Yesterday was the day. Yesterday was what 9months of training came down too. The day of reckoning - my first Triathlon.
The night before we had to go down to the park and pick up our race packets, get marked and of course our swag. Inside our packets were our number (518), swim cap for our heat and other misc things. It was upon this packet pickup that I began to get really, really nervous. I mean like a deer in headlights nervous. And when I get nervous I get a bit pissy, I know me pissy seems a little un-real, Ha!
I had a freak out about a spare tire tub kit that I did not have and so Karyn stopped at a store and we gathered all the things I would need in case of said tire blow out. (didn't need it Thank God!) After I rushed the sitter home, picked up Teriyaki, put kids to bed, laid out all my items for the race and ate the said Teriyaki it was after 9pm. I was tired, stressed and my knee was killing me.
I crawled into bed with my ice packs and ibuprofen to try to get some sleep. At 10:00 I may have been still awake and a friend messaged me on facebook saying "go to bed". I fell asleep shortly after that and slept until 4am. I had set my alarm for 4:45 to get up, get ready & eat a hearty breakfast before my Tri buddies arrived to pick me up. Getting up so early gave me this time to relax, eat, have coffee, drink my water, Gatorade and mentally prep. And I felt good when they arrived. Relaxed and ready to tackle this Tri.
With my knee taped like I was going into battle I kissed my hubby and kids goodbye heading to check in. Promising to see them along the way. Bill, the kids and our friend Melinda were coming down to cheer us on along the race route. A few of our other friends came down to cheer us on. They made great signs and screamed, yelled and offered so much support to each of us as we swam, biked and ran by them. At one moment on my 2nd lap of the bike as I was riding past them I got all teared up.
The Swim was great and I finished better than I have during trainings. I am not going to lie looking out at the bouies and seeing the actual swim course was a little intimidating but I knew I could do it. Luckily my pre-swim jitters and nervous pee didn't stop me from swimming a good race. I was out and to the transition area. We wont mention that before I pulled my bike off the rack I put my helmet on the wrong way, ha! Got it on and was on the road for the bike.
As I have gone over the race in my mind and in discussions with Bill I have come to realize the bike was my downfall. I honestly wasn't ready for the bike. My issues with the bike started weeks ago when I tore my hamstring by using a bike that wasn't suited for my body. (too tall for it's frame) I quickly found another bike to borrow. And although this bike fit my frame I wasn't familiar with it and learning to ride an unfamiliar bike in a few days is harder than you'd think. I just never got the hang of how to use the gears on that bike correctly and make the ride more fluid. It may seem like riding a bike is easy why would this be a problem. However, in a bike race knowing when to shift down/up or go into a high gear/low gear is very important - especially for hills! Don't even get me started on hills.
The bike route was 4.5miles long with 1 big hill and several smaller "mounds" and we had to complete the course 2x. More than half the course was on a newly paved and flat road so that wouldn't be the hard part of the course for me. And lets not forget our awesome cheer sections positioned along this route that helped give us our motivation. Now only if they could've been on the hills, ha! On the first lap my bike chain fell off midway up the hill thanks to my awesome shifting abilities. A race bike "fairy" drove by and saw me trying to mess with it. After about 5mins he had me up and ready to go. At this point I may have said
"I'm just going to walk the rest of the way up this hill " and he said "
Yep, probably not a bad idea now" And I was on my way again. Passing by the cheer squads I may have been heard saying "
This sucks" and someone said "
Not as much as we do, you're doing this, we aren't". The chain issue plagued me again on the second lap but at least it was at the top of the hill this time. I was able to get it on myself and thankfully so because there was no bike "fairy" to help me.
I cruised into the transition area glad to be off that bike and ever so grateful to not be biking anymore. I got my footing and immediately felt my knee pop and the hamstring pulling. Yep, the run was going to be difficult for sure. I paced myself and walked/ran the first 1/4 mile or so. I passed Briana on her final 400 yards of the run and cheered her on. Excited to see her almost done, but also knowing that meant Karyn was already done. I was officially the last of our Tri Trio on the course. But sorrow did not set in. I looked at my watch and said "
You can do this and you can finish before 10am" and the self motivation talk started:
You can do this
You are strong
You are a fighter
This injury will not define you
You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime I picked up some speed, got some high fives from a few elites who were on their 2nd lap of the run (they completed the entire course 2x) and finished before 10am. In fact I finished the run in like 18mins with a torn hamstring!
My final race time was 1:41 03 - and my Family and friends were on the other side cheering me on. I found Bill and embraced him with tears coming down my face. I had completed the race. I had set a goal and I had finished it. I had overcome a torn hamstring & bike issues to complete my first Tri and I was alive!!
I had said all along it wasn't about a time it was about finishing the race. Setting a goal and completing it. But who was I kidding, in my head I had made my own little competition and time. However, on the bike that 2nd loop I began to face the reality that I wasn't going to make that time and now more than ever it was about finishing. I am happy with my time. I am happy that I overcame everything to still finish. Plus, I can now say ........
I am a Tri-athlete! I finished a Triathlon.
Bring on next Tri season - bring it on.
Yep, you heard that right, this off season while I am training for the Tinkerbell I will be also eyeing down that 1:41 - I will squash that time next year, just after I get my own road bike!
And let's not forget about my girls. The ones who saw me through till the end. Who were there through all the tears and sweat. Who never said "No" and who completed this Tri with me. Karyn and Briana - You are both Amazing & Strong women who I am proud to have trained and raced alongside. Thanks for joining me on this wild & crazy ride. I love you both!
