Cancun Ironman 70.3 Champion!

Hallelujah!  I did it, I won my first Ironman 70.3!!  I can't explain how exciting it was to 'break the tape' and even better to be able to do it with Randy right there with me!

I went down to Cancun with confidence after a really good training block and finally starting to feel fully recovered from surgery.  I knew it was going to be stinkin HOT and HUMID, so I had done some heat acclimazation in the weeks leading up to the race, thank goodness for that!  In the days leading up to the race, more and more names started to appear on the startlist, the race line up was looking tough.  Rather than focusing on who was going to be there, I shifted my focus to what I was capable of doing.  If I went out and did what I was capable of, I could be in the mix.

Race morning started of dark and early.  As we were setting up tranistion it was pretty windy and there was a bit of sprinkling rain.  I hoped I'd made the right decision to use my disc.  (Glad I did!)  Since it was already pretty warm, I did a super light jog and then headed down to the water early.  I wanted to do all of my warming up in the water to stay cooler and still get loose.  Before I knew it, it was time to line up at the start.  Let's get going!

I had a quick start: a mix of running, dolphin diving, and floundering around but quickly took the lead and got to the first bouy and started to find my rhythm.  The water was warm and my swim felt a bit off...I just felt like I was slugging through mud.  Tried to keep my focus and effort high so I could get a good gap on the girls that would be chasing.  Out of the water, run on the beach, then run through Wet 'n Wild, then to transition.  I totally took off in the wrong direction and the crow was yelling for me to turn around, opps! Finally go where I needed to go and on my bike.  I just put my head down and trusted my legs would do their thing.  The course seemed pretty shaddy and not too hot at the start, but it slowly warmed up like an oven.  Then the wind picked up and I was pushing the pace solo.  On the second lap we started to mix in with the age-grouper and it was great to have bikes to chase!  I knew the other ladies were chasing hard so I tried to keep the pressure on the gas.  What an exciting T2: the crowd was going crazy!  I tried to carry all that energy out on the run course with me.  The run was 2 out and back loops and thank goodness there were aid stations every kilometer!  As I was coming out of transition the sky got really dark and I was like, sweet, its gonna rain!  It rained for a little bit and then that was the end of that...it just sparked a wave of humidity and the heat was rising.  I focused on running from aid station to aid station, trying to keep my cadence up and rhythm relaxed.  I wanted ice so badly at the aid stations, I kept yelling, "Hielo, Hielo" and they would say "Agua, Agua"....they didn't have the ice there yet!  Finally I went through one station and the bucket all the water bags were in was full of ice, so I made a quick stop to put a handful of ice in my hat and in my short...ya gotta stay cool out there!...and I think that shocked the kids working there!  I finally got my method down and it was a relief to see the water/cooling oasis every little bit.  I kept the pressure on all the way home because ya never know what will happen...but boy, it sure was fun to turn the corner and see the finishing shoot!  I was so excited and had the hugest SMILE on my face...I had done it!  What an awesome day!!!

Enjoy the slideshow....