Focusing on the things that went right at CCC instead of the uncontrollables that affected my race. 1. My shoes! I debated what shoes to wear for days before the start. The conditions were going to be wet and muddy and so I needed a shoe that drained well with good traction. I wore a prototype Catamount I’ve been working on with the team that is super fast and responsive but also drains very quickly. I was planning on wearing an upcoming version of the Cascadias, which I LOVE, because they lock in my heal really well and are very protective. Because I have an issue with my feet staying warm after they are wet, I had to go with the shoe that drained a little faster. Honestly I don’t think I could have gone wrong either way 2. THE FOOD! Up until my win at @javelinajundred last fall, I’d thrown up or had major GI issues in almost every race. Since using @spring_energy , that seems to be an issue of the past. In the last year, I’ve found that I need close to 400 calories an hour. I ate a @spring_energy gel every 20 minutes alternating between Awesome Sauce (180 Cal) and the other 100 calories high carb gels. It was perfect. 3. A watch that works. I’ve had a lot of trouble with watches during races. Confusing route finding and inaccurate tracking, either underestimating or overestimating mileage, which makes it hard to know when aid stations are coming. Not only is that frustrating, but it messes with my fueling schedule. I was able to download the CCC route onto my @garminrunning Forerunner 945 directly from @strava (my favorite feature), it beeped every time I needed to turn, was accurate AF AND told me to eat every 20 minutes. 4. My attitude. I was confident in my ability to have a top ten day, and knew that a top five day was even possible. But I also was ready to take on the day in whatever way was handed to me. Having that cool confidence is something that I’ve lacked since the pandemic and being THIS excited to race lacked for much longer than that. I’m excited to one day, have another good day. I’m taking these lessons and putting them toward the next one. #runhappy