My first triathlon is over! I think it went very well. My final time was 1:58:10, and while I think I can do better than that in the future, all I wanted to do this time was finish in under two hours. It was an amazing morning!!

I had some trouble sleeping Saturday night because of anxiety and woke up several times to hear rain pounding down. Yup, rain. It hasn't rained in Tucson for months and then we get our very first winter storm on the weekend of the triathlon. What a winner. I got up at 4:15am, used my inhaler, the bathroom, and headed out. I got to the race by 5:10am, and set up my bike and transition area. It was really cold. I guess I have gotten used to the temperate weather here, because I was really cold -- it was about 45 degrees and damp. Once I was set up, there was a lot of waiting around and chatting. There were 10 waves of swimmers and I was in wave 5. Wave one had the slowest people, and wave 10 had the fastest. I was very glad to be in the first lane so, if it came down to it, I could use the ladder to get out. Finally, at 8:00am, I was in the water and off I went!!

It was so exciting!! The swim section of the race went by so fast, it felt like I was only in the pool for about 2 minutes -- all that adrenaline kicking in! When the counter put in the red sign that told me that I only had one more length, I was shocked! So off I went, down to the end and tried to get out. It didn't happen -- I used the ladder. I put on my flip flops and glasses and ran out to the transition area, sat down on my bucket and put on my shoes and helmet and sunglasses -- while I was in the pool, the sun came out! It was still a little colder than usual, but the sun really helped. I ran my bike down to the end of the transition area, and then kept going another 10 feet since I didn't want to slip in the huge puddle. I clipped in without a problem and headed out on the bike route. The bike route was 3 loops of 4 miles each. Police were at every intersection blocking for the riders and making sure no one got hit by cars, a bus, or pedestrians with coffee (many people were talking about the pedestrians after the race -- apparently, they just headed across the street without looking even though there were cones everywhere).

I was so COLD on that bike for those 3 laps. I am so glad I put on my jacket for the bike portion; if I hadn't, I would have had frostbite! As it was, water from the pool was running down my legs for the first two loops and by the end, my bike shoes were sloshing with water -- I could wring out my socks after the race. I couldn't feel my feet by the end of the bike section because of the wind and the wet.

I don't know how I did on my split times, because they haven't been posted yet, but I think I did alright on the bike. I did pass one person. I took the corners very slowly because the road was still wet and I was very scared of falling. Two people did fall -- one girl broke her wrist and one guy managed to rip all the skin from his ear to his elbow. I did not fall and I felt pretty good about how things were going. I pulled back in to the transition area and racked my bike, pulled off my socks and bike shoes, and put on new socks and my running shoes. Then I sprang up to do the run.

And almost died from the pain in my adductor muscles (inner thighs). Oh My God. The Pain. I almost screamed when I stood up. My ankles weren't in great shape either. But I had to finish, so I started jogging a little bit and made it out of the transition area and up the first little hill. By "jogging" I mean I was moving one foot in front of another in a running position, but it was like I was 200 years old -- my stride was about 6 inches. Then I couldn't handle it anymore and walked for awhile. It took about 2 miles to loosen up a little. I ran off and on, then ran without stopping the last 3/4 to 1/2 mile. Now, I was still doing the very short stride thing, but I didn't stop and I made it across the finish line without walking. I was very proud of myself.

I crossed the finish line and turned off my heart rate monitor. I wore it because I wanted to see exactly what I was doing and how many calories I burned during the race. I burned 1,269 calories. My average heart rate was 153, and my high heart rate was 169. I was very pleased with these numbers because it means that my training was good. This is great since I am doing another triathlon on April 9.

The people at the race were so nice -- everyone was cheering me on and everyone that passed me on the run portion would say encouraging things as they passed me. I was talking to the other TriGirls after the race, and they said that the pain in my legs was because of the cold -- the muscles just took the chance to seize up and stay that way when I changed into my running shoes. I met a great guy at the race who was doing this triathlon for the fourth time. He had prostate cancer and non-hodgkins lymphoma. We talked before the swim wave and he was fantastic -- and he helped me a lot with my worries. Without exception, everyone I talked with that day was positive and helpful and encouraging.

The big bummer of the day was that Ron, Brigid, and the guys didn't find me, so they didn't see me finish the bike section or the running section of the race. I was a little sad since I wanted the guys to see me finish the race, but they will get to see the pictures. There were professional photographers throughout the race taking pictures. Once I see them, I may post the website and password so that everyone can see them. Overall, I am happy it is done, and I am looking forward to the one in Maryland -- and I hope that my adductors don't freeze up then!

When I got up this morning, I had a little bit of soreness going up and down the steps, but other than that, I feel pretty good! I am heading off to spin class this morning so I can loosen up a little. I am glad I don't feel as if I am frozen in place because of sore muscles!