The swim is what terrified me the first time I Tri'd the Pawling in '06. This time I wasn't going to let it DNF me! Needless to say, I alternated between breast, back and free/crawl throughout the swim. I know if I really tried I could have shaved at least 5 minutes off my time, but my main goal was to not DROWN! I was actually comfortable, and even had a teeny bit of a conversation out there with someone else who didn't love the swim! Thankfully I was not dunked, kicked or really pushed. In my experience, the swimmers were considerate :) I was just sooooo happy that I ignored my initial drive to "just forget about this and turn back while you can!" Thank God I at least did it this time around!!!

I'll continue practicing in open water (2 nice lakes) and try to breaststroke less and crawl more. Obviously that slowed me down bigtime.

slow. Wasn't in a rush. Chatted with a volunteer.

Stop my freaking chatting :)

on my training rides for this course, I usually complete it in 45 min or a little less. I was ok even on the hills. I certainly could do better but this was the only leg of the tri today that I felt I did my avereage, and not below.

~work on those hills!

slow. Wasn't in a rush (plus I was crying a little!)

Absolutely need to lose weight, and I'll take the run more seriously next time.

Walked a lot- I was by myself this year so I lugged around the bike and two big bags! I'm a nurse, so I overdo it when it comes to packing supplies, lol.


My weight, plus the fact that my family couldn't join me. I was a sad sack during T2 and cried a little.


I love the race, the volunteers, my fellow racers, scenery and the location (close to home). What I need to do is focus on my training and weight~ 20 to 30 pounds...