Race Result

Racer:	Holly Gannoe
Race:	Kinetic Sprint
Date:	Sunday, April 24, 2005
Location:	Spotsylvania, VA
Race Type:	Triathlon - Sprint
Age Group:	Female 30 - 34
Time:	2:18:00
Overall Place:	74 / 99
Age Group Place:	4 / 7
Comment:	COLD Swim, Beautiful Bike, Fun Run = Good Time!

Race Report:

Kinetic Sprint Triathlon - 750m/18 miles/5K
Spotsylvania, VA - April 24,2005

Swim: 27:00 (26:18)
(T1: 4:20 est)
Bike: 1:12:37 (1:09)
(T2: 2:42 est)
Run: 38:24

Official Chip Time: 2:18:00 - 4th Place Athena - No Award but still happy!
Overall Women: 74 out of 99

NOTE TO SELF: MUST PRACTICE OPEN WATER SWIM!

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The rest of the story:

This race was my first triathlon since my finish at the Timberman 1/2
Ironman in August 2003 so I was looking forward to being back to Triathlon.
I enjoyed biking in France last summer and had some fun doing some running
races in 2004 but I have been very anxious to get back to the "TRI".

I definitely had some anxiety about the swim. My training in the pool this
year has been great. My 60 minutes workouts have me consistently covering
1800-2400 yards in a session but the pool and the Open Water are two
completely different things for me. I have a very hard time putting my face
in the water during a race. It is by far, my biggest hurdle in perfect swim
conditions.

So, there I stood on race morning with 350 other wetsuit clad freaks and
their loved ones, hopping around, trying to keep my toes warm and shivering
in the cool 45F air. I got a chance to say "Hi" to Molly & Rob, wished them
luck and kissed my ever faithful sherpa, Jim goodbye and waited for my wave.

Swim: Lake Anna was 60F and a strong wind had put a good chop on the surface
of the fresh water lake. I raced in the last swim wave with the Athena's,
Relay Teams and Women 45+. Somewhere in the group was Coach Debi B. but I
never did see her until after the race.

My swim was nothing but survival from buoy to buoy. Yet again, I was unable
to put my face in the water and keep it there. However I was able to "talk"
myself into continuing on with my usually mantra:

The sooner you get out of the water, the sooner you get on the bike!

27:00 minutes later I was out of the water, and looking for my feet.

T1: 4:26 - Slow but fine. Jim was there waiting as I got out of the water
and he said "Put on everything you brought, the wind is kicking up and it is
not getting warmer!" So I took my time to make sure I had my socks on, my
wind jacket zipped and my gloves on.

Bike: 1:09:00 - This Bike course ROCKED! I loved it so much. There was
only one small climb out of the park and then 18 miles of rolling terrain.
I was only passed once on the bike and lost track of how many riders I
passed after I counted to 10. As it turns out, I moved from last place in
the ATHENA group on the swim to 4th place on the bike and that is where I
stayed for the remainder of the race.

The only notable comment on the bike was that I still had no idea where my
feet were. Obviously I was able to move the pedals on the bike but I
definitely didn't feel them.

T2: 2:42 - Better considering that I still don't know where my feet are. I
took off my jacket, put on my sneakers, ate a GU and headed out onto the
course.

Run: 38:24 - FUN, FUN, FUN. The run starts on a rather steep incline and I
chose to walk it. I had peaked at my watch and knew that a sub 2:00:00
wasn't going to happen so I decided that I would simply have a good time,
cheer on everybody that I ran with and passed and enjoy being back to racing
TRIs. A mutual friend, Rob, who had a tough time with the swim, cheered me
on and ran with me for a bit at the top of the hill. He chatted with me and
told me I was looking good and really helped me relax and find a pace.
After a couple hundred yards, he wished me well and I went off up the road.
I cheered every person I saw heading back and gave encouragement to every
person I passed.

At around Mile 1, the most amazing thing happened! I could FEEL MY FEET! I
gave out a loud "Yeah, I can feel my feet!" and was treated to many laughs
and smiles and similar cheers from the folks around me. With feeling in my
feet, the last 2 miles went much quicker. After the turn around the run
course is a downhill run all the way and I smiled, cheered on the back of
the packers who were mid-run and looked forward to that finish line!

It was the most fun that I have had in a TRI in a long time!

Jim met me at the finish and we went to the main deck to get some pizza,
listen to the Awards Ceremony and meet up with Coach Debi.

D'OH Moment of the Day: At the awards ceremony when I realized that the 3rd
place Athena finished only 7 minutes ahead of me AND a full 14 minutes
behind 2nd place. If there were any way that I could have known that I had
moved from last to 4th on the bike, you can bet I would have busted my BUTT
on the run, feet or no feet!!

Even so, 4th is the best I have ever placed in any race as an Athena and I
think that I may have had the most fun at Kinetic that I have EVER had in
any of the races I have done so this was the perfect way to start my return
to TRIs!

Holly G.