Thank you so much my dear, dear friends!! I had an amazing 50ish day a week ago and couldn't have been more pleased with the day.

When I drove up to Mont Tremblant with Kathy, I wasn't 100% sure what I was going to do. I had them ship my bike, but as I realized it was a few weeks since I swam, I really didn't know if I had it in me.  

I go out for the practice swim and the wetsuit feels restrictive and I'm cursing myself why I couldn't find the time to get to the pool and give it a try.  Just why! Busier people than I can, so why couldn't I?  Although, truth be told, I wasn't that hard on myself as I already accepted there was no way to go back.

We go back on a quick bike ride and it feels GREAT!!  I'm looking forward to a little bike ride, but just realize there's a little obstacle to get there... the swim.  
Later in the day, I'm able to try my sleeveless wetsuit to see if I feel better in it. The difference is marginal, and since the water is cold and I'll be in there for about an hour, I feel sleeves is the way to go.  Plus, the great John Stolz is there to make sure to get me into my suit...my lucky charm to start the day.

I wake up and it's incredible how calm I am. I see the great, awesome, incredible Scott Willett who helps me get into my suit and gives me a pep talk. I try to tell him I already know I'm not going to finish, but "one stroke at a time..." are thrown back to me. Ahh, you got to love him!  But it was incredible to see him on race day, while I was in a wet suit as there really is nobody like him on race day.  I've had the honor of standing by him many times on race days and I feel so fortunate for our participants that we have someone as incredible as him as part of our team.

It's time for me to do my practice swim, I actually feel great, feel my swim stroke is great so I get out before I want to and leave it as it is.  I'm in the wave behind Karelle, so luckily for my nerves (which are still non-existent)  I focus on her and give her great thoughts, be strong, you got this, remember how far you've come.  And again, I have to applaud someone else!  My dear friend Karelle is a recon.  She put 100% into this training.  She's incredible.

Finally it's my turn and still again, no jitters.  I think from now on I'll have to go in and just realize that this is for fun.  I do enjoy swimming and biking, running's okay, so I need to focus on it being about FUN!!  No matter how many positive thoughts I have, I'm just never going to win a race, so I might as well focus on just being fit and having a great, safe time. 

The swim is okay.  I'm just taking it easy as I do just want to ... survive!! The last time I swam a mile was a while ago, so I'm taking it very, very easily. And when the first wave passes me, they start a wave effect so I slow down even more to let them pass.  I also managed to get on the other side of the buoys than we were supposed to be and away from everyone else.  But still I managed to have someone pull my ankle, kick me and punch me! And yeah as it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. (I will admit it does feel strange to say "A MAN PUNCHED ME" and know it's okay... as a woman I'm taught that nobody, especially a man, should ever do it so it's crazy to think someone got away with it.) I really thought I would have a black eye, but guess the cold water was good for something.   Calm myself down again, another reason I'm happy to not be worried about time.

I'm finally finished with the swim and I'm a little sad when I see I beat my last year's time by only four minutes.  Last year's swim was just too horrible for words and I was really hoping myself to redeem myself.  But I did most of this freestyle, so if I keep at it, swim more in the wetsuit, I'm sure I'll get myself a time I know I'm capable of.

When I get out of the swim, I see the super star Quesada's who again tell me "YOU LOOK GREAT!!!" They tell me this every time they see me on the bike, running/walking up hill...always passing me effortlessly, but they do it in a way that I actually believe it and it's not a mantra like "GO TEAM" they tell everyone.  

I get my suit taken off of me by the volunteers and I walk to the bike.  My stomach's a little wobbly so I take it nice and easy. Jon Paulk passes me and before I know it, he's at mile 5 of the bike course.  He's incredible.

Again, Stolz is outside transition giving me little tips, taking pictures to let everyone know my bike was the last one in transition area (that was not his point) and I get on the bike. Yippee! Can't wait to take McKinley out for a nice, ride with no cars and NO pot holes.  Seriously, it's incredible how great the Canadian system is about their potholes, but it's almost like if they have one in the making, they go out and stop it.  I wish our roads were like that. I start with Elyse Greenspan who looks amazing.

The ride is awesome and I do feel ... not great, but okay. I remember to take food, happy for the salt from Kathy and friends to settle my stomach, and I see my little, tiny cheer squad of TNT co-workers, Coach Paul who cheer like a million.  I see Scott again who I proudly tell him I did most of it freestyle (not sure if he knows/remembers about my fiasco of last year), but he says "My cadence looks great and positive thoughts"  The cadence part brightens my day! Yeah! I just got a huge thumbs up from an incredible coach!  However, I wish I had time to go around and explain to him what my plan is... I'm going to stop at mile 45ish on the bike and call it a day, so don't look for me on the run..and I'm okay with it.  

However, there's no time for it, so I continue and get passed by swimmers who came out of the water after me. Hmp.  But my cadence looks great so that's all I care about.  The hills are not that bad and I feel like I'm climbing great.  Wow.  I feel great!! My stomach is still a little unsure of itself, don't quite know what the problem is, but I do my best to take in calories and to drink!  Plus, there is an out and back which I absolute love. Yes, some people don't like them, but it's always great to see friends out on the course and see how they are doing.  The best person I saw was Dani Frisch Harkin cause once I saw her, I knew she was golden and would have her day at the finish line.  

There's a woman who passes me and stays in my view. I see her struggling a little on the hills so I use her as concentration to keep my speed up.  It's a little frustrating cause I feel like I'm going stronger on the up hills than she is, but I still can't manage to catch up. What's the problem?! It's even more of an ego buster when I see her stop thinking, "Yep, this is it, Sunshine." but no, she's still ahead.  Grrr!!

The 47 mile mark comes when I decide to get off my bike. It's an easy left into transition and before me are some incredible, difficult rolling hills. I have managed to finish a half marathon not properly trained and I felt horrible for about a week afterwards.  I knew going in that today wasn't my day so it's time to say goodbye.  My legs are starting to scream so before I run into danger zone, I do what's right and give away my chip.  However, the person I give it to says "You look great. Are you sure you're done?" I know I can't, or shouldn't do the 13.1 mile run, that I'll be tempted if I finish the bike ride, that I feel great now and to finish on a great note... so I continue to give it to him. It's a little heart breaking to hear "racer 275 is a DNF...."  Boooo.. At least it's by choice this time and I really am happy with my decision.

Plus, another important note is that when I do finish this race, I want it to because I worked hard at it and know it.  I don't want it to because I had a good day.  That will be fine with my second, my third half ironman, but not for the first.  The first will be earned cause I worked my butt off for it.

I was having a great day. My race number was awesome, I got lined up with the TNT wave so I couldn't have asked for a better spot to put my bike (as soon as you came in from the swim, out to the run), even my room number was the same street number of the house I grew up in. The night before at the Inspiration Dinner, I pull out my chair and my mother's picture is staring at me ... I gave her picture to be used as inspiration and was shocked to have pulled the chair to see my mom.  She was such an incredible woman, all she would care about (and my coaches and my teammates and my friends) is that I'm safe, I have fun and I do my best.  I don't come from a family of athletes. In fact, my dad, bless his heart, even forgot I had signed up to do this.  If I didn't cross that finish line, he wouldn't have even known I had crossed a start line (knowing my dad loves me, it's okay that he didn't remember I was doing a race he doesn't get... one of the things I have accepted about this incredible man)  But these things reminded me what really matters. I felt great on race day so there were some bummer thoughts that I wasn't 100% ready for that day..cause if I was, I'm sure it would have been great. 

However, the highlight of the day was seeing Dani Frisch Harkin on the bike.  Once I saw that, knowing she has 10 straight NYC/Harrisburg Marathons under her belt, she would be okay.  She's an incredible lady with such a strong sense of humor who welcomes everyone with open arms.  She's a strong lady who has had some things that could give her a lifetime of a pity party, but she manages to pick herself up and to just carry on.  trust me when I say that if you can treat Dani to a beer, take the honor of treating her to a beer.  You'll enjoy it. 

So being at the finish line, with some of our teammates, when she came across, was a moment I'll never forget.  There wasn't a dry eye...heck, I'm even tearing up thinking about it... when she put those arms into victory position.  The announcer who was giving the awards out even stopped to announce Dani's name...he knew it was a special, incredible moment. 
And in true Dani fashion, when people came in after her, she knew their names, where they were from, their' mother's names and their life story.  Seriously, you have to love this girl.

So yeah, I still have yet to get that medal, but seriously, Dani Frisch Harkin got hers and that's enough for me.  I had a swim that I'm pleased with a great bike ride with some awesome views (I saw a mother cow leading her baby cows) and just had fun.  Triathlons are a crazy sport..serious... what do swimming, biking and running have to do with one another?! nothing! But I really enjoy doing them.  The first time I did a triathlon, when it was my wave to go off, I felt like Anne Boleyn being led to execution... so this time was a lot better.  I had fun. It was enjoyable. I cheered.  I felt great.  

Next time I'll just train so I can bring home some hardware.

XOXOXO to everyone.  Again, I can't thank those who donated enough for making a difference.  I really am appreciative of your support.