Richmond Road Race Recap

So I did it: I survived my first cycling race and didn't make a fool of myself. I wanted to see what racing was like, and I got my first taste of it on Sunday, May 18th.

Before I start with my race recap, I want make a few disclaimers: 1) I am very new to racing so I'm not the best commentator on how the race played out. I can only give an inexperienced racer's perspective 2) the field split (a bunch of ladies were in the lead group, and I was in the slower one) so I didn't get to see how the "real" race unfolded.

I am coming up on my first cycling anniversary (Memorial Day weekend), so I have been road cycling for less than a year. After picking up the sport relatively quickly, I was thinking about racing early this year. I had no idea how to begin racing and how it all worked. Also, I am still pretty inexperienced in riding with a group and needed to learn some skills. Luckily, I had a friend who races and was willing to give me some pointers. With his encouragement, I jumped the gun and decided to give racing a try this season. I figured that now is as good of a time as any. I've been training hard this season for my duathlon and 10K, as well as cycling more, so the fitness was there. With the cross country trip this summer, I would only have time for one race, so I might as well get my feet a little wet.

I chose to race the Richmond Road Race, which is two 22-mile laps in the countryside (actually ended up being a bit shorter than 44 miles). Although the race site was a 2 hour drive, I decided to do this race because the start time was at 12:20, so I wouldn't have to leave the house ridiculously early. Also, I am not confident enough to race a criterium just yet. Taking fast, tight turns in a large group is something I need to work on.

43.5 miles, 1063 ft of climbing

I must admit that I was really nervous leading up to this race. It's scary to be the newest kid on the block and unsure of what to expect. All the other ladies in my race were on teams, and probably have years more experience with cycling and racing. I felt like a total noob and tried to figure things out by watching and learning. My goal for this race was to hang on and not get dropped, get a feel for what racing is like, and try to have a good time out there.

I'm 525

There were six races with staggered starts. The first three races were in the morning, and the last three started at noon. The women's race was the last to go, at 12:20. We had a small field of 26 women. The pro/1/2/3 and Cat 3/4 men were out on the course with us, with a 20 and 10 minute lead, respectively.

The races had a rolling closure, so there were vehicles in front of us and behind us to direct traffic and give us the full use of the road. That was really great so I didn't have to worry about cars and I could focus on keeping my poise throughout the race.

The start was pretty chill, and we rolled out of the parking area onto the roads. My plan was to stay comfortable at the back of the pack, sit behind someone's wheel, and conserve my energy. The pace was very relaxed for most of the first lap, much to my pleasant surprise. I felt like I was hardly working at all, and the first 20 miles went by so quickly. The strongest girls attacked on the climb coming up to the end of the first lap. Eleven girls rode away, while 15 of us were left behind to chase. I had expected the field to split and wasn't surprised that it happened when it did.

My group tried to work together briefly to chase down the lead pack, but the gap just kept getting bigger and bigger, so we eventually settled down. We rotated through the paceline, and I did some work in the wind, trying to keep up our speed. I did a good job conserving my energy for most of the race, so my legs were ready to work hard. I had also fueled and hydrated pretty well, and was only taking in calories from my sports drink. I had a few gels on me, but didn't use them.

With about five miles to go, I, as well as (I think) 6 other girls, put it into high gear and dropped the rest of them. I was committed to riding the last few miles hard and race with these girls. Having ridden the first lap, I knew exactly when that final climb was and how hard it was going to be. And this time I was getting tired. I was ahead of about three girls on the climb, but I just couldn't keep my speed up and got passed by two girls. With 1km to go, I was hurting but stayed with it. When I saw the 200m sign, I sprinted as hard as I could. Five girls were ahead of me, but I kept my sights on them, rode hard, and passed one before crossing the finish line, coming in 16th.

I seem to have pretty good luck with "first" race experiences: half marathon, full marathon, duathlon, and now my first road race. I really couldn't have asked for a better day. The weather was absolute perfection, the course was beautiful and just challenging enough. I didn't get dropped and held my own throughout the race. I didn't come in dead last (which I was afraid of!) and did pretty well, considering this was my first race. Despite the nerves, I'm really glad I have this experience under my belt. Time and time again, I learn to not let my fear get in the way of doing the things I want to do. Being the most inexperienced one is tough. It's freaking scary and intimidating. But I remind myself that everyone had to start somewhere. It might as well be now, rather than later. 

Read More

Pikes Peek 10K Race Recap

I've never been very fond of shorter-distance races. I am an endurance runner, and I do better the longer the race is. I usually really get into the groove at about mile 6, and the more miles that pass, the stronger I feel. Sprinting and running above my VO2 max is not my thing because it hurts. The lung-searing, lactic acid burning, and gasping-for-breath pain really scares me. Which is why I chose to focus on my nemesis, the 10K distance, this spring. The Pike's Peak 10K on April 27th, 2014 would be my goal race.

If you know how I train, I tend to not follow a specific training plan. The workouts I do are usually decided as I am heading out the door. Sometimes, I'll have a vague goal for the week, such as running a tempo and an interval workout. But my "training plan" is a plan in the loosest sense of the word. 

I have changed the way I've been running, though. When you're training for endurance, it's important to get those "easy" miles in to acclimate to the high mileage. Ever since I finished marathon training back in October, I have been pushing the pace of most of my runs. I needed to decrease my mileage since I had a few niggles to deal with, so my plan was to run less, but run faster.

My runs for the past few months have been significantly shorter, but I would run in such a way that I was pushing the limits of my comfort zone. Sometimes, I greatly exceeded it, and had to walk. My mind would tell me to quit, but each run trained me to ignore that voice for a little bit longer. 

I had no doubt in my mind that I would PR this race. In the days leading up to it, some negatives thoughts did creep into my mind, like did I do all that I could have to train? Maybe I should have done more structured speed work. I'm scared of racing my heart out because I know it will hurt. The other part of my mind told those doubts to shut the fuck up and just run. Hard. Who cares how bad it will hurt, it's only 40 or so minutes of pain. 

So I toed the starting line ready. Ready to run my best. Ready for the pain and to work through it. I had a goal. I wanted to run a sub-46 minute 10K, making my goal pace 7:22 minutes per mile.

Ready to race!

I am terrible at estimating my race pace. Or more accurately, I am terrible at estimating my ability. There are a few factors that I neglected to take into account: #1 is that I underestimated the 190 ft elevation drop (making it a great PR course) and how that would affect my time. #2 is the fitness I've gained from the cycling I've been doing recently. I was worried that I've been slacking on the running-specific training these past two weeks, with my Disney vacation and all. But all that worry was unfounded.

I got up 15 minutes before my 6 am alarm clock and had my usual extra-large mug of coffee and bowl of oatmeal with egg whites, chia, coconut, cranberries, dates, and almond milk. I also had half a Clif Builder's protein bar and a bite of a fig bar right before the race. My brother and cousin came with me to spectate, and we got to the starting line 30 minutes before the race start. The weather was a bit chilly, albeit perfect racing weather. I like to start a bit cold and then warm up, instead of getting over heated. Those arm warmers came off before the race, which was a good decision.

The race had a wave start, and I was in the 1st wave, which included everyone running under an 8:00 pace. There were pacers, and I lined myself in the vicinity of the 45 minute pacer. I wasn't planning on following him, though. The race has only one turn, at the very beginning, and then it's a straight shot down to the finish. Although there is that 190 ft elevation drop, there are still a few uphill sections. According to my Garmin, I gained 72 ft.

Here's how my splits went down:

1- 6:37
2- 6:53
3- 6:56
4- 7:05
5- 7:10
6- 7:23
6.2- 6:28

Sprinting to the finish

I crossed the finish line at 43:38 minutes, averaging 7:01 min/mi.

Why I still doubt myself sometimes, I'm not sure. I beat my previous PR of 47:32 by almost 4 minutes! I need to learn to believe in myself. Believe that I am a fast runner and that I can push myself to become better and better.

I am still a work in progress and I still have a lot of room to improve. One thing to work on from this race (and my previous 10Ks) is to run even splits. I tend to start too fast because I am afraid of not making my goal pace, and then fade near the end. It's so easy to get caught up in the crowd at the beginning. I really wanted to run even splits this race, but seeing my first two miles were well under 7:00, it was very difficult to maintain that, especially when I hit the uphill sections. So pacing. 

For now, I don't have any other running races on the calendar. This race went swimmingly, and I am satisfied with the outcome of my training this season. In the next month, I am switching my focus to cycling as I prepare for my cross-country bike ride, and possibly my first cycling road race in May. So stay tuned for more about that!

Read More

Hagerstown Duathlon Race Recap

I've been running for about two full years, and have been cycling for a little less than one year. This spring, the next logical step seemed to be combining both sports in a race and I decided to enter myself in my first duathlon. I prefer longer distance races since I'm better with endurance than with speed. However, I could only find a sprint distance race that worked with my schedule. 1.9 mile run, 10 mile bike, 3.1 mile run. Not too bad, right?

When I registered for this race, I looked at the previous year's results and figured that I would probably do pretty well. It's a small local race with a small field, about 140 participants. Last year, I think there were 3 people in my age group, and since age group awards go 3 deep, an AG place is automatic. This year, there were 8 in my division. I figured that if I could average a 7:30 pace on both runs and 18 mph on the bike, I would have a shot at placing.

I would say that training for a sprint distance worked well with my other training goals this season. I am focusing on building speed for the 10K and becoming a stronger cyclist for my cross-country ride this summer. I have definitely seen improvements in both areas. I knocked back a few brick workouts and practiced my transitions a few days before the race. Never had I felt so ready to race, and I was so excited to try my best!

The night before the race, I made a list of all my gear and laid it out, checked my bike and loaded it in the car. I went to bed early and set my alarm for 5:40 am. The race site was an hour away, and I wanted to get there by 7:45. I like to wake up about an hour before I have to leave so I have plenty of time to drink coffee, eat breakfast, do my morning business, and double-check that I have all my gear.

When I arrived at the park where the race site was at, I headed to packet pickup to get my bib and swag bag. My dad, brother, and cousin came out to support me, and we milled about and took some selfies. There was a kid's duathlon and a 5K before the adult's duathlon, so we had some time to kill. 

I racked my bike in the transition zone and laid out my helmet, shoes, and water bottle. I decided to leave the bottle off my bike, to reduce extra weight. I planned to take a swig during T1 and T2. 

Laying out my stuff. I was hoping that I wasn't forgetting anything, and I felt like a total noob. I observed how other people placed their gear, and copied them.

We saw the kid's duathlon start, and then the 5K. As the 5K runners started to finish, we headed to the starting line to wait for the 9:30 start. It was a mass start, which meant the farther back you are, the more you have to run. I placed myself near the front, which made me kind of nervous to be with all the fast-looking people. There was a count-down to the start, I mentally prepared myself to focus on the race, and we were off!

Because I was up front with the speedy people, I started off going at a sub-7 pace. I spotted a girl going about my pace, and I tried to stick with her. The 1.9 mile run went by really fast, and I finished with a 7:02 split. I've never ran that fast in a race before!

I like this photo! Still feeling good on those fresh legs...

I went into T1 feeling calm and pretty good. I put on my helmet while simultaneously taking off my running shoes with my feet. I put on my cycling shoes, took a swig of water, and grabbed my bike. Off for the bike!

I would say that I'm stronger on the bike. I'm not a very fast runner, compared to athletes who run track. A sub-7 minute pace is super fast for me! However, my strength on the bike is where I can gain some time on the faster runners. I passed quite a few people, and only a handful passed me. The bike course was mostly flat, with some rolling hills near the end. I was feeling very good on the bike and was breathing very evenly. I finished in less than 31 minutes, averaging about 19.5 mph (they messed up the timing for T1 and T2, so I don't have accurate splits for the bike). As I rolled into the transition area, my dad started yelling at me that I was the 2nd woman! That really got me excited and I flew off my bike and into my running shoes as quickly as possible.

The first mile of the run was pretty painful. My legs felt like cement and were getting pretty sore from the lactic acid buildup. Although I felt like I was just crawling along, I was averaging about a 7:10 pace. At the midway point, I realized that I was actually 3rd woman. Placing was still a possibility, but I knew that the 4th woman was close behind! My pace was slowing down as I was getting more fatigued, and it was a struggle keeping up the pace, let alone going faster to widen the gap. As we got closer to the finish line, I was over taken and I knew that I didn't have it in me to sprint. I finished the 5K in 23:03 at a 7:26 pace. Still super fast for me, but not fast enough to get 3rd overall.

You can see me in the back of the photo, so close from the 3rd woman! I was only 8 seconds behind.

I finished in 1:08:00, placing 40th overall, 4th woman, and 2nd in my division. For my first duathlon, I'm pretty darn proud :)

So glad to be done!

During the awards ceremony, I was actually named 1st in my AG, since the 3rd woman was also in my age group. I forgot about that, and was pleasantly surprised! I've never stood on a podium for anything before!

The other two girls were representing Georgetown. Looks like we all match :)

Overall, I had a really great experience! Multisport races are hard and I am in awe of duathletes and triathletes. I hope to race more in the future, and eventually get into triathlon!

Read More

Piece of Cake 10K Race Recap

I have been looking forward to my first race of the season! My running club hosts a bunch of low-key races that are included with the membership, and they had their Piece of Cake 10K on Sunday. After the 10K or 5K race, there was a club meeting and award brunch with cake. 

I kept an eye on the weather forecast all week, but it looked like rain. Although I dislike being wet, I was mentally prepared for a rainy race and was determined to have fun despite the weather. My various weather sources ranged from 30% to 100% chance of rain, and when I woke up Sunday morning, it was raining steadily. I had my coffee and usual pre-race breakfast of French toast, and packed my gear, including an extra change of clothes. I decided to wear my water-repellent cycling leg warmers with spandex, which did NOT work. The leg warmers kept slipping off when I was warming up, so I ditched them. Poor decision :( At least my waterproof jacket kept me warm.

My brother and younger cousin decided to run the 10K, as well, and we joined up with a friend at the start. We were all running at different paces, so we kind of split up immediately. The rain seemed to ease off a bit when the race started, but my bare legs felt really cold from the rain and wind. My core warmed up quickly, but my legs never really warmed up. I really wish I wore running tights, because my legs felt a numb and a bit leaden. 

The course was on the roads through a park, so there were some out and backs. I saw my people a few times on the course and we cheered each other on! The route also had rolling hills, and my strategy was to maintain a consistent effort. At some point, my legs were feeling really heavy because they were just so darn cold. I managed some pretty even splits, though.

7:34, 7:18, 7:36, 7:49, 7:29, 7:38, 6:51 (0.2 mi)

I finished in 47:32, averaging 7:39 pace. I came in 1st for my age division (out of 7 people), and 8 out of 140 females. That really surprised me!

At the finish line, waiting for my friend

Overall, I had a successful race! My primary goal for this race was to run at an even pace and finish strong without fading. I think I did decently in that regard. This race definitely boosted my confidence for my goal race next month. Looks like the work that I'm putting in to develop my speed is working. That makes me more motivated to get out there and do more speed work. I used to dread it, but no pain no gain! Now I'm so pumped for my next race, a sprint duathlon on April 12th!

Soaked, but happy!

After the race was the brunch and club meeting. It started pouring harder and the temperature really dropped. Although we were under a tent, I was just too darn cold to stay for the whole thing, and we bailed early. Unfortunately, they didn't serve the cake until after the meeting, so I didn't get any. Oh well, I bought a huge slice of carrot cake later :P 

Did you race this weekend? How did it go?

Read More

Weekend Turkey Runs- Race Recaps

For the long 4-day weekend, I ran two "turkey" races; a 10K Turkey Chase (Thursday) and a 10 miler Turkey Burnoff (Saturday). They were both really fun and really cold. I had a great time!

For the Turkey Chase 10K, my entire family came out to support me. The first two miles were mostly downhill, and the next few miles had some big hills. I struggled a lot with keeping up my pace. I need to work on running negative splits. Oh well, I got almost a 4 minute PR with a time of 48:15. I kicked it into high gear for the last 0.2 and gave it my all. 

My splits

1- 7:10

2- 7:20

3- 7:32

4- 8:07

5- 7:43

6- 7:59

6.2- 6:50

Next up was the Turkey Burnoff on Saturday. This race was definitely fueled by all the turkey, stuffing, carbs, and cheesecake that I indulged in. My race plan was non-existant, and I just wanted to do it for fun. There was 5 and 10 mile options, and being the crazy person that I am, of course I would prefer to run the 10. My brother joined me and chose the 5 mile option. 

For the first 5 miles, I decided to stick with my bro and we averaged about an 8:35 pace. It was a conversational pace, nice and relaxed. The course had some rolling hills and went through the tree-lined roads of a local state park.

1- 9:04

2- 8:31

3- 8:42

4- 8:22

5- 8:29

The course was a 5 mile loop, so those opting to do the 10 miler just ran another loop. My brother veered off to the finish line and I picked up the pace for the last 5 miles. I pushed it comfortably hard.

6- 8:04

7- 8:19

8- 8:25

9- 7:58

10- 7:50

Woohoo, finally, some negative splits. 

My dad caught these pics of me running for the finish. Look at that form, and running the tangents and all that jazz!



The Turkey Burnoff was a low-key race put on by my running club. There was no medals or prizes; just pure running fun :) I really enjoy participating in these club races, and will probably run another one next Sunday.

Read More