In early May of this year I had a meeting with my cycling coach Lang Reynolds. We had just installed a new power meter on my bike and we were to discuss the goals and schedule for the upcoming season. I had just had a very disappointing race at IMAZ where my heart was not in the race. I was feeling very disheartened by all that had gone in my life in the last several months and I really wasn’t sure what I wanted to do as far as my upcoming triathlon season.  Before our meeting I had thought a lot about IMC and I had decided I did not want to make that my focus for the next several months. It was far too overwhelming for me to think about.  It is one thing to complete an IM, something I had no question I could do… it is another to really put yourself out there; to race, push your limits and give it your all. I did not want to just complete another IM. Stress, depression, anxiety and panic attacks were ruling me at this point I did not have the fight I felt I needed to even think about doing an IM. Some days it was a struggle to just get out of bed. So I met with Lang and shared my concerns about IMC :-)  He agreed with me so my A race became Danskin, and we would just see how I felt as the race got closer.

Training:  Once school was out my training time became very limited.  This year it was particularly difficult as 3 of my children had summer school classes and they all needed to be picked up and dropped off at different times. I was unable to continue my noon masters swim sessions once school was out due to the crazy schedule, so I did most my swimming in the lake.   My bike training leading up to IMC this year was very different than anything I had ever done before.   I was very concerned about my lack of hours on the bike from May-Aug, particularly after I committed to doing IMC in mid-July. My longest bike leading up to IMC after IMAZ was done on May 26^th, a 3hr 58 min ride the day I had my accident. Lang did not seem at all concerned, so I trusted him and decided I would do the plan as is and not question him. I hired him to help me learn how to use the PM and to be more efficient with my time. I was also looking for workouts that really challenged me on the bike.  Running…this was probably my biggest challenge due to my accident.  I was definitely behind with my long runs due to the time off.  I would have liked to have had another 4-5  2:30 -3hr runs under my belt heading in to IMC but once again, nothing could be done about it.  It is what it is and I decided just to make the best of what training I had been able to do.

 

SWIM:  This was my best swim ever.  Not my best time ever but the most relaxed I have ever been in an IM swim.  I was actually looking for people to draft off of instead of trying to get away from everyone. With my lack of swimming this summer I knew I needed every bit of help I could get! The other thing I tried during this race that was different was getting behind the big guys who are thrashing around. I would see a crowded area ahead and I would stay right on their feet until they parted the waters for me. This was amazing, anytime things started getting rough I would duck right behind some big guy and he would pull me through the crowd.  Before, I never had the presence of mind to try this I always wanted to get away from those guys.  I like the new IMC swim. On the way out I didn’t even site off the buoys; I swam straight toward the top of the mountain that lined up perfectly with the first buoy from where I started.  There were some radio towers on top so I looked for those.  Coming back I just looked for the big crane. I don’t think that crane will be there next year so I will have to find something else.J Coming in the last couple hundred yards of this swim was tough .  The water gets pretty shallow quite a ways out and people start standing and walking. I am not sure why they do this as the footing underneath is very rocky they would be much better off if they kept on swimming.…next year keep swimming people, swim right up to shore.  As I came out of the water I saw 1:12:?? on my watch I was thrilled!!!!!  1:13:19

T1: After hearing the weather report for race day I had decided to wear my cycling jersey for the race.  I had never done this before in an IM so I wasn’t sure how I would like it. I decided I would just put everything in my jersey pockets like I do when I am doing my training rides, so I removed my Bento Box. Transition went very smoothly. I had loaded up the back pockets the night before and rolled up the jersey so the contents wouldn’t spill.  The jersey was a full zip so it was easy to get on even when I was wet.  The volunteers were wonderful and extremely helpful.  3:18

 

Bike:  Nutrition…

·         300-cal an hr. mixture of  Carbo pro and e-load ,

·         3-4 thermolytes an hr.

·         1 bagel between OK falls and Richter Pass 

·          Potato chips and1/2 coke just past special needs

·         2 Carb boom gels one before yellow lake and one after.

·         1.5 bottle of water and hr.  

This all worked great never once did I feel sick or feel bloated.  This was probably the best I have ever felt on the bike. 

 

Lang had given me some wattage numbers to ride between and a cap for the climbs on the bike.  I was to rest up when I could if I had a tailwind and same with the downhill sections. This worked great for the first 1.5 hrs of the bike. It was an easy ride all the way to Richter pass. I got there feeling really good. The climb up Richter was fine the surprise came when we had the short downhill at the top and I look down and I saw I am only going  16-18 mph…WHAT???  This was a shock.  I finished the last section then headed down the big descent and this was when I got a sense that we were going to be in for some serious wind coming up and sure enough as I headed down to start the rollers I was being blown all over. BTW they are not really “rollers” as everyone calls them; it’s a series of small hills.   Rollers would be easy, and there is nothing easy about this section of the course.  I don’t think in the 4 previous years I have done this race I have ever had as strong of winds as we had this day.  It was very scary on the descents.  Somewhere on the out and back I got stung by a bee. It got between my leg and saddle…felt like someone stuck a needle in my leg. On the section heading to Yellow lake I was having a very hard time breathing;  most likely because of all the dust being blown around, my asthma was definitely acting up. This was probably the hardest part of the ride for me. My chest hurt to breathe.  Yellow lake was absolutely crazy this year….I could not believe how many people were there screaming and yelling. The energy they put out  just pulled you up the hill. The descent off Yellow lake was very scary … a couple times I was sure I was going to be blown off the road. I had opened a Carb boom gel just after the top and was holding it in my right hand,  sipping on it.  As I started the descent the gel squeezed out and was all over my right shifter. Within minutes I could barely move it, by the end of the ride I was stuck in that gear, I could not move it at all.   5:37:07

 

Here are my power numbers from the race

 

 

T2: went smoothly…quick change into a new outfit and off I went.  3:18

 

Run.  On the run all I had was water and coke .  I carried a package of gummy worms with me just in case, but never felt like I needed them.  I really watched my pace the first 5 miles and made sure I walked through every aid station so I could get enough water and coke.  If you are doing this race next year and you have the opportunity I would definitely go out and run the hilly sections of this course. This is not a flat course there are some nice long hill sections out near the turnaround.  4:04:31   Total race time:  11:01:33 

Big thanks to my team; you all inspire me to continue to work and train hard.  To John Teeters and Tom Price, thanks so much for your support. You will never know how much that has meant to me this past year.  To Lang my cycling coach… thanks for treating me as an equal, being patient with all my power meter questions and for believing in me.  To Scott Armstong, whose masters program I took throughout the winter… thanks! Your workouts kicked my butt and made me work hard.  I actually looked forward to going to swim practice…I can’t believe I said that!  I am looking forward to swimming with you and your group in the fall when the kids are back in school!   Big thanks to Dr. Scott Hammons at Essential Chiropractic. After my accident in May my back, left  hip and neck area were pretty messed up. I was very hesitant to see a chiropractor because of a bad experience I had had in college but I really felt that it was exactly what I needed. Scott is great and has helped me tremendously. I am no longer running with my right ear on my shoulder. To Michael my husband…THANK YOU … thanks for standing up for me and for  believing in me.  Thanks for all the help and support you give the team. There is no way I could do all this without you.