I'm behind in blogging again - I can't seem to get to it regularly - just too much going on this summer! We spent all of Saturday at the beach, and Granddad even joined us. It was a perfect beach day, and we had such a great time. Scott and I had both boys way out in the waves, getting splashed and soaked, and they were screaming and laughing and loving it : )
And if you're on facebook, you know how my Sunday morning was spent - doing my second sprint triathlon! I've been contemplating it for a while, and wondering if I had it in me to do something like that at 17 weeks pregnant. I didn't want to pre-register, though, since I knew I really had to just play it by ear and see how I was feeling. And I also wanted to see how the weather was going to be, because I knew I couldn't go out and do something like that if it was super hot and humid.
As it turned out, the weather looked like it was going to be good, and I was feeling like I could do it, so I got everything ready on Saturday and went to bed nice and early Saturday night, setting the alarm for 4:30am (!!!) Since I've not been feeling terribly energetic in the mornings lately, I promised myself and Scott that if I woke up and felt like I needed to just roll over and go back to bed, I would do just that. And I admit, I did have second thoughts when that alarm went off, but not enough to make me stay in bed. Just enough to hit snooze once!
But as soon as I was up, the race-day adrenaline kicked in, and I was ready to go. I had a bagel and banana and took my coffee on the road. Since I had packed everything up on Saturday, all I had to do was get dressed and hit the road.
I got to the race right around 6, which was perfect - left me plenty of time to register and get marked and get all my stuff set up before the 7am start. They moved the swim and transition area from where they were last year, and the spot they chose this time was much, much better. The only drawback is that there was a longer run back from the swim to transition, but I felt like it was worth it, since it was a better spot overall.
Since I don't know if there's even such a thing as a maternity wetsuit, and even if there was, I wouldn't have spent the money on it, I went low-tech again, and just wore my bathing suit for the swim, and pulled on shorts and a shirt afterward. I did the same last year, and was almost dried out after the bike, so figured it would work fine again this year, and it did.
I chatted with a few people as we waited for the start, and checked out the new swim course, which was a big rectangle instead of a triangle. For some reason, even though it was exactly the same distance, this seemed less intimidating to me. And truthfully, the swim itself was the least of my worries this year. Just knowing that I completed it last year made me feel so much more confident.
My biggest concern this year was the run, of all things - the thing that worried me least last year! But as I've progressed in this pregnancy, swimming and biking have continued to come pretty easily to me, but running takes so much more out of me, and I knew I'd be tired after the swim and bike, so I wasn't looking forward to that last leg. I was actually kind of looking forward to the swim, which felt strange, but I guess is a good sign!
I was in the last wave of swimmers to head out, which meant a good 12 minutes standing on shore, but it went by fast. I really preferred this year's wading start - last year the start to the swim was off a boat ramp, and once you stepped off that ramp, you were in over your head - literally! It was a little unnerving. But this year it was a nice gradual walk into the water (which was a perfect temperature!), and then before I knew it, the horn sounded, and I was swimming.
It took me a few minutes to settle into any kind of rhythm, and I did a lot of breaststroke during that time, so I was pretty slow getting out to the first buoy. But as I got nearer to it, I started getting my head in the water and actually swimming, and was actually doing ok. I need a lot more practice with sighting, though - I found it really tough to get back into a good pattern after lifting my head up to sight. Definitely something to work on next year!
The distance between the 1st and 2nd buoys was the longest, and where I felt the most tired, and took the most breaks. One thing I learned, though, is that when you're at the back of the pack, you get a lot of encouragement and cheering from the kayakers! Once I finally got around that 2nd buoy, I knew I'd be fine, and was able to swim pretty well straight into the finish. I was not the last person out of the water, but I was close - 5th or 6th from last. But I did not care one bit - I was immensely proud of myself just for finishing!
I took my time and meandered up to transition. I was in NO hurry - so unconcerned was I with time that I didn't even look at the clock as I got to transition! As it turns out, my swim time was 16:17 - 15 seconds faster than last year's! Swimming is definitely agreeing with me during pregnancy, I guess!
I also took my time getting my bike gear on, and made sure I took a good long drink of water, and then hopped on the bike and headed out. The bike course was very similar to last year's, but since the race start had been moved so much, the bike was only 10 miles instead of 16 (one of the reasons I felt like the race was doable for me this year). But it was the same gently rolling hills, and a really nice ride - nothing too challenging. It was awfully lonely out there, though. I passed a few people, but all of them were on hybrids - everyone else was long gone!
It was a good ride, though. I cruised along at somewhere around a 17mph average (last year's pace was around 19.5mph average), and finished the bike in 36 minutes.
Once again, I took my time in transition, and even stopped for a bathroom break. One of the major disadvantages of racing (and training) while pregnant is that you constantly have to stop to pee! Obviously I wasn't concerned about the time it took, but it's just a hassle.
Anyway, I turned out of the transition area and started running, and was pleasantly surprised to find that I actually felt pretty good. Remember that I haven't really been training for a triathlon - I've been working out and have done a few short road races, but haven't even thought about doing any brick workouts or really preparing for a multi-sport event. So I had no idea what my legs were going to feel like when I set out on the run, but they felt fantastic.
I didn't let myself get carried away, though, because I remembered the run course from last year, and it contained some pretty big hills - and this year's course was slightly different, but still covered some of those big hills, one of which came right in the first mile, and slowed me waaaaaayyyyy down.
The run was two loops of the same course, and I definitely had a moment during my first run up that big hill, when I was thinking about how I'd have to get up it a second time, and I thought to myself "what the hell am I doing out here?" But once I got to the top, that thought quickly disappeared, and I settled into my now-average 10-minute per mile pace. I stopped for water when it was available, and it didn't seem to take too long to get through the first loop.
The second loop was definitely tougher, and I had to stop and walk up all of the hills - even the smaller ones. I could have run up them, but I felt like I'd be pushing myself way too hard if I tried to do that, so I did the smart thing and walked, and felt much better for it.
Thankfully, the final stretch was downhill and then flat, and as I got to the turnaround and headed toward the chute, I did allow myself to speed up a little, and covered the final few hundred yards at an 8-minute pace. For someone who's gotten used to running 10-minute miles, that short burst of an 8:00 pace felt like I was absolutely flying!
I finished the 3.5 miles in just over 33 minutes, and my official finish time for the race was 1:34:47.
It was an amazing experience, and as always at the end of a big race, I had tears in my eyes. I know some people probably think I'm crazy for doing something like this while pregnant, but I know what my body is capable of, and I know that I've maintained a level of fitness throughout this pregnancy that made it very possible for me to do something like this. And I was so slow, and so careful not to become overheated or overexert myself in any way.
So in the end, I'm really proud of myself. Proud that I've stayed so healthy and fit during this pregnancy, and proud that I accomplished this. And I'm glad that I didn't have a race season with no triathlons. I really would have missed the experience, and I'm happy I didn't have to.
I felt tired, but good after the race, and refueled with the free pancake breakfast, which was awesome. i will definitely be making this race a regular part of my schedule, and plan to be back every year. It's so well-organized, and a really nice course, and I like that I've been part of it from the beginning (last year was the inaugural), and hope to get a nice streak going : )
I'm definitely feeling wiped out today, but I think that's a combination of getting up ridiculously early yesterday, the race itself, and the fact that we're in the midst of our hottest, most humid weather so far this summer. The heat is just sapping me of all energy.
I was so tired today that, despite the ideal beach conditions, I couldn't even think about mustering the energy to get myself and the boys and all our crap down on the sand. Instead, they splashed in the pool all afternoon while I sat in the shade on the deck. It was a nice compromise : )
And since I never write about a race without including all the official stats, here's the scoop:
1/3 mile swim - 16:17 minutes
10 mile bike ride - 36 minutes (according to my bike computer)
3.5 mile run - 33:09
Transition times - no clue, since they weren't broken down, but were lumped into the bike time - definitely at least several minutes in each transition, though.
Finish time - 1:34:37
10 out of 12 in my age group
141 out of 155 overall
To say I'm happy would be an enormous understatement!
Sometimes, ya just gotta get out there and race, no matter what the time. Well done, and I'm glad you got a tri in this year. That will hold you over until next year :-)
Posted by: Wes | August 05, 2009 at 03:42 PM