Quassy Race Report 2011

dotcatlin

Quassy 2011 Half Race Report-

Overall it was a hard race for me...as an Athena, and returning to the game post-baby. But, I finished and am back in the game. So, no more talk of post-baby (after this report). I'm back in the game and now it's going to be about finding my game again. I am left today feeling proud of myself for sticking to my body comp plan and losing 20 of the prego lbs, plus sticking to the training and finishing an HIM again, but also have feelings of disappointment for finishing 1hr and 8 mins slower than my last HIM, and due to that have some questions. Mostly I know that time and build will bring me back to where I was and beyond! Before my last HIM I had 2 marathons and a whole year of build training, even if it wasn't EN style. This time, just 5 months total. 3 months of Beginner OS, 1 month of Beginer HIM and the last month with Intermediate HIM. I felt ready, but did not execute well. Not enough time to build? A really hard course for an athena? Went too hard on the bike (how could I have gone slower?!) I dunno...

Saturday before-good lunch and pasta, salad, fruit for dinner. No issues, good prep. Water and gatorade.

Bed at 10:30pm

2:30am meal-2 packets of oatmeal mixed  with a pudding and lots of water so was able to drink it (470 cals). Went to bed again full.

5:00am-peanut butter and nutella sandwich, coffee with a little cream (450 cals).

6:30am-salt tab with water

7:00am-gatorade (100cals)

Swim: This was the good part. I got a swim PR!!!! My swim time was 35:03 for a 1:49/m pace. My last HIM was 37:01 for a 1:56/m pace. I was very happy with my swim. Just went out and swam smooth the whole time. Felt great. Easy transition out to Bike.

Bike: Stayed in Z2 for 30'. That wasn't a problem. The hills were coming though and I couldn't keep in Z2 all the way through the hills.

After 30' went for Z3. Fine on the flats, but there hardly were any flats! All hills. I consistently went into Z4 and sometimes 5 on the hills. I would be in my small ring and lowest gears and really couldn't go any slower! I wasn't even pushing!

And, I wasn't tired. I was just sloooooow. I totally thought I was going to do well on the run. Final bike was 4:05ish for a 13.9avg. My last HIM was a 3:14, for a 17.29avg! As I said, this course was all hills, and as an athena people were just cruising by me. Also, I'd like to get a tri bike! It has to make things easier!

Concentrated Infinit (729 cals) + 5-6 25 oz water (125-150oz). No issues. Peed 8x on bike. Is that normal?!

Run: 2:27. 11:17/mile. I was going for 9:11/mile. I started off fine in E+30' at 11:05. No problem. Walked the aid stations, drank 6oz every station. Power bar at mile 6 (250 cals). A little gurgly in the stomach before powerbar, then was gone, and it helped me finish the race. Picked it up to my MP (9:08) for the 4th mile and then it was hills, and hills and I just couldn't do MP with hills. Can most people do MP with hills? I kept a 11:30avg for the (many miles) of hills, then the last few pushed 10s to end up with an 11:17/pace. I don't feel like I "pushed" b/c I woud've killed myself up the hills. If it was flat I think I could have pushed more on the run. I definitely ended with juice. Am I supposed to feel just completely spent? How does one keep MP up a huge hill?

Questions:

Is it posible for an Athena to keep heart rate in zones on hills? It just seems like I have to work so much harder than people zooming by me!

I am so much slower on my bike now than I was pre-baby. I had a year of run training and 2 marathons under my belt before my 4 month non-EN training program pre my last HIM. Is it possible that I just don't have "the build"?

I believe in EN, but my last HIM I went out hard at 20avg, pushed through it and did 10/miles. I must keep believing though, right? Is it b/c I had the 2 marathon build and this time b/c I am coming back post-baby? It was a tough course, but I'm just so confused I did so poorly when I felt so good! Didn't bonk, didn't walk.....ugh!

Notes/Plans/Goals:

Continue to work on body comp to get my game back. I've lost 20, am back in shape, but in order to really improve at this endurance game I need to lose about 20 more. This is my #goal for the next few months. In yesterday's race I was 5lbs heavier than my last HIM.

Continue to ride, ride, ride through the summer to build those bike legs.

Learn to push on the run.

People have been noting my disappointment today and say I am being hard on myself. I know I just need time to get my game back, but honestly I am surprised that I was so far off a previous race and wonder if there are other things I need to think about. (People I raced with said they were about 1/2 hour off their pace from Amica, but I was off and hour & 8 mins. I just feel like I didn't execute.) Bah Humbug.

Now what?!!?!

tuckerm

Dottie, it does seem you are being a bit hard on yourself. You keep comparing your race to a previous HIM. Which race was that? How do the courses compare? But in reality, you cannot compare two different races.

Plus the Quassy race is really, really hard. I remember pros saying after last years race that the course was a championship level course. I just looked at the bike and it says it has 2500ft of gain. That's pretty damn good for a half.

If you want to be competitive at a race like this body comp is huge, like it is for most of us. You really need to get the w/kg up! How did you do against the other Athena women? And running hills is not easy easy, especially for bigger people. I know I don't like it. (I'm 190-195ish) Key is to get lighter and faster. EN training can help you with both.

carls10

Dottie-  I hear the disappointment in your report.  I was surprised, VERY surprised by all of the hills, not just on the bike but also on the run.  It was a tough race and I don't think it's fair to compare it to another HIM on another course. 

I think the goals you have laid out for yourself are realistic.  You have plenty of time and good weather here in NE to get yourself where you want to be for AZ.  Really no sense in beating yourself up over the race.  Trust in the plan and the EN way and go out and crush the rest of your season!

Bill McKinney

I'd say congrats on getting back in the game so soon after the little one. That's an awesome accomplishment. Clearly the hills played a big role. My bet is that all the z4 and z5 on the hills on the bike played a big role in not hitting your goal paces on the run. Like someone else said, you can't compare races across courses like that without taking into account the terrain. An 11:00 IM time at IMSG is a lot different than a 10:30 at IMFL. Given the challenges you lay out, I'd definitely look for a flatter course next go. Sounds like you are racing with HR. If so, you might also think about a switch to power if you can swing it. On the hills, my bet is that not only were you burning matches going up, but you were probably not hitting it hard enough going over the top and down the back side. Heavy people should have an advantage going down, and those pedal strokes right at the top of the climb and up until 30-35mph going down is when you put the hurt on the people who killed themselves going up and have to rest going down.

Think of this as a HUGE first step back into the game after massive physical and mental challenges of having a baby. Take the lessons to the bank. Keep doing the work and come back to compete another day!

[Deleted User]

Hey Dottie, it was great to meet you this weekend. I thought you looked a little down at the finish, but I think you did great! And I feel your pain, being a heavier guy battling those hills! But this is a tough sport - a half ironman is no joke! And your fellow competitors are hardly casual athletes - this is one hard-core group! You should be nothing but proud to be in the mix. To swim, bike, and run that distance. And now you get to enjoy to challenge of trying to get better! That's what I intend to do.

chris malone

Dottie,

I did Quassy last year and I'm a male Athena. Bigger people doing hilly races is a tough combo. Pro or AGer, it's all relative. You wouldn't bet on the larger pros winning the hilly races. The numbers don't add up. Quassy is a great venue but it is a bitch.

8x pee on the bike is not normal and so I'm thinking you were light on sodium and combined with the sneaky Connecticut humidity, you were drained. What was the weather like? If you can accept that you were out of your "ideal terrain", and chalk the race up to a good hard day, you can build on it. Don't beat yourself up twice.

Congrats on your day.

cm

filarl

Doing Quassy HIM as a post-baby come-back race - no way I could have done that - you are seriously TOUGH!!!!!! I echo the others, you are being WAY too hard on yourself. That race is a son of a #$# and to do it when you're body is still making a physical transition has to be crazy tough and a huge accomplishment. While I think we all know some chic (or more likely know of someone through someone - supposedly) who popped out a baby and fit into her skinny jeans on the way home from the hospital and then won some sort of athletic contest (running race, tri etc) 2 months later in a 2 piece with no stretch marks etc etc, most can't do that - myself included.
In my case it's like my running legs just don't want to come back - so I definitely relate. I'm making improvements slowly (although now have a stress fracture - boo-hoo:-( But the long process to regaining fitness is really frustrating at times and takes a lot of patience (not that I'm good at that either!) Best of luck on your journey - I predict that you're going to find yourself getting a lot stronger over the summer and will rock your IM! I'm rooting for you!!!!!!

delesh

Congrats on your come back. Don't let the results get you discouraged. It is probably not really helpful to compare results of different races and you should instead focus on your execution during those races. All of the knowledge you can take away from this race will be super valuable going forward. Use it to get stronger and faster.

I would question your gearing on the bike. I am not familiar with the Quassy course, but you may not have had enough gears to spin up the hills effectively. Also, as Chris said, be careful of taking in too much water and not enough salt. I know that I get very weak and can't hold pace when my salt balance gets out of whack.

Again, congrats on your finish. You did something that 99% of the population can't/won't do. Enjoy it

afrost

Dottie,

You did awesome out there! That sounds like a beast of a course - on both bike AND run. And you have a 9 month old?? And two other little kids?? I have 3 kids too. And started back once my littlest one was just over a year old. But I did a supersprint!! It took me 4 YEARS to get back to a HIM! You should not be hard on yourself at all. What a great example you are setting for your kids. I know you will get back on that bike and work hard. Your swim and run sound like they were just fine - more than fine given the terrain of the run and your limited time to get back to this crazy sport of ours. I look forward to reading your Florida race report!

---Ann.

dotcatlin

Aww, you guys are all so sweet. Thanks for lifting my spirits. It's all good! It's amazing what a few days removed from the race will do! I am very interested about this whole water & salt situation. I will look into this more and think about my nutrition choices. I can't wait to get back out there too, but I've taken a good couple of days off

Thank you for all the congrats, tips & stories. I love being part of this team!!!

Dottie

kviehe1

Hey Dottie,

I just wanted to chime in and congratulate you. Not to beat a dead horse, but seriously you finished a HIM with a BABY at home. And if I remember correctly this isn't your only child. It is so easy to underestimate the toll that pregnancy takes on our bodies. And every subsequent pregnancy makes it harder to come back from. I am super impressed with your time and the role model that you are for your kids. Hopefully one day when they are older they will appreciate what a ROCK STAR their Mommy is. Keep training and keep us posted.

Keri

dotcatlin

http://www.brightroom.com/go.asp?101874767

Thought I would add my photos link from Quassy! I got a little choked up running in with my kids (the other races I've done have never allowed that). The baby was at home, but she was on my mind, of course. It's hard to tell, but I'm throwing the gang sign across that finish line. Oh yeah Baby!