Well, disaster might be a strong word. Truth is, I’m not really that concerned about the events that transpired over the weekend… In fact, given that the race is practically in my backyard right now, I think that the people who finished in front of me should be jealous that I got in some extra training miles! Here is a quick recap of my second official race of the year over the weekend, the Desert Classic Duathlon in Phoenix, AZ.
After many consecutive years of bad weather during February, and conflicting dates with RAGNAR, the Desert Du was moved to March this year. I’ve thrown my hat in the ring over the past 4 years, and it’s always a good test of fitness and a hard workout before some of the more important events, so I made the trip again this year with my friend and fellow pro, Jesse Vondracek. Fellow Zoot athlete, Bryan Dunn and his wife Jamie were gracious hosts, and they live only minutes from the start in Fountain Hills, so we spent the evening having a fantastic dinner, watching Paris-Nice, and playing with their two golden retrievers. Oh, yeah, and Bryan gave me a tour of his Star Wars model collection… Legit! Race morning came quick, and we were up for some breakfast and coffee, and then out the door to the venue. I will say that I probably didn’t have the “killer instinct” at full force for this race (see: my unruly hair), but I do consider it a practice event, and don’t want to be at my best in early March. Fortunately, the race caters to this mindset, with a more relaxed Xterra-type atmosphere. After setting up the transition zone, I did a quick jog and toed the line with the formidable duathlon pros like Chris Foster and James Burns… Good thing I don’t race Du’s professionally, because these kids can run! On the first trail loop, I averaged ~5:15’s, which I was happy with considering my training and the terrain. Only problem was that the leaders were throwing down 5:02’s, so I started the bike a little ways back. Still, the idea was to empty the tank and get some top end speed, so I charged ahead on the bike and did what I could. I was able to ride hard with a smaller group through about 25 of the 31 miles before I slowed up a little in preparation for the second run, and I came off the bike in 6th. Nothing special.
Out onto the second run, I was catching Lewis Elliot quickly, passing him for 5th in the first mile. After about another mile or a little more of running, I was greeted by a very disappointed group of pro men doubling back on our route, led by a race crew member on a fourwheeler telling us we had made a wrong turn. I tried my best to stay in the game, but we were way out in the middle of nowhere, and the race was essentially over for us. Even so, I made my way back to the proper run course, which was now marked with some flagging and decided to finish the course as it was meant to be done. In the end, our lead group of 6 men all added about 4+ miles to the second run leg, and I finished about 30 minutes down in 8th place. Ha! Good training day, if nothing else.
I know a lot of people were pretty upset with the race direction, etc., but my first reaction was that we are responsible for knowing the course. I will concede that this was a particularly labyrinthine grouping of trails, and no amount of course recon would have made much difference, especially since the course wasn’t well marked during or prior to the race. Additionally, there was a volunteer that was absent at the first of many questionable junctures, who appeared shortly after we passed, and the problem could have been solved with a little flour leading through each turn. These are the kinds of issues you see when a new company assumes the lead on a race and maybe does not have the same level of experience, but you have to remember that nobody WANTS a race to go poorly. Without any malicious intent, it’s just one that you have to chalk up to being a little disappointing, and move on with a little more experience for the next round. Hopefully everyone involved can learn a little to make a better race in the future, and to avoid going off course, since in the end, it’s our responsibility, even when things seem stacked against us.
So, with a solid training day logged, it was back in the car and on to Tucson where I will finish my Oceanside prep and continue building for St. George. Weather keeps getting better and better here, and I am looking forward to the next series of tests as my season progresses. And as for the Duathlon… I’ll be back for more next year!