I must apologize for the long-winded recap of my pre-race
training and race day experience. Hopefully, it will help me and fellow amateur
triathletes better prepare for future races.
Two weeks prior to my first attempt at a tri, I had a strong
and promising week of training. While I had skimped on the biking, I hit
running and swimming pretty hard. Instead of a detailed recap, here’s a quick
summary of the week:
Monday: First
(ever) open water swim
Tuesday: Morning Barre Class
+ evening track workout
Wednesday: Morning run + evening
Master’s Swim Class
Thursday: Fast Tempo Run
Friday: Morning run +
evening 1 mile continuous swim
Saturday: 15 mile run with
crazy head wind
Sunday: Second open water
swim and 4 mile run
It was a great week and Will made us this awesome dinner on
Sunday. Why? Because he loves me and because we both knew I had a rough week
ahead.
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| Macaroni and cheese with sauteed brussel sprouts and carrots |
The following week (prior to the tri) started out okay, but
went downhill FAST. Brief recap:
Monday: 10
hour work day + 7 mile run
Tuesday: 10 hour work day + track workout
Wednesday: 13 hour work day – no workout
Thursday: 3 mile run + 14 hour
workday
Friday: 4 mile run + 14
hour workday
I should clarify that
my work days were spent standing in the field in either a flame retardant jump
suit or in 90+ degree weather (no shade).
To top it off I was also wearing steel toed work boots and a hard hat…safety
first!
 |
| It may have been hot, but at least I had a great view while I worked. |
After the excessively long work week, I really wanted to go
home and relax…but instead, I had my first triathlon EVER ahead of me. So I
drove the 1+ hour drive from Morgan Hill back to home, loaded the car quickly
(hoping I had everything I needed in my pre-packed race bag) and rode with Will
and Colt (our dog) up to Monte Rio. Fortunately, Rachel and Travers are super
understanding and did not seem too annoyed with us for showing up at 11 pm.
Thanks to Rachel, we stayed at a prime location for the
event. We had a nice private deck area, an outdoor kitchen and fire place and
private access to the Russian River. The best part was that we were only about
2 to 3 blocks from the packet pickup/expo/transition area/race start!
The only downside to our location was that I could not
escape the race; there was no pretending that this was just a relaxing weekend
with great friends.
Monte Rio is a beautiful little town with super laid back
and friendly people. Saturday morning (the morning before the race), we had
breakfast at this local (dog-friendly J) place
with outdoor seating that had an outdoor cooktop/grill/hot rod and dog
park…awesome! Our breakfasts were buttery and delicious! So good, in fact, that
Will wanted to stay until he became hungry again (he made the mistake of facing
the grill and watched the chef make a ginormous breakfast burrito). Will even
joked about ordering a breakfast burrito to put in his bike cage instead of
water :p.
After breakfast, Rachel and I took our bikes out to see how
they rode and to make sure no pre-race adjustments were needed. We went for a
relatively slow two-mile ride from the resort and then turned back. My legs
were TIRED and sore from the crazy work week of standing in the sun for hours
on end; this was NOT how I wanted to feel the day before our race. So when
Rachel asked me if I was ready to turn back, I was all over the suggestion. So
we were about a quarter of a mile into our ride back to the resort when I got a
flat. I took off the tire and tube and tried to put a new tube on (tried is the
key word here). Meanwhile, Rachel had made it back to the resort before she
realized I wasn’t with her. She doubled back to help and we struggled with the
tire for a while before a friendly biker stopped to help us (this was not the
first time we have needed help from fellow cyclists). My bike computer clocked
the tire change at 29+ minutes, and that’s when I told myself that I would just
bail out of the race if I got a flat in the middle of the bike.
I was super discouraged by the way that my legs felt and the
failed tube change (I pinched the tube and Will had to re-do it for me), so I
decided a short shake out run might help.
In preparing for my run, I realized that I had misplaced my Garmin and I
began to panic. I have never felt more unprepared mentally, physically and emotionally
for a race in my life. After searching for 20 to 30 minutes, I was totally
relieved to find my watch (in a bag that I am sure I checked 5 times). So I set
out for a short 1.5 mile shake out run. I felt much better when I got back,
showered quickly and then we headed out to the Sonoma coast for lunch.
We had lunch in Jenner - it was so beautiful with cool
temperatures that it almost made me forget about the race ahead.
After lunch, it was time to get serious about the tri. The
four of us headed over to the check-in and expo to pick up our race packets.
Unsure of how secure the facilities would be, we planned on making two trips,
the first to get our packets and the second to set up our bikes. After our second trip over, we walked down to
the swim start and transition area. Initially the transition path followed
along a rough road that turned into a finely-graded sand with angular gravel
(A.K.A. bad news for the feet). Rachel and Travers waded in the water while
Will and I scoped out the surroundings.
All I kept thinking was how on earth am I going to make it up to the
bike transition without shoes?
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| Swim entry, exit and transition. |
After a few minutes we headed back to the resort to relax by
the river before dinner. On our way back, I made the best 7 dollar investment
ever …on a cheap pair of sunglasses (since I had forgotten mine in the Friday
night frenzy). Hanging out by the river was great! We saw a river otter
snacking on crayfish and then we saw race officials set up the buoys for the
upcoming event. The start line had been moved closer to where we were staying
due to shallow river waters (in fact the start buoy was right behind the
resort).
The rest of the day flew by and (thankfully) I passed out
early.
RACE DAY
I was up and moving just before 6 AM. I took Colt out to do
his thing while I assessed the weather conditions. When I came in, I ate a
bagel with peanut butter with a banana and washed it down with as much water as
I could. Rachel was up with me eating a bowl of lucky charms while Travers was
just getting up and Will was trying to get as much rest as possible. Then we started packing our gear and planning
out our nutrition for the bike and run.
We decided we should go to the
transition area to set up our gear and then come back to put on our wetsuits
before the race start. Before we left, Rachel gave me some helpful tips about
undoing the Velcro on my bike shoes and loosening up my laces to minimize my
transition time. She also added that since this was my first tri I should try
to have fun and not stress about the transition. I let her words sink in and started to feel a
little bit better and then kept telling myself not to panic during the swim.
With my gear lined up under my rear bike tire in the order
in which I would need them, I was ready to go back and put on my wetsuit. I
should mention that “my” gear included a pair of my husband’s (Will’s) running
socks and the pair of sunglasses I bought the day before.
Thanks to Will, my mindset took a turn for the positive when
we were putting on our wetsuits. As I
stood struggling to pull my wetsuit up over my legs without tearing it, Will
sat on the futon and casually pulled his up to his knees before he realized he
was still wearing basketball shorts over his jammers. We all got a good laugh out of his self-proclaimed
“rookie mistake.” I tried to body glide every body part that might potentially
chaff and lathered on sunscreen before pulling up my wetsuit.
Finally, we were ready to head over to the race start. The
guys (Will and Travers) went straight to the start line. Rachel and I went to
the transition area to drop off last minute additions to our gear. We slowly
walked down to the start of the swim. As
we walked I adjusted my goggle straps and tried them on- they were dirty and
foggy. I frantically tried to wipe them clean as we traversed the unfriendly
terrain. We were about 2/3 of the way there, when we decided that we would be
much better off if we used sandals in the transition, so we turned back and
grabbed our sandals and headed back to the start. We left our sandals at the
very end of the carpeted section and walked along the carpeted aisle to the
start. By that time, the race officials had directed the purple caps (i.e. under
34 year old men) to walk over the mat and through the water to the start line. We
were told to wait on shore until we were directed into the water. Meanwhile there were several green caps (a.k.a.
men from the wave behind us) warming up in the water…frustrating.
At the direction of the race officials, we made our way over
the mat and through the shallow water toward the starting line. At this point
even the rocks on the river bottom were hurting my feet and to my surprise I
was looking forward to the swim. Rachel went to the front of the line with the
other strong swimmers and I was content to hang back. The race official started
us off with a verbal countdown from 5 to 1, and the race began.
At first I felt okay in the water. It takes me a while to
warm up so I knew the first section of the swim would be slow going. I tried to
relax as much as possible but as the orange caps around me swam closer to me,
passed me or collided with me I began to panic. It seemed like it took me
forever to get to buoys one, two and three, but eventually I began to relax and
feel more comfortable in the water. To my surprise, I was still swimming near
other swimmers in my age group. I had expected everyone to pass me early on in
the race. Somewhere around buoy 9 the water was too shallow to swim and we all
had to walk until it deepened. I grew confident at this point that I would
actually finish the swim as buoy 10 was just a little further. As I passed buoy
10, I heard someone say “how many buoys are there?” I looked ahead and realized
that the swimmers were not turning around, instead they were continuing onward.
Thus, I experienced panic attack number 2 compounded by the aggressive green
caps that were determined to swim through whatever or whoever was in their way.
Finally I reached three buoys in a row indicating the turn-around. At that
point I said to myself, “Okay, you are half way there; just get through this
and get out of the water and on your bike.”
Now that I was officially warmed up, the way back seemed to
go by a lot faster than the way out. There were a couple of shallow points
where I was forced to wade through the water on the way back to the transition;
however none were as long or as arduous as the stretch between the starting
line and the transition mat at the water’s edge. That stretch really took a lot out of my legs
and I was worried that it would take away from the bike and the run.
Finally, I was out of the water and running along the
carpeted aisle to my sandals. I slipped them on and tried my best to smile and
wave at the spectators nearby. I ran up the hill towards the bikes when one of
my sandals fell off. I bent down picked it up and saw a fellow (male)
triathlete next to me struggling over the rocks. Inspired by his determination,
I carried my sandal instead of putting it back on (half because I didn’t want
to bend over and also because I thought if he can do it, then I can do it
too).
I was so excited to have the swim behind me and to get on my
bike. The excitement was short-lived; as
I ran into the bike transition area I recognized my husband’s bike and began to
panic. I have been training with Will for several years and I am acutely aware
of his capabilities. Will is certainly a faster runner and swimmer than
me. Given the fact that he had a full 5
minute head start on me in the swim, he should have been on his bike by the
time I got to mine. So I started to change as my imagination and fears went
wild. As I was frantically pulling my bike shirt over my head and considering
returning to the water, I heard the familiar voice I know and love say “Hi
Sandi, have fun out there.” If you didn’t put two and two together, it was Will
wishing me luck as he took off. Apparently, he was sitting down devouring a Cliff
bar as I was freaking out. Now that I knew he was okay, it was time to get down
to business. I had a mental check list going: 1) turn on bike computer, 2) put
on gloves, helmet and shades, 3) slip on bike shoes and 4) grab the bike and
GO. If you are reading this carefully, you may notice I skipped Velcroing my
shoes…that happened as I was walking my bike down the aisle.
I could feel the adrenaline take over as I was running
through transition towards the bike chute. I have dreams of running and jumping
on my bike one day like I have seen the professionals do…today was not that
day. I carefully climbed on and clipped in and started my bike computer. Some fellow bikers caught me and passed me
early on and asked where the no passing zone was. Being passed early on made me
a little worried that the bike would not go as well as I hoped, but I decided
not to fret and let Rachel’s advice replay in my head, “Do NOT go out too fast
on the bike too soon.” It did not take
me long to warm up and start passing people (including some of the people that
passed me early on in the ride). I was about 3 miles into the ride when I
caught site of Will. I figured it would be fun to catch up to him check in and
ride side by side for a bit. I was bit
too ambitious and not only rode straight passed him but also startled him along
the way.
The bike course was awesome…probably my favorite part of the
tri overall. With the exception of the curving stretch on an isolated road
which made me question whether or not I took a wrong turn. My goal on the bike
was to ride comfortably fast and fuel enough for the run ahead. At about 10
miles in, I decided I should have a Honey Stinger Waffle (super tasty). Of course I started eating it right around
the time I met up with other bikers near a fairly sharp right turn, up a hill,
with a timid slow moving car near us. It was too risky to ride with one hand so
I held the waffle half in and half out of my mouth as I maneuvered the turn…I
definitely inhaled some of the waffle but it worked out okay.
The route took us all out to the town of Jenner where we
would turn back for the final stretch. I
started to wonder if I would ever see Rachel during the ride. A few miles
before the turn, I saw her heading back to the transition. I was super excited
to see how well she was doing so I saluted her. Why a salute…I have no idea or
explanationJ.
Just before the turn around I came upon the aid station on the bike course.
Having only one cage with a bottle of water, the Gatorade seemed like an
awesome idea, but I still wanted my water. So I took a bottle, drank some and
then wondered what I should do with it. I struggled to put it in the back of my
jersey and finally managed to stow it away just before the sharp turn around.
Finally, I was on my way back to the transition and I was starting to look
forward to the run ahead. I passed Will
once more going the opposite way as he approached the turn around.
I was warned that I would be disqualified if I did not
dismount my bike before I got the transition area so that’s what I focused on
when I got closer. Well that, taking a GU, and reviewing my mental checklist
before the run. I dismounted too soon
and held up the people behind me a bit, but at least none of us were DQed,
right? I tried to run my bike back to my
transition spot, but I think trotting is more like it.
Once I was back in my spot, I began my mental checklist for
the run: 1) turn on Garmin and acquire satellites, 2) hang bike 3) remove
helmet, gloves and bike shoes, and 4) put on and tie running shoes. Check, check, check and check…and I was off
on my run! The legs did not feel as good as I was anticipating, in fact they
felt like Jello and my form was, well, lacking (my knees were knocking and I
felt super slow). I was surprised to see my first mile was sub 7:40 and decided
I would maintain the effort assuming (hoping) that I would warm up and feel
more comfortable in the miles ahead.
For the most part, I was running with ladies and then I was
passed by a middle-aged man. I thought he was going to pull ahead, but it
seemed like he was going my pace. After the first water stop, he asked me what
the pace was. I was happy to report that we were running sub 7:40s, and I guess
he decided he liked the sound of that and stuck with me. Between miles 2 and 3,
I saw Travers running back to the finish. I was so excited to see how confident
and strong he looked so I said a quick hello and gave him a quick cheer. My
fellow runner asked me if I was running with a team and I was more than happy
to explain I was there competing with friends. Shortly after, I spotted Rachel
who was also on her way back to finish.
Although the run felt hard at that time, I thought I was running
downhill and should cheer Rachel on as she ran uphill. Again my newly found
running buddy asked me if I was running with a team, so again I explained that
I was there with friends. J
The worst part of the run by far was the turn around, which
was right in the direct sun. It felt
great to get back in the shade to finish up the second half. I had to laugh at
myself when I felt the miles get slightly easier on the way back, meaning I was
actually running uphill when I cheered for Rachel. I had less than 3 miles to
go and I needed to keep up the positive attitude. I was hoping to see Will
before I got back to the finish – I got my wish and yelled out “I love you!”
and quickly explained (before the guy next to me could ask me again about
racing with a team) that the man in the red jersey was not only my buddy, but
also my husband. The run started getting harder, but soon enough, I had one
mile to go (GO TIME). Although my new running buddy tried to stick with me I
had to finish my own race. I saw the bridge ahead leading to the
all-too-familiar transition area, and new the end was near. Imagine my surprise
when I saw the runners ahead of me make a sharp left AROUND the transition and
up a steep hill on the far side…WTF?!?!
Time to sprint and git ‘er done!
It was so awesome to have Travers and Rachel cheer for me as
I ran up the hill and across the finish line. In addition, they gave me the
best cold cup of water I have ever tasted when I was done! Of course we gave
Will the same VIP treatment when he finished too J.
What an amazing day and race. Somehow I managed to finish my
first Olympic tri in 2:49!
