** Warning this is going to be a long blog**
If I had one word to describe this weekend it would be awesome. To sum it up things didn't go exactly how I had planned it was a learning experiene but I came, I saw and I "Tri"ed.
Friday I spent the day with my husband. He was planning on going hunting this weekend for opening day. He took the day off of work to spend time with me. I was spoiled, he took me out to breakfast and bought me a new pair of running shoes. I was planning on leaving town around 3 pm, as soon as my girls got out of school. But we left town much later than expected. My mom, my girls and I. We wanted to take my mom's Denali. My older sister, and her two children decided to come along, at the last minute. In order to fit everything in the car, I had to take the front wheel off of my bike. It was easy to remove, no big deal, right? We saw a ton of wild life including deer and a mountain lion on the drive up. Some of which could have easily become road kill but I didn't want to bring a deer home before my husband. We ended up arriving in Tahoe, after 10:30 pm and very, very tired. Originally, I planned on running a bit Friday to get acclimated with the elevation and thinner air. Yeah that didn't happen.
Saturday morning, it's official, I'm 29! I was so excited to be in Tahoe. My only plans were to complete the mandatory athlete check in ( Expo and turn in my bike) and relax on the beach surrounded by the most beautiful scenery. I got up bright and early. I figured it would be best to check in and get my bike turned in as soon as possible. It took me a while to get my bike together. I could get the wheel back on, but the brakes were messing up. At first, I couldn't get the brake line back in the bracet then when I did they would rub the tire. I couldn't ride my bike 15 miles with brakes rubbing the tires. Also the brake line kept falling out the bracet. I have no bike tools and I'm so not mechanically incline. I was really wishing my husband was there. I finally rigged it so it would work - ok. Not perfect but ok. I took my bike to check in around 9:30 am, only to find out that check in starts at 11 am. So we went and got breakfast and drove around a bit.
At 11, I checked my bike in. There was line of athletes. All of them looked so experienced. A lot of them did different triathlon team trainings and wore their team shirts. They all looked young, fit and had top not bikes. I was intimidated! Here I was, with my mountain bike (with mountain bike tires), inexperienced and still overweight. After checking I, my family met me down at the expo. It was really neat and I got a ton of free-bees! The kids had a good time and made posters to cheer me on. As more athletes arrived and I got to talking to them, I knew I wasn't the only inexperienced triathlete. And while my gear wasn't triathlon specific, I started to feel much more comfortable.
We stayed at the expo a lot longer than I expected. It's hard to get in and out of anywhere quick with 4 kids, ages 8,4,3, and 2. I got to listen to the course talk and found out that the transition area is 1/4 mile from the beach and we would have to travel streets to get there. We decided to check out the beach, on our way down I noticed lots of debris including glass. I knew I couldn't do it barefoot, I didn't want to risk injury. Tahoe was truly beautiful, such an amazing landscape carved by God. I bought myself a few things at the expo, including and iron girl hat (as worn in the pictures), a key chain and the belt to put your bib number on. That night we went out for Italian food. Endurance athletes tradition of eating pasta the night before the race! My food really wasn't that good but I forced myself to eat it anyways. I knew the nutrition would be vital come morning.
That night, I got all my gear together in my bucket. Set out my clothes, the girl's clothes and prepared myself to get up early, I knew I would be walking to the event. I wanted to get my transition area ready and I didn't want to forget a thing! Our hotel was just a few short blockes from the venue. It was an older hotel but clean and comfy. Plus it was less than half the price of the venue's hotel and really just as close. Score!
Sunday Race day I got up bright and early 6am. Got myself ready, ate a banana and a protein bar. I put on coffee for my mom who I knew would be getting up and ready with the kids as soon as I left. I didn't have any pre-race anxiety or jitters. Except, I hadn't been able to pass a bowel movement all weekend. I was bloated. I always get constipated on race weekends! Ugh!! I was uncomfortable to say the least.
It was a cold morning, I think they said 37 degrees. I set up my transition gear, and got myself ready for the swim. I made the 1/4 mile walk down to the beach. So many of the athletes had really nice
iron girl wetsuits. I anticipated the swim being the most difficult portion of the race for me, and seeing these girls in really nice professional looking wetsuits was a bit intimidating. The swim was divided into 4 waves, mine being the last. It was a cold morning, and the sand felt like icey rocks. My feet were sore and numb at the same time. At 61 degrees the water was warmer than the air. I knew I was in for a challenge. I decided to start to the outside and lined up in the middle of the crowd. There was a 20 minute cut off time and I was worried. I hit the water with about 100 other women. Immediately I was kicked or hit in the face, arm and legs. My body was taking a beating. I tried to remember my training and focus on swimming efficiently. Not only was I being beaten physically, every time I came up for break a wave would crash in my face and I was literally breathing in water and or drinking it. I felt like I could easily drowned. All the training I had was useless! Nothing could have possibly prepared me for this barbaric swim! I decided to go into survival mode: Do not stop, Do not drowned! Survive, get through it, even if it means doggy paddle! Gasping for air, I decided to do back stroke. Yeah I couldn't see but at least I could protect myself and get some air. I'm so glad I practiced the back stroke in my pool -- A lot! Soon, I was nearing the shore. I got out of the water and hussled the 1/4 mile back to transition.
In transition. I grabbed my nutrition, got my shoes and bike. I was almost out of the transition area when I was reminded to put on my helmet. Opps! Almost forgot! I was still gasping for air. My chest was tight but I was excited to be off on the bike course. It was 15 miles of climbing but the scenery was breath taking. I figured I'd be able to catch my breath on the ride, boy was I wrong. Women were zooming past me on their nice road and triathlon bikes. My bike was nice, or so I thought but at the end of the day it's a mountain bike. The tires are not made for speed. I set a good pace for the ride. Climbing the hills was tough, the elevation in Tahoe is roughly 6300 feet. The air is thin but the views were specular. The climbs were killer. There were many points of the ride that my legs ached and I didn't want to keep going but the trill of competition kicked in. Almost every climb, I was passing women proving my athleticism. I could hear my spin instructor Dana telling me, "this is where the change happens, keep going, keep going." I would mimic my movements to those that I knew were effective in spin, bracing my abs, pushing through with my whole body. But on the downside of the hill, I was being passed. Not because the women's were working harder than I was or were stronger athletes than me but because their bikes were more aerodynamic and made for speed. My breathing was horrible, I was wheezing and out of breath the whole ride -- elevation I assume. My stomach was killing me and it had gone beyond cramping, my colon felt like it could erupt. I was still constipated, full of gas and in pain. Out of breath and falling further behind I was discouraged.
I was nearing half way, cave rock, where we turn aroud come back. At the turn, I had the most beautiful view of Tahoe, the largest alpine lake in the US, surrounded by beautiful pines and blue skies. Taking in the view, I notice off in the distance a small but bright rainbow. Immediately, recharged I said, "Thank you, God." At that moment, I remembered my daughter Mariyn and as she says, "God's promise". I was moved,spiritually by how awesome our God is. How he not only encourages me even in my weakest moments but is there with me. The ride back was hard but I knew God promised me that I could do it. I gained momentum and was again, gaining position. Up and down the hills, my legs pedaled fast, the pedaled hard. I couldn't wait to get back and tell my Mariyn what I had seen. Physically I was prepared well to do all the climbs. Exhausted and still short of breath, I started to climb the steepest hill on the return route. Women in front of me were faltering. I was too out of breath to pick up the pace and go around them. They looked as if they were losing control over their bikes and struggling to make it up the hill. I pedaled in front of as many as I could but at 3/4 of the way up the hill decided to dismount and walk, get a drink and attempt to catch my breath. It just seemed safer. At the top of the hill, I got back on my bike and made the last leg of the ride. Athletes were already finishing up the last leg of their run!
Back in transition, I racked my bike, took a bite of the protein bar and took off on the run. Near the run out gate, my family was standing there cheering me on. I gave them a high 5 and I took off.
I needed to go to the porta potty (consitpated no longer) but couldn't easily access it. I knew the run was going by the beach and there were toilets there too. Out of breath and in severe pain with stomach cramps, I stopped and used the porta potty. I knew running was my strongest point but I still was out of breath. In fact, I never caught my breath the entire race. My chest was very very wheezey. Most of the 5K run was up hill. Any day, I could have ran this 3.1 miles effectively but not today. My lungs were hurting and I decided it was time to walk/jog. Mind over matter I told myself and thought of Dave and Adrienne. I knew I would get through, I knew I could finish. Wheezing and winded I wished I had remembered to bring my inhaler. It was at home, as my asthma rarely acts up, I'm not used to bringing it. The last leg of the run was a steep down hill grade. Yeah I could run quickly but you have to be careful. I didn't want a knee or joint injury. My quads were burning. I thought of Zamara, my running partner and how we would pace ourselves. I was happy, I knew I was near the end. Once th road was flat I picked someone in front of me and decided to ignore my breathing (mind of matter) and catch up. With in the last hundered feet or so, I passed 2 women and crossed the finish line!
That was it, I not only survivied. I "TRI"ed. I'm now an iron girl triathlete! 2 hours 20 minutes and 12 seconds after getting in the cold waters of Lake Tahoe, I swam 400 meters, bikes 24 K, ran 5K and crossed the finish line.
Words can not describe how accomplished I feel. My biggest fans, my girls, my reasons for "Tri"ing greeted me at the finish line. Yeah, I know in the world of triathlons I could have done a lot better but I stated with a goal, and I finished. Athletically I'm a tough competitor but it was a learning experience and I know exactly where I have room for improvement. Nearly 500 women registered for the event, 374 women officially finished. I came in at 336 overall with plenty of room for improvement. I'm ready to "Tri" again and to encourage others to do so.
Over an hour after finishing my race, I caught my breath. I coughed a lot on the way home, lots of wheezing and phlegm. I used the inhaler as soon as I got back home and am now ready for a good night sleep.
