Race Coverage

"A Ginormous Confidence Boost"...

Wednesday, 12 July 2017 19:10

By Gaby Bunten

LIFE TIME TRI - MINNEAPOLIS TRIATHLON RACE REPORT - Words still can’t describe my thoughts and feelings about Lifetime Minneapolis this past Saturday! I’m still totally surprised. Personally, the outcome of this race wasn’t made by my time, place or splits. It was truly a ginormous confidence boost in my own abilities! I find it so easy to get caught up in comparing myself to other athletes, when I know deep down, that isn’t why I do this sport. Triathlon for me has become a lifestyle, a career, a hobby, a place where I have met countless lifetime friends and my better half. The sport itself has given me a competitive outlet, post-swimming career.

This year has been a journey to say the least. I began working with my coach Leanda, back in September and she has royally kicked my butt. And, I LOVE IT! I’ve had ups and downs during training periods, like every other athlete. But, I’ve really doubted my own abilities to “breakthrough” as of late. The swim is and always will be my happy place. However, my bike and run have always lagged behind. Literally, a fish out of water… But everyone can relate to a time when everything relatively just clicks! For me, that was Saturday.

Leading up the Lifetime, I was fairly distracted. Between the fourth of July, Kris’s big 3-0 and my best friend’s bridal shower ALL that week, my mind was elsewhere. In fact, I barely realized I was racing until I picked up my packet on Friday afternoon. But hey, distraction can be good for pre-race jitters, right?! It suited me well. Friday evening was filled catching up on the TDF, cooking up a mean Bolognese and my enjoying my pre-race favorite, a glass of red wine (Rosso di Montlacino to be exact). Set my alarm for 4:45 the next morning, fell sound asleep within seconds (SUPER odd for pre-race) and before I knew it, it was race morning! WHAAT?!

Swim: ....

The swim start was fairly uneventful. I sighted for the first buoy and had my sights on the elite men. My goal was to “chick” as many of the elite men as I could! Yes, even Kris. I waved as I passed him.
Water temp was WARM! It was announced to be 76, but in a wetty, holy cow! Toasty.
I found a nice rhythm in my stroke and was able to find a straight line around the pack of guys all the way to the finish.
Swim time at the timing mat – 19:33.

T1:

I made my way up the beach towards transition, trying my best not to biff it on the wet cement. That was hard!
Once I had made it to my bike I saw that three men had gotten the best of me on the swim. I grabbed my helmet, bike and off I went!

Bike:

My legs felt like total bricks for the entire bike… But hey, if the quads aren’t screaming, you aren’t on a proper bike ride, am I right?
I settled in after a half mile and began getting some fluids in and finding a good cadence. It was just then that I realized, we seriously couldn’t have asked for nicer weather on race day. One for the books.
It wasn’t long before I started to get passed by a few elite men, which is when my nerves kicked in. I knew that I needed to hold onto my lead on the bike to have any fighting chance against the rest of the field of elite women. I’ve never been a super biker, so I just had to focus on pushing the pace and driving the bike well. It must have been all of the TDF I’ve been watching that helped the cornering skills.
The bike course was slightly different this year due to road construction, clocking between .8-.9 shy. But it still had its charm with a few technical corners and segments to it, and boy was it smooth! Thanks city of Minneapolis for paving those roads!
Before I knew it, I was taking off my shoes and heading towards the dismount line. I realized then that I had miraculously held the field off! But I knew they’d be coming in hot right behind me.
Bike time at the mat – 1:05

T2:

Threw my bike on the rack, my nifty Hoka Tracer’s on my feet, helmet off my head, visor on my head and fastened the race belt as I ran towards run out. Those race belts are tricky!

Run:

My legs felt surprisingly snappy off the bike. Who would have guessed after feeling like lead pipes on the bike?!
Hit the first mile focusing on getting my turnover up and tempo steady.
Once I hit the turnaround on the bridge I took a quick look behind me thinking I may see Hanna, Danielle, Elaine, or Meg. Sure enough once I made the turn to go back onto the path around Nokomis I saw Hanna and Danielle charging ahead onto the bridge. That put a bit of pep in my step! I knew I had to keep my rear in gear for what was heading to be the second lap of the run. Quickly quieting the voice in my head that wanted to give in and tell myself it was all right if they caught me, and start thinking about that finish line ahead!
The second lap, I could feel the fatigue wanting to creep in, but managed to keep my tempo up and turnover steady. I took a peak behind me once again on the bridge to see where the girls were and I could see Danielle once again charging towards me! AHHHH!
I then made mental notes to myself to just make it one more mile and take it from there. “Mile 4… Mile 5…. No one’s passed me yet, that’s a good sign. Mile 6… Oh my gosh, no one’s passed me yet! Get you’re a$$ to that finish line!!!!”
Ahh…. So many feels crossing that finish line. I can’t describe them all! I was overwhelmed with a feeling of utter excitement. But also, “Holy $h!t I just won?!”
Run time at the mat – 40:40
Finish time at the mat – 2:08:34

I’m always thankful for our Minnesota triathlon community to have a close knit group of women. Danielle, was a great addition to this race and I hope she comes back to many more races here in Minnesota! She’s a super talent! But, I was most thankful to have each of the elite women push my limits Saturday, because everyone truly put on a show! Kudos to you all, you are all just awesome. On a final note, be sure to wish Kris a happy belated 30^th birthday and make him blush  I’m pretty proud of him too. RESULTS