Race #14 of 2012

Recap:
1. resolution 15k run
2. Super run 10k
3. Frozen foods 5k
4. San Diego Petco park 1/2 marathon
5. Tinkerbell 1/2 marathon
6. Superseal (cancelled triathlon)
7. Lavaman triathlon
8. Spring sprint triathlon
9. Rock n roll 1/2 marathon
10. SD international triathlon
11. Vineman 1/2 ironman triathlon
12. IB sprint triathlon
13. Trirock international triathlon
14. Desert Edge Olympic triathlon

There was actually a total of 18 races on the schedule this year. I did not do Solana Beach sprint tri which fell one week after vineman. I skipped mission bay triathlon which fell on my bday & I just didn't wanna get up early on my bday. I had a few upcoming races that I also have decided not to do. The "really big free marathon" the travel to Nevada to participate is too costly with soaring gas prices & I'm tired. The silver strand 1/2 marathon I would of had to volunteer for my bib & really don't want to take up my whole weekend for a race I really didn't enjoy last year.
The Desert Edge triathlon was a HUGE undertaking on a few levels, some I wasn't aware of right away. My cousin Patty had asked me to come out to Colorado & participate with her in this race for her 50th birthday. I have done 2 other races with her & enjoyed them so much it was hard to pass up. It would also be an opportunity for me to bring the kids on a road trip to meet family they had never met before! The drive is around 12-13 hours. Originally I was going to try to make a straight through drive both ways with 2-3days in Colorado. Well with the help of my works scheduling dept, a good friend in Las Vegas, & my plotting the schedule went : thurs work AM shift, depart San Diego 4pm (which turned into 5pm after gas, a trip home for forgotten items) & drive to Las Vegas. We got to Vegas around 10pm-ish & stayed with our friends that own a home there. It was literally a quick pit stop as we got there visited only a few moments before getting bed. We left bright & early to finish the drive to Colorado.
The drive from Vegas to Grand Junction went way smoother then I expected! Other then small bladders stopping us more often then I would have liked & me mis calculating gas & BARELY making it to fuel at the last 10 miles! We arrived & spent the evening getting settled in with our family. Sat Patty & I took a easy bike ride in the morning. I quickly learned how hard a change in altitude makes it to breath! I was huffing & puffing the whole time! It made me nervous about the race! After the ride we went out to the race site to get our bibs & drove the race course. I felt a lot better after seeing the course. It was mostly flat with a few small rolling hills & one bigger climb towards the end. Nothing compared to my 1/2 ironman. My confidence was up again!
We spent a relaxing night at home & early to bed. Race morning I got bundled up as best I could (I was NOT prepared for Colorado weather & had loaner clothes from Patty). We headed to the race start I got out of car & started to reconsider this decision to race! IT WAS 31 degrees!!!! Soooo cold I can't even describe. The race director had emailed there was an option to skip the swim because air temp would be down (water temp was 66 degrees) but doing a duathon would disqualify you for awards). I was in a division thy had maybe 6 woman so I still had visions of podium.
We got set up and in wetsuits quickly & actually headed in the water as it was warmer in the lake then out of it. We swam around to get warmed up & then it was GO TIME. I felt very confident going into like the first 20 yards of the swim. The water was not cold like the air. BUT all of the sudden I felt myself gasping for air & unable to breath. I kept trying to breath in but I was struggling. I had to STOP I was feeling lightheaded & dizzy. One of the aid canoes came up & asked if I needed to hang on....my pride screamed inside me NOOOOOOOOO but my brain was like you could die HANG ON! I held on & tried to catch my breath, it was not happening. In triathlon you can legally hold on with no penalty as long as you make no forward motion (FYI). There was NO WAY I was gonna give up but I was quickly aware that all my friends warnings about the altitude were dead on. I continued on the swim slowly having to stop & catch my breath a ton of times. I didn't have to hang on again but I was the last person out of the water for both the Olympic & sprint waves. Then it was on to the bike.....

Race #13 of 2012

TriRock intermediate distance triathlon downtown San Diego 9/9/12
This was a very anticipated race for me. It was my trirock three peat! This whole blog started when I was training for the inaugural trirock in 2010. That was my 2nd tri and my first sprint distance race. I came back in 2011 & did the sprint faster & a lot smaller then the year before. I remember finishing that sprint amazed with the triathletes doing the intermediate course they added that year. The swim seemed SO FAR! The bike & run double what I had done. Shortly after that race I found myself signed up for Lavaman & I was going to be doing that distance!
After finishing Lavaman & getting ready for Vineman I figured why am I doing the sprint? Why not move up this year & go further. WOW seemed like a great idea until race day!
I was so nervous about this one! I had not kept up the level of training after Vineman. I had not done the race distance in any sport (maybe the run) since July! I was sure I would finish I just didn't know how pretty it was gonna be.
It gets weird doing races alone now. I show up with no one there to take pics with or talk to pre-race. This time I ended up talking to the girls right next to me who also said they were nervous BUT had just done ironman in JULY! The one gal was lapping me the whole race saying hi each time.
My wave was the third wave so getting going was quick! Before I knew it I was making my way thru the swim course. It seemed sooooo long! I have seemed to master one key element to triathlon...peeing in my wetsuit ;) definitely warms things up. Although this race the water was kinda warm & I was getting HOT in my full suit.
Turns out my swim time was better then Lavaman by a few minutes! I got out on the bike & on the course which was new this year. It was flat for the most part. We had to do 3 loops (the course was changed a few days before the race-shortened & made 3 loops instead of 2). There was one bridge we had to go up & over 3 times that was the only minor hill. There was a lot of turns to navigate but other then that it was hammer time!!!! I wasn't passing anyone but was happy with my momentum. A new thing on this race was roving race medics. It's actually a new program where instead of aid stations there was medics all over the course with first aid on them. Lucky me some of my friends are race medics! I got a few "go Katie" cheers as I rode the course.
After the bike I got out on the run course. Now indefinitely wasn't passing anyone! I felt painfully slow. I had no power I just chugged along. It was getting HOT. Certain parts were breezy (we were right on the water) but some sections were direct heat no breeze! I was doing a run walk at no particular interval. I did notice that every time I ran I passed this one gal who I exchanged comments about the heat with BUT when I walked she was passing me. I finally decided just run with her at her pace it was obviously more manageable then what I was doing. As soon as I committed to running with my new friend (stranger) she was no where to be found! She had stopped to go to the bathroom! Eventually she did catch up with me & I asked if I could run & pace with her. She said yes :D The run on this course was 2 loops we had hooked up during the second loop. She was running between 10:50-11:50 pace which was perfect for me. We both agreed it was better to have someone to run with. I can say if I was not running with her I definitely would of walked way more. We both had a goal time of sub 3:30 & were on target for that! We were joined in the last few miles by my friend Amanda she was one of the race medics. These medics were running lap after lap, checking on runners. "You ok?" "How's your hydration" "how's your nutrition" etc etc At one point I got salt off one of them. You literally couldn't go 1/4 mile without having a medic pass you. Amanda ran with us & chatted for quite awhile then she pulled off to check on a runner. My friend & I were about to get to the final .2 anyway. This is where I had hoped to see my peeps that were coming to see me finish. I let her get ahead of me as I scanned the crowd lined up & didn't see anyone :(
I got to the finish & beat my previous times by a lot! It ended up not everyone made it but I managed to find my friend that did make it. It was fun for someone new to see my big race.
The 4th event was fun drinks & breakfast with friends & family followed.
I was so nervous about this race & in the end it was one of my best races :) I'm very proud of all my trirock race. I hope I can find a way to do this one every year.

Race #12 of 2012

The IB surf town sprint triathlon 8/26/12 was my very first ocean swim triathlon. (if you don't count practice tri's). I did not get down to imperial beach for a course preview. So I really had no idea what to expect. I opted for the Athena division this time as I knew there was only 3 in the division.
The swim was definitely different & I wish I had spent more time on ocean entry. Luckily it was not high surf. It was hard to stay on course & somehow the girl dog paddling stayed ahead of me the whole time?!
Once out of water I made my way to transition had a smooth switch to the bike & hit the flat bike course with all I had! It was a short trip through residential streets to the helicopter filed that we would loop twice around. I spent a lot of time in my aero position (who knew I would live aero after swearing I'd never get bars). I passed at least one girl in my division so I was trying to get a big lead on her knowing my run is very slow. The bike was only about 9 miles so I was headed back to transition in no time. After I pulled in one of the Clydesdales says "man you did awesome on the bike! I was trying to catch you the whole time!" OK I am not gonna lie that felt awesome!!! I was pushing it hard on the bike! Turns out maybe too hard on my calves as I started on the run I was CRAMPING! I was so lucky my friend Maureen came out to see me race & since I saw she had her running gear on I said "come on run with me!" My calf cramps kept from getting any real momentum in my run. Knowing I had at least one girl in my division behind me kept my pushing with what little oomph I had. Part of the run was on base so Maureen waited while I did that loop since she didn't have a race bib. I made it to the turn around to see the other girl was right behind me & moving fast! With just over a mile left she passed me :( There was no way I was gonna get her so I took a walk break. Then I met back up with Maureen & she ran with me up to the finish. Turns out I took 3rd place (out of 3) but a podium is a podium! Sadly an elderly triathlete in his 80s collapsed as he crossed the finish to this race & died from heart attack. There is 3 older guys I see at all these races one I passed & said you inspire me every race. He said I sure hope so it's getting harder each time. I can't help but hope that I continue to help & inspire people. I want to follow my passions whatever they be, live an active healthy lifestyle & honor the memory of my brother until I meet Jesus face to face

Vineman blog part 4!!!

Well my second transition was interesting! Being one of the last in on the bike meant there was not much room on the rack. I ended up struggling with my bike for a LONG time! It was frustrating! I was exhausted & couldn't lift it up to the rack, it kept getting tangled with the bikes around it! Finally I got it on! I probably wasted 3-5 minutes. I had taken coaches advice & left a cooler of ice at transition area with my shoes. The idea was to dump ice water on myself after the bike to cool core body temp. We got so lucky with awesome weather it really didn't seem necessary to completely dump it. I sat on it to get my shoes on, toweled off my sweat, got my chilled water bottles out of it & stuffed some ice in my hat & clothes. I took off on the run with very little steam. I had hoped to run aid station to aid station (one each mile) but the best I could manage was 5 min run 1 minute walk. Lisa's watch had an interval setting so I was able to follow the beeps! I also did walk/stop at aid stations to get ice, water, snacks. The had tons of fruit! They also had pretzels, cookies, & cola but I avoided those! The run was not as scenic & beautiful as the bike. I was warned it was exposed for the most part & to expect blazing sun. I was surprised there was plenty of shade & a nice breeze at parts. I never felt over heated. I credit running VERY VERY SLOW & the constant ice I had stuffed in all my hat & clothing. Not much to say about the run part...I ran then walked then repeated. I did have a stupid grin on my face the whole time & smiled at everyone passing by.
Some were miserable & couldn't smile back. Others were in go mode & haulin ass...I like to engage everyone I pass. On the bike I waved at every spectator most were sitting staring blankly until I waved then they would wave, cheer, say good morning.
I think it's the fun part for me, making it a smiley happy thing (even when it's not). The same way when people would ask how you feel? I'd reply "I feel good" even if I didn't. It almost worked to convince me I DID feel good. As I came up on the aid station at mile 5 I saw a sign saying GO KATIE . I remember thinking "huh my name is Katie" then I realized it was Jackson & Martin & Lisa!!! I was sooo happy! I think I was close to crying. I hugged & kissed Martin a few times. The boys ran along with me for a while. It was so fun runnin hand in hand with my son.
After this aid station we ran onto La Crema winery it was a 2 mile loop through the vineyard. It was on a dusty hot endless trail. After the winery we went F.O.R.E.V.E.R down this one road until the turn around which was more then 1/2 way but felt like you were waiting for it like a 1/2 way point. Knowing you were headed to the finish was the mission after passing the turn around! I stopped at a wild berry bush where some kids were picking & eating berries. I tried one but it wasn't ripe yet I guess.
I hit the turn around point & I was worried Martin may not be at the aid station still. It had taken me so long to go about 4 miles. I was more anxious to see him again then anything. I was afraid they would think they missed me & take off for the finish line. I wanted to see him again (but also at the finish line). Luckily he was still there when I finally made it! I was able to get more hugs & kisses in. I remember tellin Lisa I have less then 4 miles to go! She said I know you are almost done. It was a good feeling knowing I was so close & the next time I would see Martin would be at the finish! I continued to run walk through the last few miles. Most people were walk only at this point. I was glad I was at least making forward progress albeit slow. I made my way to the last stretch of road until reaching the high school & finish line. There was a lot of people cheering. I saw some of the friends & family of teammates cheering me along. Then I saw jeremy & his sister waited to cheer me on (they had had passed me during the race). The as I rounded the corner that extra adrenaline kicked in I was sprinting to the finish line (as the announcer was yelling it was my birthday-wrong it was Martin's). I was about to cross when I stopped dead in my tracks ran over to my guy & gave him a big kiss before I ran across the finish. What a great memory i will always have of having Martin there with me for my big moment. My official time was 8hrs & 55 minutes. I felt pretty good with my time & race. If I had begun in a later wave I may of got a DNF did not finish. I took my time & got done with something I'm not sure I believed I could do. Lisa treated me to a post race massage (WONDERFUL) & we went back & toasted a glass of wine to celebrate! We attended the victory party where Martin boogied with the hippies for a bit. Then I headed to bed for a great night of sleep!!!

Vineman blog part 3

The bike portion was definitely daunting. Having missed the bike preview I didn't know what was in store for me. I did know there was a flat straight portion for the first couple miles until the first turn which was tight & steep. Then we traveled through a back alley type side street until we got on the rolling hills through vineyard & forest.
Everyone said this course was amazing & it was very pretty. It was comparable to the routes we trained on here in San Diego. I did not pass anyone on the bike portion. I was not hammering as hard as I did on my recent shorter rides but I also wasn't going beach cruiser speed either. I had borrowed my friends Lisa's watch for my race. I set one timer for the bike to go off every 15 minutes. When the timer went off I took a sip of water & every two beeps I took salt or ate a bite of bonk breaker. The first aid station I tossed one bottle & the passed out arrowhead sport top disposable bottles. I didn't get very far before mine was dangling out of my bottle cage. The stupid thing did not fit! Somehow I managed to get it to stay after stopping twice. The next portion of the ride seemed to go so fast. There was an unfortunate mishap at this bottle drop for me-when I attempted to flip my bottle into the netted area it did not go the way I intended. It flew up & over my head behind me nearly hitting one or more cyclists behind me!!! The chick it just missed was pissed & I imagine still telling the story of the idiot girl who flung her water bottle at her.
I stopped at the aide station & and used the bathroom. I saw a gal from San Diego I recognized said hello , she was an official. I asked what the mileage was...when she said 1/2 way I was blown away & HAPPY!
After my potty visit this guy says "you are doing great I saw you a ways back, keep it up". I love triathlons for this reason some people are so nice & encouraging (I do realize he obviously DID NOT see my bottle toss)...
I got back on the bike course & I would say it pretty quickly got tougher. I had the same problem with the water bottle popping out. I started to really feel the mileage tacking on. I knew there would be one more aid station and then the dreaded chalk hill (there was one or two hefty hills before it I found out). At the final aid station I stopped and put some pain rub on my knees that were starting to dislike the rolling hills. Then I grabbed a banana from a volunteer. OOPS! There was pain rub on my hand which then got on the banana which then got all over my mouth! EWWWWW. It didn't even feel like the pain rub worked on my knees! Once I was on that last leg I had 2 things on my mind getting up chalk hill & the fact that I was getting tired with a half marathon ahead of me. Somewhere along that last stretch I was rising through another vineyard & reflecting on how amazing this was. Then I realized my brother had to get sick & lose his life for me to be here. I thought about how he had wanted us to all go wine tasting which we did in his memory. I thought about the 70miles I was racing which happened to be our combined years his life cut short @ 35 & me turning 35 this year. I have so much, I have grown & changed so much. His life was stolen right now when he could of had so many more adventures like me. I lost it tears full blown ugly cry face weeping. I was all pissed I said F*#K CANCER! (a few times-sorry but it's true). I had this grimace of angry through the ugly face & was just hammering through the tears. I'm not sure how many miles that latest but it was a while of my grieving the loss of my brother again & carried me through the finish of the bike leg at a part where I imagine I could of started to get discouraged & tired.
Coming in from the bike was fun! There was a ton of spectators! I walked in the bike transition. I was all about taking my time. It was definitely HOT & I was in no hurry to start my 1/2 marathon...to be continued

Vineman blog part 2

So I got to T1 and set up my transistion. I went down to the beach ready to go since I would be in the 4th wave there was not much time to wander around. We took team photos and got in our wetsuits. I was definitely ready to take on the swim. The water was warm at first but as we waited 4 or so minutes to start our wave I started to get cold. I wore my sleeveless wetsuit and was starting to worry if I had made a bad decision. I wondered if I was gonna warm up? As soon as I started swimming I knew I was going to be fine. I tried to find someone to draft off of and everytime I got behind someone they all seemed to be kicking wildly and not swimming fast enough. The river is very shallow the whole course but at parts its so shallow you touch the bottom when you are swimming. Some people get out and walk but I felt like stopping to walk would take away from the whole accomplishment. I did stop once and stand to adjust my goggles. The river water was pretty gross it was warm & lots of algae. It was like being in non salty bay water. It's definitely motivation to move quickly to get out of it. Along the swim after one red ballon marker after another there was 2 bright neon orange markers I was thinking DANG the turn around came up fast! As I got closer & closer to this turn around I see MORE red markers beyond them WHAT THE HECK they were some sort of warning markers about what I don't know I didn't stop to read them! I had been told there was a current coming back from the actual turn around point. On our swim preview this was true! But as my friend Jeremy pointed out once everyone is swimming like crazy there would be current going both ways with the flow of the swimmers. I got in one little bit that carried me faster for like 10 feet...
I'd have to go back & look up my time but it was about 50 minutes. Once out of the water I walked to transition & took my time there 10 minutes. I figured what is the hurry when I have 8 hours ahead of me. I didn't want to waste energy to save minutes now when I would need the energy later! This race as 2 transitions so before you leave on bike you have to bag up all the gear. Being one of the last out of the water meant the dirt lot transition was in was now mud! I took extra time to wash off & dry my feet trying & failing not to get my socks wet before getting in my bike shoes. I walked out of transition & up the small hill before mounting my bike. Then I was out on the bike course!....to be continued

Race 11 of 2012 Vineman Blog

OK so this blog I am actually trying to write before months pass by and I forget all the details of the race.
So this is not just a race blog but also the trip blog.
Martin was my co-pilot for this trip. I was lucky enough to have a good friend willing to help with him during the race.
Day 1- Wake up 2:30am departure 3:30am. Martin slept the first few hours of the drive. I fought off sleep and had to pull off 3 times until I finally pulled over handed him my phone said wake me up in 10 min. Somehow that little teeny snooze did the trick and I rallied then rest of the drive. We did not head straight to our final destination. We took a detour through the country including Gilroy the garlic capitol to San Jose to pick up Mary. After we got her we took the scenic route through San Francisco and across the Golden Gate Bridge. We finally arrived at our home for the weekend our condo in Windsor. A trip to the grocery store where I bought WAY TOO MUCH FOOD! Then Martin and I relaxed at the pool.
Day two- not much going on with the team so we headed to Johnson Beach where the swim start was to check out the wetsuit demo (it was lame). Then we headed to the Jelly Belly Factory for a tour! THAT WAS FUN! I was not eating sugar so I skipped the jelly bellies but it was neat to see the ins and outs of jelly beans. After lunch we headed to Johnson Beach to swim with the team. Lisa watched Martin & Jackson swim in the river while we swam.
This was my first time swimming in fresh water. The river was WARM and GROSS! There was algae floating around and at first it startled me and creeped me out! It not much different then swimming in the bay on the gross scale but the water was nicer and the amazing towering trees and scenery was better. After the swim the team went for pizza & beer...AKA as gluten heaven...I skipped the dinner and went to Armstrong woods with Martin, Lisa & Jackson. It was a small redwood preserve just a mile or so from the swim. We walked around checked out the tall trees and then headed for the condo for dinner & sleep.
Sat morning was full of team activities. We met back at the swim and went over race preview. We then were going to get in the cars and caravan over the 56 mile bike course. I of course realize as it is time to leave 1. I am out of gas & 2. I forgot my wallet which I needed to get gas AND my photo ID. I will need for my bib pick up. My stress/blood pressure went through the roof. Luckily I had some random cash in the car and got gas but was going to have to go back to condo before bib pick up. The course preview started once I got gas. We went only a few miles when I get a "I have to go to the bathroom". About 10 miles in Trent pulled off I took this as an opportunity to take Bugs to a bush to pee. As soon as I got him out of car Trent says this is private property lets go. I tried to rush Martin (you can't rush this you know). He doesn't like peeing in public as it is. This turned into a battle royale. ME-stressed about the race, PMS, having Mary in the car waiting & knowing she can't miss the caravan, me not wanting to miss the caravan that is now taking off, my son needing to pee but refusing knowing he will be complaining in the car the whole time....HIM-stressed out, been in the car for endless hours over 2 days, not caring about bike course preview, needing to pee but not able to be rushed and forced....Julie said take your time. I said I can't Mary is waiting. Luckily she got Mary & they were able to complete the bike course preview. I on the other hand missed the preview, spent the next few hours crying as did my son. We both yelled at each other & were completely frustrated. We got back to the room and both apologized realizing our stress led to a stupid fight. I was even more freaked out now about the race. I had no clue of the course. All I had seen over the last 2 days was serious triathletes biking & running in their ironman finisher swag. I realized I was in no way ready or capable for this event. I never should have signed up. This whole trip was more then I should be doing. I DID NOT WANT TO DO THIS RACE AT ALL!!!! I had felt this way for a long time but going through the motions because I made the commitment. I felt so stupid thinking I could do this at any point. I could NOT stop crying! I made a call and was talked off the ledge my a friend. He helped me view the race as not a whole but little bits to tackle one at a time. That did help a little cause I knew I could do the swim. So I just said to myself just swim after that whatever happens happens. It didn't change the fact that I didn't want to be here and doing this. I knew that if I woke up in the morning not wanting to do this I would fail. Most of the getting to the finish is about mental. I went to the EXPO and got my bib and set up my T2. I was still crying and did not want to be around anyone. I didn't even want to be at the expo another minute but I wanted to say hi to my high school friend Jeremy and his sister Sarah who were also racing. As soon as I chatted with them I bailed. We had out inspirational dinner which after getting terrible directions from GPS we made it. It wasn't all that inspirational to be honest. The food was good. Lisa came and got Martin for the night so I could head to race day solo. We had our team meeting after dinner. Trent gave a good talk and I was ready to leave again cause I was so not into this. A teammate stopped me and said she wanted to talk. I am sure she could either tell or was told I was a basket case. She said "you are a strong woman, from what you have said you have been through a lot of tough things in your life. This race tomorrow is nothing compared to that." "we are just gonna swim, and bike, and run, that's all" "we can do that it is nothing like what you have been through ok". THAT WAS IT, THAT WAS THE PERSPECTIVE I NEEDED. Somehow everything changed for me and I realized I could deal with this. It was just one day, and it really is nothing compared to the "stuff" I have been through in my life. Thank God she took the time to talk with me, she is I am sure also worried and stressed about her race. I went to bed feeling so much better about the race and ready to take it on.
Race day- wake up 3:45am meet team at 4:30am and head over to Johnson Beach. All my stress and anxiety was gone. I had taken all the pressure off and found perspective through my two convos. I decided not to rush any of it and just take my time and get it done when I got it done....to be continued

Vineman training

I am ridiculously behind in the blog. I could of shared so many triumphant & challenging & FUNNY stories about this training season. Now I am just 8 days away from the race. Hahaha started this blog & got this far & now I'm 4 days from the race!
Now is when my nerves are crazy! My mind is constantly on the race. After Lavaman season I have gone into my races so confident. I have felt over prepared. I have been cool & breezy. The pre race butterflies a thing of the past...until NOW.
The last few days all I can think about is the distance I have to cover! After a 1.2mile swim I have to bike 56 miles (which I've never done) the post that run 13.1 miles!!!
The longest training I did with the team was a 1 mile ocean swim a challenging 54 mile bike then a slow walk/jog of 4 miles or so. It was about 60 miles total.
All the training have been challenging & I know this is on purpose to have us ready to race. Most the time I tapped out shy of the furthest distance & cut the runs short because I literally did all I could do.
I definitely threw a wrench in my training season when I opted to go into acupuncture for my GI issues & get treated during training. Well even before that! I have been seeing MY dr for over a year or two regarding my guts & fatigue. Finally this year I declared I would once & for all fix my guts. I went through tons of lab tests, referral to GI dr, colonoscopy, intestinal biopsy...only to hear nothing is wrong with you :(
The week I had the GI tests was when I bonked during training. Finally I asked for a referral to acupuncture I've seen claims it can cure anything! & I'm at the I know something is wrong with me & I will try anything stage.
SO I went in & she says "something is wrong with you"
THANK GOD!!!!!!!!!
She said I could do acupuncture to help with the symptoms but really she would like to take me thru an elimination diet & find the culprit. Also use supplements to repair my gut.
This would take place my last month of training meaning I have to scrap the old race plan using processed chemical filled endurance products & only use whole foods (from my very short approved list).
I thought about waiting until after the race but also thought what if I could feel so much better before my race?
I know myself well & putting it off would mean its not gonna happen. It was not or never.
The training plan became salt tabs & water for hydration & applesauce packets, mashed sweet potatoe & mashed avocado in ziplocs that I can suck through a whole in the bag, fruit. It's a lot of crap to carry on the ride. The first ride I had to do this was the long swim bike run = 60. Coach Trent was doing sweeper so he was waiting for me. He really helped make sure I was eating enough & not to much.
I've noticed the whole foods kinda weigh me down & make me feel sluggish on the run (or it could be the long tough bike before my runs?).
I'm feeling good now that I'm on day 29 of 30 on the repair portion. My fatigue is gone 100% it's an amazing feeling to have my life back. Does that sound dramatic? Well when you can't stay awake to live your life it feels like a trap. It was getting worse & worse & I was in bed more & more :( everyone said I trained to hard I knew that wasn't it. Everyone said I needed more sleep I knew I slept good & solid plus a nap....I'm so glad I found out for myself & got help. I can totally get through my day without feeling fatigue & I feel awake & alive.
That does give me some confidence going into my race feeling better. The sluggishness I use to have training is gone. I'm still SLOW!!! I MEAN REALLY SLOW! But I'm awake!
So then the dilemma was tomorrow is day 30. I can start adding foods back in that I was off one at a time to find potential allergies. Sadly everyone says wait until after the race. I had hoped & planned to return to my pre diet race plan using gu & bonk breaker bars. Everyone agrees its a risk to reintroduce anything before the race even if I tolerated it before. Since its been eliminated it could cause potential shock or reaction to my system....ooooooo-k she says arms crossed & pouting.
I'm leaving tomorrow morning to drive up. No doubt in my mind I will finish just scared of the process it will take to get me there. A test of
endurance, a test of faith, a testimony to how far I will go to fight in honor of my brother. He suffered too much & lost too much & my parents are so broken. I must focus on the true reason I'm doing this & allow my angel to carry me through.

Race #10 of 2012

Can we just call this the year of races!!!! I can't believe I'm so buy training & racing I can't even blog! (hopefully with new electronic policy at work I can catch up now). SDIT San Diego International Triathlon was one of the original scheduled races pre-TNT. I had hoped to move up to the International distance from the sprint but once vineman hit the schedule it was a must! The distance is 1000meter swim, 30k bike & 10k run. The course was on point loma and downtown. The swim was in Spanish landing. 1/2 the TNT summer team was doing this race so I was hanging with the purple peeps & ran into a few tri buddies.
The more I race the less & less ingest those panic butterflies & anxiety pre race. Especially in this case when I'm training for a much longer race. I was nervous about not knowing the course at all. I have to admit the swim course looked SO LONG! I kept reminding myself I had just swam a mile 2 days prior. I did not like not knowing the bike course & had heard there was some hills so I wanted to hurry up & get going. My wave was 11 I think the day prior to the race I had made a switch. Instead of racing in my age group I opted to move up 2 waves & race the Athena division. It's for women 160+ (although it may have been 150+ actually) either way I was at 161 so I qualified. I knew that it was a smaller division (4 actually) & my odds were good I could place.
I took off on the swim & while I knew I was at the back of the pack I was in the wave with men, women & military & I felt good that I kept a pretty straight line & constant pace.
Once out of the water I was ready to tackle the unknown bike course. I just followed the person in front of me! The first part of the course went right by my Sportfishing docks! Then we turned and went UP the hill to point loma. It was a slow grade & I was able to easily get up the hill (surprised myself) once at the top & on the base where Cabrillo monument was that where I discovered the rolling hills I had heard about. It was a loop at the top of point loma you had to go through twice. The first loop it was dread for the second time having to do the rolling hills & the second time it was joy knowing I'd soon be headed down hill! Knowing there was a chance to place in the race kept me pushing myself the whole time on the bike. I got back to transition & wasted probably a whole minute staring at the racks not able to find my spot!!!! Such a bummer! I got changed into my run stuff & decided to run with my fuel belt that I will be using at Vineman. This was good cause it's race specific but definitely weighed me down. I knew I had passed a fell Athena on the bike & as i slowly ran I knew she would be gaining on me. I was sure staying ahead of her meant my 3rd place finish. After some run/walk run/walk moments she passed me! I thought oh no! & made my way in front of her & stayed there with all my strength. I wanted to walk so bad I was so hot & tired! I kept about a 30 foot gap between us. I was dumping water on me constantly trying to stay cool. I was sure I would get my usual burst of strength in order to power through the last mile & sprint that last .2. I was wrong! I'm not sure if it is my change in nutrition & eating less carbs but I was completely out of steam when I hit the 6 mile mark! With .2 to go I had to stop :( the chick passed me with lots of steam & I thought girl you can have it! I managed to walk a short time & run SLOWLY into the finish. I got my medal walked over to a shady spot by the TNT booth & collapsed. I was so done. No way you could say I didn't give my all. I was so pooped. I saw vineman coach & said you should start worrying!
I laid there until I regained some strength & began to hunt for FOOD. Everywhere I looked was food I could not have! Chips, pretzels, red vines, smoothies, bars. I said I just need an orange! I was told there might be some at the finisher tent. I walked up all i saw was bagels, bananas, cornbread etc. I just want an orange!!!! Then there they were did I eat like 10 slices at least!!!!
I was waiting around for the awards just in case...when they announced the awards for Athena masters (age 40+) I realized the chick I was trying to beat was in that division NOT MINE! They only announced one finisher in the Athena division?! I went over to the timing people and asked if they had more results for my division. They did & my name was listed 2nd out of 3! I did it! I was 2nd place! After the results were posted online I saw there was 4 women in my division. Being 2 of 2 was fine & 2 of 3 ok but legitimately making the podium by going faster then 2 people.
It was an awesome feeling wearing 2 medals. I was very proud & honestly now I want THAT feeling again now.

Race #9 of 2012

Have I really done 9 races this year? WOW! Check this out:
1: 15k resolution run
2: 10k super run
3: 5k frozen foods
4: San Diego 1/2 marathon
5: tinkerbell 1/2 marathon
6: super seal sprint triathlon (CANCELLED)
7: Lavaman Olympic triathlon
8: spring sprint triathlon
9: rock n roll 1/2 marathon

That is crazy!!! Not even 1/2 way through the year & I've done so much-
Originally I had eagerly signed up for the full marathon like last year (my first & only full). But then I got bamboozled into joining TNT summer team for vineman & training for 1/2 ironman & full marathon was not something I could take on.
I was actually still toying with the idea of doing the full marathon against the advise of every coach I talked with. I wanted to run with my friends. I wanted to finish another 26.2. I finally listened to sane advice & committed to only doing the 1/2. I rode to the race with a friend Jill she & her 2 friends both former ironman finisher were doing the full. I met up with some of my running buddies they were doing full....I was in this one all alone.
I don't mind doing it alone I've had a few races I've done solo. Most the time you end up running your own race anyway AND triathlons are definitely solo! I moved up to a very fast wave knowing last year it took forever to start when we were further back. It was a good idea in the sense that I got to start early! The bad part was I think I started out running way faster & being passed by a billion people! The course is same as last year except when the split for the half is early on & this was different. Only 3 miles in to the race I was headed on the long part of the run that goes up the 163. It took FOREVER! I felt really good for the most part. I ran most of the time just walking through the aid stations for water mostly. I ended up deciding somewhere along the 163 when I watched everyone passing me checking their garmin watches not to check my time. I felt good I was happy with my race & though why worry about how fast or slow i am or put pressure to finish by a certain time. After going up & around the freeway ramps to friars road another seemingly endless stretch. There is a lot of spectators for the rest of the race though & that is cool. Along the way I saw a few friends doing the race & a few TNT teammates along the route. I thought I was going to finish equally as strong as I felt the whole time only to hit mile 11 & just lose my steam. I ended up doing a lot of walking between 11-12 miles. I managed to get a small burst for the finish & as I crossed was so glad I did the 1/2. I went & saw my TNT peeps & watched some people finish. I was so exhausted! I also slipped off the curb & knocked my hip out of place so I was limping post race. (ended up seeing chiro & getting fixed up). I was waddling after this race just like I had done the full last year. It was quite a difference to see how my runs have lacked & I suffered for it. It was fun I'm glad I did it again & will probably do it again some day.

Race #8 of 2012

I wrote this almost entire blog on my phone app only to have it not save :( Then I never went back to rewrite it now for almost a month!!! Boy I am the worst.
This was a really special race too!! My previous lost blog was awesome. Now I'm not sure I remember what it was I wrote.
Sprint Sprint Triathlon was May 6th. It was a big race for me because it marked 2 years since my very first race! 2 years ago was when Desirae and I got up early morning headed out to do the mini-sprint triathlon. It was 250 yd swim, 6 mile bike, 1.5 mile run. I remember at that time I was much heavier, I was SLOW and it was HARD! BUT when I crossed the finish line the feeling that I could keep going forever and the rush of making it all the way sparked all this tri-kate stuff!
This time I was coming back to do the full sprint distance. I remember 2 years ago barely completing the mini sprint and looking at the real triathletes going 500yds swim 12 mile bike 3.1 mile run in amazement!
I felt very nostalgic and sentimental coming back to this place. I still don't feel like a real triathlete (will I ever?) I see so many true athletic people who have probably spent their entire lives doing sports with ease. That is not me! BUT my return to Mission Bay is different. I have an Olympic distance race behind me, several sprints, so much experience with all 3 sports & the distance well its FUN!
I was also racing with some friends & teammates, along with several of my teammates coming down to watch, cheer and take pics. I have to say one benefit of meeting the TNT peeps is the support, they understand what it means to have someone there.
Doing a sprint is so much different then the longer races. I literally should be done in under 1.5 hours. The normal triathlete should be done in an hour! So there is not the same amount of fuel and water needed. My transition area was super basic and I was not really stressed about it. As long as I had goggles, swim cap, wetsuit, bike shoes, helmet, running shoes I was good to go. Once I got all set up I got to hang around with my teammates and friends. What a difference it is to come back and stand in the same place with out the nerves I use to experience race morning. There is still some nervousness but not the same gripped with fear kinda feeling I use to have. I am filled with confidence that I know what I am supposed to do and I can do it.
The swim I am not scared of anymore because I put so much focused effort into open water salt water swimming. AND lets face it the bay is NOTHING compared to some of the choppy, huge wave ocean swimming I am doing. The distance well I can do the distance. I am just not fast by any means. The water is not ideal it is cold and DIRTY! I was excited and this race has a lot of first timers so they are all freaking out. The buzzer goes off and I swim off. The splashing and chaos doesn't bother me but for some reason it takes me F.O.R.E.V.E.R to do the swim. I am sure I am passed by every single person in my wave and I am the last one out of the water. That was not very good feeling and I was sort of embarrassed when I got out and everyone was waiting to cheer me on....OH WELL SUCK IT UP AND START MOVING. I also felt slow in T1 I decided to put on my socks and bike shoes (I would like to stop wearing socks on the bike to save time eventually). Its so hard with wobbly legs to get shoes and socks on wet feet. So I sat down to get it done. The thing with that is out of the swim you are totally fatigued and sitting down involves getting back up and the heart rate is a mess! I got changed and got going and once on my way thru the bike out I was in GO MODE! I really tried to push it on the bike, its a flat course and I wanted to beat my previous sprint times AND I had sucked on the swim so I wanted to make up.
The bike course was 2 loops around fiesta island. I wasn't passing people AND was passed by my friend who was in the wave behind me! I was giving it all I had knowing I may suffer on the run for it but willing to do it.
The second transition I am usually much faster! There was a bit of distance to where my spot in the bike rack was to cover so I actually stopped took off my bike shoes to run in transition. I took off on the run and definitely felt fatigued, BUT STOKED to be 3.1 miles from the finish!!! My friends/cheer squad was all over the course and it was so cool to get little boosts of go KATIE! along the way. Then I ran into another friend coming to watch on the run course (twice cause it was 2 loops). Coming around to the final finish was the best feeling. I sprinted in and I was done. 2 years of an amazing journey crossing the same finish line. From mini sprint to being on my way to 1/2 ironman....WOW....all I can say is our God is an awesome God and I am so blessed for the journey He has me on

The frugal triathlete

I'm continually amazed in my life how I'm able to live the life of abundance I do when I'm a single income providing for my family of 3. I'm constantly facing the choice of working different hours, job, putting kids in public school, spending more time working OT so that we can be more comfortable. As of late I seem to be working less hours then ever (yes feeling the pinch) but not going with out.
Triathlon is NOT a cheap sport. Seems every time I start to doubt if I should be investing my time to this, let alone money God shows me He will provide where He wants us to be.
So many things have been provided for my training at little or no cost. I have to say I do my due diligence & shop smart as well. But other things have been generously given to me.
Can I make a list?
I know I talked about the discount I got on my wetsuit & bike. I've got some cycle clothing at warehouse sale & used from a teammate. All for fraction of regular cost. Just used gift certificate for new bike pump & water bottles. I got a TON of free water bottle! Someone gave me a bike computer! A friend gave me aero bars & the bike shop installed them FREE! I got my new tires on clearance. I've done almost every race free or discounted!
I could go on & on & on but the point is I AM BLESSED.
God gives me the desires of my Jett according to His will.
& I feel like He continues to bless me because I do work so hard at being mindful of what I spend.

Swim practice

Due to my swing shift schedule I never make track workouts with the team (ever-never been to one Lavaman or now). I wonder how different my run would be if I had any training in this area.
I have been able to attend swim practice though. During the beginning of Lavaman I missed it because I was finishing up my support group class but eventually I made it to a few Wednesday nights (I have every other wed off). Not sure if I got out of it what I should have. I certainly didn't learn how to actually DO a swim work out because this week with vineman team I was clueless. It did provide for some comedic relief on my behalf. My favorite was Coach Trent only being able to say well you're here in the pool...
This is what the work out looks like:
VINEMAN SDIT 5/2
WARM UP: 500: 300 Swim / 100 pull / 100 skate
800 Drafting Switch Leader every 50 yards
5x200 :30 rest between each 200
• 50 Close Fist Drill
• 50 Catch Up Drill
• 50 Thumb to Thigh Drill
• 50 Swim (breath on weak side only) 200 pull
3x100 descending Splits (try and decrease time by 5-‐10 each 100)
6 x 50 add a push up each 25 (start easy and build up)
If time-‐practice easy freestyle with bilateral breathing

My response is "huh?" what's pull? With a pull buoy you do arms only "oh yeah" is that like last week I couldn't do it...no that was kick only...oh yeah I couldn't figure that out...
I did the warm up & drafting drill with Denise (we only did 100 yards of drafting cause our time was running out fast). Then why I couldn't figure oh the 5x200 meant go through the 4 drills 50 yards each equalled a 200 yard set then rest?!?! Seriously lacking in the intelligence area here.
Again running of time skipped the 200 pull & was going to go into descending splits. Denise says you try to go faster each time. I read descending I say no you get slower...she says no it means you take 5-10 seconds off your time like instead of it talking you a minute fifteen seconds you do it in a minute ten...still not getting I have the coach explain and after a minute or so it dawns on me...I'm not computing this swim language at all. So I take off & after 50 yards Denise yells at me hey! What is your time... I say I dunno was just going to see if I seemed like I felt faster each time. At this everyone is dying laughing & coach points out the numerous giant clock timers at every part if the pool & Denise says your supposed to look at the timer.
This whole thing was hilarious & I was literally grinning in the pool at how ditzy I was. I feel like I'm the accidental triathlete. I need it to be this way though. Life is a struggle for me, I'm barely making it & tripping over myself & making mistakes left & right...God grants me His grace new every morning. This parallels my life...I'm sort of doop-de-doing my way through it but it's the only way to show its not me it's Him who is in me that will get me too the finish...in life & in the race!

Bonking

Ok quickly up to speed here with what's going on...I bit off way more then I can chew. My plate is too full. I've let myself get sucked in to something that I never should have. That being said what the devil (I may mean that literally) intended for evil God can use for His good. I am a work in progress (BIG TIME) but hope all I do can bring honor & glory to God. I signed up for summer team before I even finished my olympic distance race. I signed up to fundraise another almost $3000 (which in all honesty is the only part I'm actually ok with). I signed up to do a 1/2 ironman with so little experience. I signed up to train for a 1/2 ironman with so little time in my life to train. (can I use that as an excuse for not blogging).
Post Lavaman I turned into a sloth for weeks. There was post race depression, jet lag, trying to get life back in order. I had no motivation. I finally got out with the summer team& the first ride I went on I sucked I was so slow I got behind. I turned back on the ride cause I had to work & it was taking me forever. I got lost rode all this extra mileage didn't get out on the run. My performance was pathetic, my heart & head just not in it.
After that I finally got in with GI dr. I spent a whole week prepping & recovering from an Intestine biopsy. So miserable! Only for Dr to say nothing is wrong. I'd rather be dealing with figuring out my gut issues then training for a race I have serious doubts I can finish (just being honest).

I had a brief fainting spell when I was in bed for 3 days. Wanted to quit, was in tears over everything when my tri-Kate spirit decided I wanted out of my funk. Let's face it there is no maybe at this point I have to show up race day. I started by making a training schedule that was based off a few plans i found online & the team schedule. That made me feel better about fitting in training. Then I cleaned out my van & organized all my tri stuff. That made me feel more prepared. I showed up next training feeling ready to do this....
That was until Coach Trent started talking to us about the brick. He described rolling hills, he used the word "deadly", steep downhills, no bike lanes in narrow windy roads. At mile 37 we were to get off bikes & run for 30-60 minutes. It was already hot & we hadn't left yet! I think I prayed lord Jesus help me a thousand times listening to that. I took my inhaler so between that & my anxiety my heart was palpitating! We took off to ride & almost right away Denise had her chain come off. I stopped to help her. Happened a second time & I waited again. I'm not leaving her but I'm so slow at this stuff I need all the time I can get. I was so freaked out I was nearly in tears. I wanted to take her bike breaking as a sign i should just quit it all now. I felt doomed, it seemed like I had lost too much time training & was starting over. All these negative thoughts going through my head she says you have Skips jersey on you have a special angel looking out for you today. She sold me some used gear this week from her late husband. Amazing man who battled cancer, a bike accident left him paraplegic & TNT legend. That sort of snapped me out of it until we had to go up scripps poway parkway. That hill was every bit as hard as ever. All I can say is thank God Brian was helping out team this ride & being sweeper.
He has become on of my fav peeps. I like that he doesn't sugar coat anything but doesn't be an a** either. This poor guy got stuck with me & never made me feel like it was a bummer to wait for my slow ride. After we got over the hill I took off & ended up with just one other teammate Ann. Coach Trent was not joking about the ride. It was miles & miles of rolling winding roads through the country. Beautiful YES. Tough YES. I was so intent on getting through it & hanging on for dear life I did not get my hydration on at all. I was too scared to try to drink while riding. (should I of stopped yes-but I felt dumb & didn't wanna stop in the middle of no where). By the time I got to SAG I was a mess! Coach G had talked to us over & over
about it & I quickly became aware of why he warned us. BONKING!!! when you don't take care of your nutrition & hydration & keep cool you BONK. Well I was there I was panting couldn't catch my breath, dizzy, felt faint. I couldn't even think or talk really. I was more then done at that moment (not even 1/2 way through the brick by the way). It took me a long time to recover again poor Brian got stuck with me. I'd say he is a saint cause the next 10 miles or so I turned into a grumpy hateful whining person. Granted none of that directed at him. I was just thankful he wasn't ditching me cause I'm sure he wanted to! At a stoplight a man says to me are you riding for leukemia lymphoma? Yes I say. He said I'm a Hodgkin's survivor thank you. OH YEAH!!!! That's why I'm out here doing the most grueling thing I've ever experienced in my life!!!! Because it's nothing compared to what the blood cancer patients go through. Ok so that revelation helped in the moment but I was still going through every emotion, physically past my limit when Saint Brian understood & agreed I had places to be & was in no shape to finish today. He showed me to the place I could turn back to my car (after a few more grueling hills). Anyone else think he just wanted away from me?!?!!!
What did I take away from this? I felt like a quitter a failure like there is no way I'm ever gonna finish my 70.3. I realized I don't have the time it's gonna take to do these Saturday rides. I felt like I was basically screwed. Sunday I somewhat redeemed myself. I went with team for ocean swim & for the first time ever I went out 100% confident. It was NOT flat calm, there was swells & it was not easy. There wasn't a moment that I lacked confidence. It was challenging but not a moment where I didn't know I was capable.

I started out when I signed up this time saying I can't do this, I can't raise another $3000, I can't do this distance..I knew in that moment it was all God. Doesn't He always do that?! Strip us of every last bit of self so that He can do the work through us & in us. I'm not complete...in fact I'm a mess...more in need of Him then ever. I'm really can't see how it's gonna happen but I have faith it will. I trust God allows me to bonk during training so I won't during the race...

Race #7 of 2012 LAVAMAN

So I will pick up where I left off...
race morning I had normal race guts. Woke up wide awake and in shock the day was finally here. I had laid out my stuff for the race before I got sick so I packed up the tri bag, I think I double checked my list? See why waiting so long is dumb! I put my helmet and bike stickers on. I was so anxious to get going I headed down to where the team was meeting. Everything in the morning was so exciting and surreal. The whole team was there and I felt so much better I think I was high fiving and hugging everyone...except the one bad seed in the bunch (I am glad there was only one bad person I met this season). All my teammates have been amazing. Such good people who all are fighting and working towards the same goal. In this moment at this time it was all I could see is wonderful people who have been along side me during this journey. They all had some part of it with me. I have grown to love and appreciate everyone so much. Everyone looked GREAT! It was a short time of prep getting air in bikes last minute words from coach then we rode over to the transition area. Coach had given very specific instructions set up transition, go down to get body marked (I had done this at packet pick up), get timing chip, go to bathroom and meet at finish line for team photo. It's funny all the stuff I packed in my tri bag when I flew over seemed like so much stuff but laid out ready on race day seems like not much at all. I did have my tri kit on and wetsuit, goggles, cap in hand.We did the team photo and then coach gathered us around him. He had us close our eyes and he verbally went through the race step by step with us. His visualization was so vivid and his voice so firm, confident and soothing. After we had a little bit of time so we did a quick warm up swim. Honestly at this point everything was a blur of faces and sounds. The first wave was already getting in the water and the countdown was starting. At this point I was standing right by the start surrounded by my teammates that were in the same wave. I grabbed one for a quick prayer. Then I was just taken aback at the presence of power I was among. These were all amazing strong beautiful woman standing around me. I wanted to make some sort statement of awesomeness but it wasn't the time or place. I just wanted them all to know how amazing they are for making it to this moment. I wanted them to know what they meant to me and how much I loved sharing this with them. Well no time for that kind of mushy non-sense it was time for us to get in the water. This was the first time I have ever done a race that I wasn't petrified. It was the total opposite! I was amped, I knew I was ready and except for normal butterflies I had no fear going into this. I was passing out high fives to my teammates and the countdown was moments away when Kathryn next to me had her goggles snap!!!! I don't know how in the moment I was able to be the one to get her to focus and fix them but we pulled it off! She tied them off just in time for us to take off!!! I expected it to be a lot more congested and violent then it was. I thought I was going to get kicked and slapped all over the place. It was hard to sight and swim straight. Once I found a path that was clear I was good. I was swimming past a few people that were struggling and so glad I worked so hard on my ocean swimming. I loved this swim! Above was chaos and noise, below was tranquil and beautiful. There was so many fish just cruising around not caring one bit what was going on above. There was sea turtles munching in the coral. The water was perfect temp. From shore it didn't seem that far. Especially compared to the 2 mile swim we just did. But in the water it seemed to take a long time to get to each buoy. When I finally made the first turn is when the fastest people in the next wave started to pass me AND the slapping and kicking and swimming over me started. I got around the buoy that was the final turn and what a rush to be headed back in. Shortly after that the NEXT wave had people catching up with me. Something almost hit me head on and I turned in time to see it wasn't someone swimming the wrong way it was a sea turtle! He was just cruising along didn't care that there was a race going on. The way in was faster, not sure if current was helping or just a mental thing. Before I knew it was done with the swim! The thing that had frightened me so much every race before was a thing of beauty this time. I exited the water and coach yelled at me for a hug. As I left his embrace I turned and did a faceplant right in the sand!!! Totally embarrassing but I was so overjoyed I didn't let it get to me and got up and ran towards the transition area. I saw a couple teammates transitioning same time as me and I think we all made fairly good time. I opted to throw on my bike shoes with out socks. I had done this only a few times on short rides...so technically was breaking the cardinal rule "nothing new on race day". I didn't want wet socks for the run and decided I felt this was a little late in the season. I was fine with the decision until my toe started to hurt. I still don't know if my shoe was rubbing it or I cut it on coral or when I fell in the sand? Either way the wind had calmed down since Friday and the bike course was in perfect condition. Unfortunately what I missed out on course preview day was the slight incline that is on the out portion of the ride. It was gradual and never ending it seemed. Thank God for the few people on the road. The guys that were race SAG said don't worry its all down hill after the turn around. Great I thought...but where is the turn around! Then there was a fit, tan, beautiful man on the side of the road cheering for everyone....and well he was just very nice to look at. He moved to the other side on the way back for additional support. During the race talk they went in great detail about the turn around. It had a steep decline, then speed bump then steep incline into bottle exchange. I managed to maneuver it well and exchange 2 bottles. I did really well eating and drinking on the bike. Definitely room for improvement but I had come a long way from not being able to do any of it while riding. I drank a total of 4 waters on the bike minus a little I dumped on my head. At 2 gu's and ate a bonk breaker bar. It was fun out there passing by all the teammates and being in the actual race. I should of paid more attention to going faster and trying to pass people but I was just going along smiling and loving where I was at. Just like the swim after the turn around it felt like no time and I was making the turn back into the resort and headed back to transition. By this time I was definitely feeling the heat. I was feeling tired and didn't have the kind of energy I would have liked to be heading out on a 6 mile run. I was very very very slow at first. In fact I was very slow the whole run. I could never get that burst of energy I can usually muster up at the end of a race or training. The run went out of the transition through a little patch of lava field then onto the street for miles 1-4. There was a small incline but no major hills. The aid stations were a thing a joy with ice and water. Just as coach said every training I was pouring water all over and stuffing ice in my hat, clothes anywhere I could get it. I definitely saw the value in keeping my body cool over trying to drink water. The run was tough because of the heat but I felt good. I kept telling people when they asked how I was that I felt strong. I did feel strong...just also slow. TNT had an aid station that we got to pass by twice that was cool. It was like you knew there was a support boost there waiting. I relished the few moments on the run there was shade. Once I turned into the resort I knew I was in the home stretch. The last mile or so seemed to never end, but then the finish line was in sight and then I got the missing burst. I ran as fast as I could to the finish!!!! It was a great moment. Ended up bittersweet in a way, kinda lack luster moment. I don't know what I expected but there was sort of a "that was it" aspect to it. Everything about the race was beautiful. The course the people the location. I loved the opportunity that everyone supporting gave me to do this. After getting across the finish line and getting my medal coach sent me down into the water. That felt sooooooo good to dive in and cool off. I am so happy that I did this race. I have talked about it for so long and my friend Jeani was right. This was my race. I wish I didn't have to go through everything I went through to do it but I will never question God's will in my life.
It always seems God shows me something when I do these races. This time was no different. Everything in training was just so all about God and trusting Him. I really think that the things I overcame throughout the season and the lofty accomplishments were almost more then the actual race. The whole morning on the beach with Noel's rocks was a big God moment. Really the big thing happened after I got home. I came home with a desire that had been absent from my life. I came home wanting a relationship. Watching everyone with their significant others at the race. Supporting them, being at all the events and cheering them on. I wanted that too. I have been single for a long time now for a lot of reasons mostly by choice and partly because most guys..mmmm all guys even the seemingly nice ones turn out to be liars or crazy or just not good enough for one reason or another. I came home ready to trust God's plan for me even if it meant trusting a man in my life. I was ready to surrender my heart and be willing to allow someone to get close. The cool thing is it was like God was just waiting for me to do so cause the results were instant!!!! OK don't freak out and look for a status change in facebook just yet. I have always said God is a great husband to me. I am truly never without and even live in abundance. He constantly amazes me in ways that are not humanly possible. Well there I was on Easter morning in church. Alone as usual. In that moment where I said sooooo yeah about the whole I want a relationship, sitting alone in church is not so fun. I hear loud and clear I am going to pursue you like you have never been pursued, I am going to put a desire in your heart that you have never knew possible. Our relationship is about to grow deeper and stronger. He revealed to me that I am not yet presentable to the one He has for me & I agree. I am pretty sure He could mean a man on earth or my heavenly Father. Either way I am all for a stronger relationship with the one who already has all my love, heart and trust. I still would like to share all this with someone and have some earthly support along the way but I am not desperate for it like I am to be closer then ever to my Lord.
I am so looking forward to what is in store with this summer season and my upcoming races.
I doubt I will get to post about the post Lavaman fun but it was seriously OFF THE CHARTS. Coach said we were never going to be the same and he was right!!!! HELE HUI

Official Lavaman Blog

There is so much to write about and I just don't know if I waited too long to remember every detail...EEK!!
I may be the worst blogger ever, I think most would agree if they looked at my other blog I abandoned about fishing....I have every intention of keeping up with it but my time is so limited. This year I gave up TV altogether cause I just couldn't keep up even with one show. Really need to focus on Lavaman not babble..

Here goes:
When I started this journey nothing seemed achievable. Being able to fund raise $4500, train to be able to complete an Olympic distance triathlon, even getting the time off work proved near impossible. Well I truly found that what is humanly impossible is possible with God. I have committed my life to God and I gave this over to Him from day one. I believed this was all part of His plan for my life. I can tell you He prepared me for this AND saw me through it. All glory definitely goes to Him as I was truly carried by Him.

OK so fundraising proved to be like putting on an old hat. I use to be the planner, go getter & stop at nothing to finish my task. Although in the past I was stop at nothing until I am #1 best numero uno. Luckily my time as single mom cured me of that and I was content to finish my goal. I can see how I could have run myself into the ground trying to be the top fundraiser rock star champion of all time. I think my heart wouldn't let me make this about me and I really kept the point of it being about my brother. I am continuing on with TNT and keeping the fundraising going but I'm so thrilled to be a part of the fight against leukemia in my brother's memory. Did I write about the day I finished fundraising? I am never going to get to the race HAHA...I had put a goal for myself over a month out from when the actual deadline was. I do not like last minute stress. Also there was a team incentive to finish by Feb 9th. That was my goal...I was hitting facebook hard with daily updates how close I was to my goal. People were helping so much daily! It was a good feeling knowing I was inching closer and closer. I fell short of my Feb 9th deadline. I had 3 dreams that week about finishing my fundraising. Thought about it constantly what it is going to be like. When the moment would happen, how it would happen....
I had a really good day on 2/13 don't remember what it was but I remember posting how great it was and if I could just finish my fundraising HINT HINT...the comment posted was "done". Then a note on my wall for you and your brother...$165 donation got me there on Valentines Day. A very generous person who I know strictly through our shared passion for fishing and facebook. God never stops knocking my socks off. Yes making the Feb 9th deadline would be cool but a sweet kiss on the cheek from the Lord on Valentines day :) Even better!!! I was walking out of gym when I got the email/posts. I started crying! It felt amazing!!!
I think that moment and the other accomplishments during the season are more than even the race. I think the race really is just marshmallow fluff. The journey there was life changing more so then I think the race could be....or not I gotta write about it!!!!

So the day finally came to leave for Kona! I finally got the time off work and Deana took me to the airport. Some teammates were also on the same flights so that made the trip all the more fun. Arriving in Hawaii was sooooo exciting. I was one of the only ones who hadn't done this before so I was taking pictures like crazy (dork over here hehe). After waiting FOREVER for the rental car we got to the resort we were staying. There is no way to describe this place. It is like a destination in itself! Amazing breathtaking overwhelming! I had a lot of bouncing around to do so the first night I was couching it with a friend until my room was available for the weekend. I headed into Kona to meet up with the team for the first scheduled activity we swam at the ironman swim start. How cool to be there right were the ironman world championships are. I could totally imagine it. Especially from watching it on TV. Then we met up at Kona brew co turns out my guide book was right BEST PIZZA mmmmmmm.
The next day I woke up on CA time. Luckily a friend was also up and we went for a walk. I had not checked out to much of the resort so this was neat. It was still dark out when we started. As the sun came up we made our way on a part of the run course. All around this part of the island people take white rocks and write stuff out on the black lava. She decided this was a good time to write out a few things for the race. She wrote GO TEAM and Skip for a fellow teammate who lost his battle with leukemia just over a year ago. I decided to write my brother's name. As I crouched down to grab the rocks and coral to spell out his name my senses all went crazy. It was like my sense of hearing went away and there was no sound, my vision blurred and my sense of touch heightened. The groves and pattern in the coral seemed to be the only thing I could sense really. As I laid each one down images of my brother and his life flashed in my mind. The photographs and memories played vividly with each placing of a stone. My breath was taken away as tears started to fall from my eyes until they turned into uncontrollable sobs. I cried out to God & let Him have all my hurt in that moment. I was shaking and could barely finish. As I wrote his name it was like I was realizing all over again he was gone. His life ended so tragically and way too early. My heart was breaking all over again. I wanted to lash out or scream or do something but I was paralyzed in that crouched position. Suzanne was there but I didn't even look up, I just heard her in the distance saying "you can do this". I finally finished and then it was like I snapped back to reality. I had no way of knowing that was going to happen. I didn't even go with the intention of doing that but God met me there and I guess I got it all out because He knew I needed to.
After that Jodi and I headed over to A Bay where our race would be. She and I swam out and tested the waters. It was so beautiful and clear. There was coral, tropical fish and sea turtles below us. I am so glad we did this so I will be less distracted on race day! (Team plans a few swims here too but on our own we could do it at our leisure and pace). I got to try Kona coffee when we did a plantation tour. We did bike pick up in the afternoon and a run for part of the course preview. Friday was the full course preview. When we got up Friday the wind was INSANE! We did a swim in the bay and it was crazy cause the current carried us so far around. I was glad we swam day before cause the visibility was so different. Not that it is important to see the fish and coral but it was way cool!
We were supposed to go out on the bike course and do about half of it but it was soooo windy we didn't go far at all. I will tell you that being on the bike with the gusty winds like that was scary. My heart was pounding and I was very nervous about the race. I think we all were. The thought of riding 24 miles with the wind pushing you like that made a 3-4 hour finish time rise to 5-6 hours in my mind. We biked a portion of the run course and then did the last part of the run course.
Saturday morning we had the option to go on an additional race preview our sport of choice. I went back out on the bike cause I wanted to practice more in the wind. Then I went for a quick swim back at A Bay. After we had to go to pick up our race packets. I went to lunch with some friends and whatever I ate at lunch made me horribly sick! I had a few hours until the race director meeting and our inspiration dinner. I was back in my room losing my lunch with horrible stomach cramps. From experience I knew this could be laying me out for days :( I was in tears and fearing the worst. I was able to get myself out of bed and make it to the race meeting. I had the cutest dress and shoes all picked out for the inspiration dinner. I could barely get dressed and look somewhat presentable when I headed out. I am glad I made the race meeting. There was definitely some info that I did not want to miss. We headed straight into the inspiration dinner. This moment should of been so different. I believe it was supposed to be a surprise. They had all the coaches, mentors, staff lined up cheering us into dinner. Everyone passing out hugs and smiling. Inside my stomach was killing me and I faked a smile although I wanted to sob. This was another moment that was being tarnished by bad luck on this trip (the previous account will not be recorded in public forum but I had another tearful moment). I wished so bad I was in my normal mode. I would be high fiving and hugging and probably crying in joy. Instead I dodged my way through as many people as I could and plopped myself down in my chair and started crying. I was again so disappointed that I was missing out on the experience I had waited so long for, crying cause if I wasn't miraculously 100% by morning I was not going to do well in the race....or even be able to race? Where we ended up sitting was so far away I couldn't really hear the inspirational talk anyway. I at some white bread rolls, a banana, plain pasta and dry plain chicken. Bland and tasteless & a huge bummer. After dinner we headed to a small meeting room for coaches last minute instructions. This lastest way longer then I would have liked. I ended up lying on the floor with my eyes closed praying that I was able to make it through this and back to my bed SOON. Again all info that I needed to hear just so upset my stomach hurt and I was not myself.
I went to sleep praying God would take all they pain away. I took more pepto thanks to my friend Elisa for supplying me. I did feel like all the bad food I ate had left my system and I was just feeling the after effects. I slept surprisingly well for a race night. I woke up in the morning and decided my stomach felt the same as any normal race day stomach would. I wasn't sure if it was from the bad food or race day so I decided to blame it on race day guts and have an awesome day!