I did it!!! I have just completed 3 triathlons in 29 days! I am super proud that I reached my goal and finished each race strong. My race today was good, I did well but my run was very hard on me and it was not fun! I did manage however to land for the first time in the top 10, I placed 8th out of 44 women in my age group!! Though I was heart broken to see that I missed 7th place by 3 seconds, but I will discuss all of that later. All in all, I was happy with this as I thought my run would ruin any chance of this happening but my swim and bike proved to keep my placing high.
My overall results are as follows – 201/552
Overall age group rank – 8/44 YEA!!! I finally made the top 10!!!
Swim – 300 meters – 6:18 mins/ Age group rank for my swim – 10/44
I did ok on the swim, though it was not by best time (5:48 PR). I felt as if I was holding back for the first 2 laps. I need to work on improving my pace as well as work on distance training for my next race, but overall I am ok with my time for the swim. I need to get in the habit of training all out on the first 100 meters or so to get used to the feeling of racing. I usually stay steady until the end and then it is an all out sprint. My breathing was good but there is still much in this area I need to improve. My next race has an 400 m lake swim which is shorter than the 600 m lake swim from my triathlon back a couple of weeks ago but I was way too slow on that one so I need to work really hard over the next couple of weeks on my speed for this next race.
T1 – 1:22 mins – This needs to be faster, I was SUPER slow putting on my shoes and getting my gear ready for my bike.
Bike – 10 miles – 29:47 mins/avg speed – 20.1 mph/ Age group rank for my bike – 4/44 – YEA!!! I am super happy about this!
I was so excited about the bike! I held a strong pace and ended up 4th fastest in my age group! The first girl came in at 21.5 mph so I as not too far off. I need to push it harder and I really have to get comfortable so that I can use my aerobars in my races to help with my speed. I have used them in training but I am too scared as of now to use them in a race with other riders around. It just takes time I guess to feel totally comfortable using them. This is my favorite leg of the race by far. I held my speed strong the entire distance though getting on the bike with my shoes is something I need to work on. I ran in my cleats, then mounted on my bike and had some trouble getting into my clipless pedals. I was paranoid I was going to fall so I took my time getting on my bike, the problem is that all of this was counting against me, so it slowed my time down a bit. During my ride I met a man who passed me around mile 3 and so I decided that he would be my target guy….you know the person in front of you that you try and beat. We passed each other back and forth through the whole ride. At one point while passing him I told him what an inspiration he was and he replied…” Your fantastic on that bike and you are giving me a workout this morning young lady!” After the race he came up to introduce himself and I found out that he did the Ironman in 2007 at the age of 56!!! He was very kind in giving me some encouragement to keep pressing on towards my dreams! He said I have the genes for this sport! Oh that meant the world to me! So thank you to Bob, # 202 my cycling motivator!! I will always remember you!
T2 – 1:37 mins – Again, I need to speed things up, my transitions are far too slow.
Run – 3 miles – 30:48 mins/ 10:16 mm/ Age group rank for my run – 20/44
Oh where do I start….This run was terrible. The course was fine, but I just bonked BIG time. I started off strong at around an 8.5 mm and felt ok, then I just crashed. I felt very hot, my head started to pound and I had NO energy. I slowed down to an 11:30 pace and knew this run would be one I would NOT want to remember. I kept pressing on and DID NOT walk which I am proud of. My run averaged out to an decent pace but it was way slower than my goal and it cost me in my overall placing in my age group. My swim and bike times where faster than the girls who came in at #5,6 and 7 and as I said earlier I was only 3 seconds away from 7th place in my age group! 3 little seconds. If I just had pushed it harder I could have done it but I tried, God knows I gave it my all but it was just not my day.
Now I always believe that there are lessons to learn and we have to look on the bright side of things. So despite the run, I had a great race and I learned allot. I can see where I need to improve and how my training is paying off. I need to remember that this year was my chance to get back into this sport that I love so much after a long 17 years away. It was my chance to loose the rest of my weight and celebrate where I have come from. I also need to remember that it was not that long ago I was having pain in my knee and my running was limited. If I look at where I am compared to just 4 short months ago, I am amazed at how fast I am improving. 2009 for me is one of self discovery and reaching goals I have set for myself, and yet I find myself getting stronger each race and that gives me hope that someday I will be the triathlete that I know is inside of me somewhere. I remember sitting in Russia when I signed up for what would be my first triathlon in 17 years, I was scared wondering if I could do this again. I can now say that this experience has surpassed anything I could of dreamed of. And so now I press on towards my next race which is in 2 weeks. I am VERY excited about it because it is my first super sprint triathlon! Thank goodness for 2 mile runs! LOL It is a 400 meter lake swim, 11 mile bike and 2 mile run! YIPPIE!! So the training continues! This is going to be a great week as well because I am starting the training for my half marathon in October! I want to thank each of you for all your support and comments regarding my training! It means so very much to me!
Always remember to…..Imagine with all your mind. Believe with all your heart. Achieve with all your might!!!
Training Schedule for Week 1 of Denver Half Marathon Training!!
Monday – Rest!
Tuesday – Bike 11/ Run 2 mile, Swim 1,600 m
Wednesday – Bike 11 miles, Swim 800 m
Thursday – Swim 1,600 m, Bike 11 m/Run 2
Friday – Bike 11 miles, Swim 800 m
Saturday – Rest!
Sunday – 4 mile run/walk