#IMLP7th

I’ll get to the 7^th place excitement in a minute, but first wanted to talk about the race. Brian and I have been trying to do at least one race a year together and decided that Lake Placid would be it this year. The past couple months we did some great training together, which I really enjoyed. All the training topped off with two peak weekends, the first in Lake Placid with his coach Jesse Vondracek (and wife Amy Cole) and then a weekend at Brian’s family farm in central VA with our friend Ben. I had been able to train on the course a little and was feeling fit and ready.

I didn’t realize until about 2 months out from the race that there were no homestays for Lake Placid. By then most of the accommodations near town were taken, so Brian and I were scrambling a bit to find somewhere to stay. Luckily, his coach Jesse was staying at the National Sports Academy for a couple months of the summer to train in Lake Placid. He graciously invited us to stay with him in his one bedroom apartment. We brought up an air mattress and though it was a little tight, we both really enjoyed spending race weekend with Jesse.

Dai Roberts group van spotting in Lake Placid!

Weird pre race contests... who can splay their feet the most, Brian won

living large, it actually was pretty comfy though and thank you Jesse for the place to stay

our traditional pre-IM mini golf, this goes back to my first IM when I was so nervous, Brian took me to play mini golf to get my mind off it

he beat me by quite a bit...

hanging out at the Infinit booth, super nice guys, great products

Race day came quickly and my nerves were bubbling away. Quick hug for Jesse who was racing in the pro mens field, and then I lined up with the other women to watch them go off. There were lots of ominous gray clouds over the lake, but I’m not even sure I gave them a second thought. The gun went off and I actually had a pretty good start. I was close to the first group that was breaking away, and then I got dropped… Hmmm not part of my plan but I adapted and hugged the cable and led a second small group until a little after the second turn buoy. At that point the two girls on my feet came around and I jumped on their feet (sweet, free ride!). I then noticed that they were kind of weaving back and forth a lot so I made the decision to just hold the cable line. By the way, the new Zoot Prophet 2.0 wetsuit is really comfortable, I loved the first version of the Prophet but this one is definitely a big improvement. Coming around the dock I was just over 30 min, not too bad. I jumped back in and worked on maintaining my pace and holding my line. I started running into amateurs about halfway down the first leg. No problem I thought, we’re the only ones allowed to swim inside the buoys (until the turns) so I’ll just get clean water there. No such luck, inside the buoys seemed just as chaotic. I take full responsibility that I should have found a way to handle this better, but it was frustrating. I came out of the second lap in 1:06 and couldn’t believe how much time I’d lost on the second loop. Definitely not an ideal swim for me, but it was time to focus on the bike. It had started to downpour just as I was finishing the swim. Running by my bike rack I was slightly relieved to see I wasn’t the only bike left.

There is a fairly steep hill coming out of transition that goes into a left hand turn. I rode the brakes, thinking better to be safe right here then wreck. I was able to get into a groove on the way out of town but remembered coach Tara’s insistence on taking that first climb fairly easy. Going into the descent I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be in the rain. The only thing I found really difficult was seeing through the rain collecting on my glasses. That and rain at 40+ mph is a bit uncomfortable. I hit the paved portion fairly fast and then was slightly more cautious on the rougher section toward the bottom. Left hand turn at Keene and I was onto my favorite portion of the course, the rolling road along the river. Somewhere on this road Brian came by me, and I was happy to see that he must have had a pretty good swim and was looking strong on the bike. I was able to get a look at the pro women at the turn around and thought, ok a few are not out of my reach, I just need to continue to ride strong. I rode pretty consistently up the climb back to town and prepared myself for loop 2. Pre riding the course a few weeks prior, I knew loop 2 would be tough. The volunteers were awesome and had my special needs bottle out of the bag and held out for me coming through town. I also was able to catch a couple shouts of encouragement from friends. The rain had stopped at this point and it was starting to warm up. I went a little harder up the climb out of town and then hit the descent a little faster than the first loop. On the first part of the descent I saw Brian on the side of the road and my heart sank. I asked if he needed anything and he waved me by. I’ll let him elaborate but he ended up on the side of the road for 20-30 minutes with a sliced tire. Once I was out on the out and back section I could start to feel the fatigue creeping in and knew the climb back to town would be tough but manageable. I just kept sucking down my Infinit custom blend to stay topped off. I did see Brian again before turning to climb back and was relieved that he had been able to get back on the bike. I was probably a bit slower than I should be on the climb but I felt like I gauged my effort fairly well. Heading back into town, I was ready to get into my running shoes. If you read my Syracuse report, I have a weird habit of finally being able to pee on the bike right before dismount. This race was no exception, though I had at least gotten out of my shoes first this time. Sorry bike handlers…

coming through town after the first loop

heading into T2, pretty excited to be getting off my bike

The volunteers in the change tents were great and I was in and out of T2 pretty quickly, finally in my Zoot tempos and holding my flask of Infinit napalm. Running out of town was exciting and energizing with all the crowds out cheering. The weird weather didn't appear to keep anyone inside. I wasn't sure what place I was in but I felt confident that I was racing within myself. After the first turn around I was trying to count the women but wasn't sure I was counting right. I passed Brian going the other way and he yelled that I was in 7^th. Hmmm I thought, 7^th is pretty good! But I was still gunning for 6^th or even 5^th if I could make it happen. I was holding my predicted pace pretty well until heading back uphill towards town. I knew this area would be slower and tried to keep my feet light and my legs turning over. There was a DJ in between the two hills and he played my favorite pump up song for me, The Fighter by Gym Class Heroes! Running back into town was fun with all the crowds. I turned toward the shorter out and back and saw a few guys by the brewery waving around a giant check and going nuts. I couldn't help but smile and high fived them. Shortly after that I saw my coach Tara with her little daughter Maya. Tara yelled that my cadence looked good and to keep pushing. I left town feeling newly energized to take on the second loop. That energy carried my all the way to the turn around on River Road, and then it started to get really tough. I was so happy to see that Amber was leading and smiling, she has always been so nice and I know she works really hard. I had seen 6^th place walking and thought there might be a chance to catch her, but if not I at least wanted to fend off 8^th. Coming up the two big hills into town was really tough, I refused to walk though, mostly because I was terrified I wouldn't be able to run again. I don’t think the last two miles of an Ironman have ever been that tough, I was starting to become concerned that my legs would just give out, and I begged them not to. I passed by Tara again and she yelled to hang tough. She told me later that her daughter said “Rachel looks upset” and Tara explained that I was just very focused and maybe hurting but that I would be happy at the finish line. I probably didn't soak in the oval as much as I should have, I was so focused on just making it to the line. I saw the Dark Mark before the finish and high fived him. I’m not 100% sure what happened when I crossed the line but I was told I raised my arms up and then kind of staggered to the side and fell into the finish line arch... Kind of embarrassing, the medical volunteers were great and grabbed me. I kept telling them I needed to wait for my husband to finish and they took one look at me and said no, you’re coming with us.

heading into the final out and back, pretty hurting at this point

When I called my coach once back at the apartment, I said, before you say anything I’m actually really happy with this day. She knew it wasn't the time I wanted and that maybe I hoped to place a little better, but was happy that I recognized my effort on the day. I've said in past reports that my ideal race is one where I have nothing left at the end. I can honestly say that for this race I pushed all day and am not sure I could have gone a step further at the finish line. Being able to push myself to that extent is what I really strive for.

after the race

at the midnight finish

I had about half a beer and was feeling tipsy...

Now this #IMLP7th business. I've been asked a few times if I was shooting for 7^th. All I ever want to do with my racing is go as hard as I possibly can. Whether that’s 1^st or 10^th as long as I know I gave it everything then I’m good. If I had been able to pass 6^th I definitely would have. That being said, I was pretty excited to be 7^th. I received a message from Dark Mark asking me to get to the brewery at 10pm for the “award ceremony.” I have to admit, I was a little nervous to meet Dark Mark and TRS as they are quite the twitter personalities. They were extremely nice and welcoming of me. I was given a Real Starky t-shirt and gluten tolerant wrist band and introduced to many of the people hanging around for the festivities. The award ceremony was really fun and it was really nice to meet and chat with the 7^th place male pro Raymond. When I was able to get to my phone, I had close to 50 Facebook notifications and almost 100 twitter notifications. I was pretty shocked at the huge response, which was 98% positive. I more than doubled my Twitter followers in just 2 days and many of them took a minute to congratulate me! While I recognize that Amber and Kyle are definitely the heroes of the day, it was pretty cool to see the triathlon community, largely amateurs, rally around the pros. I consider this an incredible gift from the triathlon community and wanted everyone to know that I greatly appreciate it. I know I don’t need to tell anyone what I will do with the money, but if I had donated I would be curious. I am a graduate student finishing up my PhD and my husband works a hard manual labor construction job building elevators. We get by fairly well, but money does get tight and I try to have my racing be as little a burden as possible. Currently that means doing races that I can drive to and staying with homestays (which I actually really enjoy). I have no expectations of getting rich from triathlon, and I definitely don’t do it for the money. I know it will take time to work up the ranks and I look forward to that challenge. I don’t necessarily think race organizers owe me anything, but it would be great to have a system in place to develop younger/newer pros. If this kind of support meant pros doing more at races, I would be happy to help out with clinics, kids races, etc. So I’m rambling, I was going to say what will happen with the money. The majority of it is going to make some needed repairs on our home that we have been putting off. I know that many people have much more to worry about than a leaky roof, but we are trying to sell our house and move when I’m done with school so we need to make those repairs. I do want to donate a portion of the money. The triathlon community has given so much to me and I wanted to find a way to thank them. I've been talking to Final Kick Sports about possible ideas to give back a little. I will also donate a little to two charities that are very close to me. I should write an entire blog explaining them, but two of my best high school friends passed away years ago in two separate incidences. Ali’s fund (Ali Sacco) supports cardiac research at the Boston Children’s Hospital. Adam’s fund (AdamTowler Foundation) supports a scholarship fund to a school in Wyoming where he was from, as well as the American Heart Association. They have both been an inspiration to me, and I used to raise more money for their funds through my racing, so I wanted to get back to that a little.

This blog is probably a little too sappy for Dark Mark, TRS and Pay10Deep :P Seriously though guys, I appreciate you bringing pros and amateurs together (IMLP7th video). You made a race that I might have been slightly disappointed with (for not finishing on the podium) really fun and my husband and I will be able to pay some bills and give back a bit. I hope I can thank/repay the community by being a good ambassador for our sport and racing to the absolute best of my ability at the rest of my races this season. I still can't believe I'm doing another IM 4 weeks after Lake Placid, but I'm actually getting pretty excited for Louisville. As always, thank you to all of our friends, family and sponsors for your unending support.

3 seconds

I popped my head into my dad's office in the late afternoon to let him know that I was going to do a loop around the island on my bike.I always told my dad when I was going out for a ride or run by myself, and when I expected to be back. I may have even joked that if I wasn't back in an hour, to send the search party. He just responded that he would see me in a bit. This was pretty routine, the lap around the island (exactly 19.2 miles from our house) was my favorite and most ridden cycling route. I had ridden it so many times that I knew every crack and pothole, and knew exactly what gear I needed to be in at each part.

I set out on my Giant road bike with clip on aero extensions. I had bought the bike used just a year or two before when I started to get into triathlons. It was a beautiful New England July late afternoon. The sun was out and the temperature was warm but fairly mild. I always rode around the island in a counter clockwise direction. This meant heading out towards the northern end, which is more wooded, then making my way towards and around the lighthouse at the southern end, before finishing the last couple miles by a few beaches and through town. The lighthouse was my favorite part. It was mostly uphill to get to the lighthouse, but you were rewarded with amazing views of the island, the cliffs, the lighthouse and waves splashing up on the rocks. I soaked in the sights and then turned around the lighthouse to head home. I had just come down the big hill onto the short narrow causeway between two beaches. I was enjoying the speed but also thinking about the steep uphill that I would hit right after the causeway. My legs felt great, the ride had been going very well and I was in my aero bars enjoying the speedy section by the beach. I was about 2 miles from home. I saw ahead that two cars in the oncoming traffic lane were getting ready to turn left (in front of me) into the beach parking area. The first car had time and made the turn. I remember looking at the next car, a blue Jeep, and then my next coherent memory was my dad standing at the end of a bed in a hospital room.

These next details were mostly filled in by family and friends. I don't remember much for 5 hours after seeing the Jeep. I remember some brief blurry flashes: some sirens in the ambulance, someone trying to cut off my helmet, sticking a needle in my arm.

After the first car turned, the second car turned as well. The lady in the first car acted as the first witness and said it was milliseconds after they began turning that I hit them. My hands had still been in the aero bars, I hadn't even had time to reach for the brakes. My bike and I hit the side/front of the car and I fell backwards. The boy who was driving the car, was actually a friend of my brothers, on his way to the same cross country practice that two of my younger brothers would be attending. Given that it was a late summer afternoon, there was a pretty sizable crowd at the beach, including the whole running team. I am told my brother Nate assisted in holding my head and finding towels. I was out cold for about 15 minutes and had a seizure. I was bleeding from my mouth, but no one knew the exact reason. The EMTs found my phone in my back pocket. My "banner" was my name "Rachel" as this was an old flip Nokia phone, and the first number in my contact list was AAHome. The boy, an 18 year old, then recognized me and apparently lost it, saying he killed his friends sister. Someone had called 911, and then one of the EMTs called my dad. They told him I had been in an accident, that I was unconscious, and to meet them at the location. My dad didn't mention anything to my mom just yet, not wanting to worry her. My youngest brother, Jacob, was also at the beach, and went off on the run. The coach rode up next to him and Jacob said "I hope that girl is ok," and the coach had to tell him it was me.

I was taken to Newport Hospital, across the bridge from Jamestown, about a 15 min drive. Upon arrival, they told my dad to expect me to be airlifted to a different hospital for severe brain damage. They cut off my helmet, one that I had borrowed from my sister. I was given three CT scans, one of my face, my spine and my head. My spine was ok, my head CT showed a bad head injury/concussion but no bleeding and my face CT showed a broken jaw. My lower jaw was broken clean through the middle and displaced so that one side was moved back and down. The condyle on the right side where the jaw meets the skull was gone, completely shattered. Once they had determined that there was no spinal damage or brain bleeding, it was mostly just waiting for me to come around. They had assumed the severe brain damage because of the seizure and how long I was out for. The bleeding ended up being from the break in my lower jaw. The first thing I told the doctor was that I had a half ironman race in September, and asked if I would be able to still do it. He just looked at me, and shook his head. He then explained that they couldn't do anything about my jaw, that I would have to go to a specialist and that I could also see a neurologist about my head injury if problems persisted. They did a few more x-rays to rule out other breaks, but all they found was a bruised sternum and bruised knee. Then I was discharged. I remember the receptionist was amazed that I was walking (albeit on crutches because my knee hurt badly) out of the emergency room. They said that my fitness helped me to absorb the impact. I was still bleeding a little from my mouth and nauseous/dizzy from the head injury. If you have never puked with a broken jaw, hope you never have to.

I had a few friends visit the next day and my dad took them out to show them my bike. The frame was broken cleanly in half where the fork meets the frame and the handlebars were all twisted. If I had been able to get my hands on the brakes, my hand might have been crushed between the bike and car. My dad pointed to the bike and said "now this is the point that took most of the impact." To which I looked at him and said "no dad, my face took most of the impact." I was still a little loopy...





We also went to see the car, I was told I almost totaled it and wanted to see how much damage my little self could inflict. The largest dent was in the passenger side door and the side of the car in front of the door. We assumed that was from my body/bike. I was told I knocked the mirror off and it flew into the open passenger side window. The windshield post is the hardest part on the car and there was a dent in it. At first we thought this was from the helmet, but it makes much more sense that this would be from my chin. My dad liked to play this fun game after the crash about what would have happened if I had hit differently. If I had hit more towards the back of the car, I might have gone through the window and hurt the passenger. If I had hit more forwards, I may have gone over the car and had a host of different injuries. I preferred to not think about it. Overall it was about $2000+ in damage to the car, not quite totaled.



Next we had to do something about my face. I couldn't just keep walking around with my jaw hanging all loosely, might start to freak people out. We went to an orthopedic surgeon and he took a couple x-rays and flat out told us it was out of his league. Luckily, there was another orthopedic surgeon that went to our church that had great reviews. A few days after the accident we went to see him. He took x-rays of his own and came back in and told me that he had never seen a break this bad without cuts all over my face and missing teeth. He also said that any other surgeon would probably put all sort of screws and plates in my face to get it back together. He didn't want me to have to deal with the complications that route can bring, so he told me, you're young and fit, and already doing much better than expected. We're just going to wire it shut to fix the break down the middle and not do anything to the condyle and hope it just gradually grows back in place. If it didn't work, they could always put screws in later. They put me under later that day and wired it shut. I would have it wired shut for a month (any longer and the condyle joint might fuse). This is the wiring process: they put arch bars at the top of your teeth. These are held in by wire wrapped around the very upper/lower part of your teeth/the root. The arch bars have hooks on them. Wire is wrapped from the bottom hooks to the top hooks to keep your mouth wired shut. If your jaw isn't broken on purpose, you don't get a straw, everything you "eat" has to be sucked through your teeth.



We picked up a nice new blender on the way home and I got to work creating liquid masterpieces. Smoothies and Ensure get old really quickly. I found that stuff that was already somewhat blended worked best. My favorite savory recipes were blended pizza, lasagna and chili. Mac and cheese, not so much, it just tasted like liquid cheese. I will admit... I did try to blend a cheeseburger... desperate times call for desperate measures. It did not work out so well, but here is a crazed picture of me attempting:



Probably the most fun I "blended" was teddy grahams and milk. Teddy grahams are my favorite snack and my brother was mean enough to bring them on a road trip. We had fun watching the little bears spinning around the blender and made sound effects. While the diet did suck, the worst part about having my jaw wired shut, was that I was not allowed to raise my heart rate. I also had to be supervised if I was in over a foot of water. Here I had been training for this half ironman triathlon, and now someone had to watch me if I dangled my feet off the dock. It was weird. My dad caught me a few times trying to do lunges in the backyard and warned me not to raise my heart rate. When the wires finally came off I couldn't decide if I wanted to eat first or run first.

Meantime, my cousin Mikey helped me find a replacement for my bike and we got to work getting it put together.





I had the wires removed a month after the accident, but the arch bars stayed on for another couple months. Once the wires were removed, I could only open my mouth a little less than a cm, but it was enough to eat some scrambled eggs, which were amazing. Gradually I was able to open it more and more and had to do exercises in front of a mirror because it would open crooked. It still opens a little crooked, but you can only see it if you're really looking for it. The tooth on the fracture line died while my jaw was wired shut so it looks a little different from my other teeth, but no one has ever noticed without my pointing it out. Getting the arch bars off was the worst part. My doctor was awesome, and called me his miracle patient every time I came in. When he asked me if I felt like I could do it with just a topical numbing agent I said yeah sure I'm tough. Plus I didn't want to go under again. He started to bend one wire and we realized that was definitely not going to work. It was too late to put me under, so I had to have about 20 shots of novacaine in the roof of my mouth and lower mouth. Once my jaw had been unwired, I remember the guy that hit me sent me a message that said something along the lines of, oh great you're fine now, you can go eat cheeseburgers. But I wasn't fine just yet, I had still missed my big race, my jaw would take almost a year for the joint to regrow, and I still had the head injury. After he sent me that message, I blocked him from all further contact. While I did forgive him, I didn't feel like it would be good for my recovery.

A few months after the accident, I was still having problems from my head injury. I would go to the grocery store not realizing my shirt was on inside out and backwards. I would constantly forget the word for something. I would walk into rooms forgetting what I went in there for. I would "space out" during conversations. I was having trouble concentrating. People would tell me that things like this happened to them as well, but I think what they didn't understand, was that this was alllll the time. The worst incident was when I spaced out and went through a red light. After that, my neurologist thought I might be having petit mal seizures so set me up for an EEG. And this is what I looked like for 24 hours:

The EEG came up negative, which was good and bad. Good I wasn't having seizures, bad that the only thing that would help me was time. With head injuries, they often just get better with time. Since I had had several minor concussions (ice hockey) before this, it might take a little extra time. Even now I still have some difficulties with memory and concentration, but it has gotten better year after year.

There was one point when I became angry. For a long time after the accident, I thought he hadn't seen me, that it was an honest accident. He had told the insurance company the sun was in his eyes. Much later, I learned that shortly after my dad arrived at the accident, he ran up to my dad and said "I thought I had enough time." So he did see me, and thought he could make the turn. He then lied to the insurance company. Thankfully they must have seen through the story (the sun wasn't even close to setting at 5pm on a July evening) and assumed full responsibility. I still forgive him, but I do hope he learned something from the incident. My situation, while not very much fun from me, was due to a simple mistake. We all make mistakes and that is why I can let this one go. The harder issue for me to come to terms with, are the displays of hatred towards, and deliberate scaring of cyclists by motorists. I am sad that if any of those folks read this article, the safety concerns may fall on deaf ears.

The crazy thing about this whole story, is that I was very very lucky. This easily could have gone so much worse. These are all the reasons why I was so lucky:
1. I could have had severe brain damage or broken my spine
2. The driver had good insurance
3. I had an excellent surgeon that treated me like he would treat his own daughter
4. I had very supportive family and friends that kept my spirits up
5. My only lasting remnants from the accident are a little TMJ and being a bit forgetful.

I have many friends who have also been in accidents with motorists and came out much worse. Some have lasting disabilities, and are still thankful and feel lucky to still be here. I titled this blog 3 seconds, because that was the approximate amount of time it would have taken for me to go by where the car was turning and be in the clear. How often have we been held up while driving somewhere, or doing something, for 3 seconds. A mail truck, slow moving farm equipment, stop lights, traffic, pedestrian crossings, all typically stop us for more than 3 seconds. 3 seconds will not ruin your day and it won't make you late for an important meeting. Our lives are worth more than 3 seconds, please consider this next time you come across a cyclist or group of cyclists. Be patient. We are often moving quicker than you may think, and often have to move away from the shoulder to avoid debris and potholes. Slow down, assess the situation (many cyclists will often use signals or wave you around when its safe), and pass/turn with care. Cyclists, do your part as well. Use hand signals, watch for vehicles and stop at stop signs. Maybe just as importantly, wave thank you to the motorists that are patient. Maybe if other motorists see us thanking them, then they will realize that we're not so bad after all.

Syracuse 70.3

Heading into Syracuse 70.3 I was feeling pretty good. I had just watched Brian's inspiring come back after injury to win Rev3 Williamsburg. I was excited about taking on a challenging and different course. I would get to catch up with some Canadian friends as well. Training had been going great and I was ready to finally put together this half distance.

In the couple days leading up to the race my stomach was feeling a little iffy, but I just chalked it up to nerves and carried on. In retrospect, once it was feeling off, I could have been more careful about pre race eating/sleeping. Race morning was beautiful, the temps were going to be great, the water was calm and the wind was pretty low.

It was an in-water start and I lined up in the second row and in the middle. We all kind of jumped when the gun went off because there hadn't been the typical 10 sec warning, but we were off. I had an ok start. This sort of triangle formed and I was on the edge of it, which wasn't the best place to be. I tried to sort of break into the triangle and got elbowed in the face (my fault), and then decided to try and go around and that was somewhat effective. Then I ended up being the one with people on my feet and a break to the next group. I had just resigned myself to doing the work on the swim, when a woman came up next to me. Yes! She was moving at a good clip and I slid in behind her. So I was with a little group of 3 for the rest of the swim. I could feel that I was swimming fairly well, and I gotta say, my new Zoot prophet felt awesome. My shoulders didn't get tired and I felt very smooth in the water. On the way back in, my head felt a little fuzzy, and then all of a sudden I puked a little! I thought oh man that's weird but carried on. Getting out of the water, glanced at my watch and saw just under 30 min, sweet! It was going to be a good day. Running up into transition, I felt very sluggish and fuzzy. I figured the good effort on the swim and then all of a sudden going vertical was just going to be an adjustment. I took a little more time in T1 than usual, wanting to make sure I could calm down a little.

The first 2 miles of the bike were fast, and gave me a chance to calm myself a little after the swim. After those two miles, the climbing started, going right into a nice hill out of town. When we turned onto Sweet Rd to start the bulk of the climb, I went to shift and heard the chain fall off. Shoot! Thankfully, I couldn't have done it in a better place, I was literally right in front of the bike support guys. They ran over and immediately started working on it. The chain was stuck pretty badly in between the frame and crank and took a few minutes to get it unstuck. In the meantime, I got to watch a bunch of the women come by. This was frustrating for sure, but I hadn't lost hope. I did get slightly worried when one the bike techs said something about possibly having to get me on a different bike. Finally the chain came out and they did this cool Tour de France type thing where I got on and clipped in and they pushed me until I got going. Thank you awesome bike support guys for your quick work! I made a mental note to be careful shifting gears and carried on up the climb. I took the climb a bit conservatively (maybe too conservatively) knowing that it would get faster later on. The course is beautiful and the descents were fun. I didn't see another rider for a long time, and focused on nutrition, hydration, cadence and power. My nutrition wasn't going down as easily as it usually does. Warning, possibly TMI, I kept burping stuff up and my stomach felt full and gurgly. I took some extra salt in an effort to calm it but it wasn't going down like it usually does after extra salt. Finally about halfway through the bike I saw riders up ahead. Yay, people to chase! I started reeling them in and was having fun chasing people down. I was probably a little too scared of pushing it more on this bike course, I think getting out to ride more hilly routes will be beneficial going into Placid so I know how much I can push it. About 1/2 mile from T2 something weird was happening with my derailleur, I thought oh no just hang in there one more minute! Coming into T2 all of a sudden I was like, whoa I gotta pee, and was actually able to pee on the bike! I was so excited about this that I forgot to get out of my shoes and ran into T2 with one bike shoe on and one off... I gotta tell you, I looked super pro.

I could see a couple of the women and they were close, I thought ok hold it together and you can catch them. I grabbed my stuff and started running. My turnover was good and my legs felt good and not at all over worked from the bike. But my head was feeling fuzzy. I thought ok, start the nutrition, you've got caffeine and salt. My stomach was still feeling gross and the burping up of stuff hadn't stopped, so I popped some more salt and tried to focus on the woman in front of me. My pace was already much slower than I had anticipated, but with the grassy hill coming out of transition I decided to just go with it. There were some rolling smaller hills on the first part of the out and back (you did it twice) and then there was the beast of a hill at the end of each loop. I shortened my stride and kept telling myself, c'mon your legs feel fine, pick it up and keep going. I started to get this weird sensation where I would feel cold for a few minutes, then really hot and thirsty the next couple minutes. I tried more salt, with not much difference. It was frustrating and I'm not going to lie and say that my head space remained super positive. Coming back around for the second loop, I seriously considered dropping. I was already way back and was just not feeling any better. I have never really considered a DNF, it crosses my mind occasionally, but never as a serious option. I thought of the time I'd put in to get there, I thought of the people that support us, and I thought of the kids I was visiting on the way home. I wanted to set a good example, that no matter how bad you feel (unless you're going to get injured), you don't quit. After shuffling up the beast hill the second time, I came back down and saw my Canadian friend Andrea (who had an amazing race after crashing on the bike). She cheered so loudly for me, I was able to get it together a tiny bit. An amateur female had passed me and I was about to pass her back, I tried not to feel bad for myself that a couple of the amateurs were up on me. Instead, I thought well my race is obviously not really going anywhere, but maybe I can help her. I came by and said come on, let's bring this in together, you've got this. We ran in most of the rest of the way together, me getting even a little boost from being able to help someone else. Huge congrats to Andrea winning her AG after crashing on the bike, David for a strong race, Hana for gutting it out on a tough course, Heather for her awesome 4th place pro and the Welch brothers for strong races.

I'm asked sometimes "what is a good race for you?" I consider a good race, a race where I finish with nothing left, my legs full of lactic acid, my heart pounding, just completely exhausted. While I know there may have been other stuff going on, it was heart breaking for me to finish with relatively fresh legs. Yes my stomach and head weren't so fresh, but I still relish that super sore, ran yourself into the ground feeling. Fortunately, I still have 4 more big races this season to capture that feeling. I am especially excited for the next one, Lake Placid, because Brian and some friends are racing. All I can do now is go back to the drawing board and also know that the majority of my remaining season focuses on my strength: the Iron distance. Three out of four of the remaining races are courses I'm somewhat familiar with and have had good results on. I haven't raced Lake Placid before, but we will have a chance to go train on the course. Overall, things are looking good.

So lessons learned:
1. Don't run into peoples elbows in the swim
2. Look into chain stays and practice shifting on climbs
3. Even when excited that you can finally pee on bike, 200m before bike dismount is probably not the best place to practice
4. If feeling sick, suck it up and think about how awesome legs feel
5. If feeling sick, guzzling water and chocolate milk after race will probably result in puking all over yourself...
6. Enjoy the process and think about all the awesome races left in the season

Ironman Texas

I missed writing up my race from Florida 70.3 and this is a little delayed... I've been working on my first manuscript so I felt a little guilty writing anything besides that. But, just submitted the first draft for my advisor to review (eek!) so had a few minutes to catch up.

Florida 70.3 was a mix of highs and lows. I had a good swim, great bike, then fell flat on the run. On one hand you want to be positive and project a positive attitude, and on the other hand you don't want to accept that that's what you can do. I let the race sink in for a few days and then decided I would use it to fuel my fire leading up to Ironman Texas. All we ever want is to put together a race that truly represents what we are capable of and reflects the training we put in.

Going into Ironman Texas, I knew that I had put in some great intensity on the bike and run. I was a little nervous that I hadn't gotten the super long rides in since it was such a cold winter, and I ended up on the trainer quite a bit. The intensity had been there though and I was running well off my training rides.

One of the greatest parts about racing Texas was that so many people I knew would also be racing, AND I would get to see my good friend Meghan. Meghan and I were really good running buddies back in Virginia. We ran together probably 2-3 times a week and she was one of my bridesmaids in my wedding. I remember runs where I would be trying to run tempo pace doubled over because I was laughing so hard. It was really nice to spend a couple relaxing meals with her pre-race so we could get all caught up and I could meet the newest member of her family, 4 mo old Easton. The last time I saw her daughter Lexie, I could barely understand a word from her, and now she is talking in complete sentences! Although I wasn't really up for her games of tag post-race, it was fun to see her again. I also got to catch up, very briefly, with my homestay hosts from Steelhead 70.3. Jan was doing her first Ironman and ended up finishing despite a very challenging run. Sean shaved a huge amount of time off from his previous Texas finish! I also got to catch up with the Zoot guys and some Zoot team mates, Kendra and Christian. Not to mention catching up pre and post race with some cool ladies I met at other races, Caroline and Helen. You just meet the coolest people in triathlon.


Meghan's daughter Lexie, cutest triathlete every


Meghan's 4mo old, Easton

Finally race morning came. I got in the water about 10 min before we were to go off, immediately loved the temperature and was happy to be wearing my Zoot prophet wetsuit. The gun went off and I took off, desperately trying to latch onto some fast feet. After about 200-300m I settled in with a pretty sizable group. I think if my start had been a touch better I could have hung on with a slightly faster group, but I was happy to be swimming with some people. I enjoyed the swim and felt comfortable with my group, although there was quite a bit of shuffling around. Exiting the water, I glanced at my watch and was very excited to see almost exactly an hour. I'm not the strongest swimmer so that was very promising, and its always nice to start the day on a high note. My transition was relatively quick and I was on my bike.


super fun swimming through the canal

The first 30 miles I was flying. I felt great, I was getting calories down, the speed was good. Then at some point after that, my legs just started to feel flat on the bike. I was frustrated because I usually feel great on the bike, and it's really become a strength for me. I tried to remain optimistic. It helped to think about the run, it's been awhile since I was genuinely excited to get off the bike and run, and this time I was. I knew I'd been working on my run and that was where I could make up some of the time I lost on the bike. But would it be enough? I wasn't really sure how much time I was losing, and it ended up being more than I ever expected. I did get down all of my nutrition, which was incredibly easy given how simple it is to mix up my Infinit custom blends. I had one mix for the first half of the bike with only a small amount of caffeine, and a second mix for the second half of the bike with moderate caffeine. All I had to do was mix the separate bottles and labeled them Bike 1 and Bike 2. Easy peezy, and I had gone really light on the flavor so that even with 1500+ calories spread between the two bottles, they still went down really easily. Taping my lower back, as was the suggestion by Ghent Chiropractic, really helped me avoid that late ride lower back fatigue that can happen when in the aero position for 5+ hours. Coming into T2, all I could think was "get me in my running shoes." 

Another quick transition (the volunteers were great in the changing tents) and I was off. Running through transition I glanced at my watch and saw 6:30 pace, figured that would probably be a little overkill for me, so quickly dialed in 7:40-7:45 pace, which was my target range. The first lap felt great, I felt strong and relaxed, I was taking down my Infinit napalm with no problems (even though it had been sitting in the sun all day). I saw Meghan around mile 7 and she was a great pick-me-up. Onto lap 2 I was still feeling good and was able to hold my pace. The last part of lap 2 and first part of lap 3, I hit a low point and slowed a touch. Using the mantras I've been working on helped me come out of it, but losing focus for that brief period of time cost me a bit. I was able to pick the pace back up on the last part of lap 3 and could feel my turnover improving. My new kit is really comfortable and the Zoot tempos felt light and responsive even with the massive amounts of water I was pouring over myself. I came by Meghan for the 3rd time and she yelled "there is a pro female 1 minute up." I had two miles to go, and this felt exactly like Louisville last year. Last year at Louisville I had a good swim, not so great bike and then passed a girl with two miles left. I came up to her much faster than I expected and made the pass, this lifted my spirits and I found I could keep pushing. With half a mile to go I passed another female pro. Coming into the finish chute I could see another one just a couple hundred yards ahead, but I ran out of pavement. I couldn't help but think, if I hadn't hit that low point, how many could I have picked off? But that is a lesson to carry with me to the next race.


A little blurry, but me running along the canal

Having Meghan out there was awesome, the back part of each run lap got lonely, and it helped to think "ok 4 miles until I see them, ok 2 miles until I see them." I also can't say enough good things about the volunteers. They were on point, and I never had a problem getting what I needed, even though a three loop course can get crowded. The spectators were something else too, and I really enjoyed being able to run along the canal each loop. I really loved this course and the race as a whole so I hope to come back. After the race, I really couldn't stomach much solid food, so it was great to have some Infinit nocturne on hand. After a few nights of using it, and then some easy spins and swims, I was raring to go again.

I really enjoyed talking to a few of the other pro women. I feel really blessed to be able to line up with them on race days. I think a few of them can sense I'm a bit impatient to move up the ranks, but they are so encouraging. I'm not sure one of them (not sure if she would want to be named or not) realizes how much it meant to me when she said "you're so young and have such a bright racing career ahead." I just need to trust the process and know that this is a long and difficult road, that's what makes it so wonderful. So excited for Kelly Williamson's win, she is just the nicest person and it will be awesome to follow her racing the rest of the year. Can't wait to see what coach Tara Norton has in store for me leading up to Ironman Lake Placid (and Syracuse 70.3), I've never been so excited to get back to training post-Ironman!

The Early Days

A few times in the past few weeks I've heard athletes say "I could never be an elite." So in the spirit of that, I decided to share some of my first forays into the sport. Enjoy :)

My first open water swim start, just as terrifying as my first Ironman swim start.

I prepared a little better for my next endeavors into the water

I mastered 3 wheels pretty quickly

And decided to move onto the big leagues, safety first though...safety first

My first real race was a local 5K and my brother and I started in the very front. I

 was around 10 years old, thought I was invincible and that I would win the race!

It was more like this:

And my clothing of choice was that years race shirt (what a newbie!) that went down to my knees, and a pair of swishy pants

I come from a family of 5 kids, and all of us are competitive. My dad used to tell us that whoever was first in the local 5K got a happy meal from McDonalds. Kind of an interesting reward for a healthy activity. My older sister actually tried to sabotage us by telling us eating Halloween candy right before the race would make us faster! Poor Nate ended up getting oxygen right after the race that year. I used to wear this cotton superman t shirt for every running race. I remembering thinking it was hilarious at the time.

I ran on my high school cross country and track teams

And this was my idea of post workout/race recovery

This was my idea of winter cross training.

I did my first triathlon on a road bike I borrowed from my younger brother. Getting into the water I was somewhat concerned that they had to shorten the swim because of treacherous current conditions. I held my head above the water for the entire swim, put bike shorts on over my swim suit and then changed into run shorts for the run...it was a sprint... I mean transitions have never been my strong suit...

Didn't get a picture of my first triathlon...but I imagine I looked something like this

Studying abroad in Bermuda I did several triathlons

I thought swimming in bike shorts was perfectly reasonable

I insisted on wearing a bike jersey that I attempted to pull on over my wet swim suit

Aero bars? What are aero bars?

Who runs in a bike jersey?!

Fortunately for the next one I realized I didn't need the bike jersey...

This was the race that I got lost on the swim though and then couldn't remember what my bike looked like coming into transition

Then I got rid of the bike shorts, I finally realized that much padding wasn't required for a sprint tri. Still no aero bars though, and I thought replacing running shoes every year or so was perfectly reasonable.

For the first several years I raced triathlons, I swam with a nose clip (you can see it here on my swim strap), because I never learned how to put my face in the water and blow bubbles. I have since realized that toddlers usually master this by age 3

Training for my first 70.3 I almost totaled a car...with my face...

I made some pretty creative smoothies, including blended cheeseburger

I was so excited when I was finally allowed to bike again that I jumped on the trainer with bare feet

I finally got a pair of aero bars for my first 70.3 the following year, and look, an actual tri kit!!!

I had no idea that people actually ate stuff during the race and got by on a little gatorade...I bonked in pretty epic fashion on the run

My first Ironman, I didn't even look at the weather before the race. I assumed, its Florida, it will be hot! It was 32 deg getting out of the water, I had to buy XL arm sleeves the day before the race (they were all that was left) and wear the bike jersey I had brought to train with. I still didn't own a tri bike and thought everyone raced on road bikes with clip on aero bars.

But I finished, honored one of my best friends, made a ton of new friends in the process and had a lot of fun

I finally got a tri bike the next year. I was amazed at how much easier it was to run off the bike, still no aero helmet though.

Since then, I've gotten an aero helmet, found excellent race kits and shoes (thank you Zoot) so I don't have to change for each event, taken in actual calories during races, and learned some of the lingo. 

I still mess things up pretty frequently,

and I still feel like this sometimes when I'm going up against the big girls