Ironman 70.3 Vietnam Team Relay Race

#abetterversionofme2018

Just when I thought it was over...

On April 1st 2018, I ran 42km in Ha Long Bay and upon my return to Saigon; I thought for sure my 2017-18 race season was over. Throughout the last few weeks, I've been taking it fairly easy during both my running and gym sessions, hoping to give my body a bit of a rest after several weeks of hardcore training and competing. Just over a week ago however, I was asked to jump in and replace a friend in the Ironman 70.3 Vietnam Team Relay race in DaNang. Of course, I'm not one to turn down these kinds of opportunities and I've been looking forward to experiencing this kind of event - a triathlon of some sort.

So, on Friday night, after work, I flew out to DaNang. On Saturday morning, I woke up early and headed out to go watch the Sprint Triathlon in which one of my work colleagues was participating.

I was so impressed and inspired watching her race.

Later on, I met my teammates for the first time and then we spent the day getting to know each other while learning about the fine details of the event. I'll be honest; I was really excited, but also incredibly nervous. I learned that there were time caps for both the swim and the cycle and so I needed to rely on my two teammates, whom I barely knew, to complete their legs of the race in order for me to run the 21kms to the finish line. If they did not finish within the timecaps, we would be disqualified!

My teammates and I showing off our race numbers.

Luckily, both the swimmer and the cyclist did what they needed to do and I felt so relieved. It was a VERY long wait for me before I could run however - my run began just before noon and it was HOT HOT HOT! In order to remain sane and hydrated, I decided to strategize and walk through each water station. I finished my run in 2:01:38, which isn't a great time for me overall, but it might have been one of the most enjoyable runs I've had in a while. I encouraged and greeted people along the way as I tried to keep a smile on my face right up till the finish line, where I ended with a BANG!

This event was exactly what I needed to end my race season! It was a lot of fun! I met new people and was inspired at a whole new level. I'm so proud of our team and what we accomplished together having just met less than 24 hours before the start of the race. I probably won't be doing a whole Ironman myself anytime soon, but after this past weekend, I am considering the Sprint triathlon as a possiblity in the near future. Who knows...

After race photo.

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