On August 3rd I raced in Ann Arbor, Michigan at the Superwoman Triathlon. I had to drive to Michigan because everything in my home state of Wisconsin has been cancelled. My goal is doing the race was to get a second USAT sanctioned race. Only two races are needed to be ranked. With so few athletes racing my chances of making All American as a para athlete are better than most years.
It was actually nice to be able to get away for a weekend and it's only a 3 1/2 hours drive to Ann Arbor. I could have gone on race morning since There were two races contested on race day; the Superman for the men and Superwoman for the ladies. I decided to drive up the night before. I often don't sleep well the night before a race. If I had a rough night, I am more likely to drop out of a race if spend the night before at home.
It is strange with COVID and travel restrictions. There may have been only three cars in the hotel parking lot. The place was quiet. I should have had a great nights sleep. I was relaxed a ready for sleep, but my body had other ideas.
I took a dose of Ibuporfen PM which usually helps me sleep. For some reason I had pain all over and my body felt like I was on fire. It took three doses before I finally fell asleep for about 4 hours.
The race itself was pretty routine. We could not enter the park until transition opened up at 9:45 and it was strictly enforced by the State park staff. As usual I was early so I had to wait in lin with dozens of other cars.
The race was run by 3Disciplines. They have all the procedures down for doing a socially distanced race.
I lined up for the time trial swim, another that was not wet suit legal. I lined up right behind Tri Faster owner and coach Lauren Jensen Mcginnis. Ten Tri Faster athletes were also at the race including two in my age group. Lauren and I are about the same size. Lauren is a former pro-triathlete and almost always wins the entire women's race. As I stood next to her, I wonder if I didn't have CMT, how good an athlete I could have been. I was actually a pretty decent runner before my CMT accelerated after my post bike accident surgery.
God had other plans for me, so I will keep on racing for as long as I can. Still I sometimes wonder what might have been.
The race was a bit of a disappointment for me. I had the slowest swim in my age group, but I did feel comfortable.
The bike course was like riding on a washboard. Not fun. I missed a turn somewhere and ended up with an average bike speed of 14.2 mph., Earlier in the week I had averaged 17.6 mph at the WSO races.
The run was on trails and honestly could have used a few for arrows on the course. There were not many runners out on the course. I think I did the correct course, It was almost entirely an off road course. So there were times I was not sure I was going the right way. I finished the race around 1 hr 48 minutes. Not a good time for me. I finished in 4th place. I accomplished my goal of finishing a second race. My mis-turn on the race did not cost me third place. I think the 3rd place woman was 10 minutes ahead of me.
Both these races were a good turn up for my most important races of the Season. I will be racing at the Duathlon National Championships in October. I got the word this week the races are still on. 3-Disciplines the race organizer for this event will also be staging the Du Nationals. I am really looking forward to it.
******************************
Chris
Wodke
Founder
& Manager Team CMT
www.run4cmt.com
Chris is
a triathlete and long distance runner. She is a three time participant of the
Boston Marathon. In 2012 she finished
2nd at
She has
appeared three times at the Paratriathlon National Triathlon Sprint
Championship. She was the 2012 and 2014 National Champion Paratriathlon Open
Division Champion.
In 2014 she was the PC Open Champion at the Duathlon National Championship and
at the Aqua bike National Championship in 2016. She represented Team
In 2014 she represented the
In 2020
she was named a National Ski Patrol Subaru Ambassador and a USA Triathlon
Foundation Ambassador.
She
travels around the country raising awareness of CMT.
She is
the author of the book, “Running for My Life” that details her experience as a
CMT affected athlete and the book “Soup Sundays, A Journey Toward Healthy
Eating”.
You may
visit her author page at:
http://www.amazon.com/Christine-Wodke/e/B00IJ02HX6
Team CMT
is a group of athletes and supporters working to raise awareness and to find a
cure for CMTWe currently have 233 athletes in 41 states. We also have
members in Australia, Canada, England, Finland, Vietnam, Iran, Scotland,
France, Turkey, Poland, Norway, Mexico, Wales, Ireland and Sweden!. If you wish to join us visit our web site; www.run4cmt.com or www.hnf-cure.org
CMT or Charcot-Marie-Tooth
is the most commonly inherited peripheral neuropathy. It affects over 155,000
Americans (as many as MS). It is a disease of the nerves that control the
muscles. It is slowly progressive, causing loss of normal function and or sensation
in the lower legs/feet and arms/hands.
Symptoms
include; muscle wasting in the lower legs and feet leading to foot drop, poor
balance and gait problems Atrophy in the hands causes difficulty with manual
dexterity.
Structural
foot deformities such as high arches and hammer toes are common.
Poor
tolerance for cool or cold temperatures and many people have chronically cold
hands and feet.
Additional
symptoms may include fatigue, sleep apnea, breathing difficulties and hearing
loss.
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