When I first heard about the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Blue Ridge in 2020, I was intrigued by the possibility that an Ironman branded half ironman would include a challenging bike course. When the bike course details described an "epic five-mile climb on Route 43 to the Blue Ridge Parkway entrance" and that "Athletes will experience breathtaking views of the valley, as they ride and descend 21-miles of completely closed roads" I never stopped thinking about this race. I love challenging race courses as the accomplishment comes in the journey to the finish line. My most memorable half Ironman races have been on really hard courses (IM 70.3 St. Croix and IM 70.3 Branson quickly come to mind).
For the past few months, Ironman 70.3 Blue Ridge has remained my focus. Although my training has been a bit unconventional this year, I felt that I could do really well on the course as it suited my strengths of being a hilly and hot course. I didn't need to be fast, just healthy (injury-free), strong, smart and steady. With this race as a priority (my third half in 8 weeks), my focus at Ironman 70.3 Chattanooga was to participate in the race with our athletes, get a little better at suffering (at IM 70.3 Florida I was not willing or ready to suffer), but not destroy myself so that I could race well in another 70.3 just 14 days later. With Karel back at home with a recently broken wrist, I shocked myself in Chatty by placing 3rd overall female (missing 2nd by 14 seconds) and I contribute that magical performance to having no expectations, feeling no pressure and detaching myself from the outcome. Fast forward two weeks later and I was able to race at my best and my best allowed me to fight all the way to the end for the overall female win. Although I was two seconds "too slow" and ended up 2nd overall female, I'm extremely satisfied and proud of my performance.
After fifteen consecutive years of endurance triathlon racing, completing 16 Ironman distance triathlons (#17 is in six weeks at IM Lake Placid), 5 Ironman World Championship events and well over 25 half Ironman distance triathlons, I've adopted a new mental approach to training and racing.
I am not attached to results. Whether it's in a training session or in a race, being non-attached simply means staying present and giving my best, without attachment to the end result. I'm not attached to metrics, paces, watts or miles. Detaching from the outcome doesn't mean that I don't care about the results or that I don't have goals. But knowing that I can't control the outcome (or who my competition is on race day), I can only control my preparation. When it comes to my effort - or giving my best on the day - I have trust my body and mind. I love the experience of using my body and mind and when I cross the finish line, I accept the end result knowing that I did everything I could to deliver my best - and that makes me feel successful.
Training and racing with this lightness has kept me enjoying the journey. At this point in my triathlon hobby, I could easily be burned out, injured or suffering with a health issue from 15 years of endurance training. I'm incredibly grateful for my body and for what it continues to do for me (and allows me to do).
Winning, beating, setting, qualification.....for so much of my triathlon journey, my justification for racing revolved around a specific outcome at the finish line. It wasn't that I wasn't enjoying the journey. I thrive off setting big goals and I never let a result define my self worth but I never want triathlon training to feel like a means to an end. I don't want my goals to define or to control me. Although it feels good to win, beat the competition, set a PR or qualify for a World Championship event, detaching myself from an outcome has allowed me to hone in on the present moment, enjoy the journey of fitness development, keep training fun and playful and stay consistent with training while reducing the risk for injury or health issues.
I would like to send a huge thank you to the Ironman staff, Roanoke (and surrounding) police and medical personnel, volunteers and the Roanoke community for putting on a safe, beautiful, supportive and scenic event. My idea of the "perfect" race course is a clean lake swim surrounded by mountains (check- Blue Ridge had it!), a scenic and challenging bike course (check - and 25-miles car-free on the Blue Ridge was an added bonus!) followed by a two-loop, spectator friendly run (check, check - with incredible volunteers!).
Because the performance is not defined by the end result but by what happened from start to finish line, I'm excited to share my detailed race report (coming soon) of how I was the female across the line but ended up 2nd (by two seconds) but could have been 4th (within a minute) after 70.3 miles of racing.
Race Results
