While the other road racers were in Duluth racing I was dabbling in the sport of duathlons.
Saturday was the Apple Duathlon in Sartell (St. Cloud area). I picked up my sister—we were going to drive to Dickinson, North Dakota after the race. My sister is a Type A personality, I knew she wouldn’t just sit back and let me do my thing—instead feel the need to help or what I call dictate the situation. I know, be greatful she was there—but sometimes it's too much. She has never been to a race before and thought it would be necessary to read and tell me every rule like I was one of her children. She can be very helpful at times, but I’m a “Go with the flow” type of person. I wasn’t worried about the rules, after doing a few road races the rules tend to be the same. Plus, the announcers tell you them before you start. I was more worried about warming up, stretching, and having everything I needed for the transitions.
Dan “The Man” Stone from spin class was there, Judy his wife came to watch. I ran into a few people from the TH group: Melinda, Amy, and Larry. Amy qualified for the HI Ironman and said that this du was a recovery for her. I wish I could say the same!
After getting organized and ready we lined up. The Elite went first. Five waves later us ladies took off (all women were grouped together). The first block was “the hill”, I tried to keep myself at a steady pace so my heart rate wouldn’t spike. Although, starting the run on a hill will spike everyone’s heart rate. After cresting the hill I heard this wohh-wohh-wohh sound. I looked over to the right and the elite were already on their bikes! What the hell?—guess that’s why they are the elite.
I saw mile marker one and thought “This is the dumbest thing I have ever done. Why did I sign up for this thing? I’m not a runner. I like the bike, but this combination thing is just dumb.” It sounded like a great idea when I was sitting in front of the computer a few months ago. Only 26 miles to go! During the run I kept thinking about the bike part—oh how much fun that will be!
I got to the transition area got into my cycling gear and was off. The arrow bars I borrowed from Bill worked great—the position was very comfortable. My goal was to gain time during the 20.5 mile stretch on those who are the runners and to reduce my average heart rate. The challenge was pacing myself since there was another 3 mile run after the bike. The crosswinds from the east was not helping the situation. The winds can damage one’s mentality but racing this year in winds much stronger then what I was being dealt during this race, I was able to push that aside and just focus on continuing to be consistent. Unlike the run when everyone was passing me, I was able to pick away and start passing people. Those that passed me on the bike I was able to catch up and pass them a few minutes later.
Transiting to the last run I knew this was going to be the hardest part of the entire race. Staying at a consistent speed was the goal. My left calf started to cramp while I was putting on my shoes. I took a swig of water and started out—the cramping stopped. Since I was now warmed up, the second part of the run wasn’t too bad. I even joked around with some of the people cheering the runners on. Once I saw the Jr. High (the finish line) I kicked it up and tried to give it my all. I crossed the finish line after 2 hours and 7 minutes—tired, pleased with my time (although my transition times could have been shorter), and very happy that I completed the race.
I don’t know if I’ll do the du again. The pain is still fresh in my mind. I am excited that now I don’t have the nagging feeling that I should be running, instead I can run because I want to and that I can focus on cycling.
Results:
Time: 2:07:33
1st run time: 27:00 (avg 8:42)
Bike time: 1:06:58 (avg 18.4)
2nd run time: 29:44 (avg 9:35)
Saturday was the Apple Duathlon in Sartell (St. Cloud area). I picked up my sister—we were going to drive to Dickinson, North Dakota after the race. My sister is a Type A personality, I knew she wouldn’t just sit back and let me do my thing—instead feel the need to help or what I call dictate the situation. I know, be greatful she was there—but sometimes it's too much. She has never been to a race before and thought it would be necessary to read and tell me every rule like I was one of her children. She can be very helpful at times, but I’m a “Go with the flow” type of person. I wasn’t worried about the rules, after doing a few road races the rules tend to be the same. Plus, the announcers tell you them before you start. I was more worried about warming up, stretching, and having everything I needed for the transitions.
Dan “The Man” Stone from spin class was there, Judy his wife came to watch. I ran into a few people from the TH group: Melinda, Amy, and Larry. Amy qualified for the HI Ironman and said that this du was a recovery for her. I wish I could say the same!
After getting organized and ready we lined up. The Elite went first. Five waves later us ladies took off (all women were grouped together). The first block was “the hill”, I tried to keep myself at a steady pace so my heart rate wouldn’t spike. Although, starting the run on a hill will spike everyone’s heart rate. After cresting the hill I heard this wohh-wohh-wohh sound. I looked over to the right and the elite were already on their bikes! What the hell?—guess that’s why they are the elite.
I saw mile marker one and thought “This is the dumbest thing I have ever done. Why did I sign up for this thing? I’m not a runner. I like the bike, but this combination thing is just dumb.” It sounded like a great idea when I was sitting in front of the computer a few months ago. Only 26 miles to go! During the run I kept thinking about the bike part—oh how much fun that will be!
I got to the transition area got into my cycling gear and was off. The arrow bars I borrowed from Bill worked great—the position was very comfortable. My goal was to gain time during the 20.5 mile stretch on those who are the runners and to reduce my average heart rate. The challenge was pacing myself since there was another 3 mile run after the bike. The crosswinds from the east was not helping the situation. The winds can damage one’s mentality but racing this year in winds much stronger then what I was being dealt during this race, I was able to push that aside and just focus on continuing to be consistent. Unlike the run when everyone was passing me, I was able to pick away and start passing people. Those that passed me on the bike I was able to catch up and pass them a few minutes later.
Transiting to the last run I knew this was going to be the hardest part of the entire race. Staying at a consistent speed was the goal. My left calf started to cramp while I was putting on my shoes. I took a swig of water and started out—the cramping stopped. Since I was now warmed up, the second part of the run wasn’t too bad. I even joked around with some of the people cheering the runners on. Once I saw the Jr. High (the finish line) I kicked it up and tried to give it my all. I crossed the finish line after 2 hours and 7 minutes—tired, pleased with my time (although my transition times could have been shorter), and very happy that I completed the race.
I don’t know if I’ll do the du again. The pain is still fresh in my mind. I am excited that now I don’t have the nagging feeling that I should be running, instead I can run because I want to and that I can focus on cycling.
Results:
Time: 2:07:33
1st run time: 27:00 (avg 8:42)
Bike time: 1:06:58 (avg 18.4)
2nd run time: 29:44 (avg 9:35)
3 comments:
great job you should be proud of yourself!
next is a mtb race!
yeah right...
Way to go! I've toyed with the idea of a duathlon when running at the club. I always come to my senses when cycling season starts.
You the bomb!
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