Pretty pleased with the swim overall. Glad we had done a practice swim the day prior - it was pretty choppy and I would have had a rough day otherwise. I did a good job of pacing myself and keeping h.r. down - only had to breathe every 4th stroke which was the goal. Did really good with sighting and staying on course to the first turn buoy. After that got a little off course with the current. But overall I was pleased with how I did on the swim.

Work on sighting and navigation a bit more. If I had a wetsuit, I would have worn it

T1 would have been much quicker if I hadn't made a running dive to beat some guy into the one remaining vacant portolet. I figured I should go before getting on the bike so I wouldn't have to worry about it for a while. Otherwise, spent time drying off which - in hindsight - is pointless. Otherwise took some time to review nutrition chart and make sure I had everything before getting on the bike. I figured a minute spent doing this might save me from making a nutrition blunder and bonking later on. Also had one of the volunteers apply sunblock. Figured this was also well worth the time.

Not waste time drying off. Otherwise did pretty good.

Rough ride with the winds picking up for the 2nd half. Wish I had taken advantage of the low winds and tailwind on the first 20 miles and let my h.r. get up just a bit higher. Live and learn!

Need more training in windy conditions and more strength training. Would have pushed harder the first half to make up for a really sucky 2nd half.

Felt okay with T2. Put bike up before removing helmet. Switched out nutrition / hydration, put on race number belt and got moving.

Could put on race number, hat and sunglasses when running.

Glad to be off that stinking bike and start the run. Saw Marcy, Ken, and Rob on the run between miles 1 and 4 so that really broke things up and gave me some bright spots. Tried to stay positive mentally focusing on this as the last leg of the race and that was a good thing. Saw Sister Madonna Buder on the run and she just looked so happy and peaceful - I tried to adopt her great attitude and take things one mile at a time. Started pretty conservative - running one mile then walking about 1 minute or 2. Kept h.r. about 163 with this strategy and figured I'd pace it this way at least to the halfway point. Got really frustrated after mile 9 all of the aid stations were gone. Completeyly sucked as there were people behind me struggling and they had no hydration with them - they were reliant on the aid stations. I was pretty peeved also at how desolate the last miles became, but looked at it as a mental challenge to remain positive so far at the back of the pack and at some points doubting if I was still on course. Sometimes the only way I was sure I wasn't lost was by spotting a random used sponge or water bottle on the ground. Anyway, I was physically feeling pretty good at mile 9 so decided to run the rest of the way pushing a little harder each mile till the finish. At mile 11 I thought I might be able to beat my goal of 8:30 if I could manage quicker than 15 min mile pace, and I came very close to this. I put a big smile on my face and continued to push through until h.r. got up to about 185 and kept it here for the last 2 miles. Spectator support picked up on the last mile and that made it really enjoyable.

Push a little harder from the start of the run. But this being first HIM distance, would rather err on the side of caution.

Saw Rob and Ken at the finish line. Got (ugly) medal and had picture taken with hubby. Talked to Rob and Ken about their races (both awesome!) and then got a massage. Rode bikes back to hotel (about 1/2 mile) and sucked down recovery drink and Aleve for the soon-to-hit-like-an-anvil soreness.


Uncertainty of ability at HIM distance.


Can't even put into words how horrible it was to have no aid stations or support the last 4 miles of the run. Otherwise, the volunteers and aid stations were great. Too bad wetsuit shrunk and I couldn't wear it - would have helped with swim speed and it was very cold in the morning and standing on that sand was crazy cold! Felt great coming out of the swim. The men's wave had caught up to me and I really loved getting out of the water with a bunch of people around. Had a rough time on the bike - the wind just killed me and my hamstrings were hurting as well as upper back. Glad to be on the run and tried to encourage other back-of-packers. So happy to see the finish line - proud to have pushed through and that both Rob and I finished about at our time goals for the day. A great accomplishment even though a slow overall race I stuck to my pacing strategy and I am amazed at how far I have come considering that a year ago this time an Olympic distance race was pushing my fitness level to the limit, and the year prior I was barely able to even run 2 miles for a sprint tri.