The race was Saturday, August 1st, so Bruce and I headed up to Michigan on Friday, July 31st, where we met his sister, Tina, and her husband, Justin. I was going to have quite the pit crew!
Friday was spent picking up my race packet, finding out my wave start (7:11 - YES!!!) and taking my bike over to transition. Then off to dinner and the hotel.
Race morning came bright and early at 4:00 am. I wanted to allow plenty of time since our hotel was 40 minutes away, and I knew parking was going to be a problem. Plus, I have learned my lesson about porta-potty lines at these 70.3 events! I got dressed in my new MELRAD uniform - I was looking good! Once there, I set up the rest of my gear, hit the restroom one last time and started the walk down the beach to the swim start. I know it was only 1.2 miles, but it seemed to take forever, especially walking the entire was in the sand. I thought Bruce was going to die laughing at me trying to “hurry”. I was trying to hurry because I was very nervous about the swim. One, it was in Lake Michigan, which can be a little crazy. Just ask anyone who did the XTERRA Milwaukee race back in 2005. Two, to make a long story short, I had an epic mountain bike crash on July 3rd which took my left shoulder out of commission. I only started swimming again 9 days before the race, and that certainly was not pain free. I wasn’t sure how my left arm was going to work/hold up, so I wanted to get in and warm up before the start. Phew - just enough time - I got to swim for about 5 minutes - enough to know my arm was going to get the job done.
Ok, now I am in my new Profile Design Bionik wetsuit ready to go. The wetsuit is awesome - so comfortable and easy to get on and off. It must work great too because I came out of the water 4 minutes faster than my previous 2 70.3s! I worked really hard to stay on someone’s feet the entire swim, and I was successful about 75% of the time. I think that helped. The water wasn’t too rough, but had enough waves, that I was starting to get sea sick. “Get me out of here” was all I was thinking. Maybe that helped my swim time as well.
Out of the water and a 100 yard run up hill in the sand. Ouch! Since I was right in the middle of the football field size transition area, I stopped at the entrance and took off the wetsuit. Didn’t want it drying out too much and become hard to get off. Transition was smooth and I was off on the bike. The course was rolling hills with somewhat rough roads. I lost one of my bottles off the back of my bike within the first 5 miles. Took out both my speed and cadence sensors, so now I am riding strictly by feel. Maybe that will be good for me, I wonder. Not too worried about losing my drink, as I think I will have enough, and I have the always handy GU in my snack bag! Bike is going well until about mile 35. BAM! The wind has now picked up to 25-30 mph and it is right in my face. That was the longest, hardest 20 miles of my life. I was so happy to be back at transition - took me 2:53 - only 3-4 minutes off my previous times. Not bad - I must be getting stronger.
Off on the run. I felt great the first 8 miles. My run training was paying off (Thank you Melanie for the tips!) I switched my nutrition, so the stomach issues that have plagued me before were not an issue. Hooray!! The run wasn’t too hilly, but the wind was still a factor and was wearing me out. I kept going - slow and steady was going to get me to the finish. I did it! 5:43, a PR by 6 minutes. 13th out of 55 in my age group. Man, some of these ladies are FAST!
Within an hour of me finishing, the storms arrived and it started pouring. I felt bad for the people with the later wave starts who were still out on the course. My crew thanked me for being so speedy and keeping them out of the rain! It was a great day - I am going to keep improving my run and get closer to that 5:30 time!
See you at the races,
Ellen Sauter
Good job!
Nice story Ellen! Sounds like an amazing experience.