The race was a week ago and now it is time to reflect a bit on how the race was overall.
Race morning. Up at 4:45am to get some breakfast, a bowl of cereal, and pack up the car. Niles MI is an hour ahead of us and the race started at 8:30am, so we hit the early morning highway for the hour drive. It was a nice drive up with the sun just starting to come up in the east and turning the sky various shades of purple, pink, and orange. Once we arrived at the race site there was already a nice long line at the check in to receive your race number and swim cap. It went by quickly and then it was off to transition to set up my equipment. I did a quick set up and headed to the restroom, which ended up being another line. This wait seemed forever. I guess it always does when you have to go. Once I finally got to the port-o-pot, there was only about five minutes til the race started! I considered for a moment swimming without my wetsuit, but decided to put it on. It was then a quick walk down to the water for the race meeting, and since I was in the first wave, we were instructed to line up at the water to get ready for the start.
My first glance out at the swim course made my heart sink a bit because those bouys seemed so far away, but I just took a deep breath and made myself relax. "This is where all the training pays off" I said to myself. The air horn goes off and out we go into the water. The water is not very deep for about 100m so most people just keep running while some dive down and start swimming. I just kept running until the water got about stomach deep and started swimming. There are a bunch of swimmers around me and I feel like I am pushing way to hard so I try to get a little outside of the bunch and pull back and catch my breath. "Long and strong", "Focus on form and breath every four strokes" I repeat to myself. Before I know it, I am rounding the first bouy and cruising toward the second. This second leg was really smooth and I am feeling good in my stroke. Once I hit the second bouy, it starts to get really crowded. The second wave of athletes is starting to catch up and pass, and the middle of my wave is starting to slow down, so there is a big group heading into the last third of the swim course. I try to pass one guy who is swimming really hard, and didn't quite make it far enough around his reach and take a nice punch right into my goggles. It stuns me for a second but I just keep pushing on and pick up the pace a bit. I feel like I have enough wind, so I push the pace hard toward the finish. I start to notice some athletes standing up around me in the water so I stand up and run the final 100m and start to take off my wetsuit. I am surprised by how fast the swim felt but I am a little out of breath from running hard out of the water, so I take my time, running slowly uphill to my bike. I am heading the wrong way into the transition, as a race volunteer catches me at the last moment. "Wrong way!" he yells. I guess I am a little dazed. I thank him and head in the correct side of the transition area and get ready for the next leg.
I head out fast on my bike, really happy to be out of the water, and before I know it I am getting out of breath. I tell myself "race within yourself" and then focus on finding a pace that I know that I can hold for another 23 miles. The course is nice and smooth but then starts to get a little hilly. There are some small rises and then a few quick descents that get my speed up to over 30mph. "Those hills are going to be tough coming back the other way" I think to myself. I have to go to the bathroom again so I find a nice spot and pull over quickly to pee. I get passed by 3 riders and one of them yells out "we got a pee'er" as he goes by. I just smile and get back on my bike. We then have a couple of long straight sections where I just put my head down and focused on my breathing and cadence. This is where I start to get passed by quite a few of the older, more experienced, second and third wave athletes on their sleek triathlon bikes. They go speeding past me like I am standing still. I don't feel too bad though as most of them are sporting Iron man tattoos and have been doing these races for years. I just keep the pedals moving fast and start to heat up and sweat pretty good. I am taking big drinks and going through my water pretty quick. Before I know it, I am down to a few drops left in my bottle and realize that I still have about 12 miles to go. "Should have brought another water bottle" I think regretfully. I just keep pushing on. No time to stop and think about it. I do scope a few houses along the way to see if I can spot a garden hose to fill up my water, but ultimately decide to push on. The big fun downhills on the way out are now standing tall in front of me as I switch down to an easy gear and start climbing. There is one hill that I was sure that I was going to have to walk my bike to the top, but somehow managed to keep my pedals moving over the top. With the hills defeated and just flat road ahead, I kick it into high gear and finish the bike stage feeling pretty good but thirsty.
I search around transition looking for water to fill up my bottle before I head out on the run. It takes a minute but I finally find one and hit the road running. I chug water on the first part of the run until my stomach is full and is sloshing around. It temperature is starting to rise so I know that I will need the hydration to hold me through the run. It is hard to catch my breath at first, but just try to stay relaxed and keep my feet moving fast. The first mile marker seems to take forever to show up, but then they start to come faster and faster. Just before mile 3, I need to pull back a bit and catch my breath. The phrase "race within yourself" is being repeated over and over in my mind. I try to get a smile on my face and keep pushing. Around this time in the race, I start to pass up other athletes, and each one that I pass seems to give me a bit more energy. I tell myself that I am just going to keep the feet moving and really push it the last half mile. I hit the last water station about a mile from the finish and have to walk for the first time on the run. I give myself one minute of walking and then pick it back up. I am now breathing really hard and my heart is pounding. "Just a little more", "Step-step-breath", "Almost home", I try to keep my mind off of how bad I want to stop, and before I know it, I see the finish line. All of a sudden, my legs have new life. "Finish with a smile" I remind myself as I push through the finishing arch triumphantly. It may have been a bit forced, but there was a smile on my face none the less.
