Live Life, Share Life: Lake Norman Triathlon

One of the highlights of every summer for the last 5 years has been the Lake Norman Triathlon put on by none other than the Lake Norman YMCA in Davidson, NC. The preparations for this event begin around January 3rd when the event opens for registration. The event is usually filled within the first couple hours and then it is closed!!!

By far the best part about this race is not the event, but instead what this event represents - a carrot dangling in front of my nose driving me on to doing silly things like going to bed at midnight but still waking up at 6AM all summer long to run and bike. Without that carrot I would have slept in more mornings than I can count - and looking back now, those would have been wasted mornings. Instead, I can look back, tally up the mileage, check the ol resting heart rate, and feel really good about how I spent the summer mornings.

This year's race was very different for me in that I did not have hardly any pre-race jitters or butterflies. I think I know it so well that it has become a really comfortable race - in that there are no logistical surprises which certainly reduces the stress of the event.

The morning started with my alarm going off at 5:00 AM, immediate breakfast consisting of 1/4 cup of oatmeal, handful of raisins, and some water. Head upstairs, get dressed in my race attire, brush teeth, then head to the car. 25 minute drive to the race venue, top off the tires to about 100 psi, and roll to the transition area. Get things set up, get my race number tatooed on my arms, legs, and calf. Quick warmup bike, quick warmup run, bathroom stop, and straight to the swim start at 7AM. I was in the Mens 30 - 35 age group which was the 3rd swim wave to head out this morning at 7:08. Even though I did a pathetically small amount of swim training this year, my focus on form paid off with the easiest swim in the last five years. Coming up out of the swim finish and running to transition is always fun b/c Karin and the girls usually make it to cheer me on - this year was no different. THANK YOU Karin for waking up ridiculously early and dragging 3 sleepy kids to this race - it means a lot to me. On of our Young Life leaders, Matt Johnson, also made it to the swim exit with Karin to also cheer me on - Matt, you are a stud!!

The bike was really good. This year the course was about 4 miles shorter due to some road construction adjustments and it added a 3rd big hill to the previous 2 big hills on the course. Last year I felt that the hills were a weakness for me so in training this year I incorprated a fair amount of hill repeats and it paid off. I felt really strong on the hills and took advantage of that to pass a lot of people. Rain hit at about 1 mile to go but did not cause any major problems.

The run was a lot harder than I had planned for. The previous week I had come out to the venue to ride the bike course twice and then hit the run at about 90%. That day I felt really good and got my running legs under me within .5 mile. Race day was another story....you can never quite simulate how hard you are going to be going on the bike and how deep into the red zone you will push your body. Today I never fully got my running legs under me - I felt 75% there by 2 miles in and that was as good as it got. I think my deficiency was muscular - need to continue my weight training into the season next year....

My cheering squad was augmented by my most faithful cheerleaders outside of Karin - Bruce and Lynn showed up for the 5th year in a row I think to cheer me on - thank you guys - it is awesome to be able to share the morning with you and to be able to talk about the race afterwards. I know you love my hill by hill detailed stories :)

We hit the food tent for some recovery nutrition and found PB&J's, bannanas, grapes, and strawberries. There was also this vendor giving away a Red Bull like drink called Xs. This lady was telling me all the wonderful nutritional value of the product and behind me, Ellie and Ava managed to grab a couple shots of "Red Bull" before I noticed and slammed them back. Maybe that explains their INSANE energy today...

I showered up in the YMCA locker rooms, packed up, and headed to the jeep located on Pecan and Church street for the drive to Bruce and Lynn's house for a KILLER brunch of bagels, eggs, bacon, OJ, and more. We ate outside on their amazing back deck - it was SOOOOOOOOO nice.

Then on the way home I stopped over in River Run where a bunch of local Highland Creeker's were having a post triathlon party which they were kind enough to invite me to. It was great to meet a bunch of people I did not know and hopefully get connected with some local tri-geeks to start training with.

Race Results:

- 9th out of 42 in my age group (30 - 35).

- 69th out of 365 in the overall male category.

Overall....amazing day. One of the best of the summer.

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