Race info!

Aloha! I'm so sorry I haven't written since the race. I've been overwhelmed with pain, fun and feeling tired. I have to start out by telling you that it is absolutely beautiful here! Everything from the sky and the birds to the grass and the lizards are vibrant in color.

So race day came and went. It was an amazing experience that is quickly leaving my memory. I wish I could forever remember what it was like in the swim. I don't even think I was really paying attention to what I was suppose to be doing, my head was so far in the water looking at the coral and fish. I did swim the fastest I've ever swam before though. (Thanks to my swim coach!) The bike was fun too! I know I was smiling almost the whole way. I said to a few people as they passed me..."Isn't this so much fun?" Although it was a lot of fun the bike was still really painful. The wind was blowing and there weren't any flat roads. It was up and down, up and down the whole 56miles. I did hit a wall( in triathlon terms that means I didn't feel well) at 2 hours and 45mins. I wasn't eating enough and didn't have enough salt in me. As soon as I took my endurolytes (basically salt pills) I felt much better. When the bike was over I ran through the transition, put my bike away, threw on running shoes, had a volunteer put sunscreen on me and was on my way to finish the race with a 13.1 mile run. The run was pretty brutal. My knees were already killing me from the bike and running didn't help. The run was also up and down, through a golf course, beach and on the road. There isn't much different from the weather in Orlando and the weather here in Kona, it hot! The main difference is there isn't any shade in Hawaii. I have blisters on my back now. I applied sunscreen twice so there wasn't much more I could do. I was in so much pain and so tired that I just wanted to finish. I just kept telling myself that I just had to run until the next water/food station. They were posted every mile. I walked and refueled every mile, I would of died if I didn't. I even stopped to go to the bathroom. My teammates were giving me a hard time telling me I should of peed on myself. I still want to believe that only the pros do that but I guess that's not true. :)

My over all time was 6 hours and 20mins! 35mins on the swim, 3:18 bike and 2:20 run...something like that. That's 10mins faster than my goal!!! I'm really excited. After the race I was in a ton of pain. My knees felt like they were going to fall off, I thought for sure they were going be the size of grapefruits. Within a few hours my knee pain left and by the next morning I found pain in a lot more places. Today I feel great! I'm ready for another workout.

The day after the race we went to the Four Seasons Resorts spa. It was amazing! We were there hanging out at their beach, getting massages and spending time in the hot tub for about 7 hours! The next day I felt so much better! We spent Monday at the beach and the evening at a luau with my parents. Today we went on a cruise that took us snorkeling and then spent the afternoon walking around Kona. Tomorrow we are traveling two hours to the Volcano National Park and then through Hilo and up through the northern part of the Island. Thursday we still haven't figured out what we are going to do but I'm sure it will be fun whatever it is.

I love the people that I'm traveling with. They have been wonderful. We all get along great and enjoy doing the same things so it has made traveling easy. My parents also came to Hawaii. It was great to have them there on race day. I hate not having people there to cheer for you on race day. Its hard to race that way. My parents also had a hard, long day of sitting in the sun. They took some great pictures that I hope to have posted soon.

We leave Hawaii Thursday night and if all goes as planned we will land in Orlando Friday afternoon.

Overall my time here in Hawaii has been amazing. I couldn't ask for a better trip. I can't wait to see where and what size of race I do next! Mahalo (thank you in Hawaiian) for all your support and prayers. You made my race so much easier!