"Today is going to be your day, I just know it!"

And with that, I teared up for the 4^th time race morning. Those words were said to me by one of the fabulous IMAZ volunteers as I dropped my gear bag with her. I had several ‘mantras’ ready to talk my mind and body into staying as strong as possible throughout the day and now I had one more thanks to the kind words of a volunteer. 

Heading out to the water from Transition

In Transition, I nervously checked my bike a million times, searched for Pam spray to get my wetsuit on and hugged all of my teammates as tightly as possible. When we lined up, I wanted to get into the water with my friend Beth R. We held hands and tried to walk to the water’s edge together despite the crowd pushing around us. As we neared the inflatable swim arch with timing mat, a volunteer was yelling, “Climb the fence, climb the fence, the race is starting”. Beth and I hurried, scrambled over the fence and jumped as far as we could out from the wall into the 61 degree water. Yes, 61 degrees is cold, especially when the health club pool is 83 degrees. I had double swim capped and plugged my ears for the race. Luckily the day before, I had found out on the practice swim that my head really doesn’t like that cold of water, especially in my ears. I had been very dizzy and nauseous after the practice swim. A teammate gave me some ear plugs and I crossed my fingers that they would work.

Holly(me) and Beth

Swim - 2.4 Miles

After we jumped in, I lost Beth.  We had to swim under a bridge and a little ways past to get to the official start. I was treading water now, exchanging looks with other athletes around me. I kept thinking, how many of you are going to beat the crap out of me on this swim? I was way too far up in the crowd for my abilities but it was too late to move back, I just had to wait for the inevitable beating. The cannon went off and the most aggressive swim I’ve ever been involved in began. Believe me, this isn’t my first rodeo so I’m always expecting a good amount of contact. This was, well, brutal. I was convinced I was going to come out with black eyes after getting some really good hits to my goggles and pushed under water multiple times but I stayed calm. No panic just kept thinking to myself, “I’m swimming at freaking Ironman!!!”  It seemed like it was almost until the turnaround before I had some space. I stayed up by the buoys and sighted pretty well. Took in a good amount of water during the swim, the water was so choppy with 2600 people all swimming at the same time.  Got to the steps at the finish and 2 big guys basically lifted me up to the bottom steps. I was a little shaky but walked the chute to the wetsuit strippers – Shwoop, off it went.

Coming out of the water with a smile

T1 – Got my gear bag, carried it and my wetsuit to the tent which was was packed. Found a seat eventually and tried to towel off for my full change. I had decided to completely change so put chamois butter on, bike shorts, fresh jog bra, socks and jersey. I wasn’t too cold since I changed fully. I paid the price on time doing this but really, I just wanted to finish Ironman so I wasn’t too concerned. I ran out and grabbed my bike from an awesome volunteer.

Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Jersey and off on the bike

Bike - 112 Miles

The bike felt great but I was really taking it easy. I saw Brooke as I headed out for loop one and that was just awesome! I had hoped to reserve energy on the bike for the run and just take it all in. The bike was 3 loops with some false flats but not bad compared to Georgia. The headwinds were pretty strong on the way out for me, but then on the turnaround, the wind cooperated and was behind so I was flying. I thought, this is going to be GREAT. Gut it out for the first half of each loop and then tear it up on the second half. Unfortunately, the winds in the desert aren’t that predictable. The winds on the 2nd and 3rd loops were constantly changing so you just never knew if it was going to be a headwind or not. I didn’t feel any tailwind on loops 2 or 3, just always head or side winds. It was awesome though, people would come by and call you by your name (on your bib) and say good job. It was a mental pickup to just hear someone say your name out there when you were in the tougher miles and mentally a little off.

I over hydrated – stopped at the porta potty 5 times, yes 5 times. Can’t even imagine how much time that took since each time I had to wait in line to get in but it did feel good to stretch and get off of the bike for those moments. I met a really nice guy, John, while waiting in line. He’s 68 and was doing the race with his son, though his son was way ahead of him. We talked a few minutes more and then off we went. He got ahead of me coming out of the porta potty and I passed him a few minutes later and said, 'See you on the run John'! I later saw him on the run which was heartbreaking– more about that later.

I was really hungry on the bike. I did try to eat some Pringles (in my special needs bag) and some Luna bars in addition to my liquid calories but was still hungry. Not a good sign unfortunately but my stomach wasn’t upset, just grumbling and hungry. Finished the 3^rd loop and was THRILLED to get off of the bike.

T2 – I grabbed my gear bag and saw my awesome girlfriend, Paige. I gave her a quick hug and jumped into the changing tent for another full change. Just like superman in the phone booth. Come in one way and emerge in a completely different outfit. At this point, I was so slow on overall time; I didn’t have to fight a crowd in the changing tent and had a volunteer that was helping me. I got all of my bike stuff off and started putting on my run stuff and realized I had forgotten to put my body glide in my run bag… Not good but they had some Vaseline so I improvised. Got my hat, sunglasses, threw on my race belt again and out of the tent I went.

Another outfit change to TNT Purple and the run begins

Run - 26.2 miles

I came out and started the first loop (3 loops total for the run) and it was packed with spectators. It was so nice to hear all of the cheers. I felt pretty good for the first three miles and was able to run then walk through the stations. My plan had been to run a mile walk a minute. HA! That plan fell apart quickly as my stomach started revolting. Though I had been able to do ‘number 1’ multiple times, not a chance for the alternative. Not all damn day which makes things uncomfortable to say the least. I eventually had to move to all walking which was really defeating mentally for awhile. Everything felt fine except my stomach. I stopped taking in fluids, food at about mile 6. I just couldn’t do it anymore, got dizzy, nauseous so that was that. The good news was that I was walking faster than I could’ve jogged at that point so I just changed my mindset and said to myself again, ‘This is freaking Ironman, take it all in and smile.’ I knew I would make the cutoff even walking the entire marathon so with that pressure gone and my ego back in check from not being able to run, I relaxed and enjoyed myself. The Vaseline had not worked well and I now had multiple blisters with the worst being on the bottom of my left heel and back of my right heel. I had gotten rocks in my shoes from the 'off pavement' portions of the course so fearing I wouldn't be able to get back up if I sat down and took my shoe off, I left them there the whole race. Suck it up buttercup, this is Ironman!

At about mile 7, I met Angela who was also resigned to a walking marathon at this point. We stayed together for almost 10 miles talking about everything under the sun. There we were, at Ironman in the complete dark talking like old friends though we were complete strangers. We tried to run a little but my stomach just couldn’t do it. I had cut off fluids, food, and gel for awhile and it hadn’t helped. Probably hurt me but that's the way it went. Again, I took it all in. The awesome company of Angela, who was in the navy and raising a step child with Cerebral Palsy, the lights from the bridges shining on the water, the amazing volunteers at the aid stations. Angela had started to feel better and was going to try to run, so we parted ways and a few minutes later I saw Paige and my Coach Mary again. So great to see them. A couple of minutes later I saw my daughter Brooke and just broke down crying again. It was SO amazing to see them; I really needed a kiss from my 4.5 year old to finish that 3^rd loop. She said to me, ‘Go get those boys Mommy’ and I laughed and took off after the guys in front of me.

I thought about so much when I was in the dark walking by myself. My family, teammates, Paige, friends throughout the country tracking my day online and my friend Paula who had lost her battle with cancer this year. Paula was with me out there throughout the entire day for sure. Smiled when I saw signs that my friend Frank had his family hang for me. At around mile 23, I met Reggie. He was from Tempe and this was his second Ironman. He was having a rough night and was off of his goal but in good spirits too. What can you do? Accept that it didn’t go as planned and keep moving. We chatted for a while and reached mile 25 where I saw an athlete in bad shape being helped on the course by 2 other athletes. He was being supported by them and was trying to walk and finish the race. Reggie and I came by and it looked like there was nothing we could do so we carried on. Later I found out that the struggling athlete was 68 year old, John, that I had met on the bike earlier. I believe he fell late into the run and fractured his pelvis. The heart of an Ironman. The athletes that were helping him had no worry about their time, their races; they were going to get John to the finish no matter what and they did. To me, that is what Ironman is. Not what time you finish but everything you learn about yourself and experience with others over those 17 hours. I’m pretty competitive about a lot of things in my life. Racing for a time goal just isn’t one of them anymore and truly it hasn’t been for a long time.  I’m 43 and a mom with a full time job. I got exactly out of this race what I wanted, to make the cutoff, have Mike Reilly call me an Ironman, have the experience of a lifetime doing something I wasn’t really sure that I could. A true stretch goal if you will. Though I finished at the BOP for my age group and about an hour later than I had expected, those ironman miles in the sunrise, sunset and dark were some of the best of my life. The finisher chute is the most unbelievably amazing finish in the world. People are screaming for you, banging on the side boards and just giving you so much energy. I swear I ran a sub 7 minute mile pace in that chute. It was the first I had run without pain or stomach upset since mile 3.

Crying and laughing crossing the finish!

The day after Ironman, they showed a short video of a guy that they discovered still out on the course at 2am. He was 2 hours past the cutoff but wouldn’t stop until he finished the race. He got no medal, he is not an 'official' finisher but it didn't matter, he was going to finish that race for him. Again I say the heart of an Ironman. What an amazing individual. Some people hold the winners of the races as their inspiration. For me, its people like him and John. I’m so thankful to have shared this experience with such amazing teammates raising $320,000 for Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

GA IronTeam at the IMAZ Practice Swim

Team, I’m going to miss training with you every week, thanks for sharing your last 10 months with me! Here's a link to the video I put together from my clips in AZ. Thanks for the memories of a lifetime!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl_iGCMNo04&feature=share

Augusta Half IM Race Report - Don't Eat the Paste

Some of the fab athletes on our team pre 70.3 (I'm second from the left)

I'm going to keep this entry limited to just the Augusta wrap up vs catch you up on my missed weeks of training updates. This race was a 'training day' for us as we enter our last 6 or so weeks of training. We were supposed to test ourselves but not go all out. 


Woke up race morning to 95% humidity and overcast (slightly spitty) skies. My wave didn't go off until 8:44a so since we had to be out of transition by 7a, I caught the shuttle over, set up transition and then caught the shuttle back to the hotel to chill out before walking back around 8:10. Put my wetsuit on and got lined up, time was flying. Pre race I had a couple of sport bottles of EFS. It was a little hard to figure out nutrition as I haven't started a race that late so was hoping I didn't screw things up by drinking too much pre-race.

Beth B, Me, Ann heading toward the swim start

My husband, Brad, and 4 year old daughter, Brooke, made it just in time to see me head into the water. I got the best pre-race kiss from Brooke, I was thrilled to see them as my day was starting.

Go Mommy, Go!

Swim 1.2 miles: 0:29:22 (1:32/100m)

Swim was very murky with lots of random weeds, branches. The great news is that the field was pretty spread out and there was a nice current working positively for us. I was really happy with my swim, felt strong the whole way and even caught people in the waves ahead of me (a first).


T1: 0:5:37
Ran up the hill and met the wetsuit strippers around the corner. Picked the biggest guy I could find and off it comes, I was shucked like a big ear of corn. Got on socks, shoes, my number and off I went.

Bike 56 miles: 3:18:10 (16.9mph)
Weather was still overcast and it was just a nice rolling course so I was trying to hold back some. I felt so good so I just kept saying to myself, "Don't eat the paste", as my girl Paige reminded me. Basically meaning don't get pulled out with everybody, let them fly by. I didn't eat the paste for a long time but then, guess what, I ate it... I had 2 bottle of EFS and 2 bottles of water with gel. Didn't eat my luna bar (critical error), just drank all of my calories. Sun came out full force at about 30 or so miles on the bike. I mean HOT. Was starting to dread the impending run. 


Funniest part of the bike was a guy standing at the end of his driveway with a sign that said, GO HOME on it. I saw him and started laughing thinking it was a joke. That was until he started saying, 'Go home, you're an inconvenience to the community, don't come back'. What?! So then I pedaled a little further and his next door neighbors were on their driveway saying, 'Don't listen to him, we think you guys are rockstars. Please come back'. Too funny! Sweated out the last 25 or so miles with the sun baking down and then hit the transition area.


T2: 0:4:26
Threw my bike back, grabbed my shoes, did a porta potty break and off I went. I felt pretty good other than hot. Unfortunately that feeling didn't last.

Hello Sun! 

Run 13.1miles 2:42:10 (12:24 pace)

Yep, the wheels fell off. Don't get me wrong, I'm no speedster runner but I can pull off faster than this. I made it to just mile 2 before I reverted to a very sporadic run walk. Basically it was based on my stomach. I had so much fluid in there that my stomach was sloshing every time I'd start running. I'm running next to this guy (stranger) and he hears it and says, 'is that your shoe?' I say, 'nope, that is my stomach'. Ohhhhhhh. Yeah, not good. Major gastric issues. 

Brooke and me - about 5 miles into the run

Generally when I do races, I run with friends that are new runners or I'm pushing a jog stroller running with my husband or something that has me go at someone else's pace. It cracks me up because people look up race times and think I'm so much slower than I actually am but the reality is that I almost never run my own pace at races. Well, this time, I completely own this run time. I didn't hang back to stay with anybody, didn't  push 35 pounds in a jog stroller for the distance. Nothing, it was just a rough run. Sun baked until about 8 miles in for me, shoving sponges down my jersey, running through hoses (yep, blisters). Then, the thunder started and a downpour. Every type of weather decided to be represented during the race at some point. It felt great to get rained on though my two toes with new blisters weren't so happy. 


Despite some challenges during the race, I smiled the whole time. Seriously, even the worst day out there beats what other people go through on a daily basis to just live. Whenever I hit that pity party moment I try remind myself how lucky I am to do this sport no matter what the day brings. I have to smile.

Hopefully this crazy finish photo makes you smile too

Finish: 6:40:10

Note to self, before attempting a finish line photo where you jump, let the photographers get ready so they catch you in the air. I was a cheerleader from grade school until college. We used to do this 'C' jump where your body forms a C. This was me either jumping or landing while doing the C. I can't tell what it looks like I'm doing, some sort of dance maybe? I might need to have a caption contest to do it justice. 

No more races until the big dance on November 20th. The next several weeks are brutal looking at the schedule but our team has raised over $250,000 now so I'm going to keep smiling through it! Thanks for reading, I'll try to update this weekend. As always, your donations are appreciated and help find cures for blood cancers so thanks for your donations!!

Triathletes, Please Don't Play With the Snakes on the Swim

Pictures from Peachtree City International Distance Triathlon - May 14, 2011

You think I'm kidding on the title but I'm not. That was actually one of the announcements right before our swim start. I heard it and was laughing when someone asked me what he said. I told him and then he said, 'Oh yeah, that's true, but usually when everybody gets in and starts splashing they swim away'. Um, okay, good to know that the lake is full of snakes...Guess what I did - splashed a lot just to make sure it was clear to the snakes that I had no interest in playing with them.

This week was a complete rest week so NO TRAINING AT ALL. What? Really? Yes, really. We were told not to do anything tri related so my entry this week is the week leading up to my first triathlon in 7 years, the Peachtree International Distance on 5/14/11. Race report is under Saturday - tapered as you'll see below:

Monday - 1700y swim

Tuesday - 17 mile bike

Wednesday - 1800y swim

Thursday - 4 mile run. Had an appt at the bike shop that night to change my cleat placement and adjust my fit if necessary. If you remember, I've been having massive knee pain on the bike so when I was evaluated, basically everything was wrong. He added a shim to one shoe (one leg shorter than the other), changed my cleat position, told me my bike was way too small for me (great...) and that I lean to the right when I cycle so unless I correct my biomechanical issues, he forsees more injuries as I increase my mileage. Lovely. He changed just about everything you could on the fit, seat height and tilt, stretched me out more in my upper body and moved my cleats so I was completely freaked out about what would happen during the race since I had no time to ride with all of the adjustments he made pre race.

Friday - off, drive to race to check in and spend the night. First Ironman nightmare since I've started training. In my dream, I didn't finish the bike portion in AZ. It was never revealed in my dream why I didn't finish the bike but I was out of the race, crying on the sidelines as everybody was finishing. I blame my anxiety over my radical bike changes and knee pain pre-race for the nightmare. Had a blast otherwise, with two of my hilarious team mates, Rachel and Karen. So glad to be with them and laughing!

Saturday - RACE! As I mentioned, I hadn't done an open water swim, triathlon or had my wetsuit on for 7 long years so I did have some nerves going into this race. Particularly when I saw that it was the Southeast Regional Chamionships so there were lots of fast looking people and bikes competing to make Nationals. I was a little out of place with that crew. Here's how it all came together:

Swim - .93 mile 33:37 minutes

This was a rectangle Lake Swim. Water temp was 72 so I wore a sleeveless wetsuit. On the swim, I felt pretty good right when I got in (no warm up, just into the water as the time started). Had a minor panic attack about 2 markers in. Don’t really know why but I just started to get the gasping feeling and really short breathing. Did some screaming in the water and then worked through one of my affirmations, ‘all that I need is within me now’ and just kept repeating it until I calmed down. It actually worked and I didn’t have to stop swimming to calm down, just kept trying to stroke through the panic and repeat my affirmations! Finished the swim but definitely need work on sighting. Was WAY wide and swam a good amount of extra distance I suspect.

T1 3:26. Did a hammer gel and water pre bike.

Bike - 25 miles 1:29:38

I tried to hold back since I had no idea what my new fit, cleat position and body would do. My knee hurt a little bit on some of the climbs but really not bad at all. It was a rolling course with a few good climbs but nothing horrible. I’m still a bit hesitant in saying the problem is fixed though as my knee didn’t start hurting the last time until 35-40 miles into the ride. This was obviously shorter. When I used to do tris several years back I would go out way too fast on the bike and then have nothing left for the run so I tried to stay a little reserved for this reason too. Drank Perpetuum aero bottle on the bike (finished it) but nothing else.

T2 2:21. Another hammer gel and water pre run

Run - 6.2 miles 1:01:36

Run was really nice, all on golf cart paths so closed to traffic. Again, hilly but I don’t think there really are any flat courses around GA. Took me the first mile to get my breathing in a normal range. I tried to follow an old guy that seemed to be paced evenly and not too fast, not too slow. I stuck with him for the first couple of miles to keep from pushing too hard since I was breathing so hard and needed to get my HR down. Definitely didn’t get enough bricks pre race which I think was part of my breathing issue in addition to some good hills right off the bat. Drank water at mile 2 or so, Gatorade at 3.5 or so and water again around 5ish. Can’t remember exactly where the aid stations were but I did 3 drinks (about half a cup each) total on the run. Skipped one of the stations they had. I felt pretty comfortable on the run for the most part. I walked quickly while I drank the fluids but other than that, ran the entire course. Knee felt fine on the run!

Race: 3:10:37

Driving back from the race I had on some Nicki Manaj, 'Moment for Life', some of the lyrics that made me smile:

This is my moment, I waited all my life I can tell its time

drifting away I'm one with the sunsets, I have become alive

I wish that I could have this moment for life, for life, for life

Cuz in this moment I just feel so alive, alive, alive

What a gift it is to be able to physically compete in triathlon, no matter where you place, how long it takes, it's just an amazing feeling to be out there doing it. All in all I think it was a good day, especially for my first tri in 7 years and breaking the ‘nothing new on race day’ rules with all of my bike changes and no open water/wetsuit swims. It definitely could’ve gone the other way rolling the dice like I did. The only soreness I had was in my calves which I’m not sure if it’s from the race Saturday or running around all day on Sunday volunteering at Iron Girl triathlon. Knee is hanging in there so we'll cross our fingers. Tomorrow training ramps back up!