Sam Mazer

2011 in Pictures

2011-12-31T06:23:00.000-08:00

2011 sure had its ups and downs...really high ups...and really low downs...but PRs all around, so I can't complain.

February - Mercedes Half Marathon. 1 week after a killer bought with the flu...1 BIG PR. Good way to start off the year.

NOLA 69.1...I have no pictures.

April - Country Music Half Marathon. It made up for my Nola suckage. 3rd Female overall and another BIG half marry PR of 1:23 (hillier course than Mercedes). TOTALLY unexpected!!!

Music City Distance Carnival. Somehow I got thrown into the invite 5k. 3 weeks before CdA and at the end of my biggest training week ever (I ran 25 miles on the wednesday before in a double run day of 17 and 8). The names on the start list were UNREAL. Track PR of 18:06...nobody needs to know that I got dragged along in a 5:25 first mile trailing off the back of the pack. But hey, what would have been the point in "racing" if I let them go and ran 5:40s all by myself, right?

Coeur D'Alene. My first IM. 10:38 and 10th overall. I can't complain but a lot went wrong on the run and I needed redemption because I know I had more in me. The first one is always a learning experience, right?

October saw another half marry that isn't worth mentioning. It was a "rust buster" after being plagued by patellar tendonitis post-CdA and trying to get myself back in shape for Cozumel while in law school.

I ran another 5k 3 weeks out from CdA. 18:08ish. Good confidence booster because at that point I had no expectations AT ALL for myself in Cozumel.

Hey look! Proof that I wasn't bloody the whole time. 10:20 was still a BIG IM PR...I learned that I can no longer think that "I can't" do something anymore.

2 Half Marry PRs. 2 IM PRs. 2 injuries (if you count Cozumel as one big one instead of a million little ones).

here's to staying in 1 piece in 2012...

IM Cozumel: The Good, The Bad, and The UGLY!

2011-12-07T09:20:00.000-08:00

The main question lately has been whether or not I remember it all...If you asked me last week, I would say yes...but this week? Everything last week seems kinda fuzzy right now. My ears still have a slight ring in them and my eyes don't feel like the 20/20 vision they normally have...plus headaches here and there when I have to venture out into the real world where all you people use BRIGHT LIGHTS. I'm getting by though. Saw a neurologist yesterday and getting an MRI tomorrow just to make sure its nothing more than the concussion that we think it is just to be safe...oh yeah, I get to have a root canal tomorrow too!!!! FUN!!! (Dentists scare me more than clowns).

It's no secret either that I wanted my Kona spot. I would normally say I would be disappointed getting so close but still missing it, but I'm not! I did this race as a bit of a redemption after Coeur D'Alene in order to put a race together that I knew I was capable of. CdA (my first IM) was that learning experience race where a lot went wrong that I needed to fix for the next go around. I needed just one more go this year. I battled patellar tendonitis after CdA (and all fall) so I had a month and a half of NOTHING in July/Aug, started law school, somehow managed to get back into shape (with a new schedule of less sleep and more stress than I am normally used to) and raced Cozumel as my first race since CdA (I threw a "rust busting" half marry and a 5k in there but no tris in between the two). I bet nobody thought I could make it that long without racing, huh? It was good for me though. I felt like I did half the work going into Cozumel (because of school) but somehow I was WAY fitter than I was going into CdA. I told myself no pressure. Just a whatever/get 'er done attitude and it was a blast! I DID redeem myself from my CdA performance. It was an 18 min IM PR and I had an awesome Plan B frame of mind the whole way that got me across that finish line. Can't complain about that. Kona or no Kona...I'm happy with the fact that I figured out that I have another level of digging deep that I didn't know I had when I was bleeding all over the place and that is satisfying in an of itself...but I still want Kona...I'm just okay with all of this at the moment, that's all I'm getting at.

The Race:

My swim was KILLER! I'm super pumped. I swam a 57 SCY about two weeks before the race so I was crossing my fingers for a sub 1hr swim...but 55??? I LOVED being able to SEE a draft the whole way in the crystal clear waters. That always helps. I got out and saw the clock...muttered a "HOLY S*%#^" and ran to our tent ALL the way past where the carpet ended??? It was weird. One of the Timex gals ran into the tent and I was like, "uhhh...did we just swim a 55???" The volunteers were great in helping me dump out my stuff out of my bag on the ground but then they proceeded to put it all back into the bag while I was trying to stuff stuff in my pockets. A lot of "no no no no"s were going on because I can't process in spanish when I'm running on adrenaline...It all worked out though...

In Coeur d'Alene, my big mistake was going out too fast on the first lap/half and ONLY eating gels (instead of mixing in solids throughout). My stomach did not like the gels only plan. I worked on my nutrition plan this fall and I don't think I actually figured out what works for me until October. Needless to say I had a plan and I was not going to get off that bike and run what I know I was capable running if my stomach was turned inside out and I was puking by mile 3 like last time. Two girls FLEW by me within the first ten miles, but I was determined to hold a comfortable pace for at least the first lap and a half and build it from there. I found some girls to RIDE LEGAL with and keep me paying attention and all was good until mile 50-ish. I ate like I was supposed to and then got a BIG wave of nausea. Next thing I knew, I was stopped, leaning on some sort of pole, and puking my guts out. My first thought was "no no no no...not CdA all over again. It's too early to be puking"...but then my Plan B frame of mind clicked in and told me it would be alright. Don't panic, adjust. Forget the CarboPro and just go gels and solids and water. Within 5-10 more miles I was back on track and feeling decent again. Catasrophe SAVED!!! I was SO proud of myself!!!

la la la la...fast forward about 35 more miles...so I'm riding. Thrilled that I haven't bonked...thrilled that I'm on sub 5:30 pace with just over 30 miles to go and feeling great! Thrilled to get off and do what I do best...RUN. Out of NOWHERE a pack of at least 20 or more swallowed me and it was clear it was bad news waiting to happen. I've done my share of road racing and this was unlike any roadie pack situation I'd ever experienced. I had gotten stuck in the middle, couldn't get out, half the people didn't speak English and I was terrified. Somehow I managed to try and get off the front but that only works for so long at 5'3"/105. After that I moved off to the right where it was clear for the most part. It all happened so fast but what I remember is some guy swerving and slamming on his brakes, my back wheel coming off the ground, closing my eyes, and being curled in the fetal position holding my face and screaming bloody murder. I think only one guy stopped but I'm not totally sure. I remember standing up (still holding my face) and when I took my hands off, the blood was POURRING down the front of me. After that, I bent forward and it was DRIPPING. I've never seen so much blood in my entire life. I still to this day do not know who stopped. I'd like to thank him for calling for an ambulance (even though I was back up and riding before they could get to me). It all just seemed like instinct and everyone tells me that there's no way they would've kept going. There was no second guessing it in my head and at first, my first thought was, "OH...I'm blowing another shot at Kona." It was at that moment that I told myself the only way I was going to get through all this was to just plain forget about it. Plan B frame of mind working its magic again. Forget about the Kona slot. Get back up. Find a rhythm even if it was a slower rhythm than before and just feel it out. The ambulance found me and I told them I was fine except for the fact that my face was on fire...so onward I went.

My bike kinda looked like a murder scene. I think I mostly dripped in my bento box though. I know I had to windshield wipe my Garmin a few times too. After that, everything is a blur. I just remember telling myself the body does amazing things. The crowds on the course were amazing through every lap...but after lap 3, I kinda felt like a zoo exhibit. I hadn't let myself look to see how bad the damage actually was and just poured water on it at every aid station.

Off the bike, they couldn't find my bag in T2 and I stood there for a good extra minute or two but I figured whatever at this point. I had stopped thinking about Kona and I was bleeding like crazy so I just stood there. They tried to clean me up in the tent while I was putting on my shoes and wouldn't listen to me when I said no. I just wanted to put on my shoes and they were getting in the way of preventing me from doing that (I know its their job though). I thought there might still be some sort of a chance. My friend Carly (who was also racing) said later she was like, "I was wondering what took you SO LONG in T2." haha. They wouldn't let me go!!!! I told them to clean me up in a few hours!

My legs honestly felt great...it was just the rest of me that wanted it all to be over. I had lost all my solids out of my bento box when I crashed and was running ONLY on gels at that point, which I wasn't thrilled about. I could feel my jaw swelling and couldn't bite off the tabs on my gels or the bagged water. I remember kinda chuckling to myself that it was all a bad dream. I seriously couldn't believe it was happening like this. After lap 1, the medical people stopped asking me if I wanted help. I just wanted it to be over but I wanted to finish first. I wanted to stop being stared at like a zoo exhibit for the blood too. Only one guy told me it was a hot look. haha. I perked up a bit on lap 2...even though the torrential downpour BURNED!!! Just short of the turn around, I started to see a few girls on the way back that I thought were in my age group. I smiled for a sec and totally thought, "I got her!...and her too!"...and the inner runner in me wanted to go get them now but I made myself run patiently. Carly (who rocked a BIG PR!!!) was out on the run course too and it was good seeing a friend. Her husband is the one that took the pic at the top of this post. All I told her the first time I saw her was that I had an oopsie. hahahaha. You gotta crack jokes when things are that bad, right? I told Tommie and Trish (two Cozumel locals but they're American. I was staying with Tommie and his wife Sarah and I don't know what I would've done without them after the race), "Everyone keeps staring at me and I don't know why?"

The end eventually came and I didn't enjoy the finishing chute as much as I would have liked after such a big ordeal but I had just run down 4 girls in the last half mile and I wasn't sure what lap they were on or whether or not they were in my age group. Turns out I was 10 seconds shy of second place. Bummer...but hey, I still got on the podium and I still found another level in me that I didn't know I had...and even though I had been hoping for a lot more on the run a 3:35'll do with a chin busted open enough for 1 internal stitch and 5 stitches on the outside.

I got whisked away to the medical tent so quick that I didn't even make it to the real people food section for the athletes right when they finish!!!!! Pizza would've tasted soooooo good (I think that's what I heard they had)...but if I couldn't even bite off the tabs on my gels, then I guess its a mute point. Sarah was working the med tent and I had told her I wouldn't visit her in there. Oopsie. I think they thought I was funny. The main doc couldn't believe I finished. They wanted me to put on the hospital clothes before I got on the stretcher to get into the ambulance. ugh. I managed to get them to let me only put on the top. The shorts looked funny and we all know that nobody wears underwear under our tri suits. Apparently they didn't know how to lock down my stretcher in the ambulance either. I started rolling around. It was hilarious. The sirens were going and everything and we had to stop to figure that out. Then she couldn't find my heart rate. It was quite an awesome ride. I was laughing and kept telling her that I was alive.

...and no, other than that, my hospital experience was not scary at all. A plastic surgeon did my stitches. I got a CT scan and Xrays to make sure my jaw wasn't broken (it isn't...but its still sore 10 days later)...and I had to ask them a few times to put sugar in my IV so I didn't show them what triathlon BONKING was all about. The first time I saw my face was in the reflection of the CT scan. How did this happen to me? Since I've been back, I've been telling my non triathlon law school peeps and profs that this really is a freak accident and this is EXACTLY why there is no drafting in triathlon. I didn't even shower that night when I got back to the apartment either. I couldn't figure out how to. Mum and Dad got on Skype (I told mum not to let dad in the room but that didn't work). They had gotten word that I had crashed because Tommie emailed Auntie Cherry but they thought by the splits that it wasn't as bad as it really was. I didn't sleep much that night either. I didn't after CdA without a crash and once the shock set in around 10pm, I was scared of going to sleep with how hard I banged my head. The first thing I thought of when I got back on the bike was, "I BETTER NOT HAVE A CONCUSSION."...law school finals. ugh. I took the LSAT with a concussion and I know how awful of an experience that was. Finals are 10 million times more important than the LSAT and having a career is more important to me than my hobby even though I LOVE LOVE LOVE my hobby and the person it has made me.

Since being home, I've been having a really rough time...hence it taking me so long to write anything on my epic trip to Mexico. Oh yeah, did I mention I broke a tooth down there two days before the race as well and I'm getting a root canal tomorrow??? Awesome. Dentists scare me more than clowns...but anyways. I started getting dizzy at the Cozumel airport. Luckily I didn't have to talk about my face too much because people already knew. I put on a hoodie at awards because I got tired of the whispering and pointing and staring at Kona roll down. Sara Gross had a seat next to me on the plane (who, by the way ROCKED the AZ/COZ double and got 6th two weekends in a row) so it was great having a fellow Lifesport/Zoot peep next to me that I've known for years because I was just plain scared of the whole situation and still scared to sleep (probably part of why I was dizzy...and the fact that I couldn't open my mouth to eat either). My friend from Alabama helped me through the airport and without him, I probably would not have made my connecting flight. I'm not gonna lie. I cried to get the gate re-opened because they had JUST shut it when I got there. I never thought I'd want to get back to Mississippi that badly. ha. Running dizzy through an airport with all your law school books and road rash and a concussion is NOT something I would recommend. A friend picked me up from the airport in Jackson and made sure to tell me how disgusting my face was for the next 4 days. hahaha. That's what friends are for, right? 10 days later and I'm literally 95% healed. It's CRAZY. The only reason I had a bandaid on today was because I cover the stitches (which need to come out tomorrow). So yeah, the outside is looking good but the inside decided to take the boat home or something. Monday and Tuesday of this week were the worst with the dizzyness. I thought I was going to pass out in the library at school and somehow managed to get home but its been pretty awful. My vision is a bit blurred and I'm getting an MRI tomorrow but mainly its just a gnarly concussion that has left me having to study for delayed finals all of my winter break. Oh well...ya know, I'm super thankful that my school is so understanding in this situation and I'd rather study over break and RECOVER than feel like I'm half assing a law school final. It is what it is.

Below are a few more pics. I also gotta give a shout out to Zoot for being an awesome sponsor. I have AWESOME teammates. Coach P for dealing with me this fall when I was stressed beyond belief with school and always coming up with a plan that gets the job done. My friends that have checked in on me since the accident (you really learn who your REAL friends are during hard times, that's for sure), and my parents for telling me how proud they are of finishing.

No ironman's planned for 2012 yet. We'll see. 70.3s for sure. I'll get that Kona spot eventually.

Now...its time to buckle down and learn some torts!!! My brain is currently in a "functioning" window so I gotta run with it when I can!!!

Mandatory hospital pic

Day 2...just after getting home from the airport. OOZY and DISGUSTING.

Day 9!!!

IM Cozumel

2011-11-29T05:52:00.001-08:00

I suppose I need to do a little write up on this one. It's gonna have to wait until I get home though. Find me on Twitter @sam_mazer until then. Thankful for a lot of little things in life at the moment...that's for sure...

"Can't", "Won't", and "Not Gonna"...

2011-07-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

"Can't," "Won't," and "Not Gonna" are three of my least favorite words. They get under my skin and bubble up a fire inside of me that makes me want to do whatever it is even more than I already did and knew I could.

The first time I let one of those words really get under my skin was undergrad. I don't talk about my undergrad track and XC days because I didn't enjoy them for many reasons. I hated running A LOT in 2008 and it took me a while to get the love back for what is now my favorite part of triathlon. Amongst those years, I had a (now) former coach tell me "well you're not gonna win, but..." I'll always remember that. It took me so off guard that I didn't say anything at the time. You really have to question a coach that will tell that to an athlete. The funny thing is that for that race, I knew I wasn't going to win but that doesn't matter. A coach should never tell an athlete that. You tell them what they are going to do. Positive reinforcement. I've surprised myself a lot in the years since when my now coach has encouraged and coach me to do things I never thought I would be able to accomplish years prior.

Lately I've heard quite a bit of the three again. A lot of people have told me that I "can't," "won't" and am "not gonna" be able to train for an ironman and do well in law school. I mean, c'mon. Nobody likes a debbie downer. I find myself referring to "normal people" a lot when it comes to life outside of triathlon. It may seem that I'm ALL triathlon...and yes, I love to S/B/R...but I really enjoy getting away from it and feeling "normal" at the end of the day. Triathlon is a hobby but at the same time it sometimes seems like a second job and nobody wants to come home and talk about work (whether it is real work or "play" work) when that's what they did throughout the day. Being injured this past month has been great for that. I did girly things, banned tri talk from the dinner table, and did things I never have a chance to do. I even read a book for fun! (I say it like that because I won't have time for that in another week)...but I will ALWAYS be a type A athlete at heart. I was a full time student athlete in undergrad, trained and worked a full time job afterwards, and don't see why its any different now. It's all about time management. Being so type A when it comes to training, I have no doubt I'll be just fine. I'm most likely going to sacrifice having a social life, but what triathlete has a social life like that of most students anyways. I've never enjoyed staying out late at bars. I don't get it. It's too loud, and I'd rather have a post workout "high" the next day versus a hangover. I can't wait to prove all those "normal" people out there wrong. It just adds fuel to the fire that's already lit. As well, having been out of school for a few years, I feel like I have a better appreciation for what is to come. I'm excited to learn and get going with my career while keeping at my usual hobbies no prob. I'm attacking it like a full time job with training before and after. I've done it before. Instead of an office, I'll spend 8-5 in a classroom/library. Workouts before and after. It's too hot to do them in between anyways...

I can, I will, and I'm gonna!!!...so there!

My injury checklist - DONE

2011-07-20T08:56:00.000-07:00

Coach P's post IM/injured orders:

- do something girly
- cross-stitch
- watch a movie
- read a book
- do something you've never done before

All of the above were checked off on week 1. So proud of myself. I've been handling this quite well, I must say. The good that has come out of this all is that I was forced to take a break when my brain didn't want to take a break. I've learned patience (sort of), boredom, and enjoyed getting away from life revolving around S/B/Ring...so much so that I banned it from the family dinner table talk. My brain is much more ready to go than I thought it already was and I'm super super SUPER excited for Ironman Cozumel in November :)

I think a couple friends are scared of whats happening to me with this free time and my quest to be girly when it won't go to waste with a swim or a run a few hours later. In week one of accepting that I was injured, I got my eyebrows done, hair trimmed, and a manicure and pedicure (all by myself because my sister bailed on me AFTER I already sat down). I even got a new purse on monday...like a real purse!!! After I caught up on life post IM, I got my cross-stitch back out. I'm working on stitching a copy of Gustav Klimpt's paining, "The Kiss." Its a monster and I kinda hate it right now because I'm a fan of PNW native art but I know it will look fabulous when its done months and months and MONTHS from now (maybe a year or two even. ugh). I am reading a book and I got sucked into going to see HP the night it came out. I'm not too sure what I was thinking when I thought I could last through a movie starting at midnight. This is exactly why I have a no-movie-starting-after-8 rule for myself...and I'm not going to lie...I was throughly embarrassed...too embarrassed to take pictures even. It was the best people watching ever, but still. I fell asleep and woke up like 4 times wondering when it was going to be over because I just wanted to go home and crawl into my bed. hahaha.

Yesterday I think I got one of the best compliments ever..."Y'all are some of the biggest weirdos I've ever met." I think that sums up my family...at least me and Mum. I'm a big proponent of normal being boring...so with that said (and my last little window of freedom in life FOREVER)...we went Zorbing.

And then when we got home, we did some planking:

I love my mother. hahaha. Dad walked in the house and we had a mischevious look on our faces. He was definitely wondering what in the world we were getting into. hahaha. LOVE IT.

...and on that note, I'm attempting my first run today since the second of July...if you can count that as a run. I didn't even make it out of my apartment complex. SO EXCITED!!!...and excited for school to start in two weeks too!

Nothing

2011-07-07T18:26:00.000-07:00

Nothing. That's what I've been doing.

Way back in my track and field days in undergrad I had a run in with mr. patellar tendonitis. It was AWEFUL. It woke me up screaming in the middle of the night. I almost screamed bloody murder from one wrong move in the middle of class once. I cried while trying to keep sane by doing the elliptical. No fun at all. I ended up having to do nothing to get over it and even though that was 7 years ago, I still feel a slight niggle every time I go down the stairs. Unfortunately that niggle turned into more than a slight niggle oh...say around mile 18 in Coeur d'Alene. If you saw me on Sherman doing a little gallop to the finish line, that's what it was. I knew exactly what it was but I've been in denial ever since and trying to tell myself it was fine. Last week after the race wasn't so bad. I went for one or two spins on the bike and it didn't bother me. It DID bother me when I tried to jog a mile. That's as far as I got. A mile...well, 1.3. I tried to jog a few days after that and I only made it 0.3 before going back to my apartment. This week on the other hand was bad and all the plugs have been pulled. I'm doing my best to do NOTHING for the whole week...maybe some of next week too so that it doesn't put an end to things completely for 2011. I can swim here and there but I had explicit orders to "read a book, do your cross-stitch, watch a movie, do something you've never done, do something girly, and just REST."

After that the conversation went something like this:

Me: Can I swim today?
Coach P: You swam yesterday.
Me: So?
Coach P: So swim tomorrow instead.
Me: But why can't I swim today.
Coach P: because you need to rest.
Me: Well can I do my TRX?
Coach P: No.
Me: But why? What's wrong with core?
Coach P: Rest.

Yup. I do triathlon because I'm type A and I don't do well doing nothing. I brought both bikes back to Nashville (my road bike has been in desperate need of LOVE and just got a Rival to Force upgrade) and they're just sadly sitting in the garage. Today Iwent to the pool for a 2k-ish dip and OF COURSE it thundered the second I got out of the car. I figured mother nature was now taking her chance to intervene so I went to the grocery store instead.

School starts SOON so I am VERY much looking forward to being crazy busy and learning lots. For now I'm just enjoying my last little window of freedom and doing my best to do nothing and something new. Zorbing on Monday with Mum. Google it. I can't wait!!!

OH...and follow me on Twitter. I just caved in and I think it might be the worst thing that's ever happened to me in a good way. The best outlet for my completely ridiculous randomness EVER.

Girly task for today was getting my eyebrows done. I'm not a fan of the Frida Kahlo look. Tomorrow I'm getting my hair did after the chiropractor laser zaps away the inflammation in my knee for the second time this week. I'll do anything at this point. For now I'm just doing NOTHING...or trying at least. I may still do my TRX :)

Potato 140.6

2011-06-29T07:02:00.000-07:00

The truth: (since I'm going to be a lawyer and all I made sure it was the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the uber fun details of ironman truth)

- the ironman vibe/atmosphere is UNLIKE any other I have ever experienced before...ELECTRIC!!!
- for the first 2 minutes into the race I thought I was gonna die/drown
- I've never farted so much in one day (gotta love the liquid diet)
- "what do you do when you have to pee?"
- my shammy cream wore off half way through the first lap on the bike
- I cried at mile 14 of the run
- HUGE cheering sections are KEY...thank goodness for my Seattle people! Fan of the weekend has to go to Carly (I think her awesome/LOUD cheering was the only reason I happen to be smiling in some pics)!
- projectile vomitting at mile 3 of the marathon makes for a LONG second half...and always make sure you tell anyone and everyone that it came out of your nose too
- how do people get crap on the cold sponges?!?! wtf??? Really???
- I wasn't hallucinating when I thought I saw a gorilla in a tree.
- A mid-run hug from your race weekend roommate when things are exploding for both of you is MUCH appreciated. No words exchanged. The silence said all. ha.
- I thought I would be more excited about the post race pizza.
- Highs and lows are a given...but those lows are lower than any other race lows I've ever experienced.
- Next time I will eat my special needs snickers even if I think I might puke it up again.
- Always pinch a buddy's ass mid-run to lighten the mood for everyone in the vacinity.
- I galloped to the finish after my patella tendon decided it was going to hate me.
- the finish line "party" at midnight is AMAZING!
- Sharing the podium with your buddies is way more fun.
- Restaurants don't care if you are shoeless, face first on the table, or in the fetal position in the booth after an ironman.
- I'm pretty sure I had a fever after the race. On fire and shivering at the same time.
- IM #1 = LEARNING EXPERIENCE.
- I don't even want to know how much I weighed post race (but I'm kinda curious). It was probably double digits (nobody tell my mother) but should be back in the triples by today hopefully. ha.
- It took me 3 days to poop again after my insides probably turned inside out during the race.
- I wanted Kona way more than I thought/tried to tell myself I did after wavering so much about it being possible while being in first semester of law school.
- I'm already hungry for another.
- I am an ironman!

My first Ironman is done. I've gone from being ho-hum about it to pissed off at myself to keeping things in perspective that it was my FIRST go at the distance. I know I have to be happy with a 10:38 and 10th overall but at the same time I know I'm capable of a WHOLE lot more. We're all hard on ourselves no matter what and I definitely consider my run my strength so I'll never be happy with it knowing what kind of run shape I'm in and how much I feel like I settled and gave up at points on the second half. They aren't kidding when they say being naive in your first IM is an added bonus. Now I know how much it potentially can suck mentally when I give it another go. Cathleen, Lilia, and I knew we'd all be pretty close. I blew up but MAD props to the both of them. I had hoped to hold off Cathleen the Machine on the bike a bit longer than I did, and Lilia looked fabulous on the run! I've got a few things to dial in for my next go at the distance...but Coach P said this distance is definitely going to be my strength...which I'm okay with :) The ironman atmosphere is electric and unlike any other race I've ever experienced.

I had been wavering for months about whether or not I'd take a Kona spot if I got one. I've heard/know that first semester of Law School is no joke and I really want to do well so I tried to tell myself that I'd be okay if I turned down the spot but the truth is I want it BAD. I don't think I realized how bad I wanted it until yesterday and that also might've been part of the reason I settled for 3rd when Lilia passed me when I was in the bathroom. I thought it'd just be easier just to not have to make that decision at all. It might be a blessing in disguise for both school and trying to dial things in one more timer...because I WILL get it next time!

I'm not gonna lie...I was a bit of a nutcase in the week prior but I stayed with my buddy, Mark, in CdA who DEFINITELY knows how make someone laugh and lighten the pre-race mood. I know people might not believe me, but I'm pretty sure he is, or might be more ADD than me. hahaha. My Seattle friends said there was no way that was possible. We did figure out though that our off the wall energy levels were opposite...with me a ready to fire on all four cylinders morning type person and him an antsy evening person. I walked into the bathroom several times to inappropriate doodles in the steam on the mirror and I'm pretty sure we should not be allowed at a restaurant with crayons and a paper table cloth ever again. hahaha.

As for the race itself...I thought I was going to die in that mass swim start. I've experienced swim start beatings in short course worlds and 70.3 worlds and numerous other races, but this was UNREAL. Luckily I was able to find enough clear water after 200-300m to swim full strokes and starting with that many people always means there is a sweet draft to jump on. My hands froze up on the second lap so I felt like I couldn't grab water very well and even though I know I'm in sub 1hr shape, 1:03 given the water temp combined with my size is a decent effort. Also, for the first time ever, I went to the wetsuit strippers. There was no way my hands would've gotten that off on my own...and of course I made sure to tell them to be careful because I wasn't wearing any underwear under my tri shorts. hahahaha.

Lap #1 of the bike was great. I had a good pace going on that I felt like I could hold onto for 112 miles. I ended up riding with Robin from Seattle/Pauole. She told me I was keeping her honest and I was super appreciative of having a familiar face in the vacinity to keep me going. Nutrition was going great but my stomach started to feel "off" on lap #2. English Point and all the rolling hills after it hurt WAY more the second time around and my usual dark patch hit between mile 75-90. I will be focusing on that for the next time around.

Moment #1 of glory would be my dismount. I fell over. Enough said. It was loud. There was a big crowd. Awesome. I wish someone got a picture. ha.

Onto the run, I saw my Seattle girls within half a mile and all I said was, "this s*** ain't no joke." My stomach was churning and I wasn't quite sure whether or not it was physically possible to run a marathon. I had been having issue with puking on my long runs and hoped it wouldn't happen on race day...but it did...and a WHOLE lot earlier than I had hoped. I tried to take a salt pill at mile 3 and spit it right back on the ground. That's usually the red flag. It was projectile, yellow, and it even came out of my nose. Those volunteers sure are troopers. I swear it didn't seem to phase the lady. She just patted me on my back, gave me water, and didn't think anything of me asking for something to wipe my face because it came out of my nose. Obviously puking dehydrates you so I knew it was probably going to make for a LONG marathon by catching up to me later but I really did feel 10 million times better for most of the rest of that lap and I was still on target for what I had hoped to run. I LOVED running through town. The crowd was always amazing but thats when things were starting to go downhill too. I knew I should've taken my special needs back and I knew I'd regret it later if I didn't...and I did. At mile 14 I cried in front of the V02 crew. Adam walked a few steps with me but knows me well enough just to let me be and have a moment. Mark and I hugged around mile 17. Not many words exchanged...none needed really. We could both tell. I stopped at two port-o-potties and that's when Lilia passed me. S*** happens. The goal at that point was to make it from aid station to aid station. An EMT sitting on the course in an ambulance even came out to the pathway to ask if I was okay at one point (I think I was zig zagging). I just remember telling her I hadn't eaten for a while but would try some pretzels. I figured if I told her I was dizzy she would try and take me away. At 23 I told myself I was so close that I would NOT walk through the aid stations anymore. I managed to lighten the mood by pinching Joe's ass which was HILARIOUS. He didn't know I was there and there were only dudes around him so he was DEFINITELY confused at first, called me a turd, and laughed. We all laughed. hahaha. My patella tendon was REALLY bothering me on the second lap of the run too. I knew what it was because it was the exact same feeling from when I had tendonitis back in my undergrad track days so I ended up resorting to a gallop, almost got run over by a guy and his dog crossing the street and not looking at a corner where I heard later that the volunteers were just sitting there smoking (but other than that corner and my experience with it, the volunteers were beyond amazing and beyond awesome that words cannot describe it). Surprisingly there are a few pictures of me SMILING! I told/promised myself to smile on the run and I didn't think I was doing a great job of it, but Carly definitely made EVERYONE smile and her husband Kevin is an amazing photographer. She was supposed to race too but crashed 10 days prior and tore her AC joint in her shoulder. She definitely still managed to keep positive (within herself and for everyone racing) despite the circumstances. Sydnie, Jenny, Alicia, Tesia (and probably others but I was in such a daze that I can't remember the faces that I saw) were right there at the fence before the finish and made me smile and high five my way to the finish. I've never been happier to see a finish line in my life! haha.

I thought I was going to be more excited about the finish line pizza and solid food at dinner but my insides were churning and probably inside out as well. I wanted to curl up in a ball in the fetal position when we got back to the hotel and the restaurant definitely left us alone when I was shoeless (I couldn't get my feet in my shoes) and face first on the table while Mark was in the fetal position on his side of the booth. Rough day for room 206. He rocked it but is tough on himself as well...and neither of us could eat very much of what we ordered. At one point, I thought I was going to pass out because I was getting tunnel vision. Why do we do this to ourselves?!?!?!

Huge thanks to Coach P. He knows his stuff and despite the second lap of the run, he told me I should be thrilled with this first time effort. He said (and I know) that anyone and everyone would be thrilled to be in the 10:30s for IM #1. I'm well aware of that, but like I said...I'm hard on myself and I have big goals. Mostly I'm just not satisfied with a sub par run after running a 1:23 half at the end of April. Of course...Zoot rocks!!! Best sponsor I could ask for. The support is amazing and they always make sure we have what we need leading up to race day. My teammates are fabulous and we all support each other 100%. The Bike Rack for making my bike race ready and the quietest/happiest I've heard/felt it in a LONG time. I'm new to town as of this month and they've been awesome from day #1. Friends and family...I was super super surprised with how much facebook love I got pre and post race. I'm sorry if I neglected some messages and/or phone calls post race. I kinda needed to mentally check out of triathlon after the race. Long day and a long spring of training like I've never had before leading up to the race.

Awesome look...I know...I've always told myself I'd never do the shorts and compression socks look but it was so fabulously comfortable post race...except for the fact that none of my pants fit anymore.

The expression "like a kid in a candy store" is way beyond true for Mark...he went from 0 to 10 on the bummed to happy scale for the first time in 24 hours in 2 seconds...ps...check out the tan line on his forehead (but don't tell him I pointed it out).

Respect this distance...

Ironman...the eating contest...

2011-06-21T19:56:00.000-07:00

5 days out from my first Ironman and I've got it all figured out...Ironman is an eating contest. I mean, seriously...we're all gonna be out there consuming calories every 15-30 minutes or so until it takes us to finish the darn thing. What other sport does that???...except real eating contests (and those people consider eating contests a sport)...and really, this whole journey (especially for a first timer) has been mostly about dialing in race nutrition for a much longer race than I am accustomed to. I've projectile vomited in two yards over the course of the last month mid and post long runs (the humidity is to blame for that one). The first time I managed to wait until mile 20 and one step back in the driveway before "watering" Mum's flowers by the mailbox and the other time it was some random yard at mile 12.5 in a REALLY nice area of town. oops. (Coach said the guy that drove by me probably thought I was drunk)...mile 13-17 that day was definitely a bit of a death march and if my head could've actually processed a thought at the time, I would've realized that I just puked the salt pill I had just tried to take and should probably have taken another one. Long story short is that the run where I puked at the end and held in the calories went a lot better than the one where I puked in the middle.

Anywho...the number of calories I have laid out for the day is more than most people consume in SOLID meals in one full day (I will reveal the stats post race)...if only these calories tasted as good as a yummy solid meal of an equivalent calorie count. One of my non-ironman/triathlete friends about died when I said how many calories were going to be in one of my bottles on the bike. He said I could eat a Chipoltle Burrito and it would taste much better...with that said, I've decided to label that bottle burrito in sharpie because the liquid diet will probably get old after a few hours and I we can all use some humor to keep us going. ha.

I hope all of that made sense. Just two days ago a friend and I had this conversations:
David: You have the attention span of a goldfish...you're like OH...PLANT...(pause)...ROCK!..."
Me: BUBBLES!!!!!!

Needless to say, sometimes I'm all over the place and it makes sense in my head and sounds really funny the first time around...is it obvious I've been doing all of my ironman training alone??? too much thinking time...

Cheers to everyone competing in this weekend's eating contest. I can't wait!!!

2011-06-19T13:58:00.000-07:00

Seeing as I'm about to begin a new "real" life adventure (while continuing to pursue the usual crazy hobby/habit of mine :) )...I figured it was time to start over with this thing. Clean slate. Blogging is obviously not at the top of my daily to do list, and when you're not happy, there is definitely a lack of urge to want to keep it up. I told myself at the beginning of 2010 that I was going to be selfish for once and put myself first to get myself back to a happy place...it only took me until 2011 to finally have the guts to do that.

From here on out...this is my story (and I'm often told I have lots of stories!!!)...stay tuned :)