Friday Night Swim Race Race Report

Long overdue indeed.

I love this race.  Lots of TNM participants, low-key, very well organized (Thank you Raise the Bar), and my favorite sport, really can't ask for much more.

We left super-early to beat traffic to Kent on a Friday night.

Which gave me plenty of time to “think” about the race,  I’ll admit, B and C races I don’t put too much thought into, just go in and give it all I got…or something of that sort.  But there is something about the smaller races that also make me more nervous than the bigger ones. So in “thinking” out loud to Mark  I had a lot to go over:



Positive thinking:

Hawaii swimming days!

*I had put in a ton of swimming in Hawaii (Linsey you rock)and beyond and was feeling strong in the water.

*I love swimming.

*Great practice race.

*I love racing!

Race Strategy:

*Start out conservative

*Pace myself with the group/people I am comfortable swimming with.

*Build and then “hang on”

*"If it is super close, you sprint to the finish" (that was Mark’s advice!).

I lined up for the start with the New TYR Freak of Nature. So comfy! I was alongside my husband and 3 other soon to be TNM Ironman CDA finishers.  I knew there was a strong field in the group. Mike who attends the swim classes I teach at Seattle Athletic Club downtown and my friend/teammate Linsey who is one tough cookie.  When the going gets tough this girl can dig deep like no one I have ever seen.  She just happened to swim 3 (yes 3!) open water swim miles that morning in prep for her upcoming 11 mile swim race.

Mike and Linsey post-race

I am never one to start out sprinting, make me incredibly nauseous, so I put up with people yanking at my feet while they sprint the first 100 or 200 or whatever yards.  About mid-way through the first straight-a-way through a two loop course the petting of my feet stopped and I could see someone  ahead, whom had picked a totally different route of swimming the course.  I stayed directly in line with the buoys.  I figured at this point that swimmers would be on my feet and I kept it conservative trying to stay in my comfortable place so I could use my matchsticks for later.   Rounding the first turn buoy I did a quick check and could see some swimmers behind, but none right on my feet. Phew…this helped settle me a bit so I could swim at my own pace without the pressure of others. I kept my sights on the one swimmer ahead.  I knew the stroke but I swore it was Linsey.  1^st loop I checked my watch around 26’. Never super accurate as I always start my watch early to be ready for the gun to go off AND I can’t do math and race at the same time. But this is where I had “estimated” I would be so knew I was swimming solid. Loop two I started making ground on the swimmer ahead and had small vision of possibly winning. After the final turn buoy I really gave it what all I had left and could feel my face burning hot and my fingertips going tingly numb.



Laura and I.

I popped out of the water as second swimmer, and found the first swimmer was Mike the whole time.  I had won overall women afterall.  I know if Miss Linsey were not swimming over 16 miles that week that this would have been a much closer race and I am excited to see her flourish in just a few short weeks at her big event!



I was lucky to meet Laura who is a fabulously strong swimmer and triathlete, but it was her kindness and sweet smile that stuck me the most.  She had an awesome swim winning herself a cinnamon roll that looks to-die for!

Thanks to RTB for the fabulous fun event and the super yummy 40 pound pie!  With Mark a few weeks away from CDA it didn’t disappear within 2 days like last year!