Pre-Race
I slept okay but only got about 5.5 hours of sleep which isn't really enough for me. I left the house shortly after 5am and arrived at the race site around 6 am (about a 50 minute drive for me). I unloaded my bike and proceeded to the transition area and picked up my packet, got my chip and headed over to body marking. Lori was there volunteering so it's always great to see familiar faces at events. I had a solid 30 mins to setup my transition area to my liking and there were a lot of first-timers there that looked confused on what to do so I helped them out since I know first hand what it feels to be clueless at your first triathlon. With about 15 mins until participant meeting, I headed to the pool for a short 200 yard swim to get a feel for the water. Perfect mid-80s...I knew I was going to swim fast and well so my nerves calmed down after that.
Swim (250 yards)
It was over before I even knew it. I couldn't believe how easy swimming 250 yards felt even with only two swim workouts since Middle Tyger Triathlon. Didn't even have to stop at the wall to rest once and ended up passing one swimmer and catching up to another so that felt great. Swim time: 6:16 (includes a 10-20 sec run to transition). And to my surprise, fastest swim time in my age group!
Transition 1
Legs felt really good coming out of the swim and was able to make a good run to transition. Got on my cycling shoes, helmet and sunglasses and proceed out of transition. Transition 1 time: 1:18
Bike (9.5 miles)
I felt really good when I got on my bike, legs felt fresh unlike they did at Middle Tyger Triathlon. I was able to surge ahead two riders which that felt great but one caught me a few miles later. I had a hard time controlling my heart rate and breathing for the first 5 miles but after I got relaxed, it got easier, just too bad only 4 miles were left at that point. Ended up passing 3 other riders while 1 other rider passed me. For the first time, it actually felt like I was racing. In most triathlons, I get passed but don't do any passing. Bike time: 40.04 (14.3 mph).
Transition 2
Much, much better than last time! Got my shoes off, helmet off, put on my running shoes and grabbed my hat and number belt to put on while I was running. 49 secs.
Run (2.5 miles)
Running still hurts after riding, no matter how long the run is! The first 1/2 mile was brutal, mostly because it was on grass then went uphill before doing 2 loops then returning back. I had an issue with my watch starting (apparently I forgot to reset it from last time) so when I hit start, I didn't realize it was wrong until about 2-3 mins later. So pretty much the entire run I had no clue how fast I was running. I felt like I was crawling at some points but I guess I ended up running much faster than I thought. Averaged an 11 min pace which for me, I'm super happy with considering all my runs after cycling have been 12+ min pace. Time: 27:32
Overall Time and Final Thoughts
1:15:56 (89 out of 134) – Finally feels great to finish in the middle of the pack. Sure, there was a lot of beginners but still it feels good. With very limited training in the last 5 weeks due to extreme hot temperatures with triple digit heat indices, I am thankful I did as well as I did. I swam, biked and ran faster than I did in the Middle Tyger Triathlon and although it was a shorter course, I still didn't expect that.
This is a great course and a fun race! It's very beginner friendly so if you're a women in Upstate, SC and want to try a triathlon, this is the one to do! I really hope to be able to do this one again next year.
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