"Olympic Medalists"

Yes, it's true, I have not updated the blog since May 12.  This is quite an absence for me, but honestly it's because I've been busy...training!  The first big announcement was that I hired a coach, and not just any coach, an Olympic Hopeful!  Justin Roeder is stationed at the Olympic Training center where he trains to make his bid for the 2016 Olympics!  He is from the Indianpolis area, and is a Butler graduate.  His impressive resume as an athlete is inspiring in itself, but I had a feeling working with him was going to provide the necessary guidance and accountability that I desperately need to get me to the finish line in Louisville in August!
We began working together on May 20 with him uploading workouts for me.  And I can honestly say that I have not missed a single workout since we began working together!  Is it paying off?  Check this out...
Yesterday was the June Muncie Olympic Distance Triathlon at Prairie Creek.  Many of you may remember reading the Race Report from May where I vented about my performance, and said I believed I could go under 3 hours.  SPOILER ALERT:  I CAN!
The day was about as perfect as you could ask for in terms of weather.  Wetsuit swim.  Upper 50s Low 60s at the start, overcast, but sunny with mostly calm winds.  The water was 69 and felt great.  My swim was unlike any other.  Only a little trouble sighting coming in.  Best T1 I've ever had.  The bike was SICK!  I was over 20mph on the first lap, and had the HR way up!  Couldn't hold it the second lap, but still averaged 19.6 for the bike!  Over 3 minutes faster than I've ever been!  Best T2 I've ever had.  The run started off flying at 9:10-9:20 for the first 3 miles, and then my 170+ HR just couldn't take anymore.  I took my first walking steps and held on for a 10 minute average pace run.  And here are the results and comparisons from my previous attempts

Making the day EXTRA special, was spending the entire race with my family!  Morgan and Emma both completed their first 5k, and my Uncle James brought my cousin Haley who ended up first overall female in the 5k!  Here are a few pictures from the day!  Everybody got a medal, and we all earned it!