CassadagaMan 70.3 - First half Ironman distance :)

I have to document this race while it's still fresh in my memory. 

After Vermont 100 DNF last year, I was lost and did not know what to do. The big questions were "Do I want to train for another hundo?" (considering the amount of time and physical & mental effort I had to put into it) or "Should I take a break year and focus on my career?" (while still doing shorter ultras like 50Ks or even a 50 miler). During one of the runs with D., we had a long talk about my current #life situations and possible goals for next year. For sure, I needed something to focus on to have some kind of structure in my life as well as the mental, stress outlet. I operate better with structure and precisely defined steps and goals. Luckily, D. has done it all (ultramarathons, Ironmans, and stage races). After hearing me b*tching about my current career and life situations (she listened quietly and said nothing), she suggested that I look into doing a half Ironman. She said the training is lighter than a 100 miler and an Ironman. Plus, I get to switch among 3 sports, which should give me excitement and new things to look forward to. I had done several shorter distance triathlons (sprints and one Olympic) and always had in the back of my mind that I wanted to do an Ironman. However, the training for an Ironman scares me because of the time and effort I need to invest in it (yeah, right and I chose to do a 100 miler instead /eye-rolling). However, a half Ironman could be a good stepping stone to the full Ironman in the future and it should give me a taste of the longer distance triathlon (and see if I like it or not). 

I started talking to D's ex-triathlon coach and friend, B., and asked him if it was possible to train for ultras and a half Ironman at the same time. I wanted to keep running ultras (e.g., 50Ks and a 24-hour race) in 2020. (Syd's note: Looking back, I am not surprised if B. rolled his eyes at my text messages LOL). I told him I am not a competitive athlete and always toward the back of the pack. The only person I want to compete with is myself as my career is already stressful enough. I want to do my best in any race while still enjoying the camaraderie and post-race beer/social. 

The goal was to train for ultras in Spring and then do a half Ironman race in Fall. Everything went smoothly. I was doing specific workouts and was feeling great until March...

***(and then, the 2020 pandemic sh*t hit the fan)***

All my races on the calendar were either canceled for postponed. The half Ironman A race in September went quiet and we thought, like other triathlon races, it wouldn't happen. At the same time, work got more challenging in Spring due to the pandemic. We had to move instructions to be online with only 2 weeks of preparation, conferences got canceled, and travel was restricted due to the stay-at-home order. I was trying to be positive and kept the training going by doing anything I could do (running outside and biking on a trainer). Like many people, I was struggling mentally and physically, and could not find the motivation to do anything. Our summer travel plan got canceled and we had to stay in the US in the summer (originally we had planned to be in Thailand from June - August). The good thing was I was able to keep training (for an unknown race) and be at the Canal Corridor 100 race in July. 

Mighty Moraine Man 70.3 (original A race) was changed to only a sprint distance and the original plan was that I would do the sprint distance just to be in the "race" mode. I contacted the RD in July asking about the packet pick up and COVID policy and had heard nothing back. Meanwhile, New York lifted the quarantine ban for Ohio and I saw someone posted about CassadagaMan 70.3 in the Cleveland Triathlon Club (CTC) Facebook group. I looked at the location. It's only 2.5 hours from us and it's on a long weekend (Labor Day). The timing and location seemed perfect. However, I was not sure if I was in the 70.3 shape considering that my goal prior was changed to "let's gear up for next year". I sent the info to B. asking if I should do it. The courses (bike and run) were hilly and I had not trained on hills. He looked at it and said, "of course but you will need to do hilly long rides leading up to the race". So, I signed up for the race 2 weeks before the race day. I never trained for a triathlon with a group before because I only did shorter distances. However, for the long ride (100K), I joined a CTC hilly ride. They were super friendly and nice (and fast). Another friend, D., also loves hills and he went on a shorter, hilly ride with me the week after to gear up for CassadagaMan. 

Stress from work and last minute things to finish/do made me miss a couple of workouts during the training but, in general, I think the training went well. I also convince my husband, Chef P., to drive me to the race (keyword phrases: there are a lot of wineries around there and beer at the finish line). It was our first real vacation in 9 months so we were looking forward to it. We took Friday off and left for NY on Friday morning. Stopped for lunch in Erie, PA, and arrived at the race around 3pm. I picked up the race packet and we drove the bike and run courses because I wanted to know how hilly the courses were (and how many major hills I needed to climb on the bike). The courses were pretty well marked and it's impossible to get lost. After I saw the hills, I thanked all my hilly ride friends and training. The run course was more hilly than expected but nothing compared to what I went through at Vermont 100. 

Although Chef P. did not care about my race and was not interested in seeing me on the course (like other spectator husbands/families did), he planned and cooked all the meals leading up to the race (carb-loading). So, I brought my own meal to eat on Friday night before the race. 

The race morning I arrived at the race early to find a spot to set up the transition area. The temp was a bit chilly (high 60F/15C) but the water was warm. The race was capped at 150 people and there were 80+ signed up for the 70.3 distance and other people doing the relay. Because my goal was to finish, I did not have that race pressure. B. and I had quite similar expectations on the time for each leg based on my training time. I did some warm-up swim in the lake before taking group photos with other CTC peeps. 

Body marking on the hand - COVID policy 

Transition area - LOVE a small race like this

CTC group photo

Then, we took off. The swim was an in-water start. The male athletes started at 8am and the females started at 8:03am. Of course, I got panicked during the first 200-300 yards because I could not see the buoy, and the water leaked into my goggle. Then, I stopped and took a deep breath. I asked a volunteer on the kayak where the buoy was. She pointed in one direction and I saw a yellow buoy where I was supposed to swim to. I cleared the goggle and started swimming again. This time I imagined that I was swimming in Lake Medina and it's just another morning swim with my swim buddy, P. I took my time and heading toward the yellow buoy. Along the way, I got off course again and the kayaker volunteers had to get me back on the course. Because I was too excited, I even sighted the wrong buoy >_<' After 1000 yards into the swim, I finally calmed down and was able to stay on the course and keep swimming. 

T1 went well. I practiced the transitions so everything was in an automatic mode. B. said to take time in T1 and make sure that I re-fueled before getting on the bike. At the beginning of the bike, my arms felt kinda weird like the muscles were still confused about transitioning from the swim to the bike. I think it's because I never practiced swim/bike before so I was not used to the feeling. Again, I went out slow and easy (B. said to ride easy until 2 hours into the ride). Because we drove the course the day before, I knew exactly what to expect at what mile, and, through visualization, I knew when I should take gels or drink. The bike course was hilly with 2 big, long climbs (and I just realized that I loved long climbing hills). The bike course was 28 miles and we needed to do 2 loops of the course. The first loop went well (easy). It started to rain around Mile 20 and we got headwind when I started the second loop :( Stomach started to hurt (gas in the stomach) after I ate the rice ball and took the first gel. Something was wrong but I was too focused on the race that I kinda ignored it. 

T2 also went well. I also ate another gel while running out of T2. That's when sh*t hit the fan. My stomach really hurt and felt like it had bubbles in it (I am pretty sure my stomach looked like I was 2-month pregnant). I could not eat or drink anything and when I started running again, I felt like the whole stomach moved up and down every step. This problem never happened to me before in an ultramarathon and I felt horrible. I could not run no matter how hard I tried. I used the porta potty at Mile 3 hoping that it would be better if I urinated. At that point, my tank was almost empty. I thought to myself - thank god it's only a half marathon and I'd been through worse. The worst-case scenario was that I walked the whole course. It was not what I expected but it's better than a DNF. At the aid station around Mile 5, I had some coke and was able to burp out some gas. The run course was more hilly than I expected and I tried walking up and running down the hills, putting one foot in front of the others. Running on road sucks. Luckily, it was raining and the temperature was perfect. If there is any triathlon that the run portion is on trails, I would sign up in a heartbeat.

I finished the race at 7:42:06 hours. 30 minutes longer than I expected. But I finished...

Yay. I completed my first half Ironman. 

I also learned a lot from this race.

1) Although the race duration is about the same as a 50K, the dynamic in the race is completely different. I cannot rely on the fueling strategy that I use in an ultramarathon. This is something that I need to fix going forward. 

2) Since my first triathlon race in 2015, I've always liked triathlon as a sport and tried to do a couple of short races every year (sometimes with minimal training for swim and bike). Now that I have tried a longer triathlon race, I realize I like the longer race than shorter ones. It's more physically and mentally challenging and needs more planning and strategy. These are things that attract me to endurance sports.  

3) I missed the soreness after a long, hard race. The last official race that I did (50K) was in January in Thailand. 

It felt great to be able to race again in the new, unknown territory. I love the feeling of being a newbie where I have SO MUCH to learn, think, and be obsessed with. Yes, I suck at all 3 sports and it's great because there is so much room for improvement. 

The question becomes - What is next?

At this point, I still don't have the right answer. Career is the main priority at this point and next year will be very critical for me (that could make or break my career). I know for sure that I want to do another 70.3 to fix the issues that went wrong this time before I step up to a full IM. Let's see what life brings. 

On Sunday, we visited a winery in NY on the way back. Chef P. and I had a great time at the winery and it was our much-needed vacation.