ST. GEORGE

Well its Saturday May 8th one week after the race. Melina wanted me to post about Ironman. I actually started a blog to document the whole thing but with training and work I just never seemed to find the time. Who knows maybe now that its over ill get my notes and workouts and go back and recap the whole experience on the other blog. Looking back I think that signing up was the hardest part, it took days of convincing to get the courage to do it. Once it was done the excitement, fear etc... set in. Anyways Ironman St. George was my 10th triathlon but it might as well have been my first because of the difference between a Ford Ironman event and all the others I have participated in. Race day was Saturday but the process started Wednesday when they opened packet pickup. Nick, Kyle and I took basically the day off to fully be able to enjoy it all. We picked up are packets got body marked (3 days before the race). After body marking we spent a ton of time and quite a bit a money in the Ironman store. They had everything imaginable for a Triathlete. Thursday was pretty low key we got our families together for dinner at Kyle's parents house and then went to the banquet and pre race meeting. It was awesome to see all the athletes there and feel the excitement with an event this big. Friday was a busy day in that all transition areas needed to be set up before 3 pm. I met Kyle and Nick we headed to Sand Hollow to set up T1 then stopped for some lunch at Pizza Factory and then set up T2. So by 2:30 or so all of our race stuff was dealt with it was time to relax for awhile and wait for the kids race at 6pm. Kids race got over my family headed home about 7:30 which left me alone to try and get to bed early and be ready for race day. Not sure if that was a great idea cuz all it did was make me anxious and not have anything else to think about but the race. 8:45 I was in bed watched the Jazz for an hour and was asleep before 9:45. 2 am rolls around and i'm wide awake i spent the next hr and a half trying to get back to sleep. No such luck. 3:30 I hoped in the shower grabbed my stuff and met Nick and Kyle at 4:15 am. I probably could have done a better job with breakfast but it was hard to get anything down. We dropped off our special needs bags just before we boarded the shuttle (School Bus) at the tabernacle in St. George and headed to Sand Hollow. We were in T1 by 5:20 or so. Checked our bikes pumped up tires etc... at about 6 i left Nick and Kyle in the changing tent and never saw them again until mile 90 in the bike. It was crazy how many athletes were there all ages, shapes, sizes because of the number of people I wasn't able to find Nick and Kyle before the start. At about 6:30 the announcer started telling everyone to make sure they were ready for the swim start. 6:45 the pros started and I was ready to get down to the water. It took a full 15 minutes get to the water and when the gun went off I was standing in then middle of some knee deep water talking to Troy Ence we looked at each other put our googles and it began. My goal for the swim was to finish between 1:10 and 1:30 I started at the back right of the pack and really didn't get to beat up. by about 5 minutes into the swim I was actually enjoying it. I stayed wide right got bumped by a few people but for the most part had a great swim to the first buoy. At the turn I stayed wide just because the inside still looked pretty congested. I probably swam a little extra but this being my first Ironman I wanted to avoid problems at all cost. I've been in the middle of the chaos in other events and figured this was the safest route for me. Turn 2 came and I decided it was time to get a little closer to the buoys so I angled in to the main group after turn 2 and at the final turn was right at the turn buoy. heading to the ramp I followed a couple of guys and pushed it a little harder then I had been. I stuck to my plan of just enjoying the swim and it worked I had a great swim felt good only breast stroked a little bit but just felt good overall. As I approached the ramp I stood up and saw all the fans there cheering it took a minute with the cold and all to get my feet under me  running up the ramp I looked over and saw Nick right next to me. The wetsuit strippers got my suit off and I headed to T1 I grabbed my bag and was heading into the changing tent when Nick said lets just change out here so we changed just outside the tent and Nick said to go ahead he was going to wait a minute for Kyle so I left knowing they were stronger bikers and would catch me soon. I ran through the changing tent got sunscreen rubbed on me and was off on the bike. I felt great getting on the bike and briefly saw my family cheering me on as I rode past. Weather was perfect for the bike I took it easy getting my legs warmed up from the cool swim. and by the highway I was feeling good and enjoying the ride. It was exciting to see all the spectators. Turning on to Telegraph I figured Nick and Kyle would catch me shortly but I pushed it down the hills which usually I don't but I figured ever fast mile I could get would help down the road. The next 2 hrs and 30 minutes went well I stopped briefly at the aid stations for water or a banana. I stayed according to plan as far as nutrition and I kept my pace as best I could. Still no sign of Nick and Kyle. Climbing into Gunlock I felt good but slow. The ranch hill and the wall came and went like usual. Lasse was waiting at the top of wall to give some support and update my family of where I was. Special needs stop was just what I needed just before Dameron Valley. I stopped and Mari Bleazard was there we talked and she told me where my family was. I ate a PBJ and had a couple handfuls of Pringles filled my water bottles and was on my way. The wind was perfect coming down the volcano hill I actually saw 42mph on my speedometer usually with the breeze there i keep it under 40 but with no traffic to worry about i was able to just go which was nice. At the turn for lap 2 I briefly saw my family I probably should have stopped but I knew the hardest part of the ride had begun. TO BE CONTINUED........................

My Ironman

He did, he did it, he did it! He is an ironman and wow was it the most amazing event I have ever been to in my life. So inspiring and motivating. We want to says thanks to everyone who was there to support. I got teary everytime I heard of someone new wanting to know how he was doing and who was there giving their support. It was such an example to me of what a true friend is because he had so many cheering him on, it shows me what an amazing person he is. So caring about others and never forgetting little details of their life. He is always interested in them and takes time to build those relationships and Saturday was proof of that. What a crazy week it was the week before the event. I have never seen him so serious, he wasn't much for talking and when we did it was about times and transition and race prep. On Friday we went down with my family for the kids race, Jax was totally stoked about this! We ate dinner with Ashlee and Bret Nelson and they were so sweet to invite us, it worked out perfectly! The kids ran their 200 meter race and finished across the same finish line as Jeff. I didn't even see Jax, he was a blur! We went back to Cedar while Jeff stayed at the motel and tried to get some needed sleep. On Saturday I woke up at 3:30 am not able to sleep, so I texted Jeff to make sure he was awake. Obviously he was and just getting ready. We left the house at 5:15 AM right on schedule and I was all nerves for him. When we came down the Hurricane hill the traffic was at least 2 miles long waiting to get in to park at the fairgrounds. We made it on the shuttle buses and ran over to the race. I wanted to see him so bad before but there were way too many people, I just kept shouting his name and getting funny looks. Bev and Joe took Hunter and that helped so much! The boys were seriously the best troopers ever! We watched the start and my gut was hurting 2000 people swimming all at the same time! When they sounded the gun some people were still not even in the water. He did so awesome! It took him 1 hour and 22 min. and transition went well. We saw him fly by on his bike and it was so quick I was having withdrawls not being able to see him for longer than 2 seconds. Long story short he had a GPS to track him on the race and it didn't work, so so bummed. Luckily we had tons of friends helping and I have never been so thankful for texting and my phone. Their updates saved us! We got shuttled back, hurried up with lunch and booked it over to Red Hills Parkway to see him go around on his second lap! The whole family was there, his side and mine, looking for him. We kept debating whether he had passed already or not and while thus debating speeding past us he went with Mari screaming there he is! He had the funniest look on his face, like why aren't you all cheering? Here I am! We screamed his name and then we went to the pool for a quick swim. I was dead set on seeing him get off the bike and start into the run. Luckily Bev and Joe had staked out an excellent spot and we saw him get off the bike. I told everyone I was ignoring everyone so I wouldn't miss him this time and my mom was so great to take Hunter (who was starving) and bounce him around. He did the bike in 7hrs. 53 min. We knew the run would be tough all around and it was. He finished the run in 6 hours and 22 min. and I could tell on the turn around it was going to be tough. He did so awesome though, this was his first ever marathon. Not exactly the best time to do your first marathon after a 2.4 mile swim and 112 bike. He finished in 15:58 and I have never been so proud. My mom was so great to stay with the sleeping kids and he had so many people there to support him. It was a crazy day but I will say the most motivating and inspiring day ever. I learned you can't judge someone from the outside because they come in all shapes and sizes and finish just the same. It takes a lot of heart and not only is this race a physical challenge but a mental one as well. He was sore the next few days, after a lot of icy hot and massages twice a day he was back and having training withdrawls. The part that makes me cry everytime though is when each person crosses the finish line the announcer says, "Jeff Burgess You Are An Ironman!" He is and will always be our ironman! Way to go babe. Pics will come later and video

Mental Prep for race day

Never underestimate the body's ability to go farther than you ever thought possible. However, the body is a machine. Your mind is the driver. Prepare your mind now to drive your body on race day.

3 days and 17 hours to go...

Its coming, ready or not I suppose and I am still wondering if this is all real. These past few days loads of people have talked to Jeff and asked him if he is ready for the Ironman race on Saturday and his answer has generally been ready or not its here. Hearing him tell people about the race and as we discuss time, distance, transition, fueling, pace and a whole lot of other worries it all seems surreal. I don't really believe this is happening to us. We have been planning this and working towards it for over a year now and its here. He has trained so hard and we are so blessed that the race is in St. George and he is able to train on the course for almost every workout. Most doing this race just don't have that opportunity and we are hoping it has been to our advantage. As we discuss times and when to fuel I can see him think exactly where he pictures himself on the course at that time. Both of us have been obsessed with reading material and different pro ironman blogs about this distance to the point we might both be going insane with overload of information. We know each sport will be difficult and there will be moments when you body will say to your mind that its time to quit. But what I have been pondering lately is that this is more a mental race, it is physical and the time and training must be put in diligently, but when race day comes you don't know what will be thrown at you. A flat tire, no water, rain, too hot, wind anything can happen that day but what will drive you forward will be your mind. As a kid your always told you can do anything you put your mind to and mentally you have to be prepared for anything. Your body is an amazing thing created by our Heavenly Father and I personally think we don't even have the tiniest idea of what we are capable of. The training that Jeff has done is proof of that. Not only is our body amazing, but it doesn't compare with what our mind is able to do. Is he ready? I know he is, it will be the toughest day of his life mentally and physically but he will be our hero that day. His boys worship him and right now they have no idea what he is going to accomplish and hopefully that will inspire them and teach them that they can do hard things and overcome obstacles that seem impossible. So in 3 days 17 hours 4 minutes and 28 seconds we will have our own hero, our own ironman!

Easter

Easter this year was so much fun. We went camping down to the Whitney Pockets with Jeff's family and it was a blast! Boy I love camping even with babies as long as we have a heater. Jeff's mom's family is a lot of fun, and wow they cook like crazy. It was a gourmet meal and tons of food! Scones, french toast, eggs, chili, you name it they cooked it! The kids did an easter egg hunt in the mountains and they had a blast. We came home Saturday and dyed easter eggs. This gets better each year as they get older. Once they start dipping there is no stopping them! We luckily game out with some color this year after some coaxing from me. Last year they were most brown.

I found that just letting them get on the table worked the best for coloring.

On Sunday we woke up and the kids went on a little hunt for their baskets and eggs. Jax did most of the hunting while Jake found his basket, opened all the eggs and ate all the candy! General Conference fell on the same day so we stayed in our pjs and watched, I wasn't as prepared this year for conference for the kids but it went okay. October will be better I hope. Goals, goals, constantly making new goals. In between conference sessions we went to Grandma's and made egg salad sands with twinkies and cadbury eggs for the kids to have a picnic. Which ended up inside due to the weather. Fun nonetheless! Bev used to do that when she was a kid on Easter. We had an easter lesson that night after conference and it is amazing how much they are coming to understand!

This was on Sunday in our Easter clothes, it was the best they would do for me. What a nutty house we live in!

Lessons in Food Storage

The past two years jeff and I have tried to live off our food storage from Jan.-March in order to save some money and just to see if we can. We only went to the store to buy fresh produce, milk products, and eggs. We did it again this year and I have learned some things I want us to remember.
 First of all I can make bread without a bread maker! Not much to others, but a miracle I thought I would never achieve. Though I love the bread maker when I am in a rush and have no time. I enjoy doing it without if I make the time. I made about 3-4 loaves twice a month depending on our appetites. I simply can't resist the smell of freshly baked bread. Maybe its from working at Old Grist Mill one summer during college, I wish I could just bottle it up. I have used two recipes I enjoy, Emilie's Whole Wheat Bread, and a recipe I found from Sister Hinckley in her Small and Simple Things book. I love both.
 Second I realized I don't have near enough wheat stored up! I am thankful I learned this because I thought those calculations for your family had to be off, but you really need a ton if your making bread every week.
 I also learned that we must purchase a cow yearly. Our family does this and shares the meat and it has less fat and it so nice to have in the freezer. We have buffalo also, and it is surprisingly good.
 We decided this time to not buy any special snacks for the kids like fruit snacks, etc... Though I did cave a couple of times. The funny thing was is that they started eating their meals so much better and healthy fresh snacks. I had a good habit when Jaxon was little but it was so easy with the other stuff. I am sure we will still buy those goodies, but it showed us how much it affected their appetites.
 I learned to plan ahead, each Sunday I would plan our week's menu including side dishes. It was hard to prepare ahead of time with having a baby around again, thankfully I had some casseroles in the freezer.
 I learned that I need a checklist of exactly how much I have of each thing, so I can keep a list of what I need to buy to keep our supplies up. I learned I need to write the year on each can so I rotate through things better as well.
 I also need to stock up on cleaning supplies and water. We don't have nearly enough water and it is what keeps us going!
 All in all it was another good experience and has made us appreciate what we have. Food as well as devices like microwaves and bread makers! Prepare every needful thing!

Lake Las Vegas Half Triathlon

Its off to Vegas we go! Only one more month till the big St. George Ironman race, for a little warm up we headed to Lake Las Vegas for a half ironman. Which consists of a 1.5 mile swim, a 56 mile bike, and a 13.1 mile run. We were ready for warm weather, but much to our chagrin it was windy, but we still enjoyed the sunshine. It was so nice to have the resort right there during the race so we could watch, eat, swim, and play while he worked his guts out. Our friends the Nelsons were there racing also, as well as some people Jeff knows from the tri club. This is the first race we have been to where I haven't had another family member there to help and the kids really did awesome, they were excellent! It was so nice to have Ashlee there too so we could each watch and her cousin came which helped a ton! This was an afternoon race, it started at one. This is our future ironman! What a hottie!

Jeff swam is 35 minutes which was so awesome! Pre-race everyone has their signature prep and Jeff's is always the cool guy, don't get ready too early and he never ever shows his nerves. 

Here he is coming out of the water. Its always a little tough to go from swimming to standing upright and running to transition and stripping that wetsuit off. He said the water was freezing, good thing he brought his long sleeve one. It was also nice to have such a small group of athletes to race with. There were only about 100 doing the long distance. 

This is getting on the bike, boy I don't know how I got those kids there so fast. They must think their mom is crazy, as does everyone else. As I cart and holler to run, lets go see him. Then after he goes off on the bike we get to relax for a bit.

We went swimming before the race started and during the bike as well. Its so nice to have kids who love the water and aren't afraid. Hunter was amazing even considering the tooth he cut that day. This pic is the only good one Jake would let me take and I had to zoom quite a ways. He is showing me his muscles.

Jax found a little friend at one pool named Joey and they chatted the whole time and played. Ashlee was so good to play games with the boys while I had Hunter in the pool. 

The bike was a killer course, harder in Jeff and my opinion than St. George's course. He did it in about 4 hours. He did great though because he ran out of water at the half way mark and had to ride all the way back in with nothing. To have no water that whole time and be pushing it and know you have to run a half marathon after would kill me. Luckily we were just finishing our gelato when he ran by and I had some water in the stroller. 

Off he runs literally into the sunset! The run took him 2 hours which was awesome!

We played outside and the kids played with toys while we waited at the finish line.

Here is our finisher! With a time of 6 hrs. 42 min. Now time for steak and lobster and a good soak in the hot tub! Way to go babe! One month to go and you will be an official ironman. In my book you are already an iroman! Love you!