Blue Lake

I better just start with a disclaimer: this post is going to be of Roger Thompson length...so bear with me. It was my first olympic. What do you expect? I'll be sure to add plenty of pictures for your added enjoyment. :)

I'll start with Friday night. At about 9:00, I realized I had not bought any gels like I was supposed to. I had some samples of random flavors, but lately, all I've really been able to handle is vanilla and I only had one. Great. My fabulous husband offered to head to REI the next morning to get me some more. Problem solved. Saturday morning rolled around and as I finished up my packing, Eric headed out to get my gels. He called me about 15 minutes later and said that it was the scratch and dent sale and that he was in a line that was wrapping around the building. Perfect!! I called 3 different grocery stores, but none of them had vanilla. At this point, I was feeling a little stressed out and Trish, Sheena, and Jen pulled up. I told them my problem and Jen just happened to have 3 vanilla gels in her car! It was amazing.

The day before, Sheena and I were joking that we might need glow sticks to finish the race. She came prepared just in case!

Eric headed home and we stared loading the car. Since Tim had graciously taken my bike, we only had Sheena's to fit in. It was a little tight, but we fit all 5 of us, our luggage, and Sheena's bike in and headed to Oregon.

The ride down was a blast. Good friends and great conversation with some serious nerves every now and then as well as some bumping music. Does your ass still have the hiccups ladies? ;) More than once, I said, "Wouldn't it be awesome if it was tomorrow at this time and we were on our way home?" I had been anticipating this race for SO LONG that I was really to the point where I just wanted it to be over with!

After we got to the hotel and unloaded, Sheena and I headed to the race site to scope it out. Things were a little disheveled and we had a hard time figuring out exactly what the course was. I did feel a little bit better just seeing everything though.

Up next, we met up with a bunch of the team for dinner at McMenamins. This place was amazing! If you have never been there, you should go for sure. It is enormous and beautiful. Dinner was great and I was actually really hungry which was a good sign for me...no nervous stomach yet!


After we walked around a bit, it was time to head back to the hotel. Since the girls had been given a smoking room which the hotel was trying to pretend was non-smoking, they came and hung out with Eric and I in our room. At about this time, I decided I should probably get my aerobottle bracket on my bike. Should be pretty easy, right? Hmmm....
Trish decided that reading directions was stupid and that she could do it herself...or not. I was feeling a little stressed and even more so knowing that my person was not there because she had to leave late due to a little ballerina's performance. I called Phaedra and begged for some help. Trish and I headed up to her room and she gave us some pro bike help. Thanks, Phaedra (she's behind the camera of course)!
We got in bed at around 10:30. I was tired so I figured that was good. I might actually be able to sleep! About a half hour after I laid down and was dosing I had one of those sit up and yell "@#$%" moments because I realized that I did not bring my sports bra! My old top had a built in one so I didn't even think about it. Of course, I started freaking out. Eric sweetly told me to chill out and that he was sure someone had an extra one. So I spent most of the night alternating between being nervous as hell and trying to figure out what I was going to do for a bra. Needless to say, it wasn't the best night of sleep.

I woke up around 4:45 and got up about 10 minutes later. At about 5:20, I texted Sheena and crossed my fingers that someone in her room had an extra sports bra. Jen saved the day again!!! I was so relieved.

Sheena, Eric and I met up in the lobby at 6:00 and headed out to the car. Again, things can't just be easy. Eric and I couldn't find the keys. I never lose my keys! Eric ran up to the room while I emptied my purse in the parking lot. No luck. I ran in to check with the front desk, no keys. I was trying so hard to remain calm but of course I was freaking out. The best part of it all was that Sheena just plopped herself down in the parking lot to make herself some breakfast. Big difference between Sheena and I!
Eric finally found the keys in our room and we were off. It was awesome to see so many familiar faces once we got into transition. Plus, I finally got to see Jessi which always makes me feel better. She is my comfort zone at these things.

Since I still have some scabs on my blisters/burns from Iron Eagle, I decided to go with band aids and duct tape. I got some really weird looks from people around me, but Eric suggested the idea because he is positive duct tape holds the world together. I listened to people make fun of me, even total strangers, but I told them that at the end of the race, when there was no blood to be seen on my heels, they could steal my idea!

One last hug from my biggest fan and it was time to head to the water.

In true A+ team captain form, Tim was there to show us the swim course. It looked long, but that was to be expected. Once I knew where the buoys were, I felt pretty good about it.
I love this next picture because it is proof to me that I actually am capable of a genuine smile even when I'm beyond nervous!


Up next, it was time to try and secure my Power Bar sponsorship. I cannot believe they haven't called me yet! They must be really busy!
I got in the water for a short warm up and was relieved to feel that the water was actually warm! I guess there's some benefit to living in Spokane and swimming in lakes that take your breath away!

My wave was 29 and under and we were starting at 8:15. They sent us out into the water at 8:10 and it was sheer torture just treading water and waiting for them to let us go! When we finally started, I reminded myself of my swim goal. Find a comfortable pace and go with it. About 10 minutes in, I took in a huge mouthful of water. I had to stop for a second to cough and burp. Definitely had the potential for a panic attack here. But then I saw one of the guys in a boat looking at me like, "Do you need me to pick you up?" "Oh hell no!" was my answer so I started in again. I swam way too far out before I hit the first buoy. However, I swam so close to the next 5 that they were maybe an inch away from me when I passed them. I felt great and knew I could push harder, but I stuck with my pace. Before I knew it, I was swimming with the wave ahead of me. When I finally made it to the beach, I was stoked! One third of the way done! I could hear Trish and Jen cheering and found them on the beach. I gave myself a little round of applause right alone with them!

Time I alloted myself for the swim: 30 minutes.
Actual time: 26:53.

Transition was ridiculously slow, mostly because I could not stand on one foot to save my life. My balance was gone. It took me forever to get my socks on, but I finally did it and headed out on the bike.

Basically, this bike course was made for me...flat, flat, flat! I loved it! Again, I just wanted to settle into a comfortable, steady pace and stick with it and that's exactly what I did. I even passed people along the way and was only passed by a few girls in my age group. I got a little chilly on the bike and wished that I had worn my toe covers since almost all of my toes were completely numb. I was really surprised at how fast the miles flew by, though, and before I knew it, I was coming in!

Time I alloted myself for the bike: 1:30.
Actual time: 1:16:23

I was pretty excited to start the run, mostly because I knew it meant I was so close to being done! It went really well. About a minute in, I checked my cadence and it was right where I wanted it to be. I settled into a comfy pace and kept on trucking. If you know me, you know that my best friend on my runs is my iPod. It gets me pumped up and makes me run faster and I hate listening to myself breathe. Since that wasn't an option here, I just sang some of my favorite songs to myself in my head. It was also nice that so many Tri Fusionites were out there. Seeing them and giving each other high 5's as we passed broke it up nicely. Before I knew it, I hit the turn around. I was feeling pretty good aside from my right knee which was pretty achy. I chose to ignore it.

At about the time I expected to see Jessi coming to run me in, she was no where in sight. My stomach dropped a bit because I knew something was wrong. I was pretty worried about her, but in retrospect, it probably helped me to run faster because I wanted to get to her and make sure she was ok.

Then, off in the distance, I saw Steve. He had come out to get me! What an awesome friend and teammate!!!
I have to give a huge shout out to Steve here. He pushed me HARD out there. Had it not been for him, I wouldn't have finished 3 seconds before one girl in my age group and 5 seconds before another! Steve, I really can't thank you enough! I appreciated you coming out to get me and pushing me more than you know!

I finally rounded the corner to the finish and gave it all I had left.

Time I alloted myself for the run: 1 hour.
Actual time: 54:19.

Total time I alloted myself for the race: 3 hours
Actual time: 2:42:42
Not bad! :)

That finish line felt pretty freakin' sweet! My support crew was there to give me hugs. Jen reminded me that it was finally "tomorrow at this time" and Trish was sure to ask me what I was going to do next since I'm heading to Disneyland next week! I loved it.

Then it was time to find Jessi. When I finally saw her, I noticed that she was hobbling - I'll let her tell her story. She still made it to me and we grabbed each other and started sobbing like babies. I was thinking to myself, "Pull yourself together, Tiffany! It's not like you just finished an Ironman!" I was just so relieved and emotional and I knew the second I saw Jessi I was going to lose it. This is always such a sweet moment for me. I love that Jessi knows every single thing I have done to prepare for this and every emotion I have gone through because she has been there to listen to all of it. As I have said before, nothing is sweeter than celebrating with her after finishing a race, not even crossing the finish line! Love you times a million, lady! Thank you so much for all of the time you have invested into me and my training. You are incredible and the best friend I could ever ask for!

We were sure to get our A+ picture in after the race! I freaking love these two!!
I have to thank the cheerleaders out there!

To Timmers, you are so freaking awesome and beyond supportive. It was so much fun listening to your cheers and letting them fill me up. All I could think about was how excited I am to pay you back at Ironman next week!!! I'm so pumped I can barely stand it! Thank you also for driving my bike to and from the race as well as picking up my pillow for me! What would I have done without you?! You are such an awesome friend! I'm obsessed with this picture by the way!

To Jen and Trish. You girls are nothing short of incredible. You cheered your guts out out there! I know because I could always hear your voices above everyone else's! I cannot thank you enough for taking time out of your busy lives and spending some extra money to come and cheer. It meant the world to me to have you there and I'm so excited for the 2 of you to do this race with me next year!

To my hubby. Wow. I really don't know where to begin. I would have been lost without you over the weekend. You were beyond supportive. You put up with my freak outs without saying a word. You carried all of my crap on your back and ran your ass off to get pictures of me and to cheer for me. Thank you not just for the sacrifice you made in devoting your entire weekend to me, but also for all of the time you have allowed me to train and not complained about it. I appreciate and love you sooooooo much!
And what became of my duct taped heels, you may be wondering? No blood! The duct tape was awesome and I would use it again in a heartbeat!