UMM YEAH....THAT'S GONNA LEAVE A MARK

Hello my blog-following peeps... big news on the blog front.  Despite bonding all summer over Ironman training, spending umpteem hours together sweating and enduring grueling conditions and accomplishing together the biggest challenge we have ever undertaken, I have finally found Kerry's threshhold for our friendship.  She simply refused to allow me to use her ass to cushion my fall while running yesterday.  Sad I know.....I was a bit choked up myself. Anyhow this is how it all came about.  Cindy, Kerry and I went to Lynn Woods yesterday to get in a two hour run.  Now I love running in the woods but the one bad thing about it is when you get tired running you start dragging your feet a bit.  This isn't so bad on the roads but the kiss of death in the woods where the trails are full of rocks and tree branches.  About an hr and 25 mins in I was dragging ass and my feet when boom.....my foot hit a rock and I started that slow motion "oh crap I am going down" dance.  There was pretty much nothing I could do to stop it.  Now Kerry was running in front of me and upon hearing that unmistakeable sound of someone hitting a rock and then the cascade of dragging feet she said and I quote "I felt something coming and I wasn't sure exactly what it was but I knew I didn't want to get caught in it so I took off."  So there you have it peeps.  I could have landed softly on Kerry's ass but instead hit the ground and executed a stunning slide depositing tons of dirt and gravel into both hands.  Whatever Kerry!!!!  Seriously though thank God she sped off because given the fact that I easily have 20+ lbs on her I would have taken her down like a bowling ball meeting a bowling pin.  Once I got back on my feet we surveyed the damage.  Both palms were bloody and both knees were already sprouting bruises.  Kerry squirted water from her bottle onto my hands to try and wash away some dirt and gravel from the cuts.  Cindy offered up the back of her shorts for me to wipe the blood off but I used my own shorts instead.  She kept pointing to her ass saying "right here" "right here".  Now I knew what she was talking about but Kerry thought she was asking her to squirt water there and could not figure out why the hell Cindy wanted her ass squirted with water.  What a crew we are.  Like any self-respecting runner I walked a few minutes to make sure everything worked and nothing I needed for running hurt and said "Let's go finish this run!"  And so off I went dripping blood for 35 more minutes.  When I got home I had Quinn help me clean up the wounds as much as I could tolerate without crying like a girl.  OMG that hurt. Once again Quinn had to break out multiple first-aid products to put me back together again.  Talk about high maintenance!!! They look pretty good today but my hands are very sore.  Unfortunately you can't appreciate the bruising in the pictures.

In retrospect it could have been worse........this could have happened



Now that would really leave a mark!!!!

I think that might truly be the last straw for my friends.  I have traumatized them enough without breaking out my pasty white ass for them to see!!!!  Cindy, Kerry and I reunited this morning for a bike ride and spent an enjoyable 40 some miles together.  It rained but we kept on riding.  It was like wild kingdom out there. I am pretty sure the animals are planning a takeover because they were in groups today...4 deer, 6 turkeys, a gaggle of geese (no kidding...there were at least 50 of them), 3 horses and squirrels galore.  I did see a few horses asses also but they were in cars trying to see how close they could come to me on the bike.  Idiots. Just how many geese do you need to qualify for a gaggle anyhow?  Anyone out there know?  Anyhow..other notable weekend stuff..went out to dinner last night with Tracie, Ariel and Quinn and had an awesome time.  The only drawback was the little shit sitting at the table behind us who felt the need to scream frequently throughout dinner at the top of his lungs in an ear-piercing tone pissing off just about the entire restaurant.  Now I would never harm a child but I truly wanted to choke the life out of this kids parents.  Idiots.  One more note before I sign-off...a special shout out to Mef (my Aunt Beth for non-family readers) who is in the hospital after a set-back from her hip surgery.  Keep strong Mef and be positive.  I love you!!!!

BUSY BUSY BUSY

For someone who doesn't exactly have a booming social life I had a very busy weekend.  Quinn and I decided to play tourist on Saturday and went into Boston to see the Constitution.  We walked from North Station over to the Charlestown Navy Yard and waited in line to see the boat.  This was right up there with trying to get on a plane.  Belts, cellphones, camera, etc and body all through metal detector and xray.  Thankfully it took much less time and we were on the boat.  If you live in these parts and have never seen it you really should go.  It is a beautiful ship full of history and it's FREE!!!  I found something I really wanted to take off the boat but but it was a bit big to carry.  I can assure you if I had one of these

I have a million reasons for needing one of these

those lawn-mowing idiots from next door would manage to get it done much quicker!!!  Nothing like a canonball across your lawnmower/weedwacker/leafblower to get your ass moving.  And yes that is an Ironman finisher shirt I have on.  Have I mentioned I am an Ironman??  After touring around the Constitution we visited the USS Caisson Young which is a destroyer.  Quinn found a little something there she wanted to take home.  This might just shutup the white trash f bomb dropping neighbors on the other


Depth charge anyone?

side of our apartment who scream at each other at least three times a day or more.  IDIOTS.  We left the Navy Yard peacefully without procuring any weapons and walked over to the North End into the madness of St. Anthony's feast.  After splitting a softball-sized aranchini we sat over by the fountains and cooled our feet.  It was a great day.  Sunday was raceday.  Kerry and I were doing the Cranberry Olympic Tri.  We were both signed up to do this last year but some beyotch named Hurricane Irene blew threw causing the race to be cancelled.  The weather yesterday was beautiful although heavy fog caused the race start to be delayed 15 mins because you could not see the buoys on the pond.  It was great to

As Quinn says...same picture, different numbers



 do a race with absolutely no pressure.  As stated I had one goal and that was to ride the wheels off my bike and I did.  That must have been Kerry's goal too because she had a blistering fast ride also.  We both averaged just under 19MPH.  We both agreed that our legs were burning and hurting but we didn't care.  Kerry followed that up with a damn good run and I thought mine was pretty good considering I have a toe that hurts like a bastard and can only be fixed with surgery.  Both of our swims were good.  We started in different waves.  I was in the 45 and up wave since I am old.  These women were brutal.  Worse than Lake Placid.  I got hit, pushed and swum over more than in the IM.  Nasty old biddies!!!  Kerry said her wave was very aggressive also.  The water was pretty shallow in some parts but all in all a nice swim.  It took me a few minutes longer in transition than planned since my damn wetsuit got stuck on my foot.  I think every race should have wetsuit strippers!!!  Great day, great race.  After I crossed the finish line I heard someone calling my name.  I looked up but didn't recognize said person but she was carrying flowers so she can't be too bad right?!  Turns out it was Melanie, loyal blog reader and Kerry's friend who came to watch us.  She had flowers for both of us which was awesome of her.  Thank you Melanie and good to finally meet you!!  Thanks to all of Kerry's friends for coming out to watch and cheer us on.  Thanks again to Quinn, sherpa extraordinaire who not only comes to these races but makes sure she sees us as many times as possible.  You rock Lynda.  Onto marathon training.


Me and Kerry on our way to check out the water



Asking Quinn if my legs are still attached



Bonnie did this race after doing a marathon in ICELAND a week ago!!!!!



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.