Ouchers

[update: February 01, 2008]

Last Sunday I raced the 3m half marathon here in Austin, TX….I was feeling really good about myself leading up to the race and was so excited the night before I could hardly sleep. The lineup looked to be very tough with several Kenyans and other speedy women showing up. I did my warm up run Saturday and was having a hard time keeping an easy pace…I was feeling so fast. This feeling carried through to the moment the gun went off, all the way through the first mile (5:19) and mile 2 until somewhere between 2 and 3 I felt like I had suddenly picked up 1000 lbs and a sickly feeling began to spread through my stomach. I looked down and my legs had a purple hue and I was horrified by the new weirdo running stlye I had attained. I had a flat out lactic acid attack brought on by me, myself and I….trying foolishly to stay up with the Kenyan chics and all the other fast dudes!

Paul came up around mile 4 and I really wanted to drop out, the pain was so intense and my legs were loglike. I decided I was just going to hook onto him and stare at his armpits until I could no longer stay…and then drop out :) He looked back and slowed down a few times and I actually managed to start feeling better by mile 6 with the new improved pace. Phew….the rest of the race was relatively still only mildly enjoyable as the lactic managed to work itself out and around a little bit. I was waaay off pace but at this point I just wanted to finish. We ran into the line together after getting passed by quite a few friends while still getting quite a few cheers…thank you people! Paul and I crossed in a 1:17…thanks to him for I would have become a cup collector.

I learned a new lesson… the first few miles of a race can ruin the entire thing and turn it into a flesh color changing sufferfest…don’t let it happen to you! Stick with your race plan (or maybe even get one).

Despite this my training is going well for trials and I have some high mileage weeks coming up this month…should be a fun challenge.

South Africa 70.3

[update: January 22, 2008]

I have always wanted to visit South Africa as my grandparents on my father’s side are from there. Growing up I inherited many stories of the places they lived. Entering the 70.3 seemed like a perfect way to get there and an added bonus was that the race was put on by the Triangle folks which I have grown very fond of because of their prudent race organization.

I arrived into Capetown the Wednesday night before the race after a long 24 hours of travel. I met up with my dad in DC and from there we flew to Amsterdam, then turning south for the long haul to Capetown. Our plan was to spend the day in Capetown and travel to the race site in East London on Thursday night by plane. I woke up Thursday morning and my legs were wrecked after such a long flight. After a few stalls with the manual rental car and a few frights from driving on the wrong side of the road! we made our way to Table Mountain for a hike. I had pretty much done everything wrong up this point as far as tapering was concerned (I ran a nutty hilly 30k the Sunday before I left) I figured adding a 4.5 hour hike could only add to the adventure! My dad and I had a beautiful hike through canopied trees, traversing mesas while following waterfalls and streams. If you ever get a chance to visit Capetown, this hike is a must! I recommend starting the hike from Kirstenbosch Gardens, heading up the mountain and ending at the cable car for a ride down. My dad and I were very happy to see the restaurant next to the cable car as we both had not planned well for this hike carrying very little food and water. After a few cokes and chicken fillets we were ready to take the car down, grab a nap in the grass and head to the airport for our flight for East London.

I experienced the supreme organization and hospitality of the Triangle staff during Ironman Austria last summer. These guys really know how to put on a race while making their athletes feel well taken care of. We were greeted by Kelly and Blaine who took us to our hotel is East London. This town is a quiet beach town with an extremely laid back vibe, meaning lunch can take up to an hour plus to arrive. There is only one internet “cafe” in this town, which actually means to get a connection you have to make your way to the four computers nestled in between wall upon wall of 80s videos and uh… other types of videos. In the few days before the race I had the chance for a few ocean swims which was both rough and cold, and to view the bike course which looked like a blast….90k out on a tough rolling 4 lane highway which was to be completely closed off on race day in both directions. Race day was sure to be both hot and humid as the midsummer combined with oceanside could potentially be stifling.

Race morning the sky was almost clear and I felt calm and relaxed. I was really there to enjoy the race as much as possible, knowing my fitness was off due to lack of usual swimming and biking. I chose to think I would be just a little bit extra rested :) The pro men took off first, exactly 20 minutes before we did and I could not believe how fast they were coming back. Yay for me! but bad news for the stronger swimmers, the swim was short. The gun went off for our ladies wave and I felt good swimming, not fast but strong and I could tell I did not have the familiar fatigue in my legs when in full on racing season. I exited the water and my dad yelled out “4 minutes!” which I didn’t worry too much about as I knew Lucy was a very fast swimmer. Once out onto the bike course I was having a blast…I was passing men from the first wave and many of them offered shouts of encouragement. (thank you!). It was incredible to have such a huge highway completely closed off on both sides. We were going up and up and up all the way out so I was looking forward to relief at the turn around. The media trucks were yelling to me that the gap had now closed to 2 minutes to the lead…I thought about picking it up on the way home so that I could enter the run with a cushion. The sun was hot on my back and at the turn around we headed smack! into a huge headwind….but it actually felt good as it cooled things off a bit. I could see the lead ladies vehicle up the road now and was determined to catch it, and her. Pretty soon I was upon the back wheel of Lucy who seemed to be struggling with the headwind. We said a hello and I went on ahead…trying to push it all the way in as I knew the run was going to be tough…and it was!

Off the bike the crowds and announcer Mike were amazing, i focused on hydrating the entire first loop as the sun was up and the air was thick and steamy. There was a herculean 1.5k hill that we had to climb up and run down on each of the three loops and let me tell you…it was all I could do not to walk sometimes going up that thing. It was a beast. The aid stations were plentiful, however and I was happy to receive bags of water and sponges at every stop, often handed off by the local children. On my last lap I could see that I had a significant lead and could relax a little, even to hit the port o let. This was a luxury I do not often get in a half ironman. I made it into the finish and was greeted with confetti at the line and a big hug from Paul the RD and Madame Mayor of East London…my dad was there as well looking excited. DJ Mike was booming and always makes you feel very special, he is a stellar announcer. I was thrilled to see Heidi coming in for second place…she and I had met in Richmond late last year and this was a breakthrough for her as she has been strapped with sickness and injury. Lucy came third looking very happy but tired, as we all were. That was one tough course.

Onto an ocean soak and a massage, chicken and ice cream after a while. We had a fabulous awards presentation with native dancing and then more dancing…which was well uh entertaining amongst the athletes. I will write more about the rest of my trip, the “scenic” part and I have more pictures to share…check my gallery and sign up for the race next year! The flight wasn’t too terrible and it was well worth it.

Thanks for reading, Desiree

Desiree Wins Ironman 70.3 South Africa!

[update: January 13, 2008]

Photo Credit: Ironman South Africa

Desiree overcame a slow swim start with the fastest bike and run splits of the day. She ended up winning by 12 minutes over her nearest competitor. Full story here.

Desiree will post a full race report when she gets back to the States later this week.