Surprise! I’m headed to THIS beautiful place:

That’s Idaho’s Lake Coeur d’Alene, beautifully captured by my friend Chrissy who raced there last year. Nope, I’m not racing the Ironman this weekend, instead you can find me at the Smashfest Queen pre-race party at CycleMetrix TONIGHT!!

YES! You should totally stop by!! The party kicks off at 5:30pm and features a PRO Q&A panel with Ironman and (and Ultraman!) Champions Hillary Biscay and Maik Twelsiek, delicious treats, and of course, awesome SMASH apparel! Come say hi, check out the gear, and hopefully give Maik a hard time about USA beating Germany at the World Cup! (Fingers crossed, right?) Full detail are HERE. See you there!!!

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Check it out, it’s my old stomping ground, the Bozeman Swim Center!

The Swim Center is home to the Bozeman Barracudas, the team I proudly represented from ages seven to 11. Bozeman is by no means a big city (population in the 30k range), BUT this gorgeous 50 meter pool has produced some big time swimmers! (Including my sister who still holds some team records!) Just this morning I was warming up at the Swim Center and a guy SPED by me. Turns out it was my old teammate William! Even 18 years later, some things never change!!

Bozeman has a couple other pools (including an OUTDOOR pool, my fav!) and I’m looking forward to checking them out as well, but there’s nothing like returning to my swimming roots at the Swim Center!

My first trophy. It took me FIVE years of swimming just to get 2nd place!

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Rev3 Knoxville

I raced the first ever Revolution3 race in Knoxville, Tennessee way back in 2010. My new-to-the-sport amateur self was BLOWN AWAY by how the race treated the professionals. A special VIP section, giant posters in transition, and all around “special” treatment. It was clear to me, Rev3 thought the pros were important people!! I left that race with definite plans to someday “go pro.”

Fast forward four years, and I’d finally done it! I was back in Knoxville, and this time with my own personal bike rack in the PRO section. The occasion was bittersweet, with this year’s race marking the last professional field at a Rev3 race, but the organization still provided the first class race experience that I’d admired in the past.

I was happy with my 8th place finish in a field of strong and speedy women, but the real highlight of this race was catching up with friends! My friend Caroline went above and beyond making my trip to Knoxville a crazy amount of fun, including pre-race cheers and lots of laughs about our days swimming for Athens Bulldog Swim Club. I got to watch my former boss, Lyn, finish her first ever Olympic distance tri at age SEVENTY-ONE, managed to snap pictures with friends Andrew and Alyssa, and spent some quality time chatting with friends post-race. Rev3 puts on really great events and age groupers should be sure to enjoy them for years to come!

Ironman 70.3 Raleigh

Just two weeks after Knoxville I found myself in the warm waters of Jordan Lake racing Ironman 70.3 Raleigh. The North Carolina race venue was absolutely BEAUTIFUL and lots of fun with a rolling 56 mile point-to-point bike course and a two-loop half marathon course that ran through downtown Raleigh and North Carolina State University.

I led the race out of the water and finished 9th. Not exactly the bike and run results I was planning on, but still a great race experience. PLUS I had my parents, Greg and Tres from Quintana Roo, and a whole lot of other athletes and spectators cheering me on, which ALWAYS makes me smile!!

What’s Next?!

Surprise! A last minute decision to visit dad for Father’s Day landed me in Montana!

I’ve always wanted to do a training block out here, and now seemed like as good a time as ever!! I’m looking forward to discovering new routes, making new friends, and actually putting my Instagram account to good use! It should be a fun couple weeks! Visitors welcome!!

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Thanks to my Aussie friend Tim for sending me a link to a cool article on the construction of the World’s Largest Artificial Reef off the coast of Mexico!

Not only does the location of the reef look spectacular, but I am always FASCINATED by human engineering. Who came up with the idea to place 1,000, 10-ton concrete pyramids in the shape of a serpent to house all sorts of marine life and protect the coast?

That’s artwork with a purpose!

Since the reef is located in the Quintana Roo state of Mexico, which shares the same name as the brand of bike I ride, I’m thinking I should christen my next ride “Kan-Kanan.” Or maybe I will look up the Mayan word for “fast”, since that might be a bit more appropriate name for a QR bike!

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