Yesterday I slept until my alarm went off and woke up feeling calm. Today, not so much. I started waking up at 3 am and kept waking up every 20 or so minutes until I gave up and got up at 6. It was Tri for the Cure day! I sat on the couch drinking my coffee, eating my peanut butter bagel, and watching Olympic women's cycling. It totally got me ready to kick some butt on the bike.
It was awesome doing a race so close to home. I was parked and in the transition area 15 minutes after leaving my house! Usually I calm down when I get to the race and start getting my stuff in order. Again, not so much today. Everyone looked so hard core-lots of Iron Man tattoos and fancy schmancy bikes. Also, I realized that I brought two right bike gloves and no left. Derp.
When I got down to the water, the swim course looked twice as long as when I practiced at the clinic. Seriously, why do I do this??
The opening ceremonies started at 8:30. It all kicked off with a flash mob and we all were boogying in our wetsuits. The cancer survivors all went forward and some spoke. It reminded me that this race was about something much bigger than myself. During the national anthem I looked around at the 1,000 women around me and thought about how lucky I am to live in a country where I have so many opportunities as a woman. There were women of all ages and shapes, stripped of make-up and fancy clothing, coming together for a common goal. The opening ceremony set a great tone for the event, but it also meant that I didn't get to go to the bathroom for the 35 minutes right before the start. I had a lot of coffee pre-race and really needed to go!
I was in the second wave which took off 3 minutes after the first. I resisted the urge to hang at the back of the pack and positioned myself in the middle. Too soon the horn sounded and we were off. The water was not warm- only about 63! The water was much more crowded than at the clinic because most people were swimming at my speed. There were people bumping and grabbing me on all sides. I won't lie, the swim was not easy. It seemed endless. But, I was infinitely better prepared than my lake swim last year. I kept my face in the water, didn't hyperventilate, and just swam. I still had to go to the bathroom and really though I'd just go in the water (nasty, I know, I'm sorry). Turns out I can't swim hard and pee at the same time. My swim time was 12:08, which is 147/572.
Finally, I reached the shore and headed into the min-trasition. I stripped off my wetsuit and slipped on my sneakers for the run to the bike. We had a nice little 1/4 mile run up-hill to the bikes.
I found my bike, switched into my bike shoes, put on one of my right bike gloves, and was off in 4:45. It felt great to be on the bike. Once I was comfortable I reached for my sweedish fish. I don't normally eat during sprint tris, but I have been having such good luck with sweedish fish, that I decided to try it. Unfortunately, I took off my bike bag to improve my aerodynamics, so I had to put them in the back of my jersey. They got wet during the swim, so they were a salty partially dissolved mess.
The bike was great. It was drizzling, but the roads were okay. The crowd support was amazing- I felt like I was in the London Olympics. The course was all roads I ride all the time so I knew where the hard parts were. My hips felt tight (probably from racing yesterday), but overall I felt great, except that I still really had to pee. My bike time was 50:43, which is an average of 17.7mph, good for 192/572.
Then it was time to hop off the bike and start the run. Next time I will take the time to double knot my shoes in the transition, both of my shoes came untied at different points in the run. I hopped on the shoulder of the woman in front of me and we ended up running the whole way together. She kept me going the first half and then I kept her going the second half. The run was basically a blur, I just tried to keep my legs moving. I was a little tired, but like the bike, felt pretty darn good. The last mile seemed endless because I didn't know exactly where the finish was. We got back to the SMCC campus and it seemed like we should be done but they looped us around the back on a little bike path. I wanted to push, but not too early. Finally it was there and I was done!! Run time was 25:25, which is an 8:12 pace, 92/572.
I headed straight for the bathroom, followed my the massage tent, and then the foot reflexology. Ahhhhhh. By this time it was really raining and I was wet and cold. But since the transition area wouldn't re-open until the last runner went out so I couldn't leave, I headed for the food. Whole foods put out a great spread- fruit, granola, almond butter, and cookies. There was also a separate BBQ area and coffee and donuts. I had some fruit and stuffed some goodies in my bag for later, then hit up the Green Mountain tent for some coffee. My hot caramel vanilla coffee tasted like absolute heaven.
Finally, finally the transition area re-opened and I could get my stuff. All my gear was totally soaked from sitting in the rain for hours, and I'd picked up a bunch of free goodies, so my bag weighed about a 1,000 pounds walking back to my car.
I am now showered, dry and warm and enjoying an awesome pancake. Grainberry pancake mix with brown rice protein, spirolina powder, and banana topped with almond butter and syrup.
The rain was bummer but overall the day was amazing! I am so pleased with my performance. 1:34:18.2 total time, good for 104 / 572 and 11/50 in my age. But in the end, it wasn't about my time, it was about raising money and awareness for cancer. This one was for you Dad!
-Justin's dark chocolate peanut butter cups: Even better than Reese's. These will probably be gone by tomorrow. 
