Epic Bike Day

Today I rode my bike the farthest I've ever ridden in one day - 80 miles!

I set out this morning on a ride with the Fleet Feet group. There were 4 groups of riders today - those going 20, 35, 50 or 80. Only 3 of us were crazy enough to attempt 80, but what the heck?! Sounded like fun, right?

First, it was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, grass was green, the air was warm...it was absolutely perfect. It was topped off by very little wind and not a cloud in the sky!

The ride heads west towards Sauk City and then south into Roxbury and Mazomanie. This part of the ride is mostly flat with a few rolling hills. The guys dropped the girls for this portion of the ride, so it was just Ali, Rebecca and myself riding along.

Once we hit Mazo, we connected back up with Ryan, Jim and Jesse. We then headed south towards Cross Plains. At the 40 mile point, it was the plan that Ryan, Steve and I would break off and do the Ironman loop in reverse while the others headed back in to Fleet Feet. Steve disappeared on us, so it was just Ryan and I attempting this craziness.

The IM loop backwards is punishing! I am certainly glad we are riding it the other way on September 9th. Ryan and I made good time into Mt Horeb. We rode the hills strong but steady and still managed a good pace on the flats. We stopped at Kwik Trip in Mt Horeb and decided we needed food! I filled up both water bottles with water and gatorade. I also purchased a snickers ice cream bar and a coca cola which I promptly ate and drank. We met a few other ironman bikers here, as this is a popular stop for anyone riding the loop.

Heading out of Mt Horeb, though downhill, was all into the wind. After getting out of the wind, we had a climb that lasted for several miles. By the time we hit Verona, we were cached and still had another 14 miles or so to go.

We gutted it out and got back to Fleet Feet. Neither of us felt like eating Chipotle at that point, so I headed home. A few lessons learned:

1) I developed some hot spots in one of my shoes about 60 miles into the ride
2) You shouldn't drink coca cola mid-ride - you'll only need to drink constantly for the rest of the time!
3) A snickers ice cream bar does wonders for the spirit, if nothing else.
4) 80 miles on the bike less than 6 days after a half ironman - HURTS!

High Cliff Half Ironman Race Report - June 24, 2007

Wow! What a great feeling to complete my first half ironman! I knew it would be an awesome feeling to finish, but I wasn't sure if I would enjoy the rest of the race. I didn't know if I'd get bored, frustrated, or if I'd lose heart. I wasn't sure how my nutrition plan would go or if I'd get a flat on the bike or totally bonk on the run. I had no idea how the race itself was going to feel. I'll tell you what though - it felt AWESOME. I can say with complete confidence that I thoroughly enjoyed the race....well, except for the last 4 miles of the run.

Saturday Pre-Race

I had a hard time sleeping Friday night and ended up getting up really early to do my pre-race workout. Saturday was a nice chilly 58 degree morning. I headed out on the bike in a long sleeve jersey and was a little chilled. I didn't feel great on my pre-race ride. I had a nagging soreness in my upper glute from a few days back and was quite nervous about that as it was somewhat tight on the bike. Following my short 40 minute bike, I headed out for a quick 20 minute run. A little tightness in the glute on the run too. At this point I was definitely worried. I didn't want to have a bad race on Saturday, but I also didn't want to race hard and screw something up that would wreck my IM training.

At that point, I was planning to head up to Appleton on Sunday morning. But, what a stroke of luck - my good friend Becca called and said she had decided to do the Half and wanted to drive up Saturday and stay overnight. Hooray!!! Not only did I not have to get up at the butt crack of dawn, but now I had a racing buddy! Part of the reason I participate in triathlons is the camaraderie and the prospect of going up there alone had left me less than excited. Fortunately though, Becca and I now had each other in this little Sunday morning event!

We headed up to Appleton around 730pm. We first stopped for Noodles and Company for dinner and some good girl talk. Then we were off. We arrived in Appleton around 10pm, checked into the Radisson, unpacked some of our race gear and were in bed before 11pm.

Sunday Pre-Race

At 5am, the alarms went off and we were up. I was definitely groggy and tired, but managed to pull everything together. I got cleaned up and dressed and then began to prepare my nutrition for the day. I mixed my sports drinks, loaded the bottles onto my bike and packed my bento box full of energy gels and food. By 530am we were out the door!

On the way to the race, we thought we'd just follow some of the other cars with bikes on them. This was a GREAT strategy, until we realized that the people in front of us had NO IDEA where they were going! Becca and I pretty much remembered the way from our directions (that I lost!), so we turned around and led the caravan of triathletes to High Cliff State Park.

High Cliff State Park is beautiful! I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a day of hiking, picnics, boating, swimming, whatever. What a gorgeous site for a race!
As we pulled in to the park, we could see that the lake wasn't completely calm. It wasn't wavy, but my anxiety level definitely climbed one notch upon seeing that. By the time we got parked and headed for registration, it was 615am. Becca still had to register and I had to pick up my packet of goodies.

45 minutes until Race Time...

Becca and I parted ways at registration. I picked up my packet and chip, got body marked and headed for transition. Transition was kind of messed up. There was no rhyme or reason as to how the Waves were organized. I was in Wave 5 and expected to be near the racks for Waves 4 and 6. Nope - I was next to Wave 2 and 7. Makes sense....I found my spot pretty easily and had a really good location. I was very close to the Swim Exit and the Run Exit and had a little ways to go for the Bike In/Out.

I racked my bike, got my transition area organized and made a mad dash for the bathroom. To my surprise, there was NO line at the ladies room...but the men had a HUGE line. Sweet Justice! Gotta love it! After bathroom trip #1, I headed back to transition to put on my wetsuit. That's when I noticed my friends Doug and Laura Meier. Doug was also doing the Half and in my wave! How lucky! I wandered around at this point trying to find Becca. I managed to find some other friends of mine - Dean and Michele. It was great to catch them before the race! After continuing to search for Becca with no luck, I headed back to my Transition spot, grabbed my cap and goggles, headed for the bathroom once more and then down to the water.




10 minutes until race time....

I immediately found friends in the water - Doug, Dean, Christine, Becca and Tim. Funny how in a group of nearly 1000 athletes, you can still find the people you know! I did a warm-up swim which gave me a preview of the swells we saw from the car. I also got a preview of the green muck we'd be swimming in.

I wasn't really nervous at this point. I was a little bit, but nothing like at Lake Mills. I think maybe it was because in an event of this length you need more patience and you can't just hammer like you can for a sprint. I was quite surprised by how relaxed I was.

The Waves started going off at 7am. I was scheduled to start at 708am. I waited patiently with Becca and Doug and lined up on the inside of the buoy line. I just kept telling myself 'Nice and Calm....Long and Strong......Don't Panic'. 15 seconds to go...and the cannon went off.

The Swim (1.2 miles)

It was fairly shallow at the start, but definitely deep enough to swim. Despite this most people try to run in the water for a few seconds before starting to swim. I'll never understand this, but I waded patiently behind some people before starting to swim. The first 3 minutes of the swim were not what I expected. Between the lake swells and the proximity of the swimmers there was a lot of splashing and running into each other. I was definitely thrown off by this and needed to do some breast stroking to calm down. Once more relaxed I started swimming.

The buoys were pretty far apart but easy to see. I just took it buoy to buoy. Thinking about the whole swim in one chunk was too daunting. I tried swimming straight, but the swells definitely tried to carry me towards shore during the first portion of the swim. Once we made the turn out into the lake it was smooth sailing. I hit my rhythm and just focus on swimming from one buoy to the next.

While on the 'backstretch', I had some jerk swim over the top of me! I was not expecting this BC at this point each athlete had TONS of space and there was no need to go barreling over people. The guy pissed me off so I tried swimming on his feet for awhile to catch a draft. That didn't work for very long though.

The turn into shore was tough as it was hard to see exactly where the swim exit was and the sun was shining right into our eyes. I managed to find the exit and as I got closer to shore, it gets pretty shallow. It amazes me how many people start walking. as long as your hands don't hit the sand, keep swimming! I was swimming past people who were just casually walking up to transition.

Finally I got up. I had done it! I survived the swim. I headed up the hill into T1 (got to thank the race directors for that) and checked my watch. I was over 3 minutes ahead of my goal time!!!

Goal Time: 38 minutes
Actual Time: 34:29

T1

Nothing too exciting to note from T1. I peeled off my wetsuit, got my bike gear together and I was off. Time to Bike!

Goal Time: 2 minutes or less
Actual Time: 1:57

The Bike (56 miles)

The course at High Cliff is mostly flat, except for the big hill right out of the park. What a great way to start - huffing and puffing at 12 mph. I had ridden this course before so I knew this was the worst of it. Just be patient and get warmed up.

I used the first 5-10 miles of the bike to just get warmed up. There's no sense in hammering early. You'll only pay later. This course is always windy since it's flat and really open. We started out into a crosswind, which wasn't bad. I was able to ride pretty steady.

About 6 miles into the bike, I really needed to use the ladies room! I knew there would be a porta potty on the course, but wasn't sure when it was coming. Finally, 8 miles later it appeared! Hallelujah! Fortunately too there was no line. I hated having to stop, but knew that if I didn't I'd pay for it later. There went 1.5 minutes.

After turning off of Lake Shore Drive, you have about a 4 mile gradual uphill directly into the wind. This stretch sucks. Nothing like working hard to go 14mph. I ended up hooking onto a good group of women at this point. (No, I wasn't drafting) We stayed together for the majority of the race and it was good motivation for me throughout.



There is nothing unusual to note about the bike. It went very well. I didn't get too tired. I didn't get frustrated. No Flat Tires or dropped water bottles. It was an incredible success! Another great part of the bike was my friend Michele. Her husband Dean and I were pretty close on the bike and she was ALL OVER the course taking pictures and cheering. It felt so great having support out there! I had a huge smile every time I went by her.

With 2 miles to go on the bike, I managed to catch up with one of the women I had been chasing. We chatted the last 2 miles while both trying to crack the 3 hour barrier on the bike. What a fun last 2 miles. The support of other athletes is amazing.

Nutrition and Hydration on the bike...I got through 2.5 bottles of water/sports drink. It definitely wasn't enough, but luckily I never paid for it. I took some clif shot bloks, a balance bar and a gu. I tried to eat/drink every 15-30 minutes. Overall, it worked well for me. I'm happy to report no stomach issues!

Goal Time: 3 hours or less
Actual Time(w/bathroom stop): 3:00:53
If I hadn't stopped to pee: 2:59:23

T2

What a pain to run 30-40 yards in your bike shoes across uneven grass. Oh well. I dropped my bike gear, grabbed stuff for the run and headed out of T2.

Goal Time: 2 minutes or less
Actual Time: 1:37

The Run (13.1 miles)

With about 8 miles to go on the bike, I really started thinking about how much a half marathon can hurt. I definitely had anxiety going into the run. I was dreading it.

The run is a 2 loop course through the trails of High Cliff. It's gorgeous! I loved the run course. It was mostly flat, fast, well shaded and fun! Of course, the race directors send you up the big hill that we rode out of the park. I took it nice and slow. Many runners were walking and I resorted to walking as well towards the top of the hill.



I had some hamstring/glute pain during the run, but this was expected. What I didn't expect is how good I felt on the run. I didn't hate it! And it was going fast! Every aid station, I dumped 2-3 cups of water on me to keep me nice and cool. I also drank some water or gatorade or a combination. I took a gel at Mile 3.5 and again at mile 9.

Michele and Laura were everywhere on the run course! Again, it was so great seeing familiar faces. And I was really having fun! I could actually smile honestly and be excited every time I saw them.

I started the 2nd loop and knew I was going to get tired at some point. The question was when. Mile 9....that's when my body said 'I want to slow down. Actually, I don't want to do this anymore, but since you are making me I'm going to hurt you'. I took a Gu at this point and had some water, which did help for about 2.5 miles.

I met up with a gentleman named David at Mile 11. We both were looking to finish the race in the next 20 minutes so we stuck together and motivated one another. Without David, I honestly think I would have slowed down more than I did.

At Mile 12 I saw Laura and Michele again. I said to them 'I lost my smile at Mile 9'. Laura said you'll find it again in one more mile. That was a nice reminder that I was almost done.

David and I made the final turn down High Cliff hill. Yes, that's right - we get to descend the beast that we had to climb twice. Thank goodness! David started to pull away, but as I saw the finish I picked it up. I started cheering and smiling and displaying LOTS of enthusiasm for finishing my first half....AND in the final 25 meters I looked at my watch and knew I was going to break 5:40!

Goal Time: 2 hours or less
Actual Time: 2:00:45

Overall Goal: 5:45 or less
Actual Time: 5:39:42

AG Place: 4/13
Div Place: 19/106




Final Race Thoughts

I was almost in tears when I finished. I didn't think I would enjoy the race as much as I did. Nor did I think I'd break my goal time by over 5 minutes!

I am so appreciative of the fans and volunteers. They were so supportive and made the race that much more fun and bearable. I highly recommend this event to anyone who wants to do a half ironman. It's a beautiful course and a well run event.

I was lucky to be able to see all my friends finish as well - Doug, Dean, Becca, and many others! I'm so proud of Becca. She took 1st in her division and finished over 30 minutes ahead of what she expected. She's amazing!

After Becca finished, we got cleaned up and left the park. We grabbed some food at subway and headed back to Madison.

As I lay here at 3 am, I am sunburned and sore. But I'm also proud of my accomplishment today. Sure, Ironman is still daunting, but after making it through today I feel much more equipped to deal with what's to come on September 9th.

Next Event: Janesville Sprint Tri, July 14th

Check it Out - Sarah and Andy's Blog!!!

I added a link in my 'T2' section to Sarah and Andy's blog. Fellow GMR peeps and great friends, they are in the process of adopting a child from Kazakhstan. Check out their blog to read about their journey and support them in this joyous event in their lives!

Pre-Race Notes: High Cliff Half Ironman June 24, 2007

It's one week before my first half ironman and I'm definitely nervous! I just can't imagine what it's going to be like to compete for that length of time.

I'm not really nervous about being able to complete any single part of it. It's putting everything together and seeing if I can get through it without any major disasters.

My swim training has been really solid over the last 5 months. I'm quite confident in being able to swim the distance. I just hope I can settle in to a nice, moderate pace and not go too hard initially or feel like I didn't go hard enough.

My bike training was something that I have been nervous about for awhile. I've been doing some solid riding and hill training, but have only had 2 rides over 50 miles since the season began. Luckily High Cliff is a pretty flat course, so I should be able to manage just fine.

My run training has been up and down depending on my hamstring. I know I have a good enough endurance base to get me through the run. I just hope it can get me through the run faster rather than slower :)

Nutrition is a big black hole for me. I'm still figuring this out. It should be very interesting seeing how my body reacts to the demands of racing and eating/drinking. I'm going to shoot for 3-4 bottles on the bike with Gus/Clif Shot Blocks. The run will probably consist of more GU, Water and some Gatorade. I need to get this figured out so I can have a plan for Ironman.

As far as goals go, I'm going to keep those to myself! It'd be too much pressure if you all knew about my goals. I have an overall time goal, as well as goals for each section. Ultimately though, the goal is to cross the line and be able to use that experience to help me fill out the rest of my summer.


Stay Tuned...a full race report will be posted next week!

Great Midwest Relay 2007 - Race Report

The 3rd annual Great Midwest Relay race from Madison to Chicago took place on June 8-9th this year. The Great Midwest Relay is a run from Madison to Chicago that between 2 to 12 people cover 190 miles. This is my second year participating with the same great team. And yes, we aren't crazy people, there were 12 of us - which means fewer miles to cover per person. So here it is...GMR 2007.

The Team
Deena - Our Team Mascot!
Becca
Andy
Sarah
Danielle
Deidra
Pat
Jesse
Matt
Jim
Andrea
Jerry
Greg



Transportation
When not running, we had 2 large 15 passengers that were very skillfully decorated. The 'ladies' van (sorry Jim/Jerry) stayed nice and clean and not very smelly. Let's just say we never ventured into the 'boys' van.



How it works
With a 12 person team, each person runs 3 times. The length of each run varies between 1.8 and 9 miles. While one team member is out running, the vans drive to the next exchange zone to pick-up the runner and drop off the next runner. This is continuous process that starts on Friday and runs through Saturday until we end on the Chicago lake front.

Friday

Friday morning began with a flurry of activity for me. I went to our Masters Swim class at 6am. Following class, I headed straight to the grocery store to pick some much needed supplies - meat, cheese, bread, paper towels, etc...I scrambled to get home, send a few emails, wolf down some Cinnamon Toast Crunch and pack my bag for the trip. I had about 30 minutes to get through all that before the team showed up to pack the vans and head for the start.

At 9am the team showed up and we packed up the vans. This is always the exciting part - everyone is fresh, well rested, clean and excited about the race. This is before sleep deprivation, injuries and strange smells, but more about that later!! Typically when you bring together a group of 12 people, there is bound to be some chaos. But, for the second year in a row the vans got packed quickly and all supplies were accounted for. The vans immediately split into boys and girls and it pretty much remained that way until the middle of Saturday night.

The race starts at the Coliseum Bar off of John Nolen Drive. The parking lot was packed with large passenger vans, SUVs, Trucks and loads of crazy, excited runners. Both vans arrived and the decorating began! I must say, all who helped decorate did an excellent job! While all that fun was going on Sarah, Greg and I went and got us registered and checked in. It was kinda of a cluster, but lucky for us, they had some extra illumination supplies.

Becca was our first runner and she was excited and raring to go! The race starts teams at different times depending on pace. Our assigned start time was 11am. There was a ton of excitement at the start this year. The race had double the number of teams from the previous year. The gun went off and Becca was off.

As Becca started the first leg (5 miles), we all jumped in the van and headed to the transfer point. Usually when we get to a transfer point there is some time to hang out, stretch our legs, eat, use the bathroom and get ready to change up runners. At the first transfer area, Jesse and Matt had a Cheesy Poof Contest. The object was to stuff as many as they could in their mouths and still say 'Chubby Bunnies'. It was pretty hysterical. Check it out at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB8IEIYdVAA

Becca and Sarah exchanged the bracelet and we headed for the 3rd transfer spot where Jim would start his leg. Fast forwarding to when we were driving to pick up Jim, we ended up taking a wrong turn and ended up picking up an English runner who had also taken a wrong turn. This guy had run close to an extra 3 miles! Poor guy! We got to the transfer area and Jerry was up next. Jim was coming in and Jerry was headed for the Porta John! Rather than a smooth handoff, Jim waited patiently for Jerry to finish doing his business.


Let's fast forward to my first leg, otherwise this could get really long! My first leg went from a small church in London, WI to Lake Mills, WI. It was a 5 mile stretch that was 98% on the Glacial Drumlin Trail. It was a hot run with little shade. I made the mistake of not bringing any water and definitely craved some for most of the run. I worked on catching a guy who was about 1/2 mile in front of me. I finally caught him around mile 3 and breezed on by. It was a good feeling! I then had to run through part of the Lake Mills Tri course. It's funny how I didn't really recognize any of it until I got close to the trail exit. From there I could see the people waiting for runners coming in. They looked so close, but were close to 1/2 mile away. I cruised in around 39 minutes. A good solid first run! I wasn't sure if I could keep that up for two more runs, but I'd try.



I was runner 6, so we still had 6 more runners to go before we got through the first rotation. During those next six exchanges, we had some peeing in the bushes, bloody ankles, runners almost being hit by a car and obscene uses of the foam roller. This is what happens when you turn a bunch of male runners loose on a two day race - they turn into 8 year olds again. At least it's entertainment!



My second run began after dark, around 10pm. This time I had 4.3 miles to go and had to run from West Allis through Milwaukee. I ran down S. Morgan Ave to Hwy 100. Hwy 100 is kinda like a 'hang out' for many teenagers and young adults on the weekend. As you can imagine that was an interesting experience - being honked at by random cars while trucking down Hwy 100 with a reflective vest, head lamp and blinking lights. My hamstring started bothering me about 5 minutes into this run, but amazingly I was able to keep up my quick pace. Once off Hwy 100, I hit the pitch dark Root River Parkway. This was exhilarating - running through darkness, with nothing but my light! I passed a few people which was nice and came flying into the exchange zone. 33:30 and I felt great despite the hamstring issue!

Now, it was time to sleep. Our Van contained runners 1-6. We drove ahead to our 3rd and final exchange zone to catch a little shut eye. It's tough though to really sleep in a van when other vans are pulling in and out. Runners are coming and going and most people have little to no respect for those of us trying to sleep. Such is life on the GMR.

Saturday

As we slept in our van at the 3rd major transfer area, we received a phone call from our other van. Jesse, our 11th runner, had pulled his calf and was out of the race. Our team pulled together though and finished out all of Jesse's legs.

We began the last 6 legs at around 430am. It was perfect because by the time our 2nd runner started it was nearly light out. It's always really nice running and waking up around sunrise!

My 3rd leg was 7.4 miles long and started around 715am. It was getting kind of hot at that point and was definitely sunny. I was really nervous about this leg and being able to hold up a good pace without killing my hamstring. Plus, I remember the pain last year on my 3rd leg and it wasn't pretty. I was expecting the same thing this year.

To my surprise, I had a great run. I was flying for the first 4 miles. I had some cramping issues with my quads. I drank water and slowed the pace down. I managed to recover and finish strong. I came in at 1 hour and 1 minute! I was so pleased! I thought I would come in around 1:10! What a great GMR for me! And I never got that 'post-marathon' feeling like I did last year. It was great.

We came in to the finish line at 2pm. 20 minutes faster than last year! Everyone was relieved to be done, but was cranky, tired, smelly, sore and just wanting to get home. After waiting for the Ultra Team to finish, we packed up the vans and headed back to Madison.

After a gas station stop and a 2.5 hour drive, we were back. Everyone unpacked their coolers, we divided up the remaining food and said our congrats and farewells. I think everyone just really wanted a shower at that point!

Another great year for the GMR and Deena's Dozen. We had a fabulous team that kicked butt and had fun in the process!

I'm not sure if I'll do it next year, but I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun 'team' race. It's a blast and very rewarding!

Lake Mills Race Report - June 3, 2007

Finally kicking off the 2007 race season and I was pumped...I no longer feel like a complete novice. Plus, this is the shortest tri I'll do all season, so this one is for pure fun!

Tri's are always early and on Sundays...why?! That totally kills your ability to have a rocking Saturday night AND race well the next day. Whatever, can't do much about it.....

I was up at 4:45am. I prepared breakfast - a Trader Joe's frozen waffle and some tea. MMM....A check of the radar and we were ready to hit the road. Rain was threatening, but it could be hit or miss. This could interesting...The only thing you can change is your attitude, right?

As expected - the race was packed and there were people everywhere. This race attracts about 800-900 people and a pretty good mix of top triathletes to novices. Also, not surprising, I was in one of the last waves....10 of 12. The wait didn't feel as long this year though as it did last year. Of course, I was sooo nervous, but once the air horn goes off, nothing you can do but race!

It poured rain before the race started, so everything was soaked - helmet, shoes, glasses, etc...By the time the race started though - no rain and the sun was breaking the clouds. Also, there was light winds and it was HUMID! Perfect racing conditions for a short,early season race.

I warmed up by swimming about 300 yards or so...The water was warm, which was really nice....It was kinda murky, but that didn't matter much. Tim was great! Standing on shore, watching me warm-up and trying to calm my nerves. It was so wonderful to have him there supporting me.

Swim: I started about middle left, right near the front. My wave was Women 15-29 and 55+, probably about 45 women in all, maybe more. You start knee deep in the water. I started off well, continually reminding myself to take it easy to the first buoy. I don't know if I actually swam easy or not, but reminding myself too kept me calm. I felt comfortable in my sighting and wasn't minding the incidental contact from the other women. Going around the first buoy was a cluster...there were still several men from the previous wave at buoy #1 and that really made me have to fight for position and to get around the buoy. I picked it up from Buoy 1 to Buoy 2 and that time seemed to fly. As I was hitting buoy #2 I noticed my friend Katie swimming right next to me. She used to be a college swimmer, so I knew I was doing well being right next to her! Buoy #2 to the shore sucked. I was really tired and just wanted to get in. I kept on pushing, swam as far in as I could go and exited the water....I was the 2nd person from my wave out of the water! What a great feeling!



T1: I totally messed up T1. First I ran past my rack. Stupid mistake...then I couldn't get my wetsuit off as quickly as I wanted....The rest went pretty well, but I knew my T1 time was slower than I wanted.



Bike: The start of my game plan went well. The bike starts with an uphill climb so I just tried to get up it strong and steady, turn out of town and then focus on hitting my stride. The first half of the ride sucked. My legs felt dead tired and like I couldn't get very much out of them. I only averaged 19mph on the way out...and when I hit the turn around I was at 24 minutes. I knew I had to hammer to get back in under 45 minutes. Fortunately for me 2 women passed me at this point that were in my wave. One woman got away, but the other I kept in my sights and we went back and forth the whole way back in. The 2nd half of the bike ride rocked. My legs felt good and I was able to hammer the whole way in. I sipped a little Endurance drink on the bike, but not very much. I also had a gu tucked in my shorts, but forgot about taking it.

T2: After dismounting my bike, I'm not sure what happened....but my whole bike slid and almost crashed to the ground. A little distracting and of course everyone gasped bc the pedal made a really great noise scrapping the ground. The rest of T2 went much better. Helmet off, bike shoes off, running shoes on....grabbed my race belt and out I went. A few spectators were in transition and I had to dodge them, but I hit the ground running with quick turnover. On my way out of T2, I heard and saw many of my friends competing and cheering. That is one of the great things about the transition area and run course. It's out and back and very good for spectators!

Run: The whole run course is flat and on a trail. It's pretty boring and I was kinda of mentally checked out on the run. I could have maybe run harder, but I kept up what I felt was a comfortable pace. The great thing is I had no hamstring or low back issues! Hooray! That was a good feeling not to have something hurting during the race or after! My stomach had a little sloshing going on, but not much. That was a bit distracting. All in all, I felt good on the run - strong and steady...but perhaps I could have gone faster. I made the turn for the final stretch! I maintained a strong pace for the entire final stretch and made the turn into the finish. There really was no finish line, which was odd. You just made the turn and you were done. And there was only 1 or 2 people removing chips, so it was kinda confusing.

All in all - it was a great race. I am a tad bit disappointed that my bike/run times were slower than last year (only by seconds, but still). I am very happy with my swim improvement and overall felt really good on the bike/run. I chopped 3 minutes and 1 second off of last year's time. Man, that felt great! It'll be interesting to see how this translates into my first half IM in 3 weeks!

Swim: 7:44
T1: 1:40
Bike: 44:38
T2: :56
Run: 22:33

Total Time: 1:17:30

Gender Place: 18/272
AG Place (F25-29): 9/36



Will I do it again next year? You bet! Lake Mills is an awesome tri!

Congratulations to all my friends who had awesome races at LM! Many won their AG, set new personal records, and some experienced the joy of triathlon for the first time!


Next up: High Cliff Half Ironman, June 24th