This past weekend was my first time competing in a race that was part of the Lifetime Fitness series. It was only my third time racing in an Olympic distance non drafting triathlon. Hats off to the race organizers for putting on such a well run event. South Beach has quite the party scene all day everyday I discovered- even at 5AM when I was warming up race morning.

I was pretty relaxed going into the race for many reasons.

1. I was able to drive to the race so I was not pressured to pack minimally and take apart my bike.

2. I was traveling with a friend who is a bike mechanic and he was able to deal with any bike drama (HIGHLY recommended).

3. All of the top girls in the field are my training partners here in Clermont, FL so I was comfortable and knew where I stood among them based off of training sessions.

4. This race was unique in which the girls and guys started at the same time. I am really comfortable fighting in the water, so I knew this format would suit me well.

5. This was my first race on US soil representing TIMEX so I knew it would be a good one.

On race morning I only had one mishap. Somehow I had lost part of the straw that goes in my aero bottle on my bike. Sounds minimal, but really it is not. Thankfully, my friend was able to rig something using a starbucks straw, electrical tape, and half of the original straw. It worked great!

Overall the race went exactly as I expected it to. I had a decent swim, exiting 3rd female behind Sara McLarty and Sarah Haskins. On the bike I was able to focus for the entire 40k even when a few girls passed me because I convinced myself I would catch them on the hot run. And the run was very challenging. I was able to pull off the fastest 10k of the day and move my way up from 7th to 4th place in a very tough field.

The best part of the race was that Bob Saget (dad on Full House) presented the awards. Next up is St. Anthonys!