Every once in a while, you do a race that gives you new perspective... for me, this race was the Wildflower Olympic distance triathlon on Sunday, May 3, 2015.
Here's a recap of race weekend and the amazing adventure that is Wildflower!
Wildflower: Learning to RACE HARD!
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| Champions of Wildflower! Inspiring stairs! |
Wildflower is a really special race that every triathlete should experience. It has a long history that goes back to 1983 and is known by many as the "Woodstock of triathlon." There are multiple distance (mountain bike, olympic, half iron) races for all to enjoy, and it hosts an incredible festival lasting all weekend.
I've always wanted to race Wildflower, but it never worked with my schedule... until this year! Since I raced the HITS Napa half earlier in the same month, I opted for the Olympic distance race. Due to the extreme drought in CA over the past few years, the olympic distance course format was: 1500m swim, 2.2mi run, 24.8mi bike ride, 4mi run. Many people seem to be avoiding the race in its newest format (swim - run - bike - run), but I genuinely think this adds to the amazing adventure, and is not to be missed!
Race Report Summary:
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| parking lot scenery |
This was an incredible experience for me! I enjoyed every moment of the weekend from making new, inspiring friends before the race, to digging deep to charge up (most of) those beautiful hills on race day, and finishing just off my (really deep, 5-person) age group podium. I learned how to truly RACE HARD, and am eager to get back out there and tri again!
Race report...long edition:
Pre-race notes:
I opted out of the camping this time and stayed close by in King City. The drive to and from the race site from this location took about 50 minutes on scenic back roads. The day before the race, I checked my bike and run gear in T1b/T2 to make race morning easier. I also wanted to check out the general race site since this was my first trip to Wildflower. Next time I'd skip this trip, but it did make me feel more relaxed for this first Wildflower adventure. One challenge to leaving gear the day before the race was figuring out how to weigh it down (it was really windy!) and also how to keep bottles filled with sports drink from getting funky. I decided to leave the bottles in bags with frozen cooler packs and that seemed to work (but added a little transition time during the race). I also left most of my other gear in a bag as well so I wouldn't lose any of it.
Another bonus for checking into the event the day prior to the race, was that I met some great folks out there. I met Heidi from Love to Move Productions (Mermaid Series events previously). She's an inspiring athlete who rocked the Wildflower Mountain bike race and had just finished a 105mi run to raise funds for her Mini Mermaid Running Club for girls. I have raced a few Mermaid events and always thought they were incredibly well organized and encouraging for athletes of all levels. I said a quick hello and congrats, thanked her for all she does, and got back to race prep!
I also chatted with a few of the challenged athlete foundation racers on my 2 mile hike (literally) back to the parking area after race check in. These athletes were super cool, and one of them, Mary, was featured in the event program! I cheered extra loudly when I saw her racing hard on the bike course the next day!
After a few snacks in the car, I headed back to the hotel for the pasta dinner that I packed. Then off to bed early so I could dream of cruising up all those hills!!!
This was a somewhat conservatively paced run on sandy trails... I actually had not seen this part of the course yet, and figured it would have been flatter than it was, but it was a nice challenging warmup for the bike! Always great to run up two different steep boat ramps in one run!!!
Pre-race notes:
I opted out of the camping this time and stayed close by in King City. The drive to and from the race site from this location took about 50 minutes on scenic back roads. The day before the race, I checked my bike and run gear in T1b/T2 to make race morning easier. I also wanted to check out the general race site since this was my first trip to Wildflower. Next time I'd skip this trip, but it did make me feel more relaxed for this first Wildflower adventure. One challenge to leaving gear the day before the race was figuring out how to weigh it down (it was really windy!) and also how to keep bottles filled with sports drink from getting funky. I decided to leave the bottles in bags with frozen cooler packs and that seemed to work (but added a little transition time during the race). I also left most of my other gear in a bag as well so I wouldn't lose any of it.
Another bonus for checking into the event the day prior to the race, was that I met some great folks out there. I met Heidi from Love to Move Productions (Mermaid Series events previously). She's an inspiring athlete who rocked the Wildflower Mountain bike race and had just finished a 105mi run to raise funds for her Mini Mermaid Running Club for girls. I have raced a few Mermaid events and always thought they were incredibly well organized and encouraging for athletes of all levels. I said a quick hello and congrats, thanked her for all she does, and got back to race prep!
I also chatted with a few of the challenged athlete foundation racers on my 2 mile hike (literally) back to the parking area after race check in. These athletes were super cool, and one of them, Mary, was featured in the event program! I cheered extra loudly when I saw her racing hard on the bike course the next day!
After a few snacks in the car, I headed back to the hotel for the pasta dinner that I packed. Then off to bed early so I could dream of cruising up all those hills!!!
Swim: 28:25
It was really chilly on race morning (around 40 degrees F) so when I arrived at the race day parking area, I bundled up in all my RED gear (shirt, jacket, plus hoodie!) and boarded one of the later shuttles down to the swim start. The shuttles ran until 8:30am but my swim start was at 9:55am... so I was trying to get on the latest shuttle I could! The shuttle ride was quick and the athletes were friendly, so it was a nice ride down to T1a!
There was a pretty hilarious commentary from folks getting off the shuttle and heading down to T1a... Everyone took a look at where/how they wanted us to set up our transition bags (to transport our gear after swim) and were saying how much of a mess it looked like and how insane the hill looked coming out of the water. I also had so much time there, I made friends with the other folks in the later swim waves who were also patiently waiting to begin their race. I met some really nice athletes from the Golden Gate Tri Club and appreciated their company! It was also really cold (40F for shuttle ride) at the start for the early waves but the fog lifted by the time I got in the water, and I was sweating in my wetsuit after walking about 100m down to the swim start!
Note to self: wait until the very last minute to zip up your wetsuit if it is getting warmer! I waited a while but ended up in the full suit for about 10min prior to the start, and that was way too long!
We had 5 minutes to warm up after the prior wave started, and I was excited to get into the water! I found a good starting position in the front/center and went hard from the start. Unfortunately, as I tried to keep on feet of front few gals the two ladies next to me decided to simultaneously swim into me, and then I couldn't catch the leaders since I had to completely stop and swim behind/around my new sidekicks. No worries - I probably couldn't have kept up with the first swimmer as she swam like a dolphin! The kayakers were really great at keeping us on track as we navigated the busy course. I swam a little wide on the return trip by accident (rectangular course, diagonal from shore) as I was sighting off the exit buoy rather than the line of intermediate buoys. I also somehow swam through a bunch of tree branches, twice? I am still not sure how there was a tree underwater or why the paddleboard dude didn't warn anyone (since he was right there?). The first shrubbery/tree I was able to navigate through, but the second forced me to stop and go around. Will have a better strategy next time and will hold a tighter line to buoys! (we were the last wave before relays so it was interesting out there by the time we hit the water... So many people all over the place!) I definitely need to go for a few more open water swims to work on sighting/navigating.
It was really chilly on race morning (around 40 degrees F) so when I arrived at the race day parking area, I bundled up in all my RED gear (shirt, jacket, plus hoodie!) and boarded one of the later shuttles down to the swim start. The shuttles ran until 8:30am but my swim start was at 9:55am... so I was trying to get on the latest shuttle I could! The shuttle ride was quick and the athletes were friendly, so it was a nice ride down to T1a!
There was a pretty hilarious commentary from folks getting off the shuttle and heading down to T1a... Everyone took a look at where/how they wanted us to set up our transition bags (to transport our gear after swim) and were saying how much of a mess it looked like and how insane the hill looked coming out of the water. I also had so much time there, I made friends with the other folks in the later swim waves who were also patiently waiting to begin their race. I met some really nice athletes from the Golden Gate Tri Club and appreciated their company! It was also really cold (40F for shuttle ride) at the start for the early waves but the fog lifted by the time I got in the water, and I was sweating in my wetsuit after walking about 100m down to the swim start!
Note to self: wait until the very last minute to zip up your wetsuit if it is getting warmer! I waited a while but ended up in the full suit for about 10min prior to the start, and that was way too long!
We had 5 minutes to warm up after the prior wave started, and I was excited to get into the water! I found a good starting position in the front/center and went hard from the start. Unfortunately, as I tried to keep on feet of front few gals the two ladies next to me decided to simultaneously swim into me, and then I couldn't catch the leaders since I had to completely stop and swim behind/around my new sidekicks. No worries - I probably couldn't have kept up with the first swimmer as she swam like a dolphin! The kayakers were really great at keeping us on track as we navigated the busy course. I swam a little wide on the return trip by accident (rectangular course, diagonal from shore) as I was sighting off the exit buoy rather than the line of intermediate buoys. I also somehow swam through a bunch of tree branches, twice? I am still not sure how there was a tree underwater or why the paddleboard dude didn't warn anyone (since he was right there?). The first shrubbery/tree I was able to navigate through, but the second forced me to stop and go around. Will have a better strategy next time and will hold a tighter line to buoys! (we were the last wave before relays so it was interesting out there by the time we hit the water... So many people all over the place!) I definitely need to go for a few more open water swims to work on sighting/navigating.
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| View from the hike back to the car from the expo... Lake is out there somewhere! We need rain here in CA!!! |
T1:
8:23
T1 consisted of a T1a, where we scaled a long hill / boat ramp and packed up our wetsuit/swim gear to be transported to finish, and T1b where we got all our bike gear. This transition time wasn't too bad for running up a huge ramp and packing all swim gear plus unpacking my bike bottles/bike gear I dropped the night before at T1b.
Run 1: 2.2mi between T1a & T1bT1 consisted of a T1a, where we scaled a long hill / boat ramp and packed up our wetsuit/swim gear to be transported to finish, and T1b where we got all our bike gear. This transition time wasn't too bad for running up a huge ramp and packing all swim gear plus unpacking my bike bottles/bike gear I dropped the night before at T1b.
This was a somewhat conservatively paced run on sandy trails... I actually had not seen this part of the course yet, and figured it would have been flatter than it was, but it was a nice challenging warmup for the bike! Always great to run up two different steep boat ramps in one run!!!
After getting on my bike, I did ok at maintaining good pace throughout using Coach Jim's technique of rocking out to some heavy metal/rock in my head! I passed a ton of people (which was new for me!) and no one in my AG passed me. I even made it up some of the less steep inclines in the big chain ring without realizing it until the top, so at least I was trying to push the pace as much as possible. The course was super crowded at this point and passing was actually really difficult in a few sections which also slowed me down (can't believe I am even saying this - I am not complaining, but just an observation, as I was apparently on a mission out there!!!). Why don't people ride to the right!?! This was actually driving me nuts for a while, but then I really didn't want to be the jerk yelling on the bike at such a low key event. Seriously though, I have never seen so many people riding in the center/left of the lane... slowly... with oncoming traffic/racers in the other lane!!! AAAAHHHH! :) I am assuming they didn't realize the older gals were coming through to destroy the old guys up those hills! :) Kidding... Next race I'm sure I'll get put in my place even verbalizing that here! I also learned here that it is really easy to just follow everyone else riding casually through the course at that time. Caught myself a few times starting to sit back more comfortably since everyone else seemed to be doing the same since it was a pretty tough ride... but then I snapped out of it quickly! This bike portion provided excellent mental training!
T2: uneventful, 2:30
Run 2:
This second run was not terrible, but also not great. I started off ok... I was moving past people, but I think I was starting to feel the heat pretty early into this run. I also realized I should have taken in more salts earlier in the race. I ran/walked intervals up the big hill and realized that if I am walking, I can still walk/hike with purpose! FYI: The race officials weren't kidding about the run being hilly - some stairs out of transition to set the tone and a mile long hill toward the beginning!?! Awesome! I took a few walk breaks throughout the run course to drink more sports drink, which I managed to add to my bottle this time :) and finally took off like a crazy person down long Lynch Hill toward the finish. If I wiped out doing this it would have been spectacular, but ugly!!! Luckily I managed to keep my feet under me the entire time!
I also saw some really interesting stuff out there on the run course: good running costumes, a full moon at one station, a beer bong at an unofficial aid station...and witnessed 2 college guys actually visit this station while on course, which was hilarious. Much more tame than stories from previous years, but still very entertaining!
Total run time: 56:13
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| Rockin the new RPM tri jersey! |
Finish time: 3:10:01 (6th AG, 37th female)
I don't usually write about my place/how I did overall, but this might be my best finish (ever) at a bigger event, so I felt I needed to write it down for encouragement for future racing!
Not too bad for my 4th olympic distance race ever! I shouldn't be surprised that I still have so much to learn when looking at my race history... I apparently used to just enter random races that sounded interesting without really paying much attention to what I was doing at any of them. This is totally great for having fun experiences and getting to know the sport, but it might be a tough way to learn how to race hard! The only other olympic distance tris I've done are NYC in '08 (really unique event!), Mermaid Santa Cruz '13 which was pretty challenging 2 weeks after my Tahoe DNF (felt like I needed to finish a race!), and then the Desert Tri last year ('14) with the RED team. All really different races, but great experiences!
Here are a few random side notes:
Notes on Transitions...
* I shouldn't have racked the bike the night before if I wanted to save T1/2 time...I had to leave most of the gear in my bag for the most part because it was super windy, so that meant unpacking/sorting for T1b/T2. Even 2 min saved in transition would have made a big difference in the racing side of things... I didn't expect to be that close to the leading gals in my AG. Now I know better! :)
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| packed a donut as a post race treat! |
Notes on Race Nutrition...
* This could still use some work! I had my usual oatmeal breakfast (w/ almond butter, craisins), and some snacks while waiting for the swim (banana, few bites of rice cake). Out of the water, I ate a Honey Stinger gel and a few gulps of sports drink to fuel the 2mi run. On the bike I had 2 bottles of Scratch Labs lemons & limes, a picky bar, 2 gels, and 2/3 sleeve of shot blocks. This was too much as it was heavy in my stomach during the run. Next time I may stick to gels/blocks and avoid solids for this distance race. On the run I drank Scratch Labs Orange (in my run bottle) and had 1 gel (about 20min into the run).
Notes on the Event...
* I am really glad I experienced Wildflower - such a cool event! Incredibly well organized for what I can only imagine is one big logistical nightmare.
* It was good to get a slight lay of the land on Saturday, and I met some great folks during that excursion.
* Most people I met were really cool at this event! It was so great to be at an event with a lot of good athletes (many folks rockin Kona gear / racing fast) but very few DBs (most of the DBs probably aren't tough enough to handle the ego crushing course or the crazy encouraging college kids everywhere).
* This course has the best volunteers!!! Hands down, the most enthusiastic I have ever seen! Many of them college students who were super thrilled to be out there for the weekend. Thanks so much to all of you for the cheers, the help on course, and the "splash" on the run course (they ask, and then throw much appreciated cups of water at you as you run by).
* Thanks Coach Jim, for dealing with my ridiculousness and helping me learn a ton each race! I am really proud to be able to race these tough events and finish strong! After this race, I am definitely eager to get out there and have another go at pushing the pace, all race!
Ready to RACE HARD!
Let's Get RED!
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