Race reports aplenty

*Whoooooooosh*
(That's me blowing the dust off of this here blog. Poor, little neglected blog.)

So while I've been sucking at blogging this summer, I've been enjoying the hell out this summer. Here's a quick recap on the big races.

1. Omaha Women's Sprint Tri
I biked once and swam zero leading up to this race. As usual, I just do this race because it's right across the street from the hospital where the boys were born, and my entire family comes out to cheer.

This is hand's down my favorite race picture of all time.

I had a top 60 swim, top 50 bike, and top 10 run. Ha! A perfect reflection of my training. I did get 4th in my AG and an invite to Nationals in Vermont. Ha ha. Small races are so flattering.

2. Omaha Oly Tri

I ended up doing this race because I had a long run on tap, but without my running buddies, I didn't want to run alone. So I figured this would be a great three hour workout instead. Genius, right? Not that I'd biked or swam since the previous race.

I had such FOMO (fear of missing out) last year, so while totally under-prepared for 2/3 of it, I knew I had the strength and fitness to survive. The race itself was beautiful. Perfect weather, great course, fun fun fun. I finished second in my AG and really happy.

3. Sioux Falls Marathon

This was my A race of the fall, and to say it was a disappointment would be an understatement. It was my first marathon as a mom, and I'd put a lot of time and sacrifice into training. Well, the race itself was crappy, but everything else was fantastic. Sioux Falls was lovely, the race was organized and flat, and I got to meet the coolest chick in the history of ever.

Jeri is even funnier, sweeter, funner, and more adorable than she is online. She was kind enough to welcome me into her home and cart me around all weekend. Thank you thank you.

Here's the short version of the race: I went out too fast, got tired in the middle, and wasn't mentally strong enough to keep from falling apart. The course is flat and scenic, but it can be pretty isolating. With no one to shame you into not walking, it's far too easy to give into the temptation. I blew up my goal and far past four hours.

This is what one looks like 60 seconds before a tearful, dramatic, melt DOWN.

This smile is a lie.

4. Omaha Marathon

This marathon was only two weeks later, but I was determined for redemption. My plan was simple: Stick with the 4 hour pace group like glue. I know I'm physically capable of a 3:45ish marathon, but I guess I'm not mentally strong enough yet.

The morning was cold, calm, and perfect. This was taken around mile 7. See that yellow pacer guy? I was on him like white on rice. Like, we were knocking elbows. Sorry, dude. I was on a mission.

I ended up losing the pace group after a huge downhill near mile 13, running with a coworker 13-18, and finishing the rest on my own while keeping the pace group behind me.

Finish time: 3:57, 7 minute PR, and this smile pretty much says sums it up:

I was SO DAMN proud of myself. My splits were really consistent, I only walked through water stops, and I enjoyed ALL of it.

My mom dropped me off and returned to cheer me at the finish. Bless her heart, I love her. Here's a few gems from the morning:

"Niki, it's 39 degrees! You're going to freeze in that outfit. Here, I have a sweatshirt in the trunk. You can just tie it around your waist when you get hot."

(As I'm sitting in an exhausted pile after the finish) "I see chocolate milk over there. You can walk around and pick up all the snacks you want. Take all the time you want. Enjoy it.! I'll just sit right here and wait for you."

So that's what I've been up to this summer. Oh, and being a mom.

The boys are two now, and life is beyond wonderful.



So now what? I'm giving serious consideration to Kansas Half Ironman next spring. I've always said I needed some training buddies, and I think I may have found them. The lack of time is what's killing me. We'll see how the winter goes.

What else? Well, this is the end of ye ol' XC2 blog. I started blogging four years ago while training for my first marathon, and it seems appropriate to end on a great marathon performance. Thank you so much to everyone for reading, commenting, and providing me with the inspiration from all your blogs over the years. I'm still reading and following everyone, so I'm definitely still around.

And to anyone who's found this blog looking for pregnancy running or twin pregnancy running, feel free to email me with questions.

Where I'll be:

A.) Twitter! Want to see picture of food, my kids, and me? Twitter is the place to be.

B.) Bottle Fed Parents- A new blog! Razz, Vanilla, Nitmos, Amy, and I got together to do a little blogging about parenting, life, and the joys of being an adult. I'm the newest parent and sunniest of the contributors, so it'll be fun to watch my spiral into the crusty, jaded, self-medicating pro just like the boys.

Bye folks. Thanks again. It's been fun.