I did the Pinehurst Olympic race in October. I had actually vowed to never again do this race, because I did so well in 2008, that I figured I’d quit while I was ahead. But my friend and boot camp instructor Renee inspired me to want to return to this race. It is a beautiful race venue, and I figured it was really dumb to leave it off my list forever just because of foolish pride. I had a great time, so am very glad.
Official Results:
- Swim 1500m: 31.25, 3rd AG.
- T1: 2:41 , 5th AG
- Bike 30m: 1:33:57, 19 mph, 2nd AG. (hilly)
- T2: 1:34, 3rd AG
- Run 10k: 1:06:34, 5th AG. 11:06 m/m (hilly)
- 2 minute Penalty for “Overtaken” on bike
- Overall: 3:18:09 4th AG (would have been 3rd if not for penalty
Heart Rate Data:
Bike: 162 bpm Avg HR / 170 bpm Max HR
Run: 166 bpm Avg HR / 176 bpmMax HR
Pre Race:
I packed my gear up the night before and headed for an early bedtime.
I got up at the crack of dawn (4am), grabbed some coffee and oatmeal and started driving in the dark. Somewhere in Apex, on a dark and lonely road, I heard a funny noise in my back tire. I hadn’t seen anything on the road, so was startled by this. I looked in my rear view mirror and didn’t see anything. I wondered if a screw came loose, or if I had left something on top of my car that fell. Or, if the mechanic who recently installed new tires left a bolt loose. Lots of things were going through my head.
I drove cautiously for a bit, listening to the sounds of the car, and everything sounded okay, so I kept driving. About ten minutes later, I noticed the low air pressure warning light come on. Crap. I was still on a dark and loney road. The car still sounded okay, so I figured it must be a very slow leak, so I still drove on, looking for a safe place to stop.
Fortunatley, I found an exit with a gas station, and got off. I think I was on 1South heading toward Sanford. Luckily, the station was open and well lit. I got out, and inspected the tire. Sure enough, it looked low and I could hear a hissing sounds. Crap Crap Crap. I actually happent o have a tire repair kit in my car, so I found the spot where the air was hissing out, but I did not see a nail, and I didn’t really think the kit would work here.
So, I called AAA. They are really great…I highly recommend subscribing to their service. I always always get my money’s worth from the $75 annual fee. I called them, and the first thing they always ask is “Are you in a safe location”. Yes, I was, thank goodness. I gave them my information and they said they’d have someone out in 45 minutes.
Ack, that was probably going to be too late for me to get to the race. I had written it off, but texted my friend Renee that I had a flat tire and was likely not going to make it. She called me , which was super nice, and asked if I needed help. I said “No, but can you ask the packet pickup folks to hold my packet for me, and tell them I may be a little late”. She said she would.
So… I waited for the AAA guy. It was a long wait, as you can see from Facebook:
The AAA guy showed up at 6:30, and took about 15 or 20 minutes to change the tire. He was really nice, and I thanked him for helping me so early in the morning!
I was about 45 minutes away, and packet pickup closed at 7:30. Yikes! I carried on, trying not to worry about the time crunch.
I got to the parking area, pumped my bike tires, grabbed all my junk and rode the 5 minutes to the site. I think I got there at 7:40. They had set aside my packet, so I grabbed it, got chip, body marking, bike set up as fast as I could.
It was stressful, and I had not spare time whatso ever . Just barely got my potty break, wetsuit on and they were calling up my wave.
Wow, you really rocked it, especially on the bike!
Yikes, that’s a stressful start to a race day