I signed up for Rev3 Williamsburg Oly distance because I got caught up in the excitement of an inaugural race that brought a large race series close to home. And who doesn't love an early bird discount? Since this was my first actual race of this year, I wanted to use it as a tune up for Musselman. My plan was to race smart, no mistakes. Secondarily, if I also happened to go sub- 3:00 while doing that, well, that would be just peachy.
For the swim, I was still haunted by some tough days last year. So I wanted this swim to be clean. Strong start, no mistakes, no mis-sighting, no panicking. I didn't care about time, I just wanted it to be smooth.
Since this is only a tune-up race, I didn't want to go 110% the whole time, but I did give myself permission before hand, if conditions were right, to lay down the hammer on the bike. I've been having some great rides on Sunny the TT bike, but she hadn't yet been tested in a race scenario. Things like bike handling, equipment, hydration, etc all needed to be tested at race pace.
With marathon training going on now I expect my runs off the bike to be stronger overall. But again, I didn't want to push it too hard here and burn out too close to Musselman. I just wanted the run to be smooth and again, no mistakes. Really try to listen to my body especially on nutrition.
In short, I met all these goals, had a surprisingly good swim, and feel pretty darn good about Musselman. The Rev3 experience was fun but needs some work logistically for next year.
I do think some of my friends who are into the mountain biking/trail running scene and pushing me in that direction have a point, though. I think no matter how calm and confident I feel, the physical and emotional stress of race days is just sometimes too much for me to handle. And the stress still manifests itself as really terrible GI issues during and after the race. It's starting to get old, and I am frustrated. Still more to learn here.
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| I have this view to look forward to later! |
Long form race report:
Pre-race:
I drove down to Williamsburg Saturday morning after packing and cleaning Sunny. Traffic on 95 was bad as usual. I found easy parking at the Expo (on William and Mary's campus) but was not prepared for it to be entirely outside. It was hot hot already and I was glad I brought some extra water to carry around with me. Packet pickup was smooth and there were some great deals. Not too many vendors or samples to be had at the expo, and nothing really in the race pack. (but that's okay, I'd rather have one thing I'll wear all the time, like the pretty rad Headsweats visor, than a load of junk I won't use).
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| You know I'm in this for the swag. |
The whole thing was pretty small, but definitely high energy. I could tell from the crowds and the types of bikes around that this was going to be a very competitive race. I've never spent alot of time at races with significant pro attendance, so there was definitely energy there. I spent some time at the Normatec booth trying out their compression boots. Very strange and also very hot since they were black and out in the sun. Now if they could figure out how to pump cool water in there instead of air, that would be money, especially for recovery.
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| My legs look strange. |
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| Khang and Hamid recovering! |
We hung around long enough for the 1:30 athlete's meeting. I'm so spoiled from Musselman, a power point presentation showing how the half and Oly courses overlapped, maps where the rough pavement was, etc would have been so much more helpful that just a dude with a microphone. There was a giant jumbotron on site but it could have been used so much better! After the athlete's meeting we headed to Colonial Williamsburg for lunch, then drove down to Jamestown Beach Park to check in the bikes. Rev3 uses these unusual box racks rather than your traditional metal piping racks, with individualized nameplates. It kept things pretty separate from your neighbors and organized!
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| Official looking nameplates at transition! |
This was a two-transition race, meaning T1 and T2 were not at the same location. We were to check in our bikes Saturday, then Sunday morning drive to the expo site, set up T2, then take a shuttle to T1 to finish setting up. Then after the race the stuff left at T1 would be bussed back to the expo site. This presented some logistical challenges (will talk about those later) but I mostly used it as an excuse to be very very minimal at transition. No need for transition to look like an episode of 'Hoarders.' After dropping off the bikes we scoped out the swim course. It was a sort of triangle shaped course, with a long straightaway out from the beach, then two different right hand turns, depending on whether you were doing the Oly or half. The Oly course was marked well with giant orange ('candy corn') buoys. The half was marked with decidedly less distinctive dark red buoys. More on that later. After leaving the race site we checked into the hotel, then got a delicious Italian dinner. They even had my favorite pre-race recipe- anything with pesto sauce tends to sit well in my stomach! And is delicious! (thanks Trevor for the recommendations!!) Got back into the hotel, packed and repacked all of my gear and transition bags, put on our pro-worthy body marking tattoos, and got to bed around 10p.
Race morning:
I woke up around 4:40 and headed out around 5a to pick up Allison, who was doing the half. Got outside and found something most unexpected- pouring rain. Just can't seem to escape it! The weatherman was totally wrong in predicting scattered showers later in the day. I didn't pack any rain gear, so by the time I loaded the car I was already soaked. Traffic into the race site wasn't terrible, but the main lot was already full by the time we got there and we had to park a little further away than planned. Setting up T2 was easy, just left running shoes, race belt, and a hat in a plastic bag. Then we waited for the shuttle to T1. This was probably the biggest improvement Rev3 can make for next year. At the athlete's meeting they mentioned they had 7 buses to take 1400 athletes plus their spectators the 6 miles between T2 and T1. Something didn't compute there, and it definitely showed race morning. We must've waited over a half hour to get on a shuttle. The officials did a nice job, once they realized the mistake, in moving the half athletes ahead of the Oly athletes and spectators so that everyone could get down there with enough time. But still, not the way we had planned the morning to go.
At T1 I got everything ready at the bike, and decided that with the rain overnight the water temp would likely be sufficiently out of range of being wetsuit optional so I threw on the wetsuit. (Turns out just barely- water temp measured at 77.6deg at race time). I didn't get a good warmup in and I'm wondering if I need to start doing that regularly. By the time I was done with transition and made my way to the race start, most of the half waves had already gone off. Before I knew it I was in my light blue swim cap with the other females under 40, and ready to go.
Swim:
The water was dark and murky, as expected in a big river like this one. The start was a beach start, and you could walk almost out to the first buoy. I tried not to waste too much energy walking, and tried to dolphin dive as best I could. I don't wear a HR monitor while racing, and especially in the water, but I would love to see what your HR does during a start like this. Almost immediately it was clear this was not going to be a walk in the park. There was some pretty bad chop and the current was taking me back over my left shoulder back towards the beach. I did get a good sight on the first candy corn and aimed there. About halfway there I got super confused by what I saw- a huge barge with multicolored storage containers going by just past the end of the course. I have no doubt that also contributed to the chop and the funky currents all along the back stretch of the course. I was definitely getting pushed to my right back towards shore. I was taking in a lot of water- it was hard to get a rhythm going and know when it was clear to breathe. I was getting more than the usual amount of nauseous and had to dry heave a few times. But I was trying to remember my goals- to not give up, stay focused on sighting, and not give up any distance by going off course. It was mentally tiring and I was ready to get out of the water. Things got physical on the last leg when the half and Oly courses merged. I was kicked a few times, my goggles got ripped off, and somewhere along the way the top of my right foot got pretty badly scratched up (I think- still not sure since I didn't notice this till I went to put on my bike shoes). I was so grateful to get out of the water and jog the .25mi to T1. Because the race started a bit late with the shuttle issues, and I completely forgot to look at the race clock before our wave went off, I had no idea what time I was at. I assumed it was somewhere in the 45 min range, that's how badly I felt. (I was not the only one- many of my friends doing the half had alot of issues just finding their course, and with the conditions, unfortunately, quite a number DNFed at the swim. I've heard that upwards of 18% of half athletes DNFed, which seems pretty high. I hope they all know that one bad swim doesn't represent all that they are capable of!!) At T1 I got rid of the wetsuit and threw on my bike stuff. I had a nice smooth rolling mount (which felt good compared to those around me who had to stop at the mount line and get settled) and headed out onto the wet course. But at least the rain and the weather seemed to be clearing up.
Swim time: 35:04 (19/52 AG, 1:49/100m- the speed I just realized is still off- I think it thinks I swam the half distance (~1900m)... mmph.)
T1 time: 5:18
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| After getting beaten up on the swim. |
Bike:
The course was fast and flat. There were fewer rollers than I had hoped for and more false flats and hills to keep you honest. Definitely not as fun as the Kinetic course. But, I got settled in early and immediately started picking off other girls in my age group. I was coasting along at 18-20mph and thought for sure I wouldn't be able to maintain that speed for the full 24 mi. But after my first Gu at mi 5 or so I was feeling ready to try for it. I wish I had more to write here, but the course was well marked, my nutrition was on, the course was only moderately crowded (though I'm sure it got worse for the half course as the day went on and the roads got busier) and the bike was relatively drama-free. I was so 100% comfortable in aero and I have Smiley to thank for that. My only complaint was that on the bike I finally realized how centered Rev3 is on the pro experience and not the average joe experience. I saw a photographer early on in the bike, and I was excited and ready for some photo ops with Sunny. But the guy waited until a pro passed me and then started taking pics of him! What? I do hope I have some good race pics because I LOVE the new DC Tri kits. I would wear it to work and out on a date if I could.
Bike time: 1:17:38 (11/52 AG, 18.55mph av)
T2 time: 1:05
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| zoom zoom |
Run:
I enjoyed my minimalist strategy for transition. Parked the bike, threw on a hat and race belt, and was off. I was a bit worried about how many matches I had burned through on the bike, so mile 1 was slow. I stopped to take in a Gu at the first aid station. But I was feeling surprisingly peppy after that. The run course was a series of out and backs, which is great for seeing the other competitors (friends and pros), but not so great when the course got a bit crowded in places. The pros were passing all of us at ludicrous speed, with bike escorts. It's was a really unique experience to share a course with the pros, those guys you see on TV and in magazines. Kind of fun, really! Though my speed was strong for me, it was clear from the beginning that all the AG places I gained on the bike were going to be lost again on the run. I had to remember that I was running my race, and wasn't out to beat these other girls. Now, everyone says the course was hard and hilly, but I would have to disagree. I didn't even think that much about the hills. (but I also have to remember that my only other reference point for an Oly is Columbia, which is generally regarded as the hardest Oly course. So there's that.) My friend Jess passed me at mile 3 or so and we chatted for a bit about her 100 mile challenge for her non profit (SCI) and that she was going to meet her 100mi goal at mile 5 of this race! She got ahead of me shortly after, and I tried to keep up but after a while just let her go. I gave her a virtual high five at mile 5. :)
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| Thumbs up at mi 3ish |
I appreciate all efforts to mitigate the footprint of these races on the surrounding community (see: Musselman), but these guys took it to an extreme. When someone like me who usually takes 2 cups at each water stop (one gatorade, one water) is expected to discard of both within the next two steps, well, that's just not reasonable! There needed to be more trash can options leaving each water stop. At one point I ended up carrying the cups with me until the next water stop because the timing just didn't work out and I didn't want to get in trouble for littering, as we were warned multiple times in the athlete's meeting. I was feeling super strong at the end of the run and it was great having DC Tri people all over the finish line area. It was also really cool that they encouraged you to grab your spouse/friend/kids/significant other and run with them down the finish chute.
Run time: 56:49
Overall time: 2:55:53 (17/52 AG)
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| DC Tri celebrating post-race! |
Post-race:
At the finish line we were greeted by volunteers ready to put your medal on you, a cold towel, and cold gatorade/water. The finisher's shirt is also pretty cool. I appreciate the history/Williamsburg theming but I would have preferred a tech shirt instead of a cotton shirt (first world problems). Some other beefs here. This race definitely has some logistical issues to work out before next year. Despite the fact that the race got a late start, the catering service was late, and the Oly athletes had to wait upwards of 30 mins for any form of post-race food (which ended up being salad, pasta with red sauce and meatballs- delicious, but not what I'm used to). Also, and probably related, because the road between T1 and T2 crossed over part of the course, the truck that took the gear bags from T1 to T2 was stuck in traffic and didnt come for like 3+ hours after the Oly finishers were done. Which was fine for me since I was planning on staying to watch the half, and I had left most of my extra stuff in the tri club tent, but for those who had to get out of town or had plans elsewhere, it was decidedly not ideal. Also, I'm guessing because the start was delayed somewhat, there was an issue with the timing chips and finishing times weren't available for a while. They put one sole volunteer at the timing tent to explain the situation (poor girl). Things were definitely off when half athletes had 20min swim times, and most of us had 20 or 30 min transition times. It looks like things have been resolved, but they could have managed it better at the time and been clearer about what was going on. The expo/post-race site being outside also started to take a toll as the weather got steamier as the day went on. From what I saw there wasn't any food available for sale nearby the race site. I was having a blast cheering and taking pics of those DC Tri-ers still out there on the half course, but I was fading fast. After spectating for a while I completely respect all the sherpas and spectators out there. They have a hard job!!
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| 1st pro woman- Kelly Williamson. 2nd pro woman- Margie Shapiro |
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| Al and her biggest fans! |
Overall this was a great race experience and I thought it lived up to its expectations as a competitive and family-friendly environment. I think the changes that Rev3 needs to make for next year are manageable and possible. I'm not sure I'll come back to this race but I'll definitely consider other Rev3 races. Especially ones that are associated with theme park discounts. Quassy, Knoxville, or Cedar Point next year, anyone? I had a blast with other DC Tri folks at Busch on Monday. Not sure if walking all day in the hot sun is the best recovery, but it was totally worth it! Especially since everybody was a first timer, and it was Mark's first time at a real amusement park EVER. I had to get in on that enthusiasm! I love these weekends because I get to meet the coolest people. See you at the next one, guys!
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| Best recovery food in the world. |
earworm: John Mayer - Stop this Train
