With still some soreness in my legs offering a reminder of what happened, here's an account of racing this past weekend in St. Petersburg, Florida at the 2010 St. Anthony's Triathlon...
St. Anthony's is regarded in the professional triathlon world as a "spring classic." It's an early season, warm-weather race, outside of Tampa, Florida, and every year is magnificently organized by some of the best race promoters in the sport, and raced by many of the fastest athletes in the world. 2010 was no exception. This was my 4th year competing in the race, and it has been one of my favorites since 2007, when I was a rookie pro and had no idea what I was doing!
Toeing the start line this year was triathlon star and American Olympian, Matt Reed; Australian Olympian, Greg Bennett; 2 time Ironman World Champion, Craig Alexander; and many other of the world's top athletes. I knew it was going to be fast day, and with training so far this year going exceptionally well, I felt more prepared than ever, and couldn't wait to get going.
Race morning began at 4am, and I woke pleasantly from a fantastic night's sleep. In the days leading up to the race, I was hard at work coaching a few members of the US Marine Corp triathlon team, for whom I was there to prepare for race. The extra work left me pretty tired at the end of each day, but made for some heavy sleep, which I was happy to get! Though these lead-up days were somewhat taxing, coaching my athletes always gives me motivation and energy to be strong, and on race morning I was energetic, rested, and ready to rock.
I had checked my bike into my transition spot the night before, so navigating through the 3000 race competitors before the sun had come up wasn't too difficult. I found my bike, and went to work with my pre-race ritual set up. Over the years, I've gotten pretty good at setting up my equipment for the race. My bike shoes are clipped into the pedals, so I can put them on while riding. My run shoes have elastic laces so I don't need to tie them. My bike helmet is un-hooked and easy to slip on. No sun glasses. No socks. No extras. It all adds up to speed, so I don't need to slow down a bit when I change from swim, to bike, to run. Everything this year was quick and easy, and I was happy to be away from the lime-light of the Olympians, who drew quite a crowd while setting up their own equipment!
Next up was the warm up. With the race start at 6:50, I gave myself a half hour to get in the water for a warm up swim. The ocean was pretty choppy and windy, with white caps and some good sized waves, but I felt fantastic. My arms and shoulders were loose, my lungs were open and getting good air, and the water was the perfect temperature for racing. After some easy swimming and kicking, I did a few race paced accelerations, got my arm turnover spinning quickly, and finished my warm up feeling confident.
After just a few minutes standing on the beach waiting to begin, we were called to the start line. The swim course was shaped like a horseshoe, with the start and finish in two different places. Most of the field lined up close to the left hand side, so that they set up a straight line to the first left-turn buoy. I stayed out of that group and lined up towards the right, alongside a few of the stronger swimmers in the group. When the cannon went off, we charged into the water, and I immediately settled into position behind a super-strong swimmer, who I knew would be fighting to finish the swim in first place.
By the first turn buoy, I felt as though I was working a little bit too hard to stay close to the leader. My swimming fitness is good right now, but I was more concerned with riding my bike well for this race and wanted to save some energy. I eased off the effort, and allowed a few guys to swim around me. They all kept pushing hard, and I drifted back into a chasing pack that was swimming about 30 seconds behind. Though I would have preferred to have stayed with the leading group, I knew I would have over-extended myself to do it, and will need to train a little harder in the water for my next race.
Onto the bike, I quickly began pushing hard. The first 5 miles are always really tough, as every competitor is trying to either catch up, or distance themselves quickly from the athletes they had been swimming with. I felt terrible. I've struggled recently with the initial miles on the bike. The shock of exiting the swim and immediately getting up to race pace on the bike is tough for me, but is something that I'm working on in training. I need more work! Though I caught a few of the swimmers who had been ahead, a few more rode away from me. Though it was frustrating watching them go, I tried to stay focused on myself and thought about my pedaling form, my position on the bike, and my ability to produce power. By mile 10, I had settled into the effort, and really started to push. The wind was strong, but the course was completely flat, and my 25mph course average was a good result for me.
As soon as I got off the bike, things quickly went downhill. The final stretch of road on the bike course is made of brick, and as I was bouncing along coming into the second transition, I quickly became aware of how heavy my legs felt. As soon as I stepped down off the bike, I knew I was in trouble. Running through transition to switch to my run shoes was painful and very difficult. I just tried to stay calm, got my shoes on, took a big swig of the sports drink I had left for myself at the transition, and headed out onto the run course.
My colleague Jack, who was helping coach that weekend and watching race, yelled out to me that I was in twelfth place overall as I left transition. And though I tried to get going, my legs weren't responding. I contented myself to struggling through the first mile, and ran through my mental check list of the micro-adjustments I usually make in order to "find" my form. Nothing was working. I ate some food. Drank at the aid station. I couldn't relax my arms and shoulders. My hips were tight, and my leg turnover was slow.
But I kept at it. A few guys passed. I responded every time, making the most out of the extra motivation by sticking with them, and racing. My first three miles were very difficult. I forced the pace, and could find no rhythm or fluidity. And at the halfway point, I was slower than the pace I was training for, but not completely out of the picture. The last three miles, however, took everything I had. Mile 5 was a minute off pace, and with 2 more guys chasing me down, the last mile of the race was brutal trying to hold on to my position.
One of the focuses of my training this year has been working on the ability to cope with the pain and discomfort of racing at a peak output. I've been an athlete for a very long time, and I've found that my motivations to push and compete are constantly changing and evolving. Winning, which once was enough to motivate my efforts, no longer is my sole pursuit (though it is very much still in focus). Right now, I am most motivated by simply the joy of participation. I am so happy to be capable of doing it. That my legs work. That my lungs work. I'm so happy to continue to go faster, and to get stronger. And to then share my experiences with the athletes that I coach.
It was a great race. I finished 16th overall, and was closer than ever to the leaders. And I can't wait to go at it again in a few more weeks at the Columbia Triathlon in Maryland. On Monday, when I returned from Florida, I shared some highlights and pictures of the race with the CCF Mastery Triathlon Team, who I'm training to race to success later this year at the Philadelphia Insurance Triathlon in June. It will be their first race ever, and I'm sure they'll enjoy it all as much as I do.
Be well!!
Holden
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