This recap is three weeks late but hey, better late than never! Three weeks ago I crossed something off my bucket list ... I did my first half-Ironman! Ironman's are technically a brand of race so this race is more officially referred to as a 70.3, the distance you cover between swimming (1.2 miles), biking (56 miles), and running (13.1 miles). Back in 2012 when I was training for the Marine Corps Marathon my plan was to complete marathons #19 and #20 in 2012, and then do my first 70.3 in 2013. Well, life had other plans and brain cancer entered the picture right before marathon #19, so I didn't get through #19 and #20 until 2013, and now this year was the year to do a 70.3. I chose Barb's Race because it was a women's only event which I find to be less intimidating, it was up in Napa which gave me an excuse to go home to San Francisco, and the swim was in the calm Russian River which seemed to be a lot more pleasant than the dirty and choppy ocean water that San Diego has to offer.
Race Prep
To prepare for the race I created a bare-bones training plan that had me working out about six times a week - a very light training schedule compared to the 8-10 workouts a week most plans I found online suggested. I travel a lot for work and had a number of other personal trips planned so in the three months that I was training I actually only ended up getting in about four workouts a week, sometimes six, and sometimes only two. Over the course of my three month training period I was out of town NINE times! Oh well, I worked around it the best I could. The weakest leg of a triathlon for me is definitely the swim, so earlier in the year I found a swim coach and started working out with her once a week when I was in town to improve my technique and work on my endurance. Having a swim coach is great! I loved showing up, being told what to do, having someone critiquing my form, and constantly being encouraged. It made me think that I should get a running coach too or go back to having a personal trainer. If only money was no object...
Last Workout With My Swim Coach
Race Weekend
Since the race was up in the Bay Area and we needed to take my bike David and I decided to drive and take the dogs with us. We were going to be staying in Santa Rosa at Christina's mom's house for the weekend, which was about 30 minutes from the race start, along with Thu and Barb who were also doing the race . We got up at 3:30am Friday morning to head north and were fortunately passing through LA early enough to miss rush hour traffic.
Mika Photobomb!
Race Expo
After having lunch (and finally finding a David Coke!) I went to the expo with Barb and Thu to pick up my bib, attend the mandatory pre-race info session, and to set up my run gear. Unlike all of the other triathlons I've done where you ride in and out of the same location, this race had to bike out of one location near the swim exit and bike into a different location miles away where you'd start the run. Because of this we had to set-up our T2/run gear near the finish line on Friday and leave it overnight.
Not A Monika Coke In Sight....
As we walked around the expo I started to get really nervous about the race as I realized how hot it was. I checked the weather on my phone and it was 97F!! It was supposed to be a bit cooler the next day but not by much. I was also going to be out on the course for 7-8 hours so the run would end up finishing right at the peak temperatures for the day. Yuck.
The Day Before
Gear Is Ready To Go
Race Morning
The race didn't start until 8:30am which meant we all got to "sleep-in" until 6am. The San Francisco Marathon in comparison which was the same weekend and I was missing for the first time in five years ... sniff sniff ... starts at 5:30am. Brutal. We got down to the race pretty early and set up our bikes and hung out until our wave started. It was only in the mid-50s at the start but you could tell it was going to be a warm day. I was pretty nervous waiting for the swim to start since that is my weakest leg, and just kept telling myself that as long as I made it through the swim I was going to finish the race.
I Love This Guy
Getting Ready To Race
The Swim
Our time to start finally rolled around and we were in the water. I swam a few practice strokes (great warm-up huh?) and was instantly shocked by the fresh water. Swimming in the ocean and having salty water hitting your mouth is a constant shock to me. While this water was green and murky and looked almost as dirty as San Diego bay water, in comparison it tasted as fresh as tap water! I couldn't believe it. I loved it!
Barb's Race Swim Course
When the race started I was immediately passed by any faster people behind me and tried to ignore them and settle into a comfortable pace. I could tell that I was swimming slower than most of the women in my age group but I didn't care. For the first time in a triathlon I wasn't having anxiety, and I attribute that to the fresh water and the fact that there wasn't seaweed hitting me in the water periodically making me freak out thinking that some creature was touching me. After feeling like I was swimming for what felt like forever I finally saw the turnaround point. Finally! But wait, nope ... it was several buoys farther. After making it to the turnaround and realizing I was half done I was elated. I happened to see Barb at the turnaround and we gave each other a hug before heading back.
The Russian River
The Bike
When I finally reached the shore and got out of the water I must have been smiling ear to ear and thought to myself wow! I'm going to do this! I ran over to transition to change out of my wetsuit, ran my wetsuit over to David to take back to the car so we wouldn't have to return to this transition area since I'd be biking into a location miles away, got my bike and headed out onto the bike course.
Barb's Race Bike Course
The bike course went through miles and miles of vineyards which I had heard was beautiful. A few months prior I had run the Napa Valley Marathon which also ran through wine country and while the vineyards were pretty for a few miles, I found the scenery to be repetitive and dull. This wasn't the case on the bike. Maybe because we were covering so much distance and seeing so many more wineries? Or maybe because it was a beautiful sunny day compared to the gloomy rainy day we had during the marathon.
All Smiles On The Bike
I had completed a 67 mile bike race a few months prior and knew that I could make it through the distance on the bike but was afraid that at some point I was going to get sick of biking. Usually 20-30 miles into a long bike ride I'm on cloud nine thinking about how I should try biking 100 miles someday. Then I get to miles 40-50 and I am just sick of sitting on the bike and can't get done with the ride fast enough. I must have been high on endorphins on race day because the bike ride never got boring for me and went by quickly. I loved cruising around the turns and past the vineyards and up and down little hills. There were only two bigger hills, the last of which I thought I might need to walk up at one point, but before I knew it the bike leg was done.
The Run
After getting through the swim and the bike, I knew I'd finish this race! I could run a half marathon in my sleep! Well ... within the first mile of the run I realized that while I'd be able to cover the distance, it wouldn't be easy. It was SO HOT out. OMG. I bumped into Tara during transition and we ran together for a bit before separating, and then I bumped into Barb a little further into the course. We ran together for a while before I needed a walk break, and in true Barb fashion (Bad Ass Running Buddy) she stopped to walk with me. We stayed together for the rest of the run and alternated between walking and running. At one point Tara caught up to us and the three of us walked and ran together.
Barb's Race Run Course
The course was two out and back loops (which I hate - oh there's the finish line! nope, not yet) which I found to be torturous, but it did give us the opportunity to see everyone cheering for us at the finish. At several of the aid stations there were people with cups of ice that they'd pour down your shirt to keep you cool. I probably had this done six or seven times on the course, and wow did it feel good!
Running With Barb
Running With My Two BARBs
An eternity later we finally approached the end of the run course. Before the race I had set a goal for myself of finishing in 7 - 7 1/2 hours, and I couldn't believe that even with all of the walking we had done we were going to make that. I had joked with Tara earlier that if we were going to finish together we should all hold hands. As we came into the finish chute she asked "hold hands?" which I gladly accepted. They put up the finish banner for each person who ran through which made you feel like you were winning the race as you 'broke' the finish line tape. We won! Not really, but thank goodness it was over. This was my slowest half marathon ever by far, but one of the most rewarding moments crossing the finish line. Best yet, I crossed with my two friends who each ran a marathon with me last year during chemo.
Approaching The Finish
We Won!!
Our other friend Catalina had finished before us and our friend Thu was just behind us so we waited around in the finish area until we could cheer her in. When we were all together again at the finish mass picture taking ensued. Hey, we had to, we all had cute matching tri outfits.
San Diego Ladies
GOTRSD Rocks
Love This Sign
Hilarious
Official Finish Times
Post Race
After the race we went back to shower and change and headed out for some food. We had Chevy's for dinner and an early bedtime since I was exhausted, and the next morning we drove down to San Francisco to have breakfast with my dad before hitting the road back to San Diego. Looking back on the race I had a great time and would love to do it again. When? I'm not sure. These races are expensive and there are only two in San Diego which both have ocean swims which I really don't think I can handle. There are a lot of other 70.3's which are in lakes but they require travel. For now I'm going to relax a bit and maybe get back into calmer sports like yoga and paddle boarding and enjoy this accomplishment. Is a full Ironman in my future? NO WAY. I could barely train enough for this race and can't even imagine how I'd find twice as much time to workout. Training bike rides of 80-100 miles also sound like torture. Unlike the marathon, in this case I think a half is just good enough for me.
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