Coming out of Retirement?

I've been reminded that I haven't been the best blogger lately. It's good to know that so many check out my blog though!!

On my 35th Birthday, I ran the Philadelphia 1/2 Marathon with Carol (who did the full). I wasn't quite prepared to do a 1/2 marathon, but I approached it with the idea of having fun (it was my birthday after all...), enjoy the scenery around Philly (great race course...), and get a bit of exercise. It was quite chilly out though! I successfully finished the race and perhaps had my slowest half marathon ever (I still haven't checked my finish time).

Afterwards, I enjoyed a grande cup o' Starbucks, read the paper, and chilled out waiting for Carol to finish the full before we made the trek home. It was her wedding anniversary and I had dinner plans with Sacha myself, so we were both on a mission to return home.

After the race, however, I noticed a pain in my right foot. In the center, bottom. I've never had a stress fracture (thankfully), so not sure if it was that or something else. A new pain. I couldn't bear any weight on it. The pain naturally subsided over the next few days, so I forgot about it.

Since then, I've been sticking with the elliptical trainer at the gym, which is pretty much my entire fitness regimen these days. (Sometime I guess I should swim and bike too....)

For the first time since the 1/2 marathon, I ran yesterday with Team Z. I did a lovely 6-miler around the National Mall. Most of them were running longer, so we had an early start. It was beautiful to watch the sunrise over the Mall.

Needless to say, I struggled a bit.... partly due to lack of running, and partly due to recovering from a cold. I got through it. I noticed afterwards that I had the same pain in my right foot. It was not nearly as pronounced as from the half marathon, but definitely there. What is going on. Should I get it checked out?

Won't You Take Me To Opposumtown?

It was a beautiful fall day to return to Frederick County, Maryland to do the Historic Covered Bridges Tour. Although I've biked through all three previously, since I'm sticking to shorter distances as of late, I was only able to visit the Loy's Station and Utica Bridges this morning.

I drove out there with Susan, but since my ride was starting an hour later, I used the time wisely to do some studying for my PMP Exam .... my latest not-so-favorite pasttime. I am so looking forward to the day the exam is behind me! I'm taking it on November 3rd.

The ride today was a nice break and diversion.

It was an absolutely perfect fall day. The leaves were in full color, the sky a rich blue color, and the sun warmed things up nicely. It got a little breezy toward the end of the ride, though, making things a bit of a challenge fighting a slight headwind returning back to the cars. I biked the return leg with Ari, which made for nice company.

Afterwards, in true Team Z spirit, we had a BBQ... burgers, beer, and brownies... YUM! (Except I didn't partake in the beer this go-around.)

Oh, as for Opposumtown, that's the name of the road where the ride started/finished. I guess it's become an internal joke to sing to the tune of "Funkytown".

Fall is in the Air...

What could be better on a crisp Sunday morning than a 30-mile bike ride? This morning it was fabulous to venture out to Harwood, MD- my first ride there since my 70-miler where I got 4 flat tires.

Savageman International Race Report

First off, I apologize for the lack of blog updates as of late. It seems that post-Luray, I effectively ended my triathlon training season. Priorities have shifted more toward the social arena and fitness level dropped in the month of September. As a result, my goals for my final triathlon of the 2008 season were to (1) not crash, (2) finish, and (3) have fun.

The main event at Savageman is the half-iron distance, with the toughest bike course- perhaps in the world- for the triathlon. I initially registered for the aquavelo - that is the swim and bike legs of the half-iron- way back when I was hard core training for Ironman Lake Placid. In recent months, I wisened up, realized that there is no way I could tackle that bike course, and switched to the international distance race. That would be enough of a challenge. On top of that, after several discussions with Coach Ed, we both agreed that from here on out - at least for now - I should simply stick to short distance triathlons. I tend to be injury prone, for one, with repetitive knee trouble. And besides, I just ENJOY short distance more.

I drove out to Deep Creek Lake, MD with new Team Z'rs Carrie and Colin the morning before the race. We promptly arrived at the Team Z rental house, right on Deep Creek Lake. Beautiful house. Beautiful area. I made a mental note to be sure to return to the area again soon, perhaps this winter to go skiing.

Upon arrival, I forced myself to do a little warm-up brick, going first for a swim. The water was clean and cool and pleasant to swim in. I then got on my bike for a short ride, but blew off the run. I think I had lunch on my mind instead.

I spent the afternoon with typical race preps: packet pick-up, bike drop off, pre-race brief.... but managed to skip one key element: previewing the race course. My priorities for the afternoon shifted toward watching college football (big day in the SEC!). I got went to the pre-race brief and also heard course descriptions from others, so I had a general idea what to expect. I knew the descents would be technical, and hence my first race goal was to not crash.

As for football, I need to give a big shout out to the LSU Tigers! I watched the first half of the game that evening. Being exhausted, with an early race wake-up the next morning, and the fact that we couldn't get our act together the first half, I wound up going to bed. One great thing about games on ESPN: games are re-broadcast the next morning. As soon as I woke up Sunday morning, I marched downstairs to the kitchen to eat breakfast and watch the second half. I caught most of the fourth quarter and saw the LSU Tigers win. LSU's performance- good or bad- truly impacts my moods. With the win, I knew it was going to be a good day.

The morning was cool and fog was rolling in. The fog delayed the start of the half-iron race. However, it burned off by the time the international distance began....

The Swim: 1.5K 35:39

This was not one of my better swims. I had trouble sighting and felt a bit nauseus in the water. It took some time to get into a rhythm. There was a small wake in the water too, from boats. I bought some ear plugs which may alleviate this motion sickness in the water in the future and need to give it a whirl. As a whole, I have come to enjoy swimming, but this particular morning was not much fun. Out of the water, and a climb up a hill into T1 to head out on the bike....

The Bike: 24.3 mile 1:34:19 15.8 mph 2041 feet of climbing

As mentioned, the Savageman bike course is known for a challenge. Although the main event is the half-iron distance, the international bike course is not easy either. Shortly into the bike ride, we encountered a tough little hill. It was only about 1/4 mile long, but steep. Plus, after swimming, the legs were quite not awake yet. It was as though the course was telling us, "Welcome to the Savage Bike Course". Afterwards, the course turned to rolling hills, which some challenging climbs in there. The toughest was Brenneman Hill. I am not sure of the percent grade, but it was labeled as a "Cat 1" climb (a la Tour de France), and was 1.7 miles long. Upon looking at the bike course profile, it's the definite climb shown just before midway. It looked like a wall in person. Needless to say, I wound up walking up the second half of the climb. I could have probably done it all, but my quads were burning, and it may have cost me the remainder of the race.

After that, the course was relatively gentle. At about mile 15, I was passed by the lead man (Bjorn Anderson) doing the half-iron. Granted, he started about an hour before me, and as we later found out, accidentally short cut the swim course, but nevertheless, it was a little deflating to be passed by someone going the distance. I did cheer him on though, of course.

I returned to T2 and found that my bike rack was nearly empty. Only one other bike was there. Wow! Did I have that good of a bike time? That was rather uplifting.

The Run: 10K 1:16:23


I was a bit tired by the time I reached the run. It was friendly, though, in terms of several out-n-backs to see other runners. I was passed by Marie, who was doing a relay. She noted how tired she was, WITHOUT swimming and biking beforehand. There were so many people racing from Team Z that frequently I encountered a friendly face.

The run course was challenging in itself. It was rather hilly, most notably on the trail up to the Fire Tower. I believe the race went all way the way to the top of the tower last year and due to trail damage, we were unable to run to the top this year. Darn. It was challenging enough. Believe me. There were some sections were I was just forced to walk. Plus, my knee gave me a bit of trouble near the end, so I had to take it a little easy.

I look rather excited to approach the finish line!

Although the race was quite the challenge, I was glad to have done it. The weather and the course venue were beautiful. Plus the comradarie was priceless. A fabulous end to the 2008 triathlon season!

Finish: 3:33:12

By the way, before the race, Damon and I made a bet. He challenged to me that I would finish the entire international distance triathlon in less time than it would take him to bike (in a relay) the half-iron course. Needless to say, as I expected, he beat me, in 3:12. He and his relay were absolute studs.

Luray Triathlon

It's race weekend! This weekend was the Luray Triathlon: Swim 1500 meters, Bike 25 miles, Run 10K.

I had really no expectations on this race. Coming off an injury and my DNF at Ironman, I was really just looking forward to having a good time. I drove up race morning with Carol after crashing at her place (and watching Michael Phelps swim in the Olympics!) to join Team Z for race day.

Although the swim was wetsuit legal, I elected to not use mine. Ok. I did not bring it. I wrongly assumed that the water would be too warm to allow wetsuits and felt like bringing it would be too cumbersome. It turned out the water was 74 degrees, and wetsuits are allowed for anything below 78 degrees. Oh well. It would be fun to swim sans wetsuit and I was not trying to podium or anything, so who cares if I did not have the wetsuit to help me go faster?

The swim was rather murky, especially at the start. It seemed as though I was swimming through the black abyss. I had trouble sighting buoys as well, and was seemingly swimming very wide and off course. No biggie. I kept my cool and just enjoyed the swim. Swim time: 33:07.... not bad for no wetsuit (for me).

Finishing the swim, I saw Carol pass me, who started a wave or two after me. I tried to catch up with her for camaraderie sake, with no luck. She's just too darn fast in the water. (And she was swimming without a wetsuit too.) I did manage to catch up with her in transition though.

I had heard that the bike course was hilly. To my surprise, it was not too bad. The weather was cool and we even got to hit a section of fog on the course. It seemed to me that the bike course was a net loss in elevation, or at least in the easier direction. About the middle of the first of two loops, I passed by Kat Rich. She began to jokingly curse out that she was thrilled she was ahead of me and "mad" I was passing. Ha ha. Some fun competition never hurts.

I did make a nutritional error, however. I had become accustomed to long distances and prepped my nutrition as such. I had some Clif Bloks, a couple Gus, and two bottles of Accelerade. After downing most of one bottle and Clif Bloks, my stomach began to get upset: too many calories. I was hammering on the bike harder than I would during a training ride, with my heart rate approaching my anaerobic threshold. My legs and heart were handling it just fine, but as a result of going relatively hard, all the blood was in my legs, not allowing my stomach to digest the calories. One would think after all the triathlons I have done, I would have learned how to race by now, but alas, apparently not. Needless to say, I had to back off eating and drinking to avoid more stomach upset, or even worse, vomitting. Luckily, it was cool enough that my body could survive without fluids. The lesson learned there is to stick with lighter Gatorade and water for short distance triathlon.

Kat and I passed a couple more times on the bike course, as she caught up to me as I dealt with stomach distress. Hmmm... with the fun trash talking, I had to find a way to drop the hammer a bit and cross the bike finish line before her, which I did. Bike time: 1:37:02

She and I shared some good nudges in transition, and I managed to get out on the run before her, knowing full well, she'd likely catch up with me on the run.

The run was fun, but I did eventually start to suffer from a calorie deficit. Towards the end of the run, it was over an hour since I consumed any calories. Not liking the sports drink on the run course (Heed- YUCK!), I stuck with water. I had to take a few walk breaks, but overall, moved along fairly well. The nice thing about the run course was that it was two out-and-back loops, which allowed for many opportunities to see a friendly face.

Upon finishing the first loop, I saw Ed, who high fived me, and gave me a smack on the butt, mentioning "how does it feel to run SHORT course!?" He's pushing me to stick with short distance triathlon from now on. I did tell him later that I would like to go long just one more season (it would be nice to finish an IM strong and not have to go to the ER), and then promise to stick with short course.

About the last mile of the run, my bad knee began to bother me a bit. I wound up sort of galloping into the finish, definitely favoring my right knee. Ug. It wasn't too bad, but a little tender. I continue to nurse it. Run: 1:04:08.

A good race. One I'd certainly do again. Afterwards, the weather was so beautiful, it was nice to sit back, relax with the team, and hang out. Saturdays just don't get much better than that.

Skyline & Wine

I'm getting back into the groove after Ironman. I elected to join a gym and look to dabble into other activities that have been put on hold for a while. I went hiking at Great Falls a couple weekends ago. Today, Carol and I decided to go out and ride Skyline Drive and stop for lunch and wine afterwards at Chrysalis.

Because the weather was uncooperative for every visit we had made to Skyline Drive thus far this year, we were glad that the weather was just about perfect to ride it today. We went to the top of Hogsback and back, about 40 miles in all.

After our ride, I decided to introduce Carol to the Chrysalis Winery. Did a wine tasting, grilled up some chicken and veggies, and enjoyed some wine with our lunch.

Next weekend I get to introduce Carol to what's off Skyline Drive. In other words, we'll venture on one of the many hiking trails in the park. Stay tuned.

Ironman Lake Placid 2008

I first did the Ironman in Lake Placid, two years ago. Although I finished (16:41), I had a tough day primarily due to a failure in my nutrition plan. I actually gained 6 lbs during the race and wound up spending the night in the ER to replenish my electrolytes.

I made the tough decision to attempt Ironman Lake Placid again. I felt that I could apply lessons learned in terms of nutrition and training would go better. (I was in the Navy Reserves as well two years ago, making training a bit of a challenge due to military obligations.)

And my training did go better this go around. I felt very much prepared for the race. However, during my 20 mile run, my right knee buckled. This was about a month before Ironman race day. I have had knee problems for several years, but have learned how to basically keep things in check and stay healthy. However, this time, I was apparently suffering from some tightness in my IT band and other tissues, causing my kneecap to be unable to move freely. It was simply "one of those things" and not preventable. I went through some aggressive physical therapy, even up until two days before the race, as my PT (Kerri, PT Extraordinaire) was there in Lake Placid. Alas, my knee simply did not heal completely in time.

I elected to go through with the race primarily because I had put so much time and effort into it and thought I would be all right as long as I didn't let my mind focus on the knee. I had let it rest in the several days leading up to the race. I was diligent with physical therapy. I thought I would be just fine.

I started out race morning calm and collected. I woke at 3:15 and had coffee. Breakfast was my usual spinach omelet and 2 Boosts. (Ever see that commercial for eggs where the egg is doing the triathlon? That's me. My triathlons and long training rides are fueled by eggs.) I was stoked for a great day.

Helen (the best IronMate ever!) dropped off Pam and me and we headed into transition. Bottles. Check. Body marking. Check. Pump up tires. Check. Everything was set to go. No pre-race jitters. Just set to have a good day.

The swim was a rougher than I recall from two years ago. I swam rather wide for my first loop. I got kicked in the chin, which stung a tiny bit, but I was still surprised to see an irritated scrape on my face from it when I looked in the mirror later. Between loops, I took a Gu, smiled for the cameras, and embarked on my second loop. I stayed on the buoy line for most of the second loop. My swim time was 1:25, a minute faster than from 2 years ago, surprising as I'm a much stronger swimmer now.

It was not raining pre-race, but I felt the raindrops pelting my arms while I was swimming. The rain did not stop for 12+ hours.

Heading out on my bike, the rain began to negatively affect me early on. Am I not mentally strong enough for this? Ironically, dealing with the rain helped me turn my focus and I was not thinking about my ailing knee for some time. I struggled mentally throughout the ride. And my knee began to haunt me. There were times that it hurt so badly on a climb, I just yelped.

I am not quite sure why I elected to press on. Early on in my second loop I knew my chances of making the bike cutoff were uncertain. I averaged 13.5 mph on my first loop and I was getting slower. The knee pain was increasing. Quite honestly, there were times where I could not help but cry. In addition, my brakes seemed to get clogged with grit from the road and were rubbing against my wheels. I pulled over 3 or 4 times to examine my bike. So much of me wanted to quit. But for reasons I cannot explain, I pressed on.

When I approached the out-and-back from Wilmington to Black Brook and back (mile 80 or so), Team Z had a cheering station set up. How easy it would be to drop out. I could hop into one of their cars, get out of the rain, and get into dry clothes. But I didn't.

When I emerged from the out-and-back, I was the last Team Z racer, and the cheering there was infectious. I knew I only had 1 hour, 15 minutes to bike cutoff. However, I wondered if I could make a miracle happen and make bike cutoff. My knee pain seemed to temporarily subside to a dull ache. Could I do it?

On the hill affectionately known as Mama Bear (heading into town one hits the Cherry Patch and the Three Bears), about mile 108, I met my doom. I was near two other cyclists at the time. The race director advised us we missed bike cutoff and we could either elect to finish the loop unofficially, or he could take our bikes and deliver us to transition. I selected the later, mostly because I had been shivering from the cold rain and decided it was pointless to hurt my knee anymore and climb Papa Bear. Besides, Jill, from Team Z, was a few cars behind and told the race director she wanted to pick me up.

Jill dropped me off at transition.

I had mixed feelings upon arrival. Part of me felt like I have nothing to prove; I already am an Ironman finisher. But there was a part of me that felt like a failure. I decided to try and keep my spirits up. How many other people can say that they toed the line, and swam 2.4 miles and biked 108 miles in the pouring rain? Casey asked me if I had made the bike cutoff, would I have been able to run? Probably not. After all, I could barely walk the next day (and would still be limping for a week or so later).

Many people at the Team Z tent were fabulous. Helen had my dry clothes. However, she thought I was out on the run course as she saw my bike in transition and she did not have her cell phone with her due to the rain. In the meantime, Mrs. Durst, Victoria, and Emily were wonderful help to get me into some borrowed dry clothes. Mr. & Mrs. Durst cranked up the coffee maker, just for me. Sarah made sure I got a burger. Iwon simply made me laugh and look at the bright side. Robin gave me a blanket. And EB made it a personal mission to find Helen. From there on out, Helen took amazing care of me.

It was a tough day for many of us. Eight of us from my triathlon team did not finish. Nevertheless, we had the courage to start.

Congratulations to all of us. Those that started, those that finished, and those that had the strength of character just to stand in the rain all day and cheer their hearts out for us.

A Little R & R in Lake Placid

Today was an opportunity for some rest and relaxation. I wanted to avoid all the hype of Lake Placid and step away from Ironman stressors for a bit.

Besides, as many times as I have ventured up here, I figured it would be nice to see some of the sights other than the Ironman course.

Our original plan was to take the gondola ride to the top of Little Whiteface Mountain, an area popular for skiing in the winter, and mountain biking in the summer. We arrived, and saw a few mountain bikers prepping for a day of fun. We were disappointed to discover, however, that there was an unknown wait to take a ride on the gondola due to thunderstorms in the area. (We had heard the thunder all morning and had occasional spots of rain.)

Hmmm... so let's go to Plan B and take the Veteran's Memorial Highway and drive to the top of Whiteface Mountain. We drove up 3 miles of the highway to the toll booth and were told it was a $14 fee and 0 visibility at the top. Well, no use in venturing any further.

So, Plan C was put into action. Let's visit the High Falls Gorge. The Ironman bike course passes by the entry to the gorge. As many times as I've been past it, I thought it was time to actually see what was back there. We were rewarded with 700 ft of waterfalls.

Tonight is dinner with Carol and Carrie: make your own pasta night!

I've got my race bags ready and tomorrow it's time to check all my gear in. Get ready!

#2147 is in Lake Placid

Yahoo! After driving nearly 600 miles, I am here in Lake Placid and ready to do my second Ironman. I drove up with Helen on Wednesday. It was essentially a non-eventful drive, which is a good thing, but my car hit 100,000 miles shortly after we got into the Adirondack Region, so I take that as a good sign of things to come this weekend.

This morning we went for a swim in Mirror Lake. The water was fabulous. I swam the 1.2 mile loop (the race does 2 of those) at a relaxed pace.

Afterwards included all the pre-race logistics... check-in, hitting the Ironman expo, and whatnot. I'm just glad to have all that stuff knocked out so I can relax on Friday.

And naturally, we just had to hit the shops along Main Street!

A Tour of the Ironman Bike Leg

Here's a fun video of the 10K decent into Keene early on in the bike loop. (Course is two loops).



Here's a video highlighting the entire bike course, but there's no music and the video is over 15 minutes long.... a little boring to watch.

The Countdown is On!

I leave one week from today on my Ironman Lake Placid 'vacation'. I'm looking forward to the trip. Helen and I have plans for some fun low key activities around town... and I'll just happen to throw an Ironman triathlon in there!

Here's a YouTube video from the swim start from 2006. I'm in the water there somewhere. I didn't know it was pouring rain while we were in the swim until I heard about it later.

Skyline Drive- Visit #3 of 3

I was hoping for the third visit to Skyline Drive this season, that the weather would play in our favor. Trip #1: Sleet and hail. Trip #2: Thick fog and rain. And as it would play out, trip #3 had fog as well. Many of us came ill-prepared without lights. As a result, the park ranger would not let as pass any further than Dickey's Ridge, at mile marker 5. It turned out to be a moot issue for me. Due to my knee woes, I knew climbing hills on Skyline Drive would be sort of touch-and-go. Not wanting to press my luck, I elected to descend and call it a day after reaching Dickey's Ridge. Everyone else descended with me, but they all repeated the climb up to Dickey's Ridge two more times. My maximum speed descending was over 36 mph... a little weak.

Because I carpooled out to the ride with Pam, I needed to occupy myself for two hours to await her return. Conveniently, a coffee shop was open near our cars. A chance to drink coffee and read the Sunday newspaper like normal people do! Now, the challenge was, finding the Sunday newspaper. Neither the coffee shop nor the nearby grocery store had the Sunday paper. I found the Northern Virginia paper from yesterday. (Uh... Washington Post please.) I wound up settling on this Warren County weekly paper. The front page news announced Miss Warren County and also showed someone's Independence Day Tree. (Turns out the guy doesn't have the heart to ever break down his Christmas Tree and just instead rotates the decorations depending on the season.) Weak. I elected to roam the nearby bookstore instead. Sadly, although not surprising, the bookstore is going out of business and one can purchase the store, the books, the computers, and the bookshelves for the bargain price of $50K. I felt compelled to try and help and bought a book I've been eyeing for a while, Three Cups of Tea. It was on the NY Bestseller list. It's the true story about a man who, after a failed attempt to summit K2 and still in Pakistan, decided to help and begin to build schools. He's built 51 or so schools there since then. Inspiring.

Needless to say, although it was somewhat disappointing to not ride more on Skyline Drive, I adhered to my top priority at this point, to help heal my knee. Besides, it was nice to have the chance to enjoy a Sunday for once and relax. So, perhaps the need to cut the ride short was a blessing in disguise?

No Running Until Ironman

UG! So, my knee gave way at mile 17.5 of my long run a couple weeks ago. I've had knee problems for several years now, and for the most part, I manage to keep problems in check.

I have had no sharp pains since then, but a persistant dull ache in my right knee, my problematic knee.

As a result, it was time to see my favorite PT, Kerri. I was Kerri's first Team Z patient a couple years back, but I have not needed to see her in a while. Would you believe she's had 80 Team Z patients?! She is a miracle worker.

Needless to say, my IT band and such on my outer right leg is really tight, pulling my knee cap over. Kerri has me doing some stretches, self-massage (including the foam roller- ug!), and core work. And no running until the race. Missing running is no big deal, as I already have the mileage in me. Ideally, I'd be running, but healing is more important at this point.

Recovery Weekend in the Pacific Northwest

Leisurely Bike Ride to Outskirts of Bellingham

I rode a wee bit along Hwy 542- aka Mt. Baker Hwy. One day I'd like to do the hill climb up the mountain! Funny... cannot see Mt Baker on the road, as it's obstructed by foothills, but had some fabulous views of the Canadian Cascades- including Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains- site of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Easy Run Along Whatcom Creek

Had an easy morning run along Whatcom Creek, a wonderful salmon stream and estuary through the center of Bellingham. I love that the lower falls are right in the center of downtown. I've never seen the creek so low! The tide was out, which was part of it. Last time I was in Bellingham, I saw a harbor seal at this location, but none this time.... probably since it's not salmon spawn time.

I Rock! I Biked 122.3 Miles Today!

One hundred twenty-two miles is a long way. Before the ride, I was curious: what did that equal to in terms of driving distance? First, I checked Googlemaps and verified how far it was to drive from my place in Arlington, Virginia into Delaware. Not far enough. For a 122 mile bike ride, I may as well have biked to just past the New Jersey state line. It was not the sort of thing I wanted to have in my head as I embarked on my bike ride. Having failed to complete my 110-miler both times I trained for Ironman, I was a little apprehensive. However, despite the long distance, several other factors were in my favor. The weather was going to be a little cooler than it had been, I was ready to implement "lessons learned" from my 110-miler, and the route was going to be relatively flat.

The route was broken into 2 loops: a 49 miler and a 73+ miler. The first loop was potentially the easiest 49-mile ride I've ever been on. The weather was highly cooperative, the terrain was easy (just flat enough--- too flat would have been a challenge unto itself), and Susan kept me company for a bulk of the ride.

The second loop was largely a repeat of the first loop, just in reverse. As a result, it was a great chance to see the front runners heading out for loop #2 as I came in, as well as see those coming in after me as I headed out for more. Company is always welcome.

I rode with Siri for about the first 10 miles of loop #1 before she dropped me. For the rest of the second loop, I was alone. For a long stretch, I did not even see a sag vehicle. It got rather lonely. I kept telling myself that during Ironman, I'll be largely alone, so may as well get used to it.

Although the temperatures stayed in the 80s, the humidity was rather high. I kept hoping that it would begin to rain, but not a repeat of the stormy weather from the weekend before. Alas, no rain.

Around mile 90, I was much relieved to see Roy and Linda with their sag-mobile. Cool drinks, munchies, and good cheer. Fabulous! I caught up to Siri at that point, who assured me I'd probably see her again during the last 32 miles. She was feeling a bit nauseous. She must have finished strong, as I did not see her again until the ride was over.

The final 32 miles had their ups and downs. By and large, I was ready to get off my bike. Strangely, I feel like I was more mentally tired than physically tired. I started to have tears of joy stream down my cheeks when I hit the 113 mile point. For one, I had reached a new milestone in terms of distance on my bike (previous record was 112 during IM 2006), secondly, I had made it past 100 miles during a training ride, a new first, and lastly, I had less than 10 miles left to go! I could do it!

Several vehicles passed by filled with Team Z'ers during those final miles. A memorable vision was of Ed, standing on the passenger seat of his truck as he drove by, with his body poking through the sunroof, announcing he had cold water for me. There was only about a mile or two left at that point, but I was thrilled to see him and Talia. I came up to them and said, "I don't believe I'm actually going to finish this f***ing ride!" I was so thrilled!

Team Z friends and BBQ awaited at the end. Yee ha! I did it!

I earned recovery week this go-around for sure.

19+ Miles I Ran... 1 Month to Ironman!

Ah! The last uber-long run before Ironman! This weekend I had project manager training scheduled for all day Friday and Saturday. That left me with a dilemma: when do I knock out my long run? I needed to go about 20 miles (4 hours). Do I wake up super early Saturday morning? With a need to eat 2 hours before running and class time starting at 8am, an early Saturday run was not reasonable. Running after class Saturday afternoon/evening did not make much sense either, as my recovery time would be short before the 120 mile bike ride on Sunday. I elected to run Friday night after class. I decided that in some ways, it was more like Ironman prep. After all, I'll run the marathon portion of my race at the end of a long day, as the sun sets into darkness.

I thought I may wind up running point-to-point, starting from Crystal City and take Metro back when my run was over. Plus, being prepped with the Metro back option enabled me to have a back-up in case I found myself in trouble.

I started off running 9 minutes, walking 1 minute. I did that for the first hour of my workout. However, my right knee began to plague me. I've felt some minor discomfort in it the past week. It was not pain, per say, but I have had knee problems for long enough that any sign of a problem sounds off alarms in my head.

I backed off to a run 4 minutes, walk 1 minute approach. That was very doable. The knee discomfort subsided and I was able to cruise along. I worked my way up into the National Zoo. I debating continuing on northward, along Beach Drive into Maryland (and taking the Red Line Metro back), but with the sun setting and venturing into lesser familiar territory, I elected to venture back on Connecticut Avenue toward downtown.

I stopped in Dupont Circle to purchase more Gatorade. A kind panhandler opened the door for me, so I couldn't help but give the guy a buck. Hopefully soon he finds better days.

I continued on toward the National Mall up to the Capitol. So much action along the Mall! I guess it's that time of year.

The summer solestice helped keep daylight for a bulk of the run. One obvious benefit to running in the evening: it gets cooler as the run progresses on. It's nice to only have to deal with heat at the beginning, when one is not yet tired. The cool evening air was much welcomed this go-around.

Rather than continue on around the Mall again, I decided to run back toward Crystal City. It was getting dark, but the Mount Vernon trail is well-travelled in that section. I felt safe along it.

I was moving along well until about mile 17.5. My knee failed on me. OUCH! Without wanting to do more harm, I stopped running immediately. My legs cramped up on me too, so needless to say, I was forced to walk the last 1.5 miles. Ugh! At least I could walk. Upon returning home, icing the knee was in order. Luckily I have all day Saturday to recover before the 120 mile bike ride on Sunday.

Other than the knee mishap at the end, I was happy to have gone nearly 20 miles on my feet. One month from today is the Ironman. Healing those knees will be a top priority. I can do it!

Mind over Matter?

This weekend's training schedule called for a 110 mile bike ride from Boyce, VA. I was rather stoked about the prospects of completing a 110-mile bike ride in training. During training for Ironman two years ago, I failed to complete our 110-miler (actually 112), on the Lake Placid Ironman course. I was suffering from some serious knee pain and had to bail at about the 85 mile point. As I've been (knock on wood) healthy this go-around, I foresaw no problems being able to finish the ride.

The ride was actually two-55 mile loops. The first loop was rather scenic, biking through towns such as Stephens City, Middletown, and White Post, all quaint towns with antique shops and the like. In between the small towns, we passed apple blossom orchards. The terrain was not too challenging. My first loop went really well.

I did manage to do one dumbass error. I am such a klutz. On one of my many bathroom breaks off to the side of the road, I crossed and slipped through a cattle grate. My right leg fell all the way through, witnessed by Carol. I have a lovely scrape and bruise on my leg as a result.

Anyway, we returned to the cars for our second loop. I replenished my supplies, and was ready to hit the road. The next loop crossed into West Virginia. I was feeling pretty good, but the heat and humidity was building up fast. The sun was beating down on my head through my helmet. The ice in my Accelerade melted rapidly and began to get warm. Warm Accelerade tastes nasty. So, I found myself primarily drinking water. I developed a headache, first signs of dehydration. Not good.

I came upon Holly and Kerri, who were out there sagging, at about mile 80. They helped to cool me down by icing my fluids and putting ice down my back and sports bra. It helped cool me down. I knew I had about 5 miles to go to the next rest stop, so I'd press on until there and re-evaluate my status.

I slowed down a lot and made it to the rest stop, but I was not feeling too well. I went inside the Shell Station and the air conditioning seemingly shocked my body and I began to feel faint. Carol took one look at me and instructed me to stop my ride. I was bummed at the prospect of failing to once again complete my 110-miler, but I was not exactly keen on having heat stress either. That would be a real problem.

I had also heard that a supercell thunderstorm was rapidly heading our way. That sealed my decision to hop into Roy and Linda's car (the ultimate sag vehicle) and head back to the Team Z tent.

As we drove to the tent, the storm hit. I found a few Team Z people huddled

under the tent, holding onto the supports, trying to prevent the tent from blowing away. (Ok, holding onto a metal support structure during a thunderstorm- probably not the best plan.) I saw Chris Wren getting pummeled with rain runoff from the two tents. My body temperature began to drop rapidly though. I began to shiver and was advised to warm up inside the Team Z trailer.

After the storm passed, and the remaining cyclists returned, I heard varying stories. Some biked through it! A number of them huddled into a vacant barn. A local saw Carol and invited her to hide in his shed. Siri, Alex, Andrea, and Bruce hid under a bush! (Ok that was a little crazy too.)

I had planned to camp that night in Luray, where we were slated to swim and run the next morning. Another thunderstorm was coming and the prospect of getting wet once again was not appealing to me. Carol and Carrie invited me to crash in a hotel room with them and I gladly accepted.

Hotel rooms were hard to come by, however. After a few phone calls, Carrie found this place called the Best Value Inn. Sounds good to me. Frank also requested a room there.

I drove Carrie's car (since I have a good sense of direction) through the thunderstorm to Luray. We discovered that the place was actually called the Cardinal Inn. I declared that their motto could be "Commit Cardinal Sin at the Cardinal Inn". Actually, the place wasn't as seedy as I am making it out to be. It was out of the weather, so already it was a better alternative to camping. On wet ground. With more potential thunderstorms.

We got cleaned up and elected to go to dinner at the same restaurant we visited during our last trip to Luray. We talked about seeing a movie as well, but it was getting late quickly and we were all beat. So, just dinner it was. Then time to go to sleep.

Sunday was an open water swim followed by a 12 mile run.

The water was about 78 degrees, a bit too warm to wear a wetsuit. Many people did though, but I think I would have sweltered had I worn a wetsuit. Besides, not bringing one was one less thing to cart around. I swam about 1-1/2 miles and definitely noted how much slower I was sans wetsuit. Part of that was certainly the "lack" of race mentality as well. It was fun to get in the water.

Afterwards was time to run. I decided from the get-go to only do 2 hours, which would be about 10 or 11 miles. I ran largely alone, getting passed here and there by teammates, or seeing each other do out/back runs. I ran from Lake Arrowhead park to downtown Luray, enabling me a chance to run on the greenway in town. More importantly, the greenway runs parallel to Hawksbill Creek. The creek was highly inviting. I dunked my head in it and rinsed off my arms and legs. It felt good to cool off.

I ran back toward the lake, but largely ran-walked back. It seemed to be an elevation net gain on the return. It felt warmer than the 74 degrees shown on the thermometer (probably because the sun was beating down) and my legs were just beat. It had been a long weekend.

The next week is the largest volume of training, then it's taper time. I'm looking forward to it.

Some final notes:

1. Best wishes for a quick recovery to Jana. She crashed at about mile 10 of the bike ride and I came upon her, face down, in the middle of the road. She went over her handlebars. She suffered a fractured cheekbone and some tissue damage in her shoulder. She is at home resting. Sore, but fundamentally all right.

2. I need something to protect my head from sun while on the bike and means to keep Accelerade colder. I bought some Polar bottles, insulated bike bottles, which will help.

Empty Nest

I won't dwell on the details, but I was forced to euthanize my cat, Socrates, on Sunday. She was staying at the PetSmart kennel during my travel to St. Louis and to New Hampshire and something was amiss on Sunday and she was rushed to the emergency vet. It seemed that whatever it was, was neurological. The saddest part, was that I was unable to see her in her final hours.

She was such a good kittie. I adopted her from the SPCA in New Orleans in April 1997. She and I had an immediate connection when I first laid eyes on her. The day I brought her home was the morning of the Chalmette Crawfish Festival, and I remember my friends McKinney and Chris coming to my pad pre-festival and decided to name her Socrates. No, she's not named after the philosopher, nor is the pronunciation the same. She was named after Socrates Street, in Algiers Point, my neighborhood at the time. So, her name was pronounced SO-crats. Odd, but it stuck.

She absolutely loved people. She was purring until the very end. She frequently was chatty and seemed to respond whenever I needed an ear to listen.

Life moves on, but I cannot help but feel that my home is an empty nest. I miss her.

Mooseman.... or....

Devil Man? Mosquito Man?

This weekend I ventured up to New Hampshire for my sixth half-iron distance triathlon, the Mooseman Triathlon. A couple people commented to me that in the midst of Ironman training, this race should be a piece of cake. I replied that going 70.3 miles under my own power is never a "piece of cake".

Technically, the race was slated over a recovery weekend. Additionally, the temperatures were forecast to reach 95 degrees. As a result, I intended to dial it way back on the bike. After all, the next two weeks are slated to have the highest mileage volume for our entire Ironman training schedule. I certainly did not want to mess that up, nor did I want to wind up with heat distress.

I drove to New Hampshire on Friday with Susan and we arrived in town early enough to preview the race course. It was hilly, but doable, along the level of difficulty of some of the easier rides we've done this season. There was one hill, known as the Devil's Hill, which reached a maximum of 15% grade. Lucky me, I would have to face it twice. Fortunately, although it was steep, it was relatively short and was early on in the course loop.

I elected to camp at the Moose Village for the weekend due to close proximity to the race and it was cheap. Besides, several events in conjunction with the triathlon festival were held at the Moose Village, which was convenient. It was actually a girls' summer camp. (Obviously, the camp is not in session quite yet.) Myself and David Gearin were the only ones from our team staying there though. Everyone else seemed to think we were nuts to camp before a half-iron triathlon.

Friday night, I joined Leslie, Susan, Andrea, Ed, and Talia for dinner at the rental house they were staying at. Fabulous dinner of chicken, pasta, and.. wine. Too bad I couldn't imbibe in too much wine since I had to drive back to the Moose Village, and had the upcoming race looming over my head.

Upon my return to the Moose Village, I found David and saw that he was having a bit of difficulty putting up his tent. He'd never put it up before, and I guess my camping experiences came in handy as I was able to figure it out rather quickly. He repaid the favor the next morning by replacing my rim tape and new tires on my bike for me, as a result of last weekend's debacle.

Saturday was the olympic distance triathlon. There were several people from Team Z racing. As always, it was fun to cheer. I noticed that my legs were tired, however, likely due to several factors, and I primarily sat back to rest up. Not good when my legs were tired before my race.

I received another outstanding gift from my Secret Pal. I am fairly confident I know who it is, but who knows. I may be completely thrown off. Regardless of whoever it may be, the little goodies I frequently receive are very well appreciated!

After Saturday's race, I picked up my packet, headed to the store to find something super cold to drink, and ventured back to the Moose Village. A pre-race pasta party was held there, and I dined with David, Kitty, Jeff, Christy, and Suzanne. Post dinner we campers ventured to the bonfire on site and indulged in s'mores.

The easy thing about camping is calling it an early night. By the time the sun goes down, there's not much else to do besides crawl into the tent. With a backpacking tent, there's no choice but to be horizontal. And being horizontal results in falling asleep.

Since we were so far north, the sun rose at 5am, making it easy to wake early. I got dressed, ventured into the dining hall for breakfast, and made my way to the race. Parking was quite limited, and with two bikes (mine and Carol's) I did not want to walk far.

TIME TO RACE

The water temperatures were rather chilly. But with my pre-race swim the day before, I discovered that it was easy to adapt. Besides, the water quality was ideal. It was clear, tasteless, and calm. A real treat to swim in. The fabulous conditions paid off as I had my fastest swim pace ever in a race, finishing the 1.2 mile swim in just under 38 minutes.

As I mentioned earlier, my plan was to take it very easy on the bike. As my legs were tired pre-race, and knowing full well I have two weeks of tough training ahead, I saw no reason to "race". I was passed by everyone and I just kept telling myself that "they" aren't Ironman training. Additionally, the last thing I wanted was a heat disorder. I found myself consistently drinking fluid. As I only had Accelerade to start, I was beginning to consume too many calories and began to feel a little bloated. At the next aid station, I grabbed a bottle of water and began to alternate drinking water and Accelerade which seemed to work well.

The road conditions were poor. Several people on rigid tri bikes felt tremendous soreness in their upper bodies as a result. As mentioned earlier, the course was hilly, but doable.

Although I was following my race strategy and staying well-hydrated, I could honestly say I was not having fun. I wanted to quit so badly, but told myself I wouldn't as long as I was fundamentally all right. I guess I pressed on to test my comfort zone boundaries. I had mixed emotions as I finished the first loop. On one hand, it was great to see the support of Team Z and others, and yet I dreaded heading out for a second loop. I truly was not sure if I would make it.

Upon reaching the Devil's Hill the second time, I elected to walk up it. I decided it was not worth frying my legs. Trust me, I was by no means the only one walking up that hill. I then continued on, biking in full sun. It was hot. I wound up going through 6-1/2 bottles of fluid and only had to pee once.

I was rather happy to get off the bike. I biked an average of 12.9 mph, the third slowest pace out of anyone racing. Oh well. Like I said, I purposely dialed it back. A lot.

At least my legs were relatively fresh. The limiting factor on the run was the heat. The run course is two out-and-backs, making it fun to see everyone. I was doing fine run-walking. However, as a kind gesture, people were hosing us down to keep us cool. Yes, it felt great, but eventually my feet just got waterlogged. I could feel the blisters form. Ouch. Needless to say, that effectively ended my running and I was forced to walk the rest of the way.

I walked for a while with a woman named Susan, a Team in Training participant from Long Island. And with about a mile to go, we were joined by Siri. Approaching the finish line, Susan began to run with one of her TNT teammates and shortly thereafter Siri and I ran to cross the finish line together.

It was my slowest half-iron ever. I cannot complain given the conditions and considering my training schedule. I am glad to have finished the race without incident. And now I have two tough weeks of training to look forward to....

Pictures from the weekend can be found here.

Count 'Em- 1, 2, 3, 4 Flat Tires!

Today had a 70 mile ride on the schedule. I thought not much of it. After all, with Ironman training, my perception of a long ride is a little skewed. After biking 100 miles last weekend, a 70 mile ride seemed like cake. On top of that, the ride was going to be on relatively easy terrain. No problem.

Last night, strong thunderstorms came through the Metro area. As a result, many of the roads we were biking on were heavily laden with debris. Early on, I was biking with Harriet and Kitty when I mentioned to them that it would be a miracle if we exited this particular stretch of road unscathed. It was a virtual obstacle course from the debris.

I guess I should have eaten my words.

About a mile or so later, both my front and rear tires blew out. I only had one tube and one CO2 cartridge with me. Great. I began to change my front (having not immediately noticed my rear was also flat.) Diane, who was sagging, pulled over and was able to give me a second tube and let me use her pump. To save time and get some tire changing practice, Carol offered to change my rear. (She had some challenges changing a flat of her own in Lake Placid last weekend.) Ed also caught up to us and handed me over a third tube in case I flatted again. (Flat tires tend to come in multiples.)

Not five minutes later, my rear tire blew again. I was with Carol and Pam at this time, but I insisted they continue on. Diane saw me pulled over to the side of the road again. In the midst of the chaos, I managed to lose my cap to my wheel skewer in the grass. Diane proceeded to look for it, while I changed my tire. I found the culprit: a staple embedded in my tire. I used my tube from Ed and my only CO2 cartridge.

Diane and I were unable to find the cap to my skewer, so I was forced to temporarily stop riding until I got a replacement.

I rode in Diane's car for a period of time. Carol was briefly lost, so we helped her get back on track and rejoin others. We eventually met up with Ed who was able to give me a replacement cap and I was able to resume riding.

About ten or so miles later, my front tire flatted again. Great. I was alone and out of tubes and CO2. I tried to call Ed and Susan on my cell phone and wasn't able to get hold of either of them. Bill Hall came upon me and was able to hook me up with both a tube and CO2. I think he sympathized with my plight and offered to change my tire. From the looks of my tube, I got a pinch flat. UG.

Bill put me back in business and I continued on. By this time, I was tired, very dirty, and just ready for the ride to be over.

I was alone, with about three miles left in my ride, when I heard a branch cracking. I looked up and behind me, and saw a branch, about 3 or 4 inches in diameter fall directly behind me. I about had a heart attack. That was a close call. Had it fallen on my head, it would have knocked me out cold. I could not help but panic a bit. Tears began to stream down my cheeks. That was just too close for comfort.

Was karma haunting me for not taking the ride seriously enough to start?

Needless to say, I was thrilled when the ride was over.

Upon checking my front tire later on, I am surprised I did not flat a fifth time. A sizable gash was in it, exposing the tube. I made it a point of order this evening to order new tires.

I am glad it is now recovery week. Ya-hoo.