Pre-race: woke up at 5:30 (normal time) and went to the T (transition) area for body marking and to set up my transition area. It was very, very cold--around 30 degrees. I wore my new DeSoto Forza one-piece tri suit. Super neat and turned out to be very comfortable. After hoping that I didn't forget anything, I put my wetsuit half on for warmth and headed down to the beach to await the start. Cold, cold, cold. I got down there a little before 6:45 (when T closed) and had to wait until 7:30 for the first wave to start. I was in the last wave, so we started the swim at 7:45.
Swim: 400 yards
The water was cold (duh! I felt like my chest was in a tight steel cage and I felt it for the rest of the day) and a bit choppy. There were a bunch of first-timers who had no idea what to do, but good for them for racing! Even though it was kinda annoying. 80% of my wave flailed around, making it nearly impossible to swim. I did a lot of breast stroke (the synchronized swimming, head out of the water kind) because I couldn't get any clear water until over the half-way point, where I moved way out to the side. Good decision because I was able to put my head down and go. One of the people in kayaks (volunteers who make sure nobody drowns) had to keep telling a woman near me not to forget to breathe. She kept making loud howling drama queen noises...kinda funny. Note to self: stop laughing while swimming! Finally made it out of the water in 10:40. Super slow, but given the circumstances, I'm okay with it. Only minor panic and a few gallons of lake water swallowed (would come back to haunt me on the run).
Transition 1
The T area was around a quarter of a mile from the swim site. As, I was in the last wave, lots of people were already on the bike when I started the swim. Anyway, jogged to T1, dropped the wetsuit and put on my bike gear. Trotted awkwardly (it's really hard to run in bike shoes!) to the mount line and got on my bike. Go time!
Bike: 15 miles
This was, by far, my best leg! The majority of the 500 athletes were already biking, so I had lots of people to pass. The bike course was East on Hwy 50 from stateline into Nevada. Lots of rolling hills and a couple of good climbs. I hauled ass (for me)--averaged 19.66 mph, even with the hills. I passed, literally, hundreds of people and never got passed. In fact, people came up to me after the race to comment on my biking and legs :)
Finished in around 45 minutes. Pretty fun to do a short, fast ride.
T2
Uneventful. T1 and T2 were in the same place. Racked my bike, changed shoes, put on my visor with the tiara attached and took off. Heard a few people comment on how strong I looked. Yes!
Run: 3.11 miles
Unfortunately, the lake water came to haunt me at this point and I had a major side ache the entire time. Lots of super attractive burping. I was kind of a weenie and walked up a couple of hills, which I would never normally do in a short run. Finished with a 9:22 pace. Not bad. Definitely could have and should have finished faster and pushed harder. I'm just not used to racing short runs. Need to alter my pacing accordingly.
Total time: 1:37, 14th place out of 80 or 90 in age group, nearly 500 people started and only 379 finished. I was 70-something overall.
Post-race
Felt great. Ate some chow and waited around for the last athlete to finish the bike portion so I could take my stuff out of transition. I'm ready to race more and need to so I'm better prepared for the swim. Drove back home and lazed around. Big bruise and cut on the inside of my knee. I thought my race number cut me during the bike portion, but the bruise is confusing. Maybe I got kicked during the swim?
I'm still tired today, which surprises me, as I'm not usually tired from 1.5 hours, but maybe the traveling and swim stress got to me :) Skipped my swim, even though I woke up early and put my suit on. Went back to bed. Went to work. Fell asleep when I got home. Weird.
Gearing up this week to spend another weekend in Tahoe for the 72 mile bike race around the entire lake. Can't wait!
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