Skye Moench explains how she has turned in consistently great results all year
Skye Moench has been in excellent form all year, but she may have turned it her best performance yet at Ironman Chattanooga on Sunday. With a time of 8:34:07, she dominated the event, winning gold by more than 26 minutes, and setting course and American records in the process.
“Sunday was one of those days where I felt good and strong almost the whole race,” Moench said after the race. “I was in a great headspace and ready to go and give my best. I had no idea I would go as fast as I did, but I’m thrilled and pleasantly surprised.”
Moench swam at the front of the field, but still had challengers in contact. She quickly put the race out of reach on the bike, however, taking a lead of 14-plus minutes into the second transition point.
Skye Moench blew up the field on the bike, taking a 14-minute lead into T2.
The gap continued to expand on the run. At the end of a long day, she had another big win to her name, and secured a spot to the 2022 Ironman World Championships in Kona next October.
“I felt incredible on the bike and had SO much fun ripping it up on my Trek Speed Concept; I just felt so fast,” Moench said. “I felt great once I got out of transition and started the run. The hills on the run in Chattanooga were a nice challenge, but I focused on resetting my run form after every uphill grind so that I kept my speed up on the downhill or flatter sections.”
Moench’s win came just six days after she impressed at the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in St. George, where she took sixth within a talent-studded field. Last spring, she also notched a comeback win at Ironman 70.3 Texas, and bronze at Ironman Tulsa.
Skye Moench cruising to an American record.
She credits her career season to her consistency in training.
“I execute the training my coach gives me everyday to the best of my abilities, and I don’t overthink it if the session doesn’t go amazingly for me,” Moench said. “I also take care to make sure I fuel and rest well every day, and that allows me to stay healthy and to back up big training days, weeks and months.
“I’m not perfect, but I do try my best! Big results don’t come overnight. They are always a culmination of a lot of work and patience.”
Big performances deserve big cookies.
Moench is building a reputation as a game day performer; someone who thrives when the pressure is high. One of her biggest talents as an athlete may be her ability to never let her emotions get to her — neither too low, nor too high — in training or racing.
“I don’t know if it’s because of my life experiences or having a background outside of professional sport, but I keep it together and can always gather myself and give my best effort and not back down on race day,” Moench said. “All the training in the world doesn’t matter if you can’t execute on race day, and execution is mostly mental.”
