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IMCDA Race Report - It's a little long, but I guess I had a lot to say!
To start off with my race report for IM CDA, I guess I’ll back it up a couple of weeks. June started off as a pretty rough month…instead of relaxing and focusing on the big race a few weeks away, I had the rug pulled out from under me and life as I knew it began to fall apart. Very little sleep happened the first three weeks of June and I lost eight pounds over the course of a week…I’m still not back at my “normal” weight, but working on getting the appetite back and getting rid of this insomnia, but no luck yet.
The self-confidence/esteem took a huge hit and for those three weeks leading up to the race the only thoughts I had were pretty negative (why am I doing this, you/your life is a big joke, you’re an idiot for thinking you can pull this off, etc.) and as everything was falling apart, my one thing went right out the window. And I have to say, that one thing is a really powerful piece. It was like a huge blow to the chest when you don’t have that anymore.
I am out on the last long-ish training ride on June 19 and on my way home (about 10 miles away), I wasn’t paying attention and I hit a car on my bike. Stupid really, I was looking right and about to cross a road and didn’t see the car on my left coming at me. The car slammed on its breaks, I heard the squeal and then swerved and ended up on the right side panel absorbing the impact. Luckily I made it out ok, the car and passengers were fine and my bike only ended up with the handlebars slightly askew. So it sort of served as a wakeup call for me to snap out of it…that in six months, finishing is going to be what matters, not all this other stuff.
Now it is race week and I was still a wreck. Having been working this event for the last five years, I have been planning out and visioning my race week for a long time. I couldn’t get over the fact that it IS race week and what is happening is not what I planned and prepared for. I had a pretty rough breakdown in the park after leaving the 4-Keys talk. It sort of felt like I was in a fog and I just couldn’t absorb the excitement/electricity of race day. (This made me feel even worse, because I love this weekend in CDA.)
My mom, sister and I went to the welcome dinner and we sat in the front right section of the tent. It was pretty vacant up there and it was just the three of us in our area of the table. We are eating and then this guy in a Hawaiian shirt sits down next to my mom and says hello. He didn’t say anything else, but he didn’t need to – I knew exactly who it was and just sat there and stared. Mike Reilly was sitting next to my mom! I couldn’t think of anything to say to him…I don’t think I even moved and just sat there with my mouth hanging open until he got up a few minutes later to emcee the dinner. Classy, huh? 
Saturday’s drop off of my bike and gear seemed to help my spirits a little. I usually am one of the race captains that oversee transition, so it was nice talking to my old volunteers and co-captains. It is always nice to see them year after year and especially this last weekend.
So now it is race day. Wake up at 4:15am to get dressed and eat then head to CDA. My dad drove us to downtown and we found a parking spot really close to transition, which was nice. We walked right up to body marking then I set up my bike and put the last couple of things in my bags. Dropped off special needs, final hugs from the family and it was off to the beach for the start.
With everything that had happened in June, all I was asking of myself was to do my best that day and to take whatever the day gives me. I didn’t think about any goals other than just going out and trying. I knew mentally I wasn’t exactly there but I wanted to put the negative thoughts in the back of my head and keep them there as long as I could. XBL1 – slow is smooth, smooth is fast, etc…I kept quizzing myself all day and just focused on our mantras. As my mind would wander I would pull it back with EN thoughts. My parents have a boat at Silver Beach Marina (it is on CDA Lake Drive – we pass it eight times total in the race) so I knew it would be nice to see my family/friends there all day too…just be sure to be smiling when you go by them!
Swim – 1:11
So this really came out of nowhere! I ended up starting on the buoy line close to the water and when the cannon went off, I just went for it and hung on as best as I could. I really can’t remember much of the swim and I am pretty sure there wasn’t much thinking to what was happening. I have definitely come a LONG way in swimming…so this was a huge deal. My first 70.3 race was last August at Lake Stevens and my swim time at CDA was better than that race. Go me!
T1 – 11:12
I wore a swimsuit under my wetsuit (I planned on being in the water closer to two hours and didn’t want to be cold to start the bike) so I took a little bit of time changing. Plus, I was mixed in with the fast age-groupers and I was pretty freaked out about that. I didn’t care that I was taking a long time; I was just glad to have made it out of the swim.
Bike – 7:42
Loop one went well; I was getting smoked by the fast people but I just kept telling myself to stay in my own race. I don’t have a powermeter, so no data about the bike. I did hold a 15.1 average until about mile 85 and loop two’s hills. The final average was 14.5, so I know I took a big hit on loop two. The heat/wind was starting to get to me and the “this is far enough” bug started talking to me. I am really familiar with the course, so I kept playing the next couple of miles in my head to try to focus on what was coming up and to keep going. I think my favorite part though was riding on the sidewalk into T2 and standing up on the pedals for that last little ride into the bike finish.
T2 – 8:20
I took my time here too – my feet weren’t sand/rock free on the bike and I didn’t want to run a marathon with junk in there. PLUS, the T1 sunscreen team didn’t do me any favors and I was on my way to some serious burns on my arms and legs. My thighs ended up blistering pretty badly and my arms are patchy red with blisters. Not so fun. I took my time with the T2 sunscreen group and let them take their time covering me head to toe.
Run – 6:23
The run started well. Leading up to IM, all I would think about was “just get to the run”. The mojo through town is really nice but I definitely noticed I needed to watch my pace and not let it get out of control. I was able to run (and only walk the aid stations) until mile eight or nine…then the fatigue set in and walking seemed like a good idea. Aaron Linkow caught up to me at that point and saved my race. I honestly don’t know if I would have mustered up the courage to keep going if it hadn’t been for him. We ran/walked the rest of the marathon together from there.
Overall – 15:37
I know I wasn’t super active in the forums, and I spent most of my time reading posts and absorbing the tips/tricks/hints from all of you guys, but I must say, being a part of EN made race day very special. I loved the “Go EN” cheers we exchanged each other on the bike and especially on the run. Seeing everyone out there – Al on his way to his win, Mike going in for the finish, Michelle at her mile 25.5…it was AWESOME to be part of this team. Monday when I was in the park, I checked the results postings and saw that Wendy finished before midnight and I started to cry – couldn’t hold in the tears. I am so thankful for all of you guys; your courage and drive is so inspiring…I don’t think I could have accomplished this without EN. But, I don’t think I would want to do it without this team either.
And I can’t say thank you enough to Rich, Patrick, the CDA team and all of you watching us that day. It was really great to have this “family” to rely and lean on, especially on Sunday. While I was pretty quiet about all my personal demons that day, seeing all of you on the course helped keep me going – it really makes a huge difference seeing your teammates pop up all over those 140.6 miles. I have to say my biggest thank you definitely goes to Aaron – his motivation and encouragement through that marathon will mean more to me than he will ever know. He definitely saved my race and was the reason I made it to the finish line, and I will be forever grateful to him and EN for that.
Shoot! That was a lot longer than I thought it would be. I know it isn’t much of a racing specific report…but more of a recap that I really needed that “win” on Sunday and I couldn’t have done it without you guys. Thank you all again for everything – I can’t wait to see what the rest of you accomplishes the rest of this season.
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Comments
Carly, loved reading about your journey....I had a lump in my throat at the end! You finished and finishing is what it is all about...congratulations again and again!! Hurrah for the couragious, loving people inside this haus....I tell ya it is something special
Take care Carly and rest up!
P
Carly - I really appreciate your report - our stories are so much more important than our times or pace or HR or watts. When I saw you coming down Mullan about mile 3-4 into your marathon, you had such an upbeat appearance, I could just sense your positive determination. Congratulations on your success.
Carly,
Great race, great race report, and so nice to meet your sister and mom! Good luck and can't wait to see what you race next!
Carly,
Al put it perfectly, our stories are so much more important than the numbers. I thoroughly enjoyed your report. Congratulations!
Dave
I feel exactly the same way. Thanks for the inspirational narrative. It was so cool to see you and Aaron on the run course, and especially seeing you guys at the finish line. Congrats on your IM finish! Something to be incredibly proud of.
Carly,
What a great race report and thank you for sharing your experience! It was wonderful seeing you and the other EN folks on race day. Everyone was so encouraging and upbeat. Congratulations on making your journey a success by focusing on things you could control and managing your thoughts. That can feel like the hardest part of this journey sometimes. My one regret from race week was not being able to meet the Team at Thursday's dinner due to misplaced rental car keys. I got back to Atlanta late last week after spending 2 weeks on vacation with family in Montana after the race so will work on getting my race report together soon!
Again, congratulations on a great race!