Bracebridge Triathlon

Rachel, Andrea and Katie in the transition zone before the big race!

The race season wasn't about me this year, but instead my daughter, Rachel. She conquered her fear of the water after a near-drowning experience in her first triathlon by winning her age group when she competed with me in the Michigan Iron Goddess Sprint Distance Tri last year. This year she jumped in the river with both feet to compete in the Bracebridge Olympic-distance triathlon relay with two of her friends.

Read on for more pics, stories and a special Eat-Clean athlete...

Rachel and her very supportive boyfriend after a pre-race pep talk!

My husband, her boyfriend and I rose at 4:30am to make the trek to Muskoka country to watch her compete. It was a blast! The humidity was sweltering, but we persevered through the heat and got to see Rachel pummel through 1500 meters of water, Katie ride her bike for 40 kilometers in record time, and Andrea race to the finish line after a great 10 kilometer run. Bracebridge is known for its challenging course. In fact, it's a qualifier for many other big races like Kona. The girls finished 5th out of 8 relay teams. Way to go!

Rachel out of the water and racing to the transition zone to pass on the baton to her team mates!

What a great way to gather together a group of friends together and try something new. The girls trained on their own, but had a goal to keep themselves motivated and focused. They supported one another and it was wonderful to see their camaraderie. They even had a special handshake to accompany the baton toss after completing their respective heats.

Beth Primrose with my husband, Robert, and myself.

I also had the pleasure to meet the first-place women's finisher, 50-year-young Beth Primrose, who also happens to be a huge Eat-Clean Diet fan! She finished in amazing time and is such an inspiration to all of us out there Eating Clean and training. She definitely had me motivated to get back into triathlon training mode.

What a great day and my congratulations to Rachel and her teammates for a great race!

Now I have a major itch to get back in triathlon training mode! Let's see what the future holds...