Calgary 70.3, a lesson of toughness...

The Champions (my -home away from home- family), made it clear yesterday, that my 70.3 Calgary second place finish was worthy of a great reward.




I guess Curtis had been joking when he said not to come home unless I had won the race! Thank goodness Curtis was joking and decided to make me a tasty reward for my second place finish instead.






Curtis, the triathlete/Baker made some Tiramisu on my first day back in Victoria....THAT CAKE WAS THE BEST EVER, THAT BOY HAS TALENT.


At the race:


The Calgary 70.3 was such an experience for me. It was really a CHALLENGE, an opportunity to get stronger. Mentally, this time.


I found myself to be more negative than usual in the days leading up to the race. I felt tired from the camp in Victoria and things had not been going as planned as far as logistics were concerned in Calgary, and for some reason, this time, I let it get to me. Tired maybe.

There were so many wonderful things going on around me (I was reunited with Sharkie (Corbin), staying with Justin like old times, found a great place to stay, liked the course, Lance and Paul would come to support us during the race...) but this time, it seems I was noticing the little things that bothered me, more than usual. That had to change.



Controlling the mind...

If there is one mind skill that I have discovered and worked on in the- triathlon school of life- this year, it is to control my thoughts and I got to work on that PLENTY this week-end. Lance told us (and still reminds us constantly) about the importance of positive self talk during training sessions and races. I have realized the importance of it in the hard trainer sessions I have done in the garage. Those trainer sessions are unique because they place you in a situation of intense concentration because the task is simple: (turning those legs as long and as hard as you can) and there is no real external perturbation, it is the perfect opportunity to work on the inner monologue. To eliminate those killer thoughts that creep up when you are at the fine line...where you might be thinking you are going to crack! During these trainer sessions, I have learned to identify negative thoughts and stop them, to replace them with positive imagines and inspiring thoughts. I have seen the impact that they could have on the work output.But, there is a big difference between filtering thoughts while sitting on a trainer, staring at a spot on the wall and doing it in a real race situation with distractions and so many outside factors. While I have gone a long way in the garage ( step one). This week-end...I got to start working on step 2.


Calgary 70.3
Justin, coach Lance, Linsey at the finish line.


The Lifesport crew at the awards


So on the night before the race, after a magic talk with Lance, I worked hard at thinking positive, visualizing positive outcomes, and...most of all, the things that works for me...thinking about how much FUN race day was going to be. That always works. On the morning of the race, I was feeling great, ready to enjoy a fun, hard, training day...and lucky me, I would have my team mates on the course. I was pumped, back to normal, savouring the opportunity. In a perfect state of mind.






Linsey, Lance and I...before the gun went off.
Do I look like I'm cold?

I did a swim warm up, and felt race ready. The gun went off. I started out fast. I found myself in a big pack but let myself get distracted by two swimmers that -sandwiched me- and did not want that to change! I stayed there for a while, trying to concentrate but after having been a human punching bag for more than a minute, it was hard to find an efficient stroke. By the time that got out of my mind, I had lost the lead pack.

Block that thought! Re-focus. Now I wanted to fight to stay with those two swimmers that had just tried to beat me up (hahah) and I needed to put my head down and get back to the pack. I have learned to crave the feeling of almost loosing a draft and putting my head down to catch it again, there is no better feeling than that of making it back into a draft and feeling that temporary relief, I was going to go for that! At mid-course, that pack was really getting away, but I stuck with my two other swimmers and was feeling strong and efficient. I ended up staying with those two swimmers for a while, until they went off line at the second to last buoy, I decided to go ahead on my own, sacrifice the draft for the shortest line...convinced that I would gain significant time. Unfortunately, that didn't make a big difference this time. I should have stayed in the draft. We got reunited at the buoy.

Re-focus. One buoy to go, time to give it all! I see that the lead pack is still not so far, is this for real? I think to myself that I am having a great swim. I get more energy and pick it up, I think that I start my own combat with the two other swimmers to push up my pace and make it out of the water before them.

Out of the water. I realize, from what the announcer says that I had a good swim and am not as far back from the lead as I would have predicted (there were some very good swimmers at that race!)

Now I m on the bike. There is one thing on my mind. The lead. I want to get to the front of the race. I can t help but notice that my legs are not good at all. But they don t always feel great when I come out of the water and I can usually go hard on the bike and they later come back. I started the bike fast, passed many riders. When I passed Lisa Mensink, I will admit, I thought I had taken the lead...until I heard someone yell...Mirinda at 1:30. And that was the story of the bike ride. My legs never got better this time, in fact, they got worst, and worst and worst.....I ate so many gels, thinking it would make the energy come back, but I just felt heavy. I saw the lead car at the distance and kept on thinking to myself that I was gaining on it. Someone yells-Mirinda at 2:25-....ouch...that was probably a wrong split...

So I get into a comfortable cruising mode and focus on things I can control: cadence, gears, effort up the hills, position on the downhills....legs keep feeling worst and worst.....and I feel myself slowing down. By the time the bike is over, I just can't wait to get off that bike and run, maybe that would feel better. Negative thoughts were haunting me at the end of the bike because I knew I had definitely not posted a very fast bike split. Running off the bike, I turned around, certain that someone was very close to me, the run was going to be hard.

Out of transition,my legs are heavy but that's just normal right?

I focus on the happy people that cheer me on and remember how much I have to prove to myself that I can do a great run time off the bike. Never look back. Oups, I just looked back again, and now see Lisa coming off the bike. So close!

I better run, I will definitely be chased hard! Someone yells that Mirinda is now at 4:30...ouch. Re-focus on the energy from the crowd. The announcer calls:_ Mighty Mouse_...hahaha....he knows about the name coach Lance and team mates called me in Maui! I feel happy and want to push.

I get to the first turnaround and notice I am not too far ahead of many of the other competitors and remember thinking they looked fast...that helps me push up the pace on my heavy legs. I ll admit, I remember thinking that holding on to second place would be VERY, VERY hard. Once again, I re-focus and think about the cadence, I need to bring it up, go faster, I am being chased! I focus on re-hydrating and taking coke at each aid station (that is magic to me as I usually have decaf and am very reactive to caffeine!). The coke helps A LOT. I keep on feeling better and better. At the second turnaround I realize Catriona is moving up and that she will be the one to worry about. I keep on pushing and feeling better (I realize that I am not afraid of the distance, I am pushing this run! Yeahhh!). I now know Catriona is behind me and coming for me, the motorcycle with the camera man is there, waiting to film -the passing-. By kilometer 13, we are finally shoulder to shoulder... I have had time to think about this and by the time she gets close, I am thinking that I am going to try to hold her as long as I can and STAY WITH HER (this is a first for me), she will help me go faster and maybe I can get her. I follow her and she seems to be fading, she then builds a little gap on a downhill (wow, how can she sprint down the hill like that, I was all out!) ....I come back a bit and stay at her heels...then we hit the final uphill...that is when I realize that she is tired. She falls behind and I take back my second place. Less than 5K to go. I am determined to hold on to my second place. She is still very close, I can hear her breathing!Kilometer 19 is VERY long! My negative thought at this point is: WHERE THE H*&^L IS IT! (please excuse my french!) there it is!...now it is 2K to go. I think about how I had made the last intervals I did in Victoria BURN and say to myself that I can push harder. 1K to go. I see coach Lance on the side. He tells me to start giving it all....after a little hesitation, I just go! Turn the brain off and the heart on! It is the sprint to the finish. That also turned into a great moment with a Lifesport team mate (the amazing Chris Thomas) passed me at the finish, encouraging me to sprint.

I think I did good at the mental combat out there. I like to win. I wanted to win. But Mirinda was in her own world on Sunday. I feel happy and proud about my battle for second, that was my personal win on Sunday, to have held on. That will probably have helped me win a race another day by making me tougher. I am so glad I held on and took a chance when Catriona passed me, I proved to myself that I could fight back.

It hurt, it really hurt. But it felt so good in the end. There is no better feeling in the world than to be coming to that finish line.

The race is over. It was not my fastest time, but I am more proud than ever. The Calgary race was a lesson of mental toughness. Thank you to the race organizers, to Dave and Lisa, to my team mates, to my coach Lance and coach Paul, for having made Calgary very happy after all.