What the hell happened? I'm not yet sure, but maybe not enough sleep leading into it. Under-recovery. I felt great on the start line. The gun went off and I felt fine. The more I ran the more sluggish I felt. I pushed harder, but the speed wasn't there. My first run was about 10seconds slower than last year. Not much, but with everything I'd done in training I felt I should have ran a minute faster. Onto the bike, I had a great first lap (of three total) and finally caught some solid cyclists. I hung with them just fine and stayed relaxed. Took in plenty of calories on the bike (but less than previously) and lots of water so I was ready for the final run--30km of brutality. I started out ok, but after about 5k I was getting a nasty stomach cramp. I was taking in a little gel and lots of water. The temperature was warming up to mid 80's--the hottest day that I remember here and the first time I've ever gotten sunburned here! So, the stomach cramp was killing me and obviously I had to slow up. I did that and kept drinking water. I never caved in mentally {the highlight of my race}. I never walked--the exception being about 10 total steps at an aid station to get down some water. I finally got rid of the cramp with about 10km to go. But by then I was fatigued enough that I didn't have a lot of energy to push myself as much as I wanted. I did re-pass some guys that passed me while I was hurting... but really it was too little too late. I finished in like 7:07--my second best finish ever. 18th Elite. Definitely feel I was capable of sub 7 hours this year. Knowing my fitness now compared to the 2007 race (my best time), no doubt I'm faster now... Considering I did a 7:07 with a disappointing performance, well its not that bad.
Or is it that bad? As a competitor, I'd rather have a great result or an awful result than a mediocre result. I heard Mike Tyson say something like this in an interview. Obviously he has a tumultuous history, but in his prime he was one of the greatest competitors and athletes ever. Without a doubt that pesky mediocre result is the least satisfying and most frustrating performance to have.
The most fortunate thing about this year's race is that I didn't get hit by a car {like I did last year!}... So I'm lucky enough to immediately continue my quest for success. And with that, its time to get on the trainer for some pain.
John,
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I really felt your pain when reading how things started to go downhill, I felt like I was there. I appreciate that feeling of putting so much time and effort into something, having all the right feedback in training but then you arrive at the all too important day, and frankly, it's just not "your day". I loved that you didn't walk, I'm a stickler for that one too, even if my walk would be faster than my run ;).
But my favorite part of the whole post was when you talked about your result and how you felt about it. Pretty impressive to finish as you did, having a crappy day and all. Think about all those folks behind you that did everything right that day and still never caught you. And the silver lining being that you weren't violated by an automobile!!
Way to roll with the challenges, keepin' your chin high and moving on to the next goal. And with an attitude like that, you've already won. Keep up the good work!
Phaedra.