Always Remeber your Firsts
Thursday, May 5th my last exam of my Junior year was finished and so was my brand new road bike at my local bike shop I had ordered a week prior. I was a little anxious about our first meeting; I had only seen her in a magazine before I placed the order. But man did she turn out to be a beaut. I had to take her out immediately.
That was 11 days ago. Today I stepped up to the starting line of my first duathlon. I had only ridden my gorgeous red, black and white Trek 2.1 five other times, and, coincidentally enough, I had only ever ridden a road bike five times in my life. I wasn't so much nervous as I was excited. What also excited me was that I was able to keep a pre-race tradition alive when I stopped by an Auburn Starbucks at 0500 and picked up an eyeopening americano with a cinnamon scone (this race was in EST so getting an early start was essential).
I showed up at Callaway Gardens this morning primarily to see what it was like racing on a bike and getting the feel of a so called multisport event and secondarily to check out the scenery at the lovely Georgia gardens. Placing well, if at all, would be a bonus amongst a crowd that had to know what they were doing far better than I did. The race consisted of a 5k run, a 30k bike, followed by another 5k run in the opposite direction of the first run.
I had expected to be the only one I knew here but it just so happened that several of my running/cycling buddies from Auburn showed up to participate or cheer us on. That ended up being great for my moral and maybe even my performance as they check on my bike for me and made sure the air pressure and everything was topped off.
The race official announced the beginning of the race and I positioned myself with the lead pack, really not knowing any better I guess. I figured I'd try and keep the first 5k at about a 20 minute pace, hard but still leaving a good bit in the tank. A couple guys took off, the likes of whom I didn't think I would see again until after I crossed the finish line, while others matched my pace. I rolled into the transition area for the first time in around 19 minutes, something like a minute ahead of schedule. I could live with that. I wasn't really too out of breath after all. Quickly slipping out of my New Balance's I took a brief moment to gather myself and figure out which way I was supposed to go after that. Seems like this information was readily available to my rested mind before the gun went off but somehow, in the heat of battle, these important, simple details can escape you (or maybe that's just me).
Back in the right direction I started what I hope will be the first of many bike races. I slipped in to my pre-clipped-on bike shoes as I rode down the first stretch. It soon became apparent that the guy who was now in front of me actually knew what he was doing and took off. I definitely wouldn't see him again today.
The course took us through some very dense woodsy areas followed by brief sections of narrow road flanked by placid ponds and small flower fields. It was really great fun. I never until this day had raced anything on wheels outside of the digital world. I felt like I was going 100 miles an hour at times.
The 18 miles of riding ended a lot faster than I had anticipated and before I knew it I was preparing to dismount and slip into my racing flats again for another 5k. Another first, I hadn't yet had the experience of running immediately after a hard ride. My legs felts springy but fatigued at the same time. One of the guys I had passed during the ride (the guy that, during the first 5k went out way ahead of me) seemed to be closing the gap. I knew how far I had left, by feel anyway as I had learned the scenery and landmarks by now, and pretty much sprinted those last few miles. It's curious the way running on fatigued legs affects your perception of actual pace. I really did feel like I was sprinting though.
Two other strong participants who had easily blown past me during the ride were now back in my sights and just a few minutes later were behind me. But there was still the matter of that other dude, who I was pretty sure was in my age group. I couldn't let up now.
After finally making it out of the winding, wooded road (I swear it was longer this second time around) the finish line was in my sights. Crossing the line at 1:32:27 I had no idea if that was supposed to be good or not. Turns out it wasn't half bad, at least enough to put me in 4th overall and 1st in my small age group.
Not a bad first at all.
That was 11 days ago. Today I stepped up to the starting line of my first duathlon. I had only ridden my gorgeous red, black and white Trek 2.1 five other times, and, coincidentally enough, I had only ever ridden a road bike five times in my life. I wasn't so much nervous as I was excited. What also excited me was that I was able to keep a pre-race tradition alive when I stopped by an Auburn Starbucks at 0500 and picked up an eyeopening americano with a cinnamon scone (this race was in EST so getting an early start was essential).
I showed up at Callaway Gardens this morning primarily to see what it was like racing on a bike and getting the feel of a so called multisport event and secondarily to check out the scenery at the lovely Georgia gardens. Placing well, if at all, would be a bonus amongst a crowd that had to know what they were doing far better than I did. The race consisted of a 5k run, a 30k bike, followed by another 5k run in the opposite direction of the first run.
I had expected to be the only one I knew here but it just so happened that several of my running/cycling buddies from Auburn showed up to participate or cheer us on. That ended up being great for my moral and maybe even my performance as they check on my bike for me and made sure the air pressure and everything was topped off.
The race official announced the beginning of the race and I positioned myself with the lead pack, really not knowing any better I guess. I figured I'd try and keep the first 5k at about a 20 minute pace, hard but still leaving a good bit in the tank. A couple guys took off, the likes of whom I didn't think I would see again until after I crossed the finish line, while others matched my pace. I rolled into the transition area for the first time in around 19 minutes, something like a minute ahead of schedule. I could live with that. I wasn't really too out of breath after all. Quickly slipping out of my New Balance's I took a brief moment to gather myself and figure out which way I was supposed to go after that. Seems like this information was readily available to my rested mind before the gun went off but somehow, in the heat of battle, these important, simple details can escape you (or maybe that's just me).
Back in the right direction I started what I hope will be the first of many bike races. I slipped in to my pre-clipped-on bike shoes as I rode down the first stretch. It soon became apparent that the guy who was now in front of me actually knew what he was doing and took off. I definitely wouldn't see him again today.
The course took us through some very dense woodsy areas followed by brief sections of narrow road flanked by placid ponds and small flower fields. It was really great fun. I never until this day had raced anything on wheels outside of the digital world. I felt like I was going 100 miles an hour at times.
The 18 miles of riding ended a lot faster than I had anticipated and before I knew it I was preparing to dismount and slip into my racing flats again for another 5k. Another first, I hadn't yet had the experience of running immediately after a hard ride. My legs felts springy but fatigued at the same time. One of the guys I had passed during the ride (the guy that, during the first 5k went out way ahead of me) seemed to be closing the gap. I knew how far I had left, by feel anyway as I had learned the scenery and landmarks by now, and pretty much sprinted those last few miles. It's curious the way running on fatigued legs affects your perception of actual pace. I really did feel like I was sprinting though.
Two other strong participants who had easily blown past me during the ride were now back in my sights and just a few minutes later were behind me. But there was still the matter of that other dude, who I was pretty sure was in my age group. I couldn't let up now.
After finally making it out of the winding, wooded road (I swear it was longer this second time around) the finish line was in my sights. Crossing the line at 1:32:27 I had no idea if that was supposed to be good or not. Turns out it wasn't half bad, at least enough to put me in 4th overall and 1st in my small age group.
Not a bad first at all.
Comments
Post a Comment