Well, the taper worked...I had a really great race yesterday and I'm sure my bike and run paces were PR's. The course is crazy fast (flat) which, of course, helped. The unfortunate part, however, is that this race is a qualifier for age group nationals which made me a medium fish in a huge pond. The field was really competitive and I finished 241 out of 478 (incl. men) and was 8th in my age group (out of 28). At least I was top 13% in the swim (64th) and about 1 minute out of the top 10 of masters' women.
I was in the 5th starting wave and just before I got in the water, it occurred to me that I was most looking forward to the run...what a ridiculous foreign thought. I've done so much work on my running in the last year, I quite liked the feeling of "10k, no problem, bring it."
The swim was a bit more fiesty than most races I've done...which, as Duncan and Julie reminded me afterwards, is good training since IMC will be a mass start of probably 2,000 barracuda-impersonators. As far as I could tell, I was one of only 2 weenies in an insulated cap and I was quite warm in the water...they announced the water temp. was low 60's, but I think that was a low-ball figure. By the 3rd buoy, I was passing other colored caps from earlier waves (many of whom were swerving all over the damn lake and a bit in the way) which is always fun and a confidence builder.
T1 was good...even though Seujan wasn't there to yell at me, I followed her directions and didn't put on socks (or any other additional layers) for the bike...got out and on the bike with no problems. T1 was 2:41 which sounds bad, but there was quite a jog with the bike out of the area. My odometer already said .2 when I hit the line to hop on my bike.
The bike course was flat and fast with basically 2 out-and-backs, making it possible to see people faster and slower than me. It was fun because I could look at lots of bikes and could scope for Julie and Duncan and yell at them in various spots. As usual, I was passed by a good number of people on flashy fancy cervelos and the like...but I think I got dropped less this race than usual. On the longer out-and-back, I swore the long grass was blowing toward me and we were going into a headwind...however, just as I was starting to look forward to the 8-10 miles of tailwind I was earning, we passed the airport, and I looked over and saw a windsock blowing at about a 10:00 angle, almost perpendicular...crap, that means the same wind on the way back. Yup, it was...no wind gifts. But I was aero almost the whole ride and kept a good cadence. What was great, too, was that it felt similar (even easier) than the TT I'd done last week in the wind, so I was confident. I averaged 19.65 mph on the bike...flat or not, that's damn good for me. Love my bike! Although the wind didn't help, the weather did...I'd thought sure it'd rain, but it didn't and the temp was low 60's...comfortable.
I sort of botched T2 a little...I'd decided to carry my bottle with the Hammer shake for the run (was really glad I did later), so putting on my cap while running out of transition wasn't going to work like usual--not enough hands...and I also had to put on my race belt. Both the race belt and my cap had some minor mechanical difficulties, but after swearing a few times, trying to calm down, and taking a second look/adjustment of both, I was off and running...T2 was 2:16. I can certainly clean up that process next time.
The run was also flat and fast, out and back. I made myself try to relax and start the first mile slowly...and took my mile splits to keep things in check. Mile 1 was my slowest mile at a 9:01...just the start I wanted. From there, I felt strong and kept thinking "Keep it loose, keep it tight," push it, but enjoy it. The enjoyment part was pretty much over by the last 2 miles. At the turnaround, I started to smell the barn a little too early...mile 4 was my fastest at an 8:12 and the last 2 after that were tough. I don't wear my HR monitor for races because I'm afraid the information will freak me out. Good decision. The last 2-3 miles I kept thinking that it was probably really high...by the end, I knew I was leaving it all on the course---no question of whether I could've pushed a harder pace. The last half mile is really pretty, along the lake through the park...which I'm surpised I even noticed. I finished strong and was really happy with the race.
Duncan and Julie were in the wave that started one behind me, so I kept waiting for Duncan to catch me. I managed to hold him off since I had the head start, but he did finish with a faster time...both he and Julie did the Honu Half Iron last weekend, so this was a walk in the park for them.
I had a nice drive home, listened to some country music (go figure), and arrived home really stiff...a 3-hour drive is not recommended for "cool down" after an ass-kicking race. Seujan took me out for a mountain of sushi (mmmm...salty soy sauce) and I slept like a rock.
Today is recovery...which is a little wierdly like the taper, but I better savor it as I'm back up to a 17 mile run on Thursday and a 100 mile ride on Saturday.
Race stats:
Swim: 23:33
Bike: 1:14:31 (Avg. 19.65mph)
Run: 53:35 (Avg. 8:37 per mile)
Run splits:
Mile 1: 9:01
Mile 2: 8:36
Mile 3: 8:42
Mile 4: 8:12
Mile 5: 8:23
Last 1.2: 10:39
4 weeks till the Osoyoos Half Ironman...
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