Sprint Nationals was an interesting race for me, I switched from the Age Group Olympic distance race about 10 days out. It was a noon start which was also interesting for me as well and the first time for this. I anticipated a really great race, as you can tell by the video below, but it didn’t turn out as well as I had hoped. This photo here was taken by Paul Phillips owner of Competitive Image. Great shot!

This year since I will be racing the ITU Age Group World Championships in Beijing, China during Interbike, I decided to take a trip West and check out DealerCamp.  I must say, I was quite impressed.  There were many of the top players in the industry there and a very solid retailer turn out.  The venue in Park City, UT is more than ideal for such a show and bike demo.

TIMEX was my first stop of the day.  No surprise here =).  I had been out running earlier that morning and ran past Robin Barsante, the Tech Rep for the Southwest Region in the Timex Ford Flex.  He b,b,b,beeped at me as I ran past him and just made my run!  So fun seeing family in the middle of some random street in Utah!  TIMEX had a prime stop at the front of the expo and it was great to listen to Robin tell all about the new TIMEX RUN TRAINER soft launching in October!

ORBEA was my next stop.  It was so exciting speaking with Tony Karklins about the new Ordu launch for 2012.  It sounds like we might get a preview in about 6 weeks.  I am really anxious to see what the Orbea team has come up with after being a part of the Ordu Focus group a year ago. I have a feeling its going to be SWEET!

SHIMANO/PRO was up next.  It was great speaking with the Shimano Sales Representative and good friend Matt Thompson about the HOT Ultegra Di2 that is hitting the market and will retail for $2283. They also have a NEW XT and Cyclocross Groupo on the mountain side.

ORCA Wetsuits and SwimSkins have to be the best I’ve swam in, hands down.  John here is demonstrating how their new Breakaway Zip System works.  When you flip the zipper up, the zipper pulls apart with with a tug on the fabric.  So fantastic for fast removal of the Skin during transition!  Awesome Orca, I’m loving it!

The TRISHOP.com owner, Scott Par was there taking care of business as usual and I was so excited to run into him at the site.  He has a great online model and there has been good growth since he launched it in partnership with the TIMEX MULTISPORT TEAM in February.  Be sure to check them out for all you online Triathlon needs.

POWERBAR was there with ours truly, Tim Hola.  Always good seeing my peep and Team mate everywhere!  Powerbar has GreenTea Power Gel for 2012 and will bring their Power Gel flavors to 1o now!  I love this stuff as it keeps me moving during my training. Note: Tim and I both sporting our amazing NATIVE EYEWEAR!

I finished up my visit at the Tri America Event hosted at the St. Regis.  I enjoyed this time catching up with friends in the industry and discussing somethings that are up and coming.  Power Tap is launching a synched HR strap that will reflect watts based off HR feedback through any ant+ device for only $200!  I should be getting my hands on one soon, so keep posted!  Also, Contour is a new Sports Camera that has GPS and Bluetooth capabilities and a lower profile than others on the market. Lastly, I spent a lot of time with John Cobb, the founder of the new Cobb Saddles.  I am very excited to be mounting the V Flow on my Ordu to give it a ride as well as getting the brand new SHC Dirt saddle on a Clients MTB 29′er who is at the top of the Amateur Xterra Field.  Stay tuned…

Thanks DealerCamp, I will be back in 2012. Enjoy your training =) www.tristafrancis.com

The 4th of July brought several fun opportunities for the TIMEX FORD EDGE!  I started off in Breckenridge, CO and headed over with my Sister and our families to the Breckenridge 4th of July Parade!

It was quite fitting to be lined up next the the Bicycle Tour of Colorado Stage Race float.  It was fun hanging out talking with all the other entrants.  Many were fascinated with the Timex wrapped Edge!

It was incredibly fun.  There was a lot of support of the TIMEX brand and my crew was able to hand out candy and tell spectators to check out our blogs and www.timexironman.com.  There were over 20,000 in attendance.

Next up was the Firecracker 50 MTB race.  This is a huge race that actually starts along the parade route.  It is a challenging 50 mile race which has as much elevation gain in 50 miles as does the Leadville 100.  It was awesome to be there for the start and send off a client of mine, Matt Perkins.  The Edge was parked where the athletes loop through at Carter Park.  Matt in the photo above ended up having a spectacular race placing 9th in his Category.

After the Parade was finished and the race was well underway, the Timex Ford Edge and I headed down to Boulder for a BBQ at Barry’s house.  It was so enjoyable and relaxing chatting with many of our triathlon friends; Mirinda Carfrae, Julie Dibens, Craig Alexander and family, Tim O’donnell, Christine Anderson, and Kim Hager to name a few.  Well, there is no surprise the NBC IRONMAN showed up for the duration of the party and spoke with a lot of us there.  I am quite sure the Timex Ford Edge will hit the big screen too!

Our last stop of the day was back to Highlands Ranch, CO for fireworks at Town Center.  I can honestly say, there had to have been well over 30,000 in attendance. We arrived a bit late coming down from Boulder and had to drive around a bit to find parking.  Little did I know it would be like having the Edge in a parade of its own as we drove past all the people!  We got real lucky and parked 400 meters away from where we watched the fireworks go off.

If you haven’t had a chance to check out the car, you can do so here.  I love the Crossover!

Enjoy your training =) www.tristafrancis.com

Yep, that’s what he said after I finished the hardest half of my life.  My K-Swiss sponsor rocks, he supports me, not only with awesome shoes, but with ongoing, never waivering, strength and encouragement.  I consider him as tight as I am with my Timex Family.  He ALWAYS checks in on me after my races. I know my phone will be blinking with an alert from him when I get back into transition as well as good luck wishes the day before. Yes, I am a lucky girl.

The Rev3 Quassy Half was amazingly brutal.  I was lucky enough to be there with my Client, David Schultz (above). I have never been scared for a race, then I drove the course the day before.  I had sketchy training coming into this race due to illness after St. Anthony’s.  I had lost a lot of volume I was trying to carry to be ready for a half; which can be challenging for this short distance girl.  I didn’t really know what I was up against until 12 hours before I would awake and head over to the race start.  I call this course the 70.3 Xterra.  Unrelenting hill after hill.  I swore I would never race this again, but now I would love to go out being totally prepared for such a course and just crush it!  That’s my fire inside…

I will proudly say that I was 1:10:00 off my best half time.  My swim had hills too I think at a 38:52 ;) Bike was a 3:27, Run was a 2:17 (and yes, I ran the whole thing).  BRUTAL!  I am grateful for optimal weather conditions because I believe I may not have seen the finishline had it been otherwise.

“Sounds like a brutal race, but congrats on finishing! You need a good butt whooping every now and again:)” So there you have it, straight from the mouth of JMS. Enjoy your training =) www.tristafrancis.com