Steelhead Race Report: The Run Leg

The Steelhead Triathlon run leg is a 13.1-mile out and back run that takes triathletes through the Jean Klock Park area. The course roadways are mostly concrete and asphalt that are in good condition. There are several hills as well as a scenic trail section to challenge the racers. The course has aid stations at every mile.

As I headed out of T2 my heart rate was pounding at 145 bpm, which is in the middle of zone 3 for me. I was over 8 minutes behind my friend and was worried that I would see him at some point as I was heading out to the turnaround and he was heading in to the finish line.

Right from the start of the run I was not feeling great. There was a hill right a hundred yards from the start that was meant to get your attention. I jogged up the hill and my heart rate spiked above my anaerobic Threshold and moved into zone 4. I had a difficult time getting my breathing to slow down so that I could relax. All of the yoga training that I had done was just not paying off. I tried to breath in deep and relax but it wasn't working.

Within the first mile the asphalt course turned into a trail run. I did not expect this, but I was not overly concerned about this type of running. I enjoy running on a hard packed trail as it doesalleviatee the pounding the joints. Unfortunatelyy, the trail also brought with it several steep (for me) hills. My heart spiked again. This time into the low 170's. I could only run at this pace for a minute or so until I could not breath. I slowed down and walked the rest of the way up the hills and jogged down the other sides oseveralla of these hills. The trail run only lasted about a mile and we were onto the cement portion of the race... ouch.

The next mile included a gentle long hill that again forced me to walk. The good thing was that it was followed by a gentle downhill to an aid station that I stopped at to get water and ice.

I proceeded to run/walk the next mile or so. Every time I started to jog or run my heart would spike into zone 4 and I was forced to slow down and walk again. I was not only worried that I was going to have a horrible run, but was also starting to worry that I might not be able to finish the race.

I was dejected in knowing that in a few short miles I would see my friend heading back and I still had 10 miles to go before I would finish.

At mile four I again took in Gatorade and water as well as a shot of Gu and a glass of ice for my head. It was hot and I saw a few fatigued runners being attended to by the medical staff. The race officials had several ambulances on the course as well as officials on bikes to monitor the runners.

There was this guy up a head of me that looked as if he was drunk while walking. His head was down and his arms weflailinging from side to side. As I jogged a bit more, I noticed that it was my friend. I picked up the pace to get to him fast. As I ran up, I yelled to him that he didn't have to wait for me. He answered me with something to the effect that he "didn't feel that great." I finally caught up to and looked at him. He still had his head down and his face and neck were beet red. Even worse was that he was not sweating. I helped him raise his head and told him to walk slowly. He not only didn't feel that great but he looked even worse. I was worried that he might have had a heat stroke and asked him if he wanted to keep going. He said yes, so I looked at my watch and told him that all we need to do was 12 minute miles to fiunderin unter 6 and ½ hours. At the next aid station we spent some time getting him to look less like a zombie and more like a triathlete. He drank water and Gatorade as well as eating some fruit and Gu shots.

Over the next three miles I told my friend that we would jog in the shaded areas and downhills and walk in the sun and uphills. I also made sure to talk to him so that I wousenset a sence of hofarings fareing. We eventually got to the turnaround point and I told him that we would need to pick it up a little to about a 11 ½ minute mile pace. He was far from enjoying his run, but it was going to be my mission to make sure that he would finish. At mile nine he wanted to make sure that I would remind him about this run next time he wanted to do one of these events. I laughed and at least his mind was still clear and it seemed that he was even starting to feel better. Our walking was decreasing and our jog running was increasing in distance. My heart rate (by the way) was back to normal and I felt great of course we were also doing about 12 minute miles.

At the next aid station and with three miles to go I told him that we need to finish in the nighborhood of 10 minutes per mile pace. He said that I should go ahead and try to finish in under our goal time I asked him if he felt ok and he told me he felt fine and to get going. I told him not to quit since he had come this far there was no point in stopping now. He said that he would see me at the finish line. I headed off.

I still needed to finish the last 3.1 miles in under 30 minutes. Normally, this would not be a big deal, but after racing for about 6 hours and with the heat, it was going to be a challange.

The first mile felt fine and my time was right at 10 minutes. Still needed to pick it up a little more. I got some water at the next aid station and poured a glass of ice down my shorts. It felt great and I hoped that my core temperature would drop a little. I continued to run and finished the next mile in just under 10 minutes. There was just a little over a mile to go and I needed to finish it in under 9 minutes. That is also where the last hill seemed to spring up from the earth. It was a long hill that seemed to be about a half mile long. Funny thing is that I didn't remember this hill being so long when I headed out. I attacked the hill with good intention but quickly slowed down. I glanced at my watch and I was spiking my heart rate right to the 182 limit. I was breathing heavy and the sweat was pouring off of my body. I slowed down and figured that it was better to finish then to not finish at all.

I was a little over a half mile to go and in the middle of the last downhill. I looked at my watch and realized I was going to finish just outside my time. I still wanted to make sure that I finished strong and just then there appeared an official telling everyone that the last turn was right ahead and the finish line was at the end of the chute.

The finish chute seemed like it was a half mile long by itself. I finally heard the crowd at the finish line cheering for the racers. I looked up ahead and there were my girls cheering me on and my wife just a few yards down from them. I crossed the finish line and looked up at my finish time... 6:34:40.