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September 5, 2007
ITU Age Group World Championships
I think I'll just dive right in...
Race Morning
After 4 days of rain and cold I was SOOO happy to wake up Sunday morning and NOT see rain. I won't say it was sunny but overcast and gray and mid 50s was way better than the pouring down rain that the earlier racers had to endure. Things were starting off well.
My mom and I got to the race site pretty early - I was one of the later waves to go off at 9:30 - so once I got my transition set up we found a bench and watched the city wake up and come alive with thousands of triathletes! We also watched some of the earlier waves of swimmers so I could get a handle on what the swim was going to offer.
After a 15 minute warmup jog and some light stretching it was on with the wetsuit and my final goodbyes to my mom and then into the "pre-start" area. Here we go...
The Swim
The waves were 10 minutes apart so after the wave before me went off they let the next wave get in the water for warmups. I jumped into the lake and nearly had a heart attack. Wow was it cold - so, so, so cold. Even colder than the Thursday practice swim in my opinion. As in take your breathe away, whole body numbness cold. And did I mention how dirty the water was? Black, diesel-smelling, nasty water. Worse than the Allegheny River. And cold. Oh wait...I think I might have already said that... :)
But this is how triathlon is. Nobody ever said it was an easy sport.
Before I knew it, the horn blew and I set off on my first World Championship race.
I won't mince words here - my swim was dismal. I didn't feel great, the swim seemed to last forever, I didn't site well and when I got out of the water I saw 26:xx on my watch. Dear Lord, I thought, was I the absolute last person out of the water in my wave? I would have believed it. But as I ran into transition I saw that there were still plenty of bikes in my wave area. I kept telling myself "you're okay, don't worry, just get on your bike and go, you're okay, don't worry, just get on your bike..."
Of course afterwards I realized that the swim was slow for EVERYONE. It was either long or perhaps the cold slowed us down, but either way - maybe 2-3 minutes on the slow side. Still. I am just not a good swimmer and the bigger the race, the more apparent that becomes. More on that later.
The Bike
I hate the fact that I'm a weak swimmer but it sure does feel good to start passing people like crazy on the bike. ;) (one benefit of swimming slow) The transition was the longest I've ever seen in my life multiplied by 10. It was over a half mile and since my bike was on the very far end I had a very long way to run with my bike to get to the mount line. Plenty of time to loosen up the legs! :) Once I got on my bike I was determined to hammer. Upset with myself for swimming so dang slow I was on a mission.
And I had a great bike because of it. The course was relatively flat but had some technical sections (lots of turns) and it was also very windy in spots. As in hold very tightly onto your aerobars because otherwise you are going down.
My legs felt good. I was cruising and passing people left and right (some in my AG but of course there were also others out there from earlier waves). And then someone passes me and it's someone in my own AG! :) This gets me furthered fired up. It's a gal from Australia and I tell myself over and over DO NOT LET HER GO! She is very clearly on a mission too (poor girl is even a worse swimmer than me...) and I decide that she is my ticket to having a strong bike. Make the decision now, go with her! Of course this is a little tricky in non-draft racing. You have to keep them in sight and not let them go but you can't stay too close because then you're cheating. But she was exactly what I needed. We battled back and forth and pulled each other (no drafting of course!) through the field. It was awesome. And it resulted in my best bike of the year and probably of all my triathlon racing period.
The Run
The crowds were amazing and let me tell you how it feels to hear people screaming "GO USA!" in your face! Coming out of T2 I felt like I was sprinting. I was so amped up from my good bike and from all the cheering! My favorite cheer is how the Australians yell "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie" that sounds more like "Ozzie, Ozzie, Ozzie" in their accents while they wave their big kangaroos around!
As the run course made a turn down around the lake I started to settle in a little. This was, afterall, a 10K, not a mile race. ;) I immediately noted that my usual nausea was probably not going to be a problem today. And that made me so, so, so happy. Don't get me wrong, my stomach did not feel great. And in fact I didn't take any fluid or nutrition in on the bike. But it was merely "unsettled" and I didn't feel the need to throw up. How awesome. I'm blaming it on the nice, cool weather.
I instantly started to focus in on picking people to work up to and pass and then when I would catch them, I'd pick another person. This was by far the best focus and concentration I've ever had in certainly any triathlon I've ever done, perhaps maybe even in any race ever! I was so on a mission.
And so it went. I kept picking off people (again, a benefit of being a good runner - you are always passing at the end instead of getting passed). I was running around 6:30 pace and feeling pretty good. And then another Australian (different one) in my AG passed me around 6K. I had the same resolve to not let her go. DO NOT LET HER GO! Make the decision now - stick with her and now you don't even have to worry about drafting. :)
She pulled me along through the field but around 8K started to get a little ground on me. And then we entered back into the city with about 1.5K to go and the fans and crowds overwhelmed me again. "GO USA!" and those obnoxious noise makers and cow bells and with about 800 to go there was a Team USA coach/official yelling at me to just get 2 more and with that I looked up and saw my Australian friend right there. I made it my goal to get her, do whatever it takes to get her. And so I sprinted as hard as I could and right before the line I got her.
Of course now I know it doesn't much matter the difference between getting 11th (as I did) or 12th but at the time I didn't know what place I was in. And truthfully making those decisions - first to stay with the Aussie on the bike and then making the committment to get the other Aussie on the run - are what made my race for me. It certainly wasn't an overall fast time and the swim was pitiful but it's the best I've competed in a long time. And because of that, I am very, very happy with my race.
I was 11th in my age group, 2nd American in my age group, 33rd overall and 6th American overall. Total time of 2:21:02 as 26:52 swim (dear Lord...), 4:32 T1 (told you it was long), 1:06:42 bike, 2:50 T2 and 40:05 run (20:15/19:50 5K splits). At the very least it was a much improved performance from US nationals! :)
Overall Experience
The whole trip was truly an amazing experience. And I'm so very glad I got the chance to do it. It's not an easy thing to travel to a foreign country, deal with 9 hour flights and lugging your dang bike around everywhere, trying to figure out currency and language barriers and by god what am I going to eat in this country?! Then there is the 6 hour time difference and trying to figure out where you are going to ride your bike without getting killed by one of the many BMWs flying around on the roads... It's certainly a challenge to remain focused and get ready to have the best race of your season!
But it was worth all that hassle and more. I met so many wonderful people. I saw and experienced a culture very different from the only one I've ever known. And I got the chance to watch the best triathletes in the world in the pro, under 23 and junior races. But best of all I got to represent my country and see how I stacked up against triathletes around the globe.
What's Next?
Coming home and studying the results (absolutely LOVE pouring through all the results and comparing splits, etc...) I kept coming to the same conclusion - if *only* I could actually swim I might be able to make an impact in this sport! Even O told me his theory that I needed to either (a) get faster in the water or (b) move up in distance to half IM/full IM where the swim is much less significant and my short comings can be made up easier on the bike/run.
I was feeling especially salty about the whole swim thing yesterday when I sent my coach a long, whiny email about how slow I am. I lamented how I work hard in the pool and in the weight room but still don't get faster, blah, blah, blah. To which he simply replied "patience". Oh great - just what I wanted to hear. ;)
But I know it's the truth. Patience. It's obvious that I don't have the upper body strength of a good swimmer or the experience in the water of pushing myself hard or the stroke efficiency that will allow me to swim faster with less effort. But just as my running came round through high school and college, so will my swimming.
And so now today I'm feeling more encouraged. Competing in Germany offered me the opportunity to see how very far I have to go. I've already discussed the swimming situation. I think running is my strength but guess what - there were age groupers who ran 3 minutes faster than me. And there were people who outsplit me on the bike by 2 minutes. But competing in Germany also gave me confidence that I can do it and the determination to train correctly so I will do it. In fact I'm more excited than ever to keep pursuing my goals and my dreams in this sport. The only person that can put limits on myself is me.
I'm not sure what I'll do - stick with shorter races or move up to focus on longer ones, make a huge push to turn pro or stick around in the amateur ranks for a few years, heck, maybe I'll just become a duathlete! (just kidding of course...) But what I am sure about is that I love this sport and all that encompasses it and that I have an amazing support system to help me achieve all that I want to. What more could you ask for?
I'm absolutely stoked about my next race - the Half IM World Champs in Florida! At the very least I can say with a good deal of certainty that the Gulf of Mexico won't be 60 degrees when we jump in early on November 10th - and that makes me very happy! I'm excited to have a good chunk of time to train hard and prepare myself as best as possible for it. After 2 easy recovery days (short run/bike/swim) on Monday and Tuesday, I started training up again today with a 4K swim this morning (main set of 30x100) and an easy 30 minute run. Later today I'll hit the weight room. And so it goes, the next journey to begin...
PS - Pictures are coming! :)
Posted by beth at September 5, 2007 12:37 PM
Comments
Beth,
CONGRATS on your race! Very nice results and splits! Yeah, the swimming is not the easiest for most...and it matters SO much at the OLY distance...My theory: "Become One with the water and make it your best friend..." Until you truely love the water...you will fight against it. And, swim 5x per week for short course. Oh, I am only kidding...but some part of me is serious. Enjoy your great results!! Way to go! :)
Posted by: Jennifer Harrison at September 5, 2007 3:18 PM
Beth,
A hearty congratulations to you on this tough, unique, and challenging racing experience! You are a tough chick, you know that, don't you?
I admire your perspective and your drive to move forward from this already good place you are in right now.
I have to ask, do people get sick from swimming in polluted water? Did you have any after effects from the water?
I'm intrigued by your lack of nausea experiences in this race. I fought some nausea and stomach cramping in my race this weekend, but I think I figured out my issue. I'll be posting on it soon.
Hope your dive back into real training and real life is smooth and successful. Welcome back to the USA!
Meghan
Posted by: Meghan at September 5, 2007 5:14 PM
Congratulations again, welcome home, and thanks for the great race report!
Posted by: Alison at September 5, 2007 7:54 PM
ok, biking and running, no problem. You will get better and better.
I agree with Jennifer's theory (become one with the water...) But how do you do it?
Go to swim, the pool, the lake, the river, the dang bath tub, not just for training... become acquatic... play in the water, play underwater... stay underwater as much as you can, holding your breath as much as you can...
If you do not become acquatic, even if do fast enduring swimming, it will be eternal catching-up, eternal compensation, trying to make up for the earthly weakness that is there.
The swim is where you are tense, where you want to get it over and done with, where you start with a disadvantage. I wonder how you would change if - as a natural swimmer - Tris "finished" with a swim after that gruelling Earth work/fatigue? Like, heck, i can't wait to jump into the water!!!
Go grow some gills and fins. Otherwise it will always be a chore. And who likes to do chores?
This doesn't mean you will win. But it could mean you will not start with a perceived disadvantage. Meaning you could indeed win.
Now that you have met the other "Beths" living around the globe (and evidently there aren't that many, wow!!), all with different weaknesses, done dealing with them, or to be dealt with. Race is on.
Go Beth, GO!
PS. btw, Auzzies are pretty darned aquatic. Beating an Auzzie like you did is worth a quarter of a gill. Remember you need two full gills. Then there's the fins.
Posted by: corrado giambalvo at September 6, 2007 10:57 AM
What a great report, thanks for sharing Beth!! GREAT job :) I cannot wait to hear about your next worlds race!!
Posted by: barb at September 6, 2007 11:08 AM
Congratulations on a great race! Out of curiosity, why would you just be kidding about becoming a duathlete? Why isn't that a consideration? I know your potential as a triathlete is incredible, but have you considered duathlons in addition to triathlons?
Posted by: TR at September 7, 2007 5:29 PM