Labor Day in Bellingham

My second trip up to the Pacific NW this summer! And timed appropriately with recovery week.

I did my long run (7.5 miles) on Friday, along the South Bay Trail. This trail, connecting downtown Bellingham to the historic district of Fairhaven, is a rail-to-trail conversion, running parallel with Bellingham Bay. It's highly popular with both casual bikers and runners. It suited me perfectly for my run. I'm still feeling slight tenderness from my crash, but it fades once I get moving, so hopefully when I start truly gearing up for the NYC Marathon, I'll be back in action.

I worked a race on Saturday, called the Bellingham Traverse (http://www.bellinghamtraverse.com/). The course is supposed to follow the life cycle of a salmon (only in Washington!), and is a multileg race consisting of running, kayaking, mountain biking, and road biking, either as a team or solo. The finish line is at the brewery (http://www.bbaybrewery.com/) a couple doors down from my mom's condo (how convenient!), so it worked out well for me to work timing. It was a fun race to watch! The big chatter amongst the racers and organizers was next weekend's Hill Climb. It's a 24.5 mile ride along Mt. Baker Highway, but with a 4300' elevation gain, with 3/4 of the elevation gain on the second half of the climb. (http://www.norkarecreation.com/hcinfo.htm) The race is expecting some pro cyclists, as a $4000 award is available for the record. The hill climb is certainly on my radar screen. Maybe next year? Just to give it a try.

Otherwise, the weekend was filled with the tourism bit in and around Bellingham. Zip over to Lummi Island (the "forgotten San Juan Island") for the artist studio show, boat tour of Bellingham Bay (saw lots of harbor seals, but missed out on the pod of orcas... ug!)

I took my mom out on an easy hike in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie Forest (really, just an extension of North Cascades National Park), along the Horseshoe Bend trail, hugging the Nooksack River. We recalled having gone white water rafting, starting in this same spot. Very nice trail, very family friendly. I think she's going to return soon.

Of course, we made a visit to the Mt Baker Vineyard on the way back (it's on the way after all).

All in all, good trip. Is a move out there in my future?

Still recovering

Erg! I tried running today for the first time since my bike crash. Alas, I was only able to run for about 10 minutes before it became too uncomfortable. So, I then walked for an hour. At least that was something. I'm too nervous to try biking again quite yet. At least I can swim to get some aerobic exercise. (Walking is nice, but gets too boring and I don't get my heart rate up enough.)

Perhaps it was naive of me to think I could be back running and biking a week later. I'm mostly healed up, but I still have a nasty bruise at my tailbone and some lighter bruises on my butt. It's uncomfortable to apply pressure there; even wearing tight pants is uncomfortable.

I know I should truly consider myself lucky considering how badly the accident looked. And yet, it's still highly frustrating.

At least I can swim. And Carol "Camel" showed me some exercises to work my core muscles that will keep my backside off the floor.

My First Road Bike Accident

I've had a couple of mountain biking accidents, requiring medical attention, but this Sunday's ride was my first time crashing on my road bike.

It was a great day for a ride. A fun-filled weekend started out with Angel Helen's wedding out in Linden, where a few of us crashed at the house Friday night. I got up Saturday morning and went for a trail run along the Appalachian Trail, which crossed nearby the house. The run was fun and leisurely, and I stopped at one of the huts along the AT (built for thru-hikers) to read the log book and make an entry myself.

The wedding itself was beautiful! Helen and Noah seem truly truly happy.

Then Saturday night I went with Jenn Byl to see Dave Matthews. What an amazing concert!

After a full day Saturday (and not getting to bed until about 1am), I was debating whether or not I'd even make the ride. However, I saw that several others were going, I didn't want to ride solo later in the day, wanted to get on my bike due to a trip to Louisiana this week, and figured with 40 miles, I'd be home early enough to take a nap in the afternoon if needed.

So, the ride started out fun and fantastic. We rode out from Riley's Lock, which is easily accessible from the Metro D.C. area. There's some great scenery and hills in that area. At about mile 26, we approached a left turn. My group didn't anticipate it well, saw the road late, and accidentally failed to signal a left turn. I made the turn wide (I was going pretty fast descending down a hill), whereas another girl (someone new to our team) made a sharp turn. I saw I was going into her. My bike skid on some gravel in the intersection and I slid right into her. I hope she's all right, but I do know the accident caused some damage to her rear derailleur. (I think she was otherwise going to continue riding, so I believe she's all right.)

I crashed on my left side. From the initial impact, I was reluctant to move. Alisa called up Ed to let him know what happened. I could still wiggle my toes and all, so we knew I was fundamentally ok. I suffered from a minor concussion, as I have a small bump on my head, had some nausea, and initially could not remember exactly what happened. I got my wits about me quickly though. Thank goodness for helmets as mine took the brunt of the fall.

I also have some road rash on my left shoulder and back. My bike jersey is tattered. I felt hardest on my left hip and butt. That's the most sore. I've got scrapes from the road rash and some bruises, but like I said, overall I'm ok. Ed pointed out that I should consider myself very lucky.

Ed and Talia drove me home after the ride. I just chilled on the couch and ordered a Domino's pizza. Not sure when I'll be game for some exercise again as I am quite sore. Hopefully I'm out and about soon. :-)

I'll keep the helmet as a reminder why we wear them.

Culpeper Race Report

750 meter swim: 18:19

15 mile bike: 54:23

5K run: 27:45

Finish: 1:44 (82/205 women)

The days leading up to the race were not exactly conducive to triathlon training. A killer project at work kept me there until the wee hours blaring 80's music and keeping Starbucks venti non-fat raspberry mochas a staple in my diet. To add, the weather forecast was hot and word on the street from those that previewed the course was that it was quite hilly. All in all, I was not expecting anything spectacular. After all, though, I do triathlons for the fun of them. And that was my mission for the day.

I drove out bright and early to the race with Holly and Tim. Tim seemed to appreciate being chauffeured as he took a little snooze in the back seat of my SUV en route to the race. Holly and I just chuckled.

The transition area was a sea of Team Z green. I was lucky enough to obtain race number #77, so perhaps I was destined to have a great race day after all?

I knew the water was going to be warm for the swim. I did not quite expect it to resemble one of those mochas I've been living on as of late. Absolutely could not see anything in the water. Another swimmer and I kept bumping into each other. Upon exiting the water, I felt like I had a decent swim, but upon review of my time, my pace was the slowest in over 2 years. Perhaps due to the warm water and lack of wetsuit?

The bike course surprised me. I was expecting some horrid death climb which would cause me to regret bringing my tri bike versus my road bike. The course was a bit challenging, yes, but not nearly as bad as I expected. I was left in the dust by both Kari and Matt (damn, they're fast) and kept Holly in my sights for a majority of the time until the last 1/4 or so of the course. I passed a handful of Z'ers myself, saying hi, as it is always fantastic to see a friendly face out there.

I started out the run slowly as I attempted to get my legs underneath me. The run course had a tough reputation as well, and being unfamiliar with the route, I played it safe. The course was out-and-back, however, and upon the turn-around I asked myself, "was that it?" Yes, maybe a tough hill here and there, but certainly nothing compared to Columbia. The out/back format allowed for plenty of opportunities to cheer on fellow teammates. I believe I negative split the run, but I have no way to verify.

It felt good to finish strong. My bike pace was about average for me, better if the course was actually 16 miles as many think. My run pace was my fastest triathlon race pace in two years!

Congratulations to the many Team Z'rs in their first triathlon. Simply put, it was great to see you out there and enjoy the experience with you.

Next up- Annapolis....

(Thanks to Dan Hicok Photography for all the great shots!)

Ironman Tidbits

While I was up in Lake Placid for the race a couple of weeks ago, a newsletter they handed out was discussing the dedication and training required of Ironman triathletes. It referenced a study performed by the WTC (World Triathlon Corporation). The study "showed that the average Ironman triathlete spends 18-24 hours training for Ironman Hawaii. A typical week includes seven miles of swimming, 225 miles of biking, and 48 miles of running." My friends and I were all in disbelief. The "average" athlete? For a "typical week"? We're not even sure if we did that level of intensity during our toughest training week.

From my last Ironman go around, Coach Ed calculated we swam 170 miles, biked 4,250 miles, and ran 1,225 miles total over the course of our training. Hmm. I'm not sure what his start and finish dates were from those numbers and they were likely determined from our training schedules. As a result, I've elected to post a table off to the side of my blog to keep track of the mileage to date. And once I become a little more proficient at HTML programming, I'd like to add a second table showing my amount of nutrition to date (i.e., gallons of Accelerade sports drink, number of gels...)

I had once read in an article in the local Bellingham, WA sports magazine (where my mom lives) that Bellingham boasted the most Ironman finishers per capita than any other city in the U.S. Interesting. I decided to compare numbers against Arlington, VA, where I live. I counted the number of Ironman finishers (repeat finishers only count once), based on the results listed in NAS, which keeps track of all North American Ironman races (to include Canada, but not Hawaii). I also only based my calculations on the hometown listed in the results themselves. In other words, I know of a couple of other Ironman finishers who live in Arlington but their hometown was listed elsewhere in the results, so they were not counted, as potentially the same situation exists for Bellingham. Anyway, I found that 0.06% of Bellingham's population are Ironman finishers, whereas 0.04% of Arlington's are. Higher, yes, but based on the article, I would have thought that Bellingham's numbers were higher than that. It did appear, though, that Bellingham had far more repeat finishers (again, finishers were only counted once) than Arlington.

Read about Ironman history at http://www.ironman.com/mediacenter/history/ironman-triathlon-world-championship

Any other tidbits? Please feel free to post your comments.

I'm in for Ironman USA (Lake Placid) 2008

This past weekend was the Ironman in Lake Placid. Alisa did absolutely amazing! Several of us rode the bike course (1 loop) on Saturday. Riding the course brought back many memories from one year ago, both good and bad. Overall, I had a fantastic ride. After debating the last several weeks, I elected to commit to training and racing for next year's Ironman. It looks as though I will have an amazing group of people to train with. There are many reasons for electing to go about it again, but the bottom line is I'm doing it for myself.
Registration in person was bright and early Monday morning. After hitting the sack post-race Sunday night (well, really early Monday morning) at 1am, I drove over to the registration line with Chris and Stacy, arriving in line at about 5:45 am. As it was, we were about 50th in line. Here's several pictures from registration, including a pic of Ed cooking breakfast for us. Yeah!

Rocky Gap Xterra (Off-Road Triathlon) Race Report

For my July race, I opted to do something a little different and make a return to Rocky Gap State Park for EX2's off-road triathlon. My overall goals for the race including (1) finish, (2) avoid injury, and (3) have fun. I succeeded in all three.

Due to various reasons, I was unable to make it to the race venue the day prior and elected to go up morning of. I had ridden the course before, 2 years ago, and the race was truly meant solely for fun, so no biggie. I knew of no one else participating in the race, other than some familiar names on the race roster. However, I love EX2's races (always fabulous schwag) and was determined to fulfil my fat tire fix.

I was delighted to discover two fellow Team Z'ers, Dave & Kathy Lett, as I set up. Kathy was racing; Dave was cheering. As they're both new to Team Z, I hadn't prior had much opportunity to speak to them, so seeing them there was a pleasant surprise. They introduced me to their friends and fellow racers. And soon it was time to enter the corral to get "counted" and begin the race.

This race is my only experience with Xterra, but the swim is nothing but a typical triathlon swim. I have done two-loop swims in races before, but generally that means a quick run out-run in, lasting just a few seconds. In this one, there's a good 1/4 mile run, over a hill, between the two swim loops. This was my first race swim since my poor experience at Columbia, so I was truly delighted to have a pleasant, relaxed swim, despite the HR skyrocking between swim loops. Ooops.

Naturally, the bike was next. The course is billed as "semi-technical". I think that's based on the overall "average" of the course. It's a two-loop course, about each loop a little under 9 miles. Now, part of it is asphalt, part of it is semi-technical singletrack, and part of it is downright hard. In support of goal #2 (avoid injury), I played it conservatively on the ride. I joked around with Brian McKnight (one of the photographers who always seems to be in just the right location) and fellow racers. On my first attempt up Evitt's Revenge, the race leaders zipped up the hill effortlessly past me. Oh well.

On the second loop, the strangest thing happened to me yet in a race: I lost the soles to both of my mountain bike shoes. Early on in the second loop, I noted that the sole of my right shoe was flopping around. I thought not much of it under I unclipped from my pedals (again in support of goal #2) and the entire thing just peeled off all together. Unsure quite what to do with the thing, I chucked it on the side of the trail. (Generally I try to adhere to the rules and only throw trash in view of aid stations.) Without a cleat, or rather without an entire shoe bottom, I wound up having to pedal with essentially only a sock on my right foot. Not too comfortable with clipless pedals. Oh well, I continued on in support of goal #1 (finish). The situation was not a show stopper.

I continued on, and to my surprise, a mile or two up the trail, my left shoe sole peeled off! Huh? At least this time, the sole stayed clipped into the pedal, so I was able to utilize it as a platform of sorts.

I showed my situation to fellow racers along the course as we chit-chat and joked. A few times I had to drag my bike across the challenging terrain, resulting in my rear tire getting dislodged at one point. As I fixed it, I somehow got my chain all twisted and could not help but laugh and received help thanks to a NV Racing member.

My bike was thrashed by the time I finished the bike leg. My bike could have used a tune-up before; it definitely needs one now.

All right. Time to run. The run leg is 5 miles and it truly is a technical run. It's not a matter of a simple dirt trail in the park. The run requires mental alertness as a misstep can result in bodily harm. (Recall goal #2- avoid injury.) I went along with ease, passing several people (ok, we were all in the back-of-the-pack, but I was glad that I was racing with relative discipline) along the trail. My one complaint about the race: lack of aid stations on the run. The heat of the day was rapidly rising and our first run aid station did not come until over 2 miles into the run. I was absolutely desperate for fluids upon arrival and immediately downed 3 cups of Gatorade. I recalled in my previous race I was able to take a bottle of Gatorade with me, but they were unable to support that request this go-around.

Along the way, I chit-chat with a gentleman who was lamenting that his son had finished the race as he started the run loop. His son is my age (and a fellow Ironman finisher) and I encouraged him (at least I hope I did) as we reached Evitt's Revenge for the third time (twice on the bike, once on the run). I don't forsee getting my dad to do a triathlon with me anytime soon! Let alone an Xterra!

The run loop is essentially over at the end of the Evitt Mountain Homeside Trail, with a climb on all fours. There is then a 1-mile run along the road to the finish.

Kathy finished the race placing 4th in our age group. Congratulations to her. Me? I think 10th out of 12. Oh well. I refer again to my race goals. I succeeded in all three.

Visit to Chicago

Time for a little break from triathlon... I spent the long 4th of July weekend visiting the family in Chicago. I was actually able to drag my dad to the city (he HATES the city) for some daddy-daughter time eating our way at the Taste of Chicago. He was amazingly thrilled to enjoy the city from a tourist point-of-view and looks forward to doing so again. Additionally, I was there for my cousin's Keith's wedding (Mom's side of family). Here we all are (well, minus bride and groom). Yes, I do wear something besides running/biking/swim clothes... once in a while.

My Columbia Triathlon Race Report - 1.5K swim, 40K bike, 10K run

May 20, 2007


And so, my spring “A” race…

I had high expectations of this race, in retrospect too high. Deep down, I secretly knew that my day wouldn’t be as perfect as I had hoped. I had negative factors against my control. For one, the frequent travel to New Orleans, with a visit as recently as two days before the race. And two, it’s allergy season, with differing allergens in the mid-Atlantic and the Deep South. Nevertheless, I had dreams of breaking 3 hours.

I struggled a lot with the swim. In fact, it was my toughest tri swim since I started seeing Coach Ed over 2 years ago. Almost from the get-go, I was nauseous in the water. What was it? Was it the Gu I had just prior to race start? Was it the taste/smell of the water? None of it seemed to add up. I flailed about, panicking in the water. I wound up swimming on my back for a good part of the race, trying from time-to-time to flip back onto my belly (after all this was my “A” race and I wanted to go faster) but every time I put my face in the water, I nearly vomited. I eventually was able to flip onto my belly and stay there for the last third or so of the race, but with a struggle. Talking to my mom later, knowing I’m a terrible spring allergy sufferer, she asked if my ears were plugged. Indeed they were, for the entire race. She believes as a result, my equilibrium was thrown off. It sounds as logical as anything, so I’ll go with it. Anyway, in reviewing my swim times through my triathlon career, despite my struggle, I had my fastest pace in a tri swim yet!

For the bike, I erred on the conservative side in an attempt to keep the legs fresh for the run. In hindsight, I was almost too conservative. During the ride, the roads were a little slick and traffic was not considerate. I had one car run me off the road. For the most part though, I did enjoy my ride, seeing Tracey, Joanna, Linda, Monica, Meagan (who zipped by me despite a crash and a flat), and Shannon (as well as the Team Z men heading in) out there. Seeing fellow Team Z’ers is always a relief. Next time, I’ll be more aggressive on the bike, especially since I’m making vast improvements climbing hills.

Ah, the run. I’m not the best hill runner, mostly due to problematic knees. The knees have not been bothering me as of late (knock on wood), but I wasn’t quite ready to let it all out and risk injury either. I ran a good part of the 10K, walking the four or so tough hills. The best part was the course out/back sections, an opportunity to high 5 fellow Z’ers. I was pretty satisfied with my run, with a very strong finish.

My finish time was 3:19 and some change, a disappointment for not breaking 3 hours, but I believe that sub-3 was too lofty of a goal all things considered. I was absolutely wiped afterwards. The travel, the allergies, and the race were just about too much for my body to handle.

Of course, the absolute best part of the day was seeing friendly faces out on the course and on the sidelines. I love sharing in everyone’s personal victories! I apologize to anyone if I came across as cranky post-race. Now that I’ve had some time to relax and reflect, I am very proud of what I did. What we all did. It’s sometimes too easy to forget how few people actually do triathlons and just finishing one is an accomplishment in itself.

A road ride or cyclocross?

Ah, an absolutely beautiful day to ride! Today's 50-miler (ok, really 48 miles) called for a ride in Southern Maryland, with views of the Chesapeake Bay. We rode there in early spring and today's return was much better weather.
A small crowd showed at the ride, with the recently indoctrinated Ironman finishers taking a much needed break. That meant a low showing for the AngelZ. (Although Angel Alisa did not race Coeur d'Alene last weekend, she's presently in Lake Placid previewing the course and doing her last mega-workout before tapering for her race.)
So, Angel Carol and I represented, gaining honorary Angel Carrie for the ride. A nice leisurely pace. Ken Wagner joined us for part of the ride. He's typically a much slower rider, but today was his debut using clipless pedals and he wound up surprising everyone (including himself) by whipping ass and eventually leaving us in the dust.
We had lovely beach views of the Chesapeake, some eye candy as other road riders were out there, and a mini-adventure. Shortly after the midway point, we came across some road construction. With no known detours, we attempted to ride through it. However, there were barricades to climb over and around, grass to tiptoe through, and the general road construction debris. This all required some carrying of the bikes. Hence, it was beginning to resemble a cyclocross race. Hmmmm.
This upcoming week is a recovery week. I'm doing a 5K on the 4th of July. I was hoping to kick some bootie in my last 5K and that didn't happen, so we'll see how this one goes. Then I'm off to Chicago for a 5-day weekend to hang with the family.
Oh, by the way, yesterday, Helen and I ventured out toward our regular riding area, this time wearing actual girlish clothes vs bike gear, and went to visit her wedding venue and then went wine tasting. She marveled at the wonderful wineries in the area and wondered why she hadn't visited before. (I've been known to cap off the end of a training ride with a winery visit. Yeah!) I may have found a new partner in crime for post-ride libations!

Back from CDA

Wow... what a weekend! Am I ready to sign up for next year's Ironman in Lake Placid? Not quite yet.
Anyway, after visiting with Mom and being a tourist in Seattle, Alisa and I headed across the mountains to drive across Washington and into Coeur d'Alene. What a beautiful drive! We got acquainted with CDA, saw some of the Team Z peeps, and went to our volunteer meeting. She and I were slated to work bike transition. Saturday evening ran late with the pre-race dinner, followed by Team Z support planning, and finishing off with chalking the bike course. (And chalking the course proved to be wasted effort, as it was all smeared by the time they actually raced the course, but our good intentions were there.)
Race day started early naturally, and we were all suprised with just how light it was by 4:30. A concern was the water. The water had been choppy and on race day it had up to 4' waves. They even offered a duathlon option to racers, basically cutting out the swim leg (no run in lieu of swim). It looked like 200 or 300 people opted to do skip the swim, but I'm not sure how that affected their results.
Anyway, working bike transition was a lot of fun. The transition area was too tight to deliver bikes to races, but we were able to direct people around and see all of our Team Z racers come into transition and cheer them on. One cool thing, is we checked all the bike tires while the racers were swimming in the water for flats. We found a total of about 6 flat tires. Alisa found one where the tire itself was partly off the rim, getting caught in the brake. We brought the problem bikes to the mechanic, who fixed them, and we returned the bikes. The racers never knew they had a problem with the bike. It was like we were mysterious in the night.
After everyone was on the bike, Alisa and I grabbed a bite to eat at the Team Z tent and then headed out for a long run. I cut my run a little short though, maybe 8 miles (plan was to run 10), as my knees are beginning to act up again. UG!!! Note to self- give knees some TLC!
The team tent was in a fabulous location, where the racers biked past us 4 times and ran past us 3 times. Very spectator friendly.
Members from our team finished one by one, starting with 59-yr-old stud, Chris Wren. As time wore on, the sun set, and the course got lonely. The AngelZ were out still racing. I walked out onto the run course to seek out Helen as Siri gave me word that she was throwing up and her spirits were flat. I found Helen, who had improved, and walked with her and Linda for a while to try and give them a boost. I knew they'd wind up finishing close to midnight.
As midnight approched, I headed toward the finish line to wait. It began to lightly rain and get cold and windy. I cried when I saw Helen and Linda finish together.
Absolutely inspiring.
The funniest story from the weekend was from Michael Warwick. I don't know him well, and I believe this weekend was the first time I've chatted with him. He's pretty cool. Anyway, at about mile 80 of the bike loop (out of 112), he experienced a major problem with his bike. I forgot what it was, but nevertheless, it was a race ending problem. Anyway, he hung out on the side of the road, waiting for the rescue wagon to come get him. A local guy out there cheering noticed Michael's picture of his daughter on his bike and they began to chat. The guy mentioned he had this old bike around the house and Michael would be welcome to use it. He accepted the offer. Out comes this dusty old lime green bike. It had one water bottle cage and needed air in the tires. They did some quick repairs to the bike and Michael was on his way. He actually finished the entire race. Anyway, he was on a mission yesterday to try and retrieve his bike from the mystery local guy. I hope he was successful.
And so yesterday, Alisa and I headed back to the west side of Washington. We nearly ran out of gas though. We stopped for lunch in Ellensburg, on the east side of the Cascades. I noted we were at 1/4 tank and made a mental note to fill up after lunch. That slipped my mind as we left Ellensburg. Going into the Cascades is quite remote. After all, the interstate runs through the Wenachee and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forests. Not exactly towns along the way. We make it through Snoqualmie Pass and I finally look at the gas gauge and see it's BELOW E, with the warning light brightly shining. Oh no. I had no idea how long it was on. Luckily, though, we were through the pass and were decending. Alisa was half asleep and seemed unworried, as she said she'd just get out her sleeping bag and sleep on the side of the road. As for me, we were in the middle of NOWHERE... in the mountains.... with little cell phone service! Ok, so I wondered how long we could decend. I saw a sign for the next town, 12 miles away. There's no way we'd make it. I mean, we were BELOW E. And then a miracle occurred... a gas station! We actually made it to fill up! We were saved! So, second note to self... check gas gage twice before driving through the mountains!
Fun weekend. Back to reality though. Time to hit the bike.

One week to the Ironman in Coeur d'Alene

Ah, it's one week to the Ironman in Coeur d'Alene. I'm not racing it, but I'll be on the sidelines cheering my heart out. I'm so proud of the 30 people from Team Z who are participating, and especially excited for those I've become very close to.

This picture is from this week's happy hour. I mostly posted it for my buddy McKinney from New Orleans. He was grumbling at me that I've become some far-too-serious triathlete, and that I never drink beer anymore. That couldn't be further from the truth! (Shame on me!) Anyway, so from left is Helen, Alisa, Trusty Mark (who's very camera shy but seems to be happy here), EB, Joanna, and me... with beer in hand.

My boo-boos from my mountain bike crash are healing, but mentally, I'm still off. I hit the mountain bike singletrack this morning and my radar is off. Hmmm... better get on track soon!

I leave for the Pacific NW on Wednesday, out to spend a couple days with Mom in Bellingham, then hit Seattle, and then road trip to Coeur d'Alene with Alisa to watch the race. On the way back, we're hitting Eastern WA wine country. Yippie! I'm very excited for the trip!

Getting to reacquaint myself with the mountain bike

Ahhh... the mountain bike. It's been a while since I've been on it, last October in fact when I did an adventure race with Tes. I figured it was about time that I get on the darn thing, since I'm doing an off-road triathlon in a month.

Now, mountain biking is truly my first love. I used to actually HATE my road bike. I had one, but only went on it when mountain bike conditions didn't prevail. When I started biking in Louisiana, road biking was monotonous and just plain work. Sure, I did my first century (100-mile bike ride) while I was still living there, only to prove something to myself, and swore up and down I'd never do it again. (I guess I ate my words a few years later.)

Anyway, back to this evening. My ride was first postponed due to severe thunderstorms. After the storm passed, I headed home and decided to do an urban assault (ride around down vs the trails due to lack of light and possibly wrecking the trail due to the rain and potential ruts). I should have known that karma wouldn't play in my favor. Prior to the ride, I had a flat front tire. I began to change it, but as I inflated it, I discovered a pinch flat and immediately wound up blowing the tube with explosive force. BOOM! (I think I woke the neighborhood.) Ok, that was my only spare. But, I was determined. I found that my original tube wasn't damaged, just flat and was still usable. So, I rechanged the tire back with my original tube. Then I inflated my rear tire only to discover that my valve was broken. I quickly placed on the valve cap, figuring it would hold air long enough for me to get in a ride this evening.

Not five minutes into my ride, when I decided, now or never, time to jump the curb. Needless to say, I misjudged the timing on my bunny hop and BOOM! This time it was my body hitting the pavement. #!$^^&#$. Injuries are minor... just scrapes to the knee and elbow, but they sting like heck. Check me out post ride. (Socrates, my cat, wanted to get in the picture too.)

So, what's with me and flats these days? My new road bike, Zorra the Explorer, has had 5 flats on her rear in the last month! I think I've finally resolved the problem, but if I get another flat, she's going into Conte's bike shop for a little check-up.

Anyway, so back to mountain bike crashes. I've never crashed on my road bike (knock on wood), but I've had a couple of horrific mountain bike crashes! As a bonus (and amusement), I thought I'd include a picture after my worst crash. In June 2002, David (boyfriend at the time) and I went for a mountain biking/camping weekend in Desoto State Forest in Southern Mississippi. I was a new mountain biker at the time and shortly after the start of our ride on day 2, I got a little brave and tried to go over an obstacle. I wound up flying over my handlebars and landing square on my face. I chipped 4 teeth and had a swollen nose. (We thought it was broken, since it was off-center, but it was just really swollen.) My mom asked me to take a picture of myself so she could see how awful I looked! So, now I'm sharing it with y'all.

Happy riding!

Just who are those AngelZ?

Ahhh... the AngelZ.... (we have the "Z" at the end to tribute to Team Z).... This picture is of most of us as we prep our Ironman AngelZ for their 120 mile bike ride and modeling off our jerseys!

The AngelZ started last year in preps for Ironman USA. Siri, Helen, Jessica, and Alex all routinely rode the long rides together and dubbed themselves Charlie's Angels, with Alex, the token male, being Charlie. From time to time, other riders would join the Angels on their missions. EB became an official Angel herself. Finally, after a long and tiring season in preps for the Ironman, I finally rode with Charlie's Angels on my 120 mile ride. Our ride started out on Skyline Drive (see Sky-Mass post from last season) and I heard them singing as we climbed the road to Dickey's Ridge. I spent the remainder of the long ride with them and wondered why I hadn't ridden with them earlier! They sing and dance (yes, it is possible to dance on a bike). After spending countless hours on a bicycle, riding with the AngelZ makes it so much more fun! Besides, when else is a good time to catch up with the girls on all the gossip around town? We surely don't have the time and energy to stay up into the wee hours chatting on the phone! So, we multitask as we ride our bikes.

We all stop and wait for another during those necessary potty breaks (and have had some serious bonding doing so), talk of roadkill, muse on upcoming weddings (both Helen and Jess are getting married), and offer each other advise.

And of course there's initiation! I'll leave out the gruesome details.

Lastly, we are always the LAST ones to finish off a ride. (Ok, there have been rare occasions where someone else has had a bad day and we weren't quite last, but as a rule of thumb, we're last.) Maybe we're just more disciplined in riding in our target heart rate zone than everyone else?

Let's get re-geared up!

Ah,

So, nearly a year has passed since I successfully completed my first Ironman triathlon. And now what? Soon after the race, I participated in a couple of short distance triathlons, just for fun. What was more crazy was doing my 10th marathon in the fall. You'll have to understand my reasoning, however. It was the Seattle Marathon. It's held over Thanksgiving weekend. I was heading that way anyway to visit my mom for the holiday (and my birthday!). Secondly, it was the one and only marathon where I had DNF (did not finish) after my name. I felt like I had unfinished business there and this was an opportunity to fix that.

I struggled quite a bit during the Seattle Marathon, as I found myself rather lazy post-Ironman. It was also difficult as work had temporarily relocated me to work in New Orleans. The first part of the race was fun and leisurely, but the notorious Seattle rain tore up my spirits the second half. My mom even bailed out on cheering me on. (Her reasons were highly understandable as it was beginning to snow. I-5 from Seattle to her home in Bellingham- 85 miles north- isn't well-equiped for snow. She wasn't quite keen on getting stranded.) Anyway, during the race, freezing rain and snow fell. Erg. But I was FINISHING! I can be so stubborn. I was very thankful for the hotel hottub and sauna after the race.

Now I find myself truly getting back into shape. I have done two triathlons thus far this season. (I'll post the race reports shortly.) And I have several more races on my schedule.

Will I do another Ironman? Hmmm.... After last year's race, I swore up and down that I had nothing to prove to myself, that I wanted to engage in other things, etc. etc. I went to watch Ironman Florida in November. A couple of Team Z triathletes were doing it, and since I was in New Orleans (a 5 hour drive away) I decided to go and support. Being there, the Ironman bug was slightly woken up inside of me. And now I see my fellow Team Z members getting ready for Ironman Couer d'Alene. I've done the bike rides and runs with my fellow Angels (I can explain the Angels in another post), granted at much shorter distances, but even as they went longer, I'd be with them in spirit or in a car to support. I am heading out to cheer them on later this month at the race. Then next month, I'm returning to Lake Placid to cheer and volunteer at the Ironman there. Several members of Team Z will sign up for next year's Ironman at Lake Placid. I fear that I may get caught up in all the excitement and sign up too.

The Big Weekend

Well, I finished. In 16:41. Yes, 16 hours and 41 of moving. A long day. But I finished. And I couldn't be happier.

Part I - Pre Race

Ryan and I headed up to Lake Placid via a few necessary errands on Thursday. We made the drive in surprising time: only 8 hours, arriving in time to join my teammates for dinner. Team Z headquarters was located at the Rock and River Climbing Lodge in Keene, about 10 miles outside of Lake Placid. It was fantastic to be able to have run of the place, sort of our own Team Z oasis.

Anyway, we headed out to dinner where I was able to dine on fantastic pork tenderloin. Impressive. After a great meal and long drive to upstate NY, it didn't take long for either of us to crash. Ryan was originally going to camp on the opposite side of town, but with difficult logistics and such he wound up just crashing in my and Tes' room.

Friday morning we woke for a relaxing swim workout. Upon arriving in Lake Placid, the town was electric. Mirror Lake was filled with other swimmers. I swam one loop of the course and felt rather relaxed. No problem. Then it was time to take care of packet pick-up, lunch, and then meeting Mom. After all was said and done, Ryan and I headed back to the R & R for a good night's sleep.

Saturday was simple. Just a short swim, short bike, and short run, each lasting no more than 5 or 10 minutes. Fantastic. It was then time to dump off my gear and bike and head on back to the R & R for our pre-race feast. And it started to rain. I thought to myself, no problem; get the rain out of its system. However, the rain seemed endless. I worried about my bike and gear getting soaked, but then again, it was out of my control. Nothing was going to stop me. Deal with it and move on.

Friends and family were abound for our pre-race feast. Siri developed a beautiful slide show showing pictures from the past year which brought laughter and tears. And Ed gave his pre-race chat about the development of Team Z. He reflected on some of the moments this past year and began to shed some tears. I could not help but shed some tears myself. I was rather jittery, however. I mean, I loved having the support of friends, family, and Team Z there to support us, but I think there came a point where I just needed some quiet time to myself. I quickly retreated. My racing teammates and I shared a traditional pre-race brew alone, shared a few short stories, and then it was time for bed.

Part II - The Big Day

I awoke at 3am after a rather restless sleep. I had wild dreams about the Ironman. Yet, at the same time, it hadn't quite struck me yet what I was about to embark on. I got myself ready and soon we were out the door.

And it was still raining. All I could do was hope for the best. I couldn't control the weather. All I could control was how I reacted to the weather. I got body marked, checked my gear, put air in my tires, and headed to the Team Z tent to take a deep breath.

About 1/2 hour prior to the race I began to panic. My mom had yet to arrive and Ryan had yet to return from the R & R after an emergency retrieval of Justin's wetsuit. I was overcome with emotion. I mean, I knew my mom would arrive (which she did) and was glad Ryan was there to help and knew he was on his way back, but I simply could not help myself. I think what I was about to embark upon suddenly came crashing down on me at once. What? What? I need to get my wetsuit on? I need to cross the timing mat? I need to get in the water? I entered with Betsy and Brian and finally was able to tune everything else out and relax.

The canon went off and we were off. I felt surprisingly relaxed in the water. I had the usual bumping the water and was once pushed fully under (and managed to stop short of taking a big gulp of water), but it did not seem to bother me. I was in some strange zone. Tuning everything else out. I finished the two loops and quickly saw Ed, Kerri, and Matt (who was filming). I joked with Ed that I wasn't the last one out of the water and he replied, "No kidding! Look at your time!" I had expected to finish the swim in about 1:45, but managed to exit the water after 1:26. Wow. I was rather thrilled.

It's a little distance from the lake to the transition area. My wetsuit was peeled off and I went down the corral, excited to see Team Z supporters along the way. I saw Ryan and gave him a hug, just thrilled to see him. He laughed and told me to get on my way.

All right: T1. I changed clothes and shared some laughs with my teammates and prepped to head on the bike. The rain had stopped (although the roads were wet) and was on a high. I felt fantastic during the first bike loop. I flew down the hill into Keene and cruised along the Ausable River. I felt strong... Perhaps too strong. Along the river I was moving at about 20 mph, which in hindsight may have been my first mistake. But at the time, I was not thinking about that. I also was not thinking about the fact that I was primarily consuming water instead of Gatorade. The thought of drinking Gatorade simply did not appeal to me. I just wanted to drink cool clean fresh water. Water never tasted so good. Mistake #2.

Nevertheless, I cruised along. I caught up with Helen about 1/3 or so into the first loop. We were happy to see one another and began to sing songs, leapfrogging back and forth to keep each other company. As we climbed along Whiteface Mountain, we took pictures and had a great time. I once again saw Ed, Kerri, and Matt and Ed commented just how strong I looked. I felt strong. In fact, I almost felt invincible. Helen and I finished our first loop, stopping at special needs. Then we passed by Team Z HQ, through town, and I just felt alive.

However, my high quickly disappeared. Departing town felt lonely. Only 5 miles into the second loop. I pushed along, slowly. Helen was still strong, so she had left me. I simply felt alone. I pushed along, knowing the downhill into Keene would be coming along shortly, giving me new life. As the downhill arrived, I had a sense of relief. A chance to rest. I did not dive down the hill, allowing gravity to do all the work, only pedaling here and there to avoid cramping.

Luckily, the break did give me some new life. However, I shortly began feel down and out once again. I began to cry, wondering why I had decided to do this. I reminded myself why. Because I can. I stopped crying as quickly as I had started, not allowing myself to become disconnected. I saw Doug, Mary Lou, and Robin along the course, running. The company was much welcomed.

Departing Jay, heading into Wilmington, was tough. I saw Susan (and I do not remember who else) and was suffering. I mean, there was no way I was going to quit. I did not train all year, bring my mom and Ryan out there, and invest so much of my life to just quit the race. But I was struggling.

Approaching the out and back in Wilmington helped. It helped a lot. There was a huge Team Z crowd on the corner. I fed off their energy. Seeing other Team Zers on the out and back was fantastic. I no longer felt alone. I was so proud to be part of our team as strangers approached me with positive comments about our team. I stopped in the port-a-potty (I was having some "issues" to put it nicely) and came back to life. I also realized my need for Gatorade. (I had not had any since my initial bottle several hours earlier.) I got some new wind in my lungs. I exited the out and back once again seeing Team Z non-racers and supporters feeling a lot better.

I knew for sure at that point I'd finish the second loop. I enjoyed the scenery heading back toward Lake Placid. And then my bad right knee began to fail me. I was forced to pedal, pedal, pedal, then coast, coast, coast. I would coast until I lost momentum. Then I would repeat. Pedal, pedal, pedal.... coast, coast, coast. I saw some people cheering along the sidelines and asked the time. It was 3:58pm and I had 11 miles left in the loop. No problem. I'd make the cutoff.

I was thrilled to return into town and get off the bike. I have never wanted to get off my bike more. Siri quickly joined me in the transition area. We shared some quick bike stories and were ready to head out on the run. We had over 7 hours to do our marathon. I recalled that I once had to walk all but the first 3 miles of the New Mexico Marathon, due to knee injury (surprise, surprise) and that took me 6:40. I could do a marathon in under 7 hours. Even if I had to walk most the way.

I ran in short spurts, starting at 15 seconds each, working my way up to a minute. I'd run for short spurts, then walk. The out and back run course helped as I saw Team Zers every few minutes. I was near a man named Lyle, who was 75 (!)- the only one in his age group- who asked me three different times whether or not we'd finish the race. After the third time, his questioning began to mess with my head. I purposely distanced myself from him. I mean, naturally I was impressed that he was out there, but all the same I was not in the mood to deal with his questioning. I knew I had come this far. No way was I going to stop and not finish. No way.

Finishing my first loop was difficult. Several people were finishing and people along the sidelines said to me, "Way to finish strong". I shook my head and said I was only on my first loop. Many recoiled and said, "Oh, we'll still be out here." It was tough. Tough to head out on that second loop. I continued to scoot along. Near an aid station, I saw Susan along the side (who was on bike), with her back to the course. I called out to her and when she moved away, I saw Bill, sitting, wrapped in a space blanket. My heart began to sank. I had already guessed that Pam got pulled from the bike course. It just broke my heart. (I later saw Pam, who despite getting pulled from the bike course, ran anyway to support us, and heard that Bill cheered for finishers. I am not sure I could have done the same. I am very impressed by both of them.)

I continued along as the sun began to fade away. Soon it was dark. And almost scary. Some runners were spooked by the blackness and simply began to run out of fear. There were lights about every 1/2 mile, but for the most part, all I could see were the glowstick necklaces draped around racers' necks. And then the rain returned. It was dark. It was raining. And I could hear the finish line announcer. But I still had a good 6-8 miles to go. A man in a truck pulled up along side of me and offered me a long sleeved shirt. I gratefully accepted it. I was so cold and wet and miserable. Soon thereafter, I approached the aid station giving away space blankets. I wrapped myself in the blanket, using it as a rain jacket. I just wanted to get to the finish line.

Determination kept my feet moving forward. I was greeted by Pam who had amazing energy. I appreciated her enthusiasm, but was not much up for talking. In fact, I hadn't said much to other Team Zers for a while, just simply waving as they went by. I felt like I did not have the strength to speak. Later on, many of them commented that I seemed spacey and had concerns about my condition. As we came back into town, I saw Ari on his bike. I was grateful to see him, and in many ways impressed that he was out there on his bike, in the rain, just to see us. See if we were ok. I asked for him to spend some moments with me. He did, but then went on, as EB was behind me. He needed to check on her too.

I came back into town, and before heading back on the last short out and back, I was greeted by my mom and Ryan. My mom was thrilled to see me, excited like I've never seen her before. And Ryan decided to spend those last couple miles with me. He encouraged me to move on, got me to run a little (and he actually ran faster than me, wearing flip flops), and kept me moving.

Finishing the out and back, my mom joined us and the three of us entered the speedskating oval. The area was on fire. I had a sudden surge of energy and found myself running. The entire crowd was cheering. I crossed the finish line in 16:41. And could not have been happier.

I was greeted by Ed, who could not have been more proud. And Jill was working the finish line.

OK. So crossed the finish line, got my medal, took pictures, yadda, yadda, yadda. I wanted to go back and see the rest of the finishers come in. I didn't want to go medical. I didn't want to eat food. I wanted to go and watch the finish line. Oh no. Had to go to medical. Ryan and Jill walked me in. During the race, I actually gained weight. There was a 6 lb difference between my pre- and post-race weights. Now, part of it was due to differences in scales, part of it was due to wearing wet shoes (I initially weighed myself without shoes), but 6 pounds? Medical was a little concerned. I shook it off, simply wanting to get back outside and cheer people in. Ryan went to get me pizza. OK. Pizza sounded good. I sat down with Ed and Ryan and my mom (who left shortly thereafter) and ate pizza. I was a little chatterbox. In many ways, I acted like no big deal. I was more excited to hear about others than worry about my own self. I asked Ed how other Team Zers fared.

Midnight passed, and it was time to pack up and go home. I wanted a beer (but only drank about 3 sips) and Ryan drove us all home. By the time we got back to the R & R, all I wanted was a hot shower and to go to bed. I showered, dressed in my pajamas, and then began to shiver. Uncontrollably. I began to head toward my bed, thinking I'd simply warm up once I hit the covers. Tes would not let me. She insisted on drying my hair and Ryan insisted I put on fleece. I put on Tes' ski hat and wool socks. Ryan brought me some tea. I felt a little better, warming up. I talked with Ryan, but apparently was not making much sense. I talked like a child, in incomplete sentences. Ryan grew concerned. He went to get Pam. I seemed to be making sense to my own self. I just wanted to go to bed and was wondering what all the fuss was about. Pam took a quick look at me and said we were going to the ER. What? Why? I was tired. Very tired. Finally, I gave in and agreed to go. Did I have a choice? I think seeing Ryan's grave concern about me made me realize this was serious.

Ryan grabbed Susan (we were way low on gas) for a ride and the four of us were off. We got to the ER and Pam did most of the talking. I was too tired and out of it to say much. I still did not believe anything was wrong with me other than just pure exhaustion. The medical staff took my blood, hooked me up to an IV, and I was fast asleep.

I woke the next morning about 5:30 and then met up with Susan, Pam, and Ryan, who were camped out in another room. And then I was released.

Apparently I suffered from hyponatremia from the lack of Gatorade, which resulted in the weight gain and a potassium imbalance. Lesson learned there. I am glad that my friends took care of me.

I had not realized what I accomplished on Sunday until writing this. What a tough, yet amazing day. Will I ever do another? I don't know. Never say never. I am glad that I am now an Ironman finisher. No one can take that away from me. I am grateful that I got to share the experience with my team, one of my best friends, and my mom.

I wound up raising $600 for the American Heart Association. I am forever changed by the experiences I have had over the past year. I am glad I did it. And now it is time for rest.

One Week from Today

Wow. It's 7:15pm eastern time, and to just think that exactly one week from right now, I'll be in the midst of my first Ironman. I'll be somewhere along the run, likely experiencing the highest highs and the lowest lows of my life. Wondering why I am putting my body through arguably the toughest endurance event in existence, yet at the same time thriving off the energy of the day and amazed that I CAN put myself through the toughest endurance event in existence.
I leave on Thursday. Team Z and I are staying at the Rock and River Lodge, located in Keene, about 10 miles outside of Lake Placid. I'm glad we are staying close enough, yet far enough from the action. Knowing myself, I will have the nerves running wild upon my arrival. I almost will be surprised if I do NOT throw up beforehand. (I get pre-race butterflies very easily.)
Naturally I'm aware of every ache and pain my body is experiencing at the moment. I woke this past Thursday with knee pain (even at rest) in my bad right knee. ???? I have been giving it extra love and our unofficial Team Z physical therapist, Kerri, spent some time with me this morning. Seems I have a minor case of tendonitis. She showed me some emergency repairs and believes I'll get through the Ironman just fine (partly due to the therapy, partly due to adrenaline).
It's hard not to be emotional about the entire thing. Coach Ed shared his thoughts with us, sending a late night email last night. Siri shared hers after the bike ride this morning. And naturally, we've all been chatting amongst each other. We can see it in each other's eyes. The excitement. The nerves. I've shared something with 22 other people that I simply cannot describe. And it's not just the 22 others who are doing the Ironman with me next Sunday. It's our entire Team. We will paint Lake Placid in Team Z green.
For the longest time, I thought that after I completed the Ironman, I'd take a break from Team Z. Now granted, I'm looking forward to the opportunity to do some "other" things... hike, kayak, be a tourist in my own town, that sort of thing. I'll even perhaps be out past 10pm on a Saturday night? But, I won't be able to take a break from Team Z. They are my friends, my teammates, my confidants, my network. We've cried together, laughed together, seen each other at our worst and seen each other at our best.
One Week from Today.

Diamond in the Rough Duathlon

Ah yes, the Diamond in the Rough. Now, the race was intended to be a triathlon. Due to the recent flooding in the Susquehanna watershed (the swim is in the Susquehanna River), high bacteria levels in the water precluded the race director from allowing the swim. Disappointing, yes, but better than winding up with some awful disease, especially two weeks before the Ironman.
So, now the race was a duathlon. Erg. My motivation for signing up for the race was to practice open water swimming and my T1 (swim-to-bike transition). I was still there to have fun, though, and triathlon or duathlon, I was still with Team Z and ready for a great day.
As we hung out pre-race at our tent, I prepped for run #1. I looked at my running shoes and noted something was amiss. I wasn't quite awake yet as I stared at my shoes for a minute or two, perplexed. I had two right shoes with me. OK. Now what? I contemplated my options. Just walk the run portions in my Tevas? Forgo the race? It was suggested to borrow a pair from teammate Mere, as she's not able to run these days due to injury. (If anyone was disappointed about canceling the swim, it was she. She was all set to kick booty in a relay.)
Mere and I wear about the same shoe size. They seemed to be a wee bit big, but considering my alternatives, I figure I'd make do.
And we were off. The first run was fun and easy. It was billed as a 5K, but turned out to be more like 2.5 miles.
Then the bike. I had forgotten how much I enjoy the DITR bike course. It has some rolling hills, goes along the river, nice and scenic. I took it a little easy on the bike, being a "training" race and all (and knew I had a 40 mile bike ride scheduled for the following day). I felt fabulous on the bike. I decided early on to walk up the steep sections of the challenging climb at mile 21 to avoid thrashing my legs. Besides, I'm still learning how to handle my tri bike (one of the reasons why I'm using my road bike during the Ironman). I had a decent bike time considering the relaxed pace. I was about 5 minutes slower than my bike time from my time at this race last year, and believe I would have easily beaten it had I pushed a little harder and rode the hill, rather than walk it.
Finally, it was run #2. Using Mere's shoes began to haunt me a little. My legs felt great coming off the bike, but my feet were not happy. I had trouble running on the pavement, so instead I ran a bit in the grass. I caught up with my teammate Adam, suffering from knee pain. Heck, rather than risk my own injury, what better opportunity than to have fun with Adam?
Adam and I sang and danced with the race volunteers. We cheered on other racers. It was fabulous. Approaching the finish line, our teammate Jill caught up to us. The three of us joined hands to run across the finish line together.
My first Ironman is in less than two weeks. Note to self--- make sure I bring a right AND a left shoe.

Longest Training Weekend

Well, this weekend we headed out to the George Washington Forest to celebrate the Team Z birthday with our longest scheduled training weekend, and of course, a little bit of socializing. After all, aren't we a social club with a triathlon problem?

Our Team Z slogan is "You'll Never Know... Unless You Tri". Now, it may sound a little clichéd to some. But I think I realized the true meaning of it this weekend.

I arrived Saturday morning ready for our long run. On the schedule was 20 miles (or 3 hours, whichever came sooner). After some logistical confusion, we finally started running about 10am. Naturally, perhaps the hottest weekend thus far this year happened to coincide with our longest training weekend of the year. Oh yeah. The run was on a fire road of sorts. Natural ground is nice, but whew! It was hilly. I ran with Durst and Jenn Byl and in order to keep our heart rates down we had to walk up the hills. We ran for 2:45 and only managed to squeeze out 12 miles, indicative of the challenging terrain.

Afterwards was a much welcomed lunch, a visit from Potomac River Running, and our Team Z birthday party. I couldn't imbibe too much at the celebration, knowing a long day of biking was looming ahead of me. I had a beer then retired to my tent to read and fall asleep.

Sunday morning arrived quickly. I had a restless sleep, wildly filled with dreams. And now I had to bike 100+ miles.

The bike ride was along the "Sky-Mass loop", largely considered to be the most challenging bike ride in the area. It climbs Skyline Drive from start to mile 31, decends into the town of Luray, then climbs Massanutten Mountain before hitting rolling hills back in for a total 82 miles. We were going to do that, and then some.

I biked solo for the first 15 miles or so. Along the initial climb up Skyline Drive, I could hear "Charlie's Angels" (Alex, Siri, Helen, and Jess) singing as they rode to Dickie's Ridge. I was highly amused. We met up together at the Dickie's Ridge stop and biked together for the rest of the day.

It was a gorgeous day outside. The view along Skyline was fantastic. About 35 miles into the ride, we hit the top of Hogback Mountain, and were then completed with over 50% of the climbs for the day. Yippie. During the decent into Elkwallow, we had a near crash. Dive bomber Helen pointed to her right, and I thought she was pointing the turn into Elkwallow, when it was actually a deer preparing to cross the road. Jess and I were close behind Siri as she slowed down to try and avoid the deer. Luckily, Jess and I were able to avoid Siri and the deer. Otherwise, that could have been ugly. We want to sing "Doe, a Deer", not "Do a Deer".

Upon arrival in Elkwallow, Alex's bike saddle was increasingly giving him grief, inducing fears of his abilities to have children. Needless to say, he insisted we press on, as he awaited on the side of the road for Ed's arrival and repair assistance.

We continued on into Panarama and onto the decent into Luray. Siri pointed to the sign on the side of the road indicating the downhill for the next 4 miles. Yippie!! We had earned our break. Quickly after our decent, Ed pulled up with Alex. Alex had insisted upon completion of repairs that Ed deliver him to rejoin his "angels". That was one of the highlights of the day.

Shortly thereafter was the rest stop at 7-11. It was 11am, and 80 degrees, or so the sign said. Alex and Helen's rendition of "Hot Tires" was starting to ring true. It certainly felt much hotter! We filled up on Gatorade, water, potato chips and Nutter Butters. Yee ha.

Time to press on. We knew that the infamous Massanutten Mountain loomed ahead. Erg. Upon arrival at the base of the mountain, we knew it. Our speeds quickly slowed to 5-6 mph. Massanutten Mountain is known for bringing many a sad face to many cyclists, forcing them to walk. I decided in my mind to go as far as I could and then walk when I had to. Soon thereafter, Ed found us in his sag wagon. He said, "Go as far as you can and then when you're ready to stop, I'll bring you to the top. I've already brought 4 people up the mountain." Hmmm... peer pressure. Do I stop? I saw Ed again a short bit later and he basically said now or never. Either accept the offer or attempt the mountain. He said that he had only seen one person be successful thus far, and that was Schwartz, and she was suffering. Knowing Schwartz is a far better climber than me, I decided to bail. Quickly thereafter, Siri, Helen, and Jess joined me. But now what? Alex and Bill were on that mountain too. Was there any room for them? Without saying a word, they pressed on.

And then the Angels, Ed, and I witnessed perhaps one of the most inspirational moments of the day. Ed turned on the music and we cheered Alex and Bill up that damn mountain. It was such a victory at the top. Bill went on, electing to ride solo. The rest of us descended down the mountain (a scary descent, forcing one to go very slowly, which makes for zero reward for such a difficult climb).

After that, it seemed like the end of the loop was within reach. Just some rolling hills and we'd be home free. Nay nay. Rolling hills, yes. But not exactly home free. It was blaring hot outside and no forgiveness of shade. We passed landmarks we'd seen from the car the day before, but funny, they came slowly. I began to get some new life as we saw some teammates coming from the opposite direction, heading out for more mileage. For one, the company was welcome, and for two, it meant the end of the loop was near.

Finally, return to Elizabeth Furnace. OK. I looked around... fellow Ironmen-finishers-to-be were suffering. I heard Schwartz call out to John S (who did not want to go out again) to get back on the bike and do at least 100. I later heard that before that Schwartz went through racking her bike and getting changed into fresh clothes before forcing herself to go out again. The two of them did go out again and finish 100. My calves and left shoulder were very sore. I thought that taking some Advil would help. Part of me wanted to bail as well, but I knew I couldn't. I couldn't leave Charlie's Angels. They were suffering just as much as me and it simply would not be right to leave them.

The initial plan was to go out 5 miles and back. OK. Five miles out. That's doable. We made it to 5 and decided to go to the store (another 3.5 miles out). I was biking slowly, a little ways behind the group. The Advil was kicking in, which helped, but the heat and humidity was getting to be too much. Helen was slowing quite a bit too. We went on and made it to the store. All I wanted was a Coke. And believe me, it was the best. Coke never tasted so good.

OK. Time to head back. Again, slowly. Helen stopped briefly as this farm to watch the goats. She was amused by their little bells. It's easy to forget the simplicity of the country while on a bike, with the wind in the ears. But stopping for a moment, we were able to chuckle and watch the goats and gaze at the Massanutten Mountain in the background.

And soon we were back. I earned my spot in the Charlie's Angels photograph and went through my highly secret initiation process and received my token of rememberance. As hard of a day it was, at the same time, it was my easiest 100 miles on a bike. The accomplishments of the day took a while to sink in, and I realized that we are all simply human, yet amazing at the same time.

Eagleman 70.3

Wow. What a day. I think Eagleman was probably the highlight thus far of my year with Team Z. My finish time... nothing special (6:51). In fact, I think it was my best triathlon experience ever. After all, it was billed as a training day anyway. I just wanted to go out there, feel strong, and have some fun.

A group of us had spent the night at Holly's boss's house: a little ways away, but couldn't beat the offer. Besides, it was a slumber party of sorts. During the course of the evening, I heard of the sea nettles. Now, I naive as I was, I thought the sea nettle chatter over the email was some sort of Eagleman lore. However, some were stung by the things during their swim on Saturday. I grew a little apprehesive. I knew the Choptank River lived up to its name, but sea nettles too? Oh well, no sense in worrying now.

We woke around 4am, sharing our stories of restlessness over breakfast. Soon, we were off towards Cambridge.

The weather in the morning was rather chilly, unusually chilly for Eagleman. Eagleman is known for being windy and hot. Today, windy, yes, hot, not so much.

The whir in the transition as all set up was infectious. Yet, at the same time, it tends to make me a little unsettled in the nerves. I elected to tone out all the chatter over the loudspeaker and blare my Ipod to U2... "Beautiful Day" played, of course. (I think we all have come to associate U2 music with our long training rides.)

Adam and I headed over to the swim area to watch a few waves take off (my wave was not until later) and watch the pros come in. And soon it was time to get suited up and ready to race.

Maroon caps. Female: 30-34. And we were off. The swim started out fine, just slow relaxed strokes. I tuned everyone else out and took it easy. The plan for all of us doing Ironman was to keep the heart rate down in Zone 1 and just relax. Practice race disclipline.

Heading out on the swim was not too bad (other than feeling crushed quickly as the pink, then the "pumpkin", even a couple blue swim caps passed me). But then, turn around the sailboat, and wham! Suddenly I was getting abused by the Choptank's waves. On the swim back in, I had to stop twice, tread water, and take off my goggles to get my bearings. I kept telling myself to keep my cool, and for the most part, I think I stayed relaxed. Nevertheless, I was quite happy to exit the water.

Next up: bike. I was psyched to take the Red Baron out on her maiden race. This race course was made for my little Guru bike. I kept my heart rate low on the bike but felt very strong. I'm not a strong climber, but I can go in the flats. Eagleman had maybe a 50 feet elevation gain over the 56 miles. Maybe. It did get lonely out on the course, though. I kept looking for the Team Z green jerseys. Finally I passed Jess, sharing a few laughs. At about mile 35, Holly caught up to me. I think we were equally happy to see each other, so we wound up leapfrogging the rest of the bike route in, both looking strong, and passing several people along the way.

During the bike, I got a slight muscle cramp in my left calf. It faded away, but quickly came back with a vengeance on the run. I began to walk and stretch. I saw Ed about 2 miles in. He asked how my knee was doing (as I recently had problems) and happily, the knee was fine. It was my calf that was giving me trouble. He reminded me that Ironman, not Eagleman, is MY race, and just to walk as necessary.

Slowly, the calf began to loosen up. I saw Ed and John Mead at about mile 5, cheering away. And suddenly, I became simply giddy. I jumped in the air and laughed when I saw them. And then I saw fellow Team Z'er after another on the out and back run course. It gave me so much energy. I was able to run longer and longer stretches. With about 3.5 miles left, Helen caught up to me. And we decided to run in together.

Coming into the finish corral was simply amazing. Helen and I leaped high into the air as we saw others from our team. What a great finish to a fabulous race. And finishing that race made me feel ready as ever for Placid.

The Peak of Training

The peak is here. Over Memorial Day, the Team headed up to Lake Placid for a training weekend. Although the knees were bothering me a bit, and I had to take it a little easy, I still managed to run 5 miles and bike 86 miles, allowing me to get a good feel for the course. I cannot imagine a more beautiful Ironman course. Being up there, and hanging with my Team, made me all the more excited for come July 23rd.

This weekend is my 4th 1/2 Ironman: the Eagleman 70.3. It's on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. It'll be a training day, really. Just a long training day. It'll give us an opportunity to "practice" for Ironman. Me? I need to practice discipline. All too often during a race I get some sort of competitive mindset, and usually that results in bonking. Not fun.

Race updates should be available on www.ironmanlive.com (although the link for Eagleman is not there yet). Check me out this coming Sunday.

Century & Columbia Weekend

Wow. About two months away from the Ironman. This weekend was going to be very telling. A reality check. On the training schedule included a 100-mile bike ride (a century) and the Columbia olympic distance triathlon (1 mi swim, 40K bike, 10K run). Sure, I've done 100 miles on a bike before. Twice in fact. But neither time was exactly easy. At least I had several friends to ride along with, and the weather was perfect. An added bonus was the scenery. We rode on unfamiliar territory, and the ride was deemed as "relatively flat", but had some surprise climbs. At least the scenery (including the views along the Chesapeake Bay) and companionship was fantastic. The ride had two loops: a 60-miler, then a 40-miler. It was a little tough going out for that second loop, but with thoughts of the end goal, I pressed on. I did just fine, experimenting with Slimfast shake consumption for the added calories: one before the ride and one at the mid-ride break. Otherwise, it was gels, a Clif Bar, and those wonderful Clif Bloks (sort of endurance gummy bears- whoever came up with those is a genius).... and lots of Gatorade. At the 80 mile rest stop, I shopped around at the convenience store looking for something a little different to eat. I had a taste for Chex Mix, but alas none. I wound up getting some trail mix. Big mistake. My stomach began to give me serious grief at about the 85 mile point. With all the riding miles, my legs were demanding a lot from my body and hence, my stomach was having trouble with digestion. I was riding with Betsy and Talia at this point. They knew I was having some difficulties, but tried to keep quiet since the ride was not exactly easy for them either. I slowed down a bit, wanted to throw up (and tried to), and had tears running down my cheeks. My stomach truly hurt and was compounded by some knee pain. We reached the 90 mile point. "Only" 10 more miles to go. I told Talia that I wasn't sure I'd make it. I secretly hoped Coach Ed would pass by in the sag wagon. However, at the same time, I knew I'd kick myself if I didn't finish the ride. Luckily, at about the 95 mile point, the stomach pain began to subside. And finally, we reached the cars. Much thanks to Betsy and Talia for helping me through a tough day. And that was only Saturday. Another day of training faced me. A race no less. Shortly after the ride, Holly and I headed to race check-in (getting seriously lost along the way). We eventually made it, took care of business, and then it was time to head home to pack for the race, submit a report for the Navy, eat dinner, and get a good night's sleep. Race morning started earlier than usual. Although I crashed quickly Saturday night at 9pm, I was wide awake at about 2:30. My legs were a little tight, I had some pre-race anxiety, and was just plain old hungry. (I guess after burning 4179 calories during the bike ride and unable to consume much for dinner was telling me something.) So, got up, took a bath, tidied around the house a bit, and ate banana pancakes. Dozed off for a bit and realized it was time to head out to Centennial Park in Columbia, MD. I had no particular goal in mind, just to have fun. A training day. I watched the masters racers finish the swim (darn, missed the pros) and headed toward our Team Z tent to veg prior to my start. Nerves began to kick in as they called my wave. Nerves? A bit of a queasy stomach, a little pre-race apprehension. As soon as I jumped into the water, I should have known it wasn't my day. My right foot hit a rock, causing a little gash on the bottom. Ouch. Ok, time to swim. The water was a little murky but smelled (and tasted) clean. Swim, calm down, have fun. You know, every Tuesday and Thursday I swim more than a mile, but today, the mile swim was a little tough. I was glad to hear that others felt the same. I was glad to get out the water. Transition was fast, and soon I was on the bike. Quickly after my bike start, my knee problems from yesterday came back to haunt me. I thought, take it easy, relax, don't worry about people passing (after all, how many of them biked 100 miles the day before?) And then knowing this bike course, and how hilly it can be, I thought that the knee injury is no big thing now, but I do not want it to escalate into a major issue, forcing me to forgo Placid. About the same time, I saw my teammate Adam on the side of the road. I pulled over and asked him if he was all right. He was highly discouraged, contemplating not finishing and waiting for the SAG wagon. What? Why? Here, Adam was so very excited about this race, his first olympic distance triathlon. Turns out, during a flat tire change, he lost his skewer (the thing that holds the wheel to the frame) in the grass. I helped search for it briefly and told him to take the skewer from my bike. After all, it would be best if I just dropped out anyway. He was thankful, took my skewer, my spare tire tube, and a CO2 cartridge (maybe he had a premonition that he'd flat again.... which he did.... a total of 5 flat tires during the race). I waited for the SAG wagon along with another racer, who wound up stripping his pedal from his crank. Eventually, SAG arrived, making our group to a total of 6, each of us with our own stories of woe. I mean, it somewhat sucked to not finish. But overall, I feel great that I had the opportunity to help another teammate out. After all, what are teammates for? Besides, it forced me to be smart. After all, what is my end goal?

Yes, yes, yes, overdue for a post

Ok. Well, been terribly busy between the day job, the Navy job, and training itself that unfortunately my blogging has been neglected. But now that I'm into the peak of my training, it's only appropriate to drop a little line. Training has been going well, although April suffered a little as I was gone for over 2 weeks on my annual military training. I was able to stay a bit in shape throughout, running and biking on the stationary bike. However, those and not swimming showed. I'm back in action, but this coming weekend's workouts will really be telling. This Saturday I have a 100-mile bike ride followed by the Columbia Triathlon (1 mile swim, 40K bike, 10K run) on Sunday. All along it felt like the Ironman was eons away and now I cannot believe it's just over two months away. Wow. Columbia will be my first triathlon of the season. I rode the course yesterday. (It's about an hour away from here, in Maryland.) It has a few challenging hills, nothing too bad, although I may come to hate it after knocking out the 100-mile ride the day before. I'll let you know how it goes. Cheer for me from afar. Until then...

Ironman Training Has Begun

Ok, Ironman training has officially begun. Now, true, it's not as though I have been sitting on my ass in the months prior to this. I heard a triathlon coach once say that it takes 7 years to prepare for an Ironman. So, perhaps one could argue I've been prepping for the last 6-1/2 years for this July's Ironman. That would mean my training had begun in July 1999. That July I already had multiple marathons on my resume. However, swimming to me meant tooling around at the pool or beach. And biking, well, a 15-mile ride was plenty for me.

However, soon thereafter, I decided it was time to raise the bar. I had already proven to myself I could finish a marathon. Increasing the distance to ultra-marathons (beyond 26.2 miles) did not quite seem to make sense. After all, as I've mentioned, my knees were not built for running. (Side note: they've been holding out well as of late, thanks to proper training, proper nursing, and glycosamine.) I thought I would give triathlon a try.

My first triathlon was the Cajun Man triathlon in Lafayette, Louisiana. I was completely ill-prepared. I had friends who were triathletes, and had an idea of what to expect, but I certainly did not look the part. I had my old mountain bike, a swimsuit, and running shorts. I had never swum in open water. Karma was not on my side. My goggles broke off in the water during the swim and as well as my watchband. I was completely out of my element during the swim. I was spooked by placing my face in the water, so I wound up swimming on my back. It was a tough 600 yards, but I managed to finish the swim. The bike was 14 miles, shortened from 20 as it had been during previous years due to flooded roads. And then a 5K run.

I remember the post-race party, Cajun band and all, but I wasn't quite hooked on triathlon. Not yet. But it was a start.

I would have never guessed I would ever embark on finishing an Ironman. Yet here I am. Officially starting Ironman training.

Myrtle Beach Marathon

This past weekend I ventured down to Myrtle Beach (road trip!) with 3 of my Team Z teammates- Jen, Holly, & Susan. Susan & Jen planned to run the 1/2 marathon, whereas Holly and I planned for the full.

I was rather relaxed about the entire idea. Myrtle Beach was to be my 9th marathon. In many ways, I knew what I was getting into, yet on the other hand, it was sort of a new beginning. It was to be my first marathon giving heart rate monitor training a try.

To make a long story short, I was long skeptical of using a HRM in my training or racing. After a few heated debates with Coach Ed and a kick in the head recognizing that I seemed to routinely bonk during endurance events, I decided it was time to give the heart rate monitor a try.

Regardless, I approached Myrtle Beach as sort of a long training run in pursuit of the grand prize this summer. I wanted to see how the heart rate monitor would work for me, especially since I knew my marathon preps were not quite textbook, as my longest training run was only 16 miles.

Upon our arrival in Myrtle Beach, we were giddy with a sort of cabin fever after the long drive. We zipped around the race expo, taking full advantage of the free local microbrew to calm the nerves. Did some shopping, took advantage of the pasta dinner, and soon it was time to crash for the night.

Race day started at 4:00 in anticipation of 6:30 start.

Turned out to be an absolutely perfect race day: 50 degrees, no rain despite the forecast, and little wind. I bid temporary farewell to Holly, Jen, and Susan, and was on my way. I kept a comfortable 10:00 minute/mile pace, staying in zone on my heart rate monitor. The course was pleasant, flat, and fast, along Ocean Blvd.

I faded out about mile 16, where my lack of training began to show. I elected to take it easy for a while, walking a bit and chatting with some fellow runners. I played cat & mouse with a fellow TriCAT (who recognized me from my TriCAT shirt), chatted up with an Ironman Florida finisher, and gave high 5s to spectators along the course.

The rest paid off. My second wind came about mile 19. I knew I wanted to break 5 hours and possibly finish the day with my second best marathon time ever. As fellow runners hit the notorious "wall", I began to run almost as though my day had just started. As I approached the finish line, my eyes welled up as I saw Jen, Holly, and Susan there to greet me at the finish line.

And so, I finished in 4:52 by my watch. (Chip time was 4:54.... I stopped the watch for a much needed pee break at mile 9.) And I succeeded by beating my previous 2nd best time of 4:55 from Marine Corps Marathon a few years back. (Best time is 4:12 at Vermont in 2004, where I had an amazing 1/2 marathon split time but wound up paying for it by nearly crawling to the finish.)

I loved traveling with Holly, Jen, and Susan to race. All 4 of us had a great race. What I love about our team is the fact that we share each others' victories. And from afar, we cheered on our teammates that elected to race locally in the GW Birthday Marathon.

So, now what? My race strategy has paid off by rewarding me with a speedy recovery. Nevertheless, giving the legs (and mind) a break this week before my training season truly starts next week.