70.3 St. Croix

Coming off of Boston Marathon, I was understandably anxious about this race.  During the marathon itself, I had numerous thoughts about how perhaps St. Croix just wasn't meant to be and it wasn't too late to bow out.  People would understand, they would easily acknowledge that my training up to that race was less than ideal, perhaps even insane.  But, even as the thought crossed my mind, I abruptly pushed it aside.  This was my schedule, I chose it, I knew I could do it, and I would be disappointed in myself if I didn't try.  Plus, knowing the race had the possibility of qualifying me for Kona was far too much for me to pass up.

After the marathon, I was saddened to realize I had caught some sort of cold that left me sneezing routinely and feeling very sluggish in training.  I took 4 days completely off of running and compensated with time spent on the bike and in the pool.  I had to spend several hours walking cruise ships on Sunday and Monday prior to race day for work, and I was setback again when I acquired massive blisters on my heels from trying to extend the life of my boots for far longer than they were designed.  Both things were certainly not helpful in easing my anxiety for the upcoming race.

I relied heavily on vaseline to protect my blisters and pushed through with training, spending the majority of the time on my bike trainer with the 24-hour bike challenge lingering in the near future.  I packed up everything on Thursday/Friday morning and due to a fishing trip friday, I was unable to do my final swim practice.  Friday afternoon I drove to the airport and made it with well over an hour to wait before my gate would open.  While waiting, I noted that the boarding time had passed and was dismayed to realize that the gate had actually changed.  I made it to the new gate, dead sprint, with 5 minutes before my flight was scheduled to depart.  There was no one manning the gate, so myself and 5 others who had just noticed the gate change had to pound on the glass to try to signal the pilots to wait for us.  As the door to the plane was just about to close, one of the pilots saw us and they let us on.  I was so terrified at that moment that I would not even make it to St. Croix on time.  It was a blessing in a way, as it distracted me significantly from thinking about the race.

Upon arrival, a member of the local Coast Guard unit was kind enough to take me from the airport and to my hotel.  It was nice not needing to worry about transportation for once.  The hotel was quaint and in the middle of a huge celebration, known as Jump Up.  I dragged my bike box to the entrance and had to carry it up 3 flights of stairs with the last set being absurdly narrow, to the point where I could barely fit myself and the bike up it.  But, we managed and I was so exhausted that I immediately settled in for the evening.

Saturday I awoke and assembled my bike before heading to registration to get my bib and timing chip.  At registration, which was incredibly small but well organized, I got my bib, chip, shirt, and a bottle of rum...it was certainly fitting as the race was sponsored by Captain Morgan and we were on an Island Oasis.  I had to laugh at that.  I went the half a block, literally, back to my hotel and organized all of my race gear to check that I had everything.  Sadly, I must have been very out of sorts while packing because I had forgotten my race belt.  I also needed to procure something to put in my water for electrolyte replenishment during the race.  As such, I returned to the registration area to head to the only other thing there aside from a small mechanic setup.  It was called the Official Merchandise store but there were very limited items in it as the Island population is rather small.  Lucky for me, there was a race belt for purchase and I also bought some salt tabs just in case.  I ended up buying gatorade from the local cafe to fill my water bottle with for the race.  I opted against my normal pre-race routine due to being alone and the roads looking a little rough.  I decided risking a flat was not worth it and that walking around would be plenty to get my legs warmed up.  That meant I had two days completely off before the race, which is unusual for me.  I spent the rest of the day attending the pre-race meeting, meeting fellow athletes, catching up with one of my good friends, and just taking in the Island.  I ate pasta for dinner before calling it an early night to relax prior to race morning.

While relaxing, I decided that I ought to watch some TV.  There was only one working channel and it was all about crime cases and murders/assaults happening to women alone in their apartments/houses.  If the race wasn't already enough to prevent me from sleeping, waking up from nightmares that evening definitely didn't help me feel well rested by the time 4am rolled around.  Perhaps TV wasn't the best choice in hindsight...

Race morning I was still exhausted, but quickly realized it was my birthday so I was all smiles as I headed over to the transition area.  I was first to my rack (18-29) which was right next to the female pros.  It was so neat being near so many phenomenal athletes, including Leanda and Rinnie!  I set up my gear and then secured one of the only pumps that was available to check my tires.  It was very unique in that there were so few competitors, roughly 600, and we didn't have any sort of body marking to differentiate.  I knew a couple girls that I had raced before, one who was a year younger meaning she wasn't in my age group...though she beat me in Miami and is quite quick.  Despite being small, this race was full of some of the top athletes in the world all desiring Kona/70.3 WC slots.

The swim started from an Island that we had to jump in the water and swim to.  While there, the announcers said happy birthday to me, so that was sweet.  All of the male waves went first and then my wave was the first for the women.  It was a run in start, and as soon as the horn sounded I realized that I would be swimming alone because all the other girls in my wave quickly left me in their wake.  Thankfully, the water was so clear that there was plenty to look at to distract me from worrying about how much time I would need to make up.  It was my first non-wetsuit swim so far this year, and I felt really sluggish in the water.  I told myself that I already knew this was my weakest part by far and not to get down.

Coming out of the water, I quickly was aware that I was in last place as my bike was all by her lonesome on my rack.  It was disheartening for a moment, but even the last female pro still gives it her all and that was my goal too.  Plus, since it was my birthday, I put a smile on and vowed to at least win the Miss Photogenic award!

Going into the bike, I had no idea how far I needed to close the gap or what the ages were of people I was passing.  I told myself to take it easy until I reached the Beast to conserve energy.  When I signed up for this race initially, I chose it because it was on my birthday and never looked at the course, so for the last month I had been dreading the 21% grade that was pending.  I am so grateful I had Andreas and Ultrabikex Studio to prepare me as best as one could be prepared in Miami.  At least I knew the course was very hard and when the Beast would start!  I let the tailwind carry me most of the way there, in fact, at one point I was appreciating the scenery and the lovely wind farms when I realized that they were sure getting lots of power for those things!   Then it hit me that the wind coming back really would be a challenge to bike into.  However, I focused all of my attention on the Beast and set the other worries aside.

Mile 20 came and I saw this blind turn that looked as though it was going uphill.  I asked the guy I was passing if this was the Beast and he smiled and told me it was.  I dropped all gears immediately and started up.  I was very surprised to realize I was passing people and able to stay in my saddle for most of it.  The locals had marked grades and distances on the road with funny statements like "the easy part" to keep us well informed.  It was pretty brutal, and about halfway I could only think 'worst birthday present to myself ever, why can't I be like normal 25 year olds and just go drink or throw a party...' before I laughed and realized that would not be me.  There is one part on the climb where the line you chooses either gives you a 26/27% grade or a 21.5%...so I was very grateful for the markings at that point for helping me choose the best route.  When I reached the top I was so ecstatic that I shouted for joy and tears were pouring from my eyes with so much happiness filling me.  At that point, I knew I was successful no matter what the outcome of the race would be and nothing would kill that joy.

The bike course continued to get tougher from there on out.  Luckily, I knew from several articles to expect a much slower bike time and had conserved energy in the beginning to prepare for it.  But at mile 30 I had to dismount as my bottle cage had come unscrewed at the top and flipped into my pedal making it impossible to bike.  Having no tools and no time to waste, I tore it off the rest of the way and as it was my only cage, ditched my water bottle in the process.  That made me anxious for the next 26 miles, so at the next aid station I chugged an entire bottle of perform to stay hydrated.  The rest of the bike was into the wind for most of it and had intermittent 10-12% grades that continued to challenge me.  When I finished in 3 hours, I was very pleased with the time.  Even more exciting was the fact that we got to pass the runners as we came into transition so I had a good idea where anyone I might need to run down would be.  Entering transition, I realized there was only one bike from my age group on the rack so I was pretty excited to get running.

At the start of the run, the outsides of both my feet were cramped, maybe from being so tense while climbing.  But, with Kona on my mind I pressed on and ignored the weird sensation.  Even when the insole in my shoe completely got messed up and flipped around my foot, I persevered.  I ran with my heart and managed to pass the first place girl in my age group around the 3 mile mark.  I then played the game of strategy, realizing that it was incredibly hot with very little protection from the elements and that I was easily at risk of dehydration or cramping.  Thus, I walked all the hills and aid stations, but ran quickly between each to still have a 1:47 half marathon time at the end of the day.  It was easy to keep moving when I was running scared the entire time.  I took it home the last mile to finish at 5:34 and earned the best birthday present ever...my golden ticket to the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii!!

This race was not about time, it wasn't about trying for a PR and I had no pre-race strategy as I typically do.  Rather, it was about heart, determination, and faith.  When I started this year, I never would have imagined how it would have panned out up to this point.  I have been so incredibly blessed and honored by every opportunity I have had and the results that have come from them.  This race tested me mentally more than any other to this point.  I knew I could race hard, but it was only a dream to take 1st.  Disney Dopey showed me that no challenge is too big, New Zealand taught me that rough roads won't destroy me, Oceanside gave me confidence in being the comeback kid, Florida proved to me that breaking 5 hours can be done, Boston humbled me and also showed me that my base is very strong, but St. Croix combined all of those to turn dreams into reality.  No matter how I had finished, the joy from conquering the Beast when it had been so terrifying for me eclipsed all other emotions.  This race was magical and I seriously had the best birthday ever.  I was alone in St. Croix but I was overcome with all the love and support showered on me by God and all of my amazing family and friends.  My schedule the past 6 weeks was crazy to many, but I surrounded myself by people that never stopped believing I could do it and succeed.  That, and being relentless, is what made all the difference.

I am so so grateful to our sponsors for preparing me for this and to my team for preparing me every step of this journey.  Now it is time to focus on Kona :-)