Holy heavens Batman! I will post more tomorrow. I am tired, sore and hungry :) I have to say...I'm a dumb runner. I thought a little swim and ride before a half wouldn't be so bad to take on. HA! I'd challenge anyone who thinks it is easy to give it a shot and see how they feel 5 hours later. Holy Heavens Batman.... I am pleased with how well I did. The course was long - 1.5 mile swim (instead of standard 1.2), 56 mile bike was accurate, 13.6 mile half marathon (at least! Some had it at 13.9!!) makes for a long race. I brought it home for the big girls (Athena) today, but would've placed 6th in my AG if I'd have stuck there...it was worth the medal :) Pictures and report tomorrow, if I can stand up out of this chair.... ***Okay, so I was thinking the WHOLE run about how to describe how that half felt. Here is my best attempt: Think of the worst bonk you've ever had...put it at mile 20 in a marathon...THEN run another 13.1+ miles. Yeah, almost there :) *** Oh...and yes. I'll be back again next year! You'd better believe it! ******************************************************************** I don't know if it is better or worse to wait to write the report! I guess we'll see how long this one ends up :) I was nervous as all get out. I had a hard time sleeping Friday and butterflies all week. I thought I was over being nervous about races! Got up at 4 and headed down to Provo. Got a decent transition place and waited around with the Triple Threat Triathletes (TTT) and found Brent and Ericka. I just didn't know how it was all going to go, worse than my first marathon! Before I knew it, I had my wetsuit on and was getting into the water. Here is where I saw Matt, it was SO nice to have other FRBers there to share in this crazy!! I knew the swim would be my biggest struggle. I'm not a horrible swimmer, but just slower than most. I just plug along though, and it doesn't bother me or make me nervous...just slow :) So, I took off with my wave start (45ish min late!!! ugghhh...wasn't looking forward to 45 min later of HEAT on the run, but it was cool when we started). We had 2 loops of the harbor and I felt like I swam pretty straight and did well on my sighting. It was hard when we turned to swim East...with the sun right in front of me I couldn't see the buoys! I just followed everyone around me until it came into sight. On the second loop, there was a guy WALKING...what?!? was I seeing this right? Yup, due to getting molested I had to do a breast stroke kick and my feet hit the bottom. You could totally walk the swim...crazy! This dude was really just walking along the bottom...cheater! :) The last push toward the dock where you exit seemed SO long. It just wouldn't end...and I couldn't see, because it was into the sun again. Just kept plugging along until I saw people standing up. Whew! finally done. It was SO great to have my TTT peeps there cheering like crazy. Swim time: 46:44 - this was a little disappointing to me. I wanted to be closer to 40! But, afterward I found out it was measuring (to those with swim garmins) closer to 1.5 miles instead of 1.2!! 500 extra meters? yeah...nice. But, made me not feel so bad about my slow swim time. T1 time: 1:50 - this seemed to take forever! Especially peeling that wet suit off. But, if you had to stand around and put socks and shoes on wet feet in a race, wouldn't you feel like time was just ticking on without you?!? Yeah, transition times always seem to take forever. Before I knew it, I was off on the bike. Whew. The hard part was over. I've done this bike ride before. I can do it again. Here we go. I had opened and taken a couple cliff blocks before the swim, and after a few miles on the bike grabbed a few more. The bike is where you must stay on top of your fuel or you will bonk hard! Been there, done that...don't want to do it again. Around mile 10 I passed my first TTTer. With a good shout out to each other we had a little more to keep going. Somewhere around this same time a lady in a purple jersey passed me...well, kept up with me :) We really leap-frogged the whole time on the bike and we chatted quite a bit. I felt like she was my friend on the bike! We were in different AG so we were good knowing we weren't competing and just helped each other. I loved purple lady! They had an aid station on the bike which was WAY weird! Full bottles of gatorade or water and you had to grab them out of the volunteers hands. TONS harder than a cup!! You're going 20mph and trying to grab something...slippery! :) I still was SO grateful for the extra water, I was worried about running out so it was nice to have a drink and to spray it all over my face and hands as well. My goal was to not see any bikers coming back until I hit mile 20 (out and back course). Well, it was past mile 19, but before 20 that the first place guy came the other way. Made me feel like I was on target! Plus, I was 15 min back due to wave starts, so I wasn't going to complain. Pedal on!!! I felt strong and passed quite a few people. At the turn around it was fun to see everyone behind me. I got to cheer them on and hope that I could stay strong enough they wouldn't catch me :) 2 of the TTT relay teams were in front of me, but other than that I was out front. I hate running scared. The other ladies were 3-6 min behind me due to wave starts. Brent was a lot closer than I liked at the turn around! I knew I had to kick it in or I'd get those -1000 commando points when he passed me. Around mile 40 I got tired of the bike. I was ready to be done. I kept thinking...it is like having the 5K left in a half marathon. You're mostly there, and tired...just push through!! My butt was done and I wanted to run :) Foot felt great and I just wanted to get my legs running instead of pedaling! I had done well on my fueling and anytime my legs started to feel heavy I would pop some cliff blocks or a gu, or just some of the electrolyte drink I'd packed along. I also brought some small graham cracker snacks in case my gut got tired of the gu and blocks. Good thing too. Next time I might try to do a pb sandwich, gut gets tired of gu, but you need fuel. SO much easier to eat on the bike!
About 1-1.5 before the finish on the bike I saw a crash and it put a pit in my gut! A guy about 20 feet in front of me just passed out on the bike! He swerved to the R, hit a curb and flipped into the field. He and his bike were facing me...so he flipped pretty good! He was unconscious and not getting up. I hit my brakes, but then saw a volunteer just 50 feet ahead running back. I decided to continue on the tenth of a mile to the intersection where the cop was directing traffic and let her know. I told her he had passed out and was unconscious and not getting up. She got on her walkie and called an ambulance. I'd done all I could do and continued on to the finish...shaken up! Then I saw my family just a bit later and I broke down! tears, hyperventilating and all. Finally, it was time to get my butt off the bike and run. YES! I had this, just a half marathon in front of me. I could wake up and do this any day, right?  I was blowing the family a kiss...not trying to hide! :)
Bike time: 2:51:38 (19.65mph) I was hoping I could hit 20mph...SO close! Next time :) T2 time: 1:17 - slower than I would've liked, but not too shabby looking at other participant's times. I got headed out then remembered I should grab a drink before I head off, I didn't know when the first aid station would hit. So, I went back and got a drink. Probably added 20+ seconds, but it was worth it! ....gotta get going to my son's doc appointment...stay tuned.
I know you've all been waiting for the final installment. Pins and needles, I'm sure! So, I get out of T2 and I'm on my way, running and passing lots of other folks. Assuming that the jello legs that I'm used to from the bike will fade in a mile or two and I can kick into normal running gear and get this baby over with. HA! The jello legs faded right into lead legs. I felt like my cardio was still fine, but my legs were just done. I don't know if my fueling was off on the bike, if I pushed too hard on the bike or if I just wasn't as ready as I thought...especially for the heat! It was close to 85 or so when I started running around 11:30...started. running. I had asked Craig to bring a big cooler of ice (like Larry did for the marathon last week) so that I could fill up my shirt...and boy did I! The way the course was, the family only had to move 100 ft and could see me at mile 2, 6, 8 and finish. I was SO grateful for each handful of ice, encouragement, shouts and smiles from the kiddos! Kept me going. The second loop was the hardest. There are 2 out and backs and then 2 loops, so you cross people 4X that are in front of and behind you. I was gaining on the people I knew in front of me, but didn't seem to be putting any distance between the people behind me. I knew I was going slow, but I thought for sure I'd finish under 2 hrs...like 1:50-1:55 or so. HA! This was one time it was good I didn't have my garmin, it would've just depressed me. I did get to see Craig and MattVH on the 2nd loop! They'd recognized me on the first loop, but I got to see who was cheering me on the 2nd time around. Each aid station had water, gatorade or heed, ice and a couple had people standing there with a hose to spray you down. Oh, it was nice! I kept dumping water over my head, shoving ice down my shirt (yes, sometimes I was hot enough I'd take it out and suck on it or eat it) and the hose brigade would shower me down. Only way to survive running at noon!!! I don't know how you AZ people do it day in and out at 5AM! The last 3 or so mile stretch to the finish felt like such a drag! I did feel like I picked it up around mile 12ish for a bit, but then faded during the last half mile. Which I found out later the course was closer to 13.6-13.8!!! ugghh! Kelli was with me on this last push. I kept singing over and over "my body tells me noooooo, but I won't quit! 'cuz I want Mooooorrrree!!" I just had to get to the end...then I was going to lay down. Not walk, not talk...just lay down on the grass 2 inches on the other side of the finishing mats and lay down and nap. Yup...that is all I wanted to do.  Since most of you only see the back of me anyway in a race, I decided to use this picture since you'd recognize me better this way :) hehehe
Problem came when that last stretch I started to feel zings of cramping in my calf. I thought of Kelli again last week on the course. I just had to keep moving before it got too bad! I wanted this done so bad....I swear that half marathon was like 50 miles long!!! I finally could hear the crowd at the finish line and pulled my way through and pushed to the finish! I was done!! I had done it!! I didn't stop 2 inches over the line and lay down. The cramp wouldn't let me, so I did my Smooth walking around the finishers area until it calmed down enough that I could let them take of my timing chip. I had no idea of how well or what time I'd finished in....I was just done! I hadn't stopped running on the run when I saw lots of others walking and I had only been passed by 2 or 3 people and I passed a gazillion! Especially the 2nd lap when a lot of people were just on their first lap. But, I didn't care. I was done! Run time: 2:02:37 - stinky 2 hour half marathon! I guess if it was over a 1/2 mile too long, I did run a sub 2hr...but still kind of ticks me off!  My 8 yr old racing me to the finish!!
When I finished my boys raced me to the finish line and walked around with me...and ate treats with me :) I sat with my family, got a professional stretch session, chatted with TTTers and cheered in those that followed closely behind. I was ecstatic when I saw my finish time and placing! I know lots of people think that since I'm tall and lean I shouldn't sign up for Athena, but hey...I don't make the rules! My TTT group all think I'm a big sandbagger, but just because I'm willing to admit I weigh over 150 doesn't mean I'm cheating, does it? This has really been bothering me. I don't make the rules about weight in Athena, but they all say "well, there should at least be a HEIGHT limit!" What the heck?!? I'm still dragging around all the weight, so why not if I can? Am I really being considered a big cheater when I sign up for Athena? I'm really conflicted about all of this. I guess they got to me.  "WHATEVER! I'll race Athena if I want to!" :)
Anyway, I was happy to be able to take podium and place in my first half. My purple jersey friend from the bike passed me on the 2nd loop of the run and I couldn't keep up with her. Looking back now I wish I would've given more and kept up with her! My run time would've been under 2 hrs. I did find out her name was Rachel too! That just really made my day. Purple Rachel sisters on the half! I'm hoping some of the race pics will have her in it! Overall I had a great day and I'm ready to take the challenge on again and someday do a full. But, it will take a lot more training to get there...a lot! I am SO grateful for my health and strength that got me through this race, my family and friends that were there supporting me along the way and all of you that were in my thoughts as well. If any of you are 'dumb runners' like I was and think that since you can run marathons with little to no build up, so a half IM would be nothing....do it. Go ahead, try it. We'll talk afterward :)
Me posing alone on the podium...none of the other big girls were willing to show! :)
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