Ironman Lake Tahoe Non-Race Report

Squaw on Saturday

Beautiful run course at Squaw Saturday

I have had a lot of time to think on my 1000mi drive back from Tahoe- the IM Boulder redemption race that wasn't. Emotions are still kind of flying high but I know the choice made for racers yesterday was the right one- the air was very unhealthy to race in.

We originally decided to change our plans of getting to Tahoe when we first heard about the fires earlier in the week. We scratched our flight and decided to drive in the event the race was shortened or cancelled, letting us leave on our own schedule instead of waiting around for a tue flight home. Turned out to be a smart choice.

Arriving on fri spared us the smoke that rolled into town on Thursday. It looked pretty bad. On fri however things were looking much better and the wind had shifted, clearing the air and setting minds at ease that the race race would happen without a hitch. Weather reports for the weekend had forecast some storms on Saturday night into Sunday, bringing winds to clear out any smoke that might settle.

Kids run Saturday a.m.

Kids run Saturday a.m.

I started my day with the Iron kids run- ways great fun helping the little ones get across the finish line and hang medals around their neck. You get to witness every emotion from joy and excitement and determination to agony and tears :)

Smoke clouds rolling into T1 Saturday afternoon

Saturday afternoon around 2 pm when I dropped my bike off in t1 I could clearly see that smoke was rolling down over the hills into the Lake Tahoe area. It was only a matter of time until it reached transition and spread out. By dinner time in Truckee the air was bad enough to shut windows and Ac off in our room, and doubts about the race started to creep in.


A restless night of sleep followed and I periodically got up and looked out our window to see the smoke settle all around us. Visibility had to be down to a. Few feet. It was bad and it smelled in our room. Wake up call was at 3.30 am and when we opened our windows the stench of smoke was over whelming. The winds from the storms never came and the smoke had been settling in the valley all night. I seriously doubted the race being on, save for a miraculous wind shift to blow clean air in within the next two hrs.

Nevertheless, I got ready and we headed over to t1 where the air was surprisingly clear. Renewed hope the race was on, entered my mind. Perhaps the winds were now sweeping clean in Truckee, where we were staying, part of the bike course. I briefly mentioned smoke concerns to one of the Rd's and for the first time I could sense honest doubt in IM's plans. They would wait until the last possible minute to make a final decision regarding the start of the race, to give every last chance for the smoke to clear. Air quality in Truckee, to keep things in perspective, had risen to hazardous levels of 800 overnight. Anything over 20 is considered unhealthy. I went ahead and filled my bottles and warmed up and put my wetsuit on. Time was 6 am, rain was starting to fall,and no announcement had yet been made. Race start was in 30 min and things felt a bit surreal.


I was in the dark water ( it doesn't get light until after 6.40 am there) trying to warm up while starting to cough up a lung ( smoke particulates were surely hanging out on water from lingering smoke the night before) and trying to wrap my head around a long day ahead even though I could barely breathe when we walked out of our hotel two hrs prior.

lots of disappointed racers

A beautiful sunrise after the race was called off

The announcement came just as I was walking over to step on the timing mat to activate my timing chip for the race. Tom Ziebart delivered the "unfortunate news" to a crowd that assumed the race was a go, since no prior announcements were ever made. I immediately turned to Brandon and left the start corral and was overcome with emotion. In a strange way it was a relief To know the decision was made for us, as there was simply no way anyone should have attempted to race in conditions like this. Smoke particulates penetrate deep into the lungs and can cause long term health damage, and given I felt the smoke sitting in my lungs and giving me a headache and a scratchy throat just walking around in it, I immediately started to gather my things and pack up and get ready to head home. Apparently the other pro women swam the course, but it had never even entered my mind after Ziebart told everyone to exit the water after calling off the race. What's more, people were dealing with their disappointment by going ahead and riding the bike course. It was disgusting out and I have no idea how anyone was able to take deep breaths in that air. The visibility in Truckee and squaw Valley ( t2 and run course) was as bad or worse than Thursday and the mountains were veiled in smoke all around. But to each their own.

I am disappointed the race didn't take place. I like challenging courses, and this race was going to be a real toughie. It's disappointing to know pros won't be coming back next year as the race was taken off the calendar for us, but in staying positive I am setting out new plans for the remainder of the season. I will likely race a couple of half ironman races and then return to fulls in November. The quest for Kona points 2015 has been delayed but it gives me a chance to get some more  sharpening in. 

On bike course towards Squaw and Truckee around 8 am Race day

On bike course driving to Truckee race morning

Thick smoke on bike course race morning

T2 race morning around 9 am

T2 race morning veiled in smoke

Lastly, the King Fire that ultimately affected the race has burnt close to 90,000 acres and is keeping 7k fire fighters busy. Structures and homes have been lost. When I think about this, an IM that had to be cancelled, seems trivial. People have lost almost everything, wildlife is fighting for their lives, and yes- all of us who trained and invested time and money and sacrifice into competing, have a bitter pill to swallow. But there will be another race. I certainly wasn't planning on just a 2000mi drive. I'm now over tapered and feel lousy. Looking forward to getting home and looking ahead to the next event. I do hope the fire is fully contained soon and that CA gets some much needed rain. Our car still wreaks of smoke. A reminder until I wash all of my clothes in my smoky bags.

Thanks for reading.

IM Boulder Reflections

It's been three weeks since IM Boulder and not a day goes by where I don't think about the race and what went wrong on that day. Even after completing 14 of these events, there is still stuff that can go wrong, nothing is ever guaranteed in this sport.

I was pretty pumped about a local IM, getting to sleep in my own bed and not having to travel. I had fun at the pre race pro panel and kids' run event, handing out medals and helping the kids get pumped for their races. I wasn't overly nervous about the course since it was my "hometown race" and I had ridden the bike course numerous times and run on the creek path countless times in the ten years of living in the area. I knew altitude and heat could be a factor on the mostly exposed course, but since I live here, I figured I would be fine, having trained in it for years.

On race morning I wasn't very hungry (it was 3 a.m. after all!) and I had to force down my breakfast. My stomach felt like it was full from one bite. I had my coffee to wake up and then moved onto race hydration. Before the swim start I had a Powergel to top off my storages heading into the first leg. My parents had made it into town to watch me race and I wanted to put on a good performance, especially since my mom had a very serious bike- car accident earlier this year that she is still recovering from. With the year so far having been anything but race focused, I wanted to get back to where I had left off last season.

The 2.4 mi swim felt surprisingly good and smooth. I found myself towing the chase pack and had women around me that should have been ahead of me.  I figured I was having a pretty decent swim until the fast age groupers started passing us on the home stretch. Despite efforts to not have this affect me, it always manages to put a slight damper on my confidence. However, this has happened even in races I have won, so I wasn't overly worried.

Early on the bike. Pic- Triathlete Magazine

Out of the water and onto the bike I could tell my stomach was off. I was thirsty, but only for water. The water temp for the swim had been right around the cut off of 76 deg but I swam in a full sleeve wetsuit, which might have contributed to some early dehydration. I was picking up some spots early on on the bike but then settled in for a good long solo ride, only having one other pro woman around me, with the occasional age group mens pack zipping by. The air temperature was definitely on the rise and by 10.30 a.m. I was baking in my aero helmet. Even though I was feeling like I was getting increasingly cooked, I made sure to dump water all over at every aid station and take on all the nutrition I could handle. Despite my best efforts, I was getting nauseous. I kept having to sit up after eating and drinking to let my stomach settle, as otherwise I would have not been able to keep it down. This was cause for some concern for the run ahead.

I pulled into T2 under 5 hrs for the 112mi ride, a time I was pleased with despite having fought nausea for 90% of the ride. I felt the heat of the day and knew I would need to turn things around quickly if I wanted a shot at a decent marathon. Starting out in 4th on the run, I could barely make it to the first aid station where I tried to take as many fluids and ice as I could. Engine overheating and body shutting down. And only 25 more miles to go. I knew I was not going to have the day I had hoped for at this point.

Last 10mi of bike, feeling less than great. Pic- Randy Sadler

My lead bikers were great, trying to encourage me on and getting the aid stations to have things ready for me. I didn't care- I was going to walk each aid station anyway to try and get as much in me as I could. By mi 3 I saw the race leader walking as well, I tried encouraging her on, but apparently she was off even worse than me. With the many out and backs it was easy to spot the competition and it wasn't long until other women started catching up to me. The run is usually my strength, rarely do I get caught. I switched into survival mode at the half way point, unable to shake the nausea that had bothered me all day since early on the bike, and I made a deal (although almost broke it several times) to just make it to the finish line.

Trying to hold it together. Pic- Triathlete Mag

The crowds in town were spectacular and I felt like I owed it to them to finish the race, no matter how bad I felt. So many people were cheering my name, pushing me to keep going when all I wanted was to find a quiet spot and lay down. By mi 20 I lost my now 3rd place position and could no longer fake my jog. The nausea had gotten so bad that if I even tried to do anything but walk, I thought I would pass out. So I walked, not fast, but I walked. I got passed by age groupers, who  yelled kind words of encouragement, but I was unable to pick up the pace. Finally, with 2 mi to go and after having a few orange slices, my stomach was quiet enough for me to shuffle into the finish for 5th place. My family was there waiting and I was relieved to have completed the day, but at the same time felt sad, embarrassed and let down about how my day had unfolded.

Holding back the tears. Pic- Kat Hearty

Post race I spent some time in the med tent trying to get rid of the ever worsening nausea, and eventually made it home to my couch. The following days I felt totally off, I couldn't be out in the sun very long or the nausea returned, so perhaps I was suffering from some form of heat exhaustion during the race as well. It has taken nearly three weeks to feel like my normal self and I am finally back to being able to push it in training and enjoy it too. I scratched from a race I had entered to try and "make up" for my bad performance, since it took way longer to recover than I thought.

Now with the performance in Boulder finally digested and this race report putting the final stamp on it, I am really excited to give it another go in a month when I toe the line at IM Lake Tahoe, the final year for a pro race there. I'm looking forward to the scenery, the climbs and the cooler temps!

Big thanks to my support crew: Zoot, BMC, Rudy Project, Power Bar and Hed Cycling. And of course  to my super sherpa Brandon and my family and friends. Thanks for believing in me.

Here is to a fresh start to Project 2015!

A 2014 Update

Almost seven months have passed since my last post, wow, life got busy. After a busy 2013 race season that ended with a PR at IMAZ, I was certainly ready for a break. And what better way than to ring it in with a puppy!? Amos joined us mid December as a fluffy 9 week old baby. I now know that puppies and human babies have much in common. It has definitely been a learning curve but we love our boy (now 65 lbs at 7 mos!) and his sweet face saves him from most of the trouble he gets into. I was ready to hit training hard again by mid winter, but constant sleep deprivation due to puppy baby made it difficult at times :) I had planned to do some early season races, head to St. George for the US Champs and then into the summer season with IMCdA kicking off my IM race schedule. But life doesn't always work out the way you have in mind. I have had to learn to adapt this year. Big time.

Sweet Baby Amos!

Just as I was getting into a training groove, one of the most stressful times I have experienced, hit. I was out with Amos, our puppy, for his usual afternoon walk at the local park, when I caught him eating something suspicious. Completely unaware I picked up whatever leftovers I could find from what he had just devoured. I brought it home and thought it looked like meat laced with something weird. Later on, friends told me it looked like rat poison and that's when alarms went off and I raced to the ER vet. It was confirmed there that poor Amos indeed had eaten poison, so luckily, since it was discovered early enough, it was still sitting in his stomach and he was able to throw most of it back up. The bad news was that rat poison is plain evil. It can cause seizures and blood clotting issues, all delayed in onset. Amos stayed at the ER for the night to be safe and I went home worried sick.

For the next month the poor thing had to take Vit K tablets each day to help clot his blood, and visit the vet more times than I can count.  News and media invaded our little neighborhood and wanted to talk to us. It was stressful and draining to say the least, and training took a back seat. However, I am happy to report that Amos is healthy and free of the poison in his body, and I do hope that whoever did this ( there were numerous poisoned meat balls found at our park) will be found and pay. (my vet bills especially…)

By spring, we decided that our condo was not going to be ideal for housing a big puppy and us. We went through the selling process and were able to find a house to call home, which we will be moving into in the next few weeks. Renovations will be mixed with training, but that's no longer a daunting task after the events that unfolded last week.

It was just a regular Sunday morning and I was able to sleep in, when B burst in the room with a serious look on his face to tell me (still half asleep) that my mom had been in a CAR ACCIDENT on her bike. I immediately sat up, trying to understand what he was saying. It was followed up with "She will be OK", "but she is in the ICU right now". Thoughts ran through my head like crazy. Most of all it was shock. There, completely being caught off guard, I got the message no one ever wants to receive.

We made arrangements to go see her in the hospital and luckily she was released the day we arrived, letting us help her back into the comfort of her own home. I got to play Nurse for a few days (and actually quite enjoyed it) and helped feed my mom liquids and medication (her mouth is wired shut so the broken bones around there can heal) through syringes into a tiny opening in her mouth. I helped keep her wounds moist (important for healing) and clean. Good news is she is improving every day. Although her face will soon be all the colors of the rain bow as her black eyes fade and her facial bruising/ swelling recedes, she will certainly be awhile until she is allowed to train again. But she wouldn't be related to me if she didn't already have goals. IMAZ will be her comeback race. I plan on racing it as I do every year. I can't wait for us to cross the finish line!

What I learned from this experience is that family is everything. If someone near and dear is in serious trouble, it changes your perspective on everything. Nothing matters more than your family. I am so grateful that this accident wasn't any worse than it could have been. Don't drive drunk, just don't. It takes one second to change someone's else's life forever. I owe a big thanks to friends near and far that have offered their kind words and help along the way.

As for my racing, I would be lying if I said I have been able to do my usual loads of training. I am feeling a bit frustrated that I am not as fit as I should be this time of year, but I still have half the season ahead of me and IM Boulder is still a race I would really love to do well at. I have just over 2 months to  prepare, but I will give it my best shot. My mom plans on cheering me on.

Thanks for reading and I promise another update real soon!