Translation: 1 mile swim, 24 mile bike, 6 mile run
Race day!
My early bedtime paid off. I woke up feeling rested at 4:40 am so I could be at the race site by 6:00 am. I made myself a breakfast smoothie for the road.
- container 2% Fage greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup raw oats
- 1/4 cup frozen blueberries
- 1 very ripe banana
- splash of milk
- ice
It was perfect pre-race fuel. Carbs, protein and easy to digest.
We set up our bikes in transition in the pitch darkness.
My Cliff shot blocks (energy gel blocks) that I was planning to eat during the bike leg were invaded by ants during the swim. The ants also decided to climb all over my helmet and bike shoes. Gross! Fortunately I had a back up gel in my race belt pocket. I ended up eating 1 gel and 1 Larabar during the race (and I didn't photograph either).
Leslee and I before the fun begins!
3 hours and six minutes later I was crossing the finish line. Whew! I didn't train for this race so my goals were to...
1. Finish
2. Not be the last to cross the finish line
Success! I was determined to beat the two girls behind me across the finish line. They were on my tail for most of the bike ride and the entire run.
Immediately after crossing the finish line.
According to my heart rate monitor I burned 1,876 calories, had an average heart rate of 161 and a maximum heart rate of 183. And here's the post-race coconut water I packed in my "cooler."
Leslee and I headed over to the awards ceremony and found these Sandhill Cranes trying to get in on the action.
Leslee won the women's Aquabike division! Go Leslee!
The aquabike division means that the athlete competed in the swimming and biking portions of the race, but not the running.
Here's her award. Pretty cool!
I was nodding off on the drive home so I grabbed a coffee at McDonald's. Didn't I just say you'd never see McDonald's on this blog? Whoops!
And I have to give a shout out to Neutrogena for my new favorite sunscreen. Their pure & free baby formula is my new sunscreen of choice. It contains none of the chemical sunscreens (like oxybenzone & avobenzone) that I try to avoid. The active ingredients are titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, two ingredients I can slather on my skin with confidence. One liberal application this morning lasted all three hours of my triathlon.
I jumped in the shower as soon as I got home and then laid down for a quick nap. Around 2:00 pm Chris and I headed to Panchero's for a late lunch. I had a veggie and black bean quesadilla with a plain tortilla on the side. I adore their tortillas so much that I eat them plain.
After lunch we went to see Quentin Tarantino's new film Inglourious Basterds. Tarantino's style was evident throughout the film, which is what made it so enjoyable for me.
On the way home from the movie we stopped at the grocery store to pick up some food for the week. Once home I made myself unpack my dirty race bag before I could sit down and relax. Oddly, I really wasn't hungry for dinner. Intense exercise kills my appetite for hours. But around 8:30 I decided to have a light dinner so I wouldn't wake up in the middle of the night with a screaming stomach. I opened a bottle of Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc to accompany a small bowl of reheated risotto from last night.
And I had my Sunday night ice cream treat while watching True Blood.
Now my eyes are involuntarily closing so I will have to call it a night!
