Auburn Tri - Race Report!

The night before
Kellie and I had driven up to Auburn the night before. Our goal was to be at the race site by 6:30 so we could hear the pre-race talk. You'd think leaving Berkeley by 3:50 would get us there, right? WRONG! When it rains, California folks don't know how to drive anymore. It was stop and go almost the whole way up. So it took us almost 2 hours & 50 minutes to go 110 miles.
When we got there, the race talk was already going on, so I listened while I checked in for the race. I got my race number & the bag of goodies & then set up T2. Running shoes, hat, a bottle of water, and a towel all got wrapped in two bags (it was still raining!) and ready to go. Kellie's job the next day was to come to T2 after she dropped me off at T1 in the morning and set up my shoes and stuff for me.

Waking up
4:35 a.m. - my alarm starts ringing. My mind is completely foggy, and it takes me a moment to remember (1) why my alarm is ringing so early on a Saturday, and (2) why I'm in a hotel. All those things come together within 2 seconds, and I remember it's the day of my first tri of the season!!!

After snoozing a couple of times, I'm finally out of bed & getting ready. I munched on a bagel and orange juice while I got dressed. I had already laid out my clothes the night before and gotten my bag ready for T1, so there really wasn't much to do. We loaded up the bike & all of our stuff and headed out to Rattlesnake Bar.

Pre-Race, at T1
We got there about 5:45, and the race volunteers were just setting up the bike racks. There were several other Janes there, so we staked our claim on the 3 front bike racks, put up the yellow tape & "Janes" signs, and settled in.

The time always goes by so quickly from getting there to when the gun goes off. Today was no exception. Kellie was there with me at T1 until about 6:30, then she headed over to T2. Until that time, she tried desperately to find safety pins so I could pin my number to my jersey. But there was never any to be found, despite the volunteers continually telling her that "they are coming!" Which just brings me to another point - this race was the most poorly organized of any that I have ever raced. They had no idea who was supposed to be marking (the folks finally came around 6:30 with magic markers), they didn't have the buoys set up on the swim course yet, the bike racks were still being set up, the race was 20 minutes late to start. It was so disorganized, and I was pretty disappointed. But at that point, you gotta tell yourself, "It is what it is" and keep going. :) I never got pins, so I didn't wear my race number.

The Swim
The first wave of swimmers were the Sprint Men, which set off around 7:20. We, the Sprint Women, were the 2nd wave, which went 5 minutes later. The countdown started at 2 mins, then 1 min, then 30 secs, then 10 secs, then 5-4-3-2-1! At the 10 second mark, I started to get butterflies, but I calmed myself down, and when it was go time, I was ready.

The swim overall was great. It's my strongest sport, so I came out feeling really good. (That's me in the pic below, 2nd woman in the pic already out of the water.) The only problem was near the turnaround at the buoy, where guys who were already heading back were crossing through the women going towards the buoy!! I was thinking "look up and spot, dude! you're going the wrong way!" But two of them just barreled through the women like they had the right of way. Again, you gotta say to yourself, "It is what it is" and keep going.

At about 3/4 of the way through, I popped my head up to see how far I had left to go, and this other woman triathlete said to me, "Keep going - we're almost there!" That felt so amazing. I love the comraderie of a triathlon, and I didn't know this woman at all, but that was a boost I needed to finish the swim strong.

T1
T1 was uneventful - got my wetsuit off no problem (I love cooking spray!), dried off, got my jersey, socks, bike shoes, sunglasses, and helmet on, unracked the bike, and headed off for the part I dreaded the most - the 8.5 mile uphill bike ride!!

The Bike
I don't know why I had a fear of the bike ride, but I did. I had read on the tri website that it was all uphill, mostly gentle uphills, but between miles 3 and 4 were some pretty steep switchbacks. So I was just dreading the ride.

And guess what - it was harder than I even imagined!!!! Up until Mile 3, I was doing great. But it was the 90 degree right turn onto what I think was Shirland Tract road with the immediate steep uphill where I completely fell apart. I made it up a ways, but there was a slight turn left and more uphill that it kicked my butt! I stopped to regain my compusure (and my breath) and take a drink of water. This woman passed me walking her bike up the hill, and I said "what a great idea" and she said "that's the only way I'm getting up this hill!" I contemplated walking my bike at that point, but I wanted to try again. So I hopped back on my bike, attempted the rest of the climb, but couldn't make it. So I walked my bike up that treacherous hill, along with that other woman. I can only imagine there were several people who walked up that hill. I'll be interested to hear other Janes race reports to see.

Between mile 3 and mile 7 were the hardest. I got off my bike one more time between those miles to walk up another hill. I was not ready mentally for those hills. Every time I could get to the top of one, I would think "ok, that has to be the last one", and then there would be another steep one staring me right in the face! I thought I was going to die out there. It was the hardest bike ride I've ever done. I'd rather have gone 25 miles on flat land than 8.5 on that course!!

After the 7 mile point, I felt better. The last mile and a half were pretty easy, except for one last hill right near the end of the bike. But I got out of my seat and forced my way up that hill without stopping, knowing Kellie was waiting for me at T2. What a blessing that was & did wonders for my motivation on the tail end of my bike ride.

T2
Sure enough, there was Kellie waiting for me at T2. What I haven't mentioned until now is that Kellie was planning on running with me. She was going to wait for me at T2, then run along side me for the balance of the race. When I got close to T2, it was soooo good to see her there. She directed me to where my stuff was, I racked my bike, changed shoes, took off my helmet and put on my running hat (I've used the same hat at every single triathlon I've ever done), took a swig of water, kissed her, and then she and I headed out on the course.

The Run
What a cool course it was! I loved the single track trail running! Kellie and I ran for about a 1/2 mile before I needed to stop and walk. I had just come off a pretty tough bike ride, and I needed a bit of a break. We ran and walked off and on the whole way. I couldn't believe that there was a HUGE HILL at the end of the run!! There were several other people who walked that part, us included. I looked at my heart rate monitor and saw that I could finish the race before the time I wanted to, so I kicked it into high gear. Once I knew I was close, I ran like gangbusters to the end. Kellie veered off right before the red finish arch, and I finished in just less than 1 hour and 45 minutes, which was my target.

Post Race
The food spread was awesome. I immediately went for a Cytomax, and it was sooo refreshing. I had a bagel, a 2nd cytomax, and that was it. I looked at my heart rate monitor, and I had averaged a 172 heart rate, with a max of 185 bpm. I knew I was way above my target HR the whole time, but I didn't pay attention to it (nor did I want to). I had my HRM set so it was showing the time elapsed instead of my HR. I burned something like 1300 calories.

Kellie and I headed back to the hotel for a quick shower & then headed home. The best part was lunch! I had been craving Popeye's fried chicken for weeks, but I wouldn't let myself have it until I finished this tri! We had already staked out a Popeye's at the Dixon exit on the way up to Auburn, and sure enough, we stopped and ate some goooood food. All I can say is that it was good carb and protein replenishment - that's how I justified it. :)

All in all, the race was great. I felt challenged & strong at the end, and that's what mattered to me. I loved the support of the other Janes, and I especially loved having Kellie with me in the last 2 miles of the run. This week will be an off week for me (no training) but next week, I will continue training for my next tri and start my training for the HM at the end of the season!

(More pics coming in the blog once they are posted from the event!)