I Ain't From Dallas, but I D-Town Boogie!

On June 2nd I raced in the ITU Pan-Am Cup race in Dallas. We had been focusing on this one for a while, so I had a combination of apprehension and confidence going in. In the end, I did pretty well, and I can tell all my training and experience is starting to pay off.


I went down to Dallas the week in advance to get a bit more acclimated, check out the race site, and have a relatively stress-free week going into the race. I did home stay with a very nice family. I once again really lucked out here- I rarely feel that much "at home" when I am not at home.

Mark and Mary, thank you so much for all your accommodation and support! You have a great family and a beautiful home, thank you for letting me into it for the week. To the kids, I will definitely come back and hang out, talk about Harry Potter and soccer with you until bed time any time!

The family's dog, Lexi. She and I became friends when I gave her a treat, and then we became BEST friends when I found out she can actually eat more peanut butter than me!

The week going into the race was awesome. It was rainy a couple times, but I got some good training in anyway. I got to meet a couple of Zane's other athletes (both of whom seem to share my inappropriate sense of humor... poor Zane!) and I was able to get very familiar with the race course.

Finally, I got set up with some race wheels! Profile Design Altairs from Kompetitive Edge. They accelerate like a Ferrari, have top end speed to spare, and corner like surgical instruments.

I set up my Cervélo P2 (which is a time trial bike) with a road-style cockpit and pushed the seat back, so now I had an aero road frame with race wheels! Sara, you've never looked better, and I was definitely glad to have the speed boost on the bike leg.

The Frankenbike, in all her glory! I have to attribute my solid race, at least in part, to a huge upgrade from my old Roubaix...

The race start was set for 2:45 PM... the hottest part of the day. We watched the women's race first, where half of the field DNF'ed. That's right, the heat got to 50% of the ladies! If that doesn't psych you out, I don't know what will...

As we walked over to jump into the lake (It was an in-water start) the pavement was baking my feet and I had to alternate standing on one foot lizard-style. The breeze only offered a bit of respite from the 98 degree temperatures, and as I jumped into the still, brackish water I hung on to that initial chill for as long as I could, knowing I would wish I had it again in about an hour...

As we swam up to the start line, I thought of a commercial I had seen recently. I looked at my competitors, and smelled blood in the water. "Everything we've worked for...." Check this commercial out if you haven't already:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4zJEk06O4g

The initial sprint (and the whole swim) felt razor sharp. Some punk was on my left creeping up, but I pushed him over to where there was a buoy in the water blocking a pole, and he had to slow down and go behind me... The phrase "pinching off" came into my mind, and my 13 year old self giggled with Mike Sup as his dad explained to us that the phrase referred to another driver in NASCAR, and not a turd...

I was 7th coming out of the water, and hit my transition hard. My experience in ITU racing paid off here, I ran so fast that I was mildly surprised when I got to my bike!

Here is my transition, I've never made up so much ground in these stretched as I did in Dallas!

Now, I was so pumped to have FINALLY made the front pack in an ITU race that I was all sorts of chatty with my competitors on the bike. Unfortunately, there seems to be some sort of unspoken (obviously!) rule that you just don't talk to each other during the race... everyone looked at me weird when I tried to crack a joke, and mostly just mean-mugged and shoulder-shrugged each other until someone would yell something like "CLOSE THE GAP!" or "¡Jale, Cabrón!" or something in French... sorry, Canadians, Je ne comprend pas francais! 

All in all, the bike felt very tame to me. It seemed like no one really wanted to push it, especially after watching 20 of the women bonk... However, it was so slow that some of the runners who aren't strong swimmers were able to catch us! ...scrawny little punks...

I wasn't in the best position coming off the bike, but again I made up ground in transition. I knew within a hundred meters of the start of the run that it would be tough. I used every aid station, and did everything I could to keep my 162 pound body (which is like, morbidly obese for a triathlete) cooled off. There were several moments when I felt flaky, and at several points I had to choose between racing some guy and going for broke, or playing it safe and surviving the race. 

The run did seem long, and all of the times were about 4.5 minutes off what the guys can usually run. Given that I went a 40, it was probably more like a 35 or 36, which isn't far off what I should've gone. 

 I passed a few guys, got passed by a few guys, and wound up finishing 16th. Not top ten, no prize purse, but I was close. This was the first time I have ever been "in" a race, and had conditions been a bit better I think I could've been top 10. Who knows, I am sure lots of dudes are saying that right now, and who is to say any of us are wrong? 

The point is, I learned what it will take to be "in" any ITU continental cup race, and I can use that going into my future races. 

My post-race indulgence, a coffee (to stave off the bonk) and a donut (cuz I'm fat!)

Whew, that got a little long-winded... sorry... but thanks to those of you still reading! I took a lot from this race. I now have confidence going into any of my upcoming races, and I will soon be a force to be reckoned with. I have a while before my next continental cup, and until then I will be focusing on dropping a few more lbs and upping my run. Until next time, FOLLOW THE PACE RABBIT!