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 Swim
Comments: I'm pretty happy with this swim. Wish I could have figured out how to stay on course for a straighter line to the buoys though. Wish I didn't produce mucus during the swim, but I don't think I can really help it. Just gotta remember to drink more water the day off in hopes of keeping it from getting so thick that I really get into a coughing fit. Couldn't tell what buoys I was supposed to aim for on the last couple 100 yards, so just tried following the chick in front of me. Wasn't sure if I should head for shore then run to the TA or if I should swim behind her and get out where she did. What would you do differently?: I need a better plan for my exit.  Transition 1
Comments: I had a pretty hard time getting my wetsuit off my heels. I was shaky in the hands and legs which didn't help. Once that happened I was pretty good. I *felt* like I took too much time getting my socks on. That was a big debate for me the night before, but all in all, the few extra seconds it took me to put them on was a huge relief for the next hour of the race. Glad I put them on. What would you do differently?: I am honestly not sure about clipping my shoes in before the race and running barefoot to the mount line then trying to get my feet in while I pedal. This will be something I work on after my HIM next week. Would it make that much difference in the end? I don't know. The guy who crossed the line before me finished 19 seconds faster. I'm sure I could cut that down if I DID have my shoes on my bike already, but I don't have tri shoes. SO, that could be another expense just to shave off a few seconds. Will I want to invest in that?? I don't know.  Bike
Comments: Let's just say, I can't do hills to save my life. I ALWAYS GET BEAT ON THE HILLS!!!!!!!!! Always, always, always. I just don't have the quad strength to haul my ass up a hill of any size on my bike (I'm better with hills on a run, though, interestingly). The first turnaround seemed like a bad idea. I was barreling downhill at well over 30 mph and had to come to an almost complete stop to turn around and go back up that hill at around 6 mph. Darn it. I suck at turning around, I don't know how I can whip my ass around faster so I don't lose so much speed and yet don't have to worry about safety. ha. Anywhoo, fricking wind. I had to work like a mother to go DOWNHILL. I was pushing to maintain 18+mph going down a hill that I should have been hitting 25+mph. What would you do differently?: Strength train. I need to get my quads in shape so I don't have to worry about effing up my delicate knees. Maybe figure out hydration better. I threw up some of my bagels at the very beginning of the bike leg, so I held off on hydration. Then, the last two miles I knew it was my last big chance to get fluids in me since I didn't want to worry as much about it on the run. So, I just bucked up and took a few big chugs. Transition 2
Comments: I think when I had my awesome Denali ($150 from target.com!) I was able to jump off the moving bike because I had my running shoes on. I think I'd like to get to the point again where I can get my feet out and hop off with the bike in motion. At the very least I'd feel like a rock star doing it! =) What would you do differently?: Nothing, really, except maybe learn more advanced techniques. Didn't hesitate on this transition, which was good!  Run
Comments: WALKED up that stooopid hill. Knew enough from last year that triathlons aren't necessarily about speed through every moment of the race. It's about racing smart, too. I quickly walked up and had WAY fresher legs than last year. Didn't burn them going up. Smart move on my part. Got kind of hot on top of that levy, though. Not much you can do about that though. I didn't want to pour water on me because I just didn't want to be soggy. =) The run is where I REALLY put my game plan in place-negative split each leg. I kept a high turn over going to the turn around, just to get my legs feeling normal. I pass one gal on the way out and always worried that she was going to negative split and just blow me away (because she passed me on the bike after I had passed her and been ahead for about 4 or 5 miles). Anyway, at the turn around I saw the LONG LINE OF ATHLETES right behind me and I was going to be pissed to give up distance to them in the last 1.5 miles. SO, I kept my turn over high and pushed to the edge of almost being too much. What would you do differently?: Nothing, this was a good run for me! Post race
Warm down: Bottle of water at the finish line, chatting with family, cheering some athletes on, etc. What limited your ability to perform faster: Wind, wind, wind. Hills, hills, hills. Event comments: This race has SO MUCH POTENTIAL to be a really awesome race, but it definitely lacks a little something, something. They had this the same weekend as the Utica Boilermaker and that wasn't a good idea. There were fewer athletes this year and there was talks of canceling this triathlon, which would be a tremendous shame. I got $25 for winning my age group which was pretty cool, BUT the newspaper only reported the overall top 10 finishers. ARE YOU EFFING KIDDING ME???????!!!! There was a man in his MID 70S that raced. AND THE COMMUNITY DOESN'T KNOW BECAUSE IT WASN'T SHARED BECAUSE AGE GROUPS WEREN'T REPORTED. That's awful, awful, awful. I was looking forward to seeing my own name in print, but I was more upset that A) the top 10 finishers were all males. Show the females some love, please!! AND, there are so many people that should have been recognized for their accomplishment by placing in their age group. HELL, the top female finisher wasn't even recognized in the paper. That's terrible. Last updated: 2009-07-07 12:00 AM
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Overall Rank = 26/110
Age Group = 25-29
Age Group Rank = 1/7
Started on the hydration side of things on Tuesday. Tried to make sure I was drinking 60+ oz of water every day. Gave in to every carb craving during the week. Had a BIG bowl of gnocchi Friday night, drank at Gatorade before bed.
Didn't sleep the greatest, but definitely wasn't the worst. Birds starting chirping around 4am so I dozed on and off until 6:30am. Toasted two cinnamon raisin bagels. Completely burned one half of one, so I had the partially charred three halves with a little bit of peanut butter. Worked hard to choke down the bagels. My gag reflexes were at an all time high because of the nerves (gagged brushing my teeth, too!). Tried to get another Gatorade down, but only managed half...didn't finish the rest before the race, either.
Got the hair in two French braids and left to be at the race by 8am for a 9:30am start. Transition area wasn't assigned so I tried to get a spot nearest the bike in/out since I run with my bike shoes on (haven't tried to learn the running squirrel yet).
Set up the area, changed and did dynamic stretching. Helped with the nerves a lot.
Aimed for 15 minutes of swimming 1/2 hour before the start, but got in late. Not sure how much I swam, but I assume it was 300-400 yards. I did some one armed butterfly, some dolphin kicking, some backstroke & breaststroke. Worked a few drills-kicking on one side, FINISHING my stroke and switching to the other side. Expected more, but wanted to have enough time to get out, relax, stretch spots that needed and just sit back and enjoy feeling ready to race. Race started late because the ambulance was late. What a pain to be raring to go!