I positioned myself sort of in the middle/back instead of way out on the edges. It was mixes M/W and I didn't want to get dunked by aggressive swimmers. I stayed on the line pretty well, passed a lot of people, and eventually caught and passed people in the waves ahead of me. I felt strong, and didn't push terribly hard as I wanted energy left in the tank for the rest of the race. I knew my lack of swimming would be troublesome if I overdid it. Everything felt smooth and steady, and overall I was really happy with how it went. At the end, where it gets very shallow for a long way, people were standing up way out in the water and walking in. I must have passed eight people by continuing to swim into the shore.

I did manage to draft a little bit here and there, it was good to be able to pass people once in a while, as well.

As usual, swim more and be able to go harder on this leg. However....considering the lack of that, I am pretty darn happy with it!

It was a long run through wet and uneven grass to the bike mount, so I was careful not to sprain my ankle. I felt pretty good about the transition.

With the millions of miles (it seems) that I have been riding this year, my expectations were that the bike leg would be my strongest, and that came to pass. I was still having hip pain at the beginning, and that took about 40 minutes to subside...but I spun and pushed hard, passing a ton of people and not being passed much at all.

I did end up passing a bunch of guys wearing aero helmets and riding on disc wheels.....that was fun... pretty soon I was passing the wave ahead of me, and then one ahead of that. I got to see all of my LUNA teammmates on the course, as it was out and back. I am the oldest LUNA so I was the last to start. :) I felt really strong for the entire ride--I tried to make sure that every time I looked down, my speed did not drop below 20 MPH except on hills. My biggest goal for the 2011 race season was to record an average speed over 20 MPH in a sprint.....I was psyched to see that I was 21.1 MPH for an Olympic!

It was great to see that I was in the top 15% overall for the bike and was fastest in my AG!

It poured rain from mile 14-24, by the way.....luckily I have ridden in the rain "a couple of times" this year (i.e. almost daily!!!).

As always, push harder!

Once again, running through wet, uneven grass, downhill. I was careful not to get hurt! It took a few extra seconds to get my Garmin off my bike, but I needed it to see my run pace, so I took the time to get it.

I had pinned my race number on before the start so I didn't worry about that, and was trying new ez laces so was hoping they were tightened right! (they were fine).

Possibly have a bike computer instead of having to rely on the Garmin....

It was nice and cool for the run--the rain had cooled the air and it stayed cloudy. At about a mile, a friend caught me and passed me, but was only about four steps ahead for a long while, she kept looking back to see where I was, so I just stepped it up and we ran together for the rest of the run. It was nice to have her to talk to, we kept a very decent pace and kept encouraging each other to run hard. It was her first Olympic, and she did really well! I felt pretty good, again considering my running has taken a backseat to biking of late.....

Run faster. :) However, it was a pretty decent run for me.

Not much, had a lot of friends milling about, so just caught up with them, had some fluids, eventually went and got my jacket, as it was not warm!

One of my teammates came up and told me she thought I placed in my AG....I was pretty surprised, as it was a very competitive and big race...but knew my bike leg was really solid and only one woman over 40 had passed me on the run. I went to check results, and sure enough, I was 3rd!

It was fun to stand up on the "podium" (back of an old flatbed truck) and get the award (metal water bottle). Two of my teammates also placed in their AGs! It was a really great day!!


I don't think anything really limited my ability--I had done a HIM training plan, mostly, in getting ready for the race, in order to make sure I was getting enough biking for my other events. I missed a few swims and runs as my bike training ramped up, but I knew I had more than enough fitness to do well at the Oly. I wasn't tired or sore afterward, which I think speaks to the training volume I've done this year! (Or did I not push hard enough????).


Chelanman was so well-organized and everything went very smoothly. I saw a lot of smiles all day. It was great to hear people cheering everywhere, and I heard my name quite a bit, too, which always boosts the spirits! I hope to do this one again next year....although once you add gas, lodging and food, it becomes pretty expensive. I loved being able to do the race with my teammates, Carrie, Jenny, Janet and Charity.