Rev3 Costa Rica Race Report

Race day got off to a very EARLY start! I was up and at 'em at 3:37am, did some quick stretching, got some food down, race tattoos on, and was out the door to catch the 4am shuttle. I plugged myself into my Ipod (with my coolio Yurbuds of course!) The morning's tunes included Katy Perry, Eminem, Luke Kauffman, Wiz Khalifa and Bruno Mars.  The 45min shuttle ride when by relatively quickly, but I must say, that is the earliest I've ever arrived at a race site!!!  I got my transition area set up, a quick ride in on my bike to check the gears, a short run with some drills and pickups, and before I knew it, it was time to head down to the water.  I jumped in and out of the water then got the downlow on how the course/buoys worked.  It was a 2-loop swim, where we came out of the water and ran around a red buoy on the beach between laps.  The loop was basically a triangle with RED buoys for the turn buoy and some randomly placed YELLOW buoys for sighting (they werent' lined up with the Red ones) and an extra RED buoy for the 1/2 IM racers.  Okay, pretty simple, right?! 

The gun goes off and I am immediately in the lead and swimming toward the first Red buoy, all is good.  I usually don't have to sight too often, so my head went back down for about 20 strokes and then, I looked up and could not see the red buoy.  Nothing new, but the next time I sighted, and the next, and the next, I could never find the Red buoy.  Uh oh!  So I ended up taking everyone off course.  Finally I saw some splashing up ahead and was relieved, thinking it was the guys and I was on track.  But then the splashing was getting closer and closer, opps, they were headed towards us after already going around the first buoy! (they had a 3min head start.)  So, all of a sudden, I took a hard 90' left turn and eventually got around the first buoy.  I guess the spectators on the beach were getting a kick out of this...they said we totally looked like a 'school of fish' suddenly changing direction in unison.  Rounded the buoy, now find the next one.  Again, for the life of me, I could not find the buoy.  I was blindly swimming towards who knows where??  I even stopped and did a few breastrokes and cleared my googles (on several occasions), I never have to do that, what was wrong with me????!!!  Eventually, a boat comes up and hollars, 'derecho', which means right, so I veer to the right.  Totally off course, again, they finally come catch up to me, and then I see the Red buoy, way off to my left, argh!  Finally make it around there, and YAY, I can see the red buoy on the beach.  Finally, I took a straight line to a buoy and ran around it on the beach.  Dove back in and was ready for lap #2.  I was much more efficient and swam a decently straight line to all the buoys.  Coming around the last one, I passed Kelly, and finally took the lead on the swim, to pop up on beach as the first swimmer.  For the first time in my life, I was actually glad the swim was over :)  

Here's a look at how I swam...Lap #1 I swam the black line.  Lap #2 = much better!

Time to get on my bike!  My speedy Blue Triad SL was ready to go.  I hoped on, manuvered across the gravel section and started climbing.  The start of the course was pretty darn tough and definitely a wake-up call for the legs.  Kelly passed me within a few minutes and Annie Warner came by too, I was going to have my work cut out for me.  After climbing some steep grades, there was some fun (and a bit scary!) decending.  I was able to re-pass Annie, and headed out of the resort onto the main road in second.  I could see Kelly up ahead and just tried to keep her in sight.  My legs weren't responding too well and felt pretty flat, but I kept on pushing.  We did two laps out on the road.  Each lap had some false flats, winds, and 3x180 turns.  Then there was also the herd of cows and random skeleton of some strange but freaky looking animal in the middle of the road.  At the 180 turns I was able to see a group of girls coming up on me which included Bree, Annie, and Kate.  Kelly was having an awesome ride and had put a good gap on me and was riding strong up the road.  As we hit the climbs on the way back to the resort, the group caught me and we all entered T2 together. 

Time for an 'off-road' adventure!  The run was pretty cool, but also tough!  We ran along the beach, then through a small 'town' that was outside cheering like crazy, awesome!  Around a soccer field, and then back on the road for some uphill running, through the resort, then we hoped onto the cart path of the golf course, which brought us back to transition and then did it all again.  I had some trouble getting my legs under me, but just kept saying, "it's only a 10K amanda, Go!"  About 10min in and my stomach started cramping and rumbling...uh oh!  (I think I'd drank some bad water a few days before because I'd had some cyclical rumbling/pain...but was hoping it would stay away during the race...no such luck.)  I tried to suck it up and keep running, as Annie and Kate were just right there and I wanted to keep them in sight.  About 10min later, and no improvement, only worse.  I ended up making a very quick pit-stop and then was on my way.  The gap to Kate and Annie had opened up and I was running in no-man's land.  I kept pushing, reminding myself of the fitness I could gain from the hard effort.  Unfortunatley my legs never came around and my flat legs carried me across the finish line in 4th. 

A huge congrats to all the other girls out there and to Kelly, Kate, and Annie for finishing on the podium.  It was a tough day all around and a great way for us all to kick off our 2011 Season!  Thanks to Rev3 for putting on such an awesome event at a great destination!

Adventure: Costa Rica

What a great way to kick off my 2011 season: Costa Rica style! After being stuck in the cold and snow all winter, it was great to step off the airplane in Costa Rica and feel the heat! As I made my way out of customs, I was greeted by the Rev3 Media Crew. I hung out with them for a bit and then watched them do the paparazzi thing when Matt Reed arrived. We were then shuttled to the Casa de Golf, where several pros were staying. A few others were staying on the same 'plantation' in condo/villas. Basically, our 'Casa' was a mix between a house and a hotel. We each had our individual rooms then there was a common area with TV/computer, a dining area/kitchen (although nothing worked except the microwave), and our very own pool!  A great way to hang out with the other pros.

On Friday we headed over to the race site and got the first look at how tough the course was going to be. There was a huge climb coming out of transition with some steep grades of 8-12%, a speedy decent, and then another bit of a climb out of the resort. Once out of the resort we had two loops on the bike then back up and over the climbs into transition. The run was going to be a two loop run, more like an off-road course: beach, dirt road, hills, golf course, you name it. And to top it all off--it was HOT!

I did some tune up workouts with Kate and then had a Pro Panel and Athlete Meeting. Saturday was a low-key day.  Some of us headed to the beach to get an open water swim in.  The shuttle dropped us off and we swam one direction down the beach, then got out and walked back along the beach looking for shells.  Bree's

collection was much bigger than

mine...Then, our shuttle never showed up to pick us back up.  After sitting around for a bit, we decided to start making the trek back home.  Luckily the shortcut we took dumped us out on a road and wahla, out of nowhere our shuttle driver appeared! Sunday was race day! (more about that in my race report, coming soon)

Then after the race we hung out, did a little shopping (at these booths right on the beach were we swam and ran during the race), then headed back to the Casa.  I stretched out by the pool with a good book in hand: The Lincoln Lawyer.  I hear the movie will be out soon :) We were somewhat 'stuck' at our Casa on Sunday night, so I got creative and made microwave pancakes for everyone. Yep, you read that right, pancakes made in the microwave. They ended up tasting decent and were the perfect compliment to our chick flick: 27 Dresses (Randy I know how much you would have loved to have watched that one again!!)

Our Monday adventure started early, 4am. We were supposed to have a shuttle to the airport that was 1:20 away. Due to some confusion and logistical obstacles, we did not secure a shuttle until 5:30. Bree had a 6:50 flight...but we were optimistic we would get her there in time. We told our driver, "muy rapido" and let's just say he obeyed. We were flying down these dirt roads, going off-road a bit, passing cars with on-coming traffic flying straight at us. We were scared for our lifes! Bree and I were white knuckling our seat handles. Got some good video....but doesn't do the situation justice!!!


Unfortunately, Bree missed her flight...but we made it alive. I ended up flying all day long and was so excited to touch down in Colorado Springs. I was even more excited to find my husband waiting for me at the airport with my own personalized sign! Until the next adventure....

Rev3 Costa Rica Results

AMANDA STEVENS AT Rev3 Costa Rica

Thank you to all the fans who got up early to watch the race!  However, we apologize for the Rev 3 live video footage not working properly.  Rev3 stated they were trying to repair it, but hopefully you all followed us on Facebook or Twitter and got to catch a piece of the action.  For clarity's sake, and in case you missed it, here is a summary of Amanda's race.

Dr. Amanda Stevens-Sadler raced in the Rev 3 Costa Rica triathlon this morning at 6:15 a.m. (Central Standard Time.)  Sadler competed in the Pro-Athlete Olympic Rev.  The first sequence was swimming, and after 30 minutes and 16 seconds she arrived on land as the first woman competitor out of the water.  (Thanks TYR!)  A video of the first transition can be found at: http://vimeo.com/20161285.

Throughout the biking and running Amanda stayed ahead, second only to competitor Kelly Williamson.  Around this time the Rev3 website lost connection, therefore causing an information gap.

Towards the last stretch, Sadler fell behind Williamson, Kate Major, and Annie Warner, putting her in 4th place for the finish. 

For more information about the race check out http://rev3tri.com/live/.  

Watch the race LIVE from Costa Rica!!

Live feed from Rev3tri.com:



Online video chat by Ustream

Pre-Race Info!

Hello Fans!


Amanda is in Guanacaste, Costa Rica this weekend, getting read for Rev3 Costa Rica!  The race begins in less than 36 hours, which will be very early morning February 19th in American time.

Follow @DrAmandaStevens (http://twitter.com/#!/DrAmandaStevens) on Twitter, or (http://www.facebook.com/DocAmanda) on Facebook for immediate updates.


Also, check out the race course and today's photos straight from Costa Rica by going to Revolution3's website: http://rev3tri.com/live/.  The website will also feature live footage of the race when it begins. :)

Blue Announces...

02.01.11 Ironman 70.3 Pro Champion Dr. Amanda Stevens & Blue set for 2011

Dr. Amanda Stevens, the reigning Ironman 70.3 U.S. Pro champion, will be riding Blue again when defending her title this coming April in Galveston Island, Texas.

 Blue Competition Cycles Inc., the official bike of USA Triathlon, today announced that Stevens has agreed to ride the all-new Blue Triad SL as she sets out to build on her success during the 2011 season.

Along with being the first American woman to cross the line at the inaugural Ironman 70.3 U.S. Pro Championship, Stevens captured the Ironman 70.3 Cancun event with a wire-to-wire performance in the oppressive Mexican heat and humidity. The victory came just three months after Stevens underwent gallbladder surgery. Stevens also finished fourth at the Foster Grant Ironman World Championships 70.3, just 28 seconds off the podium.
When Stevens takes to the bike course this year, she'll be even better equipped to improve on her times aboard the 2011 Triad SL, the same ride Germany's Andreas Raelert debuted to a second-place finish at the 2010 Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.

About the 2011 Triad SL: Built using T800 and T1000 high modulus carbon fiber, the state-of-the-art Triad SL, like all Blue bikes, is "Built to Win." By incorporating breakthrough innovations from previous Triad models as well as our AC1 road frames, we have created our fastest, lightest and best-performing Triathlon/TT bike yet. Along with increasing the surface area of the bike's head tube for improved aerodynamics, the new Triad SL also features Super Flow Tube Technology (SFT2) first used on AC1 and AC1SL road frames. To improve adjustability, the 2011 Triad SL features an Aero seat post instead of the previous fixed seat mast as well as wider chains to incorporate the use of many wider wheel models now being introduced.

More on the Triad SL is right here.

Also, Amanda was kind enough to send us this great vid clip to express her excitement about riding Blue for 2011!

Hmm..perhaps I should think about going into advertising?

Yurbuds just sent me this, enjoy! :)