Red Rock Relay 9/7-9/8

When 5 of some of my favorite coworkers, invited me to do a relay race, it was hard to hold back my reservations.  The race began at 11,000 feet at Brian Head Ski resort then traveled through Dixie Nat’l Forest, Cedar Breaks, Snow Canyon, St. George, and ended at the entrance to Zion National Park.  I loved working as a forester in southern utah and attending SUU, so I was excited about the course.  A beautiful 187 mile 2 day adventure.  If you have never run a relay this youtube video might help explain the rely race. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EL1hLU_LBvs  

Well actually our adventure started on Thursday afternoon at Devonee's place.  Once we managed to fit all our gear, including Dev's big old sleeping bag, and Heather's air matress we had to stop and eat at Costa Vida.  The perfect way to start out an adventure-good food!  So on the way down we listened to some good music, and some country.  But the most entertaing was the you tube video I need to poop. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_I4yHAQGJ8   Six nurses listening to pooping jokes, turned into a great time by all...However, the driver was a little distracted and forgot her speed.  Unfortunately the cop thought we were headed to Vegas.. He delivered a 15 minute lecture about being safe was more important than holding our bladders...  We finally found the little cabin, were we met the other half of our team.   Jen, a great organizer,was in a van with 5 guys for 2 days.  Lucky or unlucky depending on how you look at it.  The 5 guys were super kind and helped us open our luggage container on top of our van.  They proved to be some of the best cheerers on the course.

The Cabin was great and close to the start of the race.  There were tons of stars, so nice to be away from Salt Lake City.  We were all ready for bed when we finally decided where to sleep and Kirsten (Momma K) had her Teddy bear, and big purse.  We woke up early, took some photos at the race start of our team Double Slap.


Brooke was our first runner, and missed her morning coffee.  She was amazing working a night shift Thursday and then running Friday morning.  I ran with here for the first mile, and then rode the ski lift at Brian Head.  The lift was a little chilly, but provided beautiful scenery.  Unfortunately Brooke had a little altitude sickness and threw up near the end of the ride.  Quite the trooper.  She ran downhill on a trail and passed off the slap stick to me.   Here is Karen and Devonee, waiting to cheer me on.

For my first ran I ran 3 miles uphill from Brian Head.  First of all I don't really like running uphill, and I think the altitude made the run some really tough.  My second mile was 11:25 pace.  Averaged a 9:43 pace.  Then I handed off the slap stick to Dev who had an 8.4 mile run, thankfully her knee did very well.  The Aspen leaves were just beggining to change colors, which made for beautiful scenery.  We saw this amazing runner carrying a flag, for the whole 8.4 miles.  Our pharmacist Karen was able to provide him with some drugs...
 
We also saw a hot dog guy multiple times



We went to see cedar breaks, which was breathtaking. 




Kirsten's turn, somehow she managed to run without her purse. we drove through some beautiful lava fields, and our other van found us in the lava fields. The other van had an awesome blow horn to cheer the runners on...And there is our pharmacist K with some pills and sunscreen, or maybe just markers for our van. 





Then pharmacist K, with an amazing running form ran through some Aspens...Here she is taking a water break with Momma K
  

Coach Heather always wrote down our splits and recalculating our estimated finish times.  She finished our last leg of the run and passed the slapt stick to the other van. 



Drove Down the beautiful Canyon to Cedar City, we could see Zion in the distance...


Found some time to swim in the awesome gym at SUU, that had an indoor climbing gym.  Man why didn't they have this gym when I went to SUU.... I saw my good friend Liz outside the gym and talked to her for a while.  My second run started at 6:18 pm.  It consisted of a fairly flat 4 miles (7:17 pace) Here I am hydrating before my run, next to my sexy coach ;)

Mile 1 was easy and then I turned into the wind for mile 2 and mile 3, the last half mile was uphill.  My van was amazing with their support at every mile.  I wish every training run I had a support crew to hand me water, and cheer me on!  Had to run in a sports bra, I just hate being hot when I run...




The sunset was amazing!  We watched Kirsten run the long dirt road while we took pictures. 


Thankfully I didn't have to run on the dusty road.  After we finished up our second leg we found some flat grass by a church to sleep for a few hours.  I managed a night of camping without my Bivy.

The other team called us when they were 10 minutes out, so Brooke had no time to get ready. But she looks perky despite not having coffee.


 I started my third leg at 3:42am.  The 10k was uphill and then most of the run was downhill so I had a fast pace (6:54), despite having a broken head lamp.   When we finally met up with our other team, we found out their bare foot runner had twisted his ankle.  So I volunteered to run his leg.  Inwardly,  I was kind of excited, because then I would almost have run a marathon with in a few days, and I like a challenge...Around 8 am, I ran 7 miles and at 7:43 pace...


Below is Heather waiting to hand me my water bottle, and Kirsten drinking her Target health drink to stay strong and slim.


Then we went to kneaders for a delicious all you can eat french toast!   Afterwards we drove to the finish.  Our team finished in the heat of the day.  The other van was smart and bought a hose to keep their runners cool.


 We finished in about 30 hours.  Here is our stinky running vehicle, that we decorated the last day.  As you can see we were very creative :)

We received these super cool black marks on the back of our legs whenever we finished a section, because it is so much fun!


We received these unique knecklace medals.  And of course took photos at the finish line. 



We had to do a picture with our Johnny shirts we received from a patient who inspires us all. 



 Somehow I convinced my teammates to go for a little hike through narrows in Zion!  Then took the bus through Zion and I tried to convince them to do Angels Landing, but it was hot and we were exhausted and hungry! So the narrows was a perfect ending, to a relay race...





We had some delicious mexican food, and then crashed at Devonee's grandfather's place in St George..  Sunday we had an uneventful drive home, staying awake with caffeine...Momma K drove the the whole way back.  Turned out to be a fun little weekend adventure, filled with laughter.  I work with some amazing nurses! 

Utah Half Ironman 8/25/2012

I had a good bike the week before at Jordanelle Olympic Tri, so I was excited for the Utah Half.  I wanted to redeem myself from the first half ironman of the year in Texas.   I trained and tapered for the race and was ready except that on Thursday night I worked a night shift at the hospital, so headed into the race sleep deprived... I woke up early Saturday morning, had some breakfast and drove to Provo.  When I first arrived, they didn't have a number for me, so I was a little nervous, because I signed up on Wednesday, but everything worked out.  The first person I met at the tri was Brandon, at the race.  One of the sweetest guys ever!  Set my bike up next to his.  Put a pink duct tape x next to my stuff so I knew how to find my bike.   Besides the mosquitos, it was a beautiful morning.  Thanks to Mike for the awesome pictures!  So great to have a photographer at these events.

Swim 1.2 miles-35:23
The swim took place in the harbor of Utah Lake State Park.  They set us off in waves, which made for a nice swim.  The females were in the last wave. Saw my friend Leslie in the water, right before starting.  It is always nice when you are racing with friends.  We entered the water from the eastern boat ramp and swam through two buoys, then we made two clockwise loops. The swim went well, besides heating up a little in the wetsuit.   The water was murky, but it was not black like Jordanelle last week.   I was a little confused where to head on the second loop, to exit for the bikes.   I lost some time meandering, with the sun in my eyes, during that last section..The lake was shallow, my hand hit some rocks a few times.  When I finally got to the exit I struggled stripping off my wetsuit...My friend Michelle is an awesome cheerleader, which helped me forget about my stupid wetsuit.  My swim was slower than usual, I think either the course was long or I meandered a lot from the last buouy to the bikes...



Bike 56miles (2:29:51)
The bike course is a flat 56-mile out-and-back that headed out to West Mountain. The weather was perfect, with some cloud cover.  In Provo there seemed to be a lot of turns that were a little confusing. Soon I realized the turns had big signs, not just a painting on the road. In Provo, because of construction, we went off this one dip, that I thought for sure I was going to flat on. However thankfully I didn't flat the whole race! Yay!

My friends were not so lucky. Leslie and Chris both had flat tires. Unfortunately Brandon was hit by another cyclist...Once we got out to the country roads, it was much less chaotic, however they didn't have the big signs where to turn. At the first aid station at Mile 15, I grabbed some water. My quads started loosening up and I was just starting to feel the rhythm, when I made a wrong turn...I didn't go far, before I realized my mistake, and so I had the chance to repass some guys.  The second aide station was at the turn around had no fluids.  So I should have put some gatorade or water in my special needs bag.  I struggled turning around on the narrow road and actually clipped out, you think I would be more coordinated on my bike by now, thankfully I didn't fall.  I ran out of fluids returning back to the first aide station....I saw Leslie which always helps with motivation to keep pushing hard.  So grateful for the gatorade and water when I arrived at the aide station, I gulped down a ton of fluid, trying to rehydrate..I passed a ton of guys on the bike-one positive of starting in one of the last swim wasves.  Once back to Provo, I slowed down with the turns and gravel.  Finaly made it back to transition.  I was excited about my PR bike!  Nutrition wise, I had 5 gus and one honey stinger waffle on the bike. 



Run 13.1miles (1:40:58)
The Utah Half run course was a flat 2 loop course along the asphault trail along the Provo River. There was an aid station every mile. Along the trail, there were shady sections which were nice!  I was excited to finally catch Chris on the run and chat for a little while.  There was a female in front of me cheering who was really kind, and I wasn't sure if she was in a relay or not, I never ended up catching up with her, but turns out she was in a relay.  Loved seeing my happy friend Ashley out on the run, she actually ended up running 20 miles for the day. Saw Tracy smiling out on the run course too.  One day I will learn to look happy when I am running..I caught up with Brandon's frined Tony around mile 10, and ended up running a half mile together, which was pleasant.  Mile 12, I was starting to struggle, but tried to focus on my form and positive affirmations.  I hit mile 13 and knew, I still had a ways to go which was a little discouraging.  By the end of the race my garmin read 13.6 miles, so my run time was a little slow.  I think it would have been a 1:37 instead of a 1:40.  My PR run was at Boise half ironman last year 1:35.  So I was a little discouraged about this, but am happy with an overall PR 4:49 and a bike PR, and no bowel problems on the run!  I was very excited to have a much better race than I had in Texas.   First female, and 10th overall.   Thanks to my coach and friends who helped me to improve over the year. 



Sleep Deprivation finally caught up to me...

July 2012 My Month of Racing

San Rafael Classic--July 7, 2012

Two weeks after my ironman, I decided to do this fun olympic triathlon with my friend Deb Battaglia.  Deb is the person responsible for getting me into ironmans.  She is an amazing 45 year old endurance athlete, who has competed in an ironman every month this year. We drove up Friday night, camped in her car near the start.  Every race I have done with her we have car camped.   This race provides free camping to athletes!  So we didn't haven't search for a hiding place to car camp.  Unfortunately we missed the free pasta dinner.  We woke up race day and registered without any problems.The race started at 6:30, which was nice to avoid the heat.

Swim:
The Swim route was a two loop open water swim in the beautiful Huntington Lake.  There were only about 18 females so the swim was not very chaotic.   They started the males 5 minutes before us.  One part of the triangle loop we were swimming directly into the sun, which made spotting difficult.  I had a great swim for me 28:25 (anytime I am under 30 and I am within a minute from Deb I am OK with my swim time, she swam the course in 27:24) 

T1-1:39-My transition are always a little slow in these races, I struggle with my wetsuit. Maybe one day I will master mounting my bike while having my shoes attached..

Bike:
The Bike Route was paved, smooth and will swept prior to the race. There are a couple of cattle guards which were covered and clearly marked. The Bike Route is on a rural county road.  For the Olympic course we did two out and back loops.  The bike ended up being about 30 miles.  Leaving the lake there is some slight climbing, which makes for a sweet ride back to the lake.  Bike time 1:28, it was a little windy and the hills made it a little slower course.

Run:
The Run Route went around Huntington Lake twice for the olympic course. It was a combination of pavement, and gravel.  The run felt fairly good.  I though I paced well, but my stomach was bothering me the whole run.  Thankfully I made it to the finish without having to stop. It was a little short of 6 miles so it looks like I was running faster than I really was.  Run time 40:55.

This race was small, well organized, and has a beautiful setting.  It is the first race I have ever beat all the guys, which I actually didn't know when I finished, because they started 5 minutes earlier.  For my award, I received a cool slab of rock engraved with a swimmer, biker and runner.   The Picture is a little hazy, due to fires in the area...

Male Participants 1. Barrett Nelson 2:40:50 2. Erich Kuster 2:40:51 3. WESLEY DONALD 2:47:03 4. BYRON BENNET 2:52:29 5. Jeff Mower 2:56:07

Female Participants  1. KATHRYN THROOLIN  2:40:33  2. Meagan Johnson 2:59:18  3. deborah battaglia 3:00:30  4. Mandy Mehler 3:15:37  5. AnnaMarie Miller 3:17:00

Echo--7/14/2012 
(Thanks to Mike Mamales for all the pictures and zazoosh..)
I woke up early Saturday morning to eat breackfast and drive to Echo Reservoir.  Parked at a highscool, and biked with all my gear to the start of the race to check in.  I met my friend Andi, Jannalyn, Deb and Jeannie at the start of the race.  Then down at the swim start met my friend Alli, BJ, Chrystel, and Tracy.   My friend Deb Battaglia, beat me by about a minute on the swim again.  I always try to draft off her but always seem to loose her in the sun or muddy lakes...

Swim: Olympic athletes swam twice counter-clockwise around the buoys in Echos reservoir.  There was an awesome cloud cover, and so the sun was not a problem.  The wave start made the swim mellow.  Due to the low snow levels in Salt Lake, echo lake was very muddy and the visibility... um wait what there was no visibility.  There was a shoe zone after the swim, and I struggled putting on my shoes, maybe I should have just used sandals...I was feeling a little disoriented after the swim like usual...


Because of the low level of the lake, I think we ran about a quater mile uphill on a narrow path to get to our bikes.  So this time my long transition, was not do to wetsuit issues...

Bike:
The bike was an out and back course.  We started by leaving the Echo Resort and crossed onto Hwy 32 going North (left). Then we continued north on Hwy 32, going under the Interstate 80 overpass and turn right, continuing up Hwy 189 (Echo Canyon Road) to the turn-around.  We biked past some beautiful Red Cliffs, that are fun to climb on.  I felt pretty strong on the bike and found a good cycler to pace myself off.  The route back to Echo reservoir, was definitely faster. 



Run:
The run was also an out-and-back course.  From the transition we ran on the Park City Rail Trail (hard packed dirt trail). The trail parallels Hwy 32, and is completely separated from vehicle traffic. Olympic athletes will continue to the end of the Rail Trail.   Aid stations were provided every mile, which was very nice.  I had problems on the run with my stomach, despite taking 3 immodiums.
  Here is my flying to fast out of transition feeling great.  I started out at a 7min mile pace for the first 3 miles, and slowed to a 7:30 pace the last 3.   Here is my rabbit run when I started to fatigue...
 I'd like to blame my slow second half of the run on diarrhea, and maybe not having enough fuel...
But there are always so many variables, and triathletes are great at coming up with excuses..
Anyway, the weather was great!  The second female overall!  there is nobody I would rather loose to than Ali.  My race was 10 minutes faster than two years ago, and I think the transition was long this year!  My Coach ended up winning overall

                                                               swim              t1                bike             t2             run      

1

642

Ali BLACK

02:15:25.4

00:23:23.628

00:03:04.572

01:04:58.261

00:01:10.475

00:42:48.496

2

633

Kathryn THROOLIN

02:20:56.4

00:24:13.561

00:03:42.460

01:06:20.356

00:01:07.244

00:45:32.847

3

662

Lesley ROCKWOOD

02:22:34.3

00:23:17.651

00:03:39.403

01:07:54.735

00:01:05.556

00:46:37.003

Stansbury-July 21
I had a rough day at work friday, and was texting my friend Leslie and decided to race with her at Stansbury.  So I rushed to the bike store and bought some gu.  So glad Leslie convinced me to race.  I felt better at this race than the previous races.  Signed up the day of the race, just like I did for the San Rafael Classic...It was great to see my friends Leslie, TeKoi, Amanda, Mike, Jen and Wes at the start of the race.

Swim:
The swim consisted of a two loop swim in the Stansbury park lake.  I took the swim easy, especially on the long stretch were I was blinded by the sun, and just hoped I was swimming in the right direction.  The water was warm, and I wish I had a sleeveless wetsuit.  I actually had very fast transition times for me. Maybe, I am finally getting the hang of stripping a wetsuit...Somehow my friend Tekoi managed to take of his wetsuit, during the swim...

Bike:
The bike was flat and weaved around some country roads.  It was a little windy.  I felt great on the bike!  I found a guy that we kept playing leap frog the majority of the race, which helped me with my pacing..

Run:
Yay!!! No stomach issues!!!  The night before I ate salmon and a baked potato.  Race day I had oatmeal and a banana.  I was beginning to think that there was no solution to my stomach issues... The run was flat, and on pavement, which made for a quick time.  I wish they would have had aide stations every mile, on such a hot day. The first loop of the run, I felt awesome!  The first race of the year, that it felt good to run.  I could tell I was gaining ground on a female in front of me.  The second loop was harder, but I still felt strong, and finally in the last 100meters I caught the female in front of me and sprinted to the finish.  My fastest 10k race ever!

First overall female! 

                                    swim   t1        bike       t2        run          final time

1 Kathryn Throolin

27:42

1:01

55:02

0:52

42:07

2:06:41.1

Morgan Half Marathon--July 28
I had a coworker, Kirsten convince me to do this half marathon.  I didn't really feel like running 10 miles on my own, so I decided to use this race as a training run.  The 2nd Annual Morgan Valley Half Marathon started at 6:30am.  The course winds through the country roads of morgan valley with scenic mountain views and congestion free roads.  There was a small amount of participants, but the course was well organized and the provided free photographs!  I started out to fast, hoping I might finish with a PR. I only had diarrhea once during the race.  I was the fourth female.  I finished with a 1:32.  This was 5 minutes slower than my best time.  Not too bad considering I wasn't tapered and it was a hilly course.    The shirt I am wearing I recieved from a patient at Hunstman who is an amazing ultrarunner fighting cancer.


This is how I really look when I am running hard, and started out too fast.  I call it my rabbit run..  Debating about posting this, but it is kind of funny...


What a great month!  I regained some confidence about my athletic abilities eventhough I haven't qualified for Kona.  It was a lot of fun to race with some friends, relax, and enjoy some local races...I think I will be doing Jordanelle and the Utah Half Ironman next...

Ironman CDA 6/24/12

Ironman Coeur D'Alene is a beautiful race! Smooth roads, awesome volunteers and great friends made the experience amazing.  The cloudcover was wonderful and thankfully it didn't downpour like the previous day.  Didn't quite have the race I was imagining, but it is all good.   Just means is room for improvement.  I was super excited to finish with no bike problems!  

SWIM.

 Here is an awesomoe link to a video of the race start on you tube.   CDA ironman start 

The 2.4 mile swim started at Lake Coeur d'Alene on the sandy beaches of City Park.  It consisted of two counterclock wise loops.  Thankfully the water was not too cold!  My extra warm cap probably helped.  However, I still struggled in transition putting on arm warmers and gloves with my frozen hands...A mass beach start made for an unpleasant physical swim.   Waterpolo players must be great openwater swimmers, especially in mass starts. I lost my chip during the swim.  There were so many people all around me, I just kind of swam with the flow without sighting.  Open water swimming is definitely not one of my strengths, but I think I am slowly improving.  I love the Sable goggles my friend Leslie let me borrow.  They never fogged up and I never used antifog spray on the goggles.  I felt a little disoriented coming out of the water after the first loop and almost fell over, a volunteer told me maybe I should sit out for a little.  In my mind I thought no way are you crazy?   But the volunteer probably thought I was crazy.  The second loop was a little better as far as physical contact goes, but somebody grabbed my shoulder on the second loop.  For some reason my hips bother me in openwater swims.  On the second loop I could feel my hips starting to ache.  I don't really know my swim time, because of my lost chip.  A volunteer noticed I didnt have a chip and showed me where to get a new chip.  I grabbed my transition bag and into the tent, I was excited for the bike.  I have no idea how long I was in transition either.  However, I know I looked at the clock I think when I was exiting and the clock said 1:12..(Thanks for letting me borrow this picture Chris)

BIKE

The double-looped 112-mile bike course heads out east of the city, and then returns to downtown.  Then we headed onto US-95 south on the west side of Coeur d'Alene Lake.  The whole course had many hills, including a 2-mile uphill climb.  I was thankful for my arm warmers and gloves on the first part of the bike.  I might have started out a little to fast.  I saw my friend Ali on the first turnaround headed back to the city, so I knew I was probably close to her swim time. For some reason my quads were a little sore even at the start of the bike, but I decided to push hard, and if I crashed, try to be mentally tough.  The first loop went by fairly quick, and I was feeling fairly good.

  I continued to feel fairly strong until around mile 70.  Around mile 70 there was an aide station and I tried putting an ironman perform bottle in my front aerowater bottle instead of the cage. The bottle managed to get stuck in the lid of the aerowater bottle.  I tried pulling it out multiple times and finally succeded, but my lid came off of my aerowater bottle, so I had perform spraying all over.  By the time I succesfully pulled the perform water bottle free, I was past the drop zone.  I wasn't sure what to do.  I should have tossed the bottle but there were cars on one side and cyclists coming down on the other side. So I was shifting with the bottle in my mouth and holding it in my hand as I was biking, if only my jersey had a pocket for my bottle I thought.  Finally, I realized it stuck between my arrow bars..anyway that was the start of loosing my focus...

I saw my friend Chris near the top of the turn around on US-95.  I knew I  was having a good bike, despite my little dilemma and loosing focus, and starting to feel tired...  We finally started downhill into town, and I luckily recognized Jen on her bike cheering me on.  When I finally got to the next aide station it was hard to get my ironman perform, bottle out of my arrow bars, but finally completed the task before passing the aide station....I am guessing my bike time was around 5:47ish, which is my second fastest bike time.  Yay for no bike problems!!!!!  My watch says 5:50, but I think it was running in the transition.  I wanted to take it easy in transition and prepare mentally for the marathon.  However, somewhow I took 7 minutes in transition, maybe a little too much relaxing ;)

RUN. 

The two loop run, was hilly, definitely not flat. I knew it was going to be a long run, because my stomach felt horrible.  I stopped at the first portapotty, which would be a trend for the rest of the marathon.  I stopped probably about 10 times, a few times I didnt quite make it to the portapotty.  I am guessing I lost 15 min in toilets...somebody gave me some tums which helped a little..The diarrhea was frustrating!  Must be something wrong with my fueling or my diet.  Maybe this is a little too much information...oh well :)  I had Gus and a power bar on the bike, as well as perform. For breakfast I had some oatmeal. The night before the race I was feeling constipated like I was before st George.  I had rice and chicken, and actually decided to have an apple because I was feeling constipated. In the morning I had a small hard bowel movement and had one immodium, which I think helped on the ride..maybe I should have had another immodium for the run....maybe I should have done the four immodiums like I have for my other half ironmans...I think it is just part of the race for me-but that was the worse cramping/diarrhea I have had in an ironman.   The 2 ironmans I participated in last year I had 4 immodiums, felt a little nausea and dehydration and still had to poop on the run a few times, but it was way better than CDA.  After the race my stomach felt horrible though.  I have tried no lactose before race day; less fiber 4 days before the race; bananas, rice, applesauce and toast diet; immodium/no immodium...not sure...still trying to figure this out..

Anyway, back to the run...The first 13 miles was around 2hrs, so I was hoping to keep the pace for the last 13, but slowed down.. ending up with a 4:15.  The run was felt more like a miserable shuffle, but it was beautiful to run beside Lake Couer d'Alene.  It was great to run with Chris briefly and to see so many freinds on the run.  When I run I tend to get in this zone, and don't realize what is really going around me, but I can hear people cheering for me, which is awesome.  My goal for my next ironman, is to not run like a zombie...

As a triathlete I always analyze my races, the never ending process of improving.  I think that one reaon I keep doing ironmans is that I know there are ways to improve my race and push my limits to a new level...So I need to work more on running up hills.  I tend to start fast on the run..Maybe I pushed too hard on the bike.  I need to work on my bike so I am not fatigued after biking 112 miles so I can run.  I need to do more bricks, and higher quality workouts.. I need to work on my nutrition..  the easiest thing to improve is to not get my perform bottle stuck, in the lid of my aero water bottle :)  Anyway, I realize I have a lot more work on my bike and run before I think about Kona. There are so many amazing triathletes!  The winner in my age group did a 10:09, second 10:11, and third 10:29...I ended up with a 11:21:25.  Struggled with my breathing after the race, found out I breathe wrong, which causes asthma like symptoms.  Just takes me a little to recover after my long races..  A highlight for my race was having my mom, dad and brother at the finish line!!! 

 

Always great racing with you Chris, great job, considering you didn't train much on the run.  The Hardy's are always so kind and fun to be around.  Jen you are the best cheer leader ever.  Wes nice swim!  Ali  10:18---amazing!  Molly and Barabara, you always make everything look fun.  Nice job on your first ironman Tom and Grethcen.  Thanks for cheering for me Mike Mamales.   Cherell can't believe a motorcycle hit you during the race!  Thanks for hleping me train for the race BJ

Saint George Ironman May 7, 2012

My third Saint George Ironman (SGIM)!

I know this course so well! This course will always have a special part in my heart. The last three years I have trained and raced on this beautiful course. This course has helped make me stronger mentally and physically through WIND, heat, hills, rain and snow storms.

The first year that I participated in the SGIM I trained much harder than I had for my first two ironmans in Sonoma, California. I went to two excellent triathlon camps put on by Wesley Johnson and Barbara Sherwood. It was at these camps I first learned about Kona and my dream to qualify for Kona began. After these two camps I decided to buy a carbon tri bike. I was excited to participate in my first ironman branded Ironman.

The first year in 2010, I froze in the water, and shivered for the first 20 miles of the race. I was disappointed with my bike time 7:16. I think part of the reason for the slow bike time was I was trying to save energy for the run. Needless to say, I wasn't even close to qualifying, 12:46. So I had to do another ironman that year, because I knew I could perform way better. So I did the Vineman the same year and finished in 11:35, with a bike split of 6 hours. After Vineman I decided to sign up for SGIM again. It was just to convenient to have an ironman in your own state, and I felt like I had something to prove on the bike.

So I trained hard once again through the winter of 2011 preparing for SGIM. Little did I know I would be heading into one of the most stressful races I have had. Two days before the race I crashed, and needed a new seat, different helmet, was bruised and had some awesome roadrash. Despite the HEAT and all the other obstacles I managed to finish just under 12. Because of the crash I had to sign up for another ironman that year and decided to sign up for Cozumel. In Cozumel I had much better success finishing 7^th in my age group with a 10:37. After Cozumel, once again I decided to sign up for SGIM. The third time is a charm, I thought to myself. Another year of winter training. My hardest week included biking the full course in 5 hours and 30 min. Then a few days later running 20 miles at a 8 min pace. I came into the race feeling more prepared and more at ease than I have for any other ironman.

THE SWIM

Anyway, woke up early Saturday morning, and rode the bus to Sand Hollow Reservoir. It was fun to know so many people racing. I found Moka on race morning and borrowed her pump. Ironically, the start of the race the water was calm. People started creeping past the start line before the gun went off, and I decided to join. The beginning of the race was normal, with 1700 people in a mass start it is difficult to avoid being clobbered. I felt strong in the water, then we turned the first red buoy and everybody seemed to disappear. Sighting the buoys was difficult. The calm reservoir, turned ocean-like, with swells of 4-5 feet... I swam by the a tipped over kayak. I ended up doing breast stroke a few times, and tried to time the waves right. I just tried to stay calm and keep swimming. I finally got to where I could spot the rock island that I knew we were suppose to swim around. As I staggered out of the water I heard Chris yelling for me. I found Brandon, after the swim, who helped me with my wetsuit. He is definitely the best stripper ever. I cried a little in the changing tent, over the swim. I knew my swim time had to have been slow. Turns out it was my worse swim time 1:16, which I guess was good considering the conditions. I was actually third in my age group, the highest I have ever place in an ironman branded swim! I had to use the restroom after the swim. I heard hundreds did not finish under the 2 hour 20 minute limit. Honestly I am surprised nobody was hurt.

BIKE

Finally I jumped on the bike relieved to be done with the swim. Okay I thought to myself, the IM is a long race, anything can happen, I just need to refocus. Leaving sand hollow I started out at a good clip, and soon realized it was going to be a windy day... A pro passed me on the bike, so I knew I wasn't the only one with a bad swim. My friend Mike passed me on the bike, which helped me refocus on my pedal stroke. I saw my friend Tekoi cheering for me near St George. I met my other friend Ali cheering for me just passing Bluff Street. So great to have people cheering for you. Heading into Ivins, my friend Katie was driving by in a truck cheering for me. All of this helped with the wind, which I heard that there were 40mph gusts. I have trained in St George and Vegas multiple times in the wind, so I just told myself it was just going to be a long day and to forget about times. I had to use the restroom again at an awesome bike aide station in Ivins, dang I still don't have my nutrition dialed in.

Leaving, Ivins I met my friend Stephen who was racing. We took a few turns passing eachother, which helped me forget about the wind. I ended up passing a pro on the bike, going up the wall, who encouraged me. My legs were feeling good and really thought this was going to be the race I qualified. Finally reached Veyo and there was an amazing tail wind. I felt fairly good at mile 56, and was getting more excited about the race..

However, just as things seemed to be going so well went there was a slight hill, I went to shift and couldnt. I wasn't sure what was wrong, but it was okay because I was headed downhill mostly. I thought I would hold out and see how I felt when I went into the wind. As I turned into the wind and the hills, it was obvious it would be a very long bike ride, if I continued. I stopped at a couple aide stations to see if anybody could help me without any luck. I tried putting my chain in an easy gear but it would slip to the hard gear. I was in tears, but kep riding not sure what to do. Saw some bike techs and they couldn't help me.. I ran out of water and gatorade between an aide station, and so many bikers were cruising past me. My hamstring started to bug me a little from all of the standing up with the wind in hills, in one gear. As I was walking up a hill at mile 80 I decided to call it quits.

Yeah it really sucked, and I cried a lot. Of about 1800 athletes only 1000 finished...My DNF was related to some mechanical problem with my shifter. Maybe I will have to have a spare bike for these races. Somebody with a broken disk tire, asked if he could borrow my wheel to finish the race. So I let him use my wheel, which allowed him to finish.

Sometimes I wish I never had a dream to qualify for Kona, but then I remember all the people I have met and people who have inspired me. I know that my hobby has helped me cope with depression and realize most goals are more about the journey anyway. I keep improving and that is more important than obtaining a goal. Looking back I wish I would have stayed to cheer on all the finishers, but my heart was a crushed at the time..Next race, for sure I will be there for the finishers...Took a trip to Hawaii after the race which helped calm my soul and put things into perspective.

So what is next? Decided to sign up for Cour d'Alene