Philly Triathlon - Results!

As promised, here are the results of the Philadelphia Insurance Sprint Triathlon for females 30-34, specifically, me! I came in 37th of 68 women with an official finish time of 1:58:46. For my first race, I would consider that pretty good, especially when you consider I didn't run (much). If you go by my previous blog where I considered the race over after the bike, I came in 10th. Here's the breakdown.
Swim .9 K


Time: 16:08
Rank in group: 4th
Well, I'm going to chalk up my mediocre swim performance to nerves. I hopped into the water as soon as my group was allowed and then just tread(ed?) water until 8:14am. I didn't warm up. I went out way too fast and was near dead before I reached the bridge. I managed to calm down on the way back but I had already killed any type of pacing. It was also very cloudy in the river and I needed more energy in order to swim with my head up, which I didn't have. It was nice to catch members of the groups 7 and 14 minutes ahead of me. I was tied for third coming to the finish, but I stumbled getting to the bank and was officially fourth. I am also slightly convinced that either the course was too long or the timer started us late (8:16 by my watch) because that time is really slow based on my normal moderate pacing.
What I did right: 25 years of training
What I did wrong: Out too fast, didn't set a good pace
How to improve: Go out slower. I am a distance swimmer by build; I can always catch people later when they tire.
Time that I can make up on Aug 3rd: 1 minute with a better race

T1

Time: 3:07
Rank in group: 32nd
I figure, not bad for my first transition ever (no practicing either!). I didn't run my bike out, so that surely added quite a bit of time.
What I did right/wrong: Beats me; never done it.
How to improve: RUN! My legs felt fine after the swim, so I know I can do it if I try.
Time that I can improve by: maybe 1 minute with practice and an ability to run.

Bike 24K (bike computer read 16.26mi)

Time: 54:10, 17.4mph avg
Rank in group: 25th
This is the part I am most proud of. I passed people with $7000 super-duper tri bikes on my $500 beloved road bike. I essentially learned how to ride a bike 2 months ago, so I figure that's pretty good. I'm also very happy with my average speed, considering the hills on the course. I had trouble with my front derailleur (again!) going up Strawberry Mansion ramp on my second time around, so I had to power up in medium gear. I think I did pretty well on the flat sections, usually holding around 20mph.
What I did right: pedaled my pants off
What I did wrong: Not enough training in yet.
How to improve: 1) more training 2) hit the weights and build up those quads 3) suck it up and switch to clip in shoes; I really needed more power on the hills 4) get new derailleurs (budget permitting)
Time that I can improve by: with more training and clips, I'll give myself 5 minutes
T2
Time: 2:37
Rank in group: 44th
Again, I can't run. So I walked my bike to the rack, took off the helmet, grabbed a shirt, and walked to the run out.
What I did right/wrong: duh
How to improve: see T1
Time that I can improve by: I don't know, 1 minute?
Run 5K

Time: 42:43
Rank in group: 65! that means I beat someone!
This was the most painful part for me, mentally way more than physically. I actually felt pretty good after T2 and really, really wanted to take off. But I didn't. I was a good patient and watched the entire field that I had crushed all day pass me by. It was made a little better by another girl that I talked to for most of the 5K. She was tired and felt bad for me so we just talked about how much fun our first triathlons were (she is also doing SheRox). Near the end, I looked at my watch and noticed that if I jogged, I could break 2 hours, so I left my new friend behind and jogged the last 1/4 mile. Well, that was so much fun, I sprinted the last 1/10 mile and finished in 1:58!
What I did right/wrong: Got shin splints, then a stress reaction, then didn't rest appropriately.
How to improve: Keep up the rehab, then when the pain is gone, get my butt back on the trail in my new shoes.
Time to improve: 17-18 minutes if I can run my usual 8 min miles
Overall time that I can drop: 26 minutes with a perfect race, meaning 1:32 and a top five in this race.
On a side note (Oscar acceptance speech!), thanks to my family and friends for supporting me on this, especially my awesome husband Darren, who was at nearly every leg of the race (wearing yellow so I could find him) cheering me on. I can't wait to do it again. The training has made me so much happier and calmer, and helped me drop from 150lbs at Christmas to 135 this morning, which I am so so proud of. Now I just have to continue to train, lay off the junk food I love so much, and get ready for August 3rd.

The night before...

About 11 hours and 55 minutes until my wave starts. My legs feel pretty good right now, despite feeling kinda cruddy all day after being on call last night (three hours of sleep is bad). I rode up to the expo, got my derailleurs fixed, and looked around at things. One thing I noticed: there are some jacked up bikes here. I hope Chuddley doesn't get an inferiority complex. I keep telling her that it's the engine that makes the cyclist. I also tried out the endless pool. I have to admit, it's a good idea, but I like to swim at several speeds for endurance. The river was 77 degrees this afternoon, so I'll probably not wear a wetsuit to save time at transition (thanks anyways, Kelly).
Nothing to do tonight but relax, drink lots of water, and try to get some sleep. I'll be up at 6 for a light breakfast and at the transition area by 7. I'll ride up there with Darren and learn how to get things set up.
Wish me luck!

T minus 3 days and counting...

Houston, we have a big problem. What I have been calling "shin splints" for the past 2 months has been upgraded to stress fracture of the tibia by my orthopaedist (aka me, and most of my attendings). Despite how the radiologists read my MRI, and orthopaedists never listen them anyway, it is now obvious that I have a much more serious problem. For two months I have been diligent about not running. At all. I have myself tied to a bone stimulator 10 hours a day. I have worn a cast boot for a month. I have taken enough ibuprofen to cause at least 4 gastric ulcers. I have perfected the iced dixie-cup to the shins. I have moved even slower at volleyball than normal (that's slow). And it still hurts.
Actually, it had been feeling better the last week or so, not limping or anything, but I still held off trying running again until I was sure. So today I tried to run. I knew it could be bad, so I planned a trip around my block so I wouldn't ever be too far from home. I ran 1/10th of a mile. It immediately went into spasm and I am limping again. This sucks, this sucks, this sucks!
As for the Philly Triathlon on Saturday, I am still doing it. I am a very good swimmer and, from what I can tell when I'm out, a pretty good cyclist, so I am basically racing for a good time in the first two legs. I will not be running. I will enjoy a nice 5K walk along the river in my comfy-as-heck CAM boot. If people cheer me on to run, I will smile and wave.
As for the race itself, I plan on holding a good pace for the swim, hoping to pace around 1:25 100 meters. At the first transition, take off the wetsuit (borrowed from my awesome friend Kelly) into my trishorts and swim suit top, sweep hair up into helmet, and get shoes and socks on. I hope to hold 19-20 mph on the flat sections, and I'm hoping I can get my front derailleurs adjusted so I can kick into low gears on the hills. My time reaching T2 is my finish line, where I will change my left shoe to the boot. I can't wait to post pics!
Well, sorry I am boring you with this, but if you have been reading my blog for very long, you know how important this is to me, and how upset I am about it. But on the bright side, there's 7 more weeks until the next triathlon, and maybe I'll be healed by then. Thanks for reading...

My new home

I have lived in Philadelphia for three years now. It has been a rough transition, partly because I had only lived outside of Louisville for one year (the previous year in Chicago) and because Philly is completely different from the midwest. While I have many problems with the city, here are the top five things I like.
1. The Italian Market: Only 14 blocks from my house, the festival of all things Italian is a once every week or so must-see. Here are the highlights: the chocolate cannoli at Isgro's bakery, the fresh buffala mozzarella at Claudio's, frozen Italian dishes at Talutto's, DiBruno Bros House of Cheese, Anthony's Chocolate House, Sarcone Bakery fresh bread, and my favorite, the sauces and pastas at Superior Ravioli. Hungry yet? A perfect Sunday includes brunch at Sabrina's cafe (best breakfast in town), wandering through the market, and then grabbing some cannoli on the way out. Only criticism: the southern end of the market breaks down into stores selling cheap plastic crap and black market DVD's. The absolute tacky-fest that is Geno's Cheeseteaks is complemented by the more subdued Pat's King of Steaks, which my in-laws manage to visit at least twice a trip. For a view of the Italian market, picture Rocky running up a narrow street with fire barrels, and that's it.


2. Fairmount Park: While not as impressive as the Olmsted parks of Louisville, this area of greenery surrounding the Shuylkill River and Wissahickon Creek is a fantastic area for recreational activities. Famous landmarks include the Belmont Plateau (featured in Summertime by Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff), boathouse row, and yet another place where Rocky trained (see above). It is my favorite place to train, and the site of my two (possibly three) triathlons this summer. It also hosted the Philly International Cycling Championship yesterday (despite the 99 degree heat).

3. Philadelphia Phillies/ Philly Phanatic: Easily the most ignored of the pro teams here (don't try to argue this one, the only time anyone has cared recently is when the Mets collapsed last year). Games are relatively cheap, bike parking is at the gate, and veggie dogs are actually available. There's also dollar dog nite several times a year. Chase Utley is an amazing player to watch (how he has not won the mvp while Howard and Rollins have is a total mytery, which will likely be rectified this year). I am still a die-hard St. Louis fan, and I did see the Cards hand Philly their 10000th loss, but it's nice to have a team here that people don't get suicidal over (see: the Eagles). The Phanatic is also the best mascot in sports, period.




4. King of Prussia Mall: Not so much a mall as a, well, a really big mall (third largest in US). Also, not really in Philly, but in the western suburbs. But everything is there, parking is easy, and it's a fun place to people watch. Criticisms: for some reason, the Court section of the mall is not attached to the main mall, meaning you have to walk outside to get to Macy's and Banana Republic. Even weirder, you walk into the Court through the men's department at Macy's. Still worth the 3 gallon of gas drive, though.

5. Channel 6 Action News: I'll admit it, I mostly like this channel because of the opening music. It's awesome. I couldn't even tell you a single name of one the of anchors, but I'll watch the whole newscast waiting for the music at commercial breaks. It's like they wrote the theme in 1972, realized it was golden, and never changed a thing. You can search youtube for different montages over the years, and that theme song never varies.

Weird Situation...

So I got a nosebleed in the shower tonight. My first thought was, "well , now what do I do?" I mean, do I call my husband to bring a washcloth? Let my nose just bleed and let the water wash it off? Hold my nose with one hand and try to wash with the other?
Weird.