Race Report: Collegiate Nationals

It’s hard to believe that my final USAT Collegiate Nationals is over; I’ve been picturing that red carpet in both my waking and dormant hours for months.  While I didn’t exactly accomplish all of my goals, it was overall a very successful race and an amazing experience. 

After a little extra time in the Denver airport due to snow, I finally arrived in Phoenix, AZ on Tuesday night.  I was greeted by my friend Angela (her family graciously housed and fed me for a few days before the rest of the team arrived).  For the next few days I enjoyed the sunshine, rode the course with my ASU tri friend Julie, scammed my way into the ASU (outdoor!) pool, and enjoyed fresh-picked grapefruits from Angela’s tree.  On Thursday, I was met by the rest of my team and by my own personal cheerleader/Sherpa/punching bag/therapist Ian. 

Dinner with my team

A few of my teammates: Susan, Sara, and Steph

On Friday, I was excited to go watch the first ever draft-legal nationals race but was sidelined by a flat caused by a pesky valve extender.  Two hours, a trip to tri-sports, and a few new tubes later though I was good to go and VERY grateful this happened the day before race morning!  The rest of the day was filled with nationals excitement as I loosened my legs, relaxed in the expo, hopped in the water, and carb-loaded with my teammates (I was a little high-strung, however, so sorry/thank you to everyone who dealt with me – especially Coach Mace and Ian).

Relaxing NormaTec Style

My Number One Fan!

Ok now for the fun stuff, RACE DAY HAD ARRIVED!  Racking my bike in transition equipped for over 1000 bikes, I was mildly star-struck as I recognized the big-league ladies next to me.  I proudly hung my baby girl in transition before watching the men’s race.  While I would typically hate waiting around for race start, today was a different story as I was filled with the excitement of the men’s race.  Our CSU boys starting the day off with an impressive showing – landing TWO men in the top 10 (Steve at 5^th and Chris in 8^th)! 

Race Ready!

Ready to go!

Finally, it was my time to don my wetsuit and show what I’m made of.  I came out of the water about 2 minutes back from the leaders and took off towards my bike.  My transition, unfortunately, was pretty rough.  My rubber bands were somehow already broken when I got to my bike and I then dropped my chain as I mounted.  Before long, though, I was on Maureen and working my way up through the field.  Despite several 90 and 180 degree turns, that course was FAST, I couldn’t help but ride with a smile on my face.  I steadily gained on the leaders and came off of my bike in 9^th (though my T2 was just as bad as my T1). 

Heading out onto the run course, I knew it was time to dig deep into my race brain.  This was where I fell apart last year, letting nearly 25 women pass me within 6.2 miles.  This year was different though, I’ve been working hard on my run and while I am still not a “runner” it’s not a true weakness anymore either.  Despite being passed right out of transition, I set my eyes on the back ahead of me and started picking girls off.  Let me tell you what, it was hot as sin out there and it was not overly fun.  However, the words of my coaches rang in my ears and I simply put one foot in front of the other until the finish line was in sight. 

I flew down the red carpet and across the line in 7^th place with a time of 2:06:43 (a pretty substantial PR for me).  I hadn’t hit my goal of finishing top-five and getting on the podium, but that’s the danger of setting high goals and, really, making top-10 in the nation is nothing to be ashamed of. 

After the race, I had the honor of sharing an ice-bath with the fastest collegiate women.  I then had a few hours to recover before the super-sprint relay (recovery consisted of me telling Ian what food/drinks to get me and where to cart my stuff to – thanks dear).  We finished our relay in 7^th out of over 30 teams and had a great time doing it despite the soreness (and hey, I had the 6^th fastest female split). All in all, it was a successful day, in addition to my top 10 finish, my team moved up in the rankings, coming in 9th as a combined team (out of over 100 schools)!

Coming in on the Relay Course

After that, it was finally time to stuff myself with Mexican food before heading off to the awards ceremony.  While I had grand plans for the night, I have to admit that it turned into Ian and I sharing slushies and ice cream before falling asleep in front of Bravo television (he may have been more tired from chasing me around all day than I was from actually racing).

All dressed up in our "thrift shop" gear for the awards ceremony

I think my favorite moment of the day was crossing the finish line as I heard the announcer say in a shocked voice, “And Bailey Hinz from Colorado State, out of nowhere! Where did she come from?!”  He may not have known, but I did.  I trained passionately for this race and left it all on the course.  This was possibly the first race (other than Havasu) that I didn’t finish saying “What if?” and THAT is something to be proud of.  I cannot say thank you enough to my coaches (Mace, Reu, and Tess), my family, Ian, and my teammates for their support as I've fallen in love with this sport.  While I close the collegiate chapter of my career, I am SO excited for what is to come!