Chris Lieto's Lake Placid Race Report : trifuel.com

Chris Lieto's Lake Placid Race Report

Physically I was ready and relaxed for this race. I knew I put the training in and worked hard preparing for this day. My focus was to play it smart, be patient, and be very diligent with my nutrition. I knew that if I stayed on top of my nutrition I would have a perfect race, though uncertain where that would place me in this solid field. Little did I know there would be a lot more to deal with out there that day.

The weather was anything but normal. All week it rained, but the morning of the race it looked like it was going to hold off. I thought it was just going to be the incredible winds that we would have to deal with. I was fine with that and was still comfortable and confident with the day ahead of me.

Beautiful Mirror Lake, normally glassy and calm, was a little more choppy and darker that morning with the clouds dimming the sky and the winds gusting as we entered the water. I thought I would be just following someone along through the swim. I didn?t expect to lead the swim, but I felt good and was up for the challenge. I lead the entire first lap then throughout the second lap I traded back and forth with a couple swimmers, including Jamie Cleavland. I exited the water in 1st and was ready for the rest of the day, or so I thought.

Off on the bike as the rain started to come down as I went through transition. So it started to look like it was going to be a very wet ride. The bike starts out with about 4 miles of riding out of town and a lot of climbing, but it goes right into about 5 miles of fast descending.

The rain, coupled with the gusty winds, made it a little intimidating. I had to be a little tentative with the roads so wet and the rain still coming down. I controlled my speed at around 45mph as I descended through the sweeping turns. The winds kept me little more tense than I wanted to be. One heavy gust or switch in the direction of the wind could have easily thrown me off my bike. After the descent, the roads dried up for a little while and I could finally get into my rhythm. The ride started to feel really good and fast until roughly the last 8 miles of the first of two laps.

The strong winds were now directly in my face and it was uphill all the way back to town for the start of the second loop and out of town again. This time the big descent was dryer and I was able to pick up my speed to almost 60mph. The rain was off and on but the winds were unrelenting. I charged my way through them and into T2 still in the front with a healthy lead.

I started the run very comfortable and relaxed, and because I had a good lead I was able to run at an easier pace. Then the unexpected happened. I started to get large blisters on the balls of my feet, which of course makes it more difficult to run. Initially the pain was manageable and I didn?t think it was going to affect my overall result. But they became worse and broke open, which forced me to stop in my tracks. I didn?t think I was going to be able to even walk another step. This has happened to me in the past a couple of times and I thought to myself this time it will not stop me. I closed my eyes and tried to run through the pain. I ran for a minute or so until it stopped me dead in my tracks again. Soon after, I was caught by Kirill Litovtsenko.

I regained my strength and put all of my focus into starting to jog again, though I was unable to keep up with Kirill as he ! pulled away from me. After about 10 minutes of jogging in severe pain my feet started to get numb, enabling me to block it out and start to run a little more freely. I ran the next 10 miles the best I could, and I was just so glad and blessed to even finish the race let alone in 2nd and the new US National Champion.

The day was almost a perfect one for me in most people's eyes, but it was a perfect day. I raced well, learned a lot along the way, pushed through some very big hurdles, overcame a lot of pain, and finished strong with my head held high. Just like life, be thankful for what you have and the trials that you may go through. Learn from those arduous times, push through the obstacles and pain and finish strong with your head held high because in the end it was all worth it.

All the work and training you do is never enough if you don't give everything up to the Lord, and if He is not behind you.

I want to thank my sponsors who helped me put my races together.

� TYR for the great training suits and race gear.
� Gu, Penta water, and Champion Nutrition for the nutrition that fueled me to the finish and help with my speedy recovery.
� Oakley, Litespeed, Time, Computrainer, Reynolds, and Polar for the great gear.

Chris Lieto