What a "stinger" of a race!

Not even being "slammed" by a bee while pedaling my ass off would keep me from completing my first triathlon! More on this later!
Here's how the last few days have gone:
Thursday afternoon: Jared comes home from school with a cold! Holy crap, you've got to be kidding me?! I have totally separated myself from him now for the next 48 hours. After all this time and training, there weren't enough bleach wipes around to keep me happy!
Friday morning: went for a nice long walk (7 miles) to calm down some of the pre-race jitters. I hate to say, that didn't work! Came home and started packing. Left home about 12:30 and headed north. Hit Marinette about 3:00 and checked into hotel. Weather was OK, cloudy and cool. Unpacked the car, wheeled my bike into the room to keep it safe, and met my Aunt and Uncle who had driven over from Door County to watch me compete! They were all packed for their drive back home to Coppell, TX where they live in the winter and then they come up to their cabin in Bailey's Harbor for the summer. It was very nice to have them there. We went out for dinner at a local restaurant and then split up to go to our hotels. We all had rooms in the same place at first, but while trying to sneak their cat "boots" in the room they got caught and had to go to a different hotel! They ended up just down the road. Sat around and just watched TV in our room(s). I booked 2 rooms that adjoined each other and made sure Jared stayed quarantined in his room and Jeff and I in ours! I think I feel asleep around 9-9:30ish and slept pretty good. Woke up at 4am! Feel back to sleep until 5am-piss on it, up for the day! Took a hot shower to relax and squeezed into my triathlon suit! Had the weather channel on to keep up on latest edition for Marinette! Forecast called for temps in the low 60's and rain-SHIT! SHIT! SHIT! Oh well-not a little rain is going to dampen my big day! Breakfast Saturday morning consisted of a diet mt. dew, some tootsie rolls and half a muffin with peanut butter! Was that nutritious or what??!! Who cares, I'm lucky I was able to choke that much down. Slammed down my "velvet antler" and away we went to the YMCA! Arrived there at 7:05am-race time is 8am. Checked out my competition, not looking too bad! Can definitely tell the "hardcore" triathletes-even in Marinette! Now it was really damp out. Good thing I just bought a biker windbreaker jacket. Set up my transition area-put my bike right next to some "high tech" ones so as not to miss it as I come running around the corner for it! More on this later! Went into the building to get my "number" drawn on my arm! HOLY CRAP-my number was "1". How friggin' appropriate was that! I told the lady that was perfect since this was my first time! She wished me the best of luck! Of course I got the number 1 due to being alphabetically! Starting to now get really fired up. Trying to stretch out, trying to calm down the stomach, trying to get my earpieces in my ears just right, trying to figure out what song to start with! We were then all directed out to the road and the corner-holy shit, here it comes! With some last minute instructions to stay on the left side of the road at all times, make sure you run past the cone on the turn around, blah, blah, blah the horn was blown and off we went!!!! Holy crap my heart is pounding like never before! About 1/4 mile into the run I was already in what I hoped wasn't last place! The damn cool, humid air was wrecking havoc on my asthma. Damn all those Newport Lights I did in my past! Humidity is OK, but cold humidity is rough. The air was being sucked in hard and it just wasn't getting out. I had a hard run. When I got to the half way cone and made the turn to head back I was happy to see there was a person behind me! WHOO-HOO! I wasn't dead last! Of course he was at least 60 years old-but who cares, it was another body behind me! That perked me up a little. As I got to that damn .1 of the 3.1 miles I kicked it in as hard as I could because I noticed my bike was the only one left! I had parked it, as you read above, next to some hardcore bikes not to miss it, well with it being the only one left-I had no trouble finding it, climbing on it and off I went. Now, biking I knew I would be able to kick some serious ass. I pedaled big time. I was averaging 18mph and at the 3.5 mile into the 15, I passed my first "victim"! Shortly after that I passed two more, and now I really starting to get into it. Right at the first turn, approx 8 miles into the bike, I got slammed by a bee right on the right collar bone. Son of a bitch, did that hurt! That started to swell up and I was feeling for a stinger, but couldn't feel one, so figured I was safe. The shitty asthma run was now a distant memory! I passed two more people before the end of the bike route. I finished the bike in 55 minutes (another PR!), that was great since the shitty/asthma run took me 40 minutes which was easily 10 minutes longer than my normal time has been. I quickly got off the bike, took off helmet and mp-3 player to run across the field to the back door of the building which goes right into the pool. Stopped at door to remove shoes, socks, my RoadID anklet (in case I collapsed they would know who to call!) shirt and glasses. That sucked to get rid of the glasses, I seen nothing but blurry people swimming back and forth and heard all kinds of screaming and cheering. I dropped into a lane and off I went. At this point I was totally exhausted, but when I got to the door of the pool and seen the timer at that point said 1hour and 33 minutes-I knew I had a HUGE chance of making my 1 hour and 45 minute goal! I originally had just hoped to make it in 2 hours, but after awhile, I upped my personal expectations! I started to swim and my side was just killing me. I could hardly expand my lungs and each time I breathed in I had to hold my side. Shit this sucks! I was so UN-focused in the pool due to being unable to friggin' see and all the screaming going on-I felt kind of lost. But I swam as hard as I could-mostly side stroke now-and ran out the door past the timer! I seen the timer as 1 hour and 46 minutes and whatever seconds. I just stood there bent over trying to get some damn air back. Now it was raining out pretty good and I quickly put on a jacket and tried to warm up. Holy crap! I just finished my first triathlon! I felt tired as hell, I felt like crying, I felt like falling over, I felt like "now what?!"
After relaxing and recovering for awhile, I had to say goodbye to my aunt and uncle who were anxious to get on the road. With hurricane IKE on it's way, they wanted to get going and make sure all was OK at home. We then went to pick up all my gear and put in car and then went into the Y to warm up and EAT!!! Then they started to give out the awards. They had 1rst, 2ND, and 3rd for each age group. When they got to the 44-49 group, they read the 1rst place winner with a time of I think 1 hour and 28 minutes. Then they started to read the third place winner: "with a time of 1 hour and 45 minutes and 27 seconds..." , I was thinking SHIT, I just missed third place by seconds! Then they said MY NAME!!!! HOLY CRAP, I totally missed what the timer said when I came out due to not having my glasses on! I GOT A DAMN MEDAL IN MY FIRST TRIATHLON!!!! As I walked up to receive my medal, it was the same lady who painted my number "1" on my arm. She had announced to all that this was my first triathlon. Lots of people congratulated me! A few seconds after that I had to walk down the hall and let it all sink in! In other words, I had to go have my victory cry!!!!
What a great day. Through the shit run, the bee sting, the rain, the cold, the dampness, the great music I had on, I will never forget Saturday, September 13, 2008.


A special thanks goes to all my friends and family for being behind me on my quest to compete in my first triathlon!

Thank you Kori for the great plan-you planned it out and I executed it!!!