NYC Tri

Well, it's over folks. We did it. My tri team and I did the NYC triathlon a week ago yesterday, and it. was. cool.  I for sure have to come back to NYC one of these years just to do this triathlon again, and next time, you can bet I'll be doing the whole thing.  It was such an exciting event to be a part of.  Thousands of people gathered together to do this crazy thing, starting off in the wee hours of the morning, not to mention the pouring rain.  Elite and professional athletes compete in this race, and it was so cool to watch them go through the transition area after each leg (the one cool thing about not doing the entire thing), seriously just bookin' it.  Crazy.  

My leg of the race, the swim, was so fun.  There was so much excitement in the air once the elite/pro group started things off.  They did this different kind of start, called a time trial start.  They would have 20 athletes sit on the edge of the barge and send them into the water with a whistle blow, wait 10 seconds, then send the next 20 athletes in.  I couldn't believe how quickly it moved along.  This method was very helpful in reducing the beginning of the race chaos that I experienced in the only other open water swim I've done, and there were probably only about 50 women in my age group in that one.  It was also kind of nice, because you literally didn't have a chance to be nervous about jumping in.  You seriously just had to jump in and go.  Quick side note about being on the barge... for those of you Biggest Loser fans out there, runner up Hannah was lined up right in front of me, so she jumped in 10 seconds before me.  Kinda cool.  I, of course, finished before her, but that's not important. ;)  Her sister Olivia did the bike.  

Anyway, moving on...

Ok, so right when I jumped in, I just got goin', and was immediately caught off guard by how rough the water was, not to mention the honest to goodness waves... one right after the next.  I consider myself a very strong and capable swimmer, but I remember at one point thinking "I am not going to be able to keep this up for a mile".  I felt like I could barely get a breath in without getting slammed in the face by a wave.  And on top of all this, the water is seriously nasty and salty, and that's the other thing I am thinking is "gross, this water is actually going in my mouth".  But thankfully, after a few minutes, the waves were fewer and further between, and I got into a groove, and just swam.  It felt very good to be passing lots of different color caps (I was in the last wave of women) as I kept going.  I was really enjoying myself, actually, and loved the feeling of swimming along-side so many other people.  I had absolutely no concept of time once in the water, so the end-barge caught me a little off-guard, but it was nice to be done.  They had a ramp running into the water, and volunteers helping to pull us out, and from there, we had a 700 meter barefoot run back to transition.  All I remember about this, was that it was a lot longer than I imagined, and that my calves were killing me for some reason.  And that was it!  I ran into transition and passed our timing chip to Clare, and she was off. 

When Clare came back from her bike, her sister Amy took off for the run, and we both headed over to Central Park to be there when Amy finished.  We ran a little of the way up 72nd with the runners, and the crowd was awesome.  They had the whole road blocked off from Riverside to Central Park West, and there were tons of people cheering.  I felt a little like a poser, accepting their cheers of congratulations, when I knew full well that all I did was the swim.  Oh well. :)  After Amy finished, we got some pictures, got our times and then got massages! It was wonderful, even if my lady wasn't very good.  It just felt good to be laying down relaxing.  In order to head home, I had to walk all the way back to transition to get my wetsuit, then all the way back to the subway.  I don't know why I didn't notice the free pedi-cabs transporting athletes until the very end... that would have been really nice. Anyway, when I got home, I had a nice, long shower and crawled into bed for a couple of hours, then I got up, and got right back to being a mom.  :)

My final swim time was 19 minutes and 40 something seconds.  I can't remember exactly.  But I do remember that I was the second girl out of the women's relay teams to finish the swim.  Woot woot!  ;) It was a great day, and I can't wait to do it again someday.

Clare and her husband Nick in the morning.  Nick did the whole thing and did awesome!

Me and Clare right before I headed off for the swim.  I was seriously worried about getting my wetsuit on in the rain, so I made sure I had plenty of time to coax it on. :)

Our team, Amy, Clare, Me

Coming into transition from the swim.  This is seriously the worst picture ever.  I even had dirt from the river on my face, which makes me look like I have a mustache. 

Clare, right in the middle, heading out for the bike

Amy getting prepped for the run

A cool picture of transition with all the bikes gone

Hannah from biggest loser, and Olivia's husband is on the left.  The bald one.  Don't ask my why she is still wearing her wetsuit.  She wore it all day.  Those things are seriously uncomfortable, so I can't imagine why she wanted to keep it on.

Clare coming in from the bike.  Horrible picture. Sorry Clare.

Amy after the run

The three of us with our medals.  Notice our awesome MDA team jerseys!  It was such an amazing experience to race for a charity.  I had Timmy on my mind throughout the morning and my swim.  It's such a cool thing when a race and raising money for a charity go hand in hand, which they do so beautifully.  They both require a belief that what you're doing is representative of something bigger... hard work, determination, sacrifice, getting out of your comfort zone, being a part of something that is not all about you, fighting for something.  I love it.  Thanks again to everyone who donated and honored Timmy's memory.

It was great doing this with you ladies!!