what a day

We did it.
We swam, biked and ran- completing our first triathlon...

and

it

was

AWESOME!!

I think I am addicted.

There was such great energy- everyone was so encouraging and cheering each other on! The swim was at a local outdoor swimming pool, so we got into the pool individually, 15 seconds apart. The swim wasn't terrible, Matt (who started just after me) and I passed the girl who got in before us, but then didn't have to pass anyone again, and we pulled a ways away from those behind us, so we had some good space in the water. I took my time in the transition, waiting a bit for Matt, and then we took off together on our rented road bikes- setting off on my least favorite leg of the race.

The bike ride was a little less ideal. My greatest advice would be PADDED SHORTS. Need I say more? In addition to the discomfort of the seat- I had a bit of a challenge that proved to be beneficial later on. The bike that I rented didn't have a water bottle holder- not a problem. I just decided to take our camel bak and sip along the ride for some good hydration, and I thought powerade would be a nice choice with the electrolytes! I did not, however, take into account the fact that our kids had broken the mouth piece, and the hose does not stop the flow of liquid. I took off with the hose in my mouth and soon realized that letting go of it resulted in powerade dripping all over my legs- and a nasty sticky mess, but keeping the end in my mouth took some coordination in order to not choke or drown as I was trying to breath. I soon got into a rhythm of breath, gulp, breath, gulp and continued as such for a few miles. I then wised up a bit, took the hose out of my mouth, held it up a bit to drain the liquid down and tucked it into my shoulder strap. I was plenty well hydrated, and ready to get a bit more oxygen into my lungs. The next few miles went well, but near the end of the bike route I started to lose a bit of steam and decided to change to a slightly easier gear- bad idea. As I changed gears my chain fell off. So I hopped off the bike and hoped I could remember how I had seen Matt fix bikes (he had ridden ahead early on in the bike route as he is a faster cyclist than I, so I was on my own with this fix). With a pull of the chain, a lift of the bike and a turn of the pedals- that crazy little chain was back on track and I was back in the race! Ready for the part of the race I had worked the hardest for- the run.

Now, I have never liked running. I have always been slow, bored and just not a fan of running altogether. But this year I have really committed myself to getting better at running, and now I actually enjoy it- so I was excited for this chance to run the entire route- even after challenging myself with the cycling and swim. Riding in from the bike route I was greeted by my sister Kelsey and my three beauties! As well as dozens of cheering supporters- it was great! Matt was there waiting for me, getting himself a bite to eat and some drink, so I put my bike up, grabbed a bite and we were off! Talk about a weird feeling for the legs- going from biking to running! It was tough. But this is where that forced hydration came as a help- I really felt ok, and as I kept going I actually felt good! Matt had a bit of a different experience- he had to stop and stretch a bit as his legs were cramping up- so I ran ahead determined to run the entire time as I had trained so hard for it! The trail was along a little stream lined with trees and was really delightful. At the end there were supporters cheering us all on- I finished at about 1 hour 34 minutes, and Matt was just a minute behind me! It really was such a great experience- we are already looking at schedules in the future to see when we can do it again!

The triathlon was not the only thing going on that day though- it was also this little guys first birthday!! (a nice goal to achieve one year after giving birth- I thought)and our ward had an activity out at the lake- boats, water, sand, games and food! It doesn't get much better than that!



It was quite a nice day! This little guy was in heaven, and there is nothing better than that on your day.