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| Congrats to race-winners Rasmus and Magali! |
Last Sunday was my 3rd time racing the Calgary 70.3 and the 4th year for the event (In the 2nd year, i was there, but 5-months pregnant!). I love going to Calgary because i have family and friends there and lots of support. I love the race and the beauty of the course and once again Paul and his team did a great job.
After a fun and busy week of visiting friends, meeting with athletes and swimming, biking and running, race day finally arrived with perfect weather and conditions. The first nice surprise of the morning was that one of my fave people of all times- Morna Brown- was volunteering in T1. Not only was it great to see her, but she took care of my T1 bag ensuring that everything went smoothly. Between her and Suzanne Boyd (who volunteered as a wetsuit stripper and personally called me over after i ran the wrong direction!), i had a smooth T1. Thanks ladies!
I am getting ahead of myself... Back to race morning. This year we started by diving off a pontoon into the cold... i mean... refreshing water at Ghost Lake. The difference in temperature between the water and my face was so extreme that my goggles fogged up and i couldnt see a thing. As a result, I missed the first pack. From time to time I saw an arm or a swim cap and I knew i needed to surge to get on the group, but couldnt tell which direction to surge in!! By the time i figured out where the next buoy was, I realized i was leading a large pack having missed the group in front. Eventually, I was just happy if i could see the buoys and know i was going in the right direction. I came out of the water in 3rd.
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| Gotta love the fluro-green helmet right? |
Starting the bike I felt good, my legs came around quickly and the ambient temperature was not freezing cold! I love the bike course in Calgary. Its scenic and hilly, but still fast. I have been working on my position on the bike, and while there is still a ways to go, I felt smooth and comfy. I rolled into T2 in 6th place.
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Starting the run, I felt ok but not great. I found my rhythm quickly. The run course is a little deceptive, for some reason it always seems harder than it looks. There are a couple decent hills, and some gradual up and downward grades... i'm not exactly sure what it is, but it always feels hard. I overtook MacKenzie Madison near the beginning of the run, and as i approached the turn around, I could see that the lead girls, were all within a mile. I was pleased with my proximity to the front of the race. Improvement! At km 17, I overtook Lisa Mensink and knew that Mel McQuaid was fading. As much as I wanted to finish on the podium again, I was still 2mins down on Mel with 3k to go, I tried to run a little faster, but at this stage in the race, its pretty hard to move any faster than you already are!
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| Love this course! |
I was very pleased with my 4th place this time around, mostly because it means i am moving in the right direction.
I am so grateful for all the support i have in Calgary. Thank you to everyone who cheered out there on the bike and run course. Thank you to Morna and Suzanne for their help in T1. Thank you to David McColm for the wonderful photos yet again. Thanks to physio Catherine and massage Therapist Mike who treated me during race week. The guys at Speed Theory helped me out numerous times during race week when i had frustrating punctures! Thanks to my Mom who let me take over her little apartment and continues to support me in every way she can. Thanks to my sister Lisa and nephew Oliver who are a great cheering section on race day. Thanks to Bob (www.sportexcel.ca) for his ongoing support and mental tricks that keep me enjoying racing and life in general! Thanks to BFF Carrie for making time to hang out, for being a great friend and business partner. Thanks to Shelley for putting up with me all week, and to Clinty for being the best husband ever. Fabulous.
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| Shelley qualifies for Vegas!! |
An additional note from the mom side of things.... A good friend of mine has started a blog about motherhood. She is highly educated in early childhood development and now that she has a daughter of her own, is sharing her insights on her blog; http://theprofessormom.blogspot.ca/. Enjoy!
