Maccabi Man/Woman Competition

This summer, I will be competing at the Maccabi Games in Israel.  The games take place from July 17-30, and I am the captain of the Masters Triathlon Team, consisting of triathletes ages 35 and up.

I will be competing in the triathlon against other women in my age category.  In addition, there is a competition called the "Maccabi Man/Woman".  That involves four events:
July 21-- Bike 40K time trial race
July 23 -- Half marathon (13.1 miles)
July 26 -- Olympic distance triathlon (0.9 mile swim, 24 mile bike, 6.2 mile run)
July 28 -- Open water 5K swim
The athlete in each division with the lowest combined total time for all four events can win a medal as the "Maccabi Man or Woman".

So, that's four events in eight days!!  My initial concern, and still a concern, is that the half marathon could leave me fatigued before a triathlon three days later.  But, if I'm going to Israel to be an athlete, I want to do everything offered, even something as challenging as this.

I discussed with my coach Gerardo, thinking he would try to dissuade me from trying to attempt this.  But, surprisingly, he felt quite positively about it.  So, to train to compete in four events scheduled so closely together, I will racing four weekends of back-to-back-to-back-to-back events.  This should simulate the fatigue of competing in the Maccabi Man/Woman Competition.

Last weekend, on May 26, I ran the Mountains 2 Beach Half Marathon in Ventura:

Mountains 2 Beach Marathon, Mile 1

I had a good race -- I finished in 1:53:00, an 8:39/mile pace, and my fastest half marathon to date.

Today, I raced my first bike time trial, the Piru 40K:

I finished in 1:18:45.  By no means is that a champion time, as I've never been a strong cyclist.  But, I set a goal for myself to finish in 1:20 or less.  I feel like I pushed myself hard, and finished the second half of the race just as fast as the first half, which means I paced myself well.  The medal that I am holding is for second place.... out of the two women who raced today.  It's a medal, I'll take it :)

Next weekend on June 9, I will be racing the Valley Crest Half Marathon, a hilly local trail marathon through the trails of the Santa Monica Mountains.

My final race of the four, the Big Bear Olympic Distance Triathlon, will take place on June 15.

So far, two of the four events have been completed.  I'm trying to recover between events.  I am  focusing on getting enough sleep, and taking in good nutrition to facilitate my recovery.

If I can get through these four weekends of races, then I think I should be able to do Maccabi Man/Woman.