Race Report: In The Dirt Off-Road Tri 2010

Earlier this month I raced the In The Dirt Off-Road Triathlon at Vail Lake. This is another race Skyler didn't do because it was too close to Ironman. But luckily I didn't have to race this one alone--three friends also joined me.

This was Nate's first triathlon.

This was Mike's second triathlon. Mike was supposed to do this race last year, but did something to his collar bone in a bike accident. I can't remember the details.

Todd is practically an professional triathlete now, as he's competed in about 5 triathlons. This was also his second year at this race.




In The Dirt Off-Road Triathlon has the following distances: 1/2 swim, 14 mile mountain bike, and 4 mile trail run. My goal was to beat last year's time.

Swim 14:04 (2009-13:01)
The swim felt a little longer this year. You never know when the swim could be off by 25 meters or so. That makes a big difference when it's such a short race.




T1 1:45 (2009-2:16)
Not bad, but then again, the transition area was so close to the swim exit.




Since Skyler wasn't racing, he was the designated photographer. He brought his mountain bike for mobility. It was fun to see him several times along the course.




Bike 1:32:14 (2009-1:38:16)
Usually I burn my arms out on the swim because I don't really need them for the rest of the race. I should have thought this out because I needed my arms on this race. The bike starts with a steep uphill that you have to push your bike up. My arms were toast so it was tough to push my bike. Also, I had taken a caffeine chew before the race. I've tried these before, but never before a race. I can't believe I did that! Never try something new on race day! The caffeine chew mixed with my race adrenaline brought my heart rate up way too high. Then, I was trying to push my bike up the steep hill and I thought I was having a heart attack. I couldn't catch my breath. It was awful! My heart rate stay elevated for quite a while, probably like 60 minutes. Thankfully, I was fine by the time I got to the run.




T2 1:08 (2009-1:19)

Run 37:04 (2009-38:58)
This year I've really started to embrace trail running. It is good for agility and for preventing injuries. Pumpkin and I love to run Peter's Canyon, which is full of steep hills. I wasn't surprised that my run was faster than last year's, although I think I could have gone faster.




Total Time 2:26:17 (2009-2:33:51)
8 minutes faster than last year! This means success, although I would have liked another 1st place finish.




I ended up getting 2nd in my age group and 5th woman overall. I'll take that. The best reward was the Texas Sheet Cake I made. It was so delicious!




Team Poseidon ended up with three racers on the podium. I really love this race and can't wait to do it again in March and November. Congrats everyone!