Nice Tri

3:34:03!

Overall Place: 628
Bib Number: 104
Wave: 8
Swim: 0:37:18
Place: 647
T1: 2:53
Place: 362
Bike: 1:46:02
Place: 637
T2: 1:49
Place: 371
Run: 1:06:03
Place: 593
Time: 3:34:03

How the day went:

I woke up at 4:20, took a quick shower and packed my stuff (I'd laid my transition area out in the hotel room the day before). I made a couple of peanut butter sandwiches to eat before the race start. I got down to the hotel lobby around 4:45. Stacy (the most awesome coordinator from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) had arranged bagels and fruit for us, so I ate an orange before boarding the bus to the race site.

We'd done a practice swim and set up our bikes the day before, so all that was left was to do a final bike check and set up our transitions.

At 6:30 I ate my sandwich, and at 7am I donned my wetsuit and headed down to the beach for the pre-race meeting at 7:15.

One of the race referees explained the swim course, a simple rectangle with all buoys on the right. That is excellent for me as I breath on the right and that makes it much easier to sight. David even managed to find me on the beach in the sea of wetsuits and multi-coloured swim caps, and snapped a picture of a way-too-happy me with Coach Ken.

I was number 104. I was in the Athena category (women weighing over 150lbs.), which went out in the 8th wave. Because there are so many participants, triathlons have wave starts so that 800+ people aren't running into - and vying for space in - the water at once. (Trust me, there's still plenty of vying for space among 100 people!)

My swim time was 37:18, which was about what I expected. I panicked a little at the beginning - I felt somewhat competitive, and didn't want to be passed by everyone in my wave. I calmed down about half way out to the turn point, and actually passed a few people in earlier waves at the last buoy going out.

I came out of the water with another TNTer. Coach Earl was standing at the swim exit yelling something at us but I could barely understand him. I was trying to get my wetsuit off and run to the transition area, and also wanted to get my heartrate a little lower before starting the bike. Also, I generally feel like crap when I finish a long swim, and I'm still researching ways to combat that. Yesterday was a bit better, but I still had stomach cramps 6-7 miles into the bike.

As promised, the bike course was hilly. And, I choked a little on it. Still, I made it back to T2 with under 2:30 on the clock, and at that point was hopeful that I'd be able to finish the race in under 3:30. I quickly changed my shoes, ditched my helmet and gloves, grabbed a water bottle, and headed out on the run.

The run was a pretty course - first an out and back along the boardwalk, then through Rye Town Park (which was a little uneven, and made me a little nervous) then through the well-groomed streets of Rye.

The morning until then had been mostly overcast. The sun had started to come out while I was on the bike, and halfway through the run, it was hot. Very hot. At the water stations (there were 4, I think) I would drink a cup and pour a cup on my head/face. I think that slowed me down. I was a little under hydrated after the bike, as the first time I took a drink, I dropped my water bottle, and was left only with a bottle of sports drink. So the run took me longer than I would have liked - I know I can run 10k in under an hour! But still, an 11 minute mile isn't horrible, and my time is right where I predicted it would be.

Overall it was a fabulous day. Kari & Shari both did well. If I ever questioned the value of Team in Training, it was obvious on race day. I couldn't have asked for a more supportive, energetic group of individuals. From the coaches and mentors right down to my fellow teammates, everyone cheered for everyone else. And our families were all there to celebrate at the finish line.

Thanks to everyone who supported me over the last 4 1/2 months, either through donations or words of encouragement or just patience after long training sessions.

Next up? The Florida Half-Ironman, May 2005. Yes, really.

In the meantime, I'm doing an indoor cycling program through Jack Rabbit Sports in Brooklyn. This fall I'm going to focus on nutrition, do some weight training, and try to get generally stronger and fitter for when training for the half starts in December.

posted by Gillian @ 9:08 AM