Spring Sprint Tri 2023
Last Sunday was my first triathlon of the year. I’ve been racing various events since 2010 and despite that, I still get nervous in the moments before the race. Did I train enough? Can I still do it? But at the same time, I’m eager; chomping at the bit to go. It’s a bunch of mixed emotions.
I got there before the crack of dawn and got myself set up at my station pretty quick. Hung the bike on the rack, put my towel on the ground and dropped my bag. It’ so early, there’s no need to fret over it all. I take care of potty business and walk around to catch up with friends. Make my rounds and finally I hear the announcer talk about getting everybody out of transition soon. So I head back to my rack and get myself ready. Grease up my legs, arms and neck and start to get my wetsuit on. I set up the rest of my gear so that I’m grab and go once I get done with the swim. Bike shoes near by, helmet on my aerobars, running shoes with my race bib and shades. Ok! Off we go!
I head over with some friends down to the water. Man, I hate this walk! The asphalt is super craggy and old. It’s like stepping on Legos with every step! We finally get to the smooth concrete of the boat ramp. I still have about twenty minutes before my wave goes so I start warming up the body. With such a short swim (500m) I know my body has to be ready to hammer from the start. The body has to get past that initial fatigue point of going out hard and be ready to steadily move. I jump around a bit, get some arm circles going, etc. Finally my wave is up, we head into the water. Brrr! That initial shock of cold hitting your feet! But it’s not too bad. I adjust my goggles over my eyes. Some nervous chatter with the othe athletes before the announcer yells out, “3, 2, 1, GO!” The horn blows and we’re off.
Swimming is not my strong suit! I’m situated toward the back middle part of the crowd so that I don’t get swam over by the faster guys. “You’ve done this race before, you got this” I tell myself. I swim my race and try to fall into a groove fast. “Stay relaxed.” I pop my head up a few times to sight for that first buoy. It bunches up a bit as we all round it. I’m feeling pretty good. I’m catching myself swimming too hard and remind myself to glide, catch and pull, rotate so I don’t poop out. Shoulders are burning. I want to stop. I ignore that thought and keep going. Finally round the last buoy and we’re heading into the final stretch. I feel like I ended up a bit more towards the front group because it’s crowded as we finish up. I’m kind of surprised! Get out the water, try to shake off the wonkiness from swimming and start pulling my wetsuit off. Get to transition and I’m peeling and stomping the legs off my suit.
Socks on, shoes on, helmet on, pull the bike off the rack and start running out of transition. Click-clack, click-clack we go with the cycling shoes. Hop onto the bike clip in and we’re off! I take a big swig of water to rinse my mouth out of the bay water and head onto the main road. I’m feeling good! Start hammering on the bike, weaving in and out of people. Grab a Maurten gel from my bike bento box and take that in. Two laps for the bike course with lots of U-turns. All flat with the only hills being the on ramps. Last year, I struggled on the bike! But I’ve been getting more time on the bike for training this year so I’m feeling cautiously optimistic. I drop into aero position where I can. I maneuver well around the hairpins – take them wide as I enter, cut it in close near the cones, slingshot back out. I round the last U-turn and it’s a long straightaway back to transition. Dig deep and pedal hard. Bob and weave around the potholes and people. I see the final turn back to the parking lot. Whip around the turn, up the incline and pass some folks. Take a big swig of fluids because I probably won’t grab water for the run. I reach down and un-velcro my shoes. Finally hit the bike dismount line and hop off the bike. Shoes are scraping the asphalt as I run in my socks through transition, pushing my bike from the saddle. Get to my rack and it’s a quick transition. Slip the shoes on, grab my bib belt and shade and we’re off out of T2.
Run course is all flat. Two loops for this as well as you run along the Bay for half of a loop. This is where I usually handle business! That first half mile or so after the bike is always goofy as you try to get your running legs going. Hip flexors are tight from being hunched over the bike, so running tall takes some time. I work through it and try to get into a good groove. Mile 1 pings on my watch. 7:03 Not what I was hoping for – I’ve done better in training. Don’t sweat it. Push on. I keep passing people, which is a good mental boost. I start the second loop, take advantage of the slight decline and pick up the pace. Back onto the bay side of the course, it’s nice and wide and I cross the mile 2 marker. Ping. 6:56. Okay, slightly better. One mile left. “You got this. Just gotta push hard for another six minutes and change.” I tell myself. Just past the half mile point, this young cat bursts by me. So being the rabbit chase that I am, I give chase. We’re clocking about a 6:15 pace. “Just hold on for three minutes!” Legs are screaming! Heart is pumping! I’m trying to hang, but as we get near the parking lot entrance, I pull the parachute and slow down a bit. I ain’t got it. Nonetheless, I power up the incline and hit the flat section near the finish line chute. I hear some friends cheer me on and it gives me that power boost to keep the hammer on. I give one last push as I hit the chute and cross the finish line.
Whew! Chest is on fire! The volunteer hands me my medal while I grab a water bottle and try to compose myself. In pushing yourself to the limit, you learn a lot about yourself. How hard are you willing to work? How much do you want to challenge yourself? How bad do you want to do your best? No one cares how you do, only you. Knowing that I put forth my best effort on race day is how I judge my performance. And in the moment of racing when so much is going on physically, it’s easy to be over critical after the fact. In the moment, with how you’re feeling, you make adjustments on the fly – don’t go out too hard; how early do you give the final kick; fighting against your body telling you it hurts. And you hope you made the right decisions. Sure I can over analyze how I did, where I went wrong, how I can improve. But that’s just my nature.
I go over to the results booth and peep my finishing time… plug in my bib number, boom! 2nd place for age group! Woohoo! My first time earning a top three spot in a triathlon event! Also a PR for me with this distance. Time to go celebrate!
Finish time – 1:07:19
