I went into the race in Acapulco (results) with the goal of getting a top ten finish. I knew this would be challenging as the race was serving as the Pan Am Regional Championships. Regional Championships are important because they have double the points of a normal International Points race and athletes can earn points through 25th place instead of through 10th place. I was hoping that by finishing in the top ten, I would earn enough points to secure a spot in the upcoming Olympic Trials race in Hawaii.

Fortunately for us, the race was an early morning race. I was very glad that we started at 8:00 am because Acapulco is extremely hot and I would not have wanted to race any later as the temperatures got even hotter. I think it was in the high 80's to low 90's when we raced and that was hot enough.

We started with a two loop swim in the ocean. The water was calm and I felt great throughout the entire swim. There were three girls out ahead, but I was able to stick with the next group of seven or eight girls. I was very pleased with my swim because I came out of the water with girls who have been way ahead of me in the past.

I then worked really hard to have a good transition, so that I would not lose the girls that I had been swimming with. I wanted to make sure that I got in a bike pack with them. We quickly formed a bike pack and started working to catch the girls out in front of us. However, it was difficult to get all the girls in our group to take their pulls and we started to lose time to the girls in front of us. Since it was an eight loop course, we could see exactly where we were in relation to the other competitors. We were losing time to the group in front, but fortunately we were putting time on the large pack behind us. I had some other Americans in my bike group and we made some efforts to break away on the bike, but the breaks did not work and we finished the bike with all but one of our original group.

The run was a flat four loop course. The volunteers were great about handing out water and sports drinks. I was a bit nervous about the heat and I started the run conservatively. I felt better as the run went on. I was able to finish ahead of two of the girls who had been in my bike group as well as hold off some of the faster runners in the group behind me. This put me in 7th place overall. I was very happy with my race as I had a great swim, a pretty good bike and I accomplished my goal of a top 10 finish. I also earned enough points to move me up high enough in the World Rankings to qualify for the Olympic Trials.

I feel like I gained a lot of confidence from my race in Acapulco. I really enjoyed the tactical part of the bike with the jumps and breaks that were being made. I saw that I could push myself hard in the swim and bike and still hold it together somewhat on the run. Overall, the race was a great experience for me!

On a side note, the race in Acapulco happened to take place during Spring Break week for many colleges. Since I was always in the middle of track season during my spring breaks in college, I never really had a "spring vacation." After seeing the craziness that was taking place in Acapulco, I can honestly say that I do not regret missing out on that opportunity. It was so funny to see all of the ITU Triathletes seriously preparing for a big race and compare it to the college kids who were sleeping all day and then partying all night. Needless to say, our hotel laughed at us the evening before the race when we asked if they could turn the music down a little. I guess they figured there were way more spring breakers than there were triathletes!

Anyway, I enjoyed the race in Acapulco and I am now really looking forward to the Olympic Trials in Hawaii! I will try to write from Honolulu!