"What I mean is that someone sees a race, and they think that’s what you do. They sort of know you had to train, but they weren’t watching then, so they don’t understand how incredibly much of it there is. But to us, it’s almost the whole thing. Racing is just this little tiny ritual we got through after everything else has been done. It’s a hood ornament."
It had special meaning to me this past week because getting back to the starting line was the big fight this year. These past few months I have felt stronger even than before my hip surgery last year. Despite feeling really strong and having some solid training under my belt, I was nervous about getting back on the starting line. Anyone that has followed my racing has likely noticed that I have struggled with the 70.3 distance. I often even go the same speed in a 70.3 as in a 140.6. I wanted to break that cycle this year, and also race well in the heat. Still though, I tried to go into this race without putting a lot of pressure on myself, and coach Tara even wrote the following in my race plan:
"Have fun in this first comeback race. No matter your finishing position, just execute your race girlie. You are ready to start your season."
Being around friends during the race weekend definitely helped to make it fun and keep the nerves at bay. A group of local athletes from Hampton Roads was there for the race including Lucero, Robin, Diana, JP, Tanya and Tony. Lucero, Tony and Diana are coached by the Dai Roberts Group and both Dai and his wife Denise came down for the race. Even though I am not one of their coached athletes, they showed me a tremendous amount of support over the weekend and I am very grateful to have had them there. Lucero and Diana graciously let me stay with them when my arrangements fell through. Robin invited me on some island adventures with her. Lucero's mother took all of us in. Lucero and mama Lucero even pretended it was my birthday at dinner one night so that they would deliver cake to me, make me laugh and calm my pre race nerves. After the race I was able to catch up with friends Tomasz and Kasia. Tomasz met me when I was first getting into triathlon. I remember at Providence 70.3 in 2010 he asked me what age group I was in. When I answered 18-24, he said oh, the Ironkids division! It has been really fun staying in touch with him over the years. I was also able to catch up with our friend Kiley, who finished in a great 2nd in AG despite flatting on the bike. Overall, I was once again reminded of the generosity and kindness of the triathlon community. Big congrats to everyone for a great day out there!
My "birthday" celebration
Despite a hot, tough day, this girl (Lucero) always had a big smile on her face
I wasn't quick enough with the camera to get everyone, but here is Tanya. Sometimes I have a hard time hearing cheers on the course but I heard her, thanks girl!
Kiley, 2nd 30-34 even with a flat
Post race dinner out with friends Tomasz and Kasia
Race morning came quickly and I walked down to the swim start with new pro and fellow Virginian Samone. It's always nice getting to meet the other women and chat with them. After a short warm up, I lined up with the other women. The start was not quite as fast as I expected, or maybe I'm finally getting better at race starts. Getting my butt kicked at masters swim has probably helped with that :) I was able to get in with a really good group and stayed with them, resulting in probably my best non-current aided swim. I didn't fall on my face coming down the ramp steps, gave Denise a big grin for starting the day off well and started the long trek to T1.
Before the swim start, getting zipped into my awesome Zoot swim skin by Tony
At the start of the bike I passed a few women and settled into my effort. I had my concentrated bottle of Infinit that I was taking gulps from every 10 min to get some good calories and sodium. The bike course was a fun, fast course. They actually closed a large portion of highway for the race so we were treated to wide lanes, some small hills (mostly overpasses and exit ramps) and some great views of the ocean. At the pro meeting the day before, one of the Ironman employees joked that he was on the iguana scraping team and the roads did look very clean. I almost added to the dead iguana count myself though when one ran right in front of my oncoming bike.
Thank you Phil at Competitive Image for this amazing photo, and was very nice to meet you walking back from dinner one night!
I had decided before the race to wear my Smith Optics road helmet and really think that it helped me to not overheat too much. Even so I could feel myself starting to get hot in the last 10-15 miles and at that point we were riding into the head/cross wind to get back to T2. At this point I made the hard but important decision to listen to myself and dialed back my effort just a little. I also decided that I would probably need to go out more conservatively than I had originally planned on the run. I wanted to spend the first few miles focusing on cooling and not overheating.
Some bike photos from ATV photography, thank you Allan!
Thank you ATV photography for this photo! Holy quads
The run course is two loops and at the far end of the course we passed through the gate of San Juan and ran along the side of the fort. This area has been deemed "the microwave" because the heat radiates off the tall fort walls. Since it is a national park, it is also the longest stretch without aid (about 1.5 mi). I really loved this part though. The views were amazing and after a few short, steep hills it was nice to have a long flat stretch to pick up some momentum. Back out the gate it was a short, steep cobblestone hill. Turning around for the second loop I knew I was going to be able to have a good last 6 miles. Entering the fort again I could see 3 women not too far ahead. I picked it up a little and made the passes before going back through the gate. I ran hard up the cobblestone hill and then kept a good steady push the last two miles, scared they would summon some energy reserves and pass me back.
Thank you again Phil at Competitive Image photo for these great shots, you were saying you just want to make the athletes look cool and I think you did!
There was one final hill right before the finish chute and then I could see the line I'd been waiting over a year to see again. I was grinning from ear to ear, slapping high fives and was so excited to be back in the game. I was extremely pumped to be 5th, my best placing in a 70.3. Even more than that though I was proud of myself for racing within myself and executing a good day. I controlled my race rather than letting the race control me, and that is a lesson I will keep with me.
Thank you to my new Puerto Rican friend Emma for this picture! She helped me during check in, wished me luck before the swim (and took that pre-swim photo) and gave me a big hug at the finish while she was volunteering. I love this community!
After the race I chatted with several of the professional women. I have always been very impressed at how gracious and nice they all are. I met several at this race that I hadn't met before and am looking forward to seeing them again at other races this season. I've had the pro women celebrate with me after a good result and comfort me after a not so great day. They set wonderful examples and I am proud to be a part of the group.
Big congrats to Tine Decker! And all of the professional women
I got a few calories in, a little post race massage, grabbed my stuff from transition and called Brian. He more than anyone has seen firsthand the work I've put in to get back this season. He was really excited for me that everything came together on race day, especially since he knows I've had trouble before with 70.3s. I also had stolen his orange Smith sunglasses for the race so I think now I will have to keep racing with them :P I called my coach Tara and she was ecstatic that all the training has paid off and I was able to race smart. It is always so awesome to look at my phone after the race and see the incredible pouring in of support from friends and family. Usually regardless of the result! I know some might say it's "just" 5th, but I honestly felt like I had won with the amount of encouragement and congratulations I received. So I thank you all so much for that. Huge thank yous to the companies that support me. I was wearing my Zoot kit from last year (which was pretty fitting for my comeback race), so look out for my new Team Zoot kit coming shortly. Zoot makes the best tri kits, and I love the Zoot tempo shoe and swim skin. I loaded up on Beet Performer (use code rachel16 for 15% off at Amazon!) pre-race and really feel a difference drinking it on a regular basis. Pre-race I drank some Infinit mud for a little boost and then used my custom bike mix in a concentrated bottle for the bike (available in their community formulas!). I felt well fueled and hydrated, then post race the nocturne helped with my recovery. The Garmin 920 and Vector pedals were the perfect tools to make sure I was maintaining good efforts and paces. The neon Smith optics helmet had perfect venting for a hot day and I love their sunglasses. Ghent chiropractic is always making sure my body is working properly so I don't have any twinges on race day. Even though I dread ART work on my psoas, my stride appreciates it.
Lucero, Robin and I after the race enjoying some shade (something that was in short supply on the course!)
I also want to give a big thank you to my surgeon Dr. Andrew Wolff of Washington Orthopedics and Sports Medicine for doing such a great job on my hip. He was very reassuring and attentive and understood my goals to get back to full training and racing. My PT Dr. Lucas Johnson and his assistant JP worked closely with me on my rehab and I would not be in the shape I am now with no issues if it weren't for them.
I don't usually get to do the destination race thing. So now, a montage of my time in Puerto Rico:
Pre race checking out the Camuy Caves, really pretty
Who needs horse trailers in Puerto Rico
I did a bit of a caffeine taper for the race, so was very excited to get some Puerto Rican coffee after
I wanted to get some pictures of the architecture for my brother (an architecture student at RPI). I loved all the colorful buildings and different doors.
The gate of San Juan, it was pretty cool running through this, the same gate the king used to arrive through.
La Fortaleza San Felipe Del Morro. The fort we ran through twice on the far end of the run course. Also called "the microwave" because the heat radiates off the fort walls. I really loved this part of the course though.
Steep cobblestone hill we ran up right after exiting the fort. Another fort we ran by (La Fortaleza San Cristobal)
Some of the wildlife, still sad I didn't see a manatee. Brian got so excited about the iguanas, he really wanted me to try and catch one.
The day after the race, we chased some fish around in the clear water. Saw lots of cool fish, including my favorite sergeant major fish, a barracuda, surgeonfish, angelfish, lionfish, and some colorful wrasses and damselfish.
It was Luceros' turn for a fake birthday at our post-race celebration. Loved getting to hang out with all these wonderful people!
A few last minutes relaxing by the ocean before flying out
Don't call it a comeback! Excited for the rest of this season. Up next some local racing and then IMTX!
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