This would be my first Iron-distance triathlon ever. Although I should've been getting super excited to race, all I was getting was really nervous and very anxious to get it done with.

Mom and Dad came down to Missouri with me. It was great to have their support. While I spent most of my time resting and prepping for the race, they were out exploring the rugged country (kinda).

Race morning was upon us and I was rearing to go. It was nice not to have to wake up until 5am (unlike Muncie) because the race start was on the resort we were staying at.The weather turned out to be absolutely wonderful that morning and the water temperature was perfect.

Once onto the bike things started to feel great as I settled into a groove. I just made sure to keep up the cadence and stay hydrated as the temperature rose into the high 80's (including humidity).

The relentless hills on the bike, high heat and endless hills on the run took their toll and reduced me to a walk (similar to Peter Reid in Hawaii last year :) In the end, I did finish inspite of spending almost half my day on the run course.

As a finisher of an Iron-distance race, I can finally say that I'm a real triathlete. Time to go get my M-dot tattoo!