[Photo: Peter and Kate after the Lake Pleasant Triathlon. Behind us is the lake where we did our swim. We are standing in front of the boat ramp. The ramp is the steep road we have to walk/run up to get to the transition. It seemed very long!]
Amica Championship
2009-11-01
Phoenix, Arizona
United States Amica
75F / 24C Sunny
Triathlon - Sprint
Total Time = 2h 18m 46s
Overall Female Rank = 39/62 (I wasn't ranked overall. I ranked myself based on where my time fit with the others.)
Group = Athena
Group Rank = 1/4
(An Athena racer is a woman who weighs 160 and above. I call it the "big girl category" but my husband doesn't like that. The male version is a Clydesdale and that is 200 pounds and above. When i signed up for this race I could have raced in my age group or weight group. I chose weight b/c I thought that is where I belong for now. I am so big I can't really compete with those women. For now . . .! It is interesting that a lot of big women don't race in the Athena division. I think they don't want to admit they weigh over 160!)
Pre-race routine: I was not feeling fresh and ready for this race. The night before was Halloween so I ate poorly and had a couple glasses of wine. I had also come off two days of pretty hard exercise. This was not ideal. This race was not originally on my calendar but my bro-in-law wanted to do it b/c he can't do this week's race. I decided at the last minute to go for but I should have thought out my training schedule better. I did go to bed early and try to hydrate myself. I got up at 5:00 and was out the door by 5:30. Got some coffee and oatmeal and headed up north. I was a little frustrated that I wasn't more prepared. I should have mapped the event instead of relying on their directions. If I had I could have taken a more direct route and got there a little earlier. When I arrived at the race I had to walk a ways with my bike and equipment. I felt rushed b/c I decided to get my stuff race morning. When I got to the table I realized I forgot my temporary triathlon card so I had to buy a new one. Bummer. Once I got my stuff I had to scramble to get my stuff together. I was pretty focused though and the ladies near me were very nice. No real attitudes like you get at some races from neighboring racers. I didn't see my bro-in-law until I had cleared transition with my wetsuit. I was suprised to see the race was so small. I think there were only like 300 racers. 62 in the women category and 4 athenas. I was also shocked there were not chips at a championship event.
Swim Comments: Swim is always a crazy time for me. I was calmer than I had been a other races b/c I had just had a successful splash n dash. This water was much more clear and I had a lot of visibility under the water. I did well going to the first buoy and actually felt myself passing people. My heart rate went up and I felt like flipping to my back but I kept on going. I rounded the first buoy in good shape. i ran into trouble with the second buoy. I got into a groove and kept swimming. I lifeguard redirected me b/c I was swimming into the center of the triangle. That flustered me a little and I over corrected. My sighting obviously needs some work. I think I zigzagged the whole way to the next buoy. I started to get frustrated but I tried to pretend it was just practice. When I rounded the second buoy it was easier to sight b/c of the shore line. I finished and i knew I didn't do great but I also knew I wasn't the last one out of the water. I was ok. My swim is a work in progress. The Positives are that I didn't freak out (and I knew I was on the verge of it) and I kept in a rhythm.
What would you do differently?: A few things: (1) I really need to figure out my sighting issues. Probably every 3 to instead of every 10 strokes. (2) I also need to keep practicing my OWS. I think I just need more confidence in the water. (3) I need to practice being ok with contact in the water. I don't like it! I notice I don't know what to do when I get hit.
Transition #1 Comments: No chip timing so my swim time included the transition. After we got out of the water we had to go up a very long and very steep boat ramp and get out of my wetsuit. I did manage to get it half way down on my way up the boat ramp. I did pass a couple other swimmers in transition.
What would you do differently?: I would have ran up the ramp instead of walk. I would of had some gu with me. Forgot that.
Bike Comments: Tough bike course but I'm happy with my performance. It was two laps of a hilly course and I had to work it. I'm slow going up and fast going down. I had some trouble shifting from my little climbing ring to my big ring. Towards the end of my ride I had to balance my body on the handles and try to shift using both hands! Crazy. I felt like I was able to make up some time in this area.
What would you do differently?: I need to really work on my hills and Lose some weight!
Transition #2 Comments: I felt ok with this. One of my neighbors had a bucket so I sat on that to put my shoes on. I thought is went ok. I needed some nutrition at this point. I can't forget food again!
Run Comments: My time is very slow compared to my usual runs. I ended up walking all the steep hills and jogging the flats and downhills. My legs were hurtin' from the bike hills so I figured what the heck. Looking back now, i wish I would have pushed it more and run up the hills.
Post race Warm down: I ran to the finish line and Peter was there cheering me on! He probably finish about 20 minutes before me. When I crossed the line I walked to the food. I sat and chatted with some folks. I liked the atmosphere and was anxious to see who won the Athena division. There were many more "Athenas" looking racers than I had seen at past races. After seeing there were only 4 Athenas in my division it is clear many of them chose to race in Age Division. The announcer started calling winners and I was shocked when he called my name as a winner. I started laughing b/c I couldn't believe it. I have to admit, I really dug it! I got a cool trophy and people were excited for me. I think it was the pick me up I needed going into our 20 week mark before our Half Ironman.
What limited your ability to perform faster?: I had 3 major issues: (1) My weight, (2) gear issue, and (3) swim sighting. I also should have taken it a little easier before the race. I was logging some serious activity before the race. Not the smartest.
Event comments: I enjoyed this triathlon a lot. Post race food good! The awards were nice. The trophy was a wooden cactus. Cute. The MC was great. Nice techincal shirt & water bottle for signing up.
I have another race this weekend. I'm headed to parker Arizona with Ron and the kids. Wish me luck!!
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