Roth Race Report

Truth be told – i stink at this blogging thing. I really wanted to like another platform because pictures were so easy but then i didn’t use that one either. So I’m back to the wordpress platform with a  years worth of catching up to do! I’ll be putting more things up when i get the chance .. but to start how about a race report!

First of all – Challenge Roth isn’t a triathlon. Its an event. THE triathlon event. An amazing week of spectacle put on in Bavarian style. Complete with Dirndl, Lederhosen and Bier! My intent is to capture the essence of the week and go back and add some pictures as i work through them.

Checkin

We headed to Roth for the first time on Thursday to check in. Originally i was going to wait until Friday, but then realized they had to process nearly 5000 athletes. Insanity! So we went down as soon as we could to check the place out. Triathlon park was buzzing – although there wasn’t yet a frenzy. I took some time to look around at the shops, put a few ideas in my head for things i needed to confirm and buy and picked up some C4 souvenirs. Our buddy Kevin from C4 was there and made sure that we were well taken care of. THANKS KEVIN! Got out on my bike for a quick shakeout .. riding the first 6ish miles of the course. Checked in and got marked as a racer when i put on my black (individual) bracelet. Picked my stuff – the race bags were full of fun stuff – including really nice transition bags, a run hat, a poster, some epsom salt!, sport detergent (totally needed!) run belt, samples of the course nutrition and the usual chip/bib. That night was the famous beer party at the Edinger Cabin- so we were sure to stay for that 🙂 So much fun to see the pros dressed up in traditional clothes. The beer was flowing and there was an oompa band keeping the crowd entertained. So far so good – no race nerves!

Friday

I was planning on doing a practice swim in the canal, but opted for sleep instead. After all, there was another opportunity to swim on Saturday and I already had to be down there to rack my bike. I opted instead for a walk in the Lorenz forest to grab pictures and we planned met up with Ed at the expo later in the afternoon to check out the party.  We went down to the swim start, tested the water (just dipped my toes in!) and went for a pre-drive of the bike course. The course was gorgeous! But I was a bit worried it was going to be a hard day on Sunday if the winds came up. There were lots of exposed ridges… the worst between Gredig and the awesome technical decent on the backside of the ridge.We headed back to the expo to meet up with the rest of the teammates and hang out for the afternoon. When we got there it was HOT! At this point, tons of people were coming in for the registration tent. The lines were HUGE! Ed and i found a tree to hang out under and people watch while Gaby went off to do a workout in the famous Roth town pool. Friday night was the athlete dinner, so we just soaked in the expo until it was time to head into dinner. It was MOBBED. They put out an extensive spread … but it was so hot and crowded that it was hard to sit down and really enjoy the meal. I think it may have been just too may tapered gittery athletes in one tent.

Saturday

Practice swim!! We heard that the water was most certain to be wetsuit legal so Ed and I went down for an early swim. The goal was to see how the swim was going to be on race day – so made sure to get in early. It was so nice … the water was calm and very clear. I knew it was supposed to be a good swim, but i was surprised how nice the canal was. I mostly bobbed around in the water and felt really sluggish. So I did a couple of quick arm turnovers and worked on sighting on both sides of the canal. Somewhere during my shakeout swim, I realized that the people cheering from the bridge was going to be epic. For the first time, i think it really sank in … that this was happening. Glad i had a friend out there in the water with me because we were able to process that realization together. After getting back out of the water, we dropped Ed off at his hotel and we went back to the hotel to pack my bags for the next day. Gaby went out for a run to give me some space to think. Once he came back, we headed to town for team lunch and pictures at the famous Schmidt bakery. We drove back to the hotel, triple checked everything. Loaded the bike and run bag into the car and drove over to T1 to drop off the bike and my run bag (note to self – read the athlete guide to before heading out – had to go back to T1 to drop off my T2 bag – which cost me a whole hour!). At bike check-in – the officials used our chips to check us in and checked our helmets when we dropped off the bikes, making sure they were adjusted and met European criteria. Everyone’s bikes also got a once over checking mostly the headset and areobars. It was great to see such care taken for athlete safety – especially since so many people traveled and had to rebuild bikes. After we finally got everything dropped off it was around 5pm – the time i wanted to be thinking about settling down and starting dinner. I shouldn’t admit this – but i skipped the athlete meeting. I had reread the guide at this point (after my bag drop off debacle), and was confident i knew enough to get through race day with no penalties and the meeting was at 6. My teammate and all around awesome dude Ron helped me out by providing some pertinants. It turned out, i was the only team-member to skip the meeting (oops!) But by this time we were settled back at the hotel, having and early dinner and getting ready for bed.

RACE DAY!

Total time: 12:57:36

Alarm was set for 3:30 but as usual there was no need. None. I was up and ready to go. Had some coffee, grabbed my last stuff and headed out the door. One of the things i love about long course racing is that race day morning is REALLY easy. There is nothing to stress about. Bags are packed and lined up by the door or already on-site. Your bike is already racked. You just roll out the door and leave. I got to transition … got my nutrition packed onto my bike and found a pump to borrow. Apparently most people here bring their own pumps – and not all pumps display in PSI! So it took a couple shots to be confident that i had my tires pumped. I got my garmin on my bike and made sure i had satellite lock and a calibrated powermeter. After i was settled, I found my team-mates (Ed, Ron, Brittany) and Cadence athlete-extroidinare Pat and wished them all luck. All the sudden it was go time! I headed to the potties and got ready. Wetsuit – check, Tri-slide – check, goggles – check! They moved us into a coral and soon it was time to go!! No nerves – just excitement for the day ahead! We entered the canal and then slowly moved up to the start line. I looked out, took a deep breath then — BOOM!

Swim: 1:21:04

The swim was murkier than the day before. And there were 200 anxious girls in the water. The start was pretty aggressive, there was so much contact. The most contact i’ve ever had at a non-mass start infact. So, it was a rough start. I focused on just swimming long strokes, breathing well, counting and staying calm.One. Two. Three. Four. Five. BREATH – sight. You know…. doing that pattern for 2.4 miles was repetitive but comforting.  I struggled to find clear water or feet that weren’t intent on knocking out my front teeth.  A few times i needed to pop up when I got knocked good – but in general i just keep repeating “relentless forward progress”. It took so long to get to the turn around – but then there it was. A long swim back to the far turn buoy and then it was home free.

I’ve made three major changes to my swim this year. 1) I count the entire way.  2) I sight one or two buoys ahead of the closest one to me 3) I’ve changed my head position. All have contributed to better sighting, more consistent swims and ultimately faster swim times. I have one more important change – I no longer wear a watch in the swim. The temptation to check it when I am hurting is too much. So i had NO idea what my swim time was. I knew I got caught by the majority of the sub 9hr men by the final turn, and that I wasn’t the last girl in the water. But I didn’t realize i swam a massive PR until i got on my bike.  For reference, my CAC swim 2 weeks earlier was 01:40:43.756 and Jack told me he thought my race times should be somewhere “close to 1:30”.

T1: 00:04:40

Yup. I do a sport where getting dressed is part of the game. We weren’t allowed to have our wetsuits off util we got into the change tent to keep the walkway clear. I pulled the wetsuit down to my race, ran through the bagdrop, easily found my bike bag and ran into the (co-ed) change tent. Because it was supposed to be hot, I swam in just my sports bra and tri-shorts. I had a pre-packed bike jersey with a full zip ready to go. A volunteer dumped my bag and helped me dry off. Socks on, shoes on. One last towel. Sunscreen. Jersey on (with number attached). Grabbed my sunglasses and headed out to my bike. Helmet on. Sunglasses on. GO!

Bike: 06:43:31

I was aiming to 6:00 flat on this course. Two things – it was a fair course and windy. I had my power numbers from Jack and to be honest. I knew from the day before that 6:00 was likely to happen. So i adjusted my goal. Ride well, don’t override, finish safe and strong.

First things first – I needed to settle on the bike. I wasn’t planning on eating until after I got through the technical first part of the course. Did a quick time check – when I looked down and it was 8:10 I was shocked. A sub 1:30 swim? WHAT???!?!?!? I didn’t have much time to celebrate through as the course starts with a bit of a fast curvy downhill and a bumpy section over the canal. I knew i needed to wait to eat till this after this point. So just dialed in my legs and got comfortable into aero. After that section, the work (and the eating) started. My nutrition plan was to eat 1/2 a Powerbar every 1/2 hour and drink a full bottle (20oz) every hour. Every refill, I planned to add electrolytes. I knew it was hot out and i was going through water way faster than i usually do. So i really concentrated on my nutrition and riding a clean race. The draft zone was 10m and the riders were more aggressive than i was used to. But i remembered to ride my own ride (hey I’m not “racing” this thing). The first lap was spot on. I rode it in just about 3:00 flat. At that point i knew i wasn’t going to make 6:00 because there is a 5 mile tail to the loops into T2. Never mind. Pedal, eat, drink. Repeat.  By the second half of the second loop i was having trouble staying in aero. The wind was picking up and i was struggling in the heat.  I rode as strong as I could without burning out my legs and just hung on.

The best case time if i kept my first loop speed was about 6:00 + :15. That was before the wind on the second course. Damn it! i knew it was going to get hard if that wind came up. I lost about 30 minutes to the wind and general stoppage … so that is not too bad in the grand scheme of things. I stopped twice quickly at a porta-potty (once on the first loop and once on the second) but made them really really quick stops. I was pleased that I was staying hydrated in the wind.When its hot you need more liquid, but when its windy its hard to know how much you are sweating.  I did have a moment where i had to get off my bike to work out a bad cramp and started using ISO (sports drink) bottles instead of water. The bike course was filled with carnage of people who hadn’t stayed on top of nutrition. I picked off a few people who had passed me when i was off my bike, and a few people I had been tagging back and forth with earlier in the day.

This was a great course for me. It was technical and never boring. There was enough climbing (three little ring climbs per loop) that i was able to move around a bit. And there was SO much crowd support. I soaked up all the love on the course (and boy was it there!) The first time I needed a bottle was at Gredig – a left hand turn into a 13% climb with a 1.5 mile(ish) 6% sustained rise. I got nervous to do bottle handoffs – Gaby and I practiced it, but its not something i do often. When i tried to get going – 6% was sooo steep. Luckily i got a boost from one of the volunteers – I felt pro! The crowd screamed us all the way up that hill. Then there was a long false flat heading into the Gredig decent. The Gredig decent takes all your concentration.Three switchbacks (all lined with hay bails!), big speed and fearless riders.  The second place  where you really feel an amazing outpouring of support is Solar Hill. It is … well there are no words. Thousands of people crammed 5-7 rows deep out infront of you bringing you up the hill. You just have to trust they will move. And they do… but man its unnerving and thrilling at the same time. Even on the second loop there were still people there – you basically are riding a wave of energy right up and over.

Once I got to the bier mile the third time it was time to shift gears. With 3 miles to go, it was time to put the bike aside and mentally prepare myself for the run. I focused on fast cadence, low power over the last 2 miles into T2. I was ready to hand off my bike – but i didn’t hate it (cue flashbacks to AC) so I knew that I rode pretty well and put myself in good place heading out onto the canal. Pretty soon I found myself throwing my bike at the T2 bike catchers and running under the arch. I remembered to stop my garmin and save the file before handing off my bike (phew!)

T2: 00:03:24

Jack reminded me before the race that people spend EONS in transitions and that I should focus on getting in and getting out. T2 is usually pretty easy. Swap shoes, race belt, hat.Seems pretty quick – untill you realize you cant reach your shoes. This time, in addition to the usual stuff, I had a shirt change, suncreen to apply and arm coolers to get on, as part of my heat plan.  Again the volunteers were amazing in T2 – and i was in and out faster than I thought possible. (T2 was my highest ranking event of the day!!). Anyway out onto the run course I went … getting cheered the whole way!

RUN: 04:44:59

My run plan had a cutdown from 10:30. I was thinking ahead of time that a 4:30 was in my grasp if i could keep it together. I went in thinking that the course was going to be flat flat flat and there would be lots of people out there again. Lesson learned … pay more attention to the course ahead of time 🙂

As usual, I don’t really remember alot of the run. It started with a little climb up to the canal and then out and back, around a lock. As i entered the canal path, i saw the bike escorts for the leading girls.  I thought the people coming the other way looked soooo fresh, and I couldn’t understand how they looked so great when they were almost finished. It was a bit demoralizing. At mile 6 you head down a hill into a town, around a clover leaf, and back up.  You come back onto the trail around mile 9. That explains it!! I got to the end of the canal path and headed into the woods. Damn! Still a half marathon to go! I was so glad I had stayed clean on the ride – because the 1k penalty lap was up a hill! The second half of the run takes you through woods, a couple of official cheer zones and several small towns. As with the bike, the crowd support was AMAZING! Due to the heat, there was alot of walking. Each aid station had cool sponges. As the day progressed, they had to start re-using them. Kids would collect the discarded ones, rinse them out and soak them for the next person. They were life-savers! Plus, its hard not to take a cool sponge from a screaming small fan! There was no ice, but they did have chemical cool packs you could ask for and I did use one. But, my cooling strategy was to keep a wet sponge on each shoulder and keep my arm coolers/warmers wet. It worked really well, and blessdly a cloud floated in and cooled us off.

I also did a really good job with nutrition. I took a gel every hour (4 total) and 5 dots on the half hour (2 packages total). So i was taking in about 200 calories an hour. Which this late in the day is stunning for me. Super stoked. I kept drinking water and ISO and had two cokes.

I started feeling sparks of cramps around mile 10. Just my toes were cramping. I stopped someplace at the canal and worked a little cramp out of my calf. I was focusing on arm swing, staying positive and just eat/drink/breathe. By mile 10 i knew that I wasn’t going to be able to bring up the speed, so i just focused on staying under 11 minute miles. I missed a few, but by in large i did really well. At mile 24 the wheels came off. I stopped for 30 seconds to work out a cramp and fell over racked in lower body cramps. Luckily for me there was a coach on the other side of the road, who came and helped me relax (I was SCREAMING) and work out the cramps. She handed me salt water and a potato. I was able to keep moving – walking at first, then jogging, then low and behold RUNNING! I only had 2 miles to go!! I saw Gaby at mile 25 and he said i was looking GREAT and i could still hit sub 13 – which i had long thought was gone by this point. There was a loop through town square at this point and i was stoked – but the course turned away from triathlon park and i knew it was going to be a long last mile.  My rescue coach cheered me on as I took the turn out onto the last out and back. She was so awesome, I wish I could say thankyou. I took my final gel (it didn’t sit well at ALL!) and just tried to keep my feet moving. I’m afraid I walked more of that last mile than I would have liked but I knew the finish line was ahead. It was very motivating. Then i turned ….

Finish and the After-Party!!:

and ran down the finish chute – into the stadium where there were 10,000 cheering people. 10,000! It was unreal. You basically make a victory lap from the stadium entrance to the finish line and i just soaked it all in. They called my team and then my name … “from the USA with the CHALLENGE TRI TEAM, well done Emily!” and i was across the line. I see Holly! She is handed a medal to place around my neck. Then i get a hug from Felix! and hear Gaby screaming my name!! It was just unreal. Gaby told me i made it with 3 minutes to spare – SUB13!!! I headed towards athlete village where i proceeded to get stupid. I came out about an hour later and had to get my bike from T2. We collected the bike (with a little topple over to boot) and met up with the rest of the team. I tried to get into the stadium for the finish, but it was packed. So we all sat by the little fountain and saved seats for Brittany and family and Ed. We were missing the rest of the guys … Ron had a bus to catch, Jeff was (it turns out) recovering from his own T2 bike retrieval event, and I never got to meet our resident speedster Breno. But those of us that were there soaked in the amazing spectacle, waving to the drone and loving the show that Challenge put on. It was an epic way to close an epic day.

The required thanks shoutouts in no particular order:

• Gaby – for spectating and recording priceless memories for me (and walking almost a marathon spectating!)
• My coach – we’ve been working together for three years now putting the framework in place for this day. Thanks for teaching me to believe in myself and trusting there is another gear when it seems you can go no further. Thanks for making me an athlete.
• My Challenge Team – for the opportunity to race with you this year, for making me laugh, letting me cry and being pretty awesome travel/training/drinking buddies 🙂
• My hometown team – You guys support me every day. I couldn’t do it without all my Cadence friends. I would say team … but you aren’t just a team – you are some of my best friends. You guys are amazing. Bring on the hastags and the brownie points!
• My family – because this sport is only kind-of an individual sport. Can’t do it without an army of people keeping you sane and working around your ridiculous schedules
• The Challenge Team Sponsors – C4 for an amazingly comfy kit, Powerbar for keeping me fed, SBR for keeping me clean all year long

And then I ran TWO sub-8 minute miles

This running thing, it’s not my thing. I am jealous of all of you that love to run. Those that look forward to the scheduled run days, that lovingly lay out run shoes and fanaticize about putting in enough miles for a new pair. It’s not that I haven’t had some great runs. There are days that I really have enjoyed my time on my feet – but it’s very rare. There are a few places that can make me smile … but more often than not running is a chore.

The biggest reason I don’t like to run? I suck at it. How can you suck at running? Really? Two year olds do it … why can’t I. I have mile-long legs so it should be something I am good at.

I’ve wanted to like running for as long as I can remember. I showed up for summer information sessions for cross country, got my schedule and taped it to my door. I envisioned myself, fleet-footed and proudly wearing my school colors. I put on my cutest umbros and t and went outside ready to tackle the world. I made it one block. One block, if that really, I don’t remember. My breathing was ragged and I hurt, but I was able to put an X on the first day of training. The success didn’t last though and I was done by the end of the week. I was no thoroughly convinced there was no place for me in the runner’s world and as such reverted back to music dork and went on with my life. In college, I gave it another go when I realized my weight was spiraling out of control. Sadly, I achieved the same longevity as a runner as my first attempt.

Now I call myself a triathlete – and as such – I run. In training, I run a few times a week – some runs are transition runs, some are long runs and some are tempo/speedwork runs. In addition to the runs tacked onto my tris, I have completed four open half marathons and six open full marathons. With all this running, I still don’t like to run. This fall will be the first fall that I do not have a distance run (half or full marathon) on my schedule. I have gotten tired of ending my season doing something that isn’t fun.

I may not like it – but I keep plugging away at it. My run is currently one weakness I am actively trying to work on in my racing. I pass so many girls on the bike, just to lose it on the run, and in order to get better, you need to run more. So I run. When I jumped into coaching, I chose a coach and a package that would allow extra concentration on my run. Once a month, I have a one on one run with my coach. While its intimidating, its really shown me what I am capable of. All summer we have taken advantage of the long days and have been working tempo-runs out on the trail. Last night, we transitioned back to the track, driven there by early sunsets and cool temps. The last time we were at the track was MAY!

Track workouts give you a great idea of where you are and your progression. Back in May, I ran mile repeats plus a hill effort x4 (that one makes me queasy just thinking about it!). Last night it was step-down mile repeats. I was so nervous when Jack told me we were going to start at 8:30s and see where we could push it. For reference, my May repeats were at 8:35. Last night my repeats were as follows: 8:23, 8:07, 7:51, 7:35 with a 2:30 rest between each. Admittedly, I thought I was going to pass out on the last one, so its clearly outside the my comfort zone. Discounting that fact (and not remembering what my perceived effort was on the May repeats), I am left with the thought “HOLY HECK! I dropped a MINUTE on my repeats since MAY.”

Coach Jack always tells me to believe in the work and trust the effort that I have put into my training. On a day by day perspective, it can be hard to see the improvements. I’m still one of the weakest runners in my group, and I still get passed by a lot of people in a race. But … when I take a step back, the improvements I have made are HUGE. My feet turn over better, my posture is better and I can push through the mental wall a lot better. I am not “floating” yet, but I no longer feel glued to the ground either.

I still might not like running, but I sucking less day by day. I don’t have to love it to be good at it … but I think as I improve, I’m starting to embrace the challenge. Every day I lace up my shoes – I am getting one step closer to my goal. Watch out world, I may yet be a runner.

Adventures in camping consumerism

So … We go camping to get away from it all. Tuck into a tent, nestled into the woods, hang the hammock and swing all your cares away… right? What happens when you go so far away from it all … That your camping stuff is 175 miles away? You buy new and gain some stories.

Last camping trip, we forgot out lawn chairs. Luckily we had friends joining us a day later that bailed us out. Determined not to make the same mistake again, we packed the chairs a day early. Alas, while we remembered the chairs, we forgot an entire bucket of gear!

The first thing we *knew* forgot was our sleeping bags. Because the mountains are expected (and delivered) to be cold this time of year, we stopped on the way down and grabbed some new bags at a gander mountain.

Only on tent assembly did we realize we also forgot our poles!! Oh boy … Off we went to the camp store to get a new tent. The store we always giggle at … Who needs to buy a tent … In the woods? Wouldn’t you think you would be prepared? Lesson learned, while I go to the woods to get away from it all, the fact is, I’m glad for the little bit of consumerism here. It kept me warm the last few days 🙂 We procured a snug little two person tent, that sorta fits two people and a dog.


It makes me realize how fortunate we are though. To have the time ad resources to fix the issue and friends to laugh about it with. Even with a few changes, The woods are still gloriously relaxing and we will make up for it quickly. It will just take with a few less dinners out and maybe one less movie or so. Not a bad trade for the peace that the woods brings.

In the end, we are still tucked into a tent, nestled into the woods, and swinging all our cares away… With new stories to boot.

Time flies when you are racing hard!

March 8th? Really? Apparently that’s the last time I pushed “publish” on this blog. Every year I say that I should be better about recording my training and my racing and my life and then I get wrapped up in that very life that I want to capture. So now its August 11th and I have three major four races under my belt for this year. Four down, three to go and then it’s all over for this year. I’m going to try and go back and post an entry for each race.

When we last left off, I was just coming off the spring field test and was 8 weeks out from my first race of the season. I was starting off where I left off last year – at Bassman ½ – a little local tri held in Bass River State Forest, NJ. I like starting off the season with a good test. It’s a mental and physical shakedown for the season ahead. Bassman offers a great little course – a lake swim, a mostly closed bike course, and a run that features trail (yes!), road (eh) and beach (boo!) portions. Race day was May 4th and it was everybit as cold as May 4th should be, but atleast this year it wasn’t wet. I went it with really no goals – just get my feet back under me, remember how to race and have a good time. Went out with the usual suspects and everyone had a good day. I felt more secure in my abilities this go around and was very glad that I had taken the opportunity to race at the end of last year post Tahoe. It would have been really hard to get into 63degree water if I didn’t have the confidence of knowing that I had done well on this course before.

Impressions: I swam OK but not as well as last year, there was some pretty significant contact on the second loop that cost me some time readjusting googles and testing for a fat lip/black eye. The bike was REALLY strong. Three hours was an awesome ride for me. Further, it was the first time I had done that distance without putting my feet down once. Just went around the loop 3 times, focusing on moderate power early so that I would have enough when the wind picked up. It was windy earlier than expected though – so I was riding hard. I had some of the same issues as last year – where I had trouble riding level – when the wind came I went way above power and then when it shifted away I rode way under power. I would like to have had a steadier ride as it would be less work overall. The run – I felt good on this one actually – my notes state that it was “my strongest run EVER off the bike. Total breakthrough”. I carried more this year as last year the hammer drink was limited on course and had calories (from dots) every 2 miles. I was running nice and steady till mile 10 when it got really hard.

At the end of the day, my total time clocked in at 6:09:27 which was good enough for 3rd place in AG (out of 9) and a 15minute PR. Proud of this race and can’t wait to drop those 9 minutes!!

Times: Swim (45:48), T1 (4:56), Bike (3:00:03), T2 (2:35), Run (2:15:16), Total (6:09:27)

8 weeks out

How can this be, it 8.5 weeks from the beginning of my 2014 race season. Its still 2 months out but seems like its just around the corner. So much work done, so much to do. I’m working on some little things and some really big things. I’m working on continuing to build my mental strength – i think its the biggest jump I’ve made this last year. During the fall field test I struggled to stay in the game…. 20 minutes was an eternity and i couldn’t hold it together.  This weekend we retested, while i don’t have the numbers yet, i believe they went up by about 15 watts. More importantly I was there, in the game, the entire time. It still hurt, but i was able to come up with a plan, execute the plan and hang on for a strong finish. I was looking for 200 watts, although i didn’t get there I am very proud of the effort I put down. I’m working on consistency and committing to workouts. Not just the ones I like, but the ones I am dreading or scared of as well. I am trying to push in each workout and make sure that I am not taking the easy way out.I am working on cleaning up my eating and understand what fuels me best.  I’m doing my best to get good sleep and lots of water. But as i was reminded tonight …I need to make sure I am living in the now, not 8 weeks from now. While I have work to do to get there, I need to make sure that i am taking advantage of things that aren’t on my schedule, that aren’t on plan. Enjoy each day as it comes, with all its ups and downs, because thats what life is about. 

In My Head

Last night I shared my lane with a very unwelcome lane mate. It wasn’t actually one of my training partners; it wasn’t even really in the pool. I didn’t have any issues in the warm up or on the kick set. But it started creeping in during the technique set (9x50s). By the time we hit the main set, I was battling full on with this monster.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had it out with all out with this demon. Surprisingly it never reared its head at Tahoe. After Tahoe I took a really solid look at how far I had come and really laid everything down at the end of the season. No lack of confidence there!  In camp, I had glimpses of the demon (during the half marathon and in the ocean) but I was able to overcome it. It’s been so long, I forgot how hard a fight it is when this rears its head for real.

One of the hardest things for me is getting off my butt to do something I am likely to fail at. I look at my schedule and I see something scary like 8:30 minute miles (even through it’s a 1 minute effort) and I spend all this time dreading the workout. When I am with others, it’s easier to keep this in check. When I’m by myself, it can be a battle to even start the workout and then get all the way through it. Sometimes it happens during the middle of an activity. When it does everything says … time to quit. These thoughts used to cripple me for days.

During camp, Matt pulled me aside and reminded me that my body is stronger than my mind thinks it is. That I can push through when everything inside me is saying “QUIT. YOU WOULD FEEL SO MUCH BETTER IF YOU WALKED. TAKE IT EASY FOR 5 MINUTES. YOU DON’T HAVE TO RUN EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. INFACT, LOOK AT THAT SIGN – THAT’S A GOOD PLACE TO WORK OUT A CRAMP. WHILE YOU ARE THERE – TAKE A REST. JUST QUIT.”

Yesterday afternoon, I spent some time looking at my 2014 race schedule. Only a few months till race season … 13 weeks till my first half of the year and 21 till my next attempt at the full. Yikes! I am working on some weight goals and some speed improvements in the pool and on the run right now. Lots to do and 21 weeks seems like it is right around the corner.

In the pool yesterday I struggled on the technique set. I was bummed that I couldn’t lead the strongly and that I kept getting dropped on the fast 50s. I started stewing.  I started thinking about how unprepared I feel for the AC ocean-y (bay side) swim. That I was going to fail at this distance again. Just hearing the main set shut me down. “THERE IS NO WAY YOU CAN DO THIS. YOU CAN’T LEAD THE LANE. YOU MIGHT NOT EVEN BE ABLE TO HANG IN THE BACK. YOUR EAR HURTS. YOU’RE TIRED. JUST QUIT”. My real lane-mates noticed something was going on. Jack noticed something was going on. I almost got sucked under by the monster – but I fought back. I took my place second in the line and hung in for the first set. Then I hung (slower) in for the remaining set. It wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t my best, but I made it. I won. The monster didn’t – I did.

Later it sounded so silly. I got in my head because I am 21 weeks out from a race. That’s right – 21 weeks – 5 months. I am stronger, mentally and physically, than I was last year. My body really CAN do more than my mind thinks it’s capable of. I am an athlete. Negative-self talk and crappy self-confidence haven’t gotten me where I am today. Hard work and belief in my coaches, my team and myself have.

Take that demon. There’s no room for you here. Next time, I’ll kick you out of my head even sooner.

Winter Training Camp

I figure after not posting for a few weeks I would post a long one to make up for it!

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I got an email from Jack (coach extraordinare) on the first of January inviting me to think about attending winter camp. I did a little poking around at my finances and realized this would be a great use of the last little bit of Colorado money I had. It took a few days for me to settle into the idea and get tickets but by the 4^th I was booked.

Unfortunately shortly after I pulled the trigger I had an ear infection progress to a full rupture. There wasn’t much I could do about it except grab some antibiotics, stay out of the pool and cross my fingers. It went from bad to worse, but I was determined to go. A second round of anti-biotics was ordered and I was on my way. 

Matt and Jack did an awesome job getting us ready. We really didn’t have to do much other than drop our bags and bikes off at the shop. They piled them all in a rental minivan (Jack’s next car – hehe) and headed out right after Tuesday morning cycling class. 

I flew out on Friday morning from Philly. Gaby and Kona took me to the airport and I was on my way! Well, first I had to bounce through charlotte. But then I was there!! In the sun J it was glorious. After a few minutes of trying to locate Jack and Matt, and realizing that there was an arrivals and a departures level of the parking lot, I was in the car. Lou had flown in on the AC flight so he had gotten in a little earlier. We piled our carry-ons into the van, stopped at the grocery to stock up the rooms and drove off to the hotel. There was a little bit of a delay getting into our rooms due to a computer issue … but that was rather quickly sorted.  We got our goodie bags with schedule and nutrition and sent off to change. And just like that camp officially started!

Camp Plan

Day 1: Three workouts, 3:45 training time

Change 1- into bike clothes and onto the bike! The day called for an endurance ride and a track session. I was looking forward to riding outside for the whole time leading up to the trip. When I actually got on my bike I was so uncomfortable. It was like I forgot how to ride on the roads. I guess that’s usually a spring feeling … but here I was trying to get training in and having trouble riding in a group. I was a little unsteady the whole time but quickly realized that I was settling in and that I wasn’t going to hold the group back (yeah!). The ride was over before I was really ready to be done.

 

Rocket Ready to Ride!

Change number 2 … bike to run.We dropped the bikes off and headed out to a local HS track. Apparently there was a soccer game we weren’t aware of … so we headed off to the practice field. Alyssa said it was like cross country practice – I called it hell J we warmed up at a “nice easy pace” which apparently was sub 10. The workout was going to be solo work through, so while I was really pushing hard I knew that this one was going to be all me. It got hard, then it got really hard, then it got so hard I wanted to quit hard. The whole time Matt and Jack talked me through each push…. In the end … it was done and I was really really proud. We took a few photos and then headed back to the hotel for a quick drill swim (change 3) , showers (change 4) and dinner. Matt left to pick Anj up from the airport and we got ready for dinner. The bar of the dinner place was awesome. Great beer, good service. We headed for the table and it kinda went south. Not bad, but slow. Lou didn’t get his order and Anj and I got two of each of ours. The lady was out to lunch… and told Jack he was eating stoner food. We left really late (after 10) and decided to go someplace different the next time. Normatec’d and racked out for an early rise on Saturday. 

Day 2: 3 workouts, 5ish hours of training

Up bright and early for breakfast and a swim. We had a local outdoor pool rented (just for us!!) for the morning swim. The goal was 90 minutes in the water and about 4K yards. We got to the pool (which was amazing) and were let in by the lifeguards. Apparently it hadn’t been used in a few days and when they pulled back the cover it was HOT. Bathtub hot. I knew it was going to be a tough swim. The water was crystal clear though and we got a lot of video and photo work done. I got some more pointers on my stroke (head down, no cross over, tight and loose hands on recovery). The temp and my ear beat me up and I wound up finishing short. It was still 3100y though. I was bummed but ok with it.

So it was hot … but look how gorgeous it was!

Next up RIDE!! 3 hours!! I felt so much more comfortable today. Nailed my time at the front in aero, worked on staying in the group, really zoned in. We road to the beach (how cool is that!) and back and then it was over. I was so bummed.

Seriously, this is January??

It felt so so good to be riding outside. I felt like I could have pushed so much harder but we had other things planned.  We went back to the hotel and did a quick change into run clothes and did a shake out run. It hurt. I was not really holding the group back (since we were aiming for a recovery pace of 10min/mile) but I was working hard. We decided to stay in due to the early rise in the morning, normatec’d and racked out . For having a race the next morning, I slept really pretty well. 

Recovering like a pro!

Day 3: 2 workouts, 3.5ish hours of training

So what do you do after a triple? Run a half marathon. Ha! There is a word for this – its ISLAGIATT (it seemed like a good idea at the time). We left at 5:15 to drive to Naples to run the Naples Half.  The race was awesome … small (but bigger than it used to be), well-run, flat and definitely fast. Matt gave me some pacing instructions – starting at 11min/miles and working my way down.

High tech pacing right there 🙂

We talked about near/sub 2:20 and I dialed my brain in to work. I really had a hard time with the initial pacing (need to work that) but settled in to the 10:30 range that I used in Philly. The scenery was incredible. Gorgeous mansions with manicure lawns, huge yachts on the gulf and amazing cars in the driveways. Unlike Palm Beach, not every house was surrounded by a huge hedge. Some of the folks were even out waving us on. Wheels were coming off in the last mile and I looked over and saw Matt and Jack. They ran me in the last mile at a 9:05 pace. I was losing it and trying to quit running. Thanks guys – I wouldn’t have had to shove that dude in the finish chute out of the way. Final time was 2:17:04!! That was safely under the 2:20 mark.

2:17!! Safely under goal pace!

Everyone ran really well. The worst part is that we had to wait for the awards – Matt placed! Alyssa just missed a 5^th pace AG podium too. They had a beer truck pouring cups of MichUltra. Shit beer has never tasted so good. I was riding a wave of awesome until I realized I left my wetsuit at the hotel. Matt offered to drop us off and go back and get it. I felt so horrible –  it was quite a drive and robbed him of some much-deserved beach time. 

Catching some rays and waiting to swim

The delay also worked against me. The whole time I was sitting there I was getting more and more nervous about the swim. When we finally got in the water I was mentally fried – and you know what – I panicked. In waist deep water – I panicked. Once again, Jack and Matt were there to help me work through it. By the end of the swim I was much more comfortable. I realize how much work I have to do in open water. Honestly, I should have already known that – my race swims are so unpredictable, but I always chalked it up to pre-race nerves. Good  to know – now I can work on it. We dried off, took a few more pictures and headed back to the hotel  to get ready for some dinner. There were a few pints, some burgers and football. It was a really fun night. We left and repeated the same pattern, normatec and rack-out. I didn’t sleep very well though. I was up every couple of hours. I couldn’t tell what was waking me up … so I advil’d and slugged some water and went back to bed.

Day 4: 3 workouts, 3.5 hours of training

After being off the bike on Sunday,  we got back on them today. It was a super easy ride. One hour, NP of 48 (can it even go that low??). My body actually hurt for the first time of the trip. The bike ride didn’t really bug anything and it was supposed to prepare us for the next recovery run. When I started running through, it felt really cruddy. I stuck it out for the ½ hour and we did just about 3 miles. We did a quick change and went off to the Fort Myers Aquatic center for our last workout of camp. 4x500s. It was a beautiful pool to get some yards in. We had a good time working at our own paces and sending off together. I still have so much work to do on improving my efficiency enough to be faster. More video to laugh at (I mean learn from) later. And just like that … camp was finished.

Sunshine and Laps. A girl could get used to this!

We got dropped back off at the airport and I’m heading back to the biggest snow of the year. 

Last rays!

Just for grins … photos are just about 24 hours apart!

Early afternoon in Downingtown. The snow is expected to fall all night!

15.5 hours, 4 days. Who thought that was possible this early in the build-season? It was an amazing weekend filled with hard work, lots of laughs and tons of sunshine.  I got to swim in the gulf, in January! I ran a ½ marathon that I would never had put on my own plan. I learned how to fuel for a crazy high volume and how important recovery is.  I learned that I have a lot of learning left to do. I’m bringing home a positive attitude, focus for my season ahead and some crazy tan lines. A few years ago, I was dabbling in this stuff. I think it might be safe to call myself an athlete. Oh yeah, and I’m ready for a rest day!

Season 2014 – I survived the first week!

I made it!! The first 7 days are done 🙂 Planning workout time of 8:15. Completed workout time 8:05. One missed block – a 15 minute transition run planned post-trainer ride today. I was thwarted by group trainer-roading and a massive (3″ people! thats massive around here) snow storm. I don’t think I have done this well on a week – EVER! So stoked and proud. 

Made the commitment to yoga this week too. I am joining my friend Ashley in a Jan 1st challenge to touch my toes. Not sure when my hamstrings and glutes got so tight. I can touch my toes when I’m really warm (generally only after a run). I am looking forward to being able to do the stretches in class and actually touch my toes without spending an hour on the treadmill. We got some homework on friday – half sun salutations and some static stretching. Stoked to have done this both days. And its pretty unreal how much those sun salutations wake me up and get my breathing going! Looking forward to continuing this. 

One thing i do need to get my hands around is nutrition … i love spending time with my friends and it seems that alot of times thats going out for dinner and drinks. We are working to make food at home and go out later for a beer or two. This helps keep the eating out (and costs) down. The problem is thats a lithe hard when we are tired and uninspired. Picked up a vitamix and lots of good veggies and fruits this week. I am hoping to mix it up a little and make some new stuff. Started tonight with a really yummy (i know right?) kale and potato soup. It was surprisingly good. 

Tomorrow starts a new week and it looks like some strength work. Its also the day of team announcements for Rev3. I’m pretty sure I’m not on the list – but i am so grateful for the application. It knocked my out of the Tahoe funk before it got deep and treacherous. I was able to focus on ending the season on a strong note (2 prs? thats strong in my book) and got me excited for this coming season. I had a blast writing the application and thinking about all the fun that Rev3 brings to the table. Planning on participating in at least 2 this year. I have a long way to go before races start – but you know what? bring it!!

Oh yeah – its snowing!! And although i’m not skiing much i am still loving it. Pretty magical even here in PA. 

2014 Week 1 – Midweek Check-in

Its here!! 2014 build time!!

Its wednesday. Hump day. Middle of the week and I am here to check in and be accountable to the hoards of people reading here. Or just the empty internet. 

Here’s what my week looks like.

Its not a horrible week. 8 hours. That’s a pretty small one actually. And I’m just trying to finish the week with all greens – thats my goal. But to be honest, its overwhelming. I’m not feeling great (sinus stuffiness), work is crazy, and i haven’t been eating well. Today we had a 8 hour all-day meeting. There were snacks galore! I wound up having a lunch box from Panera, two donut holes and a small piece of chocolate. 3K kinda day and i feel bad about it. I only took 2 weeks off … but its tough to get back on the bandwagon.

The week started out rough just a few days ago – i almost bailed on swim practice. The thing i look forward to most of all!! It was a tough practice and at the end, I was glad to have gone. My congestion cleared in the pool and Ryan and I had a good little lead/follow thing going. Congestion came back though, and yesterday’s bike ride was a struggle to start and finish. Today’s run hasn’t happened yet and I’m so stuffed up that I’m really dreading getting on the ‘mill. I’ve had glimpses of the other life this week – rumored job openings in Colorado and a teeny tiny (400 feet tiny!) bit of skiing. That always makes it hard for me to focus.

I am still hopeful about a long-shot i applied for … but my resolve is kind of struggling knowing the phone likely won’t ring for me. I’m doing my best to keep the coals warm, fueling the fire and waiting for the blazing fire to return! 2014 is less than a week old and i want to finish this one strong 🙂

A year in Review

One week ago at this time i was about a mile into Philly marathon. There were 25 miles in my immediate future. Still a long way to go to the finish line and the end of a long season. This week has been about recentering… spending time with friends … drinking beers with abandon … staying up way to late … and just focusing on things that have slipped this year. 

And now its Thursday morning – Thanksgiving. The week is going too fast… and I am back to in Monday morning. I’ll use this last quiet morning to reflect on what I accomplished this year. 

I attempted my busiest ever season with 9 events. I completed 8. That one DNF was possibly the best thing that has happened – talk about lighting a fire under my butt. There was one sprint tri, one olympic, and two long course (half distance), and that pesky tahoe full. I did a 15k, a half marathon and two full marathons. I set one record I’m not so proud of (first DNF) and four real PRs. One at the new 15k distance and the half triathlon, half marathon and full marathon!!!

This week i had a phone call with Jack about setting goals for next year. I will be trying to do less and more. My “A” race is the Challenge AC full, but i really just want to get through that one. We are targeting two halfs and lots and lots of run work. He thinks we can keep building on my run. Yippee treadmill miles this winter 😛 I’m looking forward to building my fitness this winter and not being so far away from the group. 

Its been a rough couple of weeks – missing colorado and realizing that we won’t be skiing much this year. But i have so much work to do it might not be a bad idea to have some other stuff on the plate 🙂