...live in the moment, repeat...IMKS

I am not sure I have ever been so chill coming into a race.  I was in California the week prior...perfect taper right?  Just a couple of fishbowls beers were consumed.  Even with getting home on Friday and only having a day to prep for the race, I was just chill as can be.  #odd

I knew I didn't prep like I had last year.  Last year was a whole different caliber.  This year has been a completely different beast to tame.  My head and heart have been all over the place.  So I took the fitness I had and decided to just race to the MY best in that moment on that day.  No pressure, no major time goals, no disapointment...high five EVERY kiddo, smile, push, live in the moment, repeat.

Typically pre-race I feel sick to my stomach, have major anxiety, and sometimes cry.  Prior to the race on Sunday, there were no butterflies, no wonky stomach and not a single tear.  But there was a dramatic photo shoot at the swim start. #evenbetter  Yup, #hotmess #Imadork

Lovely Liz, of the RED LADIES, #Casey'swife

COME HERE CASEY (the stud who just rocked IMTX also on #teamBSC)

CHEEEEEESE

Sandy Brown says...look like you're gazing over the H2O...who does that with a straight face!?!?!?! #nostressinghere

high fives and two thumbs up

Was not my fastest swim at this race, nor was it my slowest.  The conditions were perfect so I might have needed to be a bit more serious and attempt to swim straight and not take the long way around the buoys.  No excuses, it was 3 min slower than my PR at this distance and for what I've put in this year...I'll take it.

The bike...hmm, despite some Garmin snaffu's the bike was pretty ok!  My legs were on fire until.mile.40...SERIOUSLY LEGS?  Well at least they warmed up right?!

I had an AMAZING cheer section at mile 35 on the bike.  at the top of a pretty good hill.  Damn my girls are the best.  #lovemyathletes It was such an epic section of cheer, I was asked on the run if I was 'the Kelly' from the bike course!  Ha!  So.much.fun.  THANKS LADIES!!!  (I'll add more pictures later, I have some good ones!)

The run...hmmm, no real major issues.  I have been running pretty good lately, if I had any expectations for this race, it would have been on the run.  Being present and in the moment was an intention I made from the start.  I wanted to make sure that I was working as hard as I could at that particular moment and if so GREAT!...if not, well I needed to get there.  My legs didn't feel great...ever during the 2 loops.  My mantra during the 2nd loop was "round 2...fight"...is that from a video game?  hmm. weird as I don't even own a DVD player, much less a video game thing...oh wait, I do have the original Nintendo.

After reviewing my race plan, Michelle wrote me to high 5 every kiddo and I did just that.  Try it!  It totally makes you smile (i.e. have fun!). 

Overall it turned out to be exactly what I had hoped.  I smiled almost the whole race, I finished in a respectable place/time and I had FUN!  I won't lie, it is was so nice not chasing PR's, world champ slots, etc, etc, etc.  & even with all the fun I had, I was only 7' slower than my PR on this course...with way less fitness.  I think there is something to be said about limiting stress and having fun in this sport.  Sounds like a good plan for the rest of the season, no? 

Post race shenanigans...

Kept my eye on the prize.

Getting the new babe (no, not mine) ready for the "LaPan medal" photo shoot.

Tuckered babe

Despicable me and aloha pants #chillin

Big thanks to everyone who reaches out every.single.time I race.  It means a ton hearing from everyone.  Lots of xoxoxo to my coach, #teamBSC and my athletes.  #lovebeingacoach 

hashtag.lotsofthem

...you are stronger than you think...

Camp thoughts…where do I even begin? 

I have attended numerous tri camps in the past 6 years…this was my first time as a coach.  How different it all is.  There is so much that goes on behind the scenes, I’ve never been so grateful for everything my past camp coaches have done to get all the logistics in place than I am right now.  It’s tough work…getting SAG bought and set up, marking courses, organizing travel, showering @ 9:30 pm, meeting and socializing with the other athletes, AND making sure you are taking care of yourself (i.e. feeding hydrating, etc.) WHEW! 

BUT here’s the deal…IT IS ALL WORTH IT!  We had some MAJOR breakthroughs this week…seeing the athletes overcome fears, getting comfortable being uncomfortable, climbing mountains in PR record time…all the exhaustion of planning and organizing goes right out the window.  I am not sure Krista and I could be any more PROUD and satisfied than we are right now.  I would call this camp a HUGE success.

We had an incredible group of athletes this year.  Such a dynamic and diverse group, different athletic abilities, different ages.  We had local Scottsdale athletes, a couple east coast, west coast and several of us from the midwest…many will become friends for life.  Everyone stepped up and put their best foot forward and worked hard.  That’s the point of camp right?  Spend 4-5 days out of your routine; build a big fitness base and WORK HARD.  And that we did…

Thursday was an easy ‘optional’ run.  I put optional in quotes because everyone ran it.  Easy social jog, we didn’t want any matches being burned…we had a big week in front of us. 

Even Baxter needed to hydrate!

The Monday before camp, our coach Michelle was having major FOMO and decided to hop on a plane from Hawaii and join us!  She asked Krista and I to keep it a secret so she could surprise her athletes.  That was a tough secret to keep!  We were all super excited about her arrival late Thursday pm!!   (Needless to say her other athletes were super surprised and excited to see her!  Read her camp blog here!)

Me, Michelle, Krista...BSC coaches!

Our version of pillow service for coach Michelle!

Friday morning was a BIG day…huge.  A long bike to Bartlett Lake, a ~40 min OWS in Bartlett Lake then a 14 mile CLIMB out of the lake (where we spotted IM world champ Rinny and Tim) then enjoy the decent ride home.  It would have been about an 80-mile day, except Jen Sparkles and I decided to ride to Cave Creek and added another 12 miles to our day.  Why not, right?  Actually we I missed our turn…my bad.  ;)

Coach and sparkles :)

Either way it worked out perfect.  It was a tough ride and with a little coaxing of the bodies with nutrition, we all pushed through.  Krista and I were able to see some folks pushing their bodies and most importantly their minds…

’you are stronger than you think’

Barlett Lake!

My friend and inspirational speaker, Jenne Fromm so kindly agreed to take some time out of her Friday evening to virtually ‘hang’ out with us and teach us a little bit of how our minds work both for us and against us.  As usual she changed a couple peoples lives that night.  Everyone should check her out here! She’s quite an amazing individual.  I am honored and proud to call her my friend.

We had an ‘easier’ day on tap for Saturday.  ‘Just’ a 3-hour ride, including a jaunt up 9-mile hill.  Pacing and nutrition was key for this ride, especially since we had a mountain to climb the next day.  Krista and I each rode with a different group.  My group practiced pace lines on our way to the climb, super fun when you don’t ride with a big bike group very often!  Once we got to the bottom of the hill our strategy was this…spin to about mile 5, then add a couple of gears, @ mile 8 ATTACK and catch the front group.  And holy shit, we did it.  PERFECT pacing...

’you are stronger than you think’

Solid bunch of athletes!

Off the bike we had a 4-mile run.  We asked everyone to stay inside themselves for the first 2 miles and negative split this run.  It’s a lot harder to do this as most feel really good off the bike and are ready to charge.  It was noon in the desert and the false flat on the way home made for the negative split to be a SOLID challenge.  I think we had an almost 100% success rate.  A quick 3k swim shower and we had ourselves another HUGE deposit in the bank.

Sunday was the day I had been waiting for…for literally YEARS.  The EPIC Mt. Lemmon climb.  We got up early and caravanned the 2 hours down to Tucson.  Having never had experience Mt. Lemmon, I knew had to pace myself and needed to convenience the others to do the same.  WOW.  What an experience.  It was exactly what I had imagined it would be.  HARD.  BEAUTIFUL.  FUN.  And 2 hours and 45 minutes later, I was at the cookie cabin...
 

’you are stronger than you think’

Me, Krista and Sippy!  At the top of the Mnt.

Not too long after that, we were ALL eating cookies and pizza.  It was so amazing to see our athletes push the limits especially mentally and literally arrive at the top.  It’s a feeling that brings tears to your eyes when thinking about the metaphor of climbing a mountain, on a bike, by yourself.  

Pizza, Cookie and Sparky!!!

Then we had to get down.  It would be quick (time), it would be fast (speed), and it would be in a wind storm/headwind.  I am not the best/comfortable descending, but holy shit THAT was fun.  We had a couple athletes VERY hesitant to descend and one actually wasn’t going to, she wanted to ride in the SAG wagon down, but Shane with his negotiation skills convinced her he would leap frog with her down.  She drank the cool-aid and we once again had a 100% success rate of both the climb and the descent... 

’you are stronger than you think’

And all of a sudden it was Monday the last day of camp.  L  We had a l5 mile route and a 10 mile route planned for the group.  How would our legs feel after 190 miles of riding 14k feet of climbing?  Would they show up to play?  But of course they did!  I think everyone was a bit sore/tired, but the run got done.  Krista and I had terrorized marked Paradise Valley in a delirium the night before… & the route was absolutely stunning at sunrise.  Such a joy to be there…running.  Especially after the days leading up to it, there were little to no complaints had by any.

Sparkle and Kelly selfie!

Another quick swim and we were done!  (both literally and figuratively)  It was bittersweet at that point.  I didn’t know if the sadness was actually fatigue or if I was terribly sad it had to come to an end.  I think it was a combo of the two!  

Thanks Planet Sun for protecting us all week!!

Camp was a huge success!  Krista gets all the credit!  She worked super hard with figuring the logistics of the rides/runs.  This camp wouldn't have been without her.  She is a solid athlete and an even more amazing coach.  She's been a rock in my world and I am incredibly thankful to have her in my life.  Thank you Krista!!  You are amazing and I am so thankful for our friendship!

Thanks recoverye21 for our CUTE camp tanks!

I also must thank all of the athletes for working so hard and pushing themselves to the limit.  THANK YOU!  They deposited a huge amount of fitness into their ‘bank’ $$cha-ching$$ and it will come in handy very soon ;)   I wish everyone the most success in 2014.

Thank you to Shane and June.  We really couldn't have asked for a better SAG crew!  Water, nutrition, directions, photos, motivation, you name it - they had it ready for us.  We really couldn't have asked for a better support system.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

And last but not least, THANK YOU to our sponsors!!

Recovery e21 - Amazing product.  This stuff has gotten me through the most grueling training rides/runs and 2 Iroman.  Good stuff.  Get it.

Planet Sun - Did I mention not one person got burned in the desert sun?  Not a ONE!!  This stuff is top notch along with the people/company that run it.     

And here I am.  On the plane…revisiting the past 5 days.  Sad, excited, motivated, ready to race, experience new things, new challenges.  I never thought I would be doing what I love, not only as an athlete but now as a coach!!!  I am so inspired and excited to keep the momentum going.  The love and support I have within this community is crazy strong and I am incredibly blessed and thankful to have TeamBSC as my friends and family. 

...until next time, remember ’you are stronger than you think’

Happy Team BSC Scottsadale Camp Eve!

It's less than 24 hours away.

Team BSC Scottsdale Camp.  My 2nd camp with this amazing crew.  My first as a coach.  EIK!!!  We have some amazing bat shit crazy sessions planned, (many thanks to Krista for all of her planning)! There will be an amazing speaker, a Mt. Lemmon climb (and the obligatory cookie), and we have a MAJOR surprise for our athletes!  I am so excited!!!!

I have not done much outside riding this year...thanks ol man winter and me turning into a wimp in the cold.  #ihatethecold  Later this week...I will have 12 hours of saddle time planned in 3 consecutive days.  Talk about a pain in the ass.  I'll be hurting for sure.  But the benefits of training camp is the huge fitness boost one gets when all has been accomplished.  I'll need it.  Race season is just around the corner for me.

This has been a stressful past couple of months for me and nothing will heal my soul more than 5 days with friends who are just as BSC as I am.  Riding long will help clear my head and get me motivated for the season ahead!  I've had to majorly adjust my race schedule, but there is still an IM on the books for this year...and maybe 2. ;)  Time to get moving!!

Cheers to BSC camp #2!!!

MAF Training

Michelle has had me training by HR from day 1.  I loathed HR training until she really got me to understand the importance.  Now that I am diving into the world of coaching, I thought I ought to do my own research and put down my own thoughts on the subject.  Michelle had been having me use the maximum aerobic function MAF method of HR training.  Here's link to the article on MAF-test straight from the MAN himself Dr. Phil Maffetone.  (my next post will be on my personal progress using this method)

One of the reasons I've not been put on the sideline for too long in my IM training is the use of MAF training...i.e. knowing if you are running too hard too often...which is a recipe for injury and illness.  Injuries and sickness are much less likely to occur when you are not running your body into the ground day in and day out.  And the key to having consistency and progress in training/racing is avoiding both of these.  Avoid those niggles and visits to the doc and you avoid setbacks in your training.  PROGRESS!!


MAF training also measures if you are actually running EASY enough.  IMO I see too many people running too hard too often and completely ignoring their 'recovery' runs.  Your body reaps so many benefits due to these recovery runs.  Ah RECOVERY.  When one pushes through and keeps running HARD instead of backing off, you burn the candle on both ends.  HR training keeps you from blowing that fuse. 

Want to get faster?  Slow down.  Build that aerobic base.  This occurs when one actually runs within their HR zone.  This could be SLOW, painfully SLOW.  In fact, you may have to walk when first staring out.   Gah!  I'd be a $$ rich RICH $$$ lady if I had a nickel for every time I've heard, "it's SO painful for me to run slow."  I actually LOVE running slow...I love it because I'm able to BUST out proper speed work when it's on my schedule because I'm RECOVERED.  It's been proven time and time again, building the base = the speed will come once your aerobic capacity improves.   The benefit of this base build is the ability to run FASTER at the SAME effort, meaning the same heart rate.  This type of training is best to be done NOW, during the *off-season*.  Once that base is built it provides a FOUNDATION for speed/strength work that comes later in the season  Without this base getting into the anaerobic sessions is like "building a house on sand".

 In addition there's a bunch of science that shows you will loose some body fat as well...uhh, ok *bonus*!

Ok, the test!!!  I snagged this from LUCHO .  I'm pretty sure he's the the KING of MAF training.

1. Take 180 and subtract your age.
2. Take that number and correct it by the amount next to the statement that best describes your level of fitness:

• a. Subtract five beats if you are recovering from a major illness or injury that has kept you from training for six months or more.

• b. Leave the number where it is if you have been working out about two to three days per week for at least a year.

• c. Add five beats if you have been working out more than three days per week for at least a year.

• d. Add 10 beats if you have been working out more than five days per week for at least five years without recurring colds, illnesses, injuries or long periods of burnout.

• e. If you are older than 55 years old or younger than 25 years old, add an additional five beats to whatever number you have right now.

Once you have your target HR let's get to the good part RUNNING...

Perform the MAF Test on a track, running at the maximum aerobic heart rate. A one- to five-mile test, with each one-mile interval recorded, provides good data. The test should be done following an easy 12–15 minute warm up, and be performed about every month throughout the year. *I'm having my athletes perform the 5 mile test as they have some miles under their belt.


While training, create a range of 10 beats below the maximum aerobic heart rate; example, if your target HR was 145, train between 135 and 145 staying as close to 145 as possible. To develop the aerobic system most effectively, all training should be at or below this level during base building. As the aerobic system develops, you will be able to run faster at the same maximum aerobic heart rate.1

GOT IT? :)

Here are some FUN READS on MAF testing and TRAINING.

Mama Simmons

Miss Zippy

Sock Doc

get a hold of me @kelgunn@gmail.com with any additional questions!!

I'm now a BSC coach...

...and I couldn't be more excited!!!

It's OFFICIAL!!!!!!  <---READ IT FROM "queen BSC" herself here

Team BSC Triathlon has launched!  I'm so excited Michelle has taken Krista and I under her wing to expand the team!  Completely honored she has this much faith in me to lead the way for other TeamBSC athletes.  BUT THAT'S WHAT A GOOD COACH DOES TO YA.  ;) 




Michelle's success with athletes is (BS)crazy.  Check out the Team BSC athlete stats...Just amazing numbers...

~TeamBSC had 21 athletes finish 24 Ironman races… for the second year in a row had a 100% finisher rate!

~16 of the 21 athletes achieved lifetime PRs at the distance (76% PR rate).

~2 Kona qualifiers and 7 Vegas qualifiers

What’s super cool about the 3 of us working together is how similar of athletes we are.  It's no secret how much Michelle has helped me get from an average athlete to the podium.  *funny* as she's taken all 3 of us from 12-13 hour iron distance athletes to >11 hour...ALL 3 OF US.  The 3 of us all admit we were not blessed with BSC speed, but we have heart and BSC work ethic...which is the same thing really ;)  Read any of our training logs and/or blogs and you will see how dedicated we are to triathlon AND how much we really truly LOVE this sport.  I cannot even explain how excited we all are to start this new journey.  We ALL believe that when you work hard for something, it CAN get done.  Hard work and dedication (with the right guidance of course ;)) can get YOU places, very very special places. 

I am super excited to share what I've learned from Michelle, my successes and experiences to help others achieve their goals!  Dream BIG!  It IS possible!

COME PLAY WITH US IN MARCH!!  We are hosting a cheap spring training camp in SUNNY Scottsdale!!!  ------->DETAILS <------  Perfect for those who are racing an early season Ironman or 70.3!!!  ****I think there are only 3 spots left, so if you are interested, contact us today!!!

Consequences

To those folks getting ready to jot down your 2014 New Years Resolution such as

• "FINISH A (enter choice triathlon/race here ->) _______" 
• "COMPLETE IM # ____"
• Run a 5k

be careful.  There are a ton of consequences that you will have to deal with once you start down this path.

...here are some of the ones I've run into in no particular order...

friends...You'll meet some really good folks.  The triathlon community has become some of my best friends.  The majority of people in the triathlon/running world are very TRUE and KIND.  You will actually WANT to get up at 5 am to spend the whole day with them on the bike.

weight loss...it took me 3 IM's before I figured out the secret of weight loss during all the hours of training and if you do it right, you'll loose some of those pesky lbs...bummer, I know.  Trash in = trash out.  Feed to fuel.

passion...More than likely you'll develop a sense of passion for sport.  It's what lights the fire in your belly when that pesky alarm blares at you at 4:30 am M-S.  It's a common thread that unites us as athletes.  You may not even be able to describe this devotion to your training and racing.  Feeling something stronger than just day to day living is pretty incredible.

confidence..."i cannot believe I just did that...I just took my body across 140.6 miles, self propelled"...I often say this when I finish a race. What else can I accomplish?  "'Belief in one's abilities to perform an activity comes through successful experience and may add to, or consolidate, a general sense of self-confidence."  **Studies have also found a link between high levels of confidence and wages. Terrible, right?

It's pretty powerful stuff, this journey to YOUR finish line.  I wish everyone a successful 2014, no matter your sport/hobby of choice.

DREAM BIG

“Be willing to be uncomfortable. Be comfortable being uncomfortable. It may get tough, but it’s a small price to pay for living a dream.” – Peter McWilliams
 

 “Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.” – Anonymous
 

 “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

Reflections

 2013 was a BIG year, huge.  A ton of gains were made, plenty of tears to go 'round, a couple of AG wins, 2 trips to the big island, and the granddaddy of them all, crossing that Kona finish line.  What you'll see I didn't mention, injury, burnout, DNF.

I attribute this to several things...my coach and my (gr)attitude.  See I really wasn't supposed to q'fy for Kona.  No where in recent years has anyone qualified for Kona in Arizona with a 10:50 finishing time (in my AG).  HOWEVER, don't take that to mean I don't think I didn't earn my spot.  Oh it was earned for sure, I fought for that finish.

"Sometimes opportunities float right past your nose.  Work hard, apply yourself and be ready.  When an opportunity comes you can grab it." - Julie Andrews

Sometimes opportunities float right past your nose. Work hard, apply yourself, and be ready. When an opportunity comes you can grab it.

Julie Andrews

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/julieandre393020.html#uVbTIosYJbTxIJvT.99

Sometimes opportunities float right past your nose. Work hard, apply yourself, and be ready. When an opportunity comes you can grab it.

Julie Andrews

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/julieandre393020.html#uVbTIosYJbTxIJvT.99

Sometimes opportunities float right past your nose. Work hard, apply yourself, and be ready. When an opportunity comes you can grab it.

Julie Andrews

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/julieandre393020.html#uVbTIosYJbTxIJvT.99

After I took the slot, talking with Michelle, she mentioned to me..."things will be different now".  I had no idea what she meant until training ramped up.  Not because she coached me any different (that I could tell anyway ;)) but because I knew I had to step it up.  No more missed workouts, no more late nights, no more half assed workouts.  I was about to step onto the biggest stage of my life and I wasn't going to let any 'what if's' cross through my mind on October 12th.

So I worked hard.  Missed VERY few sessions, ate well, slept well, basically said goodbye to my social life..that is unless I saw you at the pool, on the bike, or while running...oh and if you came to my house to watch the game and didn't mind if I fell asleep in the middle of it.  Bless my true friends who stood by me.  xoxoxo

Consistent training and fierce focus got me across the finish line...my FOURTH ironman....in KONA.  What a deal. 



And guess what I've done since?  Hmmm...REST, REST, REST.  Mostly for the mental side.  I decided before Kona I would be taking it easy the rest of the year, doing what feels FUN (surf class), and not beating myself up over a missed workout until after the 1st of the year (there has been a LOT of those).  I've said 'yes' to social events.  Only the past couple of weeks have I gotten back into the pool...last week was my first week of 3 swims.  Ha!  I have been keeping up with my long runs as the first race of the year is a 1/2 marathon with a full in April.  It's been NICE.

Big things are in store in 2014.  *teaser*  I have a first go of my race schedule.  Ironman Cozumel is happening.  Potentially this will be the year of 2 IMs...in true BSC style.  Stay tuned...

Aaaannnnndddd we are running - Kona 2013

Off the bike and into T2.  I really don't remember much about the transitions except they went pretty smoothly.  Transition is LONG on the pier.  You have to run all the way around...tip - WEAR SOCKS.  AstroTurf can get hot. (tips like this is reason #400 why you hire a coach ;))

On to the run.....Lets do something different and let me briefly recap mile by mile (or something like that).

8:20 - "Yahoo!  I'm off my bike!  I'M FEELING GREAT!!  All these people are cheering for ME!!  I live for the applause, applause, applause....  YAY!!  Great pace!!  Can you keep this up another 25 miles?!?!?...maybe you are running a bit too fast...

Nice heel strike...ugh, no wonder my feet hurt so bad!

9:31 -  Maybe I slowed down just a bit too much.  Or maybe this is where I saw coach and slowed down to chat with her?  And when I say chat, I mean, Me: I am HURTING ALREADY.  Did I train AT ALL for this race?  Michelle: YOU'RE RUNNING ON ALI'I DRIVE...PUT A SMILE ON YOUR FACE!

9:12 - Still running pretty ok at this point.  The pain is setting in though.  My feet felt like they had stress fractures.  broken.

9:37, 9:37 - Just barely hanging on.  Way too early in the race to be saying this.  I had to stop to pee. Every porta potty had a line so I found some lava and sat down.  I hope I didn't piss off Madame Pele...or on.  Damn.  Cursed.

10:06, 10:14, 9:56, 11:09, 9:54 - Still on Ali'i drive really trying not to break down into tears.  Michelle found me again out here and got me to smile for a couple of photos.  Such mixed emotions out here.  I wanted so, so badly to feel better and to have fun out there.

Forced, but hey it's a smile :)

11:20, 10:24, 10:44, 10:41 - At this point I had reached the Queen K.  This is the 'calm' before my storm.   Still feeling like crap, but had made a friend from Brazil and she kept me busy by asking me how many kilometers we had already ran.  Hmmm, folks who know me know I am NO math major.  Totally different kind of pain for me.  ;) This distracted me away from the pain in my legs and feet for a bit anyway!  They closed the roads to the spectators way earlier than in years past and it's a black asphalt highway in the middle of lava beds.  Needless to say, it's HOT.  It was the biggest mental battle I've ever faced.  It's you and your mind out there and if your mind is not right, you're in BAD COMPANY.  See mile 15. 

13:16 - Ah, mile 15, this will be forever known as the BREAKDOWN IN THE PORTA POTTY MILE.  I'm not even talking about shedding a couple of tears now.  I'm talking full fledged I'm a 5 2 year old having a tantrum.  Full fledged SOBS.  I mean seriously?  What was I doing?  I was so disappointed ANGRY in how I was running I was willing to give up a few minutes and get it all out.  Silly, SILLY girl.  I had just had enough.  FINALLY, I was able to get over myself and get back out there.

On the way back to the finish.  Was I about to puke???  Notice the 'shuffle' going on here.

11:38, 10:45, 13:44, 11:42 - Oh fun times...we reach the infamous NATURAL ENERGY LAB.  NEL for short.  Oh baby everything you hear about this place is the truth.  Why?  Terrain isn't that bad, you have the ocean to look at and you can geek out looking at all the solar panels...so why is this place so dang hard? I have no answer for ya.  Better get your mind right.

11:21, 11:09, 10:44 - Running out of the NEL, you run up a pretty good hill.  It's as if the NEL was saying 'it was nice seeing you!!!  don't let the door hit ya on the way out'.  Double bonus...when I left, the volunteers were hollering 'you only have a 10k to go!'  Uh, wait a minute...I'm no math major (see miles 11-13) but a 10k is 6.2 miles.  We are not at the 20 mile marker.  That doesn't make the mind right.  Heading back into town the sun was starting to set.  They had started passing out glow sticks.  Michelle reminded me earlier in the week that if I got a glowstick, NBD.  I would be fortunate to GET a glowstick.  Truth?  I didn't want the glowstick.  No one ever does I know.  Just keep hanging on....one foot in front of the other.  I could do it.  I could get there in time (sans glowstick).

11:05, 11:11, 10:55 - Shuffle, walk through the aid stations. Repeat.  Head down chin up.  Holy cow, we are almost there.  The excitement was starting to build.  I was ready to stop running.

8:49 - One last turn onto and down Palani AND.here.we.go.  It was finally THAT time.  The moment had been plastered in mind for almost a full year....and I was about to live it in REAL TIME.  My chest started to get super tight as I was choking back the tears.  All the blood, sweat, and tears (many, many tears) was all about to be 'worth it'.  Hell I'm crying now just thinking about it.  This is what we live for.  It was my turn.

My almost ugly cry face.

The buzz is indescribable.  Hands down the BEST BUZZ EVER.  Spectators are lined up 2 and 3 deep.  EVERYONE is hollering/cheering like crazy.  High fives everywhere.  I sounded like I was having an asthma attack...I couldn't breathe, I was literally all choked up.  The moment is hard to describe. Photos are worth 1000 words, right?  I'll let them speak for me.

High fives to the family!

Add caption

oh, here's the ugly cry face.

Funny how the finish time in the photo is different than my 'official' time...

Check out those crazy fans...how fun is this photo?

The finish is uphill, funny, IM, very funny.

My photographer was a Mizzou alum.  #rockchalk

I am so incredibly blessed.  I am so, so thankful for this experience.  It really takes a village and I have the best.  To all my family who took the time to go Hawaii, I love you forever for it.  Michelle, you're the best...I cannot thank you enough for all you have done (and endured) for me. Team BSC, thank you for accepting and supporting me as one of your own as quickly as you have, I am proud to be a part of this crazy family.  To all my training buddies, thank you for suffering with me....so thankful for the time.  To all my friends and loved ones thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the generous support.  My FB feed blew up on October 12.  So forever grateful.

Kona 2013 - The BIKE!!!

Here's the quick and dirty (and lazy) until I get the photos uploaded...UPLOADED!!!  (finally, right?!)

When I went out to Hawaii for training camp in August with Team BSC this course kicked my ass.  It was terrible.  I was terrified of coming back.  I didn't feel like I belonged or deserved to come back AT ALL.  Humble pie, a piece for one please!  I took that feeling and brought it home with me.  That ride was not to be forgotten.  I learned that this course needs and deserves R.E.S.P.E.C.T.  I came back to Kona ready to give it just that.

The smile was still plastered on my face from the swim.  The crowds and energy on the first little out and back on Kuakini, was insane!  I was having a blast!  Up Palani (a fairly steep hill) and around the 'hot corner', just how I imagined it to be.  People everywhere, probably about 10 deep.  Definitely 'le tour' style.  On the way out on the Queen K we had a tailwind.  Aawesssooommmme!!  I'm pretty sure I said this in my Oprah voice several times out there.  I just could not quit grinning.  I was totally pushing it with minimal exertion and feeling great.  Maybe somewhat of a redemption ride?  I couldn't believe how much fun I was having. 

Ok, maybe this is the only one without a smile...up Palani Hill :)

There were some big draft groups, but nothing what I had expected.  I will say, some of the men on the course did NOT like getting 'chicked'.  They would pass me immediately back and literally come within a hair of cutting me off.  I had to seriously brake a couple of times...which of course pissed me off and I would jump and go by them...blazin'.  GET OVER IT.  I believe I actually said that out loud a couple of times.

Lava Lava Everywhere!

It was so nice knowing where I was on course.  Even though I was miserable that ride in August it was such a great learning tool for this day.  THANKFUL for the hurt I endured so I could enjoy it today :)  Up, up, up to Hawi.  The crosswinds did not come out to play.  I was a little upset that I wasn't able to experience the infamous crosswinds DURING the race, but it really was all ok. ;)  When I made that turn around, ya know the one you see on NBC, I squealed with delight.  I WAS THERE!!!  (It was either that or the fact that I was at ~ 2:42.xx for the 1/2 way mark which was putting me on track for a KILLER bike split for me for this course)  A quick grab of my special needs bottles and I was heading back down....BOOM right into the headwind.

TAILWIND!!  YAHOO!  This is probably my fav photo.  :)

But, I kept pushing on.  I did have to remind myself to smile a couple of times by saying... you're in m'f'n KONA - smile baby!  And yes, I used that exact language out on the course and yes it made me SMILE!  It's hard not to smile after saying this to yourself, out loud.  The views didn't hurt either.  It was getting hot, you could tell folks were getting tired...some the men were still assholes, and about 10 miles from transition things got interesting.  I had to stop and get off the bike to stretch, I almost got peed on (this girl had obviously had LOTS of practice).  There were some 'head down chin up' moments out there.  Michelle told me in August...seeing the palm trees at the airport is like seeing an oasis in the desert!  Boy was she right!!!!  I was pretty much ready to get off the bike.

And we have a headwind!

I LOVED (almost) every second on that bike.  What a difference attitude makes!

Second quickest IM bike split @ 5:30:xx.  Woo!!! I cruised into transition AGAIN with a huge smile.  I was on track for a stellar day...I just hoped my run legs came to play...dah, dah, duuuuuh...