I started out right up front, right in front of the buoy line. Everyone else starts in the back and away from the buoys. I still don't understand it, but I'm not complaining! I had the easiest, clearest swim of all my races, despite the fact that I came up on at least 3 waves in front of me. Everyone was swimming way far to the right of the buoys, and it looked crowded. I couldn't even draft off of anyone because no one was following the straightest line on the course. How bizarre! So, I just went along, pretending that I had the lake to myself, and really focused on racing the swim. Perfect! I LOVE my new De Soto wetsuit- it is amazing!!

Draft, but like I said- no one was swimming the buoy line.

Transition was really long, and we had to put our wetsuits back into our gear bags- took forever.

Just hustle. I really hate transitions.

Hopped on the bike and my legs felt good. I knew I was a bit behind on nutrition, since I lost half my breakfast pre-race, so I started trying to make it up. I spent the entire race passing people, and felt pretty good until we got to mile 20 or so. My stomach started to revolt, and I just could NOT get it to settle. I puked in my mouth a bit and kept burping for about 20 minutes. I hate my stomach!! I still got down 2.5 full water bottles, 1 full gatorade and 1 full bottle of gatorade + carbopro, a bunch of gu's and a cliff bar. About this same time, there was a very long section of chip seal that seemed to last forever. It was the worst section of road I've ever ridden, and it really got to me, mentally. I was distracted and not too happy, and started questioning why I was even out there. Bad spot, mentally- I lost focus, got down on myself and I just couldn't pull myself out of it. It's really unfortunate, because my legs felt good, but my power just kept dropping.

In order to snap out of it, I just had to stop caring about the race. I stopped looking at my power, stopped obsessing about my speed, and just enjoyed riding my bike. I shut off my brain from worrying about my pace on the run, and just decided I had to go run because I LIKE running, not because I have to. This is supposed to be fun!

Then, it was fun. I just enjoyed my smooth, fast bike, my sweet wheels, my aerodynamic-ness, and had a blast passing a ton of people.

Not suck. Overall, I felt like I was passing people the entire ride, and hardly anyone got by me- even guys, so I guess it wasn't too bad. I just know I could have, and should have, gone faster.

I didn't know the end was coming, so I didn't have time to take my shoes off the pedals. Oops!

We had to take our shoes out of our bags, so that took a while, but I also just wasn't in a hurry!

My run went better than I expected, after my crappy bike. There were a lot of people on the course, and I passed a lot of people. I caught up to a few AG girls right away, and for most of the run, felt like I was the only one really running. I even passed two female pros on their third lap- they really seemed to be struggling. I kept my pace relatively steady, but just couldn't get going any faster. Everytime I tried to pick up the pace, my legs got really heavy and my pace actually slowed, so I just kept it steady and even the whole way.

The great thing about the 3 loop run course was that I got to see Ryan a few times on the run. That always lifted my spirits and I was so happy to see him running. It also kept me motivated, because he wasn't too far behind me, and I knew he started a lot later, so I was really worried that he would beat me. That was probably the single greatest factor to keep my pace steady.

I didn't walk for a second, nor did I want to, but I just didn't put myself through enough pain to feel 100% satisfied with my bike/run. I left just a bit on that course, and I hate that I don't feel like I gave it my all. I put in a very solid effort, and had a good race, and a good time (once I stopped puking), but if I want to see any more improvements at this distance, I need to suck it up and make it hurt.

I found my mom and talked to Bill and his wife Holly and kids for a bit. That was very nice. I then stood at the finish, frantically watching the clock and looking for Ryan. I knew he started 15 minutes behind me, so I nervously watched the clock tick away. Once the 15minute gap passed, I breathed a sigh of relief- Ryan will not defeat me in this year- Phew! Next year, I know it's game over, but I will savor this year's victory in our never ending battle of the sexes :) He still kicked serious a$$ and PRed, and crushed my pathetic bike split- but I am still Triathlon Queen in our house! hehe.

We ate some food, gathered up our stuff, and checked results. I was pleasantly surprised that I managed to take 4th amateur, so the race wasn't all that bad. We chatted with Lisac and Tom for a bit before hitting the road on the long, somewhat painful drive back to MI. Buh-Bye sun- see you in 6 months!!


My brain, nerves and guts. Actually- nerves, guts, then brain. Stupid neurons.

I guess I will concede that there is a slight possibility that it's been a long season, but I hate to use it as a true excuse. I've been racing hard for 3 years now, and have raced 8 Half Ironmans and 2 marathons these past 2 years. I've had some great races and Jorge has kept me 100% healthy and injury free, but I think my body knows it's time for a break. So, I'll listen, I suppose, since next year, the battle will rage on at IMLP :)



The race itself was great- very well organized and a very fair course. The expo was fun, there was a lot to do- very spectator friendly and the athletes were very well cared for. It was an exciting event! The course: some people described the race as 'rolling hills', but that's not exactly right. It isn't exactly flat, but 'hill' is the wrong word, too, except for the 2 real hills. It was a lot like Michigan, I guess, with just enough incline and wind to keep you honest. The thing is though- the roads are just so awful, compared to what I'm used to, that I can NOT recommend the race without explaining the conditions- I would never, ever ride it again, ever. It felt so unsafe with all the giant cracks that go WITH your wheel- even if they were well marked- you had to still avoid them, and avoid people who were avoiding the bumps and cracks. Scary. And then, there's the other surface- the chipseal crap that they use in Texas, apparently, to 'pave' their roads. If you ride on chipseal, or something similar, apparently the roads we used were amazing in comparison- but I hated every minute of it, and will never ride my bike in Texas again. To me, it was so mentally draining, really rough on my butt and the vibration just dampened my momentum. Everything else was great, and it had the fun, exciting environment of a world class event- lots of goodies, lots of people, tons of fast looking bikes and a lot of eye candy ;) The volunteers and aid stations were great as well- people were dressed up, enthusiastic and funny- it made the run especially enjoyable. If that's your thing, and you don't mind awful roads- then it was a perfect event.