Here is what says, in her words:
Meghan and I finished holding hands! It is almost impossible to stay together (especially with 800 others) in a triathlon but we were together the whole time. I crashed on the bike (my first-ouch!) and Meghan's knee gave out on the first mile of the run. But we stayed together and did it.
It was not the race I visualized in my head but the cool thing is that Meghan and I both knew God was with us and even though the race was imperfect and difficult in so many ways He still brought us through. It made me think how He gets us through life. He didn't promise it would be easy or free from pain or go the way we want/plan it but He still brings us to the finish line and what an experience we have along the way! I wouldn't change a thing about this race.
Meghan signed up for this triathlon because she wanted to do a 70.3 race. But she also signed up in support of me. I am having surgery to remove my thyroid on Wednesday. I may not be able to do Providence. So I signed up for this crazy race just in case. And my best friend signed up with me. And she was there with me when I crashed. And I was there with her when she couldn't run. We did this race together. Not for time, as we had originally thought, but for each other. We pulled each other through when we weren't sure we could go on. And we finished.
So our time was not what we expected nor is it a true gage of our abilities. But it is a true gage of our friendship. Friendship. Life. Pulling each other through. How could it have been any better? 7:07? Not the best time. Finishing together? Now that is the best finish.
And my reflection:
The day began at 4am when my alarm went off and I knew I could only hit snooze once, because I had to be at Amy's at 4:20, heaven forbid I was late. And we were picking Janel up at 4:30. Janel is a friend from the gym and a very good athlete; a more seasoned triathlete than Amy and I, and this was her first 70.3 also. I got to Amy's and she was sitting on the front stoop, bags packed... waiting. I was right on time, by the way. (How long was she sitting there for?!)
As we pulled out of the driveway, I noticed a police car pulling into Amy's road, and then waiting at the stop sign. It was our friend Ryan, whom we've trained with and will be competing in his first ever triathlon this summer along side his wife! He had come to wish us final good lucks and see us on our way. Very sweet!
We picked up Janel and the 3 of us kind of laughed our way into Middlebury, CT trying to ease the worry and anxiety and nerves that are inevitable before a race. When we got there we were surprised at the amount of people already there, and Amy threw in a "I told you so" to justify us getting up and out so early.
All of our bikes were in the same area in the transition so we kept an eye out for each other as we set up our stuff for the 3 parts of the race. We made many trips to the bathroom, Amy & I-Janel didn't have that problem, but the opposite. :) Who needs an enema when you've got nerves before a race?! We got our body markings done; your race number on your arm and thigh and on the back of your calf they put your age. It was fun to look at everyone's calf to see how old they were. The older people had me in awe.6:30 came around and we had to slip into our wetsuits to head to the water for the start of the swim waves. As soon as I was in that thing, I swear, I had to go to the bathroom---again! Terrible. No time for a bathroom run, so I sucked it up and prayed everything would stay put.
The opening service was very nice. It was lovely to have a moment of silence and a prayer. And of course, Amy and I prayed together before the race. Amy is very good at that... saying the right things, fluidly, calmly, quickly, and covers all the bases, right down to bathroom issues. We have prayed together before, hands held, heads bowed before other races and it feels good. A final blessing before we go. Somehow I feel like there is a piece of goodness with me as I go when we do this.
THE SWIM 00:38:12
Then the waves were called... the pros first, a few other age groups and then they called the 30-39ers into the chute to prepare for the siren to go. Talk about the feeling of no-turning-back. Oh my gosh. It was kind of like that feeling you get when you're about to have a baby.... the moment when your body tells you it's time to push. You decide, You know what? I'm all done. I don't want to have a baby today. I take back what I said about 'I don't want to be pregnant forever,' because, today I do. I am NOT pushing a baby out. No thanks.' And obviously you can't turn back. The baby is coming!
So our swim start was inevitable. We got the 15 second warning.... And then the siren went. We were off. The swim was great! I felt great, I loved the water, it was clean, refreshing (if at only 62 degrees) and I got my groove about 1/4 of the way out, when only to be trampled on by the 2 waves of young spring roosters and chickens behind us. These people came swimming over us like they were being chased by sharks! And the men were really physical! I didn't get dunked or shoved, but I did feel lots of bodies touching me and around me and I had to breast stroke it for a brief moment to avoid all the wake and the fear of inhaling water as I breathed.
Luckily they moved on quickly and I could settle into a nice, easy smooth rhythm. It was very enjoyable. I thought good thoughts, thought about my form, being relaxed, and when I hit that 2nd red buoy, man I was in the home stretch and I felt awesome! 2 times I saw Amy right next to me and her piggies right before me. Who would have thought we'd being swimming so close in a sea of hundreds of people? I was so psyched to be able to get through the last stretch of swim and hop on my bike!!
T1 5:17
Getting out of the water felt so good, one leg of the race done. The quickest part, but also, for me, the most challenging in terms of getting your groove with the anticipation of the start. We had to run through half the amusement park to get to transition. And there was Amy just about 5ft ahead of me running to her bike. I called to her, so happy to see her. We had brief small talk while we whipped off our wet suits and then decided together, to pee in our shorts, right there before we hopped on the bike. That 's right up there with one of the grossest things I have done, but I gotta tell you, I didn't care! There were people along side the gates right there as we peed, and we didn't even care. Totally clueless to their gaping mouths! :)
THE RIDE 3:28:12 (avg speed 16.1 mph)
Amy & I headed out together for the ride. Amy is a lot stronger than me on the bike. She is a power house!! I wanted her to go if she felt the need, not to pace with me, the slow poke. We hung together for about 3 miles out while we chatted about the swim, the peeing, the exhilaration to be doing a 70.3 and be on the 2nd leg of the race! My odometer read only 17mph and I was passing a few people, and I thought to myself, I have got to chill out. This course is said to be a toughie, and there's a reason they are all going easy now. It was a flat beginning, slight downhill, great for getting a feel of your legs on the bike after the swim, and enjoyable. I think I smiled for about 8 miles. What was cool was looking at other people's bikes, their attire, their helmets - who wears those pointy ones?! Why? I mean, I know Why, but.... really? People with those always gave me an extra big smile.
The ride was the most difficult ride I have ever done in my life. It was mostly up hill, and when you thought you were getting a break, there was another hill. And they weren't the "rolling" hills. These were serious. I remember 2 nice downhills in the enitre ride, but only to be followed by more climbing. The descents were gradual for the most part, and the climbs were long, some super steep and all of them killer. One of the hills, I tried to keep an eye on my computer, was about 3 miles long. I have trained with a great group, and the rides we have done are hard, some days I would come home and nap. But nothing could have prepared me for this. Wow.
I had Amy in my sights for all of the ride, but I was always trailing her. I could see the first aid station around the 20 mile mark ahead, and as I blinked I noticed a bike down, right in the middle of the road. I was planning on stopping anyway, I had to use the bathroom again, and I was not going to pee on my bike. My first thought was, I hope that's not Amy.... and sure enough!
Some guy rode along side her as she was reaching out for a fresh water bottle and crashed into her, sending her off her bike, on the pavement. I saw her long brown braid slam the pavement.... I stopped by bike, pulled way off the the side, just avoided another crash (they warned us about those stops at the pre-race meeting the day before) and I scootched into the porta-potty.
When I came out, Amy was still down, the medics helping her. She was rattled. They got her up, over to the side. She was banged up. Her shoulder had road burn, her elbow and under-forearm were mangled. She was determined to get back on the bike. She refused wrappings on it, and we started back out together. We had to readjust her front brakes, there was a little shifting in that part of the bike from the crash. I was very concerned about her state of mind, she was so rattled. She cried, almost hyperventilated. She was hurting. We talked it out.... We were together again. It took a few minutes to get back into the groove. Her arm and back and hip hurt, but the adrenaline pushed her right along. That, and her sheer determination.
We went about our own rides, I kept her in my sights, and I paced with another guy, sort of playing a cat-n-mouse game. He blew past me on the slight descents - I was fine with that because and I crushed his a$$ on the hills. I ended up passing him completely and never saw him again. Take that 38 year old hairy guy.
My nutrition on the ride was well planned out. I felt good the whole ride. I had food and gu's every 40 minutes to stay on top of it. I had water and gatorade and finished 3 bottles in the 56 miles. I think I paced well on the bike because I knew the 13 miles ahead of me in sneaks was sure to test my level of endurance. The 50 mile mark was so exciting to hit and the road crew were very encouraging. It was a quick, small downhill decent back into the park for T2.
T2 05:42
There was Amy, just ahead of me, running her bike to her corral. She finished the bike just before me and we met up again in the transition area. Seriously, out of this many people, so many variables on the course, who would have thought we'd be meeting for the 2nd time? It was meant to be. We were meant to do this together. We put our running shoes on, gu'd up again, hydrated, and were on our way.
THE RUN 2:49:36
(embarrassed to say 12:51 min mile that's why this is so small!)
We decided we'd run together. I felt great starting out. We started slow, agreed to pace slow, go mellow, save our legs for the last half, the last few miles and finish strong. We had the same goals, the same train of thought. 13.1 miles of running-I love running!
I had had problems with my knee in the past, worked out the kinks and had felt great in recent months during training. I was stretching appropriately, running well and further than I had ever before. I could pull off 13.1 miles - the tough part was doing it after that hard of a bike ride.
Just before mile one, I felt it. That familiar twinge under my knee cap and I thought, Nooooo.... not now, not this early.
I felt physically well to run, my body was fueled up and feeling strong. My knee had other plans. I confided in Amy, we talked to God, we reminded ourselves we were strong, fit women, mothers of 11 children - who else on this course had 11 children and were completing a 70.3?! We birthed all those babies-- I could do this!
You can only push your body in pain so much. I could push through the twinge in my knee for only so long. And then it was like a buckle of pain. I had to stop. I had to walk. I used Amy's body to stable me as I stretched. I stretched it out; my glutes, my hammies, my calf... stretch stretch stretch. Back to running... slowly. I felt OK, but the twinge in my knee was forever reminding me it was not happy about the pounding. Those hills on the bike must have fired it up.
The run was terrible. I was/am very disappointed about it. I know I finished the race, I know I accomplished something, but I am so angry that I couldn't finish as strong as I wanted to, as I know I could have.
The run was more of a walk for us. I encouraged Amy to go on, she was running well, stopping only when I did, and we walked almost all the hills. And there were ALOT of hills. (Who thought out this course?!) Amy was strong and steady. I was keeping up with her. I was only running because she was, and I was devastated to have to stop so much, the pain in my knee overwhelming. Towards mile 9, I felt it in my right knee too. Brutal. I was startign to fatigue mentally. I was hydrated, I had enough gu running through me that I never want to have a Gu again, thank you, and I was so frustrated that it was a knee issue holding me back. 2 times I was walking, Amy said she had to keep moving for fear of not finishing, her muscles getting tight, and she turned back to me, encouraging me to go on. I was limping. I was sore, my knees not cooperating.
By mile 12, I was in a lot of pain. I could barely run. I started to cry. I was having mixed emotions. I was sad about the way the run went, my favorite activity, I was excited about it being mile 12, I was mad I couldn't finish it out doing sub 9 like I had envisioned, and I was elated and in disbelief we were at mile 12, with only 1.1 miles to go, and we would have conquered our first Half Ironman - together. I sobbed like a baby. Amy had pulled me through the run, as if there was a rope of endurance tied from her body to mine.
The last few tenths of the run were uphill. We walked a chunk of it, then held hands and started running. The finish chute was in clear view. The people along side the road were cheering us on. The road officials were clapping. There were 70.3ers who had finished cheering us on, yelling You're almost there....Gooo! We turned left into the last stretch, ran past the 13 mile marker sign, the .1 mile finish. Tears were streaming down my face. We held hands all the way through the chute and finished, hand in hand. We fell into each other and hugged and cried. We were FINISHERS at the REV3 70.3 Half Ironman!! Together.
I could not and would not have finished that run without Amy. I was in pain. I was frustrated. I was discouraged. I was so, so mad. It wasn't because my body was tired. It wasn't because I hadn't eaten well or didn't have adequate hydration. It was a body failure with my knees.
I know our time could have been around the 2 hour mark for the run. I know we could have run, comfortably, 9 minute miles. I know it.
You can't change it. I am happy to have finished and done well. I won't hold on to that feeling of disappointment about the run, because the event in and of itself was a major accomplishment. I can't beat myself up about it. A year ago our friend Chris did a HI and I remember thinking, Oh my gosh, I could never do that! Never. And this year, I did it. WE did it.
Before we headed to pack up our loot and head home, Amy and I went to the medical tent. She had her wounds cleaned and bandaged, and I sat and got both knees wrapped with ice packs. They looked like knee pads for volleyball.
(2 spent Half Ironmoms!)
The day was really like a dream. It was overwhelming. As I sit and type this out, I smile thinking about the entire event. It was so awesome. Here we were, the 2 of us, in a field of tremendous athletes; professional triathletes and serious athletes, camera crews, prize purses - serious event. We are 2 moms who love working out. It's an outlet. It's a "hobby." OK, it's not sewing or chess, but it's a hobby none the less. We got these really cool long sleeve t's that say "FINSHERS" on the back and we got stunning medals placed over us after we finished!
I could barely walk yesterday afternoon. My friend Gini called and offered me a dip in her hot tub which felt amazingly good on my muscles. I could barely get in the hot tub!
Speedo cooked me a delicious recovery dinner; grilled salmon with capers, tossed greens, buttered noodles and roasted red potatoes. Delish. And what a lovely surpirse to have a gorgeous Edible Fruit Arrangement from our "Training Crew" delivered! (Thank you Todd and co. we love you guys!!)Today, I am still in jammies. Hobbling around. My left knee is killing me when I go up and down the stairs. If I did terrible damage to it, I'm ok with it, because I did a Half Ironman yesterday and finished! Wooohooo!!
(more pictures as I get them!)
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