1) Busted foot; I’ve been able to control the swelling through physical therapy with Bob Cranny, ART with Richard Hansen, ice and aqua jogging. Allowing me to make it through long runs in training

2) Nutrition; after last year’s GI issues I tried numerous nutrition plans and found the most optimal for my body which consists of powerbar gels, carbo pro and fig newtons.

I arrived in Kona on Wednesday pre-race which I’ve learned now does not allow adequate time to acclimate to the heat. We immediately dove into the Kona Ironman “circus show” activities. This included the underpants run, swimming to the floating coffee bar, multiple trips to Lava Java and the Kona Brewing company, welcome dinner, training rides and runs.

Race morning had finally arrived, I was pretty nervous since I hadn’t competed at the ironman distance since Kona 2010. After checking over my bike and transition bags for the final time I headed to find some friends. Keith and Tristan recorded a brief pre-race interview, next I found Jackie in the bathroom. We gossiped to calm our nerves before bidding farewell and wishing each other luck. After another 20 minutes of waiting and building up energy it was time to enter the water. Once the drums start playing reality sets in, unfortunately I don’t have the naive mindset like last year. I now knew exactly what I was in for and how many obstacles this day would bring. I entered the water with the masses and went to the same starting position as last year, just to the right of the car about 4 people deep. Once positioned I still had 10 minutes before the start, I flipped on my back to relax controlling my breathing and giving myself some mental encouragement.

Soon enough the cannon shot and we were off. The start was much more physical for me this year. In retrospect I should have gone up to the front row, because I was battling for the first 800 meters. I got stuck behind some slower swimmers but was caged in, I made multiple attempts to break free which resulted in getting punched in the face every time. My goggles were knocked off filling with water on one side which I had to leave for fear of getting trampled should I pause to empty them. The sun was shining so bright I was forced to breath only to the right swimming out. I finally gave up and settled into swimming on slower feet. As we neared the turn around boat everyone merged together again forcing me to slow down to avoid a kick to the face. After this the swimmers finally thinned out. I was still not in a great draft, but at least I could get a swim rhythm down. As we approached the last few buoys I finally broke free from my “slow feet” and swam in my own water, picking up the pace significantly. I knew swimming in my time would be a disappointment. It was a choppy swim this year and my positioning was just not ideal. As I exited the ocean I saw my time of 1:00.10, even after mentally preparing for this slower time it was still disappointing to see it. One thing I’ve learned racing Ironman is it’s necessary to plan for the unplanned. Multiple aspects of the race will go wrong and you cannot dwell on them, so this was my first obstacle to overcome. Losing 4 minutes due to a poor swim start is not going to break my race, I can make it up.

After a quick and more crowded transition than I’m used to I hopped on my bike. My coach and I decided on specific wattage to hold throughout the race. This is most important during the first 40K because everyone feels strong and wants to ride fast; I resisted riding hard with them and stuck to the plan. I did so and rode with teammate Susanne Davis, passing each other back and forth multiple times throughout the first 30 miles. At mile 20 my coach and ex-Timex teammate, Curt Chesney, passed me. He offered words of encouragement, confirming I’m sticking with our plan holding back to save energy for the run. Shortly afterwards ex-teammate Mike Lavery rode by. This excited me because if they were both that far behind everyone must have had slow swims.

At mile 30 a referee rides up holding up a red card. I have a lot of experience in drafting penalties and this was the first time I honestly have no idea why it was given. I sat up and looked around, I was riding completely solo. At this point I know it’s too late and arguing is simply a waste of energy, so I thanked the referee for the break and rode on to the penalty tent. There were so many racers in the penalty tent I had to wait 1 minute just to start a watch which then I had to share. Time ticked by slowly as bikers zoomed past, my 2^nd obstacle of the day I had to overcome. I wasn’t going to let this ruin my race. After possibly fulfilling my watch partners triathlon fantasy (don’t ask) the 4 minutes had finally passed and I was back out on the course.

Now I was riding with the masses, I was getting sucked into small pelotons. Determined not to get another drafting penalty I attempted to ride off the front but was unsuccessful as any climb we approached the group would catch and engulf me. I finally sat up to let them pass, taking down some nutrition in preparation for the winds of Hawi where I would surely be unable to take anything down. Riding out to Hawi there were no cross winds like last year but insanely strong headwinds. I was pushing 270 watts and moving 9 miles per hour. The turnaround couldn’t come soon enough, it finally did and weeeeeeeeee riding with the tail wind felt amazing. No pedaling and flying at 40 miles per hour, what a relief. The tail wind was exactly what I needed to recharge and get back in the game.

Mile 80 was where my plan was to turn on the juice and pick up the pace. My legs weren’t feeling as fresh as I would have hoped, but I attempted to increase wattage. The last 25 miles riding were brutal. My lower back was aching, my legs were sore but I still had a slight tailwind which I was very thankful for. I finally arrived back to transition feeling deflated but determined to continue on to run the marathon.

While changing my shorts in transition I sat for just a moment giving myself a mental pep talk. As I ran out I saw so many friends cheering me on, I couldn’t help but smile. (even if I was faking it)

Only 1 mile into the run I had nothing in my legs, yes my foot hurt and my stomach was slightly sloshing but the issue was just no fire in my legs. They felt weak; it was a struggle just putting 1 foot in front of the other. This was when my greatest fear entered my mind, I need to drop out, the dreaded DNF. So I made the conscious decision to run the first 5 miles at which point I could re-evaluate my body. At the turn around I wasn’t feeling better but also no worse so I decided to jog to mile 10 and reassess then. I’ve never walked in a race before but planned to walk up Palani drive. Ugh, starting up running after taking a walk break ruins the break. My quads were on fire, I pushed the negative thoughts out and decided I had come this far and would finish what I started. I pressed on down the Queen K seeing Curt run by looking strong then Lavery. This gave me joy to see friends having successful races. A few miles down the road I saw Susanne who seemed to be having an awesome day. Next I saw Jackie who shared my pain, she was having a rough day, we gave each other an understanding look and exchanged encouraging words. I knew by now my Bambi legs were in full effect.

Entering the energy lab I was battling to just keep running. I grabbed my special needs bag thinking to myself how impossible it would be to force more calories down my throat. I allowed myself to walk up the hill exiting the energy lab. As I reached the top of the hill that was it, now I was angry for letting myself go this slow. I stripped down to a sports bra, ditched my calories and just started running. I had 8 miles to go, calories weren’t going to help my upset stomach and walking wasn’t resulting in anything but more pain. So I ran, I ran through the pain with nothing in my mind but the finish line. The last miles seemed to take an eternity. When I finally hit Palani I was so ecstatic; I ran through the cheering crowds, all time goals out the window just happy to complete this very difficult race.

As I passed college friend Mike Lorenzen just before the final stretch I announced I would never compete in this race again. I said this last year, and I know I will eventually be back to prove myself. I have so much respect for anyone that can race in Kona successfully; I hope to someday be a member of this elite club.  The ironman distance is difficult but IronmanHawaii is in a league of it’s own.

I was very lucky to have wonderful friends in Kona supporting me. Post race we headed for dinner and drinks followed by the midnight finish line celebration which is never to be missed. After which we brought my bike to the bar and continued the celebrations.

We fully enjoyed the remainder of our time on the island which consisted of scuba diving, luau’s, off road Jeeping in Waipio Valley, snorkeling, outrigger canoe trips, ziplining, swimming with dolphins, birthday celebrations and lots of eating!

My weekend inDes Moines,IAbegan with the expo and mandatory race briefing. During which the water temperature was announced as 82 degrees. We were told by the race director that no matter what the water temperature on race morning NO wetsuits were to be allowed. They didn’t expect the temperature to come down 6 degrees overnight and he said, “you guys all qualified to get here, there is no need for wetsuits at this race”. I was thrilled, being a swimmer this is a huge advantage. They already moved the swim from the Des Moines River to a much calmer Gray’sLakedue to predictions for high winds on race day.  

While walking to transition on race morning I start receiving texts from friends racing and even hear the announcement that wet suits will be legal for all age group waves including the elite amateur wave. Needless to say I was pretty bummed, I spoke to a USAT official who informed me the race director was wrong telling us no wetsuits would be legal yesterday, it is always up to USAT and their water temperature measurements showed 75.5 degrees. (conveniently under the 76 degree cutoff). This caused quite the stir

with my wave as many didn’t even bring wetsuits based on the announcement yesterday. Luckily I always pack it because these types of calls seem to happen more and more. As I warmed up in the water with teammate Cindi Bannink we realized the water had not decreased to 75.5 degrees, it was still well over 80.

The elite amateur men’s wave took off, and 2 minutes later we followed. With only 20+ women in the elite wave it was a smooth start for me. I shot out in front with two other swimmers, at some point Natalie Kirchoff took off ahead of me. As I approached the 2^nd turn buoy my other swimming buddy did not make the turn. I really wanted to grab her, but the sun was right in our eyes and she must not have been able to sight well. I did turn and stayed on course, hoping she would quickly follow. I swam the remainder of the course in my own water keeping it steady but strong. It was definitely a hot swim, by the half way point I wanted to rip off my wetsuit to let my skin breath. I swam it in still not realizing Natalie was 30 seconds up. I had a long run through the mud to my bike in transition, literally peeling the wetsuit off my skin. I made a minor mistake in heading down the men’s transition aisle, quickly realizing it but losing precious seconds I would later need in the run.

Swim: 21:28

As I headed out on the bike I caught Natalie within the first few miles. I was surprised to see another girl but knew she was a fast runner (as were all the other females in the field) so I needed to nail this bike to gain a huge lead. The course was very technical, every time I got going hard in my aero bars we approached another turn. The wind also played a huge factor, with all the changes in direction we were getting head winds, tail winds and cross winds. I started catching some of the men at the half way point. One in particular gave me a hard time; every time I passed him he would increase wattage and pass me back. Finally I asked him nicely not to mess up the women’s race, he quickly stopped and I never saw him again. Unfortunately I may have destroyed his ego, but this is a common issue I deal with and have gotten penalties for in the past.

Bike: 1:05.22

At the 180 degree turn around I got to see where my competition was. I had a few minute lead but the girls were right there and again I knew most of them and was fully aware of their ability to pass me on the run. So I turned it on harder through the 2^nd half of the bike hoping to put more time between us.

Coming back into transition it was fun to hear the roar of cheers from the spectators. I ran into difficulty getting to my spot because the age groupers were exiting the bike out which happened to also be the bike in. I had to dodge outbound bikers, but after a few seconds they let me by. I took off on my feet attempting to get into my stride. To my surprise my legs weren’t too destroyed from the bike. Now I was in the middle of the men’s race, of course they’re all cheering me on saying I’d already won the car. Something I hate about run courses is 180 degree turn arounds. I do not like my competition to see me, but this course had 2, the first being within 2 miles. As I came face to face with the chase girls I knew I was in trouble. They weren’t that far back, and they’re all small runners gunning for me. I picked up my pace. My strategy is to stay ahead  at all costs discouraging the chase pack from catching me. To my surprise I was successful as I saw friends along the course they told me I was actually pulling away. The weather was sunny but cool, since I don’t have my top end speed this year, I’ve learned to excel in the heat (this didn’t help here). As I approached mile 5 I knew they were closing in on me but I tried to keep up my pace. Running through downtown Des MoinesI heard quick footsteps behind me, looking back in a race is a sign of weakness. It took much willpower not to look back, and finally the footsteps caught me.  It was a guy, I told him how happy I was. This is when he informed me that Kim was literally right behind me. At this point I knew she was just waiting for her chance. So I again gave it everything I had to pull away from her. As we went around the 2^nd turn around I saw how close she was. I can honestly say that is when I gave it everything I had in the tank. I hammered with every ounce within me. We approached the final climb which is when she surged. At this point I had nothing left in the tank, it wasn’t by choice but I had to watch her pass me and she crossed the finish 15 seconds ahead.

Run: 41:04

Triathlon: 2:11.43

Of course I congratulated her, she informed me that we raced at wildflower Olympic this spring where I had won by over 2 minutes. She made it a goal to beat me here. I can honestly say she outraced me. Yes they took away some advantages on the swim and bike but she out ran me and I know even if I ran faster she would have too. She played the race perfectly and turned it on at the ideal point. I left it all on the course and 2^nd was where I finished. Talking to the top girls post race I found we’re all racing pro in 2012 so I’ll get more opportunities to race them again and prove I can run faster, this was just all I had this year.

A big thank you goes out to Orbea/Orca for donating an amazing 2nd place price of $5K gift card.

Mad props go to teammate Cindi Bannink placing 5th elite amateur woman and Bo Parish for winning his age group.

http://www.hy-veetriathlon.com/news/webber-pancoast-take-5150-crowns.aspx

They reduced the men’s elite wave qualifying time to 2:10 this year which was huge. It limited the elite amateur field to 1 co-ed wave and I was hoping it would prevent some blocking and drafting on the bike course.

 We awoke to record winds on race day this year. The Chicago tri is notorious for a windy bike course on Lakeshore Drive. I have never experienced such a wavy challenging swim here though. I took some advice from former teammate Brian Fort starting closer to the sea wall in an attempt to avoid the battle zone towards the center at the start. I did just that and swam out ahead of the pack with a few men. We were swimming with the current ¼ mile out until the 180 degree turn around. Once we made that turn, BAM there’s the head wind. I used this to my advantage trying not to battle the water but to swim through it and breathe between high waves. The wind was pushing me out away from the sea wall which I later found was much calmer. I ended up as far out as the lifeboats, I had to play defense to avoid getting slapped by oars from the lifeguards trying to control the swimmers going off course.

Another girl swam next to me the 2^nd half of the swim, she was not staying in her space and knocking me with every stroke. I assumed this was my friend Chris Wickard, I made a mental note to have a word with her post race as this behavior was unacceptable. As I finally exited the water I realized it was not Chris swimming with me, good thing :) I glanced at my watch and was shocked at how slow my split was.

Swim : 25.20

As I ran the ½ mile into transition I realized I had still made up a lot of time on other racers. I continued running through the super huge transition housing 8K bikes. 

Heading out on the bike we rode North on Lakeshore Drive into direct headwinds. I struggled through some men carefully making each and every pass to avoid repeat penalties from last year. Riding with the motorcycle next to me the entire time made it easy to remember I was out on close watch.

As we made the turn heading south I took advantage of the tail winds. You can never make up the time lost riding into headwinds but you can utilize them and even give your legs a break while moving forward at record pace.

Entering into the 1^st loop turn around they did not have the cones arranged for riders to make the 2nd loop turn yet. (all waves before mine were sprint distances and only 1 loop on the bike) Luckily I knew the course and had to make my turn riding over a cone or two.

They close off the inside lanes of Lakeshore Drive, therefore you must ride on the left and pass on the right. Every year this confuses racers who end up riding on the right. I wasn’t about to take the risk of another penalty so during my 2^nd and much more crowded loop I continued passing on the right forcing me to ride into the outside lane with traffic. I came in off the bike with a slower bike split than expected but was still riding away from my competition.

Bike: 1:03.57

Entering back into transition I found my bike right away but dropped my visor while exiting. I decided to leave it and continue on. I ran through the crowds of old friends who made it down to cheer. I ran a steady pace the first few miles but when my lead bicycle rider told me I was up over 5 minutes from the 2^nd woman I slowed down my pace. I decided to save my legs for HyVee which was the following weekend. I ran the back half of the course fairly easy. My bum foot bothered my stride but no more than any other races this season.  

Run: 41:48

Triathlon: 2:14.02

This was not a PR for this race although I was content with my performance factoring in the strong winds and I did get my race revenge from 2010. I also had a great time celebrating and visiting with old Chicago friends.

Bo Parish and I at the finish line. He took his age group win…although he’s kind of a sandbagger and should have raced elite :)

After my unfortunate swim start at the Boulder Peak Triathlon I made a conscious decision to hold back when the gun fired. I’ve realized when swimming at altitude I need to go avoid going out too hard. When my wave began one girl swam ahead of the pack with me, in sticking with my plan I let her go and stuck to my steady pace. My first 400 meters went much smoother than last time. I was able to remain calm swimming at an appropriate pace. I never saw the other swimmer who took off ahead of me but I must have passed her at some point while catching other waves because I came out of the water ahead of all other female swimmers.

Swim Time 27.16

Heading out on my bike I was mixed in with many riders due to being one of the final waves of the race. I rode through the first loop feeling very strong. The temperatures soared to the high nineties therefore I took down an additional bottle than usual. I was also practicing my new liquid carbo pro nutrition plan preparing for my upcoming ironman. As Tim Hola and Steve Johnson blew by me (they started in the very last wave) I caught back up to mess with Tim a bit, and then let them move on with their race. My second loop of the bike I felt the extra bottle I’d consumed and had to get ride of the liquid while riding J. I came in with a pretty solid bike split, although it can definitely use some improvement going into next year.

BikeSplit: 2:29.54

The transition from bike to run has been a constant struggle getting my shoe over my swollen left foot. This race was no exception; I took a few extra seconds and then was off on the run course. As I exited transition it was great to see familiar faces cheering me on. My first few miles of the run I held back due to rising temperatures and lack of shade throughout the course. In retrospect I think I held back a little too much. My first few miles were moderate. As I neared the first 180 degree turn I saw another female approaching, and she was coming in fast. As she caught me I realized it was Amanda Lovato racing pro and on her 2^nd loop. I gave her some words of encouragement assuming she’d breeze right by. As she did I held on for a few minutes asking if she minded me pacing with her. No response. I wasn’t sure the etiquette in this situation, so I just continued on racing my own race. When we approached a small climb I surged passed and continued loop 1 about 15 feet in front of Amanda. This gave me a lot of confidence in preparing to race professionally next year. I thought to myself, If I can run with the top pro’s with my foot injury I’ll definitely be able to hang on with another year of recovery. As Amanda headed to the finish line I took the left turn to my 2^nd loop.

I tried to pick up my pace and again enjoyed all the cheering from family and friends. The aid stations on the run course were amazing; during the 2^nd loop the course was crowded with people. Volunteers were shouting out “really fast girl coming through” and would run towards me with water and ice, so unexpected but greatly appreciated. My legs felt solid until the final mile of the run, could have used one more gel. I was able to get into the finish line with only a small increase in pace.

RunSplit: 1:37.02 

Total Time: 4:36.57 

I’m still not content with my running pace this year but with the injury to my foot and screws that remain I have to be happy with this split for now. I look forward to training on a healthy foot for next year to see what time I’m able to drop from my run and bike splits.

After the race Amanda Lovato found me and apologized for not responding as she was struggling through her 2^nd loop of the run. It was an honor to run with her and completely boosted my confidence for the remainder of my race.

I’m now a huge fan of theBoulder70.3 race course and it’s always encouraging to have so many friends cheering you on from the sidelines. It was awesome to share the overall amateur title with my coach Curt Chesney who was also only 21 seconds behind my brother Gavin.

Photo of teammate Brian and I post race

I invited my youngest niece Corrie to race the kids 1500 meter run. This was her first chip timed race, and i think her bib was larger than her shirt.

Barry, Erin and I showed the kiddies some stretches to warm up their legs  pre-race.

Corrie enjoyed the stretches her Aunt lead.

The mascots demonstrated the run first. Soon after the kids were off.

Corrie ran the entire mile. We ran hand in hand and passed many other runners along the way.

We crossed the finish line in 8:15, not bad for 5 year old :)

The Boulder Peak triathlon is part of the WTC 5150 series this year, it’s a qualifier for HyVee the 5150 championship race held in September.  Therefore they have an elite amateur wave which starts first. This was a nice change of pace as all other triathlons raced this year I’ve started at the back and had to swim through previous waves. 

Shortly following the national anthem there was a release of doves. The guys standing next to me and I laughed as we prepared for our start. I noticed while waiting for the start gun my goggles were already beginning to fog. This is never good for me as I tend to freak out in the water when I’m unable to sight. As soon as the start gun shot I took off with the lead guys.

Shortly after I was kicked in the face, this isn’t out of the ordinary but to my surprise I started hyperventilating and couldn’t catch my breath. I stopped to tread water a few times, each time I put my face in the water I began to panic again. So I flipped on my back, fixed my goggles and tried to push on as I watched my wave swim away. I looked to the life boats and thought about pulling out, no I can’t I have to qualify for HyVee here was my thought. A lifeguard from a kayak asked if I was ok, I told him yes and started swimming. Just then the sun came out from behind a cloud and completely blinded my vision. I decided to just swim easy to the first turn buoy and take it from there. (freakin’ amateur hour). As I began to chill out I started catching some of the slower swimmers from my wave. During the 2^nd half I caught the other females and still exited the water as the first female, but not by much. As I ran out I saw my family cheering, I told them what happened rolling my eyes of embarrassment.

I ran into transition and hopped on my bike. All tri’s in Boulder begin with a long climb. I’ve been warned not to go too hard out of the rez because the course heads up old stage road which gradually gets very steep. I took the advice, although a female went by me as we turned off Jay road. I let her go and stuck with my race plan. As I made my way up old stage I felt strong right before the climb got very steep another female passed me. I stuck right behind her as I turned on the power and stood up climbing. As we neared the top I flew passed both girls shortly before the descent. As we descending I heard a few fans warning us of the speed zone coming up. Who ever heard of a 35 MPH speed limit on a race course, I honestly thought people were kidding when telling me about this. I found out post race it was due to severe accidents from previous years. So I held onto my breaks and rode down at 34.5 MPH until the speed zone ended. Phew, that was a rough first 8 miles, luckily the next 10 were downhill.

 I live on this course so I was very familiar with the roads, when to shift, etc. I rode my way back to the rez with confidence, as I turned in I saw teammate Brian Schanning jumping up and down cheering. Riding into transition as the first female is always fun, I stuffed my swollen foot into my K-Swiss running shoes and headed out. Gavin later told me that I ran right through the relay runners waiting for their bikers. I didn’t notice at the time, but I guess they all got out of my way :)

To my surprise my foot didn’t feel too sore, I built into my first mile then continued on my way. All through the bike and into the run I was breathing much harder than normal. The altitude really kicks your butt when going at full speed. As I ran I thought I had this race in the bag. I high fived Drew Scott who lead the men’s race, followed by his dad riding the course and cheering. There are a few short climbs on the run, I slowed slightly up them but felt strong even though I was breathing harder then ever. I was chasing a “carrot” guy from my wave and finally caught him right before the half way point. As we hit the turn around to my surprise, a chick came around with me. I had no idea she had come so close. We ran together for a bit, but she slowly inched away. I kept her within 15 feet. This is when everyone I know started running past going the opposite direction, all cheering for me to catch that girl saying I looked stronger than her. I pushed and pushed but could not bridge the gap. In the final mile I heard my friend Ashley cheering “Go get her” I dug deep and surged forward making up some time, but it wasn’t enough.

The finish line was right ahead and she outran me…something I’m not proud of but today was her day, not mine. There weren’t many smiles at the finish line for me, but I pulled one out to congratulate her.

1^st Loser ;)

(staying off my left foot)

I stayed afterwards to hang out with friends, teammates, and watched Gavin’s pro race.

Going into the race I was warned how difficult the course and conditions were. Typically it’s hot windy and hilly but I really had no idea what I was getting into. Walking out of the hotel room at 4:30 am it was already over 90 degrees. We arrived plenty early due to our late arrival in Kansas. Per usual we drove the Edge right up to the start/finish line.

My wave was last, so I got to watch my brother, teammates and friends all start before going off. I noticed as the waves progressed so did the in water start line. By the 9^th wave, swimmers were shoulder deep in water. Naturally when my turn came up I moved towards the front of the group. This is when the race officials determined our wave needed to start from the shore. They refused to start us until we were all back to ankle deep water. When the gun went off I began my usual surge to get out in front, while breathing to the right I noticed many girls running along the shore before entering the water. This has been an issue in this race in the past, but since I can only control myself I continued to swim onto the first buoy.

 The water was quite comfortable I was able to sight with minimal fogging in my goggles. I moved along through the swim course with ease. Unfortunately starting last required me to swim through all previous waves. I attempted to avoid swimming over people but every time my head went down it seemed I came up onto another body. Finally I entered the water recording one of my best swim times at a 70.3 distance.

As I went through my normal transition and hopped on my bike I realized something was missing. For the first time ever I forgot to lay my sunglasses out. Darn, oh well guess it was going to be a dusty eyed race.

While riding through the bike course it went from one extreme to the other. Many twists and turns brought us into strong headwinds, crosswinds, tailwinds then repeated. It was awesome seeing all my Timex teammates around each 180 degree turn.

Just before the half way point I hear a lone man screaming my name, I turn around to see Dave Scott jumping up and down cheering for me. This made me laugh as well as gave me a second wind to push up the next climb.

The final 8 miles were the most challenging, up a long false flat into headwinds. I was happy to hop off my bike into transition. First I ran down the wrong row, when I finally located my area I found my hat had blown away with the strong winds. Guess it was going to be a shade-less and hat-less run.

Heading out I was yelled at and followed by a race official instructing me to turn my number around. Apparently they have a strict policy that the race numbers must remain in front. As I ran away from him I felt the 112 degree heat and sun beating down on me. During the first 3 miles we ran in and out of some shade, but as I progressed the course became hilly.

As I entered the middle stretch we were running out in a field with no protection from the wind into extreme headwinds. Volunteers were driving around with traveling ice carts due to the record heat. I resorted to my trick from Kona in dumping cups of ice down my top and eating them between aid stations to keep cool.

At ½ mile from the turn around I saw an amateur woman ahead of me. She was from a previous wave, but now I had someone to chase so I picked up my speed. I held this pace for the next few miles and finally caught the amateur woman. She asked if any other females were close, I responded that I hadn’t seen any and she had her Kona spot in the bag.

Next I caught up to a 27 year old who ended up pacing me for the last 2 miles. I even slowed down at one point, Eric would not have it, he slowed down with me saying he wouldn’t let me drop off.  For this I shared some boob ice with him and we ran together the remainder of the race.

Overall I had a successful triathlon and locked in my Kona spot, but I was definitely happy to be done with that suffer fest.

Team Timex went out to celebrate post race!

Lawrence, Kansas is equidistant from Boulder and Chicago so I had friends and training partners from both places. Kansas IM 70.3 is one of my favorite race courses on the circuit. One of the great attractions is the run course; it’s a 2-loop course with many turns through the campground. A large group of us camped including teammate Jackie Arendt.  This allowed us to sleep in later on race morning. From our tents it sounded like rain throughout the night. In fact Sunday morning my first words were, “What if I just watch the race from my tent?” the cold, wet, windy weather wasn’t enticing to crawl out of my sleeping bag,

After a group breakfast of bagels, peanut butter, bananas and powerbars. We headed over to set up our two transitions. We must have been lolly-gagging, because by the time we made it down to transition 1 race director Tim Ziebart was asking people to make their way out of transition. I began my pre-race ritual of pumping up tires, lubing chain, filling water bottles and packing my bike with PowerBar nutrition. I made it out in just the knick of time.

Due to predictions of thunderstorms approaching, officials changed time between waves from 5 minutes to 3. This left only a few minutes before my wave began. I entered the water, took a few warm-up strokes and our wave of 18-29 year old women were off.

 The start was wide and to my surprise the other girls gave me a large amount of space. I swam with a younger girl for the first few hundred yards. This is when the waves began, as we swam farther from shore it really started tossing us around. I don’t mind a choppy swim, in fact I enjoy the challenge it brings. My issue was sighting, I was constantly flipping on my back to wipe my goggles clean of fog in order to see the buoys. Once I reached the turns I got really confused, it was nearly impossible to tell which buoy’s to go around, I couldn’t follow others from waves ahead of me because honestly nobody knew which direction to go. I asked a few kayakers who were happy to assist. Finally I was back on track. Swimming into shore I got into my groove, unfortunately I’d counted 6 stops and had lost valuable minutes.

Exiting the water I was greeted by many cheering fans. So I smiled and hopped on my bike, again I fumbled with my pedals being bumped into the wrong position (next time trying rubber bands).

 CA bike mount

Heading out on the bike the skies were gray and the winds were blowing. Luckily they were blowing in the right direction (for now). The first 25 miles we had a strong tail wind. As I approached the turn around I saw the pro’s heading back, their faces were miserable, I’ve never seen my brother Gavin in so much pain. This is when I knew how much it would hurt once I hit the headwinds. As I made the turn I felt the difference, but it wasn’t anything compared to some of the windy spring rides in Boulder. The course has some long rolling hills, but no steep climbs so I tried to push hard the whole way through. I saw some familiar faces on the bike, then noticed two amateur women ahead of me, now I knew who to chase.

My transition 2 was smooth, it still takes me awhile to cram my swollen busted foot into my running shoe, but other than that the transition was quick. Heading out on the run my foot felt decent and my stride felt strong. I saw Gavin coming in and warned him I was chasing him down.

As I headed down towards the water again and made the second turn I noticed a young girl running fast behind me, she was about 1 minute back but definitely gaining. I pushed on and picked up my pace. I could tell my altitude training has positively affected my sea level running, I was holding a quick pace and had caught the two amateur women ahead of me who turned out to be from much earlier waves.

At the mile 5 turn around I saw the young girl had gained on me and was now on my tail. We ran a mile together before I had to let her go. She was running under 6 minute miles which I knew I couldn’t hold for another 7. This was disappointing as I knew I just lost the overall amateur race, but my age group was still up for grabs and I told myself I had to be happy running 13 miles right now at any pace, as it was not expected after my basketball injury this winter. I continued on to run my own race…around mile ten my stomach began to churn, uh oh, thoughts of Kona entered my mind. I pushed through but realized I had taken in too much food on the bike. I slowed my pace hoping to make it to the finish line. Unfortunately I couldn’t, I had to take a bathroom break ¼ mile from the finish.

http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event_video.asp?EVENTID=75620&BIB=450&S=230&PWD=

Those last few miles were very unpleasant but at least I know I can dial in my nutrition for the next race and work on sighting in the swim (getting contacts this week). I believe my fitness level is above last year in the swim, my bike could use another month’s worth of training and my run is coming along. My performance in Kansas didn’t show my ability, but I look forward to improving in the next race. Isn’t that why we all do this crazy sport anyway?

Check out the video Shawn Haley put together for our friends.

http://animoto.com/play/mczF7PHs913XrnL1DCrPcw

My week in Chicago was quite jam-packed trying to visit with so many dear friends. It including my best friend from college, Lana’s,daughter’s first birthday party. 

My old roommate, Lisa’s going away party as she was moving to London. Dinner and visiting in St. Charles with my family, along with multiple dinners/lunches/drinks with friends. Not to mention my work conferences and of course training. I was able to fit it all in but as the weekend approached my body felt the fatigue. 

15 of us rented a house within the Galena territory. We ended up “getting into the wine” Friday night before the race while enjoying dinner cooked by my great friend and training partner Stacey Izard (sister of Stephanie Izard, America’s top chef).

Race morning was warmer than expected, weather predictions called for thunderstorms all day so we were ecstatic the race started on time. As there is no elite wave, I contemplated starting in wave 1 men’s 25-29. Painting a mustache would have served as my “male costume” although there may have been some questions when I took off my wetsuit so I decided to play by the rules and start in my assigned wave 10. 

Swim: The short 700 meter swim went off without a hitch; I sprinted to the first buoy to get clean water. By the last turn buoy I had caught the men’s wave in front of me and later found out that I swam over my friend Sean Wyatt. Sorry Sean :)

Bike: the transition is on a bed of rocks so running barefoot is never pleasant. After enduring the foot pain I hopped on my Orbea Ordu to head up the first climb out of transition.

The course is a point to point with many climbs throughout. I didn’t feel strong, but not super weak either. About half-way through the rain started coming down, as I was making steep descents I made the conscious decision to sit up and ride my brakes down. The risk of slipping on the wet roads wasn’t worth the time savings.

Run: My bike to run transitions are lacking this year because my swollen foot takes some time to cram into my K-Swiss running shoe. The cooler, wet weather was perfect for running. I felt strong for the first few miles, during my back half of the run my foot started swelling up more and I was limping. I pushed through to finish the race It wasn’t my best performance but I had a good time racing among my Chicago friends.

This is the first Race Henry has beat me at (by 1 second) I’ll make sure to make it the last time as well ;)

The after party is where the fun really began and continued on at our house throughout the evening.  

Bob Cranny, my physical therapist advised me to race the Olympic distance race rather than the ½ ironman distance. My foot was not ready for the 13.1 mile run, I would have rather raced the long course triathlon but recovering over 7 months ahead of schedule I was just happy to be back in the game. Because I hadn’t done any speed work on my feet leading up to the race I wasn’t sure how my body, especially my foot would react. I choose to race Wildflower as a “secret race”. This made it a little more fun and relieved much of the pressure I would usually feel coming off such a serious injury.

Gavin raced the long course triathlon held on Saturday so I got to play spectator. This was Gavin’s 2^nd pro race and he didn’t disappoint finishing among the best of the best in 11^th place.

I had a lot of nervous energy leading up to the start of my race on Sunday. I hadn’t competed since October in Kona last year. I tried to bottle up my nerves and use them as energy for the start of the race.

SWIM: As our wave began I took off a bit ahead of the pack. Two girls came with me and we swam together for the first 800 meters. Once we hit the bulk of the previous wave we split up and I swam the remainder of the course on my own.

BIKE: As I hopped on my bike I realized I haven’t practice mounting since last year. So I struggled a bit with my shoes, but soon enough I was off and climbing up the hills of Paso Robles. The women’s waves began behind all the men so I found myself riding on the left the majority of the time passing those from previous waves. In fact I even lost my voice by the end of the bike course from calling out “On your Left” so much. I felt strong on the bike considering I was off it this winter for 3 months with my broken foot. The highlight of the bike was a bee flying into my sports bra while taking a steep descent. (Maybe I need a smaller sports bra from Timex, hint, hint)

RUN: Taking off on the run I felt pretty good, leading the race heading into the run is exactly where I like to be. I tried to ignore my foot pain while running up and down the hilly trails. I twisted my ankle climbing a rocky hill. I’ve had the opportunity to practice trail running often living in North Boulder, running lighter on your feet is the key. This enabled me to come out of the ankle roll with little to no pain after a few more steps.

Fans were lining the course along the campgrounds, as the day progressed so did the beer consumption. During my run I was offered two marriage proposals and a beer bong! I passed on both and chose to finish the race pleasantly surprised with my performance.

We loved everything about Wildflower Triathlon. The huge expo, VIP tent, awards ceremony, camping, race course…It was all executed flawlessly. We’ll definitely be back for years to come. We’ll probably fly next year though…It was a long drive home.