Race Recap!

I DIIIIIIIIID IT! It. Was. Awesome.

The alarms went off at 4:05 am (again with my weird wakeup times). I had a Sunbutter sandwich on Great Harvest Cinnamon Chip bread and a banana. Attention Sunbutter folks, if you ever find this blog, feel free to use me for taste tests.

About 5 minutes after five, I left my apartment and headed to the park.

I forgot to share my race outfit!

I wore my CW-X compression shorts, a sports bra, and a spandex tank top. As I was falling asleep last night I had the brilliant idea to take two tops to the competition. I would wear one to swim in, and the other for biking and swimming. Check.

I got to the park about 5:30 and the parking lot already had a good amount of cars in it with racers setting up their bikes in the transition area. After pumping my tires (in the dark) and setting up my bike, I checked in and got my chip, race number to wear on my shirt, and the race shirt (navy dri-fit).

Everyone who was to start the race in the first wave lined up around the side of the pool in numerical order. Each swimmer started 20 seconds apart, so by the time I started (#85) 15-20 minutes had already passed. We swam up and down a lane, then moved over a lane and continued that pattern until we did the entire pool, or 1/2 mile. I have no idea what my time was, but I felt STRONG. No one passed me, and I passed two people.

Next leg: I climbed out of the pool, sprinted across the pool deck, up a flight of stairs, down a ramp, and to the transition area where I scrambled to put on top #2, gloves, helmet, socks, shoes, and my Garmin. Honestly, my transition times were S-L-O-W compared to everyone else's. When I finally hopped onto my bike, I took off and was feeling a bit tired. I took in some deep breaths through my nose and had some water, but it really took me about 6-7 miles to feel adjusted. After about mile 10, I stopped to grab my Gu, almost crashed and burned, and finished the remaining 4 miles with ease. Because I didn't focus on biking as much as the other two events, I was passed by a lot of bikers due to my lack of speed. Granted, I was riding quickly, but my seat is a little low, and I just don't have as much mileage under my belt as other folks. No big deal. Something to work on.

Biking Stats:
Total Time: 1:01:53
Average Pace: 13.8 mph
Max Pace: 22 mph (when did THAT happen?)


As I approached the transition area again, I saw my mom and dad (aka Mommyfill and Daddyfill aka the Parentsfill) and a friend from high school and my running buddy, Lizzie. I smiled and waved and transitioned into running gear as quickly as I could and took off. The running course was mostly flat, and because I have been training mostly on hills, the run wasn't too bad at all! No one passed me, and I passed 4 or 5 people. I finished with a HUGE smile on my face!

Running stats:
NOTE: I forgot to stop my Garmin after finishing so I think these stats are a bit off
Total time: 27:14
Average Pace: 9:05
Max: 6:35 (ok, when did THAT happen?)
Lap 1: 8:48
Lap 2: 9:07
Lap 3: 9:18

I'm still waiting for the official results, but I'm fairly certain I finished in under 2 hours (including transition times)!

What an amazing experience. I CANNOT wait to do another.

Time to eat. I've been eating every two hours!

Pics and official times to come later!