What a weekend! Lets start with the fun details/stats first:
- Place I finished: 3rd
- Number of female 'real pros' at the race: 4
- Number of miles ridden: 225
- Number of feet climbed: ~17,000
- Number of hours I had to stop due to stomach issues: 2.5
- Number of minutes difference between my fastest and slowest laps (excluding stomach laps): 10 minutes
We got to the venue on Friday and set up camp. I had my plan for the race - I had a lap goal, an eating plan, and I was set to go. The weather was a bit hot - it was 80F - and we have had a cool wet spring here in Seattle. To say I wasn't acclimatized would be a bit of an understatement. But I had a plan for that too ... I was self-supporting so we had a bin of ice water on the table and I'd take a cool cloth to my core, legs, and neck each lap. 30 seconds of cool bliss each lap.
Before I knew it, the start gun went and we were off. I did my usual 'pacing' and was almost dead last in the run. The first lap was slow but my plan was to turn it up as the sun (and heat) went down. The first laps felt slow - I was holding back due to the heat. I didn't want to over-do it.
I started feeling good around 6pm. The air was starting to cool and my lap times were starting to get faster. Right around this time I got what my Dr calls 'exercised-induced bronchial spasms' (I've been informed by my Dr not to call it asthma). This resulted in shallow breathing which led to a nice stitch in my side (yes, it hurt!). Oddly, the stitch is almost a good thing --it means the spasms are over - and I can control the stitch pain with some deep breathing.
From 7pm to 11pm I had my best lap times. The air was cooling down and I was feeling good. And then it happened. I had a bad lap - i had to walk a downhill because i was feeling stunned, I started to feel nauseous, my stomach felt like it was on fire, and I had to stop. I was super frustrated. My brain wanted to keep riding but given my experience at Canmore 2 years ago, I didn't want to risk it. I took some anti-acid pills, more endurolytes, and laid down. I listened as the riders rode by and kept on wishing I were out there. Several times I would stand up and immediately feel nauseous so I laid back down again. After 2 hours of this I decided that it was time to give it a shot. I could always turn around if I felt too bad. I got ready, downed some more electrolytes, and headed out for a lap.
I warmed up quickly and felt pretty decent. I didn't puke. This was good. I picked up the pace and my stomach was still co-operating. Things were looking up. The air was still cool (it was around 3am) so I was able to put in some good lap times. Fraser let me know that I was catching 2nd but I had to put on the gas. I tried. I was reeling her in but ran out of time (what an odd concept for a 24hr race)...
In summary I didn't meet any of my goals for this race. I do believe that I learned another lesson and we may finally have the last piece of the puzzle in place for my stomach issues. Here's hoping :)
I will say that I had a great 24hours on my bike! I loved my new ride and the only mechanical was that I got a flat tire! Thanks again to the guys at Norco for the sweet ride and to the guys at SVC for setting it all up and dialing it in for race day.
So now that the dust has settled I am in recovery mode .. trying to clear the dust out of my lungs, getting some sleep, and fighting off the re-appearance of my cold.
I've got a race every other weekend for the next two months - lots of time to test out my new slightly modified plan - stay posted :)
