Melting in the Heat

PRE-RACEE
This is my third time racing in Ironman Coeur D' Alene (CDA).   I love racing in CDA!  The volunteers are amazing!  The scenery is awesome.  This year however, was the hottest race I have ever raced, with temperatures reaching over 100 degrees.  I remembered being cold in my previous races in CDA.  This race was definitely different. The race directors even moved the start time of the race forward by an hour, to decrease the amount of time in the heat. 












GOALS
Have a solid swim, bike, run. 
Start slow the first half on the bike and run
Have fun and stay hydrated




SWIM

Race morning: I woke up at 3:45, to eat and prepare for the race with my friends Mike and Joe who were both racing.  I was excited and nervous.  The 2.4 mile swim started at Lake CDA on the sandy beaches of a city park.  It consisted of two counterclockwise loops.  Lake CDA is beautiful and has clear water!   I swam a 1:04, which is a good time for me despite a few issues.  There are a few things I would do differently next race.  First I would rinse my googles a little better.  Having baby shampoo in your goggles during the swim will irritate your eyes.  Second, I would do more shoulder stretches and rotator cuff strengthening to help prevent shoulder aches.  Lastly, I would wear a sleeveless wetsuit when the water is this warm.

BIKE

I started out slow on the bike to conserve energy for the marathon.  The first half of the bike, the temperatures were perfect.  We headed out east of the city along the beautiful lake.  Then, we headed onto US-95, west of CDA into more hilly terrain.  I felt strong and good.  The second half of the bike, you could feel the temperatures climbing.  I tried to drink as much as I could throughout the bike course.  Around mile 80, I started to feel the heat.  I changed my tactics and used a lower gear up the hills to conserve my energy for the marathon.  It was fun to see so many familiar athletes racing from Salt Lake City and my friends Mike and Joe.  There were some amazing cheerleaders out there too!  Overall, I felt I had raced well on the bike and felt ready to run.

RUN

In transition, I had the volunteers put sunscreen on my shoulders, to prevent my shoulders from burning in the scorching heat.   On the first mile, I didn't want to run faster than 8:30, to try to pace myself for a marathon in 100+ degrees.  Then, Ashley, an athlete from SLC, passed me running at a faster pace!  She was so inspiring to watch.  At mile 3, I could definitely feel the heat.  I was super jealous of this guy with a water bottle that was running next to me, who filled it up at the aide stations.  At mile 5, I started to have diarrhea.  I thought, "No problem, I have dealt with this before".  But, at mile 10, I started feeling super hot.  I saw Ali, a pro triathlete from SLC, cheering for me.  I told her that it was hot.  She told me that it was ok and said, "You are tough".  Love Ali!  Somewhere along the way, I started feeling the blisters on my feet.  At mile 13, I was feeling light headed.  I thought to myself I need to finish the race, I need to drink as much as I can at the aide stations, and walk the hills to finish.  The next hot marathon I run I will walk through the aide stations from the start of the marathon to more adequately hydrate. Soon, I passed BJ, another amazing athlete from SLC.  BJ smiling offered encouraging words, "Way to go K!"  He is always so positive despite terrible heat conditions and not having a good race.  The last 5 miles, this very nice gentleman who was on his first loop decided to run with me.  It was super nice!!  He talked to me about some of the ultra running races he had done.  It helped pass the time when I felt miserable.  I paced off of him and he helped me make it to the finish line.  After I finished, I shortly saw my friend Mike and he helped me to the med tent, where I received some IV fluids.  My parents were also there waiting for me to get out of the med tent; I was happy to see them. I think the heat definitely affected my race.  Definitely, my worst run, but I am glad to have finished. 

 

RESULTS

I had a solid swim and bike ride!  The marathon was the slowest I have ever ran.  I became dehydrated despite my efforts of trying to stay on top of my liquid intake on the bike and the run.  I placed 3rd place in my age group which will allow me to complete in Kona on October 10.  I am excited about that!

SWIM DETAILS | Division Rank: 6

SPLIT NAME	DISTANCE	SPLIT TIME	RACE TIME	PACE	DIVISION RANK	GENDER RANK	OVERALL RANK
Total	2.4 mi	01:04:33	01:04:33	01:40/100m	6	45	258

BIKE DETAILS | Division Rank: 4

SPLIT NAME	DISTANCE	SPLIT TIME	RACE TIME	PACE	DIVISION RANK	GENDER RANK	OVERALL RANK
Total	112 mi	05:41:33	06:49:04	19.68 mph	4	24	178

RUN DETAILS | Division Rank: 3

SPLIT NAME	DISTANCE	SPLIT TIME	RACE TIME	PACE	DIVISION RANK	GENDER RANK	OVERALL RANK
Total	26.2 mi	04:25:49	11:17:15	10:08/mi	3	31	154

Transition Details

T1: Swim-to-bike	00:02:58
T2: Bike-to-run	00:02:22

CDA was a race where I just didn’t perform the way I had hoped, or know that I could have performed.  I melted down physically and mentally in the CDA heat.  It was hard, because I felt like the last two Ironmans, I have nailed the marathon and thought I had learned how not to have a bad run.

When I have a bad race like CDA,  I try to remember my journey to where I am and to take pride in my training and my race effort.  I also took a brief break from triathlons to enjoy climbing :).  Bad races always help me fully appreciate when I have a good race.  I am thankful for so many people who helped me be race ready for CDA, including my coach Cherell Jordin from Braveheart Coaching and Bradley Gehrig at Elevation Endurance for all the indoor training through the winter.  I am grateful for friends who despite my bad race still love me and are proud of my effort.  Now, I just need to dig deep and have a vision of what can happen in another race.  Time to start training for Kona!