Sunday, July 13, 2014

Mountain Man Sprint Race Recap!!

We headed up to Flagstaff this weekend to get out of the 110+ degrees heat! It was fabulous!!

'Mr. Sprinkles and Glitter' got a free race entry into the Mountain Man Sprint Triathlon and decided not to use it (because he has a pretty hard race next weekend) and gave it to me!! I absolutely LOVED this race last year and was super excited to do it again!
We headed up there early Saturday afternoon, checked into our hotel, and headed over to packet pickup. Ran into some friends and hung out for a bit and then left meet our friend David for lunch at Chipolte- YUM!!
After lunch we headed back to the hotel to hang out for a bit before going for a run with David. Theboys were planning on running 8 miles and I was just going to tag along for a couple miles to break in my new sneakers.
From my Instagram
We left the hotel and got to one of my favorite trails and it instantly started POURING down rain! Once David got there, he parked right next to us and we tried rolling down the window to talk to him but the rain was coming down so hard we couldn't even hear him!
We decided to skip the run- which really scared me since that meant I'd be running in the shoes for the first time at the race.... We left and met up with some friends for dinner at Olive Garden. It was a lot fun and definitely took off some of the usual pre-race nerves. Driving back to the hotel after dinner I saw the coolest car I've ever seen in my entire life-- I'm not even joking!!
"Head Mouse"... hahaha!!
We got back to the hotel and got everything ready for the next morning and took our bikes out for a couple laps around the hotel. ('Mr. Sprinkles and Glitter' was riding his new bike and I changed out my cleats) We were good to go.

We woke up and headed down to the lake. The race started at 7 and we got there a little after 6 and transition was already PACKED!!
I got body marked, set up my transition, and picked up my timing chip. I hung out with 'Mr. Sprinkles and Glitter' and before I knew it, it was go time! The guys went off first and we followed 8 minutes after.

The swim went well- I started out in the front and felt good. My goal for this race was to stay outside of my comfort zone and push myself. I did notice I was getting a little weezy towards the end, but I'm blaming that on the altitude. ;) I finished the swim in 18:40 and quickly took off on the bike. (Have I mentioned how much I love when we both aren't racing and I get to see 'Mr. Sprinkles and Glitter' throughout the race?! BEST thing ever!)
I forgot how brown the water is here
The bike went great- I was constantly trying to push myself and pick up the pace. Funny how I forgot the rolling hills from last year. :) 12 miles goes by REALLY fast, and before I knew it, I was back in transition taking off on the run.
My hair is a hot mess! 
I was slightly worried about the run with the new shoes, but again, was determined to stay just outside of my comfort zone and push the pace. I started out pretty comfortable and then continuously picked up the pace, ending in a sprint to the finish. The run was like a trip down memory lane because I recognized the guy at the water station from last year and he cheered me on. Then I ran next to the SAME guy I ran next to last year. (Last year was his first triathlon ever and it was really hard for him. This year he looked great and said he's done a handful of triathlons since and plans to do more in future too!)
I finished in 1:33:37- which is a 13 second PR for me. HAHA! I was hoping to be sub 1:30 but I'm happy.
This race always symbolizes the start of of the tri season for me. Next month we'll do the Mountain Man Olympic, and then Silverman and Soma's 70.3, and before we know it-- Ironman Arizona will be here again!!! Crazy how fast time is going!

P.S. After the race 'Mr. Sprinkles and Glitter' and David did an 80 mile bike ride followed by a 4 mile run and swim while I headed back home. I apparently went the wrong way and took a detour through Sedona and turned the 2 hour drive home into over 3!! Not my proudest moment.... 

Have you ever ran in knew shoes on race day? 

What is your favorite race you've ever done before?