“I just want to see Mirinda Carfrae,” I said to John as we drove to Middlebury, CT for the Rev3tri Quassy half iron distance triathlon.
“We’ll see her,” he replied.
My affinity for Carfrae started when I watched her compete in Kona for the first time. While all eyes were on Chrissie Wellington (who is fabulous, yes), I was riveted by the athlete with the flawless running form ripping it up in her first Ironman, and first marathon.
“She is so tough, scrappy,” I continued.
“Yeah. Get some of that to rub off on you,” John said, obviously referring to my cycling. “Let some of that anxiety go and you’ll kill it.”
He paused.
“…Just like running.”
“Yes,” I said. “Just like running.”
I’m preparing my mind to hammer the bike tomorrow. It’s about time I get a little scrappy and become the cyclist that I know my body is prepared to be. I’m visualizing and feeling the joy of speed as I float down hill and glide effortlessly up hill.
No need to think much about flats because Quassy doesn’t have much of those.
This mental preparation also includes my race plan.
I’ll start with a steady effort in the swim, positioning myself to the back of my wave. I’m not a terrible swimmer, but I’m also not a front-pack swimmer. Start calm, stay calm-that’s how I roll in the swim. 38 minutes is the goal here.
T1: well, I’m a perpetual slow poke in T1. Not tomorrow. Swift, efficient, and I’m off on the bike.
Ahhh, the bike. Last night, John and I went to a wedding and during the mass, I found my mind wandering to thoughts of a 3:30 bike split.
“God,” I started, fully realizing prayers to help my bike split just might be inappropriate at that moment, but as I’ve written before, training makes you selfish. I can’t help it. 😉
“Let me be safe on Sunday. And, please, help me to achieve a 3:30 bike split. Thank you.”
That split will require a 16 mph average. With 3500 feet of climbing, I think this is a challenging but realistic goal. Everything about my training to this point says I can do it. So I will.
After an exhilarating ride, I’ll zip into T2 and take only moments to shed my bike and gear, slip on my sneakers and enjoy the best part: the run.
Given the long recovery I’ve needed after Boston, the run (ironically) is a bit of a crap shoot. If I were at 100% here, I’d be calling an aggressive time goal. But I’m not. I still get little niggles in my leg if I punch it too hard.
Complicating matters is the hilly course. My bicep femoris hates downhills, so I can’t bomb them the way I like. Even so, considering that I had to scratch the run at NJ Devilman a month ago, I will be grateful to run at any pace without issue. And, really, the key value of this race for me is seeing where I am on the bike. the run is just a fun cooldown :).
As much as I hate to say it, I’m going for a conservative 2 hours on the run, about 15-16 minutes slower than I might be able to do without the leg issues. (You may be wondering if Boston was worth it. My answer? HELL YES!)
I’ll be smiling as I run the final meters to the finish line, and those feelings of fulfillment will leave me satisfied–at least until the next day when the focus rests solely on Ironman Lake Placid, where I will again channel my inner-scrapper.
