This a post I did last week for
Wisconsin Outdoor Fun, one of the sites I blog for at work. I realized I hadn't blogged in a bit and am slightly bogged down by other things, so I thought I would share. Not quite a photo post, but I have been busy editing photos and not so much taking them lately :) My summer, or at least July consisted of running, biking, and photographing.
Last Saturday I participated in the Hub City Duathlon in Marshfield.
This was the first time for the event, and it drew over 500
participants! It was also my first time participating in a bike race
and multiple sport race.
I was a bit nervous before the race, as I am before all races. In
high school I would cry before my races in track meets. My coach would
always yell at me before the race, “Schmitt! Shut up and run!” Yeah…. it
was a problem. It also didn’t help my time when I was sniffling and
crying as I ran my 400. One time I was crying really hard (this is
ridiculous, I know) that I fell tripped and fell off the edge of the
track. Thankfully, I don’t cry before races anymore. Anyway, I was
curious if my training had paid off, although I hadn’t biked for about a
week. I obviously wasn’t that strict with training. It was about 80
degrees too, so I was concerned about the heat. I usually try to bike
or run before 8 am and if it is too hot, I run inside otherwise I get
pretty wiped-out of the rest of the day. I also had never worked on
transitions from running to biking to running. I knew it would be
painful, so I just avoided it, ha!
The race started at 10 a.m. and I took off for the first two miles. I
tried to pace myself and tell myself that it wasn’t “just” two miles. I
think the first two miles was a bit longer than the second two miles,
since my split for the first two miles was slower than the second
split. After the first two miles, I felt pretty good, so I was pumped
to bike.
I’m not sure of my transition times, but I did pause to get some
water while changing out of my running shoes into my bike shoes. I was
considering the bike portion a bit of a rest time, since I had no idea
how to race on a bike. The bike ride was pretty fun though and once you
get going, biking doesn’t take that much energy. The few hills weren’t
too bad. I also really like to climb hills… which is kind of weird. I
love biking with my fiance and racing him up the hills. Which is a bit
mean, but I like to go all out on the hills. So, that is what I
practiced on my bike rides, which worked for me on this race. My
odometer/speedometer is broken, so I would also just try to catch the
person a few bikes ahead of me. What can I say, I am a bit competitive!
After the 15-mile bike, which I finished smiling, was the final two
mile run. I think this run was a bit shorter, because I was feeling
really s-l-o-w, but my split was a few minutes faster than my first
split. This second run was painful for me. It was after 11 am, so
totally hot, and not that shaded. The heat was just rising off the
pavement. Ew. I took off from my bike, with my legs more than a bit
wobbly. After the first few steps, I cramped a bit and then realized
that I should have worked on transitions, whoops! After about half a
mile though, my side-ache dissipated and my legs were a bit more
stable. The rest of the run went well, and I was able to finish with a
strong stride.
All-in-all, the race went really well. I got second in my age
division, and eighth overall for women, which was way better than I expected. My
running splits were about where my normal race pace is. My bike portion
was 51 minutes, which was about where I planned. I think I am going to
do another duathlon! Any suggestions?
My transition area. I chose a spot that wasn't congested so that I could get in and out quickly. Well, as quickly as it takes to drink water change shoes and catch my breath.
Start of the race.
Taking off for the bike portion.
End of the bike!
End of the race!
The photos were take by my lovely fiance, except for the third one, which was taken by my co-worker, the Stevens Point Journal photographer, Doug.