This summer, I decided to put myself through a new challenge since I enjoy the half iron distance and I wanted to maintain a certain level of fitness and I signed up for 3 challenging long course events. My original goal for my non Iron year was to go after a PR in the half and work on getting faster.
What better way to spend a triathlete summer. When I go to a beautiful place with my wetsuit, bike and running shoes, I want to savor my time out on the course.
Deuces Wild in Showlow, AZ; Vineman 70.3 in Sonoma County, CA; and Mountain Man in Flagstaff, AZ COMPLETE.
The series took on names like "Turtle's Long Course Summer Series" and "Triple Suicide Series" as I came to terms of what I had done by signing up for all 3 while many of my friends were just enjoying the cool summer destinations. They were not 3 fast flat courses, they were 3 courses with lots of ups and downs and each had its own challenges and own beauty.
The final race in Flagstaff presented many challenges this past weekend. It was the long course that so many suggested NOT to do and the SLOGAN for the race is "THE TOUGHEST RACE YOU WILL EVER LOVE". I went into this race not so different then the others feeling a little under prepared. When you do 3 in a row, you have to allow recovery time after each one and then there is not a lot of time in between to step up your training and taper for the next one, so the PR goal turned into a finishing goal. The future Ironman events that I am considering are all more challenging than AZ as if you desire pine trees on your course, altitude and hills usually accompany them. So Mountain Man was also a little test of fortitude to see if I could be IM Tahoe material.
Mountain Man ended up being my slowest half of the season. I started the race feeling fatigued and bloated although I had taken the week prior very easy to try and get some of my energy back. It is difficult to assess if the slow time was a product of the race being the final event of the season or the difficulty of the course. It still was my favorite of the 3 courses and the great thing it is in my backyard only 2.5 hours away from my home in the desert.
This race was the last get a way of the season before returning to work. I had to encourage my support team to join me for the weekend as my husband is tired of traveling and my son started school, but I was so happy to have them with me. We enjoyed a few good meals and my husband got a 70 mile ride on the course in on Saturday. We went to my Tri Club's pre-race party at one of the member's most beautiful homes in the woods. With my belly full and happy exchanges between a great group of triathletes, I went to bed with a smile looking forward to a day in the pines. Pre-race rituals are just etched in my brain and an Ironman can go through them in the dark while the rest of their family is getting their last few minutes of sleep before they transform into Super Sherpas.
Passing by lots of friends and waves to people I have gotten to know over the past few years, I made my way to the water which is usually just a relaxing warm up to a long day. The long distance race had about 130 athletes split into 2 waves. Of course I was in the second wave, but I found it to be a little bit aggressive and full of better swimmers than most events. It almost felt like an Ironman replay trying to get a space in the water and I did a lot of swimming around people because this "pull the athlete out of your way thing", does not work for me. The water felt choppy so there must have been some wind and I did have a little more trouble breathing than usual in the altitude. There were no spotting buoys in addition to the turning buoy which were impossible to see in the distance and with the glare of the sun, so it was a "follow the crowd" kind of swim. My time was at least a minute slower than my last couple races, but still a reasonable start. I felt tired coming out of the water, but excited to get on my bike. It takes a good 30 minutes to warm up after a swim and I had to do that on an uphill bike course. I knew to expect 3 rollers to the first turn around Morman Lake. The scenery is beautiful with rolling hills and pine trees and wild sunflowers lining the roads. The color seemed so vivid and I felt at times like I was probably in heaven. The course was challenging with a strong head wind or cross wind when going around the first section of Morman Lake and then rolling and ending with a climb. Then you turned right onto Lake Mary Road for a few more miles of climbing which was challenging but a beautiful section of road that we usually avoid due to not bike friendly without a shoulder. At the turn around, you start flying full speed down the steep long hill. I missed the first water stop due to it being at the bottom of the hill on a curve, but had enough to last me until we looped around the second time. I quickly was surprised to find that the downhill ended and there were about 3 more steep sections of uphill rollers to get back to the turn off for loop 2 around the lake. Those hills were not in my memory bank from previous training rides, but the good news is there was a beautiful tail wind that allowed me for the first time in my life to get the sensation of "spinning up a hill" and I felt like I was floating (don't worry, that did not last too long). The second loop did not have the extra climb nor did it have the tail wind to help get up the hill. Once you got to the lake turn off for the second time, you headed straight back to the transition which was mostly downhill. My legs were pretty fatigued and I worried about making the cut off time set in this race, but I managed to finish that bike ride in less than 3:30 which is a slow time for me, but with the conditions, I could not beat myself up too much as I felt I used my energy management techniques that my coach is working on to get me through it unscathed. So, I finished early enough to be granted permission to go out on the run course. There was about 10 people behind me, maybe more, hard to count at that point and maybe a few who did not make the cut off. The run course is famous for difficult with a 1.5 mile steep climb up a road off to the side of the main strip. The Olympic Distance athletes, go up and down and turn back to the transition area, but the half distance athletes then turn to the right away from transition and have to put 7 more miles in of what they describe as flat (but it is rolling flat). The aide stations did not provide any ice or sponges like most summer events, but mother nature was looking out for us with some nice drizzles and big lightening strikes. I also started pouring water over top of my head at the stations which were every 1.5 miles. I did fine on the hill and was able to run while many were walking, but my legs were shot at the bottom. I was able to keep going, but every time I saw someone walking, I just wanted to stop. I was able to fight that feeling up until the 2 mile to go mark. My body just wanted to race to be over. I finally gave into the urge and started walking/jogging and then jogged in the last half mile to finish in 6:50. It was one of those races, where if I could just have a decent run, my time would be greatly improved, but often in a long distance event, you are just fighting to keep your body moving forward. When I stopped running, my body was hunched forward like you see some runners finishing in Ironman. My posture improved when I started running again but the fatigue, tightness and cramping was playing with my mind. I had to prove that I was TAHOE WORTHY. I ended up 2/4 in my age group...right in the 50th percentile that I usually find myself. The lady that beat me was at Deuces Wild with me and training for her first Ironman, so I was proud to see how well her training was coming along. I will take a podium finish, whenever the opportunity arises and I had to beat 2 athletes to earn my spot!!!
The crowd thins out quickly after the Olympic Event which most of the athletes partake in, but the cool thing is when I started the run and needed a pick up, I had people shouting my name from the side of the road and as they headed home in their cars. Another athlete was struggling on the run and he said to me, "You sure have a lot of friends" and that made me smile. TRIATHLON IS THE LIFE FOR ME!
What is left after Ironman? There is so much more. If you think you are going to just train for an Ironman and check it off your bucket list, think again. Triathlon is life, so live it well! And the people in my life are the best. If you are feeling down, just go to a triathlete workout, race or a social event and you will get your batteries recharged.
SUMMER SUICIDE SERIES may have tried to kill me, but has made me stronger. Now time to take a break and then search for my next challenge. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! CHA-CHING!
