Du-ing it for the Lions

This morning, Randy and I raced the Glens Falls Lions Club Duathlon.  It's the first year they've had the race and they wanted it to be the autumn counterpart to the Saratoga Lions Duathlon in May.  First of all, well done!  The race was well-organized with plenty of volunteers.  The course was beautiful too.  A couple things I'd like them to adjust for next year... mile markers!  There was only one at the 10-mile point on the bike.  None on the run.  Now, that's not always a bad thing, but since I don't have a computer on my tri bike, I had no idea where I was on the course.  They should also rethink the bike/run in/out area.  It was a bit confusing.  However, it was all worth it in the end since they were serving up peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!  Yum!!!

Now, for my race.  One thing stuck out more than anything.  I have to start running faster!!  The races was a 3-mile run, 18-mile bike, and a 3-mile run and I was hoping to go under 2 hours.

Run #1 - I like triathlons.  Way better than duathlons!  I love to swim and I'm pretty good at it.  I'm not a great runner and I am not great at executing the first run of a duathlon.  I stayed back, which was good.  I didn't want to get caught up in the excitement of the beginning of the race, particularly when I knew that I wasn't just going to be running.  I stayed within my comfort zone and ran a 25:53, which is an 8:38 pace.  Not too bad for me!  Out of 62 athletes, I had the 56th fastest time.  I was officially at the back of the pack!

Bike - I love to bike.  Especially on my way cool Parlee TT!  The bike course was beautiful, with some nice views of the fall colors.  I cranked the bike course, passing people and not getting passed.  I felt really good, feeling especially strong on the climbs.  I managed a 1:03:27, which includes my T1 time.  I would have liked to go a bit faster, but I'm pretty happy with it.  Out of 62 athletes, I had the 29th fastest bike time.  I was no longer at the back of the pack!

Run #2 - Seriously, I need to start running faster.  I actually felt better on this run than the first.  I wasn't fast, but I think I'm just used to running after riding so it's easier mentally.  I ran a 27:45, which includes my T2 time.  I think I was closer to 26:50 (based on my own calculations), so somewhere around a 9:00 pace.  Out of 62 athletes, I had the 51st fastest run time.  It was enough to make me 39th overall and 3rd in my age group (which was 36-40, not the usual 35-39...?).  And, my overall time was 1:57:05, so I am happy with that!

It was cold, but definitely a fun race that I'd do again.  The best part, of course, is spending time with friends.  And, it was the only multisport race that Randy and I have done together this year!  He did great, placing 8th overall!

So, for the next couple of weeks, it'll be some relaxing, but also some speedwork for running.  I'd like to get my pace closer to 8:00.  If I had been able to do that, I'd have won my age group.  Oh well, I kicked butt on the bike!