NicoleRamsbey.com

I have some great news to report on, we welcomed Addison into the world on June 22nd at 8:05pm and he weighed 5lbs 10oz and was 19.75 inches long! I'm sorry it's been so long since I have blogged, I think I just wanted to forget about pregnancy. The labor was unbelievably easy, please don't hate me. The doctors induced around 7am and it wasn't much longer after that I got to 3 cm . . . . wait, wait, wait, yep that's what I did as it took approx. 9 hours for me to get from 3 to 4 cm. I got an epidural fairly early b/c there were a ton of births going on that day and I didn't want to need it and not have it. The unfortunate part was I just had to sit confined to the bed from about 10am until late that evening. My patience was definitely being tested, about halfway thru the day they informed me they may have to do a C-section b/c Addison wasn't tolerating the induction medication. Huh, wonder why it took so long to get to 4 cms .. . . maybe b/c they stopped the induction medication and didn't tell me! They were really just trying to give me the best shot for vaginal delivery which was nice but I was just gettin frustrated with the unknown. Heath and I knew that we could sit here all day and then it be midnight and they decide they still have to do a C-section so the waiting was beginning to take its toll. Finally Heath gets a couple timeframes from them, you know I need some kind of goal! They try to start the induction medication again and he seems to tolerate it this time. I went from 4cm to 8.5 in and hour and a half and then shot to 10 cm in the next hour. Remember when I said their was a lot of delivering going on that day . . .well, they kind of forgot to come check on me. I buzz a nurse and someone comes and tells me they will be there soon (30 mins. later). The first thing the nurse says is that they are going to see how I've progressed, well I inform her that I'm ok but that he's there and ready to come out. Sure enough she checks me and says that we are having a baby in less than 15 mins. of pushing. Well, she was partly right it just took another 20 mins. to get the doctor available. The nurse had Heath helping, which was a sight in itself, and he wasn't up for viewing any of the delivery . . .not that I blame him. Well, the 2nd push the nurse caught Heath off guard and said, "Oh look, there's the head!" Heath looks and then says "Oh no, I wasn't supposed to see that". I'm in the middle of pushing again and hear that and bust out laughing. I couldn't contain myself, the whole situation just seemed surreal and I just found it absolutely hysterical. Heath then tells me I need to focus and be serious, yeah right! The doctor finally gets in the room, and I push a few more times and literally almost popped Addison out before the doctor even had her scrubs on. Sure enough, I had 15 mins. of pushing and it was incredibly easy.

Addison came out and after hearing the cry we were instantly relieved. The doctor and nurses were all very organized as far as Addison was concerned. He was immediately weighed and cleaned, and we were so excited to see that he was over 5 lbs and healthy. Heath and I are both so grateful to have been blessed with such an easy birth and healthy boy.

We would both like to thank everyone for their prayers and thoughts, its so nice to know that we have such wonderful friends and family that are their to support us when times are tough. You all helped us get through an incredibly tough time and it is much appreciated! Thanks tons!!!

Okay, so I guess it's exciting news to me but not so much to Heath. We had our growth scan today and had hoped that he'd have the same growth pattern as before and be at 5lbs. Not the case. He's at 4lbs 6oz and we are at the 35 week mark. The doctor said he's still showing 2 weeks behind in growth and since this has been an existing problem it would be in his best interest to deliver him at 37 weeks. The risks outweigh the benefits of leaving him in there longer just to gain a few ounces. The plan is for me to go to the hospital June 21st and they will induce on June 22nd. I'm so excited!!! I literally can't wait to meet my little man and be able to hold him and know he's ok. With that said, I understand Heaths concerns and why he would rather wait. Ideally everything will work out fine, and Addison will come in weighing 5lbs or more. The reason I say that is b/c if he's at 5lbs or more and everything else checks out ok then he can come home with us. If not, he will have to stay at the hospital for a week or so to put on some weight. I'm sure all of you can imagine that you'd rather have your baby come home with you than leave him in the hospital. SO, fingers crossed Addison can have another growth spurt where he eats his Wheaties and we bring home a fat healthy baby boy!!

Everyone who knows me well knows I love a good plan. I plan everything from my races to training, to trips to the bathroom. I can't seem to plan for anything these days though. The rollercoaster ride of doctors appointments hits its lowest lows to unbelievable highs, and Tuesday was nothing different. Tuesday we got some unbelievable news, Addison grew 2 weeks worth in 2 weeks. His weight is up to a whopping 3lbs 8oz. which is about the best we could hope for. The doctor was thrilled, and it brought Addison's percentages way up. I have to say that I couldn't have asked for anything more out of that appointment, except maybe to be taken off bedrest outside of the 4 hours a day I'm allowed to work.

Heath and I didn't have many questions b/c I don't know that either of us expected the good news. As my brain started to adjust I asked if the plan was still the same for delivery and what we could expect as far as appointments in the future. He then informs me that I could now possibly make it to 38 weeks, who knows . . .You'd expect joy excitement and happiness at hearing that however I had just spent 2 weeks adjusting to the fact that this could be over in the span of 5 weeks and now you tell me I could have almost 2 more months. Geez, someone give me a valium for all this change. Oh, did I mention that this could change as well and that it just depends on how my future appointments go? I would MUCH RATHER HAVE A HEALTHY BABY, please don't take the prior sentence the wrong way. I'd just like to know when this rollercoaster might end, but I guess like I have been doing the past 8 months I will just have to roll with the flow.

The doctors visits will stay weekly and they no longer feel the urge for me to go 2x a week which is great. They have extended his next growth visit out to 3 weeks instead of the 2 weeks they have been doing. So I guess if all goes well we will have an update at 35 weeks as to how much longer my little man will be hibernating inside me. I'm hoping he's in there for as long as he needs to be so he can come out healthy and fat and maybe not have to stay at the hospital any longer than me. God has a plan, and I'm just in the passenger seat. If I can adjust to anything and everything during races and Ironman than I can adjust to all the highs and lows of pregnancy. Thank you to everyone who has sent well wishes our way and prayed for us.

First off, I'm sorry it's been so long since I blogged. I really don't have a great excuse outside of there wasn't much to report on that I wanted to talk about. I'm doing well, just trying to adjust to life on bedrest:) I will update on that in a paragraph or two, but first wanted to talk about one of my sponsors, www.Trisports.com.

I have been blessed through the years to be supported by www.Trisports.com, and when I say supported I mean no matter what happens to me race wise with injuries pregnancy and everything that can happen they have stuck by me. They have never made me feel bad if I haven't been able to race and I don't think I can ever repay them for that. I never thought in a million years I would have the opportunities that I have had over the past years, and am so grateful. With that said, please help show some support and visit www.Trisports.com and place an order with my code NRAMB-S and get your discount. If you have visited there recently b/c of me just let me know so I can make sure they know that even when I'm not racing I'm getting the word out about this AWESOME company.

Update on Addison . . . well since the last post I have had two appointments. The first one came back with positive results showing that he had grown 2 weeks within a 2 week period which was great. He was still registering behind 2 weeks but atleast he hadn't digressed anymore. I managed to talk the dr. into letting me try part time work with bed rest outside of that, and he agreed to experiment for 10 days. After 10 days I had another visit to see what Addison managed to do. Ugh! I guess he decided to amp up on his activity and ab crunches b/c he only grew 5 days worth in 10 days. I was thoroughly disappointed. Everything else looks good outside of his weight and his waist size, all organs are normal size so that's good. I learned that they think its a placenta issue which means there's not much they can do. The dr. also informed me that if at any time I go back for a growth ultrasound and he hasn't grown at all they will go ahead and induce me. My due date is July 13th to make it to 40 weeks, but the dr. said that I won't be going past 37 weeks regardless and I could deliver anytime after 32 weeks. What does that mean . . . it means that Addison could be here anywhere in b/w May 18th and June 22nd. Wow, how's that for some adjusting. I don't even have a mattress for him yet! They are hoping that he can get to 5 lbs, I'm just hoping there aren't any lasting effects of early delivery. I had hoped all this extra weight I've gained (31 lbs to be exact) would be benefiting him, but I guess not. Oh well! I go back this week for a normal visit where they check other things outside his growth, so I'm not expecting anything abnormal or exciting to report on. Next week they will check his growth again, and I will begin the twice a week appointments. Happy happy joy joy, right . . .?

In all seriousness, I have to say that my time on bedrest could be far worse. I have had many visitors who have helped me pass the days, and the kindness from people you would never expect it from has been absolutely wonderful. I'm still managing work 4 hours a day, with the drs. approval, so atleast I have some human contact. Thank you to everyone that has kept me and my family in your thoughts and prayers. Once Addison gets here I know it will all be worthwhile.

Okay, so do you ever sit there and think to yourself that surely what's going on in your life at that given point can't be real? Maybe you're just still asleep stuck in a nightmare? I've been going through the last week and a half feeling that way. Heath and I went to my latest doctors appointment hoping that things were atleast the same, if not better, since I had stopped working out. Unfortunately, that was not the case. We found out that the waist size of Addison which was in the 7th percentile (anything under 10% is of concern) is now in the 3rd percentile. Not good. Not life threatening at this point, but not good. The doctor said full bed rest, Heath and I didn't find this amusing. We thought we came to a mutual agreement with the doctor that I could work but only get up from my desk when necessary and anything outside of work would be full bed rest. We were wrong. Work asked for a letter stating my limitations, which is standard, and when the letter came over the fax it said strict bed rest. I talked to the nurses and they explained that the doctor indeed wanted me doing absolutely nothing. Wow. I left work Monday, the 12th for an indefinite time.

I suddenly felt my world caving, like someone had just knocked the wind out of me and I couldn't get my breathe back. So many things to think about . . . I'm now using what I thought would be saved for maternity leave, I have no idea when or if I will be able to go back before birth, and what about Addison? All these questions coming at me like a freight train, and I have no answers. The bed rest wasn't freaking me out as much as the thoughts of Addison and concern over my job. I technically still have 3 months til Addison's due date, am I going to have to be out that long? If so, what do I do about money? What do I do about time after Addisons born? Am I now going miss those wonderful bonding moments most moms get with their children because I will have to go back to work so soon? Is Addison going to grow properly? I've been monitored so closely, how could this happen? I'm fit, I eat right, WTF?!

I have cried tears of frustration, fear, and just disappointment. I'm strong, but someone up above is obviously testing me. I have thankfully had a great network of friends and family that have stopped by, brought food, and most importantly coffee along with good laughs. I'm trying to assign myself little tasks to do each day to help the time pass, but can still have my moments. I know I will wake up from this nightmare at some point, I just hope Heath hasn't broken down before then. The next growth ultrasound is in a week and half, so please just keep us in your thoughts until then.

I just wanted to take a brief moment to say Happy Birthday to www.Trisports.com !!! They are now 10 years old, or young, and have made huge strides from where they started. They began their shop in a garage and have grown to include endless swimming pools to try and places for trainer rides. They started supporting me back in 2006 when I hadn't been in triathlons but a year. The confidence and support they have shown me thru injuries and pregnancy and all my ironmans is something I never expected but have come to cherish. Please take a few moments to look through their website and take advantage of their huge selection and awesome sales, it's something you don't want to miss! If you just click on the picture to the left you can automatically get a discount on any regular price purchase as well.

I’ve seen a similar warning before on a blog, and it just so happened to be from another pregnant lady so go figure. . . I’m not trying to say that all pregnant ladies are hostile, but I will say that the patience I once had has temporarily left the building and I don’t think its due to return for atleast another 3 months. Seriously. I’ve completely had it with comments people think they can make. I’ve become numb to the ones talking about how big I am or how much I eat, but the ones who always have a comment on me working out (or not as of right now) and racing . . . I’m officially done. I am dumbfounded on a daily basis by the ignorance of the people around me. Do you seriously think its better for a pregnant lady to sit on her couch not exercising at all then to workout moderately? Remember, I normally train for an Ironman, I think I can handle a sprint as long as my doctor says its okay. I’m not your typical person, but neither are half the people who make negative comments. I’d think from you athletes out there that I’d have a little more understanding and compassion. I have followed ALL the orders from my doctor from day one, and am more than willing to sit on the side lines and cheer for everyone else right now but if one more person says “good” when I tell them I’m not allowed to workout right now I may slap them silly.

I don’t know why people find it necessary to do nothing but talk about the negatives of children. For you people out there that do this, why’d you have kids?! Don’t even get me started on the working out situation after birth. The most recent one was that I just didn’t know what it was going to be like and I need to know there are other races and it could be a couple years before I race again. Yes, I know my life will change. No, I do not know what it will be like. NO, YOU DO NOT KNOW EITHER! Everyone is different, if people weren’t different than Ironman wouldn’t be such a great achievement because everyone would be doing it. I have NO EXPECTATIONS after pregnancy. Do I know I will continue to workout after birth, YES. Do I know I won’t be training for an ironman this year, YES. So either support me or shut up, and I say that with as much love as possible at this moment.

Thank you for letting me finally reach my boiling point and vent. This pot has been stewing for quite a while and this pregnant chic was bound to overflow at some point. Also, thank you in advance for complying with my new rule addressed at the end of the last paragraph as my filter that used to be on my mouth is officially unleashed. Please don't feel this is directed towards any particular person as I have experienced too many to count at this point.

Well, that title is what I keep telling myself atleast. I had my high risk baby dr. appt. this morning and hoped for the best. I have planned all week on racing the Columbia tri, and haven’t let myself really “believe” there would be an alternative. 3 weeks ago when I was told it might be a possibility that I’d be side lined I figured out very quickly that living in the now was the best I could do and I couldn’t dwell on or question the future. What good would that do? Yeah, I’m human and thought it about it but didn’t “believe” it would be the case. Unfortunately, I was told otherwise this morning. The baby’s growth isn’t quite where they’d like it to be. Nothing too alarming but more something to keep a close eye on and monitor. As a precaution, we have all decided it’s better for me to stop exercising all together for the next 2 weeks. Don’t misunderstand, I’m not doing ANYTHING wrong by exercising or continuing to do tri’s and have Heath as my back up proofJ. The main reason the exercise is a no go is to make sure that I’m not making a bad situation worse. I’m eating plenty and taking all the right vitamins he’s just not getting quite the nutrients he needs at this time. The dr. did say that he could be right where he needs to be when I come back, but better to be cautious.

So, what did I do when he told me I couldn’t exercise . . . . I laughed at him. Ok, maybe not just at him but the entire situation. Instructions to take it easy, no elevated H/R, check your blood pressure, and don’t worry. Can I laugh some more? I think the only one of those I could possibly accomplish is check my blood pressure. These days I find myself being irritable, stressed, and impatient and that’s just with cutting back on my exercise. No exercise ought to be a blast for Heath.

Back to the title though, I’m a fighter. I don’t quit, I don’t give up, and I definitely don’t stay down. Things could be far worse right now, and that is giving me lots of peace of mind. I’ve been injured before and had to do nothing, I can do it again. I can also still continue to support the community that has become like a 2^nd family to me. Just because I’m not racing doesn’t mean I’m going to rollover and not do anything. I may not be racing tomorrow, but I will be out there volunteering. I have a picture at home that is so fitting, it say’s “not everyone can be a princess, someone has to sit on the side lines and cheer”. It’s my turn to cheer, and I will appreciate the day I get to race even more.

I should definitely do my race report the next day, this pregnant girl can’t remember anything these days! The first triathlon of the season can be checked off the list, so glad I survived. I have to say the day before I really had my doubts on whether this pregnant chic was going to even make the start line. I started Friday out feeling horrible, which is kind of par for the course these days. My spirits were lifted on the way to Parris Island though, Jeff and Sarah know how to make me laugh. I was also grateful coverage at the bank came through and I was able to leave early. We (I) opted to do take out rather than our typical dinner out b/c I was wiped. Thankfully Jeff and Sarah helped prepare my bike, I just didn’t have the energy. I think Sarah was still trying to make up for almost making me pee my pants in the middle of Bilo, it wouldn’t have been pretty.

The morning alarm went off and I mumbled a few unpleasantries. My mornings aren’t quite as chipper as they used to be, which isn’t saying much. My sleep (which is a joke!) is often interrupted by either peeing or tossing and turning for hours. I’m sure the crew was just glad I didn’t get up at 3am and turn on the tv like I do at home. We picked Eric up on the way to the race site and provided the typical amusement that innocent bystanders get while around me these days. The morning went pretty well other than this sick feeling that I was about to enter no mans land. I felt a mixture of first time race jitters and what do I care attitude since I’m not “racing”. After seeing the time I was seeded to go off I instantly knew that whatever swim time I had originally put, I could no longer hang onto. How do you gauge how much slower you’re going to get? Especially when you refuse to go to the pool. I tested the waters a couple days before the race and felt great endurance wise, so I didn’t stress too much. Finally, my time comes for me to start and I’m as ready as I’m going to be. I tried to start the swim nice and steady and strong, but with enough for the end. I was mentally prepared to be passed, and had already apologized to the couple people behind me. I wasn’t prepared to be passed that much and hold that many people up. By the 2^nd half of the swim I really started feeling bad. Now don’t get me wrong, I let people pass me and as soon as feet were tapped I moved over but I am a little larger now and just started to feel plain guilty. I stopped at many walls letting people go, and knew my HR was above what it needed to be but think it was mostly out of anxiety. The last 50 I just tried to settle back down and mentally get myself back into the place I should be. I knew there wasn’t anything more I could do about the people behind me and I needed keep myself in check and not worry so much.

I started off the bike only to be stopped by a marine formation. I have done this race 5 or 6 times and NEVER had this happen. I had begun to think it was something like an urban legend . . .not the case. I figured my pregnant butt needed a breather anyways so what does it matter. The bike started off pretty well until I started to remember I had left something very important to me, my gels! Sure enough with all my apologizing I forgot to grab my nutrition. Right now that is not something I can do w/o. This girl has to get gel atleast every 30 mins. or else I’m toast. All I could think of was that Sarah started 2 mins. behind me and could catch me any day now. By about 25 mins. into the bike she caught me. I wasted no time in whining about needing a gel, and she was gracious enough to give me hers just as she took off leaving me behindJ. The gel gave me the renewed energy I needed and I spent the rest of the time alternating b/w aero and not so aero. Addison and I had come to an agreement that if he’d work with me on the bike he could go back to comfort on the run.

Rolling into transition I felt good, and was happy to be back. I knew if I could just get through the first two parts I would be fine to the end. I’m not saying the run is “easy” but I can stop and walk if needed and not as much risk for accidents. I remembered a couple gels when I left transition this time, I wanted to make sure sarah got one if she needed it and I took off. I had no idea what the splits were and didn’t bother with the garmin, after all I’m just going off effort anyway so it doesn’t really matter. I started the run feeling pretty good other than the need to pee. I was excited to see everyone out there and for a first was able to talk to everyone during a sprint. It was amazing that after the swim from hell and not so aero bike ride that I could feel so good on the run. The breathings not quite the same and the urge to pee is constant but this was the best I had felt on a run in ages. I finished the race feeling satisfied with my good effort, happy that I still continue to do this, and like I had accomplished something. I guess when I train these days I just need to do a trainer ride first!

I truly haven’t had that much fun since I have been pregnant. I was wiped after the race and being in the sun all day but it was well worth it. Some people think I’m crazy for doing this and I can understand their concerns. Luckily, the close people around me know that I’m responsible enough to do the right thing for me and my baby and right now it’s continuing to try to race for as long as I can. I can’t say enough how much I appreciate my husband family and friends for their ongoing support. That’s right, ongoing . . .you guys aren’t done yet!

Lastly, thank you to my sponsors! I’m sure you think I’m just as crazy as some people do but you helping support my healthy lifestyle means leaps and bounds to me and I couldn’t do it without you!!!!

No new “races” or adventures to report of as of right now. I have had a couple of good things happen though . . . Miss Wrigley aka Devil Dog has officially graduated her training class. I’m not quite sure how, but she managed to fool everyone there. We have also figured out a collar that will work for her after 3 tries and almost $60 later. The new collar has been working for the past 2 weeks and I am happy to report my new running partner is doing well. She has done two 4 mile runs without stopping to sit in the middle of the road. Now that’s improvement! Me on the other hand, I just stop behind random trees . .. .(j/k). I do have to say that running late in the day is not ideal. I could seriously pee 4 times in a 4 mile run and still have to go.

I’m excited to report that the new round of team in training athletes are doing phenomenal, they make my bad days good just with their excitement and motivation. I truly treasure having the opportunity to work with them. Every season is a new round of athletes, and every one of them has such great unique personalities. I couldn’t do it without the help of Sarah Parker though. She is now in charge of most weekends since I’m not allowed to ride outside anymore.

The latest baby news is the progression of the nursery . .. .my dad has offered to do a huge makeover to one of our rooms and make it into a nursery. The carpet has been pulled, paint has been applied (twice, and don’t askJ), and now for the crown molding and hardwood floors! Yes, one would say that’s a little overboard but you don’t know my familyJ. Nothing will be too good for baby Addison thanks to dad’s skills. The crib has been purchased along w/the dresser, and last night we officially ordered the rocker/glider. So exciting!!! Now I just can’t wait for it to all come together.

Well the past couple weeks have been filled with TNT practices with the new crew, training when I can, finishing Wrigley's training classes, and getting some baby stuff done. I don't sleep so well, so early morning workouts are nonexistent as I just don't have the energy. The past couple weeks Heath and I have accomplished quite a bit though. I did make time to participate in the Duathlon the Upstate Tri Club put on last weekend and it was a blast! I've never felt so miserable on a bike, but it's just called adjustments and 20 extra pounds on hills . . . I'm sad to say that was the last time I will ride outside unless it's a race. I knew the day was going to come where the issue was pushed by the doctor and today was the day. I understand the concern, but as the days start to get brighter and weather gets a little nicer it's a sad day for this girl. I had hoped to get the "all clear" from the wonderful high risk doctor, but have to go back in another 3 weeks. Nothing too alarming but the blood flow to the baby isn't quite where they'd like it to be. Hopefully it's just another minor bump in the road and will turn out to be nothing. Me and bed rest don't quite mix, although some days I think I'm working on accomplishing that all on my own:)! I hope to see all the friends out at Parris Island Triathlon, and can't wait to enjoy atleast one last weekend of freedom before I go back to the doctor!

Ok, so I knew I’d get my race report done . . . I just didn’t realize it’d be this late that I’d be posting it. Just to give you an idea of why its taken almost a week, Sunday evening was spent sitting in line for daycare followed by Heath getting violently ill which led to me then getting up at 5:30am Monday to go pay for said daycare to ensure my spot. My lovely husband barely recovered in time to go out of town for 4 days which left me fending for myself . . .those of you who know me know I don’t well with that. I don’t cook AND I’m pregnant, dangerous combo. Heath handed over a giftcard and money before he left hoping I could handle itJ. So, to make a long story short, that’s why this is just now being posted.

Myrtle Beach Half Marathon here I come! I was ready (mentally) and excited for the weekend away with friends and hubby. I cherish those weekends now more than I ever used to, kind of makes me feel half way normal again. Heath, Jeff, and I drove down Friday morning to avoid the traffic and Sarah hitched a ride later in the day. Thanks to Mitch we had a room at the convention center which was soooo convenient! I got to visit the expo multiple times and peruse all the fun shirts and products. When we got the expo we learned that the start had been moved to 7am which didn’t really bother me as I will take a later start that’s not as chilly any day. Something about snow, which I didn’t really believe. Dinner was nice especially since I had made reservations so we were sat immediately and avoided the long line.

We all get changed for bed and get our stuff ready for the next mornings race and begin to see all the postings saying to watch the news for race schedule updates. I could have gone to bed immediately which was approximately 9pm, but opted to stay up with the gang to see if the race was further delayed. 10pm as per the MB marathon website I tuned into the news and still found no update. It was 10:45 before they finally decided the darn race was canceled. At this point, all I could do was laugh. I have been in some pretty bad situations on race day and its NEVER been canceled. I did understand, this wasn’t a closed course and you can’t postpone it too long but jeez! This was my last long run until baby comes, this was like my last big hoorah for running. Everyone talked about going out drinking, unfortunately I was wiped from the drive and the expo so I opted for eating some food to drown my sorrows and then go to bed.

I got up the next morning around 7am feeling the taper, and the need to run. I went and checked the exercise room and was going to do the treadmill but they didn’t have a fan and at this stage in pregnancy I definitely would have overheated inside. I get back to the room and have decided I’m just going to run outside. Sarah had been awakened by me and offered to go with me. Luckily she didn’t ask how far before she got changed, when we’re getting ready to leave and she asked how far we were going I could see her drinks coming back up as I replied maybe 10 miles. I just grinned innocently hoping she’d feel bad for the pregnant lady and still join me. We stopped in the parking lot waiting for the garmin to locate and it was freezing, the wind just kept cutting into us as we stood there and entertained ourselves taking pictures. Once we got running the temp wasn’t so bad. Sarah ended up carrying the liquid since my fuel belts not quite fitting these days, and that was a huge help. I have to pee enough when I run but add a fuel belt that’s too tight on my bladder and I might as well be swimming. Sarah and I ran at an easy pace, and it was just an AWESOME experience. The 2^nd mile we wanted to take a picture on the beach and wound up just running on the snow/sand and in awe of the sight. As we got back onto the course I was amazed at the amount of runners out there choosing to run even though it was canceled. Everyone was cheering and smiling, something you don’t typically see race day. We even had a few people offering sag support! We get to mile 5 to do a turnaround and I notice that my Garmin hasn’t registered in atleast a mile, so now I’m clueless as to where we are. Must have been the stop on the side of the road to do snow angels. On the way back to the hotel we see someone with a medal and stop to inquire about where to get one. Sarah and I decide the more than extra mileage is worth the medal at this point. Low on fuel and Sarah feeling the night before we trudged our way to the finish line and then back to hotel. We were so happy and proud of ourselves, and it was the most fun I’ve had at a running race yet! I estimate we completed our half marathon, but have no idea on time and could care less. Lucky for me and my group none of us had trained for the marathon so it was going to be a "fun" day to begin with. I do feel sorry for TNT and the groups that trained and raised money for charity, hopefully they braved the weather and ran anyways.

Oh, forgot one important thing . .. Jeff decided the bed was more comfortable then going to run with us however after seeing our medals and hearing we did the distance he was shamed into running his half marathon after lunch by himself. Priceless. Actually, I take that back, Regina with an umbrella singing “Rain Drops Keep Falling on My Head” later on that evening is priceless. Susan, YOU HAVE TO POST THAT ON U TUBE! and I mean the one she decided to duplicate, not the one as a child. Happy 50th Regina, I hope you enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed laughing at you:)!

Well my last entry ended with a successful15 miler and the workouts kind of went downhill from there. I have started doing my own programs this week, and so far have only missed one day (yes, it’s only Wednesday). I’m trying to do the minimum I know I can do in order to survive the events I still want to do. I love working out and want to for numerous reason however I still find it hard motivation wise with all the bad weather, pregnancy excuses, and just being tired. I feel better when I do and just have to remind myself of that.

The excitement is due to the fact that my ultrasound today with the high risk baby doctor went exactly as expected. Our baby and placenta are growing as they should so there is still no reason for me to stop doing my workouts as long as I continue to be “one” with myself while working out and stop if needed. Dr. Greig (high risk dr.) has been great so far and very encouraging. He’s nice enough to understand that every woman is not the same, yet cautious enough to make me feel like I’m still doing the right things. The other part of the visit was finding out that IT’S A BOY!!! If I knew how to post the pic on here I would, but let me tell you I saw it right away and you can’t miss it. Heath sent me the pic at work and it was borderline inappropriate.

The last thing I have to report is Team in Training is back and full swing and I’m excited to say we have 5 triathletes this summer! First practice is Feb. 8^th, so its not too late to still sign up! Sarah is now going to be Assistant Coach which will help when I can no longer waddle and keep up.

So, I had 2 doctors’ appointments on Monday both regarding the baby. One was the regular obgyn and one was a high risk baby doctor. So here’s the “funny”, they sent me there b/c evidently if you work out more than the typical person your high risk! What a crock. You want to hear something even funnier . . . .wait for it, wait for it . . . the regular obgyn I got this time was dumbfounded I was even sent there! So much for trying to be a healthy person while pregnant, and not get to the size of a beached whale. I just don’t get it. EVERYWHERE you read says that pregnant women should work out 30 minutes a day for numerous reasons. You know what, I really only had 2-3 days last week that were over that. It’s not like I’m trying to do Ironman training, I am lucky to get in 7-10 hours a week as it is. Is it really too much to ask for a consistent answer? I don’t want to do anything to harm my baby, but remaining active keeps me sane. It’s a stress relief, unlike some of my more recent doctors’ appointments.

What did the high risk baby doctor have to say? Well, he was a nice guy and I do like him . . .maybe b/c he agreed with what I’m doing so farJ. Actually, he did bring up a few concerns and one of them being that it will be a 1^st time baby. I guess your placenta which typically fully attaches to your blood vessels and muscle wall provides the baby with all your nutrition and stuff might not attach all the way. Sometimes (5-10%) 1^st time mothers placentas do not fully attach which can lead to lower birth weight and the baby not getting enough nutrition. Combine that with exercising and if I was one of those mothers then I could be in for some trouble. They’re going to do an ultrasound in 2 weeks when they can establish whether the placenta and baby are where they are supposed to be. He’d like to follow me my entire pregnancy and do follow ups every 3 weeks, and yes that would be in addition to my other stupid drs. appointments. I mean, who do they think I am, a Rockefeller with tons of money and no job to report to? The good news is the guy at the regular obgyn said if it comes back normal he doesn’t think I will need to go back. The other GREAT news is that I will learn the sex of the baby 2 weeks early! So I guess there is a silver lining to every cloud.

One last thing to report on, I accomplished my 15 miler in the early morning all by myself on my day off and survived! I only had to stop to use the restroom 3 different times. I think the run felt better than the last two half marathons I have done so I was pleasantly surprised. Powerbar gel every 30 minutes does a baby good!

Ok, so some of you who are friends with me on facebook may have already read about this, if so you are more than welcome to tune out. Yesterday right as I was leaving work another employee informed me that the customer they had just waited on made a comment. He said, “Nicole sure is getting fat”. Now, part of me was kind of like, see maybe now people will understand when I tell them I’ve gained some weight (12.6 pounds to be exact) and the other part of me was mortified, humiliated, and disgusted all at once. Yes, I know, and he now does too, that I’m pregnant. It doesn’t help, and I’m dead serious. There isn’t one part of me that is happy about gaining weight. You can give me all these good reasons and fine, I realize those, but I’m still a female and a female athlete at that. Then to hear someone make the comment that I’m getting fat only adds fuel to the fire. Whoever these women are out there that say they love their body pregnant are lying. Not only does your size change but so does your skin. I feel like I’m a teenager again, my skins breaking out and my hair doesn’t want to function at all. I will spare you the other ugly details that take place in fear you may never come back to my website.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy I’m going to be a parent. I can’t wait for that aspect of it. I dream about it at night and envision it throughout my days. The rest of this has not been very easy for me though. I’m still waiting for the pregnant glow, or wait, is that the sweat I endure everyday at work b/c the thermostats at 76? Is that the nice glow I’ve been waiting for? Has it been with me since day one and I just wasn’t aware that someone was fooling me into thinking there’s a great stage of pregnancy?

Moral of the story, I think women are so happy to be done w/pregnancy that they have mentally blocked everything else out. So, if I ever forget it and decide to have another kid, please direct me back to this particular entry before I make it official. On that note, I will say I have made 3 days in a row of workouts thanks to the new approach. Hopefully that will help with some of this obvious pent up aggression.

So things since the half marathon have been a crazy rollercoaster ride. I started out the week so excited to start "tri training" as that meant we were almost to tri season and that just always seems to make me smile. Sure I get nervous about not being in shape and all the other concerns but it also seems to get me back on track and provide some normalcy to my life. The problem is, nothing is normal right now. I got in a good couple days of training w/a cold but productive track workout only to be knocked on my rear the next day by complete and utter exhaustion. I mean the kind where I didn't even want to go to the kitchen for food, and I like to eat. Some people would blame it on the exercise, but I have taken almost 10 days straight off from exercise in the past month and I still had those ugly days. At this point i guess we will just blame it on being pregnant, uggghhh! It lasted 2 days, I was able to work Friday but I also had my moments where I thought I was just going to pass out. By Friday night, I was emotionally physically and everything else spent. I was so mad that I started out the week with the excitement I've been lacking and still wasn't able to complete workouts. So saturday morning I woke up and was still questioning myself.

Why am I doing this? What am I thinking? Am I crazy for still wanting to try to enjoy some of the season? It's so cold out, am I even going to enjoy the run I have on schedule? If not, what's the point . . . .I think some of the problem is I am a creature of habit and I function best when I can get on a routine. The problem is, I can't get on a schedule. Each day I have a goal of getting up and working out, but as someone else so eloquently put it one day you can get up feeling like you just finished an Ironman and not have done a darn thing. As I write these words, I just went to the kitchen to make a yogurt parfait and got a little winded and dizzy. Yet I still feel the need to workout. Workouts help keep me sane, but its also very easy for me not to do anything right now on these days that you feel exhausted. The thing is some days those feelings come and go, and others its an all day thing. So how do you try to keep things consistent when everything seems to be against you? Any magical answers out there?

I need to try to stay sane, I need to try to stay happy, I need to remain healthy, and I need to be smart about things. I know everyone who is pregnant goes through different things and handles things in different ways whether it be exercise weight gain or eating. All I can hope to do is try to do my workouts and use them as the outlet they are. My goals are to attempt each workout and see where it leads me. I know when I need to stop, now I just need to remind myself when to start.

So, not my typical race for more reasons than I can count. One, I had ran 2 times in the past two weeks . . .sorry Katie. Two, I'm pregnant. Three, my butt has gained 10 pounds in the past 10 weeks and boy does that have an effect on speed . . .or lack there of.

I was informed today by a friend I'm no longer able to compare race times and it's just not healthy, so this will hopefully be the last time I talk about last years time vs. this years time. I have found that when you're pregnant you have to follow certain guidelines if you are going to exercise, and what you think will be easy to do isn't always easy. If I choose to race I have to keep my h/r avg right now around 150, now keep in mind last year my avg. was probably around 169 or more for this particular race. That is a huge difference. Better than that, I have to be able to always carry on a conversation. Try that on a hill if you want to be honest with yourself. I did today. I was honest. I carried on conversations, I paid attention to heartrate, I geled every 30 minutes, I drank both my bottles, and not once did I look at my garmin. There were 2 brief times where I took 10 seconds or so to walk and that was it. I felt good up until the end, my knee started bothering me a little but other than that I was impressed with how my body handled todays run. I will not run anymore races this year in racing flats, I did learn that. You live and learn the new things your body and joints can handle. Overall I was very excited with how today went when I finished. I wasn't tired I felt good and that's what counted, don't do anything to exhaustion. Then I see my time . . . 1:57, a mere 14 minutes slower than last year I believe. I was immediately kicking myself. I had done well, I had let people pass me and followed the rules but jeez! I do understand I'm pregnant, but I'm still a competitive person and people have to realize this is all an adjustment for me just like I have to remind myself I'm lucky. I'm lucky I'm out there and have people to support me doing it in a healthy and responsible way. Pregnancy aside, I will not take a week and a half off workouts again. I know that was just as much responsible for today's results as the pregnancy.

Thank you to everyone's cheering today, especially the great crewing section that may bail on doing the race every year but still manage to come support! Thanks to Jeff for keeping an eye on me, and thanks to some guy named Glenn for keeping the race fun and making conversation.

Many of you may be wondering what this year has in store for me . . . believe me, I wonder that from day to day as well. Actually, I feel like I have a decent plan in place. Of course, I will have to adjust things accordingly depending on how I feel and things of that nature but I have a pretty good plan in place. As of right now, my plans include the following races since I found out I was pregnant:

St. Anthonys Triathlon-I will be 6 mos. pregnant and will provide much entertainment to spectators I'm sure

So, I still have things to train for to help me stay fit but don't feel like I'm overdoing it on the training. Remember, my overdoing it is much different than most people. I have gotten clearance from the doctors and just have to really focus on effort and making sure the baby is getting enough oxygen. So if you see me race day and can spare some words and conversate I'd love to chat during races just to keep myself honest! I'm excited to say that I will be volunteering at the races I don't compete in so I can help out the wonderful sport that has helped me so much and cheer on the other races.

12/21/9-So many things to be thankful for

Well, the past few weeks (7 to be exact) have been a little trying to say the least. I’m really trying to get back into the training mode, which has been a little uphill to say the least. I committed to this approx. 7 weeks ago w/race schedule in hand only to be thrown a new curveball. Note to one’s self, don’t talk about not baby making . . . .its the sure fire way to wind up pregnant.

Yep, I am 11 weeks pregnant (my father couldn’t be so happy) and have my first ultrasound tomorrow which I will hopefully come out of with flying colors. I have had all the wonderful ugliness of the 1st trimester and cant wait for it to be over as quick as it came. I am hoping in another week or so life will feel a little better. But back to what I’m thankful for. . . . I’m thankful for my husband #1. He has truly been a trooper through my ugly mood swings, my nauseausness, my desire to continue to race, and my feelings of inadequacy. I really don’t know what I’d do without someone who has really tried to be so supportive, especially when I feel bad (way too often).

I’m also thankful that I can work out. I may not be making all my scheduled workouts, but I ran 13 miles on Saturday and that’s not bad. I’m grateful Katie Malone decided to take me on as one of her athletes, without her watching over me my hubby and dad probably wouldn’t let me out of the house to exercise. I will still be racing, its just a completely different kind of racing that I’ve never done before. Paris Mtn. Road Race was testament to that.

I’m thankful for my friends. I don’t think I have ever needed my friends more than I do now. I have had crying days, happy days, and just kind of blah days. I don’t ask for help, which is something I have to work on, but there are times I know you guys are my angels when you just call or show up at the right times with words of encouragement (or coffeeJ).

Last but not least, I’m so thankful to my sponsors. My sponsors had some hard thinking to do especially since it’s the time of year for renewing and what not. I am so excited to say that most signed back on even after finding out I’m pregnant. I can’t begin to explain how much that meant to me to know that I have signed on with such great companies as Trisports.com, Atlanta Bread Co., Gault Homes, Zeal Optics, Powerbar, Barracuda, Greg Spindler and Overbrook Chiropractic. Some don’t renew until later in the year, but they have all been essential to my success.

Other than anxiously awaiting turkey time, I haven't been doing much. I accomplish a workout every other day or so and hope that will only improve with time. Thea's bike ride went off wonderfully and everyone was able to enjoy a beautiful day for a bike ride. Sarah Parker is now a sponsored athlete of Trisports.com, and I'm so proud of all her hard work this year. I will be doing the Paris Mtn. Road race, however for me it will be more of a just finish, not race. I love the challenge of Paris Mtn, and you can't beat the view at the top. Quite nice. I will be trying to update more often and maybe that can provide more inspiration for workouts! Hope everyone enjoys the holiday, and don't forget to be thankful for everything you have!

Well some of you know what I've been doing (or not) and others of you may think I have fallen off the face of the earth. . . before I get to that I have one important thing to report on, Thea Kent.

Thea got into a horrible mountain biking accident, broke tons of bones, is in a back brace, and has no insurance to speak of. She was on complete bed rest til last Friday, and can now move around slowly. She has a long road ahead of her but will power through this like she does her races. An account has been opened for her, and if you'd like to donate you can go to any Palmetto Bank and ask to make a deposit into Thea Kent's account or you can mail me a deposit directly at The Palmetto Bank, 401 W. Butler Rd, Mauldin, SC 29662. There will be a ride and silent auction held in her honor on Nov. 15th at Carolina Tri downtown where there will be a 30 and 60 mile option with George Hincapie riding the 60 mile option. The ride cost is $20. Please come support, this is very near and dear to me as it could happen to any of us.

Back to where I've been, I've heard a couple things that have atleast provided me amusement. One person thought I was busy making babies, I mean, Hello!! I freak out about gaining 2 pounds, don't you think if I was trying to make babies I'd be working out more not less:). I've heard some people say I'm still dealing with an injury, which in part is true. Some people know it's the off season and just think I've been closet working out. Not the case. What I haven't heard is the true answer, I was tired. Plain and simple. I have always been mentally strong enough to do my workouts without someone standing over me, and this year that was not the case.

It was hard enough for me to get to IM this year, but once I did and it was over with I was so over hurting and early mornings and inconsistencies and feeling guilty for missing things due to training that I just said forget it. I don't think I even realized it but the lazy me was taking over the workout me. I'm not a happy lazy person and I like to eat. The two don't mix. I am going to slowly but surely pick my lazy self up off the ground and get back to my happy place.

Not too much training to speak of. Weekends after IM went like this, 1st weekend nothing, 2nd weekend 60 miles broken into two different times, 3rd weekend 35 miles followed by picking someone up on side of road b/c of bike wreck, 4th weekend rain so no bike. Ugghhh! Instead of biking this weekend a friend and I took the mutts to do a 1 mile paws for cause walk. It was definitely amusing b/c the new puppy isn't too comfortable around lots of noise and dogs at this point. She decides to sit randomly while you are walking which leads to me carrying her half the time. We had tons of fun after the fact hiking Paris Mtn with all the mud. Friday night was great, Heath and I attended the send off party for Rose ....she leaves for Kona this week!!! I am so excited and so proud of her. If you think about it, please send her all the positive mojo you can on Oct. 10th. Sunday was another non training day, but it was the BEST! I got to see 2 of my athletes finish their first half ironman. Leslie had never even done a tri before this race! Her and David were spectacular, and while I know they walked aide stations I never saw them walking and I always saw them smiling. It was amazing, and what a honor I have to be part of that.

Lets just see if I can get some training in this week and actually make the bike ride I have planned this weekend. I can't wait to spectate and volunteer at the SC Half!! Good luck to everyone racing this weekend and congrats to everyone who raced last weekend, there were some super fast times!!!

Well, I am a little behind on the race report but am doing it! I have to start with this by saying that the best part of this race week was the underwear run we did the day before IM (ironman). A local triathlete was killed by a hit and run drunk driver weeks before the IM, and to be able to support such a great cause, his 3 kids college fund, was an honor. It was a great way to cut loose have fun and really relieve the stress of IM.

This race was a little strange for me, I never felt like I was racing an IM or had the feelings I normally do. I was stressed, but that had more to do with the injury and everything else. The morning of went flawlessly with Heath dropping us off at transition. Set up was pretty quick and then it was time to head over to the swim start to sit in line. We (forrest, regina , susan, jeff and I) got over their fairly early but were still pretty far back. The girls and I joked around laughing making fun of Forrest, he gave his morning clothes bag up early and was freezing. He ended up taking Susan’s jacket and curling up in a ball on the ground while I took blackmail pictures with the crackberry. I have to go ahead and say I love these guys! I don’t think there is anyone else I could be around at Ironman time who just gets it. We can be mean and the other will laugh at you, we can be nice and someone will ask what’s wrong. . . it really is great. Although they did forget my tiara and wand they bought me, I think Forrest just secretly wanted to keep it for himself. Sorry to digress, back to the race . . .

Swim start was almost a run and jump, I swore I wasn’t running to jump in that cesspool but I followed the herd and did as told. I am not a fan of the time trial start. I am not a fan of the Ohio River . . why again did I sign up for this race? The swim was BRUTAL, I wasn’t so much in pain as I just didn’t like it. I needed to be able to power through this choppy water, and this arm just wasn’t able to do that. The start was supposedly up river so I just told myself to make it around the little island and it would be ok after that. NOT! I never got the good current to take me back to shore. I don’t think I have ever seriously focused so much just to get through a swim. I even thought about rolling over on my back, but I just couldn’t give up. When I finally got out of the water I cried, I am not kidding you. I couldn’t believe I made it. I NEVER thought it would be that tough. Swim time 1:28, 12 mins. slower than my slowest IM swim time. Big thank you to Julie lending me a speed suit or else it would have been even slower!

Transition was a little slower but I was happy to see Susan who said that Regina was right ahead of us. It was good to know that I hadn’t been left behind and that they survived it too. Time to start the bike and see if I can make up for the horrible swim. My hopes were that I could make it to special needs before needing anything for my shoulder/arm, but after the swim I lasted to about mile 5 of the bike. Of course it didn’t help that I was almost knocked out at the end of the swim with some nice person punching the back of my head. After that I just tried to remember where the long hills were so I could spin them out. I passed Regina and then Susan who mentioned filing assault charges against the swim. The bike was going well, I was enjoying the fun rollers when suddenly my chain came off. I tried to jerry rig it back on but then it becomes stuck. I pull over on the side of the road to assess the situation. 5-10 mins. later I finally get it back on. The chain was twisted and stuck in the back derailleur, I couldn’t believe what a pain it was to get undone. The riding really felt pretty good other than the shoulder and arm being uncomfortable. I have to say it wasn’t an easy course, but it was definitely fun. Some spots were downhill and technical which I love, if only the wind would go away. Finally I get to the last 10 miles which is flat. I know that now I am in the home stretch and just need to hunker down and keep my focus. I wanted to come in at 6:15 but rolled in with a time of 6:21. Bike avg. 17.6 mph. Now let’s just see what these legs can do. If I have a good marathon I could still manage to break 12 hrs.

Heath told me right before IM that I needed to not set any goals for myself except to finish. The trainings not been there, the mental part has been shady, oh and don’t forget pre existing injury. I really thought I could do a 4hr marathon. I start the run feeling good like I usually do, I am just weird like that. I walk aid stations take in oranges and water. My first gel doesn’t taste too bad, but I only take half just as a precaution. I hit the halfway point and I have already prayed to the portolet for a good 5 mins. I look at my watch and realize I’m going to have to keep pace to finish under 12. I see my family my friends and everyone who came out to support me. They gave me the extra oomph I needed to keep it going. I remember saying to one of them that it wasn’t easy, and I was very serious. Probably about mile 17 I have the dizzies and the stomach getting worse. Oranges no longer work and I just keep trying to move forward. I walk and I barter. Just a minute. Just to the next aide station. I talk with other racers, and try to help motivate them to take my mind of me. I told someone to just try and jog with me, we could do 5 mins. He was on his first lap and had already given up. I really couldn’t believe that what was stopping me wasn’t my injury it was something else. I got so mad. My knee was now hurting and the lack of nutrition was obviously causing the dizziness. Finally at mile 22 I had enough. I calculate that I have 40 mins. to make it to the finish and still make 12:30 hours. I took all that frustration and turned it into pure focus. When I get pissed its on. I was mad, and I thought I could translate that into what I needed to finish that marathon. I don’t remember much of the end. I do remember coming through the chute (12:30) and seeing my mom filming, she tried to high five me but I just didn’t have the strength. I finished with a smile however was quickly wheeled into the medical area dreaming of an IV. I scared a few people at the end, they mentioned something about me not looking good . . . how dare them! All I’ve got to say is if you need to get somewhere fast in a crowd, my hubby can clear the way . . . Sarah even got a little demandingJ.

I crossed the finish line and was so grateful. Grateful I didn’t give up, not just then but before as well. I didn’t want to do that race, I wanted to quit when I found out that they didn’t want me to swim for 4 weeks. I wanted to throw my hands up in the air and say WTF else can you throw at me. I’m not a quitter though. I have so many people who support me and believe in me and I couldn’t let them down but I couldn’t let myself down either. When I commit to something I try to follow through. Ironman is a HUGE commitment and I am happy to say that is my last for a while.

Thank you to everyone that has helped me along the way. My committed father has made it to EVERY IM, and even drove 12 hours in one day just to see me finish. My mom has flown all the way from Minnesota for 3 of them . My husband, the best Sherpa of all time, knows how to coordinate spectating/drinking through an IM. Forrest and crew, thank you for pushing me and keeping it real. My friends who put up with the countless training hours and odd schedules, you’re awesome. My sponsors: Trisports.com, Dukes May, Atlanta Bread, Greg Spindler, Gault Homes, Barracuda, Zeal Optics, Powerbar, Overbrook Chiropractic, and Run In. . .you all make what I do possible and I definitely couldn’t do it without your support and help.

So race days not too far in the future, 6 days to be exact, and I am consistently having to remind myself that race day is rapidly approaching. For some reason I have days where I am in denial . . .and today’s one of them.

My mom flies in on Wednesday afternoon and we plan to leave as soon as I get off work. I am so excited to see my mom b/c she always makes me laugh no matter how stressed and pissed I can get.

Heath and I decided to postpone Timber’s (our Huskey) surgery to have growths removed, which now that I think about it was the smartest thing! We only did it b/c we didn’t want to leave him with stitches a new puppy and a house sitter all at the same time. Timber can get a little moody. The decision was extra smart b/c I’d have a meltdown for sure if the biopsy on them came back as cancerous. It is bad enough to have to deal with me on IM taper, add something else to the mix and I might be too much for even my mom to handleJ. So, fingers crossed, he has his surgery Sept. 4th instead.

If you want to send me well wishes you can click on the contact me tab and it will come straight to my phone or you can facebook me if you’re a friend. Just in case you would like to follow me (www.ironman.com )and the crew of people I know doing IM Louisville I have listed the numbers below:

Okay, so finally starting to realize I have an IM (ironman) next weekend. I don’t know if it was Susan and her broadcasting our numbers are out there, or if it was just b/c we’re starting to get closer to it. I am excited, nervous, anxious, and ready. I don’t have to be where I want to be physically in order to enjoy this race, I just have to be flexible enough to embrace those physical challenges race day with a strong enough mind to know that I can endure anything.

Believe it or not, my husband is the one who brought me back to reality the other day. I was upset that my injury hasn’t gotten to a more manageable point and frustrated with everything. He just said point blank, “you are going to hurt race day. You are not fixed, what you are doing is putting a bandaid over it so it doesn’t get worse for race day.” For some reason him putting things in perspective and taking away the “unknown” factor I have been dealing with made accepting my injury and what will come race day a little easier. I am the type person that I would have hoped beyond hope until race day that I would feel better and then come race day have pain and be devastated. If I go into it knowing that its going to be bad and just accept it, I can focus and deal with everything much better.

This isn’t my first IM, it will hopefully be my 4th, and I want to give it all I can. Last year I ENJOYED myself, not to say I didn’t push, but when I had pain that was unbearable I just went with the flow and took in the race and had fun. I know I can push, and I know I can push when in pain and I plan on doing that this year. Last year hurt a hurt I had never felt so I am going to be thankful I am not as injured as I was then. I want to make this race worthwhile, I want to take the training I have done and put it to use. I didn’t put in all this time and commitment to crawl under a rock and give up. I hope everyone else out there racing that day brings the fire and drive that I will bring. No more negative talk, it’s time to put our game faces on and KNOW that we have what it takes without a question. So for the everyone out there . . . Hammer On!

Well, this race wasn't something I was really looking forward to just b/c of the shoulder situation and what not, but I had signed up and figured why the heck not. Sarah decided to sign up at the last minute as well and crashed at my place. With Heath not figured no biggy and tons of sleep . . . wrong! Wrigley was peeing in his crate at 1:30 in the morning! I guess without Heath here to nudge me I didn't know that a certain someone was wining. Oh well, sleep for 3 more hours and then get back up for the race. I really didn't have any expectations for this race except I was hoping to break 21 mins. on the run. Other than that, I just prayed that the shoulder didn't act up too much on the swim.

I started the swim smooth and just trying to focus on my stroke since I haven't been in the pool lately. I didn't even do a warmup today:) I can't say it felt great, especially getting passed, but it wasn't too terrible other than being slow. I ran out of the pool and looked down at the watch and read 7:46 something and just kind of went with it. The best was having Heath and Wrigley cheering for me. I had no idea what my results were from 07 (last year I voluteered since I had to have the tailbone removed). It's a good thing I didn't. My transition was slower than normal, I just couldn't seem to get the garmin on! (stupid for even trying)

I hit the bike and just tried to get into a groove. I rode yesterday and my middle 20 miles were at IM pace and on the hills I really tried to focus and remind myself what pain felt like. I have gotten accustomed to not racing over the past two months and forget what true sprint pain feels like. Everytime things would get a little hard I would just remind myself to embrace the pain, I do love it or I wouldn't do this (remember that Clay!). I would also have to say that everytime I looked down I had a smile on my face, thanks so much Sarah for the bike streamers. She didn't think I would ride with streamers on race day, but something about today needed to be fun and I knew if I rode with them I would have fun. I was hoping to break 20 mph on the bike, but boy is that bike course a doozy. I didn't even notice that when I came into transition I had met that goal, my bike was 43:31. Wohoo, yea me!

Transition from bike to run was a little more like normal, all I could hope for was that the runnin legs were there. I thought I turned the garmin on and wasn't going to look at it until the first lap was over b/c I had hoped to negative split. So I just pushed, and I pushed just trying to focus on turnover and hope I can hang on. I hit the hills and felt strong the first loop, I was hoping Eric Stone would help pace me but I found myself passing him. His knees hurt, I knew there was something b/c he's a far better runner than I am. That MC can haul some you know what. So, on my own:( I hit the 2nd loop telling myself I don't have that much longer. I look down to check the garmin and I guess I didn't hit start after all, well crap. I thought worse things, but that's the grated version. Heath yelled for me to hurry so that's what I tried to do. I ran into Troy on the 2nd loop and smacked him one nice good time, and then realized miss Kat was out running too. It was nice to see friendly faces. I just kept telling myself one last hill, and I think the name of that road is something like Helle . . . I took notes the first time around. I finished strong and tried to catch Pam Ogle who was right ahead of me finishing, but I didn't have that much left. The run was 21:19, oh well.

The results for the men are a little hard to read right now but I have to give props to David Minnich, one of my Team in Training athletes, he finished very well today and felt great. Laura Todd Boone, another TNTer, finished her first ever tri today!!!!! Wohoo for her!!! David's doing the Augusta Half as his event and Laura is going to DC. Lucy Allen had a PR which is great considering most of her training has been cycling related. I think all of gvegas did this race and there are too many people who placed to name, so CONGRATS TO EVERYONE!! I have to say thanks to forrest for puttin up with me, I swear every year he takes on a new challenge:) Congrats to his placing, I'm sure regina will enjoy the wine. Thanks to Dr. Kyle Cassas the girls from Proaxis Therapy for their help after the race. Needless to say, the shoulder/arm/neck were not too fond with me after all was said and done and it was nice seeing them there and having their help. The final time was 1:14:42 and I was 8th overall and 2nd in my age group. Karma beat me by 15 seconds, and I'm sure if she wasn't injured she'd done much better than that.

The worst thing that happened today was that kat informed me the boy dog we requested (that's what the vet told us to get), is not a boy after all. I guess I don't pay attention to peters and peepees as much as I should. Wrigley is still Wrigley but her collar is now appropriately changed to red instead of blue. Heath wants to send her back, I told him no . .. .besides Dana Sparks already tried to steal her from me anyway.

So not any racing going on to report of, and minimal training, but I am still busy! I have tried putting on the brave smiling face but it’s just not working as well as I need it to most days.

The last time I blogged we had just lost Roscoe. I still have a hard time talking about him or mentioning his name, but there has been a good distraction lately. Heath humored me and we got another dog. Timber has a new puppy playmate named Wrigley, and oh what a sight they are. Wrigley has brought the puppy back out in Timber and it’s definitely provided some laughter in our household.

I started my training back with a new outlook hoping for the best. I was in Columbia , SC for a week for bank training and luckily had two awesome triathletes that hooked me up with some local cycling and swimming groups. I came home and tried to do my long ride Saturday excited to be with friends. I noticed about 10 miles into the ride I started having pain down my arm and in my chest. I tried stretching, but it would just get worse. Then it started to hurt when I would take a deep breath. I made the decision to head home and call it a day not knowing exactly what was going on. By Sunday it was still there and Heath suggested we make sure it was muscular and not something else. The tests all showed it was something muscular which was good news. I hoped biofreeze massage and stretching would make it better but then I would try to swim and it would be flared up all over again.

I have been to Steadman Hawkins and they say it’s something to do with my Brachial nerve bundle being pinched or something like that so we are trying some different therapy and drugs and hope it works. I am currently less than 3 weeks out from Ironman and have swam once in the last 4 weeks (I think). I will try tonight and see if I can remember how to float. I know that I can finish the swim even with the minimal training; the question is how bad is it going to hurt on the bike then carry over on the run. The one weekend I biked and ran with Forrest and it hurt he said that might be to my advantage, I think it was the fastest 5 mile transition run I’ve had I was hurting so badJ. I just wanted the darn thing done and over with!

I am going to embrace this last build week as best I can and try to remind myself that there are people out there who would LOVE to be able to do what I do. There’s something powerful and awesome when at the drop of a hat you can swim (ok maybe not right now) bike or run whatever distance you want to and your training has afforded you that. I will try to remind myself how peaceful and calm I feel while atop Paris Mountain at 6am. I will also try to remind myself how all the days worries and troubles go away as I pound them out on the pavement. Most of all, I am going to try to remind myself why I LOVE doing not just this sport, but also training this distance.

The last month has been anything but uneventful, that's for sure . . . I enjoyed my week off from training right after the Macon half iron. I ended the week with a trip to Council Bluffs, IA to see my little sis who just graduated highschool and my grandparents who were celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary. I hated that the time went by so quickly, but loved seeing my family. They definitely bring me back to reality and help me have fun each and every moment I am with them. Poor Sarah watched the dogs, and had to deal with Roscoe having an episode, but she handled it with ease.

I came home with some fight in me to start my IM training. If you have been following things lately I have had a problem with getting the training I normally do in. I had a great couple weeks of training, raced Tri the Midlands and did part of a training run after that. The heat was so bad there that I literally couldn't have finished that run if you'd paid me. In fact, I walked 3 times during the sprint tri. I know, I know, how dare I! Good thing Troy called me out or I may have walked it all! It was the slowest 5k time I have had in the history of triathlon, but atleast I finished. It was nice to see some of my friends out there, and enjoyed the company of Kat and Jeff for the run after the tri. Thank god for Ashley giving me her water afterwards, b/c everyone had already devoured the water at the post party and there was nothing left.

I decided at the last minute to take the following week off of work, so it worked perfectly that Heath decided to have people over. All I have to say, is SirMixalot has nothing on Ashley Long and I rapping. The night ended with us doing karoake, and sarah staring in amazement b/c the songs were before her time. I had a great ride with some of my tnters the next day and was excited that everything was still flowing with my training.

Monday and Tuesday were awesome! I would love to live the life of a pro athlete, without all the stress:)! Then late Tuesday night Roscoe started to have problems breathing. Heath and I did all we could, pain meds and all, but to no avail wound up at Upstate Vet around 3 or 4am. Unfortunately, this wasn't an episode of pain as usual. This was the cancer invading his lungs and not letting him breathe. I literally carried him from couch to bed to car to vet. He wouldn't move. I never thought in my entire life I could miss something as much as I miss him. We decided it was best to put him down b/c he wasn't gettin better and wasn't fair to him. I know it will get better, I just miss the darn dog. The house is quiet, Heath and I beyond devastated, and yet we both have to carry on. We both had to be out of town that weekend and be apart from eachother. He had to go to Hilton Head for work and I had to put on a brave face and go to Philly with the team in training athletes. Philly was a needed distraction.

The two athletes I went for were Kevin and Ray and I am lucky to have a great relationship with them that I don't need to censor myself. Ray's wife Heather on the other hand probably wasn't prepared for me:). We had a blast the entire weekend kidding around, walking, walking, and walking, and I am proud to say that both of them did AWESOME!. Ray finished right over 2:30 hours and Kevin finished right under 3 hours. Kevin did lose his fuel on the bike, but props go to Ray who had a perfect race. Thanks for making my weekend so much better than what it would have been! Thanks to Kimberly going to Doggie Style with me as well. I am seriously contemplating a campaign for greenville to get one!

Oh where to begin, I guess I will just start with race morning. Race morning goes pretty much as planned, Sarah and I get to the race site and are only 15 mins. behind schedule which isn't too bad. I get to where my bike was supposed to be, and see someone has moved my bike. At first I think I will just make a side comment to the person who is now in my place, but then I decided against that and just moved his bike and put mine where it was supposed to be. I mean hello! My bike was the ONLY one on the rack when I left it. I am pretty sure it didn't get up and walk off on its own, but oh well. Evidently Forrest was going through the same thing, I guess some people just don't know better.

The rest of the prerace rituals were drama free until with 3 minutes to go Regina decides she needs to use the bathroom. Just as a side note I only said she had enough time b/c I forgot she had a long sleeved wetsuit on. Literally 30 seconds left before Jeremey is to send us off she comes running down the shore with the wetsuit half way up. I am sure everyone was wondering if she was a pro or something b/c me, Susan, and Sarah bum rush her trying to get her wetsuit all the way on and zipped before the horn blows. That will get your heart rate up.

The swim was ok the first half, but I started to not feel so much in my groove and by the time I am at the last turn buoy my arms are just plain tired. I have NEVER had that happen in a race, but I guess there's a first for everything. My goal for my swim was 38 and change, I was nowhere near it. I didn't hit the timing mat until 40 mins. which is a record high for me on a swim. Too bad you don't get awards for having your personal slowest swim:) I run through transition and immediately look for Sarah and see her still trying to get her socks on. Atleast she didn't beat me by too much is all I could muster at that point.

I start the bike happy to be done with the swim and ready to try and make up some of that time. The first 20 miles I am feeling okay and averaging where I need to. I am drinking and geling like usual and wondering if 4 salt tabs will be enough, overanalyzing everything as usual. I notice about half way through the bike that my average has gone from 19.9 to 18.7, which is still not too bad. It wasn't so low that I couldn't bring it back up over 19 mph, or so I thought. I started to question what made me always love the hills in this race before b/c I was beginning to despise them. The average just kept going down and at that point I readjusted my goal to just keep under 3 hours. Well just as I hit the blinking light of the entrance to the park my timer goes off which means I am now at 3 hours and NOT done yet. I promise you I don't know where it came from "son of a ....." was all I could say. All I could hope for was one heck of a run.

I start out the run with some crazy woman (thank you Julie from PTC) with a bullhorn yelling for me and getting the crowd going. It really helped put things in perspective. My garmin decided to not locate satellites for atleast first 10 mins., so I made a judgement call and decided to not look at anything until mile 11. I have done macon 4 different years now, and I can feel good and bonk at mile 10. I can feel bad at mile 4. The one thing I have figured out there is that no matter how good you feel on the run it really doesn't matter until atleast mile 11 for me. So my thoughts were to go on how I feel and not get bogged down in the time. I was afraid if I fell behind schedule again I would push harder and blow up due to the heat. I saw everyone on the course except for Regina. Kat looked good, Troy said I was catching him at the same point I did last year, Forrest was cramping, Sarah said she had no energy, and Susan was actually smiling! I felt good the entire run, I didn't push too much but didn't fart around either. Mile 11 I looked at my watch (5:20) and did the math realizing I wasn't going to break 5:30, so at that point I decide to sprint to the finish. I couldn't believe I was sprinting the last two miles of a half, much less the Macon half but I did. I guess it's better to have some left to sprint than to blow up and be walking. I finished the run in 1:52 which for me at Macon is great for the run. I didn't have the day I wanted, but ended on a good note and feeling good about my run so what more can you ask for:) A new guitar award, that's what! Yes, I got 2nd in my age group (5:36)which means my guitar award from 2 years ago won't be lonely anymore and will have a sibling.

The SC crew rocked it out at Macon. Kat Welling, Cheryl Quinn, Forrest Fowler, Rose Wilson, Sarah Parker, and many more I am sure, all placed. Macon is not an easy half iron, you have to deal with heat, no shade on the run, hills and its all worth it if you get one of those guitars. Thanks to all my sponsors who help me out, and thanks to Forrest for giving me a whole week off to regroup and refocus for Ironman training. Lets see if I can actually get back into the groove of those things called workouts.

Okay, so Heath had his Series 7 exam today (he passed!! wohoo!!) so I had doggy duty to take Roscoe to Upstate Vet Specialists. He's had some major issues going on lately and I had to take him for his recheck. One would think I would dread taking him to the vet, but to be truthful with you I enjoyed it. Since Heath's been working out of the house the past couple years it's been much easier for him to take him to the vet instead of me. I kind of miss it. I miss getting all the info first hand, and I miss being there for him when he's scared. He did well when we were there, but ended up having another bad pain day later in the afternoon. I love exercising and racing, but I love my husband and dogs more. Sunday's workout was postponed to Monday b/c I stayed with him while he was having one of his episodes. I know both my boys are 11 years old, but I wish I had a time machine to take them back to their younger years where they didn't experience anything but the wonders of running around chasing eachother and jumping over our couches. Time is precious, so if you are going to spend time doing stuff make sure it is stuff you LOVE. If you have dogs, make sure to give them a hug!

Aaaah Clemson triathlon, no traveling, close to home, doggy and hubby out there to support! I should love it then right? I don't know why, but I didn't. I woke up today not "feeling" the race I did yesterday and questioning myself about everything. I literally just hit a low. So, I have no excuses. I always tell the people I coach, you get out what you put in. I am a perfect example of what not doing all your training will do. You can lie to your coach, you can lie to yourself, but race results don't lie. I haven't lied to my coach, but I have lied to myself. I CAN'T get away with not doing workouts without it effecting my performance, period.

My performance wasn't where I wanted but there wasn't anything better than having my hubby and timber dedicating an early Sat. morning in the rain to me. They do love me:) Right before the swim I got kisses from both my boys, and it helped calm me down a little. Unlike most swims these days, I did start to feel somewhat in a groove and managed to stay on course. Unfortunately, I still managed to come out of the water a min. slower than last year. Oh well, goal #1 out the window.

Goal #2 was to be under 32 mins. on the bike. I had done the bike course the day before and tried to gauge how to ride. For the most part though, I just tried to really push it. I tried to push every limit I had in me to make my goal, but it just didn't work. I managed a 32:56 which was over my goal, but I did give it my all. Now all I can hope is that I can survive the run.

I go running out of transition and look at my garmin but realize I had not turned it on. No time to mess with it now, just run and run smart. The first mile can be very dangerous b/c it's all down hill and if you push really hard, you're screwed. The second and third miles have either a steep uphill or a long grade, so you have to know what lies ahead. I think to myself once I hit the first hill just lean forward and focus. My other thoughts revert to telling me how nice walking would be, my little devil trying to break me down. IT WON'T WORK TODAY!!! The angel won. I leaned forward and got up the hill with enough oomph to pass people on the out and back off road portion. I did my wax on wax off downhill and pulled off doing the last uphill mile smart enough that I didn't have to walk this year. I came across the finish with goal #3 not made either. I finished the run with 22:02. Close, but no cigar.

I got 2nd in my age group yet again, and Sarah Parker busted out with another age group placing!! I am so proud of her, she did her first triathlon last year at this race and BLEW her time from last year out of the water. Jeff had a great swim, which he deserved. Kevin Trexler also did extremely well and almost beat me out of the water, great job! P.S. Next time don't complain when I make you run the run course:) Everyone in gville was out there, and my coach had a stellar race as well placing in his age group. Way to go Forrest! Kat even blasted her time from last year with a 2 min. improvement . . . it's all those trainer hours:)

I also have to say a HUGE thank you to Kristin and Mark for having us over to play at the lake! Julie, Heath, and I can all say we officially surfed! Thanks for all the cheers and support, and thanks most of all to my hubby for coming to see me when I didn't even ask him to!

Well it's a little late to give a detailed report of lake murrays triathlon, but here's the brief version. Last year I spent the day before lake murray doing the miracle hill 100 mile ride, so this year HAD to be better than that right . . . oh and I also got my first ever penalty. I had on my schedule saluda repeats, but got out there and started having issues with my chain coming off so I decided to turn around and go get it fixed ASAP. I figured if I got to the bike shop early they could fix it and then I would do repeats of paris mtn. instead. I was right. Ron fixed the bike, and I had just enough time to torture myself with paris mtn. before heading to Columbia.

I leave on time with Jeff and Sarah and the drive was uneventful. I was even good and ate what I brought for dinner. The morning started out ok until Jeff missed a turn and it put us a little behind. I think Sarah and I both were ready to blow, we didn't go to the bathroom before we left so it wasn't nice to pull into the race site to a LONG port o let line. Oh well, stuff happens. I put my wonderful wetsuit on thinking to myself it MUST have shrank. There's no way I gained weight! Bad start. I panicked last year in the swim, so I was definitely hoping to have a better swim. Well, I survived the swim but only beat the time by 20 seconds. My goggles fogged, I couldn't stay on course for anything, and my swim is just not where it should be right now. Oh well, step 2, transition. I am good at transitions, and I wouldn't normally say I am good at anything but it's the only place I can make up time. Well, transition wasn't going to be where I was making up time at all. I couldn't get my stupid wetsuit off at all! I swear it was like a 3 min. transition, ridiculous.

The bike I pushed really hard, trying to break the 45 min. mark. I missed that goal by 30 secs . . . pooh! Last years was 46:36, but remember I had done a 100 mile ride the day before. I just hoped to bust out my next goal which was to break 22 mins. on the run. Well, I know this run isn't easy but all I thought about was focus on tempo. I wanted to run smart not hard:) Something Forrest has tried convincing me will work if I do it right. Well, the tempo must have worked. I didn't realize until I saw the splits, but I did manage to do a 21:55. So, as far as goals go I managed to meet one of them and place 2nd in my age group.

Congrats to all who raced! Jeff managed to finally do a sprint at "all out" effort and ms. sarah parker also placed in her age group again. I did do a cool down run again this year, but missed Troy singing boots with the fur!

Well, I have another race report to do but can't find the time to get it done. What I can say is that there's not enough time in the day to get everything done, and I hate it when I don't feel good. I started the week invigorated and determined to get back on track with stuff and then started feeling light headed yesterday during a run and this morning just felt weak. So, I decided to hibernate this evening and see what that does. Let's hope I feel better in the morning. I'm not a good patient:) and tend to eat everything when I don't feel good.

So originally this trip was a group of 5 girls (including me) all going to FL for a girls trip/triathlon. Along the way we lost a few and it ended up being me, Ashley Long, and Thea Kent. Ashley and I slummed it by driving down via the loaded down mini cooper, and Thea decided to ride first class by flying. Really, the flight she got was an awesome deal but boy did she miss out on some good conversationsJ.

Ashley was a good sport, I don’t think I saw her grimace at my driving but a few times which is pretty good. Thea even commented that she gets nervous with most “fast” drivers but for some reason felt safe with me. Go figure, but she did miss the one instant I almost took out the orange cone on the highway. I told Ashley I was getting tired. 620 miles, 9 hours, ATLEAST 4 pit stops to pee included in that 9 hours. Not too shabby.

Friday night we stayed in for the most part. We only ventured out/got lost once and that was to meet one of Ashley’s friends. Note to ones self when packing, don’t forget a skewer b/c you can’t do a triathlon without it. Luckily the crisis was saved by Andrew and his spare skewer.

Saturday we had decided to not set an alarm and still managed to all be up at the crack of dawn. Now I just wished we had actually gotten out of bed at that time. I think we did everything you shouldn’t do the day before a race.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that even though all those things occurred we all handled it exceptionally. We tried to have a plan but I don’t think anything went accordingly. We started with the practice swim which was interesting to say the least. As the girls are getting ready to get in I finally accept the fact that I had forgotten my “swimming” swimsuit and embrace the fact that I am doing a practice swim in the ocean in a 2 piece string bikini. What do I care if people stare, I just hope to never see them againJ. Thea hadn’t done an ocean water swim before so it was an adjustment. I had to keep reminding her that she’d continue to swallow water if she didn’t keep her mouth closed. Each time she’d start to talk to me she’d be hit by another wave. She had her fair share of ocean water.

I promise to get to the race report, but the rest of the day was eventful as well. The expo had a lot of great products and sales. New pair of riding gloves $10, how good is that! We also managed to find some really great stuff at Athlete 3 (www.athlete3.com ), and Kelly the owner was super nice. The highlight of the day was meeting some other team mates of mine from www.Trisports.com . Trisports.com sent Kim down to FL to keep all of us in line:) She ended up taking all of us, including Thea and Ashley, out to dinner and it was great. I met some other athletes on the team, one from Illinois , couple from FL, and one from Colorado . Andy Potts had just joined the team and we were excited to have him at dinner with us. We finally made it back to the room and were all exhausted. Time to set the alarm for the morning and hit the sack.

Alarm goes off and I hear Thea get of bed and then hear her exclaim Oh my god! I vaguely remember her shaking her head and then going into the bathroom to shower. I thought maybe she had gotten up late, but later found out the she had looked outside to see two naked people in the Jacuzzi having sex. How funny is that! The least she could have done was take a picture or tell us what was going on! We could of hoot and hollered for them.

We make it to the race site without anymore excitement, and I get us front row parking compliments of the mini cooper. I love that car! As we walk to transition I clearly see the water is MUCH rougher than the day before and try not to draw attention to it as I know Thea is going to have a cow. We stop at the port a pottys where she is instantly given a front row view of the water. She informs us that she’s not going to do the tri. I calm her down and say you never know how the weather may change in the next 2 hours (4-5 hours for me b/c I’m not elite). About 30 mins. Later they inform everyone that there will not be a swim for elite or age groupers. It wasn’t safe for the safety kayakers in the water so therefore we couldn’t swim. They had 2 big boats for the pros, but that’s not enough for 5,000 plus people. Thea had talked about kissing the ground, but I convinced her that dirt probably wasn’t good nutrition before a race.

They announce for us to be prepared to go off a little earlier than originally planned, which for the girls was 7:01 and for me was 8:58. I think they started a little later, but the funny thing is they actually finished their races before I even started mine. I went from knowing I would be around until 9am to having not a clue what time I would start. Transition closed at 6:45 so I just took my little slingbag with my ipod and chilled out. I passed the time stretching, people watching, listening to music, enjoying the scenery and partaking in Martin’s (thea’s friend) joke. Martin and some friends of his all dressed up like rednecks. This was truly a sight. They show up to the race in stonewashed cutoff jean shorts (really bike short type material) with wife beater tshirts and blond wigs with trucker hats. Martin’s got cigarette’s behind his ear and after yelling does anyone have a light he proceeds to ask if anyone wants some fettuccini alfredo. They wore this the entire race. It was GREAT! They were later interviewed by MSNBC (?) and said they had so much fun this year they were going to see how many people they can get to do it with them next year. I might be the first girl in their group for next year.

I finally get in line for my age group wave after my 2 min. warmup in my croc flip flops. I nervously start to look around at the girls wondering who is my competition, and who is serious. I get sent off and take off through transition. I made a point not to wear my shoes b/c the trek to my bike was as long as a football field. I knew exactly where the bike was, threw my shoes on and took off. I didn’t feel quite warmed up so I tried to take the first few mins. a little easy. I truly don’t remember much scenery on the bike. I was so focused. I really felt the advantage of being an age grouper. There were so many people on the course that I used each person as another challenge or goal to pass. I played cat and mouse with one girl (zoot girl) in my age group which always helps as incentive. I saw many team in training people out there and told each one I passed how great they were doing. They are such an inspiration. I kept tabs on where I was every 15 mins. b/c my goal was to finish the bike in 1:10. The wind was pretty bad so I tried to remind myself not to get to the point where I felt the burn (thanks forrest) and just gear it down. The zoot girl passed me with a mile or 2 to go and I decided not to push it just to beat her into transition. Instead I spin out my legs for the remainder.

I end up passing her while heading out of transition for the run. Now I think to myself when doing this that I may be giving her the oomph she needs to push the run but I also know I need to go my own pace. I start the first mile feeling great (as usual) and remind myself to take it a little easy the first 2 miles. I refuse to look at the garmin and just go on effort. Around mile 3 I finally start to feel my groove and look down to see my garmin says 21:49. The key is just holding onto that pace now. I hit the turnaround and start to feel the heat but welcome it. I pass martin and the redneck crew and have enough to give a shout. I literally just feel good, the spectators are great, the music is good and I go from trying to focus to enjoying it. Mile 5 is when I start to try to remind myself to just try to hang on. When I get to mile 6 I can’t wait for the finish line to show itself. Down the shoot I can feel something want to come up and out my stomach. I know one things for sure and that’s that I will projectile vomit before I will stop right before the finish line. Luckily whatever came up was able to be swallowed down up to the point of when I cross. I literally cross the finish line and throw up at some poor medics feet. The guy walks off probably spewing chunks of his own. Another medic walks up to me and while handing me a bottle of water asks me if I am cramping. I told him no, and he then says, “Well sounds like you just pushed it hard enough then.” I really was okay once I threw up. I guess I am still trying to fine tune my stomach problems, but atleast I know that I can push 6.2 miles before it gets to that point. Good thing this weekend is just a sprint!

All in all I had a decent day. My reassessed goal after the swim was taken away was to do 2 hours or less. My bike was 1:12 something and my run was 46:19 with a total of 2:01 something. Oh, did I mention I dropped my chain 3 times on the bike . . .maybe that could make the 2 minutes I was offJ. I thoroughly enjoyed myself on the run. I think I had forgotten what it feels like to feel so good after spending all of last year in constant pain. This race is nice enough to do awards for the top 10 and I just happened to squeak out an 8th place age group finish. Ashley finished a stellar 15th Elite amateur and Thea finished without walking (long story). The best was walking back to the car with the girls, Andy Potts, Terrenzo Bozzone and Kelly.

We topped off an awesome day with an evening of tapas, and I had the best white chocolate banana cream pie martini. I had a great time with the girls, they really know how to roll with the punches. No drama to report, but lots of laughs were had. I couldn’t make it to these tri’s without the support of my family and my sponsors. Thanks again for the great dinner and fun Trisports.com! U guys rock!

Ok, don't hate me but what happened is my laptop died! What sucks even more is we got a new one but I didn't have the software for my website so I had to wait o be able to blog. I have had sooo many things happen. So, to make a long story short the low down is Team In Training has started and I have a great new round of athletes. They are tons of fun and have some really good raw talent. My half iron training is in full force. I have started an endurance meal plan that I LOVE! My swimming isn't where I want it, but I am loving the long distance training on the bike and run. Don't mistake that for being satisfied for where my fitness is:) I have a race in St. Petersburg, FL on Sunday . . . .and will provide more updates as the week goes one!

Wow, how funny that two weeks after a winter wonderland blog I am talking about a triathlon. Gotta love SC weather!

The Parris Island Race is a sprint that takes place on a marine base in Beaufort, and the scenery is beautiful! I hate pool swims, but they are well worth when you get to see how fast (or slow for me) you can go on the flat course. Jeff, Ashley, Sarah and I left Friday afternoon excited to be going on a trip but apprehensive to be doing a triathlon. I don't think any of us were what we would called prepared for the race, but who cares! It's about having fun . . . right? Atleast that's what I say up until the point the race starts and I feel pain. The new mantra, it's supposed to hurt it's a race, it's supposed to hurt it's a race. Thanks Ashley, much better than the Pink song Jeff kept making us sing. The trip down was fun, we passed a trailer truck with only a toy bulldozer strapped to the back and Ashley and I managed to do our own karaoke version of Gangsta's Paradise. Yes, we know all the words. Your jealous, aren't you .. .

Fast forward to race day. I didn't sleep at all the night before, the wonderful stomach didn't agree with much of anything from Friday. I even managed to sneak Jeff's big doolie and dash over to the nearest Walgreens for help in the middle of the night. He didn't have a clue, hehehehe. Anyway, it was freezing. No rain, but freezing. I kept trying to remember what I was supposed to do in transition, and figure out what to wear once I came out of the pool. I was told I would never live it down if I put on a wind jacket for warmth in a sprint, so I opted for just the sleeveless tri outfit. I then learned that the bike course was no longer 13 miles, it was 10.8 and decide cold was ok for that distance. I was beginning to get a little nervous since the amount of speedwork I have done is zilch. My training was not for much of anything, and especially not a sprint. I figured I would just give it my all and hope for the best.

I was just going to take the swim strong but not too hard, for the life of me I couldn't remember what I had even put down for my 100 time. I know when I keyed it I told myself to check with Keogh, but somehow forgot. I was just hoping to not hold people up. Yeah, that wasn't exactly the case at all. The person in front of me didn't show up for the race so I had 15 seconds of free and clear water in front of me. I was happy with that, I like to swim by myself and not worry about drafting and what not. The unfortunate part was it didn't last but for 3 laps. I managed to pass 3 or 4 people, and am a little embarassed about how I clawed over them. I just didn't think anyone was going to let me go, so I made my own hole. Oh well, that's what happens in the pool. I came out of the pool at 8:54, which put me a few secs better then last year.

I make it through transition, and out to start the new bike course. I passed a few people but my legs just weren't pushing the gears I thought they should or going the speed that I would normally go. I refused to look at the speed after the first few minutes, just telling myself to go on effort and feel. I would look at cadence randomly but knew the power wasn't there. All I could hope for was that I could pull out a decent run.

I start the run feeling great, like I normally do, and realize the stupid garmin has frozen again. So I am SOL as far as knowing my pace. WOOHOO! Not. Ok, here we go, back to running on feel. I just wanted to give it my all and leave it on that run course. All the pain from the last year, all the daily irritants, and everything else that isn't positive. No mile markers anywhere. By half way through the run I don't know if I can keep the pace. I make these little goals like right around the corner, or start the mantra again. Remind myself I can do anything for 22 minutes. The run course was changed as well, so I didn't exactly know at what point I was where. By the time I am at the turnaround I know I just have to make it back to the finish. I finished in a time of 1:05:45 knowing the run was under 22 minutes. It didn't feel like an under 22 mins. 5k. I had no oomph for the speed. Shortly after I am told the run was 2.9 miles by someone with a garmin. Oh well, I had fun! I really did. My bike avg. was 18.5 mph which is pretty slow for me, my swim was a little better than last year, and I am not even taking the time to figure out what my run would have been.

The best part of the entire day was the awards ceremony. Yes, I placed 1st but that's not it . . . Jeff got pooed on by a bird! How funny is that! I mean, how fitting, the awards for overall finishers had eagles on them and I think that eagle meant to get even with being put on that trophy. Sorry Jeff, but it was hysterical!

Congrats to all who placed, I think half of gvegas did. Thanks to everyone who cheered for me, it helped and always does! Oh, and I proved you don't need a tailbone to do a triathlon!

So, I have meant to get on the computer and update on how my first week of tri training is going but there are far better things to talk about . . . .I am watching SNOW come down in SC in the month of March. How's that? I mean really, did god just think it would be nice for me to sleep in and not run today? Or did he just want to mess with my husband? I think the latter is the case. See, my hubby who has been out of work for a while is due to fly out of GSP for an interview tomorrow morning in Chicago . . . Yep, someone's messing with him. How ironic. You'd think, if anything, he'd have problems flying into Chicago but no the question is going to be will he get out of GSP. He's talked about driving through the night, but not quite the smartest thing to do. Instead, we have decided to leave it up to the weather gods and see what's meant to be. Don't get me wrong, whatever he can do he will do but as Regina would say, "it is what it is". In the meantime, I am going to try to enjoy the fire the beautiful snow falling and try to help him not stress.

Finally, the marathon and marathon training is over:)! I don't have great news to report from the race except that I finished. I was on pace of exactly where I wanted to be up to mile 14. Feeling decent, happy the weather was holding out. I geled at mile 14 and by mile 16 when I tried to take more fluid, everything started to come back up. I would try running, but would start to get sick after about every .25 miles. I would alternate dry heaving, spitting, burping, and nothing made me feel better. I have to say by mile 18 I finally realized the marathon gods weren't in my favor this year. I am pretty sure this is the slowest marathon I have ever done, and that includes Ironman marathons. I think the final time was 4:25 and some change, but I can't be sure.

The good news from this weekend was that I had the best spectathletes ever! My mom, Heath, and Sarah were all spectating and helped me continue walking even when the sky fell out and it began to rain. Sarah was definitely my savior as she decided to walk the last 4.2 miles with me and help me laugh at all the nonsense I choose to put myself through. I still crossed with the tiara on, but failed to see my mom still filming as I hugged the nearest trash can. Hey, atleast I puked in style right? I have to give props to Forrest and Regina, they both qualified for Boston yet again! Lisa Tolley and Ashley Long busted out the half marathon with a 4th and 6th overall female. Jeff took 17 minutes off his time from last year. We all saved enough energy to have some fun that evening (thanks to some good dinner Forrest). Mitch was even brave enough to let my mom drive his car home with all 9 of us packed in like sardines. I have to say a big thank you to all my friends and family that always cheer for me support me and help me have a blast even when some days suck. I just wish someone would have helped me and Sarah out and given us an umbrella for the last 4 miles, sore throats bite the big one!

Now, with perfect timing, I have a week off and then start triathlon training yet again. I get to ENJOY this saturday as it is my birthday, and then begin the wonderful early mornings and late nights of training. I am excited to have some sort of plan in place and get back to my normal schedule. Time will only tell if I can handle another year:)

Oh what a month it’s been! Between the holidays, training, and these darn races I keep signing up for I haven’t had a moment to breathe. Did I forget to mention all the eating I have been doing lately . . .it’s bad!

So I have to admit that although I didn’t taper for this race, I had some serious expectations. My goal going into this race was to finish at 1:44. I wanted to do this b/c I thought it would help give me some confidence going into the Myrtle Beach marathon. The confidence has been lacking lately due to just not feeling like my normal self during workouts. More on that later . . .

Jeff and I show up to the race, I am not feeling too bad. I am doing all the positive affirmations I can. Then as I decide to put on my running shoes I notice something different about the feel. Huh, what could it be . . .it felt like I had no cushion. I take my shoes off and realize that the insoles in my shoes are gone. UUGGGGHH! The day before Forrest had the bright idea to run our 7 miles (Paris Mtn). . . IN THE RAIN! I had stuck my shoes in the dryer when I got home b/c they were drenched, and forgot to check and make sure the insoles were in them when I pulled them out. How classic! I was not going to let this shake me, I have had worse things get in my way. I finished getting ready while Jeff continued to tell me his goofy jokes. As they tell us to line up for the start I realize I have to tinkle yet again and make a mad dash for the port o let where I make the fastest tinkle in history and come out right before the start.

I thought I would try something new with the garmin, and use the pacer they have on there. Yes, I am a complete idiot. I tell people all the time never do something new during a race. I soon find out that the pacer thing is not for me and frantically try to switch it and see if I can get my avg. pace to show instead. Luckily I was able to switch it to avg. pace and everything started working accordingly. I also made a last minute decision to not use my fuel belt and just carry my powerbar gels in my secret spot.

The first mile goes pretty quickly and I can’t decide whether to look at the watch or just try to ignore it until I feel comfortable. I opt for ignoring. Around mile 3 or so I pass some crazy runners cheering for people on the side of the street. Thanks regina , susan, and lisa. I know who the die hards are. About that time I look down to see my avg. pace is 7:42. Decision time. Back down or just try to hang on. I decided to do something in b/w and just try to keep a pace that felt a little uncomfortable but not too much. I have to say the next couple of miles I didn’t feel too bad. The course was a little bit of a decline, and I liked it. The course starts to hit the hills, and the only thing I was thankful for at that point was I knew these roads. I run there every weekend and I knew when I needed to let up a little and when I could push it. I pass the Spanish radio station, and this is normally where I start to sputter on my training runs. The good part was that I wasn’t doing that. I even surprised myself as I crossed 25 and entered the frontage road that goes back to furman. The long little incline normally gets to me, but not today. All I kept telling myself was 1:44. That number was the only thing I needed to think about. Nothing else.

I enter into furman, go down the mall, around the lake and hit the hill. Anyone who has run furman knows the hill. It sucks. I think this was around mile 8 or 9 and I didn’t enjoy it. I did make it over the top without stopping though. Now all I have to conquer is the darn hill that you have leaving out the back of furman. UUGGGH! I realize that it’s time to gel and the water station is at the back gate. Normally the back gate isn’t that bad of a hill, but when I am going all out and it’s time to gel the hill got to me. I had no choice though and had to gel. About this time I heard Jeff behind me yelling for drink, so I knew he would be passing me at some point.

I remembered that in the next mile or so I would hit the swamp rabbit trail. I also knew at this point I would really have to refocus b/c the trails were wet from the night before and it wasn’t going to be easy running. My garmin had at some point gained an extra half mile and lowered my avg. pace so I wasn’t too sure how I was on meeting my goal. About a mile into the trail Jeff passed me, and I could barely talk at that point. All I kept thinking was 1:44 and no walking. I saw the 11 mile mark and that is when I realized either the garmin was off or the mile marker was off. Mile 12 was when I finally got off the trail and came McElhaney. This was when I realized my garmin was off for sure. I had 12.5 and they had 12. My watch read 1:38 and some change. I now knew for sure that I wasn’t going to complete 1.1 miles in less than 6 minutes. I readjusted and pushed as hard as I could. I ended up finishing at 1:46:45.

I can truthfully say I couldn’t have done more than what I did. This is the first race since surgery that I haven’t walked. My splits per the wonderful garmin are 7:19, 7:44, 7:42, 8:05, 7:59, 8:21, 7:42, 7:30, 5:24 (must have been where garmin malfunctioned), 8:34, 8:10, 8:20, 8:15. I managed a 2nd place in my age group, and Jeff busted out a 1:44 finish and placed for 3rd in his age group. This is a huge deal! This is the first time he has ever placed in his age group, Forrest’s plans and Jeff’s hard work are paying off.

Well, this isn't the first race I have done since surgery but it's certainly the first one that I can even say I was SOMEWHAT fit to race. For those of you who don't know what the Paris Mtn. Road Race is, it's a 12.4 (20km) run that starts out with mile 2 going up and over Paris Mountain. I did this race last year, and swore I would never do it again. Last year I decided to go in blind and not really know what climbing for that long was like. I didn't do too bad last year considering it was a training day. Last year I finished in 1:44:07 and 3rd in my age group (25-29). Boy were those the days . . . I was in an easy age group, still had a tailbone, life was grand. Just kidding! Anyway, back to this year. I was somewhat trained for this race and actually did my first training run up the mountain last weekend. I took it slow, and just wanted to make it to the top without walking. I was successful at the no walking on the training day, but not so much on race day. I remember thinking last weekend that I had lost my mind yet again.

Race morning was pretty cold, but most of us crammed into Forrest and Regina's Xterra and passed the time by picking on each other. You know, I just realized that I must like to punish myself. Sitting in a car being harassed and picked on, running up a mountain that is 3 miles uphill. Wow, what a revelation. Anyway, I had my ipod confiscated (Forrest) before the start so I remember hearing all the nervous chatter. I just wanted to go crawl back into the car and pretend that I did the race so fast everyone just missed seeing me. That was not going to be the case.

The gun went off and I started the garmin. I really wanted to start out easy because I remembered how the mountain can kill the last part of the race. You may have a huge uphill and huge downhill, but after that you also have tons of rolling hills with a long incline up poinsett to finish. I didn't do too bad up the mountain, but I did allow myself the pleasure of walking 3 times for 10 seconds per walk. I used to train Jeff Galloway style and know from experience that if my heart rate gets a little too high if I walk for a few I can recover and get back to my pace. This strategy allowed me to get to the top, and then to the bottom without overdoing it. I have to say I was passing some people from mile 7 to 10. I was starting to really feel good, which I didn't expect. About mile 10 I started using positive affirmations because I know the last bit isn't a lot of fun. There were a couple more hills where I took the 10 second walk again which I wasn't happy to be doing but whatever keeps me moving forward. By mile 11 I allowed myself to look at the garmin and see my pace, 8:23. This would be cutting it close to come on target for making the same time as last year, but I was sure going to try. By mile 12 I knew that I wasn't going to make it. I saw that I was at 1:41 with .4 miles to go, and I didn't have it left to push. It was truly all I could do finish without walking again. I did finish, and I was kind of proud of myself. This is the closest I have been to being back to normal. I am not there yet, but there is still hope and that's what I needed. I finished in 1:45:17 and was 7th in my new and competitive age group (30-34).

Tons of people did a great job on Saturday. Jeff had a PR of 1:43, Regina made her goal finishing in under 2 hours, Lisa finished feeling good, Susan finished without laying in the middle of the road, and an old Team in Training athlete Jolene Parker did a stellar job for her first Paris Mountain run!

First and foremost, I have to give props to Jeff at Run In for saving the day on Saturday. I called him last minute and told him I was doing the Glenn Thrift Challenge, normally a 35 mile hike/run that was shortened into a 20 mile hike/run, and I didn't have any trail shoes. He was nice enough to get me just what I needed the day before I participated in this crazy challenge (thanks Forrest). I wouldn't consider this a race, but it was soo much fun! Forrest, Regina, Susan, Jeff, and I (austria crew back together) rode together at the brink of dawn in 19 degree weather. The start of the day was Regina and I taking potty breaks before we even started, and Fluty trying to give kisses at the same time. Fluty is a dog for those of you who don't know him. Good thing it was pitch dark out. Once daylight started to shine we promptly started to jog hoping the blood flow would reach to the fingers and toes that had frozen while walking. The jog only lasted so long, in between Regina stating this was crazy, Susan laughing, and me trying to remember not to look at people when I talked to them, I knew it was going to be a day to remember. So the we kept warm up to the point when Regina decided to beat up the ground with her knee. All I could think to do was yell Regina Down!!! As I turn to look at her she's kind of laying/posing on the ground like some bikini model with her hand on head and I try not to laugh. Susan runs over, sees the pose, immediately starts laughing asking who's there to take the picture. Forrest, the ever concerned husband (i am serious), asks if she can run on it:) I decide if I don't walk away at that point I might be in trouble because the entire situation has got me laughing so hard I am ready to pee my pants.

Regina ends up toughing it out, takes one for the team, and continues to walk and cuss the idea of Susan's to be on this hike/run. We hit a hill, mountain, or whatever, and it's never ending. All of us kind of break up into our own speeds for climbing up the hill. Once I get there I realize there isn't anyone waiting on me. Regina and Susan are behind me, but where did Jeff and Forrest go? I keep following the trail, or what I hope is the trail, and manage to catch up with Glenn Thrift (guy who started this). All I can think is that I want to murder the boys who left me b/c they KNOW I get lost everywhere I go. I decide I need to stick with Glenn no matter his pace b/c I don't want to be one of those stranded hikers. He was nice enough to let me tag along, and I was thankful someone knew the way. We all met up at the suspension bridge and all was well. Everyone finished up the last 5 miles together. What a day, and what an adventure. Susan, it's still all your fault!

Two last pieces of news, Kelly Cook Kent had a baby girl!!! Rose Wilson not only placed 5th in her age group at IM Arizona, she's going to IM Hawaii!!!! What a hammerhead!

Henry Forrest has passed away. For those of you who aren't familiar with who Henry Forrest is, he's somewhat of a legend. I had the privilege to meet Henry at IM Florida. Jeff and I were walking around the expo's and ran into the Try-A-Tri tent, their shirts are a staple among triathletes, and for once we had time to stop and chat. We talked to Henry and his daughter Toni for almost an hour. Henry reminisced about triathlons, and what his first Ironman (the original Ironman) experience was like. Henry was one of a dozen or so men who created the first Ironman. To hear him talk about it was truly an experience. They didn't have aid stations, they didn't have buoys guiding you on the swim, the bikes were were over 30 pounds in weight. He said rules were done on a voting system among all the participants, and the race almost didn't happen that day due to the weather. He said the swim wasn't anything like today's, he was guided by a friend on a surf board for the entire swim unlike today where you just follow the masses and look for the markers in the water. Jeff had the pleasure of actually riding the bike that Henry used on his first Ironman. I don't think anyone would ever complain about the bike they ride after trying Henry's bike out. The bike didn't have many gears and was extremely heavy, no compact cranks or clipless pedals to help on the hills. The run was like a desolate highway, no crowds of fans cheering you on or thousands of runners to commiserate with. Just you and the wonderful Sag volunteers that you got to help follow you on this crazy thing called Ironman. What a journey.

I talked with his daughter Toni for a little while as well, and at one point she pulled me to the side and told me about Henry's cancer. They had recently found out about it, and the prognosis wasn't good. She told us she wasn't sure how many more events he would be able to attend, but that speaking with people and being at the events was truly one of his favorite past times. Toni gave me her card and we hugged and promised to keep in touch. I believe that event was one of the last one's that he attended while in a working capacity. Toni and I always talked at events, and Jeff and I would get the latest updates. The poor family truly went on a rollercoaster ride through his illness. Henry had a risky surgery that would yield questionable results. The surgery left them hopeful after one doctors visit showed no cancer. This was the last thing that I had heard from Toni, and it was around the end of May.

I opened my email this morning to learn of Henry's passing, and it really hit home with me. I will always visit the Try-A-Tri tent at events, but it will be very hard the first time I get to see Toni again and Henry isn't there with his reassuring words. He always remained optimistic, and was the first one to cheer for other people. I hope you will help his family with your thoughts and prayers, and if you haven't visited Try-A-Tri please do. The business is run by the family, and spreads his message through everything they sell.

Greg Spindler is organizing a stretching/flexibility workshop this weekend. Greg is AWESOME, he is one of the reasons I was able to train and complete an IM with a separated tailbone.

Contact: (864)877-3500 $64 for one, just $94 to bring a friend, bring towels or yoga mat
When: Saturday November 8, 2008 9-4pm
Where: Buncombe Street United Methodist Church
200 Buncombe Street, Greenville, SC

To see more information about his workshop go to:
http://www.gregspindler.com/wellness.html

Ok, so I am trying to get back into the swing of working out however it's so hard to be so out of shape. I have officially made it to 3 of my masters swim classes which is amazing considering the lack of motivation to get up early these days. I talked Sarah, someone I coach, into coming out to try Keogh's swim class. See, she has transformed leaps and bounds from what she started at and I knew that if Keogh saw her and helped she could get even better. Well, the girl has gone from barely making it a length to passing me, so I must have done something right. Or, she has just put forth so much effort that her hard work is paying off. I believe the latter is the real truth. I am extremely competitive, but I have to say I don't think I have ever been so excited to be passed. It's so nice to see someone's hard work pay off.

So the swimming has been progressing, atleast in the sense that I am swimming twice a week. Other than that I have been hitting the weights 2 to 3 times a week and running (crawling) 3 times a week. Forrest has officially requested that I not use my garmin for the time being. I just need to remember not everything is about how fast you go. I have good days where I remember, but then I have others where I completely digress. One of those days was Saturday. I decided that I was going to do the half marathon just to get the miles in. I didn't tell anyone about it ahead of time b/c I truly wanted to just go out there and enjoy myself. I thought that if I didn't have anyone to run with that maybe it could be as great as my 10 mile run the week before. I was sadly mistaken. I didn't wear my garmin, but I have come to the conclusion that I went out too fast. About mile 9 I was forced to walking. I walked every ten minutes for atleast a minute sometimes more. I was seriously thinking to myself that I needed to have my head examined for being out there. I have done countless races using them as training days, and still done fairly well. I think the difference is that I wasn't "fit" for a 13 mile run. I would have been okay to do a 13 mile jog, but I got caught up in the moment. I learn valuable lessons all the time, and this one was a big one. I learned that for now I need to run by myself for the most part, I need to leave the garmin at home, and I need to stay away from any long distance races for atleast a month. I know, I know, what am I thinking doing any of this right now but you have to understand I had 9 weeks of purely sitting on the couch. Right now I need to keep the races on the calendar b/c that keeps me doing my workouts.

I have to say one last thing, YEA Ashley! Ok, maybe more than one. I am so proud of you for getting back on the bike, it was comforting to see you before the half too. I was clueless. Katherine Welling also had a busy weekend with her trip to AZ for Best of the US, I am sure she represented SC well.

Please spread the word about Duke’s jingle contest and forward this to friends and family.

Submit your entry for Duke’s Mayonnaise’s jingle contest today for a chance to win $500 cash, a year’s supply of Duke’s Mayonnaise and your jingle featured on a run of limited-edition Duke’s Mayonnaise jars.

The contest ends October 31 so submit your entry today! More details about the contest are below and at www.dukesmayo.com.

Note: Use of Duke’s attributes (creamy, smooth, family recipe, homemade flavor, tangy and sugar-free) are an added judging bonus.

Option 1: Mail your jingle on a CD, DVD or VHS tape with your entry form (downloaded from www.dukesmayo.com) to: Duke’s Jingle Contest, c/o Allison & Partners, 505 Sansome Street, 7th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94111.

Option 2: Go to YouTube (www.youtube.com) to upload your jingle and title it with “Duke’s Mayo Jingle 08” in addition to your first initial and last name. Example: Duke’s Mayo Jingle 08: J. Smith. Download entry form at www.dukesmayo.com and mail separately to: Duke’s Jingle Contest, c/o Allison & Partners, 505 Sansome Street, 7th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94111.

DEADLINE: All YouTube entries must submitted by 11:59 p.m. ET, October 31, 2008. All CD/DVD recordings must be postmarked no later than October 31, 2008. Entry forms must be postmarked no later than October 31, 2008.

PRIZES: The Grand Prize winning jingle will be printed on a Duke’s Mayonnaise jar and featured on www.dukesmayo.com. Additionally, the winner will receive $500 and a year’s supply of Duke’s Mayonnaise.

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Yes, this has been my motto over the last couple of days. I decided to do a 7 mile run over at the HK tri course, and I didn't do any of the above things except smile. I don't know whether it was the 4 hours sleep or if it was just b/c that run course is so tough, but I was struggling. I wouldn't have smiled but all these racers were passing me going the other way and I felt bad enough not doing the entire tri that I had to force some kind of grimace.

So, for the rest of the week I have told myself to not look how SLOW I am going and to just enjoy myself. It has worked! Take the pressure off myself and the whole world is good. Just going out for a run is great, I can't explain it. The day seems so much better when you can do a run and get everything off your mind. I wasn't concentrating on speed, I was paying attention to all the beautiful scenery around me. Nothin better than that! Boy are we spoiled, if only we always appreciated the pretty place we live.

Fun, who does that these days? J/k. Okay so with the stress of everything going on these days, you would think that getting back to working out would be the best thing for me. Can someone remind me of that when the alarm clock goes off in the morning? I just can't bring myself to get up! I have jogged 3x out of the past 4 days and it has been wonderful once I get out there, it's the getting there that's difficult. No wonder we have so many overweight people in America. I can completely sympathize b/c I LOVE to eat. Not working out for 9 weeks has eventually caught up with me, and the clothes are starting not to fit right. I guess that's my sign that my rear needs to get back into gear (it rhymes, heheh).

I have decided that I am going to get a program together that has swimming wednesdays and fridays (atleast) and running/jogging/maybe some walking on tues, thurs, sat, maybe sun. I like running the most, and tend to get out the most aggression and stress that way but I know I need to swim as well. I think I shall throw in some weights a couple of times a week as well seeing how I have been collecting flab. Unlike Ashley, when I wasn't supposed to do what I love I decided to sit on my butt and do nothing. I think she may have had a better plan than me, who cares if people stare at you while doing backward lunges in the park.

So, for all you people out there who thought I was a training machine, you were sadly mistaken. I am just like everyone else, and have to buckle down at times and force myself to do things. The one thing that I try to remember when I don't want to do a workout is how much I truly enjoy it once I get out there. I am incredibly slow on my jogs right now, but atleast I am back to loving being out there. I smile to myself, even when it feels like I have a cinder block for a rear, and know how truly lucky I am to be able to do the things I do. Next time you have a bad day, go exercise, it's guaranteed to make you feel a little better.

Well, I know it's been a while since I have blogged. . . I have been busy with recovery, work, and all kinds of fun stuff. The recovery is now in the stages where I don't want to hurt someone. I tend to bite off more than I can chew sometimes, and I went back to work a week after surgery. I told myself I would do partial days but it didn't work that way. I ended up toughing it out and going back to work full force. Who knows what I was thinking, but it is over and done with now so oh well.

Good news is that I got my stitches out last week, thank goodness, and was given the clearance to jog/run and start swimming this week. I did the Susan B. Komen 5k on Saturday since it is for such a great cause, and it didn't go too bad. I have to say I don't recommend not working out for 9 weeks and then doing a 5k after running only once in that timeframe. I never claimed to be smart. I did jog the 5k with a little effort, and finished right under 27 minutes. It was nice to help for charity, but I really enjoyed my jog by myself today much more. Now I just have to keep the motivation going . . .that should be interesting.

I do want to say congrats to ALL the hammerheads, age groupers, and spectators (me) who went out to the Greenwood SC Half! I went out to volunteer and cheer on everyone that I am normally racing with. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and agree with Kat Welling, spectating (is this a word) is exhausting! Sarah Parker finished her first ever half ironman, and did great! I couldn't help but laugh when she was on the run course complaining about the run and in the same sentence asked if she could be ready for an IM by 2010. There were lots of great finishes on Sunday, and lots of pr's. Forrest, the person who tries to keep me in line, had a great race beating his pr by almost 15 mins! Forrest, I think you have some work to do on me if you are pulling races out like that. Greg Spindler also had an awesome finish, 11th overall! If you haven't met him yet, click on his link to the left and learn about the services he has to offer, they are well worth it.

I have one last person to congratulate . ..Lucy Allen finished her first 75 mile ride! She did wonderful, and also raised money for MS at the same time.

The last update I have is Zeal Optics is finally giving a coupon code for all of you to have so you can try there product! I will get the link on the left updated where it will have the coupon code below it, but for now you can go to www.pro.zealoptics.com (copy and paste website address), then the code you enter is ZEALBLOG20 and the automatically gets you into the site with the 20% discount. If you haven't checked out these sunglasses, you need to. I personally have too many pairs, so my hubby says, and I am always trying there new styles. They are lightweight, versatile, and also made from recycled products!

Hopefully I am back on track and will be back to my website a couple of times a week! My mom always said if you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all, so rather than complain I thought I would remain quiet. Thanks to all the friends that have helped through the last month, I haven't always been cheery! Regina and Ashley, the pity party isn't over yet so don't think your jobs are done. I won't quit yet either:)

I am home and couldn't be happier:)! Surgery actually went really well, they had me up and walking around pretty soon and it wasn't too bad. Morphine can make things a lot better. I was hoping to get home this morning, but I didn't get discharged until 12:30. I have to say I was just happy that things went the way they were supposed to. The doctor finally came in around 11 am and talked to me about the surgery. He said once they got in there the tailbone was very easy to get out. I guess it helps when the tailbone is no longer attached to anything and it's just "floating" (I kid you not) in soft tissue. Once they took the tailbone out they shaved down the sacrum bone some b/c it was protruding a little as well. At first when the doctor asked me if I felt any different I told him I didn't think so. I love it when people make me think b/c I had not even noticed that the persistent lower back pain was nonexistent. Of course, my butt still hurt like heck since they did shave bone and all. So how many stitches does it take to seal up a butthole? Nine! Just kidding, they didn't quite get that far but it did take nine stitches to get my little tailbone out. The doctor was nice enough to tell me that in 3 weeks when stitches are out I will be able to swim and . . . . RUN! Yeah!!!! Bike riding will be the absolute last thing I do, but since I don't have another tri to train for right now I am okay with that.

I have to say a big THANK YOU to everyone that has checked on me and came by to see me. Jeff, Keogh, Sarah, dad, papa, donna, and heath were nice enough to help me pass the time right after surgery. I love it when people filter in b/c it makes the hours at a hospital so much nicer. Sarah was even nice enough to bring me an inflatable pool inner tube to use as an over sized donut pillow. I guess she thought they were stuffing more in my butt and not taking it out. I got a text from Ashley and saw that her surgery went well. I am sure her parents are taking great care of her. I am truly blessed to have the friends and family I do, you guys make days like these so much easier for me. I can't say how much I appreciate all the support.

I am going to sign off now, and take some more pain killers so if I have made any grammatical errors please excuse them:).

First news is good news. . . Julie Murphy rocks! I sat by the computer last sunday anxiously awaiting for the Chicago triathlon to be over. I was not a big fan of their tracking system, but Julie made it all worth while. She finished 3rd overall and I couldn't have been happier. Julie's GO Mag article came out this week, and she deserves the attention more than anyone I know. Who else would be crazy enough to swim 12.5 miles?

Bad news from over the weekend was Ashley Long's bike wreck. She will be joining me in the surgery world tomorrow. As weird as it may be, we are having surgery 20 minutes apart tomorrow. Too bad we are at different hospitals, we could be bunk mates and it would be more enjoyable. Nothing like a couple of doped up athletes to make eachother feel better. I am ready for mine to be here and over with. This injury has consumed the past few months of my life, and I am ready to move on to training consuming my life again. Atleast that would be better for my waist line! So, my surgery is at 11:50 tomorrow (Friday) and I will be at Patewood's new Greenville Hospital System building. I have heard the cafe is the bomb, which is a good thing b/c I am there overnight! I will become friends with the pain pump, that's for sure.

One last piece of exciting news is that I have 2 friends competing in their first Ironman this weekend. WOOHOO!!!! Kat and Troy are doing IMKY this weekend, and what better way to pass my time than field text messages from Kat and then watch the race online all day long on Sunday. I don't think I have ever been more excited for someone to race. They have both trained so hard for this race, and like the typical IM athlete have suffered mood swings, injuries, exhaustion, and and did I mention they live together? Forrest says that there's nothing worse than two IM athletes living together and tapering at the same time. I will take his word for it. Any who, I am going to sign off and try to watch some tv and not think too much about tomorrow. It doesn't help the drs. office sent stuff to the office that went back over what all can go wrong. Boy do they like to make me sweat. As a friend of mine says, it is what it is. So I guess I will enjoy my last meal :) and have some dessert.

So what have I been up to? Sleep, tv, and making permanent indentions into the couch. I think I have formed my own groove in the couch I seem to be there so often. It was nice at first just because I think your body appreciates the downtime after IM training, but now I am just tired all the time from not working out and possibly getting too much sleep. I do have to say I had a blast at Ashley Long's get together. She had great food, great people, and her parents are awesome. I have enjoyed the weekends. I have volunteered every weekend for the past 3 weeks, and it's nice to give back to the community that is always helping me out. This leads into the AWESOME cause I referenced above. Most of you are used to me raising money for cancer, which is an important cause, but the cause dearest to my heart is Multiple Sclerosis. I have recently had 2 people I know that are raising money for MS, and I can't help but support them 100%.

The first person is Brad, and I put him first b/c he hasn't met his goal yet. Brad's mom has MS, and he is doing his first Ironman in her honor. For those of you who don't know much about MS, if you read a little about it you will see why it's so important to raise money for a cure. Currently, there isn't any cure, and MS can have a huge effect on quality of life. Everyone that has it can have different symptoms, some people go blind and aren't effected in any other way, while others lose their ability to get around, and lastly some are effected by cognitive functions. PLEASE donate to this cause, just click on the link provided. I know that Brad would appreciate any amount large or small. http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Walk/NCPWalkEvents?px=4354800&pg=personal&fr_id=8784&s_tafId=72055

Lucy Allen is the other person raising money. Lucy is going to do her first 75 mile ride, and I couldn't be more proud of her to take on this challenge. I was lucky enough to be there when Lucy completed her goal last year of her first olympic distance triathlon, and can't wait to see her finish her huge goal this year. I will put her link up as soon as I get it if you would like to help support her!

I never realized how much I raced until now, and I never realized how much I trained until now which has made think there isn't much to report on. I do have things to report on though. I had a great day on Saturday which included volunteering at the Paris Mtn. Trail Run, and then followed up with a drop in on Regina. She said we were going to have to start our own club b/c we are pitiful, and I have to say on some days I agree. Every athlete has been through an injury at some point and time, it's just trying to remind yourself it's not the end of the world and there is life outside of training and triathlons . . .really I promise!

Regina's update includes a frozen shoulder on top of the plate in her elbow healing so quickly it was locked in place. You can only imagine how great her physical therapy goes on a daily basis. She's hanging in there like a trooper though and has been given the go ahead to get back on the trainer, which was a milestone in itself. We did reminisce about Austria and laugh about a few things I promised not to repeat. The day was definitely made better by Regina commiserating with me for a while. Forrest even managed to appear for a little while after his 3 hour ride.

One thing is official, and that is that the "swim gods" have not wanted me to swim. The past 3 times I have tried to swim I have been denied for some reason or another, so Ashley Long informed me that if she were me, she would start listening to the swim gods and hit the couch instead. She says that, but I know she would keep trying to defy them anyway.

On another subject, I have set a date for surgery and it is August 29th @11:15, woohoo! Maybe now I can try to focus on recovery and have some kind of end in sight to think about. The surgery is an overnight stay, but I am sure it will go off without a hitch. Regina and I even talked about setting our "joint" goal as Myrtle Beach for our next race to focus on. I hadn't wanted to do the race before now, but I think the timing will be perfect and a way to gradually get back into shape. I won't have any pressure to get back too soon and can hopefully be in shape enough to give good old Boston another shot.

One more thing, if you read below you will see I have posted an IM Austria Race Report. I thought it would be nice to have another persons perspective on how IM Austria went on race day. Susan Dupont was nice enough to let me post it so I hope you enjoy!

Sunday, July 13, 2008. We must look like those clowns that pack themselves into a teeny tiny car is my first thought as Forrest, Regina, Jeff, Nicole, and myself wedge ourselves into the European rental car that Nicole has so graciously rented for the trip. The utter hilarity of five grown adults each carrying massive transition backpacks at four thirty in the morning fitting into an Volkswagen Beetle sized car can only mean one thing….we’re doing an Ironman!

Riding with Nicole is like going down a winding staircase at 55mph. The IM would be a piece of cake after riding with her. She drives like a stockcar racer, but she got us where we needed to be and without me puking into a barf bag (that’s another story). As our slapstick comedy routine literally tumbles out of the car, I am greeted with my first good omen of the day: a dog! Not just any ole’ dog, but a genuine Australian cattle dog. And she is only about 20 feet away. For those that know me, there are a couple superstitions that I have before race day. The biggest one is the petting of the dog. Any dog will do, but cool dogs that have personality are the best. And I had stumbled upon one of the coolest breeds out there. Luckily for me, the owners of this little girl were more than happy to let me waller all over their dog and throw stick with it until I noticed the glare coming from Forrest that told me my time was up. Moving on.

The transition area was memorable only because of the extreme security measures taken by IM Austria to prevent theft of bicycles or unauthorized entry into the TA. Policemen with attack dogs, complete with Hannibal Lector muzzles guarded the transition area. This was so funny to me that I had to take a picture. These Austrians were serious about crime. Perhaps the one good thing about being in less than 10% of the field was the fact female racers did not have to face the long bathroom lines that the remaining 90% of the males had to endure. Nicole and I loved being able to just walk into the bathroom, a luxury we are never afforded in American races.

The time had come for the race to begin and I felt strangely out of sorts not following Regina to the start. I had never done an IM without her and I had done probably five races in my entire career without her. I did have Nicole, but I could tell that she was having the same thoughts as I was. Regina has always been the one we would cling to and cry to before the gun went off….now we had to race without her. Damn it, Regina !!! A couple interesting sights kept me morbidly amused (or petrified) as I noticed a woman and child being wrenched away from a man in a wetsuit (presumably the father/husband) at the gate to the swim entrance by an Austrian policeman. He shoved the woman and child to the right and the man to the left, yelling at them in German. It looked very Schindler’s List-like as I watched them get swallowed up in the crowd. This was immediately followed by the priest I saw on the shore of the swim start, blessing participants before the start. Do we really need a priest for this race????? Boom! The gun goes off and suddenly Nicole and I find ourselves standing alone on the beach. She bolts and this is the last time I will see her until the run.

The swim was the nicest, cleanest, prettiest, and most enjoyable race swim I have ever done, bar none. Getting to see a real life castle at the turn buoy is reason enough to just stop swimming and gawk. My initial fear before the race was replaced by awe and excitement and I tried to mentally remember everything for my report to Regina . The canal was not as bad as I thought, probably because I have swum in SC lakes that were littered with just as much seaweed. I popped out of the swim with a wave to Regina and headed to T1 pleased with my slow time of 1:30 (even though Forrest had been finished thirty minutes ago with his swim).

The bike course was something out of a movie. Picture Julie Andrews riding a tri bike with aerobars and lederhosen. Or Maria Von Trapp’s hair peeking out of her aerohelmet as she grabs a bottle at the handoff. I now know why they couldn’t stop singing in that movie….it was all I could do to not burst out into song myself. The course was beautiful with quaint towns and pastoral views of farm animals and hillsides. The entire population of some of these towns were outside cheering on the participants. I felt like I was riding in the Tour de France. The hills were the best; nice grunts that were no more difficult than any given hill on which we had trained in SC and the throngs of spectators so thick as they parted that you really felt like you were riding one of the stages in the tour. I did get to see the devil and was so comfortable in the saddle that I didn’t even notice the worst hill of all, the Rupertiberg (11%) until I had finished climbing it. Forrest had trained us well by making us do Green River Cove.

But then somewhere about mile 82, my Sound of Music film turned into a scene from another movie….Titanic. Or maybe that part in the Bible where God decides to send a flood to destroy the world and the only ones who survive are on an ark. I noticed that it had been looking like it was going to come up a cloud, but when you have to take off your sunglasses because it is so dark outside, you realize quickly that the cloud has come up. Add this the fact that every cow I saw was lying down could only mean one thing: Rain. And not just any ole’ rain. Not a sprinkle, or a misting, or even a steady downpour. This was a damn deluge!!!!! Storm and stress! Sturm und Drang! Rain came down so hard that it felt like it was cutting me. Several people reported hailstones. Zig zag lightning bolts dominated the sky. I noticed my teeth were chattering and I didn’t know if it was because I was so cold or scared. I chalked it up to a little bit of both. A girl in front of me crashed going around a sharp curve and this was enough to slow me down to a crawl and have me bargaining with God. I have never been so scared on a bike and each boom of thunder seemed to literally rattle my bike frame.

A draft marshall/official hollered at me on the course but since I don’t speak German, I had no idea what he was saying. The rain prevented me from hearing him all that well and I was so afraid that I had a penalty that I went straight to the penalty box when I got back to transition. The wonderful people there, who spoke flawless English, told me that the storm knocked out their computer system so they have no idea who has a penalty until the marshalls check back in from the course. They explained to me that I could decide to either sit out four minutes as a precaution or proceed with the race and possibly be DQ’d if there was a penalty. Since I was frozen and chilled anyway, I opted for the former and sat out four minutes with the officials before I hit the run. Four minutes was nothing for me to lose and I was simply grateful to be off the bike So I took my time in the transition tent and tried to warm myself up. Oh, another reason why I love the Austrians: in order to get to the women’s changing tent, the woman must first walk through the men’s changing tents. Gotta love it!

By the time I started my run the rain was subsiding and I was given an unexpected treat when one of our new English wanker friends eased up beside me coming out of transition. I had recently discovered by way of my new British friends, that all they knew about America/Americans connected in some way to an episode of Family Guy. This really didn’t bother me because all I knew about the English was based on episodes of Benny Hill or Monty Python so I figured we were even. Needless to say we all became fast friends and I got to be the butt of many of their jokes and a believer of numerous and sundry fibs they told me (Tim was injured by shrapnel, for example. Totally believed.). Of course when I saw him, I assumed that Tim was starting his second loop of the run, but I was shocked to hear that he was starting his first. Turns out Tim sucks at swimming, something of his own admission, but something that I had not believed because you NEVER believe a triathlete when he says a) he is either not good at something or b) hasn’t been able to train (did you hear that Rose???). Turns out Tim was telling the truth about his swimming ability. He was also telling the truth when he said that the run was his strongest leg of the triathlon, so I encouraged him to put it in gear and not wait on me. Tim was off in a flash and turned out a great four hour marathon. Not bad for a first IM.

I managed to catch Forrest on the last mile of my first loop. He was finishing his second loop (of course) and when I looked at my watch I realized that he could break eleven hours again. Excited by this prospect, I upped my pace and let Forrest follow me. This was the hardest part of the run for me because I was determined to get him in under eleven hours. When I dropped Forrest off at the turn for the finish line, I was so tickled that I was screaming for him. Forrest managed to turn out a 10:46, well under the eleven hour mark and his personal best time to date, despite a freak accident at the special needs handoff where he flipped over his handlebars. I was so proud of him and glad that Regina would be able to share in his finish

I cranked out a 13:08 finish time. Not bad considering how slow I went for forty miles on the bike and the fact that I hung out with the officials for four minutes. Along the way I was able to see Nicole, Jeff, and our other wanker friend Tom….who was walking when I saw him but still managed to pull off a low eleven something IM. How can you do that???? Regina was waiting on me at the finish line and I broke down when I saw her. I have no idea if it was out of sadness at her not being able to race, relief at being done, or happiness of my accomplishment. Maybe a little of the three.

All in all, the day was fantastic despite the deluge, with temps near perfect and the course turned out to be the prettiest I’d seen. This race made IM Florida look like Coon Dog Days in Saluda , NC .

*Tim John, the British wanker completed his first IM, but still won’t shave his legs.

*Tom Clements, the other British wanker, pulled off a sub hour swim. That’s sick fast. Good job to both of you blokes. Now you’re free to watch all the Family Guy you want.

*Austrians have weird taste in music. E.g. “It’s Rainin’ Men” and a disco version of John Denver’s “Country Roads” were popular favorites. They also like Duran Duran and eighties metal (but who doesn’t?)

*Although this has nothing to do with the race, it is a rule worth knowing. Never, under any circumstance give Jeff guacamole. It makes him angry. And you wouldn’t like him when he’s angry.

Jeff also had a personal best race despite dragging me all over Klagenfurt looking for a train the day before.

*Nicole’s daddy made it to the start of the race preventing a near crisis meltdown and propelling Nicole to a great race and a 1:10 swim time.

*None of this would have been possible without Forrest’s glaring and yelling. I live for that kind of praise. He is simply the best coach ever and I am lucky that he continues to tolerate my silliness and whining and bad eating habits (Coca cola and Hawaiian sweet rolls).

* Regina “Sherpin’ Ain’t Easy” Fowler did not get to race, but she pulled off the toughest IM race of the day watching, cheering, and waiting on the four of us. She is our rock and without her we would all truly be lost. Sniff.

I haven't been wanting to blog lately b/c I haven't been in the best of moods b/c of the tailbone issue. The tailbone has been worse since IM and the drugs aren't even cutting it. So, on top of being in pain I haven't worked out in 3 weeks so you can only imagine how pleasant I am to be around:) I went for a surgical consult today at Steadman Hawkins with Dr. McHenry, the only dr. in the upstate who does the surgery, and it went fairly well. I guess. Well to make a long story short, I am going to take a week to decide if having my tailbone removed is the right option for me. There are multiple issues with this surgery, one of which is there isn't any guarantee that removing the tailbone will fix the problem and not cause more. I guess once they remove the tailbone there is a chance that the sacrum being at the bottom could become painful as well. They have tried and exhausted noninvasive methods, so the question becomes am I ready for the invasive. I do also have to think longterm and bring up the subject of having kids. Lots of women break their tailbone or have tailbone issues with normal childbirth, and with me already having a pre-existing issue I would have to say it's likely it would happen to me. So, what to do . . .take a couple of days and think it over and decide if the pros are worth the cons and if I am willing to take the risk.

On another note, I was more than thrilled to get out to help volunteer at the Run2overcome that they had to help raise money for the jogger that was assaulted a couple of months ago. I have also already filled my next 2 weekends with more volunteering. The Paris Mtn. Trail run is what's on tap for next weekend, and then the Greenville Tri the weekend after that. If I can't participate, why not give back. Volunteering is the one thing that can make me feel good, and not so out of touch from my training friends. I hope to have some type of resolution soon, that way I can work on recovering and have some more focus.

The day before the race was a little hectic. My dad called later in the day to tell me his flight was cancelled and he was in Paris. He was going to drive race morning if necessary. Luckily he got in at 11pm the night before the race. Crisis averted. Our hotel people forgot to mention the big concert with fireworks that was scheduled the night before the race. I had earplugs, not jeff. I think he got 4 hours of sleep the night before the race, but he's used to no sleep. Hey, atleast he got to view a fantastic fireworks show right from our room.

Race morning I got up at 3:45 am, feeling as good as one can feel the morning of an ironman. I made last minute checks of my special needs bags. I still wasn't feeling quite like normal, just a little out of my element. I ate my breakfast of banana and peanut butter and bread and loaded the car. Jeff and I then headed out to pick up the rest of the crew (forrest, regina, and susan). I got there and we are all nervously laughing about different things. Then Jeff has to open his mouth about this big bouy he sees out in the water. Need I remind you we are still on our way to the race site and it's clear we are atleast a mile away. I think Susan and I almost got sick right there. During our normal race preparations I realize I have left my h/r monitor watch back at the room. I start to panic. I frantically call my dad who says he will get there asap to bring it to me. Thank goodness for Jeff's world phone idea. I promise you we looked for my dad right next to the big red balloon for 25 mins., and couldn't find him. I really start to panic. Not only am I spazzing b/c of no watch, but now I am freaking out b/c my only support crew hasn't seen me this morning. I kid you not, 5 mins. before we start (didn't know this at the time) Jeff finds my dad and all is well. I am crying and all emotional, but then get into a calm before the storm type mood.

Susan and I look around each other wondering what to do now, Regina is normally guiding us at this point. So we decide to chill out at the back of the crowd while everyone else gets ready. Then suddenly people are getting in the water. I ask the referee type guy if we have 15 mins. left b/c the pros normally go off first, and he informs us it's time to go now. Susan and I take off instantly into race mode without a word said b/w us. Okay, maybe a curse word of sorts was involved. I guess they just send the pros off 30 meters ahead of the "regular" people and call it even. I am so clueless sometimes. Secretly my goal for this particular IM swim was to post a 1:10 swim. I had talked with forrest and he thought it was possible with the canal and type swim this is. Oh, I almost forgot, forrest also said he would dunk me and not let me come up for air if I didn't open my eyes under water. That's some motivation. J/k. After trying it a few times in the practice swims there, I decided I would do it race day as well. It wasn't as bad as I had anticipated, and it definitely helped with the drafting and sighting. I felt comfortable and strong throughout the entire swim. Once we hit the canal (maybe 15 ft. wide) all 2400 of us cram trying to get to the same spot at the same time, and that makes for some speed as well. I was only hit a couple of times, climbed over 3 or 4 times, and kicked a million. I came out of the swim at 1:10:59. Boy did I cut that close!

I head out of transition and the weather is a little overcast, which is perfect. The day before had been pretty hot, so I was okay with overcast weather. The bike is 2 loops with 2 climbs that are pretty decent for a triathlon. I try to hold back and be consistent, which is hard. The bike course may be a little hilly, but the crowd support is like the tour de france. People line the streets in all the towns you go through and on the big climbs there were dj's and music all just to support you. All I remember hearing is HOP HOP HOP, SUPER, BRAVO! It was the most amazing thing ever. You look around and the scenery is breathtaking. The first loop Jeff passes me at the end, and I tell him to have at it. I did my first loop avg. 17.5, and welcome special needs. I can tell that I need some food and down my pb&j and some potato sticks. The lady looks at me like I am crazy as I pull out my patch to put on my tailbone. A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do. My tailbone wasn't killing me, but climbing definitely makes it ache. I start to get my 2nd wind about the time the torrential downpour with thunder and lightning begins. Amazingly enough, I start to laugh. All I could do was smile. Who cared it was raining, I have done my fair share of riding in the rain. Julie said I would be lucky if it rained, and maybe she was right. I was a little concerned b/c both the climbs still needed to be conquered which included some very technical downhills. I passed a good many people on the downhills. I prayed people would get out of my way and hung on for dear life. I avoided the pot holes and paint, and was upset at myself for not learning "on your left!" in German. I didn't make up as much time as I would have liked, but I came out of it without crashing. My avg. had went down to 17 mph with a bike time of 6:24. I have never done a hilly distance this far with a marathon afterwards, so i was a little concerned about how my legs will be. I didn't need to be.

I get out on the run and have to slow myself down. I am glad to have my garmin b/c the h/r monitor stopped working after the swim, so I didn't have a watch or know my total time. I do know that my bike compared to florida was slower so i wasn't going to PR. Even telling myself to slow down, I think I passed the halfway point at around 1:50. Again, a smile planted on my face. The crowd was so uplifting every step you took. I even had people cheer for me b/c of the red white and blue uniform, they were cheering for an american! I saw my dad around mile 15 and tell him I am doing ok, but the tailbone is starting to ache a little. The wonderful patch was destroyed in the downpour on the bike so I was out of luck for help with the ache. He told me all that mattered was that I finished. I did good until 15k left, or 9 miles. The tailbone was too much for me to take. It hurt to walk at this point. I tried speed walking but the movement of the arms was even worse. So I told myself to walk and just finish. I didn't cry, I didn't even get too mad at myself. It was kind of weird. I was so thankful to be where I was, participating in an IM, that I didn't even let it bother me. I knew that I was doing all that I could do. I wasn't quitting even when it sucked. I still smiled, and was still happy. 6 miles later, still hurting and walking, I decide that I can bite my lip for 3 miles. I managed to run through downtown Klagenfurt through the crowds, and make it all the way to the finish. My dad had my tiara waiting on me. What an amazing race, I even heard forrest and regina yell at me. I think my run was 4:24, I have tried to avoid looking at it:) My complete time was 12:21, which was amazing to me b/c I was convinced with all my walking I was at 13 hours. I still finished in the middle of my age group, there were 64 women in my age group. I finished in the 1600's out of 2453 (i think 180 people either dnf'd or were dq'd) and was dumbfounded at the competition. I have never been passed by so many people on the bike, these people know what they are doing.

Forrest had a personal best, Jeff had a personal best, and Susan and I were just grateful to survive. Regina was the best sherpa ever, and was such a trooper. Can you imagine being tapered for an IM, and only being able to watch? She was so supportive, and I am grateful she still made the trip!

Thanks to everyone for the support, hopefully I will be back to working order soon!

Oh, where to start . . . I am very glad that I got to Austria when I did. Jeff and I arrived in Austria the morning of July 6th. We planned to stay in Munich one day to hang out with a coworker (Stefan) who used to live in the states. Stefan and his family were wonderful. They cooked for us (i love food) and gave us a tour around Ausburg. Ausburg was a cute old town, and the buildings were beautiful. The only problem was I felt like I was on a vacation, and not tapering for an IM.

The next day we headed to Klagenfurt via rental car. The drive was amazing, Greg Spindler was right, well worth not flying into Klagenfurt. I took pictures out the window while driving, and we even stopped a few times just to enjoy the scenery. I also have to say I fully enjoyed the Autoban and pushed the rental up to 145 mph. HOW COOL! if only I had the mini pooper over there. By the time we got there I was worn out, but it was just in time for dinner. The restaurant we had that night was authentic Austrian cuisine and it was magnificent. I have to say, they aren't big on veggies though. I don't think one meal I ordered over there came with veggies, and I am all about getting my veggies in for the day.

On the 8th we purely did sight seeing around the lake and checking things out. The bikes were put together without too much drama. We even did a bike ride to the race sight and took some pictures. What an awesome sight, I can see why Katie Malone spent summers here. I found a local bakery that made a good latte machiatto and I was set. The little town that we stayed in was about 6 miles from the race site and it was called Portschach. We had restaurants on every corner and cute little boutiques, it was a great decision.

Wednesday the 9th the only thing on my schedule was to pick up Forrest, Regina (crip), and Susan from the airport. I managed to get lost on the way b/c the spelling of cities over there is different than here and I got confused. Luckily I had Jeff's world phone and managed to call our bed and breakfast. Wien, that is how the spell Vienna so I thought I had missed a turn or was going the wrong direction when I didn't see it spelled the way I spell it. Oh well, there plane was late anyway. The arrived safely with Susan barfing as they got off the plane. It was really funny, I know that sounds cruel but you would just have to be around everyone to understand. Regina faired pretty well with the airplane ride considering the monstrosity on her arm. In case you haven't been in the loop she had a tragedy on Goodwin Bridge Road 3 weeks before IM and had to have a plate put in her elbow. I got everyone back to their place in one piece and then we got some grub. The day was spent just trying to get everyone acclimated and it ended with Forrest trying his best to stay awake and finally giving in to the sleep that was required.

The next couple days were busy and uneventful, Friday we drove the 56 mile loop of the bike course. I thought I was going to die when I saw Rupertsberg (sp?). It wasn't just a hill it was a 2 part hill that never seemed to end. This bike course was hilly for me, atleast for IM standards. Remember, the only IM's I had done were Florida . . .pancake flat. I mentioned I might stay in bed and not come out, they informed me that wasn't an option. TO BE CONTINUED . . .

Would you like to track us? I am forewarning that with the time change our race actually starts at 1am on Sunday, July 13th. So when most of you get up in the morning we will hopefully be on the run portion of the race or on the last leg of the bike. If you want to see updates go to www.ironman.com and make sure you look for Ironman Austria b/c Ironman Switzerland is taking place the same day. Here are our participant numbers in case you want to check on everyone!

I didn't quite get to finish my update last night, I got a phone call from GMan letting me know that he and Janis were home and ready for me to pick up the bike box. I was very thankful that it fit in the mini, that was only with the top down. I did get quite a few stares leaving his neighborhood. Thanks again for the box Chris!

Anyway, I still haven't done any of the things that I need to do, but I was able to run today. WOOHOO! I had a nice size grapefruit growing off the side of my knee from this past weekends off road adventure and it prevented me from running over the past couple of days. I am on my way to healing and found out this morning that my rear hasn't moved too much from last week either, so I really liked all the good news today. Someone who specializes in tailbones attempted to put my tailbone back in place last week and there was some concern it wouldn't stay there. For the most part it's still there, just minor movement. Another WOOHOOO!!

Okay, so all the hours that have been logged (or not, j/k) for training are done and all the doubts and concerns are thrown out the window. It's almost race time. Today was the first day that it hit me that IM isn't so far away. For me, now is the time for the nervous excitement. You put so much effort, blood, sweat, and tears (I cried more than once through training) into IM training, that it's incredibly exciting right before the race. I am confident that my training is banked and done, and now know that whatever the day has in store for me, that is what will happen. Everyone going to Austria or that has done an IM knows that you can control everything up to race day and then it's just what Forrest calls "crisis management". Hopefully the race gods will be in our favor that day and everything will come into alignment.

One last note, please keep all of us in your thoughts and prayers. I know this will be a mental race for me b/c my normal support system won't be as large as usual and I will have to be a big girl and go out on my own. Heath will have to REALLY send great thoughts my way. I usually forget what I am supposed to do, so believe me when I say I really need all the support I can get. I am thankful for my dad making the trip, and I know Regina will be there supporting. Fun stuff, and we will be hammering on!

So, am I ready? Am I packed? Do I have everything taken care of . . . NO! To be truthful with you, it still hasn't hit me that I am leaving in 4 days so it's kind of hard to get motivated to pack. I have slowly but surely been getting little things done here and there, but the major stuff hasn't been started. How do you pack for 2 weeks in another country when you want to pack light? I think it is virtually impossible, the only good thing is I have a few friends who are old pros at racing abroad. Julie Murphy was nice enough to bring me her backpack filled with goodies she always seems to forget. Regina and I talk almost every day figuring out what last minute things we haven't thought about.

One piece of good news is that after my bike was inspected today, it was given a clean bill of health. I have to say I was very thankful for that b/c I had a bike wreck myself over the weekend. Nothing big, just a little off road riding involving a somersault or two. I must get some better handling skills!

I know some inquiring minds would like to know how Regina is doing. I will give you the info I have gotten so far, Regina had surgery yesterday at 10:30 where they put a plate in her arm to keep the bones together. Forrest told me her surgery went well, but they were keeping her for 24 hours so they could give her antibiotics through an IV to make sure to cut down on infection. The surgeon said things went well, but she will be out of commission on the triathlon front for a while so please keep her in your thoughts for a speedy recovery.

On another note, Sarah Parker has put her race report up on her website so if you are anxious to see how her first olympic distance triathlon went you can click on http://www.active.com/donate/tntsc/SParker .

I have some more wonderful updates to talk about. First of all, keep Regina in your thoughts and prayers and lets hope some miraculous doctor fixes her up tomorrow and she's still able to do Austria. I actually had a dream last night that they fixed her and she was able to race, I think she did it with a cast but she was still out there.

Other updates . . . Julie Murphy being the hammerhead that she is finished 1st in her age group and was 3rd overall female in her swim around Key West! WOOHOO!!!!! I still think she's completely nuts for doing a 12.5 mile swim. As I understand it Tracy McKee had a 1st at something when she was in Key West as well, I have to say I was so proud she expanded her horizons . . .he he he he he.

Last but not least, Jolene Hopper ( http://www.active.com/donate/tntsc/tntscJHopper) and Sarah Parker (http://www.active.com/donate/tntsc/SParker) competed in the Philadelphia Triathlon today. Not only did they finish an olympic distance triathlon, but they have each raised over $4,000 for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society! What a great group of girls, and I was happy to be involved with them. If you would like to donate, just click on one of their links. They will hopefully update their pages with a race report this week!

Okay, so you are probably wondering where this is going to go. Well, some of you know that I broke my tailbone back in March, and after still being in pain I have recently found out that it is still fractured (well, duh!). I guess biking and running might make it a little difficult to heal, but hey, I have an ironman in 22 days so I can't take time off. I have been fortunate enough to be able to suck it up and deal with it, or HTFU (i am finally part of the club), but I just received a phone call from someone who isn't able to do that. See, for some reason, triathlete's always have to "one up" each other and this phone call was living proof. Regina Fowler just called me and the first words out of her mouth are, I HAVE YOU BEAT! I am seriously beginning to wonder what her and Susan did after Jeff and I left them leaving River Rd. today. I start wondering what she could be talking about. I mean, other than my serious bonk on our 20 mile run last sunday, I wasn't quite sure how she was beating me since we weren't racing today. It didn't take too long for her to divulge, she wrecked her bike on her way home. Now, at first, I kind of thought she was kidding. We have all been on pins and needles for the past week and half about injuring ourselves before IM Austria, so I thought she was just giving me a hard time. You start to feel things that probably aren't there when you get to this stage of IM training, your mind playing tricks on you aches here and there. Plus, Regina had turned her ankle on a run last week, but that crisis was averted without too much drama. Well this bike wreck was full of drama! So how did Regina wreck her bike? Dog, no. Car, no. Another rider, no. A crack in the rode, BINGO! So as I understand it, the front wheel got stuck in this crack in b/w 2 cement slabs on a bridge and that's all it takes if you are caught off guard. She ended up falling directly on her elbow. Yep, she may not weigh much, but that's all it takes for bones to break. She knew the elbow was bad, but then the shock starts to come and lightheadedness follows. Susan can barely stay vertical just having to look at Regina. EMS arrives and whisks her away thinking they are helping her, only to later dash her hopes of racing in IM Austria. 22 days, 3 weeks of taper left and the only thing Regina can think of is trying to "one up" me. I think she is going to have to come up with a better and less expensive way of doing that next time.

In all seriousness, lets put some good mojo Regina's way and hope that Steadman Hawkins will get her in working order as quickly as possible. Especially since now she's going to be our sherpa at IM Austria!

On a completely different note, I have to BRAG about miss Julie Murphy who busted out a 12.5 mile swim around Key West today. She rocked the house finishing in 4 hours and 53 minutes. What an accomplishment! Tracy McKee is the coolest person in the world b/c she ended up flying to Key West last minute and kayaking with Jules the entire way. Regina, you could take some lessons on being a proper sherpa from Tracy . . . I'll give you her number!

I think this is the longest I have ever taken to do a race report! I read Ashley Long's (www.ashleylong.blogspot.com) race report and started to feel slack. This race is an olympic distance race that is a National Championship qualifier, so I figured there would be a lot of hammerheads out there. I decided to do this race at the last minute for a couple of reasons, Doug St. Martin was doing his first olympic distance and I wanted to support him (I can't go to a race and not participate), I had a free entry, and I wasn't completely satisfied with the way the last 2 races ended. I felt that mentally it would help to get a decent race in before IM Austria. Now, it's not like I tapered for this race, I actually had and 80 mile bike ride the day before. IM is my focus and racing during IM training is just another training day, yes I don't always remember that line, but I try.

Okay, so morning of I actually got to the park without getting lost, and packet pick up was a smooth process. I had given myself enough time to get everything done and wasn't stressed much at all. Regina and Susan weren't participating so they were just hanging out and making me laugh. I had never done the olympic course here to everyone's surprise, so I asked Forrest about the bike course. His words were, "It's like the half bike but shorter," well DUH!

They changed the swim a little so the way to sight this year was to just aim directly for the sun and when you finally hit the 2nd yellow buoy turn left. I know a lot of people were happy about this, but I just couldn't find a reason to be happy about swimming directly into the sun. I felt blind. I still managed to get a little (not much) off course with those new instructions, but felt strong. The only problem was it looked so short from shore that I think I forgot that the distance really wasn't that much shorter than the 1.2 miles I had done the week before. Therefore, don't go out strong! No, seriously it wasn't that bad, but it was the first swim I had done this year without a wetsuit . . . I managed to try to keep it strong the rest of the way knowing that I had done that in a pool on numerous occasions and came out of the water at 30 flat. I will take it. No way was I going to be unhappy, especially since I didn't have a time to go by from doing the race before.

I transition and hit the bike wanting to make up as much time as possible. I was told to treat the bike like a long sprint, so that's what I was going to do. I ran up on Cheryl Quinn early on and she mentioned some chick in black was ahead of us and had a "30" on her leg. I told Cheryl I didn't know if I had the gas to chase, but would try. I saw the girl in black, or thought was the girl in black, the entire bike. She was like the little carrot dangling in front of my face. It was funny b/c I would alternate thinking, chase her down and then instantly I would think, don't kill yourself you have a run to do. I love the devil and angel I seem to have on my shoulder:) So I tried to find a happy medium and tell myself that if I take it easier I will have a really good run. Obviously, temptation got the best of me. I don't feel I hammered the bike, but I definitely didn't hold back either. I catch up to her, and sure enough, we play cat and mouse a few times and I ended up rolling into transition ahead of her. Normally, I wouldn't be so concerned, but I was beat out by a minute the week before and I knew that 1st place was already going to Kat Welling (hammerhead w/fins for feet and legs that pedal) so that left lots of "unknown" for me. I was extremely happy with my bike time of 1:06:55 for 24 miles.

I head out of transition running trying to remind myself to take the first couple of miles a little easy and concentrate on turnover. It doesn't work! My first 2 miles were my fastest, I didn't realize this until after the fact but that wasn't the way I wanted to start out. The heat didn't seem to bother me a bit, I have to say the weekend before in Macon made this heat seem like a winter warning. About mile 2 was when the numbness started again in my foot, very frustrating, so I would walk the aid stations and dump water over my head and start all over again. I near the turnaround and run up on Doug, who isn't looking his finest (sorry its the truth), and he mentions he went way too hard on the bike. I gave words of encouragement and tried to keep up the pace. By mile 4 some guy that had been going my pace was doubled over, he managed to stand up and start walking. I told him to just try to pace off me and follow for a little while to see if that would help. He decided to try that, and it helped me to know I was helping someone else so I tried to stay focused, but knew the speed wasn't what it had started at. I hit mile 5 and took the first look behind me to see if the infamous girl in black was right there, and I was happy to see she wasn't. As I get to the end the guy that was doubled over hits his 2nd wind and we run in together. I manage to hear Doug's wife yelling for me so I try to pass someone up the hill only to have him pass me right back a second before the finish.

All in all, I was pleased with my results from the race. My run ended up being 49:11 (not good for me), but I was happy with it, which was nice. I, like Gman, had managed to do 5 races in a span of 6 weeks all while training for an IM. I actually kidded with Tracy Mckee on Monday when she was asking about how my body responds to short distance stuff when you train for long distance and I envision the confusion like this . . slow twitch, no, fast twitch, no, slow, no, fast, no, what day is this!!! Maybe you had to be there. Anyway, this race was just what I needed, I even managed to shift Doug's gears into overdrive b/c even though he was tanked when I passed him, he only finished about a minute behind me. I was finally ok with my results, and with the realization that if I want to race and train for an IM my results may not be what I always want them to be. I finished 15th out of the females, and this was the perfect precursor for IM Austria. I am glad I raced, and, oh I hate to do this, Forrest you were right and this is why I listen to you . . .most of the time:)

Okay, I just dreaded the thought of doing another race report so I figured if I took a few minutes and wrote about something else maybe I wouldn't feel that way. In fact, I am not going to talk about my training days this week either. What I am going to talk about is all the great people surround me and support me. The following people and businesses are instrumental to my participation in triathlon:

www.trisports.com - Hands down, this is the best tri shop. I may not be in AZ, but when I call and need help I feel like they are right next door and willing to help. They will also price match any product you find. Just make sure you click on my link on the left hand side of the page and they know where you are coming from!

www.dukesmayo.com - Everyone in the south knows what Dukes Mayo is. They have become dedicated to making healthier versions of the mayonnaise everyone loves just so people like us can still splurge!

www.atlantabread.com/cherrydale/index.php?store_id=90 -Atlanta Bread Co makes the best soups, sandwiches, and bagels around. They are my favorite stop after a long ride or run at Furman, don't fight the urge to stop next time you are near there!

www.skylinenw.com -Barracuda makes the BEST goggles ever! I spent months trying to find goggles that don't leak, or leave huge marks around your eyes. How lucky am I to be sponsored by the same goggle company that supplies Michellie Jones with her goggles. If you don't believe me, ask to borrow a pair of mine.

www.gregspindler.com - Greg is among the many people that help keep my body functioning to it's best ability. He specializes in Structural Energetic Therapy and helps not just athletes, but also people with chronic health problems. I highly recommend him and was lucky to meet him at the Greenville Tri 2 years ago.

St. Martin Chiropractic - I have been seeing Dr. Doug since January and I think that he is one of the reasons I have been able to continue training and racing through my tailbone separation. He helps people through a wide range of problems from infertility to migraines to athletes just wanting to improve performance.

www.zealoptics.com - Not only do I have the best goggles, but I also have the BEST sunglasses. Zeal makes stylish sunglasses and is also environmentally friendly using recycled material to make their sunglasses. This is another product that if you don't think you would like them, try mine and then see if you still feel the same way. They are awesome.

Forrest Fowler - He might as well be a sponsor. He has taken the time to make me the athlete that I am. He's put up with my crazy questions (what am i supposed to do again?), ignoring his workouts (i don't do that anymore), and my stubbornness. I am sure he never thought I would go from Hilton Head to multiple IM, but I couldn't have done it without his guidance and what Regina would call tough love:)

James Keogh - If you want to do 4,000 plus yards every swim workout this is the man to see, and if you don't I am sure he could be accommodating:) Katie Malone told me after my first season that if I wanted to get better, join a masters swim class over the winter. I liked mine so much I stuck with it. He has transformed my swim and his workouts with Forrest make all the difference.

My friends - I have to say my friends are the best They support me even though during tri season I don't always get out for girls night or dinner. I try to keep up with phone calls or emails, but am not always as successful as I would like to be. I know sometimes they question my sanity, but they suck it up and try to understand. I would be there for any of them in a heartbeat, and love them to death!

My family - Much like the friends, once IM training starts I try to stay focused so my days run together and I don't have as much contact as I would like. They are always there when I need them, and I love them.

My Hubby - The man who is ready to throw my computer out the window right now has no idea what I am doing. Basically, I couldn't ask for more. He has watched me get completely involved in a sport that not only takes money, but lots of time on top of that. Thanks for not killing me with my 3-4 am wake up calls, and for helping out and making me dinner. I truly couldn't do it without you!

I love this race. I didn't PR, I didn't place, but I still love this race. This race will test the best of athletes, no matter who you are or how good you are. I tried to go into this race telling myself to do MY RACE and know it might not be as good as last year only b/c last year this was an "A" race. This year my "A" race is IM Austria right now, so I am training for twice the distance. This is not an excuse, I just have to remind myself daily what my goals are so I don't set myself up for disappointment.

I was very excited b/c there were a lot of people doing this race that I know. I had 3 other people in one hotel room the night before, which provided lots entertainment. Monica Diaz (tnt mentor) was doing her first half ironman ever, and Sarah Parker (tnt participant) was along for the ride to provide support and take in the experience. The normal crew was there and Kat and Troy were also participating, and they are always a laugh a minute. Okay, so down the the race specifics. Can I say HOT, and if you didn't prepare for hot than you were probably one of the 30+ people that DNF'd. By the way, Keogh must have been right when he said women are much tougher than men b/c out of those 30+ people, I think 8 of them were women and the rest men.

The swim was called wetsuit legal, thank goodness. This race is always borderline wetsuit legal, so you never know until the last minute how it will go. Everyone was talking about how far away the bouys looked, so I didn't even bother looking at them. What's the point, I will see them when I am swimming. The musics playing, I am getting ready, trying to position exactly where I want to start my swim and the horn blows. I decide to run in the shallow water along the beach rather than jump right in which actually took me from the middle of the pack to the front. Not in my plan, but I stayed a little to the left so it wasn't a big deal. I managed to avoid all the punches and blows, but unlike Susan, I actually swam to the bouy rather than away from it and towards the shore. I am serious, evidently everybody on shore was wondering who that was, well now you know. Susan told us about it after the race, I am so hoping Sarah got some good pictures for that one. Anyway, I felt good and strong on the swim and never really got off track. The only time I had any problems was when the sprint course joined us and then it was an all out battle. I came out of the water at 36 flat, and was happy. I wanted to make some improvement from last year, and to make atleast a minute gain was great. There is a long steep hill you have to run to get to transition so I took my wetsuit off at the bottom this year to avoid the cramping from last year. Good plan.

My goal after talking to Forrest was to take the bike easier than I did last year. The heat this year wasn't necessarily worse, but the difference was it started out hot this year and last year the rain from the night before gave us a cool start. It was hot from the moment we got out of the hotel at 5:30. I didn't start the bike feeling great, but was hoping that after the first couple of miles I would kick in and I was right. I was right up until my 30 where my tailbone and lower back started acting up, I just had to tell myself to focus on something else and the pain would go away. I hydrated and was feeling good but could tell by my avg. mph on the computer that I was definitely not going to be anywhere near last years bike time (2:52). I was ok with that only b/c the thinking was with as hot as it was going to be you needed to save that energy for the run. I focused on heart rate and tried to let the bikers keep passing me. I knew if there was any hope of placing today it was going to come down to the run. I came into transition at 3 hours exactly, a little frustrated but I had done what I was supposed to.

I started the run trying to take it by sections. The first 3 miles I just wanted to take extremely easy since I have a tendency to feel good and go out fast. I looked at my garmin and the avg. around 8:30 which was faster than I wanted to start at so I tried to slow down. The heat felt great and it also felt good to be off of the bike. I knew immediately that I needed some salt tabs, and probably should have taken some on the bike. The humidity was so high it was incredible. I saw Janice (Chris's wife) around mile 1 or 2 and she is always supportive so that was great. I took one mile at a time and was alternating salt tabs and gel and sports drinks at the aid stations. Unlike some people, I walk every aid station, whether that helps me or not it is just something I do it for a half or longer. It's kind of like my goal is make it to the next station and I can walk while I drink or gel. A little treat for hard work. My system was working good even the hills weren't bad and I was still feeling decent at mile 9. That's around when all heck broke loose. Right before mile 9 they had an aid station, but the next one wasn't for more than a mile and a half which wasn't good. If I had realized that I would have taken some gel at mile 9 b/c the next mile and half was pure hell. I made it to mile 10 when I started to get dizzy and lightheaded so I walked a minute, tried to start back up and no go. This is the worst spot for this to happen, it is wide open in the hot baking sun with no shade. I tried multiple times to jog atleast, but it wasn't happening. I hated to be beat down to a walk after I had come so far with so little left to go. I finally make it to an aid station and get what I need and start the final 2 miles to the finish. Mile 12 I make a choice to stop at the aid station rather than jog through it to the finish. Little did I know this might have cost me a placing. I didn't want to come this far and have to walk again so I decided to stop at the aid station and hydrate some more before I headed up hill for the last mile. I finished in 5:41 and missed placing by 1 minute.

I have never needed an IV after a half iron before, but I definitely needed one this race day. The nurses had a hard time getting a vein on me. They finally got the IV going and the nurse asked me why in the world I would do this. I told her it wasn't just about swimming, biking, and running. There is something so empowering about knowing what you are fully capable of. I saw people who you wouldn't believe out there racing this weekend. These endurance events are about testing yourself, and finding out who you really are. After my first IM, I came out of it realizing that no matter what life throws at me I can handle it. I am human, and have bad days like everyone, but I try to remind myself and other people to make the best of things. If you can't fix it, suck it up and deal with it. On that note, out of everyone one Monica had to look the best after finishing. Congrats to her for completing her first half iron on such a hot day, she really did great and didn't want to kill me either:). If you would like to check out results you can go to http://www.setupevents.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=event_results&id=939

Ooohhh so where do I start . . I will start with saturday. I started my saturday out with a 100 mile ride, ok to be technical it was 97 miles. Those miles were spent in the mountains with jeff and rose, and thank goodness rose came through with some entries to miracle hill b/c I don't know what I would have done for my ride. The ride wasn't too bad considering it was in the mountains, but I can say I was glad for it to be over. The timing of the ride was perfect b/c it started at 7am which worked with my schedule b/c I had to leave from there and get ready for the tri on Sunday. Jeff and I headed to my house to get our stuff together, and I called ashley to see if she was riding with us or driving by herself. I found out that it was a great thing I called b/c she wasn't feeling the urge to race and I was her deciding factor. I run around like a chicken with my head cut off and we ended up only being 30 mins. behind schedule. As the 3 of us near columbia I call tracy to see where she was since we were all rooming together only to find out that she had almost bailed as well. We get our packets and all end up getting to the room around the same time. Tracy is trying to find a place with a beer, I am trying to find a place to eat (go figure), and ashley just wants to pass out. Oh, I forgot to mention Ashley debuted as a race director for the first time on saturday and was beat from being up since 4am and she had raced gulf coast the weekend before. At this point none of us want to go anywhere and the only reason we want to eat is so we can go to bed. Did I mention it was only 6 pm? So what was in walking distance . . . fazoli's. I couldn't even muster the energy to eat there so we got the meal to go. I really think I couldn't have picked a funnier group that night to be around. All we could do was laugh at each other. Poor jeff just sat back and looked at us like we were crazy. After dinner I decide cleaning my bike is a must especially after the long ride, and the hammer gel that had leaked all the way down my bike. The gel had dried so I decided to use a plastic knife to try and get it off, I think I ended up taking the gel off my bike and flicking most of it in my hair. Ashley decides to clean her bike since it was covered in salt. We tell tracy to cover her holes . . . .really it's not as bad as it sounds. We stayed up until 8:30 like the old people we must have become over night. Jeff was the only person who slept b/c someone kept running down the hall upstairs and screaming.

We get to the race site where I am greeted by kat who tells me I look like I need to go back to bed . . . boy was she right. I got all the prerace stuff done and in the wetsuit starting to feel better. The water is really choppy, but I normally don't mind it. Today would not be one of those days. I see multiple people just sitting out in the water not even moving wondering what's going on. The waves are what was going on. White caps in a lake, who would have thought. Anyway, once I start it's kind of crazy and every time I try to sight I get smacked with these small waves that don't give you time to collect yourself. I stopped a couple of times and almost panic it so bad. I finally was able to start swimming again and start to get a good rhythm. Once I do that I feel great, and really wish I could have seen what my time would have been without stops:) Unfortunately my time is 40 secs. slower coming out of the water, a little over 15 mins. Oh well, I didn't quit and that's what matters.

The first couple of miles of the bike was horrible. About mile 3 or 4 I start to feel pretty good and am enjoying the rolling hills. I pass quite a few people and in the last couple of miles I catch up to Karma. We pass each other back and forth a couple of times. My transition time on the 2nd go round sucked. I ran all the way to the end of my row, only to realize it wasn't my row so I have to run all the way back down and around to the next one.

As I hit the run I see Staci in from of me and it was about that time when I start to realize the swim really cost me some time b/c I hadn't seen any of my competitors and normally they are catching me at the end of the bike. Again, oh well, all I can do at this time is see if I can stay with her or catch her on the run. The run soon became survival. I just wasn't feeling like I had the capacity to go the speed I knew I needed to go. I saw kat on the turnaround smoking fast and then I saw staci extend her lead on me little by little. Ok, so if I can hold this pace atleast I will place 3rd and I am ok with that. No 3rd place.

I received my first penalty ever. I can say I usually pride myself in not getting penalties b/c I am one of those people that believes in rules. Before you ask, no I wasn't sucking someones wheel (forrest thats for you). I got a penalty for unauthorized assistance. At first I didn't know what that was for, but after some thinking I figured it out. See, I had an enervitene wrapper and a wonderful spectator offered to throw it away for me. This is unauthorized assistance. I take my penalty, and have learned from it.

I finished the race up with a wonderful 6 mile jog with jeff, ashley, kat, and troy. The run wouldn't have been as much fun without troy singing apple bottom jeans, boots with the fur. Or his amusing story about snot rocketing on the trainer b/c he forgot he was inside . . .did I mention the dog ate it before he could clean it up. Anyway, I had an awesome weekend considering, and it's great to learn from your mistakes. Thanks for all the fun guys! Kudos to everyone bringing home hardware, and jeff finally beating me:) For results just click on http://www.setupevents.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=event_results&id=930

I am sure everyone asks themselves that question at some point. Is what I am about to do worth my time and energy, and if I don't do it will the result make that big of a difference? I had a tough time with those questions this weekend. Friday I worked until after 6 then went home and took care of the dogs and got my hour ride in. I had a race saturday, left immediately after awards to get to Darlington to watch the nascar racing with the hubby and friends, raced home early sunday morning to get an 85 mile ride done. Only to wake up early sunday morning to rain, thunder, and lightning coming down on our tent. So I try to be positive that maybe it's not raining in greenville, that didn't work. I wasn't motivated to do another 5 hour ride in the rain so I called in reinforcements. Luckily, forrest, regina, and susan were planning a 4 hr trainer ride b/c of the rain. I don't know how lucky that is b/c I have never done more than a 1.5 hour trainer ride, and that was miserable even with julie entertaining me. What was I going to do, not ride and feel guilty and wonder how it will effect austria. I just couldn't do that, even knowing that I would rather spend the day on the couch with the hubby. So, I trudged all the way to TR with trainer in tow and was just dreading it.

We ended up doing the Lake Placid Half IM course with coach troy (i despise his voice now) and watched a movie after that. I have to say I bitched moaned and complained the first 90 mins. b/c I swear we spent the entire time doing a 90-100 cadence in an easy gear. I thought lake placid was hilly! Well, once you do the turnaround the last 20 miles or more is spent going uphill, which was great! Every time we would hit a hard gear I would cheer and regina would groan. Regina ended up taking over the moaning and groaning for the next 2.5 hours. I don't think I have laughed so long, susan thought she was going to be sore just from laughing. Let me explain, we put in this movie and susan put it on hearing impaired so we could talk and if you couldn't hear what was going on (forrest) you could read the subtitles. It didn't take but a few mins. before forrest was fussing he was trying to watch the movie. My comment to that was, ssshhhh, everyone be quiet I can't read while you're talking! We got a good laugh out of that. If you haven't watched a movie in hearing impaired mode I suggest you try it. You will laugh so hard, it's one thing to hear someone moan and its another to see the words being spelled out on the bottom of the screen. . . Jodie: MOANING. Maybe you had to be there, but I can say even though it sucked I still had fun.

I think after 4 hours I was a little delirious, but afterwards I was atleast satisfied that I didn't let the rain get the best of me. Kudos to the group for not letting me hop off the trainer and run away after the first hour. I am sure forrest questioned having 3 women in his living room at one time for so long but he was a good sport.

The lowdown on Upstate Olympics, I mean Clemson race, is full of the normal quirks that always seem to come my way and probably everyone elses. I will start with explaining that I ALWAYS get my packet the day before races, and there are multiple reasons for that. However, I didn't have that option on Friday. So I got up on time, left the house in a timely fashion, and got 4 miles away from Clemson and proceeded to drive in circles for 30 mins. I kept telling myself 30 mins., no big deal don't stress, and then got to the race site to see a line that looked longer than a mile. The line was to pick up your packet, so I kept trying to be positive but it still took another 30 mins. out of my already late schedule. My time was extremely rushed, and I was feeling the frustration building. I figured stretching was going to be minimal b/c it was imperative I take my bike out on a tester. Luckily, on the test ride I saw Forrest b/c I was having bike issues where my gears were jumping. He seemed to fix it but told me to go to the mechanic, well, I just didn't have time. So I come back to find some guy has moved into where I had my bike racked, and yes, I already had all my stuff sitting out. Needless to say, I was about to blow a gasket. I calm myself, find Jules who can always make me laugh and calm me down. You always have to start a race w/good mojo.

The swim at clemson is always a little tough for me b/c I always seem to get beat up. This swim was no different, except for the fact I didn't have my goggles tight enough and kept getting water in them. I sighted ok, but just had a hard time finding a groove until the last 200. I came out of the water at 14 something, which I wasn't very happy with. I say that b/c 2 weeks ago I did twice the distance coming out of the water at 28 something. The run to transition was went as planned, and all the cheers and support from other people was great motivation.

I start the bike trying to get around all the people who aren't in as big of a hurry as I am. The bike course at clemson pretty much takes every gear and it took me only a mile to realize that I didn't have all of mine. The three middle gears in the big chain ring and small chain ring wouldn't work, the gears would change randomly and make all kinds of sounds. I know the people behind me had to think I didn't know what I was doing with all the noise I was making. I literally spent half the bike getting out of my seat to stand and mash the pedals on every hill. Everything was either too easy or too hard, no in between. I was thankful to pull into transition and hit the run.

I start the run and my legs are so tight from all the standing up on the bike that I felt horrible. I was happy to survive the "hill of hell" and see all my fellow competitors on the turnaround. Once I got down the hill I was happy and thought maybe my legs had loosened up a bit. I was dead wrong. I got to the water stop and walked for a few and picked it back up knowing there was less than a mile left. No problem, right:) I love kidding myself. I literally could only go another half mile before I was walking again! I just didn't know what else to do, I was done. I told myself I could finish running and I needed to pick it up, so that's what I did. I got almost to the finish and 3 different people blow by me, and one of them was Forrest. I don't know where they came from.

I can truthfully say that given the circumstances, I am completely satisfied with what I did and know for 100% that I gave everything I could. I challenge myself internally all the time, and when I have days like this the best thing is knowing I gave it my all. Speaking of giving it there all, I have to give a shout to Sarah Parker who is now a TRIATHLETE!!!!!! I also have to say welcome back Dr. Doug St. Martin from your long hiatus off of triathlons, you rocked! Check out results if you choose at http://www.setupevents.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=event_detail&eventID=893 . Thanks to my hubby, and all my sponsors. Please help me support them by checking out there websites!

So I guess I don't have too much to report on, but weekends are about the only time I have to do updates. My build week went pretty well. I had made a decision last week that the next 11 weeks I would dedicate to my IM training. I had missed a workout hear and there, which is not like me, I can't explain what changed. I can say I did every workout I was supposed to, and felt great b/c of it. The 80 mile ride on saturday was really nice, I rode with regina, forrest, and jeff and thoroughly enjoyed myself. If you think I like to talk then you should meet regina, it definitely made my ride fly by. The transition run didn't go by as quickly, ok, it wasn't too bad. We left from forrest and regina's house and the 1st two miles weren't too terribly bad even with the 2nd mile at 90% effort, but the last mile you have to climb this long hill to get to their driveway and it about killed me. So much for the last mile at an easy effort.

Today I ran 17 miles and I was happy with how the run went. I had somewhat of a build effort ranging from 80-95%, and all the efforts felt great until the last one. I couldn't wait for that mile and half to be over, the only problem is that once it was over I had to climb the stupid hill on frontage road over by Paris Mtn. I think I spent the next mile trying to cool back down and get my heart rate where it should be. All in all it wasn't too bad, forrest and I finished the 17 mile run averaging 8:27. I can't complain with the results since I wasn't hobbling after we finished.

I will say I can't wait for next weekend, not just b/c it's a race weekend, but b/c Clemson is kind of like the Greenwood half where you see everyone you know. Sounds like there will be tons of competition and tons of fun. The best part will be racing with jules and tracy since they have both been trying to find their racing feet again. They plan to just come out and have fun, and I am just so happy to have them at a race that I could care less.

All I can say is thank goodness that race is over. The langley pond tri is a great tri, don't get me wrong, however when you add thunder, lightning, rain, and delays it can make the best race mornings a little frustrating. Normally I am the first to power on even when things like this come up, but I think last weekends 5.5 hours biking in the rain took it's toll. I came close to bailling, and I am glad I didn't. The swim was pretty good, and I know I took time off last year. I will have to wait and see what Keogh's response is to get the down and dirty on how I really did on the swim. Luckily, he knows my times better than me. The long transition run gave plenty of time to get the wetsuit almost off. I am still not quite sure how long the bike was b/c they took 3 miles (I think) off each loop of the bike course due to flooding. Did I mention the rain . . . .torrential downpour, atleast it stopped while I was on the bike. I do have to say a special thank you to some guy in transition that was nice enough to take my bag off the ground and hang it off the rack with a towel over it. This is so why I love triathlons, b/c there are so many great thoughtful people. If only they could have done something about my sopping wet running shoes. Anyway, back to the bike, it wasn't too bad. I didn't get a chance to ride it yesterday but I remembered from last year that is was a couple of miles of uphill and if you chose not to spin then your legs would be toast. The second half of the loop is downhill (with a great view) and very fast. I don't know if I am getting slower or if my competition is just getting better, but halfway through the 2nd loop Staci passed me. I don't remember Staci's last name but we are always racked together and she has always finished fairly close to me. Well, this year, we are actually in the same age group. What sucks is I would love to say bad things about her and make myself feel better, but I can't. She's not just a great athlete, she's also extremely nice and her husband is always very supportive as well. So anyway, we played cat and mouse until transition where I entered before her. Staci wasn't but a few seconds behind me, and once out of transition she decided to take the lead. I dropped in behind her, and heard another girl behind me. I took a second to figure out whether I could keep that pace or should let her go, I figured to take a chance and follow. Not soon after the other lady took the lead, Staci fell back, and I followed the lady that took the lead. I drafted and let her pace me for almost 3 miles, it felt good. The avg. was 7:34 and this awesome 50 yr. old was right on pace, with our avg. always remaining the same. So I became a little stunned when she started to pull away little by little, only to find out it was me slowing down not her speeding up. Mile 4, good old Staci showed up once again. I tell ya what, I don't think I have had this kind of racing/competition in a while. I let Staci have it and hoped to draft and let her pace and see where she took us. I started to hear her breathing a little harder about mile 4.5 and decided I had enough left to try and step it up on the incline. At around 5.2 miles I got a chance to see she wasn't right behind me but close enough that if I didn't push it she could catch me. I was dying, but I had to do what I could or I wouldn't be able to sleep at night. One last turnaround point, and yes, she was still there! I saw the 6 mile mark and tried to give it one last push in hopes she had fallen back a little bit. I got about 100 ft. from the finish and took one last look over my shoulder to finally breathe a sigh of relief. I would make it to the finish line and not only beat Staci, barely, but also finish first in my age group. My run still isn't where I think it should be, but Forrest said I am allowed to blame it on the race delay. I love to be pushed like I was today, and it is all due to Staci. I hate to lose, but she would have deserved that win today.

On a side note, I got to meet a new trisports.com teammate from NC and he placed 3rd Elite. Good job Joshua! You rocked! Regina and Forrest manage to get hardware as well. Jeff should have gotten hardware for most improved. From a roadie to an ironman, he dropped 6 mins. off last year's run time to bust it with a 48 min. 10K. Everyone that raced should be happy just to complete it. Thanks as always to my hubby, family, friends, and SPONSORS! You all help.

4/22/08-AAAAHhhh I love recovery week! Yes, it is so nice to sleep in! Other than that, my only update is to say a

HUGE thank you to my sponsors. Barracuda, Trisports.com, Dukes Mayo, and Atlanta Bread Co. provided some much

SATURDAY, APRIL 12, 2008 9-4PM at CAINE HALTER FAMILY YMCA (formerly Cleveland Street )

I attended one of Greg's stretching classes mainly to support my husband. I have had "bad" feet forever with bunions and flat feet. I've ordered inserts for my shoes and am always wearing comfortable clogs. After a series of stretches at Greg's class, I stood up and immediately felt lighter in my feet. The balance of weight had significantly shifted and I still feel like I have new feet. I did not go to the class for that reason but its amazing how much better I feel.

I can't thank you enough for a great class! I have been "re-setting" myself during the week and really feel that your program positions you to win. The stretches are very effective. Michele and I had a fantastic day at your class and look forward to supporting your efforts in the future!

Your 6 hour stretching workshop was fantastic! The way you laid out and built on the initial preparatory stretches allowed me to flow into the grander work. The 6 hours passed quickly; the session was fun and tremendously informative. It was especially valuable to me when you explained how each exercise could specifically and positively impact my cycling and running. Well done!

“Greg’s techniques are so valuable, they have changed the way I approach stretching.”

Greg's workshop is phenomenal! You will be surprised and amazed at what you will learn about the connections within your body. All of which will help increase flexibility, improve performance, and reduce injuries.

Well I have to say the past 2 weeks I have had a a wonderful week of recovery and a few interesting training days. I have to say that what I enjoyed most out of my recovery week was a group ride I did with an athlete that I coach who is doing her first triathlon with TNT (team in training). She had never done a group ride, and I thought before you do your first tri you should see what it's like to be around a bunch of people. I also thought it would push her a little harder than she's used to. The reason I enjoyed it as much as I did was seeing the look on her face when we were done. It was priceless. I sometimes forget how exciting it is to complete something for the first time when the entire time you are doubting yourself. The excitement of a "newbie" who is seeing how her hard work pays off is the best thing I could ask for as a coach.

On another note I had noticeable improvement with the tailbone this week. I am not saying I feel great, I still have to sit on the donut and I still can't run with proper form but I was able to do intervals on Tuesday which was exhilarating. I don't think I have ever been so happy to be able to do intervals. Thursday wasn't so great I came down with a sinus infection and bronchitis, which I am sure had nothing to do with riding in the rain Tuesday morning . . .all I remember is Jeff yelling, I am going to tell on you to Forrest! See, it wasn't raining when we left and then we get downtown to a torrential downpour. I offered to turn around but Jeff said we might as well keep going. We got to Paris Mtn. and the rain had stopped, and wouldn't you know once we get to the top the fog comes out and the rain starts again. Oh well, we did arrive back to the YMCA safely and that's what counts.

I was finally able to do a good 14 mile run with Forrest on Saturday without feeling like I was going to die. I then followed it up with some mountain climbing today for 4 hours and then a 20 min. transition run that felt great. I don't know if it's b/c I took the bike a little easy or what, but mile 1 was 8:16, mile 2 7:46, and then right under that pace for the remainder. My avg. heart rate was still in somewhat "easy" range so it put a great finish to my week.

Alrighty, I know it took me a week but better late then never. Originally I had a few goals for Parris Island, however those goals changed dramatically when I fractured/broke my tailbone the weekend before. Now my only hopes were to finish while not making too much of a fool out of myself. The pool temp was surprisingly pleasant compared to the normal blistering temperatures I have endured there in the past. I passed a few on the swim and had a few pass me on the last 2 laps which I enjoyed drafting off of. I climbed out of the pool (9:16) to see I was a little behind last year, but you have to spend time in the pool to actually improve. Not only that, I have to say that swimming hurts w/a broken tailbone. I hobbled/jogged to transition happy to get to the bike since it was the one thing that didn't hurt my rear as much as everything else. The wind gods were in my favor and I finished in 34:50 which was a little improvement from last year. I think I scared onlookers at the transition area. I get a little stiff when on the bike and as I tried to start my run I let out a squeal in pain. Maybe it wasn't a squeal, but I know I didn't expect it and kind of scared myself. I managed to run down a few people that had passed me on the bike, Brad and some teenage guy, and needless to say that always gives me motivation to push on. I finished with a 22:15 run, total time of 1:08:15, and a lot of pain. I went and did this race b/c even though I was hurt, I love this race. Jeremey and the Setup crew put on great triathlons. I got to see Henry Forrest with Try-A-Tri.com which made my day. Henry is an inspiration to all, and one of the first Ironmen. This company and family will always have my support. Doing triathlons is only half the fun, the other half and most important are the people and bonds you create while doing them. If you'd like to see the awful truth pictures you can go to http://www.birdseyeview.net/cgi-local/ImageFolio42/imageFolio.cgi?search=123&cat=Triathlons/20080315_PAR&bool=and

Thanks to my hubby for not making me stay at home, the doctor for good drugs, and all my sponsors and friends. You are the people who help make this happen! Whether you like it or not:)

Well, for those of you who can't wait to take time off I am not normally that person. I took my "mandatory" week off after the marathon and actually enjoyed it. By Friday I was ready to swim, especially since I have only swam a handful of times since IMFL. Did I mention I am racing in a week:) Anyway, the swim went well only to have my run the next day feel horrible. My knee acted up at mile 1 so I walked back to the car pouting hoping for the best. I took another week off hoping my knee would get better, but it didn't. Luckily, Steadman Hawkins came to the rescue yet again and I was able to start my IM Austria training this week as scheduled. I have had a crazy week at work and outside obligations that have limited my sleep greatly, but I have to say I love IM training. I was out at 5:30 this morning doing my run and was thinking to myself it doesn't get better than this. It's amazing the past couple of nights I've only gotten 5 to 6 hours sleep, but I feel better than I did the 2 weeks I took off and had more sleep. I have off days like everyone, but with all that dread of having the long hours of IM training it was instantly replaced with euphoria and the realization that I do this because I love it. So, with that said, if you are ever dreading a workout/workouts know that once you get out there you are most likely going to feel so much better. So, thank you Forrest for getting the IM training started!

So, how's my off season going you might ask. Well, I decided to give marathon's a try on my off season. Let's just say I am not too fond of the marathon in comparison to Ironman marathon. My goal was to qualify for Boston which meant I would have to do a 3:40 or under. I did not make my goal, but considering my 11 week training program was really 8 weeks with injury and sickness, I won't complain. I started the marathon feeling good, Forrest was pacing me and the 3:40 group so there was a decent group of us. I kept a little quiet anticipating the pain that was to come. We passed the half mark a few minutes under pace, which was good. My quads were tight from then on. It wasn't until about mile 17 that I started to lag behind. I went ahead and let Forrest know I was having issues, and watched as they slowly but surely kept getting farther away from me. I finally gave into walking, which I hate to do. When I started jogging again I did the math and realized the hopes of Boston were gone, so I said to heck with it. I didn't see the point of killing myself for a finish that was pointless to me now, so I just went to cruise control and tried to enjoy the ride. When I say pointless, I merely mean my time didn't matter to me now. I saw Karma, someone I race against, at mile 24 or 25 and she was walking. See, if I could just keep my mouth shut I would probably beat more people but I can't. I yelled a few words of encouragement, if that's what you call it, and told her to quit walking it wasn't worth it. Yes, she quit walking, and yes, she beat me. I can't help it, I just want to help people if it's ever possible. We all have bad days. I ended my marathon debut with my new tiara my hubby bought me, it even said princess on it:)! I finished in 3:52 something, which isn't too shabby if I do say so myself! I had the wonderful support of my pit crew, my hubby, dad, dad's girlfriend and daughter, jon, and cecilia. I wouldn't be able to do what I do without them!