What I loved most about Ironman Arizona last weekend wasn’t the race itself, though spectating 140.6 is always fun (but not quite as fun as racing one).
The best part… the people! Nick calls everyone I know via social media my fake friends… a few are fake no more, as I was finally able to put faces to twitter handles. From the moment I stepped of the plane in Phoenix, I was welcomed by friendly faces (and warm weather!). Katie and Thom were so kind to pick me up and let me hang out with them all weekend (our first stop: lululemon for swiftly long sleeves, obviously), and Krista + Shane (and vizslas!) and Mary… nice as can be! And, at the race… Coeur Sports teammates and friends everywhere! I bumped into Jeana, my MPLS friend Colleen, Elizabeth, Marc, Robin and Jess (thank you for picking me and driving me to the airport, Jess… so much fun to catch up!).
Triathlon truly is a community, a tight-knit one spread out across the country; I feel so lucky to be a part of it.
With that, here are a few snaps from IMAZ!
I was a total fan girl and went up to world champ Rinny when I saw her pre-race and asked for a photo. #girlcrush
AG swim start… what a gorgeous morning!
Coeur Sports pro teammates Malaika Homo, Jess Smith and Sarah Jarvis in T1.
Krista heading out on the bike and coach Andy ready to rock.
Out at the turnaround… it was beyond windy. Katie smiling at the halfway mark.
Sarah ready to hammer back into Tempe.
MBK lead the entire race… looking strong at mile 93.
Coeur teammate Heidi looking chic in checkmate.
After double checking my athlete tracker, I realized it was Becca… giving some heart and courage post penalty tent.
Sarah around mile 26… so focused and en route to a PR!
Minnesota friend Cathy had an awesome race… second in our super fast 35-39F AG! Now if only she wasn’t moving so I could train with her and learn her speedy secrets 🙂
Making her pro debut… Maggie! Your pro future is bright!
And, IMAZ champ Meredith Kessler… high-fives and hugs all the way down the finisher’s chute… beyond gracious.
Hanging out with Jeana at the finish line.
Monday morning with my new furry friend, Graham. He’s a little love bug.
It was hard to head back to Minnesota + 20 degrees after sitting under blue skies and palm trees Monday morning.
And, for those of you wondering… no, I didn’t sign up for next year 🙂
8 Comments
It was AWESOME to follow your posts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram throughout the race, so thanks for being my “personal” photographer and reporter since I was so far away 😉
SO jealous you got to meet Rinny! Total girl crush! I bet it would be so fun and inspiring to spectate at an Ironman. My husband and I were in AZ last year during the Ironman, but didn’t get to spectate for very long. We watched the leader transition from bike to run. That was the moment I realized that I WOULD be doing a triathlon in the near future. 🙂 Great photos. Thank you for sharing your experience and for being an awesome spectator!
Love it!! So awesome that you got to meet Rinny! Super cute pic too!! Like you, I like spectating IM races ALMOST as much as racing them! The only time i was happy i was spectating and not racing was Lake Tahoe ’13! You could not have paid me to race that day! 🙂 I would love to race in AZ again the spectators are awesome especially on the run!
I think it’s so awesome you went to Arizona to spectate and meet/see all your online friends! How fun!! I LOVED your race day updates and photos 🙂
I’ve never spectated an ironman, but I’d love to be in Kona one day to watch it/cheer. I’d say I’ll be there the first year you race, but I have a feeling that’ll the this year!!
So awesome you got to spectate at IMAZ! I love all of the pics of the ladies on your team crushing it out there! I have never spectated an Ironman, or even a Triathlon for that matter. Would love to spectate one of these days. A few of my friends raced that day and said it was super windy!! Oh and those palm trees… I wouldn’t have wanted to go home either:)
Oh and p.s you meeting Rinny = amazing!! Holy girl crush.
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