Ironman Louisville

Okay okay, fine! I will write this race report. No fun, at all. I had a GREAT time in Louisville, don't get me wrong, but coming so close to winning my AG and getting that Kona slot...missing all that hurts more than I have let on. I have gone back and analyzed every bit of my race, trying to find places where I could have pushed harder, raced smarter, done this not that. But in the end I realize that it DOESN"T MATTER. I know I give my best during the event and second guessing myself won't do me any good. I am optimistic about '11 for sure; I will be focusing solely on triathlon (with the exception of a few ultras during the off-season) so I should be in top form at the races. A new experience for sure! haha. But I digress...

Here's the rundown:

Swim:the swim start at Louisville is a time-trial start; athletes form a really, REALLY long line and jump off the dock one after another, with perhaps a half-second in between. I must say that I prefer the washing-machine like effect of the usual mass IM start better though...that just seems like part of the experience! The water was filthy but the lake was beautiful. Swimming through the sunrise, under a bridge, around a cute mini-island in the middle of the lake; so pretty! I loved it. My swim time was 1:08 which is slow for me. I think this is 'cause I had to battle through all the slower swimmers who had positioned themselves at the front of the line to ensure that they made the swim cutoff. But this resulted in a massive traffic jam when the faster swimmers caught up! Oh well, these things happen.

Bike: Oh, the bike. Right after I got on my bike I knew something was wrong. My position was way off and my quads were cramping like crazy...maybe it was the fact that my seat had fallen all the way down! Felt like I was riding a little kiddy bike where your knees come up to your nose. I could not find any bike support to save my life - asked at the aid stations, penalty tents, know one knew! Finally around mile 30, the only bike support guy I'd see all day came by and he raised my seat for me. But before I'd had a chance to try it out he sped off! The seat was wayyy too high; my knees were locking out at each downstroke and I had no power. Worst feeling ever! But there was nothing for it; I just sucked it up and rode on. The only other issue I faced was the insane heat; I heard that it got to the high 90's by late morning and stayed that way. Knowing my stomach's inability to process solids in the heat, I stuck with poweraid and a few pieces of banana. This left me seriously underfueled but I still think I made the best decision here. On a good note, the bike course was absolutely gorgeous! Rolling hills, beautiful scenery, oh man my favorite IM bike course for sure.

Run: ahahaha I started the run feeling the worst I've ever felt. Usually I am excited to start my favorite event, but this time my whole body was sore from the awkward bike position, and though my legs felt golden I wasn't able to summon the usual energy, and just started to plod along. Don't get me wrong, I tried my best, but it just wasn't there. Again, I couldn't hold down solids and stuck with water, poweraid and orange slices. I could tell that I was bonking big time, especially during the latter half of the race, but what's a girl to do? I really need to get my stomach issues figured out. During ultras I can eat anything, but during faster efforts it's like my stomach shuts down and won't absorb anything. Grrr.

But again there is a bright side! I saw Bree Wee and Hillary Biscay, two of my heroes, on the course and it just made my day. Especially seeing Bree with a smile on her face towards the end, and Hillary, who wasn't having the best day, cheering her on. These girls just LOVE what they do and boy it makes me smile to know that you can race triathlon as a job and still absolutely love it. Maybe....Limo? What do ya think? Haha I believe that my future lies in ultramarathon, but still...

Anyway I finished in 11:38 and though this was NOT what I was going for, I will take it. At the awards ceremony I heard that 19% of the racers did not finish. That is nuts! All day I saw people literally riding off course and crashing, or falling down on the run. It was crazy and I must admit, a bit scary. Must have been the heat? But considering the tough conditions I am pleased (ish) with my performance and I am finally beginning to get over the "coulda shoulda woulda" phase. I am super excited about the rest of my season. In two weeks I am racing the Ironman 70.3 Branson, with my good friend Heath and his awesome family :) Then it is off to NEW YORK CITY for the marathon, and next up is IM Arizona. Now that race will be the best yet! I get to reunite with Dan and Mary Beaver (I think I will devote an entire post to that crazy awesome couple soon) and experience the race that I have been longing to try for the past two years.

So that's that! IM Louisville in the books, altogether a great experience and filled with awesome (and not-so-awesome!) memories. I am recovered and stoked to get back at it! Bring it on, grad school...