Sprint Recap

I want to do a race recap but won't bore you with a formal report like I did for Xterra.

My sister and I drove down to Baxley on Friday. It took us about 4 hours to get down there. The race site was on the way to the hotel so we tried to find the lake. Country roads are not marked very well so we couldn't find it. I wasn't sure where we were so I had to guess to get back to the main road. My sister had directions from the hotel so we drove in to town. We decided to start at the hotel so we'd have the exact mile directions. After checking in at the Key West Inn, (sounds fancy, right?) we drove back to the country and actually turned on the road we had just left, DOH! Following the directions, we had been less than a mile from the lake the first time but didn't know it because there weren't any signs! Scoped out the site, and then we drove back in to town to find some dinner.

An uneventful evening at the hotel and I went to sleep about 10:30. We knew transition didn't open until 6 and it took about 15 minutes to get there. I set the alarm for 5 and was up about 5:10. I made hot water with the coffee maker and took a quick shower. My sister was up soon after but she was feeling rough. She had not slept well and I'm sure she was annoyed that I was up and so awake. I made oatmeal and coffee with the hot water, got dressed, checked the weather on TV and was ready to go. We left the hotel at 5:55. I know I said last week I was anxious about this race but on race morning I felt good - very little nervousness. I knew I was ready.

We arrived at the race site, parked and walked to the pavilion to pick up our packets and get bodymarked. After waiting in line, we were marked and walked back to the van to get our stuff and put our numbers on. We pumped up our tires, gathered our crap and walked to transition. The racks were set up by race number which always makes it easier. We were alphabetical so my sister's rack was 4 or 5 racks away. I had planned to take my bike out for warm-up but decided there wasn't time - transition was supposed to close at 7:15 and by now it was about 7. I ate my gel, made a potty stop and we walked down to the water. On the way, I grabbed a drink out of the water fountain and the water tasted awful. It made me gag. YUCK. I thought the vanilla bean GU was coming back. Visions of gagging in the lake made me a little anxious so I tried to shake it.

We got in the water and the temperature was perfect but the visibility was not. This was some seriously dark water, like an Amberbock or a Guinness - no kidding. Zero visibility. I was standing in the water up to my knees and I couldn't see my shins. It freaked me out at first but I tried not to think about it too much. Too much thinking messes me up before a race.

Waiting to start, I was going over my plan in my head. I knew what I had to do and I felt confident in my abilities. Knowing there were only 5 women in my age group, I was there to win. Even though there was a girl in our AG that looked fast... I wanted to win, I needed to win.

The actual race is a blur. I can remember bits and pieces but didn't think a whole lot like I normally do. I felt like I was on auto-pilot to GO. We started as one wave and I tried to push as much as possible. I finished the swim (slower than I planned) made the transition and got on my bike. I hammered as much as could over the 11 miles. I felt strong and that everything was firing on all cylinders. The course was mostly flat with slight false-flats and 2 tiny inclines. I passed some guys and caught 2 women that had been in front of me. I finished the bike as the 2nd woman. At this point I knew I was doing well. I didn't see many women and to know I was that far in front was a new thing for me - I like it!

I jogged in to T2 with my bike and got ready to run. Right out of the gate I felt good, no cramping, no dead legs just a little shoulder soreness from riding in the drops. I wasn't going to walk. I knew I'd made up some time and wanted to keep any distance I could because I'm not a super fast runner. My HR was high but not totally out of control so even though it was uncomfortable, I pushed through. I had 3 women catch me on the run and I couldn't keep up so I let them go.

I was able to stay ahead of any other women and crossed the finish line as the 5th woman. Since none of the women who passed me were in my AG, I was pretty sure I was 1st. I waited for the official results to be posted to see that I was, indeed, 1st in my Age Group. I was so happy.

I walked around and recovered and waited for my sister to finish. She finished under her goal time - YAY! This was her second outdoor race and I'm proud of what she's been able to do. Yay Lindsay!

Here are my official splits, there were 30 women and 85 total participants:
Swim: 9:27 32/85
T1: 0:48 9/85
Bike: 34:17 22/85
T2: 0:46 13/85
Run: 29:44 58/85 <-- this is a PR for a 5k - yipee!

Total time: 1:15:02 1/5 AG, 41/85 O/A, 5/30 F