Training Weekend with Beth

Ok, so I am a bit slow on the blogging front these days! Beth wrote a great recap up of our training weekend here, but I wanted to share some of my own lessons I learned from training with someone far more experienced than me.

So two weekends ago, I was absolutely overjoyed to have Beth come train with me. Oscar may have given Beth a tough time for inviting herself down to ride Skyline, but I was thrilled to show her one of my favorite riding places. And I was even more excited when she came down Friday evening to do a 6 hour brick with me Saturday. The only way this weekend could have been more perfect is if Libby was here to join us!

Kona 2011 - Lava Java with Beth and Libby

I woke up extra early Saturday, so I had lunch pre-made before we headed out right around 7a for the 95 mile route I had planned. I do this route almost every weekend and like usual, we had very little traffic, which allowed us to ride side by side for almost the entire way and talk. Because Beth now races pro, I definitely picked her brain a bit on why she made that decision, what it was like to race pro, etc. I may or may not want to race pro someday. . . :)

Riding by one of many orchards

I was a little worried what Beth would think when I got my miniature Reeses Cup at the 7-11 stop, but much to my surprise, Beth got a Snickers and a Coke.  It was a perfect ride since we are fairly evenly matched (besides the ever present headwind), so the nearly five hours flew by. I had a one hour run scheduled after the ride and in typical fashion, I started running much too fast, but Beth helped me manage the pace and before I knew it, the hour was done and I didn't walk at all. 

Afterwards we took Beth out to Marker Miller Orchard so we could all get some fresh apples and samples of apple cider donuts.  I tested out her recovery boots that evening and can attest that they do wonders. I was a bit worried how I would feel Sunday, but I woke up feeling fresh and couldn't tell I had done a six hour brick the day before.

Skyline Drive

Sunday was an equally awesome ride. We headed down to Front Royal to ride Skyline Drive. I ride Skyline quite often, but hadn't gone up to mile 32 on my TT bike since August of 2011. I was beyond excited to realize Sunday evening that our time on Sunday was 34 minutes faster than what I did last year.  YES. Progress is definitely a good feeling and the confidence and lessons I got from training with Beth will definitely stay with me, and hopefully, we'll train together again.

hmmm, I should learn to put my helmet on properly

Beth and I come from different backgrounds; I grew up swimming and she grew up running, so I think for both of us it was good to get some tips on each of our respective sport. It was very enlightening to realize that even for a true runner, you still don't feel great running off the bike. I've always enviously watched runner after runner pass me, especially in Ironmans, and it's easy to get very discouraged. This past year I learned my running form as a big limiter, but after some conversations with Beth and Chris, I think part of it is I need to be as mentally tough running as I am swimming and biking.

So this past weekend when I went out for my hour run after a 75 mile ride, instead of being nancy negative, I told myself to focus and I'd start feeling better. Not surprisingly, I did and had one of my best ever runs off the bike. This doesn't necessarily mean I'll run any better off the bike at Kona this year, but I at least finally have some confidence that I can do it.  23 days to go and I'm dreaming of this!

2011 Finish

Fun Things

I typically experience a post Ironman let down. You feel incredible when you're crossing the finish line, only to hardly be able to stand let alone walk 20 seconds later :)  It's still hard to walk for the next few days, you have cankles and people tire quickly of hearing about your race. This year was different, I had a few awesome surprises in store for me!

I had the top female amateur swim time at Ironman Lake Placid (for finishers), so I won the TYR swim prize. When I first spoke to the TYR rep, he said I was getting a set of the Convoy Luggage bags (I assumed the two suitcases) and a sleeveless wetsuit. While super appreciative, I didn't have a wetsuit so I was thrilled when they agreed to let me upgrade the Category 5 Wetsuit to the sleeved version and pay the difference. 

TYR Hurricane Wetsuit & T-Shirts

What I didn't realize until I ordered was I got the FULL SET of convoy bags including the transition and rucksack bags.  Since I didn't have a transition bag either, this is AWESOME.  Thank you TYR. I will now be going to Kona in style and have plenty of room to pack all my stuff.

TYR Convoy Set

While my shelf was already overflowing with Powerbar products, I really needed some Protein bars, Ironman Perform and Energy Blasts, so I got on the Powerbar Team Elite site and ordered a few things (I like the feeling of Christmas I get every time I receive a package from Powerbar). I've used the Energy Blasts on four long rides and I absolutely love them. The Cola Blasts are like having a mid-ride cola without actually stopping for one and gummy bears have always been my favorite candy, so it's a WIN WIN.  I will be well fueled for my next few weeks (and then some) of training.. . I've told myself I won't order anything unless I'm out of something I plan on using for Kona. Let's see how long that lasts.

Thank you Powerbar

And the biggest news is I got a new job with an OFFICE! I've worked for Valley Health Systems for the past two years as a Senior Financial Analyst for the physician management group. Right before I left for Placid, the Corporate Accountant position for Valley Health came open, so I nervously applied and hoped for the best.  Lucky for me, they told me soon after my interview that the job was mine. My effective transfer date is September 4th. Until then, I'm doing dual roles, but I got to move into my new office. No, I swear, I'm not Ironman obsessed.  I didn't hang all six posters, just three :)

My Office

And since I typically post mostly triathlon training babble, Kona is SIX weeks away - YAHOO! Ironman Canada Ironman Louisville were this past weekend, and I'm the most pumped today I've been all year to race. I've had some incredible long runs (for me), hit a power number I've never hit on a long ride two weekends ago and have managed to get in some good swims between all the thunderstorms. All in all, I'm getting excited for round three of Kona and am hoping this is the year I will RUN the marathon.

 

Ironman Lake Placid Nutrition Report

For those of you not interested in the amount of Powerbar bars, gel and Ironman Perform I consumed at Ironman Lake Placid, ignore this post.  BUT, I've received many emails asking for nutrition advice for triathlons, so for those of you just starting out or doing your 20th Ironman, I'm hoping you might find some insight in what I did. REMEMBER, you should always test out your nutrition plan before race day AND the food you eat the few days leading up to the race is almost as important as what you eat race day :)!!! 

Breakfast (done by 4am)

I have a standard pre-race and pre-long workout breakfast of a gluten free bagel with peanut butter and a banana. It's one of my favorite combinations that I don't otherwise eat, so I rarely have trouble getting this down in the wee hours before a race.  IMLP was an exception and I had to force it down.  I am incoherent until I've drank at least 1 cup of coffee, so 2 cups is a must before a race.

I always sip on either a bottle of Nuun or an Ironman Perform during the morning hours.  No, it's not a huge amount of calories (500ish), but it works for me and gets me some extra sodium.

Pre-Swim

One Powerbar Raspberry Cream gel (Yum - new flavor for me!) & a salt pill

Getting ready for 140.6 miles of fun!

Swim

Lots of mouth fulls of Mirror Lake.  Awesome.

Mirror Lake before the race - how peaceful :)

Bike

I struggle with cramps, so I took five Succeed caps during the bike (one / hour).  This worked perfectly and I didn't have a cramping issue at all for once :)  It's hot and humid in Winchester, so I've tested this out training session after training session.

Beautiful scenery

I eat half a Powerbar (peanut butter is my fav') every 30 minutes for the first half of any ride, then switch to gel so my stomach has time to settle.  At IMLP, that meant I took in seven gels.  I planned on taking an eighth gel, but I was already getting tired of it, so I drank approximately one bottle of Ironman Perform. I had two gels with caffeine; I'd like to learn to take more, but it tends to upset my stomach if I take too much.

Heading back to the school, done with the bike

Total Bike Calorie Count:  Bars (600) + Gel (770) + Ironman Perform (180) = 1550 (281/hour). That works out to be approximately half of the kj I burned during the bike portion of the race.

Run

I had my first gel 10 minutes in and planned on taking another six gels every 30 minutes or so. Unfortunately I was tired of gel and only got down one more before I was done with gel.  I tend to do well with Ironman Perform on the run and 220 calories was not going to get me to the finish line, so I took cups of Ironman Perform at almost all of the aid stations and started taking coke at mile 21. 

Both Feet off the ground :) - the finish!

Total Run Calorie Count:  Gel (220) + Ironman Perform (10ish cups @ 40 cals) + Coke (1 cup @40 cals) = 660 Calories (165ish/hour)

Post Race

I've found a glass of Sprite after a race tends to calm the nausea and then I had many scoopfuls of Ironman Restore once we got back to the room.  We headed back down to the VIP tent after I showered, and I had two pork chops and two plates of race, then followed that up with some delicious Ben and Jerry's Greek Frozen Yogurt.  Apparently I was hungry :)

While Chris and I were at Ben and Jerry's, my Dad called.  They had told the hotel manager I was the top amateur female, so he gave them a bottle of champagne for us to share. Very fun and a perfect way to end the evening. 

I typically eat a lot of fried crap after the race, then feel awful the next day.  This time around, I really focused on getting some nutrient dense food and I feel ten times better than I expected one week post Ironman.

I did have an Apple Cider donut though :)

Post-Race Nutrition Thoughts

Do not drink the Pacific Ocean at Kona.  Of course that will be dependent on how many times I get punched, kicked, dunked, etc. 

I am hoping to use Energy Blasts on the bike at Kona so I am not tired of Powerbar gel by the time I get to the run. I tested these out while I was working the Powerbar booth, and they were awesome. I also plan on incorporating more variety into my gels, which should help as well.

Powerbar booth with Caitlin Snow :)  Tim was also there - both of these pros are awesome!

Please email me if you have any questions.  I don't pretend to be an expert, but I can definitely provide you with insight of how my nutrition strategy has evolved over the years and how much better I feel during and post training sessions because of it. I don't remember where I read the statement, but for those of you starting this journey and frustrated with how you look, 'Get Fit, Get Fast, Thin will come,' really is true. . .

Ironman Lake Placid 2012 - 1st Amateur Female

Ironman Louisville 2009 - YIKES - 16th AG

Ironman Lake Placid Race Report

Most people assumed Ironman Lake Placid was going to be a "fun" Ironman since I had qualified for Kona last month at Eagleman. However, qualifying for Kona was never my goal for Ironman Lake Placid. When I outlined my goals for the year for my coach late last year, I told her I wanted to be the top amateur at Lake Placid. Even though it sounded a bit ridiculous to me, I also thought it *might* be realistic given my results from last year. So needless to say, I was a bit of a nervous wreck all week. In fact, I think of the six Ironmans I've done, the only one I was more nervous for was my first Kona. My poor parents and Chris who put up with me.  Yikes.

Pre-Race

Swim - 54:18

I think mass starts are awful. While some find it magical for thousands of people to start their Ironman journey with the boom of a single cannon, I prefer the time trial start of Ironman Louisville. Ironman Lake Placid is a very narrow course, so the start line was jam packed with everyone vying for the magical buoy line. I lined up right on it though, behind a larger male, so he could clear the water for me.

Swim Start

From the first few strokes, I was getting punched, kicked, dunked, etc.  I've taken my fair share of blows over the years; however, this was the most violent swim experience of my entire life. I considered quitting, but decided that was ridiculous and continued swimming. After the first turnaround bouy, it thinned out and I hopped on some feet on the way back for lap one. 

Mike Riley announced after lap one I was the first amateur and my split was faster than either of my half splits this year, so I knew I was in for a fast swim.  Although I felt disorientated, I lunged forward for lap two and kept swimming strong and riding the feet in front of me. I could feel the current for lap two and before I knew it, we were rounding the turnaround buoy for home. I pushed as much as I could that last lap to stay on the guy's feet in front of me and was very happy when I reached shore.

T1 - 4:40

This transition is worth mentioning since I was a bit of a klutz. I stopped at a late wetsuit stripper to get my suit stripped and started running up the 400 yds of carpet to the transition. I remember thinking that I was afraid I was going to fall and unfortunately I did somehow slip a little later.  I had a nice male stop and help me up and I kept running for transition and did my best to forget it. Since I was one of the first females in transition, I had four volunteers all to myself and was out quick.

Bike - 5:33.52

Coming out of transition, I could tell my bike legs were feeling good. My cadence was high, my heart rate was good and my power was right where it should be. I left town smiling reminding myself to be patient with the climb. I really like to climb so I enjoyed this first part out of town. I passed a few males, which always makes me smile, and before I knew it, I was at the descent I feared.  Except it wasn't bad at all. I pretended the males in front of me were Chris and I was chasing him down Skyline. I was aggressive and made it down much faster than I had in any of my other times I had rode the course (top speed of 44mph for those considering this race). I hit mile 30 five minutes before I expected to and could tell I was setting myself up for a great ride.

Then I started noticing some weird back tightness. I sometimes have pain in my sciatic when I ride, but this was different. It was like my whole low back was spasming and it was running up my spine. I tried to stretch / ignore it, but it wouldn't go away. I thought maybe it would feel better once I got to sit up during some of the climbs from Jay to Wilimington. Nope. Well, I don't believe it quitting things so I kept riding and prayed it would loosen out or I wouldn't notice it when I hit the run.

Unlike most, I was happy to hit the climb from Wilmington to Placid. I like steady climbs and enjoyed passing males the entire way back to town. Didn't think much of the three bears on lap one (thank you Skyline Drive) and enjoyed all the cheers I was getting. The highlight was definitely rounding around the school for lap one and seeing my parents and Chris going wild as Mike Reilly was announcing I was the first amateur female.  SWEET.

End of Lap One

I still felt strong for much of lap two. I didn't hit my normal ironman low around the four hour mark. I think partly because I took in more nutrition, but also because I've done a lot of long rides this year. The back tightness kept getting worse, so I sat up to stretch more than I would like the last 30 miles and by the end, I couldn't push the power I wanted.  Uh oh, was my day going to end after the bike?  I really had no idea what I would find when I would hit the run, but I knew I had a huge lead on the rest of the amateur pack and was not ready to give up.

T2 - 2:33

I walked for much of T2 in hopes that my back would loosen. It was awesome to see a friend's sister, and once again, I was treated like a queen in the tent since I was the only person there.

Run - 3:56.44

I ran out of transition and my legs felt fresh.  Like really fresh. This never happens. But my back hurt and as soon as I hit the first hill, I knew I was in trouble. There was no way I could run up. So I stopped and tried to touch my toes. I could barely bend over. Crap. I walked a bit, tried to stretch, but nothing was helping. Did my best to start running again, but things were not going well. I made the turn down River Road and was wondering what I should do. I didn't want to injure myself and hurt my chances to do well at Kona, but I also didn't want to give up my shot to be first. I had worked so hard all year for this and had already endured a lot of pain.

Luckily, a nice camera man started cheering for me and got me running. My stride was off, but I was able to run and run fairly strong.  I made it to the turnaround at mile six and could see how I was doing in the amateur race for the first time all day.  When I realized how far ahead I was, I told myself I had 18 miles of pain to go. I thought about anything I could to distract me.

Ready for Lap Two - Heel striking galore!

Once you get off River Road, things pick up.  You see lots of people.  Tim Snow was awesome and cheered for me all day long. My mom, Chris and my dad stationed themselves on different parts of the run hills to keep me running / walking fast.

I hit the turaround feeling pretty good. I knew as long as I kept the paces under 10, I'd stay in first and made that my mission for lap two.  Things felt pretty good until around mile 18 and then the fatigue hit quick. I focused on one mile at a time and did my best to break things up. When I made the final turn off River Road, I knew I would have to walk up pretty much all of the hills. My left achilles was now also acting up.

Miles 21-24 were a bit of a death march. I did my best to shuffle, walk, etc, but once I hit 24, I knew I was almost there. I took my last water at 24 and clenched that cup in my right hand for the rest of the race. Chris ran on the side of the road from me for much of mile 25 and even though I wanted to kill him at the time for yelling at me to run, I kept running.

And suddenly, I was back at the Olympic Speed skating oval. I ran through the gate for finishers and started running around the track. Finally I saw the clock, I heard Mike Reilley yelling; the crowd was screaming, and I was D.O.N.E. in 10:32.05.

Finish Line

I crossed and almost immediately collapsed. The amazing volunteers held me up and walked me over kindly to a chair where my parents joined me. I was overwhelmed after I finished with the attention I received and I still slighly am, but I cannot thank enough those reading this who have reached out and congratulated me. It means the world to me.

Ironman is truly a journey. Race day is the climax of months and months of sacrifice and hard work. It's a very selfish endeavor.  So to my family and Chris who have been there for the good and bad, thank you. My awesome coach from Carmichael Trainig Systems, Lindsay Hyman, I can't thank you enough for helping me achieve what I thought were very unrealistic dreams. To Powerbar, Cyclelops, and Swim H20 Audio, thanks for your support.

Women's 25-29 Podium

TYR Swim Prime! Thanks Haley for not doing the race :)

Eagleman 70.3 RR = Aloha!

**I'll post pictures once they're posted**

After doing Kinetic last month and then a solid four day training block in Lake Placid, I knew my fitness level was higher than it was in previous years for Eagleman, but I still wasn't overly confident that I had a chance at qualifying for Kona at Eaglmean. As "luck" would have it, I discovered at 6pm on Saturday evening that I had left my wonderful Soas shorts at home and we made a mad dash back to the race site (40 minutes away) that evening before the expo closed at 7 pm for a new tri kit for me. I was so sad not to wear my pretty Soas kit, but the whole saga had me so stressed out, that all my race nerves were gone and the Newton kit I got did match my pretty pink Newtons. Chris and I were able to go to bed relatively early that evening and the 3:45 am wakeup call wasn't too awful.

Race morning was luckily fairly uneventful and before I knew it, I was helping Chris get into his wetsuit so he could head over to warm-up and start. I started 30 minutes after him (wave 13), so I dawdled a bit longer before putting on Lindsay's awesome Aquasphere suit. I got in the water a bit and played - temperature felt fantastic and I knew it was the only time I would be cool ALL DAY LONG. I did my best to stay calm and focused on thinking about my family and friends.

Swim (26.46)

For once, I lined up on the front line and was one of the few people that lined up in front of the buoys. The current was fairly weak and I had no issues swimming straight. Within the first few strokes, I lost everyone around me and could tell that I was going to make it to the first buoy right when two other competitors did from the far right. Once I got to the buoy, I assumed I got on the shoulder of Megan Martin and enjoyed the ride for the majority of the swim. I hardly had to sight, my shoulders didn't hurt and for the first time EVER, I did not stop ONCE during an open water swim. SCORE. My tow tried to swim away from me about 200 yds from shore, but I thought for certain it was Megan Martin (Knepper at the time) who beat me my entire childhood in swimming, so I would not let her go. I found out after the race that Megan Martin did not show, but it definitely kept me motivated. I swam hard until my hand hit the sand and ran for the shore.
TI

I was overly confident that it was not going to be wetsuit legal, so I didn't bother to practice unclasping my wetsuit. D'oh. Had to get a volunteer to help that maybe added 20 seconds, but of course that seems like an eternity when you are watching other swimmers from your wave fly by. Did my best to be quick once I got to my bike, but made sure to spray on sunblock and pull on the arm coolers.

Bike (2:32.47)

Out from the dismout line, I spotted a few people from my wave up ahead. I passed them all within the first mile. At the point, I was leading my AG and just focused on hitting my power range. I was pleased to have no cramps, but I took a salt pill and waited a little bit to start my fueling plan since I had smartly drank some river water. My head started hurting 30 minutes in and I got the chills, so most of the bike was spent passing people (remember, started in wave 13), drinking and pouring water all over me. I was having a hard time focusing on the race and since my heart rate and power was right in range, I sang songs and started thinking about my family. I got a good laugh at the number of people that told me they liked my Netwon kit. Around 2 hours in I was getting tired of the headwinds and pretty frustrated since I realized my time would be slower than last year even though I was riding the same power, but I focused on making sure I was hydrated, cool and ready to run.

T2

I really tried last week to learn how to do a flying dismount, but I had no luck, so I stuck to my normal dismounting the bike and running in my tri shoes. Oddly enough, I passed three men all running barefoot from the dismount line to my rack. Racked, changed shoes and grabbed my fuel belt and started running for the exit.

Run (1:41.52)

As I was leaving transition, I kept reminding myself that Lindsay told me to settle in and my legs would come back, but the thing was, my legs felt great. I kept thinking my calves would start cramping before the end of the first mile, but my first mile was a 7:25 and I was passing people right and left. (umm, what?) The first few aid stations were super congested, so I never grabbed anything until roughly mile 3 or 4. By that point, I was overheating and I was very happy to put some ice down my sports bra. I kept running wondering when I would see Chris and when I did around mile 5, he screamed a few things and I think I just stared. . just slighly disorienated and wishing to be done :) I saw Steve Breeden soon after and probably once again gave a disorienated stare. It did pump me up for a bit to see them both and kept me running strong until the turnaround. I realized then my pace was still under 7:50 and I thought if I held onto this, I may get my Kona slot. I was really overheating at this point and starting to get the chills, but I so badly wanted to qualify for Kona that I kept pushing and trying to keep the miles under 8. I planned at first to pick up at mile 10, then at 10 I was feeling pretty rough, so it was pushed back to mile 11. At mile 11, I thought I was going to hurl, and was starting to get really worried I would pass out before the finish, so I made sure to grab Pepsi (where was the COKE?!!) and a cup of the Gatorade at the last aid station. I passed one guy and said "only 8 minutes of torture to go" and started running as hard as I could towards the finish line. I turned around quite a few times during these last few minutes expecting to see someone, but luckily I never did. I've ran scared in almost every triathlon I've done, so it was surreal to be the one passing people and running strong.

I crossed the finish line completely done. I had two volunteers helping me - one put three colds towels on me, got some water, and the other helped me over to sit down. Not sure why they didn't take me to medical; so instead, I sat down and waited for Chris. I tried to get up and go look for him, but I made it five seats before I sat down again and waited for him to find me.

We found out about 20 minutes later that I was 1st in my AG and 4th amateur. While many people thought this would happen and I dreamed it would, I almost started to cry I was so happy and surprised. I may do the workouts and get up at ungodly hours every morning, but I wouldn't be able to do this without the support of my family and friends.

So, thank you to my family and friends who listen to me babble on about triathlons, support me, get me balloons and bring me congratulations donuts :) Thank you to CTS's Lindsay Hyman for coaching me, loaning me her awesome Aquasphere wetsuit and always being there when I have a ridiculous question. Thank you to Powerbar for the fueling products, Cyclelops for keeping me dialed in on the bike and Swim H20 audio for making swimming fun again.

Lake Placid

Ironman Louisville was Ironman #1, 2 and 4 (Kona is 3,5). I love the Derby city and everything about that race; even the ridiculous heat that is almost a given, but I knew I needed to do a different Ironman if I wanted to do well at Kona (provided I qualify). There is only a few Ironmans on the East Coast, so my decision was pretty easy when I realized New York did not capitalize on my strengths, and would be ridiculously expensive. So I signed up for Lake Placid. 

I've been nervous about my decision for months. While I'd love to qualify for Kona at Eagleman, I am realistic enough to know I'm more of a plodder and so, Chris and I planned a vacation up to Lake Placid this past weekend to preview the course. I worked a half-day on Thursday and then we made the 10 hour trek up to upstate New York. I haven't been to upstate New York since I was 12 and Chris had never been, so we both enjoyed the scenery on the way up.

We were smart enough to sleep in a bit on Friday morning, eat a hearty buffet breakfast at the hotel, then head out for a tour of the bike course. Unfortunately we did not have a good grasp of the bike course and neither of our Garmins were cooperating with the bread crumb trails, so the 56 mile loop became 66 miles and I think we were both pretty frustrated.

Looking fast in my CTS kit

Chris headed into the hotel for a shower and then was sweet enough to follow me around on the second loop. The second loop went a bit better than the first for me after I realized my back wheel needed tightened, but I definitely have some work on Skyline to do to get more comfortable with descents. The roads are in pretty horrible shape, so I'm praying some patching is done before the race, but the Three Bears are really nothing to write home about. Sure they're annoying to climb at the end of each loop, but they weren't what I was envisioning at all (thank goodness!).  I rolled back to the hotel with a solid 110 miles done for the day and wasn't thrilled with my speed, but I saw the course and knew what I wanted to work on for Sunday and Monday's ride.

Pretty views

Saturday was a fun day.  We ran long Saturday morning on the run course, but spent the afternoon touring some of the Olympic facilities after refueling at Lake Placid brewery.

Pre run

River Road

After much procrastination, we finally went to swim for an hour late Saturday afternoon.  To be honest, I didn't want to swim, I wanted to play in the lake!! I was SO SO tired and burnt out of swimming for so long, but over the last year I've really started to love the water again. I eventually did the two loop course and was very pleased with how comfortable I felt in Lindsay's Aquasphere wetsuit. I don't really understand how people use the rope at the bottom to sight. I guess my body position is too high because as soon as I started looking at the bottom, I felt like my butt was out of the water!  Guess I won't worry about being on the brawl line come race day :) We ate at the hotel bar that night and headed back to the room fairly early so we could be up early for Sunday since the workout on tap was a 3 hour ride / 1 hour run.

Mirror Lake

Sunday's grueling four hour brick turned out to be a major confidence booster for me.  I was much happier with how I rode (well, except for my pathetic descending skills where Chris left me in the dust) and ran sub 8s effortlessly for an hour off the bike.  We ran down River Road (part of the course), which has great views of the ski jumps on the way back. That will definitely be a great distraction come race day!

Afterwards we headed out to High Forks Gorge. They have a .5 mile walking loop of waterfalls that were absolutely incredible. 

I was a little leery of the heights starting out and did not want to stand on the plexi glass, but eventually Chris got me out on the glass.  We headed back to the welcome center via a nature trail.  Fun to do, but maybe I should start packing more appropriate footwear than sandals ;)  We stopped off at a lake on the way back to sit in Adirondack chairs and enjoy the views.  Perfect way to spend the day. My only regret was not having a glass of Chardonnay.

That evening we headed back in town to eat at The Dancing Bears. We were lucky enough to have a lakeside view and had a great meal that was topped off by frozen Greek yogurt by Ben and Jerry's (awesome by the way if you haven't had this!).  It was getting chilly and we had to pack, so we headed back to the room early.

Monday we set out for two final workouts - a 2 hour ride and a 30 minute transition run. I discovered on the descents that I don't properly hold my top tubes with my knees, so once I engaged my glutes, I was amazed how much less my bike wobbled. Chris started feeling fresh about 5 miles outside of town on the bike and  I was pretty confident he was trying to drop me, so I sucked it up and hung on for dear life. I was very relieved when we got back into town and the pace dropped down a bit.  The run off the bike was pretty typical for me (I may or may not had Madonna on repeat on my shuffle), then we finished packing and started off home for a very LONG trip home.

Fantastic weekend of training and fun! 

First Race Done and Dusted - Kinetic Half

Chris and I headed down to Lake Anna this past weekend for the Kinetic Half Ironman.  I might (ok was) rather nervous on Friday and tried to keep it quiet that I was racing.  I had the typical first race jitters of worrying how my training was going and if all the 4:50 wake ups were really worth it.  Luckily I was so nervous on Friday that I was fairly calm on race morning.

Checkin' out the race site the night before

Race morning began at 4 am.  Not that much earlier than my normal wake up, but I went to bed WAY TOO late for a 4 am wake up. Oh well, ate my quinoa and banana, drank some coffee and before I knew it, we were on the way.  Unfortunately neither of our bikes were ready, so Chris and I were both rushed to the max to make it to the start on time and were honestly quite lucky the race started 15 minutes late for fog.

Swim – 1.2 miles – 26:37

I prepared myself for the worst after Kona’s black eye, but luckily the swim start was uneventful and within the first 25 meters, I was battling it out with one other female.  I didn’t feel like pushing the pace to get in front of her, so I just settled in behind her and thought I would let her pull me until we got to the first turnaround buoy. That lasted for about 20 strokes and then I realized the pace was a bit slow and she was swimming a bit wide of the buoys. 

I'm guessing I'm the second arm in the front- I really should learn to bend my elbows

I had no intentions of swimming long, so I picked up the pace and pulled around her.  Positioned myself to swim right on the buoy line and before I knew it, I hit the first turn around buoy (course was a triangle).  I couldn’t really see where to go next, but thanks to the two waves in front of me, I just followed and spotted the next set of buoys pretty soon after.  I started swimming through the wave ahead of me at this point and did my best not to dunk/swim over anyone.  My arms started getting tired from wearing a wetsuit although I was a huge fan of the Aquasphere one I borrowed from Lindsay, but the pace felt comfortable so my swim fitness is definitely good. I got to the last turnaround buoy before I knew it and was heading for shore.  I started seeing quite a few red caps, which meant I was catching the wave two in front of me J  They didn’t have a good swim finish chute, so I was a bit confused where to go, but only wasted about 10 seconds stopping to figure it out and made a bee line for the shore.  Was excited to hear that I was the first amateur out, but that excitement was short lived when I realized I had no clue how to undo the clasp on Lindsay’s wetsuit (thanks again coach!).  Oops.

Bike –56 miles -  2:32:17

I mounted my bike and almost immediately realized I was having the same issue as I had at Ironman Louisville last year, cramps.  UGH, I thought I had addressed this.  The first thirty minutes were some of the worst I’ve had in a long time on the bike.  I was thinking very negative thoughts, got passed on the bike by the 2^nd female and could not get into any sort of rhythm thanks to some very obnoxious males that would not let me or the 2^nd place female race.  I proceeded to drop my chain and lose the cluster, but that turned out to be a huge blessing in disguise because I was finally able to get into my own rhythm and just ride my bike. I recently got a Hydrotail Blaze for my bike, which I love, but I migh have wanted to practice getting the bottles out before the race.  I was able to do the right side, but not the left and sadly had to get off my bike around mile 35 to get the bottle. Chris luckily didn’t pass me during this point because I can only imagine what he would have said.  He flew by soon after and seemed to be riding strong, so I was happy to see that. My heart rate stayed low the entire ride (avg. 151) and I honestly assumed I was riding poorly until mile 40 when I realized I was averaging right around 22mph. I knew I wouldn’t beat my Eagleman bike time from last year (hello, pancake flat course), but I pushed it right up to the dismount line. 

In the end, besides the chain and bottle mishap, I actually had a really good ride.  Cadence and power was right where they should be and it turns out I’m a lot stronger than I realized this year on the bike. 

Run - 1:41.02

Oh the run . . this is where I always get passed.  You start out and run nearly straight uphill, which is cruel, compounded by the fact that this is a three loop course. My calves were cramping and I was immediately questioning my decision to run in my Newton’s (I have no clue what I did with my old Adrenalines).  Self-doubt immediately started creeping in and my heart rate was well below my coach’s goal of 166-172. I took a gel and a salt pill and kept shuffling along and then the miracle happened, my legs loosened up and mile number four was 7:25.  WHAT?! I had just mentally prepared myself for 8:30s after seeing 8:19 for lap three.  Lap two of the course seemed easier than lap one and I just kept running steady between 7:40-7:50.  I decided I would pick it up on lap three if I could and kept looking behind me to see if anyone was catching me. The surprising thing was I only saw men and people on lap one.  Hmmm.  I didn’t want to count my chickens, but I was really hoping I could stay 3^rd overall.  I figured if my pace stayed constant, I had a good shot.  I watched at the turnaround for the third lap and saw no females coming, so I stayed consistent and decided to pick it up at mile 11.  Legs felt great, my pace was quickening and I actually passed quite a few men back on the lap three. I couldn’t stop smiling. I’m usually miserable at this point on the run and instead, I was feeling great and doing what I always enviously watch everyone else do.  The last mile hurt, but it was a fun hurt.  10 minute run PR on the day, but more importantly, I gained some confidence I never had on the run.

I crossed the line and was shocked to see I went a 4:44 for an 11 minute PR over Eagleman last year (yes, I know the temperature plays a roll).  Definitely a very exciting day for me!  Next up is a training trip to Lake Placid with Chris!

Thanks Lindsay for the fantastic coaching and letting me borrow her awesome Aquasphere wetsuit.  Thanks Powerbar for the fuel to keep me going, Cyclelops for power and Swim H20 for keeping swimming fun!  And a thank you to my family and friends who support me.