Johan's Trifest

On Saturday, June 19, I competed in a local olympic distance triathlon in Hopkins, MI. I competed in this triathlon last year as well. Coming of the race in Iowa, I didn't rest for Johan's and had a solid training week the week before. Therefore, the morning of the race, I had to put aside the fact that I was feeling more tired than usual for races. It was a great triathlon to be at as family and friends were able to come and cheer. Also, it was fun to race with many of the great triathletes from the area. Anyway, I decided to wear my Xterra vector pro x2 sleeveless wetsuit again. I had the fastest swim split, which set me up for a solid bike. I improved my bike split by several minutes from last year, even on a hilly and windy course. The bike is usually my weakest link, but not this time! I was able to hold a strong steady pace to continue in the lead. Since the course was windy, I was glad that I had my Lazer aero helmet along with my Rolf Prima race wheels. These are two components that I have not raced with before, but know in addition to my training that they have been helping in my improved bike performances. Coming into the run, I was feeling controlled, but didn't have a ton of "pop." I stayed controlled and had a solid run despite feeling fatigued from a good training week. I ended up winning the race, which was very exciting! There are some tough local competitors in the West Michigan area! I had fun during the race and enjoyed being able to race while having my family there...my 1 and 3 year old nephews were there to cheer my on. How fun! Now I am looking forward to preparing for my next race-Lifetime Fitness in Minneapolis.

Hyvee Triathlon

After my event in Memphis, I was ready to race again in Des Moines, Iowa on June 13. I had planned my nutrition wisely and practiced the weeks before with electrolyte intake as it was predicted to be hot in Iowa. The morning of the race, a big storm system was racing in and 20 minutes before the race start, the race was changed to a sprint distance tri in order to allow everyone to get in and out of the water quickly. A sprint distance tri is definately not to my advantage, especially with being a swimmer. I like to have a longer swim of course! :) Anyway, I gave it what I had with the sudden change of plans. With a full belly from preparing for a longer race, I took off in the swim. I had a steady swim, being second out of the water. I took off on the bike and had a steady ride and run. I ended up placing 6th overall in the elite amateur divison. I had a strong race considering the quick change in plan! It was so neat to be at the Hyvee triathlon eventhough the race wasn't what I had expected to be. The venue was great with the blue carpets laid out for the ITU race that took place in the afternoon. It was great to watch and watching inspired me to keep on training hard in hopes to race professionally someday! It was so neat to see the different pros racing in person and to see how hard they push during their race. Awesome!

Memphis May Triathlon

May 23, 2010 was my first tri of the season. I was very excited to begin racing after a long winter of the most intense training I have ever done! My husband and I left fair weathered Michigan a few days before the race to find Memphis to be steamin hot! We were in awe of the nice weather. Anyway, not having much time to adjust to the heat (90s compared to 60s in MI), we prepared the best we could. The race was a time trial start where competitors left 3 seconds apart. During the race, I wore my XTERRA Vector Pro X2 Sleeveless wetsuit, which worked great for me as I had my best swim ever, putting me in the top 3 going into the bike. It was probably even a little warm for a wetsuit looking back on the race. The bike portion was flat and quick. I felt great on the bike and was able to push hard. I ended up have my fastest bike split ever as well. This race was the first opportunity I had to compete on my new race wheels from Rolf Prima. As I began the run, the heat was rising in Memphis from an already hot temperature to begin with. I took off hard, but the heat was tough to compete with. I was pushing really hard during the run and believed I had hydrated well on the bike. However, not realizing how my physical condition was changing in the race, with 400 yards to go, I ended up collapsing and having a heat stroke and had to be carried away to the medical tent. This was a very scarey learning experience for me. I have had to learn to adjust my electrolyte intake for the extreme heat conditions that I may run into. While I unfortunatly didn't get a chance to finish the race, based off of my time after the swim and bike to run transition, I was in first. Apparantley though, this wasn't my day to shine! So chalk it up to a lesson learned in Memphis. I am getting ready for my next big races!