The fun is back... Heart O' Dixie race report...

The fun is (officially) back...

Heart O' Dixie was yesterday and I'm still smiling... Although rumor has it that the distances are a little off, here are the results from the race...

0.5 mi swim: 14:07 (11/41 in AG)
T1: 1:02 (thanks to a helmet malfunction!)
27.5 bike: 1:14:32, avg. 22.1 (10/41 in AG)
T2: 1:47 (1st experience with a point to point race with Transition bags)
7 mi run: 1:08:25, avg. 9:47 (30/41 in AG)
Total time: 2:39:50

How could I not be happy with those numbers? :)
Considering I was ready to hang it up after Sunfish (ok not really), I'm on cloud 9 with these results... I can't say anything really went "wrong" or that I'm not happy with how I did... But I'll critique it anyway!

Got to Starkville on Thursday, just to take a day away from Ttown before the race... Stayed with my friends Jason and Alli, whom I've remained close with from my days at Mississippi State... They were celebrating their 5th Anniversary and had plans to hit NOLA for the weekend... They bounced Friday so I had the house to myself for the weekend... I got to see a few Starkville friends throughout the weekend, but not as many as I would have liked... Long story that I don't care to go into right now...

Spent Friday with a soul crushing sinus headache, thanks to Jason and Alli's cat Murray... When I get a sinus headache, I don't want to do anything: eat, drink, be awake, anything... But I knew I needed to keep hydrating for the race on Saturday... HoD is a dubbed as "The Hottest Race in Mississippi", so I knew that in order to avoid another Sunfish, I had to keep at it...

Met up with Jason's Grad Assistant Brian Franks and his roommate Mike Grimes... Brian, like me, is just getting into Triathlon and, like me, has a voracious appetite for everything it comes with! The three of us rode out to packet pick up together, then drove the bike course to check it out... Amanda Cassell (who I bought my bike from) had told me that the bike course at HoD was nothing like Sunfish and that I'd be ok, but I did want to check it out for myself... Sure enough, it was 27.5 mi of rolling hills, with only one or two "significant" climbs (and by significant, I mean I'd have to maybe spin a little harder, but not actually stand up to climb, and there was nothing like anything at Lake Lurleen, so I knew I was ok)

Also met up with Will on Friday... Alicia (his wife) and daughter Ally were in tow (as usual)... It's always good to see the Matterns! Will and I have become a lot closer in the last year, just because of racing--we text eachother nearly every week (or, rather, I text him nearly every week and he responds)... But, it's one of those things where we may not see eachother for weeks or months at a time, but as soon as we're around one another, it's like old times and we pick right back up where we left off...

3:45 am wake up came early on Saturday... Hadn't slept well Thursday night, so I prayed that I'd get good sleep on Friday night... prayers answered... woke up pretty refreshed and ready to race... Usual pre-race meal of a bagel w/peanut butter, banana, and a Clif Bar... And that's when I started to get nervous about the race... Like I said, HoD is a notoriously hot race, and I don't do particularly well in the heat (who does?)... But I just kept telling myself "Don't worry about it, today is all about finishing... Today is all about fun... Bring the fun back Dave"... I'm glad I listened to myself...

Show up to Louisville (after a minor detour thanks to Brian's lack of navigational skills) and instantly feel the adrenaline coursing through my veins... I sometimes feel a little intimidated by the fancier bikes, race wheels, or aero helmets, but I just kept telling myself that the day was all about fun... To not worry about anything but finishing... That it was gonna be a long day, but that the finish line the 1st place guy crossed was the same one I crossed...

A major gripe I had about T1 was that it wasn't very well "secured".. There were spectators walking all around, and (for lack of a better word), loitering around their friend's or family member's bikes... It was a little aggravating... This was my first point to point race, so I was somewhat nervous about leaving my stuff in Louisville (trans bag), then leaving my bike in T2 on the outskirts of Philadelphia (where the race ended)... Figured if someone wanted my stuff that bad, they could have it... Plus, it'd give me an excuse to buy new stuff ;)

I think the final count on the registration list was around 444, so this was a fairly decent sized race for me... Race start at 6:30am in an effort to beat the heat... I'm #257... Here we go!

2010 Heart O' Dixie Race Report

Swim: Started in Lake Tiak o'Khata, swam a crescent shape, keeping buoys on your right... Water was warm and apparently shallow, although I had no problems bumping into things (until the end, when I ran my foot into a stump... ouch)... I feel like I swam well... I was comfortable, calm, and my stroke felt strong... The day before, Brian and I had caught a swim and I felt like my left bicep/shoulder was strained, so I was a little nervous about how the swim was going to be.... Mid-way through, I remember thinking, "Man, I feel really good, thanks Lord!"... My sighting improved a ton and I really never had to stop to see where I was going (thanks to my buddy J's recommendation to have "alligator eyes" when sighting)... Did manage to swallow some lake water, which choked me... Had to flip on my back to cough it out... Probably lost a few seconds on that, but oh well... Swim Time: 14:07

T1: Run into T1 and it's a total jam... People walking, standing, reading newspapers... Hell people this is a race! Get outta my way! Learning from Sunfish, I practiced my swim exit to bike rack route, then the bike rack to bike out route... Thank goodness I did, cause I had to "re-route" to get to the bike exit... But probably saved myself 10 secs in the process.... Huge mishap in T1 though: Kendrick had let me borrow his Rudy Project Wingspan TT Aero Helment again for this race... I was pretty sure I'd use it, even though it hadn't done me well at Sunfish (at least I think it didn't, but it was probably the hills that didn't do me well)... The chinstrap was a bit snug at Sunfish, so I rigged a hair tie (don't ask why I have them) to hold the clasp into place, because it kept slipping off....

So I manage to get to my bike in T1 pretty quick... pick up the helmet, put it on my head, and... and.... and.... shit! The clasp had fallen off at some point!! Dammit!! I sort of hit the panic button, but ended up ditching the aero helmet for another one I had... THANK GOD I had brought another helmet to the race!! It would have cost me MINUTES in T1! Despite the helmet malfunction in T1, I felt like it went pretty well... Managed the flying mount and got my feet into my shoes pretty quick (without any malfunctions like at Sunfish where a velcro strap came out of the eyelet of the shoe, and I rode the entire course with it undone). T1 Time: 1:02

Bike: Man, what can I say about this bike course... I loved it!! There's a short stretch from transition to the main bike route, but after you're on it (Hwy 15), it's a straight shot to T2... Totally awesome ride... Felt super comfortable, strong, and under control... I did keep telling myself to save some legs for the run, but I was feeling so good (and under control, i.e. heart rate was low, breathing was good, no side stitches) that I decided to hammer anyway... I wanted to stay in the double digits on climbs, which I did, so I was happy about that... The advantage I have on the bike is my size... I have big (some say powerful) legs to manage climbs, and the weight to gain serious speed on downhills... So I used that to my advantage.. .Looking back now, sure, I could have hammered on some of the downhills, but I wanted to play it conservative, since I heard the run was nothing but "heat and hills" (according the race website)... Midway through the bike, it hit me: I was having fun... So I just kept saying, "Thank you Lord, the fun is back! The fun is back!" Bike Time: 1:14:32, avg. 22.1 mph

T2: T2 was my own fault... The day before, we hadn't actually checked out where T2 was going to be, so coming into Philly, I wasn't quite sure where I was going... the last 0.5 mi or so I took it fairly easy... Feet came out of the shoes (in hopes the left one would not be numb by the time I got on the run) and I put it in a lower gear to spin out a little bit, to hopefully keep the legs loose for the run... Come into T2 and volunteers are supposed to direct you to your bike box and T2 bag... Well, I come into T2 and no one seems to be directing me, so I start shouting... Like, MAD shouting... Damn near screaming... Some poor sap jogs beside me and tells me where to go... Get to my box, rack my bike, rip open my bag... Grab hat, race belt, Garmin, gel, and in a split second, decide to go sockless on the run.... Head out of T2, sort of nervous about the "7 miles of heat and hills" ahead of me... T2 Time: 1:47

Run: The run... hmmm the run... As we all know, this is my weakest discipline, mainly because of my size and weight... not that I haven't improved greatly, because I have, but I knew that I didn't need to push myself hard in the first 20 mins or I'd have to walk at some point, which I didn't want to do... After Sunfish, I made a promise to myself that I'd never walk on a run again--I may run super slow, but I'm never going to walk again... It was embarassing...

I started off strong, legs felt good and strong, breathing was good... then nature called during the first mile... had to take a pit stop behind a bush (and thank goodness I did, cause I wouldn't have made it and might have had to pee in someone's front yard!)... So I'm back on the run and feeling decent... checking the Garmin for pace every few minutes, but telling myself not to worry about it, that it was all about finishing today... Amanda Cassell had also told me that the run wasn't a full 7 miles, that it was just over 6, so I knew I could handle that... (Turns out it was just UNDER 7, not just OVER 6)

The run felt "good"... There were a few hills, but nothing that destroyed my legs or breathing... I stayed under control the whole time... An old friend from college, Mary Stephens Ruffin, ended up running up beside me and said, "Hey I know you!"... After me not having a clue, then her telling me, we had a good laugh and she passed me up... Ended up catching up to her a little while later as she was walking and convinced her to run with me... We made it maybe half a mile before she suggested we walk... I told her, "I'm gonna run, I have the goal to run the whole thing, but I can slow down if you need me to"... She tells me "No way, keep running you're doing great!".... So I forge on...

The "fan" support was pretty awesome along the way... people were sitting out in lawn chairs, some spraying hoses across the course for a little relief from the heat (which didn't get bad until the last mile or so)... you can tell the people of Neshoba County look forward to this race every year.

So the "gimmick" (in my opinion) of HoD is that you run through the Neshoba County Fairgrounds, and around the red clay/dirt track to the finish line... So by this time, I know I'm getting close.... I'm running and running and running, and I see my buddy Alex Woodard (fellow Bama Tri member) at some sort of restroom or concession stand just outside the fairgrounds... I yell out to him, kind of a "Hey buddy I see you" acknowledgement, and he starts cheering for me! I keep running and boom, Alex pops up next to me! Mind you, he WON the race overall and still had enough juice to run with me for the last mile or so (ahh, to be 22 again)....

So we're running, and Alex is super supportive the entire time... "Come on Dave, you got this man"..."Just a little further dude, lookin good!".... "You're strong right now, you're gonna do this!"... What a class act... I'm totally blessed to know guys like this....

I get on the track and know I've got about 0.25 miles left.... and this is when the exhaustion started to set in... Alex was there with me though, laughing and joking and encouraging me... We turn the last corner towards the finish line and I see Tuscaloosa Triathlete Brian Darr (he was a race official)... I say, "Mr. Brian Darr!" kind of as a joke... He responds, "Alex, get away from him before I give him a 2 minute"... What a dick! First, I know Brian, and he knows that I'm not some cheap racer who's going to have someone pace me to the finish line... Second, he knows Alex, and knows that Alex wouldn't pace anyone to the finish line! I do think he was kind of joking, but it kinda pissed me off because I saw non racers running or walking with racers who were about to finish.... Oh well... Run Time: 1:08:25, avg 9:47/mi

Cross the finish line... Boom... Final Time: 2:39:50

I really had no idea of my final time, since the race clock is always different from what your time is... But I knew I had finished under 3 hours on the race clock... Finishing in under 3 hours was a goal (honestly, I thought it'd take me more like 3.5)... So 2:39:50 was awesome for me... I FINALLY beat Will at a race! This time, by a mere THREE seconds!! My swim absolutely saved me from him this race... He had a better T1 time, a better bike split by 3 seconds, and a better run pace by 16 seconds... My swim was 2:04 better than his, which clearly made all the difference... I'm tellin ya, once I get my run better, I think I'll be able to get closer to Will with each race... It's fun to compete with him, since we both know it's in good fun...

Heart O' Dixie represented something big to me... 1) it's the longest race I've ever done (even if the distances were off), 2) I did well... much better than I expected, 3) what I've been doing in training is paying off, 4) I've now proven to myself that I can do longer races, 5) the fun is back

The fun is back

I can't believe it took HoD, a long race, to make me "get the fun back"... Maybe this is a flash in the pan, but I'm hoping this is a turning point for me... I hope that I can continue to not take Triathlon too seriously and just compete against myself (until I get stronger and faster!)... Sure, I'd like to place, or even be top 10 in my AG, but I think that'll take time... I haven't even been racing a full year yet, so I know that a year from now, or two years from now, is when I think I'll really start to hit my stride...

To think that my first race swim was a 1/3 mi swim (roughly 600m) @ 14:58, and yesterday, I swam 0.5 mi (roughly 800m) in 14:07... Improving is neat...

Thanks for reading...