My last triathlon of the season is in the can and I'm happy to know it was a decent effort. I kept calling it my "parade race," one that I would relish and enjoy. Trust me, I did enjoy this race, but I also grimaced my way through it and worked hard as hell for 2 hrs 37 min!
1500m Swim: 32:41 That's with no wetsuit since they weren't legal. Two years ago, I swam it in 34:something WITH my wetsuit...making progress slowly but surely in the swim. I was 17th out of 53 in my age group on the swim. Again, I used to consistently be in the bottom 10%. Progress, Patience, and Consistency...
T1: 3:47 apparently I was getting my nails done! Actually, it was an abnormally long run to the run out through sand and then through half a parking lot before we could mount the bikes! My HR was redlining in transition!
40K Bike: 1:12:57 or 20.4 mph...I'll take it even though I was secretly hoping for 21+mph. I also was trying to keep something in the tank for the run. 9th out of 53 in my age group on bike.
T2: 2:08...again, it was a long run through the sand back to my bike rack, but I was taking my sweet time with my shoes.
10K run: 46:08 or 7:26 overall pace. Good enough for 6th in my age group. A couple of observations. My hip was toast going into the second loop. Basically hanging on towards the end. Part of the course was on uneven grass and I was being a bit more cautious. Two years ago, I averaged 7:02 for the 10K!! The course was all on roads as I recall. Plus, my bike and swim were both slower. Oh yeah, and my hip wasn't torn :-) Still, though, I'm very proud of that pace given the fact that I've done ZERO speed work in four months. Literally...
I'm also proud of my brother-in-law who flew in from CA to do his first-ever triathlon! He didn't even bother with a sprint distance and just kicked his new "career" off at the Olympic distance level. He reminded me so much of all of the reasons why I love this sport...
Fear...learning how transition works
Upset tummy on race morning...always bring your own roll of TP
Swim Anxiety...trying to silence the evil voice that says you shouldn't be out there
Exhilaration...I finished the swim!! Time to ride my bike!
Childish...There's nothing more fun than riding your bike fast and the Austin Tri course is perfect for doing just that.
Pain...I have to do another loop???
Heat...doing a race in the mid-90s is priceless
Determination...hearing people calling your name as you run by
The Last Turn...How awesome is the feeling of running down Riverside and making that turn to the Finisher's chute?!
We were all exhausted, but had such great stories to share with my in-laws who came up to watch both of their sons (and their wacky daughter-in-law) compete. Brett was sore and exhausted the next day, but was already looking up races and talking about stepping up his training schedule. Did I mention that the three of us are already signed up for Oceanside 70.3 in March 2010?!?
The Austin Triathlon marked my last major race of the year that included a couple of Half-Ironmans, a Marathon, and a little Ironman thrown in as well. Because of my hip pain, I officially withdrew from the USAT Half-Maxx race in Oklahoma City and chances are slim that I'll be running the California International Marathon in December. My goal now is to recover, heal and stick with some short stuff until the end of the year...easy on the mileage and on the joints.
As for the hip, still plenty of unknowns...I still managed to average a great 7:26 pace for the 10K portion of the race, but not without my usual "locking up" and "dead leg" sensation. I did have to walk for about 10 sec at one point just to get the right hip to calm down. People have asked a ton of questions and have expressed so much care and concern. For that, I'm grateful....truly blessed. At this point, I'm proceeding with conservative care and and am on prescription anti-inflammatories. That certainly helps with the pain and irritation, but it doesn't ultimately fix the problem. A cartilage tear is still torn and won't heal itself. A few friends have mentioned alternative therapies including airrosti that I'll be exploring over the next few weeks. I also received several good stretches and exercises to build strength in my glue and hips. In the meantime, it's lots of yoga, massage, swimming, resistance, core and some short bike rides (god bless the Computrainer)!
2009 is in the bag and I couldn't be happier. Thanks to T3 and Erin Baker's Wholesome Baked Goods for getting me to the start and finish lines! Thanks to hubster for existing in real life. I wake up everyday thinking that he MUST be a figment of my imagination. Nope...he's the real deal.
1 comment:
Ok, so I'm still kinda pissed that even with your bum hip you still manage a frickin' awsome run split that I will never in my lifetime be able to hold for more than a half of a mile without passing out and having the medics scrape me up off the pavement.
I remember that goofy grass run just out of T2 last year and hated it. I hate running on grass because it feels like the life is being sucked out of my legs and my pace slows down to a 11:00 mile.
Glad to hear that you had a good race to end the season on and that it was in your own back yard. I love that downhill section on South Congress. You can really get the bike to rock and roll on that part.
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