Workout With a Clock

This was the first race of the season for me. Albeit more of a training interval since it was not really an ‘official’ race. This would be the second year that the club has done this event and it looked like it might be a tad chilly. Upon arrival, it seemed like there were very few people showing up at all. But as the morning progressed, cars started arriving. I have to say that when I woke up and saw that it was 23 degrees, I knew that people might be a tad nervous. But I also now that there are a lot of people who say thay will do a race, and then look for every and any excuse not to do it. I have this feeling come on when my feet are in the water at the start of a race. I knew it would warm up, but 8:00 is still pretty early.

By the time the race started, there were 7 of us. Mostly bundled up for the temp. it was… not what it would be. Fortunately Mark held the start a few minutes (40 to be exact) before firing the start gun, or saying ‘go.’ Once 8:00 came, it just kept warming up. Each 15 minutes the temp seemed to climb a few degrees. So by the time we started it was probably about 35 degrees. Granted, still cold, but the race was only going to be about an hour, and ½ that was running. So I layered up with some lycra and a scull cap for the bike. This would be the one and only race I would be able to wear my new TIMEX skin suit since it was from last year. But it had the most leg coverage and was a little bigger on me which allowed for an extra layer. Not to mention I think I sold everything else on ebay. The only parts I get a little concerned about are my hands and feet. I wore some cotton gloves on the hands and I put some socks on the outside of my cycling shoes of the toes. I just wrapped them around the toes and as much as the pedal and they just stuck there. I was very surprised how warm my feet stayed by doing this. I think it blocked the wind just enough and created enough dead air space to maintain some heat. Regardless, my feet stayed quite warm on the bike.

The field lined up on the start line… we all got in the front row with plenty of room. Mark did a countdown from 5, but had to stop at 3 because of some technical difficulties. But then maintained his count. And then the first ‘GO’ of the season came. We all took off and the 2nd Annual WWC was underway. Now, I have to say that busting your butt in a training race with 7 people is a tall order. I was wondering if I would really go at my race pace. But I really wanted to get some idea as to my current fitness. I knew that this illness had taken some out of me, but jut how much? Would I mentally be able to push myself hard enough to get some good information? I took off pretty quickly and settled into a pace that felt pretty close to a race pace for me. Granted, I did not have someone in front of me that was pushing me to go a bit faster, but I was working. I hit the 1 mile mark and started coming back. The way back is mostly a gradual downhill so it feels pretty good and fast. I was able to maintain a high intensity the entire run, but did not know my run split.

I came into T1 and things just seemed to come pretty naturally. But then again, it is a duathlon and all you need to do it take off your shoes and put on a helmet. Not too much to remember. But the mount went well, the shoes went on fine, and off I went. This I have to say was the one leg that I was most interested in because it’s a new bike and your position on the bike changes a bit when you train and race. Again, I knew that I was not at 100% of what I was before the flu, but I knew that I would get a good idea of power output and intensity. My new Trek TTX with the new Bontrager Aeolus wheels were ready to go at whatever speed I wanted to. I took off a little hot and my legs let me know. But I finally settled into a good pace. I have to say that the River Loop road was pretty beat up with frost heaves and a couple potholes that you would need to be rescued from if you hit them, or went ‘into’ them. But I managed to make it around those hazards. Initially it was supposed to be 10 miles, but I think it had always been 12 miles. So when I hit the turnaround and saw my split, I knew something was off. But it really did not matter, I was wanting to get some power data that I could use for future training.

As I was heading back I saw the rest of the racers cruising at what seemed to be a good clip. I saw Jessi in the lead group which was pretty neat to see since she has seemed to be riding well. As I rolled into T2, I was already thinking about what I was supposed to do. Get the feet out of the shoes, hope that my hands worked getting my running shoes on, and take the helmet off. All which went well with a few verbal exchanges with the people volunteering. It’s always hard to start the second run in a duathlon, or even the only run in a triathlon, when you come off the bike. You go from going 25 mph on the bike where you feel the wind against your skin and get used to that sensation. So when you start running, no matter at what speed, you feel like you are going so slow. So I try to focus on leg turnover and effort (HR). Once I settle in, I am a better judge. I never really pay attention to what my mil splits are, more on how I am feeling… and I never seem to ‘feel’ good on the run at that point. I still wanted to run a hard effort and get a good split. I made it to the turnaround and started the downhill trek back. I started to see the rest of the people and cheered them along as they were nearing the turnaround. That is one thing about these races, or any races that your friends do, is that it’s so great to see them on the course… it takes your mind off the pain a bit.

I finally saw the finish and kept it steady to the end. Now it was time to cheer others on. I knew they were out there working as hard as I was and I wanted to recognize their efforts. I ran back along the course and saw Erik and he seemed to have a pretty good clip going. Then there was Steve and Tim and then came Jessi. I started to run with her and I really did not say too much initially since I could hear the song that was playing on her iPod… it was that loud. As we got closer I gave her some words of encouragement and told her to elevate the pace here, and she did. She was truckin’ for the last 200 meters. I know she was excited to get one of these under her belt too so shake off the cobwebs. She had a great couple of runs and a solid bike. I think she was pretty happy with the day. Jim came in and so did Tracey. I think that was everyone.

Mark did a great job getting this together and pulling off another great event. I know that there were a lot volunteers that helped out too, and Kathi got a lot of supplies together and arranged to make things happen as well. Mark, and his fancy watches, was able to give each participant an accurate run, bike, and transition times, which was nice. I was not too sure where the transition ‘zone’ was, but I don’t think it made a huge difference. The splits were even posted the same day! How good is that? I guess there were not any protests, so that makes things go a bit more smoothly.

Great day, great data, and great people. Now on to the races!