Triathlon (My First 1st Place!)

Last Saturday I did the Autumn Classics Triathlon near Olympia. We stayed the night at Aaron's parents house and then they all drove me to the race the next morning. Several weeks prior to the race I kept having anxiety dreams where I'd be late to the start line and had to try and catch up, etc. etc. Even on the way to the race I was a little nervous mostly because this was the first time where I really had it in my mind that I was really going to compete. I've run lots of races, and placed (for my age group) a few times but it's never been because I was trying to win. Usually I'm just working to get a personal best on my time or to try and average a certain pace.

This time was different though. I had been training for this and so I felt confident that I was in pretty good shape, and since the event was not huge I figured there was a good chance that if I really pushed myself I might finish in the top 7, ( the top 7 times for men and women get trophies). And of course since my very competitive boys were watching me and cheering me on I wanted to make them proud.
I started off on the swim strong but because of the mass of people in the water I got kicked in the face a few times, my goggles filled with water and I lost my breathing rhythm and momentum. I was not happy with my swim time but as I ran out of the lake and rushed to my bike I still had the idea that if I did good on the bike and run I could still have a good race.


The bike portion went really well. I started off hard and passed several racers within the first mile. Then the racers became more spread a part (and they were all men) but I just focused on the one ahead of me and began picking them off one by one. My strategy was to push myself to narrow the gap and then I'd race up right behind them and rest myself in their shadow. The drag from the wind (it was windy) is really exhausting but if you get right on someones rear they take all the drag and it's much easier for you. Anyway, I'd hang out behind them for a couple minutes until I regained my strength and then I switched to a faster gear and confidently blaze past them like they were standing still. They would be so intimidated at the speed in which I passed them that they wouldn't even try to compete and fight for the lead. It worked again and again and really helped me work my way up the line. When I came back to the rally point to dump my bike and start the run, Aaron was there to help me get off my gear and put on my running shoes. I still had my ipod on but could hear between the beats in the music saying, "Babe, you're doing awesome.... I think you might be in first place....... I haven't seen any other girls in front of you..."


(on the run....I'm in black)

The run was torture. I forgot that the hardest part about a triathlon is how much it zaps you of strength and energy. I kept thinking on the bike ride that I'd catch some of the riders ahead of me during the run because they were bikers and I was a runner. (you can tell this by where they place their race number-if you consider yourself a runner, more than a biker, you would most likely wear your number on your front. Bikers wear theirs on their backs, down by their rear). Anyway, that run was crazy hard. I felt so uncoordinated and couldn't get my breathing down. I thought after a couple miles I would get into my rhythm but the whole race was just grueling drudgery. It felt like an out of body experience. Not fun. I did however manage to pass more people on the run and moved up the rankings even more.

Long story short, I placed 8th overall men/women and took first for women. It was very exciting and fun to see the boys chanting as I ran by, "Go, Mommy go.....Go, Mommy, go...." A good race, and my very first EVER 1st place. (:

My little Cheerleaders