First Day?

Its those 40 yr old women again!


Ok, I have been racing for like (OMG< 20 yrs now. is it possible?) But yesterday at Big foot Tri, I had so many weird things happened at times it felt like my first day ever! I was a spaz. Was the moon full, just for me yesterday Ha! Seemed like it

I had been looking forward to racing in Lake Geneva again this year, this race is fun with another off road run. (thats 3 for me this year, I've been loving them, but still no xterra in my future) We woke up to cooler temps, but a vicious and sick wind! Nice. I was happy for this for the bike.. bring it on, but the swim........no thanks. The water had white caps, and big waves. It was a toilet bowl. In the past 2years I seem to get from vertigo, and get it fairly easily. Even some days at Delnor when the sun comes in through the windows and shines on the water moving around, I'll get so dizzy I just have to get out. Once after getting extremely sick in the back of Mark D's private plane, I was dizzy for 2 weeks. Even taking a corner too fast in the car would send my head spinning. So yesterday's swim was horrible. I got pretty dizzy and wanted out so bad. Several times, I was looking for the side of the road and wanted to crawl out and lay still, just to make the world stop. But I really wanted to race yesterday. So I kept going. The water was so shallow, you could stand up which helped, but made for a pathetically slow swim. A had a swim time like in the beginning of my triathlon career. yikes.

I walked out of the water to transition, stood there took a deep breath, tried to uncross my eyes, and got on my bike, and took off. I felt great right away and wanted to just hammer. I usually don't start the bike, so far back and wanted to catch as many people as I could. So I am hammering away, feeling very strong. After a turn, the wind must have been behind us and I shift down and my chain drops....and gets stuck. Damn. So I have to stop, get off my bike, fix it and get rolling again. I was mad, because the bike was shifting perfectly on the pre-race brick and riding to the race from the hotel. Hmm. wonder what happened there. I start to hammer away again to catch as many more people as I could. Much of the ride was into a nice head wind, making it tough, but I just road hard knowing this would help me. Then the turn for home and the wind is behind us. Wow that was fun and I am really riding hard, shift down again....and the SAME thing happens with the chain. I am thinking no WAY, why!!!! I just caught all those girls! So I get off, fix it again and ride AS HARD AS I COULD to transition, because I am mad now. I make a fast T2, and take off run. Thankfully I felt great from the start on the run, and try to run down whoever I can. I catch a couple girls who and am having so much fun running on the hilly trails, and so happy my running is feeling good. Then... at the top on a flat grassy section, I step in a grassy hole I couldn't see, twist my foot and take a face plant. I am now laughing ....because I just want to finish this race!!!! I must have looked like a spaz! Thanks to the 2 guys who stopped and help me up whoever they are.! I walk it off a little, start to run, ankle feel ok, and I gradually get it going to reasonable pace again. Inside I am mad, because so many weird hurdles were being thrown at me, but it is driving me to just do the best a I can and not quit. With about 1/2 mile left of the run, this woman in my age group passed me. As she gets in front of me I am mad. I have worked to hard to overcome a these little set backs to have her beat me. I see that she isn't pulling away, so I start to sprint (at least what sprint is for me! ), and I am gaining on her, and I end up beating her at the line, by 1 sec.

In the end after all the mishaps, I ended up 2nd in my age group, with a horrible swim time probably 7 min. slower than it should be normally. I don't like to write big detailed race reports, but I did this time to show that when things go wrong in a race.....if you just keep it together in the head, stay focused and determined, you will be fine. The good thing is that physically (vertigo aside), I felt great. The training is working!!! Thank you Simon!

Remember to stay tenacious. Never give up.