Patriot Half Iron - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

I think this was the most mellow swim start ever. I mean no one was nervous or pushing or anything it was nice. I had the least contact I have ever had in a race. I planned to take it out easy because I was still a llittle nervous about my breathing and I didn't want to be hacking up a lung in the middle of a pond. I managed to draft quite a bit the first 200 yards or so, then I was pretty much alone.

I get bored swimming so I started singing the bottles of beer on the wall song. Made it to the first turn with about 70 bottles left on the wall but I didn't start singing til I was about 1/2 way there. I had a nice rhthym going I really was afraid to push it too hard. 50 bottles left on the wall at the next turn.....I was hoping to still have some beer on the wall by the time I finished but I reloaded with 20 more bottles. Then I just wanted to finish and abandoned the song. Passed a few people from the previous wave.

Once again my left arm/hand went numb during the swim. This happened at ST. A too. Sometimes it happens in the pool but rarely. No idea.

If I hadn't been so wary of my breathing issues I could have pushed harder. I think I need a song with a faster tempo. It was a solid effort while competeing sick.

1-Not be sick
2-Pick a faster song
3-Get a wetsuit that fits

hhmmmm What to wear what to wear...Where are Stacy and Clinton when you need them!!!...Its FREAKING RAINING.....I dont' know how to bike in the rain in cold weather we don't get that in Florida. I had my now UN-lucky rain jacket, but its pure plastic and would have been too hot. Had a throw away tech shirt and a wind vest. I was afraid the tech shirt would get wet and stay wet and be hard to get off and once wet make me even colder. Didn't think the wind vest would be terribly helpful. Opted for none of it. Even retrospectively I don't know if any of it would have helped. Smartest thing I did was to go sockless on the bike. I would have had wet cold numb socky feet for 3 hours which I think would have been worse than the wet cold numb feet I ended up with.

Suit off, bike shoes helmet and glasses on, off I go. Ran thru some of the transition area but walked up the hill to the mount line. Saw my coach and his partner on the way out of T1. I usually do the shoes on the bike thing bit due to the wet conditions and the POOP everywhere I ran in my shoes. 9/28 in my age group

What DOES one wear in a rainy race on the bike? no idea.

OK....Here goes nothing. RAIN YIKES....do it for Jen ...First thing is that I was in the third wave so it was really weird to be passed as all the young fast people were behind me. Usually I'm in one of the last waves. I was going totally by feel. I barely looked at my bike computer. I knew I HAD to race my own race at my own pace or I would be toast quick. I had to trust my endurance base cause the week leading up tot he race left me with not a lot. I just tried to keep it at a easy sustainable pace. Check your ego at the door....race your own race race your own race race your own race.

I actually had a pretty fun time on this course. It took a lot of concentration because 1-it was raining and wet and I am totally not used to riding in those conditions 2-I felt like I had cataracts because I could barely see out of my glasses due to them being fogged and wet the whole ride so visibility was a BIG issue for me 3-hills 4-techinchal course 5-sections of bad and I mean BAD as in the entire road on either side has nothing but pot holes road. Was VERY happy to have my foggy glasses when a van came by fast and close and sprayed me with crap off the road.

Anyway it seemed to go by pretty quick because of the above reasons and I did the first loop in 1:31. My coach told me it was long and thought it was 60 miles so mentally I was prepared for that. Followed my nutrition well. Didn't need as much fluid as down south due to the cold factor. Felt like I could be more aggressive on the second loop. I noticed that my legs were a bit more tired on the flats the second loop. Hit 56 miles at 2:57...SWEET sub 3 hours....but still a few more miles to go. I was FREEZING esp the last 8 or so miles. All I was thinking about was being able to run in my LONG SLEEVED top. Definate motivation to GET DONE.

I think I handled the hills really well. Honestly not a problem. Went up them slow but steady and didn't let my breathing get out of control. I was a bit twitchy on the wet downhills esp in the areas of bad pavement. Better to be a few minutes slower and not make a trip to the ER in my opinion. I'm very pleased with the bike esp with the conditions handed to me and being sick.

On that day not a thing. If I had been healthy and it was not cold and wet I could have gone harder. Open to cold rainy biking clothing suggestions.

I always take my feet out of my shoes on the bike. Saw KathyG at the entrance to T2 I yelled at her "I'm freezing its f-ing COLD" She just laughed at me :) For some reason had a brain fart and couldn't find my rack. Also I usually rack by the saddle and the racks were low so I struggled with that too.

DAMN my tech shirt was WET AARRGGHHHH. I had pushed thru thte last miles of the bike to get that freaking shirt and it was WET. OK I still got my wind vest so I wore that. I had smartly put my runnning shoes and socks in a plastic bag so they were dry THANK GOD because my feet were numb from being cold and wet for 3 hours on the bike. Dried feet, socks and shoes on, hat, race belt...rid my self of the cataracts I mean glasses, bottle with accelerade. Saw Keving (Kathy's husband) and her daughters at the T2 exit.

Not have a brain fart as to where my rack is. Put clothes in plastic bag on a wet day

My mom and dad were manning the aide station as you exited T2. My mom said she was everyones mother that day because she basically was telling people to not fall in the ENOURMOUS hole in the ground you had to run over. My dad was giving out sponges. They were troopers standing out in the rain all day for sure !!

I really didn't feel bad coming off the bike. Started with a 4:1 run walk. Had a bit of a side stitch and did the 4:1 thing for the first 4 miles or so......until the HILLS came. Yeah. I can handle hills on the bike and at least the winds in FL kind of prepares you for that....hills on the run not so much.

Really just tried to do the best I could. Started making up little mantras for each mile. Five is fine five is fine....and think about what I would say the next mile. Six is super six is super....OK Mile six REALLY sucked tho so on mile seven it was six sucked but seven is splendid six sucked but seven is splendid. So about 100 people or more passed me on the run PHIFFLE....run your own race run your own race....If Jen can change a tampon on a plane with no door on the bathroom you can do this...do it for jen do it for jen do it for jen....ANYTHING to keep one foot in front of the other. I seriously tough my big toenail on my left foot had come off about mile 7 or eight and I was getting some blisters too

The volunteers had BRIGHT ORANGE tech shirts on which was EXTREMELY helpful because you could see them in the distance....YAY and aide station and another mile down!!! I started taking pepsi at the aide stations which helped. I threw my vest off mile 2. Used my inhaler during the second mile. Used the downhills as best I could to take advantage of gravity. Walked most of the up hills. I don't know, I just didn't have a lot to give here. I was kind of woozy the last 3 miles or so. My legs were suddenly sore and tired. My foot was really hurting. The last mile I started wheezing.

Coming back into the camp where the finish was YAY I am DONE!!! I had my bright yellow top I wore at St. A on so I guess I was easy to spot as I heard Kathy yelling for me when I was about a 1/2 mile away. Finished!!! YAY. DK, TriToy and all the Graves clan plus my mom and dad were there..they wanted pictures I wanted a chair.

Not be sick and get pumpeled by call the week before a race and be able to get more rest. More long bricks, WEAR MY NEWTONS. That was a huge tactical error on my part. I don't think my foot where I had my stress fracture would have hurt at all if I had been smart enought to wear my newtons. I recently switched out of them because I was blistering in them and they don't have a ton of support.

Sat in a chair.....I got to talk to my coach for a while afterwards which was great because I have never had the opportunity to do that. I was a little out of it. Had a coke......yes a REGULAR coke and my dad brought me a DRY shirt YAY. Packed up transition and SCORED about 30 raspberry hammer gels and a bottle of enduralytes. I was wet and soggy and cold I we left.....my dad drove home and got lost so we had a nice tour of rural SE massachusetts. I had my cheesy rice cakes in the car tho so all was well in my world.


Rain, cold, bronchitis, no newtons, hilly run


Good race except I was a little miffed they did the race give aways before everyone finished. Thats kind of RUDE. I knew I would be in trouble if it rained but I think I handled the bike really well. I didn't expect a whole lot and hopefully I didn't get pneumonia out there. I wish I hadn't been sick but you just gotta roll with it sometimes. Its better than not being able to race at all and even on my best day if I had the race of my life I would never place anyway so whatever :)

Thanks to my coach Will Kirousis of tri-Hard coaching as always for believing in me, my mom and dad for being good iron sherpas and even better sports standing around in the rain all day, the Graves family for the same, DK and TriToy for waiting for my sorry slow butt to finish!! Thanks to all the patriots in our armed forces for serving and protecting this amazing country of ours!!!


My mom says "You should just go for the glory and do that aquabike thing you could win that. You just aren't built for running" :) thanks mom :)