As I sit here reflecting on the events of this past weekend, I am overwhelmed with feelings of gratitude and satisfaction. Sunday’s race for me not only marked the end of my 2015 season and my last year of being in the 25-29 age group, but it also marked the one year anniversary of the year committed to rebuilding my love of sport and journey into the world of long distance triathlons.
This season as a whole has taught me so much as an athlete and individual, and not only am I able to walk away with three top 5 finishes in my age group for the 70.3 distance but am also walking away with some amazing friendships with incredible athletes from my community.
November 8th, 2014 marked the start of my journey into the world of half ironman distance triathlons. I had only done three triathlons prior to this (all in 2013) and the longest distance had been an Olympic distance. So of course I decided to jump back into the sport two years later, with both feet, and aspirations to tackle 70.3 miles. I had no idea what to expect or how the training would affect me, my only goal was to figure out why I felt such a call to sport and to reignite my passion for running and triathlons all over again after some hard fought seasons of emotional struggle and injury.
Looking back I can definitely say I was a little over ambitious with my training plan and goal setting but after a couple hiccups; an okay first half distance race; and a leap of faith, I found myself training with a great group of local athletes and getting pushed by a new training partner and friend (Patty).
Prior to this I had done all my training alone, but after seeing how strong Patty was on the bike and knowing her commitment to the sport, I reached out to her to see if she would mind if I joined her during her training.
Lucky for me she said, YES!!
Having a training partner isn’t something new to me, but after having taken time off from sport and working to rebuild my endurance I wasn’t comfortable with my abilities, quite yet, to join other athletes. However, training with Patty showed me how much fun training with others is, how awesome it is to have someone to push you and hold you accountable, to not take myself so seriously all the time, and to start going back out to do group rides. Shortly after I started training with Patty; Erin, and Lucas started hitting the workouts during the week with us which made for a nice crew to push us through each tough workout. On the weekends Patty and I would also try to meet up with Greg, Robby, Jason and Mike, to get in long miles at faster speeds. It is always nice to have faster athletes to chase and I found myself getting more comfortable and stronger on the bike. It was also incredibly encouraging to train with individuals who were willing to help me out with my training in a safe and motivating environment.
Throughout most of the summer and into the beginning of Fall, we put in tons of miles on the bike and run and continued to work hard to get in shape for our own individual races we had on the calendar and for Challenge Florida, which Patty, Erin and I would all be racing together on November 8, 2015.
Looking back on these past months I am so proud of all the hard work we were able to put in and I am so happy to have met and trained with such a great group of athletes. It was through these new relationships that I was able to look at training and sport with fresh eyes, learned to really appreciate the process and the ability to balance sport, family, work, and just day to day activities, and the importance of making sure to have plenty of fun while training.
After close to 4 months of hard training it was time for all of us to make the journey down to Venice, FL to put our endurance to the test across 70.3 miles of swim, bike, run.
On Saturday my friend Jennie came to pick me up for the start of our girl’s/race weekend. She had asked me a couple weeks ago if she could join me since her family was out of town and I was flying solo since Bill had tech for his show. I of course said yes, since I knew it would be fun to just have some girl time, and it would be a nice distraction from my pre-race jitters and missing my family. We drove down to Venice Beach in time for me to get a practice swim in and to go to packet pickup. Since this would be my first ever ocean swim, I knew I wanted to get some extra time in the water to help calm my nerves. The water was really warm (80 degrees) and the waves took some getting used to, but after two short trips out to the first buoy and back, I was beginning to feel a little more at ease about the whole thing. After my swim, we headed over to the packet pickup so I could get checked in for the race. After checking in we decided to go grab some lunch at a local deli while we waited for Patty and Steve to get into town.
We found a great deli (Cafe Bagels) and ordered lunch, I had a lox and cream cheese bagel which was AMAZING!! After lunch we went to the hotel to get checked in and to drop off our gear. Not long after we checked in Patty and Steve got into town, so I headed back over to packet pickup with them so they could grab their stuff and we could check in our bikes. We also took the time to do a little gear browsing and Steve and I got a chance to demo the wonderful Normatec Recovery compression boots. We then headed over to bike check in to get our bikes situated and ready for the next day. Since we were unsure of the weather we all covered our bikes to make sure they wouldn’t get wet if a storm did come through. We also checked out the layout of the swim exit and route to give us a better idea of where we would be going during transition. Then it was back to the hotel so we could rest and relax before dinner.
For dinner Jennie and I went out Mama Maria’s to pickup some inexpensive pasta and garlic bread. We ordered to go so that we could go back to the room and just hang out and watch some TV and chit chat while enjoying our noodles. After a delicious meal it was soon time for bed since we both had a long day ahead of us.
I slept pretty well and woke up around 4:10am feeling rested, and ready to race. While the normal pre-race nerves set in I was feeling surprisingly calm, until we actually got to the race sight.
I took my time setting up my station and making sure I had everything situated. I also made sure to take plenty of deep breaths to help myself calm down since the reality of what I was about to do hit me hard, and I was beginning to miss my family. I had frozen my water bottles the night before since I knew it would be warm and I wanted to make sure my drinks weren’t hot on the bike or run. I also set up my compression socks and made sure I had plenty of Clif Shot Bloks ready to go. When Steve and Patty showed up, I had Steve check my tires and got them pumped up since they were in desperate need of some air. I then went to get body marked and got into my swimskin to get ready for the swim. After a quick trip to the potties it was time to head over to the swim start. I took advantage of the little swim area they had set up for warming up, and did a quick swim to get my body moving, and to check my goggles. After warm ups, Jennie said a prayer for me which helped me to calm down, since I was getting really nervous about swimming in the ocean.
Before I knew it, it was time to line up for the swim start. I did my best to just focus on my breathing but before I knew it the horn had sounded and I found myself fighting waves, and fellow triathletes as we made our way out into the ocean and on our way to the first buoy.
Swimming in the ocean is like nothing I have ever done before. Even though you are moving forward you are also moving up and down with the waves, and sometimes side to side depending on the currents. I found it a bit of a challenge to get into a good rhythm at first and spotting the buoys was a little difficult to. I also found myself quickly looking down into a very dark, and very deep mass of nothing. The comfort of the sand I had had before soon dropped away into a dark abyss and I had to keep counting my strokes and focusing on the next buoy in order to keep from freaking out about the deep ocean and all the critters that might be swimming around below me. Now I am by no means a fast swimmer, but for some reason it was hard for me to gauge how long I had been swimming and how far I was into the swim during this race. The only thing I really had to keep me going were the buoys ahead of me and the comfort of seeing the blue and occasional pink cap I found myself passing.
At one point I found myself getting really discouraged with being knocked around by the waves and not being able to see where I was, and then I heard a voice say,
“You’re doing amazing, keep up the great work.”
I don’t know why but for some reason this made me think of my Grandpa, who I lost when I was in 5th Grade, and how even though he never had the chance to watch me compete in sport in real life he now had the best seat in the house. Between the inner dialogue and thinking about how proud he would be of me, I found myself pushing even harder to get through the swim and to not let the waves defeat me.
After one of the toughest swims of my life, I finally made it to solid ground and was running towards transition to get on my bike to ride.
When it came to goal setting for this race, the only goal I had set besides just finishing the swim, was to break 3 hours on the bike. With this race having a pretty flat course I knew I would have a pretty good chance of doing this. While this course was flat, it was full of out and backs, twist and turns, plenty of good headwinds to offset some awesome tailwinds, a sketchy drawbridge, and some crazy traffic. All in all though I found myself feeling really comfortable on the bike, and I felt really strong through out the ride. While maneuvering in the traffic was a little scary at times, I made sure to stay safe and just focused on chipping away at the miles. With each mile I found myself feeling better and better, even when I was facing a headwind. I also found myself passing a bunch of riders and being able to keep from being passed by anyone. I also made sure to stay on top of my nutrition and to take water at the aid stations to help keep my body temperature down. I also had plenty of motivation from Erin as she yelled at me to try and catch her and from Patty who made sure to call out every time we passed one another. Towards the end of the ride, the temperatures had started rising and between the heat and the winds I was beginning to feel hot but I kept chasing down the clock.
As I was heading back to transition I started really pushing myself since I knew I was on track to break 3hrs and I was so excited to be able to accomplish this. When I finally got to the dismount line, I took a second to look at my watch and low and behold I HAD DONE IT!!
After racking my bike and getting into my run gear, it was time for me to head out to take on the last part of the race, 13.1 miles. As I was leaving transition, Erin was on her way out, and she made sure to yell at me again to come and catch her. As I was leaving transition I was feeling pretty good and just focused on finding a groove. The run took us around a retention pond and out along a beach road to the Venetian Waterway. I was able to finally catch up to Erin near the retention pond, and after a quick encouraging exchange of words I was on my way out along the beach road and heading to the first aid station. When I got to the first aid station I made sure to grab water to dump on my head and plenty of ice and then I was on my way. While the ice and water helped to cool me down for a little bit, it was around mile 3 that I really started to feel the heat. I had chosen to wear a visor on the run to keep my face cool, but the top of my head felt really hot and I could just feel the sun cutting into me. I tried to run in the little bits of shade I found but without any cloud coverage and not much of a breeze I found myself just focusing on getting through to each aid station. While it was not the prettiest or fastest run, I knew I just needed to be smart and focus on staying hydrated and cool until the finish. It was such a blessing to have Patty, Erin and Steve on the course because every time I saw one of them they helped me push myself a little harder. I am also so incredibly grateful for the amazing volunteers who were so great about making sure I got everything I needed to finish safe and strong. Since the run was a two loop course there were plenty of athletes on the course to keep me motivated and to help me from feeling like I was out there by myself. Since I had no idea where I was in regards to my place in the race I just focused on moving forward and trying to pass any athlete I could. On the second loop I found myself getting passed by a fellow female athlete, when I looked down at the back of her calf I saw 28 H and knew she was in my age group. Again since I had no idea where I stood in regards to placing in my division, I just made it my goal to not lose sight of her and to see if I could get ahead of her. I was able to pass her on the way out to the beach road and just kept the focus the same as the first loop, stay cool, stay smart, keep moving. I had to stop and walk more than I ever have during any of the races I have done this year, but I also knew this race was all going to come down to being smart in the heat. A couple of times during this race I had found myself missing my kids and husband but on my way out to the Venetian Waterway for the last time, it hit me hard. I found myself fighting back tears as I thought about what a huge role they play for me when it comes to what I do in sport and why I do it.
As I got out to the waterway I found myself getting passed again by the same female who had gone by me at the beginning of the second loop. I had to stop and walk to get my heart rate down and to get my breathing in check since I had started struggling a bit. I kept my eyes on her though and made sure to not let her get too far ahead of me. At this point in the race, between the heat and humidity, this girl was one of the only things keeping me from just stopping and jumping into the ocean to cool off. So after a little respite, more ice, and some hydration it was back to chipping away at the course and the distance between me and this one girl ahead of me. I finally passed her before the final turn around and from there on I kept working hard to keep that distance between us. More ice, more water, gatorade, run, ice water, run, ice, water, run. After the passing the last aid station I knew I had just a little further to go before the finish so I just dug in with everything I had and took it bit by bit until I found myself making a left hand turn into the finishing shoot. As I ran towards the finish line the announcer called out
“Coming to the finish line we have Boston Marathon Qualifier, Mother of two, and Physical Education teacher from Lakeland, Florida, Rebecca Kimble!!!”
5:49:42 later I was finished with my third 70.3, and final race of the 2015 season.
As the volunteer put the medal over my neck and cold wet towel on my back I just broke down in tears. I don’t know why but I just felt this huge release, and such a crazy mix of emotions that could only be translated in a good cry.
I had fought, I had conquered and I had had the most fun, most satisfying and most encouraging season of sport to date.
I also found out shortly after that I was going to be ending my season with First Place in the 25-29 Female Age Group Division!!!
I am beyond grateful for everyone who has supported and helped me along the way this season and to those who have been my side through the highs and lows of life and sport.
Special thanks to,
My amazing husband and children- Thank you for letting me dream big, play hard and for being the most incredible support crew I could ever ask for. You are my light and loves and I can not thank you enough for all that you do!! I love you Bill, Wyatt and Ramona.
Patty and Erin for being a great training partners and friends, for making the early mornings more bearable and for teaching me to train hard and have fun.
Robby- for being an amazing mentor and teacher. Thank you for helping me out this season and for being such a valuable guide to me as I try to navigate the world of triathlons.
Jennie- for encouraging me, for being an incredible friend and photographer and for showing me that I do have a voice and a story to share.
TriSports- for making sure I am a well equipped triathlete, for answering all my crazy gear questions, and for supporting my triathlon aspirations. You guys rock!!
Leroy and Leroy’s Bikeworks- For supporting me and all my bike needs during this season. Thank you for the fast wheels and for keeping my bike running smoothly!!
Other Notable Sponsors and Partnerships:
Pearl Izumi
FitNiche
Thank you all for getting me through this season and making sure I was well prepared for each race from start to finish
Chasing Dream Giants 
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