2008 Mighty Hamptons Olympic Distance Triathlon
The weekend started well. I drove out with the family saturday and picked up my Mighty Hampton race pack in Southampton. We crossed the ferry to Shelter Island and stayed at my Uncle's place since the race is Sag Harbor and Shelter Island is way closer than Mastic Beach. Saturday night I ate pasta, drank much water and electrolyte drink, went to bed early. The alarms (multiple) were set for 5 am so I could catch the 5:40 ferry to Sag Harbor. I awoke at 4:40 and just decided to get up get ready and go. Which was a good decision. I didn't get out of the house until 5:15. Now since we only have one car and the family would be joining me at the race finish I had to bike to the ferry. Not usually a big deal it's only 10 miles to the race start (it's a good warm-up). I opened the garage door and low and behold it was dark. I know, I know you say duh its 5:15 am in September but I figured the moon is high I'll be ok. But at 5:15 am it was POURING! No moon, no stars and it's Shelter Island so no street lights. I get my stuff and start biking blindly into the rain and dark. Whistling as I go to keep the Shelter Island scourge (white tailed deer) from running into me as I bike down the deserted streets. It takes me about 20 minutes to get to the ferry. And I just miss the 5:40 ferry. I have to wait until 6am for the next ferry (they run every twenty minutes off season and at that hour).
I get the ferry cross over and I have 3 miles to the race site. BUT I HAVE TO BE THERE BY 6:25 am since I am in the first wave out. I have to haul ass. I get to the site just as the National Anthem is being sung. I set up my stuff in record time. Get in my wet suit as I run to the swim and just make it to the start with 15 seconds to spare. My swim was good. I did 33 minutes for a mile which is about my average. I wasn't going full force cause I wanted to save energy for the run where I need all the help I can get. I did zig-zag a bit, not to bad, but enough to add a few minutes. It poured while I swam. Which I love. It's really cool to have pelting rain hit your back and bounce off the water all around you as you are soaked in the water. You get that I'm caught in the rain feeling but you tell yourself, "it doesn't matter, I'm swimming" it's surreal.
I get out of the water and run to my bike which is soaked, my bike shoes are soaked, my helmet is soaked. Thankfully I had the foresight to bring a garbage bag so my socks and sneakers are both toasty warm and dry. I head out on the bike. I've done the course before so I know the first half is really hilly. Uphill hilly. So I am queen of the gears keeping my cadence even. Using my hamstrings and saving my quads. I do well averaging 13 mph. I can't wait for the second half which is flat with a big fast 30+ mph downhill to the transition. I am doing well. Only guys with Zipp wheels are passing me. Looking at my time I should get this sucker done around an hour maybe an hour ten. I'm feeling strong. I'm coming up to mile 15 all flat and downhill from here, cool now I can get some serious speed... I hear a hiss... $hit what is that... I take a turn, my brakes feel weird... I climb the last hill and wa wa wa wa $HIT a flat. I stop, fix it in 30 minutes, I say, "ok whatever my bike time is, I'll just subtract the 30 min and I'll know how I did. Flats happen."... I'm off again 2 miles later hisssss... FU¢K are you kidding me!!!! I stop fix the flat again and I find the culprit. A tiny itty bitty sliver of quartz has punctured my tire and has pierced the tube. Now, I am out of gear. No air, no tubes. I'm walking. I feel blisters forming on he bottoms of my feet. Rain and asphalt definitely a combination for blisters.
This awesome woman stops gives me her spare tube and a co2 cartridge. I ride again! I get maybe another mile and BAM tire pops. Must have over inflated. COME ON! — I'm screwed. I walk a few miles. Crying, cause well... I've been training for this sucker since February and all I seem to get this year are setbacks. Shingles, bronchitis, pulled muscles, twisted ankle, hurt knee, broken toe waaa poor me.... I finish my little pity party and decide I'll walk back and do the run what else can I do... QUIT? I don't think so.
I get down the road another mile and there is a policeman directing traffic keeping the racers safe. I ask the fastest way back to the transition area. He says it's 10 miles away. I am a bit crestfallen and I start to walk. He sees me shivering and says, "Miss I cannot allow you to walk. If you get hypothermia and die it will be on my conscience." So he escorts me to the patrol car. Now I'm thinking "Wow... for the past 35 years, all the stupid things I've done, I've never been in the back of one of these." and it actually surprises me.
The officer calls the race officials and they have a sweep van come and pick up all the stranded bikers. There are three of us. We follow the last biker into transition and there we are. I'm like F-it I'm running. The other two say I'm crazy and bring their bike to their cars. I get to my transition spot put on my dry shoes and go. I am last. Dead last. So last, they have a biker go with me to insure my safety. After a brief bathroom break (what, am I gonna lose my position) I'm running. Slow, cause thats the only speed I run. But I run. The whole thing. Every time I feel like walking I think of all the soldiers that come back from Iraq and have to do physical therapy blind. Or all the kids that play around land mines and have to go on living without a limb. They can do it. I can run. What sort of a douche-bag would I be to complain about a run. One that I signed up for! When there is real suffering out there. (I just watched the documentary Nobelity about a bunch of Nobel Peace Prize winners puts stuff into perspective.) ANYWAY... the whole time I was chanting my mantra, "I DO NOT GIVE UP. I DO NOT GIVE UP. I DO NOT GIVE UP." One hour and fifteen minutes later I crossed the finish line. (15 minutes faster than I thought I'd do) To a cheering crowd. My kids were the loudest "GO MOMMY GO" and my friends holding the tape. I get the last participant medal and beeline to the water. I am hot, sweaty, grease and sand covered, I have black goo in my fingernails, my race suit has black hand print smudges all over it and my hair is falling out of my braids. But I feel like a million bucks.
All-in-all. it was a crappy race. I finished with a whopping time of 4:51:51. BUT I FINISHED.
Swim time: 33:58 206 place overall .
T1:3:06
Bike time not recorded
T2: not recorded
Run: 1:19:15 (but I had a pee break)
Run place: 764
Overall time: 4:51:51
Overall place 779 out of 779 finishers
I'm guessing I would've finished around 3:15:00 which would've put me in 3rd of my division. 580 overall.
1000 signed up for the race so I beat 221 wusses.
Once again, I reminded myself I can do anything if I set my mind to it.
One whole year to train.
Next year I'll kick A$$.
I get the ferry cross over and I have 3 miles to the race site. BUT I HAVE TO BE THERE BY 6:25 am since I am in the first wave out. I have to haul ass. I get to the site just as the National Anthem is being sung. I set up my stuff in record time. Get in my wet suit as I run to the swim and just make it to the start with 15 seconds to spare. My swim was good. I did 33 minutes for a mile which is about my average. I wasn't going full force cause I wanted to save energy for the run where I need all the help I can get. I did zig-zag a bit, not to bad, but enough to add a few minutes. It poured while I swam. Which I love. It's really cool to have pelting rain hit your back and bounce off the water all around you as you are soaked in the water. You get that I'm caught in the rain feeling but you tell yourself, "it doesn't matter, I'm swimming" it's surreal.
I get out of the water and run to my bike which is soaked, my bike shoes are soaked, my helmet is soaked. Thankfully I had the foresight to bring a garbage bag so my socks and sneakers are both toasty warm and dry. I head out on the bike. I've done the course before so I know the first half is really hilly. Uphill hilly. So I am queen of the gears keeping my cadence even. Using my hamstrings and saving my quads. I do well averaging 13 mph. I can't wait for the second half which is flat with a big fast 30+ mph downhill to the transition. I am doing well. Only guys with Zipp wheels are passing me. Looking at my time I should get this sucker done around an hour maybe an hour ten. I'm feeling strong. I'm coming up to mile 15 all flat and downhill from here, cool now I can get some serious speed... I hear a hiss... $hit what is that... I take a turn, my brakes feel weird... I climb the last hill and wa wa wa wa $HIT a flat. I stop, fix it in 30 minutes, I say, "ok whatever my bike time is, I'll just subtract the 30 min and I'll know how I did. Flats happen."... I'm off again 2 miles later hisssss... FU¢K are you kidding me!!!! I stop fix the flat again and I find the culprit. A tiny itty bitty sliver of quartz has punctured my tire and has pierced the tube. Now, I am out of gear. No air, no tubes. I'm walking. I feel blisters forming on he bottoms of my feet. Rain and asphalt definitely a combination for blisters.
This awesome woman stops gives me her spare tube and a co2 cartridge. I ride again! I get maybe another mile and BAM tire pops. Must have over inflated. COME ON! — I'm screwed. I walk a few miles. Crying, cause well... I've been training for this sucker since February and all I seem to get this year are setbacks. Shingles, bronchitis, pulled muscles, twisted ankle, hurt knee, broken toe waaa poor me.... I finish my little pity party and decide I'll walk back and do the run what else can I do... QUIT? I don't think so.
I get down the road another mile and there is a policeman directing traffic keeping the racers safe. I ask the fastest way back to the transition area. He says it's 10 miles away. I am a bit crestfallen and I start to walk. He sees me shivering and says, "Miss I cannot allow you to walk. If you get hypothermia and die it will be on my conscience." So he escorts me to the patrol car. Now I'm thinking "Wow... for the past 35 years, all the stupid things I've done, I've never been in the back of one of these." and it actually surprises me.
The officer calls the race officials and they have a sweep van come and pick up all the stranded bikers. There are three of us. We follow the last biker into transition and there we are. I'm like F-it I'm running. The other two say I'm crazy and bring their bike to their cars. I get to my transition spot put on my dry shoes and go. I am last. Dead last. So last, they have a biker go with me to insure my safety. After a brief bathroom break (what, am I gonna lose my position) I'm running. Slow, cause thats the only speed I run. But I run. The whole thing. Every time I feel like walking I think of all the soldiers that come back from Iraq and have to do physical therapy blind. Or all the kids that play around land mines and have to go on living without a limb. They can do it. I can run. What sort of a douche-bag would I be to complain about a run. One that I signed up for! When there is real suffering out there. (I just watched the documentary Nobelity about a bunch of Nobel Peace Prize winners puts stuff into perspective.) ANYWAY... the whole time I was chanting my mantra, "I DO NOT GIVE UP. I DO NOT GIVE UP. I DO NOT GIVE UP." One hour and fifteen minutes later I crossed the finish line. (15 minutes faster than I thought I'd do) To a cheering crowd. My kids were the loudest "GO MOMMY GO" and my friends holding the tape. I get the last participant medal and beeline to the water. I am hot, sweaty, grease and sand covered, I have black goo in my fingernails, my race suit has black hand print smudges all over it and my hair is falling out of my braids. But I feel like a million bucks.
All-in-all. it was a crappy race. I finished with a whopping time of 4:51:51. BUT I FINISHED.
Swim time: 33:58 206 place overall .
T1:3:06
Bike time not recorded
T2: not recorded
Run: 1:19:15 (but I had a pee break)
Run place: 764
Overall time: 4:51:51
Overall place 779 out of 779 finishers
I'm guessing I would've finished around 3:15:00 which would've put me in 3rd of my division. 580 overall.
1000 signed up for the race so I beat 221 wusses.
Once again, I reminded myself I can do anything if I set my mind to it.
One whole year to train.
Next year I'll kick A$$.
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