My Race Reports and Event Blog!

IM 70.3 St. George will go down in my book as the toughest 70.3’s I have ever done and also one of the prettiest. In the past this was a full Ironman distance and all my respect to those who managed to conquer this beast of a race back then! I heard all about how difficult the course was from athletes who had done it as an Ironman……and they didn’t lie! That said, the fact that it was a tough course actually lured me in to put this down on my race schedule for 2013. In all honesty, I felt that I was physically and mentally up for the challenge and excited to be racing a stellar field of athletes, including some big names from the ITU circuit.

Over the past 6 weeks I have been home in Tucson with my head down, training hard, and staying focused. This has been my longest training block since prior to Kona last year and it has been nice to be at home and restrict outside distractions. So, I am actually rather disappointed with 10th place. I can definitely pin point some probable reasons for having a bad hand on race day, however, I am not one for excuses.

Essentially I am writing this race report to identify with athletes who do not have the race they desire. It happens. From time to time, the magic is just not there on race day and I feel that it is ok to be disappointed with a bad result. We all work hard to achieve athletic prowess. For some this may not be winning races but just finishing them. Either way we are all striving to succeed in our individual goals when we race. Sometimes you legitimately have a get out clause as to explain a poor performance. But for those of us who do not, I feel there is something wrong if we are satisfied with a bad race. The day I am not disappointed with a bad race is the day I retire. I am a competitor and I strive to succeed. That may not define everyone, but as a professional triathlete it defines me. It’s about all the physical and mental hours I have dedicated to one thing, day in and day out, and that should amount to something. If I was happy with a bad performance, I would not be doing all this hard work justice. I would not be validating its purpose.

From here, I feel it is time to go back to the drawing board. For whatever reason, the training I put in over the past weeks did not deliver the desired result and I will use this as the one good thing to come out of this race. Had I continued on my previous training plan and not raced, it would be much later in the season before I discovered a change is needed. My coach (Siri Lindley) and I will now sit down and discuss the best training strategy that will enable us to move forward and achieve success.

On a different tangent, I would like to say how proud I am of the winner, Meredith Kessler, who has not only become one of my dear friends in the sport, but also one of the best in the sport. Congratulations to such a gracious athlete and a beautiful human being. I also would like to make a quick mention to the men’s winner, Brent McMahon who took the bull by the horns in his Ironman 70.3 debut and crushed it. It is great to see ITU athletes making the jump and succeeding in this non-drafting playground. It adds a whole new dynamic to long distance racing and as a competitor, a lot more fun!

My next race will be the Columbia 5150 in Maryland. From there I change the scenery and take a road trip to Boulder, CO for the summer. This is where my next block of training be happen in preparation for Challenge Roth in Germany. By then, Siri and I will have ironed out the creases with my major races for the season just around the corner.

Since turning to long course racing, early season form has never been my focus. For this reason, despite the high expectations triathlon media and fans have placed on me, I am actually happy with my 6th place in the Ironman 70.3 San Juan this past weekend. It is impossible to stay in peak form all year round because the body and mind need rest. No rest can result in chronic fatigue, injury, and ultimately a very short career in sports.

I am coming off one of the longest breaks in my 14-year career as a professional triathlete. In addition, the new list of obligations and commitments from winning the Ironman World Championships less than 6 months ago has grown exponentially. Unlike some of my competition, I have not had months to prepare and train for this event. And to be perfectly honest, in the grand scheme of things, my goal is defending my Kona title and this is when I will definitely have my “A” game. 6th place is not a “sub-par” performance for me this time of year. It does not mean that I did not give 100% in San Juan. This race hurt a lot! It was a tough course, hot conditions, and the competition was fierce. There were also some new faces on the start line who were keen to show they mean business in their IM 70.3 distance debut. These girls were the ones who stole the show on the day, with Helle Fredrikson claiming victory.

Winning in Kona is a day that seems so far from my immediate reference of fitness and state of mind. But after being a professional triathlete for so long I know what I need to do to be hitting my peak when and where it matters. I love what I do and sometimes it is very hard to justify calling it a job. Racing and trying my best to win races is all I know and at the time, that was what winning Kona was all about: doing my job as best I can. My office is anywhere in the world. My co-workers are some of the fittest, nicest, and most driven people on the planet. Sometimes I stand on a start line in the shape of my life with my eye on the big prize and sometimes I am simply on the journey to that place.

Racing in San Juan helped me recognize in a profound way that what I do is not a pursuit of a selfish goal, but a journey that enables me to inspire, motivate and encourage people of all ages, in and out of triathlon. I have had many humbling experiences as a direct result of finally reaching the ultimate goal of my triathlon career. I’m excited about future races so that I can continue this journey. The next race on my schedule is the Ironman US Pro Championships in St. George on May 4.

There is a saying that goes something like this: “You are only as good as your last race”. But if you dont mind, I would like to forget this one!

There is a lot to be said for taking an off season. It is a way to allow the body and mind to recover from a year’s worth of pounding on the pavement in order to do it all over again. I didn’t stop racing after winning in Kona last year (yes I thought I would throw that in there just in case people want to nit pick at my result in this race). I went on to win Miami 70.3 two weeks later, then I validated my Kona slot in Ironman Arizona where I finished 6th, and finally I made it over to Phuket 70.3 early December, not to start due to illness.

After this long haul of a season, I shut it down and enjoyed some of the other interests I have in life…….most of which involved travel, family, friends, food, and wine (in no specific order). As an experienced “veteran” in the sport (a phrase often used to reference me these days, although I dont think I am that old thank you very much!), I would consider my break much needed. I had planned it for a long time and it was by no means a way to ignore or defer any obligations that came with taking the Kona crown.

Fitness is soon lost on me once I stop training and I had given myself a 5 week block to get back in to some sort of shape for this race. Realistically, that is not enough given the fact that Escape from Alcatraz was a little over 3 months earlier than normal due to the Americas Cup. But there was no way I was going to miss one of my favorite races of the year despite the freezing conditions (and I hope those sailors appreciate our sacrifice!!).

With that said, it didn’t stop some of the best in the world and a full field of age group athletes jumping off the San Francisco Belle in both the men’s and women’s events. It was a tough event for all of us and never can this course be underestimated or considered easy, even on a fine summer’s day.

While this years Escape from Alcatraz left us all shaking in our neoprine booties, the race did not fail to live up to its reputation as one of the world’s greatest triathlons in history. I think we all had a great time being hosted by the wonderful city of San Francisco.

Some come here to win, some come here to conquer, others just come because they won a lottery slot, and the odd few come here to take Monday off work (you know who you are!!). In the end, I ultimately came here just to finish and take home 10th place. This is not a great result, however it is March and my best races are yet to come. Congratulations to the winners, Heather Jackson and Xavier Gomez on their success and to all the finishers who escaped Alcatraz in illegal conditions…….we are all now legendary convicts!!!

My next race will be San Juan 70.3 in two weeks and a much warmer climate.

My first attempt at Ironman was in 2007 and it happened to be at the Ironman World Championships.  Before the race I made a bold statement to the world on the NBC coverage stating that “I would one day win this event.  It may not be this year, but it will happen.”  After the race I realized two things:

1. This (Ironman) is the hardest thing I have EVER done; and
2. Winning this thing may take a while.

Now, here I am in 2012 being crowned the Hawaii Ironman World Champion……….6 years later!!!  This win is not my own and it was no solo effort.  Yes, on race day I am out there doing what I know how to do, but I want to say a HUGE thank you early on in this race report to my family, friends, coach (Siri), my massage therapists (Bill Kruse, William Pettit and Byron Thomas) and sponsors.  I want you to all know that this win was no solo effort.  These people and companies have enabled me to be where I am today and they are so important to me .

Photos by: Kevin Koresky

This is my 4th World Title and the only one witnessed by members of my immediate family: my sister Melissa and my brother Justin.  My parents (Joyce and Gordon) couldn’t make it to Kona because Mum just had an operation that did not allow her to fly, but they were online the entire time.

Back in 2008, I signed up with K-Swiss, Pinarello, Pacific Health Labs (makers of Accelerade & Endurox R4), Blueseventy, TriSports.com, Computrainer and Giro/Easton.  I have had a mixed bag of results in the last 5 years, but there is one thing that my sponsors have had the whole time: belief in me.  As I write this, my eyes are welling up with tears because it is with through this team and my more recent sponsors (Driscolls, Fuel Belt, ISM, Tor Hans, SKINS, Oakley, TriBike Transport and PowerCranks) that I have been afforded the opportunity to live my dream.

Little things in my life have always been the big things.  I did not grow up privileged.  My family has always had a very hard work ethic that has been instilled in me.  However, a number of sacrifices have been made along the way.  Leaving behind my family to pursue my dreams has not always been easy; however it has been encouraged and accepted by my parents and siblings.

I see myself as a bit of a misfit.  In large groups I am socially awkward and I say inappropriate things from time to time (I apologize to those who I may have offended).  I never really fit the mold of a typical teenager/youth who went out to parties all night, dressed to impress, slapped on layers of make-up, chased boys or lived it up throughout my university years.  I was the person who, despite enjoying the odd late night and drink or two, made it home well before my peers and was out the door training when some were just making their way home.  But this misfit is now confident being the person she is through the success the sport of triathlon has given her.

Photos by: Kevin Koresky

My first time at Ironman was nothing like my race last weekend.  A brief history of my previous races in Hawaii:

2007: 10th place.  A decent first time result, but I could NOT move after this race.  I qualified for the event in the 2006 70.3 World Championships (and the debut of this annual event) where I came 3rd to Samantha McGlone.  That year I also won the ITU Long Distance World Championships which was my 2^nd World Championship win after my 2002 ITU Olympic Distance win. I beat Chrissie Wellington in this event, but she kicked my arse in Kona, and has dominated the distance and the World Championships ever since.  I have never been in so much pain in all my life after a race.  I could not walk for a week.  My inexperience in pacing caused a bad judgment of effort on the bike and I cooked myself.  I started the marathon (first one I had ever done btw), and EVERY step killed.

2008: DNF.  For the 2nd time in my 12 year career as a professional triathlete, I was sick with a cold on race day.  Not bad odds really.

2009: 21st. Let’s just say it was a shitty day at the office and leave it there!!!

2010: 10th.  What a struggle and a fight this day was.  The demons in my head were screaming at me.  I had a relatively strong swim and bike.  But my gut started playing up during the 2nd half of the marathon and I was in the loo 8 times.  My head was screaming at my body to stop.  I’m a bit stubborn and I said no and I fought hard to make it in 10^th place.  Another arse kicking in my book.

2011: 3rd.  I finally nailed a good one.  I made a few changes.  Less  travel and racing.  Longer training blocks.  More recovery training days.  And some great nutritional advice from an expert, Brian Shea from PB Nutrition.  It was a breakthrough race for me and gave me the confidence I needed to win IMAZ a few weeks later and do my first sub-3hr marathon.

2012: WIN, WIN, WIN!!!!  Here is the race report you have been waiting for.  I came off winning the Ironman 70.3 World Champs with a good bit of confidence leading into my final 4 weeks of Kona preparation.  I headed out to the Big Island right after Vegas.  It’s what I did last year and it worked.  Kona is also such a great place to train and relax at the same time without any distractions, and I have had my fair share of those this year already!  With a week out from race day, I said to my coach Siri: “I’m ready.  I just need to rest now”.  I felt I had peaked.  Not a feeling I get very often, but I know it when I get to that point.  I wasn’t too bothered by the triathlon circus that started to arrive in town.  There were days when I was being pulled around in a million directions by media, sponsors, friends and family.  Nothing that bothered me or I didn’t expect.  I did what I had to do and kept my feet up the rest of the time.

The weather this year seemed much cooler than previous years.  A lot of rain.  Mild temperatures and not too much wind.  But that is not what I wanted for race day.  I was hoping for a really hot and windy conditions, and guess what…………that’s what we got!  I have no idea how high the mercury actually was on race day, but I felt it and I liked it!  This year was the first year in the history of the Ironman World Championships that the pro women had a separate start from the men……..what a brilliant concept: what took so long?!!!  This enables me to have a “clean” swim.  In the past it has been a battle with the men, who seem to swim rather aggressively. I could see my competition the whole way and they were not dragged along by the white water made by the men’s race.  Much fairer on all accounts.  I swam in 3rd most of the way and came out in a small group of 4 girls: Gina Crawford, Amy Marsh, Meredith Brook-Kessler and Mary Beth Ellis, with Amanda Stevens about 1min ahead.

The bike took a different scene than previous years.  There was no clear dominant cyclist on this day.  I was expecting Caroline Steffen to peg it off the front once she caught the “group” (I say this with inverted commas because technically, with the drafting rules, we are spread out according to the rules).   However, Caroline seemed to be riding rather conservatively, being content to cycle amongst the lead women, but  unfortunately she received a bike penalty early on which saw her playing catch up on the way up to Hawi.  At around this point I took to the lead which is where I remained until Hawi at which point I grabbed my special needs bag while Caroline and Mary Beth sailed on by.  I was surprised and happy to see we had split the field apart at this point, helped by the brutal winds that were hitting us from the front and the side on our ascent.  It was now a three woman show up the front.  But that didn’t last all that long.  With a tail wind heading back to Kawaihae, I pulled a stupid move and tried pass both Mary Beth and Caroline, but I ran out of gears to make it past Caroline who was in the lead and I had to drop back.  Because I did not complete the pass, this is a bike violation and I was cited with a 4min penalty which I served at Waikoloa. So I rode into T2 solo, but was surprised to see Ellis run out of the penalty tent in transition as I came in. We were all back on a level playing field……kind of!

Out on to the run, and I felt pretty average.  Mary Beth took off quite quickly in pursuit of Caroline who was 4 minutes up the road. Mary Beth gapped me by about a minute, but that was ok so early on in the run.  After about 6miles, I started to feel a bit more of a bounce and I could open my stride up.  Although the gap to Caroline stayed the same, I reeled in Mary Beth.  We ran together for the next 6 miles….. side by side (not stride for stride because she is tiny!).  At this point I just started feeling stronger and stronger so I pushed a little harder, but nothing crazy.  I’m talking 5secs a mile faster tops, but enough to see the gap closing slightly to Caroline who was now 3mins up the road.  Somewhere between mile 15 and 18 Mirinda almost caught me.  I sound vague when I say this because I actually had no idea she was there until the next day after the race when everyone was telling me. There were quite a few motor bikes around me at the time and I couldn’t hear a thing anyone was yelling at me from the side of the road.  In fact, at the turnaround in the Energy Lab, I saw Mirinda not too far behind and I thought it was at this point she was catching me.  So I was freaking out a bit.  I was still feeling good so I didn’t change my pace.  I just kept plugging away and eating in to the gap between myself and Caroline which was now down to 2mins30sec.

One thing that I remember thinking at this point in the race was how amazing Natascha Badman was doing.  I remember back in 1998, before I had even turned pro, Natascha just won her first of 6 Ironman World Titles at the age of 32.  And she is still killing 14 years later as an incredible 46 year old.

On my way out of the Energy Lab, I heard from sidelines that I was now only 1min45secs down off Caroline.  In my head I was calculating what I needed to do to win.  With 7 miles to go, I had to get back 15secs a mile and I thought that was totally doable, all I had to do was not slow down.  Gradually the miles were ticking on by and I could now see Caroline just a few hundred yards up the road.  1mins, 55secs, 45secs and that was the last time split I heard.  My head switched off and all I can remember seeing is Caroline getting closer and closer and at 23miles, I made the pass.  I surged right at the bottom of the last hill and it wasn’t pleasant.  Everyone has a pain threshold, and had just hit mine.  It is a different pain in an Ironman as opposed to an Olympic distance event where flat out is as fast as you can go to the point your heart can not beat any faster.  In an Ironman, you are willing your body to go but you are bound by the limitations to perform under fatigue.  My heart rate felt low (I don’t wear a watch or use a bike computer for that matter during a race), but I could not push any harder.  I gave the last few miles everything.  This was a fight for a World Championship Title that I have been chasing for years and I was not going to lose.

A little bit of guilt came across as I know the disappointment Caroline must have felt as she found herself now in 2nd place, which is still such a great result.  I also felt bad that I couldn’t celebrate with the crowds in the last ¼ mile because I was scared I would be caught.  But one thing I was so happy about is the win, and to have finally put my money where my mouth is.  And to top off and share such a great moment in my life and my career was the gift of having my brother, Justin, and my sister, Melissa there at the finish line. I was also blessed to have my coach, Siri bringing me home along with my dear friends. To see the emotion and joy on their faces is like nothing I have ever experienced before and that is what made winning so worthwhile.

Photo by: Paul Phillips

As a triathlete, I have no single weapon, however, I do have a shed full of useful tools.  I may not have the fastest swim, bike or run time, but that’s ok. It’s the combination of my tools that make me one of the best triathletes.  I race to get over the finish line first.  Sometimes my tools are sharp enough, and I nail it.  Other times I am missing the right spanner.  A little footnote about this analogy: my Dad is a carpenter and I grew up around a bloody big shed and a whole lot of tools!

Congratulations to all my fellow competitors and the finishers of the Hawaii Ironman World Championships.  Thank you for making this a memory that will last as long as I live. I am very proud of my 4th World Title and all the things I have accomplished along the way.  It doesn’t stop here.  My next race is this weekend: IM 70.3 Miami.  Then on IM Arizona on November  18th.  And to round off the season, my final race will be IM 70.3 Phuket on December 2nd.  These races could go either way, but I plan on racing them the best I can.

I am normally quite diligent with my race reports, however, I haven’t had my feet on solid ground for a few weeks, so I apologize for leaving you in suspense!  In a nutshell, here is what the last two weeks have looked like for me: pack up Boulder apartment; pack bike; fly to Des Moines; race HyVee 5150; pack bike; fly back to Boulder; drive 14 hours home to Tucson; unpack bike; pack bike; fly to Las Vegas; race IM 70.3 Las Vegas World Championships; win; pack bike; fly back to Tucson; unpack bike; pack bike; fly to Kona; breathe; write this race report!!

So in this race report, I will do my best to remember what went down amongst all the craziness in my life to bring you up to speed on the HyVee 5150 race in Des Moines and the IM 70.3 World Champs in Las Vegas a week later. Great for you readers, because now you get a two-for-one deal………and let’s be honest, who doesn’t love a bargain???!!!!

Last year I watched the live online video stream of HyVee 5150 and I was almost jumping out of my skin with excitement and anxiety, so much so, I found it difficult to sit still.  With sweaty hands and my heart racing, I said I would not be watching the race in 2012, but racing it.  And so I secured qualification to HyVee 5150 (which, FYI, is the richest triathlon on the circuit), via the points system, and on September 2nd I was standing on the start line.

Essentially, despite being dubbed an Ironman triathlete these days (and a veteran one at that!), I can still lay it down in an Olympic distance race.  With a 2nd at the Columbia 5150 and a win at Escape from Alcatraz, I wouldn’t say I am all that shabby at the distance.  So I felt pretty good about my odds of doing alright.  My pre-race tune up workouts indicated I had speed and that I was in fairly decent shape.   But the problem I had on race day was not so much a lack of speed in my legs, nor my arms, but my lungs.  I suffer from Asthma.  I was diagnosed in 1996.  It has been a very long time since I had an attack, and for that reason, I had not been taking my medication as frequently as I perhaps should, and coming down from the dry air of Boulder to the hot and humid conditions of Des Moines did not work favorably for my condition.

I struggled with my breathing from the minute the gun went off.  I couldn’t hang on to the girls who I normally exit the water with.  I was killing myself on the bike and yet I felt like I was spinning on the spot. And the run was just a battle with my head that said stop and my lungs that didn’t want to work.  I barely made it to the finish line.  However, I am rather pleased that I did because of the hefty pay check that came along with my less than average 15^th place performance.  I was definitely disappointed about my race in HyVee.  I know what I am capable of, but something else was in my destiny.

After a 14hour road trip back to Tucson the day after HyVee 5150, I made a quick change of equipment and clothing and took off to Las Vegas for the 70.3 World Champs.  With the two races being a week apart, I didn’t do a whole lot of anything other than eat, sleep, tweet and travel.  The problem I had during my last race ate away a bit of my confidence.  I had pretty low expectations of myself coming into IM 70.3 Las Vegas.  I questioned what I was doing there at all.  My biggest concern was another bout of asthma during the race and another week of Kona of preparation out the window.

But I am a racer.  It’s what I know and it’s what I love.  And as the race drew closer, I was mentally ready to once again give it 100%.  The doubts I had about my form and ability soon diminished as Siri Lindley (my coach) and I reflected on all the hard work we had put in over the past months.  Quite a few people made comments that I was just using Vegas as a warm up race for Kona.  But the truth is that it is a World Championship event and it has to be raced as such.  I was there to race the best in the world at the 70.3 distance, not to just go through the motions of racing.  I give it my all in every race I do.

The conditions in Vegas were brutal.  I knew it was going to be hot from what I experienced the year before, but this was way hotter.  I saw temperatures in the 100’s from 9am onwards the whole time I was there.  Same for everyone!

The swim was not my best.  I swam well, but I never felt great.  Jodie Swallow led it out, and I was 30secs down on the feet of Kelly Williams in 3rd. I felt good as I hit the bike, however it wasn’t until half way that I realized I must have been feeling really good when I caught Jodie and put time into the rest of the field.  Admittedly, I was rather shocked to come off the bike with a 2 minute lead.  The women in this race were no slouches on the bike.  In fact, I raced quite a few the weekend before in Hy Vee, and all of them caught and passed me during that race.

The run was nothing short of hot, hot, hot, with little if any shade.  There was some welcome relief with ice cold water at the aid stations.  With the added bonus of being in the lead, I started to gain momentum and put time into my main competition, Heather Jackson (2nd off the bike) and Melissa Hauschildt, Angela Naeth, Margaret Shapiro, Joanna Lawn, Mirinda Carfrae, Meredith Kessler, Lindsay Corbin and Magali Tisseyre.  One or two of these girls had caught and passed me in a number of races I had done this year.  It was either a case of me blowing up on the run, or them just being the better runner on the day.  Not this time…….with one exception: Kelly Williamson.  She is kind of a sneaky fox.  Although she didn’t have the best bike of the day, she was gradually passing one athlete after the next and with one lap left of the 3 lap run course, she was definitely in striking distance to me if I didn’t hold my shit together.  I had about a 2min lead on her and I would have to slow down 45sec per mile for her to catch me.  That was not going to happen.  This was my day.  I wanted this badly enough.  I have wanted to win this World Title since the inception of the 70.3 distance back in 2006.  I have raced every one of them with a mixed bag of results including a 2nd and a 3rd.

Now with 3 World Titles to my name, there is still one that I want even more: the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.  Watch this space!  4 weeks away and the countdown has begun!!!

Before I sign off, I want to let all my sponsors know how grateful I am to you for your ongoing support: Driscoll’s Berries, K-Swiss, Pacific Health Labs (makers of Endurox R4 & Accelerade), Pinarello, Trisports.com, Easton, Giro, Blueseventy, ISM Saddles,Tor Hans, Computrainer, Fuel Belt, Skins, TriBike Transport, Oakley, Halo Trainer and PowerCranks.

Thank you Kevin Koresky (Tri Lounge & Finishline Multisport) and Jene Shaw (Triathlete Magazine) for your awesome photos!

……racing that is! I have raced up here at altitude once before in the Boulder Peak Olympic distance triathlon back in 2006 after living in Colorado Springs for 6 months. Fast forward 6 years and only 2 weeks of living and training at altitude makes quite a difference! While I do think 2 weeks was enough time to adjust to the 5000ft of altitude, getting the job done today was a whole different animal compared to racing at sea level.

While I was warming up for the swim I remember thinking “I feel like shit” (in my exact words!) and it was then the word “altitude” flashed in my mind. I chalked my less than great warm up to feeling fairly normal considering a lack of oxygen and realized that my lungs would be on the edge of combustion for the entire race. After the race I talked with some locals and learned this was pretty ‘normal’.

The race itself saw Liz Blatchford take to the start, who is essentially a new comer to the 70.3 distance.  Liz has spent the last 6 months focusing on Team Great Britain selection for the London Olympics.  Unfortunately she missed out on qualifying due to a debatable decision on “discretionary” slots, and therefore Liz understandably had an extra big fire in her belly today with the Olympic Triathlon event falling just days before this race.

When the gun went off for the swim start at the stunning Boulder Reservoir, it was no surprise that Liz took off like a bat out of hell. And I went right with her. I sat on her feet the whole way. I left T1 a little down because I had the slowest transition on the planet and I had to play catch-up! I spent the first 10 miles chasing Liz down on the beautiful, rolling, two lap bike course. I went by and I tried hard to shake her off.  But Liz knows how to dig deep, and she held on to me for the next 20 miles. In the end, all I managed to put between us was a gap of about 2 minutes as I lead into T2, with Melissa Hauschildt a further 2 minutes back.

The run was two laps on a dirt path/road around the Boulder Reservoir. I felt significantly better than my previous race in Vineman 70.3 after getting in a good amount of running back in my legs post injury. I managed to hold off Liz until mile 4 and Melissa until mile 8.  I did not have anywhere near the speed of Liz or Melissa, who have been living and training in Boulder much longer than myself. It was a great race between the three of us as we pushed each other the whole way, which ultimately saw us finishing within 2 minutes of each other, while 4 th place was 10 minutes back.

It’s a wonderful feeling to be back on an Ironman 70.3 podium. I still have a little ways to go before I can say I am 100% fit again. However, things are right on track for the Ironman World Championships in Kona. My next race will be HyVee 5150 at the beginning of September. THANK YOU to all my terrific sponsors for being………..terrific: Driscoll’s Berries, K-Swiss, Pinarello, Pacific Health Labs, Trisports.com, Giro, Easton, Fuel Belt, Blue Seventy, Tor Hans, TriBike Transport, Skins, ISM, Computrainer, and Oakley.  AND a BIG THANK YOU to my family, friends and fans for your on-going support. I love racing high!!!

Vineman 70.3 was quite a last minute decision.  After having to withdraw from both Syracuse 70.3 and Muncie 70.3 due to a back injury I felt the need to get back and race.  Not for any other reason than to doing something I love.  We tend to take our health for granted when we are all good to go but when something slips up (illness or injury), you realize how valuable those things are in life that you can only do when your health is 100%.  This is the second time this year that I have had that experience and getting to the start line on the weekend made me very happy.

It has been over 4 weeks since I have been able to train properly. I have been doing swimming and cycling aerobically, and in the last week I started running.  So it was no surprise that when the gun went off and I went into race mode, there was not a lot of strength, power or speed I could tap into.

Meredith Kessler and I led the swim, and I pipped her to the post by a whisker running out to T1.  I went out on the bike thinking I still had the fitness from 5 weeks ago which enabled me to win the Escape from Alcatraz, however I did not!  Kessler and Amy Marsh went by me and I tried to hang on for as long as I could.  I lasted 20miles.

The next 30 miles I spent riding in no-man’s land and I suffered quite a bit.  My legs were just not prepared to push that hard and I couldn’t get out of 2nd gear to put in the effort that would bring my heart rate up.  Melissa Hauschildt (formally Rollinson) caught me with 5 miles to go.  We set out on the run together and I felt pretty good under the circumstances…..not amazing, just pretty good.  I held on to 4th place for 10 miles, however the lack of running and general fitness was beginning to take effect.  Heather Jackson ran by me and in the end I took 5th place.  Kessler took the win, Hauschildt came in 2nd, and Marsh rounded off the podium in 3rd.

It was a stellar turn out at Vineman 70.3 in both the men’s and women’s events.  I love coming back to California to race and for that reason, racing Vineman 70.3 was a blessing.  It is such a great event and I had a lot of fun times with my SELTS Team mates and coach, Siri Lindley.  And despite my set back, I had a strong performance and I managed to maintain my composure both physically and mentally when a few things could have quite easily fallen apart.  The most reassuring news for me is that my back held up to the intensity of racing, and therefore its full steam ahead for the rest of the season and I am so not getting sick or injured again!

Next race on the schedule is Boulder 70.3, where I will also be based for the rest of the summer.  Time to hit the high life!!  Thank you to all my sponsors for you continued support and to all my family, friends and fans who are all pulling for me to succeed. And if you haven’t seen the latest LAVA and Triathlon Plus (British magazine), I am very excited and honored to be on the covers for the month of July!!

There is a time when you can relate to every analogy in the book: “one curve ball after another”; “riding the wave of life”; “the road has many turns”; “it’s a hard climb to the top of the mountain”; etc, etc, etc.  And believe me, I feel I have been experiencing them all in the last 6 months.

The latest would be my niggle.

I came off riding a wave winning Escape from Alcatraz on a pretty big high. And such is life, I just recently hit a pretty big low. I was meant to race Syracuse IM 70.3 a couple of weekends ago, but during my last hard pre-race workout I tweaked my back when I ran off the bike. For the next couple of days I couldn’t walk. I have a pretty high pain threshold, and this was hitting my upper limits.

Today was the fourth day l have woken up without pain……..3 weeks on.

It’s been a very long time since I have had an injury that has required total rest, and I learnt that the hard way.  At first I refused to believe that my back pain was anything to worry about.  I did what many athletes do, and that is take a heap of anti-inflammatory pills and pain killers and get on with training as if nothing happened.  BIG mistake.  I felt pressured to train due to an upcoming  race, and the last thing I wanted to do was withdraw.  I had already pulled the pin on 2 races this year, and I just didn’t want to do it again. But in the end I finally listened to my coach and my therapist and didn’t get on the plane to Syracuse.

Now I find myself having to pull out of another event, Muncie IM 70.3.  This one is based on the fact that I haven’t done a whole lot in the past 10 days so I could concentrate on healing my back. It’s hard to channel positive energy under less than favorable circumstances.  I have also been spending way too much time getting rather comfortable in front of the TV and becoming a couched potato sports fan (something I’d rather not get used to).  And then there is the excessive amount of time I have spent reading news blogs,  Facebook and Twitter…..sorry for the over-dose on my news feed, my life is really quite boring! And I should also mention getting injured is very expensive……I really don’t want to know how much money I spent while shopping (aka retail therapy)!!!

As of right now, I am back to 100% and I am not only walking, but running again.  The past few weeks have been a constant shuttle between my home and my chiropractor (that is actually an understatement…..he is now on speed dial!).  I would like to thank the hands of Dr. Eric Vindiola from The Joint for working his magic and getting me literally up and running again. It’s no wonder that he is the chiropractor for the 10 or so Tucson athletes who are heading to the 2012 London Olympics.  A small niggle can quite easily become a long term nag and only too quickly my body and my biggest asset could be worth nothing unless I can get it back on a start line 100%.

My livelihood depends on racing and my body is the tool for my trade.  I have supported myself and my lifestyle based on a successful career in triathlon. I am blessed to have amazing sponsors that enable me to pursue my dreams.  I am extremely grateful for the gift I have been given to do triathlon as a profession.  I am also very thankful to my caring and loving family and friends.  These are the people who see me behind closed doors, and know of my struggles during the last few weeks and months.  They have been there to make me laugh when I need it, but more importantly to lend an ear and to be there as a shoulder to cry on. There are very few people who fall into this category for as it can be a pretty lonely world as a professional athlete.  You all know who you are. Thank you.

Moving forward, I will be racing in Vineman IM 70.3 on July 15.  The time I have taken to recover from this injury has fallen right when I would have taken my mid-year break, so not all is lost.  You will see many more years of me racing as a pro and looking at the big picture, this is just a little bump in the road.  Kona is still my number one priority for 2012, and I still have 14 weeks to get ready to make magic happen in Kona.

4 time escapee!

After racing in the Escape from Alcatraz for the 6^th time this year, you would think writing another race report about the same race would be exactly that: just another race report.  But every time I dive off the San Francisco Belle it’s a new experience and I feel the same excitement and anxiety as I did the first time round.

I knew after my last race 3 weeks ago at the Columbia Triathlon I had to step up my game on the bike.  Annabel Luxford spanked me that day, putting a 2min lead on me.  I knew I had to get myself into a better bike shape coming into this event, especially since I would once again line up against Annabel and I would be biking on the hilliest 18mile course they could possibly find!  So the last few weeks have been all about specific cycling in my Tucson catered towards nailing this race.  And I would say they have worked.

There is nothing quite as spectacular as taking the San Francisco Belle out to Alcatraz Island from Pier 3 just as the sun comes up showcasing the city in all its glory.  We were blessed to have some of the best weather San Francisco has seen all year, with temperatures hitting the 90s, but the water temperature was still VERY cold. The boat ride out is quite a lot of fun.  I was hanging out up on the top deck keeping athletes racing in the CEO Challenge from passing out from fear as we moved further and further away from the dock.

One loop around Alcatraz and the boat was positioned ready for us all to start our escape.  We climb over the side rails on the lower level before countdown begins.  3…….2…….1 and the horn goes off and we dive into the water.  It’s a wetsuit swim, but nothing quite prepares you for the shock of the VERY cold water.  There is no warm up and still, after my 6 years experience, I still have no idea where I’m going! My theory behind the swim is to follow the swim cap in front of me (hope that the cap is actually on someone’s head) and just have faith that there are a string of athletes thinking the same thing with the leader out there somewhere following the lead boat!

As it turns out, the swim cap I was following went the right way and I exited the water in 3^rd place along with Annabel Luxford, and we were both about a minute behind Lauren Branden and Sara McLarty.  Annabel and I also exited the water together in Columbia, so this where I wanted to be.  The run between the swim exit and the bike transition is half a mile.  I opted  to put shoes on and I had a fast transition (for a change I might add!), catching up to Lauren and gaining on McLarty.

I had Sara McClarty in my sights at the start of the bike.  I felt like I was being hunted from behind with Luxford chasing from behind, so I was just going as hard as I could and on the first climb (about 2 miles into the bike) I took to the lead.  I know this course like the back of my hand because I have raced over it so many times and this was once my training ground when I lived in San Francisco.  This is where I think I had the advantage over my competition because I know the nasty descents, which are not only fast but very technical.

I came in to T2 with a 30 second advantage over Luxford .  Not a huge lead, but I felt pretty bloody good going into the run.  Just like the bike, I knew I was being chased, so I went as hard as I could on the flats to open up a bigger lead going into the stairs.  And when I say stairs, I mean stairs!  I’m not talking about the famous sand ladder stairs, but the mile of stairs before we even get to that point!  By the turnaround point on the run, which comes after running half a mile on the soft sand of Baker Beach, I could see my lead had grown.  All I had to do now was get up that bitch of a sand ladder!  I think I ran most of it, however, I kind of hurt myself to the point that I actually don’t even remember!  By the time all the uphill was over, my lead enabled me to enjoy the last few miles of the run.  Unlike other years I have had to kill myself right to the finish.  It was definitely a nice relief.

It was a wonderful day.  A victory I wanted so badly and I made it happen.  It makes me very happy to be back in form and back to a place where I am mentally and physically racing to win.  There are a lot of things we sometimes take for granted, but I have discovered that we must enjoy today for it is the reason we keep doing what we do tomorrow.

Escape from Alcatraz is probably my favorite race.  I had a great time meeting the CEO Challenge athletes who were a great inspiration.  I went to all my favorite museums and art galleries, met up with some of my best friends, I enjoyed great food at the best restaurants in the city and I trained at some of the most beautiful locations in the world.  I was getting a coffee at Sausalito on Monday morning and a local recognized me.  He said he had met me before asked if I had won Escape from Alcatraz.  San Francisco knows me.  I love San Francisco.