It's been a while since I updated this blog, December is always so busy! Luckily, now I'm on Christmas break and I have some time to reflect on this month, especially my awesome trip to Puerto Rico!
I'd been wanting to go to Paddle Royal for a while now, I love Puerto Rico and I've heard awesome things about that race. So as an early Christmas present, and because San Juan is so easy to get to from Tampa. So Thursday straight after school I left for the airport! I was pretty nervous about this race because I hadn't been able to train properly in a due my tendinitis problems. But I knew I was going to give it my all and have a great time.
Saturday was the long distance race. The wind was cranking and the waves were big in the pass the race runs through as it circumvents San Juan. Personally, I was hoping that they would keep the course going through the more difficult waters, because it would rely less on fitness and training (which I didn't have a lot of at the time) and more on water skill. In the end, the Coast Guard forced the race to move to the inside, which was a challenge in itself! It was super windy and mega choppy, and going through the other pass, the waves were nearly triple overhead.
The first half of the race I was doing great, racing just as I had been this summer when I was in good shape. But as soon as I turned back into the wind, everything caught up with me all at once. My tendinitis started flashing into my wrists, my asthma kicked in, and my straight-up lack of training made the second half of the race miserable. I got passed by like 4 other girls, but pushed my way across the line to take 6th in the Pro class.
It was a pretty awful race for me, but luckily, because of how Paddle Royal was set up, I could redeem myself in the sprint races. The long course counted as 2 points, and because I came in 6th, I had two 6s. But the 4 sprint races counted for 4 more points, and I could drop my lowest score. I came in 5th in all of the sprints against some really excellent Pro girls, putting me in 5th for the event! I was super happy to have good place in such a prestigious race, even if it was far from my best result.
I had a fantastic time in Puerto Rico but soon enough it was time to go back home and catch up on homework! It was an incredible adventure and I was really looking forward to getting back to training this winter and starting 2014 right!
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