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Duathlon Recap!

Woke up in the dark hours of the morning and took a peek outside, expecting to see snowy rain, but it was dry.  Fingers were crossed at this point.  Cold, though!  Showered and put on my layers then came down to the breakfast I had set up and ready to fix:

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Tried and true race fuel.  Banana oats with protein powder and nut butter (okay, I drizzled a little chocolate sauce on there, too).

I was getting nervous on the way there.  See how early it is?

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Cold and gray, but no rain.  Starting to have the feeling like “What am I doing???”

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Bike racked up and very chilly right here!

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There were about 80 competitors.  They all looked quite into it too, and I felt funny with my 10-speed clunky bike with all the speedy road bikes.   I also was wondering if there was a height requirement, since everyone was taller than me ;)

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Ready, set, go!!!

First run went well.  My legs were nice and fresh and the cold didn’t bother me after the first half mile.  One mile in and they called out times – I was at 9:26, which surprised me.  I was thinking I was going to do 10:30, but I guess that’s what fresh legs do for you.  At the 1-mile point the course went uphill for probably a 1/4 mile.  Killer hill and there were a lot of walkers (right at the start!).  I just put my head down and plodded up the hill.  I was falling towards the back, which is what I expected.

Here I am coming in from the run and transitioning to the bike.  2.2 miles done!

I didn’t waste any time, but chugged some water, popped on the helmet and went.  I decided against the fleece jacket because of how hot I felt at that point.  That technical turtleneck is amazing!

About 1/2 a mile in was a really steep hill.  So hard, and a lot of bikers were quite slow on this hill and weaving around.  I thank my Lake George rides for making it up the hills.  The wind started to pick up at this point and it was blowing either into my face or into my side for all but the end of the bike run.  I really pushed it for the ride.  I kept chanting “Go big or go home” and “Leave it all on the race course.”   Good thing no one was very close to me to hear all this LOL!  All the while, I kept thinking of having to run that stupid hill again in the last leg.  I was breathing hard for most of the ride, so I was happy about that because it meant I was working hard.  People had passed me at this point on their speedy bikes and I actually assumed I was in last place.

16 miles done! Again, speedy.  I just left my gloves on, chugged some coconut water, put on my running hat and set out.  I knew I was on the last leg (and my legs felt it!).

Hit the one mile mark and the hill.  I was struggling a bit here and just put my head down and jogged.  My calves were burning!  All of the sudden I noticed that I was just walking really fast up the hill, my pace had slowed down so much.  And then I got a stitch in my right side.  This never happens to me.  I took a few deep breaths and actually had to press my hand into my side, which relieved the stitch while I did that.  Then I started thinking “Is this my appendix bursting?” LOL.  I said to myself I was going to finish no matter what.  Plus I knew there was only a mile to go.  The rest was downhill and I tried to go faster.  Hard to do that while holding your side, but it felt so much better to do that.  As I passed the loop around, I saw a few people just starting the run, so I realized that I wasn’t last at all (although only ahead of about 5 or 6 people).  The stitch left with about 1/2  a mile to go.  Here is as much of a sprint as I could manage – and a big smile cause I was done with the other 2.2 miles!


Note the time – my goal was to be around 2 hours and I finished in 1:55 and change!  Yes!!!

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Totally wiped out.  This is one of the hardest things I have ever done.  It was harder than the triathlon and I really laid it out.  I am soooo happy and pleased!

GoWear fit shows this -

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Post race coffee and egg sandwich and a pumpkin scone.

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I am totally wiped out now.  This is my plan for the rest of the day:

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I am all settled in for the after the race watching football and probably a nap with a special treat for myself.  One of those days where I can get away with 2 bakery items in one day LOL!

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I’m still trying to digest that I actually did this today :)

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October 18th, 2009 | Tags: | Category: biking, duathlon, jogging | Comments are closed

41 comments to Duathlon Recap!