#vtsmts

Second race of the season....I should have been ready. But I wasn’t. Not for the training - Coach Dave has been awesome - more for the life that gets in the way. May was a stressful and crazy month and consistency in my training has been lacking to say the least. I was getting in what I could, but with a trip to Guatemala and some work adventures in between, if I could get in a solid week of training it was a feat.

So of course I realized the day before the race all the things I was supposed to do...like put in my speed laces to test out and pack. And I thought the day before would be a good time to do both. 

Pre-Race:

Rock Hall Oly is one of my favorite races. The town is great. The venue fabulous. The event super chill and full of friendly triathletes. 

My friend and I headed out later than we wanted to....work... but were happy traffic wasn’t too bad. 

We rented a house this year instead of camping - the last two years were super hot and miserable. As we passed through town to the house we saw that our favorite ice cream shop (a former pharmacy from the 1800s) was closed. Of course that was my first question to the property manager....who said it was not going to be open this year. WHAT???? Disappointment didn’t cover the feeling.  But Rock Hall is a small harbor town so business is hard to keep.

We settled into the house - which had an amazing screened in front porch facing the beach. 

I never sleep well before a race. I did my normal up at 11 pm, 1 am, 3 am, 4 am 5 am, 5:30 am, 5:45 am, 5:50 am. Since I was getting up at 6 am, I just gave and got out of bed at 5:55 am. The best part of all of my crazy wake ups... the realization I left my aero water bottle at home along with my salt tabs.  Great, it was only going to be 80+ degrees. 

Swim: 35:16

The water temp was 79 degrees, so no wetsuit. While most people hate that announcement, I love it. I don’t like my wetsuit so I kind of hate wearing it. Since Ironman, I’ve been working on my swim starts. Being more aggressive. And I have to say for this one, I nailed it. The swim to the first turn buoy was awesome. I was in the mix and sighting off the crowd. However at the first turn buoy I lost the crowd and got a bit off course. Apparently everyone had issues with the choppiness and sighting, though it didn’t bother more than any other swim. I kept my head in the game (which is usually a battle) but I wasn’t as strong as I started. All in all, I call the swim a win if I don’t get lost. 

T1: 2:03

I didn’t try the flying mount, but managed to be quick about the swim to bike.

Bike: 1:16

This is an amazing bike course and the wind was at our back for the first 16 miles. I always have to remind myself that I can’t hammer it because I needed to save it for the run. The headwind was rough coming back into town, but the rollers and mostly flat course makes up for it. Other than my nagging left glute, the weird thing where I lose feeling in my hands and the fact I only had one water bottle, the bike was uneventful. 

T2: 1:44

Tried the flying dismount... not quite though. This was one of those something new activities. I managed to get out of my shoes and to coast, but I never could quite get my leg over and just put my foot down. But hey I was close. 

I also tried my shoes with speed laces and no socks.  Two other new things. Wasn’t exactly fast at it (actually was slower than previous years of sociks + laces)...maybe practicing would have helped.....

Run: 57:57

OMG hot. It was insanely hot. I tried to plan for it, but being down a water bottle didn’t help. It was a two loop course and I tried remind myself when I saw some of top people flying by me. The course was flat with no shade, but most of it had a breeze which was critical. There was one section that didn’t and I thought I was baking in the sun, it was miserable.

I knew to hit the time I wanted I was going to have to run around 8:45 pace, which would be a push for me without the heat. My goal was to push, but keep it under the puking and passing out. Every time I started to get goose bumps, my sign I’m pushing to hard with not enough salt, I would back off a notch. 

The run needed one more water stop on it, something to make it from miles 2 - 3 and 4 - 5. I pushed where I could, but knew it wasn’t going to be enough to hit the times I wanted.

Time: 2:53:45

I was definitely disappointed that for all of my training and new wheels I was a few seconds slower than as two years before (when it was just as hot and we had the same tail to head wind) and 2 minutes slower than last year (of course last year was 10 degrees cooler). While I know the inconsistency is really hurting me, I’m just not sure how to get around it.

2014: Swim (32:45); T1 (2:17); Bike (1:19); T2 (1:35); Run (55:34); 2:51:18

2013: Swim (35:23); T1 (2:04); Bike (1:14); T2 (1:24); Run 59:54; 2:53:29

Post Race: AKA the best part

After cooling down and showering we headed to town to grab lunch. The plan was to stop by the grocery store and grab ice cream - since shop was closed. But as we walked from the lunch cafe to the store, we noticed it.....

OPEN! The store was open. 

It’s this the best ice cream place???

It was the best finisher price ever.

Post - Post Race:

The second best part of the town is the fact that there are waterfront bars in walking distance. Live music, beautiful views and good company make for a great night.

I know want to be here..right? So amazing.

We had already decided the front porch was much nicer and cooler than the house, it it make sense to crash out there..... two couches and a mattress later...