I have been "beneath the surface" so to speak. So much has happened since I last posted. I will have to break it down as well as I can remember.
Sept. 2nd - Colin's Hope 4 mile swim. It was indeed a special day. I feel gratitude every time I think about the Holst family and how they have turned the loss of their little Colin into a positive. We swam on Colin's birthday, and his Dad released balloons before we swam and sent us into the water with words about his son and then he said "Happy Birthday Little Buddy". The swim was to raise awareness about water safety and drowning prevention. I was filled with emotion during and after the swim.
Oct 12th - Lake Travis Relays - 12 miles Solo - Was scared, didn't know what to expect, was a bag of nerves, had a great time. Priscilla kayaked the full 12 miles for me. OMG, she is amazing and she totally gets feeding! Alisa came for the start of the race and I was so glad to have her there so I could have someone to receive my endless nervous chatter. My sister and Calvin came out to Carlos and Charlies to celebrate after the race! The race: my plan was to start out easy and controlled and stay that way the second half (it was an out and back and a little side out and back), and then give it what I had at the end! I started out very comfortable and remember thinking after the first mile, this is gonna be a great day. I feel F***ing GREAT! I also remember thinking, I hope I feel the same way in 5 hours! I waited an hour for the first feed and then every half hour after that. As we were doing the "side" out and back I saw one solo swimmer ahead of me, and I said, "Hey P, time how far he is ahead". She later said, 3 plus minutes and I said, "well, that's gonna stay that way, because I'm swimming this pace and it's gonna stay that way. Also, when we were doing the "side" out and back, I was very close to a relay boat and when I stopped for a feeding, I heard someone yell "Katy, it's me Pam". It was Pam, Leslie and Meghan and the rest of their relay.....ha, I had just done the Colin's Hope swim with Pam, Meghan and I did Ironman AZ together (not really together, she was about 2 1/2 hours ahead of me) and I knew of Leslie from Lynne, my swimming mentor. OMG, I was so excited to see those ladies! And how much fun was it for the next 2 1/2 hours on the half hour (every time I stopped for a feed) to hear them cheering for me? It made the race so much fun. I needed it, we swam against the current on the way back. Headed back to Carlos and Charlies, I caught 3 minutes plus guy and I can't lie, I got a little excited....but I didn't know if I could hang on....but thought hell, just swim and have fun and that I did. I love having kayak support! It is amazing....and Priscilla was so awesome at having everything I needed at each feed! The good news is that I felt like I could have done more and I had a blast racing!
After the Race - The celebration was short and sweet! The next day, my two brothers, sister, and my Mom were all in Austin, packing her house up to move to California. Nothing like a little "reality check". My immediate family has not all been in the same place since 1995. It's been awhile. It was an emotional two weeks. It was an intense. Maybe I will share more about this another time. Suffice it to say, we got "beneath the surface" and we all came up for air, and we are blessed to have had the opportunity. I love my family!
