So proud of my girl!

I'm really bursting at the seams to share what our big family activity was last Saturday morning - thank you very much to Karianne. She decided to enter her first sprint triathlon, the T3 Turkey Tri in Orem, UT. This is very much something I never expected Karianne to be involved in. She was always the dancing (literally) child. Pirouettes, tutus and toe shoes have now been replaced with water bottles, running shoes and shiny lycra. She has made quite an amazing transformation and inspired us all in the process with her diligence and intensity.

I have to really admire her passion for the sport. I think she originally took up jogging to stay in shape while she was in college at BYU - Idaho. I can't really say when she made the change over from "I really hate running" (she used to take after me, now I'm hoping to take after her :) to "I think I'm going to do a triathlon this weekend". Nevertheless, that's where we all found ourselves on that freezing cold but sunny morning as we gathered to cheer her on and offer support.

I could tell in the weeks leading up to the event that she was a little hesitant and nervous, not really understanding how the process worked . . . "did she really have to wear her swimsuit under her running clothes?" Could she survive a three event race and live to see the finish? But she took on the challenge wholeheartedly, scheduling increasingly difficult workouts to prepare her for each event of swimming, biking and running.

Finally, the big day arrived and each one of us was so excited to come watch her. you'd have thought it was Christmas. Suddenly, everyone had nothing else to do on a Saturday morning. Dustin and Cami arrived complete with bright, cheery posters, designed to inspire Karianne from the sidelines. Cory came from his studies in Salt Lake, Kelsie got out of bed much earlier than usual on a Saturday morning not wanting to miss the beginning of the race. Even the temperamental weather of Utah in the middle of November cooperated for a beautiful sunny but cool day.

You can tell from her smiling face in the photos that she was really happy with her performance. I, on the other hand was ecstatic for her. While watching the race from the sidelines I worried that maybe at the end she would be exhausted, nauseated, physically sick or all of the above, like many of the other participants. But no, she hardly appeared out of breath, with a big smile on her face she said that she had a great time. No wonder we all want to participate next time! She made it look entirely too easy! Way to go girl! You did so wonderful and I'm so so pleased for you with what you've been able to accomplish.

If anyone is interested, we'll all be training for a similar event next spring in Orem - the Timpanogus Harley Davidson Triathlon. Hope to see you all there!