Whew, I can now officially say with pride, “I am an Ironman!” Which means I can buy all the M dot stuff I want, and that’s what really matters, right?! I kid, I kid. But it is a nice perk

Breathtaking (in more ways than one) is how I’d sum up the day on Saturday. What an amazing experience! It’s pretty difficult to  convey all the emotions that go into your first Ironman race. I had quite a few people tell me how special it is but I don’t think I ever could have guessed just what they meant. The fact that conquering the race distance is in itself an experience, I topped it off by choosing to do it for the first time in my hometown. And that just took the entire day up at least 10 notches. The support out there was incredible. Not only did I have my hubby, family, and friends at the race (including Colleen who flew down from Denver just for the race!) but I also had the support of my teammates, my own athletes, tons of triathlon community contacts, and the list goes on. I don’t have many pictures of the day yet but I do have a few and most of them are courtesy of teammates out there on the course who were spectating and supporting all day.

The morning started off rather smoothly and I (surprisingly) woke up fairly well rested. After getting all my gear on and topping off the tank with some breakfast, we were on our way to the Woodlands. I checked my bike in and triple checked all of my loot to make sure it was ready to go. From there, we made the hike with the crowds over to Northshore Park. Everything started happening so quickly from this point on. I went to gather by the team and before I knew it, they were calling for us to get into the water for warmup time. Ready or not, this was it!

Swim: “Boom!” The cannon went off and like they always do, the nerves just flushed away. My plan was to go out as hard as I could handle to try to keep some feet. Since we started with the pro men, it was a decently large group with plenty of bubbles to choose from. At first I was aiming to hang on to some of the gals but quickly discovered that the pack thing is totally different in IM than in Oly racing. Everyone spreads out just a bit more than I was used to. I hung on to a guy’s draft for a bit but then he started to veer to the left when most were going more towards the right of the course. So I opted to just keep my straight path to hopefully catch up with some others. As I got close to the first turn, I ran into another guy (who I actually recognized and knew was Mike Hermanson!) on his feet for a bit (sorry Mike!) since we seemed to be going very similar paces. At this point, I just tried to stay steady and relaxed, following my plan of breaking the swim into thirds with the middle being a bit easier. I don’t even know what I thought about during that hour but “just keep swimming, just keep swimming” (channeling my inner Nemo) popped into my head a lot. Before I knew it, I was making the turn into the waterway channel. Woo hoo! I caught a glimpse of my family on the shore and they started to walk with me as I swam – that was awesome. My right hip flexor started talking to me a bit so every few minutes I took the kick down a notch to hopefully get it to relax a little bit. That seemed to work and I exited the water ready to take on the road! I had no idea what my time was but I was happy to be on dry land again.

Bike: Once through the change tent, I headed over to my bike and noticed the clock ready 58ish minutes, woo hoo! I was aiming for a sub hour swim and it looked like I had done it. That gave me a shot of confidence as I loaded up and grabbed my bike. My heart rate was a bit elevated at this point, probably just from adrenaline, so I tried to settle down and just relax. There was no need to get too crazy at mile 1 of 112! I kept remembering what a teammate (and former pro) had told me before the race “It’s not about the bike. It’s all about the run. Stay conservative.” Boy was I glad she reminded me of that. After a few miles, I seemed to be right where I expected so I settled in for the long haul and started enacting the very vital nutrition plan. Basically: hydrate a ton and take in a bunch of electrolytes and some gels as well to conquer the heat. Between whistling, singing in my head, repeating my favorite Bible verses, and thinking about what to consume next, the miles really did fly by. Before this day, I couldn’t fathom what on earth I was going to occupy my mind with but honestly, it seemed to take care of itself.

I had told my “support crew” that I would ideally love to see them twice on the bike. Well boy did they blow that out of the water! I lost count of how many times I saw them, haha. It was incredible! They would drive to a spot, get out and cheer, and then move on down the course. I loved it. There were also some very cool OutRival Racing signs put up all over the course, made by our resident team photographers, Corey and Brittani Oliver. Thanks y’all!

I was also nervous about how I’d handle the wind. After spending about 6 weeks of crucial build up time inside on the trainer, my confidence with weather conditions wasn’t great. But really, the wind was manageable. Sure it was rough at a few spots but it seemed to only last for a few miles here and there. By the time I was heading back to the Woodlands, the sun was definitely out and it got hot quickly! At that point though, I was still excited about the run. The rest of the miles are a blur until I made it back to where locals were out and about cheering as all of the racers came back into their area. I made the turn under Woodlands Parkway and soon after had my feet out of my shoes, ready to run!

Run: Here’s where the day got tough. I felt pretty darn good up to this point. I gladly gave my bike up to a volunteer and ran on to get my loot from the bag area. “Hot, hot, hot!” I remember saying as I made my way across the concrete and into the change area. I was greeted by a few teammates who were volunteering. They were so quick to put on my race belt for me, spray me with more sunscreen, and pump me up! I’ve never experienced such an easy and hands-off transition – awesome! I grabbed a high five from another pro gal, Malaika Homo, as I headed out to the course.

As my feet started carrying me, I quickly realized something was seriously wrong with my left foot. This was the foot I was nervous about since I have a little plantar irritation but this wasn’t my plantar. The ball of my foot felt raw. I thought it might have been a blister but then quickly connected the “hot, hot, hot” moment with the pain. “I burned my darn foot! Ouch. Holy cow!” That was basically all I thought about the first few miles. I approached the first special needs opportunity and decided I’d try one of my band aids on that foot. Stopping was certainly not in the plan but I had to try to manage this pain if I was going to run 25+ more miles on it. I slapped it on and put my shoes back on, in hopes of some relief. No such luck. This was going to be about survival.

I then realized I needed to start thinking about fueling for the miles ahead and enacted nutrition plan #2. The heat was brutal, the air was thick, and the sun shining blazing down. I reached the East Shore area and spotted Coach Michelle up ahead on her bike. It was a major relief to see her and hear some much needed words of motivation. I knew the Waterway was next and from what she had told me, this was where the energy was. “The crowd will carry you,” I remember her describing that section. And my goodness was she right! The cheers, encouragement, crazy costumes, and loud music were outstanding. I saw my family and friends. Another one of my good friends, Laine, had joined them at this point in the race and I loved seeing her smiling face – it provided new fuel to my fire! From that lap on, my mantra was “just make it to the Waterway.” The cheers and supporters in those middle miles, off of the Waterway, were definitely necessary to keep me going. I seriously owe the run to anyone and everyone who cheered.

The miles seemed to drag on at the time but looking back, they seemed to fly by. I can’t separate them out in my head. I suppose I was looking at it lap by lap. Lap #1 was mentally tough but at least I had crossed one off the list. By the middle of lap #2, I reached the halfway point and sang “oooooh, you’re halfway there, ooooooh living on a prayer!” That’s always a favorite when I reach the hump of anything so it gave me a little boost to know that all I had to do was repeat what I had just done. The beginning of lap #3 hurt physically but before I knew it, I was approaching the last few miles. I knew I would finish. This was it. As I passed my dad and brother for the final time, “I love you’s” were exchanged and I started to get emotional. I tried to muster up some more smiles and squeak out some energy for the finish line photo op. I rounded that u-turn in the finish chute and headed up the small hill (which seemed huge at the time), grabbing some crowd high fives on the way. I don’t remember hearing my name but I’m sure it was announced; I was elated….I “am an IRONMAN.”

I was able to walk forward and was greeted by an ORR teammate who delivered me to Clint. I felt okay but my left foot wouldn’t allow me to put much weight on it and a wave of dizziness crept in as well. Clint convinced me to go to the medical tent just in case so I did. I spent some time getting my vitals checked, a few blisters popped, and joking with the doctor. He was a memorable part of my day and I suppose I impacted him as well; he asked to take a picture with me as I was being released. Looking back, I wished I had gotten one too!

In the back of my mind, I had wanted to go sub 10 hours and although the clock reads 9:54ish, I really finished 10 minutes later since we had a 10 minute head start. With the brutal run conditions though, I’m very proud of the finish which was strong enough to get me on the podium. Like I said above, I owe the run to supporters and everyone cheering out there. But I owe the entire race to my coach, Michelle LeBlanc, and husband, who both kept me going all of these months even when the broken hand threatened to slow me down a bit. What an incredible journey! The smile in this picture says it all.

My high school cross country coach often described hills as “little hiccups.” I thought that was a very clever way to look at them; it makes them sound not so bad and actually has a nice ring to it. So after last week’s accident, that’s what I’m looking at my broken hand as: it’s just a little hiccup in the road!

It was last Tuesday in between workouts. I had oats cooking on the stove while I ran to change upstairs. Miles (our 75 lb Weimaraner, ie – very strong and agile but somewhat clumsy) was in a playful mood. For some reason I decided it was a good idea to take a toy and have him on the other end of it, in front of me, while coming back downstairs. I’m sure you can see where this is going. I have a tendency to speed up on those last few steps and Miles has a habit of stopping abruptly to look back and make sure you’re still there. We call him our velcro dog So anywho…I sped up, he stopped, and, well, I did not (at least not without the help of a wall). In the haste of getting tangled up in him and trying to save from falling on my legs or feet, I turned my body and ended up falling into the column with my left hand bent slightly, under some of my weight.

The pain was i.n.t.e.n.s.e.!

I immediately knew this wasn’t going to be just a bruise. I tried to shake it off but a wave of nausea struck me. And then I got super dizzy and everything seemed a bit hazy. I made it over to the stove so our house wouldn’t burn down in the mean time and then collapsed on the couch. Poor Miles knew Mom was hurt and curled up right next to me with a concerned look.

I decided I’d better go get it checked out and so I drove to the closest urgent care place I could find. About an hour later, I walked out with a splint and the x-rays showing very clearly that I had broken the ring finger metacarpal bone. Ahhhhh. It hit me like a brick. How was I going to swim?! How was I going to ride?! The running would probably be okay but maybe not?! How am I going to be ready?! This was certainly not in the plan of getting ready to open the 2013 season.

After hearing some supportive words from Coach Michelle, Clint, my family, and lots of others, I felt a bit better. No this isn’t how I intended to be finishing up the training ramp up but I knew I’d just have to adjust my expectations or continue to wallow in self pity and regret. That same afternoon of the fall, I was on my trainer getting that spin workout in. It felt a little funny since I had to baby that hand but I knew that’s what it was going to take.

Friday I got in to see the orthopedic doctor and he confirmed that I could indeed run and ride indoors with no harm so that was a relief. He also put it in a (pretty purple waterproof!) cast so that has helped to protect it more. The x-rays we took after it was put into a cast revealed that it “wasn’t as good as he had hoped” and that we might have to do surgery if the bone moves much more. I will find that out tomorrow.

Either way the recovery time should be about the same and I should be good to race IMTX. Sure my swim time won’t be as fast but I’ll just be glad to be back out there. I never thought I’d actually miss swimming but I definitely do! And all of this indoor trainer riding has me longing to feel the wind in my ponytail. I am thankful though that I can still run normally.

I won’t be racing Galveston since there’s no way I can handle a bike properly and the swim just couldn’t happen. I was so ready to race too! So that’s a disappointment but I’m still hoping to get down there to support my teammates and athletes.

On a side note, the very next day after my accident, I got to meet my brand new niece and Goddaughter, Lilah Michelle. That was definitely the highlight of my week! She’s so precious and I’m so blessed to now be the aunt of 4.

I know (and truly believe) everything happens for a reason and that this is just part of God’s grand plan. These little hiccups we all face can make us stronger if we let them! And with that, I’ll leave you with some lovely photos of the hand hiccup:

Tuesday afternoon, on the trainer. The swelling hadn’t kicked in yet so it almost looks normal.

The day we met Lilah, our new niece and Goddaughter!

Notice the swelling; this was the day after I fell

Feeling much better protected and I love the purple!

I’m still here!

Not long ago, I heard someone describe this decade as “the tumultuous twenties.” At the time I didn’t think much of it but looking back, my goodness, they were right on target. Within a matter of 5 months, I’ve (we’ve) gotten married (hence the name change!), moved in with my hubby, house searched, become a homeowner, moved to a new city, and adopted Miles (our precious Weimaraner). Whew! And that does not even include any triathlon (or work related) events.

So needless to say, I’ve been hanging on for dear life while trying to enjoy the journey as much as possible.

A few weeks back I (FINALLY) had the chance to dust off those racing cobwebs and put my training to the test at the Woodlands Half Marathon. It was the first time back home since we moved at the end of the year and it was good to be back. I actually spent over a week down there doing some training and catching up after the race as well.

Going into the race, my main goal was to just go out there and feel those race nerves again. In the back of my head though, I was hoping for a PR with no cramped quads along the way (as in the painful experience I had during the 2011 and 2012 Houston Half Marathons, ugh!). It was an early morning but I was excited because the weather was nice and cool and I had some great support along for the ride. My mom, dad, sis (Amy – she was actually supposed to race herself and was more than ready but a few days prior, had dislocated her shoulder!), Clint, and Mr. Miles were all there to cheer me on.

I was prepared for a quick start and a fairly hard effort for the entire 13+ miles. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous; I was. See I’m training for this little (sarcasm) race called IMTX so the long aerobic efforts have created an ability in me to go forever but sometimes I feel like I’ve lost my speed along the way. So I wasn’t sure how the attempt would feel but I was prepared to give it a shot.

Obsessively checking the Garmin, making sure all satellites and readings were good to go!

The race was really well organized and put together; it certainly was a smooth set up from parking to the start line and before I knew it, we were off!

That first mile, I clocked in at the low 6 range and knew that was probably a bit brisk but just tried to mind my HR and back off a tad. I settled in to a decently hard pace at my targeted HR and got into a rhythm. I knew that if I hit the 8 mile marker without any sign of cramping in the quads, I’d be relieved. Once I got to that point, I felt a bit more confident and tried to step it up a notch. My family drove out to see me mid-way; it’s always fun to see familiar faces out there!

Form check! I should be leaning forward up on top of my feet a bit more.

The last few miles I kicked it in as much as I could (this is relatively speaking for a long distance triathlete in training, mind you). I think I might have hit a 180+ HR on the “sprint” in?! I ended up with a 1:22:34 which is about 2 minutes faster than my last half marathon…woo hoo!

Into the chute!

After the race, we tried to hang around for awhile but it was darn cold with that wind picking up! I didn’t think I had made the podium so we went on, in search of warmth. I later found out though that I ended up in 5th place amongst the female elite half marathoners. No cramped quads along with a PR and a tad bit of cash = a great start to the season!

Looking forward, as I mentioned above, I’m trying my hand at longer stuff this year. There are a few reasons that we decided to go this route:

1. I want to try all distances (well not ultras, I’m not that crazy ) before deciding on which one I like best and which one I’m best at – I’m hoping those end up being about the same!
2. As a coach, there’s a ton of value in knowing exactly what your athlete is experiencing in their training and racing – I’ve coached an athlete to IMFL before but I’m looking forward to bringing more hands on experience to the table.
3. The traveling for olympic distance races is tough. I’m a homebody and I enjoy a routine of training, living, and hanging out with my family/friends. So I thought trying to stay closer to home and pick races around here would suit me best this year.
4. At the time we made this decision, I was actually living ON the IMTX bike course. How convenient is that?! But then about 2 weeks later, we found out we were being transferred for Clint’s job. Oh well; I’m making the training work in the hill country just as well.

So that’s the main focus right now but I’m planning on a few other lead up races to it. We are enjoying our new city but I certainly miss being close to my parents, friends, and teammates. Happy training and racing my friends; I hope 2013 has been a good one for you so far!

Well actually, I will always be a “Gray” – a name change of course doesn’t change who you are as a person so that will be with me forever. I’ve been thinking a lot about that lately as we approach the big day and I debate in my head whether or not to hyphenate for racing purposes or not, whether to keep my middle name or change it to “Gray,” etc. Ultimately in the end, whatever I decide, I’ll still be the same me with a wonderful man by my side to experience all of the blessings and adventures that God has in store for us. It is bittersweet though to realize that yesterday’s Houston Tri (turned Aquathon) was likely the last day I’d have “Gray” written across my butt

Let’s back up to last weekend before we dive into the running and swimming of yesterday. Clint and I headed down to Galveston for the first 5150 of next year’s series to (hopefully) rack up some points. I was strangely calm and not at all anxious for the entire week leading up to last Sunday. Maybe it was God’s way of preparing me for what was to come and/or maybe I’ve also gotten better at handling pre-race jitters combined with that all too familiar taper attitude I seem to take on. I’d like to think it was a combination of both!

Saturday afternoon, we did the usual pre-race routine of the meeting, Mass, and dinner at DiBella’s. Here we are post Italian food, enjoying the sights and sounds of the ocean, just after sunset.

That night, I didn’t sleep very well, even though I wasn’t feeling anxious at all. I think the vents in the room were more to blame but who knows. I’m fairly used to minimal sleep the night before a race so I tried not to stress about it too much. The next morning, race start came quickly and before I knew it, we were off on the swim. My goal was to just plain hurt during the swim and try to keep up as much as possible with the front pack; I knew that at least 4 out of the 7 in the pro women’s field were really strong swimmers. Well I definitely hurt but I still couldn’t keep up! So there I was again swimming on my own for the most part except for a few minutes in which I was keeping the feet of a gal just in front of me before she drifted away. I came out of the water in 6th place which honestly, was pretty much what I expected; I just wish that the gap hadn’t have been so big! Hopefully with time, it will close a little bit more.

Out on the bike, once I turned onto the Seawall, I could see 2 gals in front of me, riding side by side basically. I started just hammering it down, with the aid of a nice little tailwind and the gap began to close. All of the sudden though, gal #7 came from behind and we found ourselves around the same pace. To stay out of the draft but to keep that same speed, I had to get over to the far right which unfortunately took me through some gravel/rocks/debris. Just before that I had this thought “what would I do if I got a flat?” It was one of those strange preconceived notions because sure enough a few minutes later I heard a “thump, thump, thump” noise and stopped to feel the tire. It was done. I was mad. But there was nothing I could do. In a race like that, I don’t carry stuff to fix a flat and there was no wheel support. So there I stood, trying to figure out how the heck I was going to get back to the race site before Clint started panicking. Fortunately a nice man who was out there to chase down his wife in support offered me a ride back to civilization so I wouldn’t have to hang out there all day!

I tried to take the disappointment gracefully but goodness, it was tough. That’s the first flat I’ve had in a race and I was ready to just go hard. I kept reminding myself that not every race will go as planned and that everything happens for a reason. With the help of Clint and a nice HOT mid-day (unplanned) 9 miler, I was able to press the restart button and begin to focus on the week ahead.

Fast forward to yesterday and after a (surprisingly) good night’s rest, I awoke to my alarm only to see that I had missed a call from fellow teammate/training buddy, (and up and coming Pro!) Liz Baugher. It turns out the bike portion had been canceled and the Houston Tri would now be an Aquathon. I admit, I hadn’t even prepared my mind for such a situation but tried to get past the fact that this was the second race in a row that hadn’t gone as planned. I grew up a swimmer and runner so heck, maybe this would be a fun little change?!

Race start came around and as we were swimming over to the start, waiting for the gun, I felt a BIG kick in my quad. My muscle cramped up immediately. “Oh goodness,” I thought, “I’m seriously not going to be able to run.” It was that painful. “I’m going to have to drop out of this race because of an accidental kick pre-race start. Ridiculous. This is my last planned race of the season. Ugh. Ouch. Gosh, this hurts.” Those were the thoughts racing through my head just before the gun went off. I tried to just block them out and focus.

It was a huge pack that was starting together, men and women, and as soon as we were off, I got kicked in the left goggle! It suctioned my goggle into my eye so tight that my eyelashes were grazing the lens. I tried to ignore it but adjusted a few 100m into the swim. I was able to grab some bubbles and get into a decent rhythm once the pack lightened up a bit. The cramp in my leg was obvious but wasn’t preventing me from kicking normally so I just kept trying to focus on the moment and not worry what was to come when I hit dry land.

I ended up out of the water as first female and made the LOOOOONG journey into transition. My quad didn’t like that new motion but I hoped it would just kind of warm up and go away. Here I am about to change my gear for the run (photography courtesy of my rock star brother):

Liz wasn’t far behind me – she had an AWESOME swim! I could see her as I was coming around the corner out of transition. Out on the run course, I tried to stay a little more conservative for that first mile or so to try to acclimate my quad into the motion. It didn’t feel good though and I had visions of my legs feeling like they felt the last 2 Houston half marathons in which they completely seized up around mile 6.

I began to repeat the familiar motivational mantras in my head and think about all of my loved ones to get my mind off the discomfort. After about 2 miles, I realized it wasn’t getting worse and started to gain my confidence back. I hit the halfway point and tried to steadily pick up the pace and intensity. Those last few miles seemed to fly by and I soon crossed the finish line, excited and overcome by mixed emotions about this being the last race of the season! Here Liz and I are post-finish:

This was also an exciting day for Clint’s mom, Mary, who was racing her first triathlon/turned aquathon! I quickly headed back down towards to start to try and catch a glimpse of her in action. She did very well and was all smiles post-race:

My baby brother (aka – Bryan or “Boo”) came in for the race as well! I’m always blessed to have so many loved ones come out in support. It means the world to me.

This was also the series finale of the TX3 Series so it was an extra exciting awards ceremony. Look at all of that OutRival Racing red and black on the series awards podium! I’m always honored to share the spotlight with such dedicated and talented athletes, especially when it includes training buddies, friends, and my coach!

ONURMARK always puts on fantastic events and yesterday was no exception. I always love racing locally and being able to cheer on/visit with teammates and all of the amazing people I’ve met through this wonderful sport over the past 3 years. It was a great way to end the season. Now I’m off to put my “bride hat” (er, veil?) on for a little bit and enjoy this exciting time!

Up to this point in my 3 years of triathlon, I can honestly say that I’ve never had a terribly painful race. Well, that all changed yesterday at the Hy-Vee 5150 Championship Elite Cup. Brutal is the only way to describe it. There are certainly plenty of positives to such an experience though.

Leading up to the race, I flew in on Friday and immediately upon arrival to the airport, knew that I was a part of a huge race. The race coordinators treated us like royalty, complete with transportation from the airport, 3 nights covered at a nice hotel, and lots of goodies waiting for us everywhere. Apart from these lovely little perks, I was instantly surrounded by a ton of talent. Case in point, I rode over from the airport in the shuttle with Sarah Groff! That was humbling experience #1. I tried to play it cool and not act all star-struck but I was definitely excited. She was very sweet

Then just a little while later, after assembling my bike (and finding ANOTHER bent skewer, mind you), I headed to the race briefing. I’ll paint a picture for you – a tiny little hotel conference room stacked with both our Olympians, the silver medalist, long-course studs, and the majority of the top non-drafting triathletes in the country/world. I count that as humbling experience #2, wow!

Michelle got into town a little while later and we grabbed a bite to eat. On our way to dinner, it was clear that Hy-Vee really goes all out. There were banners everywhere advertising the race and the entire city seemed to be excited.

The next day was filled with the normal pre-race warmup and preparation. I took a little break from relaxing in the hotel room and explored a very impressive farmer’s market just a few blocks away. I wish I had endless amounts of luggage so that I could have bought stuff! It was very cool. That evening, I went to Mass and then we grabbed some grub.

After a good night’s rest, since my race wasn’t until the afternoon, I headed out to watch some of Michelle’s race and am so glad I did! I went out to the run portion and told myself that “if she’s in first, I’m going to the finish.” And of course she was! So I sprinted into the finish to try to catch her victory on camera. She won a CAR for her mom and really rocked that race; I’m so proud! After all of that excitement, I tried to refocus and get off my feet for a few hours.

Fast forward a few hours and it’s time to race! I went down to drop my stuff off at T2 and was a little early so I sat in the shade by a tree. A few minutes later and all of these kids start coming up to me asking for my autograph, how cute is that?! While I don’t feel like I deserve such treatment, I tried to take advantage and connect with them for just a few minutes. I’m hoping that I left a positive impact on them by offering words of encouragement and genuine kindness. It’s moments like that when I am reminded of the big picture, to glorify God through my actions. It is very easy to get caught up in all of the hub-bub and race anxiety but one thing I kept repeating to myself over the weekend was that “this race is big but God is bigger!”

Down at the swim start/T1, a 1:30pm start time with the sun shining made for some HOT conditions. I tried not to think about it though and just hydrated as much as I could beforehand while also using ice to cool myself down. We were soon introduced and marched down to the water, complete with our own flag bearers. How awesome is that?! The kids were part of a youth triathlon team that had raced the day before; I was led down by Preston.

A dive start with 30 women made for a fairly crowded start. My goal for the swim was to go out hard and just keep some feet! Kick, kick, kick! I knew the start would hurt and I was definitely right. The front pack slowly drifted away but I was in the middle of a decent sized pack. Coming out of loop 1, I ran up the ramp with 1 gal in front of me and 3 or so right behind. After the dive back in, it was clear that I had gone out pretty hard on that first loop because my arms felt like jelly! I tucked in behind the front girl of our pack and just tried to hang on and let her do more of the work. I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep up a faster pace on my own so I just stayed steady. I peeked back after we made the turn and there were a few swimmers trailing behind our little pack. “Yay!” I thought to myself, “I’m not last AND I kept some feet.” Then I had to refocus – “finish strong, Sarah, finish strong.”

Out of the water and on to the bike, it was obvious we were not going to be in for any heat relief from the shade. There wasn’t a speck of it out there! It also became obvious that I had made a very large mistake with my fluid. In every OLY distance race this year, I’ve never finished more than 1 bottle so last weekend, I shed the second bottle to save some weight. I hadn’t had any cramping issues this year either so I figured I had dialed in on my nutrition needs. So on this race, I made 2 bottles out of habit and then remembered I’d only need the 1 so I left the other in my bag. Well, hello! This race was at 1:30pm, a solid 6+ hours later than when I’m used to racing. There was nothing I could do about it at that point though so I turned to rationing out the fluid. That was humbling experience #3. The first 2 loops I was feeling pretty good with my HR a little higher than normal (due to higher temps and probably a higher effort with such a fast field). I began to feel the effects though in the middle of loop 3 and just tried to hang on. The crowds were great and I had more people cheering than I had expected since we are so far from home – of course Michelle was out there and she always provides me comfort but there were also quite a few Shama Cycles people too so that was a pleasant surprise! I kept focusing on all of the turns and tried my best not to brake or get out of aero unless absolutely necessary. Beyond the fluid and hydration difficulties, I was actually quite pleased with my bike handling. There’s still much room for improvement but it has come a long way. I rounded the corner and headed into T2, quickly changed my gear, and ran out along that lovely bright blue carpet.

At this point in the race, I’m usually feeling pretty good and just glad to be off the bike and out on my own 2 feet. This time around, I was not feeling so hot. All I could think to myself was “water, water, I want water.” I had a foggy/dizzy feeling and immediately developed 2 side stitches from the dehydration. I took advantage of that very first aid station and drank just a bit of water while also grabbing a nice cold sponge to cool my body down. When you’re cramping though, you don’t want to consume too many fluids because it has the risk of making them worse – it’s definitely a dilemma! So I tried to meet in the middle and take in just a bit while trying to breathe through those cramps. “Don’t stop Sarah, don’t stop….” The crowds were wild and with 4 loops, I got to see familiar faces quite a bit so that really kept me going. The tough thing about those 4 loops though was the killer hill at the end of each one into the transition area – whew, that really tested my strength. I had to dig deep and just keep reminding myself “pain is temporary, quitting is forever.” The super fast front girls started lapping us – that hurt my pride for sure and I’d count that as humbling experience #4.

I knew a lot of people were watching online back home so that definitely helped carry me through as well. “This isn’t supposed to feel good Sarah, you have to push through the pain.” By loop 3, the cramps seemed to have backed off a bit and I started to feel a little bit better. Although my pace had slowed quite a bit, I was able to catch a few gals on the last 2 loops. I was so very excited to crest that last hill and finally finish in 26th!

I spent the evening moving as little as possible. I definitely left nothing out on that course. No doubt, that WAS the goal but I had expected to feel a little bit better doing it. My time was far away from being a PR. I learned a lot (per usual) during this race but overall I’m so proud to have a) been invited to such a high profile race and b) to have pushed through some very challenging moments to finish fairly strong. It’s easy to take our talents for granted and to get comfortable with where we are. We need races like this to knock us back a notch or 2 to remind us that there’s still plenty of room for growth and so many things that are still left to be improved upon. Thank you all for your support and love – I certainly did not finish that race on my own!

If you ever have the opportunity to race in Maine, I highly recommend it! This past weekend, that’s exactly what I did. It was my third REV3 event and just like the other two, it did not disappoint. These guys put on outstanding races that make everyone feel like a rock star!

What made me feel like an even bigger rock star was all of the help and support provided by my good friend Colleen. She made the trip out to the Northeast, tacking on a few other stops along her way to Old Orchard Beach, Maine.  We had a grand old time and she provided top notch support, complete with meal preparation, bike help, and smiles. Colleen and I met in college while both studying accounting but now she lives in Denver so I don’t get to see her very often; I’m so glad we made a girls trip out of the weekend!

I flew in on Friday (my first flight left at 7am so it made for quite an early morning!) and we were settled at the cute little beach resort by 3pm or so.  Of course I immediately began to tackle the reassembly of the bike. We recently switched out stems on the Alchemy so it made for a little tighter fit in the box that requires a few extra steps. I was a bit nervous about it (per usual) but all seemed to go well. That is until I discovered a slightly bent skewer that was stuck in the wheel. Using my handy dandy mallet  (which also doubles as hotel security) that I brought along to help prevent any seat post issues like in NYC, we tapped it back into alignment as much as possible. It was just enough to get that skewer out of there and replace it with a good one.  I put the wheels on and everything seemed good to go until I realized the front brake was rubbing without even being closed. Not to worry, with Colleen’s help, we were able to loosen those babies back up and into place. Now, I’m totally not mechanical at all but over these past 5 or so months of traveling with bikes, I’ve been forced to relinquish my fear of breaking something and just get after it. I’m very proud of that accomplishment! I seem to be able to handle most of the minor flare-ups, which is crucial when traveling with a bike so much. I’m certainly not claiming to be a pro at bike repair/maintenance and I definitely won’t be opening up a bike shop anytime soon BUT I’m getting better for sure.

With the bike seemingly good to go, we set out to grocery shop and grab a bite to eat. First we had to make a tiny pit stop across the street to check out the mighty (read – freezing) Atlantic. My goodness, I’m so glad we did – it was beautiful and revved me up for the weekend ahead.

The next day was full of the normal “day before race” preparation with warmup workouts, exploring the course, and a race meeting. Notice I said the word “seemingly” above in regards to my bike being good to go; well, I realized while warming up that I had forgotten to tighten the bolts on the side of the stem that holds it in place – WHOOPS! I’m so glad I discovered that before the race I still have a ton of room to improve in the mechanical area! After all of that was taken care of, we went and explored. Colleen doubled (or tripled?) as a travel agent too! Look at this beauty she took us to see…

It looks like it’s straight out of a painting, huh? I was blown away. How quintessentially Maine! There was a wedding going on too so that made for some awesome people watching. We relaxed for a bit, enjoying the scenery while reading. Needless to say, we didn’t get much read with views like this:

We had to pull ourselves away though so we could get to Mass. I’ve said this before – one of the cool things about traveling to new places is exploring different churches and seeing how different (or similar) they all are. Well, this one provided us with quite a unique experience. Due to my lack of navigational skills (and perhaps also to the distraction provided by the above beautiful scenery), we got there about 10 minutes late. Usually this wouldn’t be a big deal except that apparently at this church, they are rather quick with everything. So by the time we got there, the homily was already winding down. I have no clue how they got there so fast. Nonetheless, we made it and experienced a record setting Mass – a mere 37 minutes! That might be one for the books, wow.

Dinner was up next at a place we had stumbled upon earlier in the afternoon by the name of “David’s.” Boy am I glad we did! It was in a cute little part of downtown Portland (Portland, ME that is – no, we did not drive all across the country just for food….although, I guess that wouldn’t be unheard of for such a yummy place!). We did a great job filling our bellies and then headed back to relax in the hotel for the evening.

Race morning came early, as it always does, and the pre-race rituals began. Time seems to pass so quickly and I soon found myself waiting to start with this lovely view to enjoy:

After all of the 1/2 ironman distance folks went off, we had a bit of a break and then got to go. It was a wetsuit swim with a beach start which makes for a fun and sloppy water entrance! I had a bit of a delayed reaction to the gun but dove in as quickly as I could, doing the strange dolphin/stand up/dive back in maneuver that is pretty common for ocean swims. It was definitely an aggressive start and I tried to just stay with it, “just go Sarah, it will settle down soon enough.” I tried hard to keep up with the very front gals but my goodness, they are just darn quick! So once again, I found myself in a sort of “no man’s land” out there between 2 packs, just swimming along as hard as I could. I had to restructure my thinking and remember to race my own race; don’t worry about everyone else, just keep pushing. I turned that last buoy and noticed some other girls coming up alongside my right so I guess a mini pack had broken out and caught up. I exited the water with 3 or 4 others and headed into transition. There was a decently long run from the water and my feet certainly appreciated the change from the rough concrete to the carpet into T1. I quickly grabbed all my loot and was out. The course started with a decent climb but once I crested that, I was ready to just hammer down. I turned my focus onto my HRM to try to get it started and going but I would have no such luck. The Garmin told me it was reading but it wouldn’t give me any data! I tried several times before settling on the fact that I was just going to have to go off of feel. I’m sure I threw away some seconds focusing on that too much but my goodness, it was irritating. With a change of mental plan, I just tried to stay strong and steady. I passed 3 or so girls in the first few miles and then after that, there wasn’t a change in position. I could see the gal in front of me but it appeared we were going similar speeds so I wasn’t able to bridge the gap. It was such a beautiful, rolling, and shaded course! With this type of scenery around, it’s tough to keep focused:

Somehow I managed to though and despite a few traffic/course direction hiccups, made it back to T2, dismounted, and fumbled to put my shoes on. My hands just don’t work well after a hard bike effort! I grabbed my watch and belt and headed out. I really didn’t know what place I stood in at this point but I could see a girl not too far ahead so I decided I needed to make a move quickly. I tried to get my run Garmin started but again, this one wasn’t reading the data correctly either. It was giving me read outs of low 50s which I knew was definitely not accurate! I rounded the first corner and spotted Colleen, grinning and hollering her heart out. “What place?” I asked and she let me know that I was in 5th. Just after mile 1, I was able to overtake the 4th place gal and claim that spot. The course didn’t provide many flat open stretches but it did give us quite a few rolling hills and a ton of shade. It was an out and back so you knew exactly where you stood.

After the turn around, my legs were definitely feeling all the hills from the day but I just tried to take it mile by mile. At mile 5, I tried to kick it in and pick up the pace a bit to finish strong. I ended up 4th place behind Goss, Lavelle, and Kelleher. It’s always fun to be racing alongside (or behind at least) such talented and well experienced athletes!

We spent the rest of Sunday having fun and relaxing; a winery visit and delicious dinner along the water down in New Hampshire topped off the evening. It was a fabulous girls trip and having a good race was just icing on the cake. It was in no way a “perfect” race and certainly presented its challenges but again, I learned a lot. You have to be able to change gears mid-race and come up with “Plan B” if all doesn’t go as predicted. When my HRM wasn’t working, that definitely threw me for a loop but there was nothing I could do about it but move forward. Not having that data definitely messed with my confidence but I had to prove to myself that I could listen to my body and just go. So now that I’m on the other side, I’ve gained a whole different confidence in that I can reach back and pull on this race experience in the future. With that, I’m off to test that darn strap in preparation for next weekend.

We did a lip sync to that song way back in middle school. If you were subjected to that performance, just be glad I wasn’t actually singing….I wouldn’t have done Sinatra any justice. Music is definitely not one of my strong suits! Needless to say, this song (along with several others) were on my mind this past weekend as I traveled up to the big city to race in the Aquaphor NYC Oly tri (part of the 5150 series). The last and only time I went to NYC was after high school graduation with my good friend Kristi and her sister. This time around, my mom came along for the ride and what ensued was a whirlwind of a trip that packed in some touristy activities, lots of fabulous food, and some hard work as well.

The trip there went smoothly and after a quick bite to eat, I settled in to tackle the reassembly of the bike. This is certainly not one of my favorite parts of traveling to races so I try to knock it out as soon as possible. In case you haven’t ever had to disassemble and pack your bike, here’s what it looks like upon arrival:

Looks like a fun project, huh?! Actually – it looks a lot harder than it is and honestly, I’m proud that I can now do this myself. I’ve gotten quite good at it. Usually it goes pretty smoothly but this time – I wasn’t so fortunate. It was the first flight with the Alchemy and apparently they make their seat posts to fit a lot snugger in the frame. Mind you, this is an AWESOME feature. I’ve had trouble with seat posts slipping in the past no matter how tight I crank that tool. The only time it’s not so awesome is when you are trying to take a bike apart and put it back together. Well, after quite a bit of tugging and wiggling and pulling, my mom and I just couldn’t get it to budge. We put a bit of lube on it to soak for the night to see if that would do the trick. I then called it a night and decided I’d tackle it the next day.

After a nice warmup run in Central Park, I tried to get the seat to come out but I still wasn’t having any luck. We even tried heating the frame with a hair dryer to get the outside to expand so the post would have space to come up (that idea was courtesy of my dad – engineers…I would never have thought of that!). When that didn’t work either, I opted to just bring it to a local shop. So my mom and I set out to face the busy streets of NYC on a Friday afternoon while wheeling a bike through the crowds. That was a feat! The shop was super nice and I left it there while we went to grab a bite to eat. I seriously felt butterflies in my stomach the entire time for fear that they wouldn’t even be able to get it unstuck. But alas, they did…and I was back in business. With most of the prep work behind me, we were able to be tourists for the next day and a half and gawked at all the common spots – Grand Central Station, World Trade Center Memorial Site, Statue of Liberty from afar, Flat Iron building, Empire State Building, Times Square, and the list goes on. Per some suggestions from my good friend Carolyn, we dined in some amazing restaurants along the way. Included in all this was a very interesting (read – hot and miserable) tour bus experience. Looking back, perhaps we shouldn’t have gone on a busy Saturday afternoon but hey – we got a good laugh out of it afterwards. It certainly tested our patience! Here are a few shots:

The always chaotic Grand Central Station

Fabulous Asian food at Buddakan (Sex and The City rehearsal dinner spot!) – I am no food photographer, obviously

Times Square

Mom and I near Rockefeller Center

The Today Show studio! We watch this religiously and have forever so this was very exciting.

Empire State Building from our tour bus

Times Square Starbucks! Yes – this is cool to me. There were 2 full bars; insane!

After my pre-race meeting on Saturday afternoon, I quickly finished prepping and laying everything out for the next morning so we could go to Mass at St. Patrick’s and then grab some obligatory Italian food at a local spot afterwards. St. Patrick’s is under a restoration process right now but my goodness, it’s still quite impressive. It’s also clear that it’s very much a tourist destination. There was a lot of milling around during the actual Mass – people coming in and out, taking pictures, etc. I’m not sure I’d ever be able to get used to that if I went there regularly. I felt like a tiny little needle in a huge haystack, that’s how big the church is. Here’s just a glimpse:

After some delicious pasta at a place called Fiorini’s, we quickly made our way into bed; race morning would come early with a 3:45 alarm set! I actually slept pretty well that night, relatively speaking and woke up ready to go. After a good 20 minute bike ride through the quiet(er) early morning streets of NYC, I made it to transition. It quickly became evident why this race has to have a lottery entry system – it was PACKED! I could hardly move around to explore the swim in/bike out/run out. They didn’t allow us to take our bikes out once they were checked in because there were just too many darn people. I did what I could though and met up with my mom to start the trek down to the swim start. It was quite a ways a way since this course is a point to point swim. The 5:50am race start came quickly and before I knew it, we were all lined up on the pier, ready to dive in and conquer the Hudson!

Well – I felt like I was conquering it…at first. I couldn’t quite keep up with the very front gals – they were quick! But I was out in front of the second group, going along pretty strong and feeling fast with that current until all of a sudden, I see some gals come up on my right side from behind. I thought to myself – “do they know something I don’t know?!” Well – it turns out, the current is stronger the farther you are from the bank. Duh Sarah – I should have thought about that. I grew up going to the Comal River every summer but I just didn’t even think about it. My dad actually tried to remind me of this right before the race start but I had to rush off the phone because they were calling us to the start so I didn’t let him tell me – parents always know best, no matter how old you get! At that point, it was too late to correct my mistake so I just tried to finish as strong as possible and keep my head up. I ended up 11th out of the water, although I was fairly close behind 2 or 3 other gals.

After a very long run into transition on some rough concrete, I was eager to get my bike on. Once out of the more technical/skinny/not conducive to speed start of the course, I settled into a good rhythm. This was no flat course though so I tried to focus on keeping a consistent cadence without laying on my brakes when I got scared of the speed. For the most part I was successful at that and was feeling good. The Alchemy hoods have since been wrapped with tape so they were much less slippery this time around than in New Orleans. Towards the middle of the course, my HRM stopped working so I was just going off of feel. That’s a little scary but I really didn’t have a chance to re-sync my Garmin with my HRM so I just went with it. I came in from the bike in 8th place so I had made a little progress but there was still a lot of room for improvement.

I went into this race with a massive blister on my right big toe – towards the bottom, right where shoes touch. I tried my best to come up with a taping solution that would stay put through a swim but at this point in the race, although it was feeling okay, the tape had shifted down, leaving my blister open to the elements. As I went to put on my running shoes, I tried to cover it back up without much luck. I was nervous that it would cause me quite a bit of pain but I had no choice – “just go Sarah, just go!” So there I went – running out onto the streets of NY, lined with people cheering. After a 1/2 mile or so, I entered Central Park. At this point, I was feeling good and settled into a quick rhythm. The energy in the park was amazing and this ended up being my favorite run course to date. The rolling hills provided a challenge but I tackled them with a vengeance and a smile! I passed a gal around mile 4, moving into the 7th spot and could see another way up ahead. I tried to turn the speed on and go for it. I made up quite a bit of distance but didn’t quite catch her – she ended up ahead of me by 8 seconds. Next time, I’ll kick sooner!

Looking back, the swim really hurt me. I was 11th out of the water whereas my bike and run times were both 4th place. My transitions were also slow (once again) so I gave up time there too. This is a year of quite a few learning experiences though so I’ll take as many as I can get! I’m pleased with the results – those were some very talented athletes and I’m always humbled to be racing in their midst. I also earned a few more points towards the series so that’s always a plus!

Mom and I ended our trip with some shopping (very limited because both our feet hurt!) and celebrating in the form of vino and some yummy Lebanese food! All in all, we had a wonderful and successful weekend. I really enjoyed getting to hang out with my mom one-on-on, outside of typical daily life back home. A huge thank you goes out to all of my sponsors for their continuous support, my family and friends for their unending love, and the good Lord above for all of these blessings!

This past weekend, I had the privilege of spending a lot of time with Michelle in what resulted in a truly adventurous and memorable trip to the Big Easy. It was one of those whirlwind trips that packs a big punch in a short amount of time. We actually both decided to give 5150 New Orleans a go just last week so it was pretty last minute. She wanted to try and qualify for Hy-Vee and I was due for a recovery week so it seemed like a good fit. It’s always more fun to have a traveling buddy who is racing too!

Normally, for races that are farther than just a few hours, I arrive on Friday afternoon so that I have a night and day to settle in and get prepped prior to the race. We opted to go Saturday morning though and I actually liked it! It made packing much simpler and in a strange way, helped my stress level. I got to spend Friday evening hanging out with some good friends and Clint so I was happy to be able to include that on a race weekend. I always find it a bit challenging to pass the time on Saturday before a Sunday morning race so the long car trip (and lots of girlie chit-chat!) definitely helped. I don’t think we turned the radio on once, that’s how much we had to talk about! I guess that’s what happens when you have so many different types of relationships with a person – friends, coach/athlete, co-workers, mentor, and the list goes on…

We arrived in New Orleans and had a bit of time to kill prior to our room being ready and the start time for the pre-race meeting. My legs were definitely not feeling peppy and I was still pretty darn mentally relaxed. After picking up our packets and taking care of pre-race business, I had just enough time to go to Mass prior to dinner time. That evening, we grabbed some delicious Cajun (but not too spicy for fear of race stomach revolt!) food and enjoyed more conversation before hitting the sack early. I often times have a lot of trouble falling asleep the night before a race but it seems that my more relaxed attitude combined with the lovely chilly hotel room temps had me sleeping like a baby!  I woke up feeling rather refreshed and ready to go. Mentally, I wasn’t too anxious and physically, I didn’t feel as peppy as normal but was excited to get the race going.

After an unexpected stop en route to the race site, we arrived about 20 minutes prior to the scheduled transition closing time. This is a tad too close for comfort but amazingly I stayed calm. I told this to Clint a bit later and he was astounded. I guess Michelle just has a way of keeping me calm and/or I just don’t show that side to anyone but family I think this is an area of needed improvement (I mean not showing it to family either)! And luckily, the race directors decided to delay the closing by 30 minutes so there was plenty of time to get everything set up, do a little run, and check my bike as well. We didn’t get to jump in the water before the pro men started but luckily, they let us get in for just a few minutes prior to the female pro start.

The gun went off and whew, that water was WARM!!! I believe the final temperature was around 84 degrees – so basically everyone felt like they were swimming in a bathtub. I’m really sensitive to pool temperatures for workouts…maybe a tad too much – I really don’t find anything above 80 very enjoyable. So, 84 degrees is way too high for me (or anyone I’m sure) to feel good. But – in a race, you are all in the same boat and facing the same challenges so I try not to think about it too much. I’d say this was the most aggressive I’ve been able to be in a swim as far as not letting elbows, hands, body contact, etc. deter me from keeping a hard effort. I was able to keep feet for the entire race and came out with a pack so I was so excited! The lead gal had gained over a minute on the pack but still, I was happy with my position.

After a 1/2 mile run to transition on some rather rocky gravel and concrete, I transitioned (rather quickly I might add, woo hoo!) to the bike. This was the Alchemy’s “maiden voyage” as Michelle termed it, so I was excited to try her out in race mode. The course was a 2 loop trek with a few bridges and sharper turns but nothing too major. I felt fantastic on the first half of loop 1 since we were in a very strong tailwind (a hurricane was/is brewing out in the gulf so we got a lot of the associated winds!). The bike was handling great and I was cruising right along. I came to the u-turn point and WHAM, there was that expected head/crosswind. My speed dropped way down but I just focused on keeping the cadence and effort up with the knowledge that everyone is facing the same challenges and course conditions. It was so humid that my sweat wasn’t evaporating at all – I felt like I had just taken a shower…gross, huh?! My hands became very slippery (which is normal) and the hoods on my bike weren’t wrapped because they have a little grip to them that is designed to replace the need for tape. I guess I must have a higher than normal sweat rate because it certainly was not working for me. I ended up staying in my saddle as much as possible for the rest of the race whereas I’d normally stand up while cresting a climb. I just felt like the risk of slipping and eating it on the course wasn’t worth the speed. Granted, I’m still not the most confident rider and bike handler so perhaps it was more mental. I managed to stay upright and finished the bike portion, sitting in 4th place. I had moved up a few spots from the swim so felt good about that.

Another quick (albeit, still a little tough for me to put my shoes on) transition later and I was out on the run. Mentally at this point in the race, I always feel a bit of relief because it’s just me and the road. I don’t have to depend on any equipment or watch out for too much; it’s just time to hammer it out and finish as strong as possible. Once I got into a rhythm, it was clear that this was going to be a hot and sunny run! The first half is always more mentally challenging as I approach that halfway point. After mile 3 though, the physical challenge takes over.  I saw Michelle a few times and she was able to shout out the progress of the gals in front of me. I tried to kick it in but 3rd place was just a bit out of reach for the lack of pep in my legs. It became a race against myself those last few miles to just give it what I had and not leave anything out on the course. I ended with the 2nd fastest run so I’m pleased with the resulting time I was able to squeak out on a lower volume of running this past month.

Overall, I ended up 4th place in a great field. It’s always challenging to look back on a slow race and try to compare to your past performances but it’s all relative. All of my competitors faced the same not so easy course conditions. I am pleased with my transitions this go round; they seemed more in line with everyone else so that area seems to be improving. Looking back on the run and swim, although they didn’t feel great (I actually got nauseous in the water!), I’m proud of my performances. On the other hand, I felt pretty darn good on the bike but definitely see that my technical handling skills on hills has a lot of room for improvement. The new bike felt great and did very well; user error is more to blame on this one As always, I’ll take this race experience and learn from it. Michelle had a fantastic race and ended up taking home the win for Elite wave which earned her a spot to Hy-Vee championships. All in all, it was a successful trip for both of us but I think the best part of this entire weekend was time spent with a great friend/mentor/coach, etc. When else do you get the opportunity to have so much one-on-one time with someone?!

Of course I can’t wrap up a race recap without a shout out to all of those who make these experiences possible. Thank you so much to my amazing fiance, my family and friends, awesome coach, and wonderful sponsors for all your continuous support. It’s all because of Him though that I have been blessed with such individuals, opportunities, and talents to be able to take this journey. I hope everyone had a great weekend, full of racing or training and fun times with family/friends!

So I originally planned to be blogging about 2 races and figured I’d have lots of fun pictures of downtown Austin to show you. Well, my body had other plans and after Memphis in May on May 20th, it reminded me who calls the shots around here!

First of all – let’s go back to Memphis (well, technically – Tunica, Mississippi…but it’s a teeny tiny casino town just south of the border so I’m guessing you’ve never heard of it!). My dad and I made the 10 hour trek up there on Friday, just as all the future Ironmen back home were prepping for their big race the following day. (Once again, I have the most supportive family ever – wow!). So much of my time spent waiting around, tapering, being restless, etc…was spent following the OutRival Racing progress at IMTX live on the feed (along with a very small amount of accounting CPE work). It was certainly a wonderful way to pass the time and very inspirational indeed! As my dad proclaimed at dinner Saturday night, “this has been a very uneventful trip so far.” What he meant was that there weren’t any travel mishaps like I had in Knoxville so that’s a very good thing. But the lack of excitement in that area was made up for in other adventures for sure – we experienced Mass at a downtown Memphis church, got in a bit of a fender bender (no damage was left though, thankfully) on the way into town, and my dad got to play a lot of poker which always involves meeting quite a few interesting characters of whom he relayed quite humorously back to me.

Fast forward to the next day, race day. Earlier in the week, I found out that our race wouldn’t actually start until AFTER all the other waves had gone and cleared the course. Which meant that we wouldn’t be starting until 10:30am! Mind you – we were in the south so at 10:30am, we were looking at high 80s/maybe low 90s? It’s very sunny there as well with a whole lot of flat land with no trees so there was not much shade to take refuge in. Well at our pre-race meeting the afternoon before, they took a poll and we all agreed to start 30 minutes earlier – so race time was set for 10am.

I usually start training by 7am most mornings and am up at 6am – I’m just a morning person; I always have been and I really don’t foresee it changing. Even when I try desperately to sleep in – I’m doing well if I make it past 7! So anyways, I digress. It’s Sunday morning and I’m up but I don’t have to race around to get out to transition, warmup, etc. so it was actually kind of nice to ease into the morning and eat a good breakfast while watching the start of the race. The time seemed to crawl by at first but as it tends to do, time marched on and race time finally came.

The swim was actually a time trial swim so this was unique feature #2 of the race. We were started alternating male/female in order of our race numbers, every 10 seconds. I think I ended up being the 5th female in the water or somewhere around there – basically right in the middle. It was a point to point course which I find to be more motivating then circular/triangular swims for some reason. I also liked that it was more like “every man for himself” sort of style since we were in time trial fashion and it was up to each individual to make up enough time to catch a draft if that seemed beneficial (depending on whether or not you had faster people in front of you). This made it a little less crowded and definitely less aggressive – it felt more like a hard effort in a workout. The water was a bit warm but I just went as hard as I could and I ended up with the 3rd fastest swim split amongst the females so I’m pleased with that. I think I could have gone a bit harder but feel that I’m beginning to get comfortable with being uncomfortable in the water – if that makes sense? Baby steps….baby steps.

Out on the bike, I was ready to tackle the headwind that I knew we’d be facing for the front half of the course. In that first mile, there were 2 other gals right around me and we switched positions a few times before I made a hard effort to get in front. Once I was able to pass, I quickly found out that I was going to be up there alone as far as I could tell. The 1st place female and the front males were too far out to see so I just hunkered down and pushed. I noticed that my HR was averaging a bit higher than normal but I figured that was due to the heat so I didn’t do much to change it. The second half of the bike was awesome – I think I was averaging around 27-28mph with that lovely tailwind! My dad was there with the splits at about the halfway point and it turns out I was able to make up some time in the second half which is always motivating. I came into transition, determined to make this one smoother than the last race – I tend to have trouble getting my race belt and shoes on because my hands are all shaky. I was fairly successful this time around but looking back at the numbers, I still have a ton of room for transition improvement!

Now it was time to hammer it out on the run. I’m usually relieved to be out on my own 2 feet with just over 6 miles separating me from the finish line. Well, this time around – I quickly found out that the heat puts a whole new spin on that relieved feeling. It was painful. The course was basically straight out a farm road and straight back with very few spectators besides the volunteers giving us fluids every mile or so. It was so hot and sunny that all I could see was the sun reflecting off the road in the distance, like a mirage. I felt like I was in the desert! But – I pulled the inspirational feelings from watching IMTX the day before and had a little pep talk with myself “they were out in the heat ALL day and ran for 26.2 miles – come on Sarah, you can do this….” That seemed to help along with my usual motivational phrases I count on during races. It still didn’t feel good though, especially after turning into a headwind at the halfway point. I also couldn’t tell how far back the gal was behind me and how her difference in start time for the swim would factor in, etc. I tried not to think too much though and just gave it all I had. Turning the corner into that finish line was wonderful relief! I ended up second place female by about 30 seconds amongst some very talented athletes so I feel very blessed and proud of the performance.

Fast forward a few hours and we’re on the road back home. I noticed that every time I got out to walk into a gas station (I had to drink a LOT to quench my thirst after that heat and thus that required quite a bit of patience from my Dad in all my requested stops!), my left foot felt pretty tight on the outside above my heel/beside my achilles. I didn’t think much of it and just figured it would go away in a few days after post-race soreness subsided.

Well I was wrong, and as the days wore on, there just wasn’t much progress with the pain. It hurt every step I walked. I tried to remain positive. The race plan was that the following Monday, I’d be doing CapTex in Austin which I was definitely looked forward to. With Michelle’s urging, we remained conservative – giving it a lot of extra rest and treatment. By Friday, I still hadn’t decided whether I was going to race although I was preparing to just in case. After a ton of prayer, thought, and advice received, I made the very tough decision to sit the race out. It’s the big picture that matters – this was only one race, as everyone kept telling me. But I was so disappointed, angry, and frustrated. I almost felt like I was taking the easy way out by not racing but as my sister pointed out, just pushing through would have been the easy way out. Who knows if it would have made my foot worse but I really didn’t want to find out. I was relieved to finally decide and although it was tough, I felt at ease so I knew it was the right decision for me.

The time that was freed up by not racing was certainly not wasted! I got to ride with Clint on Sunday and it was one of those awesome rides where you go hard but you feel good and enjoy the company. My sister and niece also surprised us and came into town so I got a lot of Abigail play time which is always wonderful.

I also had more free time for training and I was longing for more volume since I’ve been racing so much so I welcomed the changed training plan. Since my foot was still about the same, I didn’t have any runs scheduled so more swims and rides ensued! Well – once again, my body let me know who was calling the shots. After some extra yards in the pool, my shoulders were not happy with me and of course, my wise coach advised me to back off. Once again, I was frustrated.

After reflection and a bit of rest, I’ve realized that all of these aches and pains are a reminder that I have to be patient. My body has taken me quite a few miles and has withstood and allowed me quite a few great races these past few months. I have so much to be thankful for and there is no sense in pushing too far, too fast, too hard because that’s just a recipe for disaster in the long run. PATIENCE is key here; PATIENCE. I have always been a very impatient person with myself. I used to start my homework in the car ride home from school and would not get out until it was finished. I feel a great sense of accomplishment when I cross items off my to-do list. I just don’t like waiting around, watching time pass by. No folks – I am not at all patient by nature….but I’m doing my best to learn to be more patient because believe it or not, speed isn’t always a good thing!

And my goodness, what an adventurous trip it was! The flight there went smoothly and my fiance, Clint, and my mom were right on target with their 15 hour drive from Texas. Yes – you read that correctly: my mom and fiance drove TOGETHER, cooped up in my tiny car to come to the race. Wow! I am spoiled and blessed!

They made it into town by dinner time and I was so excited when they drove up. You see, I traveled quite lightly on the flight since they like to charge an arm and leg for EVERYTHING so the drivers had pretty much all my racing loot. So besides the fact that I was super stoked to see them, I was also anxious to have everything there and ready to prep. I think in the midst of my excitement, I may have distracted Clint a bit and the keys to the bikes suddenly disappeared. So there we all were, outside the hotel, frantically searching and tearing apart every inch of the car and luggage for the darn key. We finally found it and freed the bikes.

The rest of that evening was pretty tame and included a fabulous dining experience at a place called Cafe 4 at the Market Square area in Knoxville. There’s really only one word for the food – “amaaaaazing.” You have to say it like that too – it’s all my fiance uses to describe wonderful food so I’ve adopted the same policy.

That’s where the calm/relaxed feelings came to a halting stop. That night, I had a lot of trouble sleeping. Those that know me well know that sleeping isn’t my strongest suit. I have difficulty quieting my mind and being still enough to drift off. It has gotten a lot better and especially when I’m knee deep into high volume training, I usually don’t have too much trouble. But, when you race back to back weekends and thus, are really only recovering and tapering again, there is quite a cutback in volume. I just couldn’t turn myself off. I guess I finally fell asleep but then per my lovely internal alarm clock, was up the next morning around 7am Houston time. It’s quite dependable! Well in the middle of that restless night, I also realized I had forgotten the extender valve for the pump to air the disc up. That darn wheel is quite difficult to air up without it. Heck, it’s still difficult with the extender but it definitely helps. So between the mediocre sleep and forgotten supplies, the morning was a bit rough but with the help of my lovely support crew, we were able to get out and ride around a bit. I followed that up with a swim prior to the pre-race meeting.

At this point, my mom and Clint knew I needed some time to myself to nap and relax so they went out on a mighty adventure to pick up a few forgotten items. Later on I learned that they had done quite a few other things as well – they met a dog, played in a park, looked at houses, and the list goes on. I know – I’m still amazed at how well they get along…I am so lucky! We ended the day with Mass at a small little church that had the most gorgeous scenery:

It’s so green there! I love it. After church, we headed back to Market Square for dinner at an Italian spot. This dinner was not so “amaaaaazing.” We’ll just leave it at that. We waited way too long to get our food and when we finally did, it wasn’t up to par. So we topped off our dinner with a little dark chocolate at a cute little coffee shop to help take away the sting. And then, restless night #2 began. Once again, I just didn’t feel sleepy and couldn’t turn off. I was used to this situation when I first started racing but like I said, it has gotten a lot better so this was an unexpected challenge of the trip.

I was so relieved when the alarm went off on race morning because I knew that no matter what, I’d be finished in just a few hours without pressure and anything to prepare for. Don’t get me wrong – I was still going to go out and give it my best but after quite a few travel and trip adventures, I felt like it was a feat to just get to that starting line with some juice still left in me. And sure enough, just as soon as the gun went off, all the butterflies and anxiousness just melted away.

I found myself starting out pretty strong and was able to catch on to the fastest pack. It only lasted a few minutes but still, those girls are FAST so I was pleased. I tried to keep it but I was gasping for air every few strokes and knew I couldn’t keep that up so I found myself once again, a little bit in “no-man’s land” where there’s a pack behind and a pack ahead. There was one gal pretty close to me who was my same speed so I kept her feet for a bit until she started veering way far left. We ended up finishing pretty much at the same time, with her a little bit past the actual finish. Since it was a wetsuit swim, that water was pretty chilly! I loved it but my feet did not. As I was running the 1/4 mile jaunt to transition, my feet were completely numb. I tried not to let it panic me too much and I guess they must have eventually returned to normal somewhere before the bike.

I was less than 3 minutes behind the leader so I was pretty pleased with the placement at this point. Out on the bike, I just tried to get past the busier city streets and focus on attacking those few steeper hills. Around mile 3 or so, after coming off a steep climb and anticipating a steep descent, I was shifting from the small ring to the big ring when I had a big oops moment. That shift was way too intense and I dropped the chain. Not only did I drop it, but I couldn’t just pedal it back on so I literally had to stop, get off, and get it situated. Mind you – there were girls right on my tail so there was at least one, maybe two, that passed me during this little complication. I tried not to let it deter me and just refocused on the course.

The day before, we had ridden just the front few miles of the course until it got back into the more rural part. Well, that more rural part delivered some mighty challenging miles. Rolling hills were basically the name of the game. My legs were left feeling heavy and fatigued but I decided I’d power through and use the very limited hill training this Houston gal has in her to the best of my ability. I came into T2 in 10th place with 11th and 12th VERY close behind. They were so close that they actually beat me out of transition by just a bit.

I actually didn’t know what my placement was at this point but since the run was out and back, I would soon find that out. By the run, I was hungry. Not physically hungry but just hungry for the finish, hungry for some hammer time, and hungry to see how far I could push myself. I passed one girl around mile 1 or so and then as soon as I could count the gals coming back in, I knew I was now in 11th place. I definitely wanted that 10th place spot and knew that if it was going to happen, I had to make a move NOW. Since the girl in front of me was pretty much my same speed, I had to kick it to make up the distance and finally, around mile 3.5, I was able to do just that. It was not easy and I knew I couldn’t let up much at all so those last few miles were painful. My legs were exhausted from all the hills and I was beat. That finish couldn’t come quick enough! But alas, it did, and I ended up 10th. Whew!

Once again, I learned a lot during this race. I have some room for improvement on being prepared with everything I need for sure. Additionally, keeping calm in times of high stress is always an area that can be better as well. The swim is getting better but I still don’t have it in me to keep up with the leaders; I doubt I’ll ever catch that far up but I want to make up as much time as possible. A girl can dream, right?! I obviously also need to be careful with my shifting – that was a huge mistake that could have been prevented.

After all is said and done, I’m pleased with the results and proud that I was able to overcome a lot of challenges in the journey. I couldn’t have done it without the endless support and patience of my mom and fiance who were there for me. Neither of them ever thought twice about helping me do this, do that, etc…no matter how crazy it was. I must say that the thing that helped the most was prayer. It’s so easy to forget how powerful it is!

The lessons learned list is growing and I know that if I let it, it will help me become a better athlete. I think we all tend to get caught up in the details and stress of a race but remember the big picture…one race doesn’t define you. The journey is what it’s all about.