Buffy’s Race Report: Champions Olympic Triathlon, March 27th
The morning started out really well. I woke up on time (I fear oversleeping prior to races). I got to the race with no problems (I didn’t know exactly where I was going and I’m directionally challenged). I felt good. I got into transition and got all set up with plenty of time to spare. I walked around chatting with all my RLE Brand Ambassador buddies and just sort of settled into the morning. I had recently purchased my wetsuit and had only been swimming in it once, but I loved it. Swimming just felt so much easier in it, so I felt pretty confident before the swim.
The swim started and I plunged in to the water. This was when I made my first and most detrimental mistake. I stuck my face in the water and it took my breath away since it was so cold. I should have just kept putting my face in that water and swimming a few strokes until I relaxed. This happened when I tested my wetsuit out at Barton Springs, and after a few strokes, I was just fine. I didn’t do that though. I guess I just didn’t keep my head about me. I ended up trying to swim with my face out of the water, which just doesn’t work. Then I was swimming breaststroke, which is tremendously difficult in a wetsuit. I hadn’t been practicing my breaststroke either, so I was exhausted about half way through that swim. If you are one of the two ladies who were out there in kayaks for swimmer assistance, I would like to thank you – a lot (particularly if you are the lovely kayak lady who essentially paddled next to me and gave me pep talks when I rested on her kayak). If you are reading this, kayak lady, know that I will never forget all that you did for me that day.
The swim leaves me wondering if I was really that unprepared for that distance swim. I actually don’t think so – I think I could have made it with no kayak-rest-assistance and much, much faster had I just stuck my face in the darn water and swam freestyle like I was supposed to.
I finally manage to get out of the water (thank you to the volunteers who stood in that freezing water to help pull us all out). It was super easy to find my bike in transition since mine was the only one left in there! I actually had a relatively good transition time, for me. I’m usually slow in transition. What I should have taken the time to do was put on sunscreen, but I was so eager to get moving, I didn’t. I am very, very pale so that was a very, very bad idea.
I started out on the bike and actually felt like I was moving along fairly well. My spirits started to lift a bit. That only lasted about 10 or 15 minutes. The wind picked up, and I swear that every time I was riding into the wind, I was going uphill also. I know that isn’t actually true. I’m sure most of my trouble was my exhaustion from the swim. I forced my way through my first lap, thought about stopping after one lap, changed my mind, and moved on to my second lap. I didn’t see a single other cyclist during my second lap so I knew I was still in last place. My biggest fear at that point (and for the rest of the race) was that they were going to close down the course before I could finish. I just wanted to finish. That is all I wanted. I managed to get through the second lap and dismount without crashing. I really fear falling over when I dismount as that happened to me the first time I ever rode my bike. Actually, after my second lap I was so beat and ready to be off my bike, I didn’t really care if I fell over. I figured that I would be moving slow enough to not really injure myself, and there were enough volunteers around that someone would probably help me up!
I was a bit slower in my second transition than my first, but still not awful considering how the rest of my race was going. I applied sunscreen here, but I think the majority of that damage was already done. I was really happy that it was time to run. The run is my part of the triathlon. I love running. In every triathlon I’ve ever done I start the run and there is a feeling of comfort that washes over me as I realize that I’m in my element and the rest of the race is good to go – nothing left to worry about. I started my run and that feeling started to wash over me…and then I started to feel nauseous. I stopped to walk a few steps and then tried to run again. Still no good. It went like that for the rest of the race. Halfway through the first lap I knew that I’d be walking the majority of the run portion. This probably is the most disappointing part of it for me. I’ve never had to walk the run portion of a triathlon before.
Mentally it was super hard for me at the end of the first lap/start of the second. At the end of the first lap, most people thought I was finishing my second lap. I kept letting everyone know that I wasn’t finished. Sandy – if you are reading this, thanks so much for the hug at that point. I needed that. The start of the second lap was also on many participants’ way back to their vehicles. So, as I was walking/shuffling with my chip and race number still on, most people on the trail were headed back to their cars, their races long finished. I did my best to keep my head up and continue on. I got almost to the end of the run and Adam (another RLE Brand Ambassador) ran out to meet me and shuffle in with me. Adam, if you happen to read this, thanks so much for that. It was nice to have someone with me at that point. And then it was over. Jake North was still there to take my photos, which makes me laugh. I think I might buy one just to remind myself that all tough times come to an end.
I know this has sounded like an awful, awful race. For me, it wasn’t pretty. It was downright ugly. But as a race, it actually was a good race. I didn’t have a good race, but the race itself was great. Everything went smoothly before the race started. The venue was nice. The port-a-potties were clean and had toilet paper. The kayak ladies were my salvation. The volunteers were so supportive when helping me out of the water. I got nothing but smiles from volunteers on the bike course. The SAG wagon checked on me on the bike course, but let me finish. The volunteers at the water stops on the run had water in hand for me when I passed them. I had a buddy run me in and all the RLE people cheered for me when I finished. If you are going to finish a race in last place, then a RLE race is one to do that in! Big thanks also to Terri, Eli, Joey, Ron, Leilani, and Michele for checking on me after the race to make sure I was okay. I am also 100% sure that some of my other RLE buddies checked up on me and I am forgetting to say thanks to them here – please forgive me for that (I was really tired and sunburned and sort of out of it at that point!). Thanks as well to Carol for the lovely email of encouragement that you sent me after the race – I really appreciate that!
- I need to practice my nutrition for this race distance/type more. I know that part of my crashing and burning was that I didn’t properly feed myself. I also probably didn’t properly hydrate.
- Sunscreen is of the utmost importance for me. I’ve thought about posting photos of the sunburn on the backs of my shoulders, but it is so bad that no one really wants to see that.
- Finishing in last place is not the end of the world. It is just one race. It comes. It goes.
- Margaritas really help if you’re feeling sorry for yourself about finishing a race in last place.
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