well - i've been in the pool 4 TIMES A WEEK for the last month trying to prepare for this and it wasn't worth a squat. NOTHING can prepare you for a mass wave start and getting trampled. i started off good but was constantly run over by people who could only swim in zig-zags. it SUCKED. i even had to tread water a couple of times to let people get passed which really messed up my breathing and any kind of pattern i was trying to get in to. it was tough although despite all that, i must say it was kind of nice....! last night i worked on visualizing having a smooth, great swim and i believe that really helped me as i aimed for that the entire time.

i really have no idea. get 100 people together to jump in the OW at the same time and then go balls out bashing into everyone in my way?!?!?

this transition area was HUUUUUGE and so it took a while to run barefoot to my setup. i struggled a little getting my gloves on, which was retarded. then we had to walk our bikes forEVER to the bike start - seemed like wasted time to me.

dunno. not wear gloves? or perhaps DRY my hands off before i try putting them on??? tee hee

i had an AWESOME ride - it was SO much fun! i was haulin' on the way out as i maintained 26-27mph for most of the flats and topped out at 36 on the downhill. it was fast, energetic and i just kept passing people! WOO-HOO!!but once i hit the turnaround i quickly discovered why i was cruising along at such speeds - oh yes, the wind. the headwind was tough, especially for the climbs. i tried to stay aero as much as i could even though i don't have aero bars (just balance my forearms on handle bars, eek!) but i'd say i did pretty well at my average mph since the highest (including elite) was 24mph. i LOVED this part of the race!

absolutely NOTHIN! well, maybe drink a little more, but it always takes away from my momentum. need to work on that

this went smoothly - legs felt great right off the bike

oh MAN, it was SO HOT by this time. the forecast was for 102 degrees today and my run was at like 9am. so it was the high end of the 90's and there were NOT enough aid stations. they really should have had one set up at every mile. my pace on any given day was slow - but relative to everyone else dealing with the heat, it was rather competitive. even the elite's didn't run faster than a 7:20 mile - some were even at an 8, which says a lot. that's definitely on the slower side. i honestly thought i was a lot faster than that but it just goes to show how much heat can zap you. but my energy level was ROCKIN as my negative split worked beautifully. the first 1.5 was smooth as i gained control over my body and once i hit the turn around i stepped it up. i only got passed by 3 chicks who i tried keeping up with but since they didn't stop to drink, i lost them. during the last 1/4 mile is when i started picking up my pace a lot - then started to sprint and then noticed a chick was "one-uping" me and i know what THAT means, so ofcourse i couldn't just LET her, so the race was ON!!!!! we BOOKED it to the finish line - it was a good 60 yard dash and i will never know who beat who because we were so close. it was AWESOME!! and WHERE that burst of energy came from, i have no idea, but it was exhilerating!!

start to pick up my pace earlier - i was surprised how much energy i had left in me once i challenged myself.

drank a ton and walked around with my mom and puppy dog with a wet towel over my shoulders


well..... i am a little frustrated. i guess it just takes practise swimming with the masses because had my swim time been better (and it would've been a lot better had i not been run over a million times) i MAYBE could've been in the top 5?? 15 out of 342 is AWESOME for me!! but i can't help but think that i would've taken 5th if i shaved a few minutes off the swim. i have the bike and run speeds to be really competitive... it's like, i can TASTE top 5, though it's just outside of my reach. but hey - i'm new to this and there's a little time left before the season is over. i will NOT complain though, finishing in the top 4% is something i'll remember FOREVER =)

oh ya, and the HEAT was the MOST limiting factor.... OMG


really disappointed over the lack of drink stations. they should've known it would be BLISTERING hot like it was.