Grand Coulee Half Iron

It's taken me a few days to wrap my head around this past weekend's race.

Did it have the outcome I expected?

No.

Did I learn something?

Yes.

Did I still love triathlon...you bet!

Lisa came up from Vancouver to spend a few days with me in Vernon before we headed south to Grand Coulee. It was great to spend a few days with Lisa hanging out and "prepping" for the race. As I was tapering for the race, we kept our activity pretty low key (I struggled with being over-tired before the race in Oliver in June, so I didn't want to make that mistake again). We got a few lake swims in but generally hung out...in Lisa and Ally fashion...Starbucks, movies, good food and LOTS of giggling! After 20 years, somethings never change...and I hope they never do.

We headed south on the Thursday before the race. I gave Lisa the play-by-play of all the places I had ridden this past summer (...poor girl, must have completely bored her to tears, but she puts up with me...most likely tunes me out, but whatever...). The Century Ride (from Hell...), the Oliver Bike course, the "almost Ironman" bike course, the Ironman bike course...and countless references to "this" hill or "that" hill. Can you say mono-focused? Knew ya could... I digress.

We arrived in Grand Coulee to find that the motel we were staying at was about 250 metres from the start of the race. Nice.
I'm not sure we could have planned that any better. My friend, Ryan, came out from Wenachee for the evening and had dinner with us on the patio overlooking the lake. It was good to just chill and relax into the surroundings.

On Friday we did a bit of reconnance work. We drove the Olympic bike course (which was the first part of the Half Iron course as well). It was a daunting course even from the comforts of the car. In retrospect, I'm glad that I had the opportunity to come down and pre-ride it, as you just don't get the same perspective until you're out of gears and only a few metres up the hill.

We got up onto the Mesa and it was just as I had remembered it...vast and golden. It's pretty quiet up there and it went on for miles and miles and miles.

The course has you going over the Grand Coulee Dam which was interesting. (...I'll get to that a bit later...) T2 was across the dam and had you running alongside the river which, I thought, would be a great place to run. I'm shaking my head....it was miserable...but, I get to all that shortly.

The night before the race was not unlike most pre-race nights....completely amped at 11pm, then tossing, turning, checking the alarm, watching the hours tick by, peeing at least 5 times, i was not going to get any sleep. Oh well, there's plenty of time to sleep when you're dead, right?

Race morning came quick despite the slow cadence of time during the dark hours. The Ironman athletes hit the water at 7am to near perfect conditions. There was a slight breeze, but a welcoming one considering it had been so hot the day before. Little did I realize how hot it was going to get...uggg!

The male Half Iron athletes started at 9:30, the women started at 9:35. We all got together for a pre-race photo and the encouraging words flowed freely in anticipation of the day's events. It's interesting to see everyone's little rituals; iPod inserted, stretching, eating, giggling...it was great to be with everyone.

The men started enmasse...the women were a bit more civilized...a bit of breathing room between us and lots of encouraging words as the gun sounded. We were off! I LOVED the swim. It was incredible...at no point was I tired and, as I rounded the last buoy, I was sad to know that the swim portion was almost over. All that swimming in Jade Bay amounted to that moment. Done. There was the beach...I could see the exit and it was done. I vaguely remember hearing a few people cheering my name, but every time I get out of the lake after swimming I'm a bit dizzy and we had a hell of a haul up the grassy slope to get to transition...I couldn't wave, I couldn't look up...it took all I had to drag myself up the hill to the eager volunteer that had my T1 bag.

I got into the changing tent and basically brain-farted. I can't really explain it any better than completely gapping on what I had to take off, what I had to put on, what I needed to apply and where...it was all a bit overwhelming, really. I was off in la-la land, to be honest. I just could not get my shit together. I snapped back to attention when I saw my Coach, Ginny, fly into the tent after me and fly out like she was on fire. Ok, Ally...get it together...this IS a race after-all. Get going for crying out loud!!!

I made it out of the tent and grabbed my bike and hit the road. I had neglected to squeeze a gel into my mouth before hitting the water, so I was pretty hungry by the time I got on the bike. I slurped back a gel and then popped a Cliff Shot Block into my cheek and sucked on that for a while. The first turn had us starting the climb that confirmed that I MUST invest in a larger rear cassette, or a compact crank, or SOMETHING that would keep my legs spinning a bit faster than the snails' pace I was currently maintaining. Oh well, it would be over soon enough. I fell into a reasonable cadence and was observant of my HR and just kept pedaling. I came across a dead rattle snake, yeesh, and said, out loud, "...I don't have the energy to deal with you right now"...and kept pedaling. No panic attack, no tears, no drama...I was on a mission! (....gee, does this mean that I'm making "progress" in conquering my phobia?...Lord, I hope so!)

Once on top of the Mesa, I grabbed another gel and picked up the pace. It was beautiful up there. The temperature was very comfortable and there was a slight tail wind which was a great help. One of the things I did well in this race was to nourish on the bike. I had a gel every 35-40 minutes and between gels I sucked on Shot Blocks. The only thing I would change for next time is to be more attentive to hydrating a bit better. I figured the ride would take me about 3 hours (it took 3:21) and I had 3 bottles of E-Load and I managed to drink a bit more than two. Not enough...though, I didn't figure that out until 8 miles into the run. Too late....more on that later.

So, I was really enjoying the bike ride so far...eating religiously, trying to drink, managing my HR, going silly fast where appropriate...I flew through Grand Coulee on route to the Damn. No, that wasn't a typo...I am seriously afraid of heights and had a full-on panic attack at the thought of riding across that thing. Aack. This was frustrating. Well, all alone, and about a mile from transition...I had no real choice except to keep pedaling. I mean, I rode past the snake, right...this is just a big block of concrete. Man, I could employ one therapist on a full-time basis with all this crap...I kept riding. Sobbing, mind you, but I got across. Yeeesh...

T2 was a bitter sweet place. I was pretty happy to be done biking, especially after getting off the damn dam, but a bit reluctant to start the run. I think it was mostly in my head as I knew that in the past, it was about this time that things start to fall apart. I had my water belt, which contained 2 gels ( I should have brought more; note for next time!) and a bottle of E-Load...but it was HOT. And got HOTTER! Ugg. It was miserable, to be honest. Early on, I saw Andrew (who's wise words of "stay focused" were an ominous mantra I would learn the true meaning of...) looking like a rock-star...then Mike, also looking fantastic...then there was Joel...Holy Crap...these guys make it look easy! Then Ginny...wow, what a vision...big smile...then Katherine...then Cindy....oh...it was right about then that I did the math and determined that I was going to be finishing pretty far behind my goal of a sub-6 hour time. Oh, and did I mention it was HOT? I was out of juice, the aid stations were really far apart and I was getting uncomfortable.

I'm aware that I have to work on my "mental game". This race showed me that. It's evident in the finish photo...my head is down, my body language said everything I was feeling, I felt broken crossing the line. And, when I really look back on it, WHY? I FINISHED! I did well! It was REALLY tough course and I did the best I could do on that day. That's what this sport is all about. Training really hard and giving it all on that day. There was no point (...oh, except for T1 where I seemed to be camping out...5 minutes?! Who spends 5 minutes in transition???) where I could have gone faster. I raced well. The only thing I regret is not smiling crossing the line...I failed where that was concerned. I can correct that...I will NOT be grumpy crossing anymore finish lines from now on. I PROMISE!!!

The run was super flat...and super hot! I heard Lisa cheering me on from Myra's car as I ran alongside the river. I had fallen into step with this really nice man named Brad from Omak. At first, he did all the talking...I was pretty caught up in my dark thoughts, but he drew me out. We laughed, we talked...it was great. I started gulping the flat Coke at the aid stations and found PRETZLES...yahoo! Those little gems are money! I'm eating them at IMC, for sure! And the ice was glorious...I stuffed it in my shirt, sucked on it, slurped the cold water as it melted...it was glorious. But, short lived. At long last, the finish line was coming closer. I ran under the bridge and saw Nick, the guy from New York we were staying beside in the Hotel, cheering me on, and then started up the nasty little hill to get to the finish line. We had to run around the block and then down the finishing chute. It was glorious to stop. I was happy to see Lisa and everyone else there cheering! As I said before, I promise to smile when crossing the next finish line...I guarantee it!!

It was a good race, despite my glucose-deprived thought processes during the race. :) I completed it in 6:27:48. My swim time was 32:38 (I improved over Oliver by almost 6 minutes!!! WOW!), bike time of 3:21 and a run time of, ahem, 2:26. Overall, I placed 12th in my age group and did well! I still love this sport and look forward to building on this experience for IMC.

A few days out...

Today was the first day I wished it was race day...funny, eh? It's like Christmas...it never gets here fast enough and then, when it does arrive, it goes by too fast. Well, something tells me that I'll have plenty of time to relish in the warm fuzzies of it all grinding it out on the bike.
Ok, back to being nervous about it...damn it. I go from being super psyched to wondering if Mexican Jumping Beans do really exist and if I have mysteriously consumed an entire cans' worth just recently. How does this happen?
Lisa is here and is also getting ready for her race, too. She's got such a great outlook on this race. And, wether she knows it or not, has been instrumental in keeping my feet on the ground (or my head out of my ass...not too sure which is more appropriate at this juncture...) about it all. As she says, "...Ally, it's just a swim, and then a bike ride and then a run...you've done it before, right?". Well put, Lisa.
After tonight's sleep, it's only 2 more sleeps...and, you guessed it...the pendulum has brought me back to being excited again. :)

The Mental Game

It's a little over a week from the race and mentally I'm feeling like shit. I'm tired and sore from a hard last week of training and am trying not to let my head get the better of me. I remember feeling this way before Oliver and I tried to train through it...that didn't work. All I got was MORE tired. I want to go into Grand Coulee well rested, so I am starting my taper tomorrow (a few days earlier than scheduled). I feel like I'm letting myself down by not following my "plan".

I have done all the hard work and it will pay off come race day. My biggest challenge right now is to keep my spirits high and not let my fears and insecurities get the better of me. I'm not sure what it is that makes me think that I'm not good enough to compete, or don't deserve to be there...those are probably normal feelings, but ones I know in my heart to be unfounded. I have worked really hard for this race and feel the strongest I've ever felt (in comparison to Oliver). I'm ready for the race.

Part of the allure of doing these races is working on my mental toughness. Physically, I know I can do the distance; I can swim 2 kilometers with no problem, I can ride well over 90 kilometers and just yesterday I ran 18kms very comfortably...so where's the issue? The issue I face is one of self doubt and fear of not succeeding. What constitutes "not succeeding" I'm really not sure of...maybe not achieving the goals (specific times) I've set for myself? On one hand, the "rational" hand, the times are set to gauge my effort...if the times are too slow or too fast it's unrealistic. So, there has to be a happy medium somewhere; Andrew once said to "set some goals and then work your ass off to achieve them"...fair enough. Times aside, another goal will be to mitigate the unnecessary negative mental thought processes that will take way from my more important goals...LIKE FINISHING THE DAMN RACE WITH A SMILE ON MY FACE! :) (...which is going to happen regardless...)

As I sit here to finish this entry, I've just gotten off the phone with Lisa (...thank you, again, for listening...), and know that (the mental training) is going to be the bigger challenge I will face in the next year. Where in the world do you get a schedule for that, I wonder?

Confirmation of Lunacy

Why is it that most of the hair-brained ideas I get start with the thought, "...gee,I wonder what that would be like?". I mean, really, it's all very well and good to sit at a computer and stare off into cyber-space and watch other people climb Everest, complete the Death Race, or walk on the moon...but what evolutionary hiccup do I have (in common) with those people that makes me think that I can do these things, too? Hmmm, I guess I'm about to find out.

I'm signed up for it...it's official. They have my money, with no refund possible...August 30, 2009 I will complete my very first Ironman.

It's right about this time that my knees get a bit weak, my stomach flips and that very palpable shiver goes down my spine at the very thought of race day next August. "Can I do this?", "Will I make it?", and the ever-popular, "How much is this gonna hurt?" occupy the majority of my cerebral real-estate at this moment. My gut instinct says, "You can't NOT do this...you'll regret that decision forever"...so here I sit. In front of my computer, $575.00 (US) poorer, slightly petrified, but SO glad that I pressed that final button to confirm my registration.

Being the social animal that I am, I'm already looking forward to training with my friends. The trips, the bricks, the other races that will get us to the IMC start line. I am soulfully embracing the challenge of learning "balance" in my life; work/training, training/life, and any other combination that life will throw my way. This is no small endeavour, that's for damn sure...I wish myself luck. :)