Ironman Raleigh 70.3 relay

Since I'm not training for anything big this year, 2 of my friends and I decided to do Ironman Raleigh 70.3 as a relay team - Steph would swim, Kristin would bike, and I would run. We were in the middle of  registering and we needed a team name, so Kristin suggested "Wonder Women" and doing the race in costume. Why not?

When race weekend came, our friend Kim decided to come with us to cheer, and she even offered to drive so none of us would have to drive back after racing. 

This was my first Ironman brand event, and they definitely do a great job. When we checked into the hotel there were volunteers in the lobby with directions to packet pickup. So we walked over there and got our stuff and explored the Expo. 

After we checked Kristin's bike in at the lake, we settled into the hotel room and planned dinner. Great view of Raleigh from the Holiday Inn downtown!

Since I went to NC State I had a few places I wanted to take them. Unfortunately, my all-time favorite restaurant, 518 West, had recently closed, and everything in walking distance is new. So we picked a pizza place that looked close and easy, and then tried to go to sleep early. 

Since there are 2 transitions, they have shuttle buses from T2 back to T1, and they encourage people to take them due to limited parking, so we did. However, I would encourage relay teams to at least bring one car, and maybe even leave the runner at T2. It's 45 minutes to the lake, and the timing can get tight. We made it (but mostly thanks to new friends - one who gave Kim a ride out to the lake when they didn't have enough shuttle space for spectators and another who drove us back to T2 while Kristin was biking so I wouldn't miss her).

Jordan Lake is beautiful. 

Ready to race!

Relays were the last wave, so we had some time to wait before Steph started, but eventually it was time! and then once Kristin was out on the bike it was time for me to start to get ready. 

When we got back to T2 I tried to sit in the shade as much as possible. I knew it would be very hot on the run. Once it seemed like she was probably pretty close, I went into the relay area in transition to wait. 

She came in and I was off! It was super hot (and obviously the costume made it even hotter), but I really enjoyed making people smile. 

The run is 2 laps - from downtown, past NC State on Hillsborough St, turn around at Gorman and back x2. Not much shade. I'm not gonna lie, I was feeling pretty rough at the end of the first lap. So it was perfect timng to see my best friend and her daughter cheering. :) 

Quick hug and off on the second lap. I felt so much better once I had passed the turnaround and only had 3ish miles to go. 

Finished!

And, of course, post-race Goodberry's. Yum.