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| Getting things ready! |
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| Checking in the bikes! |
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| Headed to the race! |
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| We survived! |
Austin 70.3 ended up on my race
calendar after Boise's 70.3 was cut short due to awful weather. I
felt completely ripped off of my 70.3 experience for the year. I had
to be careful where I put in another 70.3 distance due to other races that were
already on my calendar. Austin ended up landing at the perfect time
at the end of race season. I knew in the back of my mind it was
going to be a push to get to Austin free of injury and with my head
in a good place. I have raced a lot this year, I have pushed my body
to new limits, and I wanted to give it one more final push. Leading
up to the race the joke around my house was how many more weeks my
body had to hold it together. I never felt like I was exhausted, but
I just knew that I was on the brink and walking that fine line.
Training up to Austin went great. I
loved training in the fall: the weather was perfect, the leaves were
changing, and it was much easier finding time to train with kids back
in school! I had some great training days and I felt really ready
going into this race with very distinct goals set for myself. The
week before the race I ended up having a pain in my right glute. I
took the time needed to get massage before I left town knowing I
didn't have anymore hard training days and figured the taper would be
the perfect combination for a strong body going into the race.
Typically, Austin's temperature is in
the high 70's in late October. But, a few days before leaving the
weather showed a cold snap coming in....and it cooled off quickly!!
When we flew in it was 86 degrees, the high on race day was 63 degrees. Laura and I were not prepared for how cool it was going to get and we
were found Saturday afternoon buying winter gear for the bike ride.
Laura and I traveled out on Thursday
and spent the couple days before enjoying Austin and the surrounding
areas, checking in, and getting ready to race! We drove the course,
became familiar with the transitions, and checked in all our gear.
We were ready....cold weather and all! I had spent a lot of time
during the week going over the course, my goals, my race plan....I
felt very ready for the race.
Sunday morning we arose to some chilly
weather and headed out to the race. Since we were one of the last
waves we decided to get to the race right before transition closed.
We literally got there 15 minutes before it closed..maybe we cut it
to close! We quickly set our belongings out and headed to the lake
to watch the pros take off. It was chilly, but we were met with a
beautiful sunrise. I was looking forward to some warmth that it
would give me. There was a light breeze and there was definite
movement in the water. I followed my prerace nutrition and then headed to the lake.
THE SWIM- Time: 40 minutes
I have grown to love the swim portion
of the race over the past year...well, maybe love isn't the word. But, it is more then just surviving now. As I started the swim I couldn't see
anything. This was so frustrating. I struggled to see where I was
going, but I just stayed out of my head and kept swimming. I figured
as long as I could see other people I was most likely headed in the right direction. The last 300 yards I thought would be the easiest due to how the waves were moving,
but it ended up being the most challenging part of the swim.
I got out in 40 minutes and was not happy with that time at
all...and hope to not see that number again. I know I am capable of
better then that! I quickly noted to myself there was no changing the time and to just leave the swim at the lake.
THE BIKE- Time: 2:44, 20.41 MPH
Lets first start off with...I love my
Kestrel bike and zip wheels so much!! They make me feel so fast on
the course. I had my winter gear on (second 70.3 in winter gear this
year!) and I was off. This course is no joke! It is rolling
hills....and more rolling hills....and more rolling hills. There is
also wind...and not a tailwind....lots of headwind...and crosswind!
This definitely made me work for my bike average. But, I thoroughly
enjoyed the countryside of Texas. I appreciated the posters carried
by people on the course..my personal favorite.. “worst parade
ever.” I passed lots of people and was only passed by a couple men
so I figured I must be moving right along amid the wind. Another
note about Texas...their roads are crap....it made me so grateful for
our roads here. The course had a lot of chip gravel, cracks,
bumps...it was an adventure! The last 8 miles of the course are
uphill and a majority of that was into the wind. As I rolled into
transition I was looking forward to running.
THE RUN: Time: 1:40, 7:40 average
I have been so happy with my run this
year. I feel like I have improved a lot and was expecting to put
down the hammer one last time for the year. The run on this course
is 3 loops of hills...you are either up or down on this one. There
is a 1.5 mile long uphill segment that you repeat 3 times. The first
loop went well and I was on target for my paces, but then about mile
4 my quads started to hurt which I thought was weird. I had
consciously taken in all my nutrition as planned, but on the downhill
my quads weren't happy. Within the next five minutes I felt pain on
the outside of my leg and on the outside of my knee..I knew exactly
what it was....hello IT band! This quickly affected my mental game
because it hurt going down and hurt going up. There is about .75
mile of each loop that is somewhat flat which during that time I was
fine. By mile 9 I was so frustrated about not being able to meet my
goal and having to run more hills with a leg that hurt that I through
all my motivational words in the garbage and just pushed forward that
last loop. It wasn't a happy loop....I had expected more from
myself. One positive note..no females passed me on the run and only
one male...so I will take it!
WHAT I LEARNED:
When I crossed the finish line I was
relieved to have pushed through and finished. As I was feeling
relief and joy of being done I also was feeling a little discouraged
about not meeting my goals. I let myself be unhappy and a little emotional for 20-25 minutes, but then I walked over and watched as others were finishing.
I knew my good friend was still out on the course working her way to
the finish line. I quickly started to change my thoughts. I had set
a PR on a tough course, on a tough day, and on an injury. I started
to think about all my successes from this year, all the things I have
learned, all the strides I have made. As I changed my thinking I
anxiously waited to see Laura come across the finish line and meet
her goal of completing her first half ironman. I love being at the
finish line. It is an accomplishment for everyone that crosses!
Most of all....I learned I can only
expect so much from my body every year, and this year I may have just
pushed it beyond the brink and at mile 4 on the run my body decided it was
done for the year. It is now time for much needed recovery.
SPECIAL THANKS:
I really have so much to be grateful
for. I am surrounded by a wonderful, supportive husband who puts up
with my craziness of training and supports me in the goals that I set
for myself. I could not do it without his support. A HUGE thanks to
him!! I am appreciative of my family who support me in this venture.
I am so appreciative of friends as well as teammates that always
offer encouragement and support. I have the best coaches I could ask
for...LOVE HT Training!
To my sponsors: Bearpaw....your boots
kept my little feet warm race morning in the 47 degree temps,
HEAD...your hoodie and supplies also kept me super warm!
K-Swiss...LOVE my running shoes! GU...your nutrition simply nails
it! Kestrel....my bike has been amazing this year, it is a perfect
fit. FlexR...thank you for all your support and shout outs this
year! Switch...your glasses were worn the entire weekend in Austin!
I am one lucky girl! Here's to another rockin year in 2013! I am
now going to turn into a couch potato for a couple weeks.
