A DAY TO GIVE THANKS

No you have not missed a few months...it is not Thanksgiving.  I think everyone has days that are special to them for whatever reason....birthdays, anniversaries etc.  I know that ever since losing all that weight years ago I have made it a point to do some type of workout on my birthday every year since 2002.  This year I really whooped it up by riding my bike 85 miles thanks to Ironman training.  So what is so special about August 20th...besides the fact that it is my Ironbuddy Kerry's birthday?  HAPPY  BIRTHDAY KERRY!!!!!!  One year ago today on August 20, 2011 is when I crashed my bike and injured my brain and a few other parts of me.  So very much has happened in the past year.  I have to admit I still get very unnerved thinking about that day and I know those of you who were there and have full recall of that day will also never forget it. There is actually not a day that goes by that I don't think about that day mostly due to a few scars that I see every day when I look in the mirror and one on the back of my hand.  But today I choose to be positive about August 20th because the outcome could have been far different and despite taking a full three months to recover from that dreadful day I did and I am fine.  I have decided that from now on every August 20th I will swim bike and run.  Not any crazy distances..just a little of each.  I wasn't sure I would ever do any of those things again so I will celebrate my ability to do so.  I will also spend the day thinking of everything I have to be thankful for.  Again it is only by the grace of God that I am here and I am so lucky to have a wonderful family, friends and my health.  Those are the things that really matter in life.  So my blog peeps I invite you to give thanks today for whatever you choose and be happy today for what you have and not what you wish you had.
ADDENDUM:  WTF..WTF...WTF...WTF!!!!  About 5 seconds after I posted this freakin blog I started hysterically crying.  Where in the hell did that come from?  I was seriously at peace and in a good place when I wrote the damn thing and then BAM..I get blind-sided with all this emotional crap.  The worst part was that I couldn't get over this feeling of being very restless and needing to go do something with myself.  Thankfully being a Monday it was my paperwork day at work so if I left I wouldn't be short-staffing the floor. I attempted to go talk to my supervisor about leaving no less than 4 times but while I was trying to figure out what to say I would start crying again.  Since I only cry in front of people under dire circumstances I turned around and went right back to my office.  I tried to get some work done and take my mind off of it but that wasn't working so I finally had to ask to leave in an email.  Since I have an awesome supervisor she understood and was ok with it.  I am home now and a bit better but still shocked at the effect this had on me.  I wanted this to be nothing but a thankful, positive day but I guess I am not quite there yet.  You know of course this pisses me off to no end.  I am still thankful for everything I have and have accomplished two of my three workout goals for the day.  Swim and run done.  Bike up next.  To me going out for a ride a year to the day you crashed on the same bike is like giving the incident the finger and if you know anything about me you know I am a fan of giving things the finger!!!!!!

TESTING TESTING 1, 2, 3

Ok loyal blog followers......time to discuss the future of this blog.  First however,  let's talk about what I have been up to since IMLP and what the future holds.  My recovery has been good.  I am still surprised at how little pain I had in the days following the race...relatively speaking of course.  My back was the worst and felt like it was going to snap in half at any moment.  I did have to walk down the stairs sideways for a day or two after the race but honestly I have felt worse after just running a marathon.  Weds after the race I went out for a 45 min bike ride.  Friday I went for a 4.5 mile run and Saturday I went for a 34 mile bike ride.  Shortly after uploading that workout I got an email from Jeff essentially asking "What the hell is wrong wrong with you???? You need to rest and recover.  You need to understand that although you feel "okay" your body is dealing with a very deep-seated fatigue leaving you vulnerable to sickness and injury!!!"  Umm OOPS.  My bad.  So I listened and rested and didn't run for the next week and stuck to swimming.  He actually wrote in my training plan to go for a walk to the ice cream shop...like 5 days in a row.  Good thing I am really not a big ice cream fan or I would have gained 10 lbs that week.  So finally after 3 weeks I am getting back into a structured training schedule again.  In 2 weeks Kerry and I are doing an Olympic distance tri which consists of a .9 mi swim, 26 mi bike and 6.2 mi run.  I have no expectations or stress over this race and only one goal....I am going to ride my bike like I stole it....as fast as I can and I hope the tires are smoking when I get back into transition.  I haven't been able to do that all summer.  Of course it will make for a painful run but hey..I am an Ironman...I can take it.  After that I will transition into trail running because I am doing a trail marathon in November.  Again no pressure here...just a leisurely 26.2 miles in the woods.  Whatever happens happens.

Onto the blog....I am still not convinced my life is entertaining enough to keep it going so here is a preview of what to expect.  I will be forced to blog about sheer randomness starting with the IDIOTS who mow my neighbor's lawn.  While I really like the little old lady who lives next door I could do without her son and grandson who come to mow the lawn.  First off the lawn is the size of a postage stamp and I could cut it with a pair of scissors in half the time it takes these two IDIOTS to get it done. They pull up with their big boy power tools.....mower, weedwacker, leaf blower.  Really dudes. I am sure this is their next purchase.



Another big boy toy

Grandson gets started on the mower.  Of course it takes him 25 pulls of the cord to get it started and I am surprised he doesn't dislocate his shoulder in the process.  In the meantime Son has fired up the weedwacker to trim around the fence and judging by the excruciately high-pitched metal sound I hear the most he is using it as a paint stripper for the fence posts also.  It seems that Son takes issue with the way Grandson is cutting the lawn so he proceeds to yell at him over top of both machines adding to the symphony outside my window.  After what feels like an eternity they finally shut off the mower/weedwacker/paint stripper and there is beautiful silence and I can once again hear the television and myself think.  That lasts for 3 secs as they fire up the leaf blower to .....well honestly I have no freakin idea why they use the damn thing.  IDIOTS.  By the time they finally pack up their toys and leave I could strangle them with my bare hands.  I think from now on when they pull up I am going to have to jump in my car and go for a ride for an hour to get away from the noise. 

SO followers...I can't do this alone.  If you want me to continue you must comment.  I mean why bother with all this typing if I don't know anyone is reading!!!!  Let's see how it goes.  The ball is in your court.

FINAL IRONMAN LAKE PLACID THOUGHTS

Now don't think for one minute just because this blog title has the word final in it that I will never talk about the race again.....if I continue blogging.  We'll discuss that in the next post.  I mean let's face it I get bragging rights forever.  Speaking of forever...a mere 7 days and 4 hours after beginning my quest I FINALLY got my tattoo!!!!

I will spare you the long version of my third attempt Thursday that fell through because the tattoo artist went to his other job where he bakes cakes.  WTF!!!  I thought maybe I was on Candid Camera.  Anyhow. I will probably find a way to work the fact that I am an Ironman into a plethora of conversations.  "Congratulations on your engagement.   You should honeymoon in Lake Placid where I became an Ironman"  "Sorry you lost your job.  With your free time let's get coffee and talk about my Ironman race."  "Wow your broken leg looks painful.  So glad that didn't happen to me during my Ironman race" and so on and so on.  I have a few more random thoughts to share about the race.  Of the over 2700 people registered for the race only 25% were female.  The average age of an Ironman is 37 and 95% have a post-secondary education.  I am sure that is because you need a good job to pay for all the insanity that accompanies this endeavor.  If you count my bike purchase 2 years ago in preparation for eventually signing up for this race I spent over $10,000 between bike, coaching, lodging, registration, gear, clothes etc.  I lost two important items during race week.  The cross I wore on my necklace got caught in my wetsuit during a practice swim and got ripped off the chain.  During the race I wore my watch for the swim then took it off in transition to put on my Garmin.  I never saw the watch again.  Kind of ironic to loose an Ironman watch doing an Ironman.  I have replaced that because I hate being without a watch but the cross will have to wait until my bank account heals a bit.  I can't believe how calm I felt as Kerry and I floated in Mirror Lake waiting for the cannon to go off.  Despite how hard the race was I never NOT ONCE thought about or wanted to quit.  I truly enjoyed race day and all my smiles were real.  I was thankful to have the ability to do it. As stated my main goal was always to finish but I told a very select few people that I thought I could do it in around 15 hours.  I am amazed at how spot-on I was.  I procured 7 cowbells for my cheering squad yet I have none now.  What did you people do with them???  Kerry, Dan, Quinn and I went out while we were still in Lake Placid to celebrate and talk about our races.

Beers and margaritas all around

Kerry and I were both surprised at how so many people said they were amazed at what we did, called us their idols and heroes.  We decided that we don't have any superpowers unless you count dedication and perserverance as a superpower.  We were simply two people who had a dream and a goal and decided we were going to do whatever it took to make it a reality.  So this is my challenge to you my loyal blog followers.  Life is short and that has been proven to me several times the past year.  I want you all to go after what you want.  Whatever it is.  Big or small.  Make a plan and stick with it.  Keep the faith through the hard times and enjoy the good.  You will get what you want and if for some reason you don't......dust yourself off, wipe away your tears and try again.  And with that I will leave you with a few more photos.

LOVE this pic of me and Kerry...like lambs off to the slaughter

I look totally badass on my bike

This is when I looked at the clock and saw my time

I am an Ironman

HARDER THAN AN IRONMAN?!??!!!

It took me all of 7 days to find something harder than completing an Ironman.  Getting an Ironman tattoo!!!!  Oh yeah...and it takes longer too.  Whereas it only took me 14:54:27 to do the race I have been trying to get a freakin tattoo for almost 30 hours now.  While the rest of the businesses in the country are struggling that doesn't seem to be the case for tattoo parlors.  Well at least the two I have gone to this weekend.  I visited the first with Kerry yesterday at noon.  Why noon you say?  Well that is what time they open and since they don't make appointments over the phone we had to go there and hope to get done as a walkin or make an appointment.  While this establishment opened the door at noon apparently the tattoo artists start whenever they feel like it.  The girl at the desk said they "should" be here shortly.  We went back around 12:45 and one of the two artists had shown up but had an appointment at 1.  I had a massage scheduled at 2 so I made an appointment to come back at 4 to have mine done.  I chatted with the artist and gave her a deposit and left Kerry there to wait for the other artist.  I returned at 4 and the artist was "finishing" up another client.  She then said she just had to clean up real quick and we would get started.  Now if you know me you know I am already pissed off.  I am Type A on time, responsible, times a wasting kind of person.  At 4:35 she said she was just going to smoke a quick cigarette and we would start.  I gritted my teeth together so hard I thought I would bust a molar and said fine.  Who wants someone in the middle of a nicotine fit taking a needle to their ankle?  In the time it would take me to run over a mile she was still smoking and talking to some random guy on the sidewalk.  That's it... I was done.  I walked out and said "Give me my money back I have more important things to do with my time" She said "I am done I am ready"  I said "I don't give a shit give me my money".  And I walked away.  Really??????????????????  Give me an f'n break.  Customer service???  Professionalism???? Apparently the Purple Scorpion in Salem, MA is rolling in the dough and doesn't need your business so don't bother going there.  New plan...Sunday afternoon I go to a place where Tracie went for a tattoo.  Place opens at noon.  I go around 12:30. Place is open but no tattoo artist.  He should be in around two or 3.  WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  She tried to call someone in but no luck so she took my name and number and said they would call when they got in and I could come down.  Yeah right.  Apparently the Shining Star in Peabody, MA is also rolling in the dough because they just called me back right now at 5:40.  I don't know what the message says nor do I have any intention of listening to it because I sure as hell ain't going back there either.  So here I sit after 30 hours and two attempts with no tattoo.  I am going to New Hampshire next weekend to the place that did my first tattoo.  It shouldn't be this hard!!!  I think these two businesses should change there business hour signs to this
HOURS
EVERYDAY 12-9
UNLESS WE DON'T OPEN ON TIME.
TATTOO ARTISTS AVAILABLE WHENEVER THEY GET HERE
WHENEVER THEY FEEL LIKE IT OR CAN GET A RIDE OR ROLL OUT OF BED
GOOD LUCK
COME BACK SOON

Purple Scorpion and Shining Star you can kiss my Ironman ass.
P.S.  This is why I shouldn't keep writing a blog.  Political correctness is not my strongpoint.

IRONMAN RACE REPORT PART 3

26.2 miles.  Lots of people run marathons.  Lots of people do NOT run marathons after swimming 2.4 miles and biking 112.  This was my thought as I ran out of transition.  And I did run...My legs usually feel good for awhile right after biking.  I headed out of town and the feeling good part lasted for a whole two miles.  UH OH.  It's going to be a long night.  My legs weren't the problem.  It was my stomach.  I had a cramp on the right side of my abdomen that simply would not go away.  It was hot too.  I still had my arm coolers on and dumped water on them every aid station in that first loop.  I also had a cooling towel that functions the same way as the arm coolers.  The towel was wrapped around my neck and tucked into my shirt so I looked like I was wearing an ascot.  Very trendy...except I was a sweaty, sticky, smelly mess....but damn I looked good!!!  My stomach cramp allowed me to run maybe a half mile at a time before becoming unbearable and having to walk.  This forced me to adopt a strategy of running all downhills and as much flat as I could tolerate and power walking anything that remotely looked like an incline.  When I was running I could hold around a 9:45-10:00 min/mi.  When I walked I made sure it was below a 15 min/mi. The aid stations on the out & back section of River Road were great.  One had a redneck theme and my second favorite sign of the race..."If you think a girl is out of your league because she bowls on a different night...you might be a redneck."  These volunteers were dressed in hats, mullets and missing teeth.  Another was Christmas themed complete with Santa  Claus and an elf and Christmas music.  The aid stations were stocked with water, Perform, Coke, chicken broth, gu, chomps, bonk breaker bars, pretzels, oranges and grapes.  Nothing on that list appealed to me.  I tried something different each time to settle my stomach but nothing was helping.  I can honestly say there wasn't a lot of running going on by anyone that loop and even less the second time around.  About a mile after the turnaround I saw Kerry.  Again it was such a mood booster to see her and know she was ok and I also knew it wouldn't be long before she caught me and we could chat.  Around Mile 11 as I was powerwalking up the hill back into town Kerry came up behind me and kept me company to the top of the hill then she took off like the Kenyan-wannabe that she is on the run.  Since it is a two loop course the spectators here have no idea what loop you are on so I got quite a few "Way to go..almost there..you are going to be an Ironman"  Umm NO.  I have 15 miles to go not 2.  I headed up Mirror Lake drive and was excited to know my family was waiting for me.  I first saw Cindy, Deb, Patty and Bonnie and then passed by the family.  I handed out high 5's, gave Tracie my sunglasses and arm coolers as the sun was starting to set and headed to the turnaround.  Right before it was special needs run where I stopped and put on my second life-saving purchase...calf compression sleeves.  All of the down hill running and powerwalking was killing my shins.  These things felt wonderful.

I also grabbed a ziploc baggie that had 7 notes in it.  I had asked my family and Quinn to write something down they wished they could say to me during the race.  I stuffed it down my shirt and hit the turnaround and headed back down Mirror Lake Drive past the family again.  Here I stopped dead right in front of them and said "I just want you all to know this is really hard".  But I said it with a smile because I was still having fun.

Note the red ascot and compression sleeves.  Nice

At the bottom of the hill I had to make the dreaded left turn to start the 2nd loop of the run while some lucky people were going right into the Oval to finish.  I resumed my run downhill strategy and noticed my stomach pain was gone.  It was replaced however by lightheadedness.  Great I was thinking.  I can walk the last damn 13 miles and finish but what happens if I pass out.  UGH.  I drank and drank and drank at every aid station and forced myself to eat although I had no interest in anything there.  YUK. My new run strategy was run 20 steps, walk 20 steps.  This worked better and sometimes I could even get up to 50 steps before I thought I would pass out.  And so it went run, powerwalk, pray I don't take a header, run powerwalk, Thank God I am not the person I just went by puking or passed out or crying on the side of the road, run, powerwalk.  At Mile 17 I read the first of my notes from my family and they really gave me something to look forward to and lasted until Mile 24.  It was all good then though.  My feet were KILLING me, I was exhausted, dehydrated, tired and lightheaded but I was 2.2 miles from becoming an Ironman.  As I walked up that bigass hill into town the crowds got heavier and heavier and louder and louder.  For 2.2 miles I heard "Hey 847 you are going to be an Ironman", "Hey Deanne you're almost there, you are going to be an Ironman tonight".  I couldn't stop smiling.  I looked at all of them said thank you and yes... yes I am going to be an Ironman.  I was running/walking around the same pace as a girl named Katie for around 1.5 miles.  She had about 3 or 4 people from her tri team running alongside her telling the crowds to cheer for Katie.  At one point one of them asked my name and I told her.  She then proceeded to run ahead of us yelling at the spectators to cheer for Deanne and Katie.  It was pretty cool.  As I turned onto Mirror Lake one last time I saw Deb, Cindy, Bonnie and Patty again which was awesome.  I knew my family wouldn't be there because they would be at the finish.  I saw Kerry one more time as she headed to the Oval and told her "Go be an Ironman and I will see you at the finish!!!"  Soon it was my turn and as I made the right turn onto Main Street to the Oval I stopped running for a few seconds.  I had two reasons.  1.  Katie was right in front of me and I wanted some separation between us and 2.  I wanted to savor the moment.  I was about to enter the Olympic Oval which was rocking with thousands of spectators and run a quarter way around it to cross the finish line and become an Ironman.  I can not put into words the feeling as I rounded that corner and saw my entire family in their green shirts and then the finish line.  Because I had lost my ability to do math a few hours prior I thought I was looking at around 15hrs 15 min.  When I looked up and saw 14:54:27 I starting fist pumping like the Jersey Shore cast.  Holy crap how did that happen.  And then I heard the words I had dreamed about for months...."Deanne Hobba from Salem, MA you ARE an IRONMAN!!!!!!!!!!!  The finish line catcher put her arm around me and asked if I was ok.  "I think" I said.  And this is how the rest of the conversation went. I can't be bothered with punctuation so follow the conversation.  We are going to walk over there and someone will give you a bottle of water. OK.  Now they are going to take your timing chip off your ankle. OK. Now they are going to give you a finishers shirt, hat, and medal. OK.  Now you are going to go over there and get your picture taken.  OK. Are sure you are ok?  Yep I am fine.  So off I went and found my family, friends, and Kerry for lots of hugs and pictures.

WE ARE IRONMEN

BEST SUPPORT TEAM EVER

BEST FRIEND AND IRONSHERPA

Shortly after these pictures I didn't feel so hot.  I was very lightheaded and my hands were getting tingly.  I didn't want to pass out and freak my family out so I went back in the athlete area and sat in a chair.  A volunteer asked if I needed anything.  She brought me chocolate milk, water and pizza.  Chocolate milk not a good idea.  Couldn't tolerate that.  I drank the water and slowly ate a piece of pizza and after about 15-20 mins I felt better so I went to find the family again.  We sat and talked about the day and celebrated my accomplishment.

They all look so attentive

Thanks to my awesome Ironsherpa Quinn I didn't have to worry about getting my bike or bags.  She had done it earlier.  What a lifesaver that was.  So the final numbers

SWIM  1:34:46
TRANSITION 1 15:29
BIKE 7:30:40
TRANSITION 2 9:28
RUN 5:24:04
TOTAL 14:54:27

There are a few more blogs to write and wrap up the experience so stay tuned but after that my blogging days are over.  My everyday life just isn't entertaining enough to keep this going.

IRONMAN RACE REPORT PART 2

112 very long very hot miles.  Having ridden the course in training camp was invaluable.  I knew exactly what to expect but that didn't make this easy.  I made a purchase a few days before the race that really saved me on the bike.  Arm coolers.

I put these on in transition and when I got hot during the ride I would squirt water on them and they would immediately cool my body temperature.  My bike computer said it was 74 at the start of the bike and 94 at the finish.  Not sure if it really got that hot but it was definitely in the 80's somewhere.  As I headed out of Lake Placid my HR was sky high from being so pumped up about my swim so I settled down and took it easy.  I navigated the never-ending hill out of town and settled in for the long haul.  The course itself was a graveyard of launched water bottles and nutrition.  I could have opened my own store with all the gu and power bars lying on the road.  It also made for a bit of an obstacle course out there.  I hit the downhill to Keene and let loose.  In training camp I topped out at 33 MPH here.  On race day I hit 38 MPH and yes I was scared shitless but it was fun.  Around Mile 36 I stopped to use the bathroom and fix my right sock.  I was getting a horrible hot spot on that foot that was almost unbearable.  Then began the 20 mile climb back into town.  This part of the course is so brutal and we were riding smack into a strong head wind.  If you watched my splits you can see the difference this made.  I averaged 18.29 MPH the first 30 miles and 12.71 the next 26.  You do have to take into account the stop which probably took around 5 mins as I waited in line but still...those 26 miles hurt.  There were so many signs out on the road and stuff written on the road that made me laugh.  Just like Kerry my favorite one on the bike was "If Ironman was easy it would be called your Mom".  Going up Papa Bear hill was great as there were tons of spectators in the road running alongside you screaming for you.  There were also two dudes in cheerleading outfits and this guy.

It also helped to know I would be headed down Mirror Lake Drive in a few minutes and would see my family.  I could see their green shirts a mile away and gave a big wave and smile as I went by because you know what...I was having fun!!!

Hands down best cheering squad EVER

I looped into town behind the oval and headed out for round two.  As expected everything was just harder.  As I approached the bottom of the hill in Keene I saw Kerry ahead of me.  After riding all those miles with her I can spot her easily.  It was such a boost to catch up to her and have a little chance to compare notes and make sure we were each doing okay.  We hung together for a bit and then I pulled away.  I stopped again to fix my right sock as my foot was burning like crazy.  I never had this problem in training and I was a little worried that I had already developed a blister that would haunt me on the run.  Before I knew it it was time to climb back into town again.  OMG this was tough.  I was hot and tired and the head wind was just as brutal.  There was a lot of carnage on this stretch of the course.  I saw no less than a dozen people off their bikes throwing up over the guardrails.  I also saw two or three lying flat out on the ground waiting for the ambulance.  As I passed all these people it was a reality check.  No matter how bad I felt...and I did...it could be much worse.  I had to stop for a third time to ease the pain in my foot but then got going and was back on Mirror Lake Drive again to see my family and friends.  This time as I looped around to the Oval it was time to get off the bike.  After 7 hrs and 30 mins my 112 mile IM bike was done.  My actual ride time was 7:23 so between the 3 stops I only wasted 7 minutes.  I think I consumed around 6 bottles of Perform, several bottles of water, 6 gus, 1 pack of gu chomps and two bonk breaker bars on the bike.  As I hit the dismount line I unclipped and was very happy that my legs cooperated and did not crumble beneath me.  A volunteer took my bike and I shuffled into transition to get my run gear bag.  Before going in the tent I hit the bathroom and then into the tent.  Once again a volunteer sat me down and dumped my stuff out and asked what I needed.  Again I said I have a list.  Helmet off, shirt off, running shirt on, bike shoes off, tri shorts off, underwear and compression shorts on, eat, drink, advil, body glide feet, socks on, shoes on, sunglasses on, gum in.  I can't run without gum!!!  The volunteer packed all my stuff back in my bag and turned me around the right way as I attempted to run the wrong way out of the tent.  Hey...I was hot and tired....what can I say.  This transition took 9.5 minutes but again I don't care.  I didn't want to forget anything.  As I crossed under the Run Out arch the clock said I was now 9 hrs and 40 minutes into my Ironman day.  At that point I could still do math so I knew I had 7 hrs and 20 mins to run a marathon.  I could pretty much walk the majority of it if I had to.  OK legs I know you have gone 114.4 miles already but we have 26.2 more to go and they are going to be the hardest and hurt the most so let's get this party started.

Me and my ass headed out on the marathon

Stay tuned for the run details

IRONMAN RACE REPORT PART 1

There were 2273 people that finished IMLP this year.  There was also an 11% DNF rate (did not finish).  The average finishing time this year was 13:30 which is the slowest it has been in 4 years.  The experts say this was due to slower than usual bike splits which then led to an average marathon time over 5 hours.  I am pretty sure you can blame the heat and the ridiculous head wind on the hardest part of the bike course for those statistics but we will get to that later.  I actually slept well the night before the race and was up at 3:45 AM. Melatonin is da bomb!!!!  I had my usual pre-race breakfast of a bagel with peanut butter, a banana and coffee.  I put body glide on each and every part of my body I thought could possibly chafe and donned my race day uniform.  I took a few deep breaths and Quinn and I set out for the less than half mile walk to the transition area.  Before heading in I stopped to get my body marked as they wrote my number all over me.  It was then I realized I forgot the damn Sharpie I brought from home so I borrowed one from the body marking people and wrote the very important "FOR DAVID" on my hands.

As the sun comes up athletes are getting body marked

 I headed over to my bike and put my bottles on and filled up the aerobottle.  I found Kerry and used her pump to top off my tires and we headed up Mirror Lake Drive to the swim area.  Quinn and I had set a tent out along there earlier and my coaches condo was also right there so we had a place to hang out and even better go the bathroom before the race started.  There were a million things going through my head as we waited but at that point I just wanted to get in the water and do this.  After a team picture at Jeff's condo it was time to put the wetsuit on and head over to the swim start.  My family had only made it as far as the playground on the way to the swim start so I would see them before heading into the water.  In retrospect this was a good thing because when I did see them there were quite a few tears and I needed to block all that out.  I hugged all my peeps and Kerry and I headed over through the arches into Mirror Lake.

You're right Josh...we do resemble a pink penis

We got into the water just as the pros were starting and had 10 mins to decide where we wanted to be.  We ended up in the open space between people who wanted to be up front and people who wanted to be way in back.  It was weird to be in open space but I knew it wouldn't last.  I floated and choked back tears as I realized I was actually about to start this race and despite my feelings about swimming I wasn't nervous at all.  BOOM.  Off goes the cannon and for a whole 30 secs it was good.  Then we hit the traffic jam all the while everyone behind us was approaching.  It is kind of like the worst highway pile up you could imagine...only in a lake and we were smack dab in the middle.  From then on it was more like water rugby.

 I am not sure I did anything that resembled swimming on the way out that first loop.  It was sorta like swim swim swim ouch hit in arm swim swim swim ouch hit in leg swim really dude do you have to swim over top of me.  I was constantly adjusting to avoid flying body parts and a few times got sucked in towards the cable where it was worse.  It is virtually impossible to free yourself while you are there so you just grin and bear it.  The return trip was slightly better but still a lot of contact.  It was on the way back that it struck me....despite the fact that I am swimming and getting beat down on occasion I am having fun!!!!!  Holy crap...how did that happen?  As I got closer to the end of the loop I could here the crowds screaming.  I got out of the water and looked at my watch.  46:23.  I was happy with that. Through the arch back in the water for lap two.  I did stop here and stand in the water to pee.  Just sayin.  I had to go.  I knew the second lap wouldn't be as fast because there wouldn't be as much as a draft effect since it was spreading out some.  I managed to get on the cable for a great deal of the second lap although there were times when it got dicey again and I had to get out of Dodge for a bit.  Again as I made my way closer to the swim exit I could hear the crowds screaming and knew this was it...my 2.4 mile IM swim was almost done.  When I got out of the water I looked at my watch and saw 1:34.  Holy shit.  My best case scenario for my swim was 1:40.  I think this picture pretty much sums up feelings about my swim

I pulled my wetsuit down to my waist and a volunteer looked at me and yelled "You, on the ground on your butt!!" I did as told and whoosh...off goes the wetsuit and thankfully my shorts stayed on.  I stood up grabbed my suit from the stripper (wetsuit stripper that is) and headed out for the quarter mile run to transition.  It was awesome to run down a street lined from beginning to end with people 3-4 deep screaming and clapping for you.  Even better I saw my family and my awesome friends Cindy, Bonnie, Deb and Patty.  As I entered the Oval I got my bike gear bag and entered the changing tent where an amazing volunteer told me to sit down, grabbed my bag and asked me what I needed.  I had a note in my bag of things I needed to do so she worked through the list with me.  Dry off, socks on, bike shoes on, eat, drink, take advil, race number on, turn on GPS tracker, arm coolers on, helmet on, sunglasses on, gu in pockets, watch off, Garmin on.  I went to the bathroom and when got back she had all my stuff back in the bag and pointed me in the direction of my bike.  I ran out of the tent and another awesome volunteer handed me my bike and I ran to the mount line.  As I got on my bike and clipped in I looked at the clock.  I was an hour and 50 mins into my Ironman day and off I went on the bike.  I spent 15 mins in transition which is a long time but not all that uncommon.  I had stuff to do and I didn't want to forget anything.  In case you don't know you can click on the pics in the blogs and view them in a bigger size.  Stay tuned for Part 2.  Check out the link below for a pretty good video of the swim madness and traffic jam.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8dA1EJAigs