Awesome race report...I have no idea how people can remember stuff with so much detail like that. Congrats on finishing with a big smile and I feel sorry for whoever has to race a tougher, stronger you next time around!

That's awesome.



Congrats Marisol. Definately a tough day at the office.

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Searching for the bliss of ultimate exertion.

Sophie-

Way to hang tough !

Its going to be nice to have in my head when I'm hitting a low point(which I'm sure I'll have ) at my race .

Thanks for sharing.

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Seeing him in deep torment, I said. " You can have my last GU , but its been down my pants for most of the run". - John Hirsch

Take care of your body, its by far the coolest thing you're going to ever own.- Can't remember who told me this, but I love it.

Way to tough it out Sophie! Another great, inspirational race report that I've come to expect from you :)

Stuart

Way to finish the race by negative splitting the run - you are tough! It's so hard to "race" an ironman going into it feeling burnt out... I've done it, and had a similar experience. Take some time off, enjoy life, and the desire to race again will come back strong. Then you'll kick some ass. :)

congrats. great race report, reminded me that i still have to work on the mental issue( i couldn't get out of my mental breakdown last year).

I have to say that TRacer and calee are my inspiration!!! I would love race reports from both of you, I would like to read what goes inside the head of such great athletes:-)

I 2nd that motion for TRacer and Calee to report in, and Lo Lo, the pro 21 year old too!

Ok, ok! I've never written one before.. but I am working on it. I'll post it later today. :) They seem to get really long really quick!

It's ok for it to be long, I really enjoy reading those, getting in someone else's mind:-) Looking forward to it!

hey studette! we are waiting on your RR too:-) I would love to read that!

Sophie, that's a HUGE race for you. Not because of the time, or the negative split, but because you managed to totally turn around your day (and attitude). An experience like that teaches you that you really CAN change how things are going - even if everything totally sucks and you want to quit. The fact that you recovered so well and finished strong shows a great deal of mental strength that you probably never had to tap into during your previous races. In a away, I'd say that could be your best race ever - not results wise, of course. But still. Best race ever.

Congrats on an awesome race. You rock! :)

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<If you're gonna be dumb, you gotta be tough>
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Marisol there were 11 1/2 rough hours in between but, I picked these to lines out of your race report.



I head for the stairs, and smile.

I crossed that finish line with a big smile,



Well done lass.

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Rebuilt with twice as many titanium parts as Portland79.

Congrats on the race & finishing strong! I saw you with the two ice bags & thought what a great idea! Did you figure out what happened with your breathing? I was having the exact same problem, unfortunately it impacted my race & I'm trying to figure out what happend - going to talk to the doc in a few days to see if he has any ideas.

Great report, sounds like you dug deep and found your legs. I related to several of your points before and during the race. I enjoyed reading it!

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Formally azclydesdale, back in Northeast Ohio.

The breathing has happened a few times in training before, always on the bike. It tends to happen when I push a little harder and I called it exercise induced asthma. Usually, it is much worse and I can't stop it. I think taking it easy for a while just settled everything down.

[reply]The breathing has happened a few times in training before, always on the bike. It tends to happen when I push a little harder and I called it exercise induced asthma. Usually, it is much worse and I can't stop it. I think taking it easy for a while just settled everything down.[/reply]

maybe you should carry an inhaler, it sure sounds like EIA. Especially the way you recovered after the cough was gone..

4 IM's in 18 months, I'm not surprised you were a tad weary.. a year or two of short-coursing now should set you right up for a sub-11.

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"It is a good feeling for old men who have begun to fear failure, any sort of failure, to set a schedule for exercise and stick to it. If an aging man can run a distance of three miles, for instance, he knows that whatever his other failures may be, he is not completely wasted away." Romain Gary, SI interview