New Zealog

Done.

Hey everyone!

I haven't had time to write a full report yet, but I thought you'd like to hear that I'm doing great. After I crossed the line (and that is SO COOL that so many of you watched it live!!!) a nice lady walked me into the finish tent where they weighed me. I lost only 0.4kg during the race -- I was well hydrated. I was walking OK so they let me into the massage area, where I experienced ten minutes of pure bliss. The wonderfulness of the massage was secondary to the fact that I was lying down. I got some food and met Dave and Kathe outside the tent. Then I walked about half a mile to the bike collection point. I felt pretty good!

We celebrated back at the hotel with pizza. When Dave and I turned in around 11pm, there were still competitors heading toward the finish line carrying glowsticks! We had talked about going to the finish line at midnight to welcome the final finishers home, but of course we were all too wiped out -- competitors and spectators alike -- to do anything but go to bed.

Today I'm only a little sore and I have some interesting sunburn patterns. It's another beautiful day in Taupo and for the first time this week, I'm totally relaxed! I want to make the most of it -- I'll probably go for a swim before we head to the awards party tonight.

Thanks for all the wonderful comments! Knowing you were all out there watching kept me moving. We fly to Christchurch tomorrow so I'll try to write my report on the road.

-Ariel

She finished!

Ariel finished the race tonight at 8:05 PM, just before the sun went down! Her time was 13:05:30. (You can check out all the gorey details on the Ironman Live site.) She came through the finish line running a good stride and smiling, and she's (amazingly!) walking around like a normal person now, although she's a just little stiff.

I'm sure she'll want to give a full report when she gets up the gumption ... for now thanks to all for staying up with us. I know Ariel really appreciates it. (She asked me to print out your comments so she could read them tonight!)

PS: Congratulations to all our friends who finished! And thanks to Joe & Kathe & Tara for their mobile cheering support. It was fun.

-Dave

Stateside friends want to know:

Q. When will all this be over so I can go to bed?

A. Let's see ... it's 6:00pm here, so it's 9:00pm in California, 11:00pm in Chicago, midnight(!) in New York. We'll probably start seeing finishers from our group in about an hour ... and I think Ariel would be very pleased to finish by 8:00pm local time (11:00pm in California, etc.).

Q. It's ok if I get sleepy and just check the results tomorrow, right?

A. Of course! We're flattered that you've all been paying such close attention! Please, please, get some sleep! (PS: We miss you all!)

-Dave

1/2way done with run

With 10:30 elapsed on the clock, Ariel has passed the halfway mark on the marathon course. Only 13.1 miles to go! She was looking good when she passed us -- gave us a big smile and almost apologized as she said, "I'm going to start walking soon."

I asked, "Can I run with you for a little bit?"

"No you can't, I'll be disqualified."

Ah yes, the dreaded no outside assistance rule. This is a triathlon thing -- if I were to start running next to her, that would be considered "pacing", and the course officials would slap her with a penalty, or possibly a DQ. That's my girl -- ever aware of the rules and regs!

-Dave

Exciting news

As of this moment (bike finished, run in progress), both Amy and Shannon are leading their age groups (F30-34 and F35-39, respectively)! Run strong, ladies!

-Dave

Two down, marathon to go

Woohoo! Ariel just came in from the bike in 6:46! Total elapsed time after her bike was 8:14.

"How are you doing?" I asked as she started the run.

"Pretty good!" she said, and gave me a grin. It's hot here, and the sun will be up for at least 4 more hours. Go sweetie go!

-Dave

Halfway thru bike

Ariel's halfway through the bike with 4:40 elapsed on the clock. She looks strong!

-Dave

Swim times

	Swim	T1	Place
Amy Buege	1:07:20	5:56	484
Sarah Cadwallader	1:09:23	8:43	541
Shannon Boughn	1:09:30	6:29	547
Ariel Parrish	1:18:12	10:40	876
Dan Scanlan	1:25:50	9:52	1055

Swim - 1:18!

Ariel finished the 2.5mi swim in an amazing 1:18:12! I ran to catch up with her as she was heading toward transition, and she said that she was feeling "okay". She looked good when she came through on her bike a few minutes later. Transition time was 10:40.

-Dave

Under way

The race started about half an hour ago (10am pacific time). You can get live updates at www.ironmanlive.com throughout the day. Ariel is #1288.

I'll check in periodically with more updates.

-Dave