Boise Recap!

I can't believe I am just posting this..I completed the Boise 70.3 in June!! I drove up to Boise the Thursday before with a fun group of triathletes in preparation for the Boise 70.3 race that was Saturday. As we traveled up we received a text that 53 degrees was the posted water temperature at check in. This became the hot topic of conversation..53 degree water!! That is COLD!

We arrived in Boise 15 minutes before packet pick up closed and quickly checked into the race...sure enough this wasn't a lie..53 degree water! YIKES!

Friday we took our bikes on a short ride of the race course and checked them into transition 1 and decided to check the water temperature. The park ranger informed us it was 47 degrees....as I got up to my knees in water it hurt...it felt like an ice bath. I couldn't believe we were actually going to swim in it.

Friday evening was dinner at the Cheesecake Factory with about 40 other athletes from the valley which made for a very fun dinner. It was so fun being surrounded by fellow triathletes that were all competing the next day.

I am used to an early morning race, but Boise doesn't start until noon. I wasn't sure what to do with myself yesterday morning not getting up and heading to a race. I had a normal breakfast, read the paper, checked the weather forecast on a couple occasions, watched part of a movie on TV, and then checked my bags into transition 2 in downtown Boise.

We headed up to the start at around 10:00....I was so nervous about the cold water more then anything. Well...and of course the nervousness of wanting to meet my expectations of myself on race day. The weather was perfect as we arrived to the start line and I got all of my things set up and ready to go. I ran into a couple people I knew which was nice and then headed to the start line. It was nice to hear the topic of conversation was the water temperature. Everyone was slathering on vaseline onto their feet...supposedly it creates a barrier to cold water....I was up for anything to make it a little less cold. The official water temp was 53! I also put aquaphor on my face.

The National Anthem started at noon...I love a race that starts with the national anthem. I took several deep breaths and thought about the great friends, athletes, and people I was surrounded by. That is one of the reasons I love racing is I get to associate with such great people. We gave a quick good luck to each other and departed to our waves. We watched each wave jump in one by one. This wasn't a slowly get into the water swim entry...this was a jump off the dock entry. Our wave quickly approached and as it did I took a deep breath and jumped in. It was just as cold as I expected...but worse...my goggles fogged up! I have never had this happen...I literally couldn't see to the first buoy. I was trying to stay calm as I was freezing and couldn't see anything. I knew there was no way I could do the swim with my goggles liked this. I was rinsing them in the water and trying everything I could, but then the gun went off. I tried to swim but I couldn't see anything! It was the worst feeling! I swam to the first kayak and asked him for a towel...he didn't have one. I noticed he had a wetsuit on, but his sleeves weren't on. I told him I needed his sleeve. So I quickly rubbed off my goggles put them on and was good to go. I was so mad though because I had lost 1-2 minutes!! I quickly started swimming and got into a good rhythm. I couldn't believe the whirlpool of people..usually this only lasts for a few hundred yards...not today! There were about four different sections during the swim that it was a little crazy...I got kicked, punched, and my goggles knocked off. I was really grateful this wasn't my first open water swim! I just stayed calm and kept swimming. My hands and feet hurt they were so cold! I got out of the water at 42 minutes. Despite the goggle incident, I would have come out faster then Oceanside so I was happy about it! I quickly ran up through transition and got my gear ready to go. I made sure I dried off well because I was cold!

And it was off on the bike. I was so excited about this bike course because it had some good downhills, a few good uphills, and a lot of flat. I knew that I could meet my goal of averaging 20 MPH. About two miles into my bike there was a man named Gerry that I would pass and he would pass me. We started chit chatting knowing we would probably see a lot of each other during the 56 mile bike ride. We had about the same goal time on the bike. Our joke was I would catch him on the uphill and he would catch me on the downhill and that is about how it played out. We visited for a minute everytime we would catch up to each other. It made the bike ride so much fun! I thoroughly enjoyed my bike and averaged a faster time then my goal! It was nice to have a little friend out on the course. But...I was having some stomach stuff go on and my legs were beat.

I came into transition two and there was the nicest volunteer. She dumped out my bag with all my run stuff in it and told me she would put all my bike stuff in the right bag and to get out on the run. I really wanted to find someone who was running about my same pace. But, once again...it didn't happen. I really wanted to hold 7:30 minute miles, but after about 3 miles I felt like I had to back off or I may not make the 13 mile run. I can't believe how mentally tired I am when I get off the bike...this is something that I really hope to overcome. My goal was to run to the aide station and then walk through it grabbing what I needed. I saw my triathlon coach at mile 7 which was WONDERFUL as she gave me a little cheer! Around mile 8 my stomach was not feeling so hot and by mile 9 I was so tired! I had to give myself little pep talks...I knew I wasn't going to meet my goal, but really wanted to beat my Oceanside time. I knew when I was running I was averaging about a 7:45..but by the time I walked through the aide station it was adding about 20 seconds per mile. But, I noticed my strategy was working because I would catch up to this gal before the next aide station...so I knew I was holding a good average pace with my walking breaks through the aide station. I ended up passing her at mile 11 and then the last 2 miles noticed I had passed 4 girls in my age group...this brings a lot of motivation! I ran as hard as I could the last half mile into downtown Boise...and was ecstatic to cross the finish line. I always know I ran a great race when I feel like crap at the finish line. I grabbed a chocolate milk and water and quickly found a place to sit down to pull myself together...and let my body decompress. I knew I had given it my all and even though I didn't meet my run goals I had beat my Oceanside time!

I ended my race with a nice massage and finding several athletes that I knew as they crossed the finish line.

This course was great! I loved it as much as Oceanside. The bike course was so fun and the run was beautiful and shaded. My only complaint were there were no porta potties on the run...who doesn't put porta potties on a 13 mile run!! I am pretty sure everyone will either need to pee by this point or have digestive issues...luckily I just had to pee! My only other real complaint was I really missed my family at transitions. There is something motivational about seeing your family at each transition...I missed them a lot!

My times went like this:

Swim: 42 minutes (would have bee 40-41 if not for the goggle mishap)..it would have beat my Oceanside time

Bike: 2:47 and average of 20.06 MPH....beat my Oceanside time

Run: 1:45...averaged an 8:03 pace...beat my Oceanside time

Total time was 5:22

Placed 12th in my age group and was the 48th woman to cross the finish line

I really can't complain about anything. I really love this sport and am grateful for the great friends I have met through the training process. I really loved doing a race where so many fellow triathletes were...it made it so much fun! I LOVE racing! And I am grateful for the supportive husband I have that allows me to do what I love. I hope to continue to shave off my time at races as I continue to train.

I stayed the last two night with Heather and her brother. We had a great dinner at Red Robin with some salty fries and a nice philly cheesesteak sandwich that tasted delicious! And last night....we pretty much decompressed from the race!! :)