I work so hard to train for triathlons and the season is so short. Although it’s still possible that I’ll add another race to my schedule, this year it looks like June and July may be it for triathlons. I’m trying to make the most of the short season and put all of my training to use by squeezing in whatever racing I can.

The Ann Arbor Triathlon on Saturday, July 15 was my second Olympic distance race this year. It took place a little north and west of Ann Arbor at the Halfmoon Lake day use facility. I have been there several times for the Swim to the Moon 5K so I knew I would be familiar with the swim location. Epic Races hosts both that race as well as this one. I am thankful that Epic has so many races in this area that I can drive to without having to get a hotel.

At first I was too intimidated by the elevation chart of the bike route to sign up for this race but eventually I decided to just go for it. As I do so often, I started to worry the night before the race and wondered why I choose to put myself through these things. The weather looked questionable and although I don’t mind rain during a swim or run, I worry about traction on wet roads when biking. I decided that I would feel most comfortable taking my mountain bike with thicker tires. The added weight would probably slow me down but it would ease some of my worrying.

I did not enjoy my hour and 20-minute trip on race morning when I had to drive in the dark through rain with lots of construction. However, at least the rain seemed to let up just as I arrived. Maybe it would all work out. It seemed like we had a clear window of time based on the radar!

I didn’t know what to expect from the bike or run segments but I looked forward to the swim. I’ve enjoyed swimming in Halfmoon Lake the three times I’ve been there for Swim to the Moon.

As I walked up to the registration table to collect my packet, of course I caught a little light-hearted grief for my bike. That already happens sometimes with my other bike so I wasn’t surprised to get hassled about my mountain bike. Most athletes are concerned with being as light and “aero” as possible and have really thin tires and fancier bikes. On the other hand, I am pretty insecure on the bike and more concerned with comfort. I still haven’t turned into a very serious cyclist and I just do what works for me. I explained that I would just get a really good workout with my mountain bike!

After I left the transition area I got into the water for a very quick warm up. Wetsuits are legal up to 78° and the water temperature was just under that. The buoyancy of the wetsuit helps enough that I was thankful I could use it.

As usual, Greg Sadler and his team provided a ton of great race photos. Credit goes to Greg Sadler Photography for the awesome shots that follow.

Anyone could do this race, but it also served as the host of the 2023 Michigan State Championships for age group, high school, and clubs, which qualifies people for the USAT Nationals. As a result, it seemed like a slightly different mix of people than I usually see at triathlons. When I lined up for the swim I was a little intimidated because I was surrounded by a bunch of college guys. Sometimes races have separate starts for men and women but everyone lined up at the same time for this start. We were supposed to line up by pace but there were no signs or anything to suggest where to be, so I just guessed that maybe I could start a little back from the front of the pack. I was hoping no one would be too aggressive and swim on top of me. We started individually every few seconds which would help. That’s always so much less stressful than a mass start.

I settled down soon enough from the initial rush of nerves and swam a little to the outside in hopes that it would give faster people room and they wouldn’t get too close to me.

As usual, I worried more than I needed to. I think I started in the appropriate spot after all because I didn’t have anyone on my heels. We had two loops of the rectangular course to swim and by the time I rounded the buoys at the far end of my first loop I realized I didn’t need to stray too far from the path of the buoys. I didn’t have many people immediately around me and it made for a very comfortable swim.

My training swims are usually a minimum of 3,200 meters so the 1,500 meters went by quickly – especially thanks to the added speed from my wetsuit.

I felt like I had a really solid swim. Like my other triathlons this year, I felt especially strong during the swim and I’ve been enjoying it more and more.

I covered the 1,500 meters plus the jog to the transition area in 27:13.

I wasted time in transition as usual when the wetsuit got hung up on one of my feet. Then I was slow to get my bike gloves on with my wet hands. I spent 2:52 in transition before going out on the bike.

Although the standard distance for an Olympic-distance bike leg is 40K/24.8 miles, the distance tends to vary from race to race based on the most ideal way to route the course. This bike leg was a little longer at 28 miles. It was another two-loop course.

We started by climbing a hill on the way out of the park then spent the rest of the time on the road with some rolling hills. Thankfully vehicle traffic was pretty light and I didn’t have any real concerns about that.

The roads were a little wet – enough to spit water up in my face at times. It confirmed why I should wear glasses on the ride no matter what! I’m sure my heavier bike made me work harder but I had plenty of traction which eased some of my worrying. I watched a guy in front of me wipe out as he rounded a corner which was a bit scary. I don’t know if it was from the wet roads or something else, but once again I was thankful I had opted to use my mountain bike. I was relieved that a volunteer and policeman were stationed at that corner and ran to help him.

I was also thankful for my thick tires when one stretch of the road was especially bumpy. When cars or other bikes were behind me it really wasn’t an option to ride on the smoother part in the middle of the road. Sometimes I had to stay all the way to the right where I cringed as I rattled on the bumps. I know it would have been worse on my bike with thinner tires and I can’t help but wonder how people with the really fancy bikes can handle it. Maybe they have more tolerance than I do. As slow as I may have been, I feel like I made the right bike selection for my comfort level.

I realized there may have been a trade-off though. While I felt better going over bumps, my big bike may have contributed to my misery while climbing hills! There were some pretty good inclines that I had to battle. I blamed myself for not riding hillier routes more often in training. I knew I’d get through it, but it wasn’t especially fun!

I had thoughts about how maybe I should have just done the open water swim and been done so I wouldn’t have to bike. I figured I should use my usual approach of trying to put a positive spin on the situation somehow. At least I was getting a really good workout and maybe building some strength for future rides. When I started to question if I might be in last place on the bike after I hadn’t seen anyone else around for a while, I reminded myself that it didn’t matter if I was. I don’t stand a chance at winning a race like this. I’m doing it for myself because I like to challenge and push myself. I REALLY had to push myself through this ride!

It wasn’t great but I got through it. My watch said I rode 28.5 miles and I completed that in 1:47:06. I averaged 16 mph which wasn’t too far off my usual “race” speed of 16-18 mph.

I got through the second transition in 1:07 and went out to run. After a minute I was back on the same uphill segment we rode to get out of the park. Of course that didn’t feel great after just coming off the hard ride.

After a little stretch of running on the road we made our way to trails that wrap around Crooked Lake. Since we had gotten so much rain I had debated swapping to trail shoes. I’m glad I didn’t waste extra time doing that because the surface was just fine in my regular road shoes. Most of the trail was a sandy/dirt surface. There were some rocks and roots but I’m used to running on those kinds of trails and this wasn’t any more extreme than what I’m used to. There were some pretty good ups and downs too. This race was not an easy one!

I enjoy running on trails and thought it was a nice run course. On the way back we probably ran close to a mile on the roads which made me glad again that I hadn’t bothered with trail shoes. Once I was back out in the open I noticed some light rain. At least it had held off during the ride.

It was nice to be sent down a hill toward the finish area back by Halfmoon Lake. That helped me pick up my pace!

My friend Jeff was waiting by the finish and took a photo as I crossed the line. I especially like that he captured the moment when photographer Greg Sadler reached out to greet me with a fist bump!

I finished the run in 48:53 and came up with 5.37 miles. Again, a little different from the standard Olympic distance of 6.2 miles, but sometimes it’s not worth adding silly out-and-back segments just to add up enough mileage.

My official time was 3:07:14. Here’s how it broke down:

I saw my friend Jeff by the finish line and we chatted about my race, his duathlon, and how they were waiting for his brother-in-law who was out racing. It was nice to catch up for a little bit before I knew I should get some food. As usual, I was happy about the typical treats from Epic – pancakes, an egg and cheese wrap, a cookie, and an ice cream sandwich.

Epic gave awards to the top five people in each age group. Since I fell third out of six in my group I chose a race belt from the variety of prizes they offered.

I keep trying to remind myself not to worry so much because yet again, everything worked out just fine. I may not have especially enjoyed the bike segment, but do I ever? It’s not that I dislike biking but I’d rather spend more of my time swimming and running. That always becomes painfully obvious on race days! Still, I felt accomplished for pushing through this challenging race and was glad to get out there for another race this season. I still have Swim to the Moon to look forward to in August. IF I don’t add another race to my schedule, I may wrap up this triathlon season with the truly “Epic” 10-part Battle of Waterloo on July 30th. That will be the true culmination of all of the crazy training I’ve done the last few months!

– Janet

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