I was not sure how to start this story. I always do a race recap, but this one was
different from any other race. I started
thinking about this race a week out. I
was nervous about the ride. I really
concentrated on the cycling for this event because it is my weakest event. I got to a point last week that I was worried
I let up too much on the run. I thought
the run was my best event so I let up on this training. The swim was just something I
maintained. I am not a fast swimmer but
I had enough to get through and that was my goal.
I followed a normal week of marathon fueling and
resting. A little bit of each event at a
fast pace to keep everything moving. By
Friday I was a mess. I was second
guessing my training? I should have done
more bricks… All the typical questioning
pre-race. So Friday I leave work at noon
and head to Lums Pond Delaware for packet pick up and first timers meeting. Then to my parents place for a relaxing
night.4 AM came soon and I was up and ready to go. I had my usual oatmeal and green tea for breakfast. The race event provided number tattoos to but on the arm and leg. I was tired and actually put on the arm tattoo upside down… daaaa! So I removed that with Vaseline on the way to the race.
I got there around 6 just as it was getting light out. I still needed to use my headlamp for setup. I got everything ready in the transition area and was ready for the start of the race. The nerves got the best of me. I went in the water for a little swim and to get used to the water. It was like bath water. It was 79 degrees and no wet suits were allowed.
I started too far up front and had fun in the pack of fast swimmers until they all passed me. Bumping into others and hitting one another was fun and not something I had experienced in my other triathlons. I settled into my own pace after about 10 minutes. There was a long stretch on the back side of the swim. It was at this point that I got chicked. That’s right the females that started 5-10 minutes after me were now passing me ¾ of the way through my swim. I could only assume that these would be the women’s leaders.
I was surprised to see my watch display 34 minutes when I exited the water. My fastest pool swim for 1.2 miles was 40 minutes. The adrenaline was working overtime. I continued to carry this through the first loop of the bike. I separated the bike course into 5 parts. There were the 4 miles out and in to the park. Then two 12 mile sections repeated twice. This made the cycling portion very manageable. As I started the loops I was passed by several riders. And yes I was chicked again.
I started very aggressively in the cycling. It was a little too fast so I had to slow down. It was a mostly flat ride. The first loop would be the fastest portion or the course. It was completely flat except for one small incline over a bridge. It was through the woods so there was no wind. I entered the second loop of the ride and this had some small rolling hills, but not too bad. Then I hit the turnaround point and everything changed. There was a strong head wind for the next 7 miles and that combined with the rolling hills made this section of the bike a little taxing. As I finished this section I checked my time and noticed I was ahead of my 3:15 pace for the 56 miles.
As I started the second lap, I knew this first loop would be my best opportunity to drop some time. So I decided to push the pace. My thoughts now started to change from finishing to finishing under 6 hours. My original goal was to finish, then if possible, finish under 6 hours. I knew now that this was a real possibility. I pushed through the first loop of the course with ease and looked forward to finishing the final loop. I hit the turnaround on the final loop and had about 12 miles to go. Having the head wind along with the rolling hills started to take its toll. A few more riders passed me. I finally made the turn for the park and knew I had only 4 miles to go. A woman passed me and I dropped back the 3 bike lengths, but hung onto her for the remainder of the race. When we entered the transition area I thanked her for pulling me through the end of the ride.
My thoughts were now on the run. After last weekend’s bike and run I was worried how I would feel. Did I leave enough to complete the run or would my legs be shot. I was starting to feel the effects of the heat. I was slightly nauseous and had to force myself to eat and drink. Fortunately right outside the transition area was a drink station. I chugged a sports drink and water and was off for the final leg.
I was not into the run 1 mile and started to pass people
walking. I would continue to pass people
on the entire run. It was amazing to see
so many people walking the run portion.
It was a brutal day for a run.
The course was a trail through the park and on the edge of farm
fields. It was partly shaded but not
nearly enough. Mostly dirt with some
gravel sections. The shaded sections
were nice but it was oppressively hot. I
was not feeling well. I started to feel
more nauseous and was getting chills. I
knew what this meant and had to force myself to drink at every water stop. I would take 2-3 drinks at every stop. One stop had ice in the water. So after I drank I poured the ice in my
hat. The ice actually hurt my skull it
was so cold, but what a relief. I
continued to pour water on my head at the next several stations. It was a shock to the system dumping that ice
cold water on my head, but helped keep my core temperature down and the chills
soon went away. I was glad the hydration
worked because I knew where I was headed.
Around mile 11 I stopped at the water station. This time I could not start running. I started to walk. Then some guy passed me and said I was a
great pacer and to keep going. He
indicated he liked me pacing him. I
passed him in the first mile and he stuck with me the entire distance. I could see him pulling away as I
walked. I looked at my watch and saw how
close I was to breaking 6 hours, so I started to jog. Soon I was caught up to the guy that had
followed me the past 10 miles. The last
2 miles were in the open and the sun was beating everyone to a pulp. I dug deep and passed him. I continued to run and was soon at mile
12. This would be the longest mile I had
ever run. I fact it wasn’t until after
the race that someone pointed out the 12 mile marker was off by a half mile. No wonder the last mile felt so long. IT WAS!!!
I passed several other people along the way included the pacers wife.I met up with the pacer guy and his wife shortly after we finished. She complemented me on finishing strong. In reality I just wanted to be finished with the run so I gave it everything I had left, which wasn’t much. My motivation was purely to be done. It stopped being fun the last 2 miles being baked by the sun and running on fumes. Other than that it was an overall fun day and great experience. I cooled down in the pond even though there was not a swimming area. I figured what the heck, I was hot tired and they could jet tell me to get out. The 80 degree water was more like bath water, but it was nice to cool down a little.
Then I checked the TV screens to see my results and that’s when I realized I placed in my age group. Not a big race, but I was pleased to have placed in my age group. It was the first time I ever placed in any race. Second out of 11 in my age group and 34th overall out of 125. It was a big win for me all around. I am hooked on the triathlon. I need to do another half before I jump to a full. I will need to do a lot more training for a full, but someday I’ll get there.
34:44 Swim 3:52 T1 3:07:34 Bike 3:18 T2
2:04:06 Run -- 5:53:35 Tota
The Swim time for me was great. And the Big was better than
ever, 17.9 MPH average. The run just
sucked. 89F at 1:30 when I finished the
race. Was a big win for me personally
and I am on my way to a Full Triatahlon.
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