Ironman 70.3 Texas Bike

"Success isn't defined by those who fought and never fell, but by those who fought, fell, and then rose again." - Nastia Luikin

"Get. Back. Up. You are going to have falls whether mental, physical, metaphorical, or literal. If you want it, fight for it. Never. Give. Up." - me 😜

Photo Credit for above photo goes to Scott Flathouse. He is not just a photographer but an artist and a genius! Heck to make me look that good on the bike he's a freaking magician! 

Ah my old nemesis the bike how you have hurt me and attempted to steal my confidence. I won and I will keep on winning. I got out there and had the best ride I have ever had! I mounted without a hitch and started off taking it easy. The winds were challenging going out. There was what looked like a bike accident and part of the course had to go around the ambulance and fire truck. I was anxious going around it. But at the same time one of my Strike Force Teammates, Luke, passed by with words of encouragement. So I got around it and just kept heading out against the wind. I wasn't pushing hard. I was just playing it safe. I was mostly worried about making the turnaround at the midpoint because it was two sharp left turns without a lot of room. But when I got there and I did it, I screamed out in joy like a crazy woman! This gave me a burst of confidence and I really enjoyed the ride after that! 28 more miles to go and I ran out of fluids. But I did not want to risk stopping to refill. I knew I would pay the price for that on the run.

The rest of the ride was just about perfect!! I had some crosswinds that shook me a few times but it was much better than the wind going out. I kept getting choked up thinking I was going to do this!! But I also knew anything could happen and things could change in an instant.

When I dismounted I burst into tears of relief and pride for making it! I never got in aero, I never changed gears, I never refilled my fluids (😁), my elbow, wrist, and hand hurt, but I DID NOT FALL!! I did not give up!!

Ironman 70.3 Texas Swim

I didn't sleep much at all the night before, and when I did I had dreams my alarm didn't go off, I didn't get the hotel wake up call, I was running slowly thru thick sand to get to transition to set up, transition closed before I got there, etc... Since I was awake getting up wasn't too hard. I had to force myself to eat a bowl of oatmeal. Despite my dreams that prevented me from getting to transition I had no problems getting there. I set up and I was ready. Except I wasn't. I was teary and shaky. A million questions were going thru my mind. What am I doing here? Why am I doing this? What am I trying to prove? I am not even good at this! What if I get hurt? What if I fall? What if I fail?!?!

I was waiting for my family to show up for  one last hug and kiss before heading to the swim start. They are my rock, my motivation, my inspiration and I wouldn't be here without them!

When I got to the dock with my swim wave and got ready to jump in, an overwhelming sense of peace and calm washed over me. I don't know how or why but the only explanation I can come up with to explain it is a little help from the man upstairs and for that I am so grateful! When I jumped off that dock I had no fear.

I was so happy getting out of the swim! And I was so excited to catch a glimpse of my family as I exited the water!!

The swim was my favorite part! I never would have guessed but I loved it!! I did lose time waiting for everyone to go ahead before I started so I lowered the risk of hurting my elbow. And then with the young fierce guys they started after my AG I had to deal with some really aggressive swimmers. But despite that I had no anxiety. I felt calm and strong from start to finish. I came out confident and excited! This was exactly what I needed to get on the bike! 

This was my fastest and strongest swim yet! My pace was 2:40/100 yards. As good as I felt out there I expected it to be a little faster. I am sure giving everyone a big head start hurt my time. But I loved it and that I will take any day!!

Pre Race Fun

It was a lot of fun getting everything laid out for race day. Racing was beginning to feel like a real possibility.

Saturday morning we woke up early. The kids went to my parents house to head down to Galveston later. Rick and I left around 8:00 am to head to the island. 

After checking into our hotel we went to check out Ironman Village. The excitement in the air was electric. I have to be honest I was feeling a bit out of my league. I went thru check in. Everywhere we went people spoke to Rick as if he was the one racing. When I went to the t-shirt table in check in she looked past me and said um the men's t-shirts are that way. Lol! People talked to Rick about my bike. Everyone asked him all about his racing. Ha! It is definitely a male dominated sport but to assume each time it was Rick racing and not me was surprising to me.

Team Zoot met at The Spot for lunch.  What a great group of amazing athletes! And how exciting to be among them!

Then we headed back for bike check in. This is the real deal!! I racked my bike and just prayed I would make it thru the race ok. I was super worried about mounting, the turnaround, and dismounting. I was worried about the wind. I was worried about nutrition and hydration. I was worried how much pain I would be in and hoped that I could tolerate it! But I was excited! I was eager to try!

After bike check in the Tritats team met up! I feel like I have known these guys forever!! Such a fun group!! I know I have established friendships that will last a lifetime!

Rick and I headed to the place we love the most! The beach! We walked along the beach hand in hand and enjoying taking some down time away from the excitement to just enjoy each other. He has been so supportive and sacrificed a lot for me thru this process. And I was super impressed with his Sherpa skills! He went above and beyond my expectations!

Then we met the Strike Force Racing Team for dinner! Without my coach and her husband I could have never made it this far! And my team mates are a source of constant encouragement and support for me!

I was wiped out! It was a crazy, busy, exciting, fun day!! We went back to the room and I prepared for the next day! I got my TriTats on! I was ready!!

Not much for sleep came that night! And when it did I dreamt of oversleeping, not being able to find my way to transition or to the start, of a million little things going wrong......But I got up on time and got ready to go!!!! I was going to do this!!!

Rolling With The Punches

If there is one thing you will learn very quickly in this sport it is that there is so much beyond your control. No matter what you do, the time you dedicate, the hard work you put in, there are a million things that can derail your plans and you may have little to no control over them. What you do have control over is how you handle what is thrown your way. Do you let it get you down or do you rise up to the challenge?

The Monday evening before the race a few of us were meeting at coaches house for a meeting and transition practice. The meeting went well. It was very informative and I was feeling well prepared for race day. We set up our transition areas to rehearse for race day. I saw the person in front of me had to cut it really tight to turn around, so I thought I would play it safe. I dismounted walked my bike around the turn and hopped back on. Better safe than sorry right?!? I didn't want to take any chances this close to race day. I started to get going and clip back in and straight down to the ground I went. I landed hard on my hip and elbow and my head hit the concrete. Thank goodness for a helmet! Which is why no matter the distance I am always wearing one! Instantly I was nauseous. The pain in my elbow was severe. Right away I thought this is not good. I sat out and watched the rest of transition practices. And the pain was getting worse. As I got in the car and tried to pull away l struggled to back the car out of the driveway. So my coach decided to take me to the ER with her husband following us. 

There was no wait at the emergency room and I went right back and then right in to xray. I told the tech I had a race in less than a week and he said "I don't think so." X-rays were excruciating. My mom and dad showed up. The doctor walked in and said "It's fractured." And I fell apart. My coach asked if the X-rays showed the break. The doctor said no but that she and the radiologist agreed from the joint effusion seen on the xray that it was definitely a fracture and that if I had a cat scan she guaranteed it would show the break. I was pretty much hysterical. And the doctor said really annoying things like there are always more races and here's where you decide if your glass of lemonade is half full or empty....I wanted to smack her. Lol! Her approach was not the best by far, but I'm sure she was doing her best to make me feel better. They splinted my arm in a soft cast and put me in a sling. They gave me pain meds and sent me home. It was over. All my hard work. All the blood, sweat, and tears I had literally spilled over the last 7 months was for nothing. I cried. I sobbed. I'm not going to lie, I was full of self pity. That night I cried the entire night.  The next day I was still crying. I got an orthopedist appontment for 4:00 that afternoon. I assumed it was over and I was just going in for a cast.

The doctor took one look at the X-rays I brought from the ER and he said they looked great! I was like "What?!?! Is there a chance I can race?" He said there was a chance. He took more X-rays. And it hurt so much I saw stars and almost fainted. I thought there goes any hope! But the doctor came in and said there is no break! He said the pain was likely from the swelling putting pressure on the ulna nerve and bruising. He said to come back in two days and we'll see where we are. I left in pain but with a tiny glimmer of hope!!

Two days later I was still hurting but I was improving every day. The above picture was taken on Thursday three days after the fall. There was still quite a bit of swelling and pain. But the doctor said I could try to race! If I could tolerate it I could do it! I was ecstatic but I knew it could come down to a race day decision depending on the level of healing and degree of pain that would happen in the next three days. 

My hip was banged and bruised up as well. And I was sore everywhere at this point. But there was no way I was giving up!!

I went to a cryotherapy session and did the Normatec boots as well. I was willing to try anything!!

I decided no matter what I wanted to be there. I wanted to try. Even if I got a DNF I wanted to try. I couldn't give up now!

Galveston Rehearsal

 

After a sleepless night due to worrying about over sleeping, I got up at 4 am and got ready and ate some oatmeal before heading out to Galveston. We were to meet for wheels down at 7:00. I got there shortly after 6:00. Tried to get a little more sleep in the car but it wasn't happening.

I bumped into a fellow Zoot athlete Mitchell Jeffcoat who recognized me. That was really cool. And then I met up with The Robert D and Suchosoft my IG friends also known as Robert and Susan. So excited to meet them out there!

We started our ride about 7:15. Right off the bat I fell behind. I ended up hitting every red light out there! At least it was good practice for clipping and unclipping. When I was moving I was flying (for me)! I was averaging 19mph. And I was thrilled! All I could think for the first 28 miles was how I couldn't wait to tell my coach and hubby how fast I was! The only surprise during the first half, besides my amazing speed, was after the San Luis Overpass there was a really bad rough patch of road. Other than that I was unstoppable!

That is until I turned around and headed straight into the wind!! My 19mph quickly turned into 13 mph! Going back up the San Luis pass I was riding like 8mph!! I guess the saying if it's too good to be true it probably is played out true on this day! I did contemplate just heading to lay on the beach instead! But I of course did not give up! I fought that wind and then some difficult traffic areas on my way back. My overall average speed ended up being 15.5mph. Ugh still slow!!

My friends who probably finished a good 20 minutes ahead of me waited for me. Susan had done her run already and Robert finished up his last mile with me. I ran 5 miles at an 8:40 pace. It was tough and I can't imagine I'll be able to maintain that speed for 13.1 miles off the bike come race day. It would be great if I could manage 9:00, but there is no telling what the conditions will be like. Endurance training sure has made me slower!

Robert, Susan, and I headed out to try to swim but we couldn't find a good place to do it, so I headed back to my gym. I swam 2000 yards at an avg 2:13 pace.

I felt really accomplished doing all three disciplines in one day. While the bike wasn't what I'd been hoping for, I feel confident going into this race. I feel my training has me well prepared. I have put in the work and I am ready! I just hope I am equipped for any unknowns race day may throw my way.

I had a time goal, and I think I should get close, but I may not make it. And that is ok. I really want to focus on finishing and having fun! I wish I could throw all the numbers out of my head and just rock it, but that is not me. So I will try to push the numbers into the back of my mind and just do my very best, smile, and enjoy every moment!

Robert and I sporting our TriTats hats on our run

Susan and I

ZOGGS USA Team

If you follow me at all you know there is only one brand of goggles I wear and that's Zoggs! What a privilege to be a part of the Zogg's USA team. I look forward to representing them! And I can't wait to meet up with them at IMTX!

What now?!?!?

I started my 70.3 training unable to run due to a fibula stress fracture. I battle my RA every day and sometimes really struggle during a flare up. And now what?!?!?

Just 3 weeks before race day, I had a long run planned for the weekend. Courtney wanted me to run with her to really help her push her pace and I thought it would be great to have a running partner for a change. We had a great time catching up on our run. But throughout the run my stomach and lower back were really hurting and I felt a lot of pressure in my lower region. Our pace ended up being 12 miles at a 9:23 pace which was a PR for Courtney! But I was not feeling well.

When I got home it was pretty scary. I called the dr and they said it was safe to wait until Monday morning to see the doctor. I took it really easy the rest of the day. The next day I had an Open Water Swim planned that I really didn't want to miss. It would be my friend Ivonne's first OWS and I didn't want to let her down. So I went but took it easy. I just focused on the mass starts and only swam 1062 yards. But thanks to my wetsuit my pace was 2:08! Not a whole lot faster than my typical average but I was putting forth less effort. I am glad I made it out there because it seems I still have the mass start anxiety where every time someone touches me I stop breathing and start breast stroking. Ugh! It was great getting out with my friend Ivonne for her first OWS. She rocked it!

I was so worried going into the appointment with my doctor that he would tell me I was unable to race. I was terrified really! It was 3 weeks out to race day and I had trained so hard for months. It turns out I had uterine prolapse. Basically my cervix had fallen out. And yes it's as bad as it sounds. And on top of that I had a bladder infection too. But I have to say my doctor is the best! He knows how important this is to me. So he put my parts back where they belong and gave me a way to keep them in place until after race day. Then we will discuss surgical repair. Having 4 babies in less than 6 years and heavy training took it's toll. But all I could hear is we can find a way to let you race!!!! And for that I am grateful!

The body sometimes gives us limitations and it is difficult to accept them, but there is no changing it. So you work hard, and you fight, and you never ever give up!