We got there and started setting up our transition areas. I had broken the cardinal rule of triathlons - you are never supposed to try something new the day of the race. But tired of long transition times because of having to fully change outfits with each sport, I bought a tri suit the day before. You are supposed to train with any new clothes first to make sure you don't run into problems, but I figured the risk was worth it.
I kept thinking I must have forgotten something, since it didn't take me long at all to set up, but it turns out I have just gotten effective at it. Javi had gotten run into by someone's bike, and have a nice little gouge on his leg, but he didn't seem too concerned about it, so off we went to the race meeting.
These are generally very dull, and I pay about as much attention to them as Charlie Brown's teacher (wah, wah, wah, wah, wah) but this time, I was trying to set a good example for Javi - very glad I did. The county had chip sealed the first three miles of the bike course two days before the race, which meant there was no time for car grooves to be created. It was the equivalent of riding through heavy mud. Since it was a loop, that meant the last three miles would also feel that way. We were also told about Heartbreak Hill - aptly named since when people saw it, they wanted to cry. We were told to walk it if we had to, but to be very careful on the way down - you could easily hit 55 mph. My thought was (as a Physics teacher), if it had the steepness and length to create a 55 mph downhill, what was this thing going to be like to climb up??
Instead of a mass start, we had a mini wave start. People were let out at five second intervals based upon their bib number or seed time. I joked with the people around me, trying to keep Javi calm as we waited for our turn.
The water was a little choppy (Javi would say, "a LITTLE choppy?") but I kept good time. Javi was behind me, and I hoped he was having a good swim. About halfway through, I brought up my head to sight and WHOA, there was a kayak right in front of me. For some reason that only made sense to the guy in the kayak, he had crossed my path and stopped to give another swimmer a rest. I had to make a quick decision - around or under? I opted for under, and kept going.
You can imagine my surprise when I got out of the water and there was Javi. Now, my first thought was that while he had gotten stronger, there was no way he had beaten me out of the water. My second thought was to question if he had gotten in. Turns out, he started, but when the waves started forcing water in his mouth, he panicked and got brought it. Happens to all of us at some point, and I'm proud he tried it at all. The race directors said he could continue with the bike and run to get a feel for the triathlon as a whole. We ran to transition together and got on our bikes.
Chip seal - bane of my existence. I kept looking down to see if I maybe had a flat, that's what it felt like trying to bike through it. Once past it, there was a nice little series of inclines leading up to Heartbreak Hill. I was determined (stubborn) to ride up it, no way I was going to walk. I watched my Garmin, Heartbreak Hill was also the turn around point. I came around a long winding turn, and there it was.
Doesn't look too bad, does it? Yeah, it's deceptive that way. Took advantage of a slight decline to gain some momentum, and off I went. I saw others already walking their bikes. I think I can, I think I can, I...think...I...can. Slow but steady, I kept climbing. At about two thirds of the way up, I thought to myself - I am going to do it!
Murphy's Law: you haven't done it until you have actually done it. I looked down at my feet, and my back tire had caught a rock. Unable to get my feet out of the clips in time, I fell over like a tree. Annnnnd, now I'm walking. Later I would find out that little mishap cost me fifth place, but c'est la vie!
The return trip of the bike you flew, since all those inclines now became declines. Except for the chip seal, that still biked like mud. I saw Javi as he was approaching Heartbreak Hill, but I figured there was nothing I was going to be able to say to make the experience any better, and no way to truly express what he was about to see.
The first mile of the run was trail - lots of hills, wash rocks and low lying branches. Not used to trail running, I relied on the tips Mari had given me the week before. I was happy to get on the flat part. This I knew. I concentrated on negative splits every half mile and started checking legs as I caught up to runners for my age category. 56, 29, 48...all good. Near the finish I saw what I thought was a 48, but as I got closer was a 44. There was no way I could lose a place so close to the finish, so I started sprinting. As I passed her, she realized what was going on and took after me, but it was too late, sixth place was mine! :)
As Lisa and I waited for Javi, I began to get concerned. We should have seen him by now. All of a sudden, he passed by the far side of the finish, about a mile away from the end of the course. I asked the directors if I could run with him, and they said yes. So I took off, and Javi and I talked about the race and what the next race would be.
His daughter Chloe helped him run into the finish, and then we were both done!
Javi will need more exposure to different swimming conditions (and just a lot more swimming) before he will feel confident in the water. Considering he could not swim a few months ago, I am very proud of what he accomplished. I know he will conquer the tri, and I plan to be there when it happens. Congratulations Javi!
Now if only my hair would grow out faster so that I didn't look like I had stuck my finger in a light socket...
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