So after Boston, I decided to jump back into triathlon training. Before I got pregnant I was really hoping to start training for a half Ironman distance race. While I knew I wasn’t ready for that yet after the intensity of marathon training with the little one, I thought an olympic tri would be just the right level of training and fun for the summer months. Plus, we had a whole big group of friends who were also going to be completing the race. In total there were 8 of us, with 3 completing their first tri ever (amazing!), and 2 doing their first Olympic (also amazing!).

The last time I had raced an Olympic distance event was in June 2014. Since then I have significantly improved my running. I did my best over the summer months to get to the pool when I should and get out on my bike, thought I’ll admit it wasn’t my best training. I just tried to have fun with it while still having time to enjoy with the family.

Onto the race…

I was kind of nervous race morning since I hadn’t done this whole thing in so long. Seriously — so much more to get together before a triathlon than a running race. On top of that I had to make sure Trevor was ready to spectate with some friends. I was able to get in the water to splash around for a minute before it was my wave’s start.

SWIM: I am always a little nervous at the start of the swim and feel like my heart rate skyrockets at first. But today was a little better than previous races. I tried not to get too caught up in what the other people were doing. I am not the best swimmer, but also not the worst. I just focused on my stroke and breathing. I forgot how long 1500m in the open water feels when you have done an open water swim in a while!     Swim time: 29: 53 (22 woman)

BIKE: I was super excited about the bike ride. I bought a tri bike in July and was looking forward to putting it to work in the race environment. I had a great time on this course. It is an out and back with some rolling hills. I think I was smiling pretty much the whole time on the bike. It was just SO MUCH FUN. I felt strong and in control, but was pushing hard. Bike time: 1:15:35 (4th woman on the bike)

RUN:  The run was also rolling hills. In fact, the entire run felt like you were either on a long uphill or a long downhill. I felt good coming off the bike and knew I could do much better than my last olympic on the run. I really wanted to hit just about an 8 min/mile pace. I was cruising and feeling great until some of the uphill in mile 6. I tried my best to keep up as strong as I could and gave it my all into the finish line. Run time: 50:17 (10th woman in the run)

Total: 2:38:35 for 6th OA woman, 1st in AG. This was about 1.5 minute PR. And a PR in all three sports.

Overall BITW Tri fest is a really fantastic event. The organizers do a wonderful job keeping everything on track and organized. They know what they are doing. They are a growing small company in the area, putting together quite a few races. If you’re in the Willamette Valley, I highly recommend checking out a BITW race.

Thanks so much to Jon and Best In the West for the incredible race photos!