Leading up to the race, I did as much hill training as I could on our Martha’s Vineyard hills but it still didn’t feel like enough. I was grateful for my Amity Island running friends who accompanied me on many training rides. My first race rehearsal went well, but my second one was a disaster, with a rear flat tire, defective spare tube, and mechanical issues getting the tire back on. My nutrition got completely thrown off, and I arrived home with GI distress. Mike had his own issues having been diagnosed with Lyme Disease a month before and on antibiotics for 3 weeks. Given all this, neither of thought there was even the remote possibility of a PR.
Adding to our pre-event calamities, Mike’s flight back to Martha’s Vineyard was cancelled, causing me to have to pack for both of us and load and transport our bikes. He rented a car and met me in Boston, and we were on our way to Maine. First stop: a seafood shack in Kittery, ME for a lobster roll. We arrived mid-afternoon, got checked into our Airbnb and headed to athlete check-in and the TriClub party event. Mike being the accountant declared that the odds of winning the raffle were good and so we stuck around. When the last prize – a race entry to next year’s Musselman 70.3 – was about to be called, I looked at Mike who was wearing last year’s Musselman shirt and had a feeling he was going to win – and he did!
Our roommates Kristin and Terri arrived late that evening. Kristin and I are TriDot ambassadors and had been roommates for the first ambassador camp. Besides checking in our bikes on Saturday, top of the list for me was doing bike and swim course reconnaissance. I was relieved that none of the hills matched the steep uphill grade of the Poconos course but the whole course was rolling hills. I knew the key would be getting as much speed on the downhills as possible to make the uphills easier on the legs. Saturday proved to be an uneventful, relaxed day that concluded with a pasta dinner with another TriDot ambassador, Kristin M., and Kristin and Terri and an early bedtime given the necessary 3:30 am alarm for a 6:00am race start!!!
RACE DAY: We left our Airbnb at 4:45am and unlike other races, we were pleasantly surprised no traffic jams and easy parking, particularly since we had access to close TriClub parking, which we had spotted the day before. Thank God for the evening rain that broke the heat wave that had been prevailing for at least a week. We got our warmup walking 1 mile to the swim start.
SWIM: The pros went off on time at 6:00am and 14 minutes later the first pro was out of the water! WOW! I hedged my bet and seated myself in the 43-45 min wave, as I had heard the downriver swim saved people about 10 min last year. Once in the water, I didn’t feel the pull of a strong current, but boy were the buoys coming up fast. Before I knew it, I was at the last turn buoy and couldn’t believe it when I looked at my watch and saw a time of 22:24 as I exited.
T1: The .25 mile uphill run from the swim exit gave the legs an early workout. I was happy to still keep my transition at 9:59.
BIKE: I actually was having a ton of fun on the rolling hills for the first 20 miles, hitting nearly 40 mph on one downhill. True to the race director’s guidance, things got harder on miles 20 – 30, and true to my own assessment, it was the cumulative effect of the hills throughout the course that made the bike tiring. I decided to take a quick bathroom break at mile 30 since the porta potty was open and refilled my hydration system. My moving speed was 15.1 mph for a time of 3:44:36.
T2: Quick at 3:55!
RUN: I hadn’t done any run course reconnaissance but based on the elevation charts and what people said, I knew the hard parts came at the end. I was actually feeling energy coming off the bike, so I pushed my pace in the early parts, particularly when downhill and shaded. I started doing the math and realized I could break 7 hours if I kept a good pace and did a 2h30 run. As time went on, it got hotter with less shade so I started stopping at every aid station for a quick drink and walk break. The hills – in the sun - appeared in miles 9-11. I took a walk break during the long uphill and looked at my total time. I was on pace to actually get a 70.3 PR! Once I started back down the hill at mile 11, I began running again. As I came into the finish chute, the Philly Tri Club cheered me on to give me the final boost to the finish line with a view of the Capitol, finishing the run in 2:24:53.
I was beyond thrilled to finish with a time of 6:45:46, a PR by 8 minutes against my flat course Atlantic City 70.3!!! Mike also had a 70.3 PR of 5:27:17. Pushing the run did land me in the med tent sick to my stomach but by dinner time, I revived myself enough to join the Philly Tri Club at the local brewery for the evening dinner.
This race was a lesson in never underestimating the possibilities!
