Brewhouse Triathlon - TriathlonLong Course

started off too fast and had to relax a bit to avoid having a coughing fit. was awful at drafting. as soon as i would get behind someone, they would be gone. all the non-elite women were in the last wave, so i made a goal of catching some of the guys in the wave ahead. i did manage that, but overall it was not my best swim. i thought i would at least beat my swim time from last year, considering i had a wetsuit this year, but no. last year (no wetsuit!): 30:47

not get a cold 2 days before the race

most of my transitions with the wetsuit are around 3 minutes, so i'm pretty happy with this time. last year = 2:28 (again, no wetsuit!)

find the right rack on the first try :)

had i been in perfect health, i was hoping to finish in right around an hour, doing my fastest bike yet (20+ mph pace). again - i blame my cold. shocking that my pace was so slow (i didn't watch my speed, just my cadence). also shocking that i was 4th in on the bike in a tough age group field when my pace was so slow. my pace was slower than at the half-ironman i did two weeks ago. my lungs felt okay on the bike, but i didn't kill myself, assuming the run would be even harder given my cold. still, it was nice being on the bike. passed at least two other women from my age group, and several guys. i need to write a letter to the mayor and tell them that the roads out there really need paving more than once every ten years. the cracks and potholes from the harsh minnesota winters really made for a bumpy ride. oh, and i saw my mom finishing up her race as i started my second lap! :) last year = 1:04:07.

not get a cold 2 days before the race

felt pretty good after the bike. have a mentioned the cold? have i mentioned i also have asthma? i always have an inhaler in my transition bag, but its usually floating around the bottom of the bag and never gets used. knowing my breathing might yucky on the run, i put my albuterol inhaler in my shoe. i took a puff, and then decided i should take it with me, just in case. i've never done that either. i tucked it in the back pocket of my tri suit. other than that, and not finding my rack right away, everything went normally. last year = 2:29.

find the right rack on the first try :)

my goal was just to run the whole thing. after walking so much at spirit of racine, i needed to remind myself that under normal conditions i can actually run a whole race! i walked briskly through a couple of the water stops, but as soon as the water was gone (drunk or dumped on my head), i started running again right away. i wasn't going very fast, but at least i was running. felt pretty good the whole time too, actually. amazing. i was predicting it was going to be a painful, lung cookie fest. used the inhalor just after the turn around, just in case. kept a steady pace, and it was worth it. even passed a few people who had passed me earlier on. ella ran out from the crown towards the end and, yet again, crossed the finish line with me! last year = 45:40

not get a cold 2 days before the race

found my mom, bill, the girls, steve, etc. mulled around for a bit. got a bagel bite, a banana, and a gatoraid. waited to see kris come in but we just missed her. my mom had placed first in her age group (go mom!) on the sprint, so we needed to stick around for the awards ceremony. bill took the girls to the playground while my mom and i rounded up our bikes and gear and brought them to the car. came back and sat around through the door prizes waiting for the awards. the girls were really tired, so bill went back to my parents' house. finally the got to the awards. it was so fun watching my mom, and her friend liz, get 1st place in their age groups (65-69 for my mom, and 60-64 for liz, who was doing her first race). my mom was the only on in her age group, and there was no 70+, so she was probably the oldest woman racing the short course. again - go mom! you'll be happy to know she cut her transition times in half - from 18 minutes total to just 9 minutes


getting a cold 2 days before the race. not sure how long recovery from a HIM takes, but considering that the woman who won the long course today also won the HIM in chisago lakes last weekend...well, i probably can't use that as an excuse :)


i like the brewhouse because its in my hometown. that said, it bums me out that its getting more high profile. since it made the top 100 list, some things have changed. twin ports cyclery, the shop i used to work for in duluth, has been doing race support for years, back to when it was called the AAA pike lake triathlon. now gear west is sort of taking over. they didn't have a repair truck there this year, so twin ports ended up covering for them, but gear west had a bigger spot on the shirt and more name time during the awards. no offense to gear west, but they really don't have to be at EVERY tri. there are lots of other great shops who want and should be able to help out at events like this (especially LOCAL shops at a LOCAL race). it is also now a usat event, which is okay by me, but again - sort of changes the overall small town vibe. okay, rant over.

as for my race...i had a cold at my first tri this year, tri-u-mah. at my first outdoor race, buffalo oly, i was getting over an intestinal virus. fitting that i end my sad year with yet another cold. wtf? its depressing to not beat my previous times in good conditions. still, i am trying to focus on all that i have learned this year - about listening to my body, running my own race, and enjoying the race itself instead of constantly watching the clock (didn't use my watch today, again!). this was my last tri of the year. i still have a few other things coming up, but i am considering this officially the start of my off season. time to get my immune system up and running for a change, work on fat loss, and improve my running.