Live.Love.Tri.



This past weekend was the Live.Love.Tri all women's triathlon in Rio Rancho.  What a fun event!  I really like all women's races, especially when there are a lot of beginners and first-time racers, because there seems to be a strong sense of camaraderie and support.  I got to the race site at 5:45 a.m., just as the sun was beginning to rise over Sandia peak.  The event was well organized (and there were lots of clean bathrooms, bonus!).  We had a fun pre-race warm up with yoga and Zumba, followed by singing the National Anthem together.  Racers were in good spirits and it was sunny and warm when the race started at 7:00.




There were 22 women in my age group, and we all started in the second heat.  A few fast runners sprinted away and I settled into my pace in about 8th place.  There were a few steep and constant uphills in the first half of the 5K run, followed by a long, gradual downhill along a trail.  The downhill was hard on the knees, but I love hills and embraced the challenge!  I finished the run in 28:22.  My goal was 28 minutes, but I was able to make up some time with a quick transition to the bike and passed on other racer.

The bike ride was a 10 mile course, out and back, again with some steep and consistent hills.  The roads were in good condition and there were really gorgeous views of the morning clouds settling over Sandia.  There were a few hot air balloons in the sky, and I was remembering my balloon ride with my mom a few years ago on a morning just like this one.  The racers in my age group were fairly spread out during the ride; I didn't pass anyone from my group, and no one passed me.  But I had a good ride, pushed hard on the uphills, and finished in my goal time of 36 minutes. 

Then onto the swim!  The swim is my weakest event, and this was my only pool race of the year.  I like swimming in the pool because 1) I can see the bottom, and 2) there are opportunities to take breaks at the end of each lap, but unfortunately it's usually crowded and noisy in the indoor pool area.  This race had a 400 meter swim, consisting of 16 lengths in a 25 meter pool.  My goal was 11 minutes and I finished in 9:56!

My final time was 1 hour 16 minutes.  I ended up in 7th place out of 22 women in my age group.  I was hoping to be in the Top 3 for this race, but my age group had the most competitors and some really good athletes.  (The overall winner was in my group, finishing the race in under one hour!)  Overall I finished 30th out of 135 races.  I was happy with my time and had a fun race!

I look forward to participating in this one again next year! :-)


Coming up next... Xterra "Tri the Torture" off-road triathlon and the "My Way or the Tri Way" sprint triathlon in August, and hopefully a few running events in the fall!


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Pacific Northwest Bachelorette Party

Image
I just returned home from a memorable weekend in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, celebrating my sister, Katie, who is getting married in just a few short weeks.  Four years ago she, as my Maid of Honor, planned the most unforgettable and fun-filled bachelorette weekend for me:  San Francisco and Sonoma Bachelorette , and now it was my turn to do the same for her!  We gathered together a group of twelve women from Boston, Chicago, New Orleans, Salt Lake City, Manchester, Santa Fe, Denver, and Seattle to celebrate the Bride to Be.  I wanted to have some organized, pre-planned group activities, but also plenty of down time for games, lounging, and drinking wine.  While we wanted most of the weekend to be spent at a cozy cabin overlooking the serene water of Puget Sound, we wanted one exciting night out on the town, and I think we achieved that balance.  Here's the breakdown of our weekend events: 1)  Night Out in Capitol Hill We arrived...
Read more

High Altitude Baking: Coffee Cake

Image
Happy January!  I have two weeks left of my maternity leave and I'm trying to make the most of it by spending lots of quality time with Baby Ady before she starts daycare.  It's going by so fast!  While I'm home I've been using my crock pot a lot, working on some yarn projects, taking long walks with Ady and Kua, reading, and doing some baking.  I have struggled with high altitude baking since moving to Santa Fe 5 1/2 years ago.  Cookies turn out okay, but I usually have to make some adjustments with cakes, and my breads are often mushy in the middle and crispy on the ends.  I can get by okay with a few of my favorite recipes that I have practiced multiple times, but it's often hit or miss.  For Christmas, my secret santa got me this amazing cook book, Pie in the Sky: Successful Baking at High Altitudes, that explains the chemistry behind high altitude baking and gives suggestions for adjustments to make at various altitudes.  Ingenious!  ...
Read more

My Bachelorette Party: San Francisco and Sonoma

Image
I have the best Maid of Honor in the world!   Between grad school, work, and preparing to move into a new apartment, she miraculously found time to plan THE BEST bachelorette party ever (and 3 time zones away, I might add).  I had such a fabulous time being surrounded by (and loved and adored by!) all my best friends for four days. The weekend started at 4:30 a.m. Thursday when my Santa Fe friends and I drove to Albuquerque (a 50 mile trip made possible by Panera breakfast) to catch our early flight to the Bay Area.  After a 2 1/2 trip (complete with Bloody Maries, Tequilla Sunrises, Coffees with Baileys, gossip and a few bridal magazines) we landed in Oakland!  One of my dear bridesmaids from Chicago who had arrived a few days earlier picked us up and we headed into San Francisco.  We met up with the other gals, checked in early to our hotel (Parc 55 Wyndahm in Union Square) and set out to explore the city by foot.  Som...
Read more