The girls were dancing to the Hampster song in the airbnb house we stayed at for 3 nights. This house was GORGEOUS and we all fell in love. The location, the beautiful front porch...everything about this house was amazing.
This was the first time I had put on my wetsuit in about 5 years. It was TIGHT! I may have put on a few pounds since the 2017 70.3 but I squeezed into it not knowing (at the time) that I should've gone up a size. I will elaborate later on why....
We are off! Pulling out of the garage and headed to Tennessee where we stopped for the night.
That's Jake, Jinny and mom in front of us hauling the bikes
We made it to Augusta, Georgia and the most beautiful home we've ever stayed in!
The girls loved the front porch and spent a lot of time out there cuddled under a blanket.
LOOK AT THIS HOUSE?!?!?
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Time for packet pickup!!!!! This is when it gets real...all the feels. I know that tomorrow is a big day and I have work to do...the nerves kick in.
We were up around 4:30am to stretch, eat and get to the transition area where we had to rack our bikes and get our gear setup for the day. I was 1913 and Jake was 1915...I remember feeling ready but very nervous.
The pic above and below is the river we did the swim in. (1.2 miles or almost 2000 meters) You swim with the current and last time we did this (in 2017) the river was MOVING...which is awesome. It's what you want so you can go fast but on this day..Sept 25 2022 that river was barely moving. No wind...so basically it didn't have the same effect.
I got into the water with my wave and immediately felt off. I tried to get into the zone but I couldn't get a deep breath...I kept trying and never could inhale as much as I needed and that's when the panic set in. Instead of controlling myself and finding a breathing rhythm that worked for me I let all the bad feelings in and panic took over. I started struggling bad and made my way to a rescue diver who pulled me onto a ledge under one of the bridges. I was able to stand up and told him I couldn't breathe and he unzipped my wetsuit in the back and I immediately took in the biggest breath in my life. The relief. I cried and thanked him for saving me and gave him my bracelet and hugged him. (We get bracelets before the race and the racers are able to give them away to any support crew member that you connect with during the race.) This guy was the first volunteer I was in contact with and he saved my life so yeah he got my bracelet. :)
Anyways, long story short...I struggled throughout the entire swim portion.
That's a horrible idea....WHAT TIME?!?? lol
We got these shirts in 2017 at the last race so we decided to wear them again.
Jake and Jinny and baby Jude!! Jinny ran around all day at 8 months pregnant. She got so much video and was there for us every step of the way.
WE READY!
Once I exited the water I was disoriented. I struggled so badly during the swim that I was far more fatigued that I should have been. I remember wishing that it was over and I was done but knew I had 69.1 miles left to cover. The swim to bike transition is about a quarter mile which sucks...it's just much more running than you already have to do. I stopped at the stripper station and no, this is not as fun as it sounds. I laid down with my wet suit already pulled down to my waist and practically died for about 20 seconds while the gracious volunteers pulled the rest of my wet suit off. I laid there a moment longer and asked if I could just stay. They laughed in the way you would if you were having second hand embarrassment for someone. Not a fun feeling. I somehow managed to get up, grab my wetsuit from their soft stupid little hands and ran my ass the quarter mile to my beautiful bike. This is where I make up time, I tell myself. I again sit down telling myself it's ok while I pee sitting in the grass....through my bike fit. It's ok. Everything is ok. I put my socks on, bike shoes, helmet...unrack my beautiful bike and walk to the transition area. They're very strict on when you can mount your bike so I take extra precaution and walk slowly showing the volunteers how much I respect them and also taking as many seconds as I can before I begin the 56 mile journey that I know I am already playing catch up on. But this is the good part. I like the bike portion. I LOVE being grounded and having air in my lungs! Unfortunately, The first 3 miles were spent going wrong directions and following people who were just as clueless as I was. There was a lot of construction going on so I can say that but really I have to blame it on that fact that I was stressed and not thinking clearly due to my frustration. So basically, I went almost 3 miles in the wrong direction before I figured it out. After that, the bike was good. I made up precious time and really tried to enjoy it. I know that sometimes racing can be just a race but I feel gratitude when I am racing. I look to the heaven and thank God for my legs. I thank God for the breath in my lungs. I thank God for my children and my life with Justin. I have never felt closer to God then when I am working with children or when I am biking or running. Maybe that's why they call it the "runners high"
I biked and never stopped. I made up time, I passed bikers who were walking and I yelled words of encouragement. They either hated me or I lit a fire in them. I hope the latter.
The last mile was emotional. Not only because I had done well and thankfully no flat tires but also because I was scared of the next part. I knew I didn't fuel enough during the bike and I had very little left in the tank and I still had a half marathon to run. So yeah, tears of joy...tears of sadness.
Here we go...
I dismounted my bike after 3 hours 30 mins in the saddle and could barely walk but somehow made my way to my bike rack. I took off my helmet, bike shoes and sat down again and peed...again through my bike fit. Yes. I am trash. I changed into clean socks to feel not so much like trash and put on my Hokas. I took time to swoop my nasty ass, Savannah Georgia river, sweat soaked hair into a messy top knot and pulled my 2017 Augusta 70.3 visor on - cause I'm alumni and cool like that. I felt like shit but I was ok with it and knew it's just me and the pavement now. The next 13.1 miles were pretty brutal. It was hot, I was done but seeing the beautiful encouraging smiles on my families faces were all I needed to finish. These guys mean everything to me.
I'll never forget collapsing in Justin's arms around mile 9 of the run. (Justin had stayed with me a few times for a few mins and this was one of them) There were 2 ladies behind us when I fell and Justin caught me. I was crying saying I was so tired and they came to me and gave me salt tablets and chips and told me to eat. I listened and ate and immediately felt better. I thanked those sweet angels and with the energy they gave me I started running and passed their angelic little asses and beat them in the end.
My sweet baby boy giving me some much needed love. Not sure what mile this was but he filled all the cups.
What can I say about this brother of mine? He did this race with me because he is amazing and didn't want me to do it alone. He just does stuff like that. He wakes up one day and says "I think I'll do a Half Ironman - AGAIN...." and freakin' DOES IT! There is no one like him and I am so inspired by this truly lovely human who I get to call brother. He has known me my whole life and never once left me. Under his wing he has kept me and forever I will stay. ♥
This race didn't end the way I wanted it to despite the smile. I wanted to PR. I didn't. The only person to blame is me. I didn't put in the work that was required to best myself. I didn't do enough. I did just enough to not die. Shit, my best isn't even great but I let myself down and as much as he says I didn't, I Know i let him down too. My precious Justin who selflessly worked overtime as Dad so that I could train only to perform so poorly in the race. I'll never forgive myself.
And I vow to NEVER let it happen again.
Jess Version 2.o - being released Jan 2024
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