Date: Saturday, July 17, 2010
Location: Virginia Beach, VA
Race Type: Aquathlon (Run/Swim/Run)
Division: Athena
Time: 1:04:47 (4th place)
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Race Report:
Race morning
I was pleasantly surprised when I woke up to a beautiful sunny morning with no rain!
The weather forecast was all about rain and I had dealt with rain at this race last year and didn't really want to do it again. I took a casual one-mile walk along the beach to the race venue from my timeshare while I dipped my toes in the water. It was so much better than the 65 degree ocean temps from last year. Yes, the race was also in July and also in VA Beach.
Once I made it to the race venue and set up my transition area I was off to get my whole body into the water. I guess I should have remembered that my gel was in my tri suit pocket before I got in the water! Oh well, it was going to be a short race. I'd be able to survive without the gel. Besides, I had a good breakfast and that should sustain me, right?
For such a small race this is a very well organized race. The pre-race events included the Navy parachute team called "Leap Frogs" parachuting down with the US Flag as the National Anthem was sung. It was a very moving experience and one I missed out on last year due to the weather. After that a C130 airplane flew at a very low altitude right over the ocean and then banked to the right to head out. So totally cool and a very patriotic way to begin a race dedicated to the life of a US Navy Seal.
Run: 1K: Approx 5 minutes
There is so much discussion these days about barefoot running and I'm totally on the "I need to wear shoes" side of the conversation. So, as I ran the first 1K on the beach...without shoes...I just had to laugh a little. I knew some of my friends would be proud!
I probably could have pushed the pace a little more on the first run but, quite honestly, I was a little scared about the swim after my somewhat failed attempt last year. So, I just used this run as more of a warm up.
Swim: 1K: Approx 25 min
I was very happy with my swim this year. I started out heading right toward the buoy (see pic - I'm the one in the yellow cap and black tri suit with the flower on the back just to the right of the buoy and just getting over the wave)
My goal this year was to try and keep the straightest line possible to the finish and I felt I did a pretty good job doing so. I noticed a lot of people were to my right throughout the entire race and I kept getting a little nervous thinking maybe I wasn't in the best line possible. But, every time I sighted the finish line I felt comfortable with my position so I kept on swimming my own line.
When I got near the finish I was really pleased with my swim and even more pleased when I looked at my watch to see I had beat last years time by over 30 minutes!
Transition: Too slow
I'm not sure my transition time but I do know it was too slow for what I had to do. I'm typically pretty speedy in transition but I was feeling a little light headed coming out of the water so I took it easy. This isn't the first time I've come out of the water feeling light headed so I need to investigate that a little more.
Run: 5K : Approx 32 minutes
I wasn't super thrilled with my time on this run because I know I can run a faster 5K than this but because of the light-headed feeling coming out of the water I didn't push myself too hard. I allowed myself to walk at the two water stations and when I got to the finish line I knew I still had some left that I could have pushed a little harder.
Post-Race:
As I mentioned before, this race is pretty well organized for such a small race. It was nice they had a rock-climbing wall, playground area, and, of course, the beach for the family to remain entertained during the race. During the results ceremony they had a chin-up competition where they gave out prizes to anyone who could do 15 chin ups. If I do this race again next year I'm going to have to work extra hard during my Crossfit workouts so I can get a prize next year! There was only one woman that even attempted it! I could have done ONE! Haha!
Summary and Lessons Learned:
- This is a pretty fast course with lots of fast racers there. The overall male finished in 39:12 and the overall female in 45:22. So, if I ever do this race again I need to remember that and remember to just KEEP MOVING. It's a RACE and I need to RACE it, not just get in a workout!
- Take the gel out of my pocket before getting into the ocean! Duh.
