Beijing World Cup Triathlon

Saturday, September 15th was the women's race...Sunday, September 16th was the men's race. I was excited to be in Beijing for the first USA Olympic Triathlon Trials race. My pre-race camp in Korea was great, I wasn't feeling effected by the smog/pollution, and everything was going great. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to finish the triathlon. I pulled out of the race about half-way through the bike leg. It wasn't my day and once I started having negative thoughts and thinking about stopping...I knew it was over.

I stayed on the sidelines and cheered for all my teammates who had fantastic races. Laura Bennett was the first American Woman across the finish line (in 3rd place!) so she qualified for the Olympics. Sarah Haskins also had a great race, second American and 11th overall. Julie Ertel, Becky Lavelle, and Sarah Groff were the three other Americans.

The next day I headed down to the race site again, this time to watch the men's triathlon. It was very similar to the women's because it came down to who could run the fastest after the hard bike. Jarrod Shoemaker was the first American across the finish line, also earning a slot to the Olympics. Not far behind him were Hunter Kemper and Andy Potts. Doug Friman, Matty Reed and Brian Fleischmann were the other American racers.

Right now, I'm all packed up and getting ready to head back to the Beijing Airport. I fly from Beijing to Chicago (in Business Class...thanks Doug:) and then on to White Plains, NY in the evening.

So, this has been a hard trip so far...with some sub-par race results...and a lot of sick days from eating bad food! I'm very excited to get back to the USA...where people speak English and the food is not questionable. This week I will be spending time in Westchester getting ready for the non-drafting race on Sunday. The day after the race I'm heading down to Florida for a few days of relaxing time with my family...I think they've already got every minute of my visit filled with fun things to do: sailing, surfing, horse-back-riding, cycling, visiting friends, etc!

After a short break (mentally and physically) I look forward to refocusing for the end of this season. After Westchester this weekend, I've got three more races scheduled and I would really like to finish this 2007 season on a much higher and more positive note! The US Open in Dallas, TX on October 14...the Cancun World Cup on November 5...and the Treasure Island race on November 12!