That end of the season "race" bit?

As I mentioned in my last post, I planned Sunday to be the final hurrah for my 2013 tri season.  I realize that there are still plenty of races and I know plenty of people who are signed up for races, especially the HITS Palm Springs race in December.  As much as that race appeals, I know that my training in the fall completely falls apart and that I have plenty of weekend obligations as it stands.  Adding another one, just didn't seem like a good idea.  Plus, it is somebody else's birthday weekend, and insisting that we head to Palm Springs where I can be a stress case would probably not be the best way to celebrate.

So, about Sunday - I was probably not in the best mental frame of mind as I headed into the race, stressing about other crap that had to do with the race (somehow I was still helping out with volunteers while also planning on racing).  Also, on Saturday, I hoped to go for a ride - I figured that it would be nice to actually ride outside for the first time in a few weeks, and we even drove to Malibu with both bikes strapped to the car, only to discover that while Pasadena was pretty calm weather-wise, Malibu had crazy winds.  Yes, I am still a wimp at times, but biking on Highway 1 with winds coming from the west and blowing at 30 miles an hour down the canyons - no thank you. I'll do it if I'm seriously training, but I just wasn't there on Saturday. So, I decided that it would be a great rest day.  Ha!

Sunday, then, was a wake up and get ready to race morning, but at 7:30 am, I decided that I wasn't going to race, even though I was at the venue and had all of my racing gear.  However, I didn't have anything racked, I hadn't checked in, and, more importantly, I just wasn't mentally 'there' to start racing at 8:05.  I've never thought too much about that mental thing and how I need to be in the right state of mind to race.  To be honest, when it comes to running, I probably don't think about it all - things usually come together, but I still find the PROCESS of doing a tri to be somewhat daunting (as a teacher, I would label myself a "false beginner" - I have experience, but it doesn't really get me where I would like to be).  And I couldn't imagine getting ready to race in 10 minutes.  So, I decided that I wouldn't race.  Fortunately, I could postpone the race entry until spring of 2014, so I didn't feel that I had lost out in a major way.  I took the attitude that it wasn't meant to be.

Then, right around 7:45, 2 people materialized for a relay - a swimmer and a runner.  I happened to have my bike, so I thought, "Well, hell, I guess I'll ride today".  The swim started at 8:05, so we managed to get our shit together in time for the swimmer to be at the beach and I got my bike and arrived in transition around 8:10, after the swim had started!  Talk about a total mess.  The swimmer happened to be wicked fast, so I got on the bike and the realized that everyone was going to pass me on the bike.  Fortunately, on the 2nd and 3rd loop, I managed to hit the slower people and could pass them - yay!

I was sort of hoping that I would be somewhat fast (for myself) on the bike, so it's funny that I was just about as slow as I was last June when I did this race.  And on that bike leg, I swam before and ran afterwards AND my chain fell off twice.  Obviously my bike training has been sucking in recent months!  On top of it, I just saw these pictures posted on facebook (I hate it when that happens) and all I could think was "Jeez, I look really silly!".

(Photos courtesy of CalTri; I'm really not a vain person and I'm posting these silly shots of me, but I really look like a dope here.)

Once I hopped off the bike, our runner took off, and I must admit that I was very thankful that I didn't have to run.  That would have been a sufferfest!  Although, I would have ended up on the podium, as long as I didn't pull a DNF - only because there were a whopping 2 women in my age group.

At the end of the day and of the season, I'm sort of okay with the fact that I did not have the race that I wanted - obviously not as swim/bike/run or even as a bike.  It was a good wake-up call to focus on bike fitness if I really want to get faster.  But, going into this race, I knew that Vineman, back in July, was kind of "it" for me so I focused on that and I had a good race.  But since July, I haven't been very focused, so it doesn't surprise me that the race on Sunday did not materialize.  Yes, it feels like somewhat of a disappointment but not the end of the world.

So, I'm not sure how to categorize Sunday's experience - yes, a DNS for the olympic distance tri which kind of sucks, but a decent effort on the bike, despite the rather pitiful outcome.  And, since I'm SO not a spontaneous person, I'll give myself 2 thumbs up for the impromptu decision to join a relay, even though I did lose the nice lead that our swimmer gave me.

In the meantime, I feel that my thoughts have already turned to 2014 as I start to think about the 'What's next' question.

Low expectations, positive outcome

It still surprises me that I participated in an Olympic tri yesterday - TriEvent's "Championship" race (because I am a champion?) and that apparently I have a new  PR for that distance.  That is, if I want to consider it a true Olympic tri or not, seeing as the bike leg was 1km short of 40km.  I'm still mulling over the race and the experience today, but nothing about it is weighing me down or filling me with a sense of regret or frustration about the experience.  So, on that note, I'll give it two thumbs up!

Going into the race, early yesterday morning, I had no idea how I would perform - or if I would perform.  I signed up for the race because it was local and because it was exactly 8 weeks out from the Boulder race, so the timing was perfect.  In the past two weeks, I've ramped up my training, so I did not taper at all - in fact, I had a pretty hard week on the bike.  Saturday morning, the day before the race, Michael and I returned to Malibu for a nice ride up PCH.  We logged in just under 30 miles, which did not kill my legs but definitely gave them a work out.  My body, apparently, did not deal well with the ride - on the drive back from Malibu, I crashed.  Not literally, because someone else was driving the car, fortunately, but it was not a good experience to be shakey and feel physically weak, and it left me full of doubts about whether I should even do the tri on Sunday.

I decided to play it by ear - if I felt awful at any point during the race, I would swallow my pride and take a big fat DNF.  I shelved all plans to go "all out" or to try to hit a certain time, my main goal being, if I finished, to feel good at the end.  In terms of races, I felt unprepared, and not just because of Saturday's bonking.  I had no idea what the course was like, except that it was in San Dimas, home of Bill and Ted (his fact made Michael more than willing to accompany to the race, hoping to catch a glimpse of San Dimas High School), and I hadn't devised a race strategy.  Great!  

It ended up being a fairly relaxing morning getting there around 7:15), checking in and racking the bike and starting to race at 8:10.  The weather was pretty much perfect - June gloom starting out which would probably burn off by mid-morning.  It was a small and definitely local race, so we arrived with enough time for me to check off all of the "to-do" items before racing, but I did not have enough time to analyze, set goals, or even put my race face on.  I racked all of my stuff, finding a small amount of space and squeezing in, and then it seemed like I needed to put on my pink cap and GO!

The swim was held in a reservoir and was easier than the last two open-water swims I've done, both in the ocean.  Once the horn blew, I jumped in and it felt great to be in the water, although a bit warm for a wet suit.  My breathing was awesome - 3 to 4 breaths per side, but I didn't feel very fast.  Apparently I wasn't since I came out of the water about a minute slower than I did at Wildflower!  Ah well.  When I exited, I heard people calling my name, but I didn't think that it was MY name.  Apparently I did have a cheering section - a colleague's son was racing, and she and her daughter cheered for me.  It would have been nice to see them and wave, but I'm always a bit out of it when I end the swim.  Just getting to the transition area for me tends to be a major triumph.

But I did make it to the transition area and out of it in record time, I think!  I did not rush the transition, even chatting with Michael who stood right outside the area, snapping fun pictures of me (see below). It seems that the swim-to-bike transition has become a less arduous task.  More practice might actually be helping me!

Then, onto the bike - there were still enough bikes in the transition area that I did not barrage myself with negative thoughts.  Also, I reminded myself time and again, this was not an "A" race but just a good opportunity to practice for Boulder.  The bike leg was three laps - the same course, three times.  Plenty of ups and downs and turns and one stretch of a really bumpy road, it did not offer much in the way of scenery or a relaxing ride.  I think that two laps would have been tolerable; by the third, all I wanted was to GET OFF THE BIKE.  Not because I was tired, but the course just did not inspire me.  That sense was aggravated when my chain fell off at the end of the first lap and then mid-way through the second lap.  I probably lost 4 minutes, maybe more?  Add to that the fact that I decided not to shift into the big gear - that was the moment when I dropped the chain both times, so I couldn't pick up any traction on the downhill or much speed on the flats.  Still, staying in the small gears seemed like the better option, rather than stop once or twice more on the ride.  When it fell off that second time, I wanted to kick my bike (mature reaction, I know), but I tried to react in a somewhat mature fashion, advising myself to be patient because my time was not that important, my goal was to finish on a strong note.

I pulled into the transition area without dropping the chain a third time, and then it was all about the run - I was more than ready to get off the bike and to not worry about the chain.  A bit like the bike course, I had zero expectations or assumptions about the run.  Just finish it feeling healthy and strong, that was goal number 1, which would mark a great difference between this Olympic tri experience and 2012 Wildflower.  I'm not about to break it down mile for mile, but I will say that I felt FANTASTIC during the run.  Most of it was on asphalt which I did not enjoy, but it didn't kill me.  I could have pushed it more in some places, but I chose not to do so, which is a different experience from not being able to push it.  I crossed the finish line with a smile, and a new PR for an almost-full-Olympic tri!

Overall, I did not love this race, and I would be reluctant to sign up for it next year, not even for an ego boost or to see if I've improved.  However, I did appreciate that it was local, so we did not spend extra money on a hotel/motel, and it was great to return home by noon.  I am still so new at this 'sport', and each race gives me a bit more experience, which I sorely need.  Looking back, I feel good about the experience, but not because of my final time.  Rather, I ate properly during and after the race, so no crazy 'crashing', and I feel good enough today to head out for a run around 6:00 pm!  

The one negative from the day - we did not make it to San Dimas High School for a photo shoot.  Michael will have to wait until another day!