Oceanside

Oceanside was such a trip!  I think to save myself time I'm just going to post the email I sent to my coach and fill in some details:

Dan-

I am so happy! This was a really fabulous weekend for a whole bunch of reasons so I'll just start at the beginning. 

Because of life craziness I decided to travel to Oceanside alone this year instead of with Jeremy or my family. I randomly found a group of Colorado girls who were traveling down and staying at an AirBnb near the course. I took a chance and stayed with them. It was so great. They are all part of the same tri club and have been friends for awhile. I believe that groups of women are powerful and can do amazing things together. They were all so kind and welcomed me in. They gave me a boost of something I have been missing-triathlon friends and a community to be a part of.  I loved every minute of it. I learned too as I spent time with them, that I am no longer your average age group athlete. It's been a show and subtle change but made very apparent to me after seeing these other women prepare for race day. I am something more. I am an elite athlete. When they heard that my goals for this weekend were to podium they were surprised, and I think very curious to see if I'd actually do what I said I was going to do. I'm glad I wasn't made a fool.

So now let's get to race morning. I set everything up and it went so smoothly I felt sure I was missing something.  Then I found Amanda and we went down to the corals to get started. From the shore the waves didn't seem too bad and I was confident I could make it through with few problems. The first few we fine but we must have hit a set rolling in because there were three or four waves that were big and kind of kicked my butt.  I wasn't panicked but the cold combined with the size of the waves was making my breath uneven and hard to control. Once I made the first turn I was able to start relaxing and tried to settle in. I had lost Amanda at this point and decided to completely focus on what I had to do.  First I really had to get my breathing under control. Once I had that then I started to build the rest of the swim.  I felt like I had to use more energy in the water then the pace shows, but I came out thinking I did okay. I wasn't sure what place I came out but was pretty sure it wasn't second. It's a more than a quarter mile transition area and while I jogged and had lightning fast wetsuit peelers, I was a total butterfingers at my rack. My fingers were cold and made getting my stuff on feel clumsy.  I finally made it out but felt like I lost a couple precious seconds.

You'll be pleased to know that because the sun was shining I didn't put on my arm warmers. I was in the right gear for the hill and took the first bit moderate until after the commissary.  On the straight away I started to ride. It was a big change from two years ago when I was immediately passed by dozens and dozens of women. In fact no one passed me until right before the out and back section-it was Kylie. I had no idea who she was and tried to keep an eye on here but I never saw her the rest of the day. I saw Amanda at the turn-around that she was about five minutes ahead of me. It didn't surprise me but I didn't like it either. I had hoped that I'd be able to gain some ground but I don't think I ever did. As the first part of the ride went on I was thinking how grateful I was to be a stronger athlete than before. I felt like I actually belonged on this course in this position. A few more women passed me and every time it felt a little demoralizing. I did try to keep track though so I knew who I had to hunt down on the run. I almost feel a little foolish now asking about fueling. Because it was my first race this season I simply couldn't remember what I normally do, but I began to remember my routine as I rode. (BTW I'm digging the new flavors of bars Skratch just released.). I watched my NP start from where it was supposed to be up a bit above 170 slowly start to drop as I came into the hills. I think the lowest I saw it was at 163. (Speaking of data, you'll see two sets. One from my watch which kept getting bumped, and one from my computer which is easier to see while I race). I didn't love seeing my power drop but began feeling a little tired and wasn't sure how much I should try to get it back up there. I was already pushing harder and racing harder than I had ever done. The hills came and I climbed up those with little difficulty. Then the headwind flats came and I remember those being really demoralizing from before. I put my head down and tried to keep my power up the rest of the way in. I wanted to really push hard those last 11 miles but was starting to feel a little spent. I was also nervous about completely emptying my legs when I knew at that point that the only way I was going to podium was to have a killer run.  Into transition I forgot that they had us ride down the entire swim out chute. That meant I had a long run in cleats. If I had ever practiced taking off my cleats and leaving them on my bike I would have done that.

I started running but didn't want to look at my watch for a mile or so because I think it always takes a bit to level out after I start. I was feeling a little jiggly but not horrible. I happened to come out at the same time Heather Jackson was starting her second lap. I ran with her and followed her for almost a mile before I realized what a bad idea that was. I can't hold that pace! Up to this point I knew that I hadn't made any glaring mistakes and I wasn't going to blow it now. I settled back down to my pace and started to run. I wanted to keep it consistent and intuitive. You gave me HR numbers but I didn't want those hanging over my head. I felt comfortable and solid and thought that was exactly what I needed. I first lap I kept it consistent and found the girls I needed to hunt down. The second lap I started ticking them off one by one. I knew Lucy was untouchable because her pace was solid. I hadn't seen Kylie since the bike. I knew there was still Brittany, Amanda, and a girl named Maria.  I trusted in my form that felt so steady and hoped it would be enough.  First went Amanda, then Maria. With about three miles to go I found Brittany. I stayed behind her for awhile because I didn't want her to know I was there. With about 1.5 miles left I passed her and really hoped she couldn't hang on. I was pretty sure by this point that I was third, but didn't know if there were other girls who started after me and were coming up from behind. What I did know is that I had raced a good race. I had strategized well, followed the plan, didn't do anything stupid, and done the best that I think I could have. Even if I wasn't third I was really happy with the race. I had to borrow Amanda's husband's phone to call Jeremy and he told me that for now I was still third.  Yea!

I had to hurry back to transition and get my stuff before the awards ceremony and even though I was pretty tired I was almost skipping. I've been to award ceremonies before but I didn't get to stand on stage (I was ten seconds late to New Zealand). It was a pretty cool feeling. I stood up there with these amazing athletes and felt like they accepted me as one of their own. They didn't kick me off the stage because I didn't belong there. Dan, that was the most rewarding part of the whole experience, seeing myself from the outside as an athlete who belongs to be there.  As a competitor who is actually good enough to be worth watching at the next race. 

The girls from my house all stayed and waited to cheer for me as I took the stage which was really nice. And even though they had to go get their bikes, one gal stayed for roll down with me. That was an emotional roller coaster. I didn't put any stress on getting my spot this race so it wasn't on the front of my mind, but now that it was within reaching distance I was really nervous. But I did it! I earned that one spot that Oceanside had to offer even with this crazy talented field. I couldn't even fill out the registration form because I was crying, shaking with excitement, shaking from the cold, and trying not to make a scene.

Finally, thank you for getting me here. There's no way I could have done this without your coaching.

-Annette

So there you have it, a wild ride for an amazing race.  Because I traveled alone I had more flexibility than I normally do to attend the forums.  There was a Women for Tri panel that was great.  I loved hearing the stories from these athletes who are definitely gifted, but still have their highs and lows and have to work just as hard as the rest of us to meet their goals. 

Getting all checked in.  Proof that I spent at least five minutes on the sand while in California.

The night before and I was just feeling ready.  Look at the beautiful scene.

Right after crossing that finish line.  I was soooo stoked!

My housemates (Becky, Debbie, Faith, Tatiana, Mila, Lena, Leslie and me)

The sweet Endurance Girls stayed to take these pictures of me on stage.  Geesh the feeling of being up there was pretty awesome.

After the awards ceremony was the roll down.  I had Jeremy on the phone and when they finally rolled around to the women 30-34 he could here me on the other line, "Oh my gosh.  Oh my gosh.  Oh my gosh.  I can't believe it, but I got the spot!"  It was awesome!

It also happened to be conference weekend.  I didn't get to listen to any of it on Saturday, but Sunday while I was waiting for my flight I tuned in and listened to the Prophet.  It was a very relaxing way to end a pretty unforgettable racing weekend.