My first TRIATHLON!

Ok so when January 2008 rolled in and my holiday hangover was gone, I told Guy that I wanted to set some goals for the year. My biggest one was a challenge to myself...a triathlon...yep thats right, one of those events where you swim, bike run baby! For years in the back of my mind I had always told myself...one day I will compete in a triathlon. Now after birthing 3 babies all over the country, I was ready to take charge of my body again, get healthy and this had to be the best way to do it right? And while Guy declined the invite to do it with me, my brother-in-law Jason (Guy's brother) gladly accepted the challenge. Along with one of my best childhood friends Nicole. So we committed to the Kirkland Triathlon on September 21, 2008. I found a great training program on http://www.sweat365.com/ and was locked in. This was the ultimate test for my mind, body and spirit. The training program was a combination (obviously-duh!) of swimming, biking and running, but it was all on paper...I did not have a trainer...I had to be my own personal trainer and drag my butt to the gym so I could swim laps each week and then that was supplemented with running outside or on the treadmill and biking at cycle class or outside. Come that rainy, cloudy, dreary day in September...I was ready...for the most part. My personal goal was to finish in 1 hour and 30 min. Did I mention the swim part was held in Lake Washington (downtown Kirkland) and most of the participants were wearing wetsuits. Yeah ok so it was a little chili out, but the adrenalin rush was so strong I did not care...I was ready! Standing there in the lake...Nicole and I were front and center...ready to take this thing on. Ok well let me tell you...as soon as the gun fired off for the swim to start I dove in and just started to swim hard and fast and about 30 seconds into it I truly felt like I could not breath. I started looking around and all I could see was orange swim caps bobbing up and down and all I could hear was the sound of gurgling water and heavy, heavy breathing...like the kind at the END of a race when you have been working hard to finish...c'mon people this is the very beginning...and I am seriously struggling for another 30 seconds thinking...oh my gosh...I have trained hard for 12 weeks to be ready for this and I am not even to the first buoy...how in the heck am I going to make it? I start to panic and roll on my back and look to my right where there is a life guard (thank goodness there are several of them) and he is on some surfboard thingy yelling "c'mon ladies...you can do this...remember to breath...keep going...you can do it!"...ok BREATH...is that my freakin' problem...I am not breathing...so I continue to do the backstroke to the first buoy and am feeling better...just practicing my breathing the entire time...it must be the shock of the cold water mixed with my crazy adrenalin rush that is making me this way so I continue to talk to myself and finally am calmed down to a point where I can roll back onto my stomach, get a steady stroke going and make it to the darn finish (of the swim that is)! Oh I was so glad to see shallow water and rocks and couldn't get out of there fast enough! Guess thats what I get for training in a heated pool...whooooooops! Anyway, the bike part was my favorite...12 miles through the suburbs of Kirkland and then a quick 3 mile run....Guy, Joey, Jake, Luke, AJ and Owen, along with my parents were there taking pictures and cheering us on. I finished in 1 hour and 40 minutes...not bad for my first one. Can't wait to do another! Here is the link that Joey put together with all of her pictures...thanks Joe!

http://cosabellafoto.com/slideshows/triathlon/