Race report: Keuka Lake Triathlon

I am a TRIATHLETE!!!

For reals this time. It's not really official until you breathe into a wave, get kicked in the face and feel the clock ticking in transition... that indoor stuff didn't count. (Related: I am a duathlete and I am a marathoner)

The Keuka Lake Triathlon was a fantastic whirlwind kinda weekend. All in all, I'm thrilled not only with my results but by the fact that I felt SO prepared, and feel like most of the decisions I made were the right ones.

The blow by blow in a sec (you folks get the rambling, I'm already halfway through the bottle of wine I bought in wine country version. Should have bought the big bottle. I'll do a more coherent version using a couple of those professional writer skills for Scootadoot later this week!)

First and foremost, the results! The goal I told everyone else is: Finishing not last. The goal I secretly told myself: 2 hours.

• Overall time: 1:47:21
• 820 yard swim: 24:00 (3:12 per 100 yards)
• T1: 3:12
• 13.6 mile bike: 50:00 (16.56 mph)
• T2: 2:00
• 3.1 mile run: 27:40 (8:55 minute mile)
• 168/260 overall, 55th of females, 12/20 in my age group

Ok now the play by play:

SATURDAY

Philip and I went down to Penn Yan Saturday afternoon with Flower in the backseat and way too much stuff. (Only let him navigate if you have plenty of time to spare.) Got there in time for the clinics. Bummer that more people didn't go... they were excellent. Got some great tips on my running form and felt much more prepared. Chugged lots and lots of water.

Had a burger and fries (what I was craving) at Timmy G's, a cozy little restaurant downtown, and a glass of Hazlitt Cat red wine. 

Stayed in the dorms at Keuka College. It was definitely... a dorm. Ahhh, a plain white room with three twin beds and sandals in the shower. 

Far from a hotel, but a cheap bed for the night, and the best part: I could see the lake (and transition) out the window. I sprung for air conditioning, and burrrrr, it sure was air conditioned!!!

BEFORE THE RACE

The alarm went off at 5, and I commenced the: Peek out the window to see how crowded transition was, set alarm for ten minutes, go back to bed. I finally got Flower out of the car and claimed my spot (third bike in, perfect) at 5:45. 

I set my transition the way Mary taught us and put some plastic bags over it to keep it dry, and got marked. I found Sarah and Kelli who were also doing their first triathlons, it was so wonderful to know people there. In addition, the two people next to me in transition were from the Rochester-Area Triathletes!! I am totally joining. 

I went back up to the room to foam roll one more time, and made my first big mistake, I forgot transition closed an hour before my wave!! I smiled, gave the "it's my first time" plea, and got the crew to hand me my swim stuff. 

I doused myself with cooking spray, put my wetsuit on over my spandex shorts and sports bra, and went down to the water.

SWIM

I watched the olympic tri folks take off, then waded into the water as soon as they let us.

It. Was. COOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!

I slowly inched in, finally sucked it up and put my head under. Came up in shock. BURRR!!! I didn't want to be That Person Who Runs Out Of The Water With Her Tail Between Her Legs, so I stayed in, and slowly acclimated. The water was never nice, but it was tolerable. I did some swimming back and forth a little, then met Sarah on the shore. 

We met a girl from Buffalo, Katie, and us three first timers waited nervously until our wave was called. We filed through the chute, and then it was our turn. One minute. 30 seconds. 10 seconds. Horn. 

During the transition clinic, Mary told us some swim horror stories that left me wondering if I should have been taking the aqua kickboxing class at the Y to prepare. 

Fortunately, my wave was cool. Everyone spread out, and I was only kicked twice, and kicked someone else once. So water combat skills weren't necessary, but I employed her spitting in the goggles to get rid of fog strategy.

I liked the buoys because it split the swim up. I probably still zigzagged a lot, but when we practiced at Canandaigua Sarah told me her strategy, breathe three times and spot, and it worked. 

I found myself out of breath at the first buoy and my heart sunk a bit. Maybe I was too dependent on having the wall to pause at. We turned, and I settled into a nice rhythm, switching to breast stroke a few times. I had to straighten out a couple times but I felt smooth up until the next turn around point. 

Getting back was rough because there were no buoys, I was just sighting the arc in the distance. I psyched myself out a few times thinking I was closer than I was and ending up tired. Then there was someone I just couldn't get around. But I made it. 

I stripped off my cap and goggles, ran up the stairs, and peeled off the wetsuit as I ran into transition.

BIKE

I was prepared for the transition. I got my padded shorts and tank on (a tri suit would be nice), took a honey stinger, remembered the helmet before unracking the bike, and took off. I wish I would have done gloves too, but that's ok. 

Mounting the bike was a little rough, so was unmounting, but no embarrassments. The hills weren't bad at all -- all the practice on Route 65 and spinning paid off! I passed people uphill, got passed downhill. 

The only flub, the velcro strap on my saddle bag was cutting into my shorts and I ended up with a bruise and a hole in them!!! 

The ride was smooth, we rode through some rain and headwinds but nothing I couldn't handle. Average pace was 3:34, close to my 3:30 goal. 

RUN

Another smooth transition. I got the clips off, Asics, knee straps and compression sleeves on, and was out through the gate in two minutes, slurping a Gu as I went through. 

I had used the iPhone with the Runtastic app on the bike, but my hands were shaking so bad as I came through transition that I couldn't unlock/reset it, so I just left it behind and ran naked.

I feel like I started off too fast. Calves started to ache, so I backed off the second mile, then picked it up at the end. 

It was hot, and I dumped water on myself at the second water stop. I ran in hard, and finished dripping wet and grinning as Mary, who was announcing, called my name. Wonderful!! 

I finished exhausted, but probably could have handled a longer race! 

AFTER

Another perk of staying at the race site: A nice shower after. Then I inhaled all kinds of yummy food, sat in the sun for awhile, and headed home, doing a little wine tasting on the way in at Yates Cellars... yummmm Reisling. Shoutout to Philip for driving home... I was beat (though I should have taken advantage of the situation by stopping at a few more wineries on the random backroads he turned down...)

Lizzie and Brandy stayed with a sitter who had a big yard, so we're spending Sunday night laying around lazily and fighting for leg room on the couch.

I'm sad I don't have any photos from the race :( It looked like there were official race photographers there though!! 

Much more confident for Musselman!!

Keuka Lake Triathlon: What went right, where I could have done better

My results... what went right, where I could have done better (nothing went wrong), and should I do another in two weeks?

The Keuka Lake Triathlon, in a word: Awesome!!

I felt strong the entire way. The full report.

As I approach a race three times the length, I need to think about where my strong points are, and where I need to improve.

I also need to decide, very soon, if I want to do the Quakerman Triathlon olympic distance in two weeks near Buffalo. The pros and cons later in this post.

But first, the results!!

• Overall time: 1:47:21
• 820 yard swim: 24:00 (3:12 per 100 yards)
• T1: 3:12
• 13.6 mile bike: 50:00 (16.56 mph)
• T2: 2:00
• 3.1 mile run: 27:40 (8:55 minute mile)
• 168/260 overall, 55th of females, 12/20 in my age group

What went right:

• I felt very prepared with the transitions, and was pleased with my transition times! I was expecting at least 5 minutes in T1 but I was just over 3 minutes. Used some tips from Mary Eggers that helped! 
• Running was my strong suit of course!! I finished very strong.
• Glad I did so much spinning and practiced hills on the bike. The hills on this course were nothing!!

Where I could have done better:

• It was my third time in open water, so clearly I need more practice! I was happy with my time, I was hoping for under 30 and I did that. I need more practice spotting, I felt like I was zigzagging a lot and probably swam much further than 820 yards! 
• Again more open water practice! I missed having that wall where I traditionally take two pants on before I turn around (maybe I should have learned flip turns...) I found myself out of breathe a few times and switched to breaststroke. 
• I could also stand to practice more swimming with other people. There were no unfortunate incidences, the people in my wave were wonderful, but I could definitely stand to work on it! 
• Had some calf pain on the run. Need to foam roll and stretch like a madwoman this week. 
• I should practice mounting and unmounting on the bike some more. It was a little hairy, not terrible.
• I should probably get my bike form evaluated. I was fitted on the bike, but I've gotten off the past few times with slight back aches. 
• I should have warmed up more. I thought two and a half hours before start time would be a long time but it went fast!!
• I didn't get any photos! Jealous of everyone else's! 

Rookie mistakes:

• I forgot transition closed! I had to ask one of the guys inside for my swim stuff. Fortunately he was cool about it! (And I knew where my bike was, third from the bag drop, yay!)
• Bringing too much stuff. Now I know what I'll need and what I won't need. 

So, the Quakerman Triathlon is in two weeks, there's an olympic distance, and I need to decide quickly if I want to do it or not. The pros and cons of another race...

Pros:

• More race day transition practice! 
• More open water swim practice with other people in open water
• It looks like a smaller race

Cons:

• I'll lose another week to taper, and another weekend where I could be doing a long ride
• I could use the registration fee elsewhere!

Of course, since the part I really really need practice on is the swim, maybe I could get a relay team together and just do that part! Or the aquabike... hmmm..... 

I'll think on it a little bit! 

Bring it, Keuka Lake Triathlon

It's my first night in a college dorm since... College. The transition area is right outside.

I'm at Keuka College, nestled in between  Keuka Lake's two claws.

My first real triathlon is tomorrow. At this point I've trusted my training, and I'll do my best.

There's a lot to write, but I don't have the patience to type out a long post on my phone, so just a few notes.

Yesterday I was really worried. One reason was because I was afraid of open water. I swam for 20 minutes in Canandaigua, it felt great, no longer worried.

I've been so scared of forgetting something, so I double and triple checked my list. Pretty confident I have everything.

I've heard some people say the water is warm, others say its cold. Hopefully tolerable!

Great clinics this afternoon, learned a lot. 

It's 8 pm and I'm jittery and sleepy. Goodnight.

Planning on a full MUSSEL experience!

This is getting really real, really fast... the Musselman halfiron is in less than TWO MONTHS! 

Plus my first triathlon, the Keuka Lake sprint triathlon, is in 11 days. Eeeeeep!!! 

For the half iron, I have all the pieces in place, I can do the swim, bike and run, I just need to put them all together. I'm planning on a swim then a long bike ride Sunday. 

I've been thinking logistics. One thing I love about these two events is that they let athletes stay in the college dorms for crazy cheap. I was especially worried about Musselman, I wouldn't want to make the trip driving in that morning and leaving in the evening but they let you stay in the dorms at Hobart and William Smith Colleges for $35 a night! Hotels there were crazy expensive, so now I might as well take a mini vacation while I'm at it, I'll be staying three nights, coming in Friday and leaving on Monday. My free time will be spent basking at Seneca Lake state park, hopefully the weather will say that's ok!

It's the same deal at Keuka Lake, you can stay at the college, so I'll be staying there one night. 

So now I won't have to worry about accommodations.

My plan is to come in Friday afternoon, scope out the scene and do the µMussel, a fun, mini mini triathlon, where the bike portion must be done on a tricycle or Big Wheel (currently scoping out Craigslist). 

There's a breakfast the next morning, and then I can either kill some time (the college is just a few miles away from Seneca Lake State Park) or relax hopefully outdoors somewhere. Maybe if I manage my finances correctly I can find a place to get a massage. 

There's also the multisport expo that day, and a mandatory meeting for those doing the half iron. The lovely Victoria Freile has agreed to come down and be my transition crew! Lastly, a dinner (with gluten free pasta!) 

I'm sure it will be off to bed early.

On Sunday, the race starts at 7 a.m. and I hope to be done by three. GULP!

From then, it's the post race party and some sleep, then a whole day Monday to visit some wineries and bask by the lake!!

Enlisting help, Keuka tri, and the first long bike ride of the year

I've got quite a bit of ground to cover in this post, so bear with my ramblings... The Keuka Lake tri is coming up quick, I'm now working with a Ironman coach and I crushed my first long bike ride of the year (though the sunburn on my back says otherwise.

Keuka rapidly approaching

I'm now **gulp** 13 days out from the Keuka Lake triathlon and **bigger gulp** 55 days out from Musselman. In addition I'm going to sign up Friday for the Quakerman olympic triathlon June 16 and the Wine Glass full marathon Oct. 6. I'll also sign up for Highlander Cycle Tour Sept. 7 at some point.

I'm so nervous for Keuka! I'm already having nightmares about forgetting my equipment, finishing last and blowing out a tire. Here's why:

• I've never swum in open water! I don't know if I'll have the right equipment. I have the sleeveless wetsuit, but I don't know if I'll need the neoprene cap and sleeves! 
• I don't feel like I've practiced swimming in the wetsuit and my bike/run transitions enough. I'll get on it but I'm running out of time!
• Did I mention I'm terrified of open water? 

Setting my fears aside, it will be a fun trip! I'm staying in the dorms at Keuka College, found the dogs a trusty dog sitter in Greece with a huge lawn, and might make a side trip to Bully Hill winery. Because wine makes everything better. I also just put an inquiry out about staying in the dorms for Musselman!

Enlisting help

A couple weeks ago I was struggling with my training and decided to reach out for a bit of help.

Random ramblings for a Tuesday (mostly about food)

It's been awhile since I've done a random ramblings post. So why not?

-I swam 2,000 yards last night in 56:09. I think my fastest time for this distance was 53-something, but I was still excited. Before then I'd done exactly one swim in three weeks, which I got done but didn't do so well because I still was having trouble breathing. I had similar trouble breathing the last five laps of the effort, so I kept my head up for the cooldown.
-The water was warmer then usual at the DFC. While I should be getting used to cold water, warm water was nice.
-I bribed myself with nachos from Moe's Southwest Grill to get my lazy butt in the pool. Definitely had an eyes bigger than stomach moment. They were delicious.
-Putting a Moe's Southwest Grill in between my gym and the parking garage is cruel and unusual punishment.
-I'm really hungry today.
-I'm again trying to track my food. I've given up counting calories, I eat too many salads and crockpot concoctions, so I've just been tracking in a Google Doc. Mission for the week: More protein. Hello, Chobani.
-So far I've consumed two Wegman's club packs of strawberries in four days. Delicious.
-Earth Balance coconut and peanut spread is delicious. I cut the middle steps and just eat occasional spoonfuls.
-Why did I open this soda? I don't even like soda. I don't want it.
-I started to write a bunch of scardy-cat bullets about the Keuka Lake tri, but then I decided to make it its own post.
-The Chase Corporate Challenge is in one week. Excited!!!
-Breaking news gotta go.

Back on track, but how to proceed?

After shaking off my Nyquil hangover after about three days of sleeping off a nasty cold (seasons, I appreciate that you changed, but you did it too quickly) I looked at the date on my phone, did some quick math and cringed a little bit.

The Keuka Lake Triathlon, a .46 mile swim, 13 mile bike and 5K run is 27 days away. The Musselman half ironman is 69 days away.

Because I might ship this blog out to a few pros for advice, I'll start from the beginning. I was crushing it with my training. I was following the Beginner Triathlete half ironman plan from March up until two weeks ago. Prior to that I wasn't doing much cardio but I spent about six months working with a trainer focusing on weights which really helped my speed and helped me get ready for the pool.

The only thing I hadn't been following closely on the plan was the bike, mainly because up until just a few weeks ago it wasn't feasible to get outside. I've been on the spin bike a lot though, teaching a lot of classes, but really couldn't stomach more than 90 minutes at a time. I was doing 2000 in the pool in about 50 minutes, and I did the Flower City Challenge (more on that in a second.)

So that was all up until two weeks ago. Then, I took a taper week for the Flower City Challenge. All I did that week was two spin classes, one short bike ride and two short runs.

I crushed the Flower City Challenge. Day 1 was a duathlon, a 5K run, 20 mile bike (with a few killer hills) and a 5K run. Day 2 was a half marathon. Felt great for both. But then the sinus infection came on, and I had to skip my trip to Ohio where I should have done another half marathon Saturday. All I did last week was two cycle classes with hardly any resistance on the bike.

I'd love some advice: How to proceed? 

I probably still can't get in the pool, not for a few more days anyway, because of my sinuses. Maybe I'll put in some time on the rowing machine just to do something. I've still never swum in open water.

Here's what my training plan calls for this week, lots of bike time. I can imagine I'll scale this back, today maybe I'll run instead of swim.

TODAY - SWIM WU 2 x 75 last 25 each breaststroke; MAIN 2 x 600, CD 150 easy (will skip); BIKE - 75 minutes with hills
TUESDAY - BIKE - 60 minutes, aero for middle 40 time
WEDNESDAY - 75 minutes w/ long tempo - 15 mins, 50 mins, 10 mins
THURSDAY- OFF
FRIDAY - SWIM - 400, 4 x 100, 200, 2 x 100, 100; RUN - 1 hour
SATURDAY - BIKE - 90 minute bike use aeros; RUN - 30 minutes after bike
SUNDAY - BIKE - 2.5 hours easy (I'll shoot for 50 miles)

Filling out the race calendar, and returning to COLUMBUS!

I should probably wait until I throw down my money to make it official. I've decided to run the Capital City Half Marathon in Columbus May 4! I am so excited to see all my Columbus friends again, but that will mean two half marathons and a duathlon in back to back weekends. I'm also considering  a tri in Columbus at the end of June.

In addition, I'm going to shoot for the Wineglass Marathon in October.

So, the only thing I'm missing is an Olympic Tri sometime in late June. I just need to take the time to find a good one.

So my race schedule for the year:

April 27: Flower City Du: 5K run, 20 mile bike, 5K run, Rochester
April 28: Flower City half marathon - 13.1 mile run, Rochester
May 4: Capital City Half Marathon, 13.1 mile run, Columbus, Ohio (still need to register)
June 2: Strassburg Sock Keuka Lake triathlon, 820 yard (.75k) swim, 14 mile bike, 3.1 mile run, Penn Yan, NY
POSSIBLE: June 9: The Great Western Reserve triathlon, swim 1500 meters, bike 26 miles, run 6.2 miles, Ravenna, Ohio
OR
POSSIBLE: June 30: Greenswell Antrim Park triathlon, swim 1500 meters, bike 24.9 miles, run 6.2 miles, Columbus, Ohio
July 14: Musselman HALF-IRON!!! 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, 13.1 mile run, Geneva, NY
September 7: Highlander Cycle Tour, 100 mile ride, Canandaigua, New York (still need to register)
October 6: Wine Glass full marathon, 26.2 mile run, Corning, New York (still need to register)

Eeep.