Spirit of Racine Half Ironman Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

Flash back to last year's race... I had a MAJOR PANIC ATTACK just after rounding the first bouy. Almost bailed on the race. My goal for this year was to have a good swim. Good meaning: no panic attacks, no walking, nice easy swim. Didn't care about time, just wanted to not freak out. And guess what?!?! I did great! Keep repeating to myself to take it slow and easy at the start. Had to do a bit of stopping and starting at first as it was a bit crowded, but once the pack thinned out I got into a rhythm. Of course the fact that the water was 10 degree warmer than last year and the course wasn't shrouded in fog helped quite a bit, but I was prepared for the cold this year; had on botties and a neoprene cap.

Nothing. For me, it was a great swim.

I'm not known for my speedy transitions. No matter how fast I think I'm going, I'm not. Oh well, something to work on. Plus, I always have wardrobe issues in T1. I HATE to be cold, so I'm always debating what to wear on the bike. Wasn't sure if I should wear the jacket I brought or just go with the arm warmers. In the end I chose the arm warmers, and I was glad later on. Problem was, I had been planning on wearing the jacket and had my Uncrustables in the back packet, so guess what I forget.

Go faster and not be such a weenie about the cold.

As mentioned before, I hate being cold and I get cold quickly. It took a good 45 minutes before my feet warmed up (despite wearing booties on the swim) But as time went by I was very comfortable, even took the arm warmers off. Since I had forgotten my Uncrustables I was left with just GU. I have some IBS issues and need to be very careful what I eat or I will pay. I was concerned about getting enough calories in. Over all, the bike went great. My goal was to go under 3 hours and I did, by 59 seconds. Saw my husband around mile 40, which was a great boost. With about 5 miles to go, I really had to pee, but no places that really would have been appropriate to stop at. I've never peed on the bike, and really don't want to try, but that's me. Figured I could make it to transition.

Not much, I'm pleased with the ride.

Another speedy transition - NOT. But at least I wasn't being silly and worrying about clothing. I did have to take some extra time to take off my sock and spray my foot with Bio-Freeze. More about this later....

As mentioned before, get faster, streamline what I have to do.

Started the run having to pee - badly. Unfortunately, the potties were occupied. Waited a minute, decided to check the next one. Got there, waited, waited, waited. What the heck was that person doing, reading the paper? Went on and found a nice secluded bush. AHHHHHHH! Relief! Lost a lot of time with the whole peeing thing. Hmmm, maybe learning to pee on the bike or run isn't such a bad thing. Started out fine, but then at mile four the Bio Freeze began to wear off. I have a chronic foot injury. Partial tear of the metatarsal pad under my second toe. It has been giving me trouble lately, so I came prepared with my little travel sized spray bottle of Bio Freeze. That stuff is AWESOME! Of course it's a pain (no pun intended) to stop - remove shoe and sock - spray foot - let spray dry - put on shoe and sock back on - continue on run. But, I figure the time it takes to do that evens out because if I didn't I would go much slower or have to actually stop when the pain becomes to great. Had to go through that whole routine 3 times during the run.

Pee before running. Maybe try the Bio Freeze lotion to see if that works longer than the spray. Perhaps get some more opinions about the foot. Current Foot Doc says there isn't much that can be done.

I was so excited to see the time on my watch as I crossed the finish line! My goal was to finish in 5:45 or better and I did it. Found hubby and went to the food tent. As noted prior, I have food issues, so I couldn't eat most of what was provided. Although I'm usually not very hungry after a race, but figured I could handle a PB & J. They had jars and jars of PB, but no sandwiches in sight. Turns out they had no jelly or bread?!?!?! So I asked if I could just have some PB on a bun. Lady gave me a funny look, but made one for me.


Nothing, other than my slow transitions. I'm super pleased with my race.


This is the second time I've done this race and I did it again to prove to myself that I could conquer the swim, and I did. On to new challenges next year!