Race Coverage

Getting Buckled...

Monday, 21 October 2013 00:10

An Interview with 2013 LeadmanTri Bend Epic 125 Female Champion Heather Lendway
09/25/2013, 10:30am CDT

By LeadmanTri

The last time we saw Heather Lendway, she won Life Time Tri Maple Grove near her Minnesota hometown on Aug. 24. A crazy fast swim (at 26 minutes she was first out of the water overall) and killer bike split brought her to the top of the female podium at LeadmanTri Bend and earned her 4th overall.

LT - How are you feeling after a couple of days of recovery? Are you finding any good recovery tips that work well for you?
 
HL - Following the race I took a couple of days off, did a bit of walking and stretching to loosen up but not much else, so I was feeling pretty good by today. I tried to do a light jog this morning and definitely was still sore and hurting a bit, but swimming felt wonderful, so I plan to do more of that in the next days and hopefully build back into running and biking. My favorite post-race recovery technique is to roll out my legs on a PVC pipe. That seems to really help loosen me up but unfortunately that didn't fit in the suitcases so I was a little more sore than I would have expected Sunday and Monday. 
 
LT - Tell us about your race — What were your goals and how did you feel?
 
HL - Prior to the race I calculated a goal range, and the lower end of my goal was very close to the big buckle mark. Since this is the longest race I've ever done, very different terrain and unpredictable weather conditions, I wasn't going to count on cutting that last minute and a half off, but I knew it was something to keep in mind as I progressed through the race. I was nervous about the cold water because the last time I raced in 60-degree waters my body did not react well initially, but this time I went under water beforehand and made sure to be well adjusted before the race start. After that the water actually felt great. Some of the buoy,s were difficult to sight due to the steam on the water, but my swim felt great and my time was much better than anticipated (about four minutes faster) so at that point I knew that buckle could be in reach.  READ MORE