Hey guys,

This past Sunday I participated in my third triathlon, the 2nd annual Nautica South Beach Triathlon. As in my previous two triathlons, I was the runner for the KSwiss women’s relay team, with Leanda Cave doing the swimming leg and Jenny Fletcher handling the cycling leg (stepping in for Katya Meyers, who missed her connecting flight to Miami). I was super happy with the end result, because my team won our division for the third time and I improved my run time from the last two triathlons, coming in at 27:53, which is a 6:58 mile.  I was actually surprised that I did so well, since around mile three I started to feel like I couldn’t breathe and was about to collapse because the weather was so humid. Even though it was only 8am, it was one of those muggy and humid Miami days – I guess summer has come early for us here in South Florida. Overall though, I felt strong running and felt good about my performance.

The triathlons have become natural for me now, as I now know what to expect and I’ve gotten used to the routine of the event. The Nautica Triathlons are always a great experience for me to participate in, since all the money raised goes to children’s charities, with the Nautica South Beach Triathlon specifically giving to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. It was fantastic to see the South Beach Triathlon growing, as it’s only the event’s second year. Last year there were 900 participants and this year it grew to 1400 participants!  Hopefully it will become as big as the Malibu event so that we can raise more money for children’s charities.  It was great to be basically competing in my own back yard, and I had a great time handing out the medals to the cute little kids that participated in the “Tot Trot” after the triathlon was over, that was the best part. I want to thank Leanda and Jenny for being such great teammates. They are incredible athletes, very inspirational and lots of fun! Also, as of right now, it looks like I’ll be competing in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon in September, which should be a great time.

Sunday evening my teammates and I attended the KSwiss athletes party, which was on a cruise yacht that went around Miami’s Biscayne Bay. It was so interesting because it was one of the only truly touristy things that I’ve done in Miami and it was nice to be able to hang out with all of the KSwiss athletes from the triathlon. As always, I’ve added some pictures and videos from my personal camera for you to enjoy.

My next trip is to Verona, NY in May for the “Legendary Night of Tennis” exhibition event, so I’m going to start hitting a lot of tennis balls. If you’re in the area, please come out and watch us play!

Anna