Number 8!

Number 8. Freshman year. My first race. Trideltathon.

Nervousness, excitement, anticipation. Having no idea what this race would hold, yet wanting to find out more than anything. The night before I tried to go to bed early. I actually woke up five minutes after my alarm was set for. I thought I had heard my text message tone, but I didn't have a message. Weird. Well about two minutes later my dad calls me. He was in the breezeway of South Carrick with my bike and helmet. So I quickly finish getting ready and getting my stuff together in a dark dorm room while my roommate continues to sleep.

Getting down to the transition area was super exciting, and super intimidating. I put my bike on the rack and organized my stuff in what I thought would be the most efficient way for transitioning.

Off to the starting line. This race is a 400 meter swim, a 6 mile bike, and a 3 mile run. And it's a pool swim, so everyone jumps in one by one. So, I stood in line, for 45 minutes, freezing cold, waiting to jump in the pool. When I finally did, I jumped in without my goggles on my eyes. After a few strokes I realized that my eyes were burning. Oh, right. No goggles, just chlorine pouring into them. So I stopped and put them on my face real quick.

On to the bike. So I transition, and I definitely put my helmet on backwards. Seriously? How do I do things like that? And then right after I get out of transition and on my bike, I stop, right in front of a crowd of fans, and put on my gloves. I just didn't care about my time that year. As I'm biking along, I decide to eat a power bar. I had heard that was a good idea. After about a little over half of my bike ride I start eating it. Then I decide it tastes like peanut flavored paste, and I throw it off the side of the road. I know, bad idea to litter. Well, my bike is from 6th grade and is from Toys R' Us. Just keep in mind that it is not a high quality racing bike. So I change my gears and start to stand up and petal hard. As I'm standing up, I'm leaning really hard to one side, and my gear jumps. SWOOSH, CRASH. Yes. I fell. Down. On the road, and I'm pretty sure I slid a little bit. My bike was on top of me and I was completely in shock. People are whizzing by going "are you ok?" Right, like they would stop anyway. But I was ok. Purely because of adrenalin. I get back on my bike, knowing I really wanted to finish. As I'm finishing the bike route I realize that I have a MASSIVE abrasion on my right elbow, and a pool of blood was starting to form. Thankfully I still couldn't really feel it. Well, I finished biking. And seriously debated not running. But only for about 1.5 seconds.

On to the run. My wonderful friend Keli Petty (who is now Keli Brand) was standing on the sidewalk and says "Hey! I'm going to run with you!" We had trained together and planned on racing together, but registration complications kept that from happening. And thank you Keli!! There was no way in the world I would've finished that run! Then, coming up the last huge hill, I hear Carrie SCREAMING at the top of her lungs. I seriously heard her a quarter mile away. It was awesome! And after that hill I was home free! I crossed that finish line so excited that I had actually done a triathlon. And not realizing the addiction I had started.

So there you have it! Number 8! Check back tomorrow for Number 7!

Trideltathon

So it had been 3 weeks since my half marathon. And I had run a grand total of 6 miles, biked 11, and swam half a mile. Freshman year of college was the first time I had done the Trideltathon and I've done it every year since (although that first year was such an adventure I'm not sure why I continued). So here I was about to embark on trideltathon number 4.

Well, GOOD MORNING 6AM. Awesome. Ok so lets just be honest here, my goal was totally only to have fun. I knew I was not going to get a good time, so I just wanted to enjoy the race.

At the last minute they changed the location to the outdoor pool. Well the pool was 74 degrees, which is actually wetsuit legal. And it was about 50 degrees outside. So braving the cold I stood in line for 35 minutes waiting to jump in the pool. I was actually the only person in line that kept my sweats on until right before I jumped in the water. Needless to say I kept getting comments about how great that idea was. Then I jumped in . . . and again forgot to put my goggles over my eyes. Yep, jumped in and started swimming with my goggles still on my head. Ha. I know you're shocked. While I was swimming, the only thing that was keeping me going was all the scripture I was quoting. Like let me just tell you that I've always loved memorizing scripture. There is no way I would be able to do anything in life without it. So as I'm swimming I was just clinging to Jesus. And let me just tell you, when you cling to Him, he never lets you down.

Well I finished the swim and ran to the transition area. Threw my shorts and my shoes on and hopped on my bike. Well the bike segment was half a mile longer this year. And there was a hill sequence that was really difficult. Again, I knew I needed Jesus at this point. And Lord thank you for coming through! For getting me up those hills and back to that transition area.
Swim down, bike down, 3 mile run to go.

As I'm coming out of the transition area my dad is yelling "GO MISSY! THIS IS YOUR FAVORITE PART! YOU ARE THE BEST AT THIS PART!" Thanks Dad. Its a very interesting phenomenon to smile when you are in the middle of a race. Its like a reality check. Like knowing that when you finish that race you will still have wonderful friends and a wonderful family, regardless of how you do. That was a great way to start the run. And I did it without my ipod. That is an accomplishment in itself! I'm so dependent on that ipod its ridiculous. Well This time I had to depend on Jesus. And He is way greater than an ipod.
Well I crossed that finish line celebrating. Not because I had made a best time, not because I had finished in the top places. But because I had run a race with Jesus and He had given me victory. And it was fun. Yes, fun.

So needless to say this was not the best race of my life. But not the worst either. I didn't fall off my bike, like I did freshman year. And its not the last. And I can say that for the first time, I really ran this race on His Word.

"And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened by all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints of the kingdom of light."
Colossians 1:10-12