Where do I begin...I woke up Saturday at 6am, my night seemed to last a little long, so I thought I had overslept. I got out of bed and realized I had slept wrong and my shoulder was not feeling good. I started the process of getting ready, got my tri suit on and gathered all the items I would need for the day. In our race packet we got three plastic bags...morning bag, bike bag, and run bag. I put all my gear by each bag and then started filling them up. My bike bag was totally full. I had my towel, bike shoes, helmet, glasses, sun screen, race belt, socks, bike shorts, and my wet suit bag. My run bag had a hoodie and running shoes. My morning bag had my food for the morning, later to have my morning clothes in it after I got my wetsuit on. My sister, Lety, was up doing the same ritual. Joe had gotten up and was getting ready to take us to the T2 area downtown. After I was ready I started getting all the kids clothes and shoes ready so my mom would have an easier morning. I had also arranged for my 2 older boys to go to a friends house, the 4&8 year old to go to another friends, and my mom would have the oldest and youngest.
After going over our check list we got in the car, about 7:45 and took off to downtown Boise, a mile away Lety realized she forgot her towel so we turned around. I should mention it was a mental check list :) not to worry we still had plenty of time.
Joe dropped us off and headed to the office to treat patients. We walked to T2 and found our bib number and placed our run bag on the ground. We were really surprised at how empty it was. I'm sure a lot of athletes were enjoying the noon start, so no need to hurry. We walked around a little and found a spot to sit and wait for our mom to pick us up. We took this time for potty breaks and last minute phone calls. Mom arrived and we drove to Lucky Peak. We were ahead of the shuttles and got great parking. The whole morning was pretty laid back. We walked 1/2 mile up to T1 and just rambled about odds and ends. I mentioned I was really nervous and my wise sister told me what she told herself during the full IRONMAN Arizona, "ok body, I've worked too hard and too long for you to not do what I've trained to do!" I kept this with me all day.
When we got to the top there were volunteers with black permanent markers ready to mark your body with your bib number and age. We opted to go put all our bags down first and do a few other things. I went to my bike and put my bags down, then grabbed my bike to pump up the tires. Lety was just about done so she pumped up my tires, we put our bikes back up and then went to get marked. We were marked on both arms, both hands, and our age was on our left calve. I wondered why they had to mark out hands and lety explained that was how they would know who we were if they had to pull us out of the water to help. Mom and my daughter took video and pics of us. The rest of the time was just walking around and checking everything out. We looked at the water and course and did some visualizing. Another potty break and then back to our bikes to make sure all of our gear was ready to go. We grabbed our wetsuits, caps , goggles, ear plugs, and morning bag and found a shady spot to sit and relax. I forgot to take the tabs off my drinks so I ran to do that, while I was gone a photographer took a pic of Lety. So I found another photographer and asked him to take a pic of the both us of us. We sat a little longer and then I and to go potty again. After our wait in the potty line we started the process of putting our wetsuits on. Mom found us and did some interviewing with the video camera and gave us both a hug and kiss and wished us luck. The race finally minutes away and the butterflies were starting to fly. Three men from the National Guard beautifully sang the National Anthem. The crowd cheered loudly as they finished and a sense of patriotism came over me. We watched the beginning of the men's and women's pro waves, they were amazing and fast...one day I'll be there ;). We dropped off our morning bags and walked over to the mass of purple swim cap ladies to wait for our start at 12:33. This is when I realized I forgot to take a couple of puffs from my albuterol inhaler. So we ran back to T1 and ask if I could go back in and get the inhaler, they let me in and I ran to my bike and took two puffs and ran back to my sister. We walked back to the swim start and had plenty of time to spare.
THE SWIM:
There was over 100 purple caps in our wave so Lety and I opted to stay in the very back. One reason was to have more time to get acclimated to the 53 degree water and 2nd we didn't want to get swam on. The music was blaring, the crowd was roaring, and then announcer shot the gun and we were off! I started off really slow in order to get my face use to the water. I could tell the rescue boats were watching me closely because of my speed, but after a few minutes I was fine and started my regular swim. Others unfortunately, did not have the same outcome. Many felt the panic of the cold water and struggled. I was able to swim freestyle the whole 1.2 miles and did so with few encounters from other swimmers. The times I did get hit or swam on was when I got close to the turns and close to the finish. Two guys actually sandwiched me in between them about 300 yds from the finish. The whole swim I was smiling and thinking of songs I liked to get my mind off of the cold. I swam right up to the exit and I was able to run to T1! the crowd was cheering as all the swimmers ran past, we were all starting the process of taking our wetsuits off along with our caps and goggles. I got to the "strippers" and sat down and 2 guys got my wetsuit off with one pull, it's not as sexy as it sounds :) but was pretty fun because I was lifted off the ground.
THE BIKE:
I got up and ran to my bike, dried off, put my bike shorts on over my Tri shorts, helmet on, glasses on, and took my bike off to walk it to the mounting line and start my 56 mile ride. I got on the bike and the first 2 miles were great, the descent from lucky peak was nice and then...chain fell off!! Holy crap! I stopped, pulled over and started getting off my bike when this guy yelled at me because i almost hit him. HELLO! I pulled over! I'm pretty sure we are all bright enough to see when someone is stopped and out of the way, duh! Anyway, I got my chain on and I was off. A lot of people passed me while I was stopped, but oh well. The whole first part of the ride was pretty good, my husband surprised me and I had a whole cheering section with 2 of my babies! So awesome! I was able to talk a little with my friend as I climbed the pleasant valley hill, I so needed to talk and get a few words of encouragement. Ten mile creek was great until I turned around and then I slowed down about 4 mph and when I got to the turn and hill I was so ready to be done! That climb was torture! I finally conquered it and was really looking forward to another fast descent . I took the pleasant valley descent fast, no braking. My cheering crowd was waiting and I soaked up the positive waves they were sending. As I got to Gowen, my mom and 2 daughters were there videoing and cheering. The rest of the course was pretty quite and lonely. There was a whole line of us, but we were never too close in fear of penalties. We would only get close if we were confident of passing. As we got to the last 10 miles I really dug deep and picked up my speed, mostly because my bum was in a huge amount of pain and my shoulders had sharp pains. I did almost cry a few times, but reminded myself that I signed up for this and was capable of finishing! When we got to the last 6 miles I started passing people, I could tell they were just too tired, so I took full advantage. We had one last climb, which was just mean, and then it was smooth riding to T2. I dismounted easily and ran to my number and hung up my bike. I got a protein bar and took off all my gear and went to a portapotty, which were occupied, so ran back to my bike cuz I forgot to take off my bike shorts. Ran back to the potty and relieved myself. On my way out my sister was running to change and gave a loud cheer.
THE RUN:
I was feeling ok, and surprisingly my legs didn't feel like jello, but as I got about 3 minutes into the run my intestine tightened up and sharp stabbing pains proceeded to attack me. Every bounce was so horrific! I had to stop and walk, but the pain only worsened. I walked the 1st mile and thought my race was over, but my sister came from behind and told me to get going. I pushed through the pain and we ran together. The pain finally decreased and I was starting to feel better, but I was now sick to my stomach. I tried eating the protein bar earlier but couldn't force it down and ate a gel but even that was gross. We were doing good on the run and saw our mom, with 2 of my girls and 2 of my boys, and my husband!! Another boost of energy. We ran a couple of more miles and then we had another cheering crowd of friends with high fives! Loved it! We kept running and got to our 1/2 way turn around where more cheering from the friends was heard and appreciated. My honey ran with me for a minute and gave me a kiss and a tap on the butt. I told him how much i loved him. When I got to mile 10 I was really feeling the effects of no fuel. I did drink water and had an orange slice at each mile, but that wasn't enough. I started slowing down and started taking more walking breaks. People were really getting tired and looks of pain were on everyone's face. The last 2 miles an older guy was singing out loud and I thanked him for doing so. He was in his happy place, just trying to finish and he totally helped me in the process. He was also taking requests :) I was tired, my legs were throbbing and I knew I had a little more to go. At mile 12 my cheering crowd gave me my last boost and it brought tears to my eyes. My sister passed me up and motioned for me to follow, but it wasn't in me. I just kept moving at my turtle pace. As I got to the last stretch my mom was there, she had the camera and was telling me to keep going. I rounded the corner and saw the finish line, a tiny boost of energy hit me and I picked up my pace. the crowd was lighter but the cheers were loud. I was giving little kids high fives and my husband met me about 200 yds near the finish. I don't remember what he said but I was so happy to see him. As I ran to the finish line, the music was pumping and the announcer called my name, "Christy Hall from Boise, ID YOU ARE an IRONMAN 70.3!!!" I was so happy, I put my arms up as I crossed the line and felt so any emotions go through me, I even started to cry. My sister was waiting and we embraced each other with tears of joy. I got my finishers metal and a hat. The photographer took my pic and then I was overcome with joy to see my family and all my friends who came to cheer. I got tons of hugs and congratulations.
This really was an event I will never forget. This whole journey has had it's ups and downs and it all came down to 7 hours and 10 minutes of mind over body. You may be wondering...will she do another 70.3? Is a full IRONMAN next? Saturday I would of said, "Heck NO!" Today I say, "BRING IT!"
I'm thinking IRONMAN 70.3 Italy! Who's up for a road trip? :)
Chris :)
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