3 weeks post Ironman Texas, let's race!

Podium Girls!

Yesterday I raced an Olympic distance tri, first one of the season as we call know that short and fast is not my specialty.  But that which doesn't kill us...only makes us STRONGER right?!!  The race is sponsored by Muscle Milk and any opportunity to get out and hang with that crew I try not to pass up.  So I got up at 3:30...I don't even do that for an Ironman and drove to Folsom (Sacramento area) for the 7:12 start.  the sunrise was unbelievable and I just thought about how good life truly is.

The past three weeks have been truly refreshing athletically speaking....I have not had a structured workout and  have been eating whatever my little heart desires and trying to get caught up in the rest of life outside of triathlon.  Although that being said, there is still so much to do that I am like, where did the time go?!!

The short and skinny?: 1st in the AG and 3rd OA female

Pre Race Nutrition: coffee with milk, gluten free granola, banana with almond butter, Cytomax, and Pre-load from Osmo to avoid salt tabs and swelling

Pre swim smiles

TYR Swim: 24:02

Yellow Cap Fish!

I did an olympic last year on June 30th, so a few more weeks of rest post Ironman and the time was a 24:12, so not bad I guess. The first half of the swim was directly east so into the sun and blinding...thankfully they row crew in this body of water so there was a lane line all the way to the buoy...except a few maybe 25 yards to the right.  I figured that not having to pick my head up and sight was as quick as having to possibly swim an extra 25 to get to the buoy...i was reassured when the gal who i could see when i took a breath would get ahead of me and then I would catch her as she sighted.  My mom asked me what were my goals for this race and I said none, but after getting out of the water, I found myself asking, "how many girls ahead?" as all of the 39 and under  had gone in the same wave. What girl has two thumbs and is competitive? This girl!!  Only two ladies were up the road apparently 1:15 up.  Time to go ride bikes!

Bike Nutrition: almost two bags of Cytomax Energy Drops: 300

Argon 18/Gray wheels Bike: 1:12:19
Bike from LY was a 1:11:14 on a different course but yesterday there were these crazy cross winds.  I spent many a moment thanking myself for eating well for the past three weeks as skinny girls get hammered far more heavily in the cross winds. I was leaning pretty heavily to one side and telling myself that this is just good practice for Kona. Mark asked me if I drafted and practiced my echelon skills a la the tour de France and Belgium races, but I reminded him that triathlon is not draft legal :)  I managed to find one of the two gals halfway through the bike and tried to fly home as she wasn't far behind and I saw another gal coming hard (turns out she's a runner!).  I was focused on having as high a heart rate as possible on the bike and managed to have one 16 BPM higher than my normal racing HR.  Success! I also tried to keep thinking about keeping my foot on the gas, there is no time to get distracted in an Olympic, if you blink, a girl will pass you! I knew that I would need to get off my bike with as much time to spare as possible as this would be only my third run since Texas and I'm better at long distance racing as I have a bit of a buffer before the run begins...I need all the time I can get on that run!  I was in transition in 2nd place but first place she didn't do an Ironman three weeks ago was 6+ minutes up the road.

Run Nutrition: one nasty gel and water

Smith Optics Run: 45:58/7:23 per mile

Thank you Freeplay for this pic!

LY run was 46:12 on a flatter course, so this is good news!  And I was running blind as I had ditched my watch in the AM knowing I would put on my Garmin when I hit the run...if only it hadn't died I would have some data.  Oh well!  Time to just get out there and push...why does that HURT so bad?!!  Around mile 3 a guy that I was passing asked me if I had put on sunscreen.  Huh?  Sir i am trying to RUN, not talk and think! Although I thank him for his concern for my skin, what was I to do if I had not applied that morning?...there wasn't a sunscreen pump located along the course.  Perhaps he had a spray can in his pocket?  I hoped it was from exertion as I had indeed put on my suncream that morning and ended up in good shape! I was trying to run hard as I knew that my 2nd place OA could only be kept if I ran fast...but it wasn't to be...the gal who got 2nd OA ran a 39:xx...6 minutes faster than me.  I didn't have that kind of margin and around mile 4 she made the pass and that was all she wrote.  I spent the next two miles running scared as I didn't want to lose that OA position!

Post race nutrition: Muscle Milk, coke and some fries!  OK, OK, back on the nutrition wagon today!

So after a three week break, It's back to work this week and another Olympic this weekend for the prep into Vineman 70.3 in July and then Kona in October!