Ransom Canyon Triathlon 2008

Ransom Canyon Triathlon 2008

This race takes place right outside of Lubbock.  Mike and Marty Greer are the race directors and very good friends of mine.  I always cram this race in just for fun.  The weather was going to be cold so the time changed to 9 am the night before so that us athletes would not be freezing our butts off.  I never sign up for races until the day of the race since I am always so darn busy.  I took an overnight trip to train and got in at 11pm the night before so I was not fresh.  The weather was not all that bad but it was cold for me.  The water temp was 62 degrees so I got cold and never really warmed up until after the race.  I had a terrific time and did win but I had one of my worst times ever.  I have not been in the sprinting scene and I have been mountain biking so I felt out of shape.  I have some friends that I usually hang with but this watched them go by me like I was standing still.  It was humbling and makes me want to do some speed work.

PreRace-  I got to the transition with my bike and you would of thought that I was a rookie.  I did not have a race belt to put my number on or any hammer gels.  I just did not have it together.   To make things worse I put my shorts on from last weekend that had a hole in them right where the butt crack was.  I thought that I had chunked these and when someone pointed out the hole in my shorts…. I about died.  I own about 20 pairs of bike shorts.  How could it be that I grabbed the holy ones again?  I had someone offer me some duct tape to cover it so we out that on my butt. The person taping me was afraid the shorts would start ripping up the crack so they out a nice long piece to protect me from more damage.  I bet I looked real cute with duct tape on my butt…at least I was covered.

Swim-  I don’t think I heard one athlete brag about the swim.  The wind picked up about 10 minutes before the race and made the water choppy.  There were 150 athletes and we all started at once.  I personally think the swims at sprint distances are the worst.  Everyone takes off like a bat out of hell and you feel like you are in a washing machine with bricks and nails.  It takes me about 200yds to get around some of them and then I really can pick it up but not until then. I swallowed some water along with getting hit but survived it and was one of the first people out of the water.  I also forgot to put some lube on my ankles so my wetsuit would come off.  I saw some carpet as soon as I got out of the water and sat down to take off my wetsuit.  I could not get the wetsuit off.  It was stuck on my ankles but someone decided to give me a hand and pull the wetsuit off.  When they pulled on it I just slid on the carpet and that darn duct tape came off and I was exposed again.  We got my wetsuit off and I had to hop on the bike with my torn shorts.

Bike-  I thought that I started off pretty good.  We had this steep hill as soon as you get out of the water and I felt pretty good.  My buddy Wade Wilson is a great cyclist and he came out of the transition just after me.  We started the bike together and I planned to keep him in sight.  I usually do but not today.  I kept him in sight for about 2 miles and then he was gone.  I just did not seem to have power and felt uncomfortable on the bike,  primarily since I have not been on a road bike much.  I began to get passed by lots of people that normally do not pass me.  I was not panting or anything.  I did not see any need to push nor did I have the desire.  The bike felt funny with the skinny wheels and I had a saddle on it that I never use. (I mailed my saddle to kirt gentle for RAAM.).  I came out of the bike still in first among the women.  I just was not as fast as I have been in the past.  My femur is doing better but I could still feel a little something in the muscle. 

The Run-  I just was not going to run down the street with my butt showing.  I found a black piece of cloth that I was able to stick down my shorts so that the hole was not obvious.  I took off out on the run and my legs felt like a ton of bricks and my feet were numb.  I got the feeling back in my feet at the end of the run.  I had a toy with me that I got from Europe.  It is this little button that says “bum chicka wow wow.”  It was making a noise every time I took a step so it was annoying to those around me.  I passed some people and got passed as well.  I caught up to one buddy and talked his ear off while he was panting.  I still finished in first place  but my time was 8 minutes slower then I have been in the past.  I am certain most of this was on the bike and that transition after the swim.

Next year I plan to have my sprinting muscles back.