It's kind of crazy when you don't know if you'll be racing or not the night before the race. Boulder 70.3 was just one week after Ironman Santa Rosa. Jeremy didn't know if his body would let him race again so soon. I didn't know if my ankle was going to cooperate or not. I had two doctor's opinions saying that I couldn't race, and I had one PT opinion saying that I could race on that ankle. I decided to listen to all three. I would start the race, and race until my ankle said enough was enough. My parents flew out to help watch the kids while we raced, which was such a blessing. Caring for kids on race day is not easy! My dad took care of Cambrie and her soccer games, while my mom took care of the other four hooligans (Faye was still visiting).
What a sunrise at the race venue huh?
I was really nervous when we arrived at Boulder Rez. I was hobbling a lot, and my ankle was killing me. I had also forgotten my athletic tape so I wasn't sure how I was going to support my ankle for the day. Medical didn't have any type either so I was limited on my options. Oh well. I'd just do what I could do. Down at the water we put on our wetsuits. Chuck and his friend Chudley were also doing the race and it was their first 70.3. Jeremy had to jump back and forth from showing them the ropes and taking care of me. Getting the wetsuit on was miserable! Oh man, I wasn't sure I could do it. Fortunately for me that was only the second most painful part of the race. The men started about twenty minutes before me. I had hoped to catch them on the swim, but that is a pretty big spread to close. I settled for just doing great. I couldn't kick with my leg, so I was counting on the buoyancy of the wetsuit to help counter that. I also had nothing to lose so I didn't hold much back. It wasn't perfect. I kept messing up on my sighting and swam a little zig-zaggy. I also had to stay away from the crowds since every time someone bumped my ankle it sent a shockwave of pain through it. Ultimately I felt pretty good. I thought hey, maybe I at least I was first out of the water. I gingerly walked through transition and had the wetsuit peelers help me with my suit. Thankfully that didn't hurt at all. At the rack I had limited options for my ankle, so I put on Jeremy's compression sock and an Ace wrap over that. It wasn't perfect but I didn't know what else to do. Putting on the compression sock was the most painful part of the race.
I hobbled to the mount line and hoped that I could actually pedal. I started out slow and realized even though my stroke wasn't perfect, it wasn't painful. I was passed right and left, but I expected that. About 20 miles in I was feeling really good and started passing people unintentionally. I started to pick it up. At 30 miles, I was feeling even better and started going faster. Around 35 miles I realized that I was on track to ride a sub 3:00 race. That had been one of my goals this year so I went for it. I knew I wasn't saving my legs for anything so it was worth it to me to blow them out on the bike. I was shocked when I came in at 2:53. Hooray! Now was the moment of truth, could I run? I took off my cleats right at the dismount line because I couldn't walk in them without pain. My plan was to start off nice and slow on my run and if it felt good then keep going. If it hurt too much then I was going to stop.
I started a hobbling run, but really it didn't feel any more painful than walking on it. I kept going and it didn't get any worse. I did pop some ibuprofen and that probably helped, but I was running. My pace wasn't even horrible either. I was running at a 10:30 pace, which for me is about two minutes slower per mile than normal, but considering what I was dealing with I was ecstatic. I started making friends on the run and before I knew it I was done with the first lap. I only had six more miles to go and I was handling the pain. I ran the entire course! I came across that finish line sooo happy! To top it off, because I had a good bike split, my final time was 5:45:48. That is a respectable time! Jeremy was waiting for me at the finish line and he was just as happy, if not happier, that I made it across that finish line.
AJ's splits (swim 29:47, T1 8:38, bike 2:53:22, T2 3:37, run 2:10:24, final time 5:45:48). Jeremy's splits (swim 32:36, T1 2:23, bike 2:17:46, T2 1:52, run 1:55:44, final time 4;50:21).
I hobbled to the mount line and hoped that I could actually pedal. I started out slow and realized even though my stroke wasn't perfect, it wasn't painful. I was passed right and left, but I expected that. About 20 miles in I was feeling really good and started passing people unintentionally. I started to pick it up. At 30 miles, I was feeling even better and started going faster. Around 35 miles I realized that I was on track to ride a sub 3:00 race. That had been one of my goals this year so I went for it. I knew I wasn't saving my legs for anything so it was worth it to me to blow them out on the bike. I was shocked when I came in at 2:53. Hooray! Now was the moment of truth, could I run? I took off my cleats right at the dismount line because I couldn't walk in them without pain. My plan was to start off nice and slow on my run and if it felt good then keep going. If it hurt too much then I was going to stop.
I started a hobbling run, but really it didn't feel any more painful than walking on it. I kept going and it didn't get any worse. I did pop some ibuprofen and that probably helped, but I was running. My pace wasn't even horrible either. I was running at a 10:30 pace, which for me is about two minutes slower per mile than normal, but considering what I was dealing with I was ecstatic. I started making friends on the run and before I knew it I was done with the first lap. I only had six more miles to go and I was handling the pain. I ran the entire course! I came across that finish line sooo happy! To top it off, because I had a good bike split, my final time was 5:45:48. That is a respectable time! Jeremy was waiting for me at the finish line and he was just as happy, if not happier, that I made it across that finish line.
AJ's splits (swim 29:47, T1 8:38, bike 2:53:22, T2 3:37, run 2:10:24, final time 5:45:48). Jeremy's splits (swim 32:36, T1 2:23, bike 2:17:46, T2 1:52, run 1:55:44, final time 4;50:21).
Jeremy said his race wasn't nearly as bad as he was expecting. He body responded really well to all the training and even though he was tired he could do it. Chuck and Chudley finished their races too. I was a little bit disappointed that I didn't beat them, but even if I had been at full strength it would have been difficult. They did really awesome.
After the race we met up with my mom. She and the kids had been hanging out in the sand while we raced. There were four happy, slightly tired, slightly sunburned kids waiting for us.
The best part of any race is when they ask us if we won. In this case I could actually say yes. I ended up with that Roka award, even though it wasn't my best swim. I don't care. I accomplished three separate goals this race and am feeling pretty awesome!
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