USA Triathlon Pro Nationals

As soon as I returned to the OTC in Colorado Springs, I went straight to training for my first USA Professional Triathlon National Championships! This is the big time…I would be lined up at the starting line next to the best in the country…women who I have watched for 10 years be at the top of the world in triathlon. I only had two weeks between the open water competitions and the Nationals in Bellingham, Washington (Bellingham was a really cute small town about 3 hours outside of Seattle).
A little explanation regarding the categories in the race: this race is the USA Pro Nationals…but it was also the U23 Nationals. Since all the U23 competitors must be pros…we were all in the same race as the elite/older pros. So at the finish line I would get a national place among all the pros in the country…and I would also get a national place as a U23 competitor. The top 3 finishers will qualify for the Elite World Champs and the top 2 U23 finishers will qualify for the U23 World Champs.
Last year this race was an Olympic qualifier…and it was really COLD on race day…and the lake was nice and cold for a wetsuit legal swim. Fortunately, this year…it was warm and the lake was above 68 degrees so no wetsuits were allowed! I was the 12th ranked American at the race…pretty nice for a rookie:)! The other members of the U23 team, who I have been traveling with and competing with all year were all ranked near me…Jasmine was about 10th, Jenna was 11th, Caitlin was 13th…it was great to show that the future of this sport was right up there with the best!
The swim was 2 loops with a quick water exit to run around the boat dock in between laps…the bike was 6 laps with the BIGGEST HILL I have ever climbed in a race (more on that later)…the run was 4 out-and-back loops on a flat and shady road.
The fact that this MASSIVE hill was on the course…and the fact that I am NOT the best hill climber…factored into my race strategy. The strategy wasn’t much different than previous races…but here it is anyways: HAUL BUTT ON THE SWIM FOR THE BIGGEST LEAD I COULD POSSIBLY GET!!!...and then take it easy on the first lap of the bike to warm up my legs and not kill myself up the hill the first time. I exited the water with a 50 second lead over Barb Lindquist…and she had a 30 second lead over the chase pack. My first bike lap was entirely by myself…I was caught by Barb at the top of the hill on the second lap…we worked together on the third lap and then she left me on the third hill climb. On the fourth lap I was caught by the chase pack containing Jazzy-Jasmine and the eventual race winner, Becky Lavell. I was able to get a bit of drafting on that lap and then completed the 5th and 6th laps alone focusing on: “Just getting up that STUPID hill 2 more times!!” I entered transition in 8th place and headed out for the run as the 2nd U23…only Jasmine was ahead of me. The first half of the run I felt really good…And then things just started going down hill. At one of the turn-arounds, I noticed that Caitlin (my U23 teammate) was really closing the gap and catching me! I had to totally red-line it to get back to the finish line before her and get my slot on the World Champ team. It was painful…and I only held her off by 3 seconds…she had an amazing race! I collapsed at the finish line and spent about an hour in the ambulance drinking a lot of fluid and having my vital stats monitored. After a bit, I felt much better and got out to cheer for the guys race…but then about an hour later I started feeling really sick and ended up getting back in the ambulance to go to the hospital for 3 hours…2 bags of IV fluids, lots of blood tests, and more!
Eventually, I was released and went back to the hotel for a much-needed solid nights sleep:)! (I would like to thank Cliff, one of my coaches who went to the hospital with me that day.) The next morning we all drove back to the Seattle airport for our respective flights home.