The Reservoir Triathlon: 18 April 2010

This would be our first race of the year mainly intended as a “prologue” to the rest of the season. Having just entered into the speed phase of our 20-week buildup towards our main ironman for 2010, we were ill-prepared for the high intensity anaerobic effort required for an Olympic distance event. However, this would prove to be an encouraging training day for Team JaS. Here’s the play by play:

Jami’s race: I elected to not warm up in the water- a cold water tactic I learned from an accomplished open water champion who said that sometimes the body actually cools down during a “warm-up” in very cold water. After a few land exercises/stretches, I lined up on the inside buoy with about 50 other women. The first few strokes chilled my exposed skin, but I got into a rhythm, barely got bumped by other swimmers, and maintained what felt like a direct line around the swim course.

After 26 minutes, I exited the water and with frozen hands and feet, struggled to get my wetsuit off and my shoes on while on the bike. I felt very disoriented and after a few tries only one shoe was on, so I stopped to put on the other else risk a crash (my feet were so numb!). Once I got going again, even though my effort and speed felt high, it was slower than four other women who soon passed me (one of which was my speedy friend Tana Jackson). But I was able to pass two of them back by the end of the bike.

I flew into transition and with frozen feet stomped out onto the run. I got my legs straight away, but with no feel in my feet, I had to trust they were hitting the ground with each foot strike. As prescribed, I held back about 5% the first half waiting to push the last 2.5 miles. Along the way, I descended my last three miles passing four women with one more in the very last mile! This would be good enough for 10^th overall and only 1 second off from the fastest run for females on the day!

Sherwick’s race: Unlike Jami, I performed a traditional warm-up in the water but on hindsight may have benefited from staying out of the water until the last minute. I came out of UVAS Reservoir a bit slower than expected (~22 minutes) but in a good position.

I struggled to insert my sunglasses past my tightly-fitting aero helmet and finally got underway to only struggle with my shoes which were already clipped onto my pedals. Yes, I was cold! I was surprised to see Jami so soon on the bike not far from transition since the women started a wave earlier and soon caught a glimpse of our friend Tana. But only after 7 miles of chasing did I manage to overtake her! I put in a great effort, pushing each hill and descending aggressively, capitalizing on the knowledge gained during last week’s pre-running of this technical course. This would also be the first time racing my new Cervélo P4 which handled quite differently from my previous bike. The steering was much quicker, favoring a front wheel weight bias but trading off on some stability.

I started the run knowing holding back slightly for the hills that awaited at the 5k turnaround after which I negative-split the next two miles. This strategy seemed to work as I was in a solid 4^th place by mile 4 but another mile later, I had given it back. At the beginning of the last mile, I sensed a shadow off my shoulder and looked over recognizing someone I had passed in the first mile. He ran with me step for step even while I surged… three times! Knowing that I could not drop him, I tried the opposite tactic and slowed down. My last mile was 15 seconds slower than my first, but I still could not muster up enough energy to beat him at the finish. He out-kicked me for 5^th place right in the chute and my final image was the “40-44” marked on his calf!

Results

Jami: 2^nd, W40-44

Sherwick: 7^th, M40-44

Team JaS racing for Mark Allen’s Elite Team for 2010 at the finish!

Auburn World’s Toughest: 23 May 2010

This race is notorious for its tough conditions. If the weather isn’t a force to be reckoned with the brutally cold swim (from winter runoff) and relentless hills on bike and run will still get you. For Team JaS, this was our sixth running of the race so we knew what to expect and what to respect…but we never anticipated the arctic temps that hovered in the high 30’s at the start of the day that would be the demise of some of the fastest talent. Here’s the play by play:

Jami’s race: This year, the swim course would be two loops instead of one- a pattern that can make the mentally weak fade, but exactly an area which I can exploit. I quickly found a rhythm, but it was particularly hard to navigate in the fog and the imminent sunrise. Luckily the second loop went much smoother. After 33 minutes (about two minutes faster than my best here), I exited the water and charged up the ramp.

I decided ahead of time to put my shoes on in transition along with socks and arm warmers to keep my muscles warmer. To keep my body heat up, I rode faster than I would have otherwise and while I never felt warm, the effort paid off: I registered a personal best on the bike by about eight minutes!

It was clear that the temps were taxing even the most experienced of athletes when, near the end of the bike, I came up on our good friend, Troy Soares, who had started five minutes ahead of me. He had several items of clothing on- as if he was out for a Sunday ride (he had actually stopped off at his house to put on extra clothes DURING the race)- but was so chilled that he was struggling on the bike. That, along with slower times (by as much as 15 minutes for the top athletes) was very telling as to how challenging the conditions were! A quick stop in transition to trade my bike for running shoes and I was onto the run. New this year, was a 3-loop course with each lap being roughly 4 miles- a pattern I embraced because I could build each lap and go “all out” on the last one. One by one, I clicked off each loop and ran about three minutes faster than my best on this course. On paper, this new course appeared easier, but it wasn’t. Each loop included single track and gravel as well as a 200’ climb. Do that three times and it adds up to a very tough course!

Sherwick’s race:

My plan was to also put on arm warmers (but no socks) once I came out of the water. But having exited in 4^th place after a great swim in my new Xterra wetsuit in just a tick under 29 minutes, I did not want to waste any time. Little did I know this would be a poor decision! I tried to put on the warmers but my wet arms refused them- so off I went with nothing but a singlet and shorts.

Over the course of the bike ride which included 7000’ of climbing (as registered on my Garmin), I got colder and colder. My feet were numb and were not getting any warmer. Nevertheless, I managed to lose only a few spots even though my bike time was a full 8 minutes slower than last year. Getting a flat rear tire in the last mile did not help either.

The run felt like a dream, but not in the good sense. I was mostly in a daze, putting one foot in front of the other only remembering running a mile or two with Chris Liou, a top amateur triathlete who had dropped out on the bike due to the cold, and also Troy who was one lap back. Somewhere during the last mile, I relinquished 5^th place. Everyone seemed to be suffering from the cold (except maybe Jami) and the 1800’ of ascents did not even help build any body heat. I soldiered on to finish in 6^th place in what I still believe to be (one of) the World’s Toughest!

Next stop is Ironman Austria where we will hopefully be racing in warmer weather. If not, we will be very prepared for the cold!