The event was just incredible. It was evident that there was a ton of time spent in making sure that everything ran smooth…and it was seamless. Getting 100 antsy type AAA people together to compete indoors on equipment that is not their own all while making them feel like a superstar triathlete is no easy task. Somehow they pulled it off beautifully. Not one detail was neglected.
Saturday ran a biking and running field test. There were different “waves” of athletes all scheduled to compete throughout the day—roughly 10 per wave. The biking segment consisted of a 20 minute all out time trial on a computrainer—a sophisticated piece of equipment that rigs your own bike stationary and monitors your watts, speed, MPH, etc. All this info is then projected on a massive movie screen on the wall in front of the room. You then essentially race each other and can see your competitors—as well as your own—info on the big screen. While 20 minutes doesn’t seem like a difficult task….it’s a LONG time to be grinding away pushing as hard and as fast as you can go. You don’t want to start off too hard and crash…and you don’t want to go out to easy and find that you left too much in the tank. Even if you didn’t win this segment—it was a valuable lesson in wattage and why “power” is important on the bike. Certainly a new concept to me—a rider who always thought MPH was the most important.
The run part of the competition followed the bike with a 12 minute “all-out” sprint. The idea was to see how far you could run in 12 minutes….on a 1.5% incline to simulate the road. Again, 12 minutes doesn’t seem like very long….but try sprinting for 12 minutes. ‘Nuff said.
At the end of the day, the judges narrowed the field down to 10 athletes. The tension was at an all time high and they took forever to make their decision---somewhat understandable considering what an amazing group of athletes were in the bunch. The 10 semifinalists would move on to Sunday’s competition where there would be a swim evaluation in the endless pool, a BMI test (body mass index)—which pretty much told you how many cheeseburgers you had been eating lately…(clearly I’ve had a few!) , a Blood lactate test—they make you run-progressively increasing the intensity and every few minutes they take a blood sample from your finger—the samples are tested and the results ultimately will indicate your lactate threshold. The final part was the interview where you got to sit down with the final judges and plead your case as to why you should be among the final 6! I forgot to mention that Sam McGlone—winner of the 2006 70.3 world championships, and 2nd place in the 2007 ironman world championships—was one of the judges along with TJ and Cameron from Triathlete Magazine!
The camaraderie of the group was amazing. From the very first day that we all got bunched in this, we developed these sweet little bonds with each other. Picking one others’ brains about where they were from and how they got involved in this amazing sport. People came from all over—even KONA Hawaii!! There were folks from Canada, Wisconsin, Idaho, California, Nebraska, England!! It was so great to have such a diverse group of athletes brought together in the most diverse city in the world!! There was no hostility about competing against one another---just positive energy out of the sheer excitement to be a part of the event!
I wasn’t really paying attention to who was paying attention to me…everyone was so great! Honestly—I live alone…train alone…and work alone. (NOT as bad as it sounds..haha) But when I get to be around triathletes…its like its CHRISTMAS DAY! I get so excited—perhaps that’s why I love going to races! I love being around people that understand what its like to love and be passionate about triathlon. So at the event—I was like a kid in a candy store…I was SO excited to be there and I was just talking to everyone that would talk to me!! As far a being a favorite…I think everyone at the event was somebody’s favorite....i had no idea I was going to be one of the six.
on Sunday there were 5 women—narrowed down to 3. Before they made the announcement they informed us of a consolation prize for the 4 folks that wouldn’t make it. (2men 2 women) I remember sitting on the floor…gripping my head…thinking “this is it…I am totally a consolation winner”. They announced the first two women…the third was either me or I was going home. I looked at the other two amazing women that were sitting there just as anxious as me and I really thought there was NO way I was going to get picked over them. They both had such amazing stories to tell. When they announced my name…I am not really sure what I did…I just started crying like a baby and I ran up and hugged everyone in the line-up. I must have looked like a total freak…but I couldn’t stop smiling…in fact I’m still smiling…It’s pretty surreal.
Saturday ran a biking and running field test. There were different “waves” of athletes all scheduled to compete throughout the day—roughly 10 per wave. The biking segment consisted of a 20 minute all out time trial on a computrainer—a sophisticated piece of equipment that rigs your own bike stationary and monitors your watts, speed, MPH, etc. All this info is then projected on a massive movie screen on the wall in front of the room. You then essentially race each other and can see your competitors—as well as your own—info on the big screen. While 20 minutes doesn’t seem like a difficult task….it’s a LONG time to be grinding away pushing as hard and as fast as you can go. You don’t want to start off too hard and crash…and you don’t want to go out to easy and find that you left too much in the tank. Even if you didn’t win this segment—it was a valuable lesson in wattage and why “power” is important on the bike. Certainly a new concept to me—a rider who always thought MPH was the most important.
The run part of the competition followed the bike with a 12 minute “all-out” sprint. The idea was to see how far you could run in 12 minutes….on a 1.5% incline to simulate the road. Again, 12 minutes doesn’t seem like very long….but try sprinting for 12 minutes. ‘Nuff said.
At the end of the day, the judges narrowed the field down to 10 athletes. The tension was at an all time high and they took forever to make their decision---somewhat understandable considering what an amazing group of athletes were in the bunch. The 10 semifinalists would move on to Sunday’s competition where there would be a swim evaluation in the endless pool, a BMI test (body mass index)—which pretty much told you how many cheeseburgers you had been eating lately…(clearly I’ve had a few!) , a Blood lactate test—they make you run-progressively increasing the intensity and every few minutes they take a blood sample from your finger—the samples are tested and the results ultimately will indicate your lactate threshold. The final part was the interview where you got to sit down with the final judges and plead your case as to why you should be among the final 6! I forgot to mention that Sam McGlone—winner of the 2006 70.3 world championships, and 2nd place in the 2007 ironman world championships—was one of the judges along with TJ and Cameron from Triathlete Magazine!
The camaraderie of the group was amazing. From the very first day that we all got bunched in this, we developed these sweet little bonds with each other. Picking one others’ brains about where they were from and how they got involved in this amazing sport. People came from all over—even KONA Hawaii!! There were folks from Canada, Wisconsin, Idaho, California, Nebraska, England!! It was so great to have such a diverse group of athletes brought together in the most diverse city in the world!! There was no hostility about competing against one another---just positive energy out of the sheer excitement to be a part of the event!
I wasn’t really paying attention to who was paying attention to me…everyone was so great! Honestly—I live alone…train alone…and work alone. (NOT as bad as it sounds..haha) But when I get to be around triathletes…its like its CHRISTMAS DAY! I get so excited—perhaps that’s why I love going to races! I love being around people that understand what its like to love and be passionate about triathlon. So at the event—I was like a kid in a candy store…I was SO excited to be there and I was just talking to everyone that would talk to me!! As far a being a favorite…I think everyone at the event was somebody’s favorite....i had no idea I was going to be one of the six.
on Sunday there were 5 women—narrowed down to 3. Before they made the announcement they informed us of a consolation prize for the 4 folks that wouldn’t make it. (2men 2 women) I remember sitting on the floor…gripping my head…thinking “this is it…I am totally a consolation winner”. They announced the first two women…the third was either me or I was going home. I looked at the other two amazing women that were sitting there just as anxious as me and I really thought there was NO way I was going to get picked over them. They both had such amazing stories to tell. When they announced my name…I am not really sure what I did…I just started crying like a baby and I ran up and hugged everyone in the line-up. I must have looked like a total freak…but I couldn’t stop smiling…in fact I’m still smiling…It’s pretty surreal.
I think the best part of the CKC is that I now have access to world class coaching in a top-notch facility. This Cadence team knows their stuff!!! There is just no question that if you want to get faster and race more efficient—Cadence will get you there. I really feel privileged to have this available to me. I want to work with Cadence to build on my current fitness and really develop my speed. Certainly the gear helps…but you can’t put a aero helmet on a turtle and think its gonna fly. You need legs. You need power. Cadence has the equipment and the knowledge to develop that in me. Once that is developed, the gear will be an awesome compliment. My season will be pretty chock full…I’ll be doing a half in March, Eagleman 70.3 in June, Lake Placid Ironman in July, and Timberman 70.3 in August. With the help of Cadence, I hope to qualify for Kona—Ironman world championships at lake placid—which will take place in October 2008. I also hope to qualify again for the 70.3 world championships in Clearwater, Fl at one of the other 70.3 half ironman races—that will take place in November 2008.
Everyone that knows how important this is to me has been super supportive. Mom and her husband Romano are my biggest fans. They even came with me to registration at the event just to see what it was all about!! (they loved the free champagne! Haha) This sport is so new to them…and it can be totally foreign to those that don’t participate. They got a chance to see me at Lake Placid and they’ve been by my side ever since…asking questions and trying to put together all the pieces of how the sport works. I think you have to witness the beauty of the sport first hand—or be in the race itself—for you to “get it”. Perhaps that’s generalizing but watching an Ironman and standing at that finish line….will change you.
1 comment:
Elizabeth,
I love the comment about putting an aero helmet on a turtle and I may just have to quote you.
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