I believe that, to grow, I need to push myself out of my comfort zone. I try to do this whenever I race (with one or two notable exceptions). I don't always succeed, though. I know I've run races where I haven't given my all, haven't pushed myself as far as I want to. In fact there are times when I deliberately leave myself well within my own comfort zone, with zero possibility for growth. And sometimes, I overcompensate for those instances by biting off more than I can probably chew in others. Case in point: in 2006, I signed up for the Colfax Marathon, after having run exactly one organized race in my adult life--the BoulderBOLDER 10K in 2005. "Hell, I've done a 10K, and this is only 20 miles more! No problem!" That race is one of exactly 3 DNFs I have on my record. The other two, at least, were due to injury; but in the case of Colfax 2006, I simply gave up.
One would probably think (I certainly did) that today's race was another example of the same kind of overcompensating. A little background: I am a fair swimmer--at least, I can stay afloat and move myself forward. I'm pretty comfortable on my mountain bike (but still cautious). I am, I like to think, a decent runner. But I've never tried all three events back-to-back, let alone at Olympic Tri distances (1500m swim, 40km ride, 10km run). However, I've had "Do a triathlon" on my bucket/New Year's Resolution list for a few years now. I've told myself that I wanted to, but that scheduling or finances kept getting in the way. When I won an entry into today's race at Run Club a week and a half ago, I took it as a sign that it was time to put up or shut up. So I put up. I did two workouts a day over the last 10 days: ride/run, swim/ride, or swim/run (side note: triathlon training is a HUGE time commitment. Like, I always think I spend a lot of time training for my marathons, but that's just peanuts compared to tri training. Gives me a new appreciation for a 22-mile day). I got hold of a wetsuit, goggles, and swim cap courtesy of a couple of friends, replaced my rear bike tire which was wearing through one sidewall, and stocked up on fuel to consume during the race. I rode the bike course one day, and timed myself swimming 1500 meters another. I conferred with friends who have a lot of tri experience about what to pack for transition. I did everything I could in the limited time I had to condition and prepare. I didn't have any expectations beyond finishing in (hopefully) a respectable time and setting a new PR (because, as I always say, your first race at any distance is a PR).
First up: The swim! My practice 1500 took an hour, but that was because I gave myself plenty of rest opportunities and didn't really push too hard--although I did complete the first 500 meters in just under 14 minutes. My hope was to finish the swim between 45 and 60 minutes. I seeded myself towards the back of my pack, the better to hopefully avoid getting kicked in the face or something. I told myself just to swim to the first buoy, then the next one, then the next, and so on, at a consistent pace, and to try not to stop. I found that, even though I'd started at the back of my pack, I managed to pass more than a few of them as I went. Of course, before I'd even gotten to the halfway point, I was being passed by swimmers from the next wave, so I guess that all evens out. I even passed a swimmer in the last 100m or so who'd started two waves before me! As I ran up the beach to the first transition, I was quite pleased to hear my name and see several friends from
Runner's Roost and
Runner's Edge cheering for me. That gave me a nice lift. And I was even more surprised to see, when I got to my bike and looked at the clock on my Garmin, that it wasn't even 8:30! My swim started at 7:45, and it had taken me at least 3 minutes to get out of the water and up to transition and turn on my watch...that was a 40-minute swim at most!
Then it was on to the bike. I was so glad I'd taken advantage of the Runner's Edge Tri Club's course tour last week. I didn't remember it all exactly, but I had a pretty good idea of what to expect. I set off on my ride, and found myself heading up into the first mile along 51st St as the first finishers of that portion of the race were coming along in the opposite direction, in their last mile! Smiling grimly (or it might have been a smirk), I pedaled my way along the course, eating a couple Honey Stinger Waffles as I started slowly climbing up towards Old Stage Road. I did have to dismount on Old Stage--the longest steep climb of the course--and walk my bike up for about half a mile. But that was the only walk break that I took, and I pedaled the rest of the way. After summiting the hill I was quite glad to let gravity and my heavy mountain bike take over for a while and scream down the steep descent of the next couple of miles (although I did ride my brake for much of it, especially the part with the cop with the radar gun on the road. Mild moment of panic: was I going faster than 35 MPH? As it turns out, no. According to my Garmin, I topped out at 34.7 at that point). Also, I am 100% certain that I was the only racer on a mountain bike. In fact, 8 spectators and 6 racers (yes, I counted) complimented my bike! A six-year old spectator cried, "I like your bike!" Another spectator said, "First place Mountain Bike Division!" which I liked so much I've put it on my official Roost Team Race Report. And another rider, who passed me at mile 17, said, "You went up Old Stage on that? You have my respect!" If she'd've said "You're braver than I thought," I would have had a Star Wars geek moment; but as it was all I could do was smile and say "Thanks" and keep pushing, hoping to finish in under 2 hours. Which I did: according to my Garmin, my ride took exactly 1 hour and 56 minutes.
Last up: the run. I ditched my bike, helmet, and gloves, and started off on a surprisingly rolling out-and-back course. Teammates cheered for me as I started out, and I hoped that they'd still be there when I finished (they were). My goal for the 10k was twofold: to keep it under 60 minutes, and to be done before 11:45 (which would make for a 4-hour race). Seeing as how I started the run just before 10:25, the second goal would be easy. The first one, however, I felt would be a struggle. I tried to liken it to the last 10k of a marathon, "when the real race begins," and that helped me for a couple of miles. Another big--HUGE--help was passing a lot of my teammates who were finishing up their own 10ks. Their cheers and chants and high-fives were a huge energy boost to get me through the first half of that race. I did manage to keep half of my miles at under 9-minute pace, and two of them at under 10-minute pace. The last mile, however, was very slow thanks to two extended walk breaks. I was bone tired! I was watching my clock, and telling myself that I could slow down or walk "this much, but no more!" The truth is, I'm a bit disappointed with my run. I think I could have pushed harder, in fact I'm almost certain of it. I could have at least walked less. But I did run the last half mile of the race, even pushing my pace to sub-8 for the final .2, and finished in 58:15.
So I hit all my goals: I finished the swim in less than an hour, the ride in less than 2, and the run in less than an hour, and the whole race in less than 4 hours. I've completed a triathlon, and set a new PR for myself. And it's about damn time.
OFFICIAL TIME: 3:39:34
Swim: 37:03
Bike: 1:55:55
Run: 58:15
YTD Race Miles: 62.2 running (88.8 including swim & bike)
YTD Total Miles: 741.2
The Big Question: Will I ever do another tri? A big part of my says probably not. Certainly not an Olympic, Half Iron Man, or Iron Man distance. But a Sprint? Never say never...
