Hey! Guess what I did! A triathlon!
It's been months since I've a done a race, so I wasn't expecting much, especially it's been verrrry recently (only within the past 2-3 weeks) that I've even really thought about training again. It came as quite a surprise when I ended up on the podium! Here's how it broke down . . .
Pre-race
Pre-race
I had a hard time sleeping the night before, and a hard time waking up the morning of. Good thing I prepped my equipment on Saturday night! All I had to do was wake up, get dressed, grab my bag, and go. I had somehow ended up in the first swim wave, this year. In past years, I've (well) not been in the first wave. I was pretty sure there had been some mistake, or else the field was really down in size, if I (at my pace) somehow wound up in the fast group. I realized about halfway through the bike that the reason I had been mis-seeded was because I'd written down my estimated 400 m swim time (7:30) instead of my estimated 500 m swim time. Oops.
At any rate, that meant that I had to be at the DRC at 6:45. I got there at about 5 'til 7. Of course, set up was just a pair of shoes, so it's not like I needed a bunch of time. But it did take time to go and get the stationary bike settings adjusted to my liking, and I did have to pee a couple of times (yes, within the same 30 minutes). That left me with almost no time to warm up. I ended up spinning on the bike for 5 minutes, running 2 laps around the track, then hopping in the pool and sprinting through a 50. And that was my warm-up. Kids, don't try that at home.
Swim: 500 m in 9:02 - 1:48/100m ('09 ~8:30, '08 9:48)
I kind of figured that I would be the last one out of the pool. And I was! The Photographer said not by much, though ("Not by much" turned out to be about a length and a half). I felt awful until about halfway through, when my body had warmed up a little. I've been doing my 100s on about a 1:50 interval, so I'm confident that I could have gone faster with a better warm-up. And I just got back into the pool a couple weeks ago. So. You know.
T1: 1:02
Have I mentioned before that they don't let athletes run through this transition? No running allowed on the pool deck. So we have to walk the whole way. Which is why this took so long.
I kind of figured that I would be the last one out of the pool. And I was! The Photographer said not by much, though ("Not by much" turned out to be about a length and a half). I felt awful until about halfway through, when my body had warmed up a little. I've been doing my 100s on about a 1:50 interval, so I'm confident that I could have gone faster with a better warm-up. And I just got back into the pool a couple weeks ago. So. You know.
T1: 1:02
Have I mentioned before that they don't let athletes run through this transition? No running allowed on the pool deck. So we have to walk the whole way. Which is why this took so long.
Bike: 6 mi in 15:26 - 23.3 MPH ('09 16:43, '08 19:00)
Ha! I am awesome! I got the second-fastest bike split out of all the women! My friend Heidi was the only one who beat me; she finished in 15:25. Of course, cycling is the one thing I've still been doing consistently. 'Cause (you know) it's my job. Besides which, the cycling protocol we use at Genesis is Body Training System's Group Ride. Which spins at speeds anywhere from 50-130 RPM. 130 RPM, guys. And the bikes at the DRC are set to track distance off of revolutions vs. wattage. Which means that the faster you can spin, the faster you'll be done. Apparently, all that fast spinning in cycling class pays off!T2: 24 s
I was allowed to run during this transition.
Run: 2 mi in 17:11 - 8:35/mile ('09 18:00, '08 18:18)
Wow. I guess this a pretty significant improvement, too. I mean, it's still not super-human fast or anything. And still not fast enough to keep me from being run down by at least two other women (in the whole world. All the other women in the world are going to have to prove themselves more awesome than I). But it represents a significant improvement for me over the last time I did this race.
Total: 43:05, 3rd F overall ('09 44:19, '08 48:36)
With a total of 1:26 in transitions, that gives me 43:05. Last time I did this race? 44:19. And I didn't even get an award. I placed one place out of the awards, last time. This year? Third female overall. And I got a gift card to Road ID instead of a plaque!
I'm aware of the fact that the race size and field were smaller and less competitive this year. There was another indoor triathlon going on at the Y simultaneously. But you know what? I still got third place overall. And I've still improved greatly. And those other women who didn't show up at the race? For all we know, I would have beaten them, too. If they want to disagree with that, then they'll just have to go toe-to-toe with me this summer, and we'll find out!