Chattanooga 70.3 (69.1) 2025 -- Part 1

Let's review a few things before we dive into the race day recap... 

• I started this season with the intention to SHOW UP - whatever that looked like on a given day. 
• I've been in PT since March for some hip pain (tendonitis --> tendinosis? getting an MRI next week). 
• Since 2023, I've had on-going GI issues. It caused signification weight gain after my weight had already crept up from depression. Thankfully it's no longer constant like it was when it first started, but at the same time, the episodic nature makes it very frustrating. I have yet to figure out what triggers episodes or what to do besides ride it out when one happens. It feels like hunger and nausea at the same time. It sometimes causes back end issues if you get my drift. Athletes joke "never trust a fart" and I never understood this until recently. I could have gone my entire life without being a victim to my own body like that. 
• I have MDD (major depressive disorder) and have since I was 16. It's mostly well manage by daily medication and therapy when needed. I am currently on my 11th different medication from over the years. While being active is a piece of managing depression, depression also can make it hard to be active.

The last time I did 70.3 was 2019 to celebrate my 30th birthday and it was my worst race to date. I never have wanted to quit while racing but I did that day. I was in a lot of pain (hip? hamstring? - I don't remember now and I don't think I wrote about it anywhere). At mile 10 on the run I stopped to get some ibuprofen from medical and was just over it. But a incredibly kind and stubborn volunteer basically wouldn't let me quit and walked like half a mile with me until she knew I wasn't going to stop. I crossed the finish line over the allowed 8:30 time limit, but I finished. 

Naturally, in 2020 when no races were happening due to COVID, I was in great shape. In 2021, I was trying to find a new antidepressant when mine stopped working. If you know anything about that, it's trial and error and tapering on and off  which takes time. Nothing new I was trying was working. In 2022, I had my sights set on full Ironman #2, Maryland. Then I got COVID early summer and it wiped all my fitness. 2023 was a battle with my GI tract. Last year was a slow comeback year, had some personal life things going on and training was inconsistent. I did a few local races and volunteered with a local group that helps women finish their first triathlons. So I was READY to truly get back at it this year. 

I felt pretty confident coming into this year. Determined. As the spring wore on, that confidence faded. Stomach episodes. My paces slower than ever. My hip pain not getting better and limiting my running. Way too much mental energy spent being concerned about my weight when I know I am not in a position to do anything about it. (Dieting/restriction and endurance sports don't really mix). I came into the year telling myself I can do this in the body I have right now, and I do believe that. Yet, I still find myself wishing it was smaller, the way it used to look and be, that finding workout clothes and specifically triathlon clothes wasn't a struggle.

There were some training hiccups along the way and I felt behind where I thought I "should" have been. After a not great outdoor hill session, my coach and I decided to pivot my training to have a little more bike focus the last few week leading into the race. Given that Chattanooga has a rolling hills course and I train primarily on my trainer and on flat trails here near Charleston, she added some more simulated climbing and big gear work. April did not build any volume over March because life. 

Because of a combination of where I felt my training was and my experience from the last time I did this distance, my anxiety was HIGH. Probably higher than I realized. This does not help my GI issues of course. I didn't want to have a repeat of 2019. I wasn't feeling excited for the race. I was mad at my body because these GI issues suck and I had a bad incident on one of my last long runs. I knew I would be chasing cutoffs all day, more than normal. All of this is not my ideal racing scenario. It felt like nothing was coming together. 

Then race weekend rolls around and guess what, the swim is cancelled. Heavy rains the 2 weeks leading into the race cause river flow rates to be more than double the safe limits. I found this out while I was driving to TN. Since I already wasn't feeling too excited, this didn't really cause me any distress UNTIL they said that the entire allotted time for the swim would be subtracted from the day. Meaning, that instead of having 8.5hrs to finish the race, we were told we would have 7:10 (4:10 for the bike and transition and 3:00 for the run). This does not work for me. As a 8-8.5hr finisher, this felt like the final nail in the coffin for my race. I am a mid-pack swimmer and need that extra time for my back-of-pack bike and run. And just like that, all that time was gone. 

I checked in on Friday and was assigned a bib number, 2715, indicating a 4 hour estimated bike time. I sat for the athlete briefing where I found out the timing details. Then I met up with my friend Michelle who kept me company most of the weekend. We went over to the QR factory tour where I got to meet some Cupcake Cartel teammates for the first time. We got free dinner. I didn't actually end up walking through the factory as the first group came back and said how stuffy and almost suffocating the heat and stagnant air was. I am still a little bummed about that, so maybe next trip. 

Saturday morning, Team BABE had a planned meet up at 830 for a quick group photo. Only a few of us made it but that's ok. I got to meet my coach in person for the first time.

I dropped my bike off at the QR tent for a free tune up. Although I am skeptical they did anything since it seemed like there were a couple times I shifted and my bike didn't actually change gears. Also, my bike is making a creaking noise and it's both annoying and concerning. I am worried I am over the weight limit for my bike. It's 13 years old and has held up but I seem to be inching towards a new one.
 

915 was The Cupcake Cartel team meet up. They had a great spread of bagels and other snacks but I already ate a waffle from the hotel breakfast. I had some fruit and one mini cupcake. We hung out and cheered on the kids races which was a lot of fun. Then we got a group photo. 

Then I went back to pick up my bike and rack it. It is required that you rack your bike the day before. Easier to manage the flow of 2700+ people over the course of 7 hours the day before vs 2 the morning of. After that, Michelle, Peter (her husband), and I went to get breakfast (second breakfast/lunch for me). I was trying my best to keep everything super plain and easy given my on going stomach issues. Anything I could do to not have an episode. There is another layer of frustration here from not being able to eat whatever I want, not be able to enjoy new restaurants while visiting somewhere different because I can't trust my gut. I ordered an extra side of toast thinking they were the small slices you usually get when you eat out, but to our surprise, they were sizeable. Whoops. Still ate most of them. 

It was at this point that we went our separate ways for the day. I was ready to go chill in the hotel room. I hung out and played Rollercoaster Tycoon on the Switch. I finally decide to lay my stuff out for the morning, recalibrating for a later start. I go to charge my watch and can't find the cable, which I swore I packed. Cherry on top of every other shitty feeling I was having. That's when it just all came spilling out. I was upset that I couldn't feel excited about the race, that the new course cutoff pretty much guaranteeing I won't finish, that I apparently forgot my charger and didn't check/realize til a few hours before bed. I was mad that my financial situation makes racing a rarity and that I can't afford to stay downtown where everyone else was. Both Michelle and Cuppies were kind enough to offer some time of charging in the morning in transition while we waited for the race to start. So at least that was one problem solved. 

Race day coming in part 2...