***STOP READING and go to the bottom and read up. This was a reverse....Run, Bike Swim.****

Swim was good. I just jumped in and went. No hanging on the walls, just a quick breath and pushed off. Was very agressive with passing people and squeezing through the middle even when oncoming swimmers were passing. Tried to think about form and really pulling, but really just tried to get through it the best I could. I felt good about my bike, so I wanted to try to have a strong swim as well.

Have no one else be in the pool with me! :-)

This is T2. I am approximating 1:30 min here. It was included in my Swim time of 9:23. Had a bit of a run to get into the pool. Did pretty well except when I went to put my goggles on my sunglasses were still there!! So I flicked them into the grass and kept going. Luckily Josh saw me do it and he picked them up for me!

Bike was 3 shorter loops instead of 2 longers ones tihs year. I liked it better as you didn't have to do the long lonely stretch on the backside with nothing to break the headwind, but the downside was that you had to do the "hilly" part right out of transition 3 times. Max speed 30.4.

Nothing. I left it all out there. I was irritated about the run. Felt so slow and my HR was so jacked. As I started I thought for sure I was done and this was just not going to be my race, but somehow I caught my second wind and hammered it out. I have never been so close to puking before in a race. I am generally not a puker, but everytime on the hills I felt like puking. I wasn't sure if it was just all the water in my stomach, or what. I ate a few beans and it helped calm it down. Each time I reached the top of the climbing bit, and turned the corner for the long, gradual down slope I just dropped into my highest gear and dropped people like they were sitting still. That felt awesome!! Felt good to pass some of those girls I couldn't catch on the run. Moved from 36th on the run to 6th on the bike!

This is T1. As soon as I hit the timing mat from the run, I started walking. I have never wanted to walk so bad in my life! I was slightly dizy and my HR was so high, I just needed a few seconds to get myself under control. I maybe walked 20 ft then jogged to my spot. Tried to be quick abouit my shoes, but was afraid if I leaned over I would pass out. So I tried to concentrate on my helmet and visor and flicking my shoes off first, before leaning over to deal with my bike shoes. I COULD have had a faster T1, and could have moved up one spot in the overall rankings if I could have shaved off 10 seconds. 10 SECONDS! Grrrrrr! But given the circomstances, I was just trying to do the best I could at the time.

GO FASTER!

Ugh!!! So this race started at 4:30 and 4:40 for the men, and 4:50 for the women. It was 109, with full sun. We started on a cement path that snaked behind a housing addition. This was ok as it was slightly down hill and you were in the shade of the houses. But this only lasted for about a mile. Then it was onto the black asphalt bike lane of a never ending gradual climb, with the sun frying your left side. The bottom of my feet have never felt so hot!! You know when you have your feet too close to a camp fire and you think "wow..the bottom of my feet are melting...I need to scoot back?" Yeah...that was feeling but there was nothing you could do about it. I kept watching my HR and it was climbing to 175. This is bad for me. During a race I do not want to see it above 170. I know if I do that I will blow up. I literally had to convince myself to slow down my pace to try to get my HR to drop. I could feel the blood pounding in my head. I felt like I was jogging (yeah....the time agrees with me) but there was nothing I could do about it. I started getting a bit dizzy and was thinking I just need to finish this run without passing out! Get to the bike...you'll have a fan on you then!!! This was the hardest run I have ever done.

Waited for everyone to finish then checked the results. Looked like a few people did well, so we should stay for awards. I was waiting for them to call Astrids name, when they got to my AG and said I got 3rd! HOLY CRAP! SWEET! I my age group as the fastet people in it as really I was 5th in my AG before they pulled the top 3 overall women out. 2 of them were in my AG. So that bounced me up. Sweet! I'll take it!! Still 8th fastest overall, and 5 out of those 8 were in my AG! Sux. I laughingly said I moved up a spot from 9th to 8th becuase Sally wasn't there this year!! We missed her though! Should would have totally rocked it!


Did I mention it was 109 and sunny!


This race took a dive this year. We have always been able to use the community center bathrooms and locker rooms, AND they supplied 4 port a pottys out side. This year we were banned from the Center, and only had acess to the tennis court bathrooms. 2 stalls. Yeah.... Also, the 2 water stations on the run in 109 temps was not enough, and especially when the second one was manned by 3 clueless high school girls. And eventhough I have to believe the wave starts helped the mass conjestion in the pool, it was still conjested and I was STILL stuck with all the sucky guys who were walking, and hopping, and frog stroking, etc.. I was so done with it I just swam over them this year. Going to send the RD a note about this because the fastest guys start first and have no idiots to try to swim around in the pool. With the women starting last, we have all the sucky guys to swim around. It's not fair. They have got to come up with a better system. But even with all the issues the reverse swim can have, I LOVE a reverse tri!! Can't wait for the next one on Thanksgiving morning!