Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Hy-vee Olympic Triathlon Race Report








Rachel O'Connor
bib number: 1034
gender: F
location: DUVALL, WA
overall place: 926 out of 1257
division place: 60 out of 90
gender place: 230 out of 400
time: 3:08:47
pace: 0:
swim: 39:46
t1: 2:03
bike: 1:21:38
t2: 2:17
run: 1:03:05
penalty: 0:


Wow! I think that about sums it up. The race was incredible from start to finish. With the exception of Ironman it has got to be the most well supported race out there.

The Hyvee is held in Des Moines Iowa and is an ITU World Cup race. It has the largest prize purse for the elites in triathlon history. The winning men and women get 200k plus a Lexus. This year we had the added bonus of the elite race being the Olympic Selection event for the final man and woman to go to Beijing.

All the big names were there...Laura Bennet, Sara Groff, Sara Haskins, Becky LaVelle, Sara McClarty, Emma Snowsill, Hunter Kemper, ect.

Des Moines as you may or may not know had been inundated with flooding for weeks prior to the tri. I left Seattle on Friday June 13th and at the time it was said that there was no possible way to make the triathlon go. The lake/race site was 10 feet above flood stage, all available bodies of water for the swim were flooded and filled with run off with unhealthy levels of bacteria. It would be a duathlon for sure. The problem with this is that the Olympic Selection HAD to be a triathlon and if they could not pull it off then the selection would be moved to an alternate race on July 12th in another state. The city of Des Moines basically told the race director that he could have WHATEVER he wanted to make it happen. By Wednesday the waters had receded a bit and a miracle occurred....a race site was found. The swim portion was moved to a lovely lake in West Des Moines and the decision was made at 2 p.m. on Wednesday and announced.

I traveled out to the lake Thursday morning to get a look at it and saw no less than 500 volunteers/race staff transforming the area into a usable site. The beach was flooded so sand was trucked in, a brand new dock was built for the race start, blue carpet was laid everywhere and by Friday morning all the transition bike racks were set, swim in, bike out channels were made and timing mats were laid down. It was incredible.

I was able to get into the water both Wednesday and Thursday morning and after swimming in the freezing Lake Sammamish here, the 74 degree water felt great! The unfortunate part of the late notice is the fact that my wet suit was left at home. I was much slower in the water but I enjoyed feeling the freedom of swimming in a tri suit alone.Friday I also got a chance to bike a bit of the course. I ran into a police officer while on the course and asked him if the race would be closed to traffic and he said it would be and every officer in West Des Moines and Des Moines would be helping! Wow!

In the afternoon on Friday we went to the big race expo downtown. Again...a first rate event. We attended a pre race meeting and after that we were given a stamp which allowed us to pick up our race packet and have a bracelet put on our arm. The bracelet was the ticket we needed to get into transition to rack our bikes. This event was a two transition site event which was different for me.

Saturday morning bright and early I took my kids down to the kids duathlon at the race finish. Things were too chaotic and rushed to put together a tri for the kids at the lake so the finish line/stadium area was used. There were a million volunteers and over 500 kids racing. The race was great and Mary Lou Retton of all people was at the finish line to hand out medals to the kids. Aidan and Maddie had a great time. After their race we spent time in the athlete village and the kids loaded up on tons of swag.

Around 2 p.m. the transition area at the lake opened for bike racking. I racked the bike and walked the line from the swim exit to the bike and out the bike exit. Saw the buoy's on the course for the first time and 1500 meters all the sudden seemed like an impossible distance.

Left bike transition 2 miles away back to the finish/stadium where the second transition site was. Counted the number of racks from the bike dismount to my area and arranged my shoes, race belt and hat in a numbered bag for the run.

Got home by 5 and into bed by 8p.m. but sleep eluded me until about 11p.m.

I woke up at 3:30 a.m. race morning and ate a bagel with peanut butter, 8 saltines, coffee and gatorade. I also brought a banana with me to eat before the swim.
It was dark when we arrived at the race site at 4:30. I stood in line to get body marked and in another line to pick up my timing chip. The lines moved quickly and by 4:45 I was in transition loading up my bike and setting out my swim/bike transition space. I brought a 16 oz bottle with 250 calories of carbopro and gatorade as well as a water bottle.

The morning was absolutely stunning. The sun came up at 5:20 and the sky way clear blue except for a cloudy patch to the east and a huge rainbow! The air temp and water temp were the same at 74 degrees and I felt so happy to be there. I was nervous and excited. I think I was the only one without a wet suit but oh well. At 6:16 I got into the water with 89 other women in my age group and the horn sounded. I had swam to warm up and was already used to the water so I dove right in. The water felt great...the elbow to my face knocking my goggles off after about 200 yards did not. I had to stop and put them back on and dove back into the fray. The swim was pretty brutal. The men ages 40-44 took off 3 min. after my wave and by the second buoy they caught up and mowed me down. I took another hit to the back of my head and lost the goggles again! Overall the swim was great. I was slow but intentionally so. I did not want to freak out and I wanted to come out of the water feeling strong. It was the confidence boost I needed to feel like I can finish Lake Stevens in a few weeks.

Got out of the water feeling great! I did it and it didn't kill me. I loved the swim!
39:46 wasn't the best but with a wet suit and a little more hustle Lake Stevens should be better. Ran right to the bike, put goggles and cap in bag, shoes on, sunglasses and helmet and ran to the exit.

T1 2:03

On the bike and ZOOM. I loved the bike. I passed a LOT of both women and men and I averaged 18.2 m.p.h. which is good for me. The course marshalls were out in force and I had to push myself a lot to hammer past people once I entered their draft zone.

Bike 121:28 18.2 m.p.h

The course was actually a bit hilly. They found the only 4 hills in Iowa and they were all on the course. I felt a little worn hopping off the bike into T2. Helmet off, hat on, change shoes, race number and go. Nutrition felt pretty spot on. I drank 350 calories on the bike and 20 oz water. The air temp was now around 82 degrees and I was feeling it a bit.

T2 2:17

It takes about a mile to iron out my legs and loosen them up on the run. This took a bit longer as my hip flexor started to hurt a bit and I could not shake it. I ran slow and steady and walked the length of each of the 5 aid stations. I would take a sip of water and dump the rest on my head and then grab a gatorade and drink a sip.

Got to mile 5 and started to get pretty emotional. I felt tired but strong. One year ago to the day I had graduated from my weight loss program at the Pro Club after losing 90 pounds and now I was completing my first Olympic distance...cool.

I turned into the stadium which was PACKED with people cheering. I heard the announcer say "Let's welcome Rachel O'Connor to the finish line" and I heard my family yelling my name. I ran hard down the blue carpet and crossed the line.

Run: 103:05

I felt great after the race. I intentionally was just slow and steady but I needed the confidence of this race as a boost for the impending 1/2 iron. I was targeting 3:15 and was happy with 3:08.

My Dad and I gave all the gear to my family to take home and then we stayed all day for the Olympic Selection Event. The transition area was right inside the stadium for the bike to run. The women elites swam at the same lake 2 miles away, transitioned to the bike and then biked the 2 miles to the stadium crossing the blue carpet inside the stadium before beginning their 40k. They came into the stadium 7 times before doing their transitions not 15 feet from where we were seated. Amazing. They were blazing past us 25-30 m.p.h for each look and then they were in and out of T2 in a blink of an eye. A huge Jumbotron which had captured the age group swim and bike for the audience in the grandstand now showed us the excitement of this draft legal event. The U.S. girls worked well together but seemed to intentionally squeeze out Sara Groff who was battling Sara Haskins for the last Olympic team slot. In the end Emma Snowsill screamed to the finish after running 5:30 miles and ultimately won first place. Sara Haskins came in 3rd to win the final Olympic spot and was handed an American flag as she entered the stadium. Laura Bennet finished a respectable fourth. So exciting!!!

Watching these girls was such an inspiration.

Being a part of this race was awesome. The entire town was watching and involved. Hyvee is a local grocery store and when I went to buy groceries a few times before the race I was approached by many employees who saw my bracelet who wanted to wish me luck. I felt like a celebrity...The chips/snack aisle had a large TV broadcasting last years Hy-vee race and they were selling flags and merchandise in the store!

I am happy and proud to report that I now own a box of Frosted Flakes with Laura Bennet on the front as well as a box of Wheaties with Jarod Shoemaker. Only available in Iowa I guess!!

Left Monday at 5 a.m. with the van packed with husband and kids.

How does that Frosted Flakes/Tony the Tiger slogan go.......

I feeeeeeel GREAT!

Sunday, June 1, 2008

Issaquah Sprint Results!

602 Rachel O'Connor Duvall, WA 34 F 10 82 286
Swim 00:08:08.2 T1 00:02:07.4 Bike 00:45:18.6 T2 00:01:04.2 Run 00:26:05.1 Finish 01:22:43.4



I had a great time doing this race. Last year I came in around 1:37 so this is a huge improvement!

Getting 10th place in my age group is such a coup for me. Something I never expected. I am just thrilled. I am convinced that I did so well since I had everything so well planned. Last week I swam the course, I rode the course, I ran the course, I know the course! Mentally I had been going over not only my race plan but the actual race in my mind. I had been doing this daily for a few weeks before bed each night. I think knowing exactly how I was going to swim/bike/run and at what intensity as well as how to work each transition was very helpful.

Next year I will age up into the 35-40 year old category which is MUCH faster. I will probably not see a top 10 spot again for several years. I will just enjoy it now!

Here I am heading out on the bike. I am soaking wet and freezing!


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