Pre-race
Going into the first race of the season, I had the typical phantom niggles (that make you believe you are injured) but thankfully, I didn't feel stale. With over nine hours of scheduled training from Mon-Saturday, each workout helped me sharpen-up for race day (Sunday). We stayed one mile from the race venue at Balmoral Resort and I would absolutely stay there again for this race. The location was perfect as we could jog, bike or drive to the venue through the back gate and could quickly access Publix grocery store for food. Although we didn't use all of the amenities at the resort, the house made for a relaxing stay leading up to the race.
Race Morning
I had a pretty good night of sleep and felt good waking up at 4:15am. After one cup of coffee for me (two shots of espresso for Karel), I had my standard long workout/pre-race snack of 2 waffles + PB + brown sugar + syrup + banana. With the predicted hot temps, I pre-loaded with sodium (Osmo) starting on Friday morning (1 scoop), and then continued this on Friday evening, Sat morning and Saturday evening. I also had 1 scoop on race day morning. After my meal, I put on my race day kit and took Campy for a quick jog to help move things through my digestive tract. This is a tip that I learned from Karel to do before you leave the house in the morning for the race venue. Afterward, I did some light foam rolling and band work to activate my glutes and nearing 5:35am, we jumped on our bikes (with our race gear) and rode to the race venue (about a 5 minute bike). It actually felt rather good to spin the legs before arriving to the race venue. After body marking, we racked our bikes (optional race day bike check-in), set up our transition gear and then made our way to the team tent in the TriClub village area. It has been about ten months since I've set up a transition area so I checked and re-checked my set up a few times before making my way out of the transition area.
After dropping off our stuff in the tent area, Karel and I walked over the pool at Lake Eva. This is one of the best things about this race - being able to swim in a pool before the start. I'm surprised more athletes don't take advantage of this as it's not only a great way to warm-up and test the wetsuit (or swimskin in the case this year - water temp 79 degrees) but it's also good for the body to keep moving instead of sitting/standing around when transition closes. The water felt refreshing and it felt good to loosen out in the water. I swam about a 600 (didn't count my laps or wear a watch) and mostly just swam and adjusted my Roka swimskin but through in a few fast 25's. After my swim, I did one more bathroom stop and then walked back to the beach area to get ready for my wave start at 7:26am. I found myself a bit cold before the race so note to self: Bring a towel next time to dry off after the warm-up swim. It was great to see so many of our athletes throughout the morning as this made the race vibe positive and exciting.
1.2 mile swim - 31:55, 2nd AG swim, 9th female swim overall.
Goggles - TYR special OPS 2.0 (clear lens)
SwimSkin - Roka Viper X shortsleeve swim skin
The layout of this swim is unique in that it is a M shape course. There are a lot of buoys on the course, which can make it difficult to sight when you are in the water but overall, it's a straightforward course to navigate. The sky was cloudy which was nice to not have the sun in our eyes. I was shaking a bit from being cold just standing around wet so it was nice to actually get in the water and know that I would warm up soon. We had an in-the-water start for the female 35-44 age group waves. When the gun went off, I tried to take off as hard as I could to get away from the pack. There was a group of about 4 or 5 of us, one being my athlete Stephanie (who is a great swimmer). Two of the girls got away and I was swimming with Stephanie for a buoy until she dropped me. I didn't feel like myself in the water, especially since I've been swimming some of my best workouts ever over the past month. I tried to not let it get to me and instead, just focused on making good strokes and staying on course. While I am not one for excuses, I think my Roka swimskin (with sleeves) is too big for me as it felt like I was pulling a towel as I was swimming. I've only wore it once (in the Kona practice swim in October) so I really didn't have much to go by. I was extremely happy for Stephanie for having such a solid swim so I used that as my motivation to keep swimming as strong as I could. While it was a slow swim for me, the swim times appeared much slower than normal so I took it as a slow swim for everyone. I swam all the way to the water edge before getting out of the water and on to the sand. I made my way to the transition area and gave Stephanie a cheer as I passed her for having such a great swim.
T1 - 3:14
I made my way to the first bike rack to remove my swimskin, cap and goggles and then put on my CEP compression socks (calf height - easier to put on than full socks), cycling shoes and helmet. I kept the shield up on my helmet as it's easier to put on this way. I turned on my computer and then rolled out my bike to the mount line. I made my way a bit past the mount line, near the barricades, before mounting my bike and off I went.
Nutrition: 2 bottles with INFINIT (hydration system Grape and bottle with Watermelon, each bottle ~250 calories)). 1 bottle with CarboRocket 333 black cherry (~220 calories for the last 30ish minutes)
Gear: Ventum one bike, Alto cc56 front wheel (tubeless) and lightweight autobahn tubeless disc. Bontrager Velocis Women road shoes. Giro Air attack helmet.
Immediately on the bike my legs felt good. I used the first few miles to settle in a good rhythm and spent little time in my aerobars in the first mile. After a few turns through a neighborhood, I started to ease into my effort for the first part of the course. Knowing there would be headwind/crosswind for the first part of the bike, I stayed aero and just focused on making smooth pedal strokes. I didn't have any metrics to chase but I do have my normalized and 3 sec power, current cadence, current speed and lap time on my Garmin to check-in on as I ride. I wore my HR monitor (which is something I usually don't do when I race) but little did I know, it never picked up. My legs were working hard during this first portion of the race and I felt it mostly in my quads, right above my knees. I couldn't help but think of Karel saying "you don't need to "save" your legs for the run. Have you ever seen a fast marathon runner with big quads?" I couldn't help but laugh and build confidence from hearing his voice in my head. I broke the race down into segments and lapped my computer at each segment. This helped me manage my effort and only focus on one segment at a time. I made sure to stay up on my nutrition - sipping my drink every ~10 minutes (4-5 chugs). I also grabbed water at the second aid station to use for cooling my body as it was getting warm. I found myself passing a lot of athletes while on the course, which was very motivating for me to always have someone to "chase" ahead of me. I saw a few familiar faces out on the course (hi Caitlin and Sam!) which was fun and I also passed several of my athletes - and gave each one a big cheer. Nearing the tailwind section, my legs were still feeling good so I stayed strong on the pedals but used this time to sit up and get out of the saddle here or there on the climbs to open my hips. I felt really good on my Ventum and loved riding the disc wheel for the first time. I felt very confident in the wind - which is why I love my Ventum. I never had a low moment during the bike and really enjoyed all 56 miles. Karel passed me around 45 miles on the bike and told me I was riding really strong. He quickly rode away but it was nice to see him and give him a cheer. After the bumpy section of the course, I started to switch my brain to thinking of the run. I made sure not to jump ahead in thoughts as I was riding for if I did, I may have backed down my effort on the bike. I just focused on stayed present and keeping up with my nutrition. With the finish of the bike right in front of me, I slipped out of my shoes and did my first ever flying dismount (that I learned how to do on Saturday before the race). There's no better time than the present to try something that scares you! I didn't look at my total time until the end of the bike and when I saw just over 2:30, I felt like I put together a strong bike on a very tough day. I wasn't sure where I was in my age group (or overall) so I was anxious to get some reports from the spectators on the run.
T2 - 2:33
I tried to make my transition as quick as possible. I walked a few steps to get my breathing under control before jogging the rest of the way to the official start of the run course. There weren't a lot of bikes in the transition area but I still wasn't sure where I was in the overall standings.
Nutrition: Naked Hydration Band with 2 x 10 ounce flasks. One flask with NBS (3 scoops Hawaii flavor, ~90 calories)) and one flask with Carborocket hydration (raspeberry lemonade, ~105 calories)
Gear: Roka custom sunglasses (SL-1 series). Nike 4% running shoes. Garmin 235 watch.
My legs felt relatively good after the tough bike. By now, I had forgotten completely about my lack-luster swim time. I was filled with energy as I ran past the crowds of people but I made sure not to run too hard to start as it was getting really warm and the sun was blazing. With the first two miles being the hilliest of the course (3 loop course), I focused on not being too aggressive up hill (to try to manage body heat) but I attacked the downhills. I kept looking ahead for females that may be ahead of me but I didn't see anyone. I used the first loop to settle into a good rhythm and didn't worry too much about my pace - knowing that my pace would likely be faster on the first loop relative to loop 2 and 3. From my experience racing in hot conditions, I know that paces/times are not all that important as it's all about managing the conditions to prevent a heat illness, dehydration and glycogen depletion. The first loop was rough - I felt depleted. The sun was stealing all of my energy. I took two quick reset breaks in the neighborhood section at the top of the loop to catch my breath and to stretch out my back. They were quick breaks and well needed. I kept up on my fuel/hydration throughout the race - being strategic with where I drank (I tried to do it on downhill or easier sections of the course). I grabbed water from every aid station to cool my head, face and body and tried to steer clear of hoses as I didn't want to run with soaking shoes. When I started the second loop, I finally got word that I was 3rd. However I didn't know if that was 3rd AG or overall. I was racing for a place in the overall so I anxiously awaited more information. The course was getting more congested, which was actually nice to see more people on the course. However, this also made for more crowded aid stations. I finally got my hands on some ice which was fantastic - I held on to the ice for as long as I could and also sucked on the ice cubes whenever I had extra to spare. Cloud cover helped on loop 2 and I finally started to feel less depleted and more normal. I felt like I had good rhythm and form and never felt like I didn't want to be running/racing. I kept pushing the effort to see if I could catch any females ahead of me but I never caught anyone. I wasn't passed by any females after the swim so that was encouraging for me. However, with the wave start, I wasn't sure of what was going on behind me so I had to keep fighting to the finish line. On the third loop, I finally heard that I was 3rd overall female so that was my mission - to stay in that pace. I started to see more of my athletes on the course which was extremely motivating for me. My pace was getting a bit slower but I still felt in control of my effort and form. Considering I haven't done any speed work or long runs (only one 1:20 run), I felt really strong and resilient and surprisingly, didn't melt in the heat despite not being acclimated. I had one sip of coke around mile 11 because it sounded refreshing but other than that, I felt like I did a great job with my fueling, hydration and cooling - which was key for this race. Nearing the last mile, I tried to give it everything I could. Knowing that the finish line was within my sights, I did whatever I could to feel like I was sprinting. I saw Karel at our team tent, just before the finish, giving me a big cheer. Hands up, big smile - finished!!
I quickly cooled myself off with water and took a deep exhale when I heard I was officially the 3rd overall female. After my finish, I went back to our tent to see Karel, hear about his race and to cheer on the rest of our athletes. Eventually we biked by to our house for a quick shower and to grab Campy and to finish cheering for every Trimarni until they all crossed the finish line. Then it was time for the awards. This was a great start to the season ahead and although it wasn't a super "fast" race, we are both extremely happy with how strong we felt and how we managed the tough conditions.
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Official Results
Marni Sumbal
Swim - 31:55
T1 - 3:14
Bike - 2:32.16
T2 - 2:33
Run - 1:41.10
Finishing time - 4:15.05
2nd age group (35-39), 3rd overall female (out of 346).
Karel Sumbal
Swim - 32:16
T1 - 2:37
Bike - 2:22.23
T2 - 2:29
Run - 1:27.50 (2nd overall fastest run)
Finishing time - 4:27.33
4th age group (40-44), 8th overall (out of 1330)