Ottertail Country

Ottertail Country
Ottertail South

June 9, 2009

June activities.....

.


Now this is what I like to see!!! Here is a little treat from Kristi, Peg's niece. If you recall from an earlier post, Kristi is a one of the original Kettlers (movie fest). A couple of weeks ago I rode my mountain bike along with Kristi on one of her 9 mile training runs, as she likes some company on these runs. Now I see the fruits of her training........

Click on those photos for a better view.

Congratulations & thanks, Kristi!!!





Earlier this spring I needed a little excitement in my training routine so I decided to sign up for a sprint-distance triathlon in early June. So I registered for the 4th Annual Ultra-mini Triathlon which is held in Marathon, WI. www.ultraminitri.org. This race is for a good cause (the Foundation for Nager and Miller Syndromes) and caters to beginner triathletes.





Since this is technically my third triathlon, I participated in the Athlete division which consisted of a ¼ mile swim (9 laps) in the pool, a 12 mile bike ride, followed by a 5k (3.1 mile) run.




The swimming leg of the race is the most challenging for me – but I am learning to “enjoy” it more as I continue to practice. Glad we were able to swim indoors – the weather outside was not conducive for a lake swim! The temps never got above 45 degrees during the race!




After the swim, ran from the pool to the first transition outside – for me, dry socks are a must!!




Then off to bike 12 miles! A guy I train with told me he rode the course earlier in the week and there were only 1-2 steep inclines. Well, three miles into race I had already encountered 2 steep inclines, so I expected the rest to be flat. Was I ever wrong!!! The entire course was very rolling, so it seemed you were either crawling up some hill or flying down the other side! The steepest & longest hill was at the end – I was going only 5.5 mph by the end. Should have gotten off my bike and run up the hill instead – would have been faster!




Once the biking was over, I finally got to do my favorite part of the race – RUN! The running course followed the bike course, so we got to negotiate several inclines on the route. The hills didn’t seem to bother me as much while running – actually enjoyed them a bit :-)



After I finished, it was a while before they determined who the top finishers were for the race. In this race, like most triathlons, the athletes take off in different waves, with about 12 competitors per wave, so the pool isn’t too congested. So the winner is not always the first person to cross the finish line – it is the person with the lowest time.




Anyways, I was in the bathroom changing into my dry clothes when they announced the winners – so Adam had to be me and accept my medal! Turns out that I took 2nd place overall in the women’s division! And taking third in the men’s division was Kyle Schmidt from Catawba – the same guy who told me there were only 2 hills on the whole course! All of this would not have been possible without the loving support of our spouses (Happy Birthday Lori)! I really appreciate Adam coming to all my events and supporting me. It is great having him there – helps make the whole race go smoother! Not only is he good looking, he is also a great photographer!





.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very interesting. Congratulations to Kristi. Good exercise and loads of fun???

Lucy

Anonymous said...

Wow, cool posting Kristi... thanks... and most of all... congratulations on your 2nd place finish. I really am impressed...
atta girl Kristi.
hugs... ps

Anonymous said...

Great race Kristi! Even though I was not competing it is a lot of fun getting to watch you and support you in these events. I am very proud of you and am looking forward to having you take pictures of my races in the near future. Love you and Happy Anniversary on June 11th. Your wonderful Husband

Anonymous said...

Thanks for running with me the other week, and for posting my ramblings! Makes me feel like a small town hero!

Kristi

Carlo said...

See how easy that was, K? The posting I mean.... you have an open invitation to post here any time.

yram said...

Wow...what an accomplishment! I am very impressed. I enjoy swimming and know that has got to be a tough leg. Good luck with continuing competitions! You are our role model!

Anonymous said...

Yram, Hello... we missed you this last weekend. We headed down to see Lucy and Bryn, and while we were there, of course, we saw Kate, Liz and Margaret too.. We had a great time, spending a lot of time chatting with family and then Bryn took us to a local "plant place".. cool.
Good luck on your art show John. Do you have any pictures of the stuff you're showing?
ps