Spudman

About six months ago we put in for the lottery for the Spudman triathlon. There were a few little snags, but we got in (me, Tim and Jarin). Since that time I have been stressing about it and wondering why I thought it was a good idea. My training lately has not been great and I worried how I would do, and how it would go for Tim and Jarin - it was their first triathlon. By the time the big day rolled around I was a head case and just ready to get it over with. Friday afternoon the three of us headed out for the lovely Burley. You may ask yourself why there is such a rush to get into a tri in Burley, Idaho. It is an Olympic distance which means a 1 mile swim, 25 mile bike and 6.2 mile run. This swim takes place in a river, down current, it makes your time about twice as fast as normal. As we pulled into Burley and crossed the river Jarin and Tim started asking about the current, the water to them looked flat but I promised them that it would be fast. It wasn't until they got into the water the next morning that the truly believed me. We went to the park, picked up our numbers, listed to the pre-race directions and ate a marginal pasta dinner. This one threw in a baked potato - strange, but it was actually my favorite part of the meal. After dinner, we headed over to the bike transition area to get our gear set. I was a little tense, it is so much to remember and prepare. By the time this picture was taken we were all settled and having fun looking at all the great bikes.

We decided to get up at 5:30 Saturday morning and be at the park by 6:00. My wave started at 7:10 so that would give us plenty of time to put out our run gear, go to the bathroom five times (ok, I'm the only one that needs that many trips to the porta potty), and get the wetsuits on. Both Jarin and Tim set an alarm and I figured we would be fine. Small problem, the next morning when I woke up, it was 6:11. I kind of freaked out and we all got up and moving quickly. We made it to the start with about a half hour which in my mind was cutting it close. I got to the bathroom a few times, squeezed into my wetsuit, and away we went. I wasn't fast, but I was happy that I didn't panic which often happens in an open water swim. I kind of cruised along and came out of the water feeling pretty good. The bike was fun, super flat course and plenty of people to pas and be passed by. Jarin was in a wave five minutes behind me so I kept watching for him to catch me on the ride. I finally saw him as I was pulling into the run transition. We chatted briefly while we changed and we took off on the run. wow, I thought I remembered how hard it is to run at that point, but it was worse than I thought. Jarin ran a super steady pace, I ran a little faster then did some walking, but we pretty much stayed together the entire run. It's totally cheesy, but you know the Selena Gomez song, "Who Says", it may be teeny bop, but it was my total inspiration: "But when it comes to me, I wouldn't want to be anybody else...I'm no beauty queen, I'm just beautiful me." The song kept running through my head and gave me a little girl power. Eventually that wasn't enough and I just wanted to be done. I tucked in behind Jarin, and we finished the race together. As soon as I crossed the finish line I remembered how much I love triathlons, it just took a few miles to remind me. Tim started fifteen minutes behind, but made up some serious time and crossed the finish line just a few minutes after me.

Tim's brother Michael and his wife Megan did the race as well.
When we found Megan my friend with the camera was gone.

We look almost as good as we did the night before.
I was so proud of both Tim and Jarin,
They totally rocked their first triathlon.

Tim was great at being the bike guy.
Thanks for the loading and unloading.

Still sweaty, but feeling fine.

Probably the best part of the entire race was my mantra. I knew that I wasn't going to be as fast this year as I was the last time I raced and I didn't want to focus on that, the people who were faster than me, or anything else negative. I really just wanted to race and enjoy the experience. The entire time I was racing I just kept repeating the mantra:
Swim your race, enjoy your swim, swim for those who can't,
Ride your race, enjoy your ride, ride for those who can't,
Run your race, enjoy your run, run for those who can't.