Kerrville 70.3 Prelude: Donkeys and Sunsets

Sometimes things just come together so perfectly that you surprise even yourself.  I've had a super strong training and racing year and my training for Kerrville 70.3 followed that trend.  I had more "life" happen during this training cycle than in most and I didn't get to follow my training plan down to the detail, as is my usual tendency.  Regardless, I felt so much stronger and more prepared than I felt heading into my first 70.3 triathlon exactly one year ago at Redman.  In fact, I felt downright chill and had a calm that was almost eerie.  I was so mellow about the whole thing that I started to worry that I was a little too calm.  Did my mind really comprehend what we were about to do?  I did the typical race weather stalking, but the forecast got worse with each peek that I took.  It started with a 60% chance of rain early in the week and ended with a 100% chance of thunderstorms by the time I looked on Friday.  I decided to stop looking at it or even thinking about it as it was something that was totally out of my control.  We would either race, or we would not race.  We would get soaked, or we would not.

Texas, y'all.

On Friday afternoon, Mr K and I packed up the car and headed towards Kerrville.  Driving through the backroads in the Texas Hill Country as it was bathed in the beautiful sunlight of the golden hour filled my heart with happiness.  Those roads and that scenery are like a love letter to my beloved state and seeing them looking so gorgeous really set my soul at ease.  As we passed through Hico, we saw a man walking with a donkey who was pulling a cart that said "will work for carrots." I hollered with excitement at Mr K "DONKEY! DONKEY! I THINK I SAW THEM ON CHANNEL 8 ONCE!!" Well, if you know Mr K then you know that he has never met a stranger and before I knew it he had pulled over on the side of the road so that we could meet them.  As chance would have it, I was right, Charlie and Smokey had been featured on a story on WFAA earlier this year (go watch the story here - it is a good one!). It was such an honor to meet them and talk with them for just a little bit.  As you might know, I consider the donkey to be my "spirit animal" and their random appearance along the road gave me an overwhelming feeling that everything was going to be alright.

We took it pretty easy on Saturday morning before meeting up with Coach Frank and his group from Tri-Now for a practice swim.  Many thanks to Frank as he was super supportive of Mr K and I all weekend and included us in some of their team events and the Saturday evening meal.  The place where we swam was all too familiar to me as I had been there on two prior occasions. Two and a half years back, when we were at a spring base camp with Tri-Now, I stood on the shore of the Guadalupe River and watched Mr K do his first ever open water swim.  I thought that those triathletes were so cool, but I couldn't imagine myself ever swimming like that.  The water didn't scare me as I spent much of my childhood in Lake Texoma, but the act of swimming itself seemed downright daunting.  I visited this same area later again that same year when the FIGJAM group came down to the Hill Country for a long bike weekend.  This time I watched Drum and Julie swim in those same waters and again, I thought that the were pretty awesome.  Now it was my turn, life is funny that way.  Mr K and I both did the practice swim in our wetsuits only to learn later that the water was too warm and it was not going to be wetsuit legal.  I'm not sure I've ever swum that far in the open water without my wetsuit and I tried not to let that worry me too much.

The rest of Saturday was spent hustling around town, dropping off bikes at the first transition area and bags of running stuff a couple of miles down the road at the second transition area.  I've never done a tri with a split transition before and it takes a little bit more pre-planning.  There is just so much stuff involved - thank goodness for check-lists! Everyone was optimistic about the forecast since the thunderstorms had been taken out and the rain was scheduled to come in later in the day.  This thing just might happen after all!  I don't think that I have ever had such a happy and positive feeling before a race.  I wish that I could bottle it up because it was a pretty amazing feeling.

Vivace and I were ready to tango.

We enjoyed a nice dinner with the Tri-Now folks and soon it was time to head off to bed.  The big day was finally (almost) here and I could hardly wait for my alarm clock.

Quick Hits--Summer Funnin' Style

About a week ago reality started to tap me on the shoulder and today it got more brave and stared me right in the eye.  I will be back to my full-time work gig exactly one week from today!  Umm...where did the summer days go?  I have no complaints though, looking back on it I can see that this has been one of the most fun and active summers I have had in quite a while. As I prepare to heed the call of the school bell, I wanted to take a moment or two to share some of the great things that are ongoing in my world these days.  Thus I give you...the quick hits....

Dreamin' Big--Chicago Style
A huge obsession ongoing process of this summer has been training for the Chicago Marathon coming up on October 7.  Mr K and I have been working hard as a team and our training kicked off on June 18.  I have a long history of resentment and struggle when it comes to training in the summer heat.  I don't like it, it is hard and it is very humbling....but I do it...every summer.  It is one of those love/hate things because I always emerge a stronger runner in the fall, but I have just never handled it with much grace (translation: lots of whining, moaning, and gnashing of teeth usually ensues.).  However, this summer I have adopted a firm "no whining" policy about the heat.  No more checking the temperature when I wake up, obsessing over the humidity, or dreading the sweat--this is Texas, it is hot and that is not going to change. Time to get over it.  I decided to embrace the heat and let it challenge me and make me into what it will.  The result?  I have never run stronger in the summer.  (Exhibit A: a new course record at the Liberty 5K) The mind is a strong thing, y'all!

I have only run one marathon and I followed a fairly conservative training plan.  I wanted to survive relatively unscathed and have an experience that would make me want to run more marathons.  The training plan called for a bunch of miles, but no specific paces or speed work.  It took me a solid month of hard work to get back to speed after that race and I decided that from now on all marathon training would include an element of speed work.  I also decided that I wanted to really "race" Chicago, not merely cover the distance--but truly push myself.  I have found a training plan that fits me so very well.  It is a great mix of speed and endurance and it challenges me every time I lace up my shoes.  Each time I read the planned workout I think "I don't think I can do this, but I will try." and most of the time I end up meeting the day's goals.  It is exhausting and exhilarating all at the same time. 

My Current Obsession

One more important note on Chicago: this marathon is something of a perfect storm of events at the national American Music Therapy Association annual conference will be held in Chicago the week following the race (traditionally held in mid-November...see? Perfect storm.).  Andrew, a music therapy frunner from the great white north (North Dakota actually) has challenged my region (Southwestern Region) to a fundraising duel with his region (Midwestern Region)--all funds going to support the mission of the American Music Therapy Association.  So please check out this link, watch the hilarious video that Andrew produced, and please give a few bucks in my name to support the greater cause of music therapy.  I would appreciate it mightily!

Runner on Wheels
In addition to marathon training, I have had a second project going on this summer.  You will remember that I got a bike at the beginning of the summer and my goal was to become a fairly proficient rider by the time school started again.  I am happy to report that I installed some proper pedals, got some shoes, and have been successfully clipping in and out during my rides this week.  I have so much to learn, but have enjoyed a couple of bike rallies now and feel comfortable enough to go on longish rides with my friends.  Do I still feel like a runner pretending to ride a bike? Yes!  And I still have so very much to learn!

Donkey Ride Buddies-TPG, Robert, and Heidi

Aside from the Dr Pepper ride, I have had a couple of other memorable experiences on the bike this summer.  In July I was thrilled to go on my first Donkey Ride.  My friends have this great route that goes through the edge of the suburbs and passes a field with some of the friendliest donkeys you will ever see.  If you know me at all, you know that donkeys are one of my favorite things.  Imagine how my heart filled with joy as I snapped these pictures. 

I also took part in the Blazing Saddles 40 mile ride out in mountainous Granbury this past weekend.  This ride was brought to me by the letter "H" for hills, headwinds, heat, and humbling.  I knew that Granbury was hillier than the Metroplex, but I didn't know just how challenging it would be.  There was one steep grade that came from out of nowhere (a friend estimated the % of the grade--but I forget those details...I just saw STEEP) after a sharp corner and a quick downhill.  There was a pile of cyclists on the ground, people on the sides--it was madness!  This is when I hopped off my bike and pushed it up the hill....and I giggled the whole way.  I couldn't believe that I was pushing my bike! The ride was quite challenging at times, more fun at other times, and overall I had a blast.  The day was made even better as we hung out under a sparse shade tree waiting for Debby and Erin to finish their 75 mile ride.  Yep, 75 miles on those hills and in that heat?  These women are beasts! 

Blazing Saddles!

Add in a splash of part time work, time spent with friends, lots of time hanging with Mr K, tons of Olympic watching, and a somewhat unhealthy obsession with Rangers baseball and you have my summer in a nutshell.  I am always grateful for a job that allows me a bit of "down time" each year to recharge my batteries and rev up for another challenging, yet fulfilling, year at work. As I head back to work next week I will carry with me a mind full of memories, a heart full of happiness, and a body covered in odd and random tan lines.