I signed up for the Maple Grove Triathlon pretty early in the season because I knew I would be able to do the race since Keaton would be about 10 weeks old. Derek's parents were going to come up that weekend as well because they bought us tickets to see the musical Wicked for an early Christmas present so we would have babysitters for the race.
The race was on Saturday so Friday was an extremely busy day trying to get ready for the race. I like Saturday races because you have the next day to recoup before going to work or in my case having Derek go to work and getting some time to rest with the two boys. My brother, sister in law and nieces were visiting from Kansas and arrived Wednesday night so I wanted to be sure to spend as much time with them as I could since I do not get to see them that much. We had a great day on Thursday going to the Walker Art Center, hanging out downtown at Loring Park and visiting the Basillia. My nieces and Owen are ready to go to church everyday after going to the Basillica - they thought it was the coolest place. Owen asked me Darth Vader was in there! He loved how it was so dark and quiet and had tons of questions about the statues and pictures he saw! I wonder what goes on in the mind of a 3 year old!
Friday, Owen went out on the boat with my family (my sister lives in town and she docks her boat on Lake Minnetonka - pretty awesome for me)! I didn't go of course because I had Keaton and it is not the best idea to be out in the sun the day before a race. Derek's parents arrived in town Friday and Derek's Dad was doing the race as well as Derek, Derek's brother and his wife - so I was very excited to be able to race with everyone.
The race started at 7:30 in the morning and so we were up bright and early - around 4:45. I was already up though at 2:30 because that is the time that Keaton likes to eat - it is so weird how at 10 weeks old they already have a clock that goes off in their head that at precisely 2:30 I eat! Anyways...it was hard going back to sleep because I knew I was going to be up 2 hours later.
It was a great morning - nice and cool but very windy. I do not mind the wind and actually think it gives me an advantage over others. I felt really good coming into the race and tapered well for it.
The swim was pretty brutal because it was so windy but I was extremely pleased with my time - I came out around 24 minutes and some change. I knew I could fight through the water but there were some people that were going to be having a hard time out there. Coming out of transition onto the bike course there is a little hill that I made sure I was in my small chain ring but I must have not checked my bike too carefully after coming back from pumping in the van (another crazy thing I have to do with a 10 week old) and my chain was off my bike. Good thing Kris Swarthout was there just calming me down saying "just relax Kort and put it back on"... thanks Kris! I came out of the water with Julia and Michelle and knew that CY was far out in front of us. I passed Julia within about 3 to 5 minutes of the bike and pushed hard. When the wind was at your back it was some fun riding but man when you rode against the wind it was brutality. There were a couple of times I took the corners a little to hard and had to slow down and get back up to speed - I need to work on my cornering because I know I was loosing time. With about 3 miles left in the bike course I went to get a drink of water and got a nice whoosh of wind as I was trying to put my waterbottle back in it's place when I dropped it and it went into my front wheel. My bike went one way and I went the other! I think the people behind me were more freaked out than I was! I was more concerned about my bike than if I broke any bones. I was fine to ride and run the rest of the race but my Zipp 808 wheel was not. The tube part of the wheel had tore off and so it was the end of the race for me. I was so depressed seeing people ride by but everyone was so nice making sure I was OK and Diane even offered me her bike! I got picked up and dropped back off at the race site (the guys who picked me up and the race marshal who waited with me were great by the way). I got to see Derek finish so that was fun and he won his age group! I went to go find my coach Dan before leaving the race because I needed a pep talk and I knew he would make me feel better.
Later that afternoon we went over to my sisters place to hang out with my family again before going to the Musical Wicked. Owen was going to stay with them and spend the night and then I had a babysitter for Keaton. Well....Owen got very upset when Derek's parents came to get Derek (I was going to meet them at the Musical after I put Keaton to bed) and proceeded to get so worked up that he puked all over me and him...ALOT! Poor kid... he has had a couple of busy days and is extremely tired. After taking a shower I asked him if he wanted to come home or go with everyone else to dinner and have a sleepover...he wanted to go home with Mommy. That's OK - I am pretty bummed sitting here still smelling like puke but there will be plenty more races and Musicals to go to. Great job to the Maple Grove Race Directors - they put on a amazing event and I can't wait to do it again next year. Also congrats to CY for winning the race and to Julia for coming in as the fist amateur - way to go!
Kortney Haag is a mom to two young active boys and understands the time challenges many athletes face and the importance of balance in life as well as in training. She has had extensive experience coaching and racing at all triathlon distances. You can contact her at kortneyhaag@gmail.com
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Turteman Triathlon Race Report - 8 weeks postpartum
Derek and I have discussed this race so many times when I was pregnant with Keaton, that it was driving Derek crazy. He finally said “Kort, you know your body better than anyone and if you feel you are ready, do it”. Going into the race I knew my training wasn't where I wanted it to be - especially the run. I was able to bike a lot when I was pregnant and that seemed to come back pretty quickly, but on the run I just still feel out of shape and don't have that kick I used to have. I feel good running aerobically for an hour, but bring speed work into it I am pooped out!
My mom was in town visiting this weekend, with her two sisters and my uncle. I was so thankful my mom volunteered to watch Keaton and Owen because I really need Derek there to help me just calm my nerves and give me some advice. My uncle also came to the race and he was excited to watch his first triathlon.
I didn't need an alarm clock because Keaton always wakes up around 4:30/5:00 to eat so we got out of the house right on time. As I was racking my bike, my good friend Suzie Finger arrived and it was so nice to be able to talk with her about the race. We then got into talking about how much I eat because with nursing you burn about 500-600 calories a day and then with training I can't seem to eat enough!
I knew I had to plan my warm up strategically because I would have to go back to the van around 7:00 and pump before the race because 1) I had to keep up my supply and 2)I didn't want to be carrying around extra pounds at the end of the race!!!
The swim start was pretty interesting because the lake is really shallow and there were so many spots where you would sink into the mud. We could barley walk or stand, much less dolphin dive or run. All of the folks in the first wave were laughing about the situation as we were getting ready to start! The water was so warm and it wasn’t wetsuit legal, but I was so happy when Kevin at Gear West contacted me Friday that someone had returned a Blue Seventy swim-skin in my size. THANK YOU GEAR WEST because I was the first women out of the water and that has NEVER happened. I’m not sure what happened, but I think the lake conditions slowed everyone down.
Here is a picture that Catherine's husband - Terrence took of me coming out of the water.
I know that Catherine Lee is a good swimmer and sure enough she was right behind me out of the water. I had a hard time getting the swim-skin off because I was thinking it was a wetsuit and was trying to pull up on the zipper and then I had never raced with my new helmet, so I was having trouble getting that on. Catherine gained almost 15 seconds on me in transition and we left to go out on the bike course pretty much together. We went back and forth a couple of times on the bike, but then I gained a very slim lead coming into the final stretch. I was pushing pretty hard on the bike, but not racing for so long was catching up to me and I had to upchuck a couple of times - most likely from drinking so much lake water! As I came into T2 I knew I needed to gain some time on Catherine because she is a great runner. Jerry McNeil was having a heyday with Catherine and I being so close to each other and I had never been in a situation where I had someone so close to me throughout the race - I am usually trying to run people down. The run was about 5 miles long but it seemed like a lot longer when you know someone is hot on your heels. There were so many times I would look down at my watch and say to myself "OK, when my watch hits 1:35 I’ll run faster", and when that time would come, I would say “OK, when my watch hits 1:36, I’ll run faster!” Finally, I knew that the finish line was only about a quarter of a mile away and I just took off, but I think I faded right before the finish line. Derek has videotape of me approaching the finish line and I look like I wasn't even moving! It felt great to come back to the sport and actually win my first race - I knew I would be competitive going into it and there were some great girls out there pushing me that is for sure! I don’t think I could have put forth that kind of effort without Catherine pushing me throughout the race. Congratulations to Catherine as she went on to win at Lake Marion the next day - there is no way I could have done that!
I was so happy to be back out there doing what I really love, but there is no way I could do that without the support of my family. Some people may think I am selfish or doing this too soon, but this actually makes me a better mom and wife. Just to add, the volunteers at Turtleman were amazing. Than you so much - without you there wouldn't be triathlons!
My mom was in town visiting this weekend, with her two sisters and my uncle. I was so thankful my mom volunteered to watch Keaton and Owen because I really need Derek there to help me just calm my nerves and give me some advice. My uncle also came to the race and he was excited to watch his first triathlon.
I didn't need an alarm clock because Keaton always wakes up around 4:30/5:00 to eat so we got out of the house right on time. As I was racking my bike, my good friend Suzie Finger arrived and it was so nice to be able to talk with her about the race. We then got into talking about how much I eat because with nursing you burn about 500-600 calories a day and then with training I can't seem to eat enough!
I knew I had to plan my warm up strategically because I would have to go back to the van around 7:00 and pump before the race because 1) I had to keep up my supply and 2)I didn't want to be carrying around extra pounds at the end of the race!!!
The swim start was pretty interesting because the lake is really shallow and there were so many spots where you would sink into the mud. We could barley walk or stand, much less dolphin dive or run. All of the folks in the first wave were laughing about the situation as we were getting ready to start! The water was so warm and it wasn’t wetsuit legal, but I was so happy when Kevin at Gear West contacted me Friday that someone had returned a Blue Seventy swim-skin in my size. THANK YOU GEAR WEST because I was the first women out of the water and that has NEVER happened. I’m not sure what happened, but I think the lake conditions slowed everyone down.
Here is a picture that Catherine's husband - Terrence took of me coming out of the water.I know that Catherine Lee is a good swimmer and sure enough she was right behind me out of the water. I had a hard time getting the swim-skin off because I was thinking it was a wetsuit and was trying to pull up on the zipper and then I had never raced with my new helmet, so I was having trouble getting that on. Catherine gained almost 15 seconds on me in transition and we left to go out on the bike course pretty much together. We went back and forth a couple of times on the bike, but then I gained a very slim lead coming into the final stretch. I was pushing pretty hard on the bike, but not racing for so long was catching up to me and I had to upchuck a couple of times - most likely from drinking so much lake water! As I came into T2 I knew I needed to gain some time on Catherine because she is a great runner. Jerry McNeil was having a heyday with Catherine and I being so close to each other and I had never been in a situation where I had someone so close to me throughout the race - I am usually trying to run people down. The run was about 5 miles long but it seemed like a lot longer when you know someone is hot on your heels. There were so many times I would look down at my watch and say to myself "OK, when my watch hits 1:35 I’ll run faster", and when that time would come, I would say “OK, when my watch hits 1:36, I’ll run faster!” Finally, I knew that the finish line was only about a quarter of a mile away and I just took off, but I think I faded right before the finish line. Derek has videotape of me approaching the finish line and I look like I wasn't even moving! It felt great to come back to the sport and actually win my first race - I knew I would be competitive going into it and there were some great girls out there pushing me that is for sure! I don’t think I could have put forth that kind of effort without Catherine pushing me throughout the race. Congratulations to Catherine as she went on to win at Lake Marion the next day - there is no way I could have done that!
I was so happy to be back out there doing what I really love, but there is no way I could do that without the support of my family. Some people may think I am selfish or doing this too soon, but this actually makes me a better mom and wife. Just to add, the volunteers at Turtleman were amazing. Than you so much - without you there wouldn't be triathlons!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)