OK, this is the last blog before the big day....only 6 more days, and I'll be in it! The last few workouts have pretty much sucked, but from what I hear, that is normal. MyKaren and Sharon and I rode 1 1/2 hours indoor followed by a 6+ mile run on Saturday. Not a good day on the street. My freakin foot hurt, and I was not nutritionally ready for a 2 1/2+ hour workout. My bad. I swam 1.5 miles yesterday, felt fine with that, at least. I'm hopeful for a good swim and bike and a tolerable run. Shoot, I'm just hoping for an official finish.
Thanks to all the TriGirls and MaramarcBoys who have cheered me on through this journey, and the support of all my nonTri friends and family.
I'll be sure to post copious blogs after the race, but this is all for now!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
10/20/2008
Time keeps ticking and November 1st is fast approaching. Through this training, we have trained in rain, wind, heat, and now cold. It was cold as crap on Saturday, when at 7:30 am, Sharon, KateO and I decided to ride our 50 miles. None of us was really prepared for the cold, windy and damp day. Kate forgot to wear tights, so she was freezing and bailed after 33 miles. Sharon and I braved another 10 miles, but that was enough. We were too frozen to run, so we went and ate soup at Zuppa. Yummmy. We ran yesterday, a much better choice. My freakin right foot was (and is) killing me, I have not been to a doctor yet, don't see a point at this time. I hope I can get through the run and then I'll see what's going on. Waahh. Less than 2 weeks.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
10/13/2008
Yipeeeeeee! Last long workout done! This weekend was the Eastern Shore 100, and everyone did fantastic! Some of us got a little Bay swim in on Friday, there was some current and water was very salty, kind a good indication of the Florida swim. It was a flat and windy ride, the first time I've ever actually ridden the whole 100 miles on the Shore, although I've been at the ride the last 2 times as well. Sharon made a lovey and hearty meal for everyone; chicken pot pie, salad, some weird orange/onion thing, and pound cake with fruit and whipped cream for dessert. Yumminess.
Then, the ride. The IMFL peeps, as well as 2 of the IMAZ people (and of course MarcoDiablo and MyKaren the sherpa of the year) went on the ride on a beautiful autumn day on the shore. Karen turned around at about mile 17 since she has her last 1/2 IM of the year this coming weekend. It was a bit windy heading north, sometimes very windy, but everyone hunkered down and got it done. After our picnic snacks at around mile 53 (this was evidently the first time the riders actually stopped where I had envisioned...course it helped that I took some photos this time so everyone would know exactly where I thought the stop should be) we headed back to a nice tail wind. The group of 6 tried to get a nice pace line going, but it fell apart after some of the peeps got a little fire in their legs when it was time to lead....at one time the leader was going around 25 miles an hour and was about a quarter mile ahead of the group. There may be a teeny learning curve on how to ride a pace line, but everyone made it just fine. I think we averaged about 15 1/2 on the way out and 18+ on the way back. We may have had a tail wind, but we were cranking along.
After the long ride, we ran a bit on the trails in Kiptopeke, a nice run through spider webs. Whenever we stopped the mosquitos were so bad it really made us keep running. The run really was not any fun, we kept saying that we wanted crowds and water/food stops to keep us going. Afterwards, MyKaren took great care of us, with nachos and beer after our showers, and then a bountiful meal of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, carrots and salad. We ate like we had not seen food in days. We all had grand ideas of a camp fire and drinking heavily, but we all passed out around 9 pm.
Today, several of us did the dreaded 3-mile swim. We all went to 50 meter pool haven, and swam our little hearts out. Long swim. Very long. But, I felt OK and I think my last mile was my fastest of the day. Hopefully it will all translate into goodness come November 1.
I think we are ALL ready.
Then, the ride. The IMFL peeps, as well as 2 of the IMAZ people (and of course MarcoDiablo and MyKaren the sherpa of the year) went on the ride on a beautiful autumn day on the shore. Karen turned around at about mile 17 since she has her last 1/2 IM of the year this coming weekend. It was a bit windy heading north, sometimes very windy, but everyone hunkered down and got it done. After our picnic snacks at around mile 53 (this was evidently the first time the riders actually stopped where I had envisioned...course it helped that I took some photos this time so everyone would know exactly where I thought the stop should be) we headed back to a nice tail wind. The group of 6 tried to get a nice pace line going, but it fell apart after some of the peeps got a little fire in their legs when it was time to lead....at one time the leader was going around 25 miles an hour and was about a quarter mile ahead of the group. There may be a teeny learning curve on how to ride a pace line, but everyone made it just fine. I think we averaged about 15 1/2 on the way out and 18+ on the way back. We may have had a tail wind, but we were cranking along.
After the long ride, we ran a bit on the trails in Kiptopeke, a nice run through spider webs. Whenever we stopped the mosquitos were so bad it really made us keep running. The run really was not any fun, we kept saying that we wanted crowds and water/food stops to keep us going. Afterwards, MyKaren took great care of us, with nachos and beer after our showers, and then a bountiful meal of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, carrots and salad. We ate like we had not seen food in days. We all had grand ideas of a camp fire and drinking heavily, but we all passed out around 9 pm.
Today, several of us did the dreaded 3-mile swim. We all went to 50 meter pool haven, and swam our little hearts out. Long swim. Very long. But, I felt OK and I think my last mile was my fastest of the day. Hopefully it will all translate into goodness come November 1.
I think we are ALL ready.
Monday, October 6, 2008
10/6/2008
Today is my Mom's birthday, so Happy Birthday Mom! Saturday was the last long run of IMFL training, a 22 miler after an hour bike. The runs beat me up sooo much more than the long biking, but at least the next time I run (or walk) 20+ miles, it will be on November 1st in FL.
Got on the bikes at Maramarc at 6 am for an hour trainer ride. In my before the crack of dawn, blundering around the dark house , trying not to wake up MyKaren fog, I forgot my biking shoes so I had to bike in my running shoes. Not bad for an hour, but would have rather had my biking shoes. Then the IMFL and IMAZ peeps who showed up (Patty, Tammy, Heidi, KateO and Sharon) as well as a few other runner only people, all took off for a couple of 10 to 11-mile loops. IMFL had to do 2 11-mile loops, which took us generally up to the west end of Grove and east to VCU. It was a beautiful day for a run, and the Sports Backer group was out in force along the same general route, so we actually had herds of runners passing us for the entire first loop. While it was kind of a pain to have lots of runners thundering by, it was also nice to see other people, some of whom actually spoke to us! They were on a down week, and were only running 12 miles....we wished we had a down week, but I guess that will happen soon enough when the taper begins. Of course, I felt very self-satisfied that while they were only training for a marathon, I was training for a long swim, long bike and THEN a marathon. Ha ha-oh wait, maybe I am the dumb one...
The run was very painful for the last 2 miles or so, I told Sharon that I may begin to make grunting and moaning noises as I ran up Monument for the last leg, since I was in a lot of pain with my stupid hip. I always wondered about those runners that you hear who make little ( or sometimes loud) moaning noises every step they take, well now I understand. But I managed to keep my moaning internal, at least for now. I think I did ok with eating, I had 2 1/2 gus and drank 5-10 oz bottles of Endura, for a run that took about 4:15. I felt pretty good in terms of energy, but man was I sore. My quads are still a bit sore, even today.
So, less than a month away, and now it's becoming really, really real for me. I sometimes think I'm ready and just want it to be here, and the next moment I am scared @$%#less. Time keeps ticking and days go by, and I'll soon be on the beach in my wetsuit with the look of abject terror and perhaps, some excitement.
Got on the bikes at Maramarc at 6 am for an hour trainer ride. In my before the crack of dawn, blundering around the dark house , trying not to wake up MyKaren fog, I forgot my biking shoes so I had to bike in my running shoes. Not bad for an hour, but would have rather had my biking shoes. Then the IMFL and IMAZ peeps who showed up (Patty, Tammy, Heidi, KateO and Sharon) as well as a few other runner only people, all took off for a couple of 10 to 11-mile loops. IMFL had to do 2 11-mile loops, which took us generally up to the west end of Grove and east to VCU. It was a beautiful day for a run, and the Sports Backer group was out in force along the same general route, so we actually had herds of runners passing us for the entire first loop. While it was kind of a pain to have lots of runners thundering by, it was also nice to see other people, some of whom actually spoke to us! They were on a down week, and were only running 12 miles....we wished we had a down week, but I guess that will happen soon enough when the taper begins. Of course, I felt very self-satisfied that while they were only training for a marathon, I was training for a long swim, long bike and THEN a marathon. Ha ha-oh wait, maybe I am the dumb one...
The run was very painful for the last 2 miles or so, I told Sharon that I may begin to make grunting and moaning noises as I ran up Monument for the last leg, since I was in a lot of pain with my stupid hip. I always wondered about those runners that you hear who make little ( or sometimes loud) moaning noises every step they take, well now I understand. But I managed to keep my moaning internal, at least for now. I think I did ok with eating, I had 2 1/2 gus and drank 5-10 oz bottles of Endura, for a run that took about 4:15. I felt pretty good in terms of energy, but man was I sore. My quads are still a bit sore, even today.
So, less than a month away, and now it's becoming really, really real for me. I sometimes think I'm ready and just want it to be here, and the next moment I am scared @$%#less. Time keeps ticking and days go by, and I'll soon be on the beach in my wetsuit with the look of abject terror and perhaps, some excitement.
Monday, September 29, 2008
9/29/2008
Chesapeake Man AquaVelo: the good, the not so good, the really kind of crappy. Just kidding. The training day was great, even though I nearly puked before the swim start, but more on that later. MyKaren completed her 3rd IM distance race in 11 months, and placed 1st in her age group. What a great job! Som finished his 4 of 6 and was 2nd in his age group. All the TriGirl training partners did well and we all are ready for the big time.
The Swim
Due to the n'oreaster, they changed the swim to a "protected" harbor, but of course, the wind was blowing in the one direction that wasn't protected, so it was a harder swim than expected since we swam against the wind and waves on the last long leg. I actually did well, but for the terrible siting at first. I nearly ran into shore! What a doofus. I thought I was going to have a hard time with the swim because, while it was 2 loops, we did not stop between loops, just kept going. For the first time in a swim, I actually did run into people, including Tammy, but had no real issues. Oh, and the water was only 4-6 feet deep, but I refused to stand up, so I didn't, although there were many people who did. Evidently there were stinging jellyfish in the water as well, and I saw and touched a number of them, I was assuming they did not sting, since none stung me. Lucky me. Getting out of the water and standing up was weird, I nearly fell and was kind of woozy-headed. Saw Grandison, Shelley and Lisa cheering and Fred got out of the water with me.
Transition
The T & A tent was kind of crazy. I had decided to change my outfit completely, just to see how it all went. There was no fresh water to rinse off in, and the water was brackish so salt was on you all day. When I got to the tent and Tammy was there, then Sharon showed up (to my surprize, I was faster?), then KateO. I waited for Sharon and my T time was slow, but who cares.
The Bike
Sharon and I had decided to ride together, as we hope to do in IMFL, so we stopped to pee after we left the T&A tent (no portapotties in the T area) after we crossed the timing mat to start to the bike. Off we went, going nice and slow, eating and drinking and taking it easy for the 1st 15 miles or so. We saw everyone so we knew that all had made the swim. After the turn to get on the 2-loop part, we picked it up some, trying to go between 16-17 mph, and stayed in aero and talked when we could. We played the alphabet game, going from A-Z (we made it to X) with words that had to start with the letter. It was fun. Around mile 25 or so, Patty joined us so we all rode and talked and rode and peed and ate and rode. The course was dead flat, there was wind, rain, some terrible smells, a rainbow, a bald eagle, road kill, and standing water. I got a flat about 4 miles from the special needs bag stop at mile 64 (my odometer said 65). I had a part of a crab claw or something sticking through my tire, very small, but I am glad I ran my fingers around my tire. Then the race marshal rode beside me for a while, and I guess I did something wrong, because I got a 6 minute penalty for "side drafting" not even sure what that is....only thing is Sharon got a 6 minute penalty for drafting, but somehow Patty got nothing. Not sure how that all works. Oh well, I am a bad girl.
At the special needs bag, we stopped and ate. Grandison said that KateO was just ahead, so we took off to catch her. We cranked it for around 10-12 miles going 18-19 mph and finally caught her and she joined our pack. The 2nd loop was not as bad as the first one, except for the standing water part, which was now up to the bottom bracket and kind of hard to pedal through.
The end was anticlimatic, we were tired, wet, and stinky and the finishers medal was the cheapest thing around, but it was a good thing for confidence and race practice. We showered and started drinking beer as we cheered for the IM distance people. It was a fun day, and I am glad I did it!
The Swim
Due to the n'oreaster, they changed the swim to a "protected" harbor, but of course, the wind was blowing in the one direction that wasn't protected, so it was a harder swim than expected since we swam against the wind and waves on the last long leg. I actually did well, but for the terrible siting at first. I nearly ran into shore! What a doofus. I thought I was going to have a hard time with the swim because, while it was 2 loops, we did not stop between loops, just kept going. For the first time in a swim, I actually did run into people, including Tammy, but had no real issues. Oh, and the water was only 4-6 feet deep, but I refused to stand up, so I didn't, although there were many people who did. Evidently there were stinging jellyfish in the water as well, and I saw and touched a number of them, I was assuming they did not sting, since none stung me. Lucky me. Getting out of the water and standing up was weird, I nearly fell and was kind of woozy-headed. Saw Grandison, Shelley and Lisa cheering and Fred got out of the water with me.
Transition
The T & A tent was kind of crazy. I had decided to change my outfit completely, just to see how it all went. There was no fresh water to rinse off in, and the water was brackish so salt was on you all day. When I got to the tent and Tammy was there, then Sharon showed up (to my surprize, I was faster?), then KateO. I waited for Sharon and my T time was slow, but who cares.
The Bike
Sharon and I had decided to ride together, as we hope to do in IMFL, so we stopped to pee after we left the T&A tent (no portapotties in the T area) after we crossed the timing mat to start to the bike. Off we went, going nice and slow, eating and drinking and taking it easy for the 1st 15 miles or so. We saw everyone so we knew that all had made the swim. After the turn to get on the 2-loop part, we picked it up some, trying to go between 16-17 mph, and stayed in aero and talked when we could. We played the alphabet game, going from A-Z (we made it to X) with words that had to start with the letter. It was fun. Around mile 25 or so, Patty joined us so we all rode and talked and rode and peed and ate and rode. The course was dead flat, there was wind, rain, some terrible smells, a rainbow, a bald eagle, road kill, and standing water. I got a flat about 4 miles from the special needs bag stop at mile 64 (my odometer said 65). I had a part of a crab claw or something sticking through my tire, very small, but I am glad I ran my fingers around my tire. Then the race marshal rode beside me for a while, and I guess I did something wrong, because I got a 6 minute penalty for "side drafting" not even sure what that is....only thing is Sharon got a 6 minute penalty for drafting, but somehow Patty got nothing. Not sure how that all works. Oh well, I am a bad girl.
At the special needs bag, we stopped and ate. Grandison said that KateO was just ahead, so we took off to catch her. We cranked it for around 10-12 miles going 18-19 mph and finally caught her and she joined our pack. The 2nd loop was not as bad as the first one, except for the standing water part, which was now up to the bottom bracket and kind of hard to pedal through.
The end was anticlimatic, we were tired, wet, and stinky and the finishers medal was the cheapest thing around, but it was a good thing for confidence and race practice. We showered and started drinking beer as we cheered for the IM distance people. It was a fun day, and I am glad I did it!
Monday, September 22, 2008
9/22/2008
Whew! Only 1 more long run left (well, 1 more long training run)! I think I dread the long runs more than the long bikes, but the run on Saturday was my best 20 mile ever, at least in terms of how I felt. Strange, but that 20 mile was only my 4th in my life. I was ready for it to end, but felt so much better than the hurricane 18-miler. I tried to wear the TriGirl tri top, but much to my dismay, I got chub rub from chub on chub rubbing on my right underarm. So now I am not sure if I am going to be able to wear the tri top and I was kind of looking forward to wearing pink. Oh well, if I only had svelte arms.
As MarcoDiablo said in his post, the long run had an extra yummy finish, with MyKaren getting KrispyKreme donuts and bagels for us! Yumminess! Sharon and I ran together, 2-10 mile loops, and it was over almost before we knew it! We totally rocked the run. Yesterday, we swam 2 miles--and did a negative split! Woohoo. It's really weird thinking that we only have 1 long run and 2 more long bikes before the taper begins. Weird, but kind of a relief in a way.
I've been going to the IMFL site and reviewing the photos from the last few years, mostly to get myself in tune with the swim...it does look scary.
I am at the point where I am sure I can do all three things individually, but still am uncertain about stringing them all together. Guess I'll find out!
As MarcoDiablo said in his post, the long run had an extra yummy finish, with MyKaren getting KrispyKreme donuts and bagels for us! Yumminess! Sharon and I ran together, 2-10 mile loops, and it was over almost before we knew it! We totally rocked the run. Yesterday, we swam 2 miles--and did a negative split! Woohoo. It's really weird thinking that we only have 1 long run and 2 more long bikes before the taper begins. Weird, but kind of a relief in a way.
I've been going to the IMFL site and reviewing the photos from the last few years, mostly to get myself in tune with the swim...it does look scary.
I am at the point where I am sure I can do all three things individually, but still am uncertain about stringing them all together. Guess I'll find out!
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