Wildflower

Wildflower!!! Now I really feel like the season has started. I have my first race of the year under my belt and we are less than six months away from Florida. I have to admit that I was a bit nervous about Wildflower. Hills have never been my forte and anyone that knows WF, knows it is anything but a flat course. I was super nervous the night before my race since my butt and quads were already aching from having to climb the hill from the lake to the campsite all day. I was also nervous about the bike ride knowing how much I had struggled with the hills at training weekend a month before. But I have to admit that my biggest fear was not the brutal swim with people kicking me in the face, or the bike portion that had kicked my butt weeks before or even the run that had the never ending hill and unbearable heat. My biggest fear of WF was having to wear a trikini! I knew once I could get passed the fact that hundreds of people were about to see my butt jiggling in my trikini bottoms, the rest of the race would be a piece of cake.

Race morning- had a great nights sleep. Woke up to bagels, peanut butter and bananas already prepared by Todd and Brian. Yummy! Scarfed down breakfast, got my gear together and jumped on my bike. It was quite tough riding down lynch hill with a tri bag on my back, wearing a parka and uggs but I am sure it was an amusing sight. Since my wave only started at 10:10, we had ample time to goof around, take pictures and check out all the gorgeous men in tri shorts. It was great having all my friends in transition to ease each others nerves before the race started.

Swim – 29:40 The swim was great! There were no waves and the water was the perfect temperature. I decided that my swimming had improved a lot over the past couple of months so I might as well push my way up to the front of the group and make the most of it. The swim was pretty brutal but I was prepared to get a little roughed up. I got kicked in the face a few times and even got my goggles ripped off. I took a deep breath each time, calmed myself down and continued on my swim. I took it easy the whole first half and then pushed once I turned the middle buoy. I felt great coming in and I was ecstatic when I came out of the water and saw that I had a sub 30 time. I struggled a bit getting my wetsuit off but got a rush of energy when I saw Brian and the others cheering for me.

Bike – 1:44:46 The bike turned out to be a lot better than I thought it would be. I took it easy up Lynch hill knowing I had a lot of hills ahead of me. After I got out of the campsite, I kicked it up a notch. I had Brian in my head the whole time telling me to push down the hills and to stay out of my granny gear going up the hills. I felt great all the way out to the turn around point. I really felt myself pushing up a lot of the hills instead of just spinning through them. The way back was a bit tougher and I did have to get in my granny gear for two of the hills but I was still happy with my progress. It was very exciting seeing my friends pass by on the bike. It was also very inspirational seeing all the challenged athletes out on the course. Watching someone cranking up the hills using only their arms makes you realize how lucky you are. I also took some time during the bike to enjoy the beautiful scenery. I cannot imagine a bike course more beautiful than that one. Riding out on the open road surrounded by other triathletes in the middle of nature is an amazing experience that almost makes up for those awful hills. It turned out to be a great bike ride. Not really sure what I was so scared of. It was the run I should have been dreading after all.



Run – 1:04:12 Okay, so the run was not my best but it was hot and hilly and oh so painful. I have always considered myself a runner since I initially came into the sport as a marathon runner but I think I have been using that as an excuse to skip some of my running workouts. This run was definitely a reality check for me. I told myself I would not let myself walk the entire race so I just kept putting one foot in front of the other trying not to think about never ending hill ahead of me. I was running so slow I even had people walking faster than me up the hills since my jog had turned into a slow shuffle. But I didn’t walk! When I finally made it to Lynch hill I knew I would be okay from there. I made my way down the hill and turned the corner to see hundreds of spectators cheering me on. I decided to give it all I had for the last 100 yards. I am sure everyone loved the sight as my trikini decided to ride all the way up my butt when my jog turned into a sprint. Oh well, I finished the race in 3:26:28 and felt great! My original goal was around 3:45 so I was ecstatic about my time.



Overall, it was an amazing experience. Having all my friends at the finish line made me realize what a wonderful group of friends I have and how amazing the race was to be able to share it with all of them. It was a wonderful, emotional feeling crossing that finish line after months of hard training to have my friends waiting there for me with open arms. It is a feeling that no one can take away from me. It is those moments that I have to think of when I am cursing at 5am when I have to jump in the pool or go on a long bike ride that takes up my whole Saturday. I love triathlons. This was a nice reminder of why I torture myself with tough workouts.