The Barrelman 70.3 - Loved IT!!!!

Fastest Swim Winners- Left to Right- Me, Richard Pady, Angela Quick, Lee Hart

Yes, that's me all decked out in triathlon gear!  Although it may not look that way in this picture, I had just finished the Barrelman 70.3 (half-ironman distance) and felt like I needed to desperately lay down.  Currently my legs are screaming at me saying ' Sheila, you are crazy for what you put me through', but my mind is saying 'Woohoo, I did it and with only 5 weeks of true Tri training'.  See the guy on the end, Lee Hart, he's my coach.  Thanks to his training and advice I didn't only finish the distance, I came second in my age group and 4th woman overall, claiming a qualifying spot for the 2015 ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships in Sweden.

THE SWIM-For the three days before the event I felt pretty ill, nerves, what had I signed myself up for?  Lee expressed no doubt that I would finish but I don't think either of us thought that it would be pretty. It looked like it was going to be a rainy, stormy day, which for the swim and run not a big issue, but for the bike, a little nerve racking.  We had a group of us from Tri-Hart at the event, which helped keep my chatty self distracted and calm my nerves some.  Also, luckily for me, my coach, Lee Hart, was in the same swim wave.  We started in the fourth wave at the Welland Canal, Lee took off like a shot, and I played the game of catch up.  Within a few hundred metres we were swimming side by side and chasing down the previous waves like we were killer whales mowing down a herd of seals.  It was fun and motivating to have him there and the nerves disappeared.  Fifteen meters from the finish line my left calf started to cramp up- crap- I flexed my foot a few times and managed to work it out by the time I hit the exit.  Lee had the fastest 2k at 25.00 and I had the second fastest swim, 25.03, of the day.  After that Lee was gone like a shot, he ended up 2nd in his age group and 7th fastest man overall.

Barrelman Winnings

My goals coming into the Barrelman were:

 1. Win the Swim- there was a prize involved

 2. Cross the finish line- so I could claim my swim prize

THE BIKE-So I took my time through transition 1, had a drink and a Shot Block (as I was just cramping in the water), ran past the line and popped on my bike.  Let me just say, the first 40km of the 92km ride were brutal! Not just for me, an inexperienced rider, but for the Pros and Elites too.  The wind was incredible.  I fought to stay on my bike for the first third of the ride.  There were riders that were blown right off the road!  It was daunting and I was wondering if the wind would ever end.  After the course changed direction and the speedometer on my bike went form 20km/hr to 38km/hr and even, for a brief moment, hit a max speed of 49km/hr (that's good for me), things started looking up.  The sun had come out, the ride no longer felt arduous, and unlike several unlucky riders, my tires stayed firm. When the 85km marker appeared I was so excited!  Only 7km to go!! Then the head wind hit; it was the longest 7km bike ride I have ever been on.  Finally, the cones into transition 2 appeared so I took off my shoes and pedalled to the line in Niagara Falls.  My bike average was 32.1 km, that was 2km/hr faster than the sprint at Guelph and a great improvement. The volunteers led me to my bike area where I found the bag with my running gear.  Put on my shoes, stuck my nutrition in the pocket of my tri-suit and jogged onto the run course.

Women's Barrelman 2014 results 

THE RUN-As I ran through King's Bridge Park and onto the road a few people said " great job, you are running a great pace".  I certainly didn't feel that way as in my head I heard Lee saying " hold your pace, don't go faster, hold your pace, you want to make it to the finish."  So I looked at my watch, hmmm, 4:30/km, I knew I wasn't holding that for another 19km so I backed it off.  The run course ran by Niagara Falls twice, which was really cool.  It also had us run up a pretty big hill, twice. And I don't know if it was because I was so hurting from the bike or if it really was this way, but most of the run course felt as though it was on an incline.  The story when I'm 80 will be, " In my first half-ironman the run course was uphill the whole way!" Through the first loop of the course I looked at the finish clock as I ran by; if I hustled I may be able to break the 5 hour mark!  But again that voice said--no--you still have 11km to go.  So I held my pace and went up that big hill again.  As the 17 km mark came into view,  my body was saying to my brain" I don't know how much more I have for you" and my brain said to my body " you are doing so well, we are almost there".  Yes, after a 2k swim, 92km on the bike (with insane winds), and 17km running I was giving myself encouragement.  My breathing was starting to labour, and I could feel my body starting to weaken so I counted down by 1/2kms until I saw the 20km marker and knew I was going to make it.  I passed the line at 5 hours and 3 min.   I accomplished my goals!

Tri-Hart Competitors at Barrelman

I am thankful to my teammates, Natalie and Mandy, who took care of me afterwards, as I felt like I wanted to cry and pass out (my body was so weak).  After a while I recovered, as you can see I made it to the podium.  I loved it!!  I loved the race, the sense of accomplishment, my teammates, watching others cross the line beating their personal bests! It was an incredible experience to be a part of.   I would recommend going to a triathlon event just to take encouragement from all those people who triumph across the finish line, regardless of the pain, the weather, or their injuries.  

A true competitor keeps going regardless of the conditions.                                                               

Triathlon Number 1 -- Complete

Guelph Lake II-  Me on the bike

Well, I did it!  Completed my first triathlon last weekend.  As I was getting ready for FINA Masters World Championships, the only triathlon that I was willing to try was the Guelph Lake II Sprint at the end of this triathlon season.  It consisted of a 750m swim, which is much too short, a 30km bike, and a 7k run.  

With swimming being my main focus for most of this year, I had let my running slide, in fact, my husband let it slip out to my coach that I really hadn't been running on a regular basis since Christmas.  I had dropped the cycling 4 weeks out of Worlds, and before that, I had only gone for a handful of, once weekly, long bike rides.  I figured my cardio fitness and my swim training would pull me through.  Guelph would be an opportunity for me to see if I liked doing triathlon and give me an idea of what it's like to race one.

Gallacher, Me, Robin

My coach, Lee Hart of Tri-Hart, provided me with an overview of what to expect.  Gallacher Patterson, my teammate, helped me to set up my transition area and both he and my other teammate, Robin Whiffing, helped to get me warmed up properly for the race.  I had also switched my wave start.  Originally I was to be in the 5th of 7 waves, however, my swim is very strong and my bike not so much.  I moved to the first wave with the young competitors and the elites.  This would give me some well needed space to get on my bike without worrying about lots of people around me.  So I put on my wetsuit and headed down to the lake.

The mass start was a little scary.  I thought I would come out with a black eye from some guy kicking my face, but I managed to stay bruise free and settled in behind a young Waterloo Swimmer who kindly pulled me easily to the finish.  First woman out, second out overall....I learnt it is easier to let someone else do all the work.  Wet suit came off and I ran my bike out of transition and across the line.  I couldn't believe it! I was first out of transition 1.  It was short lived as Gallacher quickly came up and passed me just beyond the line.  

Got the shoes off.

Lee had given me something to work on for the bike.  I had just figured out this skill a couple days before and am still not that good at it.  The goal was to put on my cycling shoes, and take them off again while still riding the bike!  I know, many of you triathletes are excellent at that, but for someone who just became comfortable with grabbing her water bottle while riding, this is a scary endeavour.  Although I dropped my speed down to a crawl, I managed to get my shoes both on and off and stay on the bike.  Another small win for the day.

With the bike complete I ran to transition, put on my new running flats, took a drink, had a shot block, and hit the trail.  I was surprised that the run didn't hurt more.  I was trying to slow down in the first 2km, as I thought I should only be running at a 4:30 km/hr pace and I was running at 4:22, thinking I may not have enough for the finish.  I was wrong. I ended up running a 4:07 km/hr average over the 7k (as my competitive nature took over my rational thought) which boosted my confidence and giving me the 3rd fastest run for women. I placed 3rd in my age category, and 8th fastest woman overall.  Now if I could just get a little faster on the bike......

Finished my first Tri

3rd place finish 40-44 age category

All in all it was an amazing experience.  I learned a great deal and realized I have a lot more to figure out.  I am just a baby in this sport.  

I would highly recommend trying new things, branching outside of your comfort zone. I have seen many  swimmer friends also dabbling in this sport over this summer.  Check out my friend Mike at swim-diesel.

In just under two weeks I have another challenge scheduled on my calendar.  It is an ambitious undertaking, in such a short time, but an experience that will ready me for next triathlon season.  Shhh...it's a 70.3.  The goal is to finish as I will only have 5 weeks of tri training under my belt...yes...crazy.

Don't worry though; I am not leaving the pool...just shifting focus for a bit.