St. George 70.3 race report

I want to be corny for a minute and just say that I have been so extremely lucky in my short triathlon career to end up in such good hands.  My coach Jaime Dispenza (swtricoaching) needs to take all of the credit for all of my successes thus far.  Also Angie Kandalaft and her company Centerpoint Events for putting together an amazing team and giving me the opportunity to go to some great events over the years.  Without these two people I don't know where I would be.  Thanks for always believing in me guys.*tear gently rolling down cheek*

Now for the race report:
The 70.3 St. George race is the toughest triathlon course I have ever done.  Period.  The 4000 net ft of elevation on the bike is tough and the additional net of 2200 ft on the run was even tougher. I was hoping for a top 5 overall finish and a qualification to 70.3 worlds in Mont Tremblant in September.  Climbing is one of my strengths and one of the reasons I signed up for this race to begin with but I knew that in order to crush this race I had to climb during my workouts whenever I could.  I did all of my intervals up tramway and la luz and spent long rides in the saddle behind the mountain over the rollers on S-14, up Placitas, and even once in the Gila from outside Hillsboro where I climbed Emery pass twice(this was brutal).  I rode with some great training partners(thank you Mindy!) who helped motivate me and push me and also rode with the High Desert group ride occasionally to partake in the roadie test-fest and get my butt kicked several times. I did lots of base running and some race pace and tempo type stuff but didn't step onto the track or do too much speed work to prepare for this.  I knew that keeping a good solid effort on the bike without overdoing it would be key to having a strong run.

Swim-
The swim is just not my best event.  I have been working on it and have had some great coaching from Coach Tim and put in a few longer workouts over the winter and am definitely stronger than last year but still am not able to compete with top swimmers.  I came out of the water in 31:03 and in 3 place in my age group which is pretty typical for me but I was not fatigued at all from the swim.  I felt like it was a good warm up for the bike and I wasn't even winded.  This may mean that I need to swim harder while racing which is something I am working on but I kept a 1:36/100meter pace which is the same pace I swam in an Olympic distance race a few weeks ago. I felt relaxed and excited to catch the next 2 girls on the bike. Chasing after the swim is not a new thing to me.

Bike-
This course starts off with a little bit of climbing to open up the legs as you climb out of the Sand Hollow reservoir.  I immediately began to pay attention to my heart rate and power number so that I wouldn't over do it on the bike.  It was sort of hard to keep my power low because the wave of men that went after us was beginning to pass me and I hate being passed!!! However I just kept reminding myself of MY power number and passed these big guys at the end of the bike;)  I passed both girls in my age group about 15 miles into the bike and then knew I was in the lead and wanted to stay steady and strong and remember to drink both of my bottles as well as stay fed before the last big climb. I drank both bottles of Osmo hydration with 2 endurolytes broken into each as well as a vanilla crisp Power Bar and 3 Strawberry banana Power gels.    Snow Canyon is a tough climb toward the end of the bike around mile 45 that is about 5-8% grade and about 8 miles long.  On paper it doesn't sound too hard especially with all of the climbing here in New Mexico but it was harder than I expected and  I had to keep reminding myself of all the climbing I did to prepare for this race as I climbed because it was long and hard and extremely hot. I was happy to make it through the bike portion safely and with decent legs for the run. I went 2:40:28 and about 21 mph.  This was not a PR but I didn't expect a PR on this course.

Run-
I ran 13.1 miles on this day with the biggest cheesiest grin on my face ever. I just couldn't stop smiling and not just because I was in first place but I just felt amazing and I knew that I could flatten out those hills because I had trained hard and am in a great place in my life and in my training.  I just felt great!!!! It was blazing hot out there so I just kept dumping water over myself and putting ice in my sports bra trying to cool down. I drank 2 cups of the sports drink they had on course and ate 1 gel.  I sipped a tiny bit of water but most of it just went over my head.  After the turn around I was able to see the lead I had and run safely into the finish with sore cheeks from smiling so big.  Now, I was the first female to cross the finish line and the announcer announced it 3 times!!!! It felt so cool to hear him announce me as the amateur winner. I knew it was unofficial and may be short lived but I had 10 minutes of glory!!!!! I ran a 1:35:15 half marathon which is a PR for me. 2 more women from a later wave (35-39) eventually beat my time but I finished within my goal and qualified for professional status which is cool.

So I was 3rd overall and had won my age group by 9 minutes securing my spot for World Championships in Canada in September!!!! Nothing to complain about here.  I had solid splits throughout the race and felt strong and that is what matters.  I admit I was worried to be running such low power on the bike for this race but it payed off big time(my coach is always right). I know that I still have improvements to make this season but I look forward to my next race! I will be at Lifetime Captex in Austin, TX on Memorial Day and then Deuces Wild on June 21 in Show Low, AZ.