6/27/15 – It’s been a rough few weeks with injuries. But with a break in the season after Xterra Clemson, I thought I would give it a go and rest/rehab after.
So it was to Clemson I went this past Saturday. I arrived Friday to pre-ride the course, skipping my usual run because of the current knee injury. Hopping into the water afterward the lake felt like 100 degrees…tomorrow’s race was going to be interesting I thought.
Later that night it rained quite a bit with some passing thunderstorms. This would make the course a little better the next day because it was so dry and loose.
I arrived the next morning, took care of logistics, got in my usual warmup and was ready to race. Everyone lined up in the water waiting for the start. Luckily the rain had cooled the lake somewhat. This swim was slightly longer at a long 1000(more like 1100). With everyone ready, the horn sounded and we were off. There was a lead group that started to break immediately, I thought for a moment about trying to stay with them but there was no way. I swam strong and steady and ended up 7th out of the water. Transitioned quickly and was off on the tough climb heavy bike course. Quickly I caught and passed a person on one of the first big climbs…then someone came by me in a more technical section. But that didn’t last, pushing my knee a little harder, I re-passed him and pulled away, not seeing him again. I rode alone passing a few others on the ride while being careful not to push my knee too hard though. It was ok on long steady efforts, but I couldn’t accelerate out of corners. I was passed by 1 person late in the bike during another technical section and I couldn’t stay with them due to lack of acceleration. Coming into T2 I was in 5th. Transitioning quickly I was off on the run having no idea what to expect from my knee…seeing that I was only able to start walking down stairs a few days before. But still my goal was to not get passed. The run was much like the bike course, lots of turns with roots, steps, severe uphill/downhill sections and was slightly slippery…I was careful with my knee and just thought to myself to keep steady. I was running alone, not seeing anyone behind me with periodic checks but then I caught a glimpse of someone ahead. Could I be gaining on someone? After running a little further I realized I was…and in the next few minutes I caught and passed. This had me looking forward for others, but I ended up running alone into the finish.
The final result was 1st AG and 4th Overall, my best overall finish so far. Definitely worth driving down. I will rest up now with a small break in the schedule and hopefully come out stronger for the second half of the season.
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