Honolulu Tinman Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic

I was in the last wave and I swear I just kept watching the current get worse as time went by although I'm sure it just seemed that way in MY mind as nerves started to hit me pretty hard as I was looking out there. Mike (WhatwasIthinking) came by then and his seemingly calm nature kind of put me at ease ~ it's hard to be nervous when someone else is telling you you'll do great! It's funny that I felt absolutely horrible during this swim (I think I did 50/50 breast/front crawl) because I ended up with an (awesome) time that I've never seen before. The waves were huge and half the time I couldn't see where I was supposed to be heading because of them. I just couldn't get into a groove with either my stroke or my breathing which led to me alternating strokes...at least while doing the breast stroke I could somewhat see where I was. Soooo, with all that being said, while I couldn't be happier with my time I just felt horrible out there but then when running back to transition I saw Mike and Sammi...

Get over my fear of swimming by myself and practice in the OW!!!

I wanted to be sure I didn't have any crap on my foot where the new skin was (from my cut ~ I didn't want anything bothering me down the road...no pun intended) so I sprayed it off with my water bottle (which btw must have worked 'cuz I never thought about it again!) Other than that I guess I was just taking my sweet ole time as that is an aweful long time to be hanging out in there!

I'm not sure what took me so long so I guess I just need to work transitions into my training!

I got on my bike right by where Mike and Sammi were so I took a second to say hi and wave ~ seeing their big smiles is sooo motivating! I started off slower than I normally would knowing that 1. my training had been crappy the last month due to my foot then getting sick; 2. there were some hills with one big one in the middle; and 3. this race was double what I've done thus far. I felt really good going out and when I started to feel rain drops I (literally) started praying that it not rain as I am so not comfortable riding in the rain especially knowing that there was a really big hill coming up. I'm happy to say it didn't rain and I kicked butt on the hill. I was soo excited to see myself passing everyone on the way up and while my thighs were burning I managed to talk to the cow bell guy near the top (who, I must say, was perfectly placed!) On the way back I was still doing pretty good but was starting to feel myself get sluggish so I ate and drank and prayed. THEN comes the dismount...I was slowing down and they kept yelling to keep going to the stop sign so I see it a ways ahead, unclip my right foot, and watch the guy by the sign. He starts YELLING for me to slow down (No?! Really?!) so I'm watching him, see the stop sign, stop and get off. The guy YELLS "Waaaaaaaay past the red line...5 second penalty!) I'm about to say "FCK" as I'm looking for this red line he speaks of (which sure enough is there and I am past it) when it comes to mind that I need to just shut up and go! Oh well, I think to myself...good thing I'm not trying to break any records today, huh? and didn't even think about it again until later when I was talking to my Mike.

Not cut my foot open or get sick right before my race and make sure I know where EXACTLY to dismount!!! Seriously though, I am couldn't be more pleased with my time or effort on this one!

I'm not sure you can call what I was doing with my bike "running." It was more of a really fast walk made to look like running so I'm sure it took me forever to get to my rack...especially since I was in the far corner but at least I knew where I was going! I had minor issues changing my shoes ~ I'm not sure why other than I made the mistake of putting my foot down (ok, I didn't really have a choice as my balance was not the best at that moment) which made all of those long, sticky, stick-like things stick to my sock. Needless to say, I had to get those off before getting my running shoe on but I made sure to drop my other foot on my towel and not the ground!

Will mental imagery work as well as just practicing?!

I started off really slow hoping to get my running legs before picking up the pace but it seemed to never really happen. There was what seemed to be a big ole never ending hill right from the get go that really didn't help. About 2ish miles (there were no mile markers) into it my right thigh started cramping and I started praying. The rest of the run I had an internal battle going on in my head as to whether it was ok to walk or not (damn the Army for drilling into me that walking during a run is a friggen crime!!). I wanted to walk so bad and just couldn't let myself but then my leg was cramping so bad that I didn't have a choice. My eyes started welling with tears which of course made me loose my breath as I tried to calm myself down and convince myself that it's ok to walk during a race...I'm still going to finish...that's what I came to do and I will do it! I was able to start running but here comes another hill and I made myself run up it but then going down I had to walk a bit and the thought "I can't do this" entered my head. Again, the fight in my head began and I felt like I couldn't breath when I again had to say to myself "this is MY race! No one elses and if I have to walk then so be it ~ just finish!!" Off I went ~ running. I kept looking for the turn onto that last road and when it finally came into sight I just kept telling myself to keep going...you're almost there! I wanted to finish strong and was having a hard time of it when low and behold, there is Mike and Sam on the side of the road yelling at me. I looked at Mike with what I'm sure was an absolute look of desperation and told him I soooo needed that (to see them smiling and cheering me on) at that moment and next thing I know he's running along side of me (on the sidewalk) in his flip flops with Sammi in the stroller. Every time I looked over he would say "look how good Mommy is doing...she's kicking our butt Sammi" and she would be sitting there with the wind blowing her hair back just looking at me laughing and smiling. It was EXACTLY what I needed to finish with a smile on my face!!!

I think I need to work on what works for me as far as nutrition and fluid intake...I get to the point where I don't want anything to eat or drink (I'm not a fan of all the sugary stuff when working out which is funny 'cuz I have such a sweet tooth any other time!) and I know I need it.

Grabbed some water and food and stretched while watching Sammi run around. Mike (WhatwasIthinking) and Sam (fxobert) came over to congratulate me while I was still trying to breath ~ thank you! Have I told you guys how awesome you are?!?


Crappy training the month prior due to my foot then getting sick.


Despite my mental battle during the run which I'd like to think I wouldn't have had such a hard time with had my training not been interupted, this was an amazing race!! The courses were great (in every sense) and HPD and the volunteers were wonderful and friendly (I love smiling and talking to them!) I'll definitely be back next year to claim what's mine on the run course! ;)