Musselman Half-Ironman 7/2006

July 16, 2006
Geneva, NY
1.2 mile swim/ 56 mile bike/ 13.1 mile run

Each year our WWFC group selects a group race and this year it was the Musselman in upstate NY. We planned, trained and even made t-shirts and the next thing you knew we were gathered at our pre-race dinner on Friday night laughing and talking like we'd known each other forever (even if only via the internet).

Pre-Race
There's so much to say so I'll keep this brief but my LBS completely disassembled my aerobars which meant a headache for me on the other side since there weren't any markings on the horizontal pieces. Thankfully my husband was there to help me make on the fly adjustments. The news was actually broadcasting things like Danger Zone: How to beat Sunday's Heat which did not bode well for us racers but we stayed calm. We had a great evening Friday and then spent Saturday doing a variety of pre-race things like Packet Pick-up and Bike Check-in.

One of the cool things about Musselman was all of the activities for athletes. There was a pancake breakfast Saturday and a Pasta dinner Saturday night. Unfortunately the location of the pasta dinner wasn't air-conditioned so it was stiflingly hot and a lot of us left early although before we left we were introduced by Jeff the Race Director which was nice.

This year the writer who does Frazz (a triathlon friendly comic strip) was not only participating in the 1/2 IM but also speaking at the pasta dinner because of this he drew a special comic strip for the t-shirts. This was a nice idea but part of the reason I liked the idea of Musselman was because of the Zebra Mussel logo. Previous year's had shirts with Mussels swimming, biking, running, or signs indicating how far the Mussel was going. This year not only was there no Mussel there was also no mention of the distance which is a small silly thing but seriously people I want a shirt that says Musselman 1/2 Ironman.

Earlier in the day we had met Jane a newbie who was doing the 1/2 and had never done a triathlon before. Never ever, not even a sprint. Wow, I thought. That is hardcore. She had lots of questions about everything from transitions (she had no clue what they were) to race attire and nutrition. I quickly adopted her into our group and hoped she'd have a good race :)

After the dinner I went back to the hotel and packed all my gear, mixed my bottles, shaved my legs, relaxed, stretched and then we watched the requisite sports inspiration movie Stick It (it was the best we could do on Pay-Per-View). Went to sleep around 10:30pm.

Race Day
Woke up and quietly got dressed before heading to the lobby. Once there I got all my frozen bottles, ate 1.5 bagels with PB&J and drank a cup of coffee before meeting up with Mia, Carol J and Jody to head to the park. Once there I set up my transition area, get my timing chip, get body-marked and sunscreen and body glide like crazy. I see JM and I am psyched that she made it and is feeling better.

Jody, Teresa and I are in the same wave so we hang together while the bagpipers play and the national anthem is sung. I see my husband and give him a kiss, then he takes some pics and it's our turn to get into the water.

Swim
In order to get to the swim start we have to climb down these huge wooden stairs. Climb down wooden stairs in a wetsuit? All I'm thinking is I am so going to be the one that gets a splinter. So while I'm avoiding that I actually fall off the last step into the water on my ass. Nice!!! What a way to start. We gingerly walk to the swim start avoiding the zebra mussels. The water is about 76 (coming from the NW where the avg water temp has been about 63) and feels like bathwater. The horn sounds and we're off. I get jostled a lot in the first few buoys and I immediately notice that the water smells and tastes like crap. Ugh! Next thing I notice is how shallow it is. I can see the scary zebra mussels just below me and of course that makes me think crap I better not stop swimming cause they'll cut me. I try to find a rhythm but something is wrong. Between getting hit with waves and being jostled about I have trouble going more than 2 or 3 strokes before having to sight again. I just keep telling myself "Just Keep Swimming".

I round the first turn and see there are lots of people swimming off course. I try desperately to settle into a pace. The waves keep hitting me. ARGH!!!!!!! Now I'm getting frustrated cause I'm starting to feel nauseous and I'm like OMG am I actually getting motion sick from these waves?

Geesh! Finally, I make the last turn and I swim until I can't swim any longer. At this point I see that there is a long way to walk through the sand before you even get to the swim finish. I hit my watch and it show 51.56 which is about 8min slower than my 1.2 mile swim at Hagg Lake a few weeks ago. DANG IT!!!!!!!!!! I walk/jog up the shore and am briefly distracted by the sight of a fellow racer exiting the water in only "tighty-whiteys". Scary...... oh well more motivation to get moving into T1.

1.2 miles
Official Swim Time: 53.32
100 yd Pace: 2.36

T1 - 4.01
Once across the swim mats there's a long walk to the transition area and I hear my husband cheering for me which is awesome. I get my feet wiped off and into my bike shoes, helmet, glassed and gloves on and I am off to start my favorite part of the race :)

Bike
This is absolutely my strong suit. I had driven the course after getting into town and I'll admit I was a little concerned because of the rolling hills and the wind. I figured I would do ok as long as I remembered to spin up all the hills. The aid stations were going to be serving HEED as the sports drink which tasted like ass to me so I packed my own cocktail for the bike:

2 bottles with 2 scoops of CarboPro and 3 Endurolytes mixed with Crystal Light Lemonade

About 230 calories a piece and yummy! I had my aero bottle filled with water and my 2 bike bottles and then I was supplementing with a few GUs. I tried to maintain a strong cadence on the flats and repeated my mantra of "Be Consistently Fast". I passed a few people with flats and asked if they needed anything, silently thanking God that I wasn't in the same boat.

I rode past beautiful vineyards, farms, the lake and through many small towns. It really is a fantastic course. I got water at the first 2 aid stations. Just before the 1/2 way mark I see Carol J's boyfriend Scott which was awesome!!!!

I noticed that there weren't any portolets at either station and I knew I'd be faced with the ultimate dilemma.

Do I pee on the bike?

This is a question which 3 years ago I can't believe I'd say out loud let alone seriously consider. My tri friends and I had joked about this and my family who came out to cheer me on at my first 1/2 Ironman even had a saying "If you pee on your bike, you'll be whizzing your way to victory".

At about mile 30 I really had to go. ARGH!!!! I didn't want pee to get in my shoes. The bike is washable but I only have one pair of shoes. Even more critical than that I had sports drink in my bottles and all the water was in my aero bottle. Hmmmmmmmm............decisions, decisions.

I finally decided to do it and started focusing on the details of getting it done. I emptied the last few drops of sports drink and then sucked water from my aero bottle and after opening the top of my bike bottle proceeded to spit some in. I rinsed out the sticky sports drink then continued the transfer from the aero bottle to the bike bottle til my aero bottle was empty. Once the lid was back on I let it fly.

EEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKOOOOOOOORAAAAAAAAMMMMMMAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!

I am whizzing on my beloved bike and it is going into my shoes. I'm laughing and shrieking out loud as I fly down the road doing about 19 MPH, hehe only in triathlon.

I rinse the best I can with what little water I have and turn the corner toward Special Needs. This is a pretty cool feature which I've never heard of at a 1/2 IM before. We were allowed to pack a bag that could be retrieved at mile 33. I hop off my bike and 2 volunteers come over to help me get myself situated. They fill my bike bottles with fresh water, I mix my cocktail, add new water to the aero bottle, wash myself off, pour a bottle over my head and down my back, say Thank You and I am off.

I'm past the half-way mark and I am starting to pick up speed. Sweet!!!! I sing to myself and then after finishing the 3rd bottle of sports drink I repeat the above and whiz again. This time it really gets into my shoes. Oy vey!

I thank the volunteers at each of the intersections, enjoy the view and keep pedaling strong, knowing that as each mile ticks past I am that much closer to 13.1 miles in the scorching sun. At each 10 mile mark I ask myself: "Are you happy? Are you hydrated? Are you ready to run?" Each time the answers were Yes, Yes and Yes!

I see Tink and Suzy's husband after the 50 mile mark and that gives me a boost. I soon turn the corner into the park and hop off my bike. WOO HOO!!! I am exactly on pace given the hills and the pit stop.

56 miles
Official Bike Time: 3:31.40
Official Average: 15.9 mph

T2 - 4.02
I see the Tri-ers and hear my husband cheering for me as I run in with my bike. I'm ready to run. I take off all the bike stuff, lube up my feet with vaseline, put my running shoes, race #, fuel belt and hat on and I am off and running. As I'm about to leave transition I see Jody just ahead of me and I'm like WOO HOO, Go Jody, figuring she'll leave me in the dust in just a few min.

Run
Headed out of transition and knew immediately I needed to pee and I wasn't hardcore enough to just go while running so I ducked into a portolet and then headed out. I could see Jody in the distance and she was using a walk/run strategy so I hoped I'd catch her and we'd be able to run together. Before I even hit the 1 mile mark I was already dying of hotness. I knew it was only going to get worse. I saw JM coming in on the back of a golf cart and felt so sad that her race had come to an end but she kicked ass on the swim and bike which is awesome!

ER was taking pictures at the mile 1 aid station and I managed a smile as I ran past. As soon as I hit the first aid station I was starting on what would become a routine as I went aid station to aid station.

3 cups of ice down the sports bra, 1 cup into my hat, a cup of water to drink, cold sponges to cool my face and one for down the back of my running tank.

Mile 2, same thing. Mile 3 is a bit slower as I take a GU and a few endurolytes. Mile 4 is a little hilly through the college and I chatted with several of the guys running near me. Jody is behind me at this point.

I am living for the ice and in between aid stations I am grabbing pieces out of my sports bra to suck on. Keeping cool is my #1 priority. I run as much as possible and only walk through the aid stations. This lasts to about mile 5 when it is starting to get even hotter and a lot more hilly.

Stupid mistake on my part but I didn't drive the run course or even really look it over before the race. I was much more focused on the bike. Eeeekkkkk! I should have known what was coming. This is a much more challenging run course than I had ever thought.

I keep up my slow jog reminding myself that perpetual forward motion is the key. I take another GU and drink GU20 from my fuel belt. There's a bongo drummer at mile 3 and at mile 5 there were 2 girls serenading us with their violins. People from the community were awesome!!!! Setting up sprinklers, spraying us with hoses, cheering us from their lawn chairs.

I thank all the volunteers for coming out but especially for being there on such a hot day. I remember how horrible it was to not have people at the final aid station on my previous race and I was sooooo thankful that these kind souls were out there for us Back of the Packers. As I jogged I chatted with guys around me who told me that I was motivating them to jog and not walk. Most people were walking at this point. I felt like I was on a death march.

We turn off the road after mile 7 and climb Heartrate Hill which is a rocky dirt path up a steep hill. There was a bongo drummer halfway up which was amusing. Jody is looking good and is way ahead on the hill. I try to keep her in sight as I walk the hill. This was my longest mile on the course taking just under 18 minutes to complete.

Just after the 8 mile mark I see Wendy, Jody's husband and my husband. WOO HOO!!!! What an awesome surprise :) They tell me I'm looking good and I just laugh. There's a long downhill section and I find myself wondering what ever happened to our adopted Tri-er Jane. I hadn't seen her on the swim or the bike. Next thing I know I hear running behind me. Let me say that again, not walking, not death march jogging but fresh all out running and there's Jane. She looks like she's out for a stroll. She's got to be running about 10 minute miles because she flys past me.

Wow, I spend the next .5 mile pondering how lucky it is that she could run like that. I figure being a local probably helped her adapt to the heat a bit better but still, major props to her for kicking ass.

Mile 9 takes us through the college again and I'm still jogging a long albeit slowly. As I head back into town I reward myself at Mile 10 with Jelly Belly Orange Sports Beans. Yummy!!!! They give me a boost and I jog past a few guys I'd been with the last 8 miles. At mile 11 I am starting to crack. I walk the whole aid station and then some. I know I'm almost done and I really want to be able to run the last mile. I ice, sponge, drink and eat some pretzels which taste awesome. I walk purposefully towards mile 12. I see Cindy and Kathleen on the patio of the Ramada and they cheer me on. It was great to see them and I was motivated to get moving towards that finish.

At last mile 12. I am completely soaked from head to toe due to the copious amounts of ice, water, sponges I've been using the whole run. My shoes are squishy from all the water. I've never ever felt so hot in my entire life. I am literally baking. I focus on perpetual forward motion, on all the training and effort I've put towards this race. I think about the training done no matter where in the world I was. I think about my husband who should always be my #1 priority and all the sacrifices he made while I put work and training over him much of this year. I had to finish this race so I could close this chapter and start a new one where my marriage and exercising for fun were the focus.

Each time I wanted to walk, I stop myself and keep moving forward. I talk to myself. You've run lots of miles Leopard, you can run this last one. Keep going. I can see the transition area and start seeing people. I am running now and then I see the finish chute and now I'm really running all the way through the finish and into a big hug from my husband :)

13.1 miles
Official Time: 3:10.06
Average Pace: 14.31 minutes per mile

Final Time - 7:43.21

Post Race
I was hot, hot, hot but I felt fine. I got some water and then did an interview with a local TV station on losing weight and training for this, the heat and all that. It was fun to see myself later that night on TV but I really just wanted to relax after the finish. I talked to the girls about their races which they all rocked and then got a donut and watched Teresa finish.

Overall this was a hard race. The water was choppy, the bike was more hilly than I expected and what can you say about running 13.1 hilly miles in temps over 95 in the shade. I didn't make my goal of a 3 hour 1/2 mary or an overall time of 7:30 but I did finish happy and healthy. My legs were a bit sore for the few days following the race but otherwise I went out to eat after the race with a bunch of the Tri-ers and felt fine.

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First - I would not have made it to this race or any race without the incredible support of my husband. This has been a horribly taxing year for us with long hours, constant travel and oh yeah the 1/2 Ironman training. I focused my attention on other things and as a result our relationship suffered. Thank you for sticking with me and being my rock through it all. I love you more than I can say!

Second - Just six months ago I was lamenting trying to walk a 15 min mile. Now I am finishing a 1/2 Ironman feeling great. Coach David you have been integral to my success. Your guidance, flexibility and mantras have shaped me into the athlete I am today. Thank you for everything. I couldn't have done it without you!

Third - WWFC Tri-ers you rock! It was awesome, wonderful and fun to have you all share in this race with me. You motivate me in new ways every day and you have become close friends. Thank you for reminding me that it's not the destination but the journey that's important.

Finally - I have been doing triathlon now for 4 years. It's not just a hobby, it's a passion but lately it's turned into somewhat of an obsession for me. It takes a lot of energy and focus to train for a long distance race like this so I've decided to take the next few months to focus on why I started doing triathlons in the first place. The joy of exercise. I'm going to focus on healthy eating and exercising for fun and see where I'm at both mentally and physically later in the year. I hope that journey leads me to Ironman but right now I'm leaving all my options open to see what my heart tells me is next in the Making of a Speed Leopard.