Even though I didn't anticipate doing this race, it is exactly what I have been training for all year (except for getting sidetracked in the summer by training for the 10 mile swim). Back in January 2015, as I set my goals for the year, I decided to focus on sprinting. To swim a 1650 in 22 min and run a 10k in 40 min seemed like very ambitious goals. In March, I swam a 1650 in 22:16 in the pool. Progress in running came more slowly, after a winter full of ice. In the spring, I started to pick up speed and PRed at Broad Street and again in the run at the Philly Tri. So, as I psyched myself up for Aquathlon nationals, I knew this was the chance to inch closer to that run goal. In the last two weeks, I focused my training on just a few quality runs where I could hit 6:45 pace, hoping that I could hold that for a 10k.
I was fortunate to have my parents join me for the trip, although it included my dad singing "Oklahoma" throughout the entire trip. At one point, we did watch Hugh Jackman singing "Oklahoma," just to hear how the song actually goes. Oklahoma pride was apparent, with some football games on Saturday, about half of the state was wearing an "Oklahoma" T-shirt.
The day before the race, I previewed the run course, running most of the 5k out and back, one loop of the 2-loop 10k course. It was almost entirely flat, a nicely paved road that follows the curves of an irregularly shaped lake. I tried to practice how to "run the tangents," as I often have trouble focusing on that in the midst of the race. I swam for about 30 minutes, but did not want to swim the whole course (crossing the lake) by myself without the buoys being set yet, so I did several out and back swims near the start and finish. Knowing that the weather forecast called for 10 mph winds from the NE for both Saturday and Sunday, I tried to practice swimming straight with the wind coming from the right hand side, basically steering just a little bit toward the right. The finish seemed to have the wind directly at the back. I did a few rounds of sculling and sprints into the finish. I noticed that the boat ramp where the swim finishes was steep and slippery, so I planned to swim all the way to about a foot from the water's edge. My pre-race workout ended with about 6 striders of 30 seconds each and plenty of stretching later. Pre-race dinner at a casino buffet was not the most veggie friendly, but it was some home cooking. In addition to standard rice, broccoli, and salad, I had some mashed potatoes, deliciously moist biscuits (of the biscuits and gravy), and just a taste of deep-fried okra.
Race day alarm was set for 6 am, but I woke up well before that. After a breakfast of green tea, whole wheat english muffin with jelly, yogurt, bananas, water, and gatorade, I was off to the lake by 7 am for a scheduled 9 am start. It is refreshing to do a race that actually starts at a reasonable hour. I put my gear in transition, and I think I was the third competitor to arrive.
I went off for a 20 minute warm-up run, wearing Boston gear with temps in the 50's, then found a nice place to stretch and watch the sun rise.
After stretching, I went through my usual round of running drills (high knees, butt kicks, stiff legs, A-skips, B-skips, reverse giddy-ups). By the time I got my running shoes back in transition and got my wetsuit on, it was time for the 8:30 pre-race meeting. That left about 15-20 minutes of swimming warm-up, which felt very minimal to me. I kept doing short out-and-back swims up until as close to the 9:00 start as I could, but I wanted to make sure I had space at the front of the start line.
Like Steamtown, the race started with a cannon. This was the biggest mass start I have participated in, with about 200 people starting all at once. I did swim over people and get swum over, and I thought my strategy of steering to the right went out the window. They had the women start on the left hand side (green and pink caps) and the men on the right (blue and yellow caps). About halfway to the first turn buoy, I found myself among the men, and I swam straight into the turn buoy, getting the inner edge around that turn.
The middle portion of the triangular swim was mostly against the wind. I felt like I was on the middle path to the next turn buoy, with other swimmers straying far to both my left and right. I passed a few swimmers who were much slower than me, but unfortunately, I couldn't really latch onto anyone good to draft (without following them off-course). The second major turn was around a spillway (where the water from this reservoir drains through a chute to the creek on the other side of a dam). It felt weird to swim around this big concrete structure, so my turn was wider than where I would swim if it were just a buoy. After that turn, it was a straight shot to the finish, so I did find other people to swim with for the last stretch. I think I had a decent finish, and swimming all the way to the end helped.
My transitions are always a little slow since I don't run without socks, but this one wasn't too bad: well under a minute, with the help of wetsuit peelers. I did put my racing belt on the wrong way (number side in) while running out of transition and had to re-adjust.
I passed a few people in the first couple hundred yards of the run, and built momentum from there. In the first 1.5 mile stretch, I passed a number of women who were clearly built like swimmers and not so much runners. I like the out-and-back twice nature of the course because it made it easy to see how far ahead people are. I missed my mile splits, but saw that I was 10:24 at the first turn-around, and not that far from the leaders. Realizing that this is the pace for a sub-42 10k, I wanted to hold steady. The urge to keep passing people was strong. By the 5k, I was around 20:30 and was the 2nd place female. On the second loop, I got passed by a really fast high school boy, but I followed him to catch a few more people. On the second loop there were also lots of people still on their first loop, and having people to focus on and chase down really helps the run go faster.
At the last turn-around, I could see that the female in 1st was not that far ahead. I didn't want to let it go to a sprint at the end, but keeping steady, I passed her around the 5 mile mark. It seemed like she was slowing down, so I just kept my focus forward. Really for the last mile, I knew I had the race, and just tried to keep up with the guys around me as best I could.
I usually don't get that excited about finishing a race, but this was truly exciting. Not only a national championship, but also a 10k PR of 40:29, more than 3 minutes faster than my previous best. I was a little disappointed in my swim, but that just gave me more people to chase on the run. Reflecting back on how I was able to run so much faster than before, the biggest part of it was my mindset. If I am traveling all the way to OK for a race, I better try to win it. But the last year and a half of training has been really solid for me. Tempo runs on the towpath in Princeton have gotten me in the habit of going fast for a long time. My summer routine of an hour-long strength training circuit 2-3 times a week after several hours of swimming and running made a huge difference. I have also focused on running strides and drills several times a week to keep the muscle memory of running fast with good form, even when I don't want to beat my body up with too much running.
So what's next? A few running races this fall, some masters swimming in the winter. I hope to swim the 200 breast for the first time, and improve my speed in the 200 free and 500 free. Probably take a break from running in December. Next year, train for worlds. The 5k time to beat in my age group is 18:40, so I still have a long way to go.
USAT article
Link to full results
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