I was both excited and nervous leading into this race. I would let my mind take over and create all these fake outcomes such as a DNF, panicking in the water, flatting on the bike or not being able to finish the bike because of the difficulty. But it was an amazing day and I am probably more proud of this race then any other. I find that kinda of surprising for myself since it was not a stellar performance and how my times and placing compare to others in my age group has always been important to me. I am usually a solid middle of the pack on these longer races but not this day, I was back of pack this race, literally back of the pack. I was a bit rattled to find myself in this position and to be under the gun and trying to make some cut-off times. The water as about 58 degrees so I had a rough time but I made it out of the water on my own with no panicking. The bike was very challenging but I was consistent on the 3 laps and managed well so I was very pleased with the bike. Run was rough since I was tanked from the bike but I just kept moving forward. As I came through the stadium to make the cut-off for the last run lap with only about 3 minutes to spare, I was grateful to know that I would finish and I thought I could relax a bit. But now being the last person to be allowed on the final loop, I had a cyclist in tow following me and realized I had another cut-off time for the finish line that I had to make. I always thought I would be embarrassed to be that last person but it was far from the truth. I felt like a rock star passing the cafes with people cheering for me and the USA, support of others still on the course and coming down the finishing shoot with the volunteers welcoming me. There is nothing I could have changed that day. It was a challenging course and in the end, I met my goals-to finish, have fun and know I did everything to the best I could.
