blast

Kecia

June 6

I raced the Tri Clear Lake Olympic distance Triathlon on Saturday, May 25. This is a fun race that brings together the tri community early in the year here in Iowa. You never know what you'll get with the weather and the water temps can be very cold, but it's so fun to see tri friends, meet new ones, and have a blast racing! It was a much windier day than was predicted, so "having a blast" meant that we not only had loads of fun, but also had some unexpected challenges thrown our way.

I got to see some of my Coeur Sports sisters before the start of the race, at the practice swim, and while racing. Notice how we are all wearing sweats?!?! Yeah...that air temp wasn't super warm on race morning. After the swim warm up, we were wet and standing on the shore for about 25 minutes before our wave went off (hello F40+ is the last wave in the Olympic distance start at this race) and the air temperature was about 49F. It required lots of hugs to keep us warm while waiting.

These ladies, this team...so much love for everyone racing!

Swim: 34:25 for 1500 meters = 5/10 age group, 22/55 female, 89/196 overall

All the pre-race hugs as we wait to get our party started!

The swim was a roller coaster ride with SO MUCH CHOP, lots of panic by others, disorientation (I had no idea where I was at one point of this swim), and swimming in what felt like an endless pool for the last 500 meters. I kept my focus on staying calm, relaxed, and on keeping my stroke smooth and as efficient as possible. I had very minimal contact with other athletes, because there weren't many people who were swimming a straight line (myself included) and even fewer who were swimming on the buoy line. Buoys...where are those?! All I see when I site is another white cap heading my way before slapping me in the face! 🤣

Bike: 1:20:39 for 24.8 miles = 5/10 age group, 21/55 female, 103/196 overall

Tim: "How was the swim?"
Me: "I drank enough of the lake to hydrate me for the rest of the race today." 🤣

This bike course is pretty flat with a couple of out and back sections in addition to a loop that is done twice. It is fun to get to see others, cheer them on, and switch up where that wind is hitting you. The wind that was creating many challenges during the swim gave us areas of headwinds, tailwinds, and crosswinds on the bike throwing in a challenge factor at various times on the bike. Getting to see my Coeur teammates + tri friends and cheer them on was so fun!

Run: 57:51 for 6.2 miles = 7/10 age group, 31/55 female, 129/196 overall

This run is one of my favorites as it is an out and back course that is done twice, so you get to see all the other athletes, cheer them on, give high fives, and see the lake along the majority of the course. The wind that was creating a massive challenge on the swim and pummelling us in different directions on the bike felt AMAZING on the run. My run was a bit slow for me, but I ran at a consistent pace throughout and am so proud of how I executed this run.

Overall: 2:58:15 for 32.0 miles = 4/10 age group, 21/55 female, 104/196 overall

When the wind + fun collide, we have a blast, which is exactly what went down at Tri Clear Lake!