The last of 5 races in 6 weeks. Well, one more in two weeks. I'm actually looking forward to some weekends where I can get back on the open road for some good runs and rides.
I had low expectations for the race, as I was feeling super tired earlier in the week. I was trying to get in some good workouts in order to recover from Rock n Roll Man, but I was only feeling worse. After consulting with Jamie, we decided to just kick the feet up and chill for a couple of days. Good idea!!!
All the Open field studs were at this race, so I really wanted to have a good race. The points race for 2nd and 3rd will be pretty tight this year, so I knew this race was important. I really want to get 2nd in the points...forget 1st...Dan's got that wrapped up.
Game plan: Swim with the stornger swimmers, hammer the bike like mad, see if I have anything for the run.
Swim: I was able to stick with the lead group of swimmers. A few times I tried to move up to 3rd or 4th, but it was better to sit on Peter's feet as we were all bunched up for most of the swim. Exited out of the water with the lead group. Mark Woody put a little time into us the last 300 meters, but not too much.
T1: As everyone was taking off thier swim skins, I went from 5th to 2nd by just grabbing my bike and helmet and heading out of transition. I put sunscreen on my back before the race, but obviously not enough...ouch. T1 went great...left foot on shoe, right leg over bike, pedal, strap on shoes.
Bike: I felt very good on the bike. I actually felt much better than I hve in the past few races. I knew I needed to put as much time into everyone as possible, soI just hammered the bike for most of the ride. I went a little easier the last 2 miles just to get the legs ready for the run. Overall the ride was good.
T2: Another good transition. Running dismount, take off helmet, put on shoes, grab visor/number belt/shirt. I'm off...
Run: I knew I wasn't going to set any records on the run given I raced a Half last weekend, so I just figured I'd try and hold 6:15 miles for the entire run. First three miles were good: 6:10, 6:10,6:10...then I started to fall apart. The heat was oppressive and I couldn't go any faster than what felt like snail pace. I knew I had a few minutes on Peter at the turn, but I didn't want to totally blow up and get caught. Also at the turn, Dan had already made up all the ground he needed to be in virtual first place. At this point I would be very happy with second.
For the last 2 miles it felt like everyone that I was passing on the way out were flying, but I was jogging. I really struggled. Then, a little past mile 5 I started to feel good again (probably from the shade). I tried to pick up the pace, but had difficulty due to a side stitch that all of a sudden came on. I drank too much water at once and now I was suffering. Oh well, I made it to the finish.
I did get 2nd overall : ) I was happy with my results, although a faster run would have been nice. Now it's time to plan on the fall racing season. I have one more sprint race in 2 weeks, but it's like a c- race as far as priority...just for points. The 2 BIG fall races will be the SC Half and Beach2Battleship, so I'd better get ready to get in some miles on the bike and run.
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