Feelin' the Love @ a 5K!

My last 5k was in May of 2011 with my speedy friend Janet.  When we finished the race I vaguely remember a vow saying we'd never pay to run anything less than a 13.1!  Running snobs, I know!  Well, once again, never say never came back to bite me.  When Kris & Shelly mentioned they were doing a 5K for work AND it was going to be in my backyard, I said cool... I'M IN! We had originally planned on bandit-ing the race, the Iron-whiners, but then I realized how "un-cool" Kris & Shelly would look at work Monday morning having showed up with a bunch of friends to SMASH a 5K.  Under false pretenses; I thought the race benefitted Kris & Shelly's work, not that they were doing it as a team building exercise FOR work; I paid my $40 and signed up to run in my backyard!

I had a bit of a different Sunday long run on my plan.  I was suppose to do 4mi race pace (I assume not 5K race pace, but that's ok!) followed by 4mi cruise in the afternoon.  What?, who wants to get sweaty twice?!  So I ran ~2mi from my house to the race & met Kris & Shelly there.  It's been awhile since we've all been together, Shelly is 19wks pregnant, YAY!  We stood around for a little bit and got our race instructions, then Kris & I went out for a 1mi warm up.  We talked about our "game plan".  Kris' goal was to crush some co-workers!  She pointed them out, so I had their numbers too!  My game plan was to barrel it down the hill & try to save some to make it back up at the end!  In all fairness, I felt like I had a home court advantage.  We were running the same course which included my 0.25mi hill repeat workout.  I've done this hill 10x at once, this time will only be once, but it will feel like #9... You GOT this!

3miles done for warm up... Now it's GO time!  We didn't toe the line, so we were weaving and bobbing initially.  I finally found my pace and went for it.  I was feeling comfortable the first 1.5mi, mainly because it was downhill and then flat! A little after the turn around, which was literally my backyard, I saw Kris, she was right on my tail as we had planned!  She yelled at me to run faster, I was in second place!  What? Really?... so that lady 10ft in front of me must have been first!  Do I go for it?  Do I hold back a bit and save it for the hill?  I don't know, I've never led a race before!  Let's go for it!!! I picked up my pace enough to pass her & tried to hold my lead.  I've never liked the feeling of chasing anyone or being chased, I like to run my own race, which is a lot easier when you're in the middle of the pack.  Time to step up!

Right before I got to the hill, I felt and hear something that would make Kris cringe!  My shoelace came untied!  Immediately I thought, Kris would KILL me if I stopped to tie it... especially in a race!  It has happened multiple times on training runs, to which Kris would yell at me, "That's ridiculous! I'm not stopping!" ;-).  So I kept running.  I was even imagined myself sprinting for the finish line with one shoe flying off!  I guess in a way it helped a little because I was half way up the hill already & wasn't even thinking about it.  Still in first place, I heard a sweet little voice behind me, "You can stop and tie your shoelace, if you want!"  "No, that's ok!", I replied.  "No, really, it's unsafe!  I will stop with you!"  WHAT?!  I didn't know what to make of it!  So, I quickly stopped, tied my shoelace & said, "Thank you, let's finish this together!"

For a moment my heart melted at the show of camaraderie I had just witnessed!  Usually in triathlons, we are fighting for dear life trying to stay out of DB age groupers way, who will knock you off your bike and keep going!  But the race was not over yet, no time to get sappy now!  We continued along side of each other for a little bit until she said, "Go ahead!"  That was my cue to wrap it up, I knew the finish was around the corner.  I crossed the finish line with a huge smile on my face & a warm feeling in my heart!

After the race, I introduced myself to my new found hero, who's 9y/o son had won his age group!  For me, THIS is what "racing" is all about!  Bringing people together from all walks, (or runs,) of life; for one main goal... to be healthy!  First place or last place we all showed up & got our groove on!!!  First thing that I did when I got home was tell my daughters how this "competition" turned into a show of friendship & caring!  These are the hidden lessons that I want my children to thrive from!

Ironman, the aftermath...

Everyone always warns you, but just like in training, you won't actually know until you are there.  Well, I am definitely "there", post-Ironman boredom!  Some have actually called it a depression, but luckily I haven't sank that low.  The week following the race I followed a structured "cool down" plan, an easy swim 2x, an easy run 3x, and an easy 45min ride.  Then my plan ended.
Monday came and I checked workout log.  I knew I hadn't paid my coach, so I didn't actually expect a plan to be there.  I remember saying during Ironman training that once this was all over I was going to take a whole month off.  OK, well the time has come & I can only stand 1 week!  I'm itching to workout, but forcing myself to take a mental break.  In the meantime, I've been entertaining myself with other activities such as shopping, getting my car washed, organizing the girls dresser drawers, lunch with my ladies, anything to get my mind off of swim, bike, run.  By Tuesday I had already texted Coachie, "Help! I'm bored!"  Of course, she reassured me that this was all part of the journey & my body needed to recover, all things that I knew, but didn't relieve the itch.
Today we had lunch and planned out my triathlon future & discussed all things glorious about triathlon!  Now I'm back to feeling normal, with butterflies in my stomach, thinking what am I getting myself into next!  Ahhh... the journey continues...

I AM an IRONMAN! :-)

As I bask in the glow of this that they call Ironman, I finally understand a lot of the lessons I learned along they way.  When I crossed the finish line and heard those words I had been waiting to here for almost 6 months now, I didn't feel like I had reached the finish; I felt like I was passing through the golden gates and entering into a very prestigious club and it was just a mere milestone along my Ironman journey.

Race weekend started on Thursday when Kris, Robert, & I headed to the Woodlands for packet pick up and the athlete's dinner.  In similar fashion with any other ride, run, or event during the season, we were matchy matchy all the way.  Linda & Jenny met us at the hotel & together the four of us went together to make it official... #314 in da houzzz!!!  Walking around the expo we were called out for our matching outfits and asked to be interviewed for YouTube Ironman AG stories...video  That night we attended the athletes dinner and met up with a HUGE San Antonio crowd!  This just got even better!!!

Friday we went to Lake Woodlands for a practice swim.  The temperature was perfect and at that point it think it was still wetsuit legal.  It was until race morning that it was officially announced that the swim was wetsuit optional with a 10min penalty.  I practiced a little sighting and also drafting off of Jenny's feet.  Being that visibility was close to zero, I instinctively turned to tactile drafting, I was feeling with my hands the bubbles from her feet.  Cool.  After our swim, we went back to the hotel and gathered our belongings for bike & gear check-in.  After check-in we headed to Lululemon for a little retail therapy to calm our nerves, and also because we had heard that all of the athletes names participating in IMTX were on the window.

   

Race morning came early, alarm went off at 3:45am, but I had already been up multiples times looking at the clock.  It's game day!!!  Robert dropped Kris & I in front of transition and we went in to drop off our nutrition, air up our tires, and make sure everything was in its proper place.  Then we started the mile walk to the swim start.  Here we met up with Orissa & Brian, Shelly & Patrick, Herb, Heather; Hooray, all of the Iron-Whiners were here!  Next thing I knew we were being herded into the water to start treading water.  Kris & I let Linda go on ahead, she was vying for a front row spot!  Kris & I finally got in and tried to find an open area.  We gave each other one last hug and said have a wonderful race day!  BOOM!  GO TIME!

SWIM- 2.4 miles
I tried to stay in the open area that Kris & I had wiggled into before the start.  I tried to settled into my stroke as fast as I could.  I tried sighting the buoys a few times and realized that was going to be impossible.  From then on I sighted on the flow of traffic.  I'm pretty sure I was swimming all over the course because of this, but I'll never know because my Garmin got kicked into T2 20min into the swim.  Luckily, I had a great swim in the sense that I did not get beat up, have my googles knocked off, or get swam over.  I took the turn into the canal, the final 900m stretch, and it occurred to me that I was almost done with the first leg of my first Ironman, it was actually unfolding before me.  As I approached the finish I had no idea where it was, left or right?; 100m or 200m?  Finally, I was about 15m from the swim exit and I saw that arch on my left.  I exited the swim with a HUGE smile, DONE!
...1:19:25!

T1- 6:18
I quickly grabbed my bike gear bag and ran for the changing tent.  I was ready for some intense pampering from all that I had heard, they will put your shoes on, have them help you with your cool wings, I even heard horror of volunteers offering to put on chamois cream.  "I need help!", I yelled as I ran into transition, just as I had been instructed to by Coachie!  Great, a volunteer came over to me and stood in front of my chair and... dumped out my bag in front of me!  I started to grab my things and put them on myself and finally asked, "could you help me with my cool wings?" I stood up and she held them out as if slipping on a silk robe!  Are you serious?  I forced my still wet arm into the sleeves and left them all wrinkled.  "My shoes! I need my shoes!" Hoping she would put them on me, all she did was move them closer to me.  OK, thanks for your help... I got it from here!  I ran to my bike still fixing my cool wings and shaking my head... not the royal treatment I had imagined.

BIKE- 112 miles
I ran to the bike mount line and hopped on my bike.  As I started pedaling, I saw Allen with Ailani on his shoulders & Aleina at his side.  I gave Allen a quick high five and yelled a quick "I LOVE you guys!"  It was time to settle in and get comfortable.  I had already been warned by Coachie that I needed to go out "crazy, stupid, slow."  The first 20miles flew by, I remember looking at my Garmin and thinking it's already been an hour!  I stopped at mile 30 to get some water and mix my Infinit bottles.  I headed back out very impressed with the ride so far.  There had been a nice tailwind, the roads were smooth like butter, and the heat was fairly tolerable... at that point!  The next time I checked my Garmin was at 56miles, 2:58!  I was a little nervous that I had gone out too fast, but I felt fine and just thanked the tailwind.  The second half was a combination of crosswind & head wind, but I had ridden Castroville plenty of times and every time there was some sort of wind, I got this!  I remember approaching a righthand turn and seeing a little boy on the corner holding a flag, it was standing sharp at attention!  Headwind... here we go!  I buckled down and broke it down into 10mile sections.  I stopped at mile 90 for a quick pee break & hopped back on to finish the ride.  The last 2miles dragged on, as they always do when you are praying for T2.  I hit the dismount line and jumped off my bike with a HUGE smile, DONE!
..6:21:48!

T2-7:16
As I headed for my run gear bag, a volunteer called out for my helmet & shoes.  I clipped off my helmet and handed it to them, but kept my shoes on.  I was too tired to take them off standing, I would later find out that was a wise choice.  My friend Jeff & about 300 others who did take their shoes off ended up with 2nd degree burns to the bottoms of their feet from the heated pavement!  I ran into the changing tent expecting to do everything myself again.  Luckily, my volunteer was a lot more helpful this time.  I quickly geared up for the marathon that faced me.  I looked up for a split second and saw Linda exiting the tent.  I yelled, "Linda!" and my volunteer asked, "Do you want me to go get her?", "YES!"  I ran out of T2 and couldn't believe it, I was about to start the run with my training partner for the past 6mo!  This is AWESOME!

RUN- 26.2 miles

We started the run & quickly exchanged stories of how our day had been going.  Neither of us had seen Kris at that point in the race yet and just wanted to know if she was onto the run... that meant she was off the bike!  We ran the first mile or so together and then Linda went on ahead.  I was trying to take it all in as I ran/ walked the first lap.  It was actually happening, I was becoming an Ironman!  I completed the first lap at a decent pace being that I still had my cycling legs, but by then second lap, I was a runner.  I started to feel really good and was in a good  rhythm.  I caught up to Linda and ran/ walked for a bit.  She looked like she was hurting at this point, a look I would soon see in myself!  But since I was feeling good I ran on ahead.  Again, I thought, I am on my second lap, one more lap until I am an Ironman.  I got this!  Lap three... THIS is what becoming an Ironman is all about!!!  Nausea, dizziness, lack of sweat... Uh, Oh... I know exactly what is happening here and it's too late to fix it!  Heat exhaustion was setting in!  The last few people I remember seeing before "the bridge" were Marco & a little further down was Patrick, Linda's husband.  I knew my race was taking a turn, when I heard them cheering and I could barely usher a smile.  I tried running because it had felt so great a little while ago... not anymore!  I made it to the bridge just in time to stand on the edge and lean over!  Vomiting!  I was hoping to get it all out, feel better, and keep running!  I had seen a sign earlier that had made me laugh, which had just become me: PUKE & RALLY!  I tried to rally, but it only made me more dizzy & nauseous.  I looked at my watch and I knew that if I walked I would still make it home by midnight.  That's when the switch got flipped into survival mode and I just needed to keep moving forward.  A couple of people tried to pick me up and get me to run with them when they heard it was my last lap, but I gracefully declined.  Mostly because I didn't want to puke all over my new found friend who was only trying to help.  With about 5 miles to go, I saw Roland!  I knew he HAD to have been struggling because he had started the race having had food poisoning a few days before.  Yikes!  We walked together and tried to keep each others minds occupied by talking as we kept making forward progress.  We also picked up Jeff along the way and walked a bit with him.  Jeff had the misfortune of burning his feet on the hot asphalt when he transitioned from bike to run.  I remember at one point I told Roland my husband's info was on my Road ID band in case anything happened, like passing out, I've been known to do that.  He reassured me I would be fine and he would see me cross the finish.  We had just finished the last 0.5mile out & back when we saw Kris!  The first time ALL day that I had seen Kris!  I told her I was hurting, she said she was too, but she looked great and strong!  Roland & I kept walking and as I approached the finishers shoot I saw a bench!  I need to sit on that bench!  Roland disapproved immediately, but I PROMISED him I would get up!  I took what seemed 30sec. to breathe and stretch a bit.  Then I got up, "Let's DO THIS!"  As we started to run into the finishers shoot, Kris came running up behind us... "Let's FINISH THIS!"  "YES!", I screamed, "Let's FINISH THIS!"  6 months of training and working together towards the same goal, our first Ironman finish!!!  And we were going to get to finish TOGETHER!!!  We gave high fives and hugs in the finishers shoot to family & friends.  Kris had to slow me down and tell me to take it all in!  Then what we heard next was never what we had imagined in a million years... Aixa Alvarez AND Kristina Cordova... YOU'RE IRONMEN!!!
...6:31:30!

T3- medical tent
I had already decided when I started vomiting that I would be going straight to the medical tent for an IV after I finished.  But what happened next was a whirlwind!  Kris & I crossed the finish line, gave a HUGE hug, smiled for a picture, and then... more vomiting!  I tried to make it to a corner and not puke on anyone, Kris thanked me later!  Next thing I knew I was sitting in a wheelchair and being escorted by Heather & Omar to the medical tent.  Along the way I saw Coachie!  I gave her a quick thumbs up & told her I'll be right back.  Then I saw Allen & the girls!  I tried to smile my best, so that he would know I was ok!  He gave me a look that said I am so proud of you, then a quick sneer that said why are you hurting the woman I love!  As I entered the medical tent, I immediately thought, Wow, this IS all it was talked up to be!  The first room was filled with people in chairs icing knees, taping blisters, etc.  The second room was twice the size and filled with stretchers and IV poles and it was FULL!  They quickly drew labs and asked a few questions, including if I had urinated on the run... yikes, NO!  My creatinine was 2.1, yikes! Acute renal failure!  The rest of my labs were surprisingly good, my sodium was 140, normal.  That told me I did good with the salt tabs, but not enough water!  Lesson learned.  I sat back and chatted with the girl next to me about her race while my IV finished.  I exited the medical tent and there was my family waiting for me with open arms!  NOW my IRONMAN was complete!  WE did it!!!

Camp Day #4... finally too!

Day #4... another 7am start, but today it was for my favorite... a RUN; yet not... a TRAIL run!  I have NEVER trail ran, except for maybe a small of road portion at the Kerrville Tri.  I was slightly nervous because we had already decided 1:4 will fall... who was it going to be Kris, Linda, Herb, or myself?  Nobody wanted to take one for the team!











Once again, we were split up in groups.  Hillary's team consisted of Linda, Kris, Marc, Kate, Susan, & myself.  I started out on Hillary's heels, mimicking every step she took, yet leaving enough room between us that I could see where my feet needed to go.  WOW, this takes focus and concentration, but once I got the hang of it... it was kinda fun!

Well, for the first 2hrs at least.  By then, Linda had stepped up... and took one for the team!  Ouch!  I put my Dr. hat on and cleaned her up really quick, scrubbing some rock pieces out with water.  She wasn't my biggest fan at the time, but she thanks me now... ouch!  And like a true trooper, Linda headed back out with the team to finish up the run.  It was around the 2hr mark that I remember Hillary pointing out the JW Marriott (near our casitas) and then we continued running... AWAY from them!  Aye!  3 1/2hrs later our run was over... and so was camp! ;-(  We DID IT... We SURVIVED Camp!!!

Camp Day 3... finally :-)

 Day #3 started off bright and early... again... at 7am!  The mornings in Tucson were pretty chilly, so the idea of getting in the pool... again... was less than appealing, even to Linda, the human fish.  We made our way down the to pool, and assumed our respective lanes.  Kris, Taryn, & I got to chase each others feet again, if you ask us, we could probably go into pretty deep detail after 3 days :-)  Luckily, this was more of a technique swim and was a pretty short set.  Good thing, because afterwards we saddled up to ride Mt. Lemmon!
We parked our cars and started the ride up the access road towards Mt. Lemmon.  Our group consisted of Hilary, Kris, Linda, Taryn, Kate, & myself... Smashing Girls!!!  This had been the ride we had all been waiting for.  Listed amongst the most epic bike rides in the US, with a 27 mile climb at about 5% grade, this was going to be one for the books!  I knew it was going to be a challenge, I knew it was going to burn... constantly, I knew there was only one way up & no way to get out... so time to pedal... and pedal... and pedal!!!  But what I also knew was that at the top awaited the prize of all prizes, the infamous, the coveted, the most ginormous cookie I had ever seen in pics... and I was going to ride to one!!!  After miles and miles of changing scenery; from rock formations, to cactus, to pine trees, and finally snow, we made it to The Cookie Cabin!!!  We made it!!!

http://www.bicycling.com/ride-maps/featured-rides/desert-classics

               

The decent was #2 on my list of things I looked forward to.  After we threw on a few layers that we had sent up in the SAG, we were ready for our decent.  I tried to take in the scenery, as I had on the way up, but it wasn't as easy.  Especially since Hillary had explained to us on day #1 that on the bike, you look where you need to go... so don't be looking over the cliff! ;-)  I did stop a few times to get some pics, but that rest of the time was flying downhill!!!  I hit 42mph... the fastest I have EVER gone!  

 That night Hillary & Maik were gracious enough to host a dinner at their house, where we met Sam McGlone, a longtime friend & kick ass Ironman champion, like Hillary!  Sam is now in her first year of medical school, so we got along right off the bat :-)  After dinner & a Q&A session with the Pro's, Hillary lead us to the mecca... Smash Warehouse!  The girls, quickly swiped up TONS of smash gear... and we even convinced the men to rock the Smash!  And ROCK it, they did!!!

Tucson Tri Camp- Day #2

I woke up this morning getting mentally prepared by convincing myself that nothing happened yesterday and today was a new day!  Gates Pass with McCain Loop AND 100 x 100 swim!  No sweat... :-o

As we rolled out from the casitas, we all left in groups: the A group, the Gold group, and the #1 group... I was in the Gold group along with Kris, Linda, Jeff, Taryn, and Kate, lead by Coach Doug.  We quickly renamed our group the Golden Girls and headed out.  Immediately, a certain part of my body jumped off the seat... What are you doing here again!?!?!?  I can't remember the last time I had rode my bike two days... in a row!  To my surprise, unlike yesterday's ride, we took a left out of the development and... time to climb!  What???  Don't I get a few miles to warm up my legs?... Oh, this IS our warm up! We headed up towards Gates Pass & at about 6mi hit the outlook to which we would decent on the other side and ride McCain loop. But before I reached the top, we had a pile up! As we were climbing Kris noticed Taryn was still in her big chain, beast!  She later told us she likes to keep it in the big chain as long as possible & use the small chain as a "treat"!  Well, I guess it was dessert time at the top of the climb!  Taryn switched from big chain to little chain mid-climb & dropped her chain! Kris was behind her & was able to clip out and stop, Linda was behind Kris and moved quickly to the left, I came up behind Kris and slammed on my breaks!  The next 3 seconds went like this, in slow motion: WTF?!, Brake!, rear wheel lifted in the air!, stalled out on my front wheel! (which seemed like 1 minute), and slowly tipped to the right!  I did a quick 1 sec. inventory to assess any injuries... I was fine.  Then I looked to the right... hmmm, that could have been a lot worse.  We had been climbing with a cliff to our right and LOTS of cactus! Yikes!  Luckily, I did not become a pin cushion & continued our ride.  Good thing, because the next part of the ride was my fave!  McCain loop was a beautiful 4mile stretch of some rolling hills and a few small climbs, surrounded by gorgeous views!  Now, the hard part, climbing back up the steep 0.5mi hill we had descended to get to the loop.  My legs were spent from day 2 of riding, but there was no way around it... literally!  I breasted up the hill the best I could; sitting, standing, sitting, standing... DONE!  I'm pretty sure I yelled out a dying animal noise when I reached the top & quickly hugged Kris & Linda who also were beaming at their accomplishment!  We even got a shout out from our Coach Doug on how well we all ride together! Blush!!!

The ride back to the casitas was glorious and downhill... until we were turning onto our street! I was riding on Linda's wheel a little to close and swerved to miss some gravel... Oh, hello pavement, fancy meeting you again!  A little less than slow motion: I fell to the left, clipped out quickly, and tucked & rolled, and popped back up onto my feet!  Hanging my head in shame, I picked up my bike & tried to scrape my ego off the pavement, the only thing that got hurt! And to add salt to the open wound, I hear Hillary yelling from the car riding behind us, Are you OK?  Wow, nice, I really just fell in front of Hillary... I'll go hide under a rock now!!!

We made it back to the casita, showered up quickly and got into the caravan to Sunnyside pool where  we were going to tackle Hillary's fave 100 x 100!!!  My longest swim to date had been 4100yd, so to tackle 10,000yd was going to be a huge challenge!  Well, that's what I came to camp for, so let's do this!  We got our workout which included 15 x 100 warmup, 30 x 100 swim, 200 easy kick, 20 x 100 buoy band,  20 x 100 PBB, 12 x 100 swim, 100 cool down!  Kris started out leading the lane for 15 x 100, Hillary had told us to alternate leading our lane, which consisted of the two of us and Taryn.  After the first set I got nervous, it was my turn to lead.  Kris had warned me a while ago about being lane leader and all of the pressure involved in counting laps, yikes! So I knocked out the set of 30 & was feeling great.  Kris asked me if I wanted to keep on leading, um ok?! The next 5500 went by fairly quickly, all things considered.  We were at a public pool, so I was thoroughly entertained by the kids jumping off the high dive, a scuba diver, and other kids fooling around in the shallow end.  Between 6500- 8500, I started to get really cold.  I could feel my lips turning blue, as they usually do whenever I am down too long scuba diving.  Finally, we were done!  Taryn & I decided to celebrate with a jump off the high dive.  I hadn't done it since college, but I was so elated that I threw a 1.5 in pike position off the high dive! WooHoo!  Day #2... in the books!

Tucson Tri Camp- Day 1... Survived!

After a long 12hr+ ride to Tucson, AZ, with a few mishaps along the way (like luggage flying off top of roof!); Coachie, Kris, Linda, Herb, Jeff, & I were all ready for a 4 day Tri camp Smashfest with Grand Coachie, Hillary Biscay!  We had all decided in November that camp was imperative, and hadn't stopped talking about it since. The day had finally come!  We started out with a "shake you travel legs" run Thurs. evening and got to meet the group of 16 athletes and 3 coaches.  The run was a real wake up call for me as far as what to expect for the next 4 days.  My HR was in zone 3 for 5mi and I had more salt on me than a bag of chips!  Hmmm, oh yeah!, I forgot about this little thing called altitude :-)  I'm glad we got a little taste of what it was going to be like, because today, I was prepared.

Day #1- 93.75mi bike including a ~14mi climb up Madera Canyon, the last 4mi being the toughest!
The ride started out great, Kris, Linda, & I were cruising taking turns pulling, just like any old ride back home in SA.  Except this time we were surrounded by beautiful mountains, interesting landscaping, coyotes (yes, we saw them on the side of the road & they howled at us!), and desert.  The ride took us out from our Casitas, where most of us campers are all staying, ~36mi of false flats to the base of Madera Canyon, where all of the fun began.  Right at the start of the climb we got word the Coachie had crashed up ahead.  We all kinda freaked out and pedaled on to catch up with her.  When we got to where she was she yelled at us to keep going, but Dr. Alvarez had to stop and make a quick assessment, mostly for my peace of mind because I know Coachie is tough as nails!  We pedaled on and all of us had tears about to overflow.  I yelled at Kris to stop it, because... We needed to breathe!  Up we go!!!
Hillary was by my side for most the hard climbing!  I took a moment to pick her brain for what I feel is a big weakness of mine, mental toughness!  She gave me some really good advise, and basically laid it out as: "We are all in this together, we are all suffering! Some people are able to internalize the pain or suffering longer than others.  You commit to something and you find a way to get it done." To which my response was, "Like signing up for camp!" :-)  I couldn't help thinking most of the time, the twists and turns in my life that had lead me to where I was... Riding along side of a Pro Triathlete!!!
We finally made it to the top and took in the scenery for a bit before starting the best 14mi of the ride... The decent!  Whhhhheeeee!!!! The one time I dared to take my eyes off the road I saw my odometer: 39mph!  Fastest I've ever gone!

The rest of the ride was just as great as the first half, but finally it was over... the ride, that is... we still had an afternoon swim.  We had about 2.5hrs to rest before hitting the pool.  We ate lunch, rehydrated, rested our legs in recovery boots, and then headed to the pool.  Doug was the coach for our lane, which included Kris, Jeff, Taryn, & Kate.  Linda was leading the fast fish in Hillary's group!  The workout consisted of a 600yd warm up, 3 sets of 16 x 25yd band only & 300yd PBB (pull, buoy, band), and a 200yd kick cool down.  The swim felt great, but by the end my body was starting to remember the torture from earlier in the day.

Tomorrow- Gates Pass Loop ~25mi, followed by 100 x 100 in the pool!!! ... Good night!!! :-)