By the way, I love HITS races! They aren't the big name Ironman brand races, BUT they are well run, won't break the race budget, and the race director Mark Wilson is awesome! I love their transition area as well. Plenty of room to set up, a box area to put your additional gear, and a stool. Pretty sweet!
Friday - the day before the race. Chad and I went out to the race site (Lake Cahuilla Park in La Quinta) for packet pick up and the athlete's meeting. At packet pick up, the full athletes received an Xterra wetsuit dry bag, pretty cool! Before leaving, we made sure to check out the water temps in the lake. Not too bad! We decided to leave our bikes overnight. One less thing to haul down to transition in the morning. If Chad and I are both racing, who is taking care of all our kids?! Our amazing friends Heidi and Julio and their family came down with us! It was GREAT having their support ALL day long!
Saturday - Race day!!!!
We arrived at the race site a little before 6 a.m. We had 40 minutes before transition closed, plenty of time to set up. I noticed that the velcro on my timing chip strap wasn't sticking very well, so I put a safety pin in to make sure that it wouldn't come off. What a bummer if that happened! I went and found Chad in transition and he had the same idea.I was excited for Chad! His first 70.3! I made sure to take him on a few long bike/run bricks in training and knew that he was well prepared to take the distance on. What were my expectations? I had the lingering feeling of disappointment from my last race and I would be crushed if this race ended up in a DNF. With an expedited training schedule, I knew not to expect too much. But deep down, I have the drive to push to see what I can do. I was going to go for a PR and if I wasn't feeling it, then I would back off and be satisfied with just finishing another 140.6. Let's go for it and see what happens!
After setting up transition, we headed to the water to take a little dip and test out the water. It was cold, but I knew once I started to swim it would be just fine. A little before 7 a.m., all athletes exited the water for a few final race instructions and then those who wanted to huddled up for a prayer. Then everyone headed back in the water.
SWIM -
The swim would be one mass start which included all athletes, full, half, and aquabike. Full athletes would complete 4 rectangular loops, getting out of the water for a quick run on the beach to give the race director a high 5 and then back in for another loop. Since Lake Cahuilla doesn't allow watercraft out on the water, there were lifeguards on the shore and rescue divers in the water. If in trouble, float on your back and wait to be rescued by a diver or swim a little towards shore and sure enough it is shallow enough to stand up.
T1 - 2:47. As I was putting on my biking shoes in transition, my timing chip fell off. Apparently the safety pin didn't go all the way through both layers of the strap and the velcro wasn't strong enough to keep it on. I quickly strapped it back on. I am so lucky it didn't come off in the swim! And now for the bike!
BIKE
After exiting the park, the bike course was 4 out and backs on country roads. It was flat and had some rough roads. The first jaunt out to the turn around, I was cruising! By the time I finished my first lap, I was on pace to finish the bike around 6 hours. As I headed back out for my 2nd lap, I could see and hear my kids and the Aguirre family cheering me on. Definitely lifted my spirits! It wasn't a mile into my second lap, that I noticed that I had a bloody nose. Not again!! I started having flashbacks from Rage 70.3 this year when this exact same thing happened. This time it was worse! I had blood all over my arms, hands, and face. I tried my best to clean up with the water on my bike and keep pedaling at the same time. Heading back to finish my 2nd lap, the wind picked up and I could see my bike average slowly go down. What a bummer! All I could do is start singing in my head, "don't stop believing!" And of course, I had to change the lyrics after awhile to, "please stop bleeding!" (you have to entertain yourself since you are out on the bike for a long time) By the time I headed out for my 3rd lap, my nose finally stopped bleeding. Yay! I figured Chad was done with his bike and probably on the run. I was so jealous! 50 or so more miles on the bike and then I would finally get to run. I knew Chad would be finished with his race well before I was done with the bike. I wish I could have been there to see him cross the finish line. Thankfully, Heidi taped it for me. 
I plugged away and slowly chipped away on the miles on my bike. There was one lady that I kept leap frogging with. Since you can't ride side by side or draft, I quickly asked her in passing if she had done this course before. She said that it was her first Ironman. I told her that she was doing awesome. I LOVE seeing people take on this distance for the first time. It is inspiring to me.As I was finishing up the final bike miles, I knew that this would be my slowest bike split ever - 6:37:21, which I was totally okay with. I threw out the goal of an overall PR since it seemed unrealistic and just wanted to have a good run! Heading into transition, I could see Chad and the crew. As I was gearing up for the run, I asked Chad how his race went. He said that he finished under his goal time and was glad to be done. Sweet!! And all I had left was a marathon! T-2 -1:49. 2.4 miles swimming, 112 miles biking and now I can finally run!!
RUN
Since I can't have my i-Pod on the run, I sing songs in my head. I would sing these songs out loud, but I don't think others would appreciate my singing voice. There is also a lot of self talk going on in my head. Racing is definitely mental - and luckily I am a little crazy!
Finishing my 2nd lap, I knew shortly the sun would be going down and it would cool off a little as well. I checked my watch and figured if I could keep my pace and if I had estimated in correctly the time I had forgot to start my watch, that I may be able to get a PR run split. 2 more laps to go! The sun went down around 5 p.m. and it was dark. The course was well coned off and away from traffic, but I wish I had my headlamp that I had left in transition. I don't mind running in the dark though especially when it is cooler. 1 more lap! I was starting to really feel it! Instead of focusing on it being a 10k, I broke it down into smaller segments and kept telling myself to just make it to the next aid station. Focusing on the mile you are in is much easier than looking at the entire distance you have left. I can talk myself into pushing just one more mile, over and over again. Hitting the last aid station and with less than 2 miles to go, I knew I could PR on the run if I just kept running. The last miles of my race I always turn in gratitude to my Father in Heaven for being with me during the race. I rely on Him for that final strength I need to finish. Of course I am tired and my body wants me to stop to walk, but the faster I run the faster I will be done! I knew the finish was just around the corner and it was a welcoming sight! Crossing the finish line is always the best! I love seeing my family and friends!
