Tiara Tri, (because you can never have too many crowns!)

Yesterday was the 3rd Annual Tiara Tri and I'm proud to say I've participated all three years. It's an all women's race in El Dorado State Park and I love being able to share this event with my friends.

Cara, me, and Kate all smiles with our Tiaras

Kate H. and her friend Cara C. were also doing the race so we left in the wee dark hours to get a good spot on the rack. Turns out everyone else had the same plan and the racks were almost full when we got there. This race has exploded from less then 60 entrants the first year to over 100 this time around. We wedged our bikes on the rack and checked in and got our lovely body markings. They put your bib number on your arm and your age on your leg. I am notorious for looking at that age number as I scope out all the really fast looking old ladies.

We went down to the water and were happy to see the marker buoys were much closer in this year. Last year the swim was a lot longer so things were already looking up. As usual I sized up the ladies in my group and only saw a few but the ones I did see looked pretty fit. Rats. But I would give it a good try and see what happened.

They started in three waves and with this many entrants it was crammed and legs and arms were

Over 100 women all sharing a huge dressing room.

everywhere. You can plan you swim all you want but when you get in the mix it's all about staying above the water and not getting smacked or kicked. I ended up having to keep my head out of the water for the first third and by the time the pack thinned out my heart rate was too high to manage a good freestyle stroke rhythm. So it was scissor kick all the way to the shore and off to the transition area.

The bike was the same course and wasn't any smoother this year then last. Also, the hills didn't get any smaller and the speed bumps didn't get any lower. I managed to pass quite a few on the ride and was feeling pretty good about my pace.

I sparkle!

The run is the run. I know I'm not a good runner and never will be. One of the ladies in my age group passed me and she was looking way to fresh and relaxed for me to ever think about staying up with her. But I didn't see the other ladies pass me so I was hopeful. I finished pretty strong and was happy with my pace.

Turns out I was 4th in my age group. Apparently the other two really fast ladies blew by me on the swim and I never saw them again. Dang. Oh well, that's the way racing goes. It all depends on who shows up and who stays home on any given day. This year they gave string bags instead of place medals so I didn't miss much. Come to think of it, the finisher medal was pretty small this year and the crown was smaller too. Hmmmm. I hope they fix that for next year because I'll be back for my 4th crown. A girl can never have too many tiaras!