May 21st - Rose Festival Duathlon

5k "run" - 30k Bike - 5k "run"

This was awesome! I had lots of fun...

I got up REALLY early... Before the birds... LOL

Drove to Gateway and rode the max downtown Portland to the starting area. Picked up my race number/packet & checked into the transition area. Got myself, my bike & my helmet numbered & all set up in my designated area & then just people watched until it was time to start.

They started us in waves. I started in wave #4 at 7:12, after the elite group, the teams & the under 30/over 50 group. There were a lot of us in this pack and I was at the tail end really quickly, being the only one walking the 5k on purpose. (some people later in the 2nd run section would walk, but just because they couldn't run anymore)

I just got into a good stride with the music/thoughts in my mind (since headphones were not allowed at all). It was funny about 5 minutes after I started the last wave of people was approaching behind me... A police man at a crossing said "I don't want to scare you or anything, but there are about 500 people chasing you!" That cracked me up!!! (Probably only 50 people, but still funny!)

I just walked and walked and walked... Finished this section strong in about 40 minutes (official times aren't out yet)...

Time to change to the bike. I quickly used the porta-potty, changed shoes, dropped my water pack, put on gloves and a helmet & was off... The first part was an out and back on front avenue where I have walked many, many times... Then we turned up another direction & it worried me that the elite people were just then coming back, I worried about what sort of hills were ahead that took them that long to go through.

We headed out to Barbur Blvd and Twilleger Blvd. Hills, Hills and more hills... I thought the hills were cool at first, ride up one & down one, repeat, rolling nicely... Then we went DOWN, DOWN, DOWN... I saw the looks on the faces of everyone coming back up them and they weren't enjoying themselves... So I was getting scared... Thinking about if someone actually checks to see if you make it to the turn around point... (the thought crossed my mind, but I wouldn't want to cheat myself of the whole experience...)

I got down to the turn around... They were handing out bottles of water, most people would ride and grab it at the same time... I knew I wouldn't be able to coordinate all of that, so I stopped, stood up for a minute, took a drink, put it in the bottle cage (where I didn't have a bottle before - it was in the fridge at home still)... Then I started out back up the hills...

There were a few that I found myself chanting like I did during the Newport Marathon last year... But this time instead of Right, Right, Right Left Right - it was I - Can - Do - All - Things - Through - Christ - Who - Strengthens - Me... One word per pedal stroke. Worked well, kept my spirits up and helped me get through it all...

I rode the bike up ALL OF THE HILLS!!! My new bike rocks!! The bike I rode last year, would have killed me, I would have had to walk a lot of it or be in agony trying to go up those hills.

It was so EMPOWERING to finish those hills...

After the hills it was back on a bunch of flat and sloping downward roads... Made for a nice ride back to the transition area... I was on cloud 9, having lots of fun riding fast & enjoying myself...

Back at the transition area, took off my helmet, changed back into my tennis shoes and put on my camelback again... Grabbed a little bag of M&Ms for some quick energy and I was back out walking again.

This second course took us along the waterfront for part of it & then back and forth through a bunch of warehouse type business areas... This was a humbling walk, seeing lots and lots of homeless people. They were asleep on stoops, sitting up watching, and some even clapping and cheering. It was bittersweet. I wished so much I had bags of supplies along with me to hand out to them. I wished I could give some of them a hug, and know they were going to be ok. But instead I walked on and prayed for them as I walked.

After going through this zig zag stuff, it was back out to the water and across another bridge back to the starting area along the waterfront.

There were lots of people at the finish - a cheering crowd of the rose festival court (all the high school seniors that are rose festival princesses), volunteers that cheered as I finished & a bunch of people that were waiting for the awards ceremony to start shortly.

Only disappointment was the finish just had someone to take the timing chip back from me and no finisher's recognition or anything. (I have started a hunt for blank medals so I can make them myself for each big event I do that doesn't award a piece of hardware... I just like them for the beautiful medals' case Mike made me, shows what I have done...)

Overall this was a fun & exciting event... I feel so accomplished to have done all of that...

My overall time was 2 hours 45 minutes - including the time in the transition area - they don't have the split times posted yet. I will add them when they post them...