Musselman 2012 and the Golden Shower

Sunday I raced the Musselman half-IM. It was my first half since Syracuse 70.3 in 2010. I am exciting to get back into the "middle distance" of triathlon racing because I feel like I can (hopefully) be pretty successful in this distance. Hopefully, someday. Although I am starting to think that my race career peaked at age 26. That is really depressing and I try not to think about it.

MusselBaby that came in the packet!!

Yesterday did not reflect on my "maybe I could be good at 70.3s" idea AT ALL.

Fair warning: this was not a good race for me. My race report will reflect that. Sorry that I can't spin it positively. Sometimes shit just sucks.

Pre-Race
I woke up at 4 am to get showered, dressed, eat, and hit the road at 4:45 am. I was wearing my new Johnson & Johnson tri kit! I got to transition about an hour later and saw Jill, Solveig, Jeremy, and John on my way in. I don't know how I can be so loud and excitable before 6 am.. it's just something about the race atmosphere that gets me going! I was setting up in transition and my blog friend Anne-Marie was at the rack next to mine, so we chatted about the race, the weather, etc. Soon after, it was announced that the water temperature was 78.8 so the race would be non-wetsuit legal. I decided to follow their call and swim without my wetsuit for 2 reasons: a) I didn't want to risk overheating in my full length wetsuit and b) if something crazy were to happen and I had a really good race, I didn't want to disqualify myself from any sort of award. That is just not a chance I am willing to take no matter what kind of shape I am in. Plus, it's good practice for races in the future where I really might be in contention for an award - at least now I will have one non-wetsuit swim under my belt! I was going off in the 6th wave, so I had like 45 mins to kill after they closed transition but before my wave was going off, so I stood around, talked to some people, didn't really get hit by any nerves. The weather was in the 70s already so it was promising to be hot and muggy, but at least there was cloud cover. There were also thunderstorms in the forecast.

Swim
Since I had opted to not wear my wetsuit, I was standing around in my tri kit, holding my cap and goggles, for 25 minutes because I was in wave #6 out of 7 total waves. I saw a few people at this point as well as was discovered by another Johnson & Johnson employee from New Jersey, and she was actually the woman that mailed my race kit to me! Such a small world! Anyways, they finally called for the light blue wave and I went into the coral, and then waded out into the lake - it felt cooler than I expected. Jeff yelled "GO" and we were off! Because I wasn't wearing my wetsuit and about half of the wave was, I started off to the right so I wouldn't get trampled. There were pretty decent waves coming towards the shore that were a little challenging to swim through out to the first two buoys and then parallel to the shore, but not too horrible. There was also LOTS of seaweed and I'm pretty sure I swam into a dead fish at one point (I could smell something rotting and something cold and nasty smacked into my face). Those two things would ordinarily cause me to completely freak out in open water, but during a race I can somehow tuck my fear of all things slimy in the back of my head and proceed to swim even with seaweed draped across my face. The water temperature was perfect for a no-wetsuit swim, and I would have been dying in my full-sleeved wetsuit, so I'm glad I went without. Once we turned towards the shore, we had the waves pushing us in, and then we had the current in the canal and the river. My swim time was only 2 minutes slower than my best half-IM swim time which I earned while wearing a wetsuit, so I was definitely happy with it.
36:15

T1
Awesome because I didn't have to struggle with my wetsuit!
1:31

Bike
I hopped on my bike and started out feeling good through the park. I was happy with my swim time and was thinking to myself that I might have a decent race after all! I was pushing pretty hard and passing a bunch of people as I was heading out of Geneva, and then realized that I wasn't racing a sprint tri and I should probably slow down. At this point, I realized I had no idea how to pace this thing because I hadn't raced anything but a sprint tri or an Ironman in 2 years! I was supposed to race by heart rate but it was totally spiking and I couldn't get it to come down. I'm not sure if it was the heat, the adrenaline, the fact that it was sliding down my stomach, or my stupidity that was making it so high.

Five minutes into the ride I knew it wasn't going to be a fun trip. I felt like I have absolutely no gas in the tank whatsoever. I could either cruise along at 16 mph and try to ride via HR, or I could try to push it a little and see if I could get my legs moving. I decided to go with the second option. It didn't help that the first 1/3 of the course is slightly uphill, and there was a headwind for the first long section. Even though I knew these elements were factoring into my slow speed, it was still discouraging. I was riding with Karin K. right in the beginning of the course (although it took me 30 mins to figure out who it was that kept talking to me as we played leapfrog!). She was riding better than I was so I decided to try to stick with her and at least that would give me something on which to focus. This worked for a while, and then we hit 414N which had JUST been paved and we had a tailwind, and I saw my speed hold steady in the 23-24 mph zone, and I started to feel better and that all hope was not lost. And then, the thunderstorms that were forecasted, hit. Hard. It started out with thunder, and then lightning, and then the rain started pouring down - I was drenched within 10 seconds. It was pelting me in the eyeballs underneath my sunglasses (thank god I changed the lenses to the less tinted ones), they were fogging up, and I could barely see. There was an inch of standing water on the road that was really freaky to ride through. Basically I just kept a death grip on my handlebars and tried to stay as far right as possible so that a car or other cyclist wouldn't hydroplane into me! It was at this point in the race where I just mentally gave up. I kept hoping that one of the giant lightning bolts would strike me down. Or that they would call off the race due to the thunderstorm. Or that I would flat and someone could drive me back to transition. Horrible, negative things. I just didn't want to be out there. I am not proud of this, but I guess it happens. But there I was, out in the middle of nowhere, in the rain, in the middle of a race, refusing to stop no matter how much it sucked. (Although I did consider stopping at one of the many wineries I was riding by to drown my sorrows).

 The rain continued until I reached Cayuga Lake (so I crawled down the steep downhill as slowly as possible) and then it started easing up. I was able to pee once on that downhill.. the rain just made it that much easier! By this point, I had lost Karin and I felt even crappier. I felt crappy for a long time. I tried to stay on top of my nutrition, although the deathgrip for the 30 minute deluge might have hindered that a little bit.

 I started to feel good at mile 50. Seriously? Six miles left and that's when my body decides that it is ok with racing. Of course, this had NOTHING to do with the tailwind that we were getting as we were heading north back to Geneva! By now, the rain had been gone for a while and the roads were actually starting to dry. As I was riding, I felt a few drops hit my face, so I wondered if it started raining again and looked up. Turns out, it was not rain, it was the guy that had just passed me peeing.. and it was blowing onto my face. I GOT PEED ON. Yes folks, it was my first (and please god hopefully my last) golden shower. As grossed out as I was, I do this as well (although I try to check behind me first) so I couldn't really be mad. Only in triathlon.....
3:06:57, 18.1 mph

T2
Not much to be said here. My shoes and socks were already soaked despite my having covered them up with a Wegmans bag.
 1:42

Run

photo by Solveig who did the AquaBike

I saw Matt K. immediately after leaving transition, and he took a photo of me waving at him (which I am still waiting to see!). I felt really good running through the park. I cheered for the top guys who were coming in (and also was very jealous that they were almost done!). I also saw my friends Erin and Steve (they raced the day before) at the Ramada and they cheered for me both times I ran by which was super awesome of them! I actually felt good running for the first 5 miles or so. And then I started to get hot and my legs hurt. My longest run this year has been one hour and six minutes long due to my knee injury, so I was worried about how long I would be able to run strong. I was also worried that my knee pain would flare back up. It didn't feel 100% while I was running, but it didn't do anything alarming enough to cause me to stop. I was running right with Jill for a while but she was running better than me and eventually passed me for good. I also sprained my ankle (for real) running up Barracks Rd., which is a steep, rocky, dirt road right around mile 7. I ran halfway up then rolled my ankle, then walked the rest of the way. I am no stranger to a sprained ankle, so once I got to the top, I just ran on it. So that was fun. By this point I knew I wasn't going to beat my 2009 Musselman time (my first 70.3 ever and slowest 70.3 time) and was looking at a PW. I just was hoping to stay under 6 hours. Which I managed to do.. barely. The downhill sections were ok, but I am not a great downhill runner and I had 2 sore quads, a bad knee, and a bad ankle to contend with! Running back through the park is always 1000x worse than when you're first starting, as well. It's flat but it's soooo boring. I guess I just don't have many positive things to say about this run other than I didn't screw my knee up which was my main concern.
2:06:42, 9:32 min/mi


Finish: 5:53:07, 13 AG, personal worst time by 13 f-ing minutes!!!


The good things about the race.. well the race itself is fantastic. The packets always have awesome stuff in them - this year I got all natural peanut butter, a tech shirt, shampoo/conditioner, and an adorable stuffed "MusselBaby." It's always well-organized and runs smoothly. And I love seeing all of my triathlon friends that I really only see either at Kershaw Park or at races. I got to meet some new people too!

Also, it was a COMPLETE reality check about where I am this season. I am NOWHERE near where I was supposed to be due to circumstances that were not my fault. However, maybe I can stop screwing around and actually get some quality training in.. and maybe Timberman in August won't be quite as bad? I have to stop comparing races. I raced a 5:16 at Tinman 4 weeks out from IMLP but that was at Ironman-level fitness. And I had a perfect race. This was not a perfect race, and I am not even in half-IM condition, let alone Ironman shape! I have to learn to look at a race for what it is relative to my training and not relative to every single race I have ever done in my entire life.

And luckily, I found some fun post-race things to do too. So that made my day better and I didn't sit around dwelling on a bad race! :)

The Letter of the Week is "M"

M is for Musselman on Sunday. (http://www.musselmantri.com/). My first big race of the year! Although I am not as well prepared as I would like to be, I have gotten further in my training over the past month and a half than I thought I would. Running is starting to feel normal again, although every step I take I worry that I am going to hurt my knee again. Should be a fun day - lots of my friends will be out there! Will also be hot, as usual!

M is for Magic Mike which I am going to see tonight with some other ladies who "appreciate" the male form. I think that is all I have to say about that.. :)

M is for Green Mountain Coffee.. which is what has been fueling me this week (is this the longest week ever or what?).

M is for Mornings which I DO NOT LIKE!

M is for Michael Jackson dance parties on the weekends, and then walking 1.6 miles each way to a bar that has a cover, and then realizing that you are too drunk to be drinking any more and need to drink water. (That is not something I did last weekend or anything..).

M is for My life is pretty awesome. :)

The right one will come along

The right one will come along.

How many times a week do I hear that sentence? The right job. The right relationship. The right race. So many applications for that one phrase!

Yet, I don't believe in fate. I don't believe that my life will culminate with some pre-determined "moment" in which I have no say. I don't believe in destiny. Or some god's master plan.

The perfect job isn't going to fall into my lap. In order to find a different job, I have to network, practice my interviewing skills, keep my resume up-to-date, and actually seek out and apply for positions. I have to do extra work at my job so that I am more qualified. I have to do my best in order to do better in a new position. I can't just sit around moaning my existence and assume that things will get better on their own.

And if I want to meet someone to be in a relationship with.. forget it. I hear so many conflicting theories. I have to online date. I have to be proactive. I have to do nothing and wait for someone to pursue me. I have to meet someone "organically." What I DO know is that what I am currently doing (which is nothing) does not work. I am not the kind of person that is going to meet someone in line at a coffee shop and get married to them a year later. Things like that just don't happen to me. I take a very proactive stance on life and that is in direct opposition to how dating is supposed to work. I am the woman so I am supposed to be "chased." I'm sorry, but I can't sit still for that and I don't have the patience for it either.

If I want the "perfect" race (which does not actually exist), I have to put in the time to train. I have to sacrifice other areas of my life in order to get in all of my training hours. I have to learn how to execute my nutrition flawlessly. I have to pick races that play to my strengths and then overcome my mental demons once I am racing. I have to believe in myself as an athlete and know how to race right to the edge of my ability. A great race doesn't just happen. It's something you do. Something you work towards and achieve.

So I cannot live by that motto - that the right one will come along. I just cannot sit there and be a passenger in my own life. And if I never get a better job, or meet a great guy, or have the best race of my life, at least I will know that I tried and didn't just sit around waiting for things to get better.

Cycling as a natural anti-depressant

It is amazing how a good workout can fix a bad today.

And today was a bad day. It wasn't bad for any particular reason, more the culmination of a bunch of smaller things over which I have no control.

I have not gotten any of the jobs I have interviewed for, so now that there are no open positions left for me to apply, I am back to my old standby of networking and redoing my resume. We are losing a person in the lab tomorrow, so I will have to work more overnight shifts to accommodate that change.. which I am worried will trigger more insomnia nights. I am also in the longest stretch of being single that I can remember. Even for me, who certainly enjoys a lot of alone time, it's getting frustrating. My friends (who are ALL in relationships by the way) listen and try to help (and have gone so far as to actually introduce me to guys that I will like - and have liked) but it seems to be a perpetual case of wrong place, wrong time for me.

So with all of that weighing on my mind, I didn't have the most fun day of my life. And I knew I had to ride my bike for 2.5 hours after work (because I don't have time this Saturday to do it, which is when it's scheduled for). So if the ride went badly, I think it would have sent me over the edge.

I think I subconsciously knew that I NEEDED it to go well. It wasn't a super scenic route (although it was a loop instead of my typical out and back) and it was hot, and I didn't ride particularly fast, and there was a bit of traffic, but it was good. It just felt really good. And it made me happy to be riding. Spinning up hills, flying down hills, sweating, drinking when my timer went off.. all felt like second nature. Every time I ride, I can look down and see my Ironman stickers on my top tube, and it reminds me that I can do things that not everyone can do. And that even though parts of my life are not going as well as I'd like them, that other parts are going great. And that took away the bad feelings that were resonating throughout me.

And now I feel better.

Previewing the Musselman Bike Course

I have ridden the Musselman half-IM bike course the past 2 weekends. It has been pretty hot both times as well as windy. Since I haven't raced Musselman in 2009 and I am disadvantaged due to my issues this year, I wanted to do some recon so that I am as prepared as I can be.

My first ride of the course was good, albeit slow. It was very hot and I was testing out a new drink - Skratch Lab Secret Drink Mix - recommended by a whole bunch of people. (But that is for another post). I didn't get my ride started until noon because I wanted to sleep. Did I mention it was hot out? Yeah. I got fried in the sun for over 3 hours. But it was good to scope out the course because it's deceptively hard. It is also really, really boring to ride alone.

I went back this past Saturday to ride it again. This time, I had plans to go early and ride with company (I was meeting a friend at 8:15 to be riding by 8:30). I met her there and we were off.. and then 20 minutes into the ride, I got a flat tire. Ugh. We changed it, but since Jill was on a tight schedule, we decided to skip riding through Sampson State Park and to just ride back on 96A - no big deal. Until my tire went flat AGAIN about one minute later. I ended up walking down 96A for a good 30 minutes or more while Jill rode back to Geneva, put her bike in my car, got her car, came and got me, and we took my bike to Geneva Bike Center so that THEY could change flat #2. By the time they were done, it was after 10 am. Jill was no longer going to be able to ride the course, but we somehow picked up Solveig at the shop, and they rode the first 45 minutes of the course with me (past the flat tire stop) and then turned around while I continued on.

I really tried to take note the second time around of places where I could push, places where I needed to sit back and spin, and spots where I would need to be prepared for steep hills or sharp turns. I also got chased by 2 very scary dogs. The first one ran RIGHT in front of me, requiring me to slam on my brakes and skid past it. Solveig crashed her bike due to a loose dog on this very same course two years ago, so you can understand my fear. I BARELY missed that dog. Over an hour later, a different dog started chasing me, although this dog wouldn't let up and chased me for at least 45 seconds. I just couldn't drop the dog and I thought it was going to bite me! I kept trying to figure out if I could unclip and kick it in the face. I love dogs and don't condone that type of behavior, but I was scared to death!

Anyways, moral of the story - don't ride by yourself or you might be eaten by a dog.

Growing Up is Part of the Game

I'm not quite sure what is happening to me.

Not only is my apartment clean (like, clean and picked up enough for company) at all times, I find myself vacuuming multiple times a week. Part of that is due to my cat shedding like CRAZY but also, I just am nuts about my carpet being clean. I feel the urge to immediately put things away once I use them. At one point in my life, I would throw clothes on the floor, leave items on the counter, have piles of paperwork sitting around. Now, I unpack my gym back immediately after getting home. I put groceries right away. I file my paid bills weekly. If I watch a DVD, I put it away right after I finish it, rather than leaving the DVD in the player and the case sitting on the floor. The only thing on the floor right now (other than my furniture, obviously) are my slippers.

Where is this neat-freak attitude coming from? God knows it wasn't there for the first 27 years of my life! What happened at age 28?!

I have also bought (and worn) a bunch of dresses this spring. Basically, whenever I go out with my friends now, I try to look nice and dresses are becoming more normal for me to wear. I even have a pair of heels! (There is a first for everything I guess).

Maybe I am growing up finally? I am proud of what I have accomplished, even though it may not be a lot compared to more successful people. But I have a job, an apartment, a car, good friends, I can support myself as well as my 2 pets (one which is expensive as s&%*), I can afford to do triathlons, at which I seem to do pretty well. It is time to be proud of the things that I have done rather than be hung up on the things that I want to do but haven't been successful at just yet.

I am just in an odd mood tonight. I have been streaming "Friday Night Lights" through Netflix. If you don't know, it's a TV show that ran a few years ago about a high school football team in Texas. I don't really care for football, but the show is good. And tonight, I cried during an episode. Not even cried.. SOBBED. For no reason other than it was a little sad.

WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME?!?

Keuka Lake Tri Race Report

Pre-race

I got up at 4, showered, dressed, ate, and left at 5. I was wearing my new QT2 kit that I had just gotten in the mail and had yet to wear (classic mistake but it was a nice quality kit so I wasn't worried about trying it out first!). The drive to Penn Yan was uneventful, I just rocked out to my "running" playlist on the way down! While I was picking up my packet in the gym, I got a phone call from my dad (and of course my "You Can Call Me Al" ringtone was echoing all throughout the gym before I could dig it out of my bag to answer it!) saying that my mom didn't feel well and that they weren't going to come. I was disappointed because I haven't seen them in a while, AND they were going to bring the race T-shirt quilt that my cousin made me, and they usually bring the dog too, but it was a crappy day so I'm sure they had more fun at home and not standing in the rain in Penn Yan watching me do yet another race!

Solveig and I pre-race under the red tent

I set up my transition and then brought my bag to set it under Matt K's tent. It was pretty cold so Solveig and I wandered around with our wetsuits half on and coats on top. We watched the intermediate waves go off and then went back to put our stuff away. We were in the same wave which started at 8:30 - an hour after the first swim wave went off for the intermediate race. That's what sucks about the sprint.. standing around in your wetsuit while freezing your ass off for an hour!

I love seeing friends in transition before a race, or milling around the swim start. I am really in my element at a race and I am much more personable and outgoing than in other situations. I just think it's a lot of fun to see everyone!

Swim

The water was a lot warmer than it usually is at Keuka. I would say normally it is high 50s, maybe low 60s, but today it was 67 degrees. So basically, a bath. Our wave got in and only then did I realize how choppy the water was! I positioned myself in the front towards the outside (to avoid the crowd - ever since IMCDA I have been a little freaked out in the pack) and we were off! Once I started swimming, the chop wasn't too bad. I was swimming mid-pack for a while and then started passing girls once we rounded the first buoy. By the time I reached the 2nd buoy, I was catching swimmers from the previous wave and had pretty much settled in by myself - behind the fast ladies but ahead of the pack. That is usually how it goes for me.. I need to figure out how to jump to that next level! I was happy to finish the swim, like always!

15:32 - 11th OA, 2nd AG

T1

I ripped off my cap and goggles, ran up the stairs, got the top half of my wetsuit off, gave a wave to Mary who was announcing, and ran to my spot transition. I had a pretty shitty transition. First race of the year is always rough and I had to put my Garmin on my wrist, and my new Garmin (Gary the vibrating Garmin to be specific) has a wristband that has holes in it - not velcro like my old one, so it took me a few tries to get it on. Everything else was smooth enough I guess.

1:28 - 7th OA, 2nd AG

Bike

I saw Jeremy as I was running through bike out and got mounted and headed out onto the course. Since it was such a short race I started hammering immediately. It was raining by this point but I don't mind riding in the rain, and even though it was chilly, I felt fine in just my tri kit. I am almost never cold in races so I didn't bother with arm warmers or anything - most of the other people I saw out there had the same idea as me. As in all sprint races, it was mostly a man-passing-fest. I like passing men so I had a lot of fun with it. More than halfway down the "out" part of the course, I passed a woman wearing an Erie Triathlon Club outfit that was in my swim wave. I made a hard pass and didn't see here again during the bike leg. I had originally gone into this race to "have fun" but of course that went out the window when I started racing. Especially since I won the stupid race last year, I had it in my head that I could get on the podium again (maybe not in first but at least top 3). So once I passed that chick, I laid down the hammer going down the long descent on 54A. For a while it was fun - I am pretty bold on downhills, but then I started reflecting back on my crash that happened just 2 weeks prior and remembered how unpleasant it was. That combined with the wet course, the debris on the road, the other riders (many who were probably beginners), and the upcoming 180 turnaround at the bottom of the hill, I decided that I was being an idiot so I sat up and slowed down a bit. I made the turn and started back up the hill. Since I am small, I always make a lot of passes going up hills. One guy even commented on how strong I was climbing the hill and I yelled back at him that it was because I only weigh 115 lbs. Sometimes, I don't know why I say the things I say, but it's true anyways.

looking happy in the new QT2 kit!

41:34 - 20.2 mph, 4th OA, 1st AG

T2

I made it back into transition thoroughly soaked and sad that the bike was over. I had a little trouble finding my spot in transition, but got my stuff off easily enough, and grabbed my hat and race number. This transition should be under 1 minute and I just could not get my running sneakers on (they were soaked and  I could NOT figure out how to change my Garmin to "run" using the auto-multisport mode (this is one of those things that I need to learn BEFORE race day) so I had to reset it and just set it to run the regular way. As I was exiting transition and fiddling with my Garmin, Mary yelled to me, and then someone in front of me yelled "ALEXA" and turned to give me a high five. I had no idea who it was - turns out it was my friend Marty haha.

1:17 -  39th OA, 4th AG

Run

My goal for the run was just to run. I have barely run this entire year, I have had runner's knee and now a really sore right leg from the crash. I knew I COULD run 3 miles, just slowly. At least it was raining and not hot. I just tried to keep my head down and my pace as fast as possible. The Erie chick passed me back a little before the mile mark and she was going too fast for me to keep up with. Otherwise, I saw a bunch of Train-This and QT2 teammates out on the course so that was good. Dan Jareke and Rich Clark were watching/cheering and yelled for me too!

it's so pretty!

25:06 - 8:06 min/mile, 20th OA, 4th AG

Finish Time: 1:24:57 - 4th OA, 1st AG

F25-29 Sprint Podium

Matt Kellman in his mullet wig. sexy.

My performance at this race ended up being about 5 minutes slower than last year, where I finished in 1:19:53 and won the race. I will contribute part of it to the race conditions (choppier water and rain/wind on the bike) and part of it to my lack of in-shape-ness (last year I was in peak Ironman condition for the upcoming IMCDA). I still managed to do pretty well in the race - I did not make the podium but I was 4th OA female and won my age group. Prizes were pretty good too - instead of a plaque or a medal that would just get stuck in a drawer, I got a bottle of wine (YES MORE WINE) and a jar of almond butter. Yum! Greg also got on the podium with a win in his age group for the intermediate distance, which qualified him for Age Group Nationals, so congrats to GREG! Score-This always puts on a great race at Keuka!



Afterwards, I went to this ice cream place with Greg, his wife Amanda, his parents, and 2 of his friends that I met that day. Who turns down homemade ice cream? Not this girl!

On my drive home from Penn Yan, my windshield wipers broke and are now stuck halfway up my windshield. So that looks awesome when I am driving around. I have to take my car to the Hyundai dealer tomorrow to have it looked at. Thank god for warranties!