A Month of Thanksgiving

How very sad that my last post was nearly a month ago. I truly love to write and often use this blog as a means of stress relief. A creative outlet. There have been many times over the last month where I've thought to myself.. oh, I should write about this! Or that, or whatever. Anyhoo, time flies and here we are.

After my epic 5000 meter swim in November, I proceeded to smash the Women's Half Marathon the following morning in Tempe. Having not done any real run training in a very long time, and zero speed work, I was shocked to pull a 1:43 out of my hat on race day. Averaging sub-8 minute miles for the entire 13. And the best part about it was I felt fantastic the entire way. I actually picked up the pace in the last few miles!

The following weekend I "raced" another Aravaipa Running trail race at Pass Mountain. 26k of grueling trail. This time however, I remembered my Rush Pack and didn't bonk on the trail. And what I remembered of Pass Mountain from last year showed me how much I've actually improved in trail running over the last 11 months. Last year, Pass Mountain was my very first trail run ever. And I suffered big time trying to keep up with everyone in the group I was with. I remembered the climb to the top as being super long and hard (it's not). This year during the very well organized and executed trail race, we started with about 8-10 miles on "flat" ground before we began the climb which was over before I knew it! And then it's a wonderful downhill and rolling finish. My best girl took first again and happily I came in 3rd female (an improvement!) and I'm now in second place in the series standings.

Then began the preparations for Ironman Arizona. My cousin was racing his first IM as was my good friend JA, my sister flew in to race her 3rd, and my husband was racing in hopes of another Kona qualifier. So for 2 weeks it was taper, nutrition, hydration, drive here, pick up wetsuits, take care of bikes, pep talks, early to bed, not too much beer. All while working full time and keeping the house somewhat in order for holiday guests.

Race day was epic. Weather predictions were rain, 60s and windy. And Mother Nature delivered. I started my day walking everyone down to transition and getting them all checked in, tires pumped and ready to roll. With 20 minutes to spare my cousin is struggling to zip up his wetsuit. I glance over and somethings not quite right. The suit is on inside out. With the help of 3 people we had him out of the suit, and back in it within a matter of minutes. Breathe. Ready to swim! I wished all my racers well and as they headed through transition into the chilly lake, my family and I made our way down through the park to find a clear spot to watch the swim. The announcer began to play "Beautiful Day" by U2 and I knew it was time. The show was about to start. Within minutes the water was churning with arms, legs, bodies. Everywhere. It's amazing to watch. As many times as I've been there in that mess, it never feels quite as bad as it looks from the outside. Carnage.

Once the swimmers were past our vantage point, we moved to a spot along transition to see them out of the water and through T1. My husband was the first out in 1:05, followed shortly by my sister and my cousin had an amazing swim of 1:22. For someone who just started swimming about 8 months ago, not bad! Once they were safely onto the bike course, I jogged back to the hotel made a quick stop at starbies for some fuel and hit the airport to wait for my mother whose plane was landing any moment.

Clouds took over the sky as we got back to the lake about 45 minutes later. We headed to the PTC aid station to socialize a bit and help set up. We watched as the pros came through on their first (and sometimes second) loop. My husband came through looking strong. My dad was back home giving me updates since I didn't have a computer to monitor where he was. I knew he was in 26th place coming off the bike, and in the first 3 miles of the run had moved to 22nd. This was his game, the run, and I knew he could run them all down if all stayed according to plan. After he ran through, my mom and I headed back to the transition side of the lake to watch for my sister and cousin to come off the bike. From our spot we watched my husband as he ran by at mile 12, now in 13th place. Little by little he was making progress.

We were able to catch him several more times around mile 17 and then again just past 21 and at this point he was in 8th. I screamed my fool head off as he ran by and told him to keep running, not let up. He needed to hold his place if he wanted to make it to Kona. Thankfully my husband isn't bothered by the drill sergeant bit so me screaming at him didn't take him off his game. If he even noticed, he was very in the zone! By this point, my sister had also come off the bike and was in her first loop of the run. We cheered for her and then headed to the finish line to await SkirtChaser's arrival.

At the finish line, nerves started to build. I had been surprisingly calm all day and now, knowing he had less than 5 miles to go and no places to give, I was freaking out and holding back tears. I called a good friend who was helping man the PTC aid station and told him SkirtChaser's position. I told my friend to let him know so he would keep pushing the pace and not let up. I texted my dad and told him to watch the finish online and text me immediately with his age group placement when he finished. And the phrase, a watched pot never boils, was never so true. I stared at the finishing chute without blinking. Not wanting to miss a second. And then. There he was. Running hard. Looking strong. I was screaming and nearly crying. He finished. 8th place.

I jumped out of the stands and ran around to the athlete exit. At this point he was in a wheelchair about to be hauled off to medical. Now, if he really needed it, I would let him go to medical. But we both believe that if you don't need it, you shouldn't go. Medical personnel are not there to make sure you have a speedy recovery with IV fluids. I stopped the volunteers and knelt in front of him. "Do you want to go to medical?" I asked. "Noooo," he sort of slurred in response. "OK, then you are going to need to put your arm around my neck and walk out of here with me," I encouraged him. And he did. With a little help walking, we headed over to massage where they rubbed him down for 15 minutes. Then I helped him into a warm parka and over to a grassy area where he could lay down for a while. I put my mom in charge of watching him and I went to find his dry clothes bag. By the time I got back he was a little more coherent and was almost ready for some french fries. He went through the food tent and then we flagged down a bicycle chauffeur to take us back to the hotel. That was the best $20 I've ever spent. It was literally a quarter mile to the hotel that, walking, would have taken us the better part of an hour.

We made sure he was eating, drinking, and started a hot bath for him and then my mom and I took off to get some much deserved food (we hadn't eaten all day!) and then back to the run course to watch for my sister to finish. We watched as JA came in all smiles. She truly had an amazing race and I think if the weather had been better, she would have been pushing the Kona qualifiers in her age group. (She biked around 6:30 in the crappiest weather this course has ever seen!!!). Totally amazing and inspiring. I love watching new Ironman finishers realize their dreams. And shortly after my sister was heading down the chute as well. She came flying through the finish line in great time, looking good. She was only 15 minutes off her last IM time which was amazing considering she hadn't really trained for this. She did have an amazing aerobic base though with all the marathons she runs every year. Without training, I have to note, she did suffer quite a bit more following IM. Her muscles were not used to being on a bike for 6+ hours and she really paid for it in the days afterwards.

After my sister's finish, I again made sure she was in good hands with my mom and my husband, and I went off to wait for my cousin. I knew he was in his last 5 miles, and so I ran across the Mill bridge to wait for him at the 2 1/2 miles to go point. Some friends joined me and kept me company as we waited for him. He too, hadn't trained a lot due to a new job started in the middle of IM training. But he knew what lay ahead of him on race day, and he didn't back down. He was all smiles when he came walking down the path towards us. I walked with him and we chatted as he made his way around the lake for the last time. As we approached transition, and the split off for the finish line, I sent him off with encouragement to run it in. He trotted off and I made my way back to the food tent to wait for him to come through. In under 16 hours, he became an Ironman. And better yet, he's ready to sign up for #2!! That is the Ironman spirit!

We watched as the last Ironman finisher crossed the line, ushered by the world record holder herself. The enthusiasm of the crowds never wavered. They gave as much love to the 16:59 finisher as they did to winner. This is what is great about our sport. It is a community. It's a group effort. We are all in it together, even though on the race course we are competing against each other. We walked slowly back to the hotel, feeling very blessed.

After a fitful night sleep, we were up early to claim our spot (well really his spot!) in the Ironman World Championships. I can't wait to go back to the Big Island and watch him really compete. He was robbed last year and now he can do it justice. We ate and drank and celebrated with family and friends.

With Ironman over, I had a few days off work to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family and friends. I truly feel blessed to have a family that I love, admire, respect, cherish and want to spend time with. My husband makes me smile every single day and I'm not sure there's anything else I could ask for. When we moved here almost 6 years ago, I was very homesick. About twice a year I would beg him to move back to the Midwest. It wasn't until the last year or so when I started hanging out with my girls, DMB and KS, that I began to feel content here in AZ. As an adult, with a full time job and family, it's hard to meet people (girlfriends!) because everyone else has the same full time job and family obligations. These two girls (and their husbands) along with several other close friends are our AZ family. We've built a friendship that means the world to me and this year as I reflected on things I'm thankful for, I realized that I never went through my usual bout of homesickness this year. I owe it to them for being there for me, loving me, and making me laugh all year long.

And now, as the weekend approaches, my wonderful husband and I are off to Vegas to celebrate our one year anniversary at the Vegas Marathon! Though we won't be stopping at the Run-Through Ceremony to renew our vows, we will reflect back on last year and how much fun we had and what an amazing journey our life has been. Every day I get to wake up next to my best friend. And every night I kiss him goodnight before my head hits the pillow. I'm the luckiest girl in the world.