This weekend was a jam packed with
racing, anniversary celebrating, and beaching it. Probably a strange combination to some, but for me it was perfect. Scott and I headed over to Destin, Florida on Friday. And although Friday was our real anniversary, we saved the celebration for post-race. After arriving in lovely Destin, we settled into our hotel and did the usual pre-race course-scope and packet pick up for the Sandestin Triathlon.
Despite this being a c-race for me, I was a little nervous about my lack of triathlon racing over the year. With that being said, I wanted to bust out a solid performance with good splits to build my confidence. The course consisted of a 800 m swim, 20 mile bike, and 4 mile run.
Pre-race was uneventful. Scott and I did our thing and headed out to the beach. The westerly winds were in full force this morning and definitely kicking up some nice chop. Luckily the swim went with the current. The swim went off without a hitch. I was pushed around a bit by the chop but still felt strong and comfortable. Sighting was a challenge with the chop and early morning glare, but I seemed to stay on track. I kept reminding myself, "Heidi-this is a sprint triathlon not an ironman-Go hard!" There was a little rip current heading out of the water, but I made it out at last: 15:42. A little slower than I would have liked but I didn't let if mess with my psyche.
Out to transition I went. T1 took a little longer than planned as I got my aero helmet stuck on my ears. Ooops. Guess I need to work on that.
Off to the bike. The smooth Florida roads were awesome. The wind was at my back and I was moving. Looking down at my bike computer I saw 28 mph and instantly remembered the wind. I also reminded myself that I would be headed back against the wind for the second half of the race. I passed a few guys here and there and a few passed me. But there was this one guy that I just couldn't shake. I could tell he was a newbie as he made his path down the middle of the lane and failed to stay far right. I passed him twice earlier and each time after I would make my pass he got some sort of weird inspiration and would hammer ahead of me. I'm not sure if it was because I was a chick or what.....I was keeping my pacing consistent.
A little confused by this rider's intentions, I tried to back it off. But after every time I would back off, he would slow dramatically again. The third time was the kicker. I heard a rumbling motorcycle behind me and I knew it. I was charged with drafting. As they drove by I wasn't sure what was going on as I was far right holding my line and the douche was riding again in the middle of the lane. After the motorcycle passed, I shook him one final time. I was sick of these games. Grrrrr
Despite what happened, I pushed it out of my mind and tried to focus on the present. I finished strong and caught my first glimpse of
Chloe on the way. Bike split: 52:29 22.8 mph
T2 was smooth and onto the run. My pace was strong but relaxed as I picked off a lot of runners. I kept it steady throughout the 4 miles and finished strong. Run 28:11 7:02 pace
Final time 1:39:42
Drafting Penalty: +2:00 (my first and last hopefully)
Before and after the penalty, I was 3rd in my age group (25-29)and 6th overall. There were definitely a lot of fast ladies out there. Although the penalty didn't affect my place, I'm embarrassed by what had happened. I almost feel violated. And even looking back, I don't know how I could have handled it better. I guess if it ever happens again, I will make sure I back off more or yell at the guy. I truly hope I'm not the only one that this has happened to. Lesson learned.
Post race, I got to meet up with blogger friend:
Chloe. (check out her blog if you haven't already) She pulled out an awesome performance and also took 3rd in the 30-34 age group. Hopefully this was a first meet up of many as we're planning an IM Florida training weekend for Labor Day.
Hope everyone else who raced this weekend kicked some booty!
