The Best Type of Finish? …Not to finish.

Pre-Race:

We arrived at the race site around 7:20ish to grab our packets and get set up in transition. The line was short, thank goodness and we picked up some goodies like hats and stickers as well.

The van with our supporters arrived about an hour later and we hung out, warmed up….and lost my car keys.

Naturally, losing my car keys was at the top of my mind (seriously) so I was searching everywhere, trying to stay calm (aka not jump down anyone’s throats).

Around 9am we headed our spots and got ready for the start.

The Swim:

Emily was in wave 2 with the Athenas and Clydesdales and the rest of the relays. The horn sounded and she hit the water.

Meanwhile we (our fans, and me and BB) were waiting on the shores. I was in transition waiting for the chip.

And we waited…and waited…and soon it was past the 10 minute mark, and all the other white relay cap were outta the water.

Then all the sudden, Emily comes at me, not through the chute, and collapses in my arms, panicking.

Apparently, during the swim, she was kicked in the chest which sent her into a panic attack. She hung on a kayak for a few minutes but couldn’t get calmed down. She flagged down a lifeguard and called it a day.

The Bike and The Run:

Because Emily didn’t finish the swim, Britney and I didn’t finish the bike and the run. My dad suggested that we could run the course and just not get timed, but this isn’t a course you would do for ‘fun’.

Post Race:

We were all hanging out at the race before leaving, calming Emily down, and I was double checking everything for my car keys. Here’s the last known trail of the keys:

1) I had the keys at the fence of transition when my parents arrived.
2) I have them to Britney so I could explain the map of camera postings (yes…I’m anal enough to draw a map for my family as to where they should stand to take pictures).
3) Britney swears that she gave the keys to my dad.
That’s were the trail went cold.

The question is, then, if Britney swears that she gave the keys to my dad…how did they end up in KB’s  (Britney’s sister) purse?! Either way, no worries, the keys are found, Emily is calm, so off to breakfast we went!

This race was the last of my triathlon season and while I’m bummed we didn’t finish it (it was my first DNF), it was still fun. The only bad thing is I think we went 3 steps back on Emily’s confidence of swimming in a triathlon again. She has agreed to run in the next one, which means Britney would bike and I would swim…works for me!

I’ll be back next week with my post season thoughts. For now I’ve got a short week and a long weekend (conference in Chicago then up to my own stomping grounds for homecoming).