
Our choices impact the experiences we have in life and often time define us. On Sunday, I had a few choices to make as my race day unfolded! The photo above captures a defining moment in my race because it was at this point in the race when the option of stopping, slowing down, and settling sounded sweeter than pushing through.
Pre-Race: I arrived into Madison on Wednesday and was very happy with the last minute decision I made to change my hotel. By some miracle, I found a last minute room in a hotel that was about 5 blocks away from race site. It was ideal. My best friend (who just so happens to also be my little sister), Krista, arrived on Thursday and she immediately took on the role of my Ironman Sherpa for the weekend. I was able to visit with Tristan and Doug at the Timex truck and even shopped a little at IM Village before the race. Yep, this was all in an effort to be more relaxed and just soak in everything I could from this experience. In my previous Ironman races I had the rule-no shopping until post-race, but this time, I said forget that! I reversed my thought process and instead, I chose to believe that by purchasing the IM Wisconsin clothing prior to racing, I was creating my own destiny. On Friday evening I attended the athlete Welcome Dinner with my sister and another friend, Jon Walk (super-photographer of the race photos in this post), and then my support crew was complete when my husband John arrived on Saturday. With bags dropped off and my Orbea Ordu turned in on Saturday, I was still remarkably (and surprisingly) calm that evening.
Race Day: A quick summary would be…I survived the swim, I paced the bike, and I ran scared.
Swim: Ok, this was rough and tough. Even though I had not raced an IM since 2006, I had not forgotten that getting hit, kicked, and punched was part of an IM swim. I just didn’t expect it to last for 75% of the 2.4 mile swim. Wow. This one was crowded. Probably the roughest swim I have had with respect to crowding. I would take about 5 strokes and then run into people and instead of continuing to swim, it was like a traffic jam. I made the decision to go real wide and just stay clear of the other swimmers. I tried heading back into the buoys on the back side of loop 1 but it was still too aggressive of swimming for me. I just kept thinking-it is a long day…survive the swim…not worth the fight. I came out of the water with one of my slowest IM swim times, but it is hard to compare one IM race to another because they are all so different. Anyway, I came out of the water 11th in my division.
Transition: Methodical. Or, as my coach commented to me-SLOW. I think methodical sounds better. My thought process for the bike was to treat it as a training ride, so I took my time getting changed into dry clothing, put on my arm warmers, and Nathan hydration pack and set off for the 112 mile ride.

Bike: Coming from the Houston area, the morning air was slightly chilly but by having on dry clothes and arm warmers (which I took off fairly early into the ride) I avoided shivering and wasting energy. I had my hydration strategy mapped out and since I trained all summer with the Nathan hydration pack, I decided to race with it as well. It worked fabulous for this race, and I didn’t have to worry about slowing down for aid stations until I was into the second loop of the course. My plan for the bike was to ride comfortable for the first loop (defined by-was I able to talk?) and then gradually pick things up with the mentality that the race began at mile 80 on the bike. I stuck to my plan on the bike. It was not my fastest bike split in an IM, but with this course being known for its rolling hills, I think it was the smartest I have ever ridden in an IM. My bike split was the 5th fastest in my division and I did bike faster than my goal time, so I was very happy with my bike. The Orbea Ordu is not only a comfortable ride but it handled the climbs and the descents well. I love this bike. I also think that training in Minnesota all summer with the Alex Bike Club was a big help to my bike strength. I cannot believe how fast the miles seemed to go by…then again, the fan support on this course is beyond wonderful. I was just so taken away by all the people enthusiastically cheering on the racers. It may be one of the toughest bike courses on the IM circuit, but it is certainly the friendliest. Thank you spectators! 
Run: [Yes, T2 was another full wardrobe change and a slow, methodical process] The run is the most mental part of the race for me. Even though 2 of the 3 disciplines are finished, the 26.2 mile run still makes for a long road ahead for the competitors. Immediately out of T2 I was greeted by Krista and John and I stopped to give my hubby a thank you kiss and to let him know I was doing ok. The first mile along State Street is an adrenaline rush with all the fans cheering everybody on so loudly…you can’t help but run fast by them! Then, what goes down, must of course, come back up. While I had heard this run course was flat, I would have to say that in terms of a Houstonion…it is not flat! Thankfully, the fan support helps propel participants forward and I appreciated all the other Team Timex athletes who came out to support and cheer for us as well (Mark-thank you. You were at the perfect spot when I needed a reminder to relax!). What I am most happy about the run is that not only did I nail my goal pace, but I nailed it with only looking at my Timex 3x during my run to get my splits. I used the Timex Global Trainer in training and so I knew by RPE how my HR and pace matched up. I think if I had been looking at each of my mile splits, I might have tensed up when I went off pace (b/c I did fall off pace during some miles) and this way I just had one less thing to worry about. The run was tough-I started out feeling good but early on I knew that I was just on the edge…my entire torso was so tight and sore, like somebody was squeezing me and I had a tough time taking anything in. I started walking the aid stations at mile 8 and I remember thinking-How am I going to get through this? I have 18×1 mile repeats with a short walk recovery interval! It was at that point in the race where I began to focus on one mile at a time. By mile 19, I was ready to give into the desire to just walk, but by then I was thinking that a Kona slot was within reach and I wanted that slot so bad! I made the decision to keep going and to be the author of my finish. I wanted the ending the way I had envisioned it. I did not want to settle. And because I had no idea where the next athlete was behind me, I just ran scared. My legs wanted to give out on me, but I knew that I would not be happy if I didn’t give it all I had to finish this race. There was one final cruel hill in the home stretch, and then I could hear Mike Reilly…the voice that means so much to IM finishers. I was filled with gratitude, joy, and exhaustion at that moment. Every IM finish is special and it never gets old. I finished. I collapsed (but I did not have to make a trip into the med tent!). And, to top it off, I got a Kona slot. Oh, and my run split-3:29:25-with a goal time of 3:30.
It really was the finish that I had dreamed about for so long.
Shout out:
Timex-I am so honored to be a member of the Timex Multisport Team. Our Team’s sponsors provide us with superior products that help us athletes to perform to our potential and help make race day go a little more smooth.
My family-John and the girls have been pretty supportive about my return to IM racing. I cannot thank them enough for their patience and understanding, and most importantly for putting up with me pursuing my dreams. A special thanks to Hanna, my youngest, whose determination and stubbornness may push my buttons at times, but deep down she reminds me of somebody else I know real well. Her final words before I departed to Madison- “Mom, try to avoid the med tent.”
My Coach, TJ Fry-After some begging, I was able to drag TJ back into the world of coaching, and I am very grateful. His sensible approach to training is what I need to keep my OC training tendencies in line.