'24 Whitewater off-road triathlon recap

On Saturday 5/4 we kicked off the first race in our racing block:

💫Whitewater Off-Road Triathlon (Charlotte, NC)

💫Ironman 70.3 Gulf Coast (Panama City Beach, FL)

💫Xterra Oak Mountain (Pelham, Alabama)

Three races over three weeks.

We define a racing block as 2+ races within a 4-ish week time frame. Although we've completed racing blocks in the past, this race block approach is unique in that we have been training on three different bikes (road, TT, mountain bike) and running on road and trail. Preparing for events with different skills, terrain and physiological demands has been fun for us as it adds variety to training and keeps our body and mind sharp.

We love racing blocks as it is the culmination of several months of periodized training and intentional overload. Knowing that there won't be much "training" between each race, arriving to a racing block healthy, fit, strong and resilient is the goal.

Within each race of the racing block, we will recover quickly, sharpen and race again. This allows us to get familiar with the dynamics of racing: understanding race intensity, managing nerves/emotions, nailing sport nutrition, execution, perfecting transitions, stretching the comfort zone. After each race, the confidence and excitement builds for the next race.

After this racing block we will recover from three weeks of racing and then build into our next training block as we prepare for our XTRI events:

⭐Karel: 6/29 Stonebrixiaman (Italy)

⭐Marni: 8/3 Norseman (Norway)

We drove to the Whitewater Center around 9am. We got stuck in a little traffic and arrived a little after 11am. We quickly changed into our cycling gear and I rode the first few miles of the race course and Karel rode the last few miles. We regrouped at the parking lot at noon to meet with four athletes attending our MTB skills clinic. 

We started in the gravel parking lot, working on skills like stopping, balancing, cornering and "rowing." We then headed on to the race course. We spent the next few hours riding the race course and stopping at specific sections that required a certain skill set. Karel rode in the front and I rode in the middle to help call out advice for certain sections, like "seat down." 

We were really impressed with the skills of our campers as they showed great awareness and ability to make quick decisions. It was also a great opportunity for me to recon this course as the Whitewater Center trails are extremely technical. Although there are some challenging sections requiring a lot of power and skills, the most challenging part for me is the tight turns on roots and between trees. The single tracks are really narrow and filled with jagged rocks or roots. I have improved a lot with my ability to go over rocky and rooty sections but my struggle continues to be tight turns at faster speeds. 

After the ride, it started the drizzle and we finished the session around 4pm. We changed and waited around until packet-pickup at 5pm (they opened early so we were able to check in at 4:45pm). We drove ~20 min to our friend's house to stay for the night. Karel had sushi and mashed potatoes and I had leftover spaghetti w/ veggie meat sauce and mushrooms. We were both very tired so we went to sleep around 8pm and slept great throughout the night. 

We woke up at 4:50am, at our pre-race meal (bagel + PB and jam for me, oatmeal for Karel) and got ready for the race. We left around 5:55pm to drive the 20 min to the venue. It was wet outside from overnight rain and the forecast was showing heavy rain around 10am. 

Thankfully no rain when we arrived. This was a small event with first come first serve in the transition area. We set up our transition and then gathered our swim gear to make our way to the water. This race is unique in that there is a half mile run from the swim to T1 on a gravel path so it's advised to leave shoes by the water for after the swim. 

The race meeting was at 7:15am at the dock and the race started a little late, around 7:45pm. 
The water was fresh (around 67 degrees) but felt great after a short warmup. I have been experiencing some anxiety around open water swimming ever since ICON XTRI so this was a good opportunity to work through some of those negative thoughts. 

When the race started (in water start) I went strong for several minutes and then settled into a good rhythm. I was 3rd out of the water. I have been swimming a lot so I was really happy with how I felt in the water. There were two buoys for sighting (one on each far end of the out and back course). I climbed out of the swim via the dock ladder, ran to my shoes, took my wetsuit off and put my socks and running shoes on and ran up the big hill to the gravel road, carrying my wetsuit around my neck. I was able to get in and out of transition before Karel. 

On to the bike, I soft pedaled to let Karel get ahead of me as I knew he would pass me early on in the bike and the first part of the bike is a rooty downhill. 

I knew the bike course was going to be technical and slippery but I didn't realize how much my skills were lacking for this course on this day. My focus was riding smooth and clearing obstacles but I quickly learned that I needed to change my focus to navigating the terrain safely. After a few miles, I slipped on a root and my handlebar hit a tree and I went down hard on my left side. I got back up and several miles later, I felt again. The roots were so slippery, it felt like I was riding on ice. I was getting frustrated and also my confidence was dwindling. Karel also crashed on a wooden bridge (that didn't have any netting) and despite doing everything right that he was trying to do, he crashed and broke a spoke and also his shifter broke (thankfully it still worked but he had to hold it in a certain way to allow it to shift). 

I was passed by a female around half way on the bike. Her skills were incredible. I was trying to mimic what she was doing but I was still so unsteady and unsure. I was getting passed by more male riders and it got to a point where I would get off my bike to go over sections that I would normally have no trouble with, just because I was so worried about crashing. The truth is no matter how much I want to improve my turns, I don't ride my MTB enough to see a noticeable improvement in these skills. 

When I got off my bike and ran to T2, I was so relieved. It was raining and I was so ready to be off my bike on those trails. Because of all the slow riding and getting off the bike so many times, my legs felt relatively fresh for the run. From the first step, I felt great. 

I saw Karel as I was climbing up the road and he was running down the climb. I told him that I crashed so many times and he said that he did as well. It felt good to exchange this information. 

The rain was coming down and my goal was to run as strong as I could to see how close I could get to the 1st place girl. I really enjoyed the run. The up and down nature of this trail run made it so much fun. And with the rain coming down, it was like I was playing. I was really happy with how I felt on the run, especially on the slippery trails. 

After I crossed the finish line, the rain was coming down hard. Karel met me at the finish line and we quickly got our things, showered at the Whitewater center, loaded the car and then drove home. 

Results: 
Karel - 2:15.59, 2nd overall 
Marni - 2:45.32, 2nd overall female 

Mistakes are tough. Feeling your shortcomings can make you feel like you are a failure. But mistakes are needed in life. Anytime you try something for the first time or you are learning something new, you are going to make mistakes. This doesn't make you a loser or a bad person. Mistakes are opportunities to learn and to improve. Making mistakes shows that you are trying. Making mistakes and learning from those mistakes is part of the continuous learning process of being human. 

The next time you feel yourself struggling, ask yourself: 
-What am I struggling with? 
-Why do I feel this way? 
-What can I learn from this situation? 

In our society, flooded with highlight-reels on social media, it's easy to see a successful outcome and not see the work, struggles, setbacks and perseverance that were part of process of achieving success. Hardships are core to growth. The path to success included failure. Learning from your mistakes is key to self-improvement. 

Learn to fail. Own your mistakes. Never stop learning. 

Whitewater Off-Road Triathlon race recap

 

Keeping with our theme of the year, the Whitewater triathlon on May 6th was looking to be very rainy (we've experienced rain for all five of our off-road events this year). We debated if it was worth doing the race but on Thursday of the race, we decided that we would still gain a lot from the race experience. After we registered online, the weather started to improve and based on my Epic Weather app, it was looking like the weather would work out for a dry day of racing. 

Although this race had a small participant list, it didn't make the race any less important to us. We still felt the nerves/anticipation for anytime we show up to a start line, we want to give our best and we know to do so, the effort is going to be uncomfortable and there will be obstacles to overcome. The really cool thing about off-road triathlon racing is that the entire race experience feels more like playtime than something serious like on-road triathlon racing. Swimming in open water, riding a mountain bike and trail running is fun and we love the vibe of racing off road. 

After a tough group swim in the morning, we left for Charlotte/Whitewater center around 1pm, shortly after my mom picked up Campy so that he could enjoy 1.5 days with her. There was a little bit of traffic during our 2:15 hr drive so we arrived a little later than we had planned. We paid the enterance fee and changed into our bike gear and around 4pm. With the issues of getting off course at the Whole Enchilada a month ago, we wanted to recon the course to make sure we knew exactly where we were going. The course was mostly well-marked and Karel also had the course in his computer to follow. After around 8 miles and an hour of riding, we were having a lot of fun and completely lost track of time. At 10 miles into our 15 mile ride we decided to stop the ride as we somewhat familiar with the last 5 miles. 

After picking up our race stuff, we made a stop at Harris Teeter to get some items for dinner (I had a bag of microwave basmait rice mixed in Amy's No Chicken Noodle Soup - a typical pre race meal for me) and then we made our way to our friends house (Christi) for the night. Christi and her partner Pam were out of town so we had her house to ourselves. I've known Christi since we met in a running race in 2005. 

We both slept ok (tossed and turned) so we were not feeling really rested when we woke up at 5:15am.
Karel had his typical oatmeal concoction and I had my typical waffles (3 of them) + PB, Jelly, Banana. 
We watched some of the PTO race on the computer as we were doing mobility/foam rolling and then left around 6:30am to make the 20 min drive to the Whitewater center. If you are ever in this area, I suggest checking out this place. It's really cool to see people rafting/kayaking on the rapids. There are also a lot of great trails and activities. And it is dog friendly! 

We set up our transition area and then got warmed up with some jogging. We each did our own thing and met near the lake around 7:45am for the pre-race meeting. There were only ~50 athletes in the full distance with only a few girls. Although every off-road triathlon race seems to have something unique to it, this was the first race that we've done where we had a 1/2 mile gravel run from the swim to T1. We wore a pair of trail shoes to the swim and left them on the bench by the dock to put on after the swim (since I wear socks on the bike, I also had my socks with my shoes). I wore my compression sleeves under my wetsuit. 

The water was 65 degrees and I was a little worried it would feel really cold but it was absolutely perfect. We had an in-water start which we both really like as it gives us a chance to warm-up in the water and adjust the wetsuit. 

The swim took us out to a buoy, around the buoy (to our right), then a long straight to another buoy (turn right) and then back to the dock. When we started, I found myself in a group of ~4 guys along with Karel. I was shocked to see Karel there with me as he hasn't been feeling good in the water. Karel has great take out speed where it takes me about 10 minutes to get myself into a good rhythm. After the turn buoy, I was able to pick up my effort and Karel stayed behind me. I was able to get a little away from him but he was doing a great job trying to stay on my feet. I exited the water first overall and Karel was right behind as we pulled ourselves up the ladder on to the dock. The sprint distance athletes were gathered for their pre race meeting as we got out of the water so it was encouraging to hear their cheers. 

I removed my wetsuit and sat down on the bench to put on my socks and ON trail shoes. Karel stood up and put on his shoes. I grabbed my wetsuit and left the area before Karel but he quickly sprinted by me as we ran up a steep trail before making our way to the gravel. I actually really enjoyed running to T1, it was different and a fun way to clear the mind after the swim. We weren't sure if we should run with our wetsuit on or carry it but after trying to run with it on in the pre race warmup to the lake we knew carrying it would be the smarter option. I wrapped mine around my neck and Karel opted to hold his in his arm. 

Karel was out of transition before I got there. I felt like I had a good transition and put on my shoes, helmet, sunglasses and hydration pack. In past races, I had my helmet on my handlebars and would forget to put it on until I grabbed my bike so I had my helmet on the ground and everything went smoothly. I ran my bike to the mount line and started riding. 

The mountain bike course was around 23K (or 14.2 miles) with around 1100 feet of elevation gain. Most of the elevation came in the back half and it was much more technical in the last 8 miles of the course. The course was really flowy and fun with a lot of roots, ups and downs and tight corners. I struggled on some of the obstacles in the last 8 miles as I was getting really tired and they are very technical. I only saw Karel once and he gave me a cheer. I was passed by several guys but nearing 10 or so miles, I found myself alone. The course was really well marked. 

I had a total of 90g carbs of NeverSecond Berry in my USWE hydration pack along with about 1 liter of water (33 ounces). 

Karel led the entire race from start to finish and had a great time on the course. I also had a lot of fun on the bike as I felt like I was just playing in the woods. The hard part about mountain biking (especially in a triathlon) is that the heart rate stays elevated the entire time. It's like a short distance triathlon. You need a lot of strength, power, stamina and skills to negotiate the terrain. It's a very different change from long distance racing where it's all about riding your own steady state effort and dealing more with muscle fatigue than cardio stress. The course ended up being close to 17 miles on my Garmin (1:42 ride time). 

After arriving back to the transition area as the first female (there were only 3 of us, which means we need to get more females into off road triathlon racing!) it was time for the run. My legs felt really good and I really pushed myself on the run. I loved the flow of the trails and it was constantly up and down for 4 miles and 400 feet of elevation gain. I had 1 flask of C30 Neversecond berry that I kept in my trisuit pocket. I don't wear sunglasses on the trail run but had a visor on. I wore Hoka trail shoes. 

As I made my way to the finish line, I smiled big as I had so much fun. This race wasn't about winning or needing to prove anything but just having fun. I love that off road triathlon racing can be hard and challenging but also bring us so much joy. This was a good tune-up for us as we will be participating in Xterra Oak Mountain this weekend and we expect a lot of tough competition. Although I'm just doing the off road racing for fun, Karel is hoping to put together a really good performance this weekend. 

Overall Results

Karel Results                                        Marni Results 

South Africa Race-Cation Day 6 (Xterra Pre race)

                                     

In the morning, I laid out my gear for the race. As usual, I prepare my race gear way early and Karel typically waits until later in the day. With this only being my third Xterra race, I wanted to see a visual of all my items to make sure I wasn’t forgetting anything for the race. We went for a ~30 min shake out run in the direction of Strand. As we started the run, there were several markets getting set up for the weekend. On the way back, we ran/walked through some of the markets. It was interesting to see the diversity in items at the market tables. On one table was clothing and on another table, were scrapes from electronics and cars. We also passed by a fruit vendor with lots of different seasonal fruits.

After eating a meal, I finished packing up my gear and worked on the computer for a bit.

At 12:40pm, I walked down to the beach to meet up with the masters swim team for their Saturday morning open water swim. I couldn’t resist the opportunity to swim in the ocean one last time. I met up with my new friend Gordon who let me keep my stuff in his car. The beach was packed unlike the previous days when we swam. I opted to swim in my swimskin since it was hot outside but the water was still a little on the cool side. There were around 15 athletes for the swim. Everyone swam at their own pace and we regrouped at the wall. I felt a little cold in the water since I wasn’t swimming too hard. The water was very choppy which was also different from our previous swims when the water was really calm. There were also a lot more boats and kayakers in the water as well. While I was swimming, Karel prepared our bikes for the race. Our Airbnb had a hose which was great for cleaning the bikes each day. Karel brought some cleaning supplies as well as a variety of tools.

After the swim I walked back to the Airbnb, had a quick snack and then around 3:15pm we drove ~25 minutes to the Elgin Valley Railroad market. I heard great things about this market although by the time we arrived, the vendors were shutting down. However, I purchased two wire-art animals from a local maker and he told me how he makes them. We walked around and enjoyed the décor in the inside of the building. We also stopped across the street at another store to check it out.

When we got back to Gordon’s Bay, we parked by the beach and had a pizza dinner at Tally’s Tavern. The pizza was delicious  - thin crust. The beach was rather busy so it was nice to watch the locals play in the ocean. We arrived back to our Airbnb around 6:30pm, prepared our hydration packs and bottles for the race and got into bed around 8pm. Just in time for load shedding. Neither of us felt nervous for the race but really excited to race for the first time in South Africa.