First Race of 2015: HITS Napa Valley Half

I'm really excited about racing this season with the Red Performance Multisport team!  I've already had some fun days out on the course making new friends and seeing new places... now it's time to catch up on race reports! 

After starting the year off with a Hawaiian vacation (which led to every Friday being Aloha Friday!) and a team triathlon training camp (which resulted in some great new friends and great motivation to work hard), it seemed fitting to kick off the race season with a half iron distance triathlon... in early April... 

Here is recap of my (somewhat) recent adventure in wine country!  
(next race report coming soon: Wildflower Olympic !)

HITS Napa Valley Half Race Report

Lake Berryessa, CA - HITS Napa Valley Half, April 11, 2015 (Most photo credits go to Larry)

One month ago... I raced the HITS Napa Valley half iron distance triathlon and volunteered at the sprint / olympic race.  I had an incredible time racing and helping out at this excellent series!  Racing was fun, but some of the greatest highlights of the weekend for me included: having Larry there for early morning support (so awesome!), being able to cheer for my pal, Amanda, as she and her husband raced Sunday, and meeting a social media friend, Cathryn, in person for the first time!  Such amazing, sporty gals with wonderful families!

Chilly morning, but all smiles!

 

If you haven't raced a HITS event yet, I highly recommend them!  Such a cool series with a low key, grassroots vibe.  The event organizing team is excellent, and they go out of their way to provide a wonderful racing experience for all athletes.

The short edition of the race report: the race went ok!  It was a really interesting day across a really hilly course with a dramatic swing in temperature (45F at swim start/finish and close to maybe 80F on the run?).  It was really fun to get out there, shake off the cobwebs, and run back into race mode at an event with a supportive, community vibe.

Keep reading for a much longer, ridiculously detailed race report! 

 

 

Waving to the camera (look over left shoulder of the gal in wetsuit with red back!)

Swim  37:19

Before the swim start, I found my #1 supporter, Larry, and got all my gear (somewhat) set up.  While wrestling my wetsuit on outside transition, I was really excited that I ran into Cathryn and her family!  It was so great to meet them, and it was fun to hang out for a little while we waited for the swim start!

I was eagerly awaiting the swim because it was a mass start!  This was actually the first time I experienced one of these, because all other events either had rolling starts (aka, organized mass start) or wave starts.  The mass start was fun, except I was not in the best spot when it was go time... (see photo above)

After entering the water, I swam the first 20m or so with my head out of the water to find some space and to stay on a straight path toward the first buoy.  Once I had some space to swim, I put my head down and started swimming at a consistent pace.  I looked for someone to draft off, but no one near me was swimming straight toward that first buoy, so I harnessed my inner Dory and just kept swimming! (- Finding Nemo)

The course was sort of a triangle, and I managed to sight properly and swim a pretty tight line toward the first three buoys.  After rounding the final buoy, I decided to push myself a little harder because my pace felt really comfortable up to this point.  Unfortunately, it was somewhat difficult to sight the swim exit from this buoy and the curvy shoreline was not helping... so I proceeded to kick it into a higher swim gear... in the wrong direction!  Luckily, I looked up to sight after some dude swam diagonally across my line.  I seriously thought to myself... wow, he's totally swimming the wrong way!?!  Then I paused to look for the swim exit...and realized I was the one swimming off course! Oops!!  Thank you, random swimmer dude, for redirecting me!   

Note to self: be sure to sight more frequently, especially when excited!

Upon exiting the water, I climbed the steep hill up to T1 and saw Larry cheering, which was awesome!  The water was relatively chilly (mid-high 50s, maybe?) and my feet were numb by the end of the swim, so I decided to walk up half the wall toward transition (genuinely worried about tripping over my big cold feet).  So nice of the race organizers to lay down some carpet to keep our frozen feet happy!

Positive swim note:  I was surprised to feel like I could have kept swimming that pace for another loop!  This is a positive sign for another full-distance attempt!    

T1

The HITS transition area was incredible - so much space, everyone had a seat, and the racks had bins to keep extra gear out of the way!  By far the most organized, athlete-friendly transition area I have ever seen! 

The swim exit ramp was definitely steeper than it appears here!

 

Bike  3:35

This course was interesting, with some long climbs to test your endurance as well as many fun, rolling hills.  The scenery was beautiful and definitely different from most of the typical Napa vineyard landscapes you experience on your wine tasting visits.  I drove the course the day before the race, and it appeared to be a lot hillier and more remote than I expected.  I knew this part of the race was going to be an adventure - and a potentially lonely one as there were a small number of competitors heading out there.
 

My goal for the bike ride was to be consistent and stay within the heart rate (HR) zones Coach Jim set for me.  Mission accomplished on this one (for the most part)!  

I did not do as well with my nutrition... I managed to drink about a bottle of scratch labs an hour (which was good for me) and ate a bunch of somewhat random stuff (2 picky bars, 2 gels, snack bag of pretzels, pack of shot blocks, & packet of maple almond butter).  I thought I forgot my second bar, so I went for the emergency almond butter packet in my bento box instead.  I will not make this substitution in the future, for sure!  That almond butter ended up mostly all over me / my face / my gear, and then sat like a nutty rock in my belly.  Not the best choice, but at least I properly field tested this fuel source in race mode now!  Overall, this wasn't terrible in terms of calorie intake, but I may cut back on the variety next time!  

Bundled up for the ride!

I also had 2 quick stops on the bike relating to nutrition.  One was around mile 15 to unlock the cap on a water bottle handed to me by volunteer (rockstar volunteer manning aid station solo at a turnaround that got really busy as I rode through & my bottle opening skills on the fly are not great).  The second quick pit-stop  was around mile 45 (bladder couldn't handle the cold temps and bumpy road anymore).

I also realized that I need to get a little tougher in terms of temperature tolerance.  It was pretty chilly out (somewhere around 45F at the start?) but not freezing, however, my fingers and feet were numb for almost the entire ride.    

Note to self: always come prepared with full finger gloves at early season races or races in locations where it may randomly snow (a ridiculous, but legitimate, concern from a previous race)!

Overall, I rode at a reasonable pace where I wasn't flying up any of the hills by any means, but I made it through the bike feeling like I could run hard for a few miles, which was good progress!

Positive bike note: I consistently rode up all the hills feeling pretty good physically and mentally.  I definitely feel stronger than I was last year at this time in the season!  Thanks, Coach Jim!  

Run course had lake views and bridge crossing!

T2

Overall transition was fairly uneventful & I was finally warming up!  I took another pit stop (which added a bunch of time here) and then headed out on the run!

Run  2:13 

I ran out of T2 feeling strong!  I was well inside my target HR zone and was running a quick pace (for me) until the hill around mile marker 1... where pace dropped, but my HR was still within the goal zone.  At this point I also realized I made a complete knucklehead mistake... and my water bottle was filled with water**... not Scratch labs mix!?!  I am an idiot.  I know how well I do without salt... but thought that maybe I'll be fine after loading up on the bike... and knowing they have aid stations every 1.5 mile...  

First mistake: not adding mix to my run bottle.  Second mistake (almost worse): attempting to drink their electrolyte drink which may have been HEED?  More like heave...  (no offense Hammer - the drink just disagreed with my belly every time I've had it).  It was bad, and of course I drank some at 2 aid stations... and then my stomach revolted (around mile 4-5ish).  My legs were starting to feel tired from the day of hills, but they were still moving pretty well.  Unfortunately, my gut was also moving...and I was forced to slow down dramatically (actually to a complete stop a few times).  I did manage to eat a Honey Stinger gel every 20min, and was able to add a few pretzels, water, and even a little coke after the halfway turnaround. 

Note to self: always take a sip out of each bottle before the race starts...to make sure there is sports drink in there!!!

Entrance/Exit for run course

 

I ran up as much and as many of the hills as I could with the stomach issues and tired legs.  I can handle puking on a course, but this type of issue would require a costume change if things got really bad, and I guess that's where I draw the line. (Yes, it was that bad!)  I did feel better after a few walking breaks, but there was no way to really push the pace on the second half of the run as I had hoped to.  By this time of the day, it was getting pretty warm out (in the 80s?), so my new ice-cold sponge friends (from aid station) were also helping make everything feel better!

Positive Run Note: I can force myself through a long run while having serious gut issues, if I have to (and still consume gels and water).  This was also the hilliest half marathon I have ever attempted on roads!    

Volunteering and Cheering at Sunday's Race:

 
The next morning, I happily woke up early and returned to the venue to volunteer for the sprint and olympic distance races.  I was super excited to cheer for my friends, Amanda and Matt, who were racing their first tri!!!  It was great catching up with them while carbo-loading earlier in the week, and I was thrilled to be there supporting their first tri!  It always makes me really happy to play it forward whenever I can!  They are great athletes, and I knew this was going to be an excellent day for them!

Sunrise over transition at the oly/sprint races

 

I planned on volunteering for just a few hours at the start, but ended up staying for most of the race, as I was having a good time helping out with everything from body marking to monitoring the bike mount/dismount line for the entire race. 

My body-marking skills do need a little work... sorry to the one dude who's number I messed up!  Don't worry - mine got messed up at the next race as payback!  This was a really fun job, and I was happy to be able to help a lot of first time racers in transition.  I joked around with one athlete when he was surprised we weren't marking ages on calves.  I told him that he will just have to beat everyone... and he did!  Awesome!  I also got a few smiley requests, and drew a star and even a fun little fish for my friend!   

It was great to be there to see my friends race through transition and have such huge smiles at the end of the race!  Many congrats to the triathletes, Amanda and Matt, for diving head first into this new sport!  I look forward to racing, training, and carbo-loading with you both!
 

Sunday transition area

 

  

Fond Memories!

Overall, this was a great weekend I'll always remember!  I'll definitely draw upon these positive memories for motivation at my upcoming races!  Thank you to everyone who cheered for me on and off the course, especially Larry.  Thank you, Coach Jim, for all the great training, support, and encouragement always.  Thank you Cathryn and Amanda for the inspiration to be a strong, sporty gal like you! 

Other random HITS event / venue notes:

This area is beautiful, but somewhat tough to get to (at least 45 minutes to 1 hour on winding back roads to the next city with lodging in any direction).  The road surface was a bit rough in spots, so if you ride up here, be sure to tighten all bike bolts!  I was really impressed with the event organization and helpful volunteers.  HITS knows what they are doing, and they definitely make everyone feel welcome at their events!