#champsys

[yamachiaaaaan]

9.11 #茨城CX 涸沼 C2 38位/出走45人 （84%）（TOP+5:51） 昼試走の予後がすこぶる悪く、走行を早めに切り上げ回復に専念。 ゼッケン33。 スタートは悪くなかったものの最初の登坂でスルッと最下位に転落。 全然ダメかな〜と思ったけれど集団最後方にぶら下がったまま1周回ってくることに成功。 諸々労わりながら2周目〜4周目のラップタイムをタレずに揃え、終わってみたら後ろに7人。 こんな日もある。 📸 @hiroyo_okubo #BrakingBrakes #Cyclocross #Cxjp #Champsys #JamisBikes #ptt_cx #ptt_zarigani #SmithOptics #TrailMech #スゴイカッコイイJamis (涸沼自然公園) https://www.instagram.com/p/CibF1EihdY-/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[tricraftbeer]

Had a blast at @nauticamalibutri today! I was able to ride Viserion into first place and stay there during the run for top female spot on the podium. Thanks Ice Dragon! Three races, three weekends. Now time for three beers x 3! 📷from @davidwelby #hadafastday #skechersperformance #instachamp #champsys #findfaster #giantsantamonica (at Zuma Beach)

[standertbikes]

New Standert Shop Kit Now Available

Photo by Constantin Gerlach

[tricraftbeer]

Had a great day at #im703santacruz with the best support crew in the biz. Fog shortened the swim, and made the bike a lil scary at points, but kept the temps down. Happy with my race and finishing in 6th place with some talented athletes leading the way! What a beautiful venue. #hadafastday #skechersperformance #beerme #glojo #trimom #champsys #instachamp #momswhotri #findfaster #roka #fuelyourjourney (at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk)

[tricraftbeer]

What is a Steelhead?

It’s a fish! Also, an IM 70.3 race in Benton Harbor, MI. I learned both of these things over the weekend while completing said race.

As Coach Dusty reminded me the day before, there were no expectations going into this race. That’s how I’ve approached most of my races this year after having a baby, and I thought the “no expectations” part of the season was over. But after a crash at Challenge Penticton 3 weeks ago, I got to shelve those expectations yet again.

Brief race recap of Challenge Penticton

I never wrote a race report about that crash, mostly because I was mad/sad and didn’t feel like rehashing it. I was loving my experience in Penticton, a cool little wine town on a big lake in Canada somewhere. I’d been having a lot of bike issues in the months leading up to this trip, but most were easily remedied, just annoying. The day before the race for example, my bike was in the local shop so they could make my brakes work again. It took a couple hours and was good to go. I was solo for the trip, my first time away from my baby Gloria for more than a few hours at a time. While it was annoying to have to use the breast pump 4 times a day, and I was missing her a ton, it also allowed me to relax and have a very chill pre-race day on Saturday. The race logistics couldn’t have been easier, as the hotel was a couple 100 yards from transition. Race morning I could actually pump in the comfort of my room, instead of huddling in a dark corner of transition somewhere.

The race started well. I was really happy with my swim, coming out head to head with Mackenzie Madison, my rival for the day. I felt great on the first loop of the bike, building a lead. I was riding with a lead moto for the first time. The course had some climbs, some flats, some descents, and some sweet views. I was feeling very confident about the day, looking forward to the rest of the bike, and even the run, as I came back into town for the turn around for the second loop. That is, until I was suddenly slamming into the ground without knowing why. Turns out, my spare tube which lives in a velcro strap under my seat somehow came loose from the velcro and fell directly down into my rear wheel. The wheel seized up, the bike stopped, and I didn’t. I landed on my right elbow and side. I knew the road rash would hurt and be annoying, but I was most concerned about my elbow, which I was convinced was shattered into 1000 pieces. I went to the hospital and got patched up and x-rayed. Nothing was broken, luckily. The doctor said he thought my elbow probably popped out of joint and then right back in. Lots of swelling and pain, probably ligament damage, but nothing we could do about it. We put the arm into a little sling to keep it more comfortable and that was that.

So back to Michigan. My training had been a little off, especially swimming. I couldn’t swim after the crash for about a week as I waited for the road rash to begin to heal and for the elbow pain to die down. Once I got back in the pool, it was frustrating. I don’t have any sharp pain, just an occasional dull ache and junky feeling in the joint. And I can’t pull with any power. My typical times in the pool went up by anywhere from 2-5 seconds per 100, and the one time I tried an ocean swim, I had to stop after less than 50 minutes of circuits because my hand was going numb. So it was armed with this knowledge that I went into Steelhead without expectations, just a sinking feeling my swim would suck.

The lake wasn’t as choppy race morning as it had been the day before, but it was still fairly rough, and we went against the current for the long side of the triangle course. Combined with the fact that I’m not a great swimmer anyway, and that pros couldn’t wear wetsuits in the 72 degree water, it was definite trouble for the ‘bow. I didn’t warm up in the water because of cold morning temps, and chilly (to me) water temps. I knew I’d be shivering on the bike and didn’t want it to start too early. I did swim in a little group with two other athletes, and came out 15th/20 with my slowest time ever. But that was about what I expected, so it didn’t bother me as I ran through the long transition to my bike. In fact, I was pleased to actually see a few bikes left on the racks, meaning I wasn’t dead last. Everyone was slowed down somewhat by the conditions.

The great thing about coming out at the end of the field in the swim is that there are always people to catch on the bike. My power meter didn’t sync yet again, so I went by feel and estimated my effort to how it feels in training. I also kept trying to find women further up the road. The hunt kept me hungry. As did the fact that I actually was hungry…

The course was great, scenery-wise. It went up the coast, then turned inland to wind through vineyards and farmlands. It was mostly rolling, with no climbs of note. About 1000 feet of gain in total, according to my watch. The road was rough in many patches, as you would expect, but I only lost one gel to bouncing, so that was a win. I kept my mind engaged with the effort, and my self-talk positive. I even worked on convincing myself that I was looking forward to running so I would warm up. The first hour of the bike was full of shivering and teeth chattering, as the morning was uncharacteristically cold. I had fun trying to see how many women I could catch while keeping my effort steady, without any spikes in power. It ended up being 7, as I dismounted in 8th place with the 4th fastest bike. I didn’t have fun singing Despacito over and over in my head. I couldn’t get that damn song out of my head the whole race.

I felt good on the run in my GOMebs, taking care to keep my pace steady, and effort level moderate to begin with. I wanted to stay steady until mile 7, when I would try to ramp up the effort to finish faster, or at least even-paced. The course had a couple hills, but was mostly rolling with flat sections. I wasn’t catching anyone, but I also wasn’t getting caught. That fact, and the knowledge I was pacing well helped me stay engaged and positive.

I had a rough mile right around 7-8 when I felt some lower leg cramps twinge. I took down the bottle of HotShot I was carrying, because I thought there was an aid station around the corner to wash it down. Unfortunately, there wasn’t and I had a slow mile of sour stomach, gagging and spitting as the burning of the shot hit me hard. I walked the aid station when it finally appeared so I could take in water and coke to get rid of the sour stomach. It worked, and I was able to regain my pace. An awesome spectator told me I was catching someone around mile 11, and I was able to pick up the pace and make the pass into 7th place. I finished with (I think) my fastest two miles ever in a race this distance, feeling pretty damn pleased, with a time of 4:31:58.

Thanks to my parents for deciding last-minute to meet me in Chicago and take the journey to Benton Harbor with me. It was great to not do the weekend solo, thinking about how much I missed Gloria. Thanks to Skechers Performance, Champion System, Roka, Bonk Breaker, RIP Laces, Profile Design for making racing possible. And thanks to Artie and his mom for holding down the home front with Gloria while I galavant to exotic locales to race. They did all the laundry too!

[tricraftbeer]

This is my "oh shit it's hot and that was hard and I'm racing in three days and leaving my baby again and I better not crash my bike again" face. #raceweek #nerves #im703steelhead #skechersperformance #goelite #champsys #instachamp #riplaces

[tricraftbeer]

Finish line high five from my nephew and big grins from baby G, my parents, and some friends from home. The finish line is my happy place! #im703eagleman #skechersperformance #roka #champsys #riplaces #finishline (at IRONMAN 70.3 Eagleman)

[tricraftbeer]

Some shots from a great Sunday at the @escapeseriestri Philly race. It was a surprise duathlon after the swim was cancelled but we made the best of it. I was happy to finish fourth, sharing the podium with some women I admire. And having family and friends there made it all perfect! #savedfromtheschuylkill #runbikerun #hadafastday #instachamp #findfaster #skechersperformance #champsys #riplaces #bonkbreaker #roka #ismseat (at Philadelphia Escape Triathlon)