considering my lack of swim training, this felt fine. :P

TRAIN!

OO, the horror. I am NOT a biker, I do not consider myself one though I enjoy it. 5 miles ino the 1st loop I hear a strange banging and shouting noise. To the left of me was a older hillbilly looking couple hitting pots and pans with sticks and shouting " Ironman, Ironman, you're gonna be an Ironman!!" This made me smile and giggle. This couple was out there for more than 4 hours ( I saw them on the second loop as well). The scenery was GORGEOUS! I talked to quite a few people out there. Mile 20ish, the killer hills started. I knew what to expect. PAIN. UGH. I tackled them one at a time. "Breathe, girl, Breath!". The last 14ish miles were a slight downhill. YEAH! I finished my 1st loop in just under 4 hours. PERFECT!! I felt good, but was not looking forward to another 4 hours on a bike. I saw my parents and gave them a grin, trying to hide my "excitment" of another 4 hours on the bike. The 2nd lap went better and faster than the first!? My nutrition was perfect. Every 10 miles I stopped at the aid station, re-filled my bottle with 1/2 gatorade and had half a bar or gu as well as one salt packet an hour. One the last loop around mile 107 there was a woman in a pink dress with a large hoop skirt and wig. haha!!! There is nothing wrong with laughing out loud or talking to yourself during an Ironman. :D How I loved the volunteers. I sang Rocky songs as I came near to the Transition area. 7 hours 57 minutes. DONE! Under my time goal of 8 hours. Not shabby.


train more, but other than that this was near perfect for me.

good. :) SarahK helped me get ready. My legs felt better off the bike than last Ironman. :D

I started the run too fast. I felt great and kept going. I did the 1st 5 miles in an hour. I started feeling a tad, ugh. It was around 80 and I was in need of salt. I couldn't believe I forgot to carry salt packets with me. Mile 8 I saw Jeremiah and decided to chill with him for a while. I enjoyed talking with him and hearing how his day was going. Many people said happy birthday to me out there after seeing my lovely back "Birthday Girl" my mom wrote. ^_^ I saw SO many friends on the run. There was a man dressed in an Elmo suite and a man in a Kilt ( I later found out he was the LAST official finisher, pretty cool). I saw Janelle twice on the run ( Beginner triathlete friend!) and Karen from SDR, looked strong and smiley. This is what makes triathlon special. When there was no one to talked to, I talked quietly to myself. " Baby steps around the office", " Just keep running, Just keep running, running running." On the 2nd loop my mom continued texting me ( I carried my phone with), " Are you ok?" " Almost done?" " Run Strong!". MOM!!!!! Mile 15, I grabbed my "Birthday Princess Sash". :) Mile 14-18ish were probably the toughest miles. Here I made a tough decision. Drink CHICKEN BROTH. I was feeling a tad woozy and light headed. I'm vegetarian and the thought of chicken juice marinating my dry mouth made me nearly gag. It helped a ton though. Mile 20 I heard one of my favorite songs, Saviour by Rise Against. A woman commented " You look So happy, You don't look like you're about to finish an Irionman!" haha. I danced through "Tonight's going to me a good good night.." as well. Mile 23ish, I lost Jeremiah, but watched him in the distance. He looked strong and kept running. Mile 25 I called my mom. " ALMOST THERE!!!!!! I grabbed my tiara and ran in strong. I finished in 15 hours and 49 minutes. Ok, slower than AZ, but I finished. I didn't crash, I didn't pass out, I had a good time. Mission accomplished. I once again do not remember being called an Ironman but I will not ever forget the feeling I felt while crossing that line. My dad found me and gave me a hug afterwards. I felt great and ate pizza at the finish line ( HUGE improvment from last Ironman lol). This was the best birthday ever. I am 20 and another Ironman. I later found out I was the youngest FEMALE FINISHER! SWEET! 2 Ironman, both I was the youngest gal. YEAH! Now, maybe one day start working on speed. ;)



nothing. I walked a lot with a friend, I feel like I could have been faster in the run, but eh, o well. I had fun.

ate pizza! WHAT A FUN BIRTHDAY!!!


lack of training.