(Mark Harms--fellow Zooter and 1st OA male--and I after the race)
I went into this race not knowing how things would turn out. I have been dealing with tendonitis in my right leg and have had to take a significant amount of running time off since the Oshkosh 1/2 marathon in April (exactly 3 months ago to the day). Thanks to some rest and Active Releast Technique (ART), I have been able to start running a bit again. My longest run going into this race was 75 minutes, so I was a bit nervous as to how I would hold up on the run. I have been able to work on my biking quite a bit though as a result, so I was hopeful that my bike fitness would carry over to my run.
I knew the weather was supposed to be on the warmer side (although not that warm compared to how it has been lately around here!), so I took 7 salt stick tablets the night before the race. I woke up at 4am and ate 2 Luna bars, took another 4 salt stick tablets, and then sipped on my pre-race/Gu Brew mix on the way to the race. We got to the race venu with plenty of time to spare so I had adequate time to pick up my registration packet and prepare. I rode my bike for about 15-20 minutes as a warm up and did 3, 30 second pick-ups to race pace. I felt strong and ready to go. There were quite a few people at the race that we knew, and it was nice to see a lot of familiar faces from all over the state. It looked to be a great day for a race!
I was in the 1st wave (men and women mixed elite wave). I got my wetsuit and other swim gear on and headed to the swim start. I lined up on the left side of the start line to position myself for the first turn and to try to stay out of traffic a bit. The first bit of the swim was a little rough and I had to fight for position. I was glad that I had safety pinned my timing chip strap together because someone accidentally grabbed my chip and pulled on it. I got cut off by some guy and lost my position for the rest of the swim. The water was smooth and I just concentrated on pulling efficiently through the water. It was easy to sight because the buoys were relatively close together and easily visible. I got to the boat ramp and ran out of the water. I ran over to the wetsuit strippers and laid down. The strippers had some difficulty pulling off my suit and I had to tell them how to do it. Once I was free of the wetsuit, I ran to my bike. I had a good transition and was out on the bike course pretty quickly.
I was able to hold my goal power for about 20 minutes and then started to falter. I'm not really sure what happened, but it just felt like my legs couldn't hold the cadence at my goal power. I worried a little bit, but decided not to dwell on it. A few guys passed me on the bike and 1 woman did, but I hung with her. She and I went back and forth for positioning for a while. Eventually I took the lead and she wasn't able to hang with me. I got water at almost every aid station on the bike. At 1 station, about 1/2 way through the bike, I tried to grab a water bottle from a volunteer, but accidentally hit it with my finger and it went flying. The next volunteer wasn't expecting me, so I just kept going and rode the next 10ish miles without water. I made sure to grab a bottle at the next station and when I did I was really thirsty! I kept on and tried to push the pace again on the last 10 miles. I didn't think I was having all that great of a bike until I saw Matt around mile 54. He shouted to me that I was the lead woman. I was shocked! (He was too.) I tried to pick up the pace again and hustle it into transition. I made it in fairly well and got out and onto the run course as fast as I could. I had no idea how much of a lead I really had and how my leg would handle the run.
I must have really had some adrenaline going in my system, because I thought I was taking the first mile at my goal pace (7:00/mile), when I actually averaged 6:30/mile. I tried to back it off a bit and ended up running the next mile at 6:58. By then I was getting hot and my breathing was a bit rough. I quickly hit up the aid station for some water and my pace slowed to 7:11/mile. After that the day got progressively rough. The heat, humidity, and 2 very large, long hills got the best of me. Most of my remaining 10 miles ended up being between 7:30-7:45 pace. I had to walk through most of the aid stations to get fluids and I also walked up the steep sections of the hill. People around me kept giving me feedback and saying that I was the first woman. They told me that I was putting time into the girl in 2nd place. I felt pretty fried the last 2-3 miles. It was all I could do to put 1 foot in front of the other. I told myself that this race was a race of perserverance and not a day for a PR. I could tell that my run fitness was good, but not great for the intensity required of a 1/2 ironman. I was very happy just to be racing and running again.
I ran down the steep hill and into the finish line. Before I got there I could hear them announcing my name. I was so excited! I ran through the finishers tape with my arms in the air. At the finish line they had tubs of cool water to sit in. I hurried over and parked myself in the cool water. It felt great! I was really happy to be done at last and to have finished well. I definitely did not have the best power on the bike or even close to my normal run time, but I did what I needed to do to win the race within the elite women's wave. (Only later did I find out after all of the hoopla that a girl in the 30-34 age group wave went 3 minutes faster than me to have the overall fastest time and take 1st. It was kind of a bummer, but given the circumstances I was pleased with my race.)
I have had to modify my race schedule quite a bit this season and learn to be patient. It has been challenging for me at times, and Matt has been fairly tolerant of my crankiness at times. I appreciate all of support of my family and friends an thus far and look forward to Ironman WI as my next race.
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