speedvegan

Time 1:06:50 | Overall 115/509 | Gender 11/139 | Age Group 2/21

I couldn’t think of anything other than “disappointment” when I wrote about the last time I raced this course. If I had to use one word today, it would be “redemption.” But in reality I felt so much more than that. I felt sore and I felt tired. I felt angry, for a second. I felt grateful and oh so proud. But in the end every emotion was obliterated by the happiness that came over me as I crossed the finish line in my goal time.

SWIM | .25mi | 9:10

How I managed to shave one minute off my swim is amazing to me. I did get back in the pool this week and felt quite good so that’s one possibility. I also decided I wasn’t going to wait for EVERY person to get in the water before me this time. I’m slow, yes, but I am faster than some of the girls in my wave. I spend a lot of time waiting for them to decide where to swim sometimes and I constantly have to maneuver around them when they decide to stop and doggie paddle mid-swim. This time I ran in, swam balls-out to the first buoy and tried to hang in the middle as long as I could. And it worked ! I think I will continue to improve my swim time if I keep working on it. Enter Cathy, my new swim coach. I am meeting her tomorrow night for the first time. So excited !

Obviously puzzled by my faster swim time.

T1 | 3:07

BIKE | 10mi | 29:39

My bike time is an improvement from my last race on this course, but definitely not great. My legs were burning as soon as I got on the bike. I felt every sore muscle from Friday’s hard ride and yesterday’s 5k. I’d like to think that I could have done much better on rested legs, but who knows ? What I do know is that I left every bit of energy I did have out there, hoping I could still run a decent 5k afterwards.

Cooked.

T2 | 0:55

RUN | 3.1mi | 24:00

This time did not feel as “effortless” as the last. I felt every step it took to get to the finish line. Fortunately, I didn’t forget my watch this time so I knew where I was at every mile mark. Knowing I was on target gave me the encouragement I needed to keep pushing forward. Once I passed the second mile mark and knew there was a 99% chance I’d make my goal time, a flood of emotions came over me. Regardless of the distance, goals are goals. Little accomplishments pave the way for bigger accomplishments.

Still on target !

My first time on this course was over 1h 12m. Today’s time is a 6 minute improvement in less than 2 years. I am constantly amazed at how our bodies respond to even the slightest shifts in training. That said, although I am ecstatic with today’s PR, I know there is much room for improvement and I’m very excited about the possibility of breaking this record at some point. Unfortunately, I’ll have to wait until next year since I’ve decided to do the longer distance being offered by this series during its last event of the season next month.

As always, Geoffrey was wonderfully supportive. The first 2 races of the season resulted in lots of post-race crankiness so this time, I found myself looking around for him at all the usual spots to let him know I was doing OK. I’m pretty sure he’s hoping, perhaps even more so than I am, for more races like this one !

Splits
Mile 1: 7:30
Mile 2: 7:15
Mile 3: 7:28

I did this event two years ago. It was one of the first official races I did after fully recovering from my bike crash and it wasn’t even that official. The race isn’t timed ! It’s a fun run to kick off training for those doing the ING Miami Marathon or Half Marathon. Geoffrey and I are signed up for the Half so we were quite excited about this run.

I did a long ride yesterday so my legs were pretty beat up. Plus, I’ve been dealing with a mild ITB issue. Yes, I know. I should rest it before it gets worse. I am planning to take a week off at the end of the month when I’m in NZ. Hopefully that will be long enough. Anyway, I was planning to just run at whatever pace felt comfortable for my legs and it worked out beautifully. I think that sometimes my legs get ahead of my lungs and it causes me to get really nasty side stitches. I felt a slight tension on my side during the last half mile or so, but otherwise I finished stitch-free with a good time to boot.

Although the event wasn’t timed and there were no age group awards, the first 30 men and women got mini Starbucks cards worth $5. Sweet ! Starbucks card > medal any day. I was fortunate enough to score one of them. How cool is that ??

During our long walk to the car I was thinking about how much I like the fact that Geoffrey is fit and likes to exercise. It doesn’t only make a difference in our lifestyle, but our lives in general. During my long ride yesterday, I ran into quite a few “older” folks on the road. Well, who else has the luxury of riding on a Friday ? And it got me thinking that 60 isn’t even old anymore. With all the technological and scientific achievements since the mid 20th century, we have the ability to live a really long time. Sure, unexpected things can happen to anyone, but if you do get to see 80 or even 90, wouldn’t you want to enjoy the years leading up to that point ? I certainly do and it makes me beyond happy that Geoffrey feels the same way because I’ll still want to run 5k races with him at 60 and at 70 and…

Time 1:15:26 | Gender 9/70 | Age Group 2/6

Done and happy !

Geoff and I drove down to Miami on Saturday to pick up my packet and then met some friends at the raw food market. I had a bunch of coconut water and other raw goodies. Then for dinner, I made Vegan Yum Yum’s Creamy Sweet Potato Bake. It was absolutely perfect.

After an excellent night’s sleep, we packed up all my race gear, plus Luka, and headed down to Miami again. We arrived about an hour before the race officially started. I made my way to transition where two of the other athletes sharing rack space with me had already set up. That’s when my blood started boiling. In general, I love triathletes, but some can be a bit inconsiderate at times. Clearly, sharing a small bike rack with 9 of your most competitive non-friends is not an ideal situation. But how much space does a bike really need ? And, do you seriously HAVE to bring half your house with you to a SPRINT triathlon ? Come on ! Then there’s the guy who arrives 5 minutes before transition closes and moves (read: throws) everyone else’s “crap” around to make room for his. I’m sorry but my equipment is expensive, I’ve worked really hard for it and I actually take good care of it. Also, I always make sure that I’m taking up the least amount of space possible in the rack so I don’t really appreciate having my stuff “moved” around.

Sigh.

With that said, I felt good today and I did, eventually, have a good race.

SWIM | .25mi | 11:44

This was my best swim yet. Granted, not the fastest but I really felt like I was one with the water. I didn’t freak out at all despite the upset in transition which kinda got my heart rate going. I walked in slowly, dove in and freestyled my way around the buoys and on to the exit without much of a fuss. It’s hard to believe just this time last year I was a complete spaz in the water. I feel like I’m slowly making progress. I’m also getting better at sighting so I don’t “create my own course” anymore. This will be most helpful in my next HIM since the swim course is quite technical and last year I ended up adding about 400 meters to it. I haven’t hired a swim coach yet but I am considering a few options. There are so many in South Florida !

T1 | 2:12

BIKE | 12.4mi | 34:22

I had a totally different experience on the bike today. The last couple of training rides certainly bought me some the confidence I needed to start appreciating the benefits of my recent Retul fitting. My time was better than I expected given how I’ve been feeling on the bike and especially since the course included one of the biggest bridges in South Florida at the turn around point – two big climbs back to back. I think I will get stronger with time, but today’s ride was good and has put me back in a good mental space.

T2 | 1:28

RUN | 3.1mi | 25:42

Not my strongest run, but faster than last year’s. I wasn’t wearing a watch which is how I like to pace myself during sprint triathlons. I had to go by how I was feeling which was pretty crappy to begin with. I was actually apologizing because of my heavy breathing / panting. I didn’t find my breath until after the first mile. The whole time, I felt like I was crawling but my body wouldn’t respond to any “mind over matter” attempts to go faster. I finished well spent. I may have been able to run longer, but definitely not faster.

Overall, I feel like I had a good race. Sure, I wish I could have gone harder on the run, but I beat my goal time of 1:17. That and a good bike split are enough to make me happy today.