I’ve been struggling with an IT Band issue since Collegiate Nationals in April, so I haven’t been able to train the way I’ve hoped this summer. To put in in perspective, in a good week, my legs will allow me 10 miles of running, no more than 3 a day. I thought last summer’s shin splints were frustrating, but this is definitely 100x worse.
I decided to compete in the Evergreen Lake Triathlon last weekend because it is outside of Chicago and I had plans to spend the weekend in the city. I’ve heard good things about the race and the entry fee is very reasonable ($40 for college students).
I signed up for the sprint because I wasn’t even sure if I’d be able to do the run at all. The Evergreen Lake sprint distance is a bit unique though: it has a 500m swim, a full international distance 40K bike and a 5K run. I figured since biking is my strongest event, the longer bike would favor me.
I drove down to Evergreen Lake on Friday night and stayed in the “primitive triathlon camping area” with my teammate, Kelley Hess. Basically, for $13, you could put up a tent anywhere you wanted in a field about 100 feet from transition. It was a great idea and nice for people like me who are on a budget.
There were only 50 women in the sprint division, so the entire group of us started in one wave. I definitely struggled in the open water swim. I tried to start near the front, but somehow still ended up trying to fight my way past people who were slower than me. I got knocked around pretty hard by another racer which resulted in some lost time. The second half was better, but the swim was over before I could find any rhythm. 2:00/100m pace. Yikes.
Transition went smoothly, my time was 1:30, which seems slow, but the sprint racks were the furthest away from the exit so I think only 2 or 3 people had faster times than I did. I also did my first flying mount of the year – bonus!
It was scorching hot by the time I was on the bike but I quickly found a rhythm and passed at least 100 people (from my wave and others) on the bike section. A couple of guys with fancy equipment looked at me with disbelief as I passed them, which just spurred me on even more. I averaged 22.2 miles/hr according to official race results but the course was a bit long and my Garmin read 22.6. Good enough for the 2nd fastest female bike split of the day!
T2 was also 1:30 due to having to wheel the bike all the way back to the furthest rack, but still well within the range of my competitors.
I wasn’t sure what my legs were capable of on the run so I started slowly, just hoping my leg wouldn’t start to hurt. If the IT band flared up I’d have no choice but to walk, something that would make the 5K seem like eternity. I started out with a 9:00/mile pace but as I hit the turnaround point I realized I was feeling pretty good. By the end I cruised in at around a 7:20/mile pace. Overall average was 8:22/mile pace which I’m happy with considering I was worried about walking/DNF!
I ended up finishing in 1hr 50 min which was 1st in my age group and 5th female overall! It was a fun race with great post race food (cheese curds, sandwiches, watermelon, BBQ and cookies!) and I highly recommend this event to everyone. It is one of the few reasonably priced triathlons that still attract high profile competition. Plus, the Olympic division offers prize money!
Congrats also to my teammates, Jack Dudley who won the sprint and had the fastest bike split of the day and Kelley Hess who placed second in the Collegiate Division (7th overall).
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