Deschutes Dash Race Report

I originally signed up to do the Oly distance, but changed to the sprint at the last minute. It has been 3 weeks since Pac Crest 1/2 IM and I have done virtually nothing in those 3 weeks. It is hard to train with the kids out of school. My son and I were camping the week prior to the race and I am finding that my older body can't sleep on the ground and then feel great the next day! So I made a good call switching to the Sprint.
This was a new experience for me as the swim was 1300m in the Deschutes River instead of a lake. It is a cold, dark fast flowing river and I was a little freaked out about it. Usually the swim is a no-brainer and does not take up much emotional energy, but this one did. It ended up being OK. I kept my eyes closed as much as I could and just swam.
I was 3rd out of the water in my wave (men and women) and was disappointed to see that the other two who beat me were women. I don't really know who got out of transition first, but I must have passed one of them on the bike without realizing it. I kept waiting for my AG's to pass me on the run like they always do, but the gap must have been big enough because nobody passed me! That felt really good for a change. I ended up 2nd in AG and 10th overall female. This whole season has been a big surprise for me. Again, I credit all of the riding at EMC! I also think the longer swim gives me an advantage and helps me get enough of a head start so the faster runners did not have time to catch me.

Total time 1:22:40
14:34 swim
2:20 T1
39:07 Bike (19.2mph)
1:00 T2
25:38 run (8:16-sad, I know!)

this was a really fun weekend sports event with lots to offer for everyone (5K, 10K, Oly, sprint, Kid's race). It was the most spectator friendly race. You can walk along the river and watch the swimmers as they go and see the runners multiple times on the course. It was well run, great food, FREE BEER.
If you are looking for something different next summer I would highly recommend this event. The awards were pretty cool, too.

[benbiggles]

Great job Catrena, you are having an awesome season.

[max]

Terrific result Catrena - especially if you had your eyes closed during the swim!

Awesome job Catrena! I cannot imagine swimming in a river. My eyes would be closed too!