First of all it was AMAZING to finally see my sweetie. Training away from him is always hard, and finally being together was such a good feeling. He really helps keep me feeling grounded, loved and supported. I also got to see my parents for the first time since November, so that was great too!
Training went well the few days before the race. Dave and I did a nice 3K fartlek on Friday at a nice park that Nick and Katie showed us. I moved great, hitting 14:21 with plenty in the tank. That was a great confidence booster.
The morning of the race came and we were ready to go. Warm up went well, I kept myself focused, even though it was at the expense of being social. Hopefully everyone understood! The Star Spangled Banner was sung (quite well I might add) and the men were off. The women started 2 minutes later. This is for records purposes, because apparently women automatically walk faster when there's men around? (Please notice my extreme sarcasm....) What it really meant was that all the people I could've been working with were two minutes ahead of me and I basically walked the entire race on my own. That's okay, I'm used to walking solo, but I do like having someone to share the pain... I mean the fun with :)
I started off just exactly where I wanted to be, just a few ticks under 5:30 per K pace, which would get me to the 4:35:00 time that is the World Team Championship qualifying time. I maintained that pace easily through half way, feeling great and smooth. I had zero paddles too, which was a great confidence booster.
But, once half way hit the temperature started to soar. I know I went to St. George to train in better weather, and it was! But really I never trained in anything over 50 degrees while I was there. I tried to wear layers and stay as warm as I could, but it's just not the same as the ambient temperature hitting 90. So I started to slow. My second half was significantly slower than my first, so I finished at 4:44:26. My 10K splits were as follows: 54:37 - 54:43 - 55:19 - 59:13 - 60:34. Obviously I slowed down. I did manage to make my last 5K not my slowest, which was nice, but by that point that wasn't saying a whole lot. At least getting under 4:45:00 means I have the qualifying time for Pan Am Cup in 2017 if they host another women's event, so that's one thing to check off my list.
I'm also quite happy that I stayed positive the whole race, even when I knew I wasn't going to hit the 4:35 time standard. I'd really been working for it, really wanted it, and it was quite frustrating to slip like that, especially since I still feel like I could've hit the time if the weather had stayed cooler. I know I need to be able to race in any/all conditions, and I'm not trying to use it as an excuse. I know I need to get stronger so I can do those times even in adverse conditions, but for a race as important as this one was for all of us it would've been nice if the weather gods had smiled on us a little more favorably.
And I'm very happy to retain my title! There were super strong ladies out there, with Loretta doing her first 50K ever and smashing an awesome time of just under 5:16. Susan Armenta, who held the 50K American record for 12 years before I took it, came out of her race walking retirement and looked so strong out there, finishing a solid third. Katie Grimes, Mrs. Consistent had a strong race, pushing through and being the oldest woman finisher out there. Carmen couldn't quite make the time cutoff, but stuck it out. I know there were moments she was thinking of stopping, but she stayed strong. And thus women continue their streak of a perfect record of no DNFs!
I will say that the prize money is well received as well. That money will help fund training and traveling expenses. And who knows, I may do a little something fun with it too ;)
This was the first time I didn't hit my goal time in a 50K that I was really focused on. This was a real mental blow to me, but I know I gave it everything I had. I finished the race with zero paddles and am feeling solid about my technique and how that will cross over into 20K speed. Time to start getting ready for 20K races!
The two 50K couples. Note that the wives came out victorious over their hubbies!
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