was a little worried but hoped if I paced myself slower than I would be okay. The first mile I was busy eating and felt strong and motivated as the spectators were cheering. I again had to pee so I grabbed a quick drink and hit the outhouse. I maybe lost a minute here but nature was calling and this was my only other bathroom break for the race. Around mile 6 I started to feel more fatigue and I ended up running for a few miles with an older triathlete from FL who talked my ear off. This passed the time for a while. I remember hearing cheers from the very awesome Cleveland Triathlon Club. This was a real pick me up as was the guy playing music from the Rocky soundtrack. I am very thankful for all the people who volunteer at the aid stations and who cheer! Another big pick me up was seeing Rev3 owner Charlie and our team mom Sharpie out on the course as well!

By mile 8 I had numerous aches and pains in my left arch and left knee and right calve but just went into the pain cave and stayed steady. I was happy to hit mile 10 and be in the double digits. Mile 11 I thought of my husband and figured he'd be finished by then and the last mile I gave it everything I had as I realized I could maybe break 6 hours! Also I was hungry!

The Finish:

I saw Steve waiting for me about 1/4 mile from the finish and I sprinted my heart out to finish in 6:00:37 - just a little over my goal. I heard the announcer call my name, I received my sweet finisher medal and walked over to Steve for a big hug and a couple tears of disappointment that I didn't break 6. I quickly realized that I had still done my best and still beat 2011's overall time despite numerous setbacks this season. I think my better performance had a lot to do with the support I receive from Steve and Team Rev3 and my friends and family and maybe a little bit of stubbornness!

Thanks to everyone who has been there for me and to all of the sponsors who made this day possible including of course Rev3 themselves, PowerBar who provided much fuel for 6 hours, Pearl Izumi for the kit and shoes, Swiftwick for happy feet, BlueSeventy for the awesome googles and of course Normatec for the recovery boots!

Making a Come Back Again at Fairport Harbor Triathlon

Sunday I raced the Fairport Harbor sprint triathlon. What a great little race! A lot of local talent came out to race and/or work or spectate at the race. I had a blast and was just so thrilled to be able to race again given the ups and downs with my foot. With the ankle sprain a couple weeks ago and only running once before the race last week, I was not sure how the running portion of the race would go. Fortunately it went pretty well.

It was a fun day and my goal was to finish in my age group and top ten females in the race if possible. Reasonable goals given my strength on the bike and assuming my run would be par. The swim I would not count on to get me to where I need to be in the race. If anything it is usually to my detriment and I spend the entire race catching up and passing people.

Pre-race:

Because Fairport Harbor is so close (about 10 minutes away) we went up to ride the course and swim the course Saturday. We also picked up our packets with everything we needed for the race. I think this made Sunday a little easier/smoother. 

As of late I have been getting myself ready to race the night before. This race was no different. Hubby switched out my bike wheels to my race wheels and I cleaned up our bikes since they were a little dirty. We had our bikes and kits and all of our gear ready to go for Sunday morning. We were able to sleep in until almost 6AM, which was a real treat on a triathlon race day! 

Chillen with the hubby pre-race

We woke up, made some multi-grain waffles with peanut butter and nutella, packed up and headed out by 6:45 arriving at the race start around 7. It was pretty packed already. We grabbed our bikes and transition bags and headed to the transition area. Because this wasn't a USAT race, we were able to rack anywhere so the hubby and I racked next to each other a row or two back from the bike out/run out area. We were set up and ready by 7:30 and were able to talk with some of our friends.

The start:

The Kayak triathlons went first. Steve's wave was to start at 8:10 and mine would start at 8:15. We got in the water around 8 and it was cold. Brrr! Neither of us had brought our wetsuits since the swim was just 500 meters but I was wishing I had brought my sleeveless. It was difficult to warm up with the Kayakers and Lake Erie being so shallow in the Harbor so we just got wet and waited. They called for Steve's wave and they started. They called for my wave and I was off.

500M Swim:

Finishing the swim

In true sprint fashion, the start was a complete feeding frenzy. I lined up near the front right but had a difficult time with my stroking and breathing the first few minutes as people settled in. The swim is shallow enough that people can touch so some were walking or running versus swimming and that made it more difficult to get around some folks. After 3-4 minutes I found my breathe and as I rounded the buoy to swim back I was on the left just next to the swim lane markers. I felt much more relaxed swimming the 250 back. Finally I saw the people ahead walking/running out as the water got very shallow. I stood and started running while I took off my swim cap, googles, etc. My Ironman watch said my swim was about 10 minutes but it took me a good minute or two to run out of the water and the transition was long so likely another minute to get to my bike.

T1:

As I said it was a long transition running from the beach up through a parking lot then through a grassy lane into the transition area. I reached my bike and dried off a bit, put on my socks and cycling shoes, sunglasses and aero helmet and grabbed my bike. I was running it out and thinking again that it was a long transition running up the grassy part to reach the bike mounting area. I would estimate at least 2+ minutes in transition here.

12.4 mile Bike:

start of bike course just before the hill!

The bike course is pretty flat and easy. One negative is that there is a hill at the start! It's not very long but sometimes those short, steep ones are tough! I had set my bike into a low gear to make the climb easy. As I mounted and started to pick up speed I was yelling at some of the newbie riders who were not clipped in on racing bikes to get to the right so I could pass. Then I was off. I enjoyed the ride. Some parts more than others. I passed people the entire race. The female who ended up in 9th overall passed me on the bike the last 1/2 mile or so. I felt pretty decent since my average speed was around 20.5 mph for a split of 36. It wasn't my fastest ever effort but not bad considering the winds on the last few miles of the ride back in. On the bike I had fueled with the Powerbar Perform and also took in a chocolate PowerBar gel around the halfway mark.

T2:

T2 was pretty basic. Run the bike in, rack. Switch shoes to my Pearl Izumi Transitions, throw on my Rev3 visor and go! I was probably around a minute here.

5K Run:

The run started with the same hill as the bike so that was a bit challenging but nothing too crazy. I felt strong from the beginning. I passed people the whole race and was just passed by a couple of guys the last mile and one 15-year old female who was 10th Overall with maybe 1/2 mile to go. I liked the course being a loop versus and out and back. I felt it was easier. I was laughing, joking and smiling for the whole run. It was a good feeling. I did not wear my Garmin but based on my IM watch splits I estimate my run at around 24 minutes so likely a 7:45-7:50 pace.

The Finish:

Excited to finish!

I love finishes! Then again who doesn't? This was a fun finish but I was a little nervous since it finished uphill in the grass. I did not want to hurt my ankle AGAIN! I finished in 1:15:36, 11th overall female and 3rd in my age group. Really 2nd after looking at their results since the woman who took 2nd overall was in my age group too. I am pretty happy with the result given where I am with my injury, training, etc. As usual it was nice to have Steve cheering me on as well as some friends throughout the race and finish!

Post race:

Wrapping up awards before the winking lizard with friends

After the race we hung out for the awards then headed over to the Winking Lizard in Mentor with friends for food and beer. That was a lot of fun! I was pretty exhausted after the race and it was a real treat to be able to use the NormaTec MVP compression boots for recovery!

Closing:

Special thanks to the race director, my husband, friends who cheered and/or raced too! And of course to my awesome sponsors: Rev3 Triathlon, PowerBar, Swiftwick, Blueseventy, SBR Sports and Normatec! 

Making a Come Back at Milton Man Triathlon

I'm happy to report that the Milton Man triathlon went well! Despite my foot injury still lingering to some degree I am able to run a little now and even race! This is HUGE progress! On my race schedule I had originally planned to race the olympic distance. I felt with my longest run being 3.9 miles prior to this race that I would be pushing it so I raced the sprint. I have done this race three years consecutively now with the 2010 Milton Man being my first ever triathlon.

Leading up to race day I had some anxiety. I hadn't raced a triathlon yet this season and I hadn't run a road race since April 15. I felt that my bike performance would be decent since I did well in the Twinsburg Duathlon relay and I have been on the bike a good deal this season. I was a little nervous about the swim because I haven't been swimming much lately and certainly not with any focused effort on speed. Mostly I was nervous that my foot would fail me on the run. I didn't want to go through two of the three legs and not be able to finish.

Race Morning:

Half asleep in transition area pre race

Race morning went pretty smooth. We woke up at 4:30am (yuck). Steve was racing the sprint too and we had gotten our bikes, transition bags and kits ready the night before. We also had most of our breakfast stuff ready too and just had to brew a little coffee and load up the gear. We were on the road at 5:15 for the hour and a half trek to Lake Milton. One stop at McDonald's for a second coffee and potty break and we arrived at the race site around 6:45. The first wave was to start around 7:30 for the olympic so we had plenty of time to get set up and talk with some friends and fellow CTC athletes. You can see from the picture of me in transition that I look like and was half asleep still!


750m Swim:


I did a few minutes of easy swimming to warm up. The lake water was very warm so many people including myself went without a wetsuit. Steve's wave started about 5 minutes before mine. I did not feel nervous at the swim start. I was in the water and ready to go. I felt fine at the start and fine throughout. If anything I was too relaxed. I never really pushed the pace on the swim as I didn't want to waste energy that I felt I would need for the bike and run. My swim time here was slower than the two previous years at 19:51 versus 18:25 in 2011 and 17:42 in 2010. Yikes, I ranked 32 of 37. In 2010 I ranked 7/25. I remember coming into transition and thinking uh-oh most of the bikes are gone! This hurts my chances at placing. I will need to do a little work on the swim! I expect to be much stronger next season since my in-ground pool will  be open early and I will place a stronger effort on the swim.


T1:


I was a little slow coming out of the water and to be honest that could be reflected in my swim time. Once I hit the rack I dried off for a few seconds, pulled on my socks and shoes, threw on my sunglasses and aero helmet and took off. All in all T1 was 1:29 (18/37).

16 Mile Bike:

I feel like my bike start was a little sluggish. I was behind someone and didn't want to zip around them with the winding in the park. In hindsight I should have. I felt very strong on the first 8 mile loop. The course is pretty flat but has a couple rollers. I think the heat was getting to me a little and I felt tired approaching halfway through the second loop. I'm not sure why outside of the heat and nutrition I felt fatigued. Luckily I had a PowerBar chocolate gel with me which I took around mile 12. That helped! I was excited as I knew I hit the last mile. I had passed a lot of people on the bike but had no sense of where I was in terms of ranking.  I rolled into the transition area and thought whoa there are hardly any bikes here I must have done decent. My bike split was 46:29 for 16 miles so I averaged 20.7mph. Not quite as fast as I had hoped as I was shooting for 21-22 but not too shabby. I ranked 8/37.

T2:

Not much to say about T2. In and out in 56.4 seconds. Rack the bike, change into Pearl Izumi running shoes, which I love! Throw on hat and go!  T2 rank was 17/37.

5K Run:


Normally the run is my favorite part but being injured I was dreading this part of the race. My foot has been better but not 100%. My last run had been on a trail the Sunday before at Girdled Rd Reservation. I had run 3.9 miles, my longest in months. To race a 5K was not looking too promising. At the start of the run I felt hot, fatigued and my foot was achy and I thought maybe I should just throw in the towel. But I also knew that it takes my foot around 5 minutes or so to warm up to run and I just told myself to give it a try. I thought of Ruby and how much she loved to run and I ran. Slow at first. I felt like I was running in slow motion. A  jog really. But a few minutes later that jog turned into a run and I found my rhythm and kept going. It was so hot on the run course so I stopped for water to drink and throw on myself. The course was an out and back so at the halfway point I just wanted to stay steady and finish the race strong. I wanted to break 25 and I did with a 24:48 (flat 8 minute pace). Not bad for a non-running runner. I ranked 7/37.

The Finish:

Steve and I all smiles after the race!

The finish was sweet. Steve was standing there screaming for me. I love that he cares so much about how I do! I came in at 1:33:36, 2 minutes and 10 seconds faster than last year! I had a new PR for the course, finished 9th overall and kept 1st in my age group again this year! All in all it was a great race. Steve had a great race also finishing 8th overall, 1st in his age group and PR'd his time by more than 4 minutes!

holding on to my beloved Kestrel after the race

Once again I was really impressed with how my Kestrel handled and used my Gray 5.0 wheelset.


Closing:


As always I would like to thank my sponsors: Revolution3 Triathlon for the awesome kit, PowerBar for the fuel (used PowerBar chocolate gel and PowerBar Perform drink), Pearl Izumi for the kit, cycling and running shoes used the Tri Fly shoes and Transition running shoes, Swiftwick for the socks and Blueseventy for the googles. Using good gear and having good nutrition definitely helps with performance! I would also like to thank my husband for all of his love and support, my coach for his help and my friends and Rev3 teammates for all the encouraging words before and after the race!

This new bling is joining the McGowan family collection!

These are the trophies they gave to age group winners, pretty cool!