Sizzlin' in the South: U.S. Nationals wrap-up

Last weekend, I popped over to Tuscaloosa, AL for our Elite National Championships. Being a full-fledged Northerner who prefers arctic conditions over sauna-like ones, it was a pretty rough race in the 94℉ (34.4℃), mid-day sun. After a strong swim and and effective pack ride on the bike, the run was a survival death march. Fortunately, I kept the “Prancing Pony” in the stable and was able to cross the finish line in second (albeit a very distant second!) place to the always-impressive Laura Bennett. It is always an honor to finish on the podium, but to do so at a National Championships in anti-Groffy conditions is even more special.

So what nuggets of knowledge did I gleam from the race? What lessons were reinforced? Like with every race, I walked away with some good (but random) material:

1. My family is amazing. They covered race support from every angle: lead-up to the race where my Gainesville-based family (and my visiting mom) helped me recharge, care in Tuscaloosa by my dad, Aunt Denise and Uncle Howie (who took me to the airport at 3:45 AM!!), and my post-race support back at home in Hanover.
2. Getting administered 2 I.V.s makes you a source of envy. I’d rather not have needed them, but at least I made some of the other girls jealous. Mwaa haa haa.
3. Based on my limited experience, there are no giant, man-eating catfish in the Black Warrior River. I was a bit nervous about this, as the water was so turbid that one would have attacked me and I wouldn’t have known until its barbels were wrapped around my leg.
4. Even in the midst of strip-mall chain stores, you can still find little natural foods gems.
5. After a couple years of huge packs in the WCS races, I had forgotten how much I’ve missed having the small groups out front on the bike. At one point, I looked around to see Sara McLarty, Sarah Haskins, Annabel Luxford and Laura Bennett and felt the pangs of nostalgia. (Thank goodness we had an effective pack, by the way- I needed as big of a time buffer as possible!).
6. You know that it is going to be a rough day when you run out of water with 20 minutes left in the bike and you are already feeling the effects of the heat. At this point, your best tactic is to ignore the voice that tells you that you may spontaneously combust about 5k into the race and to think instead about management skills to get you across the finish line.
7. There are two Dreamland BBQs in the Tuscaloosa area. If Jarrod Shoemaker tries to steer you astray to the wrong one, don’t listen to him. He is probably still in the midst of the post-National Champ title elation.
8. Avoid the La Quinta Inn in Tuscaloosa at all costs. Unless you like midnight visits to scary 24 hr grocery stores for mold-battling antihistamines, that is... (8a. Avoid visiting sketchy 24 hr grocery stores in Tuscaloosa at midnight)
9. If you want to race well in the heat, I’d advise against the following: weighing more than 120 pounds, growing up in the Northeast and training all summer in Switzerland.
10. Laura Bennett is a total animal. Based on how she destroyed us on the run, I’m convinced that she doesn’t actually feel heat. A true champion in every sense, I couldn’t be more awed by her performance. For years, she has set the standard for U.S. women’s ITU racing and only continues to raise the bar for the rest of us. While I would have loved to finished closer to her, I was honored to stand next to Laura on the podium!