XTerra World Championships 2014 Race Report

Just one day after telling Coach Jack that I didn’t want to hear from him until December, that I wanted to take a couple of months to relax and ride for fun, plans changed….

I received an email inviting me to the XTerra World Championships in Maui, to be held Oct 26, 2014. Wow! The opportunity to race at this world-class event for 2 years in a row is an exciting honour, and a whole bunch of fun, too. What an opportunity!

I spent the month of September in training: lots of hills, increased swim volume to develop strength in the ocean, and (did I mention) lots of hills.  I raced the Grizzly Mountain Bike Marathon, where I placed 2^nd in my AG, and was starting to mentally settle into race-mode. 

Bringing it home at the Grizzly Mountain Bike Marathon

And then sadness entered my world. My Mom suffered a stroke and passed away in mid-October. As you can imagine, my training, both mentally and physically, fell to the wayside as I had more important things to handle. And then my daughter broke her arm. Even until the morning before my flight, I wasn’t certain that racing in Maui was the right decision.

But I packed my bags, dissembled my bike and packed her up, and on Oct 22 I boarded a plane to Maui.

This year felt different for a lot of reasons. Sure, I was dealing with my family issues, and I also felt very tired, yet strangely calm. I wasn’t the “deer in headlights” like last year, I was on familiar territory. (read about last year's race in my two posts from Nov 2013: Race Report  Race Prep)

The week leading up to the race saw lots of rain on the course. It turned the bike trail into a mushy, snotty mess of mud. With that in mind, I decided that even with the changes to the bike course, I would be better off NOT pre-riding the trails for fear of mechanical damage or injury while pre-riding. Instead, I spent the time acclimating to the heat, organizing food and getting used to the ocean and run course. I stayed off-site this time, at an Outrigger condo in Kahana – it helped to avoid the bustle of the venue, it soothed my brain and calmed my body.

My family arrived on Friday night! This year we decided to add a family vacation after the race. It was quite possibly the best decision we made.

The Husband and both Daughters were signed up to race the 10k trail run and keiki kids race. The Husband put out an heroic effort, running in heat and humidity only 12 hours after his arrival. 

The Husband running hard to the Finish Line

Eldest Daughter was a rock star, the second fastest girl in her group and narrowly missing first place. 

Eldest Daughter running flat-out to the Finish Line

Youngest Daughter was required to walk due to the broken arm, but still crossed the Finish Line with a big smile. I am proud of all three – great job! 

So proud of my Family!!!

We swam and snorkeled at Napili Kapalua Beach, and dined at Merriman’s for my pre-race meal. Perfect relaxation and family time.

Race Morning

After a healthy breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast with some pineapple on the side, we headed over to the race venue. Transition was busy, I got organized and had my bike adjusted (minor issue), and then waited: without a wetsuit to struggle into, my prep time was easily cut in half! I did a short warmup, tested out the waves, and chatted with family and competitors to calm my nerves.

Settle into Transition

Strength and support from Family

Traditional Hawaiian blessing

They’re off!

The pro start went off with the canon boom, and we watched them gracefully pull away from shore. The second canon signaled the men’s start: a large swell broke on shore, and I watched the men swim UP a large wave as it crashed over their heads.  Egads. No time to get worked up, the canon boomed one last time and the women jumped into the next swell. I needed to brace myself as a wave crashed to the beach, and dove into the bottom of the next one. Whew, it was a rough entry!! Check out the video of the men’s start, the waves start around 1:00 and last for approx 1 min:

http://vimeo.com/110114060

The swim didn’t get any easier, either. I hoped that after the initial waves, the ocean would smooth out and I could catch my breath. No chance. The water was rough today, waves from all directions, it was disorienting and tough swimming. The beach run gave me hope – almost done! – but the second half was just as brutal. All swim times were slow today, but I could really feel the toss and pull of the tides. I was tired when I left the water.

2014 swim time: 37:25
2013 swim time: 35:01
23rd out of 28 racers in my AG

Half-way through the washing machine swim, ready to attack the second half.

Let’s roll

My T1 time is a bit embarrassing – I walked up the beach, walked up the lawn and walked into transition. The ocean took a lot of energy, and I wanted to catch my breath.  Upon entering transition, I noticed several bikes still waiting – so I wasn’t the only one late out of the water. I sped up my movements, keeping them smooth and clean, and exited T1 with a smile.

T1 time: 4:55

The bike course was 90% familiar: climb through the sandy trails of the golf course, up up up and more up, past the lake to the ridge, through the remaining quagmire of mud, down the tricky descent, then wait for the new trails before more climbing and one last downhill to T2. I felt strong on my bike, I could feel reserves in the legs as I pushed and climbed pitch after pitch, I stayed on my bike for sections that I know I walked last year. I descended smoothly and as fast as my daring-do would allow, then climbed some more. My mantra was “relentless” – I wanted to capitalize on my season of riding, rely on the training of the past year, rely on those crazy hill training sessions, and roll through the technical parts. I had FUN on my bike – it was a great place to focus energy, enjoy the views from Razor Ridge, and cherish the experience.

When I looked at my times post-race, I was delighted by the numbers.

Here’s a frame of reference: Ruban Ruzafa won in 2013 and again in 2014. On the bike course in 2014, despite the changes to the course, he improved his bike split by approx. 3 min. My improvement on the bike course was almost 15 min!!! I am thrilled with this result, I will never complain about a hill climbing session again. The work paid off, my perseverance paid off, and my season of riding delivered a fun ride. Nice!

2014 bike time: 2:49:21
2013 bike time: 3:03
22nd out of 28 racers in my AG

Fantastic ride on a run course

Hold on for a run to the Finish Line

T2 was unremarkable – in and out quickly, wave to the family and start “Operation Manage Your Core Body Temperature”. 

T2 - in and out - time to run!

Yes, it was HOT. I knew that the first 3 km of the trail run were not only uphill, they were also very sheltered from any breezes that would blow through. I started my run by dumping two glasses of icy water over my head, and put another glass inside my mouth. Let’s go.

Yes, it was hot.

Yes, it was dusty.

Operation "Manage Your Core Body Temperature" begins

But I knew the course – I could anticipate tough sections and prepare for them. I could estimate the distance to the next cold water stop (thanks for LOTS of aid stations with LOTS of icy water!!). Only one minor incident put me face-down in the dirt, I remember thinking: get UP! So I did, I kept running downhill. It felt like I tried to run more than last year, maybe I did. But the numbers tell me my run-time was flat over 2013 – which is entirely acceptable, considering my lack of run prep in the preceding 3 weeks.

2014 run time: 1:18:46
2013 run time: 1:18
24th out of 28 racers in my AG

Strong run along the beach

Keep running

Crossing the Finish Line

Throughout the course, I gathered energy and mental support when I heard the cheering of my kids, and saw my husband cheering for me. The course doesn’t offer many spots for spectators, but there they were, cheering loud and clear. It was amazing.

As I ran the final stretch of the beach, I pulled on some extra energy to keep the legs moving, I kissed my kids as I passed them, and pushed up the final grassy hill. The Finish Line was sweet, I was spent, I was thrilled to complete this race and I knew that my time was better than last year.
2014 overall time: 4:52:50
2013 overall time: 4:57:08
24th out of 28 racers in my AG - a tough field this year! Even though I was faster, I lost ground in the overall ranking. It's awesome to see the field improve and grow bigger. 

In the Finisher's Chute, time shown is for Pro athlete start

Last push to the Finish Line

The Support Crew

Training for a race like this requires time and patience from my family. Thank-you for supporting my dreams and cheering for me.

Thank-you to my friends, far and wide, for joining me on crazy training escapades, for listening to me talk ad nauseum about my training and for supporting my goals.

Thank-you to Coach Jack for working with my crazy schedule, and for creating a training plan that makes me stronger every day. You are a pleasure to work with.

Finally, thank-you to my Mom, who taught me that strength, perseverance, determination and the relentless pursuit of goals will take you to interesting new places, both physically and emotionally. I thought about Mom often during this race, and she gave me strength and a smile all day long. Love you, Mom.

Rubber Side Down: XTerra Canmore Race Report

XTerra Canmore was my "A" race for the year.... but in the weeks prior to race day, I was having a hard time feeling "settled" about the event. After racing in Maui last year, I knew that coming back here would make me nervous - of course I want to repeat at Maui! But would I get a spot, can I improve again by leaps and bounds to make the qualifier? And we had a busy summer planned out, some back country hiking, lots of mountain biking, time with the kids, time with friends, work is busy and overly stressful, family pressures.... would it all come together? It took until the Wednesday before the race to feel like I had a good headspace for this race.

Boy, would I need it!

The weather forecast conspired against us: cold and rain in the forecast. And the drive to Canmore on Sunday morning left me questioning just how much of the bike course I would have to walk, as it was thumping down rain. I made some decisions and some promises to myself: above all else, be safe, and, of course, have fun!

I was racing with The Husband and a good friend Erin W. The Husband has done an amazing job learning to swim over the past two years, and this is his first solo triathlon - big time shout-out and congrats to him on this event! We had just enough time to prepare T1 and T2, walk through the race meeting and get on the bus.

There were several Spin Sisters racing both the Sprint and Competition course, so we chatted and warmed up before the swim. I did the warmup that I had planned, felt confident in the water, felt ready to go.

Unfortunately, my swim just wasn't up to par today. I cannot make sense of the why's and how's, but along the way my swim was just slow. I could feel how slow it was and tried to focus on technique, on breathing, I tried lots of tricks to get moving. Total swim time was 33min - about 2 min slower than last year. Grr.
2014 Swim: 33:46
2013 Swim: 31:42

My T1 was much improved over last year - my new HUUB wetsuit is awesome, easy to take off, I love it. I was smoothly and quickly on my way.
2014 T1: 4:12
2013 T1: 6:11

Surviving the wet trails - rubber side down!

Once on the bike, I knew that I had 2km of uphill pavement to ride before starting the climb at the Canmore Nordic Centre. I needed to stay steady and focused, settle into the bike, and not burn any matches before I even got started. My legs were feeling zippy, and I was gaining on some of the crowd ahead of me. And when I got to the Nordic Centre, I continued to pass people. As each of them fell back, I did a mental systems-check: I'm not usually in the passing lane, so I did a conscious check of my body with each rider and discovered I was in fine form so pressed onwards. The climb up to the Laundry Chutes was over faster than I remembered, and we were coming down some slippery, rooty, rocky single track. There were riders all over the place; in fact, all day long, riders were slipping and sliding across trails. I exhaled and rolled forward. I know the lines to ride, I know where the tricky parts show up and can be prepared, my experience with this course was to my benefit today, it was a safe and FUN ride! I leap-frogged with fellow Spin Sister Liz (who was part of an all-female team) for most of the first lap, but pulled ahead for lap 2. Lap 2 was even more fun, as I continued to pass people and confidently rode the trails. It was the perfect ride for those conditions, I kept the rubber side down and left my legs in good shape for the run.

"Race Face" starting lap 2

Total bike time: 2:08 - an improvement of 3 minutes over last year and done on a slippery course!
2014 Bike: 2:08:05
2013 Bike: 2:11:39








T2 was almost quick and smooth - but I forgot to grab the mandatory bear spray canister off my bike so had to go back for it.  Oops.
2014 T2: 1:05
2013 T2: 1:30

I promised myself that this run course was going to hurt, that if it didn't hurt I wasn't running hard enough and to get it in gear.
And let me tell you, it hurt. I kept my feet moving at a "run" motion for almost 7.5km. There was a hill, oh Lord there's a hill. It needed a short walk break. Erin W sassed me as she ran past, so I put it in gear. And I saw a woman about .5km behind me, she looked roughly my age and dammit, I wasn't going to let her pass me. So at the 8.5km mark, I turned it up another notch. I don't exactly remember the trail, the people, or the scenery. I simply ran. My legs hurt. Oh look, The Finish Line. I made it. It was a blur, I tried not to cry, and I tried not to fall over. I'm so glad both The Husband and Erin were at the Finish area, they propped me up and gave me a hug. I love racing with "my people." Total run time: 1:15.
2014 Run: 1:15:04
2013 Run: 1:16:

Crossing the Finish Line

Overall time:
2014: 4:02:08
2013: 4:09:38
That means I shaved 7 minutes off my time from last year on a slick course.  Holy smokes!

Is it enough to return to Maui? Maybe - I placed 4th, I am super proud of my effort, I know that my legs are empty and that I raced hard.  One of our very pregnant friends Laura commented on my "race face" - so focused and concentrated. She's right, I was in the moment, racing hard, and, honestly enjoying every second of it. What an incredible high! Maui would be amazing, and if I'm offered a roll-down spot, of course I will take it. Time will tell. In the meantime, I am very pleased with my race, and ready to hits the trails with some friends for a few more rides this season. Happy trails!

Revelry in Revelstoke

With my children happily en route to “Camp Aunt Robin,” The Husband and I headed out of town for 4 days of off-road adventures.  I like to try new trails in new areas, it gives me a chance to test my fitness and skills on unknown adventures. Mission successful! We chose Revelstoke for a couple of reasons: it’s close enough to drive in half a day, and I have been hankering to ride The Keystone Standard Basin trail ever since I heard about it 18 months ago. More on KSB to follow….

Day 1: Drive from Calgary to Revelstoke and get organized

After we finally got rolling late Friday morning, Revelstoke welcomed us with blue skies. Our B&B, The Courthouse Inn (loved it! Highly recommended!), is located within 10min walk of historic downtown, and the owners and hosts were warm and full of great ideas for local eateries and attractions.

We also checked out one of the local bike shops, Flowt, who were keen to share their knowledge of local trails and were a great source of info.  Thanks guys! They also freely dispense the local trail maps, good for helping to determine routes and distances. 

We decided on a “short” trail run before dinner, and both the B&B and Flowt agreed that the “5k” loop would be a good choice (note: the 5km goes in one direction to the apex of the loop, making the total distance a 10km loop).  We started at the Rail Museum and headed UP through the trees, under Hwy 1, and continued going UP for almost 5km! There is an add-on loop at the end of the trail, “Inspiration Loop” and while it was an absolutely gorgeous Ewok forest trail, I was finding it tough to be inspired – until I started to run downhill, which was certainly a relief after climbing for 45min.  I’m pretty happy with my running this year, my feet move faster and I have better longevity. I’m not positive I’m faster on the trails (certainly faster on pavement, but it’s tough to judge off-road), but I am able to keep my feet underneath me while climbing most hills, and I certainly take fewer walk-breaks than I used to.  Consistency has been the name of the game. This loop trail is used in winter for XC skiing, but it’s perfect for a quick trail run during the summer, loamy underfoot and well-trodden singletrack. 

We headed to The Village Idiot post-run for some supper, where the local brewery, Mt Begbie, was on tap and the pizza was delicious, filling, and large enough to take for lunch the next day!

Day 2: Keystone Standard Basin

Our B&B had amazing, 3-course, 5-star breakfasts.  I enjoyed a large bowl of fruit topped with crème fraiche, egg soufflé, and “dessert” each morning. Dessert was fresh banana, blueberry or chocolate muffin-cake-morsels of goodness.  Yummy. 

KSB is not for the faint of heart, but if you want to ride through high-alpine meadows bursting with wildflowers, watch waterfalls tumble and rumble from astonishing heights, and challenge both your technical and fitness skills, you will be in heaven.

It is located approx. 50km north of Revelstoke on Hwy 23, where you then drive along a fire road for close to 14km. The trailhead is well marked and has a unique outhouse.

At the trailhead for KSB, excited to ride!

The initial 100m out of the parking lot are hell: large, loose rocks, steep pitch, and an adoring audience in the parking lot as they assemble their kits.  After that, you have to survive the cardiac-arrest inducing technical 1.5km climb through a clearcut up to the tree line.  

This view awaits you - if you survive the first 1.5-2km!

It is worth persevering, because from this point forward, you enjoy clear, almost 360 degree views, with panoramas of the entire basin as you circle counter-clockwise around the basin before heading up and over the ridge. The trail continues to climb, descend, climb some more, then descend, climb again…. You get the picture! From the first viewpoint, you can see a tall waterfall – that’s your first checkpoint. 

Time to start climbing again...

From here, you ascend a large boulder field (we encountered some large snow patches to traverse), and head up a very steep z-switchback. I would love to meet the people who can ride this beast, it’s wicked! Once up the switchback, you traverse the cliff, surrounded by wildflowers whose stems and greenery hide the true extremity of the pitch. I didn’t appreciate the exposure until the return trip, which was downhill along said cliff.  Eek!

Gorgeous ride thru fields of wildflowers on a wicked pitch, whose true steepness is (thankfully!) masked by the flowers. 

Once off the face of the mountain, you head up some more into true alpine, where the floor is blanketed in moss campion and saxifrage and more wildflowers than I could dream of! Here is where the 50mm of rain that fell in the previous week were noticed. The early sections of the trail were well-drained and virtually mud-free.  Once over the ridge, we noticed considerable stretches of mud and standing water. I’m sure a few days of hot sun would dry this out, but it did look like some serious trail damage could be an issue, both from trail braiding and from deep trenches. We did our best to ride through the muck and tried to leave minimal impact. We started to descend to the small lake and seasonal snowmobiler cabin, where we luxuriated in the view, relatively free from the dreaded mosquitos and horseflies that are rumoured to live up here.  Our day was relatively cool – only 18 C with a bit of a breeze – so the monsters weren’t around. I would put good money on an infestation and feeding frenzy if the temp were about 20C in a few days time!

No flies - today...

We took our time eating lunch, and eventually mounted up for the 2km climb out of the valley and back to our trail. The ride home was net downhill, but the trail has plenty of ups and downs along the way. The dreaded exposure on the cliff, and the steep z-switchback gave us some pause along the way, but the ride ended all-too-soon.

The Husband followed my example and opted out of the tricky descent, there can be high consequences if you miss the line. 

I survived the first climb, ready to enjoy the Basin.

Overall, this was a tough, technical ride that required good fitness to finish without being a complete mess for a week post-ride. It is entirely worth the effort and I would claim it is the premiere ride in the area!

 The beauty of the ride, the variety of terrain, and the quality of the trail leave me breathless. I feel privileged to have ridden a trail of this caliber.  In retrospect, having also ridden Frisby Ridge, I will give KSB the edge as being my favourite trail for the weekend, it left me breathless and astonished.  It was fantastic in the Tennessee Williams sense. Highly, highly recommended. 

We dined at the Woolsey Creek Bistro – OMG, gourmet food at the end of a long ride is the best way to celebrate! The chefs here are stunning. Go check it out.

Day 3: Mount Macpherson Trail Network

Great effort, time, and money has been invested over the past few years into the Mount MacPherson trails, located within 10 min of Revelstoke on Hwy 23 south.

Here is the trail combo that we rode:

Flowdown to Dusty Beaver, up View to Buff Enuff, along Tight Rope to go down Berm Donor, across Tamtrum (I almost had one!), back up Buff Enuff, across Tight Rope again to go up the other side of Berm Donor to Dusty Beaver and descend Flowdown. Thanks to the boys at Flowt for this route, it was kick-ass!  

Good note: the local trail-building association organized a sponsorship for printing the maps, which are FREE and available at both bike shops and at the BC tourist info centre. The maps are incredibly accurate, but not very durable (I taped mine with packaging tape to keep it from splitting along the seams).

The trails climb and wind their way through an old-growth forest that belongs on Endor, across a cut-block that has regenerated into a lush patch of beauty, and along the edge of some ridges.  The trails are truly buff, well-maintained, well-signed and rated according to their difficulty. We even ran into a Spin Sister along the way (hi Gwyneth!). There is a little something for everyone in this forest, smooth riding for beginners, roots and drops for those who have a bit more experience, and thrilling DH gnarly technical shit for the advanced riders.  We are looking forward to returning to Revelstoke to explore more of the trails in this area, they were excellent!

This was our “easy” day, so after 4 hours of fun we headed for Halcyon Hot Springs, an hour drive and ferry ride south.  We dined like royalty and enjoyed a soak in the world’s best mineral springs. No kidding, these springs are reputed to have the best mineral concentration of lithium, sulphur and others that are ideal for healing. All I can say is this: my legs, after three days of pretty extreme output, felt recovered and zippy on Day 4.

Day 4: Frisby Ridge

All weekend long, we encountered other riders who positively raved about this trail. We had it listed as our #2 must-ride for the trip, so we were looking forward to seeing how it would ride. We were worried about reports of snow at the higher elevations, and we had been warned about extensive mud, and of course, the annoying, ever-present and painful horseflies (these monsters have bodies roughly the size of my thumbnail!). The locals are proud of this new trail, and it’s been groomed and sculpted to perfection. We were also prepared for some amazing views and enjoying another day of mountain biking in the high alpine meadows.

All of it came true!

Almost at the Lake - beautiful alpine meadows in bloom

The trail was incredible: I didn’t fully appreciate the technical elements on the way up. We rode for just under 2 hours, entirely uphill. There were a few spots that I would consider “technical,” but I was heavily focused on keeping my legs moving and riding uphill. I think my Garmin recorded a steady heart-rate of 153bmp for approx. 1:15 before I decided to refuel for the final push to the top. When riding this trail, it’s not a tough technical climb, it’s just relentless, you have to be willing to keep the legs spinning with some torque on the pedals for a long time, all while tolerating the steady, unrelenting buzz of the horseflies that keep you company for the duration of your ride. If you can do this, you will be rewarded with vistas and wildflowers and alpine lakes that are unmatched. The trail ultimately descends to a small lake (good for filtering some water for the return trip – bring a water filter!) and a cabin where you can take refuge from the horseflies, which is almost anti-climactic in comparison to the views you had on the ridge.  

Cabin beside the lake offered respite from horseflies.

The ride down makes all the climbing even more valuable, because you will get to appreciate the technical side of the buff trail you muscled up, while still marvelling in your surroundings.  Yes, it sounds like I’m gushing, but the scenery was amazing.

Post-ride we headed to Williamson Lake, the local swimming hole, to go for a quick dip before jumping back in the truck for the long drive home. A great little lake fit for families on a hot day.

Overall, riding in Revelstoke has something for every level of rider, but the big rides, both KSB and Frisby, require some strong base fitness and technical chops. Both are a great way to step up your abilities while still enjoying the panoramas.  I feel very honoured and blessed to visit these amazing areas. 

XTerra Victoria: time to go off-road!

Pre-Race
XTerra Victoria is no doubt on of the most beautiful courses I have raced: luscious forest, soft loamy soil (with some big rocks for good measure), warm lake, challenging course.  And Race Director Monique is amazing, she hosts a first-class race - way to go! I didn't take a supporting race crew (AKA The Family) with me to this event, so no pics in this post, sorry to disappoint, you will just have to take my word for it, this course is a beauty!

I chose this race for a couple of reasons: it's approx 6 weeks prior to XTerra Canmore so it will help me to gauge fitness and readiness, and it's also a Maui qualifier, so you never know what can happen on race day!

I arrived in Victoria on Thursday, having driven from Calgary all day and taken the ferry crossing, one of my favourite relaxation exercises.  My goal for the next two days was to check out the course, prep and rest for race day.

On Friday I headed out to Durrance Lake, approx 25 min north of the city. I had studied the maps before hand, but wasn't prepared for the knotted mass of trails in the area! After a few mis-starts, I was finally on a trail, no wait, maybe it was the trail that I just passed, yes, keep rolling.... you get the picture. On race-day it was much better marked with chalk arrows.  The course was rooty and loamy with big rocks that, as Mel McQuaid pointed out, are meant to roll up and over. Seriously? It looks like a rock wall! Of course, she's right, that's why I paid good money for my front fork. I mastered a couple of the lines that she highlighted, it came in handy on race day, thanks Mel! Two laps of the course were plenty - not enough to know all the drops and tricks, but enough to wear me out for one day.

I returned to the lake on Saturday to check out the run course - love it, more on this later - and swim in the lake. There was chatter about the lake being too warm for wetsuits, so I hopped in with just my bathing suit.  It was perfect!

Race Day
I woke up nervous. It was raining, so I worried about a slippery course, and I just couldn't settle.  So I tried to methodical things: finish packing the truck, tidy the condo, attempt to enjoy my breakfast (ha!), drive out to the lake. For some reason, I thought the race started at 9am.  As I was casually pumping my wheels, a fellow racer pointed out that transition was closing in 10 min.  10 min! I headed to Transition immediately, where I learned that the race was starting in 25 min! EEK! I never make these rookie mistakes!

The Swim:
LOVE LOVE LOVE my new Huub Wetsuit. It fits well, no arm restriction, easy to strip off.... and due to the rain, the water had cooled off so it was a wetsuit-legal race. I jumped into the mix of the swim, maybe I started a bit too quick, I had to pull back on pace at the first buoy, but the winter and spring coached swim lessons rang in my head (yes, Ed, I can hear your voice inside my head, kinda spooky and inspiring at the same time): smooth your stroke, work on the front end of your stroke. I stayed with the pack most of the way around the first lap, but could feel my breath getting ragged, so I opted to stay smooth and aim for efficiency. The second lap was better, still had lots of people around me, and I didn't lose much ground.
I think the 1500m course may have been a bit short, as my swim time clocked in at 21:54.

T1:
OMG - my wetsuit is amazing! It came off my arms in the first try!  Quick to put on helmet, sunglasses, socks and shoes - I didn't spend much time here, not much to report.

The Bike:
The initial climb is a long fire-road, approx. 10 min of climbing, with a couple of loose sections in it, entirely rideable, it's about having the fitness to ride it well without burning out the legs for the technical sections that follow. I ended up behind a 25-year old male rider, whose adrenalin was running high so that he exaggerated every move, which meant he bailed off his bike on the smallest of features and had one endo that was quite spectacular.  This translated into me putting down my foot more frequently than I had planned and ignited my mental "oh shit" factor.  I knew that I had to drop him so that I could continue to ride MY race, not his. Finally, towards the end of the first lap, it opened up enough for him to give me space to pass, I didn't see him again all race and I was able to ride more smoothly and confidently. The second lap was quieter and faster: I knew I had lost time behind the other rider, I knew that the fireroad on the second lap was slow, but I persevered and my Garmin tells me I had a negative split by almost 12 min on the 2nd lap. The goal of today's bike was simply a vehicle to get me to the run.
Bike time: 2:10:55.

T2:
In and out, remember to have quick feet to start the run. Go!

The Run:
The first one km of the run course snakes thru the thick forest, it's pretty flat but has lots of roots so you need to pay attention. I tried to gain momentum, keep the feet moving quickly, the legs didn't feel burnt out from the bike so I opened up a bit more than usual. The massive hill from 2-3.5km is also known as The Beast. Yes, I needed to slow to a walk, the pitch was steeper than most staircases! But I was able to get the legs moving again at the top fairly easily. The downhill of the run was tricky, very technical with loose soil, lots of big rocks and drops, but very fun. I thoroughly enjoyed the run on this race, even lap two when I was getting oh so tired. Lap 2 went well, again, I kept reminding myself to open up the legs and push forward a little bit faster, and I'm pleased that I had the mojo to keep going.
Run time: 1:12:39

On hitting the Finish Line:
Overall, pleased with my effort. It was a tough course, I am un-used to riding West Coast trails, and I had a solid run.  It wasn't my best race, in fact I'm almost ready to declare it "average," but there are a couple of things that I learned:
- use the bike as a way to transport you to the run, then go push your pace a bit.
- the focus on running early in my season makes running in a race much more enjoyable and while I'm still working on speedy trail running, trail running at the end of the race is fun.
- I can mentally identify when I need to stop riding someone else's race and take action to get myself back on track.
Finished 5th in my AG, 57 out of 62 racers.
Total time: 3:48:49

What's next? Back into training, will have some fun riding in Revy later in July and again in Fernie in August, all to prep for XTerra Canmore on August 17.

Happy Trails!