I know that I am quite late in posting the report for Rockcliff Triathlon on June 26th, and this write-up will be quite different having been written now compared to what it would have been if I had written it immediately after the race. While I am glad I have waited to collect my thoughts and the fully review how everything went, it would have been an interesting read if I had expressed what I was feeling as I crossed the finish line.
To begin, I was not sure I was even going to race until the Thursday prior to race day. I wasn’t physically or mental prepared to race, and although I am not using that as an excuse, that is the reality. At that point I was still trying to find the balance between work, my personal life, and training - I was adapting to a new reality, and everything wasn’t going smoothly on any front. I wasn’t eating properly, and even though I was still going to the gym daily, I wasn’t maximizing my time and effort spent there. Yet, I have worked very hard to not let others dictate my success or actions, so I registered and figured I would race for myself, regardless of my level of preparation.
The venue was at Jordanelle Reservoir outside of Park City: a lake swim, a country road bike course, and a combination of pavement and trails for the run course. As usual, I was one of the first athletes into the transition area to setup my bike and gear. I took a few long walks around the area to relax and to get my head straight and took some beautiful pictures of the area. I was nervous about the swim; I tried to not look at how far apart those buoys were. After the Daybreak triathlon, I had bit the bullet and bought my own wetsuit, and this was going to be my first time wearing it. The officials had to delay the start of the race due to the amount of debris and wood in the way of the swim course, so there was a lot of time spent waiting while wearing my wetsuit. Once we did get in the water, about 5 seconds after the horn blew to start the race, I took an elbow in the face which knocked off my nose clip - not a great way to start the race. Again, I was not prepared! I hadn’t been in the water even once since the Daybreak race and it showed. I just don’t have the form or endurance to swim for distance. I struggled and struggled, trying only to get to the next buoy. Most of my swim was spent doing a weak breast stroke and back stroke. I was quickly passed by the field and it was myself and one other guy pulling up the rear. Honestly, at times I was scared; I didn’t know why the hell I felt the need to even do a triathlon, wondering why I needed to put myself into this situation. After a while I had every rescue boat around me and following me to find out if I ok, and at times I wasn’t. A few times I started to go down, and I was not sure which way was up. I am not exaggerating!! I was scared, but I am also stubborn and I wasn’t going to quit - I have quit all my life and I am not that person any more. About 100 yards from the swim exit I got a severe cramp in my left calf, but I persevered.
Once I got to the shore line, the EMT was there to monitor my exit from the water. He kept asking if I was ok, if I wanted to rest or if I needed help. At that point I was not a very nice person, but I did appreciate his effort and concern. I did ask him to help me off with my wetsuit as I was feeling very confined and wasn’t able to breathe. I sat on a rock for a couple minutes and then I got up and headed to T1. Swim time was 34:57.
T1 was ok, however I did enter the wrong side, but it didn’t hurt my timing splits. I just wanted to get out of the wetsuit and to get on the bike. The bike is a chance for me to relax; it is something I am comfortable with. T1 time was 3:02, which is good, all things considered.
I was the last one out of the water and thus the last one onto the bike course. I had driven the bike course the week before, so I knew what to expect. I tried to just keep my head down and to push it as best I could. It felt good on the bike. The race organizers did need to have the bike course marked better. One girl in front of me took a wrong turn, and I have no idea where she ended up. I passed a number of riders on the course and I was able to make up some time. Bike time was 52:19, not the fastest, but I was in the top third of all riders.
Coming out of T2, one of the volunteers congratulated me for making up some time after the swim, which was good to hear. T2 time was 2:25.
As for the run, or what will be considered from this point forward “the walk”, it was hard. The main challenge on the run was my left calf strain from the swim. I tried to run, but it just wasn’t happening because it hurt bad. I shuffle ran for as much as I could, but I just couldn’t develop any kind of a stride. Leslie Howlett was running the Olympic distance and was leaving T2 as I was coming in. All I wanted to do was to finish the run before she lapped me. I knew it was going to be close, as she is an incredible athlete, and sure enough she did catch me about 500 yards from the finish. I appreciated her encouragement to finish strong and I pushed it as hard as I could and I did finished with a decent pace across the line. Run time 34:48, with a total race time of 2:07:30, not pretty even by my standards, but I finished and I take a lot of pride in that fact.
Finishing the race I was mad, and I was upset for quite awhile after that weekend. As I have reflected on the weekend, I feel it was a successful race, not for my finish time or how it felt, but rather for what it taught me. I am sure this will not be the last time I will learn these lessons, but I do feel I am a better triathlete for having experienced that race. That being said, I do owe an apology to Jamison King, for giving him a hard time for one of his blog entries where he expressed his frustration from coming in second or third at a race earlier this year. I now better understand and can appreciate the disappointment for not performing up to expectations, regardless if you are a professional or an entry level age grouper, as myself. I have expectations to improve and to perform better each race, but circumstances don’t always allow for that success. The best thing that can be said is that I continue to learn and grow in this and all aspects of my life.
