I woke up to rain on the tent and lightning and thunder outside. Ruh roh. I just hoped it would stop before the swim so it wouldn't become a duathlon instead of a triathlon.
Thankfully it did, and we went to the beach to begin. Gun goes off and we hit the water running. I must say that Lake Elmer Thomas is the clearest lake I've EVER swam in. You can see the bottom where it's shallow. It's amazing. Clear as day. You can see all the swimmers around you, and know when someone is about to collide with you or you can see people's feet in front of you and hold on for dear life to draft. Awesome!
On the bike it started to rain. It was a drizzle the whole way and the roads were pretty wet. I took it easy and didn't push too hard. I knew I had a really tough run ahead and I not only wanted to conserve energy, but I didn't want to slip and fall on the wet pavement.
The run was tough- as always. It was really slippery and I had to be extra careful. I got to the top of hill #1 of 3 big hills and was exhausted already. The view sure was pretty, tho.
Continued on up and down to the top of hill #2 where I chatted with the guy at the aid station. Took a few minutes to rest and breathe (all while under the guise of talking to the man. I'm sneaky... not really.
Then it was down, down, down only to get to the bottom of hill #3- the steepest of the 3 hills. It doesn't look too steep in the picture, but I assure you it IS. Use your imagination. I got passed twice on this hill, but I didn't care. I walked up the whole thing. No shame in walking up a hill that I would normally have walking poles on if I were hiking instead of racing.
Finished happy and with a smile on my face. :) I love to race. I'm not speedy, and I'm not always a winner, but I sure always make sure I have a damn good time. I packed up my stuff and headed to the clubhouse to change clothes and head home. I had no hopes at all of placing in my age group, but when I came out of the bathroom I noticed they were announcing winners in the womens 30-34 age group. What the hell- I thought I'd stick around and see if I won anything when they announced the 35-39 age group. Who knew- I took 2nd in my age group. Granted, there were only 2 of us in that age group, but whatever. I'll take a win no matter how I get it. I was very happy to get my medal.
I headed out to make the long, wet drive home. Talked to Rian almost the whole way to keep me awake. Made it home safe and sound. What a great day! This race always bitch slaps me, but I LOVE it. Can't get enough. I'm always so nervous before a race and don't want to do it. When I'm done, I'm always SO glad I did it and so proud of myself. Any day my body is able to race is a good day. Life is good!!!
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