Kerrville 70.3 Bike: And She Rides

(Welcome to Part 3 of my Kerrville 70.3 story - be sure to catch up with the Prelude and Swim - I'll wait here!)

The energy coming out of the swim and T1 was incredibly good.  I noticed that the winds had picked up, but there was no rain yet and that was a good thing.  Time to take Vivace and go for a little spin!   The bike course was one giant loop that we rode twice.  We headed southeast along a highway for the first dozen or so miles before turning onto a beautiful country road for the next 8-10 miles then we headed back towards Kerrville on another small stretch of highway.  Once again, I focused on settling in and getting a good, steady pace.  My plan for the day was to not go out to fast on anything, but to get a good solid start.  Coach Frank backed up my thinking when he said these same things at the team dinner the night before.

I passed several people on the first five to ten miles of the bike, while I am a slow swimmer I am not so slow on the bike.  This was a little bit nerve wracking as we were riding on the shoulder of the highway at this point.  There wasn't a ton of traffic, but the surface was rough at times and there was some chip seal too.  Things really settled in for me once we made the turn onto River Road.  I wish that we could have ridden the whole thing on that stretch of road because it was really quite beautiful. We passed through a tiny town, but other than that there weren't many cars or people around.

The roads were wet by then and I could tell that it had rained in some spots, I was extra cautious on the turns and the downhills because this was no time for a crash.  The puddles only got worse as the ride went on, and I got rained on a couple of times.  It sounds like I got pretty lucky though because Mr K said he rode in a driving rain at points.  The last part of the first loop began to wear on me a little bit because I was so ready to see the end of it and be on the second loop.  I knew that this restless feeling might be even worse the second time around and I tried to prepare myself for it.

It was a bit of a boost to ride by the race site and start the second loop - halfway done!  I wasn't sure of my average speed, but I knew that my five mile splits were coming in consistently and at a good clip.  My heartrate was also staying nice and controlled and I knew that would serve me well over the course of the day.  I was eating and drinking on schedule and I felt pretty good, other than starting to get that "I've been on my bike a while" feeling.  My right hip was getting a bit stiff but I was able to deal with it by changing positions on the bike on occasion.

The first part of the second loop was even more treacherous this time because the wind had picked up.  The crosswind was so scary at times that I had to get out of aero just to feel more secure on the bike.  This also happened to be the section where the road was a little bit rough and where some of the faster guys were passing me so it was a bit of a white knuckle ride.  I was very ready to make that turn towards River Road.  I had a huge "heck yes!" moment during this part of the ride when I grabbed a water bottle from a volunteer at the aide station and jammed it into my aero bottle without stopping.  Seriously, that just makes one feel a bit like a badass and it is only the second time I have ever done it.

Now for some honest talk:  triathletes always talk about peeing on their bikes.  It seems to be a little bit of a badge of honor, for some odd reason.  I'd never given it much thought until I was on the backside of the course with no aide station in sight.  I kinda needed to go....could I wait for the next stop....did I want to get off my bike?  I decided just to let it go...and I laughed to myself about it for the rest of the day.  Who have I become?

There was a random guy out cheering on a small out-and-back section and seeing him the second time really lifted my spirits - especially when he pointed out that I had ridden nearly 50 miles!  I was so ready for this ride to be over, but I hadn't really realized that I was less than 10 miles from the end of it.  I saw several people on the side of the road with flat tires and I just triple crossed my fingers that I would make it into T2 without any drama.

I had set some very broad time goals for myself on the bike and on the run.  The bike was the bright spot in my 1st 70.3, which started with a dramatic swim and ended with a tough run.  That ride is still one of my best ever and I rode that one in 3:16.  I wasn't sure if I would be able to top that here, and still have good legs for the run, but I decided that I would be happy to match that time.  Spoiler alert: I beat my previous time by about 5 minutes.

T2 was waiting for us! I still know where my bag is!

I have grown and improved so much as an athlete in the past year, and I think that my biggest area of improvement has been on the bike.  I worked hard and made a lot of gains last summer and I was determined to keep my bike fitness during the off season.  I was fortunate to have discovered the Shawnee Trail Cycling Club and we join the Thursday night rides almost every week.  Riding with that group not only helped me maintain my skills, but increase them as I even moved up a pace group during the off season.  I would be remiss if I didn't mention my new bike in all of this, Vivace is one fast ride!

I had all of these things in mind as I rode back into Kerrville and towards the transition area.  I was having a great day swimming and riding my bike and now it was time for my most favorite of all - the run!

Bike: 3:11:05 (56 miles - 17.6 mph)
4th AG
5:24 T2

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.

TexasMan Tri: She's Going The (Olympic) Distance

Did I ever tell you about the TexasMan Tri, my first Olympic distance triathlon?  It happened back in mid-May at Lake Ray Roberts.  An Olympic distance triathlon consists of a one mile swim, a 23 mile bike ride, and a 10K (6.2 mile) run.  You may remember that I did three sprint distance triathlons before my Half Ironman distance triathlon last year.  It was my plan to do an Olympic distance race during my training, but the epic spring rainfalls left most local lakes closed for the summer and forced many races to be cancelled.  I was looking forward to giving the distance a shot as it sounded like a good challenge.  I was also planning to use it as good baseline measure of my fitness level heading into training for my second Half Ironman distance triathlon coming up in September.  The swim would be fairly close to Half Iron distance and the bike and run were just shy of half the distance.

Post Race with Sandie and Andy (Pic: Andy)

Mr K and I arrived plenty early and went about the business of setting up our stuff in the transition area.  I am getting the hang of this, but still feel like a rookie at times as I forget important stuff.  This time I forgot to take my bike food out of my bag, but fortunately I remembered it before I took off. The weather seemed to be pleasant with temperatures in the low 70s and a slight breeze to blow around the ever-present humidity.  We saw lots of friends as we donned our wetsuits and headed down to the beach area for the start.  The sprint distance race started before us and Mr K and I were in the last two swim waves of the Olympic race, so we had plenty of time to visit with friends.  I think that we were all trying to distract ourselves for the chop that was happening out on the water.  We all knew that this was not going to be fun swim.

Hanging on the beach with Andy (Pic: Goat)

Swim
It probably took 45 minutes from the start of the race until it was time for my swim wave to go.  I heard that they were allowing more time between each swim wave to insure that there was enough kayak coverage to keep everyone safe.  As we stood on the beach, itching to get going, they announced that a boat was bringing in a swimmer from a previous wave who could not make it. Upon seeing this, I immediately thought "do not be on that boat." I wanted lots of open water swimming experience this training cycle, this would certainly count as experience!  We were finally off with a splash as the waves were hitting me in the face.  My initial thought was "I can't do this. I just can't!" I took a second to take a deep breath and focus on the task at hand.  I could and I would do this.

That chop was no joke (Pic: Andy)

The swim course was a triangle shape and my first goal was to get out to the buoy halfway between the start and the first turn.  It was not easy and I had trouble even keeping it in sight at times, but I did it.  Once I made it there, my next goal was to make it to the first turn.  I really couldn't allow myself to think about the fact that I was swimming out into a super choppy lake, forward progress was the name of the game.  There were a few swimmers around me and I just focused on staying with them.  I hoped that once I turned the first corner things would get better as I would not be swimming directly into the waves anymore.  It felt like I was swimming forever, but I made it across the "top" of the triangle and to the final turn.  Swimming towards the shore was a big mental boost - I was going to make it!  I thought that it might feel like a tail wind after the final turn, but it didn't quite work out that way.  I was so happy when I could put my feet on the ground and run towards the beach. Knowing that I could survive that choppy swim was a great feeling, especially after the swim drama at Redman 70.3.  My swim time was 49:11, good enough for 5th in my age group - I'll take it!

T1
I'm not sure that there is anything more awkward than me with the wetsuit strippers.  Maybe I should practice this at my next open water swim - haha!  I think that it is just not a natural skill for me.  A random button on my watch got pushed during my wetsuit removal and I spent precious time in transition trying to mess with it.  I was quite distracted when I heard Goat holler at me to go faster - I really wish that I could have some of that time back, but I consider it another lesson learned.  I got back to hustling and headed towards the bike course.  My T1 time was 4:33, smack in the middle of my age group, but I can do better.

Celebrating with Nikki, Mr K, and Nestor (Pic: Nikki)

Bike
I was super excited to take Vivace, my new bike, out for a race...after the most awkward bike mount ever.  I had been riding my road bike so much and the tri bike was still a little new to me, so getting clipped in and finding the handle bars was a little tricky.  I kinda slow rolled off to the left and hoped like heck that I wasn't about to lose my balance and fall over.  I was embarrassed too as Goat was standing right there and witnessed the whole thing.  The weather was pretty nice for the bike, not too windy and the sky was still overcast.  There were some rollers on the course which made it interesting and fun.  My main thought during the bike was to keep my cadence fast so I would have legs for the run. Since it was my first time at this distance, I wasn't sure what to expect or how to pace it.  I kept my efforts pushed, but manageable and focused on cadence.  I enjoyed the ride, but I was ready to be finished by the time we made it back to the park.  My bike time was 1:23:46 (17.3 mph), the fastest bike split in my age group.  I might be the most proud of that as I have worked hard over the last year to become a stronger cyclist.

Big smiles as I finish up the bike (Pic: Goat)

T2
I'm still working at getting more efficient with these transitions and I think that it is something I will get better at with experience.  This one was fairly uneventful and I was out of there in 2:32. Time for my favorite - running!

Run
Much like the bike, I thought about having fast and light feet.  The run course was two loops so I settled into a pace that felt slightly pushed, but manageable.  There were lots of faces to see as this was a two-way course and I tried to let that distract me a bit.  I didn't look at my watch until the first mile chimed and I was absolutely astounded to see 8:20.  There was no way I felt like I was running that fast....but I was really happy about it!  Taking Meb's advice and focusing on one mile at a time, working to run that mile the best I could.  I was thrilled again and again as the next two miles came in at 8:17 and 8:16.  The sun was out now and I could feel the heat and the humidity.  Where did that breeze go?  I felt fatigued a bit as I headed out on my second loop, but knowing I was halfway done was a good thing. I was grateful to see Goat's face occasionally, he is a great cheerleader!

On the run (Pic: Goat)

 It was during this loop that I remembered that I could pour water on my head - not sure why it took me so long to remember that, the first few warm weather races are rough!  My next mile came in at 8:48 so the struggle was real.  This course isn't "hilly" but there are lots of false flats that make it challenging.  Mile 5 was my slowest at 9:09 as I walked through an aide station just to rest for a bit. It was a huge boost to come to the end of the second loop and take the turn that headed towards the finish line.  The last mile was 8:31 - not a "last one, fast one" but I did rally a bit for the finish.  My run time was 51:27 (my watch measured the course at 6 miles instead of 6.2 making my average pace 8:33) giving me the 2nd fastest run time in my age group - I missed the fastest by 3 seconds, so close!

TexasMan Finishers! (Pic: Goat)

My total time was 3:11:31.  The results were never posted, the names were just announced during the awards, so I had no idea how I did in my age group.  I discovered later that there was a mistake in the first place person's time which would have given me 3rd place in my age group.  I never got this corrected, officially, but I am happy just knowing I did it.  All in all, I was quite happy with my first attempt at the Olympic distance.  It is a challenging race distance as it has you going hard for a few hours and I look forward to taking another shot it at sometime in the future. I am super pleased with my base heading into the next round of 70.3 training and I feel happy to finally have a successful long open water race swim, such a confidence boost.

Redman 70.3, A Story in 3 Acts: Act I - The Swim

At long last Thursday afternoon arrived and it was time to head towards Oklahoma City for Redman 70.3.  Race week had left me a bit scattered, I think that it is my least favorite week of the whole training cycle (not counting race recovery...ugh.).  I was terribly distracted all week and had all kinds of thoughts, doubts, dreams, and nightmares.  What was I thinking when I signed up for this?  Do you realize how far 70.3 miles is?  What have I done?!  Add to that apprehension over allergies and a developing cough and I was a hot mess.  By the time we arrived in OKC, I had chills and felt like I was fighting off an illness.  Cue the frantic trip to CVS where Mr K and I purchased all of the decongestants, a Netti Pot (and bless Mr K's heart for helping me use this thing for the first time ever), and Emergen-C.  No time for illness!

I woke up feeling cautiously better on Friday morning and we headed out to the practice swim.  I wanted to see the course and feel the water before the rush of race morning.  It was also the first time I had the opportunity to swim in my wetsuit.  (Nothin like last minute!).  I'm thankful that Mr K was there to help me put it on, I'm sure that looked like quite the scene.  The water temperature was in the mid to low 70s, not super cold but much chillier than the warm lake I swam in during the summer.  It took my breath away at first then I settled in and had a nice swim.  I was one of the last people out of the water at the practice swim and apparently I stumbled upon a wedding as I came out of the water. Who gets married at a triathlon practice swim?  Crazy triathletes, that is who.  My friend Debby, who was also out at the practice swim, pointed out that a 70.3 or 140.6 triathlon would be the worst honeymoon ever.

Big smiles at the practice swim (Photo: Mr K)

I took Friday super easy and was able to nap and rest at the hotel for a good part of the afternoon. I was excited to go to race check-in and tried to just soak it all in.  Athlete meeting, money spent at the expo (all the Redman gear!), and it was time to rack my bike in transition where it would be waiting for me the next morning.  We enjoyed a feast of pizza at Hideaway Pizza, one of our Oklahoma favorites, before heading back to the hotel.  When we returned our buddy Stude stopped by for a pre-race visit and pep talk.  Lights went out early, but sleep was elusive at times.  I felt like I woke up every couple of hours and we ended up getting up before the alarm.

My first 70.3 was also the US National Championship (Photo: Stude)

Race day was finally here!!  We got parked in plenty of time and made the one mile walk to the start area.  The morning was cool-ish, compared the the hot summer mornings, with temperatures in the 60s.  The dark lake looked like glass as there was barely a breeze.  You just can't ask for better weather in late September.  So much excitement in the air, it was going to be a good day.  It was my friend Alicia's third time to do Redman 70.3 and it was nice to see that her bike was racked pretty close to mine.  The transition area was so busy - just bustling with athletes preparing their bikes and running gear for the day ahead.  I checked and re-checked my stuff and then headed out to meet up with Mr K and get into my wetsuit.  Mr K was so patient and helpful as I checked and rechecked my gear. I could hardly believe that it was about to go down!

With my beastly Iron friends Stude and Debby (Photo: Mr K)

I am such a lucky person as I had the best cheer squad out there rooting for me.  Mr K was joined by Drum, Baha, Ninja, Fi, TPG, and Robert - most of them getting up at an obscene hour to drive from Dallas to Oklahoma City in time for the start of the race.  It is a pretty incredible group of friends that I have and I'm especially reminded of this in moments like this.  I got some final good luck wishes from Mr K, the Ninjas, Drum, and Baha just as I was heading into the water.  Alicia and I laughed and talked as we waded into the lake.  It was go time!

It is impossible to look cute in a wetsuit & swimcap (Photo: Drum)

Swim - 1:06:53
I found myself fairly calm heading into the swim, just wanted to get through it as evenly and smoothly as I could. No drama, no wasted energy.  I was glad that I went to the practice swim on Friday because I knew how the water would feel, how it was shallow enough to touch in places, and how my wetsuit could help me out if I worked with it.  My swim leg was next-to-last so I didn't have to worry too much about a pack of faster swimmers swimming over me.  I got off to an okay start - the water was colder than I was used to and their were people all around me.  I tried to find my little "bubble" of swim space.  The course was shaped like a big rectangle that was sitting parallel to the shore.  I was just starting to find my rhythm when a couple of swimmers came around me.  One of them made contact with my face and that is when things went terribly wrong.  My nose clip disappeared into the murky waters and I knew that my race had just taken an interesting turn.  I never, ever swim without a nose clip.  I have plugged my nose since I was a kid, it is just something that I do.  I know that I should have been better prepared and I even had a spare clip....in my bag on the shore.  Womp. Womp.  Never again will this happen to me - huge lesson learned right there in that moment!

And we are off! (Photo: Mr K)

Sooo.....here I was, early into my swim and with no idea how I would finish.  I looked out at all the buoys and had a brief "oh my gosh this is impossible" moment before I took a deep breath and went back to work.  I swam with my head out of the water for a little bit, but that was quite difficult and tiring.  Then I decided to put my face in the water and give it a shot.  It was terribly uncomfortable as I am not used to breathing this way, but I was making progress.  I saw a kayak near the first turn and made it my goal to get to the kayak so I could take a break and regroup.  The kayaker was great, told me that I had great form and talked about how special it was to be doing a race like this, and that he and his daughter did the full 140.6 distance at Redman the year before.  I took the time to catch my breath and gather myself for more swimming.

The look of "what just happened?"

I swam to the next turn (the short side of the rectangle) and took a moment at the next kayak.  While here I heard myself making a terrible cough, you know the kind that sounds like it might be a precursor to barfing? I'm thinking that I was swallowing some of Lake Hefner.  I saw the next kayak 100 yards or away and reasoned that I could just swim kayak-to-kayak all the way through.  A few minutes later I was frustrated and winded and I flipped over on my back to take a break. This is when I discovered that I could make good progress whilst backstroking....so backstroke I did.  I was actually holding a pretty good pace compared to the swimmers around me and those turn buoys were getting further and further away.  Not ideal, but forward progress is the name of the game!

I worried that I might be killing my shoulders for the bike, but kept on going. I think that I might have had a more decent swim time if I'd figured this out earlier. All those hours of training spent swimming and I backstroked half of my 70.3 swim. Ridiculous!  I was never so relieved to get out of the water and found myself laughing and shaking my head as I stumbled to the shore.  What the heck just happened?  No time to dwell upon it because it was time to ride my bike!

Cooper Sprint Tri: Dress Rehearsal

I have had the most fun this summer training for Redman 70.3 Half Ironman.  I usually enjoy training, but this has just been such a blast.  I can think of only a few runs and bike rides that were just awful, and most of that had to do with the heat.  I am almost sad to see the training come to an end as race day approaches.  I intend to devote a blog post to training highlights, hopefully I can share that before race day on September 26.  As much as I've been practicing swimming, biking, and running (and often running right off the bike), I have not had many opportunities to practice putting it all together. I feel that I have improved a great deal since my last triathlon in April and I wanted to get another shot at doing everything in a race environment.  Fortunately for me, there was a sprint tri at the Cooper Center in McKinney this past weekend.  Looks like I found myself a dress rehearsal!

I arrived just after transition opened at 6:00 am as I wanted to have plenty of time to set up my area and get a feel for the race layout.  There were no other bikes the bike rack designated for my bib number so I was able to get the end spot!  The transition area was small-ish so it didn't matter too much, but I was excited to have a spot that would be so easy to find.  I wandered around a bit and visited with some friends as I waited for the race to start.  The weather was wonderful and the temperatures were in the upper 60s before the race started.  I shivered a little bit and wished for a moment that I had brought a light jacket.  Such a change when we have grown accustomed to much hotter weather!  Normally I would hang out with Mr K, but his mom-Linda was visiting us and they were coming a bit later.  No reason to wake her up in the middle of the night to get to the race so early. I had plenty of time to swim a warm-up lap so I took full advantage of it.  The pool at the Cooper Center is simply divine - outdoors and heated with wide, 50 meter lanes.  I did not want to get out after my warm-up because I knew how chilly I would be waiting for the race to start.

Swim
I never have time goals for the swim because I'm more interested in keeping a smooth, easy pace and good form.  This swim was 350 meters, so 7 lengths in the gorgeous pool.  I got very fortunate as I did not have too many people directly ahead of or behind me.  I was passed once and it happened to be at the same time I was trying to get around a slower swimmer.  Definitely not "smooth" in those moments, but I was able to recover my little pocket of space and swim on.

I was really enjoying myself and was a little bit sad when the swim was finished.  I could see Mr K and Linda on the side of the pool and gave them a small wave as I started the last lap.  I have to find time to get back out to that pool for a swim.  My official time for the 350m was 8:51, not blazing fast but important to note that at my last tri in April I swam 400m in 11:26.  Looks like my training this summer has made a difference.  Even better, I really enjoyed it and felt as if I met my goal of a steady and smooth pace.

Bike
One of my big goals for the day was to practice transitions.  My set-up worked well for me as well as thinking of top-to-bottom and vice versa when it came to switching from swim gear to bike gear.  My time in transition (T1) was 1:39.  Still not as fast as I would like, but way faster than the 3:00 from my April race.  The bike course consisted of two, six mile loops and had some pretty decent "hills" on the route.  I say "hills" because they are not really all that bad compared with other parts of town, but still enough of an incline to be challenging when put in a single six mile loop.  I got a good start and focused on pedaling hard and following all of the triathlon rules about passing and proper distance between bikes.

I didn't have any time goals here either, I just wanted to ride hard and see what I could do.  I was able to wave at Mr K and Linda as I came through the end of the first loop.  It was so nice to have them there! I passed several people, especially on the second loop which was more congested as most people were finished with the swim by this point.  I was only passed once, which felt pretty good!  My ride was over before I knew it - 37:27 was my time and my average speed was 19.23 mph. Of all the improvements that I have made this summer, I think that my bike fitness has been the biggest!  So exciting!

Run
My heart felt so happy as I headed back into transition because I was about to run - my favorite!!  I got in and out with a T2 time of 2:06, which was almost 30 seconds faster than my last race.  Not super fast, but getting better!  I didn't really know what to expect on the run as I have not been doing speed work in the same way that I usually do.  I have been training by heart rate the summer and that has meant bringing my run paces back a little bit in order to stay in my training zone.  Again, I had no goals for this other than to practice all of the transitions and test out my gear so I ran by feel.  I was passed early into the run by a 13 year old boy.  This guy looked like a pro - even handled the aide station so smoothly!  He ran beautiful negative splits and ended up about a minute faster than me on the run and 1st place in the 14 and under age group.  It is so impressive to see all the kids race at these events, they are really good at it too!  I was surprised to see that my 1st mile paced at 8:54 - a great start and that certainly inspired me to keep on working.

Much like the bike course, there are a decent amount of "hills" on the run.  I passed a few more people and was enjoying the cooler temperatures - no doubt that was helping my pacing as I had trained in temperatures that were over 20 degrees warmer much of the time.  There was a good deal of shade on this course as parts of it followed the running path at the Cooper Center. Mile two chimed on my watch  at 8:36 - yay for negative splits!  This run felt pretty short and I decided to push the pace when there was just under a mile to go.  I got a boost with a nice downhill coming into mile 3 and also from the sounds of the crowd and the race announcer.  Back to the Cooper track and through the finish line in 26:30 - not a shabby 5K!  My last mile came in at 8:16 so super yay for negative splits!  My run was a minute or so slower than my last triathlon in April, but I feel like the whole picture is much more balanced now.  In April I felt like a runner who also swam and rode a bike, but at this race I felt like a triathlete.

I had no idea how I did compared to the rest of the women in my age group.  The wonderful thing about triathlon is that everyone's age is written on their calf so you know who is around you.  I didn't see many women on the course as this race was 60-something percent men (according to the race website) and I certainly didn't see anyone with my age on their leg.  I was stalking the race results and was beyond thrilled when I saw my name in second place in my age group!  Looks like we would be delaying the post race brunch a bit as we stuck around for the awards.  It is hard to beat standing on a podium, it is one of those things that doesn't come around all that frequently, and I milked every moment of it!

My dress rehearsal race was a huge success.  While the distances were only a fraction of what I will put together on September 26 at Redman 70.3, it gave me a shot of confidence and also a glimpse of just how much fun that day is going to be - I am fired up now!!

Quick Hits: Summer Funnin' Edition

The typically busy end-of-school-year and laid back beginning of summer means that I have not checked in here in quite a while!  I think about it often, just never seem to find the time to sit down and crank out a blog post.  So how about some quick hits, summer funnin' style?

Life on the patio

Back In The Saddle

School was out on a Friday afternoon and I was at the Mesquite Rodeo Ride bright and early on Saturday morning.  It felt great to hit the open road again and I was missing my bike, Johann, as I had not been on it much at all this spring.  The folks in Mesquite always put on a nice rally with a well marked route, officers at the intersections, precious little chip seal, and delicious food at the end.  I was ready to be done by the end of the 40 mile route and very thankful that I was not riding the 60 mile route that day.

The next Saturday brought another favorite, the Collin Classic.  I had memories of last year being hot, windy, and miserable at the end and I looked forward to getting that monkey off of my back.  It turned out to be a great day with lots of cloud cover and the occasional rain shower.  Hard to top that in June!  Once again we were treated to a great rally with a nice route and terrific food at the end.  This time it was 45 miles and I was ready to be finished and grateful that I was not riding the longer course.  I think I am finally starting to realize that I don't have to chose the longest route every single time.

Leaving My Comfort Zone

I got up super early on the second day of summer and headed towards Mesquite again, this time for an open water swim clinic put on by Tri-Now Endurance.  I was so nervous and excited and I knew that I was taking a big step out of my comfort zone - which is exactly why I should be doing it.  I have taken to swimming fairly easily in the pool and I spent countless hours in Lake Texoma growing up, but it had been many years since I had set foot in a lake.  I took a moment to collect myself upon entering the lake, and then I was off.  I did not swim too far away from the shore as I had trouble seeing with my non-smoked goggles and I had not taken the clinic yet.  I swam around for a while, getting a little farther out each time, before the clinic began.  Coach Frank taught us some of the finer points of open water swimming and gave us a chance to practice these things in the water.  I was having so much fun, I didn't want it to end.  I can't wait to get back in the open water again; however, the lakes nearest to me are still extremely high due to the record rains this spring.  I am looking forward to getting back out to an open water swim with Tri-Now very soon!

Open Water Swim Clinic - I'm one of those bodies in the water! (Pic: Tri-Now)

Half Ironman Training....and go!

Soon after my hugely successful second triathlon in April, I decided to take a leap and sign up for Redman 70.3 in late September.  You can only imagine how sweaty my palms were as I hit the "enter" key on my registration.  Training started on the first Monday of summer vacation and I have really been enjoying it.  I really am a geek for training, I love the process, the hard work, and the nitty gritty of it all.  I was able to focus just on training during the first two weeks as there was a break between regular school and summer school.  I am excited that most of the training will fall during the summer months so that I can treat training like a part time job.  I've been swimming twice a week, riding my bike 3 times a week, running 3-4 times a week, and hitting the weights a couple of times each week.  The workouts will increase in time and intensity over the coming weeks and I'm very much looking forward to it.

No swimming...or running...here for a while!

Frundraising

If you have followed me for a while, then you know that I like to chose one big race each year to "give" to the American Music Therapy Association.  I am happy to announce that I will be tri-ing for music therapy this year at the Redman 70.3 Triathlon.  My fundraising is already off to a strong start and I look forward to reaching my goal in the coming months.  I would love it if you would check out my page here and pass it along to those who may be interested.

Of course...Rangers baseball

I can't leave out baseball!  I was lucky enough to catch a Rangers game last Thursday and I hope to get to some more games soon.  I love a summer weekday game, it is so worth the sweating just to feel like you are "getting away with something" while everyone else is working.  

I can hardly believe that June is already behind us and I am hoping that July passes by a little more slowly!  I am already looking forward to Liberty by the Lake 5K and El Scorcho 25K and many more adventures on the bike and in the water.

Spectating...Tips from the Pros

Sunday June 3 found me with a with a variation in my usual long run routine....June 3 was the Play-Tri Sprint and Olympic Triathlon and there was cheering to be done.  My circle of friends is filled with some pretty incredible people and I find myself busting my tail just to keep up with them.  I am not sure I would have had half of the experiences (or fun) if it weren't for them.  Example: Drum and That Pink Girl were racing their hearts out in the sprint distance...and Mary, Alicia, DK, and Elizabeth would be venturing into new territory and trying their hand at the Olympic distance.  Time to make some signs, dress in "visible from space colors", and grab a pink tambourine!  These friends give me so much energy and inspiration daily, cheering for them is the least that I can do...seriously.

So here are my tips to make your next cheering adventure a successful one:

1. Bright colors are essential--it is much easier for your athlete to spot you if you are dressed in colors that are "visible from space." The more people in bright colors, the better.  I knew I was one the right track this day when a sleeping Mr K cracked open one eye, looked at me, and said  "Oh wow...you are jarring."        MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

2. Catchy signs--have a great inside joke or one liner that you share with your athlete?  Slap it on a brightly colored sign...bonus points for glitter.  And be sure to make some generic signs while you are at it.  Not every athlete will be lucky enough to have their own cheer squad and they will appreciate the word of encouragement or laugh along the way.

A special thanks to Stephanie for this catchy sign

                                   

3. Hydrate--this is Texas and it is hot out there...not just for the athletes.  Make sure you pack contains proper hydration for the support crew. 

4. Be loud--I grabbed a bright pink tambourine for this occasion, but any random cowbell or egg shaker will work as well.  Some of my friends are lucky enough to adorn gypsy-style jingle skirts. Also, yell at the top of your lungs.  There is nothing worse than running your heart out as you pass a silent crowd.  See an athlete that looks whipped?  Yell!  See a young kid working as hard as they can?  Cheer louder! See a girl about to pass a guy (aka "chick him") at the finish line? Cheer your loudest AND shake your tambourine! 

5. Wear your running shoes--you never know when your energy and spirit can be of help to your athlete on the course.  Sometimes just jumping in with them for a minute or two can provide the spark that they need.  And jumping in during the last mile on a steaming hot course can be just what they need to propel them over the finish line.

Coach Rainbow Brite to the rescue!

Mary's Frunner Bubble of Love

 6. Show your athlete how proud you are of their accomplishment!  Congratulate them when they are finished....but beware....they will want to hug you....and triathletes are pretty soggy.

I can guarantee you that I took away more energy, inspiration, and memories than the athletes did that day!  I would like to issue a sincere thanks to all of the athletes for sharing their race day with me.



As always...a special thanks to Mama C for providing many of the pictures that bring this blog to life!