Junior Series Race #2: Magog

Race #2 of the Junior Series was held in Magog, Quebec. It was nice to return to this beautiful town after two years, although they have significantly changed the course. I like it much better now; it is well marked and spectator friendly with loops on the bike and run. This is exciting, because it was also the test event for the Canada Games 2013. With one of the biggest start lists I've seen in a race of this level in Canada, there were over a hundred junior athletes sitting in the pre-race meeting. It was actually a weird feeling not knowing literally half of the people in that room. Many Quebec and Ontario athletes we don't usually see as well as some from the Maritimes showed up.

It was nice to just ride down the path to the race course in the morning. Check-in and warm-up procedures went smoothly and I was feeling ready to race. The only problem we saw lining up with 32 girls at the start was that we actually couldn't see. The fog was so thick that we had to just swim towards where we thought the buoys would be. Oh well. The run into the water was a bit strange. There were a lot of rocks to step on, then the water stayed shallow for quite a while. Everyone ran in and dolphin dived for much longer than usual. I had a really great start because I think I waited a bit longer to start swimming. We had practiced a lot. I found myself right by Gabi, with most of the field still behind us. This is the strategy that usually works for me; getting to the front and having lots of feet to choose from to draft off of. Unfortunately, in the chaos of this race as everyone had to swim over me, I got caught up in it and by the time I choked on enough water to have to really stick my head up, I noticed we were going way off course. The boats were directing us towards the left to get around the first right-turn buoy. Once around that one the next few buoys were close enough together to see one at a time through the fog. I got out of the water and climbed up the stairs towards transition closely behind a group of girls.

 Another solid transition and I was off. It seemed like I had gotten out ahead of most in that group but it wasn't worth waiting up for a pack. I focused on the girl ahead of me and chased her down. She wasn't strong enough to work with though. I put my shoes on and tried to get to the pack ahead. That didn't really work because I was on my own and they already had a lead. Adeline and another girl caught up to me but she is so strong on the bike I couldn't stay on her wheel very long and I heard later she rode herself way up there. As I finished the first lap I realized someone else was just ahead alone as well, and it was Hannah. I rode hard to catch up to her and we worked well together for a while. Finally a group of about six caught us and we got into that pack. Unfortunately this pack wasn't very fast once they reached us and not many seemed willing to do any work. I did most the work at the front, with the help of a couple others but it was frustrating. I made sure to be at the front for every turn to avoid any risk of crashes. A section of the course was quite technical and I didn't want to be caught behind less experienced riders. I also tried to break away a few times, trying to get one or two of the girls to come with me fast out of the corners. It was weird, I'm not usually the one attacking. Somehow I got so caught up in the technical aspects of the race and trying to push the pace and take it strong out of the turn-around right before the start of the lap that I lost the ability to count to three.

This was where the race got embarrassing. I don't know why I had it in my head we had another lap, but I was ready to go for it. However I wasn't ready to get my feet out of my shoes and dismount. I realized right away what a stupid mistake I made but it was too late. I had to quickly unclip and run my bike in still wearing my cycling shoes. I also had to waste a few seconds taking them off in transition, which was frustrating because I knew I would also have to serve a 10 second penalty for my dismount line violation. Some  girls I rode with were getting away on me. I was really thrown off mentally and didn't feel like it was time to run yet. I tried to re-focus and do what I could. I chased down two including Nicole. Although they both were able to hang onto me I was feeling good and felt like I could have out-ran them. But they were still with me as I turned into the tent to serve my penalty. It took a few extra seconds because the guy was a bit confused and by the time I could leave, their lead on me looked huge and it was very hard to close the gap a second time. A third girl had also passed by the tent as I was standing there. I lost a lot of my momentum and it was frustrating to see them so far ahead. I wasn't able to do it and finished in 22nd place. I was told later it probably would have been better to serve it at the end of the second lap instead of the first. Gabi had made that mistake once before. I really hope I don't have a penalty to deal with again. I can't believe I got a penalty that stupid in the first place. At least I will never make that mistake again!

Overall I felt good about my effort in the bike and run. My swim was kind of to be expected by this point, but I think this season will be about doing the best I can with what I have. I would love to have a race where I could proudly write a race report saying everything went great. But I have to be realistic about where my swim is at. Although I'm staying positive about it all, that breakthrough I've been waiting for may have to wait until next season. It happens to  every athlete at some point. I just have to be patient and keep working hard until I get where I'd like to be. I had a great time meeting lots of new friends at this race and I'm excited for the next one in Ottawa in two weeks!

Results:

Women: http://www.sportstats.ca/displayResults.xhtml?racecode=102659

Men: http://www.sportstats.ca/displayResults.xhtml?racecode=102660

PATCO

I guess there's always good races and bad races. Sometimes even entire good race seasons and bad ones. Every athletes struggles with injuries at some point, so I guess it was my turn to not have a very good race. It's too bad; I had been looking forward to this race all year. It had been a huge goal of mine to not only qualify for my second PATCO, but to improve on last year. I had a disappointing race, but I guess the whole experience was still good.

I was feeling more confident after the first Junior Series race in Pike Lake two weeks ago, and I was being really careful about my shoulders and the swimming I was doing leading up to the race. I showed up at the venue feeling ready for a good race. My warm up and checking in went smoother than last year and I wasn't going to let anything shake me. Lining up and getting your name and country announced as you head to the start line is always cool. I was feeling really excited to race. I had been randomly seeded dead last but I had practiced starting from everywhere so I could be ready for whatever position I ended up with.  There was one spot left in the middle which I found, and then we were off. It was actually a really sudden start, no one was really expecting it. I felt I still had a pretty decent start though. It was rough but that's to be expected. By the first buoy I had a bit more space, which wasn't really a relief because I wanted to get onto the bike in a pack. I kept seeing less people around me and by the last buoy I snuck a peak behind me and saw calm water. I really started to worry that I was the last place swimmer. I pushed myself even more to try to catch onto some other people and my shoulders hurt but I really just didn't have to speed to get anywhere. With the run into transition I refocused on  getting through as fast as possible and onto the bike. I could see a couple girls in front of me. I was hoping I was wrong on how slow my swim was but it was an awful moment getting into an almost empty transition. Apparently there were only three people still behind me.

I did a lot of work on the bike. By the first time we went up Emily Murphy hill I had made my own pack of 4 from behind. I was with fellow Canadian Nicole, as well as two South American girls. We worked alright together considering the language barrier. Before the first lap was over, I noticed Nicole was no longer with us. The second time we went up the hill the others attacked. Usually I am pretty strong on hills but somehow I couldn't stay with them. Actually the stronger of the two dropped the other girl as well. I'm pretty sure the three of us each rode the last eight or so kilometers solo. It sucked. It was so hard to stay motivated and continue pushing the pace on my own.  I just wanted the bike to be over, and was hoping I could at least pick off a few more girls in the run. Finally I got into transition, passing another random girl that had been alone on the bike. Actually, looking at the results later I tied for the fastest transition time. Small victories. I felt pretty good on the run. I chased down one of the girls that had dropped me and kept focused on catching the next runner. Considering how alone I was and how much work I'd already had to do, I guess the run was pretty good for me. Nothing went really wrong at least. My time was slow, but comparatively everyone's was; it was a long and hilly course. I finished in 44th place.

I really wish I had been able to swim faster and get out with a pack. I did better at last year's PATCO. But again, I guess it happens. I really have not done enough swimming and it showed. It was pretty discouraging, but at least the whole experience of going to this race was great. Everything was so exciting, and the people I hung out with before and after were awesome. Thanks to everyone cheering for me out on the course, even though you knew I was doing badly. The encouragement was still appreciated. I am really grateful at least that I wasn't involved in any crashes this time. Hoping for quick recoveries to those that were. Also, congrats to everyone that raced!

Photo Credit: Mackenzie Kary

Also, complete results can be found here:

http://www.triathlon.org/results/results/2012_edmonton_patco_junior_pan_american_championships/7590/

Because I Can

This has been one of my favourite sayings for several years now. I'm not sure if I came across it or if I actually came up with it, but it's become mine. Because I can. Today I went for a run as part of my race prep for PATCO. I'm here in Edmonton for the race, the Junior Pan American Championships. I was by myself and running on a sidewalk when this old man with a cane caught my eye. He was standing in a doorway and I gave him a polite smile as I passed. I was surprised when he said, "I wish I could do that" with a bit of a laugh. I guess it just reminded me of how lucky I am. I love triathlon and I really do everything because I can. Some people would do anything for the opportunities I have. While many people still think athletes like me are crazy, some really are not able to do this kind of stuff, whether it's because physically their bodies won't let them or financially they can't afford goals like mine. Even if I'm the not the best out there and I struggle with injuries, I do have the ability to swim, bike, and run. I have a gift that allows me to compete at this level. I love racing for many reasons and it isn't just the desire to be the best that keeps me training every day. It is really amazing to go to races like this one. It's the second year I've qualified to represent Canada at PATCO and I'm loving every minute of it. The race is on Sunday, but we've been in Edmonton since Wednesday preparing for it. I've had the chance to hang out with some pretty cool people from all over the place. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone at the pre-race meeting and dinner tonight. It's pretty cool to make friends from all over Canada and the United States that I get to see again from one year to the next. There are also going to be a lot of Mexicans and South Americans in this race, which is cool. Even with language barriers I find it interesting to see triathletes from other countries. Anyways, I'm grateful as always for the support from family and friends, you can expect a race report early next week!