Cyclocross

I tried another new event: cyclocross. I watched it in person last year and it looked like something I would enjoy. I decided to try it this fall instead of running cross country. I borrowed a friend's bike and raced last weekend. It was very hard anaerobically and technically challenging since I don't have much of a cycling background, but I managed to not crash and finished 23rd out of 71 finishers in the Cat 4 open division. I haven't trained for this yet- in fact- haven't exercised much at all since the Lake Stevens 70.3 4 weeks ago. I did take one intro to cyclocross class where I learned how to properly mount and dismount the bike to get over barriers. I finally got my own bike, a Blue Norcross EX, which I named: Chuck Norris. (People fear him, other bikes want to be him.) My next race is tomorrow at Marymoor Park: Starcrossed. I'm excited and nervous- I still haven't trained, will be on a brand new bike, and should know a few other racers and spectators which is always added pressure. That's ok, I'm doing it for fun and a change, and to work on my bike skills.

Summer Racing

I raced in 4 1/2 ironmans this summer. They all went quite well, though a bit of a medical 'mishap' at the second race...

I started in early May with my first Wildflower. I drove in a small campervan with 2 good friends, Derek and Aaron, from Seattle to southern California. We made it a two day drive. There are no towns near the race, which is at Lake San Antonio- about 2 hours north of San Luis Obispo. Everyone camps for the weekend and they have several races over two days. Luckily, the 1/2 ironman is the first race on Saturday morning so we could then relax and enjoy the relaxed and fun atmosphere for the rest of the time.

I had a very solid race and was 4th in my AG in 4:45. Derek and Aaron raced well and were just a few minutes back. The run course is very challenging with hills, trails, and soft dirt, but made much more enjoyable by the college-aged fans cheering who was preparing to race the olympic distance race on Sunday. Their energy really helped push hard those last 6 miles of the run.

My next race was the Honu 70.3 on the big island. I was having one of my best races ever until mile 8 of the run when I began to feel awful and felt like my heart was racing. I slowed from 6:20/mile to about 9:30/mile and barely finished the race. After a few hours when I still felt like dizzy/lightheaded I had a friend drive me to the closest hospital- they hooked me up and discovered I was in atrial fibrillation. No wonder I was forced to slow down so much. I was still 50th overall in 4:44, but would have liked to know where I would have finished if my heart had not blown up at mile 8....argh. After 2 days in the hospital, they cardioverted "shocked" my heart back to normal rhythm and it has been perfectly fine ever since, knock on wood.

Though my heart had been fine, I admit I was a bit nervous for my next race- the Chelan Man 1/2 iron in July. Luckily, it went well and I had a decent swim, stong bike to move into 5th place, and then a big run to just barely grab 3rd overall in a mad sprint finish. I finished in 4:43:59. Amazing that over 3 very different races my times were all within 1 minute of each other.

My last triathlon of the summer was the Lake Stevens 70.3. Pride was also on the line for this race since it's local and I knew so many other people in the race and on the sidelines. Luckily, it went really well and I was 3rd in my AG in 4:33 and the 9th non-professional and beat quite a few pro's which always feels fantastic.

Now I think I'll give cyclocross a try- have always wanted to and I think I'll really enjoy it.