I had the opportunity to do my first race at altitude up in Calgary, Alberta this past weekend. It was great to race and hang out with local Timex teammates Lisa Mensink and Kyle Marcotte. Emily Herndon and James Cotter also made the trip into Calgary to represent Team Timex. The race started at 3,500 feet and went a bit over 4,000. Now this is relatively tame compared to Boulder, Co. However, it was an interesting experience for this flat lander.
Race Morning:
The weather was just fantastic and the water was relatively flat. I got lucky with the age group wave start and I was lined up in the 2nd wave, 10 minutes behind the pros. My swim had two events worth mentioning. I got dropped within the first 10 meters and I had clear water the remainder of the swim. Everything else was pretty routine. My T1 was a little sloppy, but once I managed to get into my Bontrager biking shoes I was ready to get rolling. Paul (www.lifesportcoaching.com/coaches.php)
my coach, had given the greenlight for the bike effort. The only problem was that my body wasn't ready to GO. My perceived effort was on the high side right from the start, but I was clearly having some issues. My wattage output was 20watts lower then any of my other races this year. I managed to fuel well during the bike and I did not experience any cramping issues the entire ride, bonus. On the flip side, I did have some lower back issues again. I was definetely looking forward to the run. The bike turned out to be a bit long at 58.85 miles. I rolled in with a 2:16:07 effort.
Once I got onto the run course I was happy that I got up to speed pretty quickly. I've been using my
on a frequent basis and it definetely helped me to get through the anxiety of feeling out of breathe at the beginning of the run. I focused on my form and I tried to shorten my stride to length while maintening a high cadence. At about 2-3k into the run, I started to feel comfortable and settled in. By the 6k mark I decided to start using the cola at the aid stations for the simple sugars and caffeine. The cola definetely helped to keep my energy levels up. As I approached the 8k mark, I realized I had run into the middle of the pro women's race. It was really cool to witness the race unfold. Miranda Carefrae had managed to put in a huge gap by this point, but the rest of the race was wide open. Linsey Corbin, Lisa Mensink, Catriona Morrison, and Magali Tisseyre were all battling in the top 5. These girls are tough and it was truly amazing to watch them battle each other on the hilly run.
I had a couple of minor GI distress moments in the later stages of the run and some rough patches between 14-16km. However, overall the run was a lot of fun. I managed to cross the finish line with a 1:20:13 run and 4:11:01 final time. I had a great time traveling up to Calgary and I want to put out a special Thank you to Lisa and Richard for their hospitality.
Thanks for reading!
Results: http://ironman.com/assets/files/results/calgary70.3/2009.htm
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