Skip to main content

Ironman St. George Weekend



No way was I going to miss the Ironman coming to Utah!

Just in case there is still any confusion:
I was not racing. Never planned on it. Never had a desire to do so. Almost.

Why?
I like to have a life besides triathlon. I've been there, done that. Too early in the season. No desire to train hard through the winter.

But I was still dying to go down there, be part of the excitement, support my friends, and have a blast! So when my friend, Lynda Wallenfels, invited my family to stay at her house, we packed up the car and headed south. Part of me wanted to go down there by myself, so I could spend all of race day out there being the kind of cheerleader I like to be. The other part of me was excited to go on a fun family adventure and squeeze all of my favorite activities into one short weekend:

Early morning trail run, beautiful bike rides, lots of family fun, cheering here and there, good food. What more could I ask for?

Congratulations to all of my friends who finished such a tough Ironman!

Especially to B.J. Christenson who finished as the 3rd age grouper!










And to my good fried, Leslie Howlett, who had an amazing race!











On Sunday after church, Lynda and her friend Dave took me on a mountain bike ride in one of my favorite places. I was so happy to see the Bear Claw Poppies as they are only in bloom 3 weeks each year.


I thought this was going to be a nice little ride but I should have known better. After all, I was riding with the 24-hour Solo National Champion! I tried to explain to her that I am NOT a mountain biker but she was not listening. A few miles into the ride, I said: "When I told you I can't mountain bike, I actually meant it." Dave's reply: "We did not believe you." Yeah, well, they figured that one out fast.

Lynda is one tough chick!

Personally, I thought I was doing pretty well. I kinda felt bad I was slowing them down so much. But mostly, I was so happy to be out there on the trails and having a blast!

Someday I am gonna be good at this!


Comments

jaredandgina said…
Oh the crack, many good memories there. Did you ever go with us there way back when we were in high school? I was surprised to hear that St. George was having an Ironman and even more surprised to see that two of my cousins participated. One finished. Pretty crazy! When are you guys moving?
May 07, 2010
LyndaW said…
We loved having you guys. Those are cute pics of the kids playing.

Sarah you CAN mtb - you rode the dirt great! It was fun to show you some trails and the poppies were beautiful. They are fading a little already.

Lynda
May 08, 2010
Nate + Carlee said…
So glad you got to go! Sounds like it was very fun!
May 08, 2010
Leslie said…
So glad you came down Sarah! It was great seeing you on the course (and on the way home). Looks like you guys had a great time!
May 08, 2010
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New PR at a High Cost

St. George Halfmarathon Report I have a feeling that this is going to be long . Even though I am going to tell you about the rest of the weekend in my next post. So. Sit back and enjoy, if you are interested. A few days before the race, I told Karl that I have two options : 1. Run the way I usually race. Conservative . Start out at a decent pace, log negative splits, finish feeling strong and in control. 2. Start out faster than usual, hang onto that pace for as long as possible, die a slow and painful death. Karl just laughed . He knew how unlikely it was that I would choose the second option. But, to be honest, the idea kinda grew on me. It was a running event, after all. No pressure. Simply a way of testing where my fitness is at. On my way to St. George, I called Coach M . She told me I was going to choose the second option. Oh, how I love to have coaches! No need to try to figure things out in my own little head. I just ask and do as I am told. There was ju
10 comments
Read more

I am so lucky

I feel the need to write. My thoughts are all jumbled. Can I make sense of them on paper? Writin g gives me perspective and makes it easier to let go. Last weekend I was very frustrated, mad, self-centered, unhappy , wallowing in self-pity. This weekend I was more balanced, a little more patient, trying to be less selfish, happy . How did it happen? I have had to deal with myself for almost 30 years now and, luckily, have figured out a few things on the way. Like how to feel at peace with myself , my family , my life . It shouldn't be complicated to be happy in my circumstances. I realize that. But sometimes it still is. Sometimes being a mom and wife doesn't come easy to me. Sometimes I think everyone would be better off if I wasn't a mom and wife. Sometimes I wish it was easier to just take off and do nothing but swimbikeruneatsleep for a week or two. It's not helping that my German teammates are doing just that. Right now. On a beautiful island. In the warm
10 comments
Read more

Freedom Run

I decided to celebrate my freedom by running the Freedom Run 10k . Not exactly my favorite kind of race but definitely one to make me feel alive and happy . For this girl endorphins = happiness . I know. I know. It's not everlasting happiness. But I will take it. The more happiness, the better . Right? My motto for this race: "A lot of people race to see who is fastest . ` I race to see who has the most guts ." -Steve Prefontaine It's time for me to show some guts in racing and training. Time to get out of the grey zone and push myself hard. Time to really hurt and put it all on the line. I wanted to run sub 40 minutes. That is a 6:25 pace. That is fast for me. The plan was to start out fast and try to hold it. If I was going to die at the end, so be it. Fortunately, I had some great company for the Sufferfest . It went something like this: I convinced Jen . Jen convinced Carlee . Carlee convinced Heather . Here we are ready to race We also have matchi
5 comments
Read more