Third in Columbia two years in a row! This year I am much happier with my race and even managed to go three minutes faster. Also, it was great to have Bec back on the starting line crushing the swim and the bike and coming off in 2nd place. I know how hard it is for her to not be able to then run to the win ... but I also know that will be the case soon.
I love racing in Columbia because it is almost a hometown race for us. And, it is the hometown of Team Fight - the triathlon team of the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. There is nothing better than having people who truly believe in me cheering me along all the way. I did my pre-race check into the Team Fight tent to see Brian and was reminded of so many people giving so much time and energy into helping people like me. Right then and there all of my worries and distractions dissapated. I went to the swim start ready to race and put on a good show.
The swim went well and I came out just on the back of the main pack. I got on my bike ready to tackle the hills. Margie caught me early on and we rode together (back and forth with a motorcycle watching us like a hawk) for most of the way with Bec and Leanda in our sights. About 20 miles in I fell off the pace and had no idea how far behind I had gotten. I took off on the run and never looked back - I got into 3rd place in the 5th mile and soon realized I was nearing 2nd and then even saw 1st not too far away. I kind of couldn't believe it! I ran as hard as I could to try to catch Leanda but she wasn't giving up either! We pushed ourselves til the end. Just how racing should be!
I ended up with probably the best run of my life- my chip came off so I wasn't awarded the run prime (that's $$ given to the best run time), however based on the guy I started with and then beat by 30 seconds, my run was in the 37:15 range...which was over 90 seconds faster than the rest of the field. Doesn't sound very fast, but only 3 women have ever broken 38 on this course in 29 years. (Two named Wassner).
Congratulations to everyone who raced. Bella had a great race for the win and a special shout out to Brock who did his first race since getting a blood clot and breaking his foot. Thank you to my tremendous team of sponsors. Their support allows me to get out there and FIGHT: Nike, NYAC, FRS, Cervelo, Zico, First Endurance, ISM, Rudy Project, NY Superfoods and Sidi. Also, thank you to Jerry Nista and Tri Columbia for putting on a great race.
Next up is Quassy Rev3 in two weeks.