Like last year, I helped out with race preparations on Friday night and Saturday at packet pick-up. The volunteers are rewarded well for helping, plus it is interesting to see a little of the behind-the-scenes of putting on a race like this.
Unlike last year, where it rained cats and dogs forcing the cancellation of the race, race morning was foggy, but otherwise great. Cam's race was cancelled, so he was able to accompany me and help me get everything ready. It was good for my mental state to have him there.
I ran into a bunch of Team Vardo folks, a couple of them doing their first triathlons! Rich and Natalie had both been training all spring and Kecia had done a tri with a pool swim last year, but this would be her first open water race. Also joining in on the fun were Bill, Chris, and Kirstin.
At race site the fog didn't seem to want to dissipate. As the athletes gathered for the swim, we couldn't see across the lake. Craig decided to delay the start of the race by a little bit to see if the fog would burn off a bit. After waiting for a while and not seeing the conditions improve, the race was started despite the fog. It looked to be okay for the first few waves that went off, so I just went with the flow. Soon my wave was ready to take to the water. We were in yellow swim caps, the same color as the swim buoys marking our course. I got in the water and looked out into the fog - I couldn't even see to the first buoy! It was going to be an interesting swim.
The cannon went off and the chaos grew worse. Not only couldn't I spot any buoys, but every time I looked up to spot, all I could see were yellow caps that might or might not be the next buoy! So with virtually no swimming at all for the last few months, I was swimming both dumb and blind...
After navigating my way through the swim, I got out of the water feeling pretty good, had a good transition and got on the bike with no problems. From what I had seen of the bike course the day before, I knew it was going to be a hilly, but fast course. The fog we'd experienced during the swim had only lifted a bit. Before the race had started, I'd asked Cam to look at the sunglasses of the elite wave to see if condensation on the glasses was an issue. He was waiting near my transition area during T1 and said only a couple elite guys were back and they weren't wearing glasses. I decided to risk it and put on my Oakleys anyway. I always feel a little naked without sunglasses on my face.
Since I've really only been working on my cycling this year, I hit it hard on the bike. I was passed by a few men and only 2 women, but not from my age group. Because it was an out and back course, I was able to keep an eye on my competition. I know full well that I am not much of a swimmer, but I only saw a few women ahead of me on the bike, so I must have done okay on the swim... I worked on keeping my cadence high and pushed the effort, especially on the hills, where I knew I was probably better prepared than a lot of my competition. With the bike segment being only 12.4 miles, I was soon back in transition and quickly out on the run.
The run followed the lakefront for about a 1/4 mile before starting its uphill ascent to the turnaround. I knew the hills were coming, but I wasn't totally prepared for how I felt once I hit them! I did walk for about 10 seconds at each water station, just long enough to toss down some fluids and give myself a little mental break. The run was also an out and back, so I kept an eye on what was going on around me. Again I was passed by a bunch of guys and just a few women. Once I'd hit the halfway mark, I was surprised to find that there were actually a few more hills I had to run up on the way back to the lake! 
The longer I ran, the better I felt - at least to a point. As we hit the final stretch (around the backside of the lake), I was ready to be done. I continued on with what Cam has kindly named the Vardo Shuffle, and headed for the finishline. About 1/3 of a mile from the end, I was finally passed by a gal in my age group. She flew past me like I was moving in the wrong direction, and I had nothing to give in the fight to chase her down. I managed to get across the finishline with my breakfast in my stomach and a respectable 5th place in my age group.
Looking back, there were a few things I had going for me. First, I had very little expectations going into the race, and therefore very few of the pre-race jitters that usually accompany higher hopes. Two, I was better prepared than most for a bike course of this level of challenge. Finally, just having the amount of experience in racing triathlon that I do, allowed me to make quick transitions and have little fear of the less than ideal swim conditions.
Next up is the WORS Cup race in Wisconsin, then the Hy-Vee Triathlon. In a previous post, I stated that I wasn't going to do Hy-Vee. A free entry fell into my lap a couple of weeks ago, and before I could really think about it, I said I'd take it. We'll see if any of my good luck charms that helped at Copper Creek will help me out at Hy-Vee!
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