Last week I won my 3rd consecutive Westchester Triathlon. That makes 5 straight Wassner wins in Rye!
To be fair, I didn't have any competition. That's right, NO other girls showed up. But that's part of the game - you have to be able to get yourself to the starting line. I almost didn't get there - I was tired and sore and had done a week of hard training and a race the week before. I still felt the Ironman in my legs, but I didn't want to miss a local race. I knew that if I could push through some discomfort then I'd be much happier for it, I'd be the champion, I'd earn a paycheck, I'd get to break the tape. In the last mile of the race, there were some clever signs posted including one which I paraphrased to "Pain is temporary, record books are forever." After 2 hours and 10 minutes of feeling down and out, really the worst emotionally I have ever felt in a race, I was able to rise above and finish with a smile.
What happened to bring me down? Being cold, tired and lonely on the bike was the start. Then, I took a wrong turn. A scary wrong turn the wrong way on a highway. I thought it looked wrong but I was waved on. When I corrected myself, I couldn't help but give the cop a piece of my mind. He yelled right back at me which caused me to ride away and burst into tears! At that point, my superfans were starting to get worried as to why I wasn't back to transition. When I finally made it, no smiles. See how angry I look in the photo? It looks exactly like Bec! Maybe I should be mad more often...
There were some definite lows during those 2 hours. But, just like in life, you never know what is going to happen and you just have to adapt. As my grandfather always told me, "Get yourself together," and that is exactly what I repeated to myself when I was out running on the streets of Rye by myself. By the time I saw my superfans off in distance on the homestretch, I was already smiling and enjoying the beautiful day and suroundings. Also, the thoughts of the best post-race food spread were already on my mind!
Thank you to my superfans, my Aunt Bubba and her dog Bruno, Bec-who gave me another win, and a special appearance by H&E. Congratulations to all of my NYAC and Chelsea Piers teammates and to everyone who raced.
None of this would be possible without the support of my sponsors. Another race and another win! Thank you: Nike, Cervelo, NYAC, Zico, First Endurance, Rudy Project, ISM Saddles, FRS, Sidi, and NY Superfoods. Also a special thanks to Carolyn Mazur, my physiotherapist at Fusion for getting me ready to go.
