This was my "A" race of the season. I wanted redemption. I attempted this tri two years ago when it was at Sylvan Lake but had problems with the swim and had a DNF. Last year I did the olympic distance and was okay in the open water. This was my year to finish up some business.
I trained so hard for this race. My friend Carley was with my the whole way. We did our long bike rides together almost every week. We swam in her community lake several times a week. We started as soon as the ice was off the lake. We would come out with blue lips.
Now you need to know Carley, she is hilarious. Doing anything with Carley is bound to involve sarcasm, laughter and a few mishaps. Carley is just getting into tri's and had decided to do the Calgary 70.3 w
this year. She is one tough lady and pushed me every ride and swim.
Some of our adventures:
-losing each other in the lake
-dropping my "balls" on our long bike ride (energy balls) and then almost getting run over retrieving them
-convincing Carley to ride the Road to Nepal. I told her it was gently rolling hills. She still hasn't forgiven me for that one.
-freaking out Carley's husband and boys by leaving my swimming ear wax (not real ear wax) in various places in their house
The Chinook Tri was moved from Sylvan Lake to Calgary this year and from August to June. It was a bit of a challenge to get ready for the early date. The swimming was the hardest. I needed to get as much open water time in as I could. That meant so many super cold swims. It still takes away my breath to put my face in the water the first time. Luckily we had a nice spring and I could spend a lot of time training outside.
I trained so hard for this race. My friend Carley was with my the whole way. We did our long bike rides together almost every week. We swam in her community lake several times a week. We started as soon as the ice was off the lake. We would come out with blue lips.
Now you need to know Carley, she is hilarious. Doing anything with Carley is bound to involve sarcasm, laughter and a few mishaps. Carley is just getting into tri's and had decided to do the Calgary 70.3 w
this year. She is one tough lady and pushed me every ride and swim.
Some of our adventures:
-losing each other in the lake
-dropping my "balls" on our long bike ride (energy balls) and then almost getting run over retrieving them
-convincing Carley to ride the Road to Nepal. I told her it was gently rolling hills. She still hasn't forgiven me for that one.
-freaking out Carley's husband and boys by leaving my swimming ear wax (not real ear wax) in various places in their house
The Chinook Tri was moved from Sylvan Lake to Calgary this year and from August to June. It was a bit of a challenge to get ready for the early date. The swimming was the hardest. I needed to get as much open water time in as I could. That meant so many super cold swims. It still takes away my breath to put my face in the water the first time. Luckily we had a nice spring and I could spend a lot of time training outside.
Carley and Sandra on one of our crazy ride adventures.
I was also able to ride with my tri hero Camilla. She is my inspiration. Whenever we get to ride together I feel like I'm riding with a rock star. She's completed tons on ironmans and is just hard core.
The day of the tri was perfect weather. It started off cool but the day didn't get too hot.
Emily, Missy, Melissa, Jody and Carley came to see me off. I was glad to have them there. It helped to keep me calm.
Emily, Missy, Melissa, Jody and Carley came to see me off. I was glad to have them there. It helped to keep me calm.
The Chinook Triathlon isn't a big race.
The swim was a mass start. I still get a panicky with an open water swim. My strategy was to just sing a song over and over and thats what I did. I sang "I am a child of God." It took my mind off my nerves and pretty soon I was on my way and going around the bouys. The swim is two loops of the course. After the first loop you have to get out and run on the beach then back in. My first lap was faster than the second one. I was so glad to see the dock and to get out of the water. Another strategy I had was to just focus on each event. Treat the race like three separate things.
Swim-check-done.
I knew this would be the hardest part for me and I was pretty sure barring any big catastrophe I would be able to finish the race.
Swim-check-done.
I knew this would be the hardest part for me and I was pretty sure barring any big catastrophe I would be able to finish the race.
A big smile, I was done the swim
T1
Everything was in a bag so I just took it and dumped it out. I wasn't sure what to wear. I'm always cold and tend to overdress and I didn't want to overheat on the ride. There is always a lot of adrenaline in transition and I made the rookie mistake of putting my helmet on first. I then attempted to put my jersey on next. That didn't go too well. Luckily Camilla was just coming through transition to start her race and gave me a hand getting dressed.
Everything was in a bag so I just took it and dumped it out. I wasn't sure what to wear. I'm always cold and tend to overdress and I didn't want to overheat on the ride. There is always a lot of adrenaline in transition and I made the rookie mistake of putting my helmet on first. I then attempted to put my jersey on next. That didn't go too well. Luckily Camilla was just coming through transition to start her race and gave me a hand getting dressed.
T1-still some bikes left, I wasn't last.
I made it out of transition and on the the bike ride. Right away I was second guessing my clothing choice. I was still wet and the breeze from being on the bike made it cold. Oh well too late to worry about that.
Jill, my friend from work, and her two boys were out on the course with signs. It gave me a good boost to see them.
For the first half hour of the race I felt off. I was coughing, I think I had inhaled some water, felt short of breath, and felt like I was bonking. I was going so slow. People were passing me. One lady yelled out," You're going to be cold you should have put more clothes on." I'm not sure why people feel the need to do say things like that. What was I going to do, turn around and ride back and put another layer on. The joke was on her...Once the day warmed up a bit she was pulled over taking off clothes and she had no where to stash her nice fleece pants.
I had to try and figure out what was going on and get my act together or this was going to be one long bike ride. I started going over things in my mind,
did I need food.....yes lets eat something, I reached into my bento box to get my favorite bike food (roasted baby potatoes with lots of salt) and dropped it. Try again, success.
Thirsty....yes have a good drink.
My mind....I was getting a bit worried that I wasn't going to make cut off times. "You know you can do this. You've biked this route before and you know you can make the cut off. You can do hard things."
My bike.....oh ya, I took my front wheel off yesterday to transport my bike, When I set up my bike I forgot to check that my brakes weren't rubbing. I meant to do it when I arrived for the race but forgot, then I meant to do it in T1 and forgot again. I very carefully reached down, being careful to not catch my fingers in the spokes and adjusted the brakes. I discovered that they were pushed way off to one side and were rubbing. Finally my bike felt better. It was a terrible thirty minutes and I was glad to get out of that funk.
The rest of the ride went without a hitch. I knew the course well and the hills and wind didn't bother me. I had trained on hills and in wind all spring. As I was turning off the highway into the final kilometer of the bike I started to cry. I knew I could do this. I knew even if I walked the whole run portion I would still make the cutoff. All my hard work had paid off.
I road into transition and my whole family was there cheering me on. They pointed the way to my run gear and told me I was doing ok. Emily was right on the other side of the fence from were I was getting ready for the run. I was pretty hilarious.
Me: 'I can do this right?"
Emily: "Yes mom!"
Me: "I need to change my shoes right?"
Emily: "Yes mom."
Me: "Do I have my helmet off?" asked probably 10 times in the few minutes I was in T2
Emily: "It's off mom." patient every time
Me: " I can do this right?"
Emily: " Mom you can so do this!"
Me: "Which way do I go?"
Emily, pointing out the way
Me: "Where are the outhouses?"
Emily, pointing the same way, "Right there."
Me: "Where, I don't see them?"
Emily: "All those grey things, just start running you will see them."
I'm sure Emily thought I had lost my mind. I thought I had lost my mind.
A quick stop in the bathroom and I was off on a 21.1km run.
The run was two loops of the course. Not bad except there was a long hill just before the turn around/end so that meant up that hill twice.
I started off not bad but quickly realized I had not taken in enough fuel during my bike ride. I ended up having to run/walk. I would run until I felt like I couldn't move another step and then I would walk.
Just after the first turn around Melissa met me on her bike. It was so good to see someone I knew. She would ride beside me and cheer me on. She would ride ahead and then wait for me. It was just what I needed.
At the last turn before the big hill Carley met me. I told her when she saw me she needed to yell at me, "Hawryluk, get going." She did just that. Carley had already run the olympic triathlon and then she ran/walked with me. I had a bit a melt down. I was so whinny. She was good, just encouraging me along. She ran up the hill and a bit further then told me to go to the turn around and do it one more time. Even though it was hard there was no point where I thought I would quit or I couldn't do it.
At the half way point, all the family was there cheering and encouraging me to go on. Jody was there and was cheering the loudest. At the turn around they had a bunch of food. I knew they had chocolate chip cookies and I was really looking forward to one. I grabbed one, took on bite and new that was not going down.
Back down the hill, through the aid stations to the last turn around and on the home ward stretch. Who should I see but Liam on Melissa's bike. I love this kid so much. He can give me a hard time but I'll tell you when it comes to a coach he is the best.
"Mom, how are you doing? Do you need me to take anything for you?"
He kept pushing me on. "Mom, you can go a little further. I'll ride my bike up a bit and you run to it and then you can walk."
I remember on my first ever long run Liam, who was about 14 said, "Remember not to think about far you have to go, think about how far you've gone." On every long run, when I'm at that breaking point, I think of his advice and it helps me to keep going.
It's the hill again and who is there. Carley, It was like an angel. She entertained me as I ran and walked up the hill. Carley and I worked hard all summer. We were on this journey together and she was there to see me up the last little bit. Carley and Liam got me to the top of the hill and Melissa was there with her sign and yelling like crazy. Carley and Liam left me and Melissa ran in with me.
As I got to the finish line I started to cry. I wanted this so bad and I had done it. My hard work had paid off. As I was running through the finish line I saw my tri hero Camilla handing out medals. She had run the Olympic and was now volunteering at the finish line. The race couldn't have been ended any better. I was so excited to see her and it meant the world to me to have her put my medal around my neck. She gave me a big hug. There was Jody, the kids and Carley. Carley was bawling. She had warned me she would be. We gave each other a big hug.
Jill, my friend from work, and her two boys were out on the course with signs. It gave me a good boost to see them.
For the first half hour of the race I felt off. I was coughing, I think I had inhaled some water, felt short of breath, and felt like I was bonking. I was going so slow. People were passing me. One lady yelled out," You're going to be cold you should have put more clothes on." I'm not sure why people feel the need to do say things like that. What was I going to do, turn around and ride back and put another layer on. The joke was on her...Once the day warmed up a bit she was pulled over taking off clothes and she had no where to stash her nice fleece pants.
I had to try and figure out what was going on and get my act together or this was going to be one long bike ride. I started going over things in my mind,
did I need food.....yes lets eat something, I reached into my bento box to get my favorite bike food (roasted baby potatoes with lots of salt) and dropped it. Try again, success.
Thirsty....yes have a good drink.
My mind....I was getting a bit worried that I wasn't going to make cut off times. "You know you can do this. You've biked this route before and you know you can make the cut off. You can do hard things."
My bike.....oh ya, I took my front wheel off yesterday to transport my bike, When I set up my bike I forgot to check that my brakes weren't rubbing. I meant to do it when I arrived for the race but forgot, then I meant to do it in T1 and forgot again. I very carefully reached down, being careful to not catch my fingers in the spokes and adjusted the brakes. I discovered that they were pushed way off to one side and were rubbing. Finally my bike felt better. It was a terrible thirty minutes and I was glad to get out of that funk.
The rest of the ride went without a hitch. I knew the course well and the hills and wind didn't bother me. I had trained on hills and in wind all spring. As I was turning off the highway into the final kilometer of the bike I started to cry. I knew I could do this. I knew even if I walked the whole run portion I would still make the cutoff. All my hard work had paid off.
I road into transition and my whole family was there cheering me on. They pointed the way to my run gear and told me I was doing ok. Emily was right on the other side of the fence from were I was getting ready for the run. I was pretty hilarious.
Me: 'I can do this right?"
Emily: "Yes mom!"
Me: "I need to change my shoes right?"
Emily: "Yes mom."
Me: "Do I have my helmet off?" asked probably 10 times in the few minutes I was in T2
Emily: "It's off mom." patient every time
Me: " I can do this right?"
Emily: " Mom you can so do this!"
Me: "Which way do I go?"
Emily, pointing out the way
Me: "Where are the outhouses?"
Emily, pointing the same way, "Right there."
Me: "Where, I don't see them?"
Emily: "All those grey things, just start running you will see them."
I'm sure Emily thought I had lost my mind. I thought I had lost my mind.
A quick stop in the bathroom and I was off on a 21.1km run.
The run was two loops of the course. Not bad except there was a long hill just before the turn around/end so that meant up that hill twice.
I started off not bad but quickly realized I had not taken in enough fuel during my bike ride. I ended up having to run/walk. I would run until I felt like I couldn't move another step and then I would walk.
Just after the first turn around Melissa met me on her bike. It was so good to see someone I knew. She would ride beside me and cheer me on. She would ride ahead and then wait for me. It was just what I needed.
At the last turn before the big hill Carley met me. I told her when she saw me she needed to yell at me, "Hawryluk, get going." She did just that. Carley had already run the olympic triathlon and then she ran/walked with me. I had a bit a melt down. I was so whinny. She was good, just encouraging me along. She ran up the hill and a bit further then told me to go to the turn around and do it one more time. Even though it was hard there was no point where I thought I would quit or I couldn't do it.
At the half way point, all the family was there cheering and encouraging me to go on. Jody was there and was cheering the loudest. At the turn around they had a bunch of food. I knew they had chocolate chip cookies and I was really looking forward to one. I grabbed one, took on bite and new that was not going down.
Back down the hill, through the aid stations to the last turn around and on the home ward stretch. Who should I see but Liam on Melissa's bike. I love this kid so much. He can give me a hard time but I'll tell you when it comes to a coach he is the best.
"Mom, how are you doing? Do you need me to take anything for you?"
He kept pushing me on. "Mom, you can go a little further. I'll ride my bike up a bit and you run to it and then you can walk."
I remember on my first ever long run Liam, who was about 14 said, "Remember not to think about far you have to go, think about how far you've gone." On every long run, when I'm at that breaking point, I think of his advice and it helps me to keep going.
It's the hill again and who is there. Carley, It was like an angel. She entertained me as I ran and walked up the hill. Carley and I worked hard all summer. We were on this journey together and she was there to see me up the last little bit. Carley and Liam got me to the top of the hill and Melissa was there with her sign and yelling like crazy. Carley and Liam left me and Melissa ran in with me.
As I got to the finish line I started to cry. I wanted this so bad and I had done it. My hard work had paid off. As I was running through the finish line I saw my tri hero Camilla handing out medals. She had run the Olympic and was now volunteering at the finish line. The race couldn't have been ended any better. I was so excited to see her and it meant the world to me to have her put my medal around my neck. She gave me a big hug. There was Jody, the kids and Carley. Carley was bawling. She had warned me she would be. We gave each other a big hug.
Results
Overall time: 6:48:49.6
Age group place 3/4
Swim Time: 42:55
Age Group Place 3/4
T1: 4:20.1
Bike Time: 3:24:49.1
Age Group Place: 4/4
T2: 2:54.5
Run: 2:33:51
Age Group Place 3/4
I actual got an extra plaque because I won third in my age group. (There were only four but hey I'll take it)
Overall time: 6:48:49.6
Age group place 3/4
Swim Time: 42:55
Age Group Place 3/4
T1: 4:20.1
Bike Time: 3:24:49.1
Age Group Place: 4/4
T2: 2:54.5
Run: 2:33:51
Age Group Place 3/4
I actual got an extra plaque because I won third in my age group. (There were only four but hey I'll take it)
I'm so grateful that I can do this crazy thing called triathlon. I have a husband who supports me. He never says a word when I get to do yet another work out, when I slack off at home, when we need to get home early so I can get to bed so I can get up early to run or bike or swim. He rides his bike with me and always tells me I'm amazing.
I appreciate my kids and grandkids. They keep me going. They come out and cheer me on. They ask how things are going and they sacrifice spending time with me.
My work friends are the best. They encourage me to go to the gym and never roll their eyes, in front of me, when I'm talking tri around them. They tease me and keep me laughing and from taking myself to serious. They hold me accountable to going to the gym at crazy hours of the night and didn't judge me the time I told them I was going to the gym but went to McDonalds and had a big Mac, fries and McFlurry instead.
I'm particularly grateful and proud of Carley. I really don't know if I would have got through the volume of training with out her by my side. There was never a dull moment. Her and her family were always gracious in allowing me access to their home and lake so I could swim. I'm so darn proud of Carley who decided she was going to do a half ironman her second year into tris and owned her race a month later on a blistering hot day. It was my turn to shed tears for her as she crossed the finish line. You are a beast Carley.
I appreciate my kids and grandkids. They keep me going. They come out and cheer me on. They ask how things are going and they sacrifice spending time with me.
My work friends are the best. They encourage me to go to the gym and never roll their eyes, in front of me, when I'm talking tri around them. They tease me and keep me laughing and from taking myself to serious. They hold me accountable to going to the gym at crazy hours of the night and didn't judge me the time I told them I was going to the gym but went to McDonalds and had a big Mac, fries and McFlurry instead.
I'm particularly grateful and proud of Carley. I really don't know if I would have got through the volume of training with out her by my side. There was never a dull moment. Her and her family were always gracious in allowing me access to their home and lake so I could swim. I'm so darn proud of Carley who decided she was going to do a half ironman her second year into tris and owned her race a month later on a blistering hot day. It was my turn to shed tears for her as she crossed the finish line. You are a beast Carley.