Last few days leading up to the big day, I ate and hydrated well, around 3 litres per day. Part of the drinking regime was a beet root juice, which I heard helps to break down lactic acid.
A day before the race I registered and checked in my bike. We received bad news that the swim was cancelled due to a cold air temperature. It was very cold for this time of the year, was very windy that day and also the following day. On the day of the race I had my usual breakfast, but my tummy shrank from the excitement. After the breakfast I went to the transition area where my bike was placed. I checked the tyres, prepared bottles with energy drinks and nutrition as well as my transition bags for the bike and the run. The athletes were split into number of waves, mine was at 8 am. I walked over to the start line with other ladies in my wave, which was in the transition area. We started off with a brief run to our bikes, hopped on and set off for the ride. We were so pleased that the bike route was closed off to the cars. First 30 km were relatively easy with a little bit of sunshine and light wind. As we cycled further the weather deteriorated, the wind became stronger and it was drizzling too. The course was hilly with beautiful scenery of countryside, mountains, castles and a river. As I was going down one hill, I went so fast that I almost hit into barriers on the road. There wasn´t a sign to slow down. After 62 km when I climbed up a 11 km long hill, my chain got stuck and I fell off my bike. A few participants passed by and asked me whether I was ok. I checked if I had any wounds, but it was only a little scratch on my knee, so I jumped on the bike and carried on. Despite this glitch, I had encouragement from the local people cheering me on along the way. There were 2 drink and food stations on the course. After finishing the ride, I quickly changed from bicycle to running gear in the transition area and then I set off. The running course was varied, partially around a stadium, then on the road and also along a river trail. There were 3 drink and food stations. When I was coming closer to the finish line I started to sprint. I surprised myself that I still had a little energy left. I was ecstatic when I crossed the finish line. I had a smile on my face and clapped my hands. Shortly after tears came out of happiness. I did it! My bike time was 3 hours 26 minutes and 13 seconds (178th position), my run time was 1 hour and 45 minutes (79th position) and overall time 5 hours 15 minutes and 28 seconds. In spite of my cycle leg being weaker in comparison with my run, I managed to catch up and improved my over all position to 130th out of 212 women, 29th in my age group (30-34) out of 53 ladies.
Having my parents and my sister present on this big day showing their support and sharing this great achievement meant a lot to me. My sister acted like my personal trainer, she ran by my side a few times which gave me a big boost.
I would like to say thank to my coach Hank Jandrell www.sports-plan.com, my masseur Robin Allan www.robinallan.com, to my training partners Evolution Triathlon club www.evotri.co.uk And special thank you to my parents and my sister for sharing my accomplishment in person! ;0) xxx
