The wind was howling outside when the alarm went off race morning, but nothing was going to stop me looking forward to the race....it was a beautiful island, awesome course & I felt fit. I was ready to get out there after a good month of training and excited see how it was all coming together in preparation for the Asian Champs next month.  It was complete chaos when I arrived in transition, which wasn't helped by the fact it was open racking and you wouldn't believe how many bikes the locals thought they could fit onto a 5m rack!  I daren't go for more of a bike warm-up after I arrived at T1, as every time I left my spot, some-one else would jump in so I opted for a run and swim instead.   There was a cool mix of 200 athletes racing ranging from world #2 Sheila Taomina to various locals who looked like they had never been on a bike before.  Many US athletes were using this race as a warm-up for their first Olympic trials race, taking place in Hawaii on April 18th and the field was deep with international talent all looking for vital ITU points needed for Olympic start spots.  As we were all heading to the beach ready for the start, the race director was asking for #219 to report back to T1.  Someone had left there bike in the middle of the transition area with their shoes etc all neatly laid out beside it.  When they were finally located, they were oblivious to the fact their gear would completely block the way of any other athlete trying to get out on the bike course and couldn't understand why they needed to move it!

The swim was a one lap affair taking us over the coral reef swarming with tropical fish in front of the race hotel but there would be no time for me to enjoy the view, there was work to be done!  The women's race seemed to head off in two packs towards the first buoy and while I had a good start, it felt weird not to have more people around me.  Thankfully, I noticed a big group off to my right and sure enough we all came together at the first buoy although Sheila, Susan Williams, Becky Gibbs, Amanda Stevens and Suzanne, new pro from Canada had completely left us in their dust.  Sheila & Suzanne ended up catching the third men's pack, who had started 2minutes ahead and had the fastest swims of the day out of all the racers. At least this made me feel better when I found out I had lost 4minutes to them in the swim!  I felt strong in the water and stayed with the third pack (a group of girls I had expected to swim with) so I was happy as I ran up the beach. I would be lying if I said I wasn't a bit disappointed after the race that I had lost so much time even if the swim ended up being a bit long. Oh, well only time to look ahead and think about getting my arse up that first steep climb out of transition.

As I came round the first bend of the climb, you could see riders weaving all over the road up ahead with some looking like midgets as they neared the crest of the hill.  I soon found a good rythmn and started gaining on the group ahead especially when a couple of the girls ended up jumping off their bikes and walking the last part of the hill.....this was a testament to the gradient and something I have never seen before in a pro race. I would be lying if I didn't say I was thankful for my 27 cassette and I am sure a few of the other girls would have gladly swapped.  By the time I reached the start of the decent after 3km of climbing, I had overtaken a number of people and found myself with Evelyn Williamson (NZ) & Alexis Waddel (US).  After a very hairy turn, where I almost ended up going off road & chewing grass, we safely made it to the loop section of the course, which followed the coast over rolling terrain.  We made a good little group by catching Magdalina (Czech girl who lives in the US) and Megumi from Japan, but knew we had plenty of work to do as Susan and Sheila would be jamming up front.  For those of you who don't know Susan, her forte is steep, hilly bike courses as she climbs like Pantani and makes the rest of us look like we are standing still.  She even has our male training partners shaking their heads in disbelief as she breezes past them in training as though we are all climbing a completely different hill!  After the first 15km, she had caught Sheila and made a break ending up at T2 with a 1:11 bike split which was over 5minutes quicker than Sheila, who is no slouch on the bike.  In the meantime, there were a three other girls ahead of us - Kelly Cook (US), Amanda Stevens (US) & Suzanne Weckend.  I wasn't feeling as strong/fresh as I can on the bike but able to hold my own until we reached the final climbs taking us back to T2.  Mike (friend & Triathlete journalist) who had managed to hitch a ride on a motorbike for the race was shouting to stay with the group but there simply wasn't anything in my legs, so Magdalina and I dropped back costing us a minute by T2. 

I have been disappointed with my running in the last few races, so I was determined to put together a decent performance before the Asian Champs.  With this thought fresh in my mind, I headed out onto the 2lap course thinking about light feet, keeping my cadence up and hopefully catching a few people. Magdelina had made it out of T2 ahead of me but I was able to reel her in by the 1km mark, as we went off road through a wooded section.  There was a strong wind on the run but plenty of sections with shade from the heat which was a relief. I would have liked to have been closer to some of the other runners ahead to push me that bit faster but it wasn't to be.  In hindsight, it probably made a difference to my run that I lost a minute to the group over the last 3km of the bike, which left me in no man's land for the run.  After I made the turn at 2.5km, I calculated I was in 9th place with Magdelina about 30seconds behind and Agnes Eppers (BOL) gaining fast in 11th.  She is an awesome runner and had outrun me to place 2nd in Argentina back in January, so I was keen to avoid a repeat performance.  Up front, Susan looked invincible and had a convincing 3minute lead over Sheila with Victoria (ITU Long Course World Champ from Spain) having a strong run in third place.  I was feeling much more confident about my run as I headed onto lap2 and didn't experience that dreaded running in treacle feeling for the first time in ages.....BONUS.  By this time, Agnes was drawing near and I set my goal to hold her off as I pushed hard down one of the hills and by the turn around realized she hadn't got any closer....OK, only 2.5km left to go with my favorite finish - a 1km beach run!  I knew I had 9th in the bag as I hit the beach as long as I didn't ease up and surprisingly for me, I didn't find the sand too hard going although it would be an understatement if I said I wasn't  spent when I crossed the line.

The normal question hit me again as I finished, "Why do I do this....it hurts way too much," but thankfully that feeling lasts about 30seconds before the adrenaline hits.  I look around at the incredibly scenery, all my friends around me and think of the post-race party to come........WOW, if someone said to me you have 2wks left to live, you know I wouldn't change a thing apart from make sure Cookie was here with me & I don't think many people are lucky enough to say that.