so...i completed the race

well, i completed the half ironman yesterday. april and i drove to galveston on saturday and picked up my packet and went to a mandatory meeting. we went to an italian dinner that was pretty good. we were just sad that we couldn't take our leftovers! we stayed at a hotel...beach hotels are nothing to brag about!!

i woke up about 4:30 and had difficulty sleeping past that point, but tried to rest. we left the hotel around 6:30 and headed to the start. there is a lot of prep involved. you have to set up your transition station...put your bike in the right spot..position all your shoes just so, etc. then i had to conquer putting on my wetsuit...and then you wait...and wait. my heat (group of people that start) was supposed to begin at 8:35 and there was a delay so I didn't start until a little after 9. by that time, i wasn't too nervous.

at that time, it was in the low 70's and pretty calm. the water was 67 degrees. the swim went pretty well. it was in salt water so i did ingest a little at one point and felt a little nauseus. i much prefer swimming in a pool to open water because you can't see anything. when i got out of the water i felt a little disoriented. then they helped me strip off my wetsuit.

i then switched into my cycling shoes and hopped on the bike. i felt absolutely great for the first 30-35 miles. then the wind kicked in and i began feeling it a little more. i was able to keep a pretty consistent pedal stroke for most of the time...the last 15 miles were a little rougher but still okay. on the bike i tried to keep myself hydrated and i also tried to eat a little bit. i wasn't very good at the eating thing. by this point (as i found out later) it was in the low 80's.

the run was okay...the wind was pretty forceful at that time. the first 6.5 miles were good but the last 6.6 was a little tougher. it just is hard to keep a good pace after everything else that has been completed. i was hot and beginning to sunburn. they did a great job with the race and had hydration about every 1-2 miles which was so appreciated!

overall, i was very happy with how i did. i didn't really know what to expect, so my goal was to finish. if i go for it again, i will definitely have some ideas for improvement!