Race Coverage

Big Dogs & Podiums....

Sunday, 18 October 2015 00:10

By Heather Lendway (heatherlendway.com)

Silverman 70.3 Race Report - After racing Penticton Half at the end of August I decided I wasn’t ready to be done racing for the year. I researched my 70.3 options and landed on Silverman in Henderson, Nevada, neighboring Las Vegas. I figured the week before Kona some big names might not be racing, but I think everyone had the same idea. The start list was stacked with over 40 female pros set to race. After researching the names I didn’t know I figured I’d be lucky to come in top 5. As race day approached the start list shrunk a bit (per usual) but there were still plenty of top athletes remaining.

Race morning my alarm went off at 3:45. I was up and moving quickly as I needed to stop over at transition in town to drop off my nutrition and get my gear setup in T2. After the first stop my Dad and I drove the 30 minutes out to Lake Mead where the swim and T1 were located. It was a beautiful morning, mid 70’s with the weather predicted to be low 90’s and windy. Upon arriving I went straight to the bike...

mechanic line. My rear derailleur hanger was bent ever so slightly (which happens when you pack a bike so much) so the derailleur was rubbing my disk when I was in the small front ring and big back ring aka the easiest gear setting. The day before, I adjusted the limit screw on the derailleur so it wouldn’t go into that last gear. After talking with Kevin at Gear West I changed my mind and decided with the climbs on the course I would really need that gear. To fix this I needed to slightly bend the derailleur hanger. I tried to bend and it wouldn’t give. Luckily the mechanic knew a little trick and with barely any effort he was able to bend it so it wouldn’t rub. What a huge relief race morning!

After that I was able to get everything ready to go with my bike, do a quick jog, stretch out and I was ready to go. Leaving transition I saw the cutest Great Dane, in a shark costume, so I gave him a little rub on the head (this is important and you’ll see later) and a smile to his owners. I zipped into my Blueseventy PZ4TX ready for a fast swim and headed to the water for a quick warmup. A few minutes after the men, with no warning, our cannon sounded and we were off! READ MORE