So here we go:
I knew going into the weekend it was going to be bad weather. I referred to "Escape the Cape" as Avoid the Hurricane on my fbook and was prepared for a tough, wavy, swim. I also realized I would have to be up super early to get down to the Cape. I was also just really tired from the week and as I was trying to avoid traffic coming home from work on Friday, I ended up here:
So I finally get home and my friend who has a summer house in Plymouth invites me to stay down there for a night. I was easily convinced as the race start is only about 30 min from there. They all go to the bar to watch the second half of the Celtics and wished me good luck and of course the optimistic one in the group added-Don't drown!! Thanks guys. (I won't go into detail about how I got woken up at 3am by two of them playing one-on-one beruit and there was a ping pong ball repeatedly hitting a tile floor.) Basically, it wasn't the prettiest morning wake up and I realize I need to update my GPS's data because I ended up going over BOTH Cape bridges when I needed to go over NONE of them. Oy. Also, when I got out of my car and was pumping up my bike tires in the downpour, I really debated just going home.
So I get there and I immediately see a girl from Zoom! So nice to see a familiar face. I check-in and get all my ish and go to get body marked. The guy is body marking me and asks how old I am...I say 26 and he goes ahead and writes it. I'm putting my sweatshirt back and I'm immediately confused. Did I just say that? Yeah, I'm definitely 25. Who does that? People were like, you know, most people lie and say they are younger. O well, I guess I'm mentally prepared for the big 2-6 next month!
I go in rack my bike and notice a very familiar bike racked next to mine. O hey! It's that same girl racked right next to me! I also saw the two girls I met during Zoom Preseason weekend. Despite the disgusting weather and how tired I was, I was in a really calm "let's do this" mood. Also, the swim didn't look that bad, I was expecting way more waves:
However, the current was moving very fast. I continued to get my stuff together and was just about to commit to putting the wetsuit on (no turning back after that bad boy gets put on) when they announce the Fire Marshall (or something like that) deemed the swim "unsafe" due to a strong undertow and they were making it a duathlon. Say what?? People were very confused and just running around in their wet suits. I, of course, had no idea what I was doing but I was actually disappointed the swim was cancelled. WAIT!? Did I just say I was disappointed the swim was cancelled??? WHO HAVE I TURNED INTO?? Eek...we'll pretend that never happened.
So we all had to run a mile, and then they kept the race the same, (10 mile bike, 3.1 mile run). It hit all of us-how do you run a mile? The last time I ran a mile was after a cross-fit workout and the only time before that was probably in High School to make the Field Hockey team. O well, here we go!
My mile time wasn't that bad and it was pretty uneventful. 7:24. I'll take it. My bike, however, was terrible. Everyone pretty much went out at the same time and it was a big cluster of bikes and people yelling. People were cutting right in front of you, not saying "on your left", passing in groups, someone got in a crash and got taken away in the ambulance etc...I was like ahhhhhhh. I mean, come on people, it's not even a real tri at this point! I decided I was going to bike the best I could, not stress, think of it as "practice" as I'm still getting used to my clipless pedals and just go have the best run ever.
My mounting and dismounting on my bike still leaves a lot to be desired, but I was so determined to drop my bike as quickly as I could and run. And that's exactly what I did! I didn't even grab water, I was just out to the run transition. I definitely made up time from my bad biking and passed a good amount people-a bunch in my age group too! I almost ran it in my 5k PR and it felt great. I really like my yellow lenses in my sunglasses too :) Overall time of 1:16. Not great, but I was pretty content with it.
The best part was that I got to go to my favorite coffee place after (Mary Lous) and hang out at my friend's beach house for the rest of the day.
O, it's probably the right time to mention I also sing in a cover band so I might have set a record that day by racing during the day, and singing Adele by night.
Swim. Bike. Run. Sing. Drink. (finally)
Sounds like a typical day for you!
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