It arrived - June 28th. The day circled in red on the calendar since my friends and I decided in January that this would be something fun. It was bigger than fun, it was AMAZING. The location (Christina Lake, BC), the volunteers, the "goody bag" (we were digging in there before the pre-race meeting even started), the spectators and good friends all served to provide a great first sprint triathlon experience.
The day before, I picked Rachelle up and we checked into our motel at Christina Lake. I didn't feel very nervous at all, surprisingly. We kept telling ourselves that we were well prepared and that it would inevitably be what it would be. Went to the package pick-up down at the lake at 5:30 and, due to the alphabetization of the racers' surnames, I found my race number to be 1. Irony. Sarah was 69...more laughter. How old are we?
The pre-race meeting was informative and reassured us that we weren't the only newbies in the crowd. I think we figured about 1/3 of the field raised their hands when the race director asked who was about to do their first triathlon. Went over the rules, routes and we were off to find supper. Finding supper was almost as hard as the race...Saturday night at 7:15 and it would be an hour and a half wait in the nearly empty pub. The adjoining family restaurant with maybe 6 tables was full with an hour wait to sit. The grocery store was empty of anything that was remotely dinner-like and neither of us was thinking that pizza would be a good choice. Same for the perogies from Cecil's Perogie hut across the road. We drove down to the outdoor burger & ice cream joint where Rachelle narrowly dodged a corn dog, but had a lovely inexpensive dinner and managed not to get indigestion. I told Rachelle about Mike's half-marathon dinner and the wrath it incurred on him on race morning. Apparently, hot chorizo sausage in jambalaya is NOT the way to go. Got us killing ourselves laughing and singing The Carpenter's "Jambalaya" all the way home at his expense, though.
Race morning was beautiful and sunny - cool in the shade, but already very warm in the sun. We got up at 7, showered and had bagels and peanut butter for breakfast. Sipped an electrolyte drink and tried to swallow the nerves that had surfaced. So close to being sick. Got our stuff loaded - after checking and double checking - and went off to the races, so to speak.
Found a nice spot to set up on the curb of the parking lot that the transition area was in, so we managed to put our gear out of the way beside the curb and not right under our bikes. Filled a bucket with water to wash our feet, laid out our towels and shoes, helmets and glasses, extra water and went off to body marking. Checked in, got our numbers on and went to the beach to watch the kids do their swim leg. Very cute & they were just as nervous as we were it seemed. After they got through transition, we were back up to get wetsuits, caps & goggles. Met the husbands and kids at the beach for a visit and then went for a dip in the lake. A balmy 21 degrees in the water. Did a little swim and then got out to join the masses (106 swimmers) for the beach entry swim leg. Wished each other luck with hugs and high-fives and we were off.
Off is right. Nothing we had done had prepared us for that open water swim. I got a snort of lake water in the first half a minute and was coughing and sputtering. The woman next to me was gasping for air and seeming like she wasn't getting any. Legs, arms, heads, splashing. Tried to get my face in and relax, but the body was having none of that. More of a panicky feeling set in very quickly and I flipped to my back to try and get a handle on things. This got me kicked in the top of the head rather than in the face, but it was a bit better. The crowd thinned out and I gave the freestyle another go. No go. My brain was not cooperating with the slow relaxed breathing I had visualized. Face out, breaststroke, gulp of the lake and more burping than is ladylike to describe. Back to the backstroke. That's how I finished the swim. All the while, I was more than upset with myself and actually contemplated bailing out. I then realized that I was on the home stretch and that there were several people (not 105, mind you) still behind me. Got out of the water to the cheers of the spectators and attempted to get the blasted wetsuit off. Hats off to those who opt for a full arm, full leg suit. I had more than enough trouble with a shorty. Got to transition, calmed down a bit and hit the bike.
The slight uphill on the way out saw my legs cramping and my heart racing, but I was feeling on top of the world at that point with what I figured would be the worst behind me. The 6% grade, 900m hill loomed large and I geared down a bit too fast. The cramps left and I put my head down and didn't look up until I saw a friend coming from behind ... on her SECOND lap of the 4 lap 20km course. She's a crackerjack swimmer, though, and I suspected she'd be waaaaay out ahead of me. Got to the top of the hill and started down. The beauty of the course was that there was a good portion of downhill back to the lake that allowed the body to recover a bit from the climb. Took the last 90 degree corner a bit too fast and heard cries of, "Oh no!" and many many gasps as I narrowly missed the hood of a van that was moving to the side of the road. That was the same corner that later saw a very experienced cyclist spill and be taken away in an ambulance unconscious. Got the adrenaline going, however! Second lap was good until I heard a funny rubbing noise and wondered why my legs weren't extending all the way in the downstroke. My seat had come loose somehow and fallen to the bottom. The rubbing was my "toolkit" on the back tire. Had to stop to pull it back out and realized that not only was it not a quick release, but it took 2 sizes of allen keys to tighten. The only thing NOT in my kit (I even had a crescent wrench should the back tire need removing). I just gave it a good wiggle back up and did my best to stand on the downhill and push back on the uphill. It held and I finished the bike in fairly good time, I thought.
T2 was quick, as I didn't have to change my shoes for the run. Just had to park the bike, take off the helmet and go. It was a 5 km out and back course along the lake with water stations at 1 km, 2.5 km and 4km. The one hill had the first (and third) water station and I hesitated to stop lest I not get going again, so I grabbed, sipped, doused and kept going. Saw Rachelle coming back around the 2km mark and felt so pleased that she was having a good race. Passed a couple of people on the way back, and I was surprised at the pleasure that gave me. Got a large burst of energy around 3km that only gave out the last hundred meters or so as I came around the corner to see the cheering crowd and my little family with their arms out for hugs. They settled for high-fives and I got across the finish line feeling fantastic at about 2 hours even. I lost track of the splits on my watch, so I'm not sure of my exact times....will have to check them when they're posted.
Post race hugs, laughter, cookies and then it was time to pack up to head home. Fell asleep in the car, had a shower and a couple of phone calls and then fell asleep in a lawn chair in the driveway watching the kids ride their bikes. There they left me and I'd probably still be there were it not for the ants that made their way up my leg into my shorts.
Do it again? Hell yes!
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