Looking Back on 70.3

Well August 2 has come and gone. Last November when I was contemplating registering for the race it seemed like distant dream, by the time spring rolled around and I was wading through the water at Wasa for my first tri, it became real! I look back over the last 9 months I am amazed with what I have done personally, professionally, physically and emotionally. With that said, let me reflect on my 70.3 race!

Race day morning:
I woke up at the respectable hour of 4:30 and sat at the kitchen table choking down my tried, tested and true staple of a bagle with peanut butter. At 5am, Dave and I headed over the Jack's house and then out to Ghost Lake. Pulling into the parking lot was surreal. People everywhere with their clear, white and red bags in hand. After getting body marked, getting my bags where they needed to go and making sure my bike was good to ride, I went over to check out the start for the swim. By this point I had some nerves happening but only the good kind that indicate you are ready for the day. Following a quick visit to the bushes, I donned my wetsuit, googles and cap and ventured down to the launch. Our heat was fairly large as we had25-29 women as well as 30-34 women.

Swim
My goal for the swim was to get out of th water in a relatively competitive position. Having never swum 2000m continuously (Chinook was 2x1km loop) I was interested to see how the body would respond. After some initial issues with my goggles leaking I set into a decent rythm. All in all the swim was alright. I noticed some slightl stomach cramps about half way through but attributed that to taking in five face fulls of water at the start! T1 was decent, though similar to Ari, I am trying to figure out where my 4 minutes went!

Bike
Now this was what I was most looking forward to. I knew that to be competitive in my age group I would need a strong ride as I knew some of the other competition and knew they were stronger runners than I. Since April I have rode Grand Valley-Horse Creek at least once a week. My legs were feeling great as I started off the ride. I just kept passing people - I was pushing a decent pace, but nothing I couldn't sustain. I went through the first feed zone grabbed some water (note to race organizer, dont hand out water with screw tops, makes it hard for those athletes who don't have those front water bottle thingies!). Cruised down Horse Creek and through Cochrane hill. At this point I was sitting in 2nd place in my age group and had about 10 minutes on 3rd place. Suddenly I hear that dreaded hiss of a flat tire...... Dagnamit I think to myself. However, I calmly, pull over, pull out my tools and start changing it. Just as I am going to fill it with air I notice some gravel in the rim, after a failed attempt to pick it out, I decided to pull off tire and tube, clean out the gravel and then go forward. All in this cost me 10 minutes! So I got back on my bike and put my head down and kicked it down hiway 22. Turining onto airport road I am anticipating a feed station as my water water bottle was empty and my other bottle was packed with triple strength cytomax which was not appealing as those small stomach cramps from the swim were still kicking around. Cruise through aid station 2 and continue on. I finally catch 3rd place coming on to lower Springbank road. We come into T2 at exactly the same time! I rack my bike, don my shoes and head out for the run (making a much needed pit stop at the loo for a pee break).

Run
Heading out on the run just behind 3rd place was very concerning. I know she is a strong runner and was in my worst case scenariou. Regardless I put my head down and find my pace. The first 5km went really well. I was hitting my 5min/km target. Then at 5km my stomach cramps decide to get a little more intense, causing me to stop and walk with my arms above my head. The next 10km were probably the worst I have experienced to date. Between the heat getting to me and those darned stomach cramps, I had a heck of a time finding a rythm. At the bottom of the Weasle Head, coming back, I decided it was time to put my head down, dig deep and finish strong. Was it ever amazing to run through North Glenmore, through the crowds of volunteers and spectators cheering me on. It was great! I hit 2km to go and really start to feel the legs shut down but keep pushing through. Then I finally see it, the fencing for the finish shoot. As I am coming in with 200m to go I can hear a fellow behind me, trying to take me in those last 200m. So I dug as deep as I could and held him off. I crossed the finish line at 5:27 and 4th place in my age group.

Since the race I have had much time to reflect. If you ask me whether I happy with my race, I will say "relatively". I really wanted top 3 in my age group and a sub 5:05 finishing time (which would have given me a qualifying spot for 70.3 worlds in Florida in Novemebr). I have played it over and over in my mind. Maybe I didn't push hard enough on the run, what if I had run tubular rims and didn't flat. After a few days of wallowing it then occured me to that for my third triathlon ever, I should be proud of my accomplishment. Not only was I able to race on race day, but I had made it 9 whole months without any health issues. Over the last 9 months I have learned more about myself, my support system and the sport than I ever thought possible. I have learned that nothing is unattainable - all it takes is dedication, perseverance and right support from the right people!

I would like to say a HUGE thanks to Talisman for the opportunity to be a part of the Driven5. Thanks to Jon, Megan and Laurel for all of your help in the pool. Kelly, a huge thanks for teaching me that gels aren't as evil as I once thought! And Jack, I don't even know where to start. You have helped to realize a potential in myself that I didn't think possible. Needless to say you have open the can of worms called "triathlon" and I look forward to many more years of training and racing!

One other thanks to David, Mom and Dad. All I can say is the last 9 months would not have been possible if it weren't for your unwavering support :-)

As the 2009 season comes to a close, I am already anticipating 2010. I still need to iron out my focus but regardless, it will include many more adventures and learning experiences (not to mention I am heading back to school to get my long anticipated Masters of Teaching). 2009 will always be the year of the Driven5. The year when 5 very different people, with 5 very different motives, came together for one common goal - dream, believe, achieve!