NOTHING COULD BE FINER

IMNC 70.3 was a success! But, my race report is a little different this time because I did not race it - I worked it. I am the run course local lead staffer which means I work with two other IM staffers to set up the 13.1 mile course for athletes after they finish a 1.2 mile swim and a 56 mile bike.

RUN COURSE LEAD-IN The week is full of prep for the race. The IM staff starts to arrive on Tuesday and this time we hit the ground running. Sami (the race director) , Greg (run lead) and I drove the course that morning to get a lay of the land. This was the 16th year of this race and the run course has NEVER been the same. It was close - but not quite. That afternoon, Greg and I started marking the course. That means laying out four rolls of green tape on the pavement to mark turns, aid stations and rough patches in the road. For most intersections, there are two arrows to indicate the turn and one to confirm. I counted almost 75 of those. We marked arrows where you veered left towards the riverwalk or onto sidewalks in the park. There are seven strips of tape to mark the tables at each aid station and a large T to mark where the toilets should be dropped on the day before the race. There is an art to doing it well and doing it quickly. There is a way to tab the tape so that you can easily pull it up on race day when the course is closed. And, theoretically, you want them to be uniform in size. We dodged traffic downtown and all the way down Front Street and slowly made our way around the park and back to the finish. I finally got into a rhythm at mile four - which was very late in the game. By the time I finished my back and legs were sore from leaning, squatting and getting in and out of the truck.

I got a break that afternoon and then headed to the social that Sami planned for us at the rooftop bar downtown. It was fun seeing some of the staff from last year and visiting with all my favorite captains.

On Wednesday, the real action began. Greg and I rode the course and tallied all the sandwich board signs that we’d need for run directional. We counted the right turns, left turns, straights and specialty signs that would keep runners on track. After that, we split up and I headed back to the supply lot to make the signs. I like that job because it is a mini assembly line. Plus, I get to use the drill to change the placard on each board.

Joel - the second in command run assist met us there. That afternoon, we headed back downtown to get an official GPS of the course and mark the miles. We hopped on the Gator in T2 and drove it through the transition and the hot corner, down towards Live Oak Pavilion and stopped. The bad news was they weren’t letting us in. The good news is that they were doing soundcheck and Susan and Derek were HOT!! We improvised and I measured most of the loop on foot. I took my time so that I could listen to what was happening on stage. When I returned and restarted our adventure, we realized that the Gator was not going to work. The governor on it was set for 15mph - and at 9mph, it started to lurch. It had a hitch in its giddy-up. We dropped it off at the IRONMAN Village and jumped in the truck to measure the rest.

On Thursday, we met downtown for the final morning meeting. We drove the course in the new Gator. We marked and pinned the porto-potties and taped areas on the course that would be dangerous for runners. We prepped some no parking areas on Nutt Street and Front Street and I delivered traffic impact letters to 25 homes on Front Street. Greg & Joel headed to breakfast at the Dixie Grill and I headed to the supply lot to spot check the aid station trucks. I wrapped up a few more tasks that day and happily made it home to a late dinner and early bedtime.

By Friday morning, we had a lot of our tasks done for the week. We drove the course one last time and by noon I was headed back to the beach.

LEAD-IN EXTRAS In addition to all the running around for IRONMAN I went to the Tedeschi-Truck Band concert on Wednesday, I took Sunny to the vet on Thursday for an ear infection and attended a memorial service for a friend on Friday. Plus, I sent out emails to the lead bike escorts and the run SAG volunteers to make sure they knew when and where to show up and what their job would be on race day.

SATURDAY - RACE DAY My alarm woke me up at 3:00AM. Three minutes later, Sami called. GOOD MORNING HAPPY CAMPER! I’m up, I’m up! I said sleepily. I was happy to be up and making coffee and prepping my breakfast and packing my sandwich and getting dressed and all the things. I left the house an hour later and ran into the first hiccup of the day. Four houses down, a fire hydrant was gushing water onto the street and into the swim start area. I called Sami. Call 9-1-1! She did and the fire department took care of the situation.

I arrived downtown at T2 by 4:15AM. Michelle Fogle - my hero and manager of three Fleet Feet stores in our area - was already loading buses full of sleepy athletes. I was there because we were afraid only one of her volunteers would show up. Plus, I was in charge of helping one athlete with a late check-in. His name was Sam and he was from Colorado and although he thought for a moment that the universe was against him getting to the start line - he was more determined than the universe. I walked him into T2 and we dropped his bag at his spot at the rack then headed to the busses. He was able to place his bike in the cargo hold and hop on the next ride to the beach. Michelle, Alexis and her volunteer that had stayed up all night so he wouldn’t miss the shift, had things well under control so I hopped into m

At 5:15, Greg, Joel and I started placing cones and signs on course. We started with downtown first - the first mile and the last mile. We were deliberate and purposeful. Joel was funny: I’m not OCD, but I like symmetry in my cones. I watched and learned.

We had four hours to get it all together and time flew. We made some mistakes that weren’t crucial, but they did set us behind a little bit. First, I messed up the signs meant for the parking decks on Water Street at Pier 33 and Nutt Street. I eventually had to swap them out for the signs at the turn-around leading into the park. Second, we couldn’t find the spots for MILE 1 and MILE 2. It meant that we had to place those signs later. Our biggest mishap was that we didn’t correct a POP placement

At 7:16, we were out in the park placing parking signs out in the nearby neighborhoods. We listened on the radios as the race got underway. It is one of my favorite parts of the day. The lake is quiet and calm and the sun lights up the tops of the trees. I noticed egrets in the trees and the leaves that had just started changing colors. Meanwhile, the chatter on the radio is a contradiction to the peace that I see.

At 7:45, the first athletes were our of the water by the time we made it to the turn-around. We were placing the last signs, setting up the out-and-back and pulling barricades to close the streets as fast as we could.

At 8:15 we were headed back into town and realized that AID STATION 2 was set up on the wrong side of the road. The volunteers moved the tables and supplies to the river-side of the road. Joel, Greg and I pushed the porto-potties across four lanes and Greg moved the supply truck over to that median.

At 8:30, we made it back to T2. We switched the signs at the parking garages, loaded the e-bikes onto the truck and headed to the turn-around at Greenfield Lake. We placed the last signs on the course, unloaded the e-bikes and headed back to town. Our goal was to start the 30-minute lead-out at 9:15 and the 15-minute lead-out at 9:30. The lead-out is a last check of the run course to make sure the aid stations and volunteers are ready and that traffic has been stopped. I think I started my lead-out at 9:20. I skipped the first mile and headed to the park via Front Street. I stopped to say hello to the most amazing Coeur teammates - Danielle and Lauren at the Front & Orange. As I rolled I let the volunteers know that the first runners were on the course.

The lead cyclists were coming in hot! The first male was on the course at 9:46.

The rest of the day was pretty easy. My zone was between Aid Station 4 and Aid Station 6. My job was to make sure athletes stayed on course, to ensure aid station volunteers had what they needed and that run directional volunteers were in place. I spent a lot of time at Aid Station 6. Mainly because It is the BEST ONE EVER! The theme for this year was GAME DAY and they were dressed in their best team gear. My favorite part is that Jen decorates the inside of their port-o-potties. I I stopped to shed my puffy coat and pants to a pull-over and skort, eat a sandwich and drink a Red Bull. and had to check out the punny signs taped to the inside of the POP. That aid station is also great to see all my friends and athletes twice.

And even Sam from Colorado! He was having a moment but had no doubt he’d finish. all decked out in hilariI stashed a Red Bull in her truck and

I got to see Andrew, Jennifer Barker, Charlie, …….. It Plus, I got to see my lead cyclists - Chase, Stephan. Kurt, Bridgette, Melissa and Christine as they led their runners out on course. In both cases the second on course actually placed first overall!

We got out of the I had a premonition that it might be trouble on Friday when we stopped to check in with the amazing men who have to drop more than a dozen portos on the run course. about it on Friday when we stopped

I am pretty sure that overall, I covered that course at least 20 times in one week That’s about 250 miles. I think I circled the lake ten times in five hours on race day.

At 3:32, Joel, Chase and I headed to the turn-around to do the hard work of pulling people from the course. My favorite athlete happily gave me his chip and hopped into the golf cart. Thank goodness! he said. I'm ready to be done. He borrowed Chase’s phone and called his wife. Honey, I’m in the limo cart and I am being chauffeured to the finish. See you soon!

My least favorite athlete yelled THIS IS BULLSHIT as we took his chip and explained that he had missed the cutoff.

You can take my chip but I’m gonna keep going!

Joel was calm: Sir, I need your verbal confirmation that you understand that you are continuing without race support.

Meanwhile, my favorite athlete called out from the cart: Hey, Man, get in the cart! You don’t want to run on Front Street.

He did not get in the cart. He decided that he would keep on going even though he wouldn't have a legal finish time.

At 4:45, Briana and I met Sami at the intersection of Willard and Front Street. She pulled the last barricade. A minute later, the law enforcement officer pulled away and the dam broke. Traffic started streaming towards downtown. There was a mini-parade of a WPD officer, Sami in her cart, Chase and his athletes in his cart and Briana and I on our e-bikes. Eventually, we caught up with the last official runner. I was SO excited to see my friend and Coeur teammate Joretta pushing hard to stay ahead of the clock. It was inspiring to see her work so hard to realize a dream! I didn’t get to see her cross the line - because Briana and I motored back to T2, but I am so proud of her gusto, gumption and grace.

I stayed another hour to unload cones and pull signs and pick-up trash (so many gel tabs) near transition. I met up with Tina and Sean and Jill. I had a mini pow-wow with Sami and Erin and Angie and my last task was heading to Greenfield Lake to check on one of the golf carts that had lost power and had been abandoned between mile three and four.

I think I was home and in the shower by 7:00PM and in the bed by 8:00PM. It was an incredible day! And in a few weeks, I’ll be ready for next year.

SANDLING BEACH TRI

Last week I raced triathlon number 90! I headed up to Raleigh for the Sandling Beach Tri Fest and the last race of the NC Triathlon Series for Set Up Events. It was one of my favorite races of the year! I had done it in 2018 when it was the Sandling Beach 50 (a one mile swim + 40 mile bike + 9 mile run). That was race number 50 for me and so the race directors (Renee Griffin) had given me race number 50 and had put balloons at my bike rack. This year they offered an international and sprint distance. I opted for the sprint distance and I was so glad I did! It was short and sweet!

I spent the night with Anna - who lives only 15 minutes from that race site. On race morning, I was able to sleep in a little and then pack my gear and head to Sandling Beach Recreation area on Falls Lake. I was worried about the dense fog that I drove through - but it cleared up by the time I arrived and the sun started to rise over the lake. The weather was actually perfect. It was sunny and temps were in the upper 50s at the start and in the 70s for the run. The water was in the low 70s and that meant it was wetsuit legal for the swim. It also meant that the water was warmer than the air - so I did a good bit of floating before I lined up for the swim.

This race is a time trial start and athletes start their race one at a time about five seconds apart. I stood in line with Dave Soroka and we chatted as we waited for the swimmers to start ahead of us. The swim was a rectangle and the hardest part about it was that it came back in line with the sun. I could barely see the finish wiggly man banner for the rays, but my FORM goggles kept me mostly on track! Best invention ever.

Once out of the swim I was out on the bike. I like that this bike and the swim were longer than most sprints. The swim was 750 meters and the bike was 20 miles. I like a longer bike! There is a good climb out of the recreation area and then a short punchy downhill out of the park that may have been the scariest section of the race. There was a volunteer pointing us left, a huge pot hole in the turn, a law enforcement officer directing traffic and a little bit of gravel. There were two people already crashed with road rash and bruises.

The bike was fun with some good rollers to keep me thinking - but nothing too hard uphill or too fast downhill. My only glitch on the ride is that I spent about nine miles worried that I was off-course. About a mile after we came out of the park there was a big intersection with signs pointing right. I watched as every rider in front of me took the right - except for one. Just as I reached the intersection, some speed demon passed me on the left and headed straight through the intersection. Was I supposed to go straight? Was I going to do 25 miles instead of 20? I knew there was a split at some point where cyclists in the international went one way and the sprinters headed another way. I kept riding and eventually passed number 320 - the woman racked right next to me and figured we wouldn’t have both made the mistake.

The highlight of the day was that I was passed by an older-than-me rider. As he passed, I noticed his bike jersey. What is that image? It kept me occupied for a few miles and then suddenly EUREKA! It was a Pink Floyd album cover. It took me a mile to think of it and a mile to catch him. I pulled up beside him and said - is your jersey a Pink Floyd album? Yes! he said with a smile. I think it was the Division Bell cover? He answered, but I couldn’t tell if he was affirming my memory because he then took off on the next climb and I dropped back to watch the two stone faces on the back of his jersey climb the next hill. Later, I found him and said, I really am excited about my race and my finish, but, I’m even happier that I recognized your Pink Floyd jersey and remembered the name of the album. He said he was impressed.

Did I mention that I liked the longer swim and bike? Do you know what’s better than a long swim and bike? A short run. My watch read 2.8 at the finish of the run and I am not sad about it. I was very proud of my effort on the run - I didn’t stop to walk - even on the hills. My total time was 1:52:25 and landed me on the podium.

Post-Race Sunshine

Skip

Curtsy

Cheer. #bringthejoy

WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 2025

This year’s edition of the YMCA/Wrightsville Beach Sprint was one of the best - although I think I say that every year. It was the 45th anniversary of the race, the eighth time I’ve done this race and my 89th race overall. It is always a blast - mainly because there are so many friends who show up to do it. It is like a reunion of sorts for local triathletes. Plus, it’s a great race for beginners. This year there were 1200+ participants! The weather threatened all day to rain or thunder or lightning us out - but never materialized. It was race day magic.

Here are some highlights:

My favorite moment was near the finish when a man and his high-schoolish aged daughter were coming up behind me. He said to her: we are going to make this left turn and you’re going to go 5% harder and put a big smile on your face all the way to the finish. I said: me, too! I tried to keep up but they moved past. I kept up the pressure and a smile on my face that last few yards and finished strong.

The lead-in to the day was relaxed and easy. Ace and I drove to the start to pick up our chips, set up our transitions and drop shoes at the swim finish at Sea Path. We drove back home, got dressed, ate a little breakfast and headed to the start line. The walk to the start at Surf & Sound was a great way to get the jitters out and warm up a little. Plus, I found a penny.

The swim start was crowded but I felt pretty relaxed. There was a five minute delay due to the cloud cover, but the time passed quickly. I did a good warm-up before the first wave took off and chatted with Ace, Jim, Catherine, Kitty, Misty, Melissa and Annette while we waited for each wave to take off. I met another athlete - Shannon who was a fellow jam-band fan. Shannon - you better come back next year!

My swim was solid. I had predicted that my swim time would be 20 minutes and my goggles showed 19:30 as I pulled myself up the ladder. For the first time, I did not cut the corner too short in Mott’s. My line was pretty straight and I held 63spm.

My bike was fine. I didn’t break any records or have a PR, but it was on par with my other WBWC races. My run was great. Again, not a personal best, but I ran all but 10 steps to grab some water at the aid station. I was trying to catch ACE and thought I had a chance when I saw him near the turn-around. But he was just fast enough to beat me to the line. But! Overall, I beat him by 10 minutes. #mybikeisfancier

Here are some lowlights:

Cheaters. I admit, these were minor infractions but it still bothers me to see people with earbuds on the bike and run. I didn’t see it, but I heard a spectator say he was following a participant in case he had a flat on the bike. Imagine if everyone had a car following them on course! There was a spectator helping an athlete just after the swim finish, blocking my ability to get to my shoes.

My biggest lowlight was the danger on the bike. In the first half mile, just over the drawbridge, I got into some bike traffic. I moved to pass three newbie bikers. Two were on hybrids and I swear one was on a cruiser. As I made the pass, I found myself behind three other bikers. We all had to slow. Suddenly, this dude pulled up behind us and yelled ON YOUR LEFT. There was no where to go and nothing for me to do, so I ignored him. Again he yelled, ON YOUR LEFT! You can’t pass right now, I said over my shoulder. It’s not safe. IT’S ALSO A RACE! he yelled at me. When the bike traffic cleared I pulled over to the right and he passed me, giving me the stink eye. He found himself behind three other bikers including the fastest woman on the course. A mile later I passed him and he yelled at me: Wait until I tell Tom you were blocking me! I yelled back: Wait until I tell him how you got chicked! And I took off. I don’t know who he was but I made sure he didn’t catch me for the rest of the day.

The whole event is so much fun and has a great mix of hometown fun and bigtime buzz. Come join me next year! It will be number 100!

TATAFORNOW!

Beth

Pre-Race with Ace

Post-Race with Kitty Cole

Made it to the Podium!

WHITE LAKE FALL RACES 2025

This weekend I did triathlons number 87 and 88 in White Bake, North Carolina. I did the international on Saturday and the Double Sprint on Sunday. I made a weekend of it and headed up to Elizabethtown on Friday night and stayed in White Lake at the race site on Saturday.

All in all, it was a great weekend of racing. The International was a struggle, but I had a great time at the Double Sprint, and I've realized that recovering from an Ironman isn't as quick as it used to be. I learned that it takes a little longer than I expect to recover from an Ironman. I also learned that I need to practice running off the bike to get better at running off the bike. Here are some other notes:

HIGHLIGHTS

• Triathlon friends are the best friends. Someone commented that I always show up alone to these races and my response was: but am I really alone? I got to visit with Tracy, Tina, Jill, Charlie, Ren, Brooke, Suzanne, Bill, Lynda…….I can count 20 other in the tri tribe that I got to see and five new friends. Plus, listening to Lilian cheer for every single person that she saw on Sunday made me remember why I loved this sport from the start.

• I stayed at the Elizabethtown Inn on Friday and can’t recommend it enough. It is a bed and breakfast run by Christine TKK She was lovely and y’all - she made the triathletes that were staying there breakfast to go: egg cups, homemade granola bars and a banana. I stayed in Kitty’s Room (obviously, meow) which faced the back yard and got a view of a full moon and the very large house cat. It was about 15 minutes away from the race site - but, staying there made it feel like a triathlon getaway.

• I stayed at Goldston’s Motel at the race site on Saturday and it was a highlight for completely different reasons. It was as if I my alter ego took charge on Saturday afternoon after the international. When I moved in, I simply threw everything in the room and spread it out all over the place. The first thing I decided was that I had a nap bed and a night bed. I didn’t even take a shower after the race. I climbed into the nap bed and slept for an hour.

• I had a great swim and bike on Saturday. Both were right on track with my spring International in May. I am pretty solid.

• I volunteered for the swim across the lake on Saturday afternoon. I was assigned a prone paddleboard and served as a swim herder - trying to keep the swimmers from getting to far out in the lake and too close to the jet skiiers and wake boarders. It was a great way to spend an afternoon.

• Dinner with Tracey and Dan at the Jose Cantina will be one of my favorite memories of the weekend. We talked about travel, theology, racing, and loss and dating conversations. It was slightly unexpected - and yet so much fun.

• My overall race was great on Sunday. Mentally, I tried to stay in it by playing chase. I tried to stay ahead of Jill on the first run. I tried to catch Rosa on the bike. I tried to catch Rob on the second swim. I had slightly better runs than the day before and despite a second swim that felt like swimming in quicksand, I placed third in my age group.

LOWLIGHTS

• Once again, White Bake lived up to its moniker. After a week of cooler temps and lower humidity, the mugginess moved back in for the weekend and the skies were blue and the sun was turned on HIGH. I think temps were in the low 90s for the run on Saturday. By the time I was on the run on Saturday, my nutrition was off and my legs were heavy.

• The run on Saturday left a lot to be desired. It was 90ish degrees and the reflection of heat off the white wall at Camp Clearwater raised the feels-like temps another 5-10 degrees. I just didn’t have the legs or the mental gumption to run well. My first three miles were fine but I lost it when I had to turn around and go back out for the second lap. I tried to play games - I will run until I see Erin/Jill/Ren/Tina/Tracy/Brooke and then I’ll walk. That turned into 2min run/1 min walk to 1min run/1 walk to :30 run/:30 walk. My run was 15 minutes faster in 2024!

• Swing and a Miss: I missed ALL THREE BOTTLES at the water hand-off on Saturday’s International bike. I didn’t really need water - I had calories in my torpedo and plain water on my frame - but I thought it would be great to pour water on my head and refill my torpedo. Plus, it’s always great to practice a hand-off. I love that the water bottle hand-off is at the top of a small rise on the course. It forces everyone to slow down. I pointed at the first volunteer and said: I’ll take that one. Unfortunately, he was balancing it on his open palm and as I approached, it wobbled. I missed. I tried for the second volunteer and it slipped out of my hand. I tried for the third volunteer, but without any resistance, I was as if I slapped it away. I laughed and myself and shrugged it off.

• EFFIN’ DOGS! I made the turn onto Highway 41 and as always thanked the officers at the intersection for being there. I shifted gears in preparation for the slight hill that followed and as I made it to the top of the rise, I heard barking. I flashed back to a training ride with Andre earlier in the year. Two pit bulls that were on the porch of a clapboard house to our left had bum-rushed Andre then - and now they were rushing across the yard to chase me. I unclipped and stuck out my foot as the first dog ran into the road. You MOTHER FCKER! I yelled. GO HOME! He slowed and pulled away and the white one came at me. ASSH*LE! GET OFF!!!

• SNAKE!!!! I swerved to miss a copperhead snake it’s way across the road right in front of my tire.

• Cheaters. I say this lightly because it was an international distance with no race officials. There are a lot of newbies at these local races and there are a lot of people who do not read the athlete guide. I was only passed once on the right on the bike - which is one of the most common illegal movements. But, I was most surprised at the amount of people with music on their phones (playing for all to hear on the bike and run) or riding/running ear buds. I think I have a hard time with this because I would LOVE to have music on the run. I once considered wearing a pair of shades that had integrated mp3 player in an early iron-distance race. But, because of the rule, I left them at home. And, because of the race rule, I do not generally train with music on the road.

• Comparison is the thief of joy. For some reason at this race I realized just how much I do it. I compared myself to everyone who hadn’t done an IRONMAN in the past month. I compared myself to a woman 10 years younger than me. I compared myself to women who had this as an A-race. I compared myself to the woman who wins my age group by 30 minutes every single time. I compared myself to the me from last year! I have my own strengths and I need to remember the negativity that comparison generates in my mental game. I tried to remember that it is useless to compare the mediocre in me to the best in others (my paraphrase).

Overall, I’m very excited about my weekend. It was pretty amazing to have completed two hard races in one weekend. It was a fun way to shift into the next block of training and racing!

TATAFORNOW!

Beth

IRONMAN OTTAWA 2025 - THE SWIM

I DID IT! IRONMAN number 18 is done and dusted! What a day. As Sami and I rehashed it on Monday, we noted that even though we’ve done a jillion of these - it never gets easier. But, it also means that each one is special.

On paper this looks like a perfect race - a freshwater swim + flat bike + flat run. It looks like a set up for a fast race and maybe a PR. In reality, this race delivered a challenge that tested my IRONMAN mettle. The short version of a challenging day: a choppy, slow swim + windy, bumpy bike + a hot run. Here’s the long version:

I woke up at 2:30AM and felt fairly rested. (I did not look at my WHOOP score until after the race and it was in the green at 71%!!) I got breakfast at the hotel cafe at 3:00 and headed back to the room to eat a bite of breakfast, get dressed and gather up my gear. Sami and I headed down to personal needs drop off at 3:40 and met Neal, Andre, Angela and Tracy at the Lord Elgin Hotel at 4:00. We were off to the swim start at 4:02. Neal had the perfect plan - and it worked even better than expected. He dropped us off about 500 yards from Transition 2 and was able to park 500 yards away from the drop-off.

I headed into T1 to set up my bike and regretted not bringing a head lamp. The light towers were not working and everything was dark. But, everything went smoothly. I managed to load four bottles, my PEZ and computer onto Lanakeli and add my bike jersey to my bike gear bag. My favorite part of the morning was finding a picnic table near the volunteer check-in away from the hustle and bustle and nervous energy of T1. I was able to eat a little more, chat with my peeps and actually relax a little before we lined up for the swim start.

Eventually, we had to leave our little nook in the courtyard. We put on our super suits and headed into the line as the Canadian National Anthem was being sung. I said my goodbye to Ace and found my spot just ahead of Sami in the 1:10 - 1:20 corral. I chatted with a woman who was doing her last IRONMAN as we moved into place. I danced with the announcer and walked down the chute and before I knew it, I was in the water and off to the first buoy.The swim layout was a rectangle As I headed out on the first short side, I noted how beautiful the sun looked as it rose over the river. The haze from the wildfires made it burn orange over the trees in the distance. I made the first left turn a and the first long stretch was against a slight current and into the wind. We had been warned about a section on this first side that was shallow enough to walk - but I was unprepared for the grass and rocks at my fingertips and for the sight of people walking on water in the middle of an IRONMAN swim! I stood up to walk - but the rocks made me nervous and the grass felt gross so I did the underwater recovery drill and pretended to be an alligator. It immediately reminded me of Haines City in 2018 when many swimmers came out of the water dripping with seaweed.

I had two goals for the swim: bi-lateral breathe between two buoys and finish in 1:15. At the turn-around, I accomplished the first. The buoys were a little closer together - but I did it! I have been practicing all summer with a different breathing pattern and on a good day it really helps with my sighting. On a regular day or race day - it drops my stroke rate from 65ish to 58ish - so I switched back to my right side for most of the rest of the swim. I did NOT swim a 1:15. I was five minutes over my goal time. My official time was 1:20:20.