Swim, Bike, Run... repeat

Our big race for the season was this past weekend.  Despite the rain, the cold temperatures, the rain, holes in my feet, sore muscles, dead batteries, 7 kids, 2 wet dogs (not Max) the rain, and latrines (there were nice bathroom with hot showers, but on the last day they were closed for cleaning and we did have a full camping experience by hitting the latrines, eww) the weekend was a total blast. 

The drive was about 7 hours north to Superior, Wisconsin, think Canada, think cold.  We set up camp just as it started to rain, so we piled in the tent.  What do you do with 6 people in a tent, you jump on air mattresses and throw Uno cards around, of course.   A group nap just wasn't happening.  Jerry drove to the nearby Target(what on earth did people do before Target?) and bought a $40 rain shelter, so we wouldn't have to be cooped up in the tent during the rain.  Granted the thing won't withstand a stiff breeze, but it was a life saver for the weekend.

 

 

Monkey Bar stunts

 

 

We have never camped as a family.  Thanks to my years helping with girls' camp, I have camped some and Jerry's wilderness survival training comes in handy, too.  We were loaded down with camping gear, sufficient warm clothing for 6 and race gear.  The kids were really excited about camping and about 2 hours into setting up and unloading we were all a little on edge.  Lydi kept taking Jerry's tools to dig in the woods for worms and bugs.  Owen kept wanting to run off.  Gaby always had to go to the bathroom and Taylor was stuck in "I'm a teenager with an iPod in my ears so don't bother me" land.  I was beginning to wish we left them all at home.

 

Then the Breffles arrived.  Our friends.  Our campmates.  Our lifesavers.  Our secret weapon.  Jerry and I swim with Barry Breffle.  He's amazing.  He's done numerous Ironmans and has qualified numerous times for the big one in Kona.  He's been doing the triathlon thang for 13 years or so and he's a machine.  Better yet, he's a super nice guy with a super fun family.

 

Barry asked Jerry and I to do this race with him last April.  Hmmm.   That was about 5 months ago.  Five months ago I was swimming 4-5 days a week and in really good shape.  I was even running (a.little.bit) to get ready for my sprint tri.  Sounded like fun.  Sounded like a plan.  It was like being asked to sit at the popular table at lunch.

 

Then the floods came.  Life got busy.  Summer arrived.  Vacation came.  We almost moved.  Training?  Not so much.  We gave Barry an out, but he said he was in it for fun.  That's right we were looking at this race as a good time, he wasn't letting us off the hook.  We're so glad he didn't!  It was fanFREAKINtastic.

 

We won our division and came in second overall to a team of college guys!  The gist of the race is this, do a sprint tri course as many times as you can in 10 hours.  Some crazies do it solo (the winner completed 7!).  I think there were about 40 individuals and 60 teams.  We completed 9 sprint tris in 11 hours and 9 minutes.  Broken down that's about 3 1/2 miles (~240 laps in a regular pool) of race pace swimming for me, 126 miles of biking (70 for Barry, 56 for Jerry) and 27.9 miles of running (15.5 for Jerry and 12.4 for Barry).

 

Swim...                        Bike...                      Run...                  (repeat)

Did I mention it was chilly?   About 45 when I stripped down to my wetsuit for the 7:30am swim.  To say it was brisk would be an understatement.  Since Chrysta is watching my potty mouth, I'll just say the water was dang cold.  Heart stopping cold.  Did I mention we were in northern Wisconsin, just south of Lake Superior and Duluth, MN.  I was freezing most of the day.  The sun came out in the afternoon for a bit  before the rain poured down on us, or I should say Jerry since he was on the bike leg at the time it hit.

 

The race director did a great job of organizing this event.  It is a really fun atmosphere.  I'd do it again in a year.  It's the only kind of tri race that I'll ever win, since I don't do any biking or running.

 

waterfall at the lake

  Me swimming around the buoy (I think)

Naptime   Gaby *heart* Jordan  All the kids had so much fun together.  Their kids are 14, 12 and 8, so they matched up well.  They ran around the camp, the waterfalls and just kept busy all day long.  They were wet and cold, but there was never any complaining.  If we ever camp again, they are coming with us.

The absolute best part of the day?  Michelle Breffle's Dutch Oven lasagna and grilled garlic bread.  I seriously could have eaten my own arm at the end of the day, but Michelle saved the day.  When our first round of coals got rained on we thought we'd have to throw in the towel and just go out for pizza, but she rocked the D.O.

 

 

Group shot prior to leaving camp in the rain.

 

Pattison State Park

 

 

Oh and lest I forget, by FAR the best quote of the trip was from Gaby.  About 3 hours into our 7 hour drive home on Sunday, Gaby asks from the backseat, "Do you believe in God?"  It was directed at all of us, and she waited for each of us to answer.  Assuming some deep discussion of the meaning of life was going to ensue, I braced myself for what was coming.  It was priceless.  "What time is lunch?"