Three Letters to Avoid...DNF

DNF. Well, had to happen sometime...luckily this just a race for fun (and to get a cool medal). For those who aren't familiar with the terminology, DNF = Did Not Finish. Kind of a thing you avoid in triathlon (and duathlon) races...but you can't avoid them forever. I learned that today! 

I got to the race transition right away when it opened up at 5:30 AM and got the best spot on my rack. I realized as the clock ticked towards 6:30 that IronGirl duathletes aren't as 'crazy' as triathletes that fill up the racks early. There was no competition for a good spot, needless to say. 

Jim and Heidi got there early (as all good triathletes do) and Jim got all our bikes in tip-top shape lubing them up...it was like a personal mechanic! Well, the race started off well - I was in wave 1 and towards the front of the chute going out. 

Heidi Christian ran with me out onto the course for a bit. My legs felt pretty good, for the workouts I've done this week. So, I just kept running the 2 mile leg and coming in I looked down at my watch to see a 15:26 split! Whoa! PR split for me! That's 7:43 miles...never really ventured down into that "7" area for a race - EVER! 

OK...so feeling good. I hop on Pink Lightning with her sweet wheels and I'm off. It took a bit to get past a few of the girls starting out and weave onto the main stretch - but once there I felt great. I was scooting right by some of the girls that were ahead of me and doing fine. I hadn't been passed by anyone....yet. 

At about mile 9.5 I was passing another girl in front of me and as I went out to pass her I hit a small bump (which, the roads were pretty crappy in this area) and as I rolled over it I heard a "Psssstttt!" sound. Crap! Was that my (Jim's) fancy wheel? I stopped and felt the front tire and it felt fine...but then again I had no idea what a flat tubular tire felt like. So I reached behind me to feel the back tire. THAT's what it felt like! Crap, Crap, Crap! (granted maybe I used some different choice words). 

Needless to say....I then started getting passed. By everyone. Well, I knew going into this that if I got a flat on these wheels - I'm out. I don't know how to change tubular tires and thus didn't pack Jim's 'kit'. I wouldn't have known what to do anyways. So...I just started walking. I had about a 1.5 mile hike until the bike route looped by the transition area (2 loop course). I was hoping a sag wagon would be coming by - as the Penn Cycle van was behind me on the course. Nope...got all the way there about a half hour later - I did get to see all the other girls go whizzing by that I knew; Jen, the 2 Heidis, and Noelle. 

When I got to transition, I decided I'd go park the bike and finish up the run (need to put in some miles for the marathon coming up, right?). So, I got to transition, turned in my timing chip, threw on my shoes, and finished up the 2 mile run leg. That leg didn't feel too bad either (granted, I had just spent the last 1/2 hour walking vs. riding my bike hard). So that split was about 16:25 by my watch. Not bad. 

I did get my medal, which was important. After the race we all had some grub and hung out for a while. Heidi C. finished WELL under the time she was aiming for and Noelle did superb too! 

All-in-all a good day! I took off a little early to get home and work on homework that was waiting for me. After I got home, I calculated from my Garmin what my bike mph was for the 9.5 miles I actually rode and was happy to see that it was 20.4 mph. Didn't quite make 21 mph...but that is OK - I think it was close enough. 

So, parting thoughts for the day:

• Isn't it strange that my first race on clincher tires (3 yrs ago) I got a flat and my first race on tubular tires (today) I got a flat? Coincidence? I think not.
• I do like the Zipp wheels - the question is "clincher" or "tubular" when I buy my own set eventually?
• How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?....the world may never know.