Well, I’d like to avoid the “blah blah blah”, but you may want some facts.

Like “where did you go between mile 11 and 12 on the run when you went from 8th to somewhere else?” and “Who were you carrying out of the restaurant after the race?”

It is what it is.  Kona provided new challenges.  My biggest take away:  Mental Toughness carried the day.

What I did and how it went:

+ Arrived the Wednesday before the race. This was helpful - not too far in advance so I’m worn out, but enough to check it all out.

+ Spoke with teammates as well as fellow Austinites.  Very energizing.

+ Bike setup.  Doug is my #1 buddy before the race.  He was very patient as we went through a few wheels.

+ Biked part of the course.  I like to get a preview of what I would see if I looked around.

+ Adjusted my body to the time with 4am as my “wake up time” and 7pm as “bedtime”.  That worked well so that on race day, 4am didn’t feel like the middle of the night.

+ Underpants run.  I admire that much confidence and chose to watch.  April looked beautiful.

+ Last minute bike seat adjustment.  It was a good idea, but I should have had Doug look it over (I didn’t tighted it right, so my saddle took a slow-motion nose dive as I rode.)  No excuses, though. 

+ Movie/book selections.  I read several good books and watched my (currently) favorite movie.  I’ll write it up soon- it’s called Peaceful Warrior.

+ Swam in the ocean before the race.  Usually a good idea to make friends with the water and know where you are going.  Just takes the anxiety edge off if you know the race-day process.  I noticed that I looked up way too much during the swim, causing some chafing on my head.  I don’t know why I was concerned, there was a mob of people around the whole time.  Funny.

+ Passion.  I am taking accountability of the semi-sucky bike time (I recall, as my daughter said to her friend, “Well, we’re going to Hawaii.  See, my mom can ride her bike pretty well and now she is racing there.  I’m going with her.”  So, I have some expectations on the bike since I usually vie for a top split among all women, and I was out of that range, but I’m letting go.  If I read myself my former post on lessons, it may help.  Frankly, I found myself getting out of the moment and thinking about “what’s next”.  I caught myself and returned to the process of cycling.  I did like the course - it had variety I didn’t expect.

+ Caffeine.  I could write a lot on this topic, but I’ll be succinct.  I was an addict.  I gave it up.  I found it again, but just for races.  Then it crept back in.  I gave it up 2 weeks prior to the race, so it was ready on race day.  I don’t like coffee.  I drink Monster.  Not that it is at all targeted to me, but it tastes good.  I like the blue one.

+ Timex.  I wore my bodylink for the race.  I was in the right zone until the final part of the bike (may be correlated to when barfing began - wouldn’t that be a neat feature… nevermind). 

+ Food.  I could write a lot on this topic, but, again, I’ll be succinct.  Hawaii has different rules on what you can bring in, and the King Kam didn’t provide me an in-room kitchen.  Without Whole Foods, I was a bit lost.  I went with plan B, but still did low-fiber the 5 days prior to the race.  No lower GI distress, so that was a good move. 

+ Nutrition.  Adjustments were necessary.  I planned 230 cals/hour given my kgs, but on the bike I started losing (sorry, barfing actually, but I don’t want to get too graphic) some of the calories periodically in small increments, so I tried to put in extra.  When I began running, I ate more and felt pretty good.  But then, at mile 10, I felt like I was bonking, so I quickly put in calories, only to have them come out fiercely between mile 11 and 12, where I spent considerable time.

+ Hanging out at the aid station.  The people were very nice.  I watched them for a bit.  I put positive thoughts out there by cheering for those top finishers coming through the “other side” of the station (I was on the Queen K).  I controlled what I could and decided that I would not be walking the rest of the way.  I began moving again.  At each station, I tried some calories, but none of them stayed in.  Rejected.  Fooey.  I was having trouble seeing in color, so I knew I was bonking.  I talked to the camera guy. 

+ Michael (my husband) reflected, “If you learn to eat, well…” and then we laughed.  More experiments coming.

+ Finish.  That was sweet.  Although it wasn’t a result I’d anticipated, it was what it was, and I was joyful to have the experience.  It also felt really good to see fabulous performances by some great people - Alex, April, Rachel, Tim all in the awards.

+ Beer.  My Austinite friends insisted I have a beer on this journey.  I did.  Michael Lovato even bought it for me.

+ Ceremony.  I would have liked to have seen the awards ceremony.  Alas, it didn’t work.  Autumn got strep the day before she and Michael travelled, and we had to get back to Waikaloa to get her medicine and some sleep.

+ Hawaii.  We stayed on the big island for the rest of the week, enjoying the dolphins, swimming, beach time, and horseback riding.  A great time with family.

+ Refueling.  Post-race the food was ok.  Autumn was “starving”, so we hopped into a nearby restaurant but she fell asleep eating and I carried her out.  I’m not sure how this was possible.  However, on my birthday– I turned 38 last Sunday — we went to Whole Foods for my favorite treats.  I had banana chips dipped in almond butter and some rice sticks (like sesame sticks).  Yes, my favorite “Junk” is salt+fat.

Result:  First IM Hawaii World Championship accomplished. 

I came out of the swim pretty far back, rode into 8th or so, and then had some ‘keeping calories in’ challenges.  I warded off the “dnf” spirits as well as the “just walk the rest of the way” spirits.  That probably took 30 to 45 minutes in a 2-mile section.  I got to cheer for Tamara, Rachel, April, Tim, Vicktor, and Alex on that stretch, so I appreciated the diversion.

Next stop:  No running or cycling until November 5.  I guess I’ll swim!  I could golf, hike, or play tennis, but we’ll see.

 Cheers to those racing 70.3 Champ or IM Florida.  :)