IM 70.3 CHATTANOOGA

IM Chatt 70.3 2018

Swim (1.2 miles)- 25:32   Bike (56 miles)- 2:40:53   Run (13.1 miles)- 1:49:14

Overall time: 5:00:56 (So damn close to breaking 5!!!)

What. A. Race!

What. A. Season…And it's only May!

Let's dive in, shall we?? I'll start from the top:

I went into this race with the same positive mentality and excitement that I had for Galveston 70.3. I was nervous, yes, but I was also completely overflowing with excited energy. Chatt is my favorite 70.3 out there and I was just so stoked to get back on that course and get the PR I knew I was capable of. Through the use of consistent meditation and positive mantras, I've been able to train my brain to see the hard work I've put into my training and trust it. I've been going into these long course races with a happy little voice in the back of my head saying, "you got this, girl! You are on fire and you're going to crush!" Feeling good feels good- even if you're still technically injured and what not. Once again, sometimes all it takes is believing in yourself even when the odds are stacked against ya.

I think every single person racing Chattanooga 70.3 had their fingers crossed for a miraculous 15 degree temperature drop over night…well that didn't happen. Duh. All week long I was mentally preparing myself for a hot race. The forecast was showing a high of almost 90 and in the past that would have scared the shit out of me. I've always said, "I die in the heat." But not this time. The heat came on fast here in the South, so there wasn't really any time for training in it to get acclimated. I was focused on just being mentally prepared - planning the way I would compensate for the heat with my nutrition, fueling, and anything I'd need to do on the run to stay cool (as much ice as I could stand in my sports bra). I would check the forecast with a smile and think ok, it's gonna be hot. I can handle hot. I can smile through hot. 

Once again, my positive mentality was unshakeable. I was going to have a good time no matter what. 

One fun thing I've been doing this season is experimenting and seeing how my body reacts because well...why not? If I fall apart during the race: 

-my boyfriend will still love me

-my parents will still be proud of me

-my friends will still scream "FLAVORTOWN" at me and show me all the love. (Have I told y'all about my love(hate) of Guy Fieri and the fact that we almost have the same hair style/ how I dressed up as him for halloween 2 years ago/ how I scream "Flavortown" at the top of my lungs during group workouts?) 

Back to the point- if my race falls apart, my life will stay intact so I might as well switch things up and see what happens right? Plus, if I switch it up and things go well, that's an awesome learning experience!

Race Morning:

I woke up bright and early after a rather restless night of "sleep". My boyfriend and I decided to share a hotel room with my Mom and Grandma (who are ridiculously sweet and supportive and were there to cheer me on) because they were able to snag a hotel within walking distance of transition and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to not worry about parking. Well…now I remember why we stopped sharing rooms with other folks before races…I won't name who (mainly because I'm not 100% positive, but I do have an idea) but one of the amazing matriarchs of my family who was sharing our room and I love so very much….snores like a bear with a head cold sawing a piece of metal with a dull blade and I sure as shit can't sleep through that kind of racket. I got pretty stressed when I looked at my phone to see 1 am when I was planning on waking up at 4, but I didn't let it get me down or get in my head. I eventually fell asleep and woke up with the feeling of…well that wasn't ideal but fuck it. TIME TO RACE! WOO!!

Chattanooga 70.3 has a rolling swim start, which is my absolute favorite way to start a race. It's self seeded and I like to seed myself a little bit farther back than my goal time so there are plenty of "carrots" to chase once I get out on the bike course. I may have had itchy, sleepy eyes even when I was only minutes from heading down the ramp to the river, but my adrenaline kicked in just in time.

 I had decided a few days before that my experiment for this race was going to be to:

-Blow it out on the swim. Olympic pace or faster because it's mostly down stream and because…why not??

-Bike with heart rate in mind - not obsessively looking at my watch, but trying to keep my heart rate in a certain range. I normally race by feel, but I noticed over the last couple races that my heart rate could be a bit higher so I just wanted to see what would happen.

-Get on the run and let my leggies fly.

I hopped in the water, which was quite refreshing after feeling a bit steamy standing around in my wetsuit (what a difference from shivering in line at Galveston 70.3 only a month prior) and got down to it. I know this swim well, now. This was my 3rd time on this course and I knew I wanted to be strategic in my route (especially after getting a little lost on the swim at Galveston. Whoops!). I pretty much just wanted to get the upstream part over with and have nice, tight turns at the turn-buoys. Then I wanted to stay good and close to the buoys when heading down stream too. The buoys stay on your right, which is closer to the middle of the river where the current is strongest - Aka where my happy ass wanted to be. I. was. flying, y'all, and feeling so so good. My route was damn near perfect, with lots of open water and only minor crowding near the end. I ran up the stairs out of the water and glanced down at my watch to see 25 minutes. 

The last time I had done the full swim course (in 2017 the upstream part of the swim was cut because the current had gotten too strong after a  gnarly storm the night before) I had knocked out 28 minutes, so a 3 minute PR was a good way to start the day! I sprinted up to a wet suit stripper, got that bad boy yanked right off of me, and ran up the ramp. I topped the hill to see Jason, my mom, my grandma, 2 of my aunts, an uncle, and 4 of my cousins (the extra fam members were all in town for my cousin's traveling basketball team and came to support that morning! My family rules!) all screaming their heads off! I was high fiving, screaming, cheesin' real big, and just brimming with joy. What a kick ass way to start a race!

I sprinted through transistion and was ready to hop on my BRAND NEW ORBEA FOR HER MAIDEN 70.3!!!

This bike course is awesome…however…my friend, Meg, may kill me for saying this…but I actually kinda prefer the super straight, flat, and boring bike course at Galveston 70.3. Shhhh don't tell her. 

Chatt is beautiful, though. It has a bit more challenges, but I dig it. With my new nutrition plan in play- Clif gels, lots and lots of gatorade, lots and lots of water, and salt- I was excited to see how the extra hydration would work out this time. In Galveston, since it was cold and rainy, the extra hydration meant I had to pee sooooooo bad by the end of the bike, but I had a feeling that hydration was going to sweat right out of me this time. The sun was out and it was getting HAWT.

I was checking my heart rate here and there and things were lookin' good. However, after the 1st 10 miles or so I realized my heart rate hadn't changed at all…it was the right number, but there had been absolutely no variance. Even on the hills. No nothin'. I decided to try and see if maybe my HR monitor wasn't placed right, when I realized I had shoved my Base salt tube (which I always keep in my bra on the bike) right under my heart rate monitor…of course! I started laughing as I moved my salt around and saw my heart rate instantly drop. Guess that means I need to pick it up a bit! Once again, it didn't phase me one bit and I just kept on trucking along. 

The miles were ticking away, but it was starting to get really freakin' hot. Every time I adjusted my helmet, a waterfall of sweat would cascade down my face. At the first aid station I barely got any Gatorade in my aero bottle before dropping it. Which was fine at the time, thankfully. I had plenty, but was just going to top off anyway. I ended up finishing that before the next aid station, though, and was ready for more sugary goodness. I was able to snag a Gatorade but couldn't refill and grab more water too, so I just stuck with the Gatorade and kept moving. I dropped my water at the last aid station and hadn't quite finished refilling, so all my bottles were dry when I rolled into T2- not ideal on a hot day. Needless to say, I think I could have used just a bit more hydration. Other than that, though, the ride was toasty, sweaty, challenging, and super fun.

I flew into T2 and could definitely feel the fatigue. My leggies were not happy campers, but I knew I could trust them. Fingers crossed, they just needed some time to loosen up once things got going.

Y'all…I started that run and was like...ruh roh. Where y'all at, legs?? And are we in the Sahara?? My mind was positive and encouraging, but the facts were the facts and holy hell it was getting hotter than satan's anus and the first aid station wasn't until almost 2 miles into the first loop. I passed my mom and Jason on my way out of T2 towards the first little out and back and wasn't able to scream and wave that time.  As I was coming back by, Jason asked me if I was ok and I responded with...well, with what he probably expected: "It's fucking hot!" I knew it was going to be a slog, but I was ready for it.

Oh…and then I realized I hadn't started my run on my watch. According to my Garmin…I had an 8 minute transition or something….All good! Just gotta freakin' run! One foot in front of the other! I was hot, but my head was in a good place!

Within the first mile of Chatt 70.3 there is this gnarly ass hill that takes you up onto the loop that you end up doing twice. On said hill I found 3 of the most amazing people I know! Their screams could be heard from miles around, I'm pretty sure. My friends, Sarah and Meg, and my coach, Carrie were there waiting for me. The earsplitting and incredibly powerful screams coming out of their tiny bodies made me smile so big it hurt! Sarah had made me a FLAVORTOWN sign and it pretty much gave me life to get up that damn hill. I AM SO LUCKY TO HAVE THESE LADIES IN MY CORNER, Y'ALL!!!

Back to the deets- I knew I wanted to run mostly on feel again, but with the heat, I decided I would let myself look at my watch a bit more often. Just to keep the fire under my ass to not slack off. Well, I looked down a few times within the first couple miles and wasn't stoked on the pace I saw relative to the way my quads were screaming at me. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't what I had been hoping for. BUT it also didn't bother me. I would look down and push a little harder for a while, reel it in, and then settle into an ok pace. This method seemed to be working just fine. It was making me move in a forward direction (the one true goal) and that's all I needed at the time. I wasn't feeling awesome, but I had enough ice in my bra to build an igloo and I was chugging water and Gatorade like it was going out of style. Oh and lots of salt. So much salt.

I really think my mentality saved me during this race. I was feeling the burn, but I would just think about all the ice I had in my bra that was cooling me and how the next aid station would have more sponges and even more relief from the heat and how I was so lucky to have so many people there cheering for me. The heat really didn't get into my head the way it would have in the past. Though it was definitely taking a toll on my body. Honestly, by mile 8, I was a bit more concerned about the fact that I was getting chills and my eyes had started feeling heavy. To be totally truthful…I don't remember much after mile 8 or 9. I was staying hydrated, but I was working my little tail off and my body was really starting to feel the stress.

After the first loop I had hit a bit of a wall and my pace took a big dive. I'd check my watch every now and then and saw that my pace was in the high 8's - 9's. I wasn't super jazzed about that. Not saying those splits are terrible or anything (especially when it feels like you're running through Hades' armpit), but they weren't what I had planned for. Especially after throwing down a 1:40 in Galveston the month before (which was on a totally different and very flat course where the high was like 60. My hopes for another 1:40 weren't high-they were realistic- meaning another 1:40 would have been a fuckin' miracle). Funny thing is… I think my watch was lying to me about my pace. According to the tracker app I started the run doing sub 8 minute miles and after slowing down on the 2nd loop, I averaged 8:21 per mile overall. 

Honestly, that's why I like to race by feel and not put too much stock in the numbers on my watch. It may have worked in my favor, though. Seeing a slower pace than I wanted would light a fire under my sweaty little ass and make me pick it up for a bit. But then again, it might have been bad for me, because I started losing hope that I'd go sub 5 and was very close to just chllin' for the last few miles.

I was slowing down a lot and it was getting hard to stay focussed when I came up on mile 11. My Coach, Jason, and Sarah were all waiting for me. Apparently they had been debating on whether or not to tell me what my place was and Jason encouraged them to do so. I've always said that I don't like knowing my place during a race because it can get in my head, but holy moly am I glad Jason convinced them. Carrie came up beside me screaming that I was doing great and I responded with a grunt and forced a smile.  Even in the pain cave, I was able to smile at my favorite people. I was on the verge of just shuffling my way home, because I was getting so loopy and the chills were happening more often…BUT THEN…Carrie told me I had a chance at an age group podium. I distinctly remember looking at her in shock and saying, "no shit??!" 

THAT LIT A FIRE UNDER MY TIRED ASS LIKE NEVER BEFORE. A PODIUM??? ME???

 The closest I had ever gotten to a podium before was an 8th place finish at Fla 70.3 2 years ago. Getting a podium at Chattanooga wasn't even on my mind. I hadn't even considered it. I just wanted to PR and cross the finish line knowing I left it all out there. So when Carrie told me, I couldn't even comprehend it…and I assumed she meant I was in 6th and if I pushed hard enough, I'd have a chance at 5th (Ironman 70.3's give awards to the top 5 in each age group). 

I'm SO SO thankful that she told me because the idea of slowing down or letting the heat get to me completely evaporated from my brain. I put on the ugliest race face ever and was grunting/ on the verge of crying with every exhalation for those last 2 miles, but holy shit I wanted that podium and I wasn't going to just watch it slip away. Like I always do at the end of a 70.3 I just kept repeating my mantra of You can do anything for 2 miles. That's all you have left. You can do ANYTHING for 2 more miles. YOU GOT THIS.

As I was huffing and puffing my way across the pedestrian bridge that leads you to the split where you head to the finish, I heard the loudest scream I had heard all day. Meg, my amazing friend and Gilmore-Girls-tri-mom was screaming her face off and jumping up and down like a lunatic (in the best way!). Honestly, the first time she screamed it actually scared me for a second! Her energy transferred right into me and gave me a big ol' smile! We like to tell people that she's my mom and I'm her "adult" daughter (hence the Gilmore Girls reference). The lady to the left of me was laughing and said, "I don't even know you, but I'm excited for you now!" I responded with, "don't mind my mom. She's super excitable." For a split second I laughed to myself and forgot about the pain. That's what our cheering friends are for, y'all. To make us smile and forget about the discomfort even if it's only for a split second. UGH SO GRATEFUL.

I took the final left towards the big hill down to the finish with my face all screwed up and a grunt with every labored breath. I passed the ATC cheer group that hangs out at the top of that hill and couldn't even force a wave or smile. Y'all, I've never felt like this heading into a finish chute. I can usually suck it up and smile big, but I was that girl that had started leaning really hard to one side, lookin' like her legs were on the verge of giving way. I "ran" down the red carpet, forced a sideways grimacey smile and then actually walked the last few steps, because I literally had NOTHING left. I crossed the line and immediately got snagged by one of the volunteers. My legs were jello and my head was spinning. I was on the verge of blacking out and just so desperately wanted to not. be. hot. anymore. They cut my timing chip off and helped me waddle to the med tent where they shoved a huge bag of ice down my back and handed me a gatorade. Jason, my mom, and my grandma found me shortly after I sat down and I was just so happy to see them. My mom and grandma had tears in their eyes and Jason beamed at me with a big ol' smile and told me--"Cori, you just got 3rd in your age group!" I looked at him with a mixture of heat drunkenness and surprise…"SAY WHAT?!" 

I didn't want to let myself believe him, though, because remember-Chatt is a rolling start. I was sure somebody was gonna come in shortly and knock me back down a few places. Well, I wasn't sure of that, but I sure as hell didn't want to celebrate until I knew for sure.

 I eventually found the english language again (heat drunk) and asked Jason, "what was my time?"

"5 hours and 56 seconds!" 

A 9 MINUTE COURSE PR AND 70.3 PR!! AND LOOK HOW CLOSE I GOT TO BREAKING 5 HOURS!! 

I sat in the med tent chugging my Gatorade, pouring water all over myself, as Jason regularly reloaded the tracking app saying, "you're still in 3rd!" I couldn't help happy crying. Even if I got knocked out of 3rd, I had gotten a huge PR and left every little bit of my soul out on that course and I was proud as hell of myself. I was ecstatic, y'all.

Spoiler:

I STAYED IN 3RD!! About 15 minutes later 4th place came in only 40 seconds slower than me and I got nervous, but no one else came through faster. I had gotten my first ever age group podium at a 70.3, snagged a huge PR, and conquered the heat for the first time ever. 

I'll never forget this race and I'll never forget the trust I put in my body to give it everything. I don't have a single complaint about my performance that day. I had an incredible race with an outcome I didn't even know I was capable of and I crossed the line feeling full of gratitude, joy, and love. A HUGE THANK YOU to Jason for being the best sherpa ever/ most amazing partner/ most supportive person/ the love of my life/ the winner of the "cutest butt" award/ so many damn things, all of my amazing family members who went to cheer for me, my ATC fam, and MY GIRLS. Y'all know who you are and your love and support give me so much life. 

Oh and super fun fact: Even though my first ever podium at a 70.3 wasn't documented on an actual podium (because a big dumb storm showed up), I did get to meet Heather Jackson! We're dopplegangers and I regularly get asked if I'm her (especially at races, but I've even been stopped while running around Atlanta! ) so I was stoked to finally meet her. Y'all, she's adorable and so damn nice aaaaaaand yeah, we're pretty much best friends now soooooo…CHATT 70.3 WAS AMAZING!!!

NEXT UP: IRONMAN WISCONSIN IN SEPTEMBER!!!!!!!!