Just Keep Swimming

MIA

2012-01-13T04:57:00.000-05:00

I have been MIA (in life) for the past month or so. Between the holidays, working more weeks of nights than I was supposed to work, and coming down with a nasty sinus infection last week, I have not been "living the good life" lately. No complaints, just sometimes it happens.

Thanks to a some lovely bacteria, I was knocked on my ass for the better part of last week. I called in sick 2 days (out of a 4 day week) and missed FOUR DAYS of workouts. I started feeling bad Monday night, and I finally gave in and went to my doctor on Friday morning after being unable to kick the sick on my own in 4 days (including Wed. and Thurs. nights off - I was working overnights). P.S. I think "kick the sick" is going to be my new catch phrase because I'm awesome and just made it up and it rhymes and everything!

Sunday and Monday I forced myself through some workouts because I couldn't take being sedentary for any longer. Now I am finally feeling back to normal, although I still have a runny nose and some sinus fluid drainage (sexy, I know). Unfortunately, I can DEFINITELY feel the hit to my fitness levels, however, illness happens and I'm glad that I took those 4 days and rested rather than push through and exacerbate the situation. How can I tell I am not totally recovered and back to normal? Well, for once I am actually able to ride in my Z1 on the bike without killing myself. I am pretty sure it isn't a "hey my legs are magically stronger" moment and more of a "wow my body is still fighting off an infection" kind of thing. Also, swimming on Wednesday (I was doing 300s) was really hard. Like really, really, really hard.

Anyway, the end is in sight. After this week I am off of nights for a little while, I am feeling 98% healthy, the rehabilitation of my knee is going well (PT, functional strength training, and 10 min. of running at a time), and my birthday is next week!

I am turning 27 again, not 28 (FYI), so if you are going to gift me a time machine, you'd better make it fast. If not, I'll figure something else out. :)

Resolutions and Goals

2012-01-04T04:06:00.000-05:00

Happy 2012 Everyone! I know I am a few days late.. whoops!

I like the idea of making New Years Resolutions but I am not always the greatest at thinking of good ones or keeping the ones I have made. Last year I feel that I did pretty good. My four resolutions were: read more books, simplify life, save money, try not to be so neurotic. Haha! I definitely think I met all of those resolutions. I read tons of books thanks to my Kindle, I simplified life by moving into a smaller apartment and selling some things (like my road bike) that I wasn't using, I saved money and completely paid for the 2 Ironmans that I did (by myself without having to convince my parents that a condo in some obscure town was the perfect vacation.. not that I did that for IMLP or anything..), and I was WAY less neurotic, I swear!

I am so proud that I actually kept my New Years Resolutions for once in my life! And actually, I couldn't remember what any of them were until I looked back to last year's post, so these must have been things that I REALLY wanted to change without needing to remind myself about them.

I try to keep them separate from race goals because I feel that resolutions are life changes that will improve your quality of life and race goals are just arbitrary goals that you strive for in order to improve.

So..without further ado.

2012 New Years Resolutions

1) Save money, for real, in a SAVINGS ACCOUNT (and NOT spend it on races/gear/toys/clothes/etc.).

2) Learn some things about wine. I have discovered in the last year or so that I really like drinking wine. It's (mostly) affordable, it's classy, it tastes way better than beer, and I am surrounded by it with the Finger Lakes region a short drive away. Unfortunately, I know next to nothing about wine, and tend to just buy the same 2 or 3 kinds over and over again whenever I hit up ~~Disney World for adults~~ the liquor store. Or I'll go to a restaurant and stare at the wine list for 20 minutes like an idiot.

3) Make more time to be social (I am doing pretty well with this one already but I want to improve), and actually dress appropriately for social outings (i.e. like the almost-28 year old female that I am) - yoga pants do not count! Actually, Lululemon apparel (even though I love it) in general should not count.

4) Ride Cherry 1x per week for the entire year.

5) Expand my social circle beyond Train-This and my 2 bike shop friends (seriously, I am not kidding.. all of my Rochester friends ride bikes). Unfortunately, the shift work required by my job hinders my ability to take classes or do activities that meet regularly, which I guess is the way that people make friends? I have no idea..

2012 Race Goals

1) Sub-1:40 in the half marathon - I am currently at a PR of 1:40 in 2011.

2) Sub-5 hours in the half-IM (this is a HUGE stretch.. so realistically, I am going to say sub 5:10) - my PR is currently 5:16 from 2010.

3) Run a 1:45 half-marathon split in a half-IM - my fastest split is 1:50 - 2010.

4) Run a legit marathon time.. which at the moment is TBD.

5) Learn to do a flying dismount.. FOR REAL. This has been a goal for the past 2 years and I have yet to even attempt to learn this trick. I am scared. I am not graceful, and my bike has an X-Lab on the back. To me, this screams disaster waiting to happen!

I know my blog sucks lately, so maybe I should make that a resolution - actually post more! I do read posts from everyone on my blogroll and I try to comment when I can (i.e. when I am reading on a computer and not on my iPhone while in bed). At this point, I feel like I have already blogged about all of the exciting parts of triathlon training, I've raced pretty much every distance out there (minus anything "ultra" and I don't think I'll ever be going to that "special" place), and I don't really know what else I can contribute that isn't repetitive. So until I get something else to write about, I don't want to bore people with "well today I rode my bike and then ran for 30 minutes" because pretty much everyone does that already and no one cares!

Also, I have recently started using FourSquare on my iPhone (it's actually kind of fun) and all it does is prove how boring I really am. The only places that I "check in" to with any regularity are: my work, the Y, and Wegmans. Seriously, does life get any more exciting than that, my friends?

Here is to a new year, a less boring blog, and new and exciting things to conquer!

2011 in Review: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

2011-12-20T02:10:00.001-05:00

Since the end of 2011 is rapidly approaching, I figured I would do a post with the highlights and lowlights of the past year. A lot of people use this to post their "yearly numbers." I don't do that.. it's not my style and frankly, I don't know. I honestly couldn't even guess how many miles I've swam, biked, or run. A lot. End of story! So here is my year of memories, accomplishments, disappointments, and just plain stupidity! And a LOT of links to race reports and creepy blog friends (and some real life friends too). :)

The Good

I PRed in the half-marathon distance at the Flower City Challenge HM. Yes, it was only by 40 seconds, and it still didn't bring my PR to sub 1:40, but I was still excited.

I WON my first race at the Keuka Lake Sprint triathlon! It was a small race, but it was awesome to finally win something (I have been close before) and stand on the top of that podium.

I think I sprinted up there to get on that podium first!

I did 2 Ironmans in 3 months. 'Nuff said.

Not only did I meet Cait Snow, but I made it into her IMCDA race report (mention AND photo!!!!).

oh wait, you've seen this photo before? my bad :)

I added 5 states to the list of states I have been to which were: Washington, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin. Obviously, the only two I spent any real time in (other than driving) were Idaho and Wisconsin. Wisconsin I'd visit again in a second - Idaho, not so much.

My family came to a whole bunch of my races. My parents were there when I won Keuka, and they were there at IM Coeur D'Alene to help me out with my medical tent disaster. They missed IM Wisconsin but only because I didn't want them to have to stand around for a whole day at IM #3.

I bought an iPhone 4 which has basically altered my existence.

I moved to a new apartment! It's cleaner, nicer, homier, quieter, and there is no squirrel taking up residence with me and Fiona. Even though it's small, I absolutely love it there, and I am no longer embarrassed to have people come over to my home!

I read a ton of books in the past 12 months, thanks to the Kindle I got for Christmas last year. Some of my favorites include: Water for Elephants, The Hunger Games trilogy, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trilogy, Pillars of the Earth, and World Without End. There are many, many more but those are some that I loved so much!

My friends have become an even more amazing part of my life this year. I actually maintained my social life (although it's not as exciting as some peoples' social lives I am sure) with trainer sessions/long rides with Kim, girls' nights with Ari and Sam, bar nights with Matthias, Amanda and Greg's wedding, and some fun outings with Solveig. I had a ridiculously fun race experience at mini-Mussel with Greg and Mary. I met a whole bunch of creepy internet friends: Jon, Mandy, Emily, Kevin, Anne-Marie, and Laurie. Also, 3 of my friends got engaged this year (Kerry, one of my long-time horse friends, Amelia, and Kim)!

FRIENDS!!

I have begun to consistently ride Cherry again, which is something that has escaped me since this whole Ironman nonsense began in 2010. I am so much happier when I get to spend time at the barn and in the saddle, so I am going to try my hardest to make this work around my big training weeks in the summer. Plus, Cherry deserves the best care possible for as long as she's around! She has been such a great 4-legged companion for the past 17 years of my life. Really, she's the best horse I could ever ask for and I love her so much!

she is sooooooo awkward, just like ME!

The Bad

Despite my increased training, swimming more yards per week, more 6 hour bike rides, multiple 3 hour long runs, even with two attempts, I did not have the Ironman that I wanted. I wanted to PR, I wanted to go sub-12, and I wanted to run a good IM marathon. I was unable to do any of those things. I think I would have been happy if I had hit at least one of those goals, but I didn't. Regardless of the small victories that I had (the completion of two more Ironmans, figuring out long ride nutrition, the success of those 3 hour runs), my failure to meet my own goals has cast a shadow over much of the 2011 season. I know that is negative, and I know that people are not happy with my perspective on it, but that's the way it is. The best I can do is take what I have learned this year and apply it to the future.

Mary sold Train-This in the fall of 2011. Although this is definitely a personal achievement for Mary (she was invited to join the coaching staff of QT2 Systems, which she accept, and which we are ALL proud of her for), I am still sad about it. Train-This has become a family to me. We are so close; most of us are in Rochester so we raced together, went to training camp together, joked around on the google group, and saw each other in training hot spots like Mendon Ponds Park and Canandaigua Lake. Even though the friendships are still there, and I have followed Mary to QT2 (which I do believe will help me improve next season), it's different now. I loved that Train-This was a local, help-you-out kind of coaching service. It was affordable, it was flexible, there were no limits to how often I could text, tweet, facebook, email, or call Mary. You don't find service like that very often, where someone launches a business because they truly love it and aren't trying to make tons of money off of it. Since it has changed hands, the logo has been altered and the name has changed to T2 Multisport. Although I understand why the company has been madeover, it still bums me out that the Train-This that I have loved for 2 years is gone.

I spent all of my money on Ironman this year. Literally all of it. Between race entries, travel (flights to and from CDA and all that driving for IMOO), hotels, coaching, equipment (hello, Garmin 310XT), I came out of the race season with no extra money saved. I don't regret it because I believe that I should embrace opportunities that I may never get to experience again, but it has made things difficult for the past 3 months as I struggle to pay my regular bills. I didn't think I would be having this kind of trouble, but my coaching has increased in cost and I am now paying off a new laptop that I bought when I was forced to replace my Macbook that died in July. I am praying to the gods of triathlon that my year end bonus arrives both swiftly and plentifully!

The Ugly

I will be happy if I never have to see the inside of a medical tent again. Hours of my life were wasted inside the medical tent after IM Coeur D'Alene, begging for that sweet, sweet IV that fixed my dizziness and nausea when they finally gave it to me (hours after I first got carted into the tent). Between passing out in the changing tent and puking in the medical tent, my IMCDA post-race celebration was not very good. There was less dizziness at IMWI, but there was vomiting both during the run and after the race in my hotel room. Again, vomiting = NOT FUN.

dizziness FTW

I still hate wearing pants. Unfortunately, it's December, and even though it's been unseasonably warm, I can no longer lounge in my apartment sans pants because one thing I hate even more than pants? A high electric bill! I have moved on to the winter equivalent of no pant - giant sweatpants and/or a snuggie.

I am still single. (Which honestly, and I am really being totally honest here and not pretending in order to make myself feel better or to convince the world that I am "better off without men," is fine. I am happy enough with the way things are in my life). After last year, I swore I would swear off boys eternally (2010 was the year of two breakups). Which I sort of did. Because my choice in men is.. questionable. But then, you know, I get bored. Seriously. It's just boredom that makes me think I want to find a boyfriend. Oh yeah, and that looming deadline of being 30 that has been arbitrarily stuck in my head as the age to be married by (ummm.. I can tell you now.. that's definitely not going to be met). But.. I have nothing to show for my year except for a whole bunch of super awkward dates with a bunch of weirdos. Maybe I am ready for part 2 of this blog post? Luckily I have Matthias who is basically my pretend boyfriend because his girlfriend, Sabrina, lives in California, so he hangs out with me, which is perfect because I don't cross those kinds of lines, and I find him totally non-threatening because he's in a relationship!

In Conclusion..

I am (mostly) happy with my year. Meaning, I will look back on it fondly. It didn't have the ultimate highs that I got in 2010 (my big half-IM PR and my first Ironman), and it did have some disappointments, but at least I tried. I feel that most of the great parts of 2011 were actually NOT triathlon related, which is totally fine! Overall, I was more levelheaded, I felt like I knew more of what I was doing (training-wise), I handled working the night shift better, and I never had that post-Ironman depression that killed me in 2010!

On to 2012!!

winter is here, maybe?

2011-12-19T04:27:00.001-05:00

Hey Winter,

6 days away from Christmas and you finally show your face! (Not that I am complaining about being able to wear my yoga capris and a hoodie to and from the gym in December). If I was actually running and had to acclimate to 20 degree weather straight from 60 degree weather, I would probably be bitching, but right now, all of my workouts take place in the comfort of my climate controlled apartment or the heated YMCA pool.

We actually saw some snow on Saturday!

I did some things this weekend. Some socializing in the form of dinner on Saturday with Matthias followed by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra's Christmas concert with Solveig. I rode Cherry. I rode my bike as well. I finished my Christmas shopping and once the final present arrives from Amazon.com, I will wrap them!

Week 2 of QT2 base phase is complete. I am done with my "adaptation lift" cycle and begin my "max phase lift" cycle tomorrow. Should be interesting! Gotta start building those leg muscles!

One huge difference between my training with QT2 and Train-This is that my rest weeks are no longer scheduled to fall on my first week of nights. Because my work schedule is on a 5 week rotation and QT2 has a pretty strict 4 week cycle with specific tapers and benchmark races along the way, I doubt it would even be possible to edit it to a 5 week rotation like Mary has done the past 2 years (Mary was a little more flexible with training cycles, races, etc in the Train-This days). Plus, if my work schedule changed, I'd be SOL. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, it's just going to be different and I hope I do OK with training weeks that fall on that first week of nights. It honestly just depends on whether or not I can sleep. Unfortunately, last week AND this weekend did not go well sleep-wise, which stinks because I had been doing pretty well for the past few months. Maybe it's time to pick the Ambien back up for a little while.

FYI: My 28th birthday is exactly one month from today. SO if anyone wants to start thinking about the awesome present they're going to buy for me OR plan a surprise party, here's your heads up! :) Actually, for all of my local friends, I will probably organize a fun outing the Saturday evening after my birthday so that I can enjoy the company of my friends! Especially in January when everyone stays inside and becomes reclusive due to the weather, it will be fun to go out and socialize!! If I am have to accept that I'm in my late 20s, I might as well have fun doing it. :)

weakling

2011-12-16T09:28:00.000-05:00

I have had an issue for a while when I am cycling. I never can seem to "hit" my target HR zones. When I was with Train-This, we used Joe Friel HR zones for both the bike and the run (I believe, Mary can correct me if I'm wrong) with a Z1 (recovery), Z2 (endurance), Z3 (tempo) and Z4 (short races). There was an offset between bike zones and run zones, like usual, and I still have a hard time understanding WHY there is an offset, but I attempted to follow these HR zones to the best of my ability. When I am running, I have no problem dialing into the required zone. I can run all day at my endurance zone, and I can hit and run at tempo pace when it's scheduled.

But I just CANNOT seem to ride in my cycling zones. For instance, my Z2 for last year on the bike were (approximately, I can't remember exactly) 142-162. So, for the majority of my rides (all my long rides, all IM bike splits) should be ridden at a HR somewhere in there. But, where do I tend to average my HR for long rides? In the 120s (if I'm lucky). This happens on the trainer, outside, all the time. During IM Wisconsin, the only triathlon where I have worn my HR monitor, I actually averaged in my Z2 (on the high side even) but this was a race situation AND it was hot as balls on that bike.

Mary figured that part of my issue with this (because it was an ongoing issue over 2 seasons) was that I was just cooked from 2 Ironmans in one year. Personally, I felt like I was just being too lazy on the bike. I felt like I was riding at endurance pace, based off of perceived effort, but it's hard to tell sometimes!

When I made the switch to QT2 two weeks ago, my HR zones changed to the QT2 system. They are ZR (recovery), Z1 (endurance), and Z2 (tempo). I ran a 5K in October and Mary used that data to structure my new zones. They are smaller and lower than the previous ones I used, so I thought that I finally might have a chance to actually ride in my endurance zone. My first bike ride in, I was absolutely determined to hit my HR zone, and I did it, by sprinting my ass off for 75 minutes. My Z1 was 134 - 145, and my average HR was 134. So even riding above my BSE (best sustainable effort) for 75 minutes, I BARELY made it into Z1. And I don't think I could ride at that intensity for much longer than 75 minutes, so that is going to prove to be problematic for long rides.

By this point, I was super frustrated.

That same day, I had posted a photo on facebook that I had taken with my iPhone. The photo was of this index card I had decorated with my HR zones so that I could sit it in front of me and stare at it while on the trainer - just another safeguard against slacking (because that's what I thought was going on). A QT2 teammate, Keith, that I am friends with through Mary commented on the photo about how my HR zones are higher than his (my Z1 is his Z3) and he said that he also had trouble riding in his HR zones, and said that it is common for runners who are used to using our entire bodies when we work out, so when we have to use just our legs, we have a harder time because we lack leg strength.

I wanted to run this theory by Mary, so I hopped over to the QT2 forum and posted a question for Mary with some background (for other members who read the forum), my "conversation" with Keith, and asking what her thoughts were on the matter. Sidenote: because I am a QT2 Mission Plan Athlete, things have changed a little bit since being a Train-This athlete. Questions about training, races, switching workouts, and other questions in general are posted to Mary's QT2 forum instead of emailed to her directly (if you want that kind of communication, you have to be a 1:1 athlete, but I can't afford it). It works out fine because Mary is very diligent about checking the forum and answering questions, and you can also see what other people post and her answers to their questions. Also, since she is now one coach among other coaches, she can actually brainstorm problems her athletes are having with other knowledgeable people in search of answers. I believe this is what Mary did, since her and I had no idea what was going on last season.

Long story short (ok actually it's long, sorry!) we think the problem is a lack of leg strength. It's kind of crazy when you think about it, because I don't look like I lack strength in my legs. I am pretty solid, my quads are pretty big, and I've done a LOT of training the past 3 years. But, this also does make sense to me. I might be strong endurance-wise but in terms of actual strength, I don't have a lot. I think this is why my quads blow up in marathons, IM marathons, and even at the end of a hilly long run.

To try to fix this, Mary is going to have me doing a lot of lower body max phase strengthening exercises (and I think my max strength phase is going to be extended) and a lot of low cadence, big ring trainer rides over the winter. I am just glad that this problem has been figured out, that it's not my fault, and that there is a solution that will hopefully make me a stronger, faster athlete!

oh runner's knee

2011-12-08T20:53:00.001-05:00

I ran for the first time in 13 days on Wednesday. I had posted about some knee pain after Running for the Diamonds on Thanksgiving Day, so I wanted to give my knee ample time off to heal. Turns out, 13 days is not enough. Two miles into my run, my knee started to twinge. As I turned around and headed back home (it was dark, cold, and I was wearing knickers and a long sleeved shirt so I ran) it continued to get worse. I kept hoping something would click into place and the pain would go away, but nope. 2 weeks, 2 runs, 2 encounters with knee pain, I don't like where this is going.

After walking in my apartment and kicking off my shoes, I immediately posted this concern on the QT2 forum (I guess I never published a post saying that I had started with QT2.. whoops) and Mary immediately put me on the run injury protocol, which is basically taking all of my run volume, and putting half of it on the bike (the other half gets eliminated). I iced and elevated my knee after running. When I woke yesterday morning, it was stiff. Not as bad as after the race, but it hurt to walk on and I basically gimped around work for the first 2 hours, then it slowly got better as I moved around more. I also made a doctors appointment for the afternoon to rule out any real damage.

Fast forward to 3:45 pm, I was in the doctors' office for literally 5 minutes. The doctor looked at my knee, had me crouch, had me stand on my tiptoes, and then deemed it Patella-Femoral Pain Syndrome AKA Runner's Knee.

The verdict is: no running for the rest of December. Pool running is ok, cycling is ok, swimming is ok. When I do ease back into running, I need to stay on flat, soft surfaces (such as a treadmill or the canal path).

I am annoyed that I put myself into this situation (running a hilly 9 mile race without the required training) but really, it's probably the best case scenario and hopefully I will be up and running (literally) in a few weeks!

Toronto Road Trip

2011-11-29T17:38:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, I took a Saturday road trip to Toronto with my friend Ari. We really didn't have a specific reason for going other than a) Toronto is the 5th largest city in North America, b) there is an IKEA there, c) I have only been there once and I don't remember it because I was too young, and d) we both just wanted an adventure!

Ari modeling some IKEA
fashion wear

We headed out at 7 am, crossed the border in Niagara Falls (slightly nerve wracking), and stopped at IKEA (after getting slightly lost trying to find it) before heading into the city. I am a huge fan of furniture from IKEA. I have a few pieces from there (courtesy of my parents and the store in Philly) that look super classy but are affordable at the same time. We ate breakfast in the cafeteria (who knew that existed!) because we were famished, then enjoyed walking through the show room (except where some kid puked in the children's area and it smelled disgusting). Ari bought a few things; I (surprisingly) bought nothing, and we exited ~2 hours later to head into the city.

Traffic heading into the city wasn't bad at all, and we found a parking spot in a garage by the CN Tower. The garage was probably the scariest part of the drive, because it had construction going on, and the ramp was running traffic 2-ways, sometimes with a temporary traffic light, sometimes without. People are idiots and we almost got taken out in there!

We headed up the CN Tower, checked out the 360 view, walked on the glass floor (I did, Ari didn't!), and walked around the revolving restaurant.

view of the city from the tower

Fun Toronto fact - if it's a clear day, you can actually see Rochester on the other side of Lake Ontario! Unfortunately, it was too hazy the day we were there. :(

playing in some fun chairs in the Distillery District

pretty Christmas tree in the Distillery District

Then we spent some time walking around, checking out the public market, eating delicious pastries, and exploring the Distillery District. We eventually got hungry and headed off to this vegetarian restaurant that I had found online: Hibiscus. It was blocks and blocks away from where we were down by the water, so we walked for probably a good 45 minutes before we found the street that it was on. As we headed up the street, away from the busy part of the city, it grew more sketchy. The townhouses looked unkempt, with their window treatments skewed across the windows, people in the homes tapping on the windows at us, and no one on the street. We hurried up down the street which then came to a dead end. WHAT? (Because we couldn't use our cell phones, we were working off of a map of Toronto and an address I had written down at home). We took a left and got the hell out of that neighborhood, only to be relieved to see the lights of restaurants up ahead. We then found the street again (apparently, it ended and then started up again on the other side of a more "main" street) and after walking 10 more minutes, we found the restaurant, which, of course, was closing. Frustrated and starving, we backtracked to another vegetarian restaurant and ate some pretty good food! This whole neighborhood was very hippie, I kind of liked it! We rounded out the meal with churros for dessert and headed back to the car. It was a long walk and my legs were KILLING me (sheesh.. I can do an Ironman but I can't walk around for a day??).

my horn can pierce the sky!
(outside the market)

CN Tower at night

The drive home was much worse - I was soooo tired, but I managed and I think I made it home at 10:30 or so after dropping Ari off. It was a fun trip! One thing I noticed was the high amount of attractive, well-dressed, in shape men. Compare that with the guys you see walking around Rochester or even NYC, and it was a HUGE improvement. Good job, men of Canada! Keep it up and I will continue to cross the border and stimulate your economy just to stare at you. :)

Run For the Diamonds Race Report

2011-11-25T12:31:00.001-05:00

The Run For the Diamonds is a Thanksgiving morning 9 mile race in Berwick, PA that started in 1908. It draws an incredibly elite field (top 8 in both genders get a diamond, the next 8 get a beautiful plaque). I have been wanting to do this race since about 2007, but there was always some conflict: work, the Philadelphia Marathon, being too out of shape, etc. This year I was determined to make it happen, and ran *just* enough this off-season (i.e. probably not enough to sufficiently train for a 9 mile race) to be sure I would do ok and not die.

I made plans to carpool the 1.5 hours to Berwick with my high school cross country coach, Mike, and his wife, Rachel, who are both talented runners and have both *just* missed out on top 16 awards at this race. (Also, these two are both registered for Mooseman 70.3 and Ironman Lake Placid for 2012)! It was ~27 degrees when I woke up on race morning, but it was supposed to warm up to mid-50s during the day, so I wore shorts and brought a bunch of different running tops along, just in case.

hilariously awful race shirt!

I showed up at their house promptly at 7:45, and we arrived in Berwick at around 9:15. The car ride was full of stories of other races, tales from High School, and Mike scaring me to death with a description of the terrain of this race. We picked up our race packets, warmed up, hit the portapotties, got race-ready, and headed to the start which was set to go off at 10:30 am. I decided to run in shorts, a short sleeved tech shirt, arm warmers, and gloves. I started at the front of the middle.. in the midst of maybe 1500 runners? The gun went off and it took me about 12 seconds to cross the start line, which is when I started my Garmin. Rachel had asked me my goal for this race, and I said that I was shooting for 8 min/mile pace, which, once I heard of the terrain (after 2 miles, you run up a non-stop hill for at least a mile), thought that might be a little fast. An 8:00 min/mile pace would put me across the finish line at 1:12, so I tentatively aimed for that as a ballpark finish time.

Unsure of my fitness, and how fast I might actually be able to run a 9 mile race right now regardless of the hills, I took it out at 8 min/mile pace for the first 2 flat-ish miles. This race is a huge party in Berwick - tons of people were out on their porches and lining the streets - drinking beers, smoking cigarettes, etc. Gotta love Pennsylvania!

The first 2 miles felt a little fast and I was cramping a little and wondering how I was going to run 7 more miles at this pace (and 8 min/mile pace is not super intense fast for me.. it should be doable!). It's a testament to how of shape I really am right now. But once we hit the big uphill, I settled into a decent rhythm. It was slow going, but I actually felt better running up the hill than I did for the first 2 miles of that race. I ran up, up, up for what seemed like forever, and then it turned into a steep downhill, and then went back up! Once the downhills started was where I started to have some problems. I am not a great downhill runner, but I knew that if I wanted to make up the time I lost on the slow uphill sections, I would have to push it, so I was basically running as fast as I could down this huge, unrelenting hill. My right knee and leg seemed stiff but I didn't want to stop and stretch it so I just ignored it. It didn't hurt.. just felt weird and a little uncomfortable.

I hit the halfway point at about 38:45 (which was ok, both Mike and Rachel had assured me that it is impossible not to negative split this race, even if you started out like a maniac), rounded a hairpin turn, and saw some young guy puking on the side of the rode. Lovely. I continued to run downhill for most of the rest of the race (mixed in with some quick uphills). It finally flattened out as we started to approach the town, but after running downhill for so long, it actually felt like I was going uphill! I passed the 8 mile clock in about 1:06:xx and knew that there was no way I was going to run a 1:12, so just started hoping I could finish in less than 1:15. At about 8.2 miles, I ran out of steam (funny, this is about the length of all of the "long runs I have done since Ironman Wisconsin). The last mile of this race was the worst part.. it's the same as the first mile (more or less) and is a straight shot down a divided "boulevard" with grass in the middle, which I am assuming is one of the main drags in Berwick. It just kept going on, and on, and on at what felt like a slight uphill grade. I finally saw the finish line, crossed, and was DONE! My legs were jello from those hills and my right knee was bothering me. I tried to stretch it out and then found Mike and Rachel. We went over to where there was food so they could check results, unfortunately, neither of them had super great races so we left without waiting for the awards ceremony.

I ended up finishing in 1:14:36 (8:18 pace), 13 out of 83 in my age group, and 605 overall, out of 1579 total runners.

Garmin data.. at least I kept my heart rate stimulated!

mile splits

We headed out of town, hit up a Sheetz for some MTOs (LOVE SHEETZ!!) And then started the 90 min drive home. Mike decided to take a different route home than we took to the race, and we ended up driving over this mountain and in the "town" of Lopez in Sullivan County. Remember all of that terrible flooding that happened in PA in September? Well, the area that my parents live and the surrounding counties were hit hard. There are bridges closed all over the place. We got to Lopez, and the bridge we needed to take to get home was closed. So instead of turning around, we went straight (the bridge was to the right of us) into the PA State Gamelands hoping that we could go through them and emerge on the other side. 20 minutes later, we were driving up huge rocky ATV trails in a Subaru Outback, splashing through giant mud puddles, and Mike was getting frustrated. Meanwhile, Rachel and I were giggling because in reality, the situation was pretty hilarious. Mike was worried that we were going to pop a tire and be stranded miles into the wilderness with only some water and a Clif Bar. Rachel and I were facebooking back and forth in our iPhones (her in the front seat, me in the back).

the "A" marks Lopez, the green area is where we were driving around lost!

We finally just had to turn around and backtrack because we weren't finding any other way out. 40 minutes after we first entered the Gamelands, we exited in the same place we started, laughing about how there was probably mud all over the side of the car with branches sticking out of the roof rack. There was an older couple walking down the road just past the closed bridge, so Rachel asked them how to get to Wyalusing (which is where they live) and they gave us directions, with the warning that it was 10 - 12 miles and "part of it is a dirt road." Umm.. did you folks NOT see where we just emerged from? Dirt road is fine.

We made the turn onto the detour road, which eventually turned into the widest dirt road we had ever seen, complete with "do not pass" signs. Seriously, I can't believe that a dirt road in freakin' Lopez, PA gets enough traffic to warrant a "do not pass" sign! 20 minutes later, we turned onto a real road. Comments from the car included: "LOOK! a real road!" "it even has a painted line!" and "CIVILIZATION!!" We arrived back at Mike and Rachel's not long after our return to paved roads, and I thanked them for driving and headed home for Thanksgiving dinner with my family!

en-route Facebook conversation between the passengers

Unfortunately, after racing a hard, hilly 9 miles and then sitting in a car for over 2 hours, my right knee was not happy with me. It was stiff and painful to walk. Since the race, I have been taking ibuprofen and icing religiously in hopes that I didn't do any serious damages. Fingers are crossed!

I will DEFINITELY be returning to this race in future years - it was a blast!

Hope everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving!

accidental tapering

2011-11-18T04:44:00.001-05:00

I have taken a sort-of "accidental" break from blogging - i.e. I keep forgetting that I have a blog. :) When the title of your blog is "Just Keep Swimming" and you have skipped both swims this week.. maybe you're not living up to the expectations of your blog? Whoops!

I am running a 9 mile race on Thanksgiving.. so I have 6 days to go until that race. Therefore, I am not skipping workouts, I am "tapering." :) Which I probably shouldn't be doing since the farthest I've run since IMWI is 8.5 miles.. Whoops again!

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. It's chilly out but not freezing (normally), there is ALWAYS a race to run in the morning (there are like 5 billion Turkey Trots in the USA), there is delicious food to eat in the afternoon (which I love even though I don't eat turkey), you get to hang out with your family, you can get drunk in the middle of the day and no one cares, and it's the first day (in my opinion) that you can play Christmas music without judgement. There is also that whole Black Friday thing but I'm not into that. I do 95% of my Christmas shopping from the comfort of my house via Amazon.com.

Also, with the bad economy, rampant publicized child molestation, the obesity epidemic, plus a million more things going on in countries other than our own, there's a lot of horrible crap going on in the world. I think it is absolutely prudent to be thankful for what we do have. Not just one day a year (hello, Thanksgiving) but EVERY SINGLE DAY. Hey, I don't have any money, I am 27 and single - these are not things that I necessarily love, but if I die tomorrow with 15 pennies in my pocket, I will have been grateful for what I did have during my lifetime: my family and friends, the ability and drive to stay fit and active, Fiona and Cherry (I really, really love my pets), my independence, and the fact that I lived my life and was happy. Also, Harry Potter. :)

..Stepping down from the pedestal..

One more thing, Mandy AKA CaratunkGirl and I are striving to start a sort-of Kindle club where people we know who have Kindles can see lists of the books everyone has and then loan each other books. As much as I love, love, LOVE my Kindle, it does get expensive. I wind up buying books (because you just have to click a button on Amazon and I am compulsive like that) that I may not have purchased if I were wandering around Barnes and Noble. Kindle has had this lending thing going on for a while, so I checked it out last night. There are a few things that kind of stink: 1) The lending period is 14 days. That's it, so if you are a slower reader, or you are busy, or you borrow a huge book, you may not finish in time. And then once that 2 weeks is up, bye bye book. 2) Not all books are available for lending. This is determined by the publisher. 3) IF the book is available for lending, you can only lend that book out once. EVER. I understand why they don't want the lending to be a free-for-all, but couldn't they have made a limit of lending to 5 people per year, or something similar?

I feel as though if I spend my money and buy a book, it's my choice to lend it to as many or as few people as I want. If I bought a regular paperback, I could lend it to a string of 30 people - it's the same thing. If I borrow a book and I love it, usually I end up buying it anyways, or I buy a different book by that author, so I don't really think the publisher would be losing any money (any more than they already do by the mere existence of libraries). Anyways, I could go on and on about this, but I'll stop. However, even with these restrictions, if you're interested in this, let me know via a comment. I have listed the books on my Kindle on a page of my blog (although I have to update it to which of those books are actually available for lending).

S-L-A-C-K-E-R

2011-11-14T00:51:00.001-05:00

Last post published on Oct. 24.. wow. Slacker alert!

It's late and I'm feeling not so great.. and tired.. so I think I will do a bullet list of updates to my life.

First things first, I won a week of vacation days to use next year in our company's United Way campaign raffle.. it was the grand prize! There are no words to describe how freakin' excited I am to have won this! Only ONE person out of everyone who works at our Rochester plant (there are 4 buildings in total) wins this grand prize (other prizes are 1 vacation day, gift cards, gift baskets, sometimes electronics such as ipods, etc.). The only other thing I have ever won in my lifetime was a set of limited edition collector's coins at a Chinese auction when I was like 10 years old. Needless to say.. I am PUMPED!

I am road tripping to Toronto on Saturday with my friend Ari.. a spontaneously planned trip as of last week that I am excited for, having never been to Toronto (at least not when I was old enough to remember it). Although I guess there ARE some things that I need to worry about, such as exchanging some money, how I am going to navigate/stay informed/exist without my cell phone (no way am I getting roaming charges!), what we are actually going to do when we get there, etc. Should be exciting!

I made a budget this past week and it was totally depressing. Turns out, I spend WAY more on monthly bills than any normal person should. I really don't think I have a lot of extra costs, other than of course, the horse, who is slowly but surely sucking my money away as fast as I can earn it. Other than that, I have cheap, 13 channel cable, the cheapest, slowest internet option that exists, I keep my apartment freezing cold all winter long to keep my heat bills down, I don't go out to dinner or drink a lot, and my main forms of entertainment are via Netflix/Hulu+ or occasionally a movie in the theatre. So it's a little frustrating when I am searching for ways to cut costs and there doesn't seem to be much there. My one really bad habit is buying stuff I don't need - so as of Friday, after buying the new (and final) Harry Potter movie on Blu Ray (come on.. I couldn't NOT buy it!), I effectively ended my extraneous spending completely. I have a feeling.. it's going to SUCK.

I am plant-sitting for Matthias while he spends the next 2 months back and forth to different places. One is an orchid and the other I can't remember the name of, however it is not good for cats (i.e. poisonous) so I had to put that one way on the top of my bookshelf where she can't get to it. The orchid is on top of my fridge because he likes that one and doesn't want Fiona to eat it either. I hope to god I don't kill them.. I have never successfully taken care of a plant..

I sold my Garmin 305 this weekend with the help of Gretchen and the Moms in Motion message board (thanks Gretchen!). I also have a pair of hot pink Zensah compression socks, size S/M that I have never worn because they are too big for me. Seriously, please someone buy them. They are so pretty and pink! I will sell them for $35 which includes shipping!! PLEASE!!!!!! They are just sitting in the box they came in and are taking up space in my apartment (as well as money that could be in my bank account). Someones calves need to be loved by some pretty pink compression sleeves, right?

Johnny's Run Like Hell Race Report

2011-10-24T20:37:00.000-04:00

On Saturday, I raced a 5K called "Johnny's Run Like Hell" that is one of my favorite local races. It starts at 3 pm at a bar (Johnny's Irish Pub), and ends at the same bar. Awards are given out in the bar. Prizes? Bottle of wine. Throw into the mix a fantastic long-sleeved, Halloween themed, t-shirt and I am sold.

Several people I knew were doing the race: Kim A., the Krazy Kellmans, K-Dub (our resident neurosurgeon who was on call during the race), Travis and his sister Jenna, along with some others.

Travis, Kim, me, Dave, Jennie, MK post-race

I met Kim and Travis at his sister's house (which was 1 or 2 blocks from Johnny's) at around 2 pm. We hung out as she got her family ready for the race (i.e. her husband donned his Willy Wonka costume and their 2 twins, their oompa loompa paint). It was hysterical and adorable! Kim, Travis and I then made our way to the race site, I did a brief warm up (because it was chilly out!) and we lined up.

Willy Wonka and 2 of his oompa loompas!

I had no expectations for this race, based on my fluctuating off-season training and lack of running any distance over 6 miles since Ironman Wisconsin. But, this would be a good test to see just how much fitness I had lost, how much slower had I gotten after an intense long course season of 2 Ironmans, and just a good race that I was planning on enjoying. I wore Gary the vibrating Garmin and my HR monitor to collect data for Mary.

I am never good at pacing 5Ks. I figured I would take the first mile out at 7 min. pace and go from there. My 5K PR is just under 22 minutes (21:48 or something like that) and it was actually at this race in 2009. That year my average pace was just under 7:00 min/mile. So I figured this was safe, as the first mile is always a little fast. Plus, at this race, the first mile has a significant downhill. I have always run 5Ks with this particular strategy: run your first mile conservatively, the 2nd mile steady, and then push the last mile. The last 0.1 is the kick into the finish. I think I picked that up running XC in high school and it has worked fairly well for me (although I never actually negative split anything anyways).

Anyways, the race started, and I was off and running! I hit 1 mile in 6:55. Oops, a little fast! Mile 2 had a medium sized hill to run up and then there were some twisty turns. Mile 2s pace was 7:15. I blame the hill. Mile 3 has this long, unfortunate hill to the finish (the same one you run down at the start) where you can hear the announcer but you can't see the finish, and then when you finally do see the stupid orange cones, it takes FOREVER to get there. By this point, I was tired and cramping and was ready to be done. My 3rd mile split slowed to 7:29.

Overall time: 22:56 (per my Garmin) with an average pace of 7:15. (Per the results: 22:57 gun time with an average pace of 7:24). Weird how they are so different.

So, while this was ~70 seconds slower than my 5K PR, I was THRILLED to go under 23 minutes. I haven't run a 5K in over a year, I have barely been running, and all of my run times in triathlons during the year have been crappy. I know it's ridiculous, but I was worried that any speed I had managed to develop over the past few years had been destroyed, so I am happy to know that it's still there somewhere!

And now, please be as amused as I am by this photo montage taken by Tim (big head in the hat) with his iPad 2 while we were hanging out after the race outside the bar. Who brings their IPAD to take photos with? This guy! But it was hilarious because as he was holding it up to take the panorama, we all saw ourselves in the screen and were giggling/trying to get into the shots.

I was 11th female and won my AG, so I took home a medal and a lovely bottle of red wine!

me (AG winner), Jennie (overall W winner), Matt K. (AG winner)

After the race, Kim, Travis and I went back to Jenna's house to change into warm clothes, and then headed back to the bar for post-race drinks, socializing, and award collecting. We hung out for a while with various friends, and then we went back to get our cars after everyone started to get cold. Travis and Kim left, and I went back into the bar to go to the bathroom, saw Matt Kellman still in there, and the next thing I knew I had a beer in my hand and I was having a conversation with John Tuttle, who ran in the 1984 Olympic Marathon. He's now a competitive Master's runner who was in town for some Master's championship in Perinton that I had no idea was happening. Anyways, it was pretty cool to meet a running legend! Even one that was very, very drunk and raced in the Olympics the year that I was born. I also made 2 new friends who were being entertained by Matt Kellman and Tim Dwyer's bar antics.

me and John Tuttle

'84 Olympic Trials - John Tuttle is the 2nd from the left (the tall guy in the back)

So to sum up, I ran a 5K, won some wine, got a sweet t-shirt, met an Olympian, drank 2 beers.. good way to spend a Saturday afternoon/evening!

Skipping Workouts

2011-10-12T16:12:00.000-04:00

I find myself in a situation that I have never been in before. A sort of structured off-season.

I am not training for anything in particular. I am not being coached until January when I start with QT2. I have nothing really to work on, but I want to stay active to avoid a backslide.

Last year, after Syracuse 70.3, I went on the ultimate lazy girl streak for probably 1.5 months, where I ran twice in that entire length of time, and otherwise spent my free time eating, drinking, and on my couch streaming episodes of Dexter. I'm not going to say that it wasn't fun, but when I started back up with Mary in December, I had a terrible time getting back into a routine. I had gained weight, I had fallen incredibly out of shape, and it was hard to motivate myself to actually go outside in the cold weather when I had spent the past 45 days curled up in my Snuggie.

This year, I am trying to avoid that. I took 2 weeks completely off after Ironman Wisconsin (for recovery and sanity purposes). Then I started up my workout schedule again - the same schedule that I have been doing all year, minus the "long ride" and "long run" on weekends and with only two swims per week instead of three. This probably gets me around 10-12 hours per week, depending on how long I ride and run on weekends.

What I am not sure of is how strict to be with myself. Since this is technically the off-season, do I let myself feel guilty if I don't want to do a workout? Do I force myself to swim when I am tired (which is what I do when I am Ironman training)? Is it ok to substitute something else (yoga, riding Cherry, going for a long hike) for the typical swim, bike, run that I normally fill my time with?

I'm not talking about skipping tons of workouts. I am talking about a day here and there. When I am training for real, I try not to skip anything. The first year I trained with Mary, I think I skipped maybe 2 workouts altogether in the 6 months I was coached by her before IMLP. The second year (this year) I was a little worse, but not horrible. Sometimes it's hard with the work schedule I keep.

This week I am working overnights. My refrigerator died for the 2nd time over the weekend, so on Monday I called the landlord about it and she said that I would be getting a new one on Tuesday. Because I work nights, I asked if they could bring the fridge as late as possible so I could get sufficient sleep in. The guy showed up at 3:15, installed the fridge, and left by 4:15. At that point, I should have left for the pool but I felt like absolute garbage. I went back to bed, woke up at 6:15 pm, and that was it. No workouts. I could have run, or hopped on my trainer, but I just didn't feel like it.

And now, I am feeling immensely guilty about it.

Last Friday, I skipped a bike ride to nap before going to a haunted house with my friend. And let me tell you, that nap allowed me to have much more fun than if I were to have ridden my bike, not napped, and gone out feeling absolutely exhausted.

Last Wednesday, I skipped an hour bike ride to get my hair cut. However, I did run afterwards.

So, considering that it's the off-season, and I am maybe half-heartedly "training" for a Halloween 5K, at which I have absolutely ZERO aspirations of any kind of PR, is this behavior ok? Is it ok to want to sleep instead of workout (for once)? Or be social? Or run errands (i.e. get my hair cut for the first time since June???)? Or actually keep my apartment clean? Or try to cook meals instead of getting prepared food at Wegmans? Or read a book? Or stream Mad Men on Netflix to my new Blu Ray player that I love so much?

Am I the only one who feels massively guilt ridden when I don't get workouts in?

Is it ok to skip workouts in the Fall!?

Chrissie, and some other things, but mostly Chrissie

2011-10-10T19:05:00.001-04:00

As everyone is well aware, Kona was this weekend. I had some friends racing (Travis and White Hot) as well as knowing some other people out there as well (Cait Snow as a USA Pro and Pat Wheeler from QT2). Add Chrissie Wellington in there and you have the 5 people for whom I was actively rooting.

I don't know why I am so emotionally tied to Chrissie Wellington. When she pulled out of Kona last year, I was devastated and lost my motivation to watch the race. This year, she crashed her bike 2 weeks before the race and (thankfully) only sustained minor injuries, but still, that's enough to ruin you for an upcoming Ironman. (I know, I am truly just happy that her injuries were not life-threatening, unlike what happened to Jordan Rapp a few years ago). As I sat in my apartment streaming the live feed on Saturday, and Chrissie came out of the water several minutes slower than usual, I started to worry. When she didn't make a big gain on the bike and as Julie Diebens continued to pull away from the field, I started to worry more. But when Chrissie hit the run, I started to believe that she could pull it off. (I never REALLY lost hope, but it wasn't looking so good for a while there - apparently I forgot how truly amazing of an athlete that she is). Her and Rinny were running through the field at almost the exact same pace, separated by ~3 minutes. Chrissie took the lead, and I was literally on the edge of my seat wondering if she could hold off Rinny.

And she did.

And as much as I love seeing Chrissie run away from the field, as she has done sooo many times, it was exciting to see her challenged, fight back, and win. ALL while feeling less than 100%.

It was also crazy to see her looking as shelled as she did after the race.

I truly believe that Chrissie is THE spokesperson for triathlon. She is always humble, she takes everything that happens to her in stride (flat tires, bike crashes, being sick, etc) and always comes back better, faster, and stronger. She is an amazing athlete and an amazing woman, and I truly admire her in all aspects. Which is perhaps why I am entering a race (Timberman) next year JUST for the chance to meet her (oh.. and race a 70.3 - no biggie).

Anyways, enough about Chrissie. I am very, very happy at the outcome of Kona, to say the least. Congrats are also in order to Crowie who obviously won the men's race and broke the 15 year old race record, and one of my other favorite pros, Cait Snow, who I met in Coeur D'Alene, landed myself on her blog, and who had a phenomenal race yesterday which I believe resulted in a PR for her and the only top 10 finish for the USA in both the men's and women's fields! Also to Travis, who had a great day on the lava fields and finished in 10:08 which is a PR for him I believe. His finish line video is truly inspiring (I wish I could share it with you all). Same goes to White Hot and Pat Wheeler - who we watched cross the line as well.

In other news..

On Friday night, I went to a haunted house in the city (The House of Pain) with my friend Ari. We were both excited to go, and we both view ourselves as.. not too girly. Ari is a hardcore mountain biker, I do Ironman, we're tough chicks! Yet, 5 minutes into the haunted house, we were shrieking our heads off, holding hands, and sprinting through the rooms, away from the creepy actors that were jumping out as us. I guess we are women after all!

Then on Saturday I was forced to clean in the morning for my Kona party (which was me, Solveig, and Matthias) that afternoon. The good news is: my apartment is the cleanest it has EVER been and I am loving it! I am going to make a huge effort to keep it this way AND get going on some organizational projects that need to be started!

I also drank almost an entire bottle of wine at the party and definitely felt the effects the next day, especially when I tried to run. I made it 57 minutes, but it was not pretty, and we'll leave it at that.

My god, I love life!

no post-IM blues for this girl!

2011-10-03T16:42:00.002-04:00

Hello blog world, it's me, Alexa.

I am alive.

This is my attempt to catch everyone up with the things-that-have-been-going-on-now-that-IM-is-over part of my life!

I am now 3 weeks post IM Wisconsin and life has been grand. I took 2 weeks completely off to be fat and lazy, and then last Monday, I started training again. Swimming, cycling, running - you got it! Feels great! Fall is the best time of the year to be training for the sake of happiness, well being, and love of exercising. The weather is perfect and it's so beautiful outside!

I also have been riding Cherry every weekend and I love it. She has been very well behaved (minus her pasture shenanigans) and has not been lame at all, which means that her arthritis isn't bothering her! That makes me so happy - it's a relief knowing that she is not in pain during daily life and it makes me feel a lot less guilty when I ride her.

Saturday I went to Mary's yoga class. I hadn't gone since March-ish (it's expensive and it's in a hot room so I like to keep it for the off-season as a treat). Wow.. talk about being sore. My abs and my arms still hurt and the class was over 48 hours ago. Combine that with sore thighs from riding Cherry and sore legs from running again and I am feeling achy all over - but it's definitely a good achy feeling!

I bought a new Blu Ray player last weekend that has built in Wi-Fi. So while I build up my BR collection (I only own 2 as of right now) I can stream TV shows and movies from Netflix and HULU. Right now I am working my way through season 2 of Mad Men!

I've seen some new movies recently - I went to see The Lion King in 3D last weekend with my friend Ari. I must have watched TLK at least 20 times when it was released in 1994 (I was 10) and I have loved it ever since, so I jumped at the chance to see it again! And then I found out that the Blu Ray edition is being released tomorrow, so of course I pre-ordered it on Amazon! I also saw 50/50 on Friday with Matthias and it was fantastic!

I am also reading "The Pillars of the Earth" which I am barely able to put down. It is super long - usually I am through a book in 3-4 days if I really like it (i.e. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo books, the Hunger Games books, The Help, etc) but this book is so long (900 pages-ish) that I've been reading it for over 2 weeks and I am only 71% of the way through (that's what the Kindle tells me, anways). Highly recommended!

This coming Saturday.. I'm sure everyone knows, is KONA! We have our very own Travis Earley heading to the Big Island to compete which is extra exciting. I am planning a Kona streaming/get drunk/board game playing party in my apartment for Saturday afternoon. Is there a better way to spend the day? I don't think so! Hopefully it will end up being more than just me and Matthias getting hammered on my couch.

Anyone who is local that is reading this and wants to hang out in my too small apartment and drink wine and play Cranium with a bunch of tri geeks is more than welcome to come by!

Syracuse 70.3 Spectator Report

2011-09-27T18:57:00.003-04:00

I wrote this last week.. forgot to post it. WHOOPS! The pictures are not in order which is not typical but I just need to get this report posted.

A few Sundays ago, just one short week after Ironman Wisconsin, was spent cheering on friends at Syracuse 70.3. This had been the plan for a while, but I felt truly terrible all week after my race until about Thursday evening, which made me debate whether or not to actually go. Between the race, lack of sleep, driving 800 miles, and then having to go back to work on the night shift, my body was rebelling. It was a wonder I even made it through those nights at work (one morning my supervisor sent me home early - that's how bad I looked). Miraculously, I was finally able to sleep for ~11 hours on Thursday after I got home from work, and then I felt ok enough to make the commitment to spectating the race.

I spent Saturday doing a mix of errands, lounging and cleaning my apartment. Now that it's the off-season, I have absolutely NO excuse for having a messy apartment! (Right.. just keep telling myself that). Saturday night I went to my friend Ari's apartment for a "ladies night" with 2 other friends. Ladies night consisted of the usual: margaritas, wine, food, talking about boys, giggling, pillow fights, crawling around on the floor with her 2 dogs.. what?

Mary and Kelly

After making it to bed no earlier than 12:30 am, my alarm went off at 5:30 am - race morning wake up call. Lovely. Commence trip to Syracuse in the dark. I have about HAD it with the stupid I-90 after driving back and forth to Syracuse a whole bunch of times last year, and then driving all the way to freakin' Madison and back on it this year! I got to the race site at about 7:45 am, just in time to see Mary running through transition, Matt C. running to transition, and my high school XC coach Mike Murphy running to transition in a matter of 5 minutes. I then found Matthias' girlfriend, Sabrina, who had flown out from California to watch, and Kenny as well! We saw Matthias come out of the water and head into transition. Then.. we waited, ate some food, waited some more.

Matthias about halfway through the run..
can you tell that he is colorblind?

A few hours later, we started to see friends and teammates come through transition: Matt, Mike, Mary, Don, Chris, etc. We were standing right before the transition line and cheering! Chris and Don came in together. Mary had her Garmin in her mouth (she's the only one that I missed with my camera). Matthias waved as he came by and then almost wiped out at the mount line. We saw everyone come through except for Tim, at which point we decided to walk out to the run loop and cheer from there.

Chris and his 2 daughters who came to cheer him on

The run course was set up as a lollipop, so we walked out the "stick" and then parked ourselves at the bottom of the loop so we could see everyone going by. After we saw everyone go by once (either just starting out, heading into loop number 2, or coming in for the finish) we walked by down to the finish line. I saw Murphy at the finish and I chatted with him - he had a great race, especially for his first half IM! His wife, Rachel, was also out there, however I did not see her at all. She had a great race too - as this was her first triathlon EVER! Check out her race report here.

Murph and I after the race

After everyone had made it in, we hung out at Matt Kellman's beer tent for some post-race food and chit chatting. I then headed back to Rochester since my job was done!

Tim going to town on a plate full of cookies!

GREAT weekend! I <3 the off-season!

Ironman Wisconsin Race Report

2011-09-15T04:58:00.000-04:00

Pre-Race

Alarm went up at 3:45 am and I took a quick shower, and ate my breakfast of whey protein shake, plain bagel, banana, and Gatorade in my hotel room. I made sure to put sunscreen on all over myself in the hotel room to try to avoid what happened to me in June, where I was a fried, peeling, painful mess for 2 weeks after the race. I left my hotel at 4:45 am with two random hitchhikers in tow - two guys I met the day before that were looking for a ride to the race start so that their families could sleep a little later - I was happy to oblige. Found a spot in a parking garage ~1 block from Monona Terraca and dropped my special needs bags off at Starbucks. I then made my way to my transition bags and my bike to stash some last minute items. Hit the porta-potty, got body glided, got the wetsuit on, headed down the helix, dropped off my dry clothes bag and headed towards the water.

This being my 3rd go at Ironman, I was calm, not nervous at all, and even SLEPT the night before the race. By this point, it was all routine. And actually.. I was so nonchalant about the whole thing that I got a little sloppy on race morning.

Swim

Lake Monona was as smooth as glass and the water temperature was 70 or so - a wonderful change from the frigid waters of Lake Coeur D'Alene. We herded into the water like cattle and I found a spot to tread water, safely on the right side of the field and to the right of the ski jump which divided the very wide swim start in half. I was not going to fight for my life like I had to last time (if I could help it)!

The cannon went off, I hit "start" on my watch, and off I went. There was much less body contact in the first 10 minutes - thank god. I was able to actually swim and not panic, but then I found myself drifting towards the buoy line - exactly where I didn't want to be as my plan was to stay wide and away from the mayhem. Unfortunately, once I got sucked over to the buoys, there was no escaping it and my swim got a bit rougher, especially around the red turn buoys. It was also a bit warm and I was feeling slightly overheated in my long sleeved wetsuit.

The swim course is a long rectangle running parallel to the shore, and once I had made it around the two turn buoys and was heading back to finish loop one, I swam into a man who was floating face down in the water in the middle of everyone. I thought he was unconscious! I stopped mid swim, grabbed his shoulders and started shaking him while shrieking "oh my god! oh my god! are you ok?" (Hey, I never said I kept it together). He then lifted his head up and said "I'm fine." My response to that was "JESUS CHRIST DON'T DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT!" and then I started swimming again. Took me five minutes to get rid of the heart palpitations after that!

I was really, really tired after loop 1. My swimming has not been up to par lately and I just didn't feel like I got the yardage in that I had before IMCDA. During loop two, the field was much more spread out and there was almost no contact, but I could feel myself getting tired and my form unraveling. I was sooo happy to see the final turn buoy and make my way back to the shore. Again, I was aiming for about a 1:12 and couldn't pull it off, but the swim is so dependent on crowd, sighting, etc. that a few minutes didn't really bother me.

Swim: 1:14:09, 1:57/100m, 805 OA, 35 AG

T1
The run to transition is really long. You have to run all the way from the swim exit to the helix, up and up and round and round the helix (which was cool because it was lined 3 deep with people) into the terrace to grab your T1 bag, into the changing tent to change, then back out to the parking garage to get your bike and get covered in sunscreen. My bike was WAY at the other end from the swim exit, so I heeded the advice of Travis E. and ran the entire way across the parking garage barefoot, carrying my bike shoes. Two volunteers had my bike waiting for me when I got to it, so I threw on my shoes, ran to the mount line, and coasted down the helix. Long transition times (especially T1) are very typical in this race because of how transition is set up.

the helix was PACKED with spectators!

T1: 7:35

Bike
After riding down the helix, the bike course goes along the bike path for a few miles which is a no passing zone. That was fine, because my heart rate shot up to 170+ during the mile-long run in T1 with all of the people screaming everywhere. The bike path spit us out in the Alliance Energy Center parking lot and then we were headed out on the 18 mile "stick" part of the course, then we would do two 40 miles loops, then ride the "stick" back to Monona Terrace. The stick is easy - there is one minor false flat but otherwise it was time to settle in, get the HR down, and start taking in nutrition. I've already said that my huge goal for this race was to nail the bike split and the nutrition, which was my primary focus for the next 6 or so hours. I have been practicing my "new and improved" bike nutrition plan for 2 months and I was confident that I would be fine. I noticed 30 minutes into the ride that I had forgotten to reset Gary the vibrating Garmin (I bought a Garmin 310XT the Wed. before the race because I don't trust my 305 to hack it for much longer) after a 30 min recovery ride on Friday, so my bike split was 30 mins off (and ~7 miles off). Crap. Oh well.

As usual, I spent the first half of the bike leg getting passed over and over and over again, mostly by men. This is fine, however the course is a bit technical with some screaming, twisty downhills and sharp corners, so I am always worried that someone is going to take me out when I am getting passed by packs of 180 lb men. I had driven the course on Friday but I had never ridden it, so I was a little apprehensive about how I was going to do on the hills. Turns out, I loved them! The first part of the loop is pretty boring, just some long, straight false flats. Then you start to hit the hills at the back half of the loop. The first section of hills are called the "woody hills" in Mt. Horeb because you make a left hand turn and start heading down this section much like going over the crest of the big plummet of an old wooden roller coaster. I would hammer down these hills and let my momentum carry me halfway up the other side, which was typically short and steep, and then I would shift accordingly and spin my way up the remainder of the hill. I was careful to ride these not too aggressively because I didn't want to wear myself out.

Then comes the three steep climbs that Kevin had warned me about. When I drove the course with Laurie - they looked rough. The first one was the longest but wasn't quite as steep and was shaded. The second one comes right after the first one. And the third one is a bit farther down the road. I believe these three hills were right around the town of Verona and there was a shuttle bus taking spectators from town out to these hills. So I saw all sorts of stuff - people in costumes, crazy signs, lots of beer, etc. These three hills are literally lined with people cheering for you like you're riding in the Tour de France. So even though they were steep (there was no spinning up them for me, I was grinding on the pedals trying to make it up) they are relatively short and there are SO many people screaming for you that they weren't bad. I was a bit worried about what they'd be like the 2nd time around!

love, love, LOVE the scenery!

I made it around the first loop feeling great, but the wind had picked up and it had gotten really hot by the time I was on the 2nd loop. I was grabbing both water and Ironman Perform at every aid station, putting the Perform in my bottle cage and dumping the entire bottle of water on my helmet and shoulders. I would stay cool for maybe 15 minutes and then I would be boiling again. As I was riding the false flats in the wind, I found myself leapfrogging with three other girls in my age group, which is pretty abnormal. Sometimes I see one or two girls out there once in a while, but never three and we continued changing positions for the better part of the 2nd half of the bike course. I hit mile 80 and felt great! My nutrition was perfect (1 bottle of Perform per hour, salt pill every 30 mins, 3 Shot Bloks every 45 mins). The hills the second time around were no worse than the first time which is NOT what I experienced in Coeur D'Alene. I don't really think I lost much speed at all on the second loop (except maybe due to the wind and the heat which are not factors I can control) and by the time I was rounding out the end of the loop, I was hauling ass and passing a LOT of people, which is not normal for me. By this point I usually feel like I am riding backwards through the field. I peed three different times during the 80 miles that I was on the loop - I just keep getting better and better at peeing on the bike! I felt great riding back into town - was still passing people, and some volunteers told me how strong I looked. Road the bike path back to the Terrace, rode up the helix (fun!), hopped off my bike and handed it to a volunteer! I was hoping for a split more in the 6:20-6:25 range, but I was just so happy that I didn't blow it on the bike that I was ok with this split.

Bike: 6:30:41, 17.2 mph, 1064 OA, 36 AG

T2
Ran into the Terrace, grabbed my bag, ran into the changing tent, and got my sneakers on and my nutrition in hand. I did the same thing as in CDA where I put all of my nutrition in a ziplock bag and then stuffed everything into the pocket of my tri top as I was heading out on the run. I switched Gary the vibrating Garmin 310XT to run mode (already I was LOVING him). I also made sure to stop and get sunscreened again (third time that day) because it was HOT!

T2: 3:43

Run
The run course is two loops through town and the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, with several small out and back sections, so it's very different than the other two Ironman courses I have done which have had very long stretches of out and backs. If you are looking to see other people out on the course (who are racing) it is hit or miss. I saw Kevin a few times very briefly throughout the run. I did not see Laurie at all.

seriously.. thumbs up for the camera!

I started off at a nice pace. I felt like I was running slowly but my pace was between 8 and 9 min/mile and I felt strong. People kept telling me I was running steady (hello, I had been running for 5 minutes.. of course I looked steady!). The plan was to do one shot blok every 2 miles and drink Ironman Perform at every aid station. The first six miles went well. I ran through the Badger Stadium and screamed "WE ARE PENN STATE" which I am pretty sure was heard by no one. Then my stomach started flipping right after the 7 mile mark and I got that nasty saliva feeling in my mouth that happens right before I get sick. I had to stop on the side of the run course to vomit. I felt slightly badass because I have NEVER puked in a race before, but I kept thinking about what happened to Greg at IMLP and I didn't want that to happen to me! And let me tell you, if you are like me and can barely stand the taste of Ironman Perform, it's even worse coming back up - so be forewarned! Puking made my stomach feel loads better so I picked back up and started running again along a dirt path that goes along the lake. Unfortunately, this was the end of my ability to eat Shot Bloks. I knew I needed to replace what I had puked up, so at the next aid station I tried to eat a Blok. I got it in my mouth and was chewing it, but I just could not swallow it without gagging, so I spit it out. Perform was having the same effect on me. None of the food looked appetizing - I tried bananas (too mushy), pretzels (my mouth was too dry to chew), and grapes, which is what I finally settled on. I switched from water to Coke at mile 12 but even the Coke wasn't appealing to me. (And that's when I know something is going wrong because Coke is basically my version of crack). At this point my run had slowed drastically and I had lost the will to "race." The first 13 miles are ok, the last 13 miles are a bitch.

I headed out on the 2nd loop feeling a little refreshed after running through the crowds and around the capitol. And then.. I was done. Walk breaks got more frequent and longer. I could not find anything I wanted to eat and was basically just pounding ice water at aid stations. I was walking up AND down hills. I tried to keep myself running as much as possible because that's the fastest way to get to the finish line, but it wasn't fun and I was unhappy that I was falling apart AGAIN, even after fixing my nutrition issues from IMCDA. Even running through town at mile 25 wasn't fun. It was dark, I was heading in for my slowest finish time yet, and I was mad. I ran down the finish chute, gave a bunch of high fives to little kids, crossed the line, and didn't even hear Mike Reilly announce that I was an Ironman!!

Run: 4:49:08, 11:02 min/mi, 856 OA, 33 AG

Finish Time: 12:45:16

finishing Ironman #3!

Post-Race
Two volunteers grabbed me and got me my medal, my t-shirt, my hat, some water and some Sprite. They took me to the photo background and I forced a smile for the photo. They then sent me on my way, and at that point I started to cry as I was walking back to the Terrace, alone. Yes, I know, I am a giant baby. But I was disappointed with my day (mostly the run), I had no one to hug, I had no one to help me, and it was overwhelming. I got my dry clothes bag and my transition bags, and was sitting in the changing room by myself, texting profanities to Mary. Men kept walking through the deserted room so I had to go to the bathroom to change into my dry clothes. I then had to check my bike out of transition while carrying 3 bags, and a really nice guy helped me to get my bike out to street level.

I drove the mile to where Race Day Wheels was set up and returned my rental wheels. Then I drove to a grocery store to get some chocolate milk, because I didn't eat anything after the race. After I went through the checkout line, I got REALLY dizzy and had to sit down on the floor of the grocery store and put my head in between my knees. I sat like that for 5 minutes, no one even said a word to me! I drank some of the chocolate milk straight out of the jug and then felt ok enough to drive the 10 minutes back to the hotel. I had to enlist the help of the girl at the front desk to get my stuff up to my room (I was on the 2nd floor and there was no elevator). She also brought me an assortment of breakfast foods (what a nice girl!). However, when I went to brush the nasty post-Ironman gunk off my teeth, I started to feel sick, and I ended up throwing up a bunch of times in the hotel room toilet. Nice. At that point, I gave up on eating, took a quick shower, and went to bed where I was unable to sleep.

Quick Thoughts

Obviously, I am not thrilled with the results of my race. I can live with everything except the stupid run. AGAIN. I thought I had fixed the problems that I had in Coeur D'Alene, and this time, even with proper bike fueling and pacing, I ran EVEN SLOWER than last time. But that is another post for another day. The emotions are still there and I haven't really had a chance to talk to Mary; to tackle what went wrong. I am just glad that I am done with Ironman for not only this year, but next year as well. I need a break, for sure. I will be back, oh yes, but I need to go in a different direction for a little while.

I am very, very happy with my bike execution. I don't think it could have gone any better. I learned my lesson in June and applied it in September. I will never be a long course cycling speed demon and I know that. But now that I have figured out how to get through an Ironman bike leg properly, I can work on getting some more speed.

Also, I did love the course. I loved Madison, the swim venue was great (I saw no snakes!), I LOVED the bike course, and even the run was interesting rather than just a long, boring out and back. I would definitely a) recommend this Ironman in a heart beat and b) return to this venue to race again.

What I have to keep in mind is that the section of the course that I felt like I executed the best - the bike - is actually where I did the WORST when compared to the rest of the field. And where I felt like I did the worst - the run - I still managed to pass almost the same number of people that had passed me on the bike. Even with that super shitty, horrible, embarrassing run time. So, I guess we are all in the same boat out there.

I am not trying to be a whiny, spoiled brat. I totally understand that racing an Ironman is a privilege. I am among a very small percentage of people that can not only afford to do it, but can actually physically do it. AND I am consistently in the top 3rd of the field (and that field has a 25% female/75% male split). But it is hard.. so hard to fall short of your own expectations. Especially when those expectations are realistic. I had two main goals - they weren't time goals. One was to nail the bike nutrition. Check. The other was to have a solid run. Fail. But.. it took me three tries to get a good bike split.. so hopefully practice makes perfect!

WTF is going on here?!

Moooo!

2011-09-10T19:41:00.003-04:00

Last post before IMOO! Yesterday was so crazy that I did not get a chance to post. I got up and headed into the city to pick up my wheels at 9 am. I then did a quick 30 min ride and a 20 min swim as my final workouts before the race.

the great Madison bike path that I rode on!

I then met my blog friend Kevin @ IronmanByThirty and his wife Jennie for lunch. After we parted ways, I hung around at the expo before meeting up with Laurie, who I met through Mary's Facebook page (I love the 21st century!!!), who was kind enough to take me around the bike course! We then made a late entrance into the athlete's dinner which was as per usual. By that point, I was exhausted so I went home and went to bed!

Laurie and I!

Today, I got up and ate a delicious carbo-load breakfast at IHOP. I then packed up my transition bags, got my bike stickered up and ready to go and brought my stuff down to the Terrace to drop it off. I had a quick meet up with Kevin again so I could give him my bike ticket (in case I cannot get my bike out of transition). I then met Laurie, one of her daughters, and 2 of her friends for lunch. By this point it was getting late, so I made my way back to the hotel to sit with my feet up - which is what I've been doing for the rest of the day!

3rd time's the charm!

About the bike course - it is a twisty, turny roller coaster of craziness. I think it's gonna be tricky but also a lot of fun. Definitely will NOT get bored at any point!

Tentative goals for the race tomorrow include:

swim: 1:10 +/- 5 mins
bike: 1:20 +/- 5 mins
run: ??!?!?!?!?!!

If you want to track me: www.ironmanlive.com

Search for either "Alexa Harding" or bib # 255!

Mad-Town!

GAME ON!!!

HELLO WISCONSIN!!

2011-09-08T20:46:00.000-04:00

Today has been crazy! GOOD crazy!

I departed from my hotel room in South Bend at 9 am to try to avoid Chicago traffic. Didn't work as well as I'd hoped but I managed to get through Chicago without any problems other than some slow traffic. I determined that my time of arrival in Madison would be about 12:30, which was wayyy too early to check into my hotel, so I headed straight down to Monona Terrace, found a parking garage, and registered for Ironman #3! Monona Terrace is really cool.. it's a HUGE convention center right on the lake, across from the capitol building!

Then, I figured I should do my workouts while I was in the area, so I went back to my car to get my stuff. Unfortunately, my swimsuit, wetsuit, sneakers, and running clothes were buried in my suitcase, so I got my HUGE suitcase out of my car, set it on the ground and dug through it in the middle of the parking garage. After getting everything, I headed down to the beachfront and hopped in the water. The water temperature was good but it was pretty choppy, and there was a lot of seaweed. I started swimming towards a buoy, but once I got out a ways, I couldn't see the buoy anymore. I turned around and swam to another buoy, but then I started panicking a bit because it was choppy, I couldn't see where to swim, there was barely anyone else swimming, and I kept imagining that one of the alleged giant black snakes of Lake Monona was swimming around me. I ended up swimming back to the shore and getting out.. after 6 minutes and 47 seconds. After calming myself down, I went back out for round 2. For some reason, the lake really creeped me out. I think I swam 15 minutes total. Not great, but at least it was something. Then I went for a 30 min easy run.

So, the freakout wasn't great, but I powered through it.

I also got a glimpse of.. THE HELIX!!!

Now I'm at my hotel room, ordered some food, and am watching bad TV with my compression socks on and my legs up. Also I am trying to get some of my stuff organized for the next few days. Tomorrow, I am heading into town in the morning to pick up my race wheels, do a quick ride on my bike and a quick dip in the lake. Then I am meeting a creepy internet friend, Laurie, at 3:30 to drive the course and then hit the athlete dinner!

Hit the Road, Jack

2011-09-07T22:11:00.002-04:00

I'm going to try to do what I did during Ironman Coeur D'Alene race week.. blog every day. This is going to be quick because I am exhausted and already in bed, but at least it's something!

I hit the road at 8:30 this morning after finishing up my packing and dropping Fiona off at the vet where she is kenneled while I am out of town. I drove 512 miles - through Buffalo, Erie, Cleveland, Toledo, and finally ending in South Bend, Indiana at about 5:30 for an overnight stop.

Apparently, South Bend, Indiana is the home of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish! I did not know this - actually, I did not even know that Notre Dame was in Indiana! I drove into town wearing my Penn State hoodie that my dad got me a few years ago. I was filled with trepidation about being heckled, harassed, beat up, murdered, but turns out, folks here are open-minded towards rival football teams!

It's a pretty cute town. I got a hotel room for $61 and then wandered downtown to an Irish restaurant that I found via google - Fiddler's Hearth. It got good reviews, had a good menu, and had an open mic night tonight! I had veggie stuffed potato pancakes, a hefeweisen, and flourless chocolate cake for dessert. Yes, I know, I shouldn't be eating stuff like this before Ironman, I should be watching my weight and whatnot, but I was hungry and chatting with the bartender and various other local patrons. It just happened. Tomorrow, it ends!

Now I am off to sleep, and heading off on the final leg of my trip out tomorrow morning. I can't wait to drive through Chicago! I am hoping to time it so that I don't get stuck in rush hour traffic.

Taper is the Devil

2011-09-06T06:00:00.002-04:00

You heard me.

Taper can take any mild mannered person (not that I am claiming to be that person) and turn them into a raging lunatic. As someone who is used to working out for at LEAST 1-2 hours per day, I am now expected to sit on my couch for hours at a time. This is boring. My back and ass are sore from freaking sitting. I have pent up energy out the wazoo and I can only imagine what I am like to be around right now.

On Saturday, I had a meltdown. I slept in, did my recover ride in the morning, showered and put actual real clothes on with the plan of running Ironman-related errands during the afternoon. I hopped in my car to drive to Triple A so I could pick up some maps of Wisconsin for my upcoming road trip. Triple A is less than 1 mile from my house. I pulled into a parking spot behind a Triple A driver's ed car, and my car would not go into park. It also wouldn't go into reverse. I was stuck. I ended up putting my car in neutral, engaging the emergency brake, and left it running to go inside.

Is it irony that this happened at Triple A, or is it the universe mocking me?

A Triple A guy was there in 15 minutes and he showed me how to "unstick" the shifter using a small button located next to it. I had to stick a key or another long, skinny object into the hole (that's what she said?) and push down on this button in order to move the shifter. While the Triple A guy was fiddling with my car, I started crying. Of course. I am leaving for Ironman Wisconsin on Wed. morning, which I am driving to. It was Saturday afternoon on Labor Day weekend. Most garages were closed until Tuesday. I drove home, crying, while the Triple A guy followed me in his truck to make sure I didn't get stuck. Worst case scenarios were flashing through my mind. Having to forgo my errands and wait for a tow truck to take the car to the garage. Having to pay for an SUV-sized rental car for a week. Having to ask my parents to drive their Honda-CRV up to Rochester so I could borrow it. Having my car die on the way to Wisconsin.

Cue: emotional Alexa pre-Ironman car-triggered freakout.

An hour of sobbing later, I started calling garages and couldn't get ahold of anyone. I then figured that my car was drivable, just annoying, and I wasn't sure if this problem was serious, but I had things to do (bike shop, running store, etc.) so I set out. I got to the bike shop and my car fixed itself in the parking lot. It was fine for the rest of the day and all of Sunday. On Monday, it was sticking again, on and off throughout the day.

I think my car is possessed.

Apologies to the people who had to deal with me while I was crying - those include the Triple A guy, my dad, and my friend Ari. To those of you who didn't answer your phones, consider yourselves lucky! Thanks for the advice from the Train-This teammates!

I have the WORST car karma when it comes to freaking Ironman. I also almost got rear-ended by a truck today after going over my race plan with Mary. If I make it to and from IMOO in one piece, consider me happy!

On a positive note, besides my car being crazy, I am basically prepared for my trip! I only had to work 1 overnight this week. My race wheels are reserved. My car's oil has been changed. My nutrition has been purchased. The majority of my suitcase is packed (the rest of the clothes need to be washed first). I have obtained some audio books from Kim. I have gone over my race plan with Mary. My bike has been cleaned and new decals have been applied (I will have a separate post on this soon). Four good luck hugs have been obtained.

Exciting!

Moooooooooo!

The Ironman Face-Off

2011-09-01T09:08:00.000-04:00

On September 11, two athletes, Alexa Harding and Mark Olivieri, will go head to head at two separate Ironman events. Alexa at Ironman Wisconsin vs. Mark at REV3 Cedar Point. High stakes have been wagered on the outcome of this contest.

These two athletes have some similarities. Both have been doing triathlons for about the same amount of time (less than 5 years). Both are loud and love to talk. Both dislike clothes (Mark has rarely been sighted with a shirt on and Alexa hates pants). Both love it when people look at their abs and therefore have slightly inflated egos. (Mark's is bigger - his ego, NOT his abs).

In an attempt to create some controversy for this contest, I have made a list of criteria that will determine the odds for these two athletes. There are 8 categories in which the contestants will be evaluated. This assessment is not at all biased and was NOT written by one of the athletes who is participating in this contest. TOTALLY UNBIASED, PEOPLE!

Biology
Alexa: XX chromosomes
Mark: XY chromosomes
Advantage: Mark. No matter how fast Chrissie Wellington may be (or how much of a freak of nature she is), she will always be beaten by her male counterparts: Macca, Chris Lieto, the Raelerts, etc.

Coaching
Alexa: Mary Eggers
Mark: Mary Eggers
Advantage: Neither. It's a tie.

Equipment
Alexa: 2008 Cervelo P2C, Zipp 404s
Mark: 2011 Kestral, Zipp 808s
Advantage: Mark. Newer bike, faster wheels, 'nuff said.

Schedule
Alexa: works 41 hours a week, rotates through days, evenings, nights, is single and lives alone.
Mark: college professor (tenure-track) with summers off, has a wife and 5 young children.
Advantage: Alexa. Five kids is insane.

Mental Stability
Alexa: reasonably emotionally unstable in most aspects of her life, somehow manages to pull it together for race day (except during IMLP where she cried on the run).
Mark: he's a man. men don't have a soul, do they?
Advantage: Mark. Reason? He doesn't menstruate. Game over.

Race Experience
Mark: 1 Ironman, unknown # of other races.
Alexa: 2 Ironmans, 3 HIMs, and Alexa continues to kick Mark's ass in races at all distances (running races, IM, half-IM, Olympic distance tris, etc).
Advantage: Alexa. Proven to be faster (sorry Mark!).

Race Venue
Alexa: has never even BEEN to Wisconsin.
Mark: returning to REV3 Cedar Point which he raced last year.
Advantage: Mark.

The Badass Factor
Alexa: has an attitude, 4 tattoos, curses like a sailor, has totaled 2 cars in less than 10 years.
Mark: watches Twilight with his wife, has to talk to his kids about "the birds and the bees," plays the piano, has crashed his bike going 40 mph.
Advantage: Alexa. Clearly. Would have been an even easier win if Mark hadn't crashed his bike.

Now I don't actually know how to calculate odds, but PLEASE leave a comment and let me know who you are rooting for! The fun part of this is - we are not racing at the same venue, so we will have NO IDEA who wins until we are finished and can check in with Mary!

*Disclaimer: I can do this to Mark because we are buddies and he knows I am teasing him. Also, he dishes it out just as bad!

Balance

2011-08-30T12:50:00.000-04:00

With 12 days left before Ironman Wisconsin, I have been thinking a lot about this season. Doing two Ironmans in 3 months is hard. And I haven't even DONE the 2nd one yet! I have essentially been in Ironman mode since March (with the exception of July). Even in July, I raced mini-Mussel, volunteered at Musselman, and drove up to Lake Placid to watch that Ironman. I wouldn't exactly call that an "Ironman vacation." I only took one week off from training after Ironman Coeur D'Alene!

Honestly, would I do it again? Probably not. I'm not saying that I regret the decision - it's been a great learning experience, I am getting to see parts of the country that I have never been to, and I am interacting with lots of great people. I think it's something that I needed to do for myself. I had the time, I don't have a lot of commitments in my life at the moment, so it would be hard to justify not doing it. It was a chance to do something incredible and I am glad that I had the means to do it. Plus, it makes me feel like a badass.

That being said, it has been hard to be so dedicated to something for so long. For ~6 months I have been living in Ironman land where all I do is work, sleep, eat, and train. I can forget a late night at the bar. I can forget day trips on the weekend. I can forget horseback riding. I can forget going on vacation. I can forget dating.

If I am lucky, I get to ride my bike with some friends. Or I can go to a(n early) movie with someone. Or I can chat with someone via Skype, Facebook, or phone.

I am 27, single, and live in a tiny apartment with my cat. One of those things I have no control over (that I am an almost 30 year old cat lady) but the other two are directly affected by my lifestyle. I am single because all I do is train (at least, that's why I like to think that I am single), and I live in a teeny apartment because I spend all of my money on triathlons! I am fine with the 2nd but I am getting really tired of the first.

So, all you people who keep asking me why I am not doing Ironman next year. This is why. I love Ironman, triathlon, training, talking about it, doing it, etc. But.. I am having real trouble balancing it with the rest of my life. And sorry, but I am not content with living for triathlon. I am not a professional triathlete. This is not a livelihood. This is my hobby. It is a hobby that I am passionate about, but I am not ready to sacrifice everything to do it. And yes, I have made some of my best friends through the sport, and I love the sport, but there are other things that I love as well that I've had to put aside in order to focus on Ironman. And I don't think it's fair to me, and it's definitely not fair to anyone else that is affected by this (mostly, my family and my poor horse Cherry).

Besides, I don't want to be 40, single, and unable to talk about anything except triathlon!

I think one Ironman every other year is a much better way to approach this. It will give me a season in between to focus more on maintaining balance in my life with people, activities, and other hobbies that don't involve swimming, biking or running.

IMC 2013, be prepared!

great weekend! but sadly, no photos :(

2011-08-29T09:27:00.000-04:00

I had an absolutely fantastic weekend! My training for IM Wisconsin is done, so this past week was a rest week and now I have a half-week of tune-up and then 10 days of taper. This allows me some time to actually play!

Saturday morning I slept in til 8 which was glorious. I then met Kim for a 90 min bike/30 min run brick workout. We rode a great loop from her house in Perinton - Victor - Mendon - Pittsford - back to Perinton. Then I met up with Kim, Travis, Matthias, and Solveig in Webster to kayak in the Irondeqoit Bay. Sadly, I have no photos because I didn't want to risk ruining my digital camera, but it was REALLY fun. I love that I have friends that want to go do things like this. Because kayaking is pretty hard - my arms were burning after 10 minutes and we stayed out for 2 hours! I estimate that we kayaked about 5 miles total. Afterwards, Matthias, Solveig and I went to Boulder Coffee in the city where we sat and chatted, and I drank a delicious frozen hot chocolate, which will definitely be the cause of many, many return trips to that place!

After two workouts and kayaking, I was exhausted and I was in bed at around 9 because I just could not keep my eyes open any longer! That's how you know it's been a great day!

Sunday I slept in til 8 again and then met up with Jon at Starbucks because he was in town for a wedding (Jon actually lives in White Plains, NY). We had fun chatting about Ironman, recovery, injuries, etc. He's heading to Niagara Falls today, lucky bastard.

Here in Rochester, NY, we did not see any of Irene, but we did have high winds on Sunday so I opted to do my 1 hour bike ride inside. (I don't want to get hit by any weird flying objects so close to Ironman Wisconsin!). I went to put my bike on the trainer and doh... I had a flat rear tire! I decided to just replace the tire because it was looking pretty gnarly, so I took the wheel off and while I was waiting til noon (when the bike shop opened), I cleaned my cassette! A few hours later, new tire installed, I did 1 hour on the bike and then ran for an hour in the wind. Turned out to be a pretty good run.

With nothing else to do for the day, I watched some NCIS Season 8 (which just came out on Friday), caught up on some laundry, chatted with some friends, and did some reading.

Spectacular weekend!

I have some good blog posts coming up, I promise! :)

13 days til IMOO!

An Ode to a Rest Week

2011-08-22T16:47:00.000-04:00

You know that point in your training where you have been working out for 4 weeks straight, no rest days, your legs refuse to cooperate, your HR monitor has rubbed you raw, you can no longer sleep, one eye is twitching, and you are having homicidal tendencies towards your coach?

That was Wednesday.

Thursday morning I woke up to an email from Mary giving me the day off. I think she got the point of my ever-increasing desperate emails: "I don't know if I will be able to make it through this week." "I am dying." "I just had to worst run of my life." "Please murder me."

Friday was easy as well.

Saturday and Sunday were not. They were my final 2 big workouts before Ironman Wisconsin. I did them, and they went well, but it was not easy.

Honestly, I'm surprised I made it through. The final push is the W-O-R-S-T.

I am now on a rest week, with 1/2 week of build and then some not-too-extreme tapering to sharpen up before my last (and biggest!) race of the season.

I just want to give a shout out to the rest week!

Unlike most type-A crazy triathletes, I LOVE rest weeks. I like doing other things, getting a chance to screw around and be lazy, to curl up on my couch with a book, to go out to dinner, to actually do something during the day on a Saturday, to be able to run errands.

Plus, I am 100% sure I would have gone insane if I didn't have today off. Like, lock me up in a padded room wearing a straitjacket while I rock back and forth babbling to myself, INSANE.

I really, really, really, really don't want that to happen.

not enough time!

2011-08-17T22:53:00.000-04:00

Busy week at work, busy (and not so great) week of training = no time to blog. I'm basically just trying to make it through to the weekend, where I will try to make it through my long ride and long run, and then hopefully (crosses fingers) have a rest week next week. MUCH NEEDED REST WEEK.

I am in pure zombie mode - wake up, train, eat, work, sleep, repeat.

So, to substitute for an actual post with actual thought behind it, here are some photos! Some triathlon, some are not. Sorry for being so lazy!

Cayuga Lake Sprint Tri - I'm smiling!

Cayuga Lake Sprint Tri

And since I went to my parents' house this weekend for the annual Harding Pool Party, this is an adorable photo of my brother and I on our Fisher-Price plastic tricycles. I'm guessing I am about 4 here and he is about 3. We man-handled those things!

And since it is almost Fall and I have been reminiscing about running cross country, here is the Elizabethtown College's women's XC team in 2002. I am in the middle row, third from the right. I only ran my Freshman year of college and then I transferred to a D2 school - Slippery Rock U. where I joined the Equestrian Team.

ECXC rocks!

One final one.. if you want to know why I talk soooo much.. I kissed the Blarney Stone!

Ireland, 2003

Announcement

2011-08-15T18:37:00.000-04:00

Time for an announcement!

I mentioned a little while ago that I would be going through some coaching changes soon. A few months ago, Mary got offered the opportunity to join the QT2 coaching staff. This will be an amazing experience for her, but it is also sad because to do this, she will have to leave behind her own coaching company, Train-This. Those of us who are coached by Mary have had to make a decision - do we self-coach? Switch to a different Train-This coach? Switch to a non-Train-This coach? Or follow Mary to QT2?

As much as I LOVE Train-This and love the fact that so many of us are so close, I have chosen to join QT2 and do the Mission Plan option with Mary. One-on-one coaching is out of my price range, and I want to stay with Mary because she understands me, and I've worked with her for 2 years! Train-This will be taken over by one of the other coaches, and I'm not sure exactly who is going where in terms of Mary's athletes. I'm sure we will all remain close, the google group will remain active, and we will all still pester each other on facebook and Twitter. Plus.. there are rumors that there will be a Train-This reunion at Ironman Canada in 2013.. :)

I think it will be good. There is so much for her to learn, which is going to positively impact MY training. Plus, QT2 is huge, so chances are I will never have to go to an Ironman by myself again and have to beg a creepy blog friend, Kevin - who I've never met - to make sure I get across the finish line ok at Ironman Wisconsin. Seriously. I don't know anyone else who is going to be there! Although he has said that after I cross the line, it is no longer his responsibility to make sure I don't drink myself into a drunken stupor. :)

Anyways, Mary starts with QT2 on 9/1. My race is 9/11. Then I will probably go into self-coaching mode for a few months (because this Mission Plan thing is more expensive than my current coaching fees) until I start with Mary - hopefully January 1. What I do NOT plan on doing for the rest of this year is 2 months of nothing like I did last year. Part of that time I was rehabbing a strained hamstring, but I also did a lot of sitting on my butt, which made it that much harder to get back into training.

So.. that's what's going to be happening in the next few months. Changes! Lots of changes! But they will be good ones.

Cayuga Lake Tri Race Report (and some other things)

2011-08-10T07:53:00.000-04:00

I had a busy, triathlon-centric weekend. I was racing the Cayuga Lake Sprint Tri (held in Ithaca, NY) on Sunday, but because IM Wisconsin is looming in less than 5 weeks, I also had a big workout to do on Saturday, so I knew that Sunday was probably a) going to hurt and b) not be my best race ever.

Usually I ride long on Saturday and run long on Sunday. Due to the race being on Sunday, having to drive home from the race, AND having to go into work on Sunday night, Mary smushed my long ride and long run together into an extended brick on Saturday. I typically don't do workouts like this.. most of the time I run 30 minutes off of a long ride. Saturday I rode 4 hours and then ran for 90 minutes. I guess there's a first for everything!

I was up and on my bike by 8 am. I have come to embrace (and even enjoy) these long solo rides. I no longer mentally struggle with them, I don't need someone to keep me company, and I actually think I ride better when I am by myself. I can dictate my own pace, timing and length of pit stops, riding route, starting time, etc. I don't have to deal with anyone else besides myself - so if I am grumpy, I don't have to worry about pissing someone else off, and if someone else is grumpy, I don't have to worry about their bad mood rubbing off on me. Not that I don't enjoy riding with other people, because I do, but just because of my personality, I think riding alone is much better preparation for racing Ironman - for me personally. It's the best head space for me.

Anyways, I headed out the same route as before, from Mendon Ponds Park to 15A south with the idea of doing an out and back (I didn't have time to waste doing any extra because I was driving to Ithaca after my workout). The weather was ok.. it was very humid but overcast, and it rained on and off for the first half of the ride. About 90 minutes into the ride, I got a flat. Of course I was riding up a huge hill at the time. I stopped and started changing the flat. Now I am totally capable of changing a flat BUT I am not fast. I had just gotten the new tube in and the tire back on the rim when an older lady in a minivan stopped to make sure that I was ok. (Picture: lone girl who looks 15, standing on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere, holding a wheel, in the rain). I assured her that I was fine, thanked her, and sent her on her way. Don't you just love people like that? If only I could have replaced "older lady in a minivan" with "hot 30 year old man in a Subaru Forester." Although I guess I should be happy that, considering where I was riding (Candadace), I did not get "creepy old man with missing teeth in rusted pickup truck with 'mossy oak' decals."

On the way home I had a hell of a tailwind AND a net downhill, so I got back to MPP 30 minutes ahead of schedule. In order to get to the full 4 hours, I rode the 10 mile Mendon Ponds duathlon loop - perfect! Nutrition also went really well for this ride. I was a little worried about trying to run with 4 bottles of Powerbar Endurance sloshing around in my stomach, but surprisingly, I had a GREAT run. We're talking.. the best run I've had since Ironman. 10 miles at 9 minute pace is not too shabby! I had to bail myself out of a low spot (some dizziness) with a mini Snickers bar but otherwise I felt great AND hit my 30 mins of tempo at the end.

I then made a quick trip to the bike shop to replace the flat kit that I had used and to get one of my aerobars rewrapped. Went home, cleaned the bike, got the Zipp wheels on, showered, packed, and was on the road for Ithaca, where I was meeting Mary and Luc at the EconoLodge (we were staying in a room together). It's about an hour and 40 minute drive. We found Van in the hotel - I guess they lost his room so he had to find a room at a different hotel. While we were discussing where to go to dinner (Mary suggested this Italian placed called "Ciao" that we had both passed on the way to the hotel), I jokingly said "hey, there's a Pizza Hut next door" and then Luc exclaimed "I want to go to Pizza Hut!!!" Guess where our pre-race dinner was?! It's always classy with Train-This.

We went to bed and were up the next morning at 5 am. I was at the race site - Taughannock Falls State Park -by 6 (my race didn't start til 9). The weather was iffy, it kept sprinkling and then clearing up, and then sprinkling again. I didn't bother with sunscreen because it was so overcast. There weren't too many people that I knew because this race is a little far from Rochester; there were a few Train-This teammates (Van and 2 Donnas). My cousin Holly's husband was directing traffic at the race (he is some kind of park ranger in Ithaca). I didn't actually see him (I saw him the last time I did this race - 2008). However, I did get to see a guy in transition wearing a 1997 NTL Cross Country shirt.

Some background: NTL stands for "Northern Tier League" which is the collection of high schools from where I grew up that competed against each other in various sports. In the fall of 1997, I was in 8th grade so I ran junior high XC, but we still competed at the NTL Coach's Invitational (where all of the schools run together in an invitational-style meet, which was actually held at my high school) and that was the t-shirt that was sold that year! So first of all, I grew up in rural, redneck-land Pennsylvania AND that shirt is FOURTEEN YEARS OLD. What a WEIRD thing to see at a freakin' triathlon! I had to talk to this guy! I went over to him and told him that I had that shirt and that I ran at that particular XC meet. He asked me where I went to school. "Northeast Bradford." He went to Towanda! (Next high school over). Turns out, we have some mutual friends. Small world!

Anyways, I'm not really going to go into detail about the race because a sprint is a sprint. But there are some things of note. I entered the "open amateur wave" like I did at the Cazenovia Tri last year (you need to hit a specific time in order to enter), however there were two (yes, two) of us in the wave, me and an older guy. I am happy to say that I smoked that dude in the swim. It was nice to have a clear shot in the swim (we were the first wave in the sprint race) however I had wanted to practice drafting and pushing myself on the swim to keep on the feet of faster swimmers. That didn't happen.

the "open amateur" swim wave.. all 2 of us!

I lead the race for the entire swim and about half of the bike. I was essentially racing alone for the entire race because everyone else started so far behind me. For a while, there was a police escort on a motorcycle riding right behind me and, for the life of me, I could NOT figure out why he was there. Either he thought I was going to do an illegal pass (because I was passing some of the intermediate distance racers from later waves) or he was just trying to keep track of the sprint race.. who knows! My quads were BURNING for parts of the bike course (thanks to the 5.5 hour brick the day before) but in general I felt pretty good. Even when I was running, my legs felt great. The run at this triathlon is off-road.. about 1 mile on grass and the other 2 miles on a groomed trail up to a gorgeous waterfall and back. I am not so fond of running on grass so that slowed me down. I definitely did not run as fast as I would like (I ran it in 25:something rather than the 23:something that I usually run in sprint tris) but I am attributing most of that to the non-pavement aspect of the 5K, as my legs felt 1000x better than they did at the mini-Mussel (and the view was WAY better).

podium!

I ended up taking 2nd place overall. Another girl beat me by 2 minutes. I swam 1 minute faster than her, she biked 1 minute faster than me, but she ran 2 minutes faster than me. It makes me wonder what would have happened if 1) we had started in the same swim wave or 2) I was racing fresh. Regardless, I am happy with how I did, I am even happier at how well my Saturday workout went, and I was happy to be racing in Ithaca with Mary announcing and my parents there watching!

I wish I had more time to spend exploring Ithaca. There is a vegetarian restaurant there (Moosewood) that I have wanted to go to for years, but sadly it is not open on Sundays. There are also tons and tons of gorges (Ithaca is gorges, after all). Unfortunately, I had to get back to Rochester so I could nap and then go into work at 11 pm. Not ideal, but the bills need to be paid! I will be happy when I am off of nights in 2 days! :)

unpretty

2011-08-02T08:01:00.001-04:00

I wrote this post months ago and then never published it because I wasn't sure how I felt about it. I thought it might be too preachy. I found it tonight and decided to put it out there, regardless.

Let me tell you a secret. I love GLEE. It has to be one of the best TV shows on the air that promotes good self image, loving yourself, facing challenges, anti-bullying, and diversity. It also makes me giggle hysterically. And yes, there are elements of ridiculousness about it. (The fact that a tiny high school in Ohio has a ton of vocally talented students and a championship cheerleading squad, Sue Sylvester - period, over-the-top theme episodes, etc.).

I think that's why I love it so much - it can be ridiculously hilarious one moment with one-liners but then 5 minutes later it is laying down something serious. In season 1, Kurt becomes the kicker for the football team to try to please his dad and can only score field goals after he dances to "Single Ladies" in the middle of the field [ridiculous], but then he comes out to his father, who then tells him that he loves him no matter what [serious theme].

There was a 90 minute episode of GLEE on the other night. (You can bet your ass that I rushed through my workouts and dinner in order to catch it. I may have also ignored phone calls). The entire episode embraced loving those things about yourself that you may not like, such as body image, mental disorders, sexual orientation, level of intelligence.

The highlight of the episode (for me at least) was a duet with Quinn and Rachel (if you don't follow GLEE - these two are basically enemies who fight over the same guy) because one of them wants to get a nose job so she looks more like the other one. It's essentially a remake of "Unpretty" by TLC. I don't care if you hate GLEE, show choir, whatever, this song is WORTH a listen.

The episode rounded off with "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga. And honestly, I think it's awesome how many "pop anthems" there are this year about loving yourself, not changing, and being happy with your life. I'm sure these are familiar with most people who listen to the radio (I am definitely guilty of being a top-40s music listener in the car and especially when I run). I am also guilty of purchasing WAY too many GLEE cast songs on iTunes.

It makes me so happy to see TV shows like GLEE and artists who are sending positive messages to everyone about being happy with who you are. That is so much the opposite of what most media is doing.

I think it's even worse trying to be 1) female and 2) an athlete. Out of all the women that I know that compete in triathlon.. many have struggled with either an eating disorder or issues with food at one point in their lives. And I include myself in that statistic. Some are still struggling. It's really a shame. We need to eat to stay healthy and train/race to our highest potential.

And every time I hear a friend being upset about some part of their life that they wish was different, or weight they want to lose, or appearance they want to change, I just want to give them a hug. Because everyone feels that way. We all want to be prettier, thinner, faster, funnier, earn more money, own nicer things, have better fashion sense, accomplish more. And in a sense, it keeps us grounded rather than floating off with our giant egos acting as balloons. But it also keeps us from reaching our potential when we focus on our negatives rather than our positives.

It's ok to make changes in our lives in areas that we are unsatisfied with.. if the change is positive. But there is a limit to what is healthy. Leaving a job that is unfullfilling to search for a better one - healthy. Going to therapy to deal with depression, anxiety, or some other mental disorder that we feel ashamed of - definitely healthy. Getting a nose job or developing an eating disorder to deal with self-image insecurities - not healthy.

Not being happy with who we are - not healthy.

nutrition and nuptials

2011-08-01T07:58:00.002-04:00

I had an amazing weekend (actually, just an amazing Saturday, but who's keeping track?).

I had a 5 hour ride/30 min brick workout to do on Saturday. Because of plans later in the day, I was up at 7 and on the bike by 8:15. This was my first long ride since Ironman Coeur D'Alene which was.. 5 weeks ago? Something like that. I was eager to get back out there and build back some of the fitness that I've lost over these past few weeks.

I was determined to overcome my limiting factor on long rides which is nutrition issues. I consistently under-fuel on long rides (and apparently, in long races as well) due to sheer laziness/dislike of PBE after drinking 23987238 bottles of it in the past 18 months/the inability to acknowledge that I am, in fact, not a robot and actually need sustenance to survive.

All of these things are just excuses, and after a major fail at IMCDA and then being publicly shamed, scorned, and humiliated by Mary (ok, not really) on the Train-This google group and her blog, I made nailing my nutrition my #1 priority on this ride.

What am I *supposed* to do on long rides? Drink 1 bottle (24 oz) of PBE per hour.
What do I *actually* do on long rides? Drink maybe 1 bottle of PBE every 2 hours.
So that is half of the calories and half of the fluids that I need on these rides!

I set out from Mendon Ponds Park and rode a really fun loop that Mary had mapped out for me last summer. For you local people, I rode from MPP to 251 W, then went south on 15A, which eventually turns into 15. When I got to Wayland, I took a left and rode N on 21. I followed 21 into Naples (there are 2 left hand turns before you get there), rode up the big hill, and then veered left on 64 heading north. 64 brought me all the way back to 251 in the village of Mendon, and from there it was a short ride back to the park! I highly recommend this loop - it is 88 miles, lots of climbing (ESPECIALLY on 15A), and it's very pretty! (In reality, it took me almost 5.5 hours to do this loop so I was out there a little longer than I was supposed to be, but that's ok!).

The last time I did this loop (also a solo ride) I didn't have a great ride. When I made it to Wayland I remember texting Kim that I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to finish. I did, but it wasn't the best ride of my life. This ride - total opposite. I was smiling the entire time. It was beautiful out, my fitness was still there, and I was totally staying on top of my nutrition.

I was slamming PowerBar Endurance like I was a frat boy pounding cans of Keystone Light. (They are probably both equally as disgusting, as well). I found that I can, in fact, drink 1 bottle of PBE per hour like Mary recommends, but to do it I have to drink very aggressively (i.e. more than every 15 minutes). I spent the entire ride force feeding myself but I did it, and I felt amazing! No mid-ride dizziness, no feeling like my legs couldn't pedal up any more hills, no headaches, no stopping for Coke or eating mini Snickers bars to bail me out of a nutrition deficit!

Literally, the BEST long ride in the history of me doing long rides!

And then the icing on the cake was seeing Mary on the tail-end of my ride! She knew approximately where I was and she rode out to find me to see how I was doing. I told her that I was nailing my nutrition and that I felt awesome. I made her proud and I definitely made myself proud as well!

I know, it seems ridiculous that a triathlete who has been racing since 2007, has 2 Ironman finishes and who has been coached for over a year and a half could be neglecting the most important part of long course triathlon. I just couldn't accept that the fix could be that easy. But.. it is.

Then I did a 30 min T-run off the bike and that went super well also! So.. I am sold on this nutrition thing!

After my ride I had to rush home, shower, and get ready to go to my teammate and good friend Greg's wedding to his fiance Amanda! (Note to self: do not wear a strapless dress when you are a perpetually sunburned and/or tan lined triathlete). Matthias drove to my apartment and we carpooled to the wedding in Victor, which was held at an adorable bed and breakfast. (I feel like I need to stop and make a comment here. Matthias was not my date, he is my friend and he is Greg's friend as well, and I didn't bring a date. Alexa = not dating Matthias!!!). Ken also came so there were 3 Train-This-ers (plus Greg of course) to "represent".

first dance!

This was a total Alexa-style wedding. There was a horse-drawn carriage, we sat on hay bales during the ceremony (which was performed by Greg's dad and was done outside). Greg and Amanda were giggling to each other throughout the ceremony - it was adorable. Also, I may have teared up. (Thank god for wearing sunglasses). I AM a girl after all!!!!! The reception was in a barn at the B&B and it was decorated with icicle lights and some Japanese lanterns. Din-O-Saur BBQ catered the reception, but since Matthias, me, and 2 other guests were vegetarians, the 4 of us got special food from Aladdin's! Kudos to Greg and his family for making that happen!

"well, that's awkward" -Matthias' comment!

The whole thing was very casual and I just loved it! I HATE the wedding industry. I hate that people spend $20,000+ on things like designer wedding cakes, invitations, DJs, crazy table decorations, and hideous matching bridesmaids dresses. I hate hearing the stupid chicken dance or being shoved out on the dance floor to catch the bouquet. (Please note, I do not hate weddings in general and I am thrilled when I am invited to them - I just hate all of the crap that's expensive and the stuff that is embarrassing, i.e. the whole putting the garter on the leg of the poor woman that catches the bouquet). This wedding was perfect for Greg and Amanda, and I think I get along with them so well because I love stuff like that too!

Matthias, Ken, Greg, Amanda, me

The reception lasted til 9:30 or so, and at that point we left, drove back to my apartment, and Matthias went home. I went inside, took the dress off and was relaxing sans pants (as usual) when Greg sent me a text asking me if I was going to go bowling with them. After some internal debate (well I already have my pants off vs. I need to go out and be social) I actually got dressed and went! It was fun! I was out super late which destroyed my ability to do anything on Sunday. I did run.. barely.

I probably should have broken this into 2 posts but both of these things just made for the best day ever on Saturday so I decided to keep that theme going!

CONGRATULATIONS GREG AND AMANDA!!!!!!!

IMLP: Spectator Report

2011-07-28T21:14:00.004-04:00

This past weekend was Ironman Lake Placid, which I am sure most of you know, was the Ironman that I did last year as my first Ironman ever! Since I decided to do 2 different Ironman races this year, but many of my teammates and friends were doing IMLP, I made the trip up to the ADKs (with Solveig) to spectate/support the many racers. The experience was amazing - JUST as special as actually racing IMLP, and I am eager to share it with everyone!

Solveig and I riding through Saranac Lake

We left nice and early on Saturday morning, drove Solveig's Prius to our cottage in Ray Brook, checked in, and went for a 1.5 hour ride through Saranac Lake and out towards Paul Smith College. It was really fun, the scenery was beautiful, and there were some nice rolling hills so we got a good workout! Then we headed into town to meet up with Mary and company for dinner. This is the fun part about NOT racing Ironman - you can get drunk at the Lake Placid Brew Pub the night before the race and not worry about it! (Not that I did that.. and not that I texted anyone who was racing and taunted them with my tipsy status).

our table at the Brew Pub

Sunday morning we got up super early so that we could get into town with plenty of time. We found Mary and a bunch of Train-This teammates, wished everyone good luck, and then set off to deliver bags to special needs and watch the swim start. The Ironman swim start is really something special, and there is a lot of emotion even with the spectators! While everyone was swimming loop 1, we headed to get some breakfast. I thought we would hit up a little shop in town, but Mary led us to.. a gas station. It's always classy with Mary Eggers in charge! Then we headed down to the mount line and watched a bunch of our athletes set out on the bike course! We then went back to the swim to watch the finals swimmers come in (the cutoff is 2 hours and 20 mins), then headed out to Papa Bear to cheer everyone up the hill for the completion of 1 loop of the bike course.

crazy Matt Kellman on the run in his neon yellow outfit!

After that, we set up the Score-This tent (because Rich Clark was there) at the top of "Rich Clark Hill" (can you see why it's called this?) with 2 microphones and a speaker. Rich Clark Hill is that steep hill that brings you back into town. It's a bitch, so we were at the top trying to motivate people up it! Rich and Jeremy just went non-stop all day - it was awesome! It was also a great place to see all my teammates, Rochester friends, and creepy blog friends that were racing because they went past 4 times over the course of the marathon.

Mary, Rich, and Jeremy

After 5:30 I went to check Kim's bike out of transition, and I walked it down to her condo. I saw Greg Glaser on the run and he was looking strong. Then we made our way over to the oval and watched people finish for a while. I saw Kim, Greg, and Josh run across the finish line but I missed everyone else.

Just some highlights of the really exciting parts of the day (along with some of my favorite photos!):

Probably the most exciting thing was Travis E. PRing with a 10:10, getting 4th in his AG, and getting a freaking KONA SLOT! For those of you who don't know Travis's background, he crashed on the Keene descent of loop 2 in IMLP 2009, broke his collarbone, and has been training since he healed with a vengeance for this race. Even though he is not a member of Train-This, he is Kim's boyfriend and we were ALL rooting for him. I don't think anyone deserves a Kona slot more than Travis!

Travis right after getting on the bike

We also saw White Hot race, I met his wife (the Commander) and his daughter (Teegan). He placed in the top 20 overall (not sure where), podiumed in his AG, and KQed for the 2nd time this year!

One of our athletes, Jochen, was flying. He led the Train-This crew for the entire race and finished in ~10:30. He's like a ghost - you don't hear from (or see) Jochen for 9 months before the race, and then BAM - he shows up and kills it!

Ken DESTROYED the run - he ran a 4:22 (which included many, many porta-potty breaks) and finished sub-12.

this is me running with Ken and yelling
that he was going to go sub-12!

Kim ALSO destroyed the race, with a HUGE PR of 12:16. She nailed her bike split right on the head and ran super well considering she was injured for the majority of her training. I am super proud of her!

look how pumped she is on Papa Bear!

Greg was doing his first Ironman ever, and was doing great until the run where he couldn't keep his nutrition down. So for 20 miles of the run, he was basically projectile vomiting. At one point, we were waiting for him, and then Ken and Kim both ran past us.. but no Greg (who had been in front of them both the last time we saw them). Ken told Amanda that Greg was vomiting at mile 6 and that he might have been taken by medical. Amanda was really worried so her and Greg's parents set off to the oval to see if he was in the med tent. He finally came up the hill, and I told him what was going on (why his family wasn't there), made sure he was ok (i.e. coherent and not about to collapse) and then sent him up to where Mary was at the QT2 tent, where Jesse took control. He totally HTFUed it for the rest of the day and finished in 12:20 with a GREAT attitude! I am calling Greg's day the "puke and rally."

Travis, Greg, Kim

I saw my creepy blog friend Jon on loop 1 of the run. I yelled his name and he told me that he had "a cupcake with my name on it" waiting for me at the house he was staying at. He did great, finished in 12:05 for his first Ironman, and I TOTALLY went and got my cupcake the next morning before I headed home! Check out his race report!

Jon and I the day after Ironman

I saw my other creepy blog friend Mandy on the run course as well. I knew she was wearing blue, and I thought I saw her walking up the hill (no shame in walking up that steep hill - TONS of people do it) so I yelled "Mandy?" and she didn't hear me. So I then yelled "MANDY!" - still no response. I was determined to not let her get by so I ran up behind her screaming "MAAAAAAAANDY" at the top of my lungs, jumping up and down, and waving my arms in the air like a maniac. She then turned around and started waving her arms too.. it was really funny! Make sure you check out her race report (she is writing it in 3 parts). She is totally hilarious, takes everything in stride, and is super smiley all the time!

My 3rd creepy blog friend Emily was also racing. Unfortunately, I did not see her during the race, but I hooked her up with last minute lodging so she was in the cabin right next to the one that Solveig and I were staying in. I may have left a creepy note on her door while she was gone.

At the finish line, I was sitting on the hill with Mary and Solveig after we had watched Kim and Greg finish (and gone over to congratulate them). I said "wow, I haven't seen Josh all day" and Mary replied "I wonder how he's doing?" And then I looked up and said "hey.. I think that's Josh running down the finish chute right now!" So funny and random!

Basically, it was a really fun and inspiring day. It has me pumped all over again to race Ironman Wisconsin in less than 7 weeks. And it was SO FUN to cheer on all of the Train-This athletes (Jochen, Ken, Kim, Greg, Josh, Rich, Tim, Deb, & Stefany) along with EVERYONE ELSE! I am also still hoarse from all of the screaming that I did! I obviously can't describe every single person's race, I just touched on a few: Ken and Kim are 2 of my training buddies and Greg is a good friend of mine. But every single person did great - either PRing or doing their first Ironman ever so it was a really, really great day! I am SO PROUD of everyone!!!

mini-Mussel 2011 Race Report

2011-07-26T20:06:00.000-04:00

This post has been delayed due to my computer dying and needing to be replaced. All of my race photos were on my MacBook which was being held hostage at the Apple store, and then they were transferred to my new MacBook Pro, which is now in my possession so I am able to finally post this race report!

Anyways, onto the mini-Mussel! I did this race last year and had the sprint race of my life, placing 5th OA. At the time, I was on an Ironman taper and I was coming into this race with peak volume under my belt and nicely rested legs. This year was totally different - I was 3 weeks post-Ironman, had been working out very lightly for 2 of those weeks (the first week post-IM was a complete rest week), and my legs were still feeling a bit iffy. Not bad, but not great. I had done maybe one outdoor ride and had been running a little slower than usual. Even so, it's hard to not want to take down your time from last year, to do better, to be competitive.

Train-This was in RARE form for this race. I got to transition at 7 am sharp and saw Mary. She was having issues with her tubulars. I went in, got racked, chatted with Tim, got my chip, and then by that point, Greg was setting up his bike on the rack next to mine. Mary came over and showed us her body marking FAIL where she sharpied her number on her arm completely backwards because she looked in a mirror while doing it. Also, she was wearing a practically see-through swim suit that she found in her car because she forgot her race suit. Like, the thing was probably going to disintegrate while she was racing. THEN, Greg one-ups her by showing us the tiny pair of triathlon short shorts that he was "forced" to wear (I think he secretly likes the attention) because his mom washed the wrong pair. THEN, we are literally about to walk out of transition and a girl comes over to me and says "I think you are in my spot." I look at her like "WTF, I am a triathlon pro, I have done 2 Ironmans, I would never make that rookie mistake." Then I looked at the spot in transition. 1724. Looked at the number on my bike. 1794. F$%&. I grabbed my bike and bag, Mary and Greg grabbed the gear that was laid out, and we moved me down to the other end of the rack where I actually belonged. As I was doing the walk of shame across transition with my entourage and gear, another local triathlete (and someone who works at the same place I do), Alan Hatch, yells "that's weak, Alexa!" I think I would rather walk home from a blackout night of drinking without my pants than have to do the transition walk of shame ever again. Luckily, my actual spot in transition was WAY better than the pretend one.

Swim
Mary, Greg, and I headed down to the swim start where we hooked up with various other members of the team. I was in Mary's swim wave so when it was our turn, we got in the water and made our way out to the buoy. I will take the time now to say that that was the last time I saw Mary during the race, except when I saw her on the out-and-back run, where she was ~1 mile ahead of me. Jeff Henderson yelled "GO" and we started swimming. I have been working hard at my swimming all year - my 400 yd time trial has decreased by 20 seconds and I am swimming 3x per week instead of 2x. I made it halfway through this 750 m swim hanging with the front pack of ladies, but halfway through I drifted to the left and lost them. Still managed to have a good swim!

Swim: 11:19, 1:31 min/100 m
T1: 1:21

Bike
Got on the bike and was feeling good. I pushed it the entire time, and passed TONS of people. It was windier this year. Not much to say about the bike other than I felt good. Matt Curbeau blew by me about halfway through, and then Greg passed me a bit later. I yelled "nice shorts" as he went by. My time was a little slower than last year.

Bike: 47:42, 20.4 mph
T2: 1:16

Run
Got to the run and finally started to feel the effects of an Ironman 3 weeks prior. My legs just didn't want to move. I started the race at 7:40 pace. Last year I averaged the race at 7:20 pace, so I knew I was not going to run like I wanted to. As I kept running, I felt worse and worse. It was hot and my legs were DEAD. At one point I saw 9:XX on my Garmin - YIKES. Whatever, I just wanted to be done with it.

testing out the Train-This crop top!

Run: 25:55, 8:06 min/mile - SO SLOW
Time: 1:27:40

After crossing the finish line, there was a wonderful sight - kiddie pools filled with ice cold water. Greg was sitting in one - he had raced well and then puked his guts out at the finish line. I got in and we were soon joined by some other teammates, and I think we definitely creeped out the other people in the pool.

Ended up 2nd in my AG, and 14th OA female. Big drop, but.. it happens!

I also met one of my blog friends, Anne-Marie, who was there and was racing Musselman the next day! So it was super awesome to meet her and she did great racing in the 95 degree heat!

a photo log of my IM recovery!

2011-07-13T19:39:00.004-04:00

What have I been doing during my weeks of recovery post-IM?

I have been drinking.

me at Magpies

I have DDed slightly drunk German men.

Matthias at Magpies

I have ridden rollercoasters.

Seabreeze

I have hung out with lots of friends (and worn a DRESS)!

Amanda, Greg , Matthias, and myself at Corn Hill Festival

And finally, I have been doing workouts to get ready for mini-Mussel on Saturday..

Mark and me at Kershaw Park

So I can hope to do this again!

mini-Mussel women's podium, 2010

Key word: hope. (Hopefully the drinking, Ironman-ing, and sitting on my butt do not slow me down too much!). And I'm racing against my coach. So there may be some "accidental tripping" going on during the race as well. :)

what not to do

2011-07-12T21:35:00.001-04:00

What not to do..

..right before a race..

..CHANGE ANYTHING!

When I was doing last minute additions to my bike (nutrition) in transition - the morning of Ironman Coeur D'Alene, maybe 45 minutes before the race start - a girl approached me (I had actually met this girl the day before in line at the bike tech tent) and asked me why I carried my flat kit in a water bottle on my X-lab. (This is just how I do it for Ironman. I am fine using 2 bottle cages for nutrition because of the bottle exchanges, so I put my flat kit in the 3rd cage and therefore eliminate the bag hanging under my saddle. It's just a personal preference). I explained that to her. Then she said "well maybe I will do that too." 3 or 4 other girls in the vicinity IMMEDIATELY yelled "don't change anything!!"

She had her flat kit in a bag under her saddle. Which is a totally legitimate way to do it. Her reasoning for wanting to change? She thought I "looked fast."

(seriously????) :)

First of all. I'm not fast. (Edit: I may be short course fast-ish but I am not Ironman fast!) And second of all. WHO CARES? This is a general rule of thumb for races and is borderline common sense! You're going to be faster using what you train with than by trying something new on race day and messing it up.

Case in point: I do not do a flying mount or dismount. I don't know how and I am too scared to learn. Would it be faster? Yes - in the long run. But if I decided to do a flying dismount on Saturday at the mini-Mussel, I would most likely crash, therefore adding time to my race and possibly maiming myself (and poor Hedwig) in the process! (This is something that I NEED to learn how to do!).

Keep it simple and make all changes WELL IN ADVANCE!!

:)

changes

2011-07-05T16:39:00.000-04:00

There are some pretty big changes coming to my life as a triathlete in the next few months. Details are not something that I can give (sorry), but I will say that my cushy life as a spoiled rotten "coached athlete" will be going in a new direction.

Hi, my name is Alexa, and I do NOT like change.

The funny thing about being presented with changes and obstacles in our lives, is that these are what allow us to grow and develop as human beings. If I never had any challenges in my path, and I never had to learn to adapt and move forward, where would I be?

So I am attempting to look at this change as a positive instead of a negative, which is hard. I like things to stay the same. I have a great relationship with my coach Mary. She understands how I work, she gets my crazy schedule, she is level headed when I am freaking out, she is accessible, she is affordable, and she is really good. Basically, I have been living in a "too good to be true" bubble for the last year and a half.

And the biggest reason - I have seen major results. I have completed 2 Ironmans. I have PRed by 24 minutes in a half-Ironman and have PRed a half-marathon, I have placed OA in competitive races and even won a race this season. If that is not a reason to stick with a coach, then I don't know what is.

Inevitably, as Mary's life changes and she takes on new challenges and opportunities, it is going to affect my life as well. But it is a chance for me to embrace my training schedule and see why I am doing the workouts that I do, rather than just have it handed to me on a silver platter that I then just spit back at Mary after I am done. I am not saying that I am changing coaches, or that I am going the self-coaching route.. I honestly don't know what is going to happen yet, but it's going to be new, scary, slightly exciting, and different.

No matter what happens, I love Mary, I love my teammates, and I love Train-This. I will always belong to them.

Details to come..

Your questions answered!

2011-07-01T13:37:00.000-04:00

I have been asked a bunch of questions pertaining to my race and particular aspects of Coeur D'Alene and the course, so I figured I would try to answer some of them here. Clearly, I am not a pro, having done only 2 Ironmans, but if I can provide at least my perspective, perhaps someone out there will benefit from it!

Apparently, dissecting my issues with the Ironman marathon on Sunday is greatly helping a bunch of people on Train-This to learn what not to do during an Ironman! It's only slightly embarrassing to see all of mistakes highlighted and picked apart like I am some kind of idiot. :)

So anyways, here are some questions that I have gotten, along with my answers. If anyone has any other questions, feel free to post them in the comments section and I will try to answer them if I can!

Why did my run go downhill and why did I end up in the medical tent?
This was a nutrition issue. I am supposed to drink 1 bottle of Ironman Perform per hour while on the bike. I was on the bike for 6.5 hours, but I only drank 4 bottles. Totally my fault. Totally resulted from me having a blase attitude towards getting in those calories. All I can say is that I need to stay on top of this in the future, and I DEFINITELY learned my lesson. What's the point in doing the training, paying the money, and taking the time off of work if you're not going to follow through with your nutrition plan?

What was the water temperature at Ironman Coeur D'Alene?
I believe the water temperature was measured at 58. I'm pretty sure it was colder than that, since it was 58 when I swam on Thursday and then the lake temperature continued to drop as race day approached. I am guessing.. 55 or 56 degrees. I saw lots of people with booties and neoprene caps. I did not wear either - just a long-sleeved wetsuit and my swim cap.

Which course is harder: Ironman Lake Placid or Ironman Coeur D'Alene?
The swim at IMCDA was definitely harder than IMLP, hands down. Colder water, rougher start, the course was not set up for any practice swims, and it was just a slower venue in general. I'm pretty sure anyone would agree with this. Both bike courses were challenging - I prefer the IMCDA course and thought it catered more to my "style" of riding (even though I rode it 10 mins slower) and was more enjoyable to me. The run course was a toss-up. Even though I had a worse run, I actually liked the CDA course more (the IMLP section along river road seems to go on forever for me) but there is a really big hill that I think is worse than the 2 hills at IMLP, and if you choose to walk up it, you will lose a LOT of time because of how long it is.

Which venue did I like better?
If you go purely by the course itself - I liked IMCDA better. However, Lake Placid is a much nicer town than Coeur D'Alene, the expo setup in the Olympic oval is cooler, the fans are crazier, there are better places to eat and shops to check out, and the general excitement level is higher. This is all probably because Coeur D'Alene is a LOT bigger of a town than Lake Placid so things are more spread out, while Lake Placid is compact and the activity is all localized. Plus, it hosted the freakin' Olympics TWICE, so it's a classier place.

Would I race Ironman Coeur D'Alene again?
I am in no hurry to repeat any Ironman race over and over again. That being said, I enjoyed this Ironman course a lot. Accessibility was a problem, lodging was expensive, and not renting a car was a HUGE mistake. But the bike course was REALLY fun. I would LOVE a 70.3 in this location!

What would I do differently?
Other than the whole nutrition fiasco, I would have taken more care to apply sunscreen. I had volunteers apply it to my shoulders, but my back is sunburned to the point of blistering and it is KILLING me. I also would have rented a car. Seeded myself differently in the swim. Walked through every other aid station instead of every, and walked through aid stations with a purpose rather than walking to the "last chance" trash bin.

Ironman Coeur D'Alene Race Report

2011-06-28T12:48:00.003-04:00

Pre-Race

I got up at 4:00 am, showered (I like to at least start the day clean), ate my pre-race meal of whey protein, banana, Ironman Perform, and 2 fig newtons, got dressed, and was walking to transition by 4:15 am. Arrived in transition between 4:45 and 5 am (it's a long walk). Dropped my special needs bags off at the trucks and got body marked. I got to my bike to re-tape on my tubular (my dad and I had determined a better way to tape it after I had already left it the day before), put air in my tires, and put the nutrition on my bike. As I was wheeling it back to my spot, I noticed that my computer wasn't working. Since I do not use my Garmin on the bike (not enough battery life for both the bike and the run) this was not good. I KNOW it was working the day before because I checked it. I removed the computer and took it up to the techs at the front of transition. They were able to replace the battery and told me not to worry about paying for it because I'm pretty sure they took it from a "used parts" box (they were out of new ones). I was just so happy that they were helping me that I didn't care. I put the computer on, checked to see that it was working. Golden.

I distributed the rest of my stuff to my gear bags (like nutrition), dropped off my dry clothes bag, hit the porta-potty, and made my way down to the beach. There were people EVERYWHERE. It's not like Placid where athletes can walk through "swim in" and there is no one else in there. Literally thousands of people are cramming their way through to the beach. I finally made my way to the water and they weren't letting us swim, so I just got in really shallow and laid down so that I could get used to the temperature. It was FREEZING but thankfully, the wind had died down from the previous days so the water was nice and flat.

Swim

**Disclaimer - If you are scared of the Ironman swim or if your name is Deb Ozarko, you may want to skip this section.

I started in the middle towards the front. I had no idea where to seed myself so I just picked a spot by a bunch of other women. The gun went off and we were rushing into the water. The first 10 minutes of this swim were hands down the scariest experience of my life. I was getting punched, kicked, feet and hands were EVERYWHERE, and the water was icy cold. I felt like I couldn't move forward or sideways but I also couldn't stop because of the stampede of people behind me. I swam with my head out of the water, gasping for air, for the first 10 minutes. If there had been kayak access, I would have grabbed one and bailed on the race, but because you are completed trapped by people, there was no possibility of that. Eventually it thinned out enough to actually swim rather than just thrash. My heart rate finally calmed down and I could breathe normally again. Sometimes I would have a nice bubble of space and then other time I would have people all around me. I never really felt comfortable. Going around the buoys was scary and it was hard to sight because it was SO bright out. At one point I got a BIG kick right to the gut which REALLY hurt. I was also burping a LOT during the swim, which is something that has NEVER happened to me before. This subsided after the first loop. Maybe I just swallowed a lot of water during the crazy start?

I made it back to the beach in 36 minutes, which is about what I expected (especially with the slow start) and as I was getting out of the water to run across the mat, the announcer said "this is the average Ironman swim time right here." Is that why it was such a clusterf--- out there? I felt a little drunk at this point (probably due to the panic and the cold mixed together) but got right back in and started swimming. There were still people EVERYWHERE. At about the 45 minute mark, my arms and hands started to get REALLY cold. Like heavy, freezing cold, arms of steel. I tried to ignore it and pick up the pace to a) make up time and b) warm up a little. Made it out of the water a little slower than I had hope for (I was generally aiming for about a 1:12 swim because I knew it would be slower than my 1:07 speedy Placid swim due to the differences in the venue) but was ok with my swim time and was happy to be out of the cold water, alive, and black-eye free!

Swim: 1:15:08, 1:58/100 m, 24 AG, 719 OA

T1

Ran (on numb feet) into the changing tent after grabbing my Swim/Bike bag. It was more full than when I did this in LP because my swim time was 7 minutes slower. I sat down and a volunteer started helping me empty out my bag. A woman sat next to me, noticed my Train-This uniform, and went "are you coached by Mary?" YES! How do people in freaking Coeur D'Alene know Mary Eggers!! Craziness. We got my socks, shoes, helmet, armwarmers on, grabbed my salt pills and race number belt, and I was out of there. Grabbed my bike, mounted, and I was off!

T1: 6:51

Bike

The first thing I noticed was that I was cold. Ass cold. Like I was shaking and shivering. Luckily, this only lasted for maybe 10 minutes. I rode through town, waved at my parents, and got going on the small out and back section that runs along Lake Coeur D'Alene. This section is mostly flat, but is windy, and has 1 big climb on the way to the turn around (that you later run up and over). I peed on this section (I had to pee so bad that I felt like I was going to burst) and tried to just take it easy and spin up anything that resembled an incline. It was at this point that I realized that my bike computer had stopped working 5 miles in, so I was riding by feel with only a wristwatch showing the time of day, my running time for the race, and a 15 minute countdown timer for a drinking reminder. Oh boy.

I didn't care at all that I couldn't see my speed because really, how was that going to affect me (other than maybe showing how the average speed drops once you hit the hills in Hayden, and who needs to see that??) but I was a little annoyed that I would only know the mileage at the 10 mile markers. I was mostly upset that I had lost my running "bike time" which is what I use to eat every 45 minutes. So.. I had to improvise. I knew that I got out of the water at 8:15. I estimated a 5 minute transition which put me on the bike at 8:20. I started eating 15 minutes later (8:35). So I just went by an 8:30 start and figured out 45 minute intervals based on that. When my watch would beep, I would check to see that it was 5 minutes after the correct interval and then I would eat if I was right. A little more to keep track of but it worked just fine. I ate 3 shot blocks every 45 minutes, drank every 15 minutes, and ate salt tabs willy nilly.

I started getting hot at about 1/3 of the way in, so I stopped on the side of the road to take my arm warmers off. I thought that this was a better decision than to risk trying to remove them while riding and crashing. The hills around Hayden Lake were super fun the first time around. I was having a blast, interacting with other people on the course, spinning up the uphills, passing lots of dudes with my hill spinning prowess, and then zipping down the curvy downhills! I was making sure to take it super easy. Every time I felt that I could spin a faster cadence, I downshifted. I ended up passing Adam from QT2 once we were heading away from Hayden Lake. He passed me back maybe an hour and a half later. I made it through loop 1 in ~3:10 (I had to guesstimate because I had no running bike time) which I was very happy with. I felt like I was riding reserved but had held a good, reproducible pace.

I waved at my parents and at Alan Hayter's daughter Christina as I went through town. I was smiling and having a ton of fun. I peed again on the small out and back by Lake Coeur D'Alene. I felt REALLY good until about mile 70 when we hit Hayden Lake hills take 2. I continued to spin up these hills but it was definitely taking more effort and I was noticing myself staying in the small chainring more of the time than in the first loop. I dropped my chain at one point in here and had to stop and put it back on - stupid loss of time for me. I had a pretty low point between miles 70 and 85, but then I started to feel better. The hills on this course are different than Lake Placid. They are steep and not as long, but they are definitely not easy. Once I hit mile 85 I perked up a a bit. I kept telling myself that I was strong, that I wanted to be there, and to keep spinning, and it worked. I had been getting passed by men for the entire ride (I was easily passed by 500 people I think) but I never chased anyone down - I just let them all go by me.

There were literally 4 times where I almost crashed and none were my fault. There was a surprising amount of drafting going on - huge packs of people were going by me. I just kept to the right and took it easy, letting them pass me. I had a basketball roll out in front of me, a bottle of Powerbar Perform slip out of someone's hands and go right under my front wheel, a girl almost step off the sidewalk in front of me (I yelled at her to watch out!) and the worst one, a woman who was being a complete jackass passed me, cut me off (there was DEFINITELY not room for her in between me and the guy in front of me, and I did not have time after she made the pass to even drop out of the draft zone) and clipped the rear wheel of the guy in front of her. He wobble but stayed up and she went crashing down, and slid towards the side of the road. Luckily I managed to get around her (this happened maybe 5 feet in front of me). Someone asked if she was ok and she said yes, so I went ahead to the next aid station which was a minute or 2 away and alerted them that someone had crashed so they could radio for a mobile unit to go make sure she was really ok.

I made it back into town feeling really good, strong, and confident that I had ridden intelligently. I had stayed on top of my shot blocks, and I drank (I think) 4 bottles of Ironman Perform. At about mile 70 I noticed my gut getting really bloaty and I had developed some central back pain (located where I think my kidneys are??). This concerned me a bit but I didn't know what to do about it so I just kept spinning my legs and tried to stretch my back out. I'm sure that this did not help my mental blackout at this time. This had reduced a bit once I got past the hills and was riding the flat parts back into town, so I'm not sure what caused it.

My bike time was a bit slow, (10 mins slower than IMLP) and once I saw that, I basically knew that unless God himself reached down and put his shoes on my feet, that I wasn't going to go sub-12. I think that it is going to take a perfect day, with perfect execution, for me to go sub-12. So I am still chasing that dream. However, I did not let myself get upset and I did not let my day go. I had come to Idaho with the goal of running a good, strong marathon and that was still possible. I felt strong coming off the bike and I wanted to see if I could execute the run that I KNOW I am capable of running and that I have been training for.

Bike: 6:32:13, 17.13 mph, 25 AG, 1090 OA

T2

I handed my bike to a volunteer, grabbed my bag and ran into the tent. People were commenting that I was still running! I whipped off my shoes and socks, put on clean socks and my running sneakers, turned on my Garmin, and opted to not wear the HRM due to the bloaty feeling and some back and ribcage pain. I grabbed my hat, sunglasses, and plastic ziplock baggie of nutrition (this was a GENIUS idea) and was out of there.

T2: 2:40

Run

(FYI: The run course got changed this year; you have to run up and OVER the big hill, down the other side, and then back up a smaller hill before you hit the turnaround. The smaller out and back portion from previous years was eliminated and this is how they made up the mileage).

The first mile felt a little rough but once my Garmin located, it said that I was running under 9 minute pace. I tried to slow it down. My goal was to run at 9 minute pace initially and then accounting for fade, wind up with a 9:15 pace on average. I know this is a lofty goal but I KNOW I can execute it.

I saw Rob from QT2 (who I sat with at breakfast and then continued to run into on Sunday morning in porta-potty lines, etc.) as I was making the corner onto the long out and back. He was looking great and really strong. He yelled "you look great babygirl" which I thought was absolutely hilarious! He was super awesome! If anyone from QT2 is reading this and knows how to get ahold of him via email, I would LOVE his email address!

The first 8 miles went well. I had a bit of cramping at the beginning but that went away. The bloaty feeling never left; I just kind of accepted it and forgot about it. I was running through aid stations, hitting the Ironman Perform without stopping, and dumping water on my head because it was pretty warm out. I was eating 1 shot block every 2 miles and continued this for the entire run even though I'd rather eat a dead worm right now than another shot block. My Garmin told me that I was averaging a 9:10 pace and I didn't really want to push it because I felt like I was running strong, but comfortable. A marathon is a long race no matter how you look at it. I had pretty much let any time goal fly out the window and I was just trying for a strong run. I was going more on feel than by pace, but was keeping my eye on the Garmin.

I hit the turnaround and was cruising down the hill feeling good, but started to lose my rhythm about halfway back into the town. I started walking short parts of the aid stations, keeping my body temperature cool by dumping water on my head and putting ice down my tri top (I know better than to put it down my shorts - thanks for that tip Amo!). I was feeling pretty yucky by mile 10 which is when I switched to Coke. That helped a bit, but I had fallen off pace heading back into town and was feeling defeated. My pace had not fallen THAT much (it was still under 10 min/mile but I had a looong way to go). I saw Christina and my parents but didn't wave at either group. I knew I had to fix my attitude for the remainder of the race, even if I couldn't pick my pace back up. I SOO did not want to run another loop but stopping was NOT an option.

Heading back out on the 2nd loop was rough, but I was still passing people. There were a lot of walkers on both loops and I was weaving in and out of people. Looking back, I should have made more of an effort to run through aid stations, but by this point I was literally running from aid station to aid station. My pace was not THAT slow, but walking for the entire length of the aid station was absolutely killing it. This was more mental than physical because it hurt a lot more to start running again after I had walked. My quads and the bottoms of my feet were killing me. I ran up the entire length of the big hill, which I was super proud of, but running back down it was torture to my legs. I saw the message that I had written to myself at the Ford Motivational Mile (it said "you rock, chica").

I hit 3 miles to go and I said f-- it, I am not stopping at any more aid stations, I just want to be DONE. A sub-12 was out the window, and so was a PR. I did not care, I just wanted to stop running, but walking would mean being out there EVEN LONGER. NO F-ING WAY!!!

One mile to go and I was in agony. The other runners around me had the same opinion. I finally made the turn to where the finish was and it looked so far away! As I made my way down the street, down the stupid downhill finish (poor quads) lots of people were screaming and yelling, but I just had no energy to do any celebrating. I crossed the line, heard Mike Reilly tell me I was an Ironman!

Run: 4:45:24, 10:53 min/mile, 23 AG, 958 OA

Total: 12:42:16, 23 AG, 958 OA

Post Race

I got my medal, shirt, and hat, got my photo, and got navigated to a chair. I was dizzy and I asked if I could get an IV but the lady said no because I was not nauseous. Ugh. Some nice people outside the fence got my parents for me (I could see them but they couldn't see me) and I eventually made my way out because I was soaking wet, freezing cold, and wanted to change.

I collected my parents and had them wait outside the changing tent while I got my dry clothes bag and went inside to change. It always feels great to get out of that race kit! I checked my phone and saw 10 texts and like 65 emails. Whoa! Sent a text to Mary telling her I was alive (because my finish time was slower than expected). Went to stand up and walk out of the tent to my parents and got nailed with massive dizziness and nausea. Thought I was going to simultaneously hurl and shit myself. I staggered to the end of the tent where a woman was standing by a table, and I felt myself about to pass out. I grabbed her shoulder to steady myself.. muttered "sorry" and then slammed down on my back, transition bags flying everywhere and clutching my sling bag (which had my iPhone and wallet in it) to my chest. She immediately stooped down and made sure I was ok, awake, etc. Turns out, she was a doctor, her name was Julie, and she was awesome! She elevated my feet, made me a makeshift pillow out of a transition bag, got my parents, and was rubbing my face with cool cups of water. Some volunteers came with a golf cart and helped me in it, drove me straight to the porta-potty so that I wouldn't crap my pants (YIKES) and then took me to the med tent.

I told the med tent workers that I was dizzy, nauseous, and thought I was dehydrated, and asked (again) if I could have an IV. The doctor said no, that he wanted to see if I could get fluids in orally. They brought me a cup of Sprite which I drank, and then 10 minutes later, barfed up along with most of my run nutrition. Note: this was not fun. I cried. They then gave me some kind of anti-nausea medicine which had to dissolve under my tongue for 20 minutes, and then brought me more Sprite, which upset my stomach again, although I did not get sick. I then had to go to the bathroom AGAIN, so a volunteer helped me out of the tent, but she wasn't holding me, and I staggered over to the porta-potty, leaned against it, and then fell down AGAIN as I tried to open the door. She got me up and helped me inside, and then held the door open as I did my thing. Sorry to anyone that I flashed.

I got back in the tent where they gave me a 2nd dose of the anti-nausea medicine. I felt so horrible by this point that I just sat on the edge of the lawn chair recliner thing that I had been lying in and put my head between my knees. I guess they saw me like this and FINALLY took me over for an IV. I was also worried about my parents because I had no idea if they knew what was going on and was concerned that they were freaking out and were going to take my bike and running sneakers away from me forever! I'm sure I had been in the med tent for over an hour. A nurse took my vitals and started an IV and had her son go get my parents. She then rubbed my feet because I was freezing!

After the IV, I finally felt better and was able to stand and walk without collapsing. My dad went and got the car (he had gotten my bike out of transition earlier and had returned my rental wheels to IronmanWheels - THANKS DAD!!) and my mom and I walked over once he had moved it closer. It was ~11:30 pm at this point and the final finishers were coming in. I wish I had stayed and watched but I was so exhausted, considering I finished at 7:42 and was still at the race site 4 hours later, cold, dirty, and tired. We stopped at a drugstore so my dad could get me some chocolate milk and then went back to my hotel room so I could shower (while my parents made sure I didn't pass out in there) and then got to bed at ~1:00 am.

I'm not sure which was worse, the run or the medical tent ordeal.

Some Thoughts

I need to have a good discussion with Mary as to what happened per my run. We've exchanged a few texts, but I know she is waiting for a complete rundown of my day before we can figure out exactly what happened. I will be sure to post when we figure it out (currently Mary has some ideas and I agree, considering what happened to me after the race).

What I do know is that I am not upset. I had a really, really stellar first Ironman last year in Lake Placid, and let's face it, it's not always repeatable. Ironman is long and hard (that's what she said?), and not everything is always going to come together. You have to respect the distance which is something that I am finally starting to do. One wrong move and your whole day can potentially be ruined. Yesterday was a learning experience. I am not disappointed, or mad at myself or Mary, or upset. I did not get emotional during the race. I did what I could given the circumstances, and I did my best. For the most part, I even enjoyed myself! I am proud of myself for forging on during a very painful run and making the best of a not-so-great situation. And let's be real - I pulled out a 12:42 finish time. I know there are people out there that would kill for that so I am in no way boo-hoo-ing about my "slow" Ironman. I understand that it is a privilege to get to do these races!

I got the f-in' medal.

IT'S ALMOST TIME!!

2011-06-25T21:39:00.000-04:00

HOLY CRAP! IT'S ALMOST HERE!

My bike is racked. My bags are in transition. My special needs bags are ready. My kit is set out and my dry clothes are ready. My wetsuit is dry. My suitcase is organized for the flight home.

I drove the course. (There are some short, sleep climbs and some screaming, twisty downhills!).

I ate a delicious pasta dinner. (And I decorated the table).

I am ready.

And.. I never freaked out!

Oh, and I met Cait Snow and Logan Franks this morning at QT2 breakfast!! (Which was super fun by the way!).

And now, my pants are off and my legs are up!

CDA Day 3!

2011-06-25T00:16:00.000-04:00

Today has been an odd day.

I am not feeling nervous. I feel ready, but worried that I am not more nervous! (Hello, Type A anyone?).

I got my wheel situation fixed in the morning. Long story short, at some point yesterday when I was carrying my rental wheels around, the end of the skewer fell off. I did not lose the entire skewer, but I lost the end that holds the skewer in place. So I could not get my rear wheel on. I had to take it down to the IronmanWheels tent today and get it taken care of - those guys are pretty cool!

That being done, I got it set up for the race (installed a Sonic Nut on my Sonic Wing rear hydration system) and then took it out for a 30 min spin on the bike/run course. Felt pretty good but there was a major (think, 20 mph) wind going on and it was only 60 or so degrees out.

I look happy.. NOW!

I have not had much time to sit down and get my legs up. I feel like I have been running around for the past 2 days. I went back down to the race start to get a quick swim in, and the water temperature and the air temperature were both just so cold that I didn't do. I feel super guilty because I bagged it because I just didn't want to suck it up and get in. Not a good excuse, at all. I know that the swim is actually just to shake out the nerves and keep the body moving and not crucial for fitness at this point, but I still feel guilty.

I have 1 hour and 15 minutes on Sunday to punish myself for skipping that swim in freezing cold water.

I went to the Athlete Dinner tonight and it was awesome, as per usual! I made friends with a girl in line, we sat together, and we are going to drive the course tomorrow! Seriously, THIS is why I love Ironman so much!

Tomorrow is the QT2 breakfast at 8 am, I rack my bike and drop off my transition bags, check out the bike course, and then I get off my FEET!

Come Sunday, I'll get to look at THIS for 12 hours!

brrrr it's cold in here.. it must be Lake Coeur D'Alene!

2011-06-24T01:08:00.000-04:00

Today was busy! I woke up at 4:30 am (thank you time zones) and eventually got out of bed, ate breakfast and built my bike up. Then I headed down to the expo where I discovered that it takes me a GOOD 35 minutes to walk from my hotel down to transition. Not fun! I bought some stuff from the Ironman store, picked up my wheels, and registered.

While in the registration tent, the woman who gave me my packet of race numbers/swim cap asked me my name, so I told her "Alexa Harding" and she goes "I read your blog!!!" How crazy is that!! So here is a shout-out to Mary from Ironman registration who reads my blog from the other side of the country!! I must be famous or something..

Lake Coeur D'Alene

Anyways, I finally did a swim in the lake. It was chilly out today and rainy/thunderstormy so I waited til 3 pm to head back down to transition. I knew it was going to be cold in the water. It is currently a lovely 57.5 degrees and because it was a little stormy today, there was a lot of wind and therefore, chop, to the water. Everything but my feet got used to the water while I was swimming, but my feet remained cold the entire time. Either way, I think it could be worse. While on the beach, I started talking to these 2 guys - John and Adam from L.A. - (because everyone is friendly at Ironman!) and I ended up going out to dinner with them and some of their friends. It was super fun and I am so glad that I met some people, because being here alone isn't the greatest thing ever. It's not horrible, but it is WAY more fun with other people!

Anyways it is late and I need to get to bed. Hopefully more fun to post about tomorrow, as well as a wonderful story about Zipp wheel trouble.. seriously, could it be MY life without some sort of wheel issue??

I made it to Coeur D'Alene!

2011-06-22T22:35:00.000-04:00

I made it! I am in Coeur D'Alene! I am going to try to blog daily (I couldn't do this in Lake Placid because I did not have internet) as I proceed through IRONMAN WEEK!

me and Erin! I look ridiculous, as usual

This may have been the longest traveling day of my life. I woke up at 3:30 am to hit the road at 4:20 am to drive to the Buffalo Airport. Flew to Las Vegas and arrived at 9:20 or so (12:20 eastern standard time). Grabbed a bite to eat and met with my friend Erin who lives 15 minutes from the airport! She is a college friend who I haven't seen since 2007 so it was great to see her AND simultaneously kill my 3 hour layover! She picked me up and we went over to the strip - visited the Bellagio and Caeser's Palace.

I then departed from Las Vegas and flew to Spokane, WA. Both flights were really good, on time, and there were no clouds so I could see what I was flying over! I have never had this happen before, and since I really haven't seen a lot of the USA west of Pennsylvania, I was super excited! So forgive me for the horrible, out-the-window, airplane photos, but it was really cool to be able to see parts of the country that are SO DIFFERENT than from where I have lived!

flying over Kansas (we asked the flight attendant what state it was)

I am assuming.. the Colorado Rockies!

So that was interesting to look at, to say the least. Finally landed in Spokane, both of my bags made it (suitcase and bike case) and I caught the shuttle from the airport to Coeur D'Alene. Who happened to be on the shuttle with me? Two guys around my age doing the race, and one of them knows Mary's because.. HE'S QT2!!!! The minute he told me that he was from Boston and was here with 15 teammates I go "WAIT, what team is it?" and then he goes "QT2" and I go "MARY EGGERS IS MY COACH!!"

Craziness! He was super nice, as was the other guy in the van! My god, I love Ironman.

Anyways, I am here, in probably the nicest hotel room I have ever stayed in (I think it might be bigger than my apartment). I walked down the road to an Irish pub for dinner, took a shower (I was gross after flying all day) and now, considering it is 7:30 PST but 10:30 EST, I am quickly crashing.

The plan for tomorrow is get up early (shouldn't be a problem with the time zone change), grab breakfast at the hotel, build my bike, go down to the race site and register, hit up the expo and the Ironman shop, pick up my race wheels, come back and get them on the bike. Then get a nice 30 min swim in to see if the water is as cold as everyone says. I also have another 30 min workout that I can't remember if it's a bike or a run.

So that's all for now! Thanks to EVERYONE who has emailed me, tweeted me, or commented on my facebook today! It makes traveling and racing alone a lot more fun when I have so much support from friends at home! You guys are the BEST!

there's no crying in Ironman

2011-06-14T12:33:00.000-04:00

Thank you, dear friends, for all your kind words and comments on my grumpy post from last week. I had a really busy training week, busy work week, and was quite stressed out from lack of time. Maybe a little moody? :) And then on Thursday, the hard drive on my laptop died, which really was the breaking point.

I am not heading into CDA surrounded by negativity; I am just trying to not put so much pressure on myself to beat my time from IMLP. I want to race well, but well doesn't always necessarily mean better. I went into Lake Placid with a goal, which I did not meet, and instead of leaving feeling accomplished and like I did something amazing (which is exactly how you SHOULD feel after completing your first Ironman, regardless of whether you finished in 9:59 or 16:59), my pride was clouded by some disappointment. And because I don't want that to happen again - I want to be happy with how I do - I am trying to not think about it. I think it just came out wrong. Mostly I want to have fun, be happy, take a chance to look around while I am riding, enjoy the scenery, make new friends, check out hot guys in spandex, spend time with my family, and mostly, not be miserable on the run. :) Of course I desperately want to PR (who the f-- doesn't?) but my life will not be over if I don't. Life goes on. Ironman Wisconsin is still up for grabs in September!

There's no crying in Ironman, right?

I think we are smiling too much for a long ride day!

Anyways, I am over the hump. My last big training week is d-o-n-e. I had a 6 hour ride on Saturday; I rode 5:45. I rode from my house, around the lake, and back. Matthias met me at about 1.5 hours in so that he could do the loop around the lake. Due to me not paying attention.. we had a few directional mishaps - nothing major (shouldn't I know this route by now?!). We took it nice and easy, enjoyed ourselves, I didn't get negative at all or end up feeling like I wanted to stop and lie down.

Sunday I did a split run - 1:45 in the morning, then a 1 hour recovery ride on my trainer, then a final 1 hour run which was to be done 3 hours after the recovery ride. I felt surprisingly good on both runs (with the exception of an emergency potty break towards the end of the first run). I felt like I NAILED the afternoon run with an average pace of 9:01. I was really happy with that.

Is it normal to feel THIS GOOD <2 weeks out from an Ironman? Is this a good sign? I hope so!

Now, I just get to spend the time I would have spent training on errands and prepping for my trip. My laptop is fixed and luckily no data was lost (although I did have to shell out some cash for a new hard drive). My race wheels are rented. Fiona has a kennel reservation. I have obtained a bike box from the Kellmans and learned how to put my bike in the box. (THANKS GUYS!!). Tomorrow I am going over the IMCDA bike course with someone who has raced it. Hopefully I will get my car back soon. I bought a new mattress which is being delivered on Saturday. I have to meet with Mary next Monday to discuss my race plan/goals. I have already made a ginourmous list, which I have then have to pack! All in all.. I am going to be a busy girl for the next week!

I will be absolutely SURE to post my bib # and tracking info when I get it. I will also be sure to post from Coeur D'Alene! (For all of my stalkers..). I love my stalkers!

IMCDA IN 12 DAYS!

stress is bad

2011-06-10T18:10:00.000-04:00

With Ironman Coeur D'Alene quickly approaching (16 days. WTF.), I am feeling more and more stress. Not nerves. STRESS. Because I have expectations of how I will do. I worry and stress that I will not be able to repeat or better my first Ironman performance.

And even though they are different races, in different years, and different locations, with different training, and I'm different.. it doesn't matter. I still worry and compare myself. Then and now.

The fact is: worrying about performance detracts from the actual experience of the race. I am not going to win. I am not going to even win my age group. Honestly, I have about a 1% chance of even PLACING in my age group. So does my performance at this race really matter (as compared to my performance at Lake Placid last year)? NO.

If I go to this race and do my absolute best - ON THAT DAY - that is what matters.

What matters is taking that race day and enjoying it, remembering it, realizing how lucky you are to be able to 1) afford to do the race, 2) travel to a beautiful part of the country, 3) actually put your body through 12+ hours of cardiovascular work without collapsing from a heart attack, 4) look hot in a race kit (HAHA).

All of this should NOT lead to having a mental breakdown at mile 18 when you realize you're not going to hit your race goal (guilty). Not lead to getting upset if your time isn't faster than XX:XX (guilty).

You (ok, I, this is obviously a pump-you-up message to myself) need to have confidence in your race and your athletic abilities and let the race just.. happen.

2011 Keuka Lake Tri Race Report

2011-06-06T10:26:00.001-04:00

Keuka Lake Tri.. was one of the best days of my life. Not because it was beautiful out. Not because the race is an amazing event. Not because Mary was race announcing. Not because I saw so many wonderful friends racing, volunteering, and cheering. Not because my parents came to watch. Not because I finished the bike with a huge smile on my face.

Not because I won.

But because all of this happened. On one day. To me.

I needed it.

Honestly, I think the details are a little monotonous. It was a sprint. We swam .46 miles and I pushed it.. came out of the water in the front of my wave. I hammered the bike (13.8 miles) and passed the one girl that was ahead of me. After that I saw no one else from the sprint. I hit the run (5K) and gave it what I could. I crossed the line, and that was it. I won the race!

one of my favorites, Dad was a little too quick
with the camera.. that is my foot though!

Swim: 14:23, 1:55 pace
T1: 1:12
Bike: 39:17, 19.1 mph
T2: 1:04 (this was slow, I couldn't get my bike back on the rack)
Run: 23:57, 7:44 min/mile
Overall: 1:19:53

favorite cycling picture ever!

This is my first win ever! I AM SO EXCITED! But I'm not quite there yet. In a competitive field ( which this was not) I will always get toasted. I need a better swim, and a better run split. Mary thinks (and I agree) that I am better suited for short course racing. I am already planning a year off of Ironman next year (for my sanity) and I think a good goal would be to focus on short course speed (and also, just have some FUN!).

Some highlights from the race:

I think perhaps I wasn't running hard enough if I was able to scream "wooooooooooooooooo!" at the top of my lungs at all of the teammates/friends that I saw. But I just LOVE cheering them on!

I saw 2 of my favorite Train-This alums - Jeremy and Glenn before the race so I talked to them for a while (and then my parents showed up and joined us!). They are 2 of the nicest guys I know.

I made 2 new friends, Sandy and Tim, who I then facebook stalked when I got home!

My friend Matthias did his first tri in a few years - he did great!

Greg had a superb race as well!

EVERYBODY DID AWESOME!

Greg, me, Matthias post-awards

Sticking around for awards is always one of my favorite things. Even if I don't get an award, I like to cheer for people who do. Especially people who are really proud of how they did, or are getting an award for the first time, or made a huge improvement in their racing ability and are rewarded with a medal!

lounging in the grass with Mary and Will

After the race, the lunch, the awards, I hung out with Mary and Will Mitchell (brother and sister). I have known them for a few years because I see them at various tris. They are both awesome, fun, and hilarious! I also met Tim Dwyer who is a marathoner that I've heard of but never met. I ended up drinking a beer, watching a squirrel plot to steal a cookie, and just lying in the grass chatting for probably 1.5-2 hours. It was an amazing end to an amazing race!

the squirrel spies the cookie, perched on Mary M's wheel

THE SQUIRREL GETS THE COOKIE!

days like today

2011-06-05T21:16:00.000-04:00

It's days like today that set the standard for how a race should be.

It's days like today that make me understand why I do this.

It's days like today that ignite me to get faster.

It's days like today that make me appreciate all of the amazing people that are in my life.

It's days like today that show me what is important in my life.

It's days like today that I win a race!

It's days like today that I love being me.

Official race report coming soon!

Lake Placid, flat tires, and race season!

2011-06-01T20:51:00.002-04:00

I went up to Lake Placid over Memorial Day weekend to do some big training miles. I haven't felt the urge to write about it because I still haven't decided how I feel about the training that I did.

I rode the entire bike course on Saturday (well, 111 of the 112 miles). I got caught in a thunderstorm for the last mile of that ride and got completely drenched. I did a split long run on Sunday while the humidity was on high in Lake Placid, with a 2 hour bike in the middle. I am now unable to sit on my bike seat without cringing. Ouch!

I got my 2nd flat in LP on the Ausable Forks out and back section (I got my first flat there the day after Tinman last year). One thing I love about Lake Placid is while I slowly changed my tire ('cause I am not very fast), every single person that rode by asked me if I needed any help. I was FILTHY after changing this flat.. I'm not sure how I got so dirty but I had gross tire grime all over my hands, legs, and most likely, my face. HOT.

I also ran into one of my blog friends, Emily, while riding the bike course. Apparently I have honed my stalker skills to perfection because how did I know it was her? I have seen photos of her bike on her blog and it's a red Cannondale. In the land of Lake Placid you see lots of Felts and Cervelos, but you don't see a lot of Cannondales. I rode up behind her and the person she was riding with right after High Falls Gorge and we chatted a bit. (Note: I asked "Are you Emily?" like the creepy stalker that I am). I had another blog friend up in Lake Placid as well, but I didn't get a chance to meet up with him (because of my strict pass out at 9 pm habit).

Anyways, perhaps I will post more about the weekend. I'm not sure yet. I am in a major funk right now.

I have my first triathlon of the season on Sunday at the Keuka Lake Triathlon. I am excited because apparently, 54A (which I think was the worst road in all of NYS) has been PAVED! I'm doing the sprint (per Mary). Since it is somehow already Wed., I am trying to get my stuff ready to go. I have washed my race kit. I need to get my Zipp wheels ready (ahhhh.. the Zipp wheel drama begins again). I need to clean my bike. I need to locate my wetsuit and get an open water swim in on Friday. I need to clean out my transition bag and make sure I have those crucial items such as: race number belt, timing chip strap, body glide, safety pins, etc.

I got into a minor car accident on my way home from work this morning. An older woman was pulling out of a parking lot and hit me. There is a decent amount of damage done to my car - it is drivable - but I hate driving around a banged-up car. The accident was her fault so it's nice that I can get it fixed without having to shell out thousands of dollars. I lost a whole bunch of sleep today dealing with insurance companies and dropping my car off at the garage. It was a pain and I am tired, but now my poor little car is waiting to be fixed and I have a rental SUV (UGH - I know!) that will get me to my race this weekend. Going from accident to garage to rental car in less than 12 hours is pretty impressive, I think!

More later, I am tired!

flowers and figurines

2011-05-26T06:37:00.000-04:00

Third post this week! WOW!

Just a couple fun things to write about!

I got an email yesterday morning from my creepy blog friend Kevin (AKA IronmanByThirty) which contained a Bazinga ringtone for my iPhone! It would be PERFECT as a text message tone but unfortunately, Apple doesn't allow for custom text tones yet, so I had to add it as a ringtone for now. I'm so easily amused that I just like to make my phone say "Bazinga!"

Mary feels betrayed that I changed my iPhone wallpaper image from one of her and I after a race to a photo of Sheldon Cooper. Yes, sometimes I become a little obsessed with something. :)

I was just starting my easy recovery run yesterday afternoon when a car pulled up to me with the window rolled down, and a guy (probably late 20s or early 30s) in the passenger seat handed me a flower out the window. He said something which I didn't hear, so I said "what?" and he replied "I was looking for a pretty girl to give this flower to." It's a little odd.. but I haven't gotten flowers (or even A flower) from anyone in probably 5 years. So I don't care if the guy is crazy, or if it was a line, or whatever, I got a pretty pink flower! And someone thought I was pretty.. while I was RUNNING!! (Granted - I was wearing a running skirt, a pink tank top, and pink sneakers which is probably the girliest I have looked in a year). I carried it for the entire 30 minutes of my run and then put it in a cup of water when I got home.

I do not know what kind of flower it is!

I then proceeded to do some cleaning around my apartment, made a Wegmans trip to get food for my Lake Placid weekend, and did the majority of my packing!

It's kind of funny.. a teammate of mine (Don) has this Ironman action figure that he takes to races with him (and training camp) and it's sort of a team thing - apparently it has left Mary a voicemail and it went to Triple T with the guys. I decided that I wanted one too, because none of my teammates are coming to Coeur D'Alene with me and I know I am going to miss them and their shenanigans. I could take pictures of the Ironman in Idaho and Wisconsin, kind of like the garden gnome in those TV commercials (or in the movie Amelie). Don offered me his Ironman but it's really big (it's like a foot tall) and I think I am going to have zero free space in my suitcase! And then oddly enough, someone actually bought me a smaller version of the Ironman action figure! So now I have my own and it was purely coincidental!!

I.. am.. Ironman..

I bet Mr. Ironman is excited to come to Idaho with me in merely 4.5 weeks! :)

On the triathlon front, Mary has me working on my nutrition plan for IMCDA. She had me fill out this crazy spreadsheet which details my grams of CHO, protein, and mg of Na over each section of the race and then total numbers. Of course I did this in the middle of the night because that's the only time I have right now, so it was kind of ridiculous trying to divide and add and whatnot during an overnight. But I got it done!!

bazinga

2011-05-25T06:07:00.000-04:00

This pseudo-recovery week is amazing. I have done laundry. I have gotten in some quality time with my couch. I have SLEPT! The weather is finally nice! I don't think I realized how thin the thread I have been hanging by has been for the last several weeks. (Did that sentence even make sense? It is 4:30 am as I type this).

I have watched this clip at least 20 times and laughed my ass off every single time. (I am getting The Big Bang Theory through Netflix; currently I am on season 3 and I am LOVING IT! How did I not watch this show before now??).

I am heading up to Lake Placid on Friday for a Memorial Day weekend training camp with some friends! Because I was a late addition to this trip - they are all staying at a condo while I am staying at a B&B (it is all the same place.. the B&B is in front and the townhouses are in back). I go back and forth between being bummed that I am not in the townhouse with everyone else and thankful that I don't have to share a room or a bathroom with anyone.

I have made a giant list of things to bring (broken down into categories) and I am packing later today (after I sleep and do my workouts).

The bad part about this is that I have to work an overnight from Thursday - Friday morning and then drive 5.5 hours on only a small amount of sleep. The other bad part is that I have to drive home on Monday and then go into work that night. :(

The good part is.. well.. I get to go to f-ing LAKE PLACID for the weekend!

Mr. Mike's, you'd better watch out because I am going to eat the shit out of you!

I am not so excited about doing the climb past Whiteface (my least favorite part of the course) twice. Nothing invokes fear in me like the last 11 miles of the bike course does, but in my opinion - the 3 bears? Easy-peasey. Riding past Whiteface? Not so much. I also hate the climbing once you make the turn towards Wilmington (between the 2 out and back sections for those of you familiar with the 2010 course).

To anyone who is going to be up in Lake Placid (I know there are at least 2 of you), shoot me an email if you want to meet up!

pics or it didn't happen!

2011-05-23T07:50:00.000-04:00

I have been so busy between work and training that I have barely had time to post. I know I say this every time. However, I believe that I have now *crested* over the peak volume of Ironman 2011 training Round 1 with the weekend that I just completed. Hopefully I will have a little more free time as Ironman Coeur D'Alene is a mere 5 weeks away!

Even while going full throttle at max volume, I was able to get Hedwig into the bike shop for a tune up and some new pink-ification: new hot pink bar tape and new cables/pink housing (the latter courtesy of my brother!). Instructions to the mechanic when I dropped it off: I don't care what you have to do to it to make it work better, but DO NOT take that Ironman sticker off! :)

Next weekend I have a big training weekend up in Lake Placid with Kim and a few other people, but I am on a rest week Mon-Fri.. with some big miles on Saturday and Sunday. That's atypical but I just finished week 4 of my 4 week build so a rest week was needed! And let me tell you.. I AM F-ING TIRED!

The short-ish version of this weekend:

scenic overlook of Canandaigua Lake
(one of the NY Finger Lakes)

Saturday I did a 5:45 ride with Kim. We rode around the lake (typical) but we detoured from our usual route and rode her boyfriend's route (the big boy route) instead. Now I'm not big on "hey everybody look at my Garmin files" but this file is definitely share-able. Not because I did awesome on the ride (hello slowness) but because of the climbing that we had to do! According to Mary, I didn't do too badly with the HR for this ride. There was a lot of up, down, up, down, up, up, up! At least it was a gorgeous day for riding - FINALLY! Kim and I both got COMPLETELY sunburned on Saturday, but it was almost worth it because it was so beautiful out!

The more times that I do these long rides (5+ hours) the easier they seem to get - mentally, not necessarily physically. I am not intimidated by a 5 hour ride anymore. I don't go through super low points like I have in the past. I feel like I am riding better as I progress this season (thank god) but it's just so early still! It's freakin' MAY! I HAVE AN IRONMAN IN 5 WEEKS!!!!!!

Anyways.

I'm not sure what the point of this tree was..

Saturday night I actually had fun. (Wait.. weekends are supposed to be fun? I thought they were for getting up at the crack of dawn and cramming in as many hours of training as humanly possible before collapsing into bed at 9 pm?) I showered (for the first time that day). I put on real clothes that didn't include yoga pants (underwear? what's this??). I left my apartment (not headed for the gym. or work. or anywhere with my bike.). I drank a beer (apparently beverages other than Powerbar Endurance, and Coca-Cola are in existence).

What was all of this for?!? I went to the Lilac Festival with my British-accented, German friend/teammate, Matthias (British accents are so fun!). It's pretty self-explanatory. There are lots of lilacs, carnival foods, bands, kids, dogs, white trash, etc. The park that this festival takes place in is pretty nice (I had never really been there. I have run past it before). So we wandered around. We may have stood in line for an hour to get funnel cake. (I know - this is absolutely ridiculous. But I was half-starved after over 6 hours of workouts, Matthias raced that morning, AND he had never had one).

..but I fit inside it much better than he did!

Sunday I may have regretted that funnel cake-eating decision as my GI tract turned against me 2 hours into my 2.5 hour run. Being 30 minutes away from the closest bathroom, I did what any truly dedicated runner would do.. I went into the swampy wildlife area that I happened to be running alongside of and.. is more explanation really necessary? I don't think so.

Damn you greasy food.

Despite the "issues" I had in the tail-end of my run, I had a little self-confidence boost earlier in the run. You see, I am tired. My legs are tired, I am tired of waking up early to go to work or to train. Just in general I am very fatigued and running for 2.5 hours was the LAST thing I wanted to do on Sunday morning (especially having to go into work later that night). So the first hour of my run, which was with other people, was hard, but when Kim left me (she had a shorter run than me), it got infinitely harder. I wanted to turn around and say f- this and go home. Put my legs up. Eat lunch. Instead I walked for a minute, collected myself, ate my emergency mini Snickers bar, turned on my ipod, and started running again. It wasn't instantaneous, but 2 or 3 miles later I felt ok. Maybe not great. But ok enough to keep going. And maybe even smile a little. :)

So all is good. My weekend training is complete, and today is workout free!! Tues-Fri are recovery days, and then I head up to LAKE PLACID for a long holiday weekend full of friends, big hills, lots of miles, other crazy triathletes, comfy clothes, and the amazing Adirondack scenery!!

flatten that line

2011-05-20T13:28:00.000-04:00

After owning and training with my Garmin Forerunner 305 for 3 years, and being coached by Mary for 1.5, I FINALLY learned how to upload the data from the Garmin onto my computer. Previously, I just used the Garmin to keep track of distance and pace, and then average HR once I started with Mary. I would report this stuff for every workout but seriously.. what kind of information am I giving her when I tell her my average pace over 100 miles was 17 mph and my HR was 151 bpm. Two data points from an entire day's worth of training? That's ridiculous and essentially useless.

I decided that I wanted to learn how to upload the files onto my computer a while ago, but I just could never get it to work. After basically having instructions given to me step-by-step by a friend, I FINALLY figured out how to do it! (That process was not without its frustrations though). Being a scientist (I <3 charts), this influx of new data was really exciting to me!

Now, after seeing Garmin files for the past few weeks of workouts, I can see how much work I really need to do. My HR and pace files look like an EKG monitor. These major inconsistencies in my heart rate and pace are NOT good for Ironman distance events. Every unnecessary heart rate spike I have will affect me later on in the day - probably at mile 18 in the Ironman run. Since one of my major personal goals in my upcoming Ironman (5 weeks, bitches!) is to run a really solid, evenly-paced marathon.. I have a lot of work to do in order to get my HR and pace lines smooth as possible in order to make this goal a reality.

I have noticed that I do a little better in races (I did pretty well in the Flower City Challenge) and in endurance runs than I do with cycling. In long Saturday training rides especially, I am ALL OVER the place. My background: running. So this is not shocking to me at all.

Good Example:

my HR data from Flower City Challenge half marathon.. good upward HR
trend, not a lot of spikes.. that bit in the middle was in the very hilly cemetery

Bad Example:

Note ALL of the spikes in both HR and pace. I am very, very inconsistent on the bike.

It's a bit discouraging and frustrating to look at this data, but I also think it's a really, really good thing because it gives me a concrete goal to work on. Before, I would just do my long rides with no distance or pace goal in mind - I just wanted to finish. Now I can still leave those pace and distance goals alone (since they are sooo dependent on environmental factors that change daily) but I can really focus on my heart rate and keeping it from spiking - and then I can actually look back on my data post-ride and see how well I did.

Mary has given me a HR cap of 155 for bike rides (I spoke a little about this earlier in the week). I have found that it's easy enough to do when the hills are small and I can spin up them, but once I have to utilize my "granniest" gear, I am screwed and my HR skyrockets. What I am also supposed to do is not let my HR dip down super low either, so I have to work hard to not coast down small-ish hills or let myself slack off when there is a tailwind carrying me along.

Just some more things to work on in the upcoming weeks! :)

rain rain go away

2011-05-16T19:51:00.001-04:00

Anyone else who lives in the NE can understand the horrible weather for training that we had this weekend. It has been raining nonstop since Friday evening. There are puddles, dead worms, and squished snails EVERYWHERE. Rain is forecasted to continue like this through Thursday.

I had a large weekend on tap: 5.5 hour ride/30 min run on Saturday and 3 hour run/1 hr recovery ride/30 min recovery swim on Sunday. One of my regular riding partners was on a rest week and the other is tapering for Triple T this coming weekend, so I was on my own for the majority of the weekend.

Becuase it is mid-May and because my first triathlon is in 3 weeks and my first Ironman is in 6 weeks, I was training outside come hell or high water. People (non-triathlon people.. yeah.. those freaks) keep saying "oh I guess you didn't get outside on your bike this weekend, did you?" Hell-to-the-YEAH I did!! Rain.. does not stop me!

I had some company for the first part of my long ride on Saturday from my German friend, Matthias. True to form, it was raining when we headed out (as it was last time). At least it was in the 60s on Saturday so I was just wet and dirty and NOT cold as well. He rode with me for 90 mins or so and then he headed back and I forged on alone. My main goal for this ride was to work on capping my HR at 155 (per Mary - more on this in a later post) even when climbing hills. I chose a route with a lot of big rollers (the dreaded 5/20) to try to simulate what I think I am going to see in Coeur D'Alene. (Because I have never been to Idaho, I am just doing guesswork based on what I have read on slowtwitch). The HR cap worked fine when I could spin up the hills, but failed miserably when I hit hills that maxed out my gearing and I was stuck wobbling up the hill in my smallest gear. I ride a 12-27 cassette so I guess my only option here is to just suck it up and get stronger.

My main issues with riding in the rain is just being soaking wet for so long. It's gross and it promotes chafing in unpleasant areas. Also, I dislike drinking out of water bottles when they are covered with grit because god knows how much cow crap I ran over (5/20 goes through cow country) and then subsequently got in my mouth because it was on the water bottle. GROSS. Everything that went on the ride with me was disgusting by the end, and I cleaned my bike off using a water bottle and water from a spicket in the park where I left my car. Apparently Matthias put his bike in the shower to clean it off!

After riding on Saturday, I had to turn around and run for 3 hours in the rain on Sunday. It was colder on Sunday!! I wore shorts, a base layer, a tech t-shirt, gloves, and a running (baseball) hat and was ok but not great temperature wise. Thank god for base layers was my mantra over the weekend! I was worried about this 3 hour run because when I did it a month or so ago, I had running partners, my legs were fresh, and the weather was ideal. This time around I was going solo, in a windy rainstorm, on tired-ass legs. However.. I managed to run the same exact course FOUR MINUTES FASTER than last time! I am PSYCHED about this! I ran 19.4 miles in 3 hours, which I believe translates to a 9:17 pace!

This is my testament to Mary. It's all about patience. In my year and a half with Mary, I have PRed at the half-IM distance, PRed at the half marathon distance, had the race of my life at the mini-Mussel sprint triathlon, have successfully completed a full Ironman, and I am now confidently running (and pacing myself) for 19 miles with no issues and no dying at the end of runs. Could I have done that without her? Doubtful.

So here is a giant middle finger to this weather. You can't stop me stupid rain! I will ride though you and run through you!

the cookie conundrum

2011-05-16T19:41:00.000-04:00

F-ing blogger lost this post so I am RE-POSTING it!

Wow, I have not posted a blog in almost a week because I have been working and training like a maniac!

18 hours and change last week, 5.5 hours (89 miles on the bike) on Saturday, a little over 2 hours of running on Sunday, plus the usual extras. My quads are still not recovered from the half marathon I did a week ago - which was proven to me about 9 miles into my long run yesterday. My long run did not go well and I was disappointed with it, but.. it happens. I also forgot to wear sunscreen because it was only 55 degrees out when I started, but I got FRIED.

The ride on Saturday actually went pretty well. Ken, Kim and I rode 'round the lake (as per usual) and we got rained on pretty heavily about halfway through and subsequently froze until we got to Canandaigua. I am so freakin' SICK of this rain and we were ALL frustrated with the stupid weather! After "warming up" in the Hess Station we headed back out - luckily the sun had come out. For once, I felt halfway decent on the last half of the ride. I did fine on 5/20 and was even able to get some quality tempo work in for about an hour (I was supposed to do 90 mins). Then.. I died. It happens. Overall, I'm pretty happy with 89 miles in 5.5 hours.

Other than the normal things in my life: being busy at work, not sleeping, and training lots.. I only have one thing to write about.

Last week was not a good week. Partly due to working evenings and therefore being unable to see or really talk to any of my friends, partly due to not sleeping well all week, and then just some other stuff. Wasn't really the best week ever. On Thursday, I went to Wegmans to buy lunch after doing my workouts and also bought an iced sugar cookie from the bakery.

how could this not be delicious?

Wegmans makes the best iced sugar cookies EVER. So I was SUPER excited to eat this cookie.. it was basically the highlight of my day - perhaps even my week (is this pathetic?).

I got home from Wegmans (which, btw, is about 100 yds away from where I live) and ate my lunch. And then I went to eat my cookie, and I couldn't find it! I looked in all of the shopping bags, all over my apartment, in my car, in my purse, in the trash can (yuck), on the ground outside the apartment, EVERYWHERE. It was gone. And I was REALLY upset. Bad mood all week was made worse because of the lost cookie. I posted on facebook and got mocking answers such as "did you check your stomach?"

Yes, this is a bit sad, but you know what.. sometimes, the small things in life are what count!

I resigned the cookie as being lost forever, got ready for work, and then realized that I was running a little early. So I went BACK to Wegmans to buy a replacement cookie, and when I reached the register, my original cookie was there! I guess it had never gotten placed in my bag. So I left Wegmans happy and with TWO fish sugar cookies! (Which I then ate at work).

Flower City Half Marathon race report

2011-05-03T21:34:00.002-04:00

This is the 2nd annual running of this race, which is run entirely within the city limits of Rochester. Remember when I posted about this last week and said it was flat except for a hill in the middle? I lied. It's flat in the beginning and the end, with the exception of THREE MILES of hills before and throughout that %&*#-ing cemetery. I forgot how ~~hilly~~ horrible that shit was.

Anyways, I came into this race well rested and tapering. I did not have a long ride on Saturday; instead I had a 1.5 hour recovery ride. I chose to do this ride outside because it was sunny and beautiful out. Although I had good intentions at doing this at recovery pace, I didn't. I didn't hammer it, but I didn't go easy like I should have done.

My race plan for Sunday was to run the first 10 miles with the 1:40 pace group and then try to drop them for the last 5K. Goal time: sub 1:40. This goal time has been on my radar since my last half marathon in 2009 where I ran a 1:41 on a nice flat course. I pulled that 1:41 out of my ass and I KNOW that with some legit training I could go sub 1:40 for sure. I was skeptical that I would be able to do it for this race given the fact that I have done no speedwork whatsoever and my running has been lagging behind where it was last year due to time off for my hamstring injury. So I went into the race drooling over the sub 1:40 but not super cocky that I could get it.

Sunday, I got up at 5 am, ate the typical breakfast of banana, protein shake, toast, and applesauce. My gear was all laid out from the night before so I just put on my race gear and grabbed my bag. I parked in a parking garage downtown where I immediately ran into Solveig. We walked inside and found Ken, Greg & his fiancee Amanda, and a few others. I did a quick warmup and lined up practically on the line so I could be right behind Andy, the 1:40 pace leader/exboyfriend/pacing buddy. You think that would be awkward, but it's not. I set my Garmin to show "average pace" so that I could keep track of where I was (I needed to maintain a 7:37 pace) when I was slowing down through the cemetery section.

can you find me?

The gun went off and we started running. The first couple miles wind through a not-so-nice part of Rochester that I would probably never run in by myself. I had talked to Andy on the phone a few days before the race and we had discussed pacing strategies, since he had never been a pace leader before. We both knew that the course slows way down at about the halfway point, so he had a plan to bank some time in the first half. This is exactly what happened. For the first 6 or so miles, my Garmin showed an average of 7:30 pace. This pace was easy for about 5 miles, and then the 6th mile I really had to work to keep it up.

Once we hit the hill on Goodman, I knew I wasn't going to be able to maintain that pace because the hill is pretty long, and that's exactly what happened. I fell right off the back of the pace group on that hill. My average pace fell to about 7:35 going up that hill. I regrouped and brought my pace back to where it needed to be once I got into the cemetery because those hills are rolling, but I just could NOT catch Andy. The cemetery was awful. It has steep rolling hills, lots of twists and turns, and I had to go to the bathroom. Oh wait, that happened last year too! Mother f-er. Last year I stopped at a portapotty, this year, I was just going to hang on and RUN. I felt like I was going to die, which was appropriate since I was running through a bunch of graveyards! I managed to get my average pace back down to maybe 7:33 through the cemetery by working the downhills hard.

down the finish stretch

K-Dub passed me at mile 9. We exited the cemetery and I got a slight 2nd wind at mile 10. I passed K-Dub back and was running right with one of the Fleet Feet guys named Robbie. I told him I was trying for a 1:40 and I was right on pace, but I was slowly slowing down the last 3 miles. I could see my average pace drop from 7:35 to 7:36 to 7:37. I knew it was going to be right down to the wire. The last 2 miles were torture. We headed over the Ford St. bridge and down the long stretch through Cornhill that I HATE. You know the finish is so close, yet so far. Robbie was running right in front of me and told me to pick it up because I was almost done. I turned the corner and saw the finish. I knew at that point that I was not going to come in under 1:40. I saw Greg on the left and he started running me in, yelling at me to sprint in.. thank god for Greg. What a great guy!

I finished in 1:40:55.

That's a PR for me by about 40 seconds. It's hard not to be happy with that. The course is harder, it's early in the season, and I PRed! I may not have hit my ultimate goal, but I was only 55 seconds off. Mary told me that if I had done my recovery ride the way I was SUPPOSED to do it the day before, that I could have gone under 1:40. For the record, I ran this race in a 1:50 last year. So.. 9 minutes faster.. NICE!

I guess that sub 1:40 is for another day!

I ended up 8th in my age group out of 199 women, and 35th woman overall. Everyone else had a great day as well!

Nutrition: I ate 1 shot block every 2 miles. I almost choked on a shot block once, and I did not eat one at mile 12 (thought it was pointless and I was too tired to chew by that point).

Greg, me, Solveig, Kenny - the lovely members of Train-This post race!

I have fantastic teammates. Thanks for everything you guys! And now.. over 48 hours later, my quads are STILL WRECKED!

PR time?

2011-04-27T06:44:00.001-04:00

I am running a half marathon this Sunday (the Flower City Challenge). The race is held within the city limits of Rochester and is put on by the local Fleet Feet. I also ran this race last year, its inaugural year.

Last year I ran a 1:50. I was plagued with some "bathroom issues" midway through the race and I did a big ride the day before. The course is relatively flat except for one decent hill up Goodman St. (I have run this hill 100+ times since I lived in that neighborhood for 3 years) halfway through that brings you into a large cemetery that you then run though (sadly enough, this cemetery is actually an attraction of our city). (Check out the elevation profile). Seriously.. 100 ft elevation gain - that's it.

My current marathon PR is 1:41 from 2009. As is everyone else, I am always gunning for PRs. However, I am realistic and know that it's not always possible. Depending on where you are in a training cycle, the race may be better suited as a training run at tempo pace. Sometimes, you race either having run beforehand or knowing you have to add on miles afterwards. Sometimes, the weather sucks, or you have equipment failure, or you have an off day. Sometimes, it's just not possible to PR. Last year, it was not possible for me to PR. I was coming off a big bike ride and my legs weren't fresh. Add to that the fact that I barely made it into a porta-potty in time.. yeah.. not a PR day for me. And I didn't expect it to be.

But this year?

I am coming off a rest week last week. The week before that I ran 40 miles. 40 SOLID miles. I am practically tapering into this half-marathon with NO long ride on Saturday (seriously, how is that even possible). I am friends with the 1:40 pace leader.

I think I am gonna go for it!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-25T07:58:00.000-04:00

Happy Easter everyone! (Yes, I know it's Monday). Lent is over, so get back to enjoying your desserts, cursing, dairy, facebook, and whatever else you may have given up (these are all things that my friends gave up!). Personally? I never give up anything for Lent because a) I am not religious and b) I am totally self-indulgent.

I went to my parents' house in Pennsylvania for Easter weekend. I arrived home on Friday evening after napping and swimming post-work. While sitting at the dinner table, I was facing the wall and saw this plaque with my brother's robotics medals hanging from it. Except the plaque had a triathlon picture painted on it. Apparently, after watching the video of my apartment that I posted a few weeks ago that showed what I currently do with my race medals (they're in a cardboard box in a drawer), my dad MADE this for me! How awesome is that!? I hung it up when I got back to my apartment and put 4 of my prettiest medals on it: Philly marathon, Syracuse 70.3, Flower City half-marathon, IMLP. This is perfect for me because I love my new apartment so much and I am trying to make it look nice by actually hanging things on the walls. But I don't want to just buy random generic crap from Bed, Bath and Beyond; I want to hang art that is either locally made, done by friends/family, or has some significance to me. So far I have a painting done by a friend, my framed IMLP poster, this plaque, and a few photos. It's a start!

I also ran for an hour while at home - not a big deal. Oh, and my mom did all my laundry, and there was a LOT of it! Saturday night I went out to a local redneck bar with my high school friend, Denise. I talk to Denise quite a bit but I hadn't seen her in a few years because I live in Rochester and she lives in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area. She came home on Saturday and we went to this bar called PJs. There are only 3 bars in town and this one is an old standby (of the other two: one is scary and the 3rd I have never been to). We ended up having a LOT of fun; another guy that we graduated with came with his fiancee - I hadn't seen him in 9 years. I ended up staying out much too late (and by late I mean 12:30) and after drinking 6 beers between the 2 of us (I had 2, Denise had 4) our tab was $13. Aaaaaand that's what happens in a small town! Also, my 10 year reunion is next year. Denise was our class president so it's her job to plan that thing! Yikes..

I drove back to Rochester on Sunday morning after not enough sleep and with a living room chair stuffed in the back of my car (a hand-me-down from my parents). I managed to find someone willing to come to my apartment at 9:30 pm (before I had to go into work) to help me carry the chair from the car to the apartment! How awesome is that!? Here is the new chair in its new home with an ottoman! You can see how fun my medals look on the wall behind it.

I need to STOP eating Easter candy!

Happy Earth Day!

2011-04-22T06:29:00.000-04:00

HAPPY EARTH DAY!!!!!

As triathletes, we tend to appreciate the outdoors.

We bitch and moan when we are relegated inside (for whatever reason) on our trainers, treadmills, and gym pools.

Given the opportunity..

We run through snow, rain, wind, and sunshine. We run on roads, sidewalks, trails, and through parks, neighborhoods, cities. We run when it's hot and when it's cold. We embrace all weather conditions.

We observe the scenery while on the bike. We ride up and down mountains. We fight headwinds and love tailwinds. We see wildlife on the side of the road.

What we also tend to see is garbage all over the side of the road. Oversized vehicles that practically run us OFF the road.

What do I want everyone to do on Earth Day? Pick up litter! Plant a tree! (Is this 5th grade?) Ask yourself, "can I walk to my destination?" Drink tap water instead of buying bottled water.

Conservation isn't a joke. It's something that everyone needs to participate in! It's not so difficult to contribute in small ways. Can you drive a car or a small crossover SUV instead of a giant truck/SUV? Can you walk to the post office instead of driving 0.5 miles to get there? Can you carpool to destinations (such as races)? Can you stick your gel wrapper in your pocket instead of throwing it on the ground? Can you buy a Nalgene bottle to fill with water rather than using disposable cups? Or a travel mug for your coffee rather than a cup from Starbucks every day?

Ridiculous things happen when people continue to look to non-renewable resources (natural gas, coal) to obtain energy. Instead of looking at ways that we can reduce fuel use and implement the use of renewable energies (solar power, wind), we discover new ways to simultaneously destroy the world and obtain more oil and gas because we fail to acknowledge the consequences. We burn the rainforest, oblivious to the millions of animals that die. We refuse to embrace wind turbines because they are "ugly." We "frack" even though it contaminates the watershed.

This fracking spill (see a more informative article here) happened in the county in Pennsylvania where I grew up. Our county sits on the (very large) Marcellus Shale which is a giant deposit of basically untappable gas because the rock is not porous enough. Enter hydraulic fracturing - a horizontal drilling process that allows access to the trapped natural gas. Unfortunately, this process is controversial because there are many steps that can lead to errors, spills, contamination, etc. It wasn't around for very long before it was implemented. Regardless of the consequences, tons of people are leasing their land to the gas companies so they can make a buck. Because it's a big dairy farming area, people where from where I grew up own hundreds of acres and can make thousands and thousands of dollars off of this drilling. They see the dollar signs and ignore the dangers. I am from a very rural, conservative area in Pennsylvania. In places like Syracuse - where it is more liberal and there is more money - people are fighting the fracking and refusing to lease their land. Demographics play such a big role in whether or not drilling is going to take over a town. Everyone in my hometown refers to these gas drillers as "gasholes" because they have overrun the area. Their water trucks are destroying the roads and traffic is ridiculous. This is a small town so the impact is HUGE. My view? I see no benefits to this situation.

Instead of battling the raising gas prices with smaller cars, better public transportation, and general awareness, we continue to exploit natural resources as an "easy way out."

I know, I am a hippie. And I know everyone knows this stuff. And this is probably not the audience that even NEEDS this lecture. But it's Earth Day.. so, I'm doing it anyways. :) Thanks for listening!

the countdown begins

2011-04-21T06:44:00.000-04:00

less than..
2 weeks until Flower City Half Marathon
6 weeks until Memorial Day weekend in Lake Placid
7 weeks until Keuka Lake Tri
10 weeks until IMCDA!

I also hope to be at IMLP to watch/cheer for everyone that I know who is racing. I am still waiting to see if I am able to take that Monday off of work but as long as that is ok, I shall be up there for the weekend! Hopefully I can find someplace to stay, otherwise Solveig and I might be squeezing in between Jeremy and Glenn in the Element! I have never spectated an Ironman before so it should be exciting! I will be there armed with my bright green Train-This t-shirt and visor, my iPhone for updating facebook and the google group, my camera for taking photos, and my little video camera for taking ridiculous videos! Oh.. and my outdoor voice for yelling!!!!! (I always have an outdoor voice).

Monday was a rest day (thank god) and after being up for 27 straight hours (workouts all day on Sunday and then had to work all night) I was a mess when I got home in the morning. I took an ambien (because often, regardless of how tired I am, I just cannot sleep) and was getting ready for bed when a friend of mine start talking to me on facebook chat. Weird for 7:30 am but whatever. Between being exhausted and the ambien kicking in, I can hardly remember what we even talked about, but I do remember barely being able to type anything coherent (I sound like I have some kind of substance abuse problem but I assure you that I do not).

I still am tired, although I have slept better as the week has gone by.

I was watching an episode of The Big Bang Theory, and Sheldon describes Penny's apartment as "..a swirling vortex of entropy." He MIGHT actually be talking about my apartment. I still need to clean Hedwig from Saturday's ride (her gears are dirty), wash the clothes that got wet and yucky over the weekend, and a whole bunch of other things. Ugh, I hate housework. I think I am a boy.

Mary has been basically out of touch for a week straight because she was at QT2 camp and she is now playing catch-up at work. I think I am going through withdrawal. And I am a moody lunatic this week due to the catastrophic combination of no sleep because I am working nights, lack of human contact, rest week, and PMS.

Thank god Kim has the best idea ever of going to get cupcakes yesterday. Unfortunately, our favorite cupcake place RAN OUT of cupcakes (WHAT!?!?!) so we had to improvise.

I realized that my transformation into cat lady has been completed as I caught myself taking this photo on Monday morning. My cat waits for me on the window sill. Kim witnessed this when she dropped me off after dinner/cupcake eating. She thought it was adorable (actually Fiona waits for me on the window sill and then when she sees me walking up the sidewalk, she will jump down and greet me at the door). It is pretty adorable.

Urgh.. is it bedtime yet?

hats off to my training partners

2011-04-18T08:09:00.000-04:00

I made it through my biggest training week of 2011 thus far. Actually, this was probably my 2nd biggest training week EVER in terms of hours. The actual week was normal volume - I was working days so I did everything in the afternoon/evenings. I had one really off day on Tuesday where I cut a swim a little short and had a run that was 1/3 bad and 2/3 good.

Saturday was when the real adventure began. And also one of the top 10 stupidest decisions I have ever made. The weather forecast was ~~atrocious~~ typical(??) for mid-April: 40 degrees, 100% chance of rain, 50 mph wind. I had a 5 hour ride schedule. There is no f*&%ing way I was gonna do that on my trainer. Nope. So I devised a plan of riding loops from a local park (I did something similar last year on another dreary day) so that if the weather was unrideable, I could hightail it back to my car and not be stranded somewhere 50 miles away. I posted my plan on the google group and FOUR other people showed up to this thing at 7 am. Ken (who called me in the morning to make sure I was still going), Greg (who I didn't even know was riding til he showed up), Don (who had said that he would go if we started later but then rode over!), and Matthias (one of Jackie's athletes that I had never met before). I was sooo happy to see these guys! Going through IMLP together was like being inducted into a family and I'm always so excited to hang out with them (plus sometimes it's a nice change to stare at someone else's ass besides Kim's during a long ride. Not that Kim doesn't have a nice ass..).

The minute I got to Mendon Ponds Park, it started raining. We started out regardless, even though Ken was shivering, and the first 45 minutes weren't too bad. I remember thinking, "so the rain is lousy and it's kind of windy but I think I could deal with this for 5 hours." That feeling did NOT last long. By this point, Greg and Don were too far ahead to see, Matthias was right behind me, and Ken was behind him. We lost Ken at the red light. For the remainder of the loop, I rode and chatted with Matthias, who is a scientist and has a fun accent!

The weather was getting worse and as my hands and feet started to go numb, I started to REALLY worry about everyone else. I didn't know where any of them were, and I was really worried about Ken because he was so cold at the beginning and it was his first outdoor ride of the year. We stopped and waited for him for a bit but it was just too cold to not keep moving. I think riding with someone else was what actually got me through the loop because we could talk and sort of ignore the fact that our hands no longer had the ability to move, or grip the handlebars, or brake.

We made it back to Mendon, freezing cold, soaking wet, covered in grit, and unable to move our fingers. Ken's car was gone, and I had a text from him saying that he and Don had stopped at the same gas station and had ridden back via a shortcut. Greg was in the parking area in his mom's car, who he had called from a gas station to come rescue him (P.S. he was bundled in a sleeping bag). I was SOOOO happy that everyone was ok, being that this ride was my idea in the first place, and I don't want to subject half of the Train-This team to hypothermia or have them lose any digits to frostbite! Don, Ken and I are used to this sort of crazy stuff by now, and Greg is an IM newbie who seems to be dealing with the crazy pretty well, but I was worried that I scared Matthias off from EVER wanting to ride with us again! He said he "had fun" but I think he was being nice! :) I love making new friends!

Anyways, I ended up riding ~38 miles outside (2 hrs 22 mins.. SLOW) and had to do 2:38 inside on my trainer - I watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Pt. 1! Then I did a transition run on the treadmill which was awful due to improper fueling on the bike - totally my fault (I blame the numb hands on the outdoor bike ride for the calorie deficit).

On Sunday I had my 19 mile long run/experiment thing. I have had several people comment that they thought that jumping from 13 miles to 19 miles was crazy/risky/etc. but I trust my coach and I really wanted to try it. I knew it was going to be mentally challenging for me so I lined up my dear friend Rae to run the 2nd loop of this brutally hilly course with me. Then later in the week I got an offer from my friend (ex-boyfriend if you want to be specific about it) Andy to run the first loop with me. (He is a much faster runner than I am so kudos to him for slowing it wayyy down to help me out). I met Andy at Mendon Ponds Park at 8 am and we set out at a nice, easy, conversational pace. I have not had the greatest experiences with marathon-length training runs so I wanted to be super careful and conservative. The first loop flew by and the next thing I knew, we were back in the parking lot in 1:30 (which was the exact predicted time I had given Rae). That loop was 9.4 miles. It was windy and a little chilly but I was dressed ok (long sleeved shirt, shorts, gloves) so I didn't change. I peed, said farewell to Andy, and Rae and I set off for loop 2.

myself and Rae post long run!

I would say that the 2nd loop went really well until about mile 17, which is also where the course goes uphill for the last 2 miles. My legs started to get a little tired/heavy at this point but otherwise I was feeling pretty good and was able to continue the same pace. I didn't look at my garmin during the run other than to periodically check mileage. I didn't look at HR or pace at all. I just ran by feel. I hit 19 miles in 2:59. The second loop was 9.6 miles. So, I ran the 2nd loop slightly faster than the 1st loop which is AWESOME for me - the girl who can't pace. This was easily the best long run (18 miles or more) that I have ever had. My quads didn't blow up, my pace didn't drop, I finished the run stronger than I started it, and I had zero GI issues during AND after the run.

I finished out the day with a swim and a recovery bike. My legs feel a little sore but they don't have that blown out feeling that I usually get after a run of that length. My hamstring is also pretty tight. It probably doesn't help that I did all of these workouts and then went right to work with barely 1 hour of sleep because I am working nights this week. I wonder what that does to recovery?

All in all - busiest weekend ever!

I really owe a lot to both Andy and Rae for helping me through that run.. they occupied me and totally kept me from cracking. (Rae and I tend to talk about some pretty questionable, X-rated topics that will remain a secret, hehe). Also, I would never have made it 38 miles in that shit on Saturday if I hadn't had Matthias as a riding buddy.

In total: 18 hrs of training. 9 hrs on the bike. 6:05 running (I RAN 40 MILES). 2.5 swimming. 30 strength.

tailwind love

2011-04-14T08:12:00.002-04:00

Apparently I started this post on Monday and forgot to finish it, so I will post it now!

I had a really crazy weekend. 17.28 hours in the books last week. Feeling strong! Also feeling very tired. I am in my last week of this build and then I get a rest week.

I got in a really solid 5 hour ride on Sunday. I rode from Coach Mary's house at 8 am with Mary, Kim, Greg, and Karin (who was riding 3 hours). We had a little pace line going for a while but then Mary and Greg broke off ahead, Karin turned around, so Kim and I were riding together and I stayed with her MUCH better than during last weekend's ride. She's still way faster than me but I could see her most of the time.

I also maintained a good attitude despite pretty heavy winds on the way out. That lead to some really fantastic tailwinds on the way home that we just CRUISED with. I really don't think there is anything better in life than a tailwind. Maybe chocolate..

Attitude really does determine everything. On Saturday I got up early, and forced myself to be excited to run for 1:45. Not dreading it. Not just getting it done. Being happy to do it. Because it is a privilege to be able to run for that long. It is also a privilege to get to race. What is the point in doing any of this if I'm just going to whine that my legs are tired or that my crotch hurts. I should be happy that my legs move and have the strength to run for 13 miles, to pedal a bike for 5 hours, and that I have the time available to me to do these types of things without feeling guilty.

I ran for 2 hours and it was grand!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Pt. 1 comes out on DVD tomorrow. You can bet your ass I will be in Target buying that shit at 3:30 pm - the minute I can get there after work!

On tap for this weekend: 5 hour ride (solo & in the rain) on Saturday and (!!!!!!) 19 mile run on Sunday. I have a wonderful friend who is going to pace me for the 2nd half of this run. I have only run this far three times in my life - one 20 mile training run pre-marathon, the Philadelphia Marathon, and Ironman Lake Placid. It will be nice to have her company and the motivation because I know she will keep me running!

Looking forward to my rest week and going to my parents' house for Easter weekend!

quick and easy

2011-04-09T21:08:00.000-04:00

So it is 9 pm, and I am getting ready to crawl into bed, after a very busy day, in preparation for a 5 hour ride with Mary and some teammates bright and early at 8 am tomorrow!

This training week has been amazing so far. I have been nailing my workouts. My crotch is healing and hopefully should be ok for 5 hours tomorrow. Today I ran 13 miles in just under 2 hours which is really good for a training run for me - and felt GREAT while doing it. I even got a little lost and wound up running 13 extra minutes (I was supposed to run 1:45) and did so with a giant smile on my face! I also swam for an hour and did an hour of recovery on the bike. So 4 hours today and 5.5 for tomorrow is exciting in early April!

After my awesome run today I filled in my Training Peaks and gave Mary some details on how good I felt, and then requested a few longer runs (3 hour-ish) because I feel that my weakness with running isn't that my cardiovascular system gets tired, but that my legs tend to blow up after 2 hours (and shocker, how long do I normally run for - 2 hours!). So I ran the idea past her and she suggested that next Sunday I run 2 loops of the super hill Spring Forward race loop equaling 19 miles total! Next Sunday! Dang! But I want to do it - I will be at the end of a build going into a rest week and it's perfect timing.

I really, really, really want to run a solid Ironman marathon.

So this was just a quick update because I am feeling good and I want to hang onto that feeling for as long as possible!

Good luck to everyone racing tomorrow! We have some teammates racing in Texas tomorrow and I know I have a few blogfriends doing the same! PEDAL HARD PEOPLE!!

I am the fashion police

2011-04-06T11:28:00.000-04:00

One of the more ridiculous things that I saw during the Spring Forward race was a man running in red and blue Buffalo Bills Zubaz pants. (I'm sorry, but NO ONE can possibly love the Bills THAT much..) I saw him in front of me at around the 7 mile mark and (accidentally) exclaimed out loud that there was no way in hell I was letting a man wearing Zubaz beat me. So I passed him and I am pretty sure I inspired the entire group of people around me to pass him as well. (I know this because one of those people that heard me facebook ~~stalked~~ friended me and told me so).

Now as a triathlete, I know that I am not setting any kind of fashion statements. I regularly wear spandex and compression socks. I often go the entire day on the weekend without showering until right before bed. I wear race shirts & yoga pants/running shorts everywhere possible. I run with a fuel belt and visor. But I draw the line at anything from the 90s.

Zubaz should have all spontaneously combusted on Y2K.

Some other things that no man should EVER wear in the year 2011 include: jorts, an earring in one ear, cotton tank tops, or any shirt that is made of mesh fabric. (For the complete list please email me at: arharding@gmail.com and I'd be happy to provide it to you). If you bought in in 1982 or Wham EVER wore it, THROW IT AWAY. Burn that shit.

Onto more pressing issues..

I think that I talk about my crotch wayyyy too much.

Regardless, my 5+ hour ride on Saturday resulted in a saddle sore. I'm not sure what exactly caused it because I rode in clean tri shorts, used chamois cream, and took a shower immediately after. I was wearing tights over the shorts so perhaps the 2 layers of rubbing plus the fact that it is early in the year and I have not yet developed any resistance to bike saddle chafing is the culprit. I am slated to ride 5 hours again this Sunday with Mary (maybe if she rides her mountain bike and I ride my Cervelo equipped with my Zipps, I will be able to keep up) so I have been doing everything I can to try to heal this mess.

This = dropping $40 at Rite Aid yesterday on every type of ointment, antiseptic, and cream available in the store. My crotch is now equipped to scrub in and perform surgery. That saddle sore picked the WRONG chick to mess with. If I find a tried and true way to battle saddle sores I will post it, but right now I am just experimenting. And I will leave it at that because no one needs that mental image.

Spring Forward 15K 2011!!

2011-04-03T15:32:00.003-04:00

It's Sunday, so in pre-Ironman training frenzied Alexa-land, it's long run day. Or this particular Sunday, it's race day! On tap: the Spring Forward Distance Run (read my race report of this race from 2010!) After yesterday's long ride ~~fiasco~~ adventure I was exhausted, which is possibly the best part of long ride Saturday - collapsing into bed, which I did, but then could not sleep. I'm pretty sure I got 1-2 hours of sleep, tops. I was up at 6:15 tired, annoyed, and pissed that I had to race.

me and Mark, my tall, directionally challenged friend

I ate breakfast and made my way to Mendon Ponds Park. On the way there, I got a phone call from Mark O. asking me how to get to Mendon Ponds Park. (And since I opened this door, I have to tell the backstory). Mark is my friend with 5 children, a wife, and a PhD. You would think he would be able to drive from his house to Mendon Ponds Park by reading a map, or using the GPS in his phone, or just by memory since I KNOW he has been there before. But EVERY TIME there is a race there he has to call me and ask me how to get there. Or text me at 10 pm the night before a race. (Or do both!!!). The same day that he called me to ask me what time the race started. Use the internet, Mark! (Alas, he is still my buddy).

showcasing Matt Kellman's absolutely RIDICULOUS
compression socks! (and Kim with her mountain bike)

Anyways, I show up, see Ken, get my chip, and then sit in my car with the heat on because it was 34 degrees out! I did a half-hearted warmup and then ran into Mary and Kim who were riding their mountain bikes, and then some other TT-ers congregated. I was having "issues" because of my 5 hour ride the day before - major chaffage and swelling in a not-so-pleasant area. The fact that I wear underwear underneath my Lulu running shorts (that already have underwear in them) just makes this situation worse. Note to self: in the future, go commando to avoid a "rebellious crotch" (term coined by Greg).

me, Tim, Mark, Greg.. quite possibly discussing crotches and underwear.

I'm not going to bore anyone with the details of the race other than it's a very hilly 15K. The last 2 miles are the absolute WORST. I ran slightly slower than last year.. 1:13 something vs. 1:12 something. Maybe a minute and change slower? I'm not surprised because I am still getting my run back to where it should be. If I cared more I would be annoyed but I really don't care. I rode 80 freaking miles in a tornado yesterday! Getting out of bed was a success in itself.

Mary and Kim were cheering at the halfway point!

The one really stupid thing I did during this race was neglect my nutrition. I had a gel which I was going to take at 45 minutes. But this course is so hilly and I was trying to push myself that 45 minutes came and I just couldn't stomach trying to take it, so I didn't. So now, hours later, my stomach is going all sorts of crazy and it is NOT fun. I napped and now I am dreading getting on my bike for an hour recovery ride (because I haven't yet figured out a way to cushion my poor crotch!!!).

Looking at all of the photos that Mary posted of our team at the race today.. I just love them. I love all of them! I love that we can talk about crotches. I love that Don sits in his warm car as his warmup. I love that Kellman wears neon yellow compression socks (and rocks the shit out of them). I love that Mary and Kim rode over on their mountain bikes to cheer for everyone who was racing. I love that Tim and Mark race and have families. I love that Rich is a vegan. I love that Greg is hilarious and that Ken is super sarcastic. They are the best! They are my Rochester family! :)

Don, Greg, Kim.. friends, teammates, family! love them!

no one likes a bad attitude

2011-04-02T19:43:00.000-04:00

If I were to write this post about how I am currently feeling, it would be plagued with negative thoughts, whining, and a bad attitude. Instead I am going to try to focus on the positive aspects of today's workout because Ironman is so much a mental sport. If you have a bad attitude, you aren't going to succeed. I tend to get a very, very bad attitude when it comes to riding long because I let things affect me that shouldn't. And then, since I tend to be an emotional person and ride, race, and live my life with my heart on my sleeve, my ride is directly affected by my bad attitude.

With that said..

I had a 4 hour ride and a 30 minute run on the schedule for today. Since it is now April and the forecast was in the 40s, Kim and I decided to ride outside. I showed up at her house at 10:30 (we wanted to give it time to warm up) and a 3rd girl, Caillie (who is doing Ironman Lake Placid this year and whose boyfriend I met yesterday at the bike shop and he sent her to us) met us there to tagalong on part of our ride. We left at 11 am sharp dressed in tights, wool socks, toe covers, gloves, hats, and several layers on top. We planned to ride from Kim's house, around Canandaigua Lake, back to Kim's - about a 4:30 ride (a little longer than what was on tap). I was excited to finally be off the trainer!

It became quickly apparent that my bike fitness has a LOOOOOOOONG way to go before my Ironman which is 12 weeks away (if you missed that somehow). Climbing hills was.. interesting. Kim was destroying me. We made all of our regular stops at our regular gas stations to refuel, recaffeinate, and rest. I was doing ok for the first 3 hrs and 30 minutes of the ride. After that, my attitude went downhill. Instead of bitching, I am going to list my issues and how I am going to try to resolve them by positive thinking.

1) 3:30 into this particular route (that I ride ALL the time) is my least favorite part - riding west on routes 5&20 which is a road that goes from west of Rochester, through all the Finger Lake villages, out to who knows where it ends. At around Canandaigua, it goes up and down these really big rollers that I just HATE. I know that this part is coming and I dread it. What I need to do to get past this mental block is drive out to 5&20, leave my car, and ride up and down this road for several hours just tackling these stupid hills. If I could get past the mental block of this section of the ride I think I would be happier and mentally in a better place.

2) Kim destroyed me on this ride. Kim has always been faster than me on the bike which is fine. Everyone has good and bad days and we are usually not too far away from each other. But today, it took her all of 5 minutes to leave me in the dust, over and over and over again. This is a huge issue for me because it makes me feel like I am slow, that I suck, that I am going to get passed by 1000 people at Ironman, and that I am out of shape and won't be ready. What I fail to get through my brain is that Kim has a year more long course experience than I do, she currently is not running due to a sprained ankle so is doing WAY more volume on the bike than I am (which makes her way fitter on the bike than me), and that everybody is different. I cannot let the green-eyed monster destroy my confidence. Plus, Kim has her own issues to deal with concerning her ankle and shouldn't have to deal with giving me 50 pep talks during a ride.

3) It was windy as shit. There is nothing I can do about this. I can't control the weather. What if it's windy in Coeur D'Alene? I should use training rides like this to my advantage. It's not always 65 and sunny at Ironman!

4) I'm slow as shit. It's April 2nd. It's been a long winter on the trainer. We rode for over an hour longer than we were supposed to due to the loop we did (5:10 instead of 4:00). My fitness will return. I need to get OVER it and just focus on what I need to do in order to get in shape. I'm slow now? I have 12 weeks. Suck it up Alexa!

Race tomorrow, stay tuned!

FINALLY!

2011-03-29T19:01:00.000-04:00

Posting 2 days in a row! That hasn't happened in a while! I had 2 SUPER great workouts this morning that I just had to talk about. I am working evenings this week so I don't get to bed until at least midnight, usually between 12:30 and 12:45 am. I don't like it but there's just absolutely no avoiding it since I don't make it home from work until right before midnight.

For some reason, I couldn't sleep last night. I was bad this weekend and stayed in bed far too late (think: sleeping in like in the college days) and I think it just really messed me up. I was tired, I took melatonin, it just didn't happen. So I slept in AGAIN this morning but finally had to force myself up because I had 2 hours of workouts to do before work. Normally on days like this, workouts sucks. I don't like morning workouts and I especially don't like morning workouts when I'm tired and it's cold out.

I pushed my grumpiness and desire to go back to bed aside, ate a bagel, and went to the gym for a swim. I had a warmup, 3x500, and a cooldown totaling 3000 yds. It felt great. I felt like I was swimming effortlessly which doesn't happen a lot for me. Usually I feel like I am really working in the water. It's a nice feeling to feel so natural! Also, even though the temperature was hovering right at freezing, it was really sunny out and the sun just made me feel so happy! I was actually excited to go for my hour run, blow off some stress, and listen to some sweet tunes!

I am soooo glad that my runs are getting kicked up a notch. I had those few months off and then it's been slow trying to get my shit back together, but now I am seeing 1 hour runs on Tuesday and Thursday with a shorter run on Wednesday, plus weekend runs. I think a higher frequency of running really helps me and works well with my body since my history = runner. It has been really difficult seeing my pace in the 9-10 min/mile range even for short 30 minute runs.

What makes me even happier is that my hour run this morning was at 8:46 pace! I know, no speed demon here, but it was definitely a good run! It is AWESOME that I felt sooo good at an hour run AND that I could hold a decent pace - that I wasn't forcing my body to try to recover and gain fitness faster than it was able to. Another tribute to Coach Mary here because she KNEW how frustrated I was and how much I was bitching about not running, asking teammates how much they were running, comparing myself to other athletes and she made me wait.

Things seem to be coming together! Kim and I are riding our bikes outside on Saturday come hell or high water (or snow, or hail, or sleet). And I am on strict instruction to up my long ride to 6 hours the minute it hits 50 degrees outside! I am getting a little anxious about this because....................

only 12.5 weeks until Ironman Coeur D'Alene!

As a special added bonus for my blog readers, here is a video that I finally shot of my apartment. I actually cleaned before I did this (except the counter - I did not clean that!). If you really want to see how dorky I am, just watch it and you will be enlightened..

I was born this way

2011-03-28T18:01:00.002-04:00

I actually have a topic for this blog post, which was sparked by a workout that Coach Mary had me do on Saturday. Instead of the typical late winter/early spring 3-4 hour trainer ride, I got to do (what I have affectionately dubbed) the "super brick." My particular workout was:

45 min bike/20 min run
45 min bike (tempo)/ 20 min run (tempo)
45 min bike (tempo)/20 min run (tempo)

total: 3:15

I hate tempo on the bike, but I love tempo on the run. Guess why? I am a runner! I can feel my heart rate zones on the run like nobody's business. I could tempo run with no watch, no Garmin, no HR monitor, blindfolded and naked and guarantee you I'd nail the pace.

I did not think I would like this workout (I like to get in and get out when it comes to long workouts and all of the clothing changes added probably 20 more minutes onto my time frame) because I tend to be kind of lazy. Surprisingly, I REALLY liked it. It was long enough to really feel like a workout, but the individual parts were short enough to keep my attention. I tend to have major ADD during long workouts (ESPECIALLY long bike rides) because I get bored, which leads to texting, facebooking, tweeting, and worst of all - talking on the phone all while on the bike. (Give me some credit, I normally will only talk on the phone during recovery rides, although I did make an exception on Saturday when my friend Rae, who just had run a marathon, called me to tell me about it and I was on the last leg of this bike ride).

Bricks to me are not a big deal, I like running off the bike, so I'm not really sure what the purpose of this workout was - honestly it seems to me that it would serve me better if I was concentrating on short course instead of Ironman, however this is why Mary is the coach and I am the athlete and not the other way around. I don't think this could be a replacement for a 6 hour ride because I never got the fatigue and aches that come with 6 hours on the bike.. I don't think ANYTHING can replace that feeling. I DO think it is a good "pick me up" for this time of year when I am ready to kill myself and throw my trainer out the window because at least I got to go outside for SOME of the workout! However, I am definitely ready to rock some long-ass (outdoor) bike rides because IMCDA is merely 2.5 months away!

So herein lies today's blog topic: how do we know if our bodies are predisposed for short course or long course triathlon, the 100 m dash or the marathon, the 5K or the 50K, the hurdles or the steeplechase?

For my entire life, I have struggled with short, all-out distances. Running at lactate threshold HURTS. After failing to do as well as I'd have liked at the 5K distance in cross country, after sucking at the mile in high school track, after choosing to do 1 mile repeats vs 400 repeats, and after taking 25 years to finally break 22 minutes in the 5K, I gave up and decided to concentrate on longer distances. Enter: the half marathon. A distance that was not too short, not too long, and that I liked! PR: 1:41. Then came the marathon: other than my quads blowing up at mile 16 it was ~~fun~~ oh wait, not fun at all. PR: 3:59. Hmm. Something does not add up.

So then I looked to my results from last season. Two races that were 2 weeks apart and were probably the best races I have ever had: Tinman and mini-Mussel. Tinman was a half-IM, my 2nd try at the distance, I PRed big time, but didn't even place in my AG. Mini-Mussel was a sprint distance race 2 weeks out from Placid after MONTHS of long, slow, endurance training, and I placed 5th OA female. So what does that say? I am better at sprints? There is just better competition at longer distance events? Who knows.

I can't honestly say that knowing the answer to this question would make a difference in what races I choose to do. If my body has more fast-twitch fibers am I going to give up Ironman? No. If my body has more slow-twitch fibers, am I going to give up sprint distance races? No. But it would be nice to know strengths and weaknesses. Where I can expect to excel and where I will have to work a little bit harder. Where I am going to see the biggest improvements because my body was made to perform its best at a particular distance, or heart rate, or level of stress.

I know you can find this stuff out by lab testing. I had my VO2 max tested in 2008. And although I can tell you what my VO2 max was back then, I don't really know what that means other than I can use it while reading Jack Daniel's book on running!

The mystery continues..

R.I.P.

2011-03-21T08:01:00.000-04:00

Goodbye, bless-ed rest week. You were known and loved by all (ok, maybe not all, but at least by me). You were so nice to me when I was tired from working nights. You let me regain some of my sanity and catch up on things that I needed to do (like laundry and going to my yearly doctor's appointment). You made it possible for me to go out on Friday night and sleep late (WAY TOO LATE) on Saturday ~~morning~~ afternoon.

But mostly, you let me demolish my 400 yd swim test time, YET AGAIN. I dropped 5 more seconds off my 400 yd time - bringing it down to 5:43.

You have to remember, I am not from a competitive swimming background. I am from a Red Cross swimming lessons/lifeguard training/WSI background and that is all of the swimming experience I have. So my 400 yd time reflects that. It's not *swim team fast*. But it's fast for me! Considering that at this time last year I was swimming 6+ minutes for a 400 yd TT I will definitely take the 5:43.

I did this swim test wearing my new goggles, the Aqua Sphere Lady Kaimans. I have been swimming in Ladies Speedo Vanquisher goggles since 2007 and although they seal properly (a problem I have normally because my head is small) they also feel like they are going to suck my eyeballs out of my eye sockets, and by the time I am done with an hour swim they are killing me. So I decided to try some new goggles. They are a little more low profile than my vanquishers (meaning I could feel my eyelashes hitting the plastic of the goggles) and I think they are dorkier looking, but they are WAY more comfy. AND they are sparkly! Maybe that will up my game at picking up dudes in the next swim lane over. Or not.

I did my swim test on Saturday because Thursday (the originally scheduled day) and Friday I was a) tired from C-shift and b) worried about trying to do a legit swim test while fighting my way through the weirdos that I normally end up sharing a lane with. Weirdos include: 400 lb man with buttcrack showing, various snorkelers, man who swims with paddles AND fins at the same time, man who swims the length of the pool along the very bottom and then rests for 10 minutes at each end, man who does butterfly right over my head, variety of large women wearing swimsuits with attached skirts "water walking," etc. These are all difficult people to circle swim with when you're going for as fast as possible. A Saturday swim test was a really good choice because the pool was essentially empty and I was definitely feeling refreshed after a mere 14 hours of sleep. (Once again, the benefits of a glorious rest week). I think I will repeating both (Saturday swim test and excessive sleep) the next time around!

photo was taken outside of a library..
and we annoyed a guy trying to use the book drop!

crazy horse! but I <3 her

Sunday morning I did a 45 minute run with some teammates and then we all met at a bagel shop to get team gear and take a team photo. It was definitely an invasion of Bruegger's Bagels by athletes in spandex! After the photo shoot I visited my horse (I tried to ride her but she is currently lame) and then spent the afternoon relaxing before nap time and then work time. I have a super crazy brick workout this Saturday and I haven't decided how I feel about it. It's a bike/run/bike/run/bike/run totaling 3:15. Yeah.

...ew.

But I bet it will be worth it when I'm killin' it in Coeur D'Alene! :)

photo circa 2006: I fell down.
Greg picked me up. obviously, drunk at the bar.

Something that is totally unrelated but that I am really excited about - over the weekend one of my BEST FRIENDS from college - Greg, a fellow bio geek at Slippery Rock U., got engaged to his boyfriend Josh!! I am so happy for them! Greg and I were lab partners (or at least at the same lab table) countless times, sat next to each other in tons of classes, ~~wasted time~~ studied at the library together, screwed around in open labs, went to the bar to celebrate birthdays, end of the semester, etc. Now he lives in Washington DC so I don't get to see him anymore but facebook keeps us in contact! :) Congratulations Greg!!!!

I am on Twitter!

2011-03-16T05:41:00.000-04:00

News of the day. I am now on Twitter. (Actually, I have been on twitter since 2008 but have not "tweeted" since 2009. Until now). Damn you Mary Eggers.

Soooooooooooo crazy blog friends.. follow me on Twitter at AlexaSwims!!! I resurrected my Twitter account for blog-related purposes! BTW, thank god Twitter allowed me to change my username from what it originally was - which will remain a secret. Did anyone used to use AIM when they were in high school/college? I definitely did. (I feel like I must state, for the record, that I no longer use AIM or any kind of chat client except for the built in chats on gmail and facebook on occasion. I think there should be an age limit to using AIM and having a "buddy list.") Anyways, my old AIM username was what I used for my Twitter handle which is really embarrassing since I have had that username since I was 17. TEN YEARS. Actually that is my username on slowtwitch as well. Super embarrassing.

Alright, that's enough self-promotion for now.

I am resting it up during my rest week which also happens to fall on a week of overnights. (Is that good timing or what??). I am looking forward to actually having some time to myself this weekend. I believe I have a swim test on Thursday so that should be interesting, given that I swim at a new, much busier pool than I used to swim at. It's going to be challenging trying to do a swim test while sharing a lane with someone who does butterfly right down the middle of the lane heading straight towards me. Seriously. This guy butterflied right over my head. Or trying to circle swim with 3 other people that are swimming half my speed. I have yet to figure out the optimum time (AKA quietest time) to go to this pool in order to do a swim test!

I have obtained some new triathlon toys in the last week or so (new goggles, new fins, and a pair of Zoot compression recovery tights) that I will test out and review. I purchased all of these myself (well the tights are a very belated Christmas gift) but I always think it's fun to test out new equipment and give my personal opinion, so look for that soon!

busiest. weekend. ever.

2011-03-14T08:06:00.000-04:00

I'll say it again. Busiest. weekend. ever.

Saturday

typical unflattering race photo

Johnny's Runnin' O the Green was at 10:30 on Saturday morning so I got to sleep in until 8 am! Woohoo! I made it downtown with a few pitstops (forgot my bib # and had to go back to my apartment to grab it), nabbed a sweet parking spot on the street, and gathered with the rest of the Train-This race crew. The temperature was in the mid 30s so I decided to race in Lulu shorts, a pink short sleeved shirt (which really stuck out considering 90% of the race field was wearing green), black armwarmers, gloves, a regular running hat, and my Garmin/HR monitor - everything else got taken back to my car. I ran a short warmup with Mary and company and then lined up - AKA was packed like a sausage into a crowd of 1000+ where absolutely no one understands that runners go to the front and walkers go to the back.

Not much to say about the race. I think I went out a little hard but running has been challenging lately because I was off for 3 months and I am still trying to get my run back to where it should be.. so I attempted to race at where I know I am capable of running and then couldn't quite do it because I'm not that fit right now. So I went out too hard and then just slowly died (except for the last mile) and the race ended up hurting pretty bad.

My chip time was 37:07 with a pace of 7:25 min/mile. This is WAY suckier than last year where I had a chip time of 36:11. Seriously? A minute slower??? WTF. I am annoyed.

Then I had to do a 5 mile run which was absolutely torture for my legs. I ran with Karin and Chris and thank god they were there to talk to because otherwise I don't think I would have lasted for the entire thing.

After the race I scooted home, changed, and then headed down to ~~Middle-of-nowhere~~ Middlesex, NY to help my friend/teammate Solveig move out of her house and into an apartment. Other than being 30 minutes late, it went smoothly and we managed to move a whole bunch of boxes using both of our cars. I got home from that adventure at 7 pm and forced myself to get on my bike for a 1 hour recovery ride. And seriously, I was looking for ANY reason to bail from this ride - my legs were KILLING me, I was exhausted and starving. I called Kim and left her a voicemail saying "I called you to see if you thought I should bail on my ride but since you're busy doing fun things unlike me, I am leaving you this message." And since Kim was unable to give me permission to skip it, I did it! It felt good on my legs so it was definitely the right decision.

Sunday
I said f-you to the lost hour of sleep and rode 3.5 hours with Kim which was not my best ride ever. I was super grumpy all day because this week I am on overnights and that just destroys my Sundays and any positive attitude that I might have had. After riding I forced myself to run for 30 minutes even though my legs were still wrecked. I was finally done with my workouts at 3 pm which gave me a few hours hang out with my cat before trying (and failing) to nap before work.

craptastic weather is ruining my life but everything else is awesome

2011-03-10T13:41:00.000-05:00

Rochester weather has been a suckfest for the last week. It's either raining and sleeting while the temperature hovers around 40 degrees or it snows all day. Neither of these are great for outdoor running so I have hit the treadmill for the last 4 out of 5 runs. This may not seem like a big deal, I mean it is winter and I do live in western NY, however I am not a treadmill runner. This is the most I have run on the treadmill ALL WINTER. I am not a fair weather runner. I run outside, year round, through wind, hail, blizzards, and icy sidewalks. However, doing this resulted in 2 sprained ankles this season so I'm trying to watch it for the remainder of "winter."

Hence, I have been moving my runs inside when the footing is too dangerous (snow and ice) or when it is too cold and rainy out (40 degrees and rainy is not enjoyable no matter what kind of running clothes you have on). I have the race on Saturday and 5 miles to add on after the race and that is getting done outside regardless of the weather - it's supposed to rain - hopefully it will hold off!

Unfortunately, running on the treadmill seems to be aggravating my hamstring which, up until now, wasn't bothering me at all. So I have busted out my foam roller again and we've been spending some time together.

Screw you winter!!!! It's MARCH. GO AWAY.

Anyways...

For those of you who asked about the t-shirt quilt that I am aiming to have made in the fall, I think I am going to go with this place: http://www.campusquilt.com/. The pricing is pretty typical but they have a turnover time of 2-3 weeks which is great and they do the style of quilt that I want. They also can make quilts in several sizes so you don't have to have 40 shirts in order to get a quilt made. You can design the layout of the shirts if you want or you can entrust it to them, and they offer choices in colors for the back of the quilt and for the color in between the shirt blocks which is exactly what I am looking for. I'm pretty psyched to get the rest of my shirts! (Am I a dork or what??).

I am STILL getting around to completing the unpacking/cleaning process of my new apartment (yes I have been living there for at least 3 weeks and it still isn't totally unpacked) but when I am done I promise an episode of "CRIBS" like the hilarious one my friend Matt did with his apartment (it's worth watching just for the shot of his closet full of shoes!).

I think I am super close to selling my old road bike. I have two people that are really interested in it - one is a woman who is coming to look at it on Monday, and another is a man who wants it for his son if the first person doesn't want it. So I could potentially have it sold sometime next week! That will be some extra storage space for me and some more money for my husband, Mr. Ironman.

And last but not least, some excitement on the Train-This front:

we are getting some really awesome Headsweats visors showcasing our new-and-improved logo (which you can see in the top right corner of my blog) - SUPER EXCITED about this
we are getting Train-This water bottles from super awesome coach Mary!
TONS of us are doing Johnny's Runnin' of the Green and then are pub crawling (Mary's term for running the course again post-race)
we are doing a team breakfast/picture/meeting next weekend
we are just plain *awesome*