Sunday brought us the annual Race Around the World Duathlon in Tinley Park, IL.  This is absolutely one of my favorite events of the year and consists of a 2 mile run, 11 mile bike, followed by another 2 mile run.  Duathlon is always “run, bike, run”.   It’s the multisport event that “some” scoff at for not having a swim but one that is much loved by those of us who don’t want to mess up our hair with a swim cap.  Duathlon is my personal favorite multisport activity and I am considering making it my main focus next year because it really is THAT.MUCH.FUN. 

The 2013 event was my 4th appearance, the first of which was in 2006 when I randomly signed up the day of the event with my trusty Walmart Special mountain bike.  It was a rough ride but brought me a 1 hour 17 minute finish.  Then in 2007, I arrived with a bit more of a plan in place AND a road bike.  This delivered me a 1 hour 10 minute finish.    Then I took some time to TRI, have a baby, and focus on the run only to make a return in 2012 with my F’N Running Club.  As history denotes, I showed up in 2012 with a torn tendon in my foot and a little girl who wanted to “run for her mom” so that I could still participate.    We took 5th in the women’s relay division, report HERE, and decided to come back for 2013 to move up in the standings.   The sole purpose of yesterday’s race was to go as hard as we could and try to take 3rd in our division.  Our team motto was to “run/race for the bling”.  True story.  We have no shame.

I’ve previously reported this to be a great event, good for both beginners & competitive athletes alike.  The event is short enough to not be intimidating but long enough to push the limits on fitness.   The course is nice, user friendly, has loads of volunteer and safety support, plus there aren’t too many turns.  The TP Fire Department brings fire trucks with “showers” for cooling off post race.  The finish is welcoming with cold drinks, the showers and plenty of  post race snacks.  Well organized event.  I love it and suggest that you DU Tinley in 2014.  Oh, and the  shirt is cool too!  Black A4 tech shirt with unique design.

Now let’s compare our 2012 race to the 2013 event.    2012 was good, we took 5th in our division & we loved the team dynamic.  What changed between 2012 and 2013?  Both Aby and I are stronger and more determined.  We always focus on fun but we wanted to push and  try to move Team 2 Tough Chiks up in the standings but knew that the competition was super tough last year and we had no idea who would “show up” this year.

2012 vs 2013

The F’N Running Club brought more people this year, some repeats, some new. 

   

Aby has grown.

   

We were faster pace wise, despite the 2012 bike course being 1 mile short due to road construction and 2013 having a hellacious headwind thru half the course.

Run #1 – 2 miles	18:54 (9:27 pace)	17:13 (8:37 pace)
T1	47.8	49.5
Bike	30:49 (19.1 mph)	34:00 (19.4 mph)
T2	43.6	42.6
Run #2 – 2 miles	19:04 (9:32 pace)	17:42 (8:51 pace)
Finish	1:10:19  ** Short	1:10:28

We brought home some bling, placing 2nd in the Women’s Relay division out of a field of 20.  We were super excited!!

We are proud to push together, as a team, in an event that is fun and family friendly.  Also, please note that our 2012 bibs were 601, and the 2013 bibs were 602.  Is it too early to “request” that our 2014 bib assignment be 603? 

  

So we’ll be back next year looking to steal that first place finish from fellow F’N Runner Deb & her IronSis (Team Twisted Sisters).  The IronSis beat me down on the bike and I’m gonna work on that for next year!!  Love that I now have a new goal for next year!!

See you in Tinley on June 22, 2014!!

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The winner of the Strike  Out ALS 5K is #18 – @jmonst – please contact me at amanda@tootallfritz.com to collect your free registration!!

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** DU Tinley Park in 2014 ** Amanda – TooTallFritz **