I had a panic attack the first 5 minutes of the swim. I ran into the water and dove in and came up panicking. I tried to get going and swim but I couldn't put my head in the water! I couldn't breathe. I couldn't swim. I started talking to myself in my head. What's wrong with you? You know what this feels like. You know you have to go 1.2. You've tasted salt water before and you've swam in the ocean millions of time..
I put my head in the water and swam. I calmed down after 500 yards and forgot all about my attack. I reached every buoy on target, dead on that I could grab the cord and swim by.. no rules against that is there? I round the last corner and headed on in.. I was pretty much done.. I had about 600 yards left when I started noticing a lot of brown spots. I couldn't make out what they were and thought they were my goggles fogging up until I swam right over a few.. JELLYFISH! They were every where! first thing I thought of was I should have worn my wetsuit. There was nothing I could do. My form was off by then. I swam through it.. keep going.. I felt my fingers tingling.. that was weird, keep going.. I kicked something with my right foot. My calf went into an immediate cramp.. keep swimming, you've swam with cramps.. My neck burned like a cut with salt in the wound but it was a weird sensation.. Was it my jersey catching my neck? Why am I feeling chafing so late in the swim?strange.. Keep swimming.. Then I felt another burn on my finger tips. I finally looked ahead of me in the water and saw a jellyfish.. Hmmm so that's what it feels like to get stung.. keep swimming.. My fingers finally reached the bottom and I stood up to run out.

Write a letter to the RD to have all jellyfish removed from course.

Easy transition.. No wetsuit to mess with just a bit rusty with the fingers and socks, shades, helmet, shoes, unrack bike and go.. I got it all mixed up so I kept thinking I was forgetting something.....

Nothing to change really except follow through with my steps, ie.. helmet, shades, socks, shoes unrack bike and go..

Flat. the ride went well.. I rode on a new bike only a couple of weeks. I also chose to ride without my computer for several reasons.. I wanted to ride comfortably on a new bike. I wanted to save my legs. I wanted to make sure my ankle would survive the run. At mile 40 I checked my black cycle shorts and saw way to much white .. I started popping my electrolytes an hour before the run. Mile 45 I started to feel my ankle.

Not drop my water bottles or my electrolyte pouch while riding over bumps on the road. Have a second pouch waiting in T2 for the run. And check on my salt residue on my bicycle shorts a bit sooner than the 40 mile mark.

Great to see my support crew waiting and rooting me on and hear other people whom I didn't know yelling my name, no names were on race numbers.. My crew rocks!!!

Need vasaline to slide into shoe easier.

During the run I started feeling the reality of my limitations. I took two puffs of my inhaler and I didn't have my electro pills to keep me well on the run. None of the stops had electro tabs. I did have my GU though so my caloric levels would be all right. Here's my training advice, DON'T RELY ON WHAT THE COURSE HAS TO OFFER IN REGARDS TO NUTRITION. Always have a back up plan! Mine was gatorade. They had cliff blocks, and other cliff items to offer but none I had trained with so I passed on all of it. My nutrition seemed to be on target. I didn't have any bloated feelings or nausea I did switch to water for the last hour.
My ankle started to really get to me during mile 5-6. I changed up to a run 10/2. My left groin side started hurting during mile 9.. I was definitely over compensating my ankle. Only 4 more miles I had to finish.. I had done 66 miles already! I couldn't quit. I kept going. At this point I was down to a run 7/1. Must make it home. I ran the last mile as painful and exhausted as I was but you know what? I smiled the whole way in because this was the first race since my ankle injury My best friend put my medal around my neck. I accomplished my goal.
I FINISHED!

Again.. Have another electrolyte pouch for the run vaseline on the shoes and a bit more sunscreen on the face.

Walked around and Tracey gave me a massage after my shower and dinner.


Need to get my bike fitted again with adjustments. Take what I have and improve for IMFL


An official stopped and said I was finishing the hottest Gulf Coast Tri in history.. It figures because the other two half's I've done were the Floridian Challenge. Talk about HOT!!!!!!

Thank you everyone! Thank you Volunteers!!! Thanks for your support, inspires. Thanks to everyone who've sent me texts, thoughts and prayers.

A special thanks to my best friends for being there to share in my excitement in achieving my goal. To Babe for my motivational YouTube video and keeping it real for me, thanks Babe ;) My Snooze Button for my wake up calls. To Chad and his strong hands for helping me with quick recoveries. And most of all to my Coach, Coach Cheryl, I would not even be able to make the distance without her.