Overall, it was a great day. My training buddy, Jen, had an awesome day -- exceeding her goal for the day. Mine was medium. I made some errors, not the least of which was going out WAY. TOO. FAST. None of this ruined my day, but it did make for a somewhat anti-climactic first race back after Ironman. Of course, the root error was not training consistently (big surprise). I think I'll finally be able to get into a groove re: school/training scheduling this week. You know, just in time for midterms.
Anyway, here's the rundown of the day:
Bitter: Staying up past midnight making a mix CD for the ride. Schweet: Jen stayed up past midnight doing the same thing.
Bitter: Jen's CD player wouldn't read either of the independently-created CDs we both stayed up way too late making. Schweet: THE WEATHER!!! A clear, Indian summer morning on Lake MacBride -- the widest possible spectrum of fall colors!
Bitter: 10:18/miles with more than a few walk breaks Schweet: Motivation to work harder these next six weeks to the Girls on the Run 5K.
Bitter: Crashed HARD for 2 hours when I got home. Schweet: Having the universe plop a super duper magna fantastic training partner into my lap -- in a way that is usually what ends such partnerships. *cryptic* Maybe I'll tell that story another time.
And the grand finale: previewing the bike ride we'll take tomorrow -- have I mentioned before how beautiful Iowa is? I friggin' LOVE living here!
I have to admit, this (like my pre-Iron posts) is just to get me fired up for my race tomorrow. I mentioned in my training log that I am reluctant to post goals before a race, but it's kind of a novelty for me to actually have goals that move beyond simply covering the distance. It's kind of exciting! I like it!
Even though I haven't gotten into a training groove, I still would like to push my pace. Nothing too crazy -- I'd be happy with a sub-9:30 pace. (Who'da thunk I'd say those two things in the same sentence?!)
Yee HAW! Nervous and excited for tomorrow! I'll run hard!
Yes, this is LOOONG overdue. No excuses besides simply not being in a writing mood. *shrugs* What can I say? It's been a whirlwind month.
In Part Two of the Multi-Sport Athlete Exchange Program (Part One: Dam-to-Dam), Danielle came out to the east side of Iowa and joined me for the Lake Geode Challenge.
It should be obvious by now that recounting the minutiae of race day kinda bores me, and during this race I decided on a truncated form for race reports. HOWEVER, this particular day wound up being one of those turning-point kinds of races, so I actually have something to say about this one.
It was my first tri of the season (I couldn't get to the QC tri for the flood) and the first day back from strep. I was going to treat it like a long training day (I was only looking to finish somewhere close to my average paces without being too miserable and/or collapsing).
And then late on Mile 5 of the 10K run, I entered the race.
The Lake Geode run course is mercilessly hilly. I unapologetically walked all the hills -- until the approach to the Mile 6 sign. Here, I heard the footsteps of the two women approaching. I said to myself, "No free passes," and started to run again. They eventually passed me, but I kept them within reach.
I re-passed them as we approached the finish chute. And then, inexplicably, this gutsy broad re-re-passed in a dead sprint, and of course I gave chase! In the end, I ran out of pavement and lost 2nd place in our age group by one foot.
The irony is that she and I were easily 8th and 9th from last in this race overall. I had no illusions about where we were in the pack, and figured placing/hardware was out of the question. But, dammit, neither one of us was going to let the other get a "free pass" especially not that close to the finish line. And even though I "lost," I am so grateful to that woman -- that gutsy broad -- who made me dig deep and enter that race, if even for the last moments, because she lit a fire in me that I had almost forgotten about. We high-fived on the other side of the line as I gave her heartfelt congratulations. Forget Inner Ass-Kicker, she helped me rediscover my own Inner Gutsy Broad -- who is way tougher, hands down.
When I got home I watched this clip a few times, reveling in my renewed competitive, yet appreciative spirit and shed a few tears of recognition at the final voiceover:
To be clear, I don't put myself on the same level as these elite athletes, but stripped down to the least common denominator, their moment was our moment writ large. For me, this drive is part of what makes me an athlete. Yes, triathlon is sometimes about going the distance, other times about the competition, but at its best about digging deeper after you thought you had nothing left.
So thank you, Stephanie May of Somewhere in Iowa for making me dig deep that day and energizing my inner athlete. But thanks especially for helping me re-discover my Inner Gutsy Broad, who admires yours...and is hot on your heels! :D
Today was my first multisport event of the 2008 season, my first true duathlon ever, and Lucy Q's racing debut. She showed herself well (and pretty much paid for herself in numbers of peeps passed, which I will discuss momentarily).
First of all, I got pulled over for speeding on my way to the event -- and got off with a warning! (That NEVER happens to me -- I always end up with a ticket, but I suspect that turning off the gangsta rap that I had blaring probably helped.) I was a little worried about what that might augur for the race...in the end it's probably just ironic, as I am slow-ass-slow on foot.
Clothing Removal Required to Have a Good Time At last! I am vindicated for the Jermaine Stewart Debacle! Despite being chilly in Iowa City when I left this morning, it was surprisingly warm (and sunny and perfect overall) in the Quad Cities and I quickly realized I was wearing WAY too many clothes. I have to admit, I did not plan well for this: I was wearing full tights, capris, a tank, a long sleeve shirt, AND a windbreaker. Luckily, I brought a short sleeve jersey along, but I left a pair of bike shorts sitting on my bed. What to do? Well...I decided not overheating was a fair trade-off for no butt padding. Yup, I went commando under my capris. BUT I was temperature-comfy and I didn't really notice the lack of padding.
Lucy Q -- My Trusty Steed After a standard-issue out-&-back run, I hopped on my bike and took off for the 17K ride. It was mostly on quiet country roads, and the last few miles had a pesky headwind. I don't know what kind of crazy mojo I've got going for me all of a sudden, but I not only managed a 15+ mph avg (official times forthcoming), I PASSED TEN PEOPLE on the bike leg!!! (You better believe I was counting) It's one thing to pass a bunch of other women, but I will admit, I felt a special kind of joy when I picked off those last three guys -- going 17-22 mph!!! Even though two of them passed me again on the run, passing on the bike is a triumph I hardly ever experience. Certainly not 10 times in a short race and certainly not when there is a headwind. Oh Lucy Q, I love you!
We Ain't in New Mexico Anymore One thing I noticed at this race is that peeps don't talk here. I mean, I've spent a LOT of time at the back of the pack. In New Mexico, we're all back there cheering for each other and giving supportive words when we pass, or on approach to turn-arounds, etc. Frankly, that was one of the most pleasant surprises when I first started -- it certainly made it easier to continue in the activity. But there was significantly less of that going on here. Except for the cheers I gave people, I don't know how many of the athletes would have said anything. Of course, the volunteers and spectators were amazing with the cheering, but I was left scratching my head about the relative silence of the other participants. Maybe this race had a lot of super-newbies who don't yet know to do that. *shrugs*
So...I finished with a time of 1:18:04. I forgot to hit my watch for splits, so I'll update that as soon as the race organizers post their results. I am chomping at the bit to find out how fast I rode. (Also forgot to zero out my computer -- D'oh!)
Bitter: Staying up past midnight making a mix CD for the ride.
