well, here's what happened:
Tri #1: like an idiot, decided that a 40+ mile ride the day before would be OK. turns out, it wasn't - Goal time was under 60 minutes for 587 yds swimming, 9 miles biking, and 2.4 miles running. But the lactic acid was still so much in my legs from the long ride the day before that I was gasping for air on the swim, and every time I breathed, I slowed down a little more. I was a little dizzy getting out of the water for the bike, and just didn't have the hill-climbing ability I should have had. Then, on the run, had to stop and walk because again, I got dizzy. Such a weird feeling. But I still set a new time record - 1:06, beating last year's time by...20 seconds.
Tri#2: Having learned my lesson about working out the day before, I was excited to take on a new challenge - new course, new competitors. I had never seen the 547yd/11.4mi/3.1mi course or the lake or any of the area before (I never go over to Lawrence, KS, much less south of it). Predicted heat index for the day was to be about 107. It was 85 degrees already at 4 in the morning when I left my house.
Got to the transition zone, got set up, and went for a light warm-up run. Everything was feeling good. Then I got in the water. Holy hot tub Batman! The water temperature was about 90 degrees - it was warmer than the air. the start zone was getting churned up and bringing cold water up, but once the swim started, it was hot, hot, hot! Time was a little slower, but felt good (other than the water temp).
The Bike course was hilly - everyone was talking about how challenging it was prior to the race. I figured I'd be facing some difficulty, but having dropped 20 pounds this year, and gotten stronger and faster on the climbs near my house, I was excited. Turns out, yes it was hilly, but I managed to turn in the 13th fastest bike time overall...not an easy task for a clydesdale! (Yes, I race in that category). In fact, I think the reduced visibility from the twists and turns of the road at the beginning of the course slowed me down a little more, just because I couldn't see what was up ahead.
Then came the run. Oh, how I suffered. I've been running a crazy hilly 5k distance every other day in less than 26 minutes. But the heat was too much. I had hoped for a run time of about 27 minutes. I took 33. I just couldn't cool down - my legs were fine, but my cardiovascular system was screaming at me. The first mile took me almost 13 minutes! Not until I got to an aid station and poured about 5 gatorade cups of ice-cold water on me did I begin to feel better. I crossed the line and immediately jumped into the ice bath they had set up under the Oakley tent. Final time for the race was 1:22 - goal time was 1:10.
Next race is August 22. Luckily, I've done the course before, though a longer distance. Distances are 528/11.75/3, with a goal time of 1:12. Let's just hope it's a tad cooler.
