The rest of the story....

After getting all lubed up and sunscreened, I made my way down the helix to get in the water with the rest of the swimmers. It was very emotional for me. All day long, I wanted someone to pinch me. I have volunteered at this race five times. NOW, I'm on the inside..living the dream!

I met coach near the bottom of the helix and started tearing up again. "Just a little bit emotional", I said. Then... I met The Bean. He and I took a quick photo and then my friends left so I could continue down the helix. I followed Bean into the water. He had been here before. And even though we had many love and hate moments this year, it felt good. We hopped in and positioned ourselves to the inside of the ski jump. Another teammate came over to say hi, and then my friend Mary. She gave me a huge hug and said, "you're gonna have a great day." I heard Mike O'reilly say "One minute to go" AND then without any other warning... we heard the cannon. It was shocking! I had prepared myself mentally to get pushed around a little on this swim. BUT, it was more combative then you can imagine. I was getting shoved and punched and kicked from every direction. I was a little stressed when I reached the first buoy. BUT thankfully V was there. She and I popped up together to get through the masses. It was fantastic to see her! She said, "good job Jen!" How cool! There was much more pushing and kicking and we were off. I did manage to lose my swim cap on my way back of the second loop. Some guy hit me in the back of the head and ripped it off. As I swam to shore, my friends were right there on the rock yelling for me. Off to the wetsuit strippers, then up the helix. All my coaches were there to scream and yell! And my friend Tribabe too!

T1: I was nervous about the changing areas. BUT they went so smoothly. I grabbed my own bag and a volunteer followed me in to help me change. GUESS WHAT! V was there too! What a nice thing to train as a team! They were everywhere all day long! We changed, porta-pottied, and then off we went to get My Precious. On Ironman day ONLY, you can call out anything you want and your number and you will GET IT! I'm serious.. VIP all day long! So, I'm telling every green shirt out there where My Precious is and she is delivered to me. SWEET! Off I go down the helix and ready to roll!

Bike: If you had asked me what I would like most about Ironman before the race, I would tell you the swim. BUT, now that's it done. The bike was by far my favorite. I took it slow and steady. I followed coach's rule.. low heart rate, high cadence, eating all along the way. It was so fun! There were people cheering EVERYWHERE! I "cat and moused" with a couple of guys all day long. And on my way to Mt Horeb, I was met by McD. As you know, McD and I rode alot together this year! It was so COOL to talk about our mornings and wish each other luck for the rest of the day. I even beat Bean out of the water! He reminded me that the race starts in another 40 miles. Check! Then it was just me, My Precious, and the route I knew so well. Ahh! Life was good! I saw coach at Midtown hill and she asked, "How's it going?" AWESOME! She said, "Follow the plan." And off I went. Special needs was uneventful. My bottles were there and then I was off again for more fun! The heat and wind were picking up as the day went by. SO, I made a decision that slowed me down, but I don't regret it. I stopped at each aid station on the second loop for ICE. I put it in my sports bra and the hat in my helmet. It took a few minutes at each station but made a huge difference in my overall comfort. On my way back to town, I felt like I was ready to run on my legs! At about a mile to go, I thanked my Southern Mama for praying for a safe ride! I had had the best ride anyone could ask for.. no accidents, no flats, and no major incidents! All with a HUGE smile on my face!

T2: Another big hurrah to the volunteers! I handed My Precious off to a volunteer, grabbed my bag and off I went. The volunteer in the change tent, changed me so fast that I looked up and she muttered, "Go Run!". OK! Another portapotty visit and off I went. The WIBA leader was on the corner on the way out, so we bumped fists and then my friend Tom was at the turn around. He picked me up there and ran me to the end of the square. I told him, "I was awesome, feeling good and had plenty of time to be an Ironman tonight. " My friends were at the end of the square and saw me... same thing.. I feel great and ready to go. It was between mile two and three that the trouble started. I was beginning the Porta Potty parade. It was so disappointing to me. I was strong enough to run, but my stomach wouldn't have it. SO.. I tried running for the first six miles or so... but it became to hard on my stomach. I decided to give up eating/drinking and walk. I figured, if I gave it an hour.. the sun would go down (cooler) and my stomach would even itself out. It was hard to do, but Lorie supported my Plan B idea. She was telling everyone that I had a "Great Attitude with bathroom issues!". HA! That's really what my run became! I did make it through the first loop. AND on my way back to the turn around, a volunteer asked if I was all right. In true form, I said "I'm dreaming about my special needs bag." As I rounded into the turn around, I saw my parents and my family friends, collected Tom and off to special needs. Tom helped me with my running shoes, after we taped my feet. Then, it was off to run! V was at Special needs with me too. I did run most of the second loop, some of it with V. My stomach had recovered and I started to get hungry. A good sign in my book! I started consuming chicken broth. I was looking for liquid calories to make my stomach happy but not overload the system. I would find out later, this was not a smart idea. On my way up the big hill for the last time, I met John. He and I rode my first 100 miler together this year. We chatted for awhile. He had a tough day, but was making do. My mantra during the run was, "Dreams do come true." I left him with about 8 miles to go and picked up Rhonda. She was having a tough day too! I encouraged her, saying we had two hours to make 5 miles. Anyone can do that! It's weird looking back on it now. I wanted to run, but my body wasn't ready. It's frustrating but I did make my goal. So.. off we go.. past "dark and scary" and then into the city to make me an Ironman. With about a mile to go, Coach Sharone met me on a mountain bike. He had come out to make sure I would finish. AND.. he said.. "Are you going to run it in?" And I replied, " Nope. I waited two years to be an Ironman, I'm just going to savor this moment." It was FABULOUS! There were people cheering all the way in and toasting their glasses!! Talk about a rockstar moment! When I reached the left hand turn for Finisher's Row.. I started to run. I gave Tom a bump, on my way in... and then heard the words I wanted to hear for so long.. Jennifer Green, from Chicago, IL.. You are an IRONMAN!

After getting caught by the finish line catchers, I was off to medical. It turns out my feet were a mess of blisters and cuts and my salt content was HIGH. REALLY HIGH! They didn't really help me, but gave me some advice and then it was off to the hotel. Thanks to Tom and Lorie for their shoulders home! What a great ride!