Well after weeks and weeks of hard training, I am pleased to say that I accomplished the goal I set for myself. I did it! I actually participated in a sprint triathlon. And I did well!! Actually, after all was said and done, I was pleasantly surprised with how well I actually did. It was hard though. I was so pumped up with adrenaline and so focused on what I was doing that most of the time I had no idea how good or bad I was doing. For example: during the course of my swim I realized right off the bat that swimming in open water is so much harder than the pool. I expected that, but not to it's degree. In the lake you can't see a darn thing. You have to frequently pause for a second and look up to find the markers and make sure you're staying on course. In my situation, I had to follow an oblong path and when I rounded the last marker to head back, I hugged it too tight and started swimming right back into the path of oncoming swimmers. That mistake probably cost me at least a minute or so and in my mind I felt like I was the last in the pack. It wasn't until I saw my final scores that I realized, I did awesome! I came in 13th out of the 42 women in my division and at the time I had no idea I did so well.
So here's how the triathlon worked: Every participant that enters is placed into a Division by sex and age. My Division included all Females ages 30-34. In your registration packet you are given a colored swim cap designating what Division you are in (mine was gold); all the stickers and numbers you wear that has your identifying number; and a timing chip that you wear around your ankle. This chip records every thing you do. Which is really cool because it tells you how long each event takes you, how long you spend in transition, and you're overall time. Great invention! Before you can even enter the transition area you must have your number on your bike. Then they mark your leg with that same number. The picture below is not flattering of me, but it shows how on my left leg my participant number of 73 is written, then they write your age on the right leg as well. That was cool because it allows you to know the ages of people that pass you and/or you pass. I thought it was awesome that a 61 year old man flew by me on the bike. Good for him! There was only 3 minutes between the start of each Division and mine was the second to start.
So the first event to conquer was the swim, and at the time I felt that it was the hardest part. But I really think the fact that I had so much adrenaline pumping through my body made me feel that way. It was like a natural caffeine high. I was buzzed. In fact I was so disoriented getting out of the water after the swim that I did a little tumble right there in front of everyone. I was fine, but I had sea legs and was going so much faster mentally then I could physically. I finally did get my bearings and made it quickly to my transition area where I dumped the wetsuit and got my biking gear on. The biking path was along Marine Drive. It left Blue Lake and went almost to the Portland airport before we circled back and followed the same path, only on the opposite side of the street.
The run itself was probably the most difficult because after an intense bike ride (not to mention a swim) they literally felt like bricks! After dismounting the bike I was laughing with another participant about how weird our legs felt and how difficult it was going to be to run. My legs were so tired I felt like I was crawling during my run. Seriously!! It wasn't until halfway during my 5K that my legs finally relaxed and didn't feel quite so heavy. I am still in shock about how well I did on my run. Like I said before, it felt like I was soooo slow, but after seeing my time, I actually ran faster than I had during training. That is a great feeling to not only meet expectations, but to exceed them. I just hoped to finish! Speaking of crossing the finish line, that was great! It was the very first finish line I have ever crossed. I have never ran a race before in my life. As I crossed the line I could hear the announcer say, "Number 73, Nicole Waite, St Helens, OR." Then I saw my family cheering me on. Spencer, the boys, and my Mom & Bill were all there with smiles on their faces. Austin said to me, "Mom, I'm so happy, I'm proud of you!" That did it. That helped elevate me to cloud 9. I was so high all weekend. I still feel really good about what I accomplished. I don't feel superior to anyone. I don't feel like I am in the best shape of my life. I just feel so darn good for doing something so hard. I could get addicted to this feeling. I want to do this again, every year. Who wants to do it with me!?
So here is how I placed: Overall I ranked 20 out of the 42 in my Division. I came in 13th on the swim; 20th on the bike; and 23rd on the run. My overall placement including all Divisions & participants (male & female) was 275 out of 483. My total race time was 1:34:34. With a swim time of 17:49; Bike time of 40:29; and a run time of 28:43.
Oh yes, The Great Wolf Lodge! This place was a real treat. Whoever thought to build an indoor water park inside a hotel is genius! 88 degree year round temperature; water slides both young and old can enjoy; and completely family oriented, yep ... genius! The hotel also offers tons of fun adventures and activities to do as a family, so needless to say our kids went to bed fully wiped out. Upon checking in all members of the family were given wristbands which was our ticket into the water park. One cool thing that I found totally clever was the fact that the adult wristbands were also our room key. I loved it. Not having to worry about misplacing a key ... once again, genius! The whole family loved the Great Wolf Lodge. In fact, Andrew still every once in a while in his prayers prays for help that we can go back. I tell you, it's hard to keep from laughing out right when that comes up! Someday Andrew we'll go back and your prayers will be answered.
After the program, the two teachers called out their students individually and handed them a diploma, their graduation certificate from Kindergarten. It was sweet. Mrs. Miller had rolled their diploma around a regular size bag of M&M's candy. She really is awesome. I hope next year he lucks out just as well as he did this year with a fantastic teacher. You will be missed Mrs. Miller! And seriously, a first grader? How did he get to be so old already!? 
Spencer and I arrived in Cabo on Saturday, May 14 and stayed until Thursday, May 19th. It almost felt too short, but we still got to do all that we wanted to. Spencer went on a guided fishing trip with my Dad and our friend Rob. To his delight, Spencer caught a 30lb. Dorado (Mahi Mahi) while Rob caught a 120lb Marlin. Both fish were larger than life. The guys took the fish to a local restaurant and they cooked it up so deliciously for us. We also went parasailing together. It was Spencer's first time. There is something so peaceful about parasailing. It's so calm and quiet when your up that high. Most of the time during the day was spent laying on the beach or pool side eating and drinking as much stuff as we could. Thanks to those wonderful timeshare presentations our stay was virtually all-inclusive. I wonder how long we can keep milking the system!?
This trip was very relaxing. There was no rush for anything. We are so familiar with Cabo now that everything just feels easy. One highlight this year was seeing the beach under the arch at Lands End. Every 4 years the tide is low enough that you can see the beach and some times walk through the arch. This happened to be the year, however, it reached full moon during our stay and the waves were something to behold. They were enormous! So during that time, water taxi's couldn't get near Lover's Beach on Lands End. It made for some exciting times though when those waves came. Each year Spencer and I talk about how we should travel somewhere new, but it's so hard to not want to keep coming back to Cabo year after year. 
