August 4, 2013
8:00 a.m.Cypress Black Bayou, Benton, Louisiana
.5 mile swim, 18 mile bike, 5K run
I have heard great things
about this triathlon, in fact, it sells out in April. This race is held in a park that has camping
sites and cabins available. I got my
parents to bring over their fifth wheel camper; I was so excited because they
have never seen me race before.
Race morning
I have had some sinus
drainage and I did not feel like eating or drinking a lot, but I forced a
little food, coffee, and water down. I
was soooooooo nervous because my parents were there!
The Swim (22:31)
I’m not a great swimmer, but I
felt like I had a good swim. I didn’t
have to sight that often because there were always people around me. But I did get behind some groups and if I had
sighted more I probably would have avoided some of the traffic. My husband said that I swam pretty straight
compared to others! I was nervous because
the men started right behind my age group, a few eventually passed me but it wasn’t
as congested as I anticipated.
T1 (3:06)
I’m always somewhat
disoriented after an open water swim. My
dad was standing beside the fence watching my transition, I couldn’t help but
smile. My rack was at the back so I had
to run/walk my bike a long way before mounting.
The Bike (1:07:24)
I have heard people say that
they loved this route so I thought it would be fairly flat. Wrong!
There were more hills than I expected.
I was concentrating so hard that I did not take in enough fluids. The fact that I still felt nauseous from the
sinus drainage and swim didn’t help either.
Overall, I felt that I had a good bike.
T2 (1:41)
I had to run/walk my bike in
a long way. I have not mastered the
flying mount and dismount, so I had to run a long way with my bike shoes. I usually have a good T2.
The Run (32:45)
OK, so this is usually where I
smoke it and make up a lot of time. As I
left T2 I felt great but before I got through the first mile I had to stop and
walk. I could not believe it, I was in
shock! My side hurt so bad, I was nauseous,
in fact, I thought I had appendicitis. I
had to run/walk through the whole 5K and I got 2 cups of water at each aid
station.
Post Race (Total time: 2:07:11)
Totally disappointed,
embarrassed and practically in tears. I did hold it
together until my parents left, but then the waterworks started. I was so mad at myself; I knew exactly what had
happened. I didn’t respect the heat. I have never felt this way during a race, but
then again all my long distance events have been in the spring and fall. I think that I learned my lesson, and there
is a certain long distance event I’m contemplating next May.
Next Day
Overall, I had a great
weekend! My husband and parents got to
see me compete in a triathlon. My
husband said that my parents were very interested during the race and asked
lots of questions. I think that my dad
would be a really good coach for me! My
dad told me that even Tony Romo has a bad day! Yes, we are Dallas Cowboy fans! J
I also volunteered for the
Ironfish Kids Triathlon on Saturday. It
was so cool to see kids competing.
My next tri is September 14 at Tyler. This was my first tri last year, so it will be
interesting to compare my results.
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