Post IM 70.3 Cartagena blues.... err Report

Last year, after we finished IM Cozumel while we were exploring the streets of Mexico City an announcement came up on Facebook that Ironman was coming to Colombia. It was a 70.3 distance and was going to be held in the beautiful city of Cartagena. Without much hesitation we called my brother and sister and they were already making plans.
We came back from vacation and by then Brian, whom we were traveling in Mexico with, had already convinced his wife to let him do it and to plan a vacation. So the planning started on our end. My family came to visit us over Xmas so we were able to get some details in person. My sister had a friend who owned a couple of condos in the City so that was the main thing. Getting that squared away since it is the most expensive of all. The next thing we had to worry about was getting there. For us was relatively easy. JetBlue flies direct to Cartagena from JFK at a reasonable price without too many additional charges. The bikes are also one of the cheapest of any carrier, however due to the military status they were free for us. Thank you Uncle Sam.

Our vacation started to take shape when my sister moved to Medellin, JetBlue flies to Medellin as well though FLL and since Adriana had never been there and I was there about 20+ years ago we then planned to go there first and head to Cartagena with her and my parents since they were going to meet us in Medellin to spend a little longer with us.
Medellin will be probably another blog entry on either one of our blogs but I’ll try to focus on the race for this one.  

Getting to Cartagena:
Since we were flying from Medellin, we took a domestic Avianca flight to Cartagena. One way was about $100 each and Avianca being the official airline of the race was taking our bikes for free. Little parenthesis here, TriBike transport announced in October they were taking bikes, but since it was so late for it they couldn’t get the 50 min bikes needed to transport them. It all worked out, but definitely something that the race needs to work on. There were enough groups from the USA that would’ve benefited from the service and for most that were traveling on extended vacations having one less headache would’ve been ideal.  

Once in Cartagena bikes and all, arrived decided to get a big van service. It charged us about US $17 to take 6 of us and 3 bikes. If we would’ve split into UberBlacks might have been about $20 each and needed 2, and forget about taxis, that would’ve been probably $30. So it all worked out at the end. In terms of logistics I think we were pretty lucky. We flew to Cartagena on Thursday 12/1 in an attempt to get acclimated to the weather. Not sure if it worked or not, I might need more time for that after a few fall/winter weeks at home.  

The Expo Shenanigans:

The expo opened up on Friday at 10 am. Guess what... everyone had the same idea, get

the expo out of the way as soon as possible. We stood in line unnecessarily for about 2 hours, luckily it was inside the Convention Center but still we were standing. People that arrived much later were done a lot faster. Only downfall was that the race shirts for women were gone and also the race bag color were limited by then. No biggie, we did some shopping at the IM store since we learned our lesson that most of international races don’t make it out to the regular IM store website, so rather get it or forever hold your peace.  Only time we buy finishers gear before the race and ignore the superstition.

We had done a short out and back ride earlier that morning on the route since our condo was on the route, we did about 18 miles out and back. You go through a toll booth on race day so we just returned right before the toll booth. It was HOTTTT and we got a feel for what it was going to be on race day. Some folks that had done the route said that after the toll booth there were some false flats and the 2 climbs of the route (more on that later).  

Saturday:

We did a little ocean swim again to get a feel for the water, we knew it was going to be different since the swim happens at a bay next to the convention center, so the water is a lot calmer than just open ocean.  Then we went to get the bikes to transition and dinner with the family. Luckily we had 4 of us plus Maria Claudia and Maribel going to transition together and they had a cab that was behind us protecting us because riding on the roads can be a bit scary sometimes. 

Race Day

Race day started with everyone doing their morning rituals for breakfast and all that good stuff. The house was still kinda quiet. No one really talked to each other, everyone was concentrated on their own stuff and things were just moving along. Getting our number tats on and packing up the nutrition. We were so concentrated that we forgot about our sherpas' nutrition and hydration for them. Note to self, always remember their needs too.
We scheduled 2 vans to take the 9 of us to the race start at 4:30 am, so by 4:30 am we were leaving the building. By 4:50 we were in transition. We then set it all up, we had frozen all our bottles since we knew by the time we got to the start everything would've been melted and wouldn't been hot as hell. Nothing worse than warm Infinit. Pumped air on all 4 bikes, set up transition and got everything set. Then it was the waiting game.

The swim:
Race was technically supposed to start by sunrise. However it got delayed. We didn't hear why it got delayed, all we thought was every minute it is delayed now it is more heat and more sun that we will get. By then our Sherpas had taken their positions and we were by the convention center area where everyone was gathering. Our early hydration was done, and the heat was starting to climb. The wait seemed like forever. I came to find out when we were leaving at the airport from another athlete  that the wait was because the buoys that were moving.


 Anyways the canon for the pro's went off and then our waves started to move. My sister, Adriana and Margo were within the first 10 waves, I was 17 out of 20. I wasn't worried about the cutoffs, I was just worried about the heat. Finally my brother and I got in the water. He was swimming with a friend that had OWS fear, so since he wasn't doing the bike then he helped him through the swim. Once our horn went off I waited about 10-15 seconds and started my swim. We were swimming east first so we had the sun in front of us. Our ROKAS performed great but still once the sun is in front of you it just gets annoying. I followed the buoys on the way out to the turn. Once at the turn I knew I was in better shape. The sun was then on our left and by the second turn it was going to be on our backs. I reached the second turn and I went a little wide which cost me swimming maybe 200 yds extra and of course cost me the PR on my swim. My swim split was 40:40 (146 out of 320, finally towards the front of the middle  :), with an avg of 1:47 /100 yds. A little slower than I expected it, I wanted to go sub 40 but I didn't pay attention to it. Got out of the water, the volunteers did great pulling us out of the water, my zipper on my speedsuit got stuck so I couldn't unzip myself. I went to one of the girls and asked her to help me, then I saw my dad and threw the goggles and cap to him. The run to T1 was about 250 meters. Luckily for me I was right at the entrance of transition and since my brother didn't have his bike and was next to me I had some room. I was surprised that most of the bikes on my rack were still there, my T1 was pretty simple, put on the race jersey, helmet, glasses and nutrition. Shoes were on the bike since I knew I had to run out a bit so I didn't want to run on the shoes. T1: 3:41.



The Bike: 

By the time I started the bike it was hot. I had a Gatorade while I ran out of T1 and got on my way. Leaving the city the road isn't great but isn't too bad either, my plan was to settle myself in a rhythm by the time we got out of the busy area which was past our condo. So I was 7 miles just focusing on staying on the bike, road and others around me. Once I got to the divided highway I started the nutrition. The heat was hitting hard, so it made taking in nutrition hard. I kept looking for the girls to see if I saw them going down but I didn't. I saw Claudia, then finally I saw my sister near the turn around. I did the math and she was maybe 5 miles up the road. The bike course is not a flat course. It has a few rollers and then towards mile 25 it has 2 climbs, when I got to the first one I dropped my  chain mid climb, got off the bike and fixed it quickly, so didn't waste too much time. Then got to the second climb and at the top was the turn around. I kept my power where I needed it, 75-80% so I knew I was in good

shape. I actually tried to dial it down a bit since I knew the heat was going to take a  toll on me and there was no way I could keep up. As soon as I turned around I saw Margo, she was doing well, then down the road my sister, chatted with her a bit and 2 bikes down I caught up Adriana. The 3 girls were trucking along. I had about 7 miles and bike traffic got congested. Couldn't pass and it just seemed like it was taking forever to go through those 7 miles. we had a short rain shower earlier that cooled us off a bit but it just increased the humidity. I saw a friend of my brother and we tagged along (keeping a distance) or a bit, but it was too congested so I just stayed back, didn't want to get carded or anything. Officials were all over, they had a ton of motorcycles on the course with officials, I didn't want to get penalties or anything. No drafting means no drafting. My bike was a PR bike by a few seconds, with a 2:48:57 and avg of 19.975 mph I was pretty happy with it. Riding with power and sticking to it really has helped because I got off the bike and had legs which in the past that has never been the case. I usually hammer the bike and start the run with dead legs. I came back to transition put my socks on, got my hat and shoes on and off I went. T2 was faster than T1 with a 2:54 time. 

The Run:
Oh the run. I came back from the bike and while I was feeling pretty good, I wanted to get into a conformable pace. By comfortable I didn’t want to push sub 10:00/miles right off the gates. I wanted to take some hydration, cool my body off a little and see what damage I could do on the run. The first kilometer right off transition is outside the wall and you enter into the walled city right after the first aid station. While running that part, I saw Angela (my sister) and Adriana come in, I knew they were safe and sound back home. I hadn’t seen Margo but I knew she was probably another 30-40 minutes behind them according to my math. I managed to get some Base Salts in me and water on me. The sun was hitting hard on us, and by the time we entered the city no wind, just sun, heat, humidity, and more heat. 

The streets were packed with tourists, cheering crowds, DJs at the aid stations cheering us, it was pretty fun to run through the city. Finally I saw my mom standing and Claudia, Shayla and my dad in the back, I have my mom the biggest sweaty wet hug I have ever given her when I saw her. She then sent me off, saw them back on the return and asked for my sister and brother. I knew my brother was jumping again into the race to run with my sister to take her from the bike to the finish line but I hadn’t seen them. My dad said they were already together. I then saw  Adriana, she was going out on her first loop and I was coming back. She had lost her Base Salt vial, I gave her mine, I knew I could just finish it without it. She looked strong but was missing the salts. I saw my brother and sister and they were shuffling away, lastly I saw Margo, she looked pretty good, but I knew the bike had taken a toll on her,

however once on the run I knew she will get it done. As you are returning on your loop they take you on the wall for about 1 kilometer, at the top of it they give you sponges, however it is probably the hottest part of the race. Imagine a 500 year wall made out of limestone at noon. That thing is HOT!!!!. The first time I went through it fine. I got my sponges and got out as quick as I could. Then I went to finish my first loop and get back into the second loop. I started talking to a few guys and we kept motivating each other, but the heat was just taking casualties. I got back to my parents and I wanted to look strong, so I was attempting to run those stretches, the walking was a lot more on that second loop. Once I got through the second part of the wall I looked at my watch and I just went for it, I was 2 kilometers out so I was just committed to run to the last aid station and then from there get a sprint to the end. 

The finish was packed, they take you under the clock tower and there is where the food and medical tents are. I finally found a place to sit next to a pool full of cold gatorades and ice. I just dumped the towels they gave me in that and cooled my self down. Saw Maria Claudia and Diego (buddies from Texas) then Adriana came so we just stayed there to rest a little. Then my sister came up with my brother, took a picture but she could hardly stand up, she was really struggling with the heat so we went to cool her off immediately and lastly Margo showed up. 

We all finished what we had started. A race that we prepared for all year, a season well planned, no injuries, great shape, strong in all 3 disciplines. We knew it was going to be hot, just wasn’t expecting it that hot. Was it a PR? No it wasn’t, I still got my PR at Atlantic City, did I want a PR? Yes I did. Did it matter? No. To me what mattered the most was being able to spend 2 weeks with my family, race with Adriana, my brother, sister as a family and of course our plus 1… Margo who became part of the family on this trip.

In general, for those looking to do Cartagena, I highly encourage you to do it. I really hope that Ironman continues it. Cartagena is a city that if you plan your trip well it caters to the tourist and to the families. Does the organization need to tweak things, of course they do. It is the first time an event of this size comes to the city or even the country. The pros had a fiasco with their running routes…

Tri Tips and observations of a concerned Sherpa

A couple of weekends we had an opportunity that typically doesn't happen often. It was being Sherpa for one of our teammates. Not that we don't like doing it, on the contrary we have a blast doing it. Cheering and sherpaing is hard work too you know.

Anyways, our teammate had been accepted to the NYC Tri. So since we were so close to the city this year we told her we would Sherpa her. She has been a Sherpa for us before and she has done an amazing job with her Sherpa duties, even being in charge of our parents which isn't an easy task.  

Our job started on Friday, I met another one of our teammates who came from Texas to do the same (can't never have too many Sherpas), her an I met at my office and then we headed to downtown to meet up with J who had arrived from Philly, bags and bike in tow via rail transportation. We headed to the hotel in midtown, athlete check in and all that good stuff to get it out of the way early. Res met up with us after work so we could do the NYCTri underpants run... totally recommended.
After that we then just went to dinner and hang out in general. Our hang out ended up piling up 14 miles according to the AppleHealth app.

We went home exhausted. Saturday we knew it was going to be a bit easier so we didn't head down until mid day. Did the bike checkin and after a few beverages for carb loading and hydration we headed to dinner at the oyster bar in Grand Central. We then split as we were parked in uptown and they were headed to the hotel for an early wake up call. 

It was funny to see that it was the first time in 6 months in the NY that we have spent so much time in the city at once. Typically we go in and back out. Sunday came and we left the house at 5:15. Have to love weekend traffic. By 6:15 we were parked at 72nd and Riverside Drive. Right where they came out on the bike to get on 9A. Awesome spot. We saw the pros and waited for her to go out. It amazed me (here is where the observations and tips come in) how many people don't pay attention nor read the rules of the sport. Don't get me wrong, I know I'm not perfect and I know I was once a rookie but taking 5 minutes to go over the rules can save you a lot. I know we all start somewhere, so this is not in a way meant to sound obnoxious. Take them for what they are worth.

1. Know the rules of the game. It is a sport afterall and we have rules. Rules state that any electronic device (cell, ipod, ipad, any of those) is strictly prohibited. I know a few people that leave their cells in the bike spare tube bags as a safety in case something happens. That's not a bad idea. However, don't come out of transition looking at your phone like you are asking Siri for directions.

2. Headphones: same as above, it is a hard transition and it is understandable. Socially it might seem like the right thing to do, run with music because you get in the groove of it and feel better. Give running without them a tri. Can't use them on race day, of course you can, but if you get caught there is a penalty. Obviously there can be 1000 eyes for over 4000 athletes on race day so chances that you get a penalty are pretty slim, but.... again follow the rules and also enjoy the cheers and the moment. (From USAT most common rules: 8. Headphones: Headphones, headsets, walkmans, ipods, mp3 players, or personal audio devices, etc. are not to be carried or worn at any time during the race.  Penalty: Variable time penalty)

3. Equipment: Know your equipment. Helmets are to use with the buckle to the back, not the front. Unfortunately I didn't catch the pic, but a few folks had helmets on backwards. It doesn't have a penalty to have it backwards, but definitely is a safety issue.

All in all, definitely was a blast cheering and sherpaing. We enjoyed seeing our TX friends and getting to cheer on all triathletes out there enduring a very hot day. It was good for a change to be on that side of the fence where you can take pics, cheer on awesome people and hang out with great friends.

Well... hope this didn't come across too harsh... and if you do anything... just be safe out there and have fun!.

Cheers!

Challenge Atlantic City - Take 2

#CommuterLife

Can’t believe we’ve been so quiet recently on our posts. Really… not a lot out of the ordinary has happened since the move, just that we’ve been so busy that the blogs went a bit dormant for a bit. Hopefully now that Puli is getting used to his train commute he can maybe get back at it and keep us active, sometimes he just chooses to sleep on the train though.

This past weekend we tackled Challenge Atlantic City 70.3, you probably remember last year’s Race to remember when Puli had his crash. In a way we had decided to get on this one as a redemption from what had happened last year. We also wanted to try the changes from the recommendations we (the athletes) had made to the race directors after their inaugural events. There were quite a few and of course we knew going in that a new event had always room to improve and we were more than happy to be part of it.

trail riding

Move forward a year and we were toeing the line for what it would be our 4^th half distance triathlon which is what is also known as 70.3 or half ironman however this isn’t an IRONMAN branded event. Backing up a little our training has been somewhat consistent for about 2 months. The move, winter, and new jobs really took a toll on routines. It is difficult to get back to it, particularly when you have to find new training grounds. Luckily we had signed up for this race so we had the pressure to get training and on the other hand we were able to get a pool nearby, our trail by the house is great for running and cycling and also we have plenty of cycling routes to do around. Some of the perks of living out in the country is the lack of traffic sometimes, which makes it for a safer way to train.  On top of that,  we found a great lake by the house which is making our open water swims super easy to get done and if we want to swim with our friends at Beacon Endurance we can always go with them too.

country side riding

They have been great too in terms of keeping us accountable and showing us around the area, and they are really nice too!

So while our training was probably not optimal, we were trying really hard to get it done, had about 6-8 weeks of consistent 75%-80% workout completion rate, which means maybe we were missing 2-3 workouts during the week. Which for the busy weekend warrior.. that’s pretty good. Of course the goal is the greens on TrainingPeaks and we had a few of those weeks but for sure wasn’t the all greens type of training that our coach would love and hope for.

Lake Walton kayaking after a long swim

So anyways… our race weekend started on Friday, we had a bit of a fiasco with our accommodations this year. We had gone to VRBO last year and found a great condo/house for our headquarters, however this year it wasn’t available and we wanted something near the boardwalk, so we went for it again. This time, of course some people got the best of us and stole our money. After a few calls to hotels around the area we found a Homewood Suites in Absecon which turned out to be a great location. So having solved that situation we headed to Exit 9 to pick up the inlaws. They were ready to go, so we packed them up and off to the shore we went. We knew we probably weren’t going to make it for athlete check-in but we were able to, got our packets and we were hanging around to get one of our friend J (Sherpa crew from last year) that was getting in from Philly later. We decided to go to the athlete dinner last minute with the inlaws. Best decision we made, for $20.00 per person (since ours was paid for) we had a pretty awesome dinner.

Saturday, the weather was pretty crappy. Cloudy, cold, rainy, windy, you name it. We were actually happy that it was happening Saturday and not Sunday so we weren’t complaining too much other than racking our bikes would’ve been messy. We got our Profile Design free demo TwentyFourSeries wheels and headed to rack bikes.

Pimping our rides

We didn’t stick around for the athlete meeting. Not  that we didn’t care but we wanted to go rack before the rain really hit hard. We made it just in time, we racked and when we were leaving hail broke loose… literally and figuratively. There was hail, rain, wind you name it. Benefit from it was that since there was ice dumped into the water, it made it wetsuit legal. We headed back to the hotel after getting the ritual hair cut for Puli and some shopping done for water and that kind of stuff. Another perk of the hotel… it had a Shop Rite right across from it. Then it was just the usual prepping of nutrition, bags, getting dinner for the sherpas, all that good stuff. Lights out by 9 pm.

Wake up call at 3 am, this race starts a little earlier than usual. Transition opens at 4:30 and since we knew the parking lot was going to get ugly we wanted to get there early. So the goal was to leave at 4 the hotel. 4 came and we were leaving the parking lot, sherpas in tow. By 4:15 we were entering the parking swamp. It was literally a swamp, water above our ankles but nothing we could do. Walked to transition, did our usual nutrition, bottles, Garmins setup, the usual pre-race rituals and then wait time. It was still dark, foggy and humid so we didn’t want to suit up until it was needed.

When the time came, we got the sherpas to their location and went to the masses. This year it was the first one to have a 70.3 (or 72.3 which we will get to later) and the full which we did last year. The half distance started first, it was a 6:00 am start, but Coast Guard had to clear it so we didn’t get going until almost 6:15-6:20 didn’t really paid attention. We were together and then when it was time for Puli to go in, we said our good-byes and wished each other good luck.

Swim (according to Puli with inserts from Res)

(PULI) The swim was a rectangle, the difference from last year is that it didn't have a million turns. This swim whenever you take it will have a current, it isn’t a closed body of water so if you are looking for an easy swim be ready to get into a current. I was able to keep a constant pace. Pushed a bit harder at the beginning knowing that we were going to go with the current after the turn so trying to even out the pace. The current got a bit stronger coming back to the dock where I felt I had to push harder there. Time (41:00 and change) in my defense it was 1.3 miles according to my Garmin.

(RES) Nothing out of the ordinary… just happy I had my wetsuit on. Managed to have a 2:01’/100 yd swim which is pretty awesome for me and coming in wasn’t too sure I could do it. Had taken my Lava Pants off at the pool last couple of weeks in anticipation of a hot swim without my safety blanket, needless to say I was so relieved when they announced a water temperature of 74-deg which was perfect for the sleeveless.  Time (43:00 and change)

Bike (according to Puli with editorial comments from Res)

Getting out of the water was tricky as the dock has some ramps that you swim up to and pretty much hope that someone can pull you up. I aimed for one and got pulled by one of the volunteers (they are always awesome). Went into transition, helmet on, nutrition to the back pocket and off I went. Didn’t noticed that when I put on my helmet my sunglasses had fallen off. Oh well… I managed the change and went on to ride. Getting on the expressway I tried to get the HR under control and get a rhythm going. All I kept thinking is don’t get to excited and control the nerves, I knew I wasn’t going to go over where I had crashed last year, but still the thought of being on the Expressway just brought too many memories for me. Once on the Expressway my goal was to try to keep a 20mph-21mph speed.

I didn’t find too much of a problem doing that, found more of a problem trying to keep it at that as I was feeling great but didn’t want to blow my legs so early. I give the credit to a slight tail wind and also the awesome TwentyFour Series Profile Design (78/58) wheels we were demoing. Those wheels are fast. Once off the Expressway I was able to calm down a little since I trying to stay within the HR and cadence and trying to slow down a little as I knew I was pushing the pace too hard at that point. Then I got with a group of guys which just kept a good pace and I didn’t want to blow pass them to burn out later, so I stayed behind no quite sucking the wheel but the referee did stay there for a little bit at one point so I guess we were a bit tight. It definitely is a fast course. Not overly complicated. Downfall is that it only has 2 aid stations for the half distance about 15-20 miles apart. Something that wasn’t too much of a big deal since it was cooler than usual so the heat wasn’t affecting as much.

(RES)… bike had tech issues the break started rubbing again I guess the wheels are wider than normal so that didn’t get adjusted and had a bit of a slowdown. Instead of burning my legs I managed my HR and cadence so I rather had a longer ride but had legs left on the run.  The aid stations really affected me, when I hit the bike it was already cleared up and temps were higher than Puli’s, so it made it for a close call on the bike almost running out of water. Not as a matter of rant, but it would’ve been nice going in that the bike wasn’t quite 56 miles, the route made perfect sense so I think that’s not the problem, the problem was that we didn’t know going in so it was one of those things that your mind is prepared for something and then something different happens and it has to adjust. One of the many things about this sport is that it always throws curve balls at you and your reaction time has to be quick and your mind has to stay in the game. It can be hard to not let that bug you for a little, but you move on.  Finishing the bike was to some extend the main goal of the day. Finish without crashing, getting a PR was just an added bonus, definitely was an accomplishment feeling to an extent, however the job was not done yet at that point. (Puli’s time 2:48, Res’ time: 3:38)

Over the Boarwalk

(PULI) coming into the run I knew I had left some legs on the bike, there wasn’t a chance I was going to have an easy run after going 21 mph on the bike. So off I went, I started to get a rhythm but I knew the legs were cooked to some extend so of course what do I do? Let’s see how far they get me… that didn’t last, at about mile 6 it just wasn’t maintainable to have a 9:30’/mile pace so I started slowing down and the boardwalk started to get hotter and hotter, aid stations seemed spaced out oddly so it was hard to know when we were getting water and I tried this time a new thing… not carrying my water bottle as I didn’t want to bother with it. At one point I also was starting to worry because I didn’t see Res on the way back and when I saw our sherpas they didn’t have tracking info on her, so the most horrible thoughts happened from mile 6 to mile 13. Saw the sherpas two more times and went in the shute to wrap it up for a 5’ overall PR on a 70.3 err.. 72.3 and a 5:55.52 time for me.

Once I got in and got my medal, I was able to pull her results that were more updated inside than those on the website. Saw that she was off the bike and that she had just gone by the sherpas. Went back outside and saw the Sherpas who told me she was on her way to Rebel which was the turn around. It was about 3 miles out and back so I just sat there and waited for her.

(RES) I was happy to see him all done but wasn’t too thrilled when he said that I still had one more loop. The watch was messing with my head because I was at 70 miles already on the watch and I thought I was done. I went to the half turn around and back to see them. I had ran out of water and the stations couldn’t keep water flowing so one didn’t have water when I went by, added to my frustration of wanting to be done but I just kept my shuffle and went on. He came to my rescue and gave me a cold towel with water to cool me off. I went back to Rebel and then when I was returning I was super surprised that he had organized my parents to come in the finish line with me. I have to admit… all my frustration and pain went away at that point. It was just happiness and smiles then knowing that for the last 3 years that we’ve done these crazy races, they have seen us finish 1 sprint (where I had a podium) our Rutgers Half Marathon earlier this year and a couple of 5k’s but they didn’t see us finish last year since we finished so late. Finishing with them side by side and with Puli has been probably the coolest finish of all times. I’m so glad that after our move they will be able to be now more involved with our activities and now “they get us” they get up with us at not even the crack of dawn… 3 am there is no dawn… to get ready… put on their Sherpa shirts and get to transition.

All in all, we accomplished our goal. Puli was able to redeem himself and not visit the ER this year, nor the medical tent on the way either. We knew our training was maybe not up to par but were confident that we would be able to do it without a problem. It was more like do it safe and get it done. Times are just numbers at that point. Sound great when you say you PR but sound even better when you say you didn’t crash, and that you finished with your family. This sport gives you sweat, blood and tears… but it also gives so many great moments when you are able to finish with a smile on your face and share it with your special ones. Now off to Ironman Cozumel training!.... Viva Mexico!!!