Wildflower race report

Redemption. That's the theme of this year's Wildflower Olympic race. Last year, Wildflower was my very first triathlon... ever. My very first open-water swim... ever. I'd just learned how to swim AND run a couple months prior. I got talked into it a couple days before the event by "friends" who said I'd be fine. If you've done the Wildflower course you'll know it's hilly, hot, dusty, and not terribly good for a first-time experience unless you've trained for it. But it's PERFECT if you want to set yourself up for a big fat PR the following year.

Last year's time: 4: 51:17, and 109 of 117 in my AG. Ouch. You'd have thought I did the long course. But hey, at least I finished and I wasn't last, so I met my goals.

This year I decided I'd be happy with anything under 3:30, but I secretly hoped I'd hit 3:20. That would knock 1:30:00 off last years time... a very nice large round number. I crossed the finish in 3:17:25, 39 of 107 in AG. A respectable middle-of-the-pack showing in a pack of some very strong women.

I drove down to Lake San Antonio with a friend the day before, and since most of the roads were closed for the long-course race, we didn't get to the campground until 5:30 pm. We set up our tents and unpacked, dinner was served (a HUGE catered dinner for the SF Tri Club) and then it was dark... so my plans for a quick swim or run went right out the window. I was in a rather hermit-like mood, so I burrowed into my tent pretty early and crashed out... despite the 50-some athletes in ST Tri all having a party until midnight. Thank you earplugs, blow-up mattress, foam mattress top, sheets and a very warm sleeping bag (yes, I camp in comfort.)

The next morning we were greeted with sunshine, mild temps and a blue windless sky. It seriously could not have been a more perfect day to race. After coffee and breakfast (an almond-butter, jam and banana sandwich on a raisin muffin, if you must know), I packed up my tent and headed down to transition. Since the 40 - 44 wave didn't start until 10:40 am (yes, you read that right... it's insanely late) I warmed up, took a pic with a friend up from L.A...

... wandered around the expo, and then scoped out the swim start (look how calm the water is!):

Swim: 30:57

The water was nice, @ 65 degrees... chilly but definitely not as cold as I'd expected. The big question for me was where to start in the pack. I decided to start in the middle, but on the outside left (as everyone would be aiming towards the right after we get through the opening and I didn't want to be in the crush.) At first, this worked fine; the ladies in my AG were all pretty cordial and I didn't get beat up as I had feared.

However, my starting position kept me on the outside left, and I ended up veering a bit too wide. I was watching another woman sight rather frequently so I assumed (incorrectly) that she'd keep me on course. Lesson learned. I also had a tough time sighting on the way back, and suspect that I was too wide on the return trip as well. I think I could have cut a minute (at least) off my time by swimming in a straight line.

(Last year's swim: 56:08... pretty choppy water, had to back-stroke the entire way, inhaled a lot of water, almost DNFd. Ah, memories of my first OWS...)

T1: 3:54. Unlike last year (8:03) I didn't feel like I needed to pass out. Not entirely sure how I could have cut more time out of this... I use Tri-Slide which is AMAZING at ensuring the wetsuit peels off like a banana, threw on socks (ok, maybe I could go sockless next time), shoes, helmet, glasses, and I was off.

Bike: 1:39:21 (versus last year's 2:12:50)

The only glitch was at the very start: my race number blew off my helmet and stuck to my front wheel, where I watched it go round and round and round. When I climbed to the top of Lynch Hill I stopped to remove it, but it blew off (I thought). Turned out it just got stuck in my brake pads, so I stopped again, pulled it off, and was on my way.

Was just sent this picture of me cresting Lynch Hill and high-fiving one of my friends. Note the sticker on my front wheel:

Loved the bike this year. It's a hilly course and I'm still not Miss Speedy on the uphills, but I've gained a lot of confidence on the downhills. A few times I glanced down at my Garmin to see 36 MPH... nice. There were a few relatively flat stretches where I just dropped into aero and hammered at 20+ MPH. Much to my delight, I think I've finally found a saddle that doesn't completely kill my sitbones or girl parts, and I was pretty comfortable the entire ride.

I saw very few women in my AG, which was odd. But passed quite a few people in previous waves, which was a good sign. I got passed by a few women with 50's on their calves (I cheered them on, how awesome is that) and I passed a 75 year old woman grinding up a hill and cheered her on as well.

Nutrition felt spot-on. I mixed up my usual 250 cal bottle (150 cals of EFS plus a scoop of Hammer flavorless Sustained Energy), ate half of a Clif bar (I like chewing on something while I'm riding), and then had a Gu at mile 22 of the bike to prepare for the run. All that said, I could have used more fluids. It was starting to get warm, and I'd made the mistake of not drinking enough liquids the day before. I felt like I started the run a bit dehydrated.

T2: 2:32 (versus last year's 4:44) I was fortunate to have a spot very close to the bike entrance/exit... so I quickly racked my bike, removed helmet, swapped shoes, and I was off. My mistake was deciding to run in my bike socks... OUCH. Big mistake. Next time I'll bike in my run socks.

Run: 1:00:41 (versus last year's 1:29:32, where I walked almost the entire run.)

This was the first time I ran off the bike feeling totally fresh. My feet (for once) weren't totally numb after my ride... I had adjusted my cleat position a few days prior and crossed my fingers that it would not harm my race. That was a great move. I ran easily out of transition, up a short flight of stairs and onto the course.

That fresh feeling lasted until 2.5 miles in... this is a HILLY run course. And by this time it was definitely heating up. Although I have to laugh... it was maybe high 70s. If I was hot on this course, I'm going to boil at Honu! But I digress... Around mile 3 I hit a hill that was a bit too long and steep, and had to walk for a bit. Grrr. Fortunately that was the only hill I walked. I remembered a hint I'd read about "snapping" feet off the ground, and when I tried that, I got a bit faster and the hills got easier. Hmm, interesting. Will need to focus a bit more on running form.

So I still didn't see anyone in my AG, and was still passing people from earlier waves. My Garmin had my average lap paces at well over 10 min/mi which was depressing, but I tried to make up time on the downhills going @ 8:30s. A cheer squad with SF Tri was at the top of the last steep hill, and one guy dressed as a cow (?? No idea why a cow) ran with all the SF Tri athletes to get them up the hill. I loved it... getting cheered on like that is a total recharger. Here I am laughing with the cow:

Once you make it up this last hill, all you have left is a very long, steep downhill... I ran down as fast as I could without killing my knees. I was surprised to finish with a 9:47 pace... all of our Garmins had the race distance at 5.93 mi, so I'm betting I would have been closer to 10:00. Overall the run was the area I struggled with the most; I was not feeling strong on the hills and I kept thinking, "if my legs are this tired on a 10k, how is a half marathon going to feel?" So I'm looking forward to some tough run training in May. That, plus making sure I go into a race well hydrated.

So... my first triathlon of the season now on the books. I feel relieved, happy to have finished a bit better than expected, and I've also regained my mojo. I'm really looking forward to the last month of HIM training.