Challenge Knoxville Olympic Triathlon Relay Race Recap {and a special guest co-author!}

Challenge Knoxville Olympic Distance Triathlon Relay - 5.17.15

Race Morning!

Stats -
Swim:  Me (30:44)
T1: Me (3:14)
Bike: Me (1:27:32)
T2: R+C (1:06)
Run: C (38:30)
Total: R+C (2:41:07)
Place: 4th of 10 relays

See Clint's side of the story/his run recap at the end of my recap!

I have been excited about this event, Challenge Knoxville, for the past few months.  Challenge Family recently merged with Rev3 and all Rev3 triathlon events became Challenge Family events starting in 2015. Knoxville was to be the very first Rev3-turned-Challenge Family event and expectations were high all around for a great event. I raced Rev3 Knoxville the past two years and actually my very first Rev3 event ever was Knoxville in 2013 (where I subsequently fell in love with Rev3 events!). I did the 70.3 relay in 2013 (I did the very frigid 1.2 mile swim in 55 degree water!) and did the individual Olympic distance race in 2014. I love the city of Knoxville (from these race experiences) and was eager to return....and to bring Clint along for the adventure!

In addition to being on the Challenge Family age group team and looking forward to seeing my teammates at the race, I was excited to get to spend time with another group of Tri-friends. This seemingly-random group of friends was birthed in the fall of 2012 when my friend from graduate school, Dave Cravotta sent me a facebook message asking if I would do a 70.3 with him. I had just completed my first 70.3 (Ironman Branson) in September of 2012 and he had decided he wanted to give one a whirl as well. From there, our group of two snowballed and became a group of about a dozen...and now we all get together at various races. Last year a group of us met up in Knoxville and stayed together in a great condo in the downtown square area (Shout out to Mr. Knuth for the great discovery!!) and we planned to do the same thing this year.

Clint and I each had a long day on Friday:  I spent about an hour at work in the morning and then drove to Peoria for the state track meet where one of our stellar track athletes competed in the long jump and Clint worked until 8. We ate a quick dinner together after he got off of work and hit the road by 9. While we drove, we chatted about the fact that my darn right foot is still being less than cooperative. A few days prior to this, Clint had already told me that he thought I should compete in the aquabike division instead of doing the whole triathlon so as not to run more and risk hurting my foot even more substantially. Though this sucked to hear (running is my "love" as far as the three tri legs go!), I knew he was right. As we talked, though, it hit me that Challenge also has relay divisions for all distances...I asked Clint if he would be down to relay it up with me. He said that he would and seemed excited about the prospect...if he could find some racing flats in Knoxville once we arrived (all he had packed were trainers). A quick e-mail to a Challenge teammate who lives in Knoxville (Lana, you are the BOMB!!!) resulted in a recommendation of a great local shop, Runners Marker. I became more excited...the thought of doing a relay with Clint was awesome!

We drove a few hours and stayed at a crappy Ramada somewhere outside of Indianapolis. Saturday morning we drove the rest of the way to Knoxville...through lots of torrential rain that unfortunately hindered our ability to admire the beautiful scenery (not to mention made it hard to see the road in general!). Thankfully Clint took on most of the driving that day so we arrived in one piece ;). 

A dreary drive!

The rain let up about 20 miles outside of Knoxville which was great and meant that we could walk around the expo without getting soaked.

We both walked around the expo a bit and changed my individual Olympic entry to the relay division with no issues (THANK YOU to the Challenge staff for their flexibility and helpfulness!). I had signed up to use some demo Profile Design racing wheels (a special free service Profile Design offered at this race!) and brought my bike to their tent to get the wheels installed on my bike. Clint headed out to find Runners Market (we split up as we were on a bit of a time crunch...it was already late in the afternoon and the running shop closed at 6!). When the wheels were installed, I brought my bike to transition and racked it for the night.

I then wandered down to the beautiful Tennessee Boathouse (where the U of Tennessee's women's rowing team works out) next to the swim start to scope out the water. It was a beautiful day and I was hopeful that the next morning would be beautiful as well (HAHA!). 

A BEAUTIFUL afternoon in Knoxville!

Soon, Clint returned with some sweet Brooks flats and striped shorts (and a singlet that ended up being too big) and picked me up. We then headed out in search of dinner...to one of our favorite places that is unfortunately not available in BloNo- Whole Foods!

After finding some dinner (hooray for the Whole Foods yummy food bar!) and food for the rest of the weekend, we headed back to our rented condo where we were greeted by my friends Chuck, Colleen, Richelle, Gina and Esteban. We hung out for a bit and got our things settled...and then Clint and I went for a walk around the Market Square area where we were staying so I could show him around this cute part of the city and we could scope out some restaurants to eat at later on in the weekend. This area of Knoxville is a lot of fun and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to travel to the area!

After our walk (which included purchasing some dark chocolate covered espresso beans at a local chocolate shop...YUM!) we headed back to the condo to put on our race number tattoos and to get everything ready for the morning. The race number tattoos always end up being not as easy as they seem they should be and we ended up with a few mistakes...oh well.  In addition, some of them were incredibly sticky once applied...causing anything and everything to become stuck to them. I had a long black hair stuck in my arm tattoo the next morning. Interesting...

Sunday morning we woke up nice and early and ate breakfast. My breakfast of choice:  a yummy sweet potato we baked the night before, mixed up in a cold mush with almond milk + figs + walnuts. Don't knock it til you try it...it's one of my favorite breakfasts...YUM!! Chuck had left the condo before I was even up (he did the 70.3 division and had an earlier start time). The rest of us started wandering down toward transition a little after 6am. HOORAY for early mornings! NOT...

Transition was about a mile away from our condo which was not bad. The walk was more than worth it for the convenience of having our own kitchen in the condo and lots of space to spread out and hang out with friends. Once we arrived, I busied myself with the typical tri-duties of making sure my transition area was set up with everything I needed. It had been a while since my last tri...so there were a few things I forgot (like flip flops), but nothing that was crucial. I had the big things...you know...a bike, helmet, goggles, bike shoes ;).

Me and Mr. Wells before the race

Transition closed at 7:30 for oly athletes, so around that time we made our way to the porta-potties for my final visit and then with a vigorous application of TriSlide + Clint's help, I wrastled on the rubber beast that is my wetsuit. UGH! I hadn't worn the thing since June...thankfully it actually fit a bit better than I had remembered since I am down a few pounds since this time last year so at least I had that going for me.

As we walked down to the swim start, it started drizzling. The day was ugly and overcast, not at all like the beautiful blue skies that were present the day before. I danced around nervously in my wetsuit and slurped down a cold brew coffee energy packet for some helpful caffeine. Soon it was time for the orange caps (the last heat!) to meander down to the end of the dock and jump in...so Clint told me goodbye and good luck with a kiss and I was off! I walked down to the edge of the dock and hesitated for just a moment before jumping in. I had heard the water temp was great...around 72 degrees or so and indeed it felt pretty great. I had gone back and forth regarding the decision to wear a wetsuit (in general I think I am more comfortable without one because they make me a bit claustrophobic) but I ended up feeling really good in the suit and was glad I had it (honestly, like I said previously, I think the better fit now has something to do with that!).

Me? Nervous?!

I did a few practice strokes and before long it was time to get situated for the start. We treaded water for a bit...and with the blast of an air horn, we were off! The beginning of a tri swim is always a slightly uncomfortable endeavor. Bodies thrashing around to find their rhythm and people swimming in less-than-straight lines makes for a hazardous environment. I am not a strong swimmer (frankly, I have never put for the time and effort necessary in order to become one!) and this was only my fourth swim of the year (and first open water swim). Going into it, I didn't even know if I would be able to swim the entire 0.9 mile course without pausing! Within the first hundred meters or so, some woman behind me to my left literally hit me in the head with her open hand. It made me see stars and I responded with some strong kicks to get away and to let her know that there was indeed another swimmer in the water (sorry I'm not sorry!).

The loop course had us swimming to the left of the start, taking a right turn after a few hundred meters, going straight for about a third of the length of the first portion, and then turning right again for the final long straight shot down the river to the swim out. By the first turn, I had found my own place and rhythm somewhere in the middle of the pack and settled in. After the second turn I wondered if I was going a little slow and reminded myself that Clint was waiting at the end of the swim and I didn't want to be TOO embarrassingly slow! So, I buckled down and made myself put forth a bit more effort. Though I know little to nothing about truly GOOD swimming form, I tried to concentrate on keeping my body on top of the water with my legs straight and did my best to produce some trunk rotation. My self-perception was that I did start moving a bit faster at this point and settled in to this new, "better" rhythm as I soldiered on to the end. As I swam, I picked out orange caps to pass and counted at least 5 that I passed. I also passed a fair number of yellow caps (from the previous heat) which made me feel a bit more confident.

Soon the dock where we were to exit the water was well within my sights so I cranked out a few last strokes and pulled myself out of the water (silently congratulating myself for making it through the swim without pausing!). I turned to the left to run up the dock and saw Clint, smiling. Turns out he was taking a video of my ever-graceful exit ;). Nice. 

I ran into the boathouse where a kind woman waiting there helped me pull off my wetsuit (I thought there weren't wetsuit strippers...but I was grateful for the help!) and then continued on my way up the dock, across the road and into transition. I hit lap on my watch and tried to get my bike shoes, helmet, and sunglasses secured as soon as possible. I grabbed a PowerBar performance energy blast (one of the fruit puree things...love them!) and ran with my bike to the bike out where Clint was standing. With a smile and a, "go get it Matyasse" I was off!

Mmmmm...slurping down some PowerBar fruity goodness before setting out on the bike!

Looking back at the results, somehow I was out of the water in 30:44. I really don't know how this is possible, but I managed to shave some considerable time off of my time from the same race last year which was 35:36.  I don't remember how much swim training I did prior to last year's event, but I am fairly certain it was more than this year's. The last time I did a swim of any meaningful distance was in June of 2014 when I did the 1.2 mile swim at the Rev3 Dells event. Following that race, I didn't do another complete triathlon all year (I did a relay at Rev3 Cedar Point, but just did the bike leg).  I have been in the pool 3 times since January.  Three.  I was almost 5 full minutes faster on the swim this year and managed to keep a 2:08/100m pace which is pretty decent for me. It didn't feel like there was much of a current....but maybe there was!  After the swim leg, our relay team was 8th out of 10.  Well...we weren't last!! ;)

I passed a few bikes right away as I started mile 1 and made my way up a highway ramp.  Within the first two miles or so, I saw someone by the side of the road fixing a flat. Wow, that sucks, I thought. I noticed as I passed that the person helping out with the flat was actually my friend Esteban! I smiled as I continued on my way...it was no surprise that this guy was helping another athlete in need. Last year he came to hang out for the weekend even though he was injured and could only do the swim (he swam and then DNF'ed as he planned) yet still brought along an entire arsenal of gear and tools to help everyone else out! He's a stand-up guy, that Esteban!

Around mile 2, I accidentally hit one of the buttons on my still-new Garmin and ended up sending the timer into "transition two" (it was in tri mode). Darn it! I flipped through and just re-started it in "bike" mode, but was slightly disappointed that I wouldn't have accurate times for the race on the watch. Oh well ;). 

It wasn't long into the ride when I realized Wow! This course is a lot hillier than I remembered!  Similar to how some women say they forget the trauma and pain of childbirth (ok, clearly I wouldn't REALLY know! ;)) I had apparently wiped from my memory the fact that the Knoxville bike course is a hilly beast! It is really never flat...rather it's a series of pretty constant climbs and descents. Not long into the bike leg, it started raining harder and frankly it made me kinda paranoid. I am not the strongest cyclist regardless, but this was just my 3rd real bike ride off the trainer of the season (I had ridden the 12k Tuesday Night Time Trial in our town the week of the race and the week prior to the race...in addition to that, I rode 7 miles alongside Clint in the country as he ran after the Lake Run a few weeks back...and I did a few 1-4 mile rides leading my track distance kids...other than that, my winter + spring bike training was limited to sporadic trainer rides!). Additionally, I was riding on new-to-me wheels and tires. I was white-knuckling it down most of the {scary} descents just hoping and praying I would stay upright!

As I neared mile 11 (or so?) I came across a man who was standing alongside the road warning cyclists to slow down because there were two wrecks ahead. I heeded his caution and carefully made my way down the next curvy hill. At the bottom, I saw an ambulance with a female in the back on some sort of body board with a neck brace on. This induced moderate panic within me and I felt my breathing start to intensify...clearly conditions were dangerous and I didn't want to see myself be part of the casualties! It also brought back an icky memory of a ride Memorial Day weekend in 2012. I had just purchased my shiny new Trek Madone road bike and was excited to bring it home to show my parents. My dad was excited to go on a bike ride with me on his hybrid Trek and to show me the 10-mile route that he enjoyed riding near their home. It had rained earlier that day, so the roads were slick. I let him lead because I knew my bike was faster than his and I didn't want to accidentally go too quickly. We carried along at a reasonably gentle pace and came to a hill in a neighborhood. The hill was pretty steep and curved to the right toward the bottom. He took off down the hill with reckless abandon and when he turned to the right to go with the curve, wiped out pretty darn hard. Let me tell you, I can still see that entire scene playing out in my head to this day. Long story short, my mom came to the rescue and carted him (and his bike) to the ER. I followed on my bike. He was fine...aside from basically superficial wounds that were just painful enough to be annoying but not serious. But...I am still a giant chicken on wet road conditions now because of that day (well, mostly because of that anyway ;)).

Shortly after seeing that girl in the back of an ambulance, I mentally talked myself down from my pseudo-panic attack and slowed my breathing. Soon afterwards, I saw a guy who had crashed being helped by a group of people. Other than these two significant crashes, I saw more than 5 people dealing with flat tires or other mechanical issues. Not a good day on the bike course! I was relieved to make it back to transition with NO mishaps.  I saw Clint right next to Bike In and was so happy to see him!  We hurried together to our transition area where I racked my bike and he took the timing chip from my ankle, I stole a kiss...and he was off!  I started a run timer on my watch so that I could be sure to be in place to finish the run with him by 35 minutes or so (he was shooting to finish in under 40 minutes).  I cleaned up my transition area a bit...UGH!  Nothing like some nice rain to make everything a soggy mess.  Triathlon is a disgusting, high-maintenance sport ;).  After a few minutes I headed up to the finish line and watched finishers run in.

Ready to run...always!

And he's off!

Again, this split was somehow quite a bit faster than last year's when I finished in 1:33:05 with an average pace of 16.11 mph. This year's finishing time was 1:27:32 (or about 5.5 minutes faster!) with an average pace of 17.14 mph. I was using better wheels than my own this year (the demo Profile Design wheels), however the course conditions this year were FAR worse due to the weather. So, I would think that those two variables (better wheels and worse weather this year compared to less awesome wheels and more awesome weather) would kinda cancel each other out...and the improved performance this year is likely due to better all-around fitness (in spite of limited bike-specific training!). Who knows though. Also of note, I managed to pass one relay competitor during the bike to bring our relay team up to 7th of 10.

A really fun part of Rev3-now-Challenge events is the fact that they allow you to have family members, friends, relay teammates...whomever!...cross the finish line with you. I waited for a few minutes and soon enough...saw my shirtless wonder booking it toward me and the finish line. I threw off my sweat shirt and crossed my fingers and prayed that my foot would allow me to finish off the final 0.1 mile at Clint's blistering pace ;). As he approached, I started running and he quickly appeared by my side. We ran together, me grinning of course, and finished together in a total time of 2:41:07...faster than I could do an Oly tri on my own for sure!

Big Finish!

 With my Swim+T1+Bike+T2 combined time of 2 hours, 2 minutes and 36 seconds...if I were to have completed the run leg in what I ran last year's 10k run leg in (56:55 with a pace of 9:11)...I would've gotten a time of about 2:59:31 (my PR is 2:59:39, set in 2013). If I were healthy (read: no foot injury!) I would've been fully capable of pulling off a far faster 10k than last year...meaning I am (when healthy) in oly-distance PR shape! Encouraging!! I'm excited about TriShark (sprint distance tri on June 6...just under 3 weeks away) and hope I can be healthy enough to power through for a PR.

After we finished, we spent some time at the finish cheering on other finishers. The finish line of a race is always one of my favorite places to hang out! We saw some pretty inspirational finishers (like the pro who had crashed yet still finished the race with tri shorts that had big holes in the front and back and big bandages covering up some pretty significant road rash!). We also saw our friend Chuck finish his 70.3 with a PR!  Way to go Chuck!!

Pretty sure he was darn relieved to be done!

Later we celebrated our awesome race experience with a late-afternoon meal at the fabulous Tupelo Honey Cafe. 

Shrimp + Goat Cheese Grits? When in the south...

THANK YOU to Challenge Family for putting on an AMAZING race and for the privilege of being on the Challenge Triathlon Team! THANK YOU to my teammates for being all-around awesome people and inspirational athletes. 

Me with some of my Challenge Teammates and the Overall Winner, Cameron Dye

THANK YOU to my friends and weekend roomies for the FUN and support!! Chuck, Richelle, Colleen, Gina and Esteban...you guys are awesome and I hope to see you again (and race with you again!) SOON! {Special thanks to Chuck for setting up the accommodations!!}

THANK YOU to Often Running + Mitch for allowing my teammate + partner Clint to accompany me on this adventure so that he could ultimately become my last-minute relay partner! THANK YOU to the Often Running Racing Team for the constant support and camaraderie. THANK YOU to Clint for being a great relay teammate and for stepping up at the last minute to do the run leg for me in my broken state! {I also SO appreciate Clint's patience and support of me...if he had a relay partner with skills that were more comparable to his, the relay's finishing time + place would've been far more impressive. However, he never makes me feel like I am less than an equal with him in spite of my lesser skills...and for that I am grateful!} Last but not least, THANK YOU to another area team, the Grim Reapers, for the camaraderie before, during and after the race! It is SO awesome to see familiar faces at races...especially when they are far from home! I do so love this sometimes crazy sport and am grateful for all of the lessons it has taught me, the fun I have had as a result and for the people it has brought into my life.

Next Up - Tri Shark Sprint Triathlon in Hudson on June 6 and then the Steamboat Classic in Peoria on June 20.  I am doing my best to be a good girl and to rest + roll + ice + stretch so that I can be up and running again ASAP!  The early season races have really gotten me excited about this season and I hope not to be sidelined from running for much longer! {Someone has a marathon PR to set this year!! Come on, foot!!}

Keep on keepin' on!

~Rachel

{CLINT'S PERSPECTIVE} -

Friday night after work Rachel and I ate dinner, packed, and got on the road for Knoxville, Tennessee. She is a member of the Challenge Family Triathlon Age Group team. As part of her team requirements, she has to complete in a couple of their events during the course of the year. There are really only two events that are logistically "easy" to do (read - within reasonable driving distance): Challenge Knoxville and Cedar Point. Challenge Knoxville has a few different races to choose from; Half iron-distance, Olympic, and aqua bike in either distance. There was also a Championship distance for people that qualified based on last year's race performances. Anyway, we drove about 3 hours Friday night and stayed in a dank and dingy Ramada inn. The air conditioner in the room wouldn't work and was only spitting out slightly cool moist air. We had two beds in the room; one of the beds was clean and the other had a wide array of stains and markings on the comforter.

Saturday morning we left the hotel and drove the last 5 hours to Knoxville. During that drive it popped into our heads that we could do the race as a relay. Rachel has been dealing with a pretty nasty case of plantar fasciitis and hasn't been running. I thought that would be a pretty great idea but I had no racing flats and nothing to race in. After a few quick emails we get the name of a local run shop so that I could try and get a pair of flats. We arrived at the race site and got everything situated-- we changed her entry and switched it up to the Olympic relay--. As she was getting her bike racked I drove over to Runner's Market. The sales people were awesome and I bought a pair of Brooks Racing flats and a pair of Brooks split shorts. I tried my best to get something Adidas but they quit carrying Adidas. Shoes secure, bike in transition, we made our way to the condo.

Race morning
Woke up at 5am to get coffee and breakfast situated. We gathered our gear and headed down to transition to set up everything. Rachel grabbed her goggles and wet suit and we made our way down to the swim start. It was raining the entire walk down to the race start and continued to rain through the swim. I snapped a few pictures of Rachel and she got out of the water and as she got onto the bike. I don't think the rain really let up much at all during her entire bike ride.

As I was waiting for her to get done with the bike portion, I set out to get a warm up mile in. My legs were totally unresponsive. After three weekends in a row of racing my legs were in strict protest. I jogged about a half mile before I just gave up and headed to transition. I waited for her to come in, and while doing so, saw many people being brought in off the course. The rain had caused some dangerous conditions and people were wiping out on the course. One was pretty bad (I heard) and had to be carted away on a stretcher. I was a bit nervous but as if on cue, she pulled into transition. I grabbed the timing chip from her ankle, threw my shirt off, and hit the run course.

Mile 1: 6:10
I told Rachel that I was going to go out at 6:10 pace and see what happened. If I averaged close to that for the entire run I'd be happy. The run course is an out and back with a few rolling hills. Shortly before receiving the timing chip, the rain had stopped. At this point, the weather started to warm up and the humidity was creeping steadily up. My legs felt pretty awesome at this point as I clicked off my goal pace for the first mile.

Mile 2: 6:10
This mile was a bit more of a struggle than the first but still manageable. I was passing people left and right and I made it a game to continue passing as many people as possible. I felt remotely bad since I was doing a relay and most of them were doing the entire swim-bike-run.

Mile 3: 6:18
A bit off the mark. I had started grabbing water right from the start. I'm pretty sure all of that travel had left me a bit dehydrated. I was still passing people so I was good there.

Mile 4: 6:06
I hit the turn around and started gunning it for home. I passed a few of our roommates and some Grim Reaper fitness athletes. Still sucking down water, the humidity was becoming stifling. I was now taking two cups at a time; one cup to drink and another to throw on my head. When the watch heaped and showed my time I knew I had hit it a bit too fast

Mile 5: 6:26
I definitely paid for the last mile. The heat, the hill on this mile, and the humidity were starting to suck.

Mile 6: 6:27
It was a struggle to keep this pace. The past few weekends of hard races and the Thursday workouts were taking their toll.

The last .2
I knew I would be seeing Rachel soon so  right around the 5.9 mile mark I started upping the pace. With .1 left to go Rachel joined me. We sprinted into the finish together with my run being 38:31 (a 6:13 per mile average pace. We ended up being 4th out of the relays after adding in her swim and bike efforts.

Normally I would thank Often Running and Adidas but this time due to unforeseen circumstances (not knowing I was going to race) I have to thank Runner's Market and Brooks for having some pretty awesome gear. If any of you are in Knoxville, Tennessee check out their store. It definitely had an Often Running vibe to it. Thanks to Rachel for letting me do the relay with you and introducing me to some pretty awesome people.

SAYONARA, Knoxville!  ...Until next year! :)

Lake Run 12k 2015 Race Report/Overall Female Win!

Lake Run 12k - 5.2.15

This race was to be the third weekend in row that I would be racing.  I was excited to be able to be able to register for the Lake Run this year as it is a pretty large event in my BloNo community.  I'm pretty sure I've only actually done this race once...back in 2009 I did the 12k and got 1:05:39 and 7th in my 25-29 age group.  I knew I wouldn't have any issues beating that this time (as long as I made it to the start line in one piece I guess!) and wanted to place well overall.  A couple of weeks before the race I started quietly looking at finishing times from previous years to get an idea of what I might have to do to place well in my age group or even overall.  To be honest, I started to think about the possibility of an overall win but tried to push that thought away because I wasn't quite sure how realistic it would be. I was coming off of two big PRs (5k on 4.18.25 and 13.1 on 4.25.15) and was feeling rather beat up (*understatement*).

My right foot has been giving me grief for the past few months.  The pain tends to move around in my foot, which is rather irritating.  Most frequently it is around my midfoot in and around my arch on the inside of my foot.  More recently it has moved to the outside of the foot as well.  Last weekend (U of I half marathon), I tied my shoes a little too tightly (I didn't want the laces coming untied in the rain and also the extra tightness kind of felt "good" on my sore foot).  After the race the top of my foot hurt (surprise!) from tying those laces too tightly and I had a gross raised bump on one of my tendons that not only hurt to touch but also moved around when you pushed on it (lovely ;)).  So now, in addition to the suspected plantar fasciitis, I had a top-of-the-foot injury as well.  Hooray for me! ;)

This past week, I babied my foot a bit.  I didn't run at all after the U of I Half Marathon last Saturday until the Thursday night group run at Often Running.  That night I ran 5 easy miles which didn't feel amazing but also didn't feel terrible.  However, Friday morning I woke up in quite a bit of pain.  I told Clint that it looked like I might be sitting the Lake Run out and just spectating/hanging out/volunteering (also something I love doing...especially when Clint is racing!).  I stretched, iced, rolled my foot and took Ibuprofen throughout the day Friday and it gradually started feeling better.  I toyed around with the idea of decreasing the distance and doing the 7k/4.37 mile race instead of the 12k that I was registered for.  I wasn't crazy about that idea, though, because I knew that if I ran the 7k I would want to run harder to see how long I could keep up with friend and Often Running Racing Team teammate Karen :)...and I figured that if I was doing the 12k I could at least keep the pace a bit slower since it was a bit longer.  Plus, if I dropped down to the 7k I would want to see Clint cross the finish line for the 12k that he was running...but the two races started at different times (12k at 8:30 and 7k at 9am) and so he would still likely cross the finish before I finished up the shorter loop.  Logical?  Who knows ;-). Lots of weird thoughts typically swirl around in my disorganized brain pre-race :-).

Saturday morning/Race Day I I felt "ok" and decided to dress as if I were racing and make a final game-day decision by 8am or so (the race start was at 8:30am).  Clint and I picked up our good friend Molly (who I/we "bullied" into racing ;)) and headed out to the lake.  Soon we met up with the rest of our Often Running Racing team members and stretched and chatted about the upcoming races.  Some went out for a warm-up, but I planted myself on top of a picnic table to stretch and think about my game plan.  I had eliminated the possibility of doing the 7k so it was down to a decision of doing the 12k or doing nothing at all.  15 minutes til race time, I removed my self from the top of the picnic table and joined the racers at the starting line...I decided to give it a go.  Why not?  If nothing else, I wanted to "earn" myself some pancakes for breakfast post-run!

Cruising in the Blue Chariot on our way to the lake...thanks for the silly pic, Clint :-).

(photo of us assembling at the race start from Tod Williamson, Race Director)

I joined Clint at the front of the pack to wait right at the start (not sure that I belonged there, but whatever!).  I told him that if he didn't see me finish that I just quit over on the other side of the lake and would be hanging out at Easter Seals' camp Timber Pointe and could he just come pick me up? ;)  When the canon (ok, how awesome is it that there is an actual canon that starts this race?!) fired, I took off.  I decided immediately that I would try to hold the other females off for as long as possible, just to see if I could.  Admittedly, I really don't have a whole lot of knowledge in the way of actually "good" racing strategies...but I told myself that I should go out relatively hard for the first mile to get just as much of a lead on the other females as I could so as to hopefully make it harder to "catch" me. Again, this "strategy" might not be the most effective...but I figured I would experiment. Why not, right? You don't know what you have in the tank until you give it a go!

(Pics from the start gathered from Facebook! You can spot Clint and me in the first and Molly in the second!)

Mile 1 - 6:53. Maybe a liiiiittle fast for me, but I managed to grab the female lead right out of the gate! The weather felt good...a little on the warm side...but no complaints!

Mile 2 - 7:19. Yeah, that first mile was too fast.  Oh, and my foot was burning...like radiating hot heat.  I still had the female lead position and decided to *try* to hold my present pace.  I tried to sneak glances over my shoulders to look for Aimee Dziekan (who I knew was close behind me!:-)) and other females, but didn't see anyone from the angle I was at (and didn't want to take the time for a long, careful look).  Somewhere between miles 2 and 3 Larry Schumacher passed me and I decided to do my best to keep him in my sights for the remainder of the race....I knew from previous races that we ran similar paces. 

Mile 3 - 7:17.  Timber Pointe was somewhere around here.  I thought for a split second about stopping to hang out with the llamas, but soldiered on.  The burning in my foot was more subdued at this point and I felt decent.  I fully expected the ever-strong Aimee to pop up over my shoulder at any moment but was allowing myself to feel pretty good about having led the female race for 3 miles.  Somewhere between miles 3 and 4 I heard a female voice yelling "Car up!" as a warning to those of us ahead of her...and it wasn't very far behind me.  I knew it was Aimee :-).

Mile 4 - 7:27. Carrying on.  Slower, but still holding on to the lead.  I heard the voice again shouting warnings of passing cars...and it seemed closer this time.  Crap.

Mile 5 - 7:31. Man.  It was a lot harder to hold the ~7:18 pace I had averaged the previous weekend in the half.  I heard the voice again yelling, "Car up!"...but this time I felt like it actually sounded further behind me than before.  Could it be?! I had already determined that if Aimee or another female caught me at this point I likely wouldn't fight it (very) hard. I was TIRED! Plus...the wind. Oh and it was getting roasty-toasty warm! Running sucks sometimes!!! ;-)

Mile 6 - 7:29. Slightly better than the last mile.  Barely.  Holding on to the lead...still. Somewhere around mile 7 the short loop (7k) runners overlapped with the 12k course. I saw my friend and teammate Andy who passed me shortly after I spotted him. I shouted something (encouraging?;-)) at him and he might've nodded a bit but carried on, wordless.

Mile 7 - 7:24.  Time to get serious, foot pain or not.  Somehow I had managed to hold on to the lead for 7 miles?!  I would't be giving it up at this point!  I dug in and chased Larry and the group of 3 other guys that were not far off in front of me. Here the course goes up a bit of a hill that is just enough to be annoying this close to the end. I pushed through and tried to keep my pace together as I climbed. 

The final bit (0.52 by my watch) was run at a 6:52 average pace (which about mirrored my first mile pace)...so I feel good about that.  As I neared the finish line I saw Clint waiting on my left and felt a twinge of deja vu from last summer's Dog Days race...minus the torrential sweat running down my body.  He yelled something like, "get it Matyasse!" as he ran with me a bit and I did my best to finish as if I knew how to run....and indeed I was the first female finisher!  

As soon as I crossed, a nice man from the Pantagraph, our local newspaper, stopped me for an interview (!!!).  I mumbled as I tried to chug a water, hitting pause on the interview to run over and give a high-five to Jeff Hill, the superintendent of the ISU lab schools where I work, as he crossed the 7k finish with a 7:10 average pace. Way to go, Jeff!!

Here's a screen shot of the article that was in the paper...just one small typo (likely due to my mumbling and incoherency ;-)).

(I work at Easter Seals AND ISU, not Easter Seals AT ISU ;-))

Also...holy close-up!  HAHAHAHA! As the reporter took out his cell phone to snap a pic of me, I backed up a bit but he only moved closer. Yikes!!

Time - 54:47, average pace of 7:21...1st overall female and 20th finisher overall out of 230.  I knew this finishing time was slower than previous years' overall female winners (last years' was 51:30 in a 6:54 average pace)...BUT it was still good enough to get it done today!  I'll take it!

(*Interestingly this 7+ mile race was also faster than my Bix 7 PR of 56:42 which was set in 2010). 

SO...three big weekends...a 5k PR and top female finish, a 13.1 PR by 11 minutes, and the top female finish at the Lake Run 12k!  I think I've "earned" some time to rest my uncooperative foot.

A BIG highlight of this race was seeing THREE of our Metcalf Track/Run Club students at the race along with friend and coach Molly! The four of them ran the 7k and each one of them placed in his/her age group. WAY TO GO guys!! I am SO proud of each of them and for working so hard to run this race! Being Metcalf's track coach this year and starting up our first track program has been an adventure for sure and I'm so grateful to see so many students really enjoying running and even running outside of practices/meets! I expect to see these guys (and others, hopefully!!) out at other area races this summer!

So what's next?  I'm doing my first triathlon (olympic distance) of the year in Knoxville, TN on Sunday, May 17 (Challenge Knoxville).  I have no real goals except to "not drown" in the swim.  Also, I would like to see how hard I can hurt during the final 10k/the run.  Following this is Tri Shark on Saturday, June 6 where I would like to have an age group finish (though I am not sure that my biking and swimming this winter...or relative lack thereof...has earned me the right.  We will see).  After Tri Shark...we have Steamboat in Peoria on June 20 and then Park2Park 5 Miler in BloNo on July 4!  I would also tentatively like to do the Main Street Mile again in Peoria on June 26.  July also brings the fun-filled Saturday the 11th when Clint and I plan to tackle the Fisher Fair 5k in the morning, Dog Days in the evening and a race in Eldridge Iowa later that night. And then...time to BIX again like we did last summer (and 10 other summers prior to that if you're me! This will be my 12th Bix 7 in Davenport, Iowa!). 

Post-race pic with two of my favorites. Clint went on to run an 11-mile post-race "cool-down" after this pic...(I joined him for part of it from the comfort of my bike saddle;-)).

Followed by his REAL cool-down ;-) -

THANKS to Mitch and Often Running for the support and the privilege of being on the Often Running Racing Team, THANKS to Adidas for the sweet gear, THANKS to Challenge Family and my awesome Challenge Triathlon Team teammates for their support, and THANKS to my Clint for being my incredible run+life coach who has found the balance between pushing me to work harder and supporting me in my current abilities!  THANKS to the race director of the Lake Run, Tod Williamson, for an awesome event as well as to all of the volunteers who made it happen yet again! Last but definitely not least, THANKS to our amazing running and multi-sport community in BloNo for supporting community events like the Lake Run and for pushing all of us and each other to be better and stronger.

Bring on the rest days, the healing...and the rest of a fun-filled season of swim+bike+running and learning along the way!

Illinois Half Marathon 4-25-15 Race Recap

I ran my very first half marathon at the very first Illinois Marathon event back in 2009.  Every year since then I have been back for the race….running most years, spectating two of the years.  My former half marathon PR was set here, back in 2013:  1:46:49.  I was eager to see this PR fall but was also wary of making a public “goal,” thinking that in talking about it I would somehow “jinx” my chances.

Well… I did start talking about it and maybe that actually helped drive my determination.  I decided in December that I would set a goal to run a half marathon in 2015 under 1:40…and hoped that I could do it at the U of I at the end of April.  As everyone else who made spring-time goals knows…this meant wrestling with the nasty IL winter elements.  I recall a number of rather depressing runs, trudging through thick and cold snow (many times in the dark after work) thinking that I would never get “faster” and that it was stupid to make a goal that required working hard in the winter months.

As the weather started getting warmer, my runs started getting faster.  While my weekly mileage has been far less than I would like (working full time, coaching track and taking 12 credit hours has totally cramped my training style this past semester!) I have worked hard during my runs to keep the intensity high.  The first time I ran a 10 mile (easy!) training run at sub 8 minute/mile pace I knew my goal was actually well within reach.

A few weeks prior to the race, Clint informed me that he wanted to pace me for the half marathon.  He was also registered for the half, but had thought about racing the 10k instead.  I told him that was crazy and that he should run his own race…pacing me seemed too “giving.”  I know the joy that running fast and hard brings him…and running a race with me wouldn’t be anywhere near the speeds he was capable of!  He assured me that it was something that he really wanted to do and so we planned on it taking place.

The Saturday prior to this race, I ran a 5k in East Peoria supporting Easter Seals (see previous race report :-)).  A week prior to the Easter Seals race I thought, “Hm…maybe I should try for a PR!”  Another running-related goal I had set for myself this year was running a sub 21 minute 5k.  After a come-to-Jesus chat with Clint I realized running a hard 5k the week before I hoped to PR at a half marathon in a big way wasn’t the best idea (what can I say…I’m pretty clueless when it comes to training “smart”!).  However, when I somehow managed to cross that finish line without giving 100% effort in sub 21 minutes for the first time (20:54 to be exact) and still felt good, I was pretty high on life. 

The night before the U of I event, Clint told me that the race time predictor on my Garmin watch said that I could run a half marathon in 1:33. I’ll have you know, I laughed my fool head off.  “Ain’t NO way this girl is running a 1:33," I thought, thoroughly entertained by the notion.

The morning of the race, we left somewhere between 5:45 and 6 am.  Disgusting.  Mornings are NOT my forte.  Our trip to Champaign on trusty 74 was uneventful (THANKS, Clint, for driving so that I could veg out!) and we arrived on campus around 7am (after a potty stop at a McDonald’s down the street per my request…THANKS again, Clint! :-)).  I “ran” in and out of McD’s to “test” my legs…and things felt good.  I was cautiously optimistic…

We met up with Andy, Steve, Marlene and Paul in the parking lot and took a pre-race picture (of course) and chatted a bit.  Clint and I did a pseudo warm-up by jogging around the parking lot and I visited the porta-potties a few times.  Darn pre-race stomach!!

Clint and I lined up in Coral A together where I commented, “I SO do not belong here!”  We chatted with a few friends and other fellow runners and joked about the rain that was starting to lightly sprinkle on us.  I danced around nervously and awkwardly like I usually do…and before I knew it, we were off.

The first half mile was ahhhmazing.  I felt like I was flying.  I checked my watch and my pace was like 6:40. Great.  Good idea, Rachel ;).  No but really…I felt euphoric.  Clint informed me that I would be controlling the pace for the first while.  We slowed a bit after the excitement and adrenaline surge induced by the start of the race and settled in with the 7:15 pace group.

Our friends Mike and Frank were running around this pace group as well so it was fun to get to run with and chat with them for a bit as we were running.  Frankly, I was also surprised that I was (for a time!) keeping up with them.  It was nice to have more company and camaraderie early on in the race. 

Mile 1-7:18. Nice.  However, it seemed a little fast (based on the number, not the perceived effort) seeing as my goal was 1:40 which would be attained with an average of 7:33 miles.  I checked in with Clint who said we were in great shape and that I should plan to stick with the current pace.  Fair enough!

Mile 2-7:13. Uh.  Whoops?  Slightly faster?!  Oh well! Things still felt good.  At this point, we were still with the 7:15 pace group and I felt like I would be able to sustain the current effort for quite some time.

Mile 3 - 7:09  Faster yet ;). 

Mile 4 - 7:11. 

Mile 5 - 7:07. 

Mile 6 - 7:04. This was my fastest mile of the race.

Sometime during mile 6 the rain started.  Gross.  We knew it was coming and I am thankful it held off for almost half of the race.  Once it started, my confidence washed away just the slightest bit.  My shoes became instantly heavy with rain and my face and arms started stinging from the sharp dagger-droplets of rain. Even more disheartening than the rain was a terrible headwind that worked to push me over (so it felt).  Some little scrawny twerp tried to duck in behind me for cover.  No thank YOU!  I gladly used the extra energy to run pointedly behind Clint from his right side to his left side to lose the guy.

In spite of the rain, we crossed the 10k in 44:35.  Clint asked me what my 10k PR was prior to that moment and I wasn’t sure.  Consulting my trusty post-it note on my work desk revealed that my 10k PR in a race was 47:24, set this past fall.  Awesome.

Mile 7 - 7:19.  My stomach sank a bit seeing this number on my watch.  While I was still well below my goal pace and well on track to meet my goal of sub 1:40, the 7:15 group started slipping away from me at this point.  Additionally, my stomach started to turn a little sour.  I tried to mentally problem-solve and considered taking one of the gels Clint had in a pocket for me if I wanted them.  I hadn’t been training with any gels up to this point this season and was leery of taking one.  But, I was also wondering if I was somehow getting hungry.  I decided that it would be stupid to chance it and kept pressing on.  I told Clint at this point that my stomach was bothering me…but also said that I was only uttering the words so that I could lose them and not think of the matter again.  I did my best to push the feelings out of my brain.  I don’t think I had been drinking any water up until this point, but Clint made sure to make me grab it at least once or twice in the later stages.

Mile 8 - 7:12. Better.

Mile 9 - 7:15. Not bad.

Mile 10 - 7:23.  At this point, I did lose the 7:15 group.  They were never completely out of sight, but we were no longer running around them.  I was slightly disheartened, but again…running ahead of pace so I knew that I really should be satisfied!

Mile 11 - 7:27. 

Mile 12 - 7:28. 

Miles 10, 11 and 12 were the hardest for me.  I was getting tired and more than once had thoughts like, “Well my goal pace was really only 7:33. I’ve been running between 7-7:20 for most of this race.  This means I really have a few minutes “banked” and could actually decrease my pace to like 8:00 miles and still get my PR….”  I didn’t say this out loud to Clint, but it wouldn’t have mattered anyway ;-).  Somewhere during this 3 mile span of darkness, he ran ahead of me and pointed at the ground on his left side…wordless.  These actions spoke louder than his words ever could have and I dug in a bit to catch up.  I THINK I can, I THINK I can!

Mile 13 - 7:10. Finishing strong!

The final 0.1 (actually my watch had it as 0.2) was run at a 6:42 pace.  How I had anything left in my tank I am not sure…but running across that finish line felt better than any ever has. 

1:35:43.

A sweaty kiss, a sweet medal, a bottle of water, a silver “blanket,” a quick picture….and I stumbled my way up the stadium stairs (worst idea ever!!) and back into the dry concourse for a banana.  I’m glad Clint walked in front of me so he couldn’t see my eyes, shiny with tears thanks to the emotion of the moment.  I might’ve lost it completely…and who wants to see that?! ;)

This race was an outstanding confidence booster.  Prior to this race I NEVER would’ve fathomed I would run a half marathon in ANYTHING in the 1:30s.  April was an insanely intense month work-wise, but somehow work stress and my winter workouts must’ve gotten married and produced a hot 1:35:46 half marathon “baby”!  Oh, and there’s that element of some rock-star coaching by our own Clinton Wells to throw into that mix as well.  While I know I’ll never break any REAL records in the running world…I’m breaking down all of my former beliefs regarding what I can and cannot do and that is a great feeling.  Hard work = good outcomes (well, in many cases anyway).

I guess talking about my goal of a sub 1:40 half marathon helped bring it to be.  So…I’m going to be crazy and publicly throw my next goal out there, knowing full well that this means risking the “embarrassment of failure”.  I am going to run 3:30 marathon this year (this will be my 11^th marathon…with my most recent being in NYC back in November of 2013; my PR is 3:49 back in 2011 at the Quad Cities).  I’m not sure when or where (other than that it will occur before mid September if you know what I mean)…but this is going to be my next quest.  So, bring on the summer heat and sweat. I’m looking forward to chasing my next goal and running many miles with you all over the coming months!

CONGRATULATIONS to everyone else for your stellar performances at the U of I event, in spite of the weather.

THANK YOU to Mitch and Often Running for the privilege of being on the Often Runnong Racing team.  I’m grateful for the opportunity and am so thankful to be able to call many of my teammates.  They've enhanced my life in so many ways!  Thanks, Clint for being my coach through more than just running.  Life is sweeter with you by my side (or, when necessary, running a few strides too many in front of me pointing at the ground with a silent, “GET YOUR BUTT UP HERE!”).  April was one of the best months of my life for many reasons and I'm looking forward to all the rest of the adventures that 2015 has in store!