South Shore Triathlon Race Recap

Another unbelievably gorgeous day for a race. Albeit windy, we had mild temps in the 70's, which is almost unheard of this summer. While I was excited about this race for myself, I was more excited for four of the athletes I've been working with this summer - Piper, Patti, Tyllie and Elisabeth. They were ready to go.

When we arrived at the race we were welcomed by a VERY choppy Lake Michigan. In all honesty, I think it is the choppiest swim I have ever endured during a race. But I tried to downplay that to my ladies and send them into the water with confidence. I felt good about all of them doing fine, except poor Patti, who despite all my urging, had never done an open water swim. Tsk, tsk;).

The swim- never have I had to stop during a swim and get my bearings as much as yesterday. The water was quite shallow and a couple times I stood up to take stock of where I was. One of the buoys washed in towards shore, so everyone swam into it, soon realizing the final buoy was out a good 25 yards, requiring them to swim back into the lake. Relief is the perfect word to describe how I felt when I turned around that final buoy.

Relief is also a good word to describe how I felt when I saw Patti pass by on the bike :) The bike- fast and fun. A short out and back then a straight shot up and down Lakeshore Drive. Thankfully for us we rode into the wind on the way out and got pushed home on the second half of the bike. Overall pretty fun and uneventful.

It is always a good feeling to get off the bike and start the run. I had been having tired legs all week and not great sleep and was a little worried about finishing the race. However, with the cool breeze and shady path on the run, I managed to turn in a 7:30 pace, which is decent for me. I was excited to cross the finish line and cheer in all my athletes.

And here they came- Piper, then Elisabeth, Kevin (a friend), Patti.... And finally, Tyllie! I had been looking for Tyllie the whole race but had no idea she had thrown on a white shirt so I was looking for the wrong color all race. Coach must know your race outfit beforehand, it's a rule.

At the end they were printing out little tickets with your race time summary. When I got mine it said I had a 5:17 swim, which I knew was wrong. When I went to talk to the timing table I found out that Piper and I had started with the wrong wave! What?!?! Apparently we had started with the pink caps instead of the purple. For those of you who know me, you know I don't have a hard time identifying pink. These caps were practically the exact same color!!! Thankfully they fixed up our times and all was well.

All my ladies managed to get within a couple minutes of their goal times, which was great considering that swim. I landed second in age group despite the wave snafu. It was a beautiful morning and I can't think of a more fun way or more fun people to spend it with. Way to go everyone!!

-Coach A www.sparkmultisport.com

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July 2012 Newsletter

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Spark Kids Triathlon Training Information

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Pleasant Prairie Triathlon Recap

Before I write this I should really go back and see what I wrote about last year's PP race.  I remember it being ideal conditions and one of the most well executed races I have ever completed.  I was pretty certain going in today that I would not be able to better my time, but I did...by almost 2 minutes.  Honestly, the conditions today were probably THE BEST I have ever raced in in my 13 year career.   No wind whatsoever, low 70's and overcast.  Loved it!

So, let me back up.  I love coming to this race.  It is in the town where I grew up so I have an excuse to stay at my best friend's house, I always see lots of people I know and it is fast no matter what the conditions are.   The lake is warm and clean, the bike is flat and smooth and the run is around the lake.  So fun!

I rode my bike over to the race and immediately set up my transition.  I wandered around looking for a few people I knew who were doing their first tri- one Spark athlete and few coworkers from the gyms.  I gave out a few words of advice, shared some Bodyglide and wished everyone well as they headed into the holding pen.  Frankly, they all seemed a lot calmer than me!  I hung out with another friend who I know from Lululemon (yes, I shop there that much) and we kept each other company until the sprint distance began.

The lake was really warm, 77 degrees to be exact.  I tried to stay as close the front of the group as possible, but there were several 14/15 year old girls who were in my wave and they totally kicked my butt.  The only solace I can take in this is that my 14 year old self (as a swimmer) would also kick my butt right now.   Ran out of the swim and busted through T1 as quickly as possible to head out onto what was one of my most fun and fastest rides ever.  Imagine newly paved roads, no cars and no wind.  That is what those 13 miles were.  This is where I picked up most of my time from last year.  After T2 I knew I just needed to come in under a 24:00 5K to beat last years time and I was confident that would be no problem.  It wasn't!  I did not bust the 1:10 mark overall but did come as close as possible at 1:10:00!

It was a great day, feel so happy that I actually was able to get my top goal- totally worth the blisters on my feet from wearing no socks with my Mizunos!  Also amazing to see all these people finish their first tri- Congrats Cat, Adrienne, Brent and Stacy!  And Brad and Emily even though you are veterans!  Welcome to the sport!

Can't wait to race with the rest of you!
-Coach A. www.sparkmultisport.com

Triathlon Gear Checklist

Use this handy dandy checklist to make sure you have everything packed for the big day!

SparkKids Coming Soon!

Official schedule/info to be announced later this week, but Coach Angela will be working with young athletes this August to prepare them for Chicago Kids Tri!  If you know any junior triathletes age 7-14, please spread the word!