i am blessed

my good Saturday turned into a great Sunday and this, my blogosphere friends, is why -

i received an email a couple of days prior from Jennifer saying she and her family would be in town and that she would really like to meet me in person and of course i said yes, that would be great! i was so excited to finally get to meet her, and a little nervous if truth be told. i mean all of our communication so far had been conducted through email. our relationship started through a blog post comment and has progressed quite nicely through that means. now i was going to finally get to meet her face to face and i just prayed that she would like me, prayed that she would think she had made a good decision to sponsor me and the team, prayed that i would hold up to the standards of a good person in her eyes. i have no idea why i was concerned - concern for anything ended up being null and void the moment i walked up and we hugged...

the day started off with a nice trail run through Marion Bear Park with Guru and Greg at 830. i love this run. it is a true trail with loose rocks, falling leaves, tree lined paths and fresh air. the knees held up pretty well for the 4.5 miles but i knew that tacking on an extra 2 might be pushing it, so i opted to stop and stretch at the cars and then so did everyone else - seems as though we're all nursing one injury or another. it was a nice brisk pace, and i was happy. it felt great to run again, especially on uneven ground of the literal sense instead of the figurative sense i have been maneuvering through lately. a great start to the morning.

i followed that up with a quick change of clothes and a drive over to Mission Beach to have lunch with Coach Brian. we caught up on life in general and talked about my goals and drive for the season. we touched on the magnitude of what i want to be able to accomplish next year and sort out a game plan to get my knees healthy and back to full mobility. we talked about his crazy busy schedule and his rough day that just so happened to also be his birthday. i'd just like to insert a bit of something here - he is a good man and you don't find that sort of thing everyday. he cares a lot about his friends and his family. he cares about his clients, he cares about himself and he cares about all of this with great balance and clarity. i admire him and what he stands for, who he helps and the athlete that he is. i'm so glad to have him as a coach but even more so to be able to count him as a friend. he sometimes stands as my sounding board and often times puts me in my place when i start to get ahead of myself. i talk about what a great person and coach he is and i mean it - i couldn't have done Longhorn in the time i did without his guidance and i wouldn't be able to do this next year's schedule without more of the same. i am grateful to have met him when i did and i feel blessed to have his support in all of the endeavors i have loaded onto my plate. we ate - he much, much more than i - and had a grand time of it - or i did at least. a great afternoon.

i left the restaurant and immediately called Jennifer, as promised, to stop by for a bit and meet her and her family. i got there at 2:15 ish. i didn't get home for the day until midnight. right away i felt like family. it was amazing to be so welcomed into a home with a group of people who had never even spoken to me on the phone much less laid eyes on me. we talked for hours about everything - training, Barney Butter, my brother, her children - our lives in general. at some point everyone decided to go for a run and because i had already done mine for the day and didn't have any gear in my car, i decided to go see Chris and hopefully sneak in a nap of some kind. this only happened after i was asked to please come back for dinner and spend some more time with the Barney family! so i did - of course. and it was the best time. we had wine, ate a fantastic meal of healthy proportions and visited and talked some more. it was just so natural, effortless - all around enjoyable company. Her daughters are just beautiful and seeing the dynamics of each of their little personalities meshed with the other's - it was just a really amazing and loving environment to be in. i had the most fun and never once wished i was anywhere else. i was even sad to leave. i haven't quite felt unconditionally welcomed like that before in a place where no one really knows me, but i did Sunday. its sort of hard to wrap my mind around. Jennifer found my blog, we became buddies over email, she generously offered to sponsor Team Barney Butter in order to promote health and athleticism through triathlon and now i find she and her family are even more caring and giving in person than i could have imagined. a PERFECT end to the day.

so yes, i am a very blessed girl. and even though i received some news that really sort of shook me to the core this weekend, i have people in my life that i can't thank enough - mom, dad, Bri, Iris, CB, Jennifer, Erik, Roo to name a few - that have taken the time with me, inspired me and given to me so unselfishly with absolutely no agenda or payment in return except my thanks and appreciation - and of course, good natured BS along the way which is only something katie b can provide in an ongoing basis ;) the hard times aren't over, nothing will ever be just as i think it needs to be, but i am realizing more than ever that i am honored to be where i am at this very moment, basking in the glory of good friends, insightful mentors and the thing i choose to call "God's" love.

and no, i am not a religious freak. i don't even go to church on a regular basis - although i am Catholic by upbringing and choose to still lump myself in with that group, my view and relationship of what i choose to call God is very personal and unique to me - so don't be offended or over joyed at my choice of words, just be and the rest will follow just as it should :)

too much on my plate

1. i had to have two very uncomfortable conversations this week with two people that i think very highly of and don't want to hurt

2. i have officially been named the advanced run coach for the 2009 TNT Lavaman season - how freaking cool is that?! now i just have to get people signed up who are actually interested in advanced running!

3. being promoted to a higher role at work = lots more responsibility = lots more pressure = lots more stress, but this is good and moves me in the forward direction that i want to be headed

4. effing accounting 101 THAT I AM FAILING MISERABLY, i cry on my way to class each Monday bc i'd rather stab my eyes out with Darth Vader's laser than sit through the most boring lecture you can possibly imagine, given by a robot dressed as a human

5. i'm about to embark on the longest ride of my life, in the driest dessert heat i've ever been in (i've never been in desert heat) - 114 miles worth of sand, wind, sun, sweat and maybe tears - with a pack of very strong riders training for IMAZ. i maybe kidding myself into thinking that i can keep up with them. i guess we'll find out come Saturday. i do know that i MUST get in MORE hydration, MORE nutrition, MORE electrolytes and MORE speed to accomplish this very GARGANTUAN goal of mine

6. i have to have all of my stuff out of creeper's apartment by THIS Friday AM and i have done zilch to start that process except to pay for the storage unit that i will put my too expensive, too big for me, baggage of a bed into for safe keeping until i can move it into my very own, all by myself apartment at the end of the month

7. getting a team together that will make Jennifer proud with the following requirements (if you know of anyone who fits this bill, please let me know). i feel so excited to be able to do this and i want to do it right so i can give this team/organization a chance to really do something special...

i need good people who like to race and train and these are the specs as of now:

TB2 Members:

1. Katie Brunner

2. Rocketpants

3. Brian Melekian

4. Chris Teague

5. ???

6. ???

2009 races:

1. 10K reso run first weekend in January

2. La Jolla 1/2 Mary in April

3. Wildflower OLY or Long in May

4. Vineman 70.3 in June

5. AFC 1/2 Mary in August

i want:

- no community service for now and maybe not for this first season. Jennifer thinks its something we might pick up for the next season depending on how the team meshes, but at some point we will do something like this -

http://outdooroutreach.org/

or this

http://www.sierraclub.org/ico/

- i'd like the team member to do each race. i don't care how fast or not fast anyone is.

- i'd like semi-seasoned triathletes so we aren't having to "teach" from scratch

- i want very upbeat, enjoyable, positive, friendly and dedicated athletes who enjoy training and want to get faster and stronger. i'm hoping we can build a tight knit group. THIS IS NON-NEGOTIABLE

- i'd like to have Saturday rides/bricks be the "big" workout for the week and something that everyone tries to make it to, the rest of the workouts each week can be done together, on your own, or whatever. this way we can create buzz for the brand as we're kicking butt and taking names on the streets of SOCAL :) this is a commitment.

- coach Brian is offering everyone on the team a training deal that will be disclosed at a later date. he is the official coach of the team and we want to put out a good vibe for his group - TNStraining

- whatever group we end up pulling together for the "team" it will still be open to anyone and everyone who wants to workout with us, no discrimination - even if they're not officially on the "team" i want as many people as we can possibly get to train with us, push us and teach us so we grow as people and as athletes - low pressure, fun and inviting yet still really hard workers, good speed and a kick ass attitude.

you get:

1. 1/2 of each race entry listed above paid for

2. team uniform

3. access to the best coach around

4. and maybe i can talk Jennifer into sending down some BB packs for our workouts :)

Longhorn 70.3: THE AFTERMATH

i got drunk. i had taken a vow of a teetotaler for three and a half months. i kept to it. strictly. at the finish line we hugged and cried - well i was fine until i saw my dad just a boo hoo-ing and that got me all worked up - but mostly i was so damned happy to be done with the thing. i just wanted a drink of the alcoholic nature and as luck would have it, my parents were prepared. they brought along ciders for me, beer for the boys and Dana and champagne to boot. i had one and a quarter of the ciders and was three sheets to the wind in no time flat. we cheered the rest of the group in (i just so happened to finish first, which was so cool because my best friend from college came down to cheer me on and kept saying "God Katie, you're amazing! You even beat all your guys! That's so cool!" and that was fantastic - to see the pride on his face, priceless) - drinking all the way. i mentioned before that i had to pee pretty much throughout the entire run yet i still hadn't gone. an hour after i finished, i realized i still hadn't gone but still had too so in true Texas form, i found a tree and popped a squat. i know, i know - classy. but i had to go and i didn't feel like standing in line for the port o' potties when there was a perfectly good tree up the tailgating sight calling my name - especially when i had a medium rare ribeye and sweet potato just waiting for me when i got back. dad had spent the morning getting fajitas and brauts cooked up for the crew so they would have a good meal waiting for them after the day's events. me being the favorite (read: only) daughter and all - their pride and joy - i got the special steak, cured with love and cooked to perfection. i was tired and worn out but i was having the most fun. we laughed and joked the rest of the day until we finally noticed we were the last group there and the last ones left to extract our gear from transition. i'd like to say we hightailed it over to get it done quickly, but there was no hightailing anything in our drunken, beaten down state - so we moseyed over to the site and packed up. the rest of the night was pretty uneventful. we were all pretty wiped out. i did get called princess quite a bit that night, but i was used to it by then (i made us change rooms because the one Bri and Ryan were in smelled like smoke and i was not having it - so i marched right up to the front desk, smiled pretty and got us a nonsmoking one instead).

i had been feeling a sicky coming on all week long and as soon as the event concluded, the sicky took full steam ahead and that's pretty much where i've been since - deathly ill. ok. not deathly. but ill for sure. now i'm trying to detox and having a horrible time of it. i'm cranky, have a horrid headache, STARVING and sleepy - but this is the way to get the sicky out for good and kick start my body back into healthy mode for the upcoming off season training that only lasts two precious months, then back to the pool, pavements and trails to get stronger, faster, better than last year and break 6 hours at Wildflower. that's right, i said it. God willing, my knees will have plenty of time to get stronger and stop their damn whining so that i can achieve this goal. here's to the off season, progress and break neck speed :)

Longhorn 70.3: THE RUN

oh the run. the final frontier. all that was standing between me and my title was 13.1 miles of pavement, cedar lined dirt paths, the scorching Texas sun, the disco duets at the energy lab and countless, water drenched, sanity saving sponges...times two.

the run was a two loop course that proved to be everything they said it would be - hard. the out and back to the energy lab was deceiving if only by name. i choose to look at things from a glass half full perspective, so hearing energy lab naturally made me think of gaining energy - not loosing it, which quickly became the super standing theme of the day. the whole way out was uphill, a sort of down hill reprieve on the way back in, only to be met again by more hills, more climbs, more aches and pains, more grabbing blindly for ice cold sponges and soaked white towels, more dreading Quadzilla and more cheerful volunteers to commiserate the experience. as i ran past the Team Barney Butter tailgating area the first time, i was met by loving screams of "great job Kate!" "go get 'em girl" "looking good" and the other veritable coos and caws. i soaked it up and yelled something like "who in the hell signed me up for this madness?!" i was still feeling pretty good at this point. this point of 5 miles and counting. i actually started to think "hey, maybe my knees won't hurt this time around. maybe this is the race that sets the precedent for all future races where i will kick ass and my knees will love me all the way!" ha. hahhahaha. hahhahhahhahahhahahhahahhahhahahha......hahahhahahhahahahhaha. yeah right.

mile 6 came and as if they were on cue from the director's chair, the sharp pains set in and i new the next loop would be hell. hell as in hot. hell as in pain. hell as in "i can't wait for this effing run to be over so i can have my medal and my cider and call it a day." and then i hit it. Quadzilla. in all of its steadily rising glory. its steep ascent. its dirty path of grime and grit. people stopped to walk all around me. to my left was a couple of 40 somethings chatting. to my right was a 25 year old sucking wind. inside me was a little girl wanting so badly to walk that she stuck out her pouty lip and thought "i am going to walk. i am going to walk and i don't care who knows it. i don't care who sees it. i am going to walk" as she continued to run up the monster ahead. run as in shimmy, shake, rattle and roll her way upwards in an attempt to keep the momentum going in such a way that it might take her through the next round. no walking happened on this loop. maybe the next. maybe.

by the 4th aide station of the second loop, my wits were nowhere about me. i was hot. i had to pee. i wanted to walk. i longed for anything to distract me in an attempt to escape the pain. i finally let myself walk through the aide station, not because i was trying to be nice to myself but because i decided to let the high fructose corn syrup devil infiltrate my mind and in the end infiltrate my mouth. Gatorade. oh sweet, evil, corn syrup bearing nectar of the underworld. it was all i could keep down and when i finally gave in to its devilish control, my spirits finally began to rise and i found the one thing that would propel me to the next aide station with the next round of highlighter yellow ick. it was glorious in every sense of the word. i could feel its nonnutritive value trickle down my throat and poison my innards, but i didn't care. i was drinking it and loving it. that little devil drink got me to the next aide station where another little devil drink called my name and i allowed myself another aide station walk through just so i could get it all in my mouth. i neared my tailgating area for the second time, but no joking words - or thoughts for that matter - left my mouth. i needed to preserve all my energy for the final stretch ahead. my second date with the death monster Quadzilla. i could feel him breathing in my direction and i knew he was around the bin. so i picked it up and met him with a vengeance. i plodded and probed, hobbled and hipped up that damn thing like it was my job. i left those whining men and women in my dust and laughed at my misery all the way. for once, i relished in the pain - there was no denying the life in my lungs, the movement in my legs, the delirium in my mind. i was about to become a half ironman. i hadn't walked. i hadn't quit. i hadn't given up on myself. around the next bin i would be all that i wanted and more. i would prove that i was strong enough, fast enough, good enough to be what i wasn't sure i could be.

i rounded the corner, shot for the finish and laughed out loud at the feat i had just accomplished. i was a half ironman and i was going to revel in the glory all day long...

official time: 2:23:33

official pace: 10:57 min/mi (horrible time, but hell - i'll take it)

official temp: mid 90's

official elevation: 371 ft

official feeling: proud, accomplished, iron-worthy!

Longhorn 70.3: THE BIKE

as i went into transition, i felt great - great to have that damn swim behind me. now it was time to get on Muffassa and ride like the wind. we had gone over some of the course the night before, so i knew there were quite a few technical turns out there only to follow quite a few "rough" spots that were thankfully and clearly marked by yellow squiggly lines. i had confidence in my ability to avoid the trouble spots while maintaining speed. there weren't many people in transition as i jogged to my designated area so i felt good about my timing out of the water. i had purposely not worn a watch for the race and i had purposely tweaked my bike computer so that it wouldn't activate when i got on. i didn't want any pressure during this first 70.3 race of mine. it was me against me, not anyone or anything else.

race top - check. sunglasses - check. a whole dadgum garden covering my feet - check...?! i seriously wasted a good 2 minutes trying to get the mulch off of my feet enough so that my bike shoes would fit. i knew i should have brought a bucket of water with me, oh well - the towel i high jacked from the hotel did its job. as i wrestled to get the rest of my gear in place, i began to shiver in the 80 degree morning air with the thought of the journey to come. 56 miles of nutrition. 56 miles of speed. 56 miles of me, the white lines, the blue Texas skies and the wide open fields. was i ready for this? was i strong enough, fast enough, good enough to get this done?

YES. YES, a million times over YES. the nervous thoughts were fast and fleeting. as soon as i mounted my steed, i knew the race was on. when i came upon "the turn" that would later (i have read) cause dilemmas and crashes of astronomical proportions, i cruised on by. long slow climb up, sharp 90 degree turn leading to an even sharper 100 yard ascent that i man handled like it was my bitch :) on to the next set of ups and downs, down and outs - i was on top of it all. riding high, riding fast, riding free. i did at one point - i'm guessing around mile 30 - get really distracted by my race number flapping violently in the wind. did i fail to mention the wind out there? holy Lord. there was a bit of a strong head wind at points, but at many others there was a cross wind straight from the Wizard of Oz out to get me. that damned cross wind would have liked to have picked me up and set me down in Oz had i been in Kansas to start with - and i think it might have had Todo been along for the ride. instead it settled on driving me nuts by tormenting my race number. i had been playing cat and mouse with a 34 year old woman and a 35 year old man. neither of them were content with me being in front but neither of them were very content on holding a strong pace either. so we continued our little game until that damned race number really started a flapping in the wind. i reached back to adjust the bugger and what do you know?! the damned thing popped right out of its holder on the right side! OY! i immediately slowed my speed to try to maneuver it back into its rightful home with no such luck. 34 and 35 finally got to cruise on by without a peep from me as i pleaded with God to just help me get the dadgum thing back in a safe place so i could finish my ride. nothing. for a good 3 or 4 minutes i played with that thing and lost quite a bit of speed in the process. finally, i gave in, looked behind me - clear, pulled off to the side and re-fastened the number to the belt clip. those things are the most difficult contraption to work out on the course! it took me about a minute of all thumbs to get it back in place and finally - finally i was able to get back on the course to hammer out the rest of the miles.

i kept thinking how annoyed i was that i had to stop for such a minor detail, but then i quickly realized that i had it easy. there were handfuls of "man downs" littering the sides of the roads with flat tires and i was not one of them. with a "thank you God" and a heartfelt smile to Mary, i flew through the rest of the turns and made way to T2. the final 400 or so yard climb did not lend itself to spinning out the legs in the most enjoyable way so i pushed through strong and readied myself for the dismount line. hopping off and landing felt awkward at first, but CB had me do plenty of bricks so i was prepared for the wobbly nature of my knees and headed straight for my rack. i kept a clear head about me and even dumped my "trash pocket" before heading out. i didn't want any extra weight for the hours to come. i still had 13.1 miles to go and it would prove to be the hardest task of the day - both physically and mentally...

official time: 3:04:57
official mph: 18.2
official temp: who knows with the wind, but it felt like high 80's
official elevation: 997 ft
official feeling: confident, strong, ready to finish my first half ironman!

Longhorn 70.3: THE SWIM

they say the water was 77 degrees. i say the water was 79 degrees. whatever it was, it was hot and not having my wetsuit was the best possible mistake i could have asked for. i over heat while i swim, so not having the option to fry myself in a vat of lake water amongst my age group opponents was something of a blessing. i was surrounded by 3 handfuls of women in wetsuits and a handful of them in skins. i wore my sports bra and tri shorts and stood to the inside, away from the majority of the racers in my wave because i know female triathletes - they're mean. they won't think twice about dunking you to get ahead. they jab, kick, scratch and crawl the person in front, behind or beside them that threatens the slightest movement towards what they've deemed their water territory. i wanted to stay clear from the get go so i stayed outside and prayed that this group would be nicer than the other groups i'd started with in the past. no such luck. the gun sounded and we were off. the first 200 or so meters i struggled to keep a steady breath and a strong arm. every stroke i took was met by a hard rubber body. the next 300 meters bred more of the same - all the while building more and more anxiety in my chest. we were like drowning monkeys in the pacific ocean except there was no salt for buoyancy and these monkeys were actually humans with strong pulls and even stronger will. i felt trapped in a sea of bodies and i couldn't find my way out to clear water no matter how hard i tried. there was no drafting because i couldn't get in a good stroke to save my life. finally after hitting the first buoy, a group of us 25-29 year olds pulled ahead and the water became a little less swallowing. i began to find a slight groove and tried desperately to keep it smooth. pull, rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push. pull, rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push. pull, rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push. and that was it. i'd get about 3 or 4 strokes in and all of a sudden i'd get bamboozled from behind or jack knifed from the side. i was flabbergasted at the fact that i could not just swim - so much so that i had to stop on five separate occasions to tread water and/or breast kick just so the animal to my right or left, front or back didn't succeed in drowning my poor unfloatable ass. i struggled throughout the entire swim not because i couldn't swim, but because this sea of neoprene clad bodies would not allow me the luxury. finally, with about 500 or so meters to go, i found a safe place. i pictured myself in an unpoppable bubble and there i stayed. i had already caught up to the wave directly before me about 100 meters back, and now i was seeing the stragglers from the two waves before that. i have to say that i have NEVER passed people in my own wave, much less 3 waves before mine - either they were super slow or i was getting faster. let's go with the latter, it makes me look better :) with this bit of light to guide me through the final stretch, i found a straight path to the inside outlet and made like a bandit to the swim out. i exited the water with such glee in knowing that 1) i had survived the near death drowning and the panic attacks it had ensued and 2) it was now time for the bike and Muffassa was calling my name...

official time: 30:37

official temp: water felt like 79 to start and ended feeling like 95

official elevation: 0 ft - i'm pretty sure it was flat out in the lake ;)
official feeling: glad to have not been drowned, pumped for the next 56 miles!

Longhorn 70.3: PRE-RACE

4am came really quickly. as soon as my alarm went off, i was in race ready mode. excited, nervous energy coursing through my veins, ready to take off and take flight. i was trying to harness that energy in order to keep it at bay until the gun sounded, still 4 some odd hours away. i wasn't doing a very good job. my head was everywhere and nowhere all at once. i headed straight for the ice chest and then down to the breakfast area where a gathering of anxious racers were already standing in line for the microwave. there were some exchanges of pleasantries and good lucks, but these were all men in my midst and the focus wasn't on the niceties of the back country, the focus was on the nutrition for the long day ahead. i heated up my sweet potato/barney butter concoction and added some grilled chicken breast in the mix for a little added protein to keep me full through the pre-race rituals to come. as soon as it was down, i headed back to the room to start the walk through that would eventually lead to the big show. i had packed my tri bag the night before, as all triathletes do, but i still took everything out and repacked it as i would put it on in transition - just to be sure. it was, after all, my first transition in over a year and i was dead set on not forgetting anything instrumental to my success for the day. swim. bike. run. everything was there and it was time to head out and down to BG's room to get the rest of the Team Barney Butter crew moving.

like i said, my energy was running rampant like a red headed step child left alone on a Saturday afternoon to amuse herself in a room full of feather pillows ;) the rest of the group didn't seem to have the same energy overload that i did and weren't shy in letting me know that i needed to take my 10 down to about a 2 until we reached the starting line. i tried. i failed.

i sang. i danced. i drove and talked and sang and danced some more. i was so ready to get this thing on. i had been waiting for this moment for 3 years - my first half ironman and it was finally here. no one has ever come right out and told me i couldn't do it, but there have been those in my life who i was pretty sure never thought i would and today i was going to prove those people wrong. there have been a multitude of people in my past who i could never impress, never live up to their standards, never be good enough for even if i trekked straight up to the moon and brought back the stars around it. today was my day to do it. to take those stars and hold them for myself, declaring that i am worth everything i think i am and more. looking back, i didn't need this day to prove that, but how sweet it is to have had it just the same. to look straight into the face of fear and weakness and beat it down with courage and strength. now i know that i didn't do this for those people who didn't think i would, i did it for me who wasn't sure i could.

i got to transition and set up my spot, exactly how i had imagined it should be in my head. everything had a place, everything had a purpose - directly in front of me were the tools i would use to get me successfully through the day. i did the usual 5 trip dance to the port-o-potties and got in a 10 minute or so warm up/stretch combination. the air outside was a bit cool, so i decided to forgo a swim warm up in order to preserve my body heat and comfort while waiting for the first 5 waves to go off - and then it was me. me in a sea of brightly colored pink swim caps. me in a sea of warm bodies covered in neoprene. me in a sea of women, all ready to do one thing - tackle the swim to get us to the bike that would eventually lead to the run that would in turn get us to the finish line that would, in the end, make us what we so craved - half ironmen. with no familiar faces anywhere to be seen, i looked inside and found all the strength, power and peace i needed to start and finish this race. i stood there in the water on tip toes and recited my Hail Mary's and Our Father. and as the countdown began, a wave of serenity passed over me as i closed my eyes and saw Clark's face flash through my mind. this was it. my journey of 70.3 was about to begin with 1.2...

official time: who knows, we were on an hour and a half delay
official temp: felt like high 60's
official elevation: 0 ft - i'm pretty sure i was standing still for this bit ;)
official feeling: excited, nervous, can't wait to pee my pants!

where to start?

lets go with the pre-race day highlights and then we'll get to the race report, probably in sections so you aren't too overwhelmed with the novel at hand...



highlight1:
taking Clara to Barton Springs where her daddy and i used to swim as kids. we were always told that we were not to get wet, that we could roll up our pants and stick our feet in. and every time, we'd end up leaving the park completely soaked because one of us had pushed the other one in against the pleading and warnings of our handlers :) i distinctly remember riding home on more than one occasion butt-naked with a towel wrapped around my little kid body and my brother and i drawing lines across the back seat that the other one wasn't supposed to cross. well we all know how well the doing what your supposed to did not work in this particular brother/sister relationship ;) some of the best times ever were had in that spring of ice cold water that always seemed to get warmer just by having the two of us in it together.


highlight2:
taking Clara to Whole Foods for her daddy's special birthday dinner and cake celebration. mom and i had his favorite - cheesecake, and Clara had his second favorite - chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. we all ate every single bite and enjoyed every last minute of it as we looked up to the sky and said "happy birthday, we love you to the moon..."





highlight3:
picking up team barney butter from the airport and then stopping for dinner at Taco Bell after BG had begged us to stop somewhere "Texas." since it was already 10 and not much is open that late in the back country on a Thursday, we had to settle for the first thing we saw and Taco Bell was it. poor guys. i'm sure that volcano taco did 'em wonders later that night, tucked away in the camper up at the neighbors where the momma cougar makes her nightly prowl for the unsuspecting Bambie's of the Morgan's Point Resort forest. come to find out, Ryan even ventured out of the camper one of the nights to urinate...brave soul. its lucky for him he wasn't eaten!!!!



highlight4:
driving up to the best damn bar-b-que place i have ever been. letting my eyes nearly pop out of my head when i saw all the meat on the grill - deer sausage, hot sausage, mild sausage, brisket, baby back ribs, short ribs, steak, chicken and pork chops. salivating at the thought of the meat entering my mouth so much so that i couldn't decide what kind of meat to get so i got them all. sitting down to eat my meat and savoring every single bite. getting hyper excited about the fact that it was in my hometown at the exact same time i got sad that i no longer live near my hometown to enjoy the delectableness of it all on any type of a regular basis. driving up to the super Wal Mart where we bought 7 some odd cases of beer, 4 bottles of champagne, 10 pints of Blue Bell ice cream and a shit load of God knows what to get us through the trip down to Austin for race day. then making another pit stop at the liquor store where BG, Dana and i each bought a bottle of my favorite port wine AND a case of cider for the after race celebration. and the best part - seeing my mom's face when we walked in looking like a bunch of drunken hippies getting ready to get wasted on her lovely lake view estate :)



highlight5:
going on and on about how we needed to leave at such and such a time on Saturday morning to be in Austin by this and that time. getting frustrated with the drunken carbo loading yahoos and their inability to pay attention to the details of the plan and then me being the one to make everyone wait to leave the next morning because i was running behind and had no idea where i was going. BG and i jamming out to the likes of billy jo bob's bluegrass mamba jamba and missing the exit to the transition site while Tim and Ryan took the right exit but missed the left turn and ended up at the XXXadult video megaplex. getting to the absolute worst expo in the world only to find out that the race was indeed going to be wetsuit legal and me freaking out, trying to decide if i should buy a wet suit for the added buoyancy seeing as how i found out the day prior that i had completely lost all floatability in the fresh water without one. CB talking me down from the ledge i had edged out to in my tizzy while Ryan ordered the boomchickylacka boom boom sauce chicken dish to satisfy his pre-pre-race meal appetite, and all of us eating entirely too much only 2 hours before we were supposed to eat our pre-race dinner and loving every minute of it.


highlight6:
getting so damned lost on the "course preview" that we had to actually stop and ask for directions and this is what we got (thanks Ryan for remembering her words, i couldn't remember anything after the door comment):
katie: excuse me, how do we get to Blake-manor Road?
lady: Blake Manor road?
katie: yes, please.
lady: well, you're on Ann Showers. just keep going a couple miles and turn left on Damita Jo (i am not making these street names up. this is Texas people, back woods Texas at that), when you get to Damita Jo, keep your doors locked and...(the transcript ends here, because the SoCal city kids all pooped themselves)


highlight7:
taking the kids to eat fried alligator and God knows what else the night before our race (nothing new on raceday schmaceday) and then not sleeping all night long in anticipation of the next morning and the looming knowledge that we were all about to become half ironmen (well Dana already was one, but who's counting?).

highlight8:
Clara in all of my tri gear (future ironman in the works right here!). this is perfection at its best. i got to sit, sleep, play, hug, kiss and love my niece for 2 straight days and then some. fantastic. better than fantastic - priceless...

i'm officially a half ironman

Katie Brunner #776
San Diego, CA
Age: 27 Gender: F
Distance Long
Clock Time 6:05:45
Chip Time 6:05:45
Overall Place 1010 / 1929
Gender Place 231 / 513
Division Place 42 / 90
Swim 1 2Mi Rank 805
Swim 1 2Mi Time 30:37
Swim 1 2Mi Pace 1:35/M
T1 Time 04:02
Bike 56Mi Rank 1084
Bike 56Mi Time 3:04:57
Bike 56Mi Pace 18.2mph
T2 Time 02:34
Run 13 1Mi Rank 1043
Run 13 1Mi Time 2:23:33
Run 13 1Mi Pace 10:57/M

i have so much to say about this incredible weekend that i don't even know where to start. for now i will just say that i am beyond exhausted, haven't slept more than 15 hours in the past 3 days and i am sore - sorer than sore actually. i promise to write all about it just as soon as i get caught up at work and then i'll be writing so much, you'll have to schedule time just to fit in all the reading ;)

thanks everyone for all of the kind words, encouragement, love and fast vibes sent to me on race day. it wouldn't have been the same without knowing how much all of you believe in me and the things that i can do when i put my mind to it.

i can't believe i am officially a half ironman. how cool is that?! ;)

TEAM BARNEY BUTTER in the hiz-ouse!

well it's official.

i have haphazardly formed my first team of the 2008 season. albeit its the end of the season, but have no worries - there will be a come back, or a regrouping of sorts come race season 2009. i have yet to get all my ducks aligned for what's to come (insert BIG, no HUGE ideas here) but for now, we are the first official TEAM BARNEY BUTTER - peanut free, no less - and i really couldn't be more pleased. i mean two of my all time favorite things are merging, Barney Butter and triathlon, right before my eyes. a ginormous thanks to Jennifer Barney for allowing us to represent her company and her product!!!

2008 TEAM ROSTER:

katie brunner AKA "hurricane"

my bike's name:
"muffassa"

favorite quotes:

"If your ship doesn't come in, swim out to it." - Jonathan Winters

"I think the purpose of life is to be useful, to be responsible, to be honorable, to be compassionate. It is, after all, to matter: to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all." – Leo Rosten

something quirky:

when i get to work in the morning i have an entire system of opening up the day's programs. if one shuts down for some reason or another, i have to close them all down and start all over again. oh, and i have this thing for naming inanimate objects...

races:
Longhorn Half Ironman '08

Rock N Roll Marathon '08
La Jolla Half Marathon '08

Wildflower Olympic Relay '07

Camp Pendelton Mud Run '07

Triathlon at Pac Grove '06
Carlsbad Sprint Tri '06
Wildflower Olympic '06

feelings on Barney Butter:

i think you all know how i feel about the stuff. it might be the best thing ever, besides white chocolate cheesecake that is - which gives me an idea...i digress. the stuff just makes me happy. i announce everyday at work - IT'S BARNEY BUTTER TIME at 10 on the dot - no meetings are scheduled then because of this fact and everyone knows it. afterward i announce - I LOVE BARNEY BUTTER, YUM YUM YUM...i know, i know what you're thinking "you're a grown woman, get a hold of yourself." i'm working on it :) it's just so damn good!

dana banister AKA "danban"

my bike's name (given by kb):

"nemo"

favorite quote:

"if you ran without sacrifice, congratulations you just jogged." - Pearl Izumi ad

something quirky:

ok what's not quirky?! umm i guess i would say my oddities on eating and numbers of things to eat at a time (4, 7, or 10) and which foods "go together" as opposed to what needs to be separated on a divider plate!! and yes, she's a grown woman too ;)

races:

Longhorn Half Ironman '08

Vineman '08

Lavaman '06, '07, '08

AFC Half '06, '07, '08

La Jolla Half '06, '08

Carlsbad Half '06, '07, '08

Pac Grove '06

Random 5 and 10 k's that are too numerous to list out!

feelings on Barney Butter:

i absolutely love the creaminess of barney butter as opposed to other almond butters because it's the smoothest almond butter i've ever tasted. i also love the fact that the crunchy is like extra crunchy peanut butter, which can be hard to find!

brian gunn AKA "marlin" (from Finding Nemo)

my bike's name (given by kb):
"babar"
favorite quote:
"Do one thing every day that scares you." - Elanor Roosevelt
something quirky:
he plans everything, i mean everything. he has a wall calender in his living room that he updates, he has an outlook that synchs with his blackberry and his gmail, and he schedules things like "pick beach towels up for katie at Costco." really bri?! ;)
races:
Longhorn Half Ironman '08
Nation's Tri '08
Imperial Beach Sprint '08
Solona Beach Sprint '08
Lavaman '07, '08
AFC Half '07, '08
Wildflower Oly '07, '08
La Jolla Half '08
Carlsbad Half '08
Pac Grove '07
and more but i can't keep track...
feelings on Barney Butter:
he loves it, although he hasn't gotten around to actually purchasing a jar because he tries to steal kb's when she's not looking :-P

ryan mashburn AKA "kibbles"

my bike's name (given by kb):
"speed racer"
favorite quote:
"everyday is a new day" - Diana Ross
(BTW: kb is totally making all of this up)
something quirky:
he likes to pretend he is the dark and brooding type, however - kb has seen him cry...well almost. not really, but he was bitten by a dog and he laughed so hard his eyes got watery when he told her the story. oh and he's a glutton for punishment. he ALWAYS says yes to kb's insane workouts!
races:
Longhorn Half Ironman '08
Pac Grove '07, '08
Imperial Beach Sprint '08
Lavaman '08
Wildflower Oly '08
i'm sure there's more but i really don't know...
feelings on Barney Butter:
he doesn't know because he's sick of hearing kb talk about it all the time, but now sort of has to go buy some since he's wearing the team jersey...peer pressure, it'll get you every time ;)

tim lewis AKA "hi, i don't know how to use the internet, don't respond to emails, don't even know i'm on this amazing team and i originally wanted our name to be 'TEAM LONG AND HORNY IN SAN DIEGO'"

paul anderson AKA "OTS - official team sherpa"

favorite quotes:
"That's what she said" "It's a great life if you don't weaken" "Suck it up, princess" (wow, he's all smiles isn't he?!)

something quirky:
I watch more cartoons then a man my age should admit to watching.

races:
Tour de Tucson (x2)
Lavaman
Wildflower Oly
Vineman 70.3 (x2)
SOMA 70.3
Tour de Palm Springs
Tahoe Century
Wildflower Long Course
AFC 1/2 marathon
Arizona Ironman

feelings on Barney Butter:
something about barney butter...is it made from purple dinosaurs?!