Reston Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic

I wanted to have a great swim. I didn't know how my body was going to feel, so I just wanted to go as fast as I could for as long as I could. This was one of my better swims. I swam straight, drafted well, and had no other issues. Probably one of, if not my fastest pace swim ever.

Nothing.

Grabbed some water from the station to rinse my mouth. I had to take off my timing chip since it was one of those real big ones. It would not fit under my wetsuit. So, yes, I had to sit down. Got my bike shoes on, helmet, sungalsses, and I was off. I still PRed this T1. I've come a long way in this.

Maybe learn to put my shoes on while riding. Wasn't a priority this year.

Here is where I had no idea how I was going to feel and for how long. It was still raining, and rained the whole time on this ride. I wanted to go hard until my legs gave up. I stood up on all of the hills, hammered the downhills, and just did not stop pedaling the whole time. I got passed by 2 people. One was for only about 1/2 mile, then I passed him back. He pretty much drafted off me the whole time. The other was Craig Ellis, I was not going to catch him. On the 2nd lap, I almost puked on Glade drive. My HR and cadence was high the whole time. I was trying not to look at either one, like I usually do. I just wanted to go hard. My real goal was to go sub 1 hr. I hammered this onto Ridge Heights, and into the parking lot. 59:49. I was real happy was this! Nutition - I took a gel flask with 3 shots of EFS Gel with 3/4 scoop of Pre Race in it. I wanted to take a shot of this each lap, and then finish it right before the run. Also had an Aero Bottle full of water.

Nothing. This is all my legs had.

Wet feet. I don't take my bike shoes off and run barefoot. Getting my bike shoes off was not a problem. Getting my running shoes on my wet feet was a problem. Only a few seconds extra, but it still seemed like too long. Not my Reston T2 PR, but still good. Not great, but good.

Practice this.

Would my legs run, or would they not run? They ran! They loosened up nicely after the bike, and again, I wanted to go fast, and see what I had left in me. No cramps. All year long, no cramps. That's a combination of better training, and much better nutrition. 1 final shot of EFS Gel (with some Pre Race in it on the bike and a Salt Stick around mile 2.5, then gatorade and water on the course. My legs gave me all they had, and still no cramps. I really wanted to be able to PR this run and this course 2 weeks out of Ironman. And I did. In the past, the lap around the track had been miserable, but this time, I knew I could hammer 1 more lap after running there all summer. Sub 47 min run. Over 1 minute faster than last year.

Running is my limiter. I have a lot more running confidence after this year. Need to work on form and speed.

Waited to Lisa finish. She was only 2 minutes behind me. Changed into some drier clothes. Got some pizza and watched Lisa get another Reston Tri Trophy.


Ironman Louisville 2 weeks ago. And the rain.


The hometown race. So this will stay on my calendar as long as I can do it. I was cold and raining in the moring. So, there were a few hindred racers that didn't even start. There was also a need for volunteers. On the bike course, way too many intersections were unmanned and the run course had 1 less aid station this year. But you can't blame volunteers. The Race Directors apparantly lost the volunteer list.
I love this race. It's a chance for everyone to show what they are made of on home turf. It was great to have a lot of FeXY teammates out there on the course and volunteering. I am so proud of how my season has gone. Couldn't have asked for anything more. And to see Lisa once again, place in her age group and for her to throw down the #1 Female bike time is incredible. Team Albrecht - the Premier Married Triathlon Couple in Reston.