Premature loss of a dear friend

Donny Jacobs: 11/28/85-4/3/12

Today I had to speak at my dear friend's funeral. Since we were inseparable when we were young, the family asked me to speak about his early years. Death becomes a common occurrence to you when you are in the healthcare field, but his death knocked me upside the head like a ton of bricks. When you are 25 you don't expect someone you have been close to since the cradle to fall asleep and not wake up. Donny was a great guy. He was going to be graduating from Vanderbuilt as a nurse practitioner with a specialty in critical care. He wanted to be the best nurse there was, and he was on that path of becoming just that. Even though we had gotten older and started on our own pathways of life, he was someone that I always felt close to even if we hadn't talked or seen each other in a while. Donny showed me that it was okay to set your sights high and then go for them and achieve them. He was an incredibly successful nurse and an inspiration to me for going back to nursing school and achieving my goals.

Below is what I read at his funeral.

Hi – My name Sarah Parker, & I grew up with Donny.

Today is a happy- sad day for us. Sad because a very dear friend has left this earth. But it is also a happy day because we are celebrating the life of Donny, our dear friend. When I think about it- for me, Donny has always been there. Let me explain … the fact is that I honestly cannot remember life before we were friends. Both our parents work at Bob Jones University and we were neighbors in faculty court on campus. Donny and I ended up being play buddies and doing everything together as youngsters, whether we were supposed to or not!

As I started thinking back on all those good times, I couldn’t help but laugh at many of the things we did - and things we got in trouble for doing.

One day Donny, Allen & I were playing tag & I was “it.” The boys started to climb the trees to get away from me, so I went up after them. Higher and higher we went. These trees just happened to be directly up against the back of the Dinning Common, and it turned out if you went high enough you could get up onto the roof … and that’s just what we did! We thought we were pretty cool running around up there and we almost got away with it, but the next thing we knew one of us was stuck and someone had to go get a ladder to save us.

Donny’s love for science started when he was young. I can remember going over to his house & he’d show me all the cacti he was growing or his new snake that he had to feed. He even had those hermit crabs & we would sit and stare at those things forever in the hopes that one would come out of its shell and move into the next/bigger size shell. He promised me that they actually did do it, but I surely never saw it happen!

His family had moved to over Blythwood Street and we moved to White Oak- just one street apart. We walked home from school together almost every day. We would stop, inspect bugs, and talk about any and everything. One day we stopped to look at someone’s new puppy. Time slipped by and we knew that we better hurry home. We gathered our things- well most of them. The next day on the way home Donny spotted my viola case in the ditch. It had been left in there overnight!

I used to get so mad at Donny in elementary school. He started going to LRC a couple of times a week during recess to work on homework. Recess was supposed to be our time during the school day to have fun. It’s when we pretended we were orphans stuck in an orphanage, trying to escape from the evil teachers. Whether it was his choice, or not, back then he learned early that his studies were important and he worked hard to better himself.

One year we were fascinated by ladybugs and we started catching as many as we could at recess. It was our personal science project. When we walked home from school together we would catch even more of them. Our poor mothers got stuck with all the forgotten ladybugs, squashed in our backpack pockets … and the smell was not nice! We tried so hard to be legitimate scientists. We tallied the number of spots each bug had and gave them names. Donny learned what they liked to eat and we made them a home. It was really just a huge pickle jar from school with holes poked in the lid for air, but it was our little creation. My mom was a K4 teacher and she figured out a way for Donny and I to come over to her class and teach them about a ladybug’s life. Ok, maybe it helped that his dad was the principle! We must have been in either 3^rd or 4^th grade at the time. I will never forget how excited we were walking across the playground, over to the other elementary building, holding our big pickle jar full of ladybugs. Donny was a leader and a teacher at heart from the beginning.

It is neat to see the different qualities that made Donny special as a young boy, represented in the grown up version of the Donny we all knew and loved. What you saw in Donny is what you got. He was one of those loyal friends that you could always count on. He had a heart a mile wide, and a smile to go with it.

Donnie has been a major inspiration in my own nursing pursuits – he was a constant encouragement and cheerleader to me. I will greatly miss my friend

Downtown Columbia Sprint Triathlon

This triathlon was close enough to home so we decided to save some $$$ and drive down the morning of the race. Jeff came with us as the babysitter, so AJ was able to come too! They were great cheerleaders! I stayed at Nicole's house and she even cleaned my bike while I was at work ... my my how the tables have turned!

4:45 am - I am blinded by my room light being turned on in an attempt to wake me up ... thanks Nicole! You're a great alarm clock =)

The drive wasn't very long, but I still managed to pass out ... that was until Jeff took a picture of me and used the flash. I remember waking up from my nice slumber and saying "you're sooo mean!" Of course that picture quickly got uploaded to Facebook. Btw, don't listen to what they said, I was not drooling!

Guess you could say it was any other normal race morning. This was my first race wearing my new On On Tri jersey! We got to transition, set everything up, got body marked, laughed with friends, tested out the bikes ... ooo... why isn't my bike shifting into the big crank. I start to panic & was not very happy. Thankfully there was bike mechanic there and he tightened up my cables for me, and then I was all good again. =)


What?!? It's already time to go into the pool?!? We start lining up in numerical order and I started to panic again. Seriously? I am #49. What if I am not fast enough for being #49 and get passed ... I don't like getting passed in the pool! They tell me to go and I take off running. Last week I walked to the edge and then dove. Well this time I was feeling a little confident and decided to run and then dive. Haha! You know you are in the air way to long when you feel like you are floating in the air and wondering what's going to happen next. And then all of the sudden I just kinda went kerplop into the water & my goggles ended up around my neck. Ooops! Gotta practice that a little more! Ok, so it turns out #49 was perfect. I didn't get passed, but I did pass 3 people! The swim felt pretty good. I ended up passing the first guy at the first wall but then it was clear sailing till the last 50 where I hit the 2 ladies. After climbing out of the pool I took off running into transition. 44 seconds baby & I was out on my bike!

The bike was a 3 loop course through downtown Columbia. This year my bike was a little faster than last year, and the course felt so much safer! I pushed hard & I only threw up once! Yes, maybe I'm on the mend! It was a technical course and you definitely needed to be alert. Every time I take a fast corner I still get nervous & feel my bike sliding out from under me (even though it's not), but at least now I don't really slow down because of it anymore. Katie whizzed by me at one point & yelled out some encouraging words. At the end of the last biggest hill, Nicole passed me and hollered at me too. Maybe one of these days I will be zooming around like them =)

Ah, the run. Hmm ... well it was slower than last year. Obviously I was not happy about this. I could chalk it up to the 55mi bike and T-run from the day before, but whatever. That's what happens when you are training for a 70.3 and are using this race as a training day. It is disappointing to see the lack of improvement in my run. Honestly its my own fault though. My coach (Nicole) tells me what I am supposed to do ... I have just had issues getting it done. Look at Katies freaking awesome running form in the picture below. I think she's even smiling! Yep, that's what I have got to work on! If anything the run this past weekend was a wake up call and helped me realign my training priorities.

Even with the slower run I was able to bring home 2nd place in my age group (25-29)!!

I am now on recovery week. Yay! Since Sunday's race I have already been working on my running drills and I will continue to work on the run as the weeks go by.

Going Local - New Racing Team

Power On!

I am racing for a new team!! This season I made the decision to support my local triathlon shop and will be racing for On On Tri. I am so very excited about this opportunity. They've got great customer service and dedicated to providing athletes with equipment, knowledge, & service to support them in obtaining their athletic goals. Al & Jamie over there are fantastic! If you need anything and are in Greenville head on down to 400 E McBee Ave, and if you're not local ... just click on their logo on my sidebar to go to their website (www.onontri.com). Check out their online store, services and don't miss the On On Tri University for some great reviews, blogs & videos. You will find great info, great gear and great prices!!

2012 Racing Season has BEGUN! - Parris Island Sprint

I am so excited for this season to start up. It seems like it has been forever since my last triathlon & weekend trip with the friends.

There is no better way to start out the triathlon season than by racing the 1st race that SetUp Events puts on - Parris Island Sprint. Yes, it's actually on the Parris Island marine base. It was my third time doing this race & I was pumped! Nicole, Jeff & I headed down there Friday afternoon. We got checked in, did our normal raiding of the BiLo to get Code Red, got food and than headed back to the hotel to clean the bikes. Tell you what, I haven't laughed that hard in a very long time. We finally all got settled, Jeff conked out early, Nicole got on her phone to talk to hubby and watch her little one on video ... and I ... I got to study cardiac rhythms. Yep, that's right, I am a dedicated nursing student! Ha!

The morning came early. Thank goodness we set the alarms on our phones because the hotel wake up call did not happen. Good thing we are good friends ... we put up with A LOT from each other ... oh, so many memories that I cannot go into!! I love my friends =)

Happy St. Patties day - race day! I was wearing my stealth black uniform, but my green running shoes kept me from getting pinched. We finally made it to the race site and started to get all prepared. It was fun seeing all the familiar faces, and a few new faces too. So nice to see Orae, a highschool-er that I had met at the pool a few months ago. He had decided to do this triathlon as his senior project. When I met him, he couldn't even swim one length of the pool, but I saw him swim Friday morning he was working it! I was excited to see him here and ready to race.

The race started and people were already swimming breast stroke ... grrreat. It is finally time for me to start ... I dove in, got some great distance and came up swimming fast. I felt great! Working on my stroke technique over the winter paid off. I ended up getting stuck and having pass 7 people and I still cut 10 seconds off my swim time. My transition time would have been great, but somehow I didn't fasten my shoe and it fell off while I was running out with my bike. Woops! Guess, I'm a little rusty! I tried to keep a high cadence on the bike and continue to push it the entire time. It paid off. I cut more time off of last years bike time. Ran into transition 2 and then I was off for the run. I admit it, I am not good at pacing myself. I felt like I was pushing but don't think I was enough. About a half mile out from the finish here comes Nicole running at me. She yells for me to keep pushing and then angles towards me. I yelled for her not to come run with me so what does she do ... she runs about 2 feet behind me. I can hear her breath & I knew I had better not slow down or she would plow right into me! I finished the run with a last little surge and then dry heaved as the marine took off my timing chip. Poor guy thought he was gonna get hit!

It was a good day. I am thrilled to say I PRed & I ended up cutting almost 4 minutes off last years time. If I keep whittling off time ... soon I will get to where I want to be!!

Recap of 2011 and looking forward to 2012

I would be a liar if I said this season didn't have it's ups and downs, because it did. But, those downs are ones I created from expectations that I placed on myself. In all actuality it was a GREAT season with GREAT results!! When I started triathlons in 2008 I "raced" to finish and to prove myself and others wrong. Never did I expect to be placing 2nd in the STATE and getting 3rd place in my division at the HalfMax NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP's! Can we all say ... cool!!

3rd place HalfMax National Championship

I think it is important to set goals for yourself, otherwise you have no purpose ... nothing to make you push yourself to the next level. The goal could be finishing or coming in 1st, but the most important thing is being able to adapt those goals depending on the circumstances. Great friends help too! They put up with the grumpy early mornings, the awesome climbs, the bonking sessions, the long rides, and the celebrations! When you get wake up calls before 4am, you know you are friends with some special people! My Team in Training athletes had an awesome season and many of them are continuing their  athletics with marathons and half marathons during this off season - success!!

When I was younger I remember watching the Ironman World Championships in Kona on TV and saying that those athletes were crazy! Yet at the same time I admired their commitment, athletic abilities, & perseverance. Secretly, I wanted to be them one day. Who knows what my future has in store for me, but I will say I am already setting goals for 2012. It is going to be a great season. My first IRONMAN is on the docket and I will be racing with all my fiends ... so excited!!!

Since the tough HalfMax I have stayed active with lighter workouts than during the normal triathlon season. This week my Winter/Off Season has started and it is so fun to be back at it!

Florida Ironman 2011

2012 Florida Ironman ... Here I Come!!

This past weekend I went down to the Florida Ironman (FLIM) to volunteer and cheer on all my friends who were racing. It was an awesome experience, and all of my friends did phenomenal. Having planned ahead, I went down already planning on signing up. Being down there and watching it just solidified my decision.

I cannot wait for next year and everything that is in store for me. It will be GREAT!

TriSports.com Halfmax National Championship - 10/08/11

There was excitement in the air because it was race weekend!! Of course, the procrastinator that I am left packing to the last minute. After finishing some homework I finally had to crash, and ended up frantically packing Friday morning. Friday noon came and 4 adults and a baby piled into Jeff's fantastic new Power Wagon truck, with lots and lots of gear/luggage. ("duh Big Red truck" is no more & now we have to find a new saying for his grey Power Wagon). Jeff normally drives like a little 'ol grandma, but with Nicole in the back seat and him trying to prove the power of his new truck we got to Myrtle Beach in decent time. It would have been even faster, but my small bladder slowed us down. =) On the ride, like usual, we tried to mentally prep for the race by going around the truck and stating our goals & projected times for the next days race, and also setting up our plans for the day. My plan was to try and hold back some on the bike so that I would have my legs for the run.

Our motel was aah-may-zing! I have to say, Nicole did a fantastic job getting our motel room. The "room" was more like a LARGE apartment. Every room had a great view of the intercoastal waterway, with a perfect view of the swim course. This led to a great place for watching the pro's swim on Sunday.

Friday night came and I seemed to just lay there while the clock ticked by. Baby Addison cried here and there, but I think it was more the nerves and excitement for the next day that kept me up. 5am and it's time to wake up. Seriously?!? I tried to eat breakfast, but that wasn't working so well because I was wound up. My outside was telling a completely different story though. Krysta was like "you know we are racing today? You are so calm, what's up with you!" Well, I really wasn't calm. I knew this day was going to be a hard day, and I knew I was going to have to work for it. But there was pressure on me - self inflicted of course. This was my "A" race for the season, my training was there, I was healthy, the weather was cooperating and this was setting up to be my best half ever ... or so I thought / hoped / wished for. But, the day didn't play out to that end. What happened? I went from knowing it would hurt, but expecting a good day to talking myself out of DNFing (DNF = Did Not Finish).

The SWIM: 1.2miles. So, I was the only person in my swim wave with a non-purple swim cap on. Yes, somehow I had accidently grabbed a random hunter green SetUp Events swim cap & didn't realize it till it was too late. Oh well! I'm not really worried about the swim. Yes, 2/3rds of it is against current, but I'm a good swimmer so it is all good. Well, I had never swam in brackish water before & was not prepared for the absolute zero visibility it provided. There was no way you could draft because you couldn't even see the bubbles from other swimmer feet to guide you. I ended up having to sight about every 4 strokes. That wasn't even enough sometimes when you factored in the current. I took the turnaround buoy a little wide and that threw me out into the middle of the intercoastal waterway. The current kept pulling me farther and farther out towards the other bank and it was a constant battle to stay on course & my time reflected that. Finally I hit that last turn, climbed out on the dock and then ran into TA (TA = Transition Area) to find my bike.

The BIKE: 56miles. The course was in the shape of an "I" and it was 2 loops of flatness. We got to bike on an actual highway. How cool is that! With a flat highway at the beach guess what you get ... WIND! And lots of it. There was easily a 7-8mph difference after the 180 degree turns. Crazy I tell you! With the last turn on the first loop and heading back to TA to start the 2nd loop I started to feel weak. What? I've been holding back some, why am already feeling weak? This is weird. Oh well. Push through it. You knew today wouldn't be easy. You are racing for 70.3 miles. Come on legs lets go! I was able to keep my mph average the same, but my effort level definitely started to increase. At mile 43 I felt like I started to crumble. The most important thing to do on a windy course is to stay low in the aero position, and I couldn't. I had to keep switching from up on the hoods and back into aero. Aggravating for sure. And then the mind games start to play in my head. My nutrition and hydration has been spot on, why is my calf cramping? Why am I so puny?

The RUN: 13.1miles. I walked through TA and thought, oh this is not going to be pretty. This is when your mind comes into play and you are supposed to suppress all the negative thoughts and push through it. Yeah, that did not work for me on this run. The course was an out and back 3 times. At the aid station at mile 2 I saw Nicole and said I was D-O-N-E. She basically told me I'm mentally giving up, and I need to suck it up and keep going. She was right. Funny thing, there was another runner struggling & she said "wow, she's (Nicole's) mean. Can I run you guys!" haha! By the end of the 2nd loop I was in complete meltdown mode. Chin was wobbling, tears were flowing I was going to quit. All I could hope for was that Nicole was waiting at the end of that loop to kick me in the butt and make me keep going. She wasn't there, and I lost it, but I did make that turn to start the 3rd loop and I did finish that race. Sweet Jeff even came back and ran that last little bit with me.

If I'm going to be honest I'd have to say that this race has demoralized me. I felt horrible, and was over an hour longer than I expected to come in at. What happened? I don't know what happened. People say, you learn from your bad races. Well, I didn't learn what to change during the race, but I will probably take a couple Tylenol PM the night before & eat more the morning of the race! The bottom line is, I did finish! I got that finishers medal & I even got 3rd place in the Athena division. Neither of those would have happened if I had walked away from that run course.