Tuesday 30 September 2008

Scotiabank Half Marathon lilliputian

WAY TOO MUCH FUN!

WAY TOO MANY LAUGHS!

AWESOME WAY TO MEET FELLOW BLOGGER'S

WAY TOO TIRED TO WRITE A PROPER POST!

will catch up with you on Thursday!

OH MY GAWD!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Thursday 25 September 2008

The last in the series, for me anyway...

...this is where you'll find me this coming weekend. My final Half Marathon for 2008! Wooo Hooo!!!

My Half Iron friend Anne and I will be driving to T.O. on Friday. I'm really looking forward to this weekend, as I get to "go home", visit with my dad, catch up with old friends and meet some new friends. Yes, I'm meeting up with more bloggers!!!

Vickie along with her friend Jan, Marci, Marlene and Tiger, maybe with some luck Melanie!

Saturday afternoon, 4pm at the Expo, Running Room Booth, be there or be square! That will be the place to be. I would imagine the noise level will increase drastically when we all get together, LOL....

There really is no plan for the race, however, I would like to go at a stronger pace than last weekend. Yes, I am taking my camera, so it may not be a PB (again). My Wooo Hooo's are all telling me to "see what's in the tank", but we will see what's shake'n when I get up Sunday morning.

The weatherman is doing the big flip flop on the race day conditions. One weather station says cloudy and rain, the other says sunny with clouds....in reality we get what we get...I am not a fair weather runner, so I really don't care.

I'll be incommunicado until I return on Monday, yes believe it or not I'm taking an extra long weekend much to the chagrin of the guys in the office. Suck it up boys, if you can go and play golf on a Tuesday and leave me to "mind to store" while you're out on the links, then booo hoooo to you, I won't be here on Friday nor Monday!!

Best wishes to everyone racing, running, cycling and tri-ing this weekend.




A very special Shout Out to Marlene and Emily...it will be their first Full Marathon EVER!! You go girls, make some memories....we will be there to cheer Marlene and Tiger across the finish line!!!

See you on Saturday!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Monday 22 September 2008

Canada Army Run debriefing...

For being an inaugural race, it was fantastic!

Knowing there would be a crush of people, we arrived at the Armories very early on Saturday morning to pick up our race kits.

Although the "swag bag" was sparse, it was okay because it really wasn't about that, this race was for the families of the men and women serving in our armed forces and the injured and disabled military personnel. The technical shirt is awesome....

I was disappointed that red technical shirts were not available to purchase at the expo, in my brain I had fully expected some sort of red shirt with "Support our Troops" on the back of it. So, me being me, wrote to the founder of the Running Room with my sentiment and believe it or not, I received an email back from John Stanton within the hour! Even after he had been announcing the runners coming across the finish for over eleven hours. He is taking my idea to the recap meeting today, Monday, so I'll let you know if I hear anything from that in the future.


Sunday morning the Wooo Hooo's met at my place and we headed downtown to meet up with a couple more by 8 a.m. We were very lucky to be able to congregate indoors at Ottawa's City Hall, it was pretty cool out in the early morning. We stationed ourselves near the doors to see the happenings outside at Confederation Square, yet near enough to the washrooms...

The cannon went off at exactly 09:00 and off we went! I actually ran into the fellow I met at the Ottawa Marathon in May...during that race we stuck together for the last 5 or 6 Km's and it was nice to start off with him for this race!

As always the Wooo Hooo's start off the race together, but run our own races and meet up at the end. Jen and I stuck together at a nice even pace throughout the race. It was a little slower than what I had originally thought about doing, but since I have the Half in Toronto on Sunday I didn't want to leave a lung in Ottawa!


There were so many people we know out running it was awesome. Blogger Nat from See Nat Run had emailed me her bib number earlier in the week so I was on the lookout for her, even though we had never met before! Unbelievably, as we were running a loop portion of the race I ran up behind a woman and for some reason, I turned and checked out her bib number, it was Nat...I looked at her and said Nat? She was plugged into her music so I leaned into her face and yelled NAT! Thank god it was her otherwise I would have been charged I'm sure!!! How great is that to meet a fellow Blogger. I even had the pleasure to meet "the Man" and "the Boy" in the recovery area....it's a fantastic feeling! The world just keeps getting smaller!

The weather was perfect, a little overcast, cool and pleasant. Later in the run the sun came out and a breeze picked up...it was the perfect fall day!

Downtown Ottawa is always busy along the canal, it is truly an "outdoor city" no matter what the weather. Yesterday was no exception. I could not believe the numbers that were out to support and cheer on the runners! There were people walking, strolling with dogs and kids in tow, there were roller bladers, cyclists (I looked for you Sprocketboy), other runners and there was even a bi-plane cruising along following the crowd for a little while.

The race itself was broken into four events, 5K disabled run, 5K, Half Marathon disabled run, Half Marathon. Trust me there is NOTHING disabled about any of our injured war veterans, they are just so inspirational to be out there running with the rest of us. True courage, strong hearts and self determination, amazing. Thank you for the sacrifice's you have made to keep our country strong and free!!!

I could go on and on, but truly this was one of the best races I've done to date and I'm really looking forward to the Canada Army Run 2009.

What a great way to spend an amazing fall day!

Next week, Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon....look out, I feel a party coming on!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Sunday 21 September 2008

What a GREAT Weekend

Saturday


A little eary for the race kit line up


Waiting for the doors to open




waiting some more




SUNDAY



09:00









The starting cannon had gone off!


we found blogger Nat





had a quick hug and a wave for the camera





and we went on our way...


HEY!



continued along the canal

and

We got our Dog Tags!!


What an incredible day!

More tomorrow,

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Friday 19 September 2008

Finally here!


This Sunday is the very first Canada Army run! There are over 6,700 runners registered for this event, how awesome is that!!!

When I signed up for this race, I was the fourth civilian woman registered...I thought to myself, am I out of my frigging mind? I'll be running with combat ready runner's and will be left in the dust!

Surprisingly, or not, this race has exploded into an across Canada event along with other countries sending runners to compete to support troops everywhere who are fighting to maintain our freedom.

Of course the Wooo Hooo's are all running now too! We will be picking up our race kits early Saturday morning, no later than 08:00, we want to be there when the doors open at 09:00. It is going to be a zoo! The founder of the Running Room, John Stanton, was instrumental in getting this event off the ground and he will be there throughout the day at his expo, signing books, talking with runners', walkers', and the public in general. I've met John before and he is genuinely interested and supportive of everyone who takes the initiative to get off the couch and take a positive step to a healthy lifestyle.

Sunday will be amazing and yes, I'm taking my camera! There will be runner's young and old, military and civilian...Ottawa will be awash in combat uniforms, brass and a sea of red and white...look for me, I'm the tall blonde wearing red!!!

On a sad note, please stop by and leave your condolence's with Xenia as she mourns the loss of her precious Athena....it is never, ever easy to say goodbye to a life long friend.

I'll leave you with a little brighter, happier subject.

A little birdie told me it was a fellow Ottawa blogger's birthday in the next couple of days....Happy Birthday Nat! Have an awesome run on Sunday if we don't get the chance to meet up!!! I'll be looking for you!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Thursday 18 September 2008

Calling all veggies and vegans

With the fall season just around the corner and after many, many months of training, running and just plain goofing around, I now find myself wanting a little healthier lifestyle.

When I was younger vegetarianism was sort of a fad with the hippy dippy lifestyle we were all living at the time (yes, I'm that old, so button up). I had long hair, sort of Janis Joplin style, worn long embroidered jean skirts and waterbuffalo sandals...ahhh, the age of Aquarius, Jefferson Airplane, Fritz the Cat and hemp....oh and being a vegetarian.

Well, now that I'm much older and hopefully a little wiser, I'm thinking back to how great I felt when I didn't have meat in my diet. Total vegan diet may be a little too strict for me...I love my half & half in my coffee in the morning and I'm not ready to substitute coffee for some lame chicory gorp. For the safety of those around me in the morning they will attest that I need my coffee (only 1 large cup, please).

I have been stealthily stalking Amy, Chia and the Tropical Vegan, reading their blogs and recipes and they run!! They haven't died, they are healthy and kicking! So, I'm going to try it again. I won't be adamantly vegetarian, if a chicken has flown through the broth of something I'm being served, I won't refuse to eat it....

The turning point for me was while reading my favourite archaeology PhD student, Xenia, and her post "A river runs through it", there was a picture of Carne Equina. Well, I had to look away! For those of you who truly know me, I am an avid animal lover, horses have been my passion my whole life, and yes, I do know that many, many of our horses in Canada are exported for meat. But to actually see it (again), well, I had trouble with it. I still *heart* you Xenia, you are and will always be my favourite PhD student !!!

So yesterday I went out and bought enough veggies, sauces, dips and bean curd tofu to sink a ship. I made an incredible dinner last night improvising from what I remembered from my "past life".

I'm even giving up my beloved red wine for awhile, see if that helps too while I prepare for the 2009 Triathlons. While I'm working on my swimming and cycling once the two half marathons are over, I'll be scouring recipes and websites!!


If you see a shadow over your shoulder while you're preparing your meal, it just might be me!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Sunday 14 September 2008

When opportunity knocks

For over ten years I had a home based business selling Weekender Ladies Wear, which was very proudly Canadian owned, unfortunately the company closed its doors this summer after 25 years of business. Very sad.

Being a S.I.NK. (single income, no kids), I'm finding it more and more difficult to maintain my meager lifestyle, what with gas prices soaring, well let's face it, just about everything soaring.

Just like all of you, I work hard for my money (If I knew how to do it, I would have put in Youtube, Donna Summers singing "She works hard for the money", but I'm not blog savvy enough)... oh, wait a minute, I take that back! LOL.....




With the Weekender doors closing it left thousands of people out of work. Not being the kind to sit back and wallow in self pity, many of these women found other jobs and home businesses to work at. Last week I was introduced to a at home business called Silpada. My long time friend called to tell me about it and of course would I like to book a home party...well, why not.

I'm all about the Bling as you know, so why book one party when you can book two....hey, why book two parties when you can do the business....Now the wheels are turning....So, yes, once I get the Half Marathons over with, I'll be back in business (no, I'm not quitting my day job), as a Silpada Independent Sales Representative to supplement my income....Once I'm fully signed on, October 1st, I'll be throwing a link to my new business and you can oooogggeeellleee the jewellery, give me a call, drop me a note...whatever...sorry there is no cross border shopping! Sorry.....but if you come to visit........LOL.

Anywhoooo, back to my passion.

I got two really nice runs in this weekend, after not being able to get my butt out the door during the week. Saturday's 6K run was awesome, no garmin, just me and the sounds of nature.

Today was hot, humid and sticky, but it didn't deter the many runners and walkers who were participating in the Terry Fox Run today.

Just in case you've never heard of Terry,

About Terry Fox

Terry Fox was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and raised in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, a community near Vancouver on Canada's west coast.

An active teenager involved in many sports, Terry was only 18 years old when he was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma (bone cancer) and forced to have his right leg amputated 15 centimetres (six inches) above the knee in 1977.

While in hospital, Terry was so overcome by the suffering of other cancer patients, many of them young children, that he decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research.
He would call his journey the Marathon of Hope.


After 18 months and running over 5,000 kilometres (3,107 miles) to prepare, Terry started his run in St. John’s, Newfoundland on April 12, 1980 with little fanfare. Although it was difficult to garner attention in the beginning, enthusiasm soon grew, and the money collected along his route began to mount. He ran 42 kilometres (26 miles) a day through Canada's Atlantic provinces, Quebec and Ontario.

It was a journey that Canadians never forgot.

However, on September 1st, after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 miles), Terry was forced to stop running outside of Thunder Bay, Ontario because cancer had appeared in his lungs. An entire nation was stunned and saddened. Terry passed away on June 28, 1981 at age 22.

The heroic Canadian was gone, but his legacy was just beginning.

To date, more than $400 million has been raised worldwide for cancer research in Terry's name through the annual Terry Fox Run, held across Canada and around the world.

Many of the participants today were wearing survivor shirts, ribbons, T-shirts with the photo of lost loved ones, some were being pushed, some were on bikes. There were families holding hands, groups of kids, people young and old. It was truly amazing to see. And also amazing were all the young volunteers at the water stations along the 10K route, young people riding their bikes offering support, first aid and kind words....

So nice to see that Terry will never be forgotten and that what he started so many years ago has grown worldwide!

I got my 12K in today and it felt great...

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Friday 12 September 2008

A little busy here...

It's killing me all these hours spent in front of the computer. My butt is bulging and turning into the shape of my chair, along with my thighs.

My eyes are becoming one and turning square from staring at the monitor for so many hours.

The running hours have really gone by the wayside and I'm more than a little disappointed that my training for the two half marathons has really, really slipped away from me.

The countdown is on and I'm working overtime again...

The good news is, I have a job!!!

This weekend I'm having to cut back my distance because I just haven't been able to keep up with my mileage, so, with that said, I'll be slowly upping the mileage right up to the Army Run...a little ass backwards, but it'll work. I totally respect the Half Marathon distance, so no real taper for me. Taper will come after the Toronto Half on September 28th, then I can rest up for a bit.

Hitting the gym, cycling and swimming will be part of my new programme, that way I'll be ready for 2009 Triathlons....

Have a great weekend everyone, good luck to those competing, cycling, running, tri-ing and having fun in general!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Thursday 11 September 2008

Out of Respect


I'm a BIG FAT LOSER!

Mr. Q,

A HUGE thank you for putting all this together for all of us Loser's, Ahemmm, I mean winners!!!

For those of you who were not aware, Mr. Q, or as the Blog world knows him, Quadrathon, put together a Weight Loss Challenge to all the bloggers who follow his posts, called Worth the Weight ! Which started waaayyy back at the end of July, with the Start Your Engines post. Mr. Q., really jumped on this and obtained some awesome sponsor's who ponied up some AMAZING bling, again Thank YOU...and for those of you who know me, I'm ALL about the bling!

It was perfect timing for me. I hadn't really done too well with the other weight loss challenge that was held by Viv. Which was way too much fun!!

So I hopped on the Worth the Weight freight train, to a newer slimmer me!

Thanks to Marianne at Headsweats, Xy at Dirty Girl Gaiters and Julie at Wicked Fast Sports!! For all the amazing prizes that were donated to Quad's Virtual Weight Loss Challenge.


THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH!


I'm just thrilled to be a part of this healthy lifestyle....

From the bottom of my heart, and my (smaller stomach) thank YOU Mr. Q. and sponsor's!!!

Oh, bye the way....

I was loser number 2!! Number 2 always tries harder...LMAO, just kidding.

And the WINNER was Scott!!

Congratulations!! You can find Scott at Gotta Run


So, there you have it...I'm happily awaiting my wonderful prizes, which I will share a photo of and a very special shout out to the Sponsor when they arrive at my little abode.

Well, I've now wasted enough company time putting together this post, so I'd better get back to work!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Tuesday 9 September 2008

What a difference...

...a week makes!

Last week I could hardly drag my sorry ass around, let alone get out of bed or off the couch.

This week I'm BAAACCKK! Even after struggling with my Sunday run, I feel MUCH better. Maybe it was a "bug", maybe it was just being overly tired, I did waste an awful lot of energy stressing over the Try-a-Tri, a lot of energy! LMAO...

So, this week I'll put some serious thought into next year's agenda. I know there will be a couple of triathlons, a marathon and I'm still toying with the 50K Ultra....we will see.

Yesterday, I hit the gym after work and cycled "hard", also spent thirty minutes on the elliptical and thirty minutes on the rowing machine....I LOVE the rowing machine!

So, there you have it, short and sweet! Tonight is the office barbecue, tomorrow I'm doing dreaded taxes (again)....

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Thanks everyone for the much needed support while I slugged my way through last week, and Wes, thanks for the much needed kick in the ass, (No sympathy from Wes, that's why he will ROCK IMFL!!).

Sunday 7 September 2008

I'm tired, yes I am!

Admit it, you are tired.

No, really I'm okay, I just need to have a little nap and then I'll be fine.

Ah, come on, I'm telling you, you're tired!

No, I just have a few more things to do and fit in my 20K run on Sunday, I'm okay....really!

HAHAHAHAA, a 20K run, ya, right, like I'm NOT going to let you do it, just wait and see! Come Sunday, you'll be toast, TOAST I SAY! Just see if I let you run me into the ground....you'll be lucky to get 12K done...trust me.



And so, this is how the conversation went all week long between my body and my head.

Well, this time, Body Blue won the battle...all along she was right, no 20K for this Chickie today...I truly was struggling to get my 12K done. The entire week slipped by without a run. It was the usual busy, busy at work, which left me with absolutely NO energy when I got home from work.

I would make dinner and then head to bed at 7:30PM, what's up with that? Not one, no, not two days in a row....but everyday this past week and Saturday was spent sleeping on the couch all afternoon. This is just not "the real me".

Today's run was slow and it was a struggle trying to catch my breath. Plus I had a hard time trying to keep my cadence all the while being 30 seconds slower than my regular slow pace. Not good, but I got at least 12K in.

This coming week I will have to be a little more disciplined, there are only two weeks before the first of two half marathons. No goofing around now, I'll be spending time at the gym if the weather is rainy or cool....I can definitely tell the end of running season is getting closer!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Friday 5 September 2008

Better late than never


All week I've been planning on joining in Reid's Virtual Mile 1, so better late than never, here I am, finally.
Reid is an amazing runner, father, husband and he works tirelessly with young people. Reid is trying to break a 5 minute mile and to run "virtually" with one of his running idols, the late Steve Prefontaine. Have a GREAT run!!!

This week for me has been unbelievably "non running". Trust me, I won't be sub 5, that will never happen, but I will get out to enjoy a quick trot on Saturday which will hopefully motivate me for my 20K Sunday run.

Hope everyone has a great weekend, whether you are running, cycling, tri-ing or just out enjoying the day.

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Thursday 4 September 2008

She bang...

...all night long!

Yes, all night there was thunderous banging noises on my rooftop as the oak trees surrounding my house doff their acorns....this has been the hardiest acorn doffing that has happened in years. All summer I could hardly sit out on my back deck because of rain and bugs, now it is worth your life out there trying to dodge falling acorns. My neighbour who lives three houses down was actually wearing a construction helmet the other day while he was cutting his lawn!!

Is mother nature trying to tell us something? Are the trees desperately trying to procreate because of some looming disease or pestilence headed our way? During the summer maple keys were sprouting in my eavestroughs, now acorns are in there sprouting into tiny trees! Mother Nature, WHAT'S UP?

On the running front, I've come to the conclusion I'm running weary. Yes, truth be told I'm starting to feel a little tired and there are two more half marathons to go before I hanging up my kicks for a few weeks.

Eight events in eight months was a stretch this year. It all started New Year's Eve with the Resolution Run, now I'm into September and yes, my running legs are starting to question what I'm up to.

September 21st is our inaugural Canada Army Run...being held in honour of our troops and their families. This race is fashioned after the American Marine Corps., and in reality I am truly getting excited about this race. Anything to support our guys and gals who lay their lives on the line to protect our freedom...THANK YOU!

So, no matter how tired or whiny I'm feeling right now, suck it up princess, because these VIP's don't have the time to think about themselves as they head into the unknown to keep Canada safe. To date, there are over 5,000 runners registered and the cap is 6,000. People, SIGN UP, show our troops your support!

Sunday, September 28th my Half Iron running buddy Anne and I will have the utmost pleasure of running The Toronto Scotiabank Waterfront half marathon with Vickie. Yes, we, the crazy ladies are meeting up to spend the weekend in Toronto! "Shut the door, it could be too much fun"

With any luck we will be meeting up with Tiger, Marci, Marlene and maybe even Vava...(don't know about Vava yet).

So, there you have it, 2008 is just about wrapped up for me running wise. I'll be going to cheer on the runner's I've been pacing at their races this fall. You GO guys, for some of you this will be the longest run of your life...awesome!

Swimming starts in October (have to prepare for next years Tri's...). With any luck we will have great weather right through to November....and yes, I'll be on the road with the bike...

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily

Monday 1 September 2008

What a BLAST!

My jittery nerves were gone once I saw the lay of the land on Friday when Anne and I went to pickup our race kits. We got to walk through the transition area down to the lake and look around. It was a long distance from the water to T1 (hey, I can talk like a pro now, just kidding), it was about 400 metres, uphill and no, I'm not kidding. There was quite a hike from transition to get on your bike too, but it is all part of it.

The alarm went off at 04:00 and my body clock went off at 03:59, I was ready!! Won't bore you with my morning ablutions Saturday morning, but once ready I packed up the car and racked up Ruby Red Rose (formerly Second Hand Rose), and headed out into the dense fog and drizzle and blackness. Driving in to town under those conditions was a tad nerve wracking, always looking for lurking deer and suicidal frogs that leap in front of your car on early fall mornings, yuck!

First thing I did when I arrived was take the bike and rack it in the transition area. Back to the car for my itty bitty transition bag and the rest of my stuff. Jeez, I packed as if I was leaving home for three months....On my way back for the third trip I found Anne and Dean arriving with her bike. My main concern was to stay out of her way as she was preparing for the Half Iron.

The Iron Man had already started, so we went down to see the first of the swimmers come out of the water...now that was exciting to see. Man they are fast. Anne went off for orientation and I wandered around the grounds, aimlessly until I heard my name called and yes, there they were, the Wooo Hooo's!!! How great is that? Glenda and Jen drove all the way to see us and Nancy, Brenda and her special man Roger biked over to the event....what a great feeling to know that I (we) had tons of support!!

Because of my orientation, I didn't get to see Anne start out for her swim. I must say, the fellow who conducted our orientation was an absolute hoot. He certainly spelled it all out for us newbies, yet made us all very comfortable and included at the same time. What a great sense of humour too, what little was left of my nervousness, he certainly put it to rest. As soon as that was over I had my cap and goggles and headed down to see Anne come out of the water....awesome to see, we were all cheering her on!





Anne giving some one the directions of the swim, hope she was pointing her in the right direction!


Anne on her way out of the water



Next event, the sprint and the try-a-tri, yikes, I'm on deck!





Since I only have shots from my camera (the Wooo Hooo's haven't sent me their pic's yet) you will subjected to what is on my camera!!


obviously a beach shot!



I'd like to think that I was leading the pack out of the water, but, nope it just looks that way!!

The swim had been broken into three parts, the sprints went first, the try-a-tri men were next and then the TT women (see I'm back with the lingo again). People were doing whatever stroke was their strongest, yes, they were doing the dog paddle, back crawl, front crawl and even the breaststroke....the wooo hooo's thought I was doing the breaststroke and even took a picture of the person coming out of the water thinking it was me....she was in my last post!

This is an action shot of the Creature from the Black Lagoon emerging from the depths!









Next, bike transition.









Me, Ms. Fussy about how my running shoes go on, just blasted her way through this change over. Normally I'm very particular about how I put on my socks and shoes, NOPE not this time. In fact I couldn't find one of my socks, it took about 30 seconds to locate it! (In the transition zone, well, let's just say, things get kicked around a lot).

Let me tell you, I jammed my socks and shoes on so fast, I actually chipped my toenail polish!! What a princess! LMAO!!

Again, there was quite a hike to get out to where you could bike mount, then off I went!! Like a thundering herd of turtles...

The Zoom photographer on the bike course was holding up signs saying "Smile for the camera", and when I was approaching he dropped the sign and said "I don't have to tell you that, you haven't had that smile off your face since you got here".




Finally, I get to the element I do know, running!


The run was a riot, I hopped off the bike and took little wee baby steps all the way to the bike rack, which in the "long run" really helped me get my running legs back under me. In the transition area my fuel belt had been shuffled around, so it was quite twisted and hard to get on, I picked it up and tried to get it straighted out, but ended up handing it off to a volunteer, if I had been going on a longer run, I would have been screwed because I didn't have any gels nor liquid with me. Of course on the longer run they have water stations, but, something to work on that's for sure.

The run route was very hilly, some hills were quite steep and I couldn't stop thinking to myself, thank goodness my strength is in the running department. I really did feel sorry for some of the try's, they certainly struggled up those hills.

Finally, to the finish line!

1:11:06












I had a BLAST!

The Wooo Hooo's were there for me snapping pictures and of course yelling "wooo hooo". My friends are amazing! They were there for me AND they were there for Anne, when one of us would come out of transition they were there! THANK YOU WOOO HOOO'S!

Anne was on the bike course when I finished up, so went over to watch her for a couple of loops. Then being the true athlete that I am, I went to the Lone Star for lunch and BEvERAges with the gang while Anne peddled her "assets".
One by one, because of prior commitments, the Wooo Hooo's headed home and I went back to watch Anne finish up her Half Iron. She was awesome! What an amazing lady...we all just love her!
As for me;

This is definitely something that will become part of my life, next year an OLY.....maybe a Half...we will see what the stars hold for me!
I had a GREAT DAY, I love it....

Lessons learned:
  • get a transition bag that is sturdier,
  • maybe a wetsuit
  • maybe bike shoes
  • definitely a top with a little more support, I'm a little too old and top heavy to have the Mama Chiquita's bouncing around in public (without getting paid for it!, JK)
  • work on transitions,
  • give yourself more than two weeks to train! LMAO

Put this on you list people, you have to try one before you die!!

Life's fun if you don't weaken,

Lily