Minne Pearls of Kate: I du, do I?

Today, John and I took part in our first duathlon. The race consisted of a three mile run, followed by a 32 mile bike ride, and another mile run to finish. The whole race started and finished at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.

I have to admit I was a little nervous about the whole race. I knew I could do each part individually but I had never tested the water on doing them in succession. My goal: finish in 3 hours (or at least to finish-barring no injuries).

I was a little anxious on how the day was going to go, especially after we realized that upon arriving at the course I had forgotten my race number and chip timer back at the house. Luckily, I was given a new number and was still able to set up in time for the race. I also found it was much better this way because now John and I were going to be in different start heats. I figured if we started at the same time I would probably kill myself trying to keep up.

How did I do?! My official time was 2:53:38 and John finished in 2:20:10. I made it under my goal! The first three mile run was a breeze, and my transition from run to bike went smoothly. The first part of the bike ride was rough, I was dealing with a head wind and multiple pot hole jumpings while trying to pass others who were riding at a slower pace. Once I was out in the open the ride was amazing, beautiful fall colors, the river flowing right next to me and perfect weather! The worst part of the race was the transition from biking back to running. After getting off the bike I felt like I had sea legs on. I ended up walking the first half of the mile just trying to get my legs back under me. The whole experience was worth it when I crossed that finish line and proved that I could do it!

As of right now, my legs are just slightly stiff, but the second day after the race tends to be worse so we will see what tomorrow brings!

John's dad was our personal cheerleader and professional photographer, below is a sample of his work!