I would have to say that these 2 races to end the season weren't what I had anticipated however I was able to grow from the experiences.
I was about 70% recovered from 3 weeks of being sick when Calgary 70.3 approached. My taper involved complete rest for a week straight with no real dialed in training before the race. The swim was slower than I expected as ghost lake had a larger current than most expected. Navigating around anchored boats made a quick swim a difficult task. I was about 33 minutes and then out of the water and onto the bike. I didn't push the swim to my usual ability as I wanted to be smooth at the beginning of the race & see how my sick body would respond to physical surges throughout the race. Onto the bike I immediately felt good with the exception of one hill that was a struggle for me. After the hill which was about 15km into the bike I felt great. I pushed the pace and laid the hammer down finishing a 94km bike ride in 2:35 minutes. However not without making another amateur mistake. I didnt research where the water stations were located & most importantly how many there were! It turned out there were only 2 & when I approached the last one I grabbed a bottle of water & only took a sip before tossing it near one of the volunteers. Thinking my hydration level was fine & expecting another aid station I was ignorant to think I should have filled up my water bottle with the 2nd aid station donation. I didn't & suffered the last 15km of the bike without proper hydration. This ended up being a major factor in the run. I left transition & felt great for the first 5km & then the wheels fell off. My heart rate wasn't abnnormally high however I started getting heart palpitations & fluttering which was a red flag in my mind. I began walking & running trying to get in a rhythym again. I walked to the 10km marker & had to pull out of the race which marks my first DNF. The doctors explained that my hearts ventrical pumps were prematurely firing which could have resulted from fatigue leading into the race as well as an unbalanced electrolyte level in my body that could impact the rhythym of my heart rate. Anyhow I learnt how to push my body even more while being ill.
Kelowna nationals I didn't really expect to race until I received a late race entry from the race director. I was excited & calm but in the end not mentally prepared for the race. The swim was the highlight finishing just over 22 minutes which is a personal best for me. I had a sidewall blowout on my back tire which was quite unusual. I pushed the sidewall back in & found someone with a small pump to assist me. This happened to take place on the large hill on the bike course. At first I thought I was going to be another DNF & for some reason was okay with that. Realizing that I was not prepared for the race I was almost thinking in my head thats what you get Jevon. I had too many mental pauses when the flat tire occurred & was definitely not at all hasty about fixing the situation. Once a spectator assisted me with my tire I pretty much coasted the remainder of the race. My intensity fell off the map & I lost the edge to go on the hunt for people ahead of me. It was another learning lesson to be prepared for races in the future. Not having my time trial bike, race wheels, race shoes, race helmet really shouldn't make a difference but it did. It's nice to race with this equipment because it really does make me feel that I can go faster but in the end it doesn't matter. This was the valuable lesson for me & in summary preparation is key.
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