Race Report: Mossman Sprint Triathlon

What a fantastic race experience. This summer is shaping up nicely! I've had a hard time figuring out what to write other than, "I can't believe I did it!"

Setting Up: So funny all the different rituals I observed from other triathletes and yet how relaxed I felt. I knew at this point (you know, morning of the race) that being a wreck would only hinder my swim performance. The biking distance was slightly less than my work commute and a 5K is such a doable distance (hopefully, I won't have lead legs). But swim...well, I needed to keep my cool if I was going to swim a half mile. I got my little space set up and decided to get the lay of the land by paying attention to the swim in/bike out/bike in/run out locations. It's helpful if I actually look like I know what I'm doing! Then I trekked down to the beach to feel how rough the sand and crushed sea shells were and to take a dip in the water. Blech! Salt Water?! I didn't think about that! Next thing I knew, it was time to line up by waves. Then I heard those damning words..."Ladies over 40, get ready!" Are you serious? I couldn't believe he announced our ages! Seriously, "Red caps, get ready" would have been just fine. Perfect even!


Swim. Nice rectangular course. Swim out to the first orange buoy, turn right and swim past three more buoys, turn right again and swim to the shore. Seems simple enough. But wtf, that first buoy seemed a mile away! I'm glad I never had to flip onto my back to calm myself (like Portland) and I managed to keep up my plan of swim 20 strokes, breast stroke to sight, repeat. The plan worked and got me safely to shore in 22:47 - an improvement of 8:03 from my half mile Portland swim!


T1: My hand is bleeding - yikes! Why won't my socks go on my wet feet?! Tell me again, which part of the helmet is the front? Argh - salt water in the mouth is disgusting! Where is my water? And gel - must fuel up. Ahhh, double latte powergel tastes so good and helps remove the salt taste. The hand - damn, still bleeding. Must have been the rough side of the third buoy marker when I made contact. Oh well, get on that bike and ride, girl! Must work on my T1 time in the future - logged in at 3:23.

Bike. Loved this course. As I was leaving transition, another girl yelled at me to hurry up and we could ride together. Cool! I've never ridden with someone else. Red rover, red rover, send Robin right over. We rode up Calf Pasture Beach Road turning onto Gregory and Saugatuck. Beautiful homes - mansions really. The weather was wonderful for a ride - clear skies and low 70s. The bike portion consisted of two loops and I could have pushed harder, but was still pleased with the results. Finished 12.5 miles in 49:41 (15.1mph).

T2. Drop off bike, get some water, pull on my hat (to hide helmet hair!) and get the H-E-double toothpicks out of there. The run was beautiful with a little over half the course along the shoreline. At first, I thought I had cement blocks attached to my feet, but then everything started feeling good because I WAS RUNNING - doing what I love to do. During the bike portion, Gina (my cycling friend)had commented that I must be from the Midwest because I was thanking all the volunteers. The volunteers were just fantastic and I noticed it even more during the run portion. Each time I thanked one, I would hear words of encouragement right back. I swear I smiled through the whole run portion because of all those wonderful volunteers. I didn't feel I was moving very fast, but I sure was hoping to finish in 30-31 minutes. Woohoo - I clocked in a 29:15 run finish.


Post-Race. Loved crossing the finish line. I even threw up my arms in victory! I had so much fun and was so happy with my swim performance that I just wanted to do the Dora dance and sing, "I did it, yeah, I did it!" Grabbed my medal, a banana, water, and went back to the finish line to cheer on Gina. Afterwards, I texted hubs and the girls the good news, loaded up the car with my mess, and headed back to the hotel to treat my girls to breakfast on the waterfront. Coffee and conversation are best post-race!

*****
Sunday afternoon, the girls and I spent a nice couple of hours at the Maritime Aquarium. It's become "our thing" - whenever we travel to a state, we always try to find a nearby Aquarium. The Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk was perfect. We got to watch the divers feed the sharks as well as learn all about what's in the Long Island Sound (you don't want to know and I certainly didn't enjoy finding out!), we got up close to sea lions, saw more than 10 different frogs, enjoyed the dinosaur exhibit, laughed with the otters - just such fun! Another tradition is to always take pictures against measuring sticks. We did exactly this about a year and a half ago at the Boston Aquarium and of course here as well. Such great memories!

I Rocked This Sprint Tri

Just checked off the 32nd state and had a wonderful day doing it! Long story short, I PR'd with 22:47 half mile swim (an 8 min improvement), 49:41 bike (15.1mph average), and 29:15 run (9:26/mi pace). With transition times, I finished in 1:46!! So thrilled! Full race report to come in a couple days.

My 32nd State - Fun Facts About Connecticut

Lots of excitement due to my upcoming race in Connecticut. First, it will mark the 32nd state for this family. Second, I am signed up for a sprint triathlon - a challenge for me with weak Open Water skills. And third, the girls and I will be making a little pit stop along the way to the Punxatawney Phil Groundhog Zoo to break up the monotony of traveling 9 hours along Interstate 80!

As with most of my races, I try to add a little fun trivia - watered down education, if you will. So, here are a few claims to fame for the great state of Connecticut:

1. Issued the first telephone book in New Haven with 50 names in February 1878.
2. They never ratified the 18th amendment (prohibition).
3. Home of the oldest U.S. newspaper still being published, the Hartford Courant, established in 1764. I'll definitely have to pick one up!
4. Home to the first hamburger (1895), Polaroid camera (1934), helicopter (1939), and color TV (1948).
5. First lollipop-making machine opened for business in New Haven in 1908. George Smith named the treat after a popular racehorse (did not know that!).
6. PEZ candy is made in the city of Orange (but they don't allow factory tours-bummer!).

The biking and running have been going quite well. I've been biking to work and pedaling more/coasting less, which is promising. I've been trying to get in an OWS, but each morning I'm free, the weather has not cooperated. Rain today, so Sunday must result in some valuable OWS time followed by a ride along the Towpath and a stop at Szalay's yummy farmer's market!

Hope your holiday weekend is shaping up nicely, too!

Racing Season Is Upon Us!

Three weeks ago, I ran my first race of the season. Just a short 5k, but a nice tune-up for spring racing. This weekend, I will be running a 4.5 trail race - the April RAINN Trail Run sponsored by GruntGirl Racing. I'm beginning to get excited about my upcoming races and it makes me ponder my training goals.

This weekend's trail run is mostly for fun and to give my quads a screaming workout. Plus, it's sponsored by a kick-ass girls group and the money goes to a worthwhile cause. I'm also using this race as a progress check for the Rite-Aid 10k, which is fast approaching in 2 weeks. My best 10k time was a 1:03:02 at the Milwaukee Zoo race last June. I'd really really really like to break one hour. It's not going to be easy as it requires a sub-10 for EVERY mile. I can maintain that pace easily for 3 miles, maybe 4...but 6. Yikes! But I want that 59:59!

On Mother's Day, I will be cycling 50-miles alongside Karen as we knock out Fat Cyclist's 100 Miles of Nowhere. We'll be doing it by spinning like maniacs through 3 spin classes, drinking tons of water, then walking like John Wayne afterwards. Wish us luck!

In 7 weeks, I'm registered for the Mayor's Half Marathon in Anchorage, Alaska. I recently read course reviews on marathonguide.com and the course is challenging in spots. It's mostly a "trail" course, but that's defined as like our Towpath trail, bike trails, and this gravel trail that a lot (and I mean A LOT) of people complained about, as well as the hill at the finish line that the winner actually walked up (wtf?!). My current half mary PR is 2:17:30. I'd really like to hit 2:15. I don't think that's too out of the question, but we'll see on race day! But if I see a Moose or a Bear on the course, then I'm golden...and chances are, seeing a Moose or Bear will definitely make me run faster!

In 10 weeks, I will tackle my first triathlon of the season. I've been trying to do one sprint triathlon a year, mostly to overcome my weakness in the water. The bike portion in a spint tri is less than my work commute and the 5k run I can churn out easy peasy. But a half mile swim, Hmmmmm....I can do it, but it's ugly. At Portland, it took me a miserable 30:51 to swim 800m with the fishes. The fishes were even embarassed! I've been improving my stroke, so I'm hoping to shed 10 minutes from that previous tri. My goal for the Mossman Sprint Tri is 20 minutes swim, 50 minutes for the 12.5 mile bike, and 30 minutes for the 5k run. I'm actually decent in transition because T1 and T2 is like being a mom and having to rush everywhere. The funny thing about this race, though, is it's billed as being in the "protected waters of the Long Island Sound." Huh? Do I need protected? Protected from what? I dunno if I like that...

It's going to be an exciting several months and I can't wait!

What races do you have planned? Anything you'd like to recommend - I need to fill August! Any post-race brews that go better with a 10k or a half marathon? That would make for a good post - pairing beers to races. Viper, that one's yours!