I participated in Wanderlust 108 this past weekend in Nashville, TN at Bicentennial Park. The event was billed as a mindful triathlon, and began with an un-timed 5K run through the downtown streets of Nashville. My Strava app recorded my pace at 8:59/ mile. This was followed by 90 minutes of Vinyasa style yoga led by Chelsea Korus, which was fun and challenging! The “triathlon” was concluded by 30 minutes of meditation led by Enrique Collazo.
The weather was cloudy and 65 degrees, which was perfect for running and outdoor yoga. A great day!
This weekend was supposed to be a double-header with the Fear The Forest Cyclocross race on Saturday at the Ziegler Action Sport complex and the RunUp Milwood Park Cyclocross race at Milham Park. On Friday afternoon, saw a post on the Fear The Forest Facebook page that they were cancelling due to predicted severe weather and low pre-registrations. I gave them a little heat posting a pic of what a real cyclocross looks like in Europe. As Saturday came around, I could see why they would have cancelled, but I would have been there without a moment’s hesitation. Fortunately, The RunUp guys and Pedal Bikes stood strong and ran the race.
I raced both the C and B races. I finished C’s 3 lap race 5th out of 22. I did not pre ride the course and was learning the turns and obstacles as I went. With that said, I was pretty wasted after the race. I finished B’s 7 laps 22 out of 24! What the hell happened there?!?! I started at the back because I missed the line up call. Through the first lap, I thought I worked my way up to around close to halfway through the pack. I conserved energy since I had a couple dudes in sight and hoped many behind me. I finished less wasted than the C race. I only found out my results later in the evening on Facebook. The only thing I could think of is that there were a few DNF’s, but who knows.
It was windy and rainy for both races. Every lap that went by, the course got less and less ride-able. Fast lines that I found in the C and beginning of B were quickly transformed into mud bogs. Traction was good throughout but there were sections with standing water under grass that zapped speed and energy and then some wonderful mud pits to run and ride through. I am glad I finally got a CX experience that I only read about and have seen pictures of. I’ll also chalk this up to another preparations for a potentially messy Iceman in 3 weeks.
On September 30th, Xterra returned to Fort Custer, I had enjoyed this race in the past and had to do it. The swim course was two 400-meter laps in Eagle Lake with a short beach run between them. Apparently, this is how Xterra Worlds does their swim. It was neat to get out of the water, see where you were in the field, and jump back in for another lap. The warm weather we had earlier warmed the lake up enough to make the swim enjoyable but still wetsuit legal.
The bike course was a combination of the Green and Red trail. My main goal was to not crash, I had a few close calls but was able to stay upright. Passing is difficult on single track trails so a good swim can help you on the bike a lot more here than road triathlons. Something I hope to remember for next year.
The run course used the three miles of the Green trail a technical trail run. I have been struggling with my run off the bike this year but it felt good today. I will be looking forward to this race next year and I hope they keep the fall date.
Michigan Mountain Mayhem Gravel Grinder’s 3rd year was warm with a light rain most of the race, making it slippery and challenging with some very long hills! But what a great race and very well organized with a great meal at the post party. I’ll definitely plan on doing this race next year. I was 4th in the fat tire race.
The start of 2017 race season was a plan to get out of my comfort zone with the intent to set myself up for training for RAAM, the coast-to-coast bicycling race from California to Maryland (but more on that later).
Kathy Roche-Wallace finishing the 2017 Muncie 70.3 Ironman.
I started off the year with Hyner Park Trail Run in PA. I ran it with my oldest daughter Melissa who was gracious enough to stay with me. The course featured an extremely difficult combination of three big climbs. The total distance was 25k with 4,226 elevation gain. What a riot, and great to be with my daughter for the event.
The next event was the National 24 Hour Challenge in Middleville, MI. As the name implies, you have 24 hours to ride as many miles as you can in a 24-hour period. Making the race was even more difficult this year, a lightning storm forced the race director to close the course down from midnight until 3:30 am. It was a challenge to get going again after you were forced to stop, especially after riding for that long. I rode it like I was racing RAAM, trying to stay focused. In the end, I finished 1st in my age group 3rd overall with a total of 339 miles (even with the 3 1/2 hour break from riding)!
After that came Muncie 70.3 Ironman triathlon, I have not done one of these in quite a few years, and it’s strange to say this is a “short” race for me. Most of my training has been in the ultra-distance world. It was a great venue, but I seriously got my butt kicked. Still managed to finish 4th in my age group, but this engine is used to running for longer distances and the shorter course really didn’t play to my strengths (but still good training).
Next came The Marquette 100k Trail Run. This was amazing and one of the most beautiful and challenging trail runs I have ever completed. I was proud that I was able to just finish and 2nd overall female.
Lastly was the Wisconsin Ironman in Madison, WI. Again a great venue with great spectator involvement and a beautiful/challenging course. I finished 2nd in my age group and very happy with my results on this challenging and hilly course.
Now that my official racing for the year is over, training dials in for RAAM (Race Across America) coming up June 2018. This is a 3,000-mile bicycle race from Oceanside CA. to Annapolis MD. I’ll again (yes, I’ve done this a few times now) race in the solo women category and will have 12 days to complete the entire course or be disqualified.
