One Time...at Tri Camp...

Last weekend I went to a triathlon camp in Sarasota, Florida. Not just ANY triathlon camp, mind you. This was an all-chick triathlon camp AND it was hosted by 5x Ironman winner, Heather Gollnick. I signed up for the camp way back in like November, when Jen first posted about it on her blog. So I had plenty of time to get very nervous and very excited. I was nervous because I had been sick pretty much from Christmas through mid-January. Which meant no training whatsoever. I was worried I would go into camp way behind everyone else and not be able to keep up (which turned out to be semi-true). I was also very excited because this was great opportunity to learn about the sport from some very talented pro and elite triathletes. And I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I was also just plain excited to spend a few days in sunny Florida!

Overall, camp was an unforgettable experience. All of the campers and coaches were amazing in their own right. I really enjoyed getting to know everyone and I look forward to keeping in contact with them in the future. As for the camp itself, I learned so much not only about triathlon the sport, but also about myself and where I am in my triathlon journey. The biggest thing I have learned is that I have a lot of work to do to get ready for these half ironman races this summer. Not just physically, but also mentally. I need to push myself to train harder and more diligently. I need to find ways to continually go outside my comfort zone to get stronger. And I need to find ways to get over my “bad self” when I get frustrated or discouraged. All in all, realizing these things about myself and changing the way I think/feel/train will only make me a stronger person and triathlete.

Camp was also filled with many firsts for me, including:

• Biking over 45 miles in one day
• Taking apart, packing and re-assembling my bike – TWICE
• Flying with my bike (Southwest ROCKS!)
• Riding in a paceline (scary, but fun)
• Seeing an alligator outside of a zoo
• Seeing a live armadillo (YAY!! FINALLY!)

While all the other bloggers from camp have posted many, many great photos from the camp, I decided I’d be a little different and hand out some fun “Camper Awards”. The recipients of the following awards were selected purely on the basis of my own personal experience at tri-camp. Some of you may have handed these awards out in different ways, or given different awards, based on your experiences with everyone. But here’s my version of Camper Awards:

• Miss Congeniality – Melissa Schwartz – Pure goofiness that had us cracking up all weekend long. Raise the roof!
• Miss Photogenic – Molly McNamara - Perfect smile in every picture. Even underwater! And there are lots of pictures of her. This girl even ran with her camera.
• Best Swimsuit – Courtney Dewees – Love love love the “I will swim every day” Splish.
• Most Determined – Sondra Houhoulis – This girl is serious about getting better in this sport. And she absolutely LOVES every minute she spends training. The harder the better.
• Best Attitude – Sherry Lynn LaBree – Fought through some serious calf pain on Saturday and Sunday, but she buckled down and got through her workouts. And all with that huge smile of hers.
• Best Dressed – Aimee McCaa– From her Louisville IM cycling jersey, to her jammies at pancakes and PJs, this girl rocks her style.
• Hottest Bike – Heather Gollnick – I have to say, that pink camo QR is suh-weet! And TINY!
• Best Draft – Monica Murphy - She was so kind to let Rachelle and I ride her wheel for 30 miles. Without Monica, I think I’d still be out on that second loop somewhere.
• Best Taste in Music – Jennifer Cunnane – Vanilla Ice, Tone Loc, Ice T, Public Enemy. Word to your Mother.
• Best Fish Impersonation – Cheryl Stine. This chick can swim. FAST. If I could only swim half as fast as she does.
• Best Moon – Elizabeth Waterstraat – Those shorty shorts make for easy elf-mooning.
• Best Travel Buddy EVER – Rachelle. This goes without saying, she put up with me for four days. Although I did contemplate giving her a Stinkiest Feet award….
• Most Intense Camper – Jen Harrison. And I’m not just saying this because she’s my coach. I honestly think Intensity might be her middle name. Could have also won Most Likely to Fart While Laughing award.
• Best Conversationalist – Holly Ball. Holly can and will talk to anyone about anything. So personable and genuine. She made the run on Sunday so much more enjoyable. Thanks, Holly!!
• Best Swim Lane Partner – Kate Oliver – This girl doesn’t make a splash. At all. NO waves when she swims. Poor thing was probably getting sea-sick from all the chop I was sending her way.
• Fastest Blogger – Todd Gollnick – He had the trike race pictures up before we even got back to our hotel rooms! Molly was a close second for this award...
• Slowest Blogger – Me. The proof is in the pudding.

And so I will close my camp recap with some photos from the last afternoon in Florida…it was colder than it looks!