Oversized & Undertrained

     On Wednesday June 10th, I left Tulsa headed across country to Colorado! It didn't take long to cross the state line from Oklahoma to Kansas. It took forever to cross Kansas into Colorado!  That first night I shared a hotel room with Ms. Brenda Alberts in Broomfield, CO. The next morning we did a 6 mile ride around the shopping center afterwards I did some speed work 8 X 200's in the hotel parking lot. From there I left to meet Ms. Brook Kreder in Morrison.

     First thing she wants to do is meet at a lake and get in the water in the wetsuits. We meet, I zip up my suit and she promptly tells me it is too big. As I watch her struggle into her suit with the help of Ms. Christy Shaw, I have an inkling that she is right. We get in the water and I realize how right she is. I struggle in the water and now I'm getting nervous about the event. Swimming in a lake where there is no nice black line on the bottom, the water is clear as mud. It is disorienting. Eek! Help! WTH was I thinking!

     Brook tells me I will be okay. I won't drown during the event. Ok, ok it's going to be great. Haha. Get back to her house, unload, eat a snack and go to town for groceries and a pedicure/foot massage. Over dinner we talk about, training, transitions, and all things triathlons. I try on her husbands suit and it is too big too which is confirmed when I tried it in the water the next morning. Water poured in through the neck and settled in the legs above my knee and stayed there. Not good! Went for a run around the neighborhood at 6400 feet elevation. Thankfully the hills were painful but the altitude did not seem to affect me.

     On Friday we go to packet pick-up, bike check-in, pre-race meeting and the expo. There is talk that the swim maybe canceled because of bacteria in the reservoir. Oh how terrible, no swim, please, Lord let the bacteria live!  Back at the house we pack our Go bags, lay it all out on a transition towel and practice. We pack the nutrition bag for our bike. We clean and fill water bottles for the bikes and put them in the refrigerator for race day. We lay out our race clothes. Eat dinner and go to bed kinda early. It will be a early wake up with a hour drive to Boulder.

     By 0430 we are heading to Boulder, about 20 minutes away from the Reservoir we realize we didn't get the water bottles. Crap! At a convenience store we grab water bottles that will fit in our cages. Meanwhile Brook is calling a friend to the rescue! The incomparable Andrew Klien to the rescue with lots of water bottles, a friendly smile, hug, good wishes and all encouraging.! 2 miles on the highway from the turnoff to the county road to the turnoff to the other county road to the reservoir traffic is backed up. We finally inch our way to the road going into the reservoir and people are getting out of cars and mounting their bikes to make it to transition. We make to transition in plenty of time without leaving the vehicle and running cross country! Gesh anxious much. Lol.

     Brook, Brenda, Chris, and I set up everything in the transition area and move out when transition area is closed. We  wander to the beach and take in the sights, atmosphere, the crowds, the cool mountain air and the undercurrent of excitement. We wade into the water to adjust to the cool water. I'm going without a wetsuit. I'm going with the neoprene shorts for buoyancy and luckily the water isn't too cold or infested with bacteria.

     We watch all the 70.3 waves take off in a rolling wave start. Men youngest to oldest, then women youngest to oldest. Go Brook Go! When it comes to the sprint distance someone decided all the women should go as a group first then all the men as a group. WTH it was chaos. Some man swam over the top of me. After that my head came out of the water and it was just survival mode to get through the swim! I felt people kicking me and I felt my feet landing on people's hands and other people's hands landing on my feet. I made it. I swam the 750 meters without grabbing a kayak. It wasn't pretty but I finished the swim portion. Then it was a run up a hill on a wet sandy beach onto concrete sidewalk and then onto asphalt. All the while barefoot and trying to get wet neoprene shorts off without taking off my tri clothes.

     Into T1, I grab my bike helmet, put it on, gloves, dry feet and shove them in bike shoes without socks because that is just too much. Slather sunscreen on and start pushing the bike to the mount line. On the bike and head out for 17 miles of hills, downhills, and hot as hades flats. My nutrition bar is a melted mess but I shovel it in and swig water. I pass people going uphill, I pass people going downhill but then they find me on the flats. Unless they are on a tri bike because they pass you and you never see them again! A short heavy man and I take turns passing each other. It is really getting annoying! He looks more like he should be watching TV, drinking beer & yelling obscenities at the boob tube rather than in my way on a bike course. (I know I'm terrible) I've decided if it kills me when I get off this **** bike, I am passing him on the run at that will be all of him.  We pass each other a couple of more times and then we hit the longest, flattest, hottest stretch of hellish highway into T2.

     At T2, I dismount at the line, oh crap I have no legs. How am I supposed to run on no legs! I trade my helmet for a visor, bike cleats for running shoes, spray more sunscreen, still no socks, and grab a drink of water. It is HOT! Like 90+ degrees at 5500 feet. I'm pretty sure we are on the surface of the sun!

     Out of T2 and onto the run. Woohoo I finally get to run. Running is easy! Except when you are running along the dirt levee of the reservoir with no legs, in 90+ degree temps, on the surface of the sun! The course is an out and back for the Sprint distance. The 70.3's have to do 2 loops. 90% of the runners are run/walking. It is a hot miserable mess. I do pass the short bike man and do not see him again until I watch him finish after me!

     I was so happy to sprint to that finish! As I am coming down the finish shoot, I hear and see Andy, Christy and Chris cheering me on! Official times 2:25:19 Swim 25:11 T1 5:33, Bike 1:13:42 T2 2:46, Run 38:07.  So what did I learn, I need a lot of work on the swim and need more saddle time on the bike. Now why did I think I needed to do a 70.3 in November? I am screwed! Eek!

     Chris finished way ahead of me because she is a Rock Star! Not only did she win her age group the next person after her was 14 minutes behind her!!! After getting under the shade tree and some fluids we went to the bike area to watch for Brook and Brenda to come in off the Bike. Shortly here comes Brook looking fresh and ready to go! We cheer her on to the Run.

      The rest of the day was spent on the run course cheering on participants.  This was so much fun!  I am hot, sunburnt, hungry, tired and stinky but having a blast cheering on Brook, Brenda and every person on that run course! We cheer Brook into the finish! As we are getting Brook fluids and shade here comes Brenda. We completely missed her finishing. Sorry Brenda!

      After the event, we make our way to a mexican restuarant for dinner, stinky, sweaty etc.  There may have been a cocktail drank, I'm not positive though.  Brook is hobbling, something with her hip.  Bedtime comes fairly early after the fun day. Morning comes and everybody is packing up, saying goodbye and heading back home. 

     With a 12 hour car trip back home, there is lots of time to think about the event.  What needs work. What needs tweaked. What the Hell am I going to do about that 70.3?

Live Epic,
Michelle