Sunday was Tri Indy. I was racing the Olympic distance and went in wanting to PR and podium. I also wanted to have a good run. Two of three isn't bad.
The swim wasn't supposed to be wetsuit legal for people trying for awards so I didn't bring mine. They changed it at the last minute, but it was fine in the swim skin and I would have been too hot in a wetsuit anyway. With the canal being dredged and cleaned this year it was an interesting experience. I've never been able to see in the canal and it is usually full of weeds. Very few weeds this year and you could see through the water and see the bottom - the later was not necessarily a good thing. I had been worried about hitting a scooter since there have been 17 pulled out since the canal was cleaned. In the end I swam over at least two of them, but I didn't touch anything but water (part of Matt's helpful advice). Fastest I've been out of the water for Tri Indy by a lot. I had started further up than I probably should have, but it was actually fine.
T1 was right where I expected, even with my concerns about getting the swim skin off.
The bike was fast and strong. They hasn't marked us with AG/weight class and distance so I wasn't sure if I was racing my competition...I just tried to make sure I stayed ahead of anyone who could possibly be a masters Athena. Both loops went well and I was doing a good job staying hydrated even riding fast. I didn't have as much problem as I usually do with being mixed in with fast riders on their second loop and very slow sprinters.
T2 was a little longer than planned, but I did change to a singlet to be more comfortable on the run. Worth the few seconds.
The first loop of the run felt solid without being over done. I was taking water at each stop knowing it was going to get warm. I probably should have hit a gel or something in T2, but I did have one near the end of the first loop.
The second loop things started slowing down. Water stops were taking longer. A lot of people were walking and by halfway through I was race walking. I still felt good about where I was on overall time. I was able to run hard into the finish. I was surprised I had finished under 3:15 and not by just a few seconds. It was an 11.5 minute PR. There was a big delay in getting the results posted by then and complete chaos at the awards tent so I got my sandals from gear check and chilled in the RF tent. When I stood up there was a puddle of sweat and blood. The chafing from RAIN had broken open on the run and was bleeding lightly. Total yuck. Finally the results updated and D texted me from the Phoenix tent that I won my division! I was super excited to have won it. I checked the results and went to the award tent...which was still a huge disaster as they didn't have the updated printout and the volunteers didn't seem to know the non-age divisions well. Or the difference between race distances. But eventually it got settled.
Super happy. I am the reigning queen of the old fat tri chicks. The under 40 Athena winner was only a few minutes ahead of me and I am pretty sure all of her advantage was on the run.
The swim wasn't supposed to be wetsuit legal for people trying for awards so I didn't bring mine. They changed it at the last minute, but it was fine in the swim skin and I would have been too hot in a wetsuit anyway. With the canal being dredged and cleaned this year it was an interesting experience. I've never been able to see in the canal and it is usually full of weeds. Very few weeds this year and you could see through the water and see the bottom - the later was not necessarily a good thing. I had been worried about hitting a scooter since there have been 17 pulled out since the canal was cleaned. In the end I swam over at least two of them, but I didn't touch anything but water (part of Matt's helpful advice). Fastest I've been out of the water for Tri Indy by a lot. I had started further up than I probably should have, but it was actually fine.
T1 was right where I expected, even with my concerns about getting the swim skin off.
The bike was fast and strong. They hasn't marked us with AG/weight class and distance so I wasn't sure if I was racing my competition...I just tried to make sure I stayed ahead of anyone who could possibly be a masters Athena. Both loops went well and I was doing a good job staying hydrated even riding fast. I didn't have as much problem as I usually do with being mixed in with fast riders on their second loop and very slow sprinters.
T2 was a little longer than planned, but I did change to a singlet to be more comfortable on the run. Worth the few seconds.
The first loop of the run felt solid without being over done. I was taking water at each stop knowing it was going to get warm. I probably should have hit a gel or something in T2, but I did have one near the end of the first loop.
The second loop things started slowing down. Water stops were taking longer. A lot of people were walking and by halfway through I was race walking. I still felt good about where I was on overall time. I was able to run hard into the finish. I was surprised I had finished under 3:15 and not by just a few seconds. It was an 11.5 minute PR. There was a big delay in getting the results posted by then and complete chaos at the awards tent so I got my sandals from gear check and chilled in the RF tent. When I stood up there was a puddle of sweat and blood. The chafing from RAIN had broken open on the run and was bleeding lightly. Total yuck. Finally the results updated and D texted me from the Phoenix tent that I won my division! I was super excited to have won it. I checked the results and went to the award tent...which was still a huge disaster as they didn't have the updated printout and the volunteers didn't seem to know the non-age divisions well. Or the difference between race distances. But eventually it got settled.
Super happy. I am the reigning queen of the old fat tri chicks. The under 40 Athena winner was only a few minutes ahead of me and I am pretty sure all of her advantage was on the run.
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