Collegiate Triathlon returns!
After Boulder, I took 2 weeks almost completely off (I totaled like 7 hours of physical activity over that time) and before I knew it, I had another race in 5 weeks and it was definitely time to start to get back into it.
This year, since the Lifetime Tempe Triathlon was no longer USAT Sanctioned and therefore no longer a Conference Race, we traveled up to Sand Hollow Reservoir, for the Kokopelli Triathlon in Utah. The 8-hour drive was long and decently boring, going North through Flagstaff and around the Grand Canyon was quite the trek, but the scenery was worth it. The time difference between Arizona and Utah was unforgiving, but we arrived at packet pick-up around 4PM, and then it was off to the reservoir for a quick shake-out swim. There was a boat ramp with docks on the sides of it, which mean there was going to be a #FullSend right off of it to get into the water. A perfectly executed entry sent me into the water for a quick shakeout. Team dinner and bedtime quickly ensure after that and it was race time!
On race morning, that water was barely cool enough to be wetsuit legal which was certainly an indicator of how hot the day was going to get (since the previous days were just as hot).My assigned spot in transition was bad, right next to bike in/out. The traditional pre-race potty went well, so I was certainly ready to go. After the team cheer, all the collegiate teams were lining up. Since it was a smaller collegiate field, we all started at the same time, which was not a problem, but something nobody was used to.
After keeping myself in the front line with an optimal line to the turn buoy, the gun went off and it was hectic. Although I was right near the front from the beginning, everyone seemed excited to go. Quickly, less than half way to the sprint-distance turn buoy, I found myself next to just one other athlete. By the time we got to that sprint turn buoy, We had begun to swim through the wave in front of us. I made a move on the outside of one of them and got myself ahead of him. Even though I could not shake him, despite my forcefully kicking when his hands came too far up my leg. Just before the turn buoy, I had had enough of his annoyance, pulled off to the side, and let him go around. I swam along side of him and soon near his legs/feet. Some point during this time, I felt so fatigue and weak I had to fight myself to keep swimming. And after sticking with the draft for a fair length, the spotting became rough and our line was not straight. I came out of the draft and began to swim on my own, and despite multiple efforts to get myself going, I just had nothing in me. Before I knew it, the other athlete must have seen this and made a move. I soon found myself without a draft, but unwilling to look back, I presume I was alone. After pushing myself hard to continue at the pace I was, I knew I had to stick with it, because the swim is normally my strongest leg. Exiting the swim in second, about 15-20 secs down, we had swam through the entirety of the two waves proceeding us.
Up the boat ramp and into transition, it was a small transition which means every second counted. A quick transition got me out on the course in first and right where I wanted to be. With poor direction from volunteers and signage, I was confused about where I was supposed to ride our of the State Park. Once I got to the main road, it was pretty straight forward as to where I was to ride.
Before the first right hand turn, I was passed and it was all about me finding my biking legs. Long story short, I must've left them in Tucson because I felt like absolute trash. Riding towards the one major climb, I was passed again and continually thought that the hill would allow me to find my legs. About 1 mile at 6% was surely enough to get the blood moving down there, but apparently not. I crested the top, still in 3rd and gave one last hard surge to try and get going. This also failed and I concluded that it was going to be about damage control for the rest of the race. At the turn around, I was still in 3rd, and saw teammates Nick and Jeff about 1 and 2 mins away from the turn around and me. With the way back being primarily, it was all about getting aero and conserving for the run. My tenacious self, said screw that and took a large gamble before the run, which was looking worse and worse, the closer I got to it. I went way harder on the way back than the way out, which ended up being about 6 minutes faster (with that fat downhill). Coming in hot, I rolled in to T2 in 3rd, very happy with where I was. (check me strava)
Strolling out of T2, I felt good, better than I was expecting. I downed a bottle of XRCEL, cause I only took in water during the ride. Knowing how previous races normally go from here, I tried to keep myself controlled as much as possible, still considering it was downhill for a bit, and it was only the beginning of the 10k. Right around the first aid station, about 2k in, Nick passed me, which I totally expected. Thinking I was still in the worst run shape (as always), I let him go, and gave him some encouragement, of course. At this point, I was wondering who else was closing in on me. At each aid station, I took some water to pour over my head and one to try and drink. Somewhere between 4 and 5k, Jeff passed me, which I also had expected. I definitely let him go because its Jeff. After the turn around which I got to in 20:28 (which was nice), I had timed it to be about 2 minutes from the turn around, before I saw the next collegiate athlete. After seeing that and realizing I was about 4 minutes up on him, I almost knew I was not going to die that hard, where I would lose 5th place. I kept my effort high as I was still feeling the best in the entire race. Seeing all my teammates on the way back was extremely helpful as it made the run back go by quickly. Nearing the uphill finish, I was still running strong and consistent throughout! Finishing in 5th in the Collegiate division was extremely satisfying for me (2:03.06 overall. (strava boi)
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Shoutout to the rest of the TriCats for racing tough. Men's went 3, 4, and 5 and won the race for the collegiate men. The women went 3, 7, and 8, and claiming second place for the collegiate team. A short hike at Zion National Park rounded out our day. Thanks to XRCEL for keeping me fueled once again!
Next, Pumpkinman Triathlon in Boulder City, Nevada on October 20th!
