I hardly ever write in my Blog unless it's about a race or something... but as I was writing in the Penguins Thread this morning, I decided to copy it to here... I think I'll do that daily :)
Saturday afternoon, My company participated in Dragon Boat Races to raise money & awareness for Breast Cancer... we had 2 teams this year... The format of the race was that everyone got to race twice and the 6 teams with the best times would race-off at the end... We went into the finals with the 2 best times of the day! So, our two teams raced each other in the finals, and our boat won... we took 1st place! our other boat didn't do so well and took 6th place overall... still, I got to add another medal to my collection - it's getting rather large.
Sunday, our local biking club had an anniversary ride and all of the proceeds went to the MS society. We had a choice of 20 or 40 mile rides - I chose the 40 miler (of course) I did pretty good considering the challenging hills... after the ride, they provided a yummy lunch with cake and sodas and of course good friends... then they raffled off many, many prizes - each participant got 3 raffle tickets with the chance to purchase more - I bought an extra 12 tickets for $10... I won twice! I got a $15 gift certificate for a RoadID (about time I got one - you think?) and I won a $200 bike light that I'll sell because I already have a light that I like... all in all a good day!
Last Night, we had thunder & lightening & rain, my dog FREAKED out and kept me up half the night...
Monday, October 18, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Viva Bike Vegas
I signed up for this ride when they announced the Century Ride will go over the Hoover Dam bypass road BEFORE they opened the road to regular traffic... I thought "How cool is that?" and I had a feeling that the ride would sell out... and indeed it did - not as soon as I thought it would, but they capped the ride at 1500 riders, and with VERY little notice, they closed the registration, and some of my friends did not register in time :(
I didn't put together a rigid training plan for this ride. Since I did the Tahoe ride, I had confidence that I would be able to finish this one - although this was an extra 15 miles! I just tried to keep my mileage between 125 and 150 miles per week... I thought that would do it.... Looking back, I think I was better prepared for the Tahoe ride...Although, my average Power for this ride was WAY higher than my average for Tahoe... hmmmm maybe I improved afterall?
Night before the ride, I went to McGhies for last minute items - got a bigger Bento Box and got some new cleats as my old cleats were pretty old, and I was having trouble clipping in & out with them... then I went to a 7-11 to get bandaids as I got a paper-cut opening the mail... I threw $10 into a machine and got a Royal Flush!!! Put me in a GREAT mood for the ride :)
I decided to wear my BLV Jersey so I could wear the RTC jersey on Sunday's ride... it was fun to see so many BLV members out there... we had a plan to meet by the front before we lined up... I took a couple of pictures, not sure if there was a big group shot at that point, but in my nervousness, I went and lined up by myself - and I bumped into some TnT Friends... so I rode out with them for the first part.
The starting shoot was LONG, and they had the music playing "Viva Las Vegas" with Elvis and show girls - only thing missing was Oscar... a brief count down, the horn, and we were off
I took this picture at the end of the ride... but this is the starting shoot:
Down the streets of Vegas we went - with Police Escort so we didn't have to stop at any traffic signals - how cool is that? soon enough, we were at the first big hill (of many) My strategy was just to put it in an easy gear and spin... success... made it up to the top and was rewarded with about 6-8 miles down hill...
I took this picture at the end of the ride... but this is the starting shoot:
Down the streets of Vegas we went - with Police Escort so we didn't have to stop at any traffic signals - how cool is that? soon enough, we were at the first big hill (of many) My strategy was just to put it in an easy gear and spin... success... made it up to the top and was rewarded with about 6-8 miles down hill...
We came to the first Aid Station and it was a mess! Bikes all over the place, lines about 20 deep for the port-a-pots...I had to go, but I could wait... so I navigated around the crowd and rode on... up the road a ways, there was a turn-out and a car was stopped with a man setting up some equipment (looked like a tri-pod) I stopped there to eat my first PB&J sandwhich (Nutrition plan was to stop & eat half a sandwich every 20 miles and to munch on pretzels & sports beans in between, plus NUUN tablets in my water bottles)... turns out it was the Bike Mechanic from REI - he took a look at my brakes for me (they had been making noise) and gave me a cold bottled water - PERFECT! After about a 5 minute break, I rode on... my TnT friends were long gone by then... What goes down must go back up, and the climbing started again... I stopped and took a picture of Lake Las Vegas - it was a beautiful view on a beautiful day...and I hardly ever have my camera while riding out there...
I climbed up out of Northshore Drive and onto LakeShore drive... got up the "hill from hell" and I knew there was a restroom soon, but when I passed, there was a line - Boulder Beach it was - whether there was a line or not... At Boulder Beach, I stopped at the restroom - nobody else was there - at first I thought maybe the door was locked, but nope, I got to go with NO WAITING - SCORE!!!
I got back on the road, and started the steep climb up past the visitor center to the main road, turned left and headed to the Dam... There was another Aid Station there, and I quickly filled my bottle with water, then continued - past the check-point and onto the Brand New Road... it was smooth and since it wasn't open to cars, we had the whole road to ourselves! Soon, I was on the Bridge - the only way to tell was that the Volunteers were there with Cow Bells and cheering us on... You really couldn't see anything because the walls were too high... but they had a Camera Set-up to take your picture with the Dam behind you... as I rode up, the whole BLV group had just taken their group shot - I was told I was about 2-3 minutes late for that... but the Volunteers let me cut in line for an individual picture so I could be with my group... I had my picture taken, and the group rode off... I stayed there for a bit... I looked over the wall at the Dam, but because I'm so short, it was hard to see anything... I don't know if we rode into Arizona, but when I was coming off the Bridge, there was a "Welcome to Nevada" sign, so I stopped to take a picture of that too...
Now that the exciting part of the ride was over, it was hard to get motivated for the next 75 miles - especially as now the hard climb to Boulder City was about to start. Since that was an out-and-back section, I got to see that there were TONS of people ahead of me, but that there were also a lot of people behind me... I stopped half-way up the hill to Boulder City to eat my 2nd PB&J sandwhich... a little late at around 45 miles... it's all good...
finished my climb and got on the River Mountain Trail - the volunteers were AWESOME again, making sure we went the right way and warning us of the hazards. I've gotta say that this course was VERY well marked, I never questioned which way to go, never had to take out my map! The RMT was a fun part of the ride - mostly down-hill but a few short steep uphill parts... We turned off the RMT onto this street where I had never been before - I'm thinking it's where the Silverman Route goes that I missed with Jen when I rode with her last week....
finished my climb and got on the River Mountain Trail - the volunteers were AWESOME again, making sure we went the right way and warning us of the hazards. I've gotta say that this course was VERY well marked, I never questioned which way to go, never had to take out my map! The RMT was a fun part of the ride - mostly down-hill but a few short steep uphill parts... We turned off the RMT onto this street where I had never been before - I'm thinking it's where the Silverman Route goes that I missed with Jen when I rode with her last week....
It seemed to take forever, but at around mile 60 was the turn-off for lunch... I debated going down the hill to the park, but I needed more water, and I could use the break... when I got there, there was a LONG line for food/water.... but I waited in line, refilled both of my bottles, and ate the turkey wrap and a pickle... then got back on the road... when I tasted the water, it tasted HORRIBLE... the first place I could, I stopped and bought some bottled water and continued my ride.. I'm thinking I would have been better off eating my PB&J and getting water at the store - which I did anyway... I think I could have cut off about half an hour to 45 minutes off my time... about 5 more miles, there was another aid station, but I didn't need to stop...
The roads were GREAT going through Henderson & Southern Highlands, and I hated that we went up Jones to get to Blue Diamond Highway - I had driven down it once looking for a bike route and decided it wasn't good - no shoulder, no bike lanes, and heavy traffic... But it was the course, so I went up that street... my left foot was REALLY hurting - not sure why... But I unclipped it so I could move it around hoping that would help the pain... as I was trying to clip back in, I looked down to the left, and I swerved to the right and went off the road - there was about a 4" dip from the road into the dirt, and I fell road side... I was VERY lucky that the car that was behind me stopped before I got run-over (that's always been my biggest fear)... she got out of her car to check on me... nice lady! There were also some other cyclists that stopped to assist... I lost about half of my Sports Beans & pretzels in the fall.... and when the cyclist turned my bike over to put the chain back on, I lost the rest of my afternoon snacks... oh well... so, now my hip and back were hurting, my adrenalin was high, and my pride hurt, but I didn't feel the pain in my left foot any more... and after about a 5 minute break, I rode on...
The Road on Blue Diamond Highway was LONG & HOT and all uphill (of course) and I was hurting... and I ran out of water!! It was along this stretch that I took out my "Dory" chant - "Just keep pedaling, Just keep pedaling" I didn't even care if anyone else heard me... I think I was delirious at that point lol - I figured I'd stop at the Gas Station at the 159/160 intersection... about half mile before there, I had to stop and rest for about a minute... but I made it to the Gas Station and bought some more bottled water - ate another PB&J sandwich... I saw my friends Kurt & Donna there. They were on their Tandem bike... They told me that they each won 8 gold medals in the Senior Olympics Bike Races last week - CONGRATS!!! I told them about my crash... then I rode out... I didn't need to stop at Blue Diamond as I had just refilled....
As I was going up the HARD hill before the overlook, my left foot was hurting again grrrr... there was a man stopped at the side of the road resting... so I stopped next to him and gave him some encouragement... then another rider came up and stopped to rest, so I told him what I had just told the other gentleman... I said, "see that there, it's the top of the hill... then there's one more hill to climb to the overlook - it looks worse than it is, then it's down hill from there except for 3 itty bitty climbs - we can do this!" I don't know if I was talking to them or to myself, but after my speech, I rode on... btw, while I was stopped, Kurt & Donna rode past me, as I expected them to pass me at any time...
I made it up to the overlook and stopped to use the restroom for only the 2nd time during the ride... this time, I had to wait about 30 seconds - not bad... then it was all down hill except for the 3 itty bitty climbs - When I got to Alta, there was another Aid Station, but I rode right on by that one too... I saw Eric there and gave him a shout out... it was 3:30 - I had about 12 miles to go - all down hill... It was advertised that they were serving food til 4pm... Me and the group I was with started chasing the clock to arrive before they stopped serving... it was the best part of the ride... unfortunately, we hit almost all of the traffic signals on Alta - some of them LONG, and I arrived at the finish at 4:08pm... turned in my chip and got my medal and headed over to get food - they were still serving :) had yummy chicken, salad and rice by Outback... I went over and sat by Ken who was volunteering... he went and got me a cold water - what a guy!
After I ate, I saw Deanna (CyborgQueen) who was there volunteering - we chatted a bit, and I said, I wanted to talk with a lady that I had ridden with... as I was making my way over there, I noticed the massage tent - so I got a MUCH NEEDED massage! never did chat with that lady :(
After my massage, as I was walking out, a man came up and gave me a HUGE hug - I didn't know who he was at first... he said, He wouldn't have made it to the finish if it weren't for me... then I realized, he was the one who came up when I was stopped and I gave the speech to... we took our picture together - he thanked me... it felt good :)
I went over to the finish shoot and cheered some people in... and then got back on my bike and rode to my car... When I got home, I was already late for the BLV get-together at Islands, so I quickly showered and got dressed and went out again...
Today is 10/10/10, and I got up and got back on my bike - I'm more hurting from the fall than I am sore from the ride... but I wanted to do 10/10/10 right... so, I rode with the group, ended up at 26.1 miles, I sat and had a bagel and juice, then got back on my bike for another 3.9 miles, so I ended up with 30 miles for the day... I think I'm done riding for a while - well, at least til Wednesday
Thursday, August 05, 2010
Garmin Give Away? Think I can win more stuff?
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2010/08/garmin-forerunner-310xt-giveaway.html
Friday, June 18, 2010
Running Again?
I decided, after much deliberation, that I would try one more time to run... so, I looked up the c25k program and decided to follow that... so I set out on my first walk/run (wog) on Monday and didn't remember what I was supposed to do... so I did 90 sec walk/30 sec run... turns out I was supposed to do a 60 sec run... oh well... so, I'll call it week 0... did all 3 days of week 0 (Mon,Wed,Fri) week 1 starts Monday!
My shins feel a bit tight - but no pain so far... I'm going to Doctor Evil next week - he'll keep my shins good :)
My shins feel a bit tight - but no pain so far... I'm going to Doctor Evil next week - he'll keep my shins good :)
Friday, June 11, 2010
My first Century Ride (I can't believe no disasters)
I know this is long, but a century IS long...
Training:
For the last 6-7 weeks, I increased my cycling mileage up to between 100 - 170 miles per week... I was riding 25 fast miles on Tuesday, 15 miles of HILLS on Thursday, Long Ride with HILLS on Saturday, and a nice 40 mile recovery ride on Sunday. Also, if I found something not working for me, I got it fixed...
I got a compact crank & new cassette to help with climbing. I also started taking Optygen HP, yes I think this REALLY helped me!
Pre-Ride:
This ride was a Charity Ride to raise money for Leukemia/Lymphoma Society and I did it with Team in Training... so, before we left for Lake Tahoe, I changed out my handlebar tape to green & purple (TnT colors) it was a constant reminder of why I'm riding. On Tuesday before we left for Lake Tahoe, we dropped our bikes off to be Trucked up to the Lake... it was hard to let Hoke out of my sight, but I trusted TnT to take care of him!
On Wednesday night, I took my other bike out for a ride as I just needed 1 more ride that week - to fulfill my 4 rides per week goal... I knew it wouldn't make or break the BIG ride ;) Friday came all too soon, and I awoke VERY early to catch an early flight to Reno... I had been warned that I couldn't pack C02 cartridges in my check-in luggage, and I couldn't carry them on either - so I went through my saddle bag and removed the 2 cartridges that I keep in there... well, guess what? I guess I carry 3 of them, because the security scan found one... I was embarrassed, but I explained that I was a cyclist to the security guards... told them where to find the cartridge, and they took it out of the bag for me, holding it between 2 fingertips as if it were a bomb... re-scanned my bag, checked my ID & wrote it up... and let me go...
We arrived in Lake Tahoe, checked in to the Hotel and picked up our bikes from the truck... I immediately took my bike to the mechanic as I was having trouble in a couple of gears - he explained to me how to avoid the rubbing by moving the derailleur without changing rings... but, he also cleaned & oiled the chain for me :) A little while later, our team decided to go out for a short ride... my bike was working GREAT for our 13 mile ride around South Lake Tahoe...I ended up going to dinner with new friends I met at Happy Hour - we had Sushi Dinner - Yummy!
My team decided they wanted to ride Saturday, but I never rode the day before a long ride, so I opted out of that ride... (Smart!) looks like I missed out on a great ride... still the best decision for me!
Saturday afternoon, I had a bit of time between planned events, and decided to fill up my water bottles and do a little prep for the next day's ride... for some unknown reason (I NEVER do this!) I took the pre-filled water bottles and placed them in my bottle cages on my bike... one of the bottle cages came loose - I looked around, and I couldn't find the screw - soooo... back to the bike mechanic I went... he had a screw and fixed the cage for me no problem - whew! Disaster averted! How did the cage come loose between yesterday's ride and today???
Saturday Night, after our Pasta Loading Dinner Party, our team spent time together to decorate our Helmets (each chapter in TnT decorates for their location - we did Royal Flushes & fuzzy dice - everyone knew we were from Vegas!) and prepared our ribbons that we pinned on our backs that had the names of our people that we would be riding for... I rode for Michael Aurich who died of Brain Cancer at the age of 9; His brother Ben Aurich whom after a two year battle with mental illness and 6 failed suicide attempts, took his own life at the age of 16 just this past February. My Aunt Marilyn who suffered with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma for over 20 years before she succumbed to the disease. Jenny & Paulette from the RunnersWorld Forum. They are the REAL Heroes...
After I got back to my room, I did something else that I NEVER do... I started up my Garmin so I could delete old rides off of it - making sure I'd have enough storage for this ride... it gave a message of "low battery"... unreal... I had to bring it to Stacy's room to charge it over night as her DBF had the only laptop in the group... another disaster averted! Went back to my room and tried to get some sleep...
The Ride - Sunday, June 6, 2010 - The day is finally here :
Woke up extra early, and went to breakfast... ate oatmeal and had a cup of OJ & some Hot Tea... Shane pumped my tires... I remember that I had to run to my room to get my jacket (that I didn't think I would need) and something else - I don't remember what... turns out, I handed off my jacket [to SAG] before the ride as it was pretty warm already...
We decided to ride to the Start Line (some people left right from the Hotel) but I didn't start my Garmin til the Start even though I knew the ride wasn't a full 100 miles... We got to the Start line, and somehow while trying to get in a good start-up gear, I dropped my chain... I acted like a girl [hey it worked!], and Shane put it back on for me - thanks Shane! Shortly thereafter, we were off!
6 of us rode together and stayed in a group for the first 20ish miles... then Emerald Bay... This is one of those climbs that you do, you think... wow, that was hard, and then you look up, and realize you just started the climb! I was determined to keep riding and not stop - which I did! I also passed many people on the way up the hill (I love my new cassette!!) And... I was passed my many others, but I made it to the top [Thanks to the training I did at the Red Rock Loop] and was rewarded with a FAST & FUN downhill... Pretty scary as the roads were very uneven and had a lot of pot holes and trenches.
6 of us rode together and stayed in a group for the first 20ish miles... then Emerald Bay... This is one of those climbs that you do, you think... wow, that was hard, and then you look up, and realize you just started the climb! I was determined to keep riding and not stop - which I did! I also passed many people on the way up the hill (I love my new cassette!!) And... I was passed my many others, but I made it to the top [Thanks to the training I did at the Red Rock Loop] and was rewarded with a FAST & FUN downhill... Pretty scary as the roads were very uneven and had a lot of pot holes and trenches.
I made it to the first Support Stop - found Blake and told him I needed to use the port-a-potty... I couldn't find a place to set my bike, so I laid it on the ground...as I came out, I saw Shane, then I picked up my bike and my chain dropped off - again - luckily, with a couple of pedal strokes, it found its way back on - I didn't have to get my hands dirty or be rescued - but someone else needed rescuing... I look up, and a woman came tumbling down the hill still clipped into her bike...I called for Shane, and he went running over to help her... she had dropped her chain going up the hill and couldn't clip out in time and fell... she was laughing when she was helped up, so all was okay!
Shane & I found Kim & Todd... I lost Blake, and never saw Stacy... I waited while Kim, Todd and Shane did the stuff they needed to do, we took some pictures, and off we all went... not sure how, but I got separated from the group again - probably another uphill part (I'm not as strong on the hills as I'd like to be) I remember the roads being real torn-up, and lots of ruts and dangerous sections... It was relatively flat & fast around here, and I found a pace-line to join in on... I stayed with them for a few miles and then one of their teammates got a flat or fell or something so they stopped and I went on alone thanking them for the great tow.
I met up with my team at the next Support Stop - filled my water, used the port-a-potty again, and we all went out together again :)
Soon, we got to the Truckee turn-off and our whole team is still together - we decided to go up the bike trail that follows the river - beautiful trail by the way... but it's a teeny trail, and we had a pace line going, and we're passing many people on the left... If anyone was coming towards us, it could have been bad... we got out of the trail and back onto the street, and our pace-line continued... in fact, I believe we joined in on another pace-line... I did my best to keep up, but I was working hard to stay on the back. Then we came to a traffic signal, and my start-up just isn't fast enough, and I fell behind. This man rode up to me and said he didn't feel right in joining in on the pace-line - I said "I let it go, I can't keep up" He said "I'll get you there, are you ready to sprint?" I said "Let's GO"... he got me there! It was AWESOME!! Then he gave a wave and fell behind... wow I don't know who he was, but a big THANK YOU!!
Soon, we got to the Truckee turn-off and our whole team is still together - we decided to go up the bike trail that follows the river - beautiful trail by the way... but it's a teeny trail, and we had a pace line going, and we're passing many people on the left... If anyone was coming towards us, it could have been bad... we got out of the trail and back onto the street, and our pace-line continued... in fact, I believe we joined in on another pace-line... I did my best to keep up, but I was working hard to stay on the back. Then we came to a traffic signal, and my start-up just isn't fast enough, and I fell behind. This man rode up to me and said he didn't feel right in joining in on the pace-line - I said "I let it go, I can't keep up" He said "I'll get you there, are you ready to sprint?" I said "Let's GO"... he got me there! It was AWESOME!! Then he gave a wave and fell behind... wow I don't know who he was, but a big THANK YOU!!
Todd & I fell behind at the final traffic signal before the support stop, we turned into the parking lot and couldn't find the team... when we finally found them, I just kept saying how unnecessary that pace-line was... I felt it wasted sooooo much energy and we still had over 50 miles to go and Spooner Summit was still a scary thought to me. My team still insists that it was FUN to push it, and pass lots and lots of people...
We were finally ready to get on the road, and Kim finally got a hold of her parents (our SAG team) so, we took another 10 - 15 minutes with them, and more pictures, etc...
then we were off... we stopped at the Olympic Rings (halfway back to the lake) to take pictures... when we finally got back to the lake, it wasn't long til our lunch stop - I was STARVING by then ;)
I ate a turkey sandwich, baked lays and a brownie provided by Subway - yummy...Todd had some Advil, and I decided that I would take 2 since my back was hurting - probably because of that Truckee ordeal - I'm glad I did, because I had no more pain the rest of the ride! We had a nice rest and then Kim said she was having trouble breathing, so someone went and got her breathing machine and we waited for her to get her breathing treatment - well worth the wait! I don't know how she rides so well with the breathing issues she has... she's AMAZING! Then we walked to the pier and took some awesome team pictures, and we were off again... I was worried about getting back on the bike after such a long break, but I had no problems.
There was a short climb out from the lunch stop, and of course, uphill means I fall behind... then we got to Incline Village - one of my favorite spots on the ride - the Homes were beautiful and the Streets were shaded with trees... only thing, is that we had to stop with one foot down at each stop sign... I would just get to the stop sign as my team was just pulling out.. I saw them, but couldn't catch them... finally, just out of the Village; I caught up and rode with them til Spooner... I've gotta say that the roads in Nevada were MUCH smoother than the roads in California, and I was happy to be back in my home state :)
Spooner was another animal... tough tough climb, and it was HOT by then, and there were no trees or shade at all... I started the climb thinking I'm not gonna stop, I'm not gonna stop, then I see the water stop and passed the entrance to it, but then I saw the port-a-potties and I decided to stop - so I went in the exit... After using the facilities, I walked over to the water and had them pour some over my head and down my back - ahhhhhh that felt so good!
Then I was on my way again... shortly after that, I saw Kim who was taking a break, so I passed her... then I saw Shane who stopped to take pictures of us coming up the hill (he did that on all of our training rides) I told him Kim wasn't far behind... then I saw Shane's family, and stopped and gave them all high fives and thanked them for their support, Then I saw Todd who was riding slow to give Kim a chance to catch up with him… then I climbed the rest of the mountain... when I got to the top, there was a Support Stop, and I tried to stop - I always unclip my right foot first, and my right foot wouldn't unclip... I tried and tried... I finally tried my left foot, and it unclipped, and I managed to lean the right way (to the left) and came to a stop without falling – amazing! Someone had to pry my right foot out of my pedal for me... then I found the rest of my team and I started breathing badly.. I felt myself hyperventilating - I felt like a black-out coming on - finally Todd told me to breath into cupped hands - that did the trick, and my breathing became better... Hard part done... I'm gonna make it to the finish!
So, I climbed Spooner and expected my reward of going downhill FAST... but there was a head wind WTF?? The tunnel was like a wind tunnel...
It was still a fun beautiful ride down - the lake looked pretty inviting at that point... We had 4 short hills to climb, they didn't feel short... But soon, the finish was in sight...
What was cool is that as we got closer to the finish, our team came together and we decided to cross the finish line together... I don't know how we did it, but we climbed that last driveway all together, and all 6 bike wheels crossed the finish line at the exact same time... how cool is that?
So, I climbed Spooner and expected my reward of going downhill FAST... but there was a head wind WTF?? The tunnel was like a wind tunnel...
It was still a fun beautiful ride down - the lake looked pretty inviting at that point... We had 4 short hills to climb, they didn't feel short... But soon, the finish was in sight...
What was cool is that as we got closer to the finish, our team came together and we decided to cross the finish line together... I don't know how we did it, but we climbed that last driveway all together, and all 6 bike wheels crossed the finish line at the exact same time... how cool is that?
I stopped my Garmin - it was only 98+ miles - riding time 6:26 - ave speed 15.0 mph (not bad!) - just shy of 9 hours total time... oh crap! Not a full Century!?!
I got my bag from our SAG, took off my helmet, changed shoes, and walked over and got my medal and ate some cookies...bought my picture that was taken at the top of Emerald Bay - then we had to take our bikes across the street to the truck... so, I put my shoes & helmet back on, and re-started my Garmin... when we got to the truck, my Garmin read 99.6, so I rode around the parking lot for another .4 miles and stopped on mile 100.0 exactly! Century DONE!
FINAL NUMBERS:
Time: 06:41:26
Distance: 100.01 mi
Elevation Gain: 4,159 ft
Calories: 6,203 C
Moving Time: 06:35:19
Elapsed Time: 09:15:33
Avg Speed: 14.9 mph
Avg Moving Speed: 15.2 mph
Max Speed: 40.3 mph
Why is my Time different than Moving Time???
Post Ride:
I went back to the Hotel, showered and went immediately to the Post-Ride party as I wanted to eat some protein ASAP… I had a couple of pieces of BBQ chicken, corn on the cob, a roll – yummy! I had a chair massage… ahhhh felt good! The rest of my team finally got to the party and I sat with them as they ate… then we went back to the Hotel for Happy Hour drinks… lots of drinks ;) (In fact I don't even remember putting on a mask???)
The amazing part of this experience is how good I felt at the end… I remember after our 77 mile ride, I wouldn’t have gotten back on the bike if you paid me, and after 98 miles, I wasn’t done – I got back on til it said 100, and I could have ridden more… was it the Advil I took at lunch? Whatever it was, I was happy that I finished my first Century, and finished it STRONG! I also want to say that even though I always fell behind my team on the climbs, I passed many, many other people... "on your left" was the words I spoke most often during the day... I am MUCH stronger than I thought I was :) Thanks to Coach Shane!!
I appreciate all of the support I got during my training & fund raising … it was a GREAT experience and I will do it again… I already have 2 more Century Rides and the MS 150 on my schedule this year
I got my bag from our SAG, took off my helmet, changed shoes, and walked over and got my medal and ate some cookies...bought my picture that was taken at the top of Emerald Bay - then we had to take our bikes across the street to the truck... so, I put my shoes & helmet back on, and re-started my Garmin... when we got to the truck, my Garmin read 99.6, so I rode around the parking lot for another .4 miles and stopped on mile 100.0 exactly! Century DONE!
FINAL NUMBERS:
Time: 06:41:26
Distance: 100.01 mi
Elevation Gain: 4,159 ft
Calories: 6,203 C
Moving Time: 06:35:19
Elapsed Time: 09:15:33
Avg Speed: 14.9 mph
Avg Moving Speed: 15.2 mph
Max Speed: 40.3 mph
Why is my Time different than Moving Time???
Post Ride:
I went back to the Hotel, showered and went immediately to the Post-Ride party as I wanted to eat some protein ASAP… I had a couple of pieces of BBQ chicken, corn on the cob, a roll – yummy! I had a chair massage… ahhhh felt good! The rest of my team finally got to the party and I sat with them as they ate… then we went back to the Hotel for Happy Hour drinks… lots of drinks ;) (In fact I don't even remember putting on a mask???)
The amazing part of this experience is how good I felt at the end… I remember after our 77 mile ride, I wouldn’t have gotten back on the bike if you paid me, and after 98 miles, I wasn’t done – I got back on til it said 100, and I could have ridden more… was it the Advil I took at lunch? Whatever it was, I was happy that I finished my first Century, and finished it STRONG! I also want to say that even though I always fell behind my team on the climbs, I passed many, many other people... "on your left" was the words I spoke most often during the day... I am MUCH stronger than I thought I was :) Thanks to Coach Shane!!
I appreciate all of the support I got during my training & fund raising … it was a GREAT experience and I will do it again… I already have 2 more Century Rides and the MS 150 on my schedule this year
For the full album, please visit Shane's Album here: http://s905.photobucket.com/albums/ac255/hikeparia/Tahoe%202010/ or for the pictures I pulled out of his album, you can see them on my FB page here: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/album.php?aid=8025714&id=1206118161&ref=pb
Thanks for reading, I know this was LONG, but I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it :)
Thursday, June 10, 2010
long time no see
Guess it's been a while... lots & lots going on in my life... can't fill it all in here, so I'll make it brief...
1. running - pretty much stopped running all together - got bad shin splints - again - while training for the LV Half Marathon
2. Triathlons - did 3 triathlons - all of them with shin splints - but figured out that I love cycling
3. cycling - LOVE IT!
4. relationship - I broke up with Jerry... I miss him!
1. running - pretty much stopped running all together - got bad shin splints - again - while training for the LV Half Marathon
2. Triathlons - did 3 triathlons - all of them with shin splints - but figured out that I love cycling
3. cycling - LOVE IT!
4. relationship - I broke up with Jerry... I miss him!
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Hoover Dam Half Marathon
This was the longest distance I have run post stress fractures in May of '08... it feels good to be back!
I have been training for the LV Half Marathon on December 6th, but I wanted to overtrain the distance, so I had 13 miles on my schedule for this weekend, and 15 next weekend, then a taper... so I decided to do this race as a supported training run.
According to my Garmin, 1897 feet ascent and 1853 descent - I don't know why it's so far off since we started & finished in the same place, but you get the idea... it was HILLY... and it was HOT... one of the Volunteers came on FB and complained of getting a sunburn... but it was a beautiful day for a run!
I finished in a SLOW 2:58:16... my goal was under 3:00 (or should I say 3:11:23 - I had a dream this was my finish time) so I made it Still this was my slowest Half ever (PW) oh well... The good news, NO SHIN PAIN YAYAYAYAYAY
Here's a couple of pictures I took on the way...
We headed down to Hoover Dam - this is a picture I took of the new road under construction - the road will sit on top of that arch - I remember when the arch wasn't complete... pretty cool to watch this road being built... it'll be cool to run on that road when it's finished! I took the picture from the switchbacks (no passing on the switchbacks) overlooking the parking lot... you can see that we ran across the parking lot, then down to the next level, where the pro's took our picture with the Dam in back of us... I hope it turns out good!
This is how beautiful the lake looked today... too bad I didn't bring my suit, great day to take a dip!
This is the coolest medal ever!
out on the course somewhere
in front of the Dam
FINISHER with medal
Thanks for reading - and Thanks for all of the support over the past year and a half... I don't think I would have continued running after my injury if it wasn't for all of my support... you guys are AWESOME!
I have been training for the LV Half Marathon on December 6th, but I wanted to overtrain the distance, so I had 13 miles on my schedule for this weekend, and 15 next weekend, then a taper... so I decided to do this race as a supported training run.
According to my Garmin, 1897 feet ascent and 1853 descent - I don't know why it's so far off since we started & finished in the same place, but you get the idea... it was HILLY... and it was HOT... one of the Volunteers came on FB and complained of getting a sunburn... but it was a beautiful day for a run!
I finished in a SLOW 2:58:16... my goal was under 3:00 (or should I say 3:11:23 - I had a dream this was my finish time) so I made it Still this was my slowest Half ever (PW) oh well... The good news, NO SHIN PAIN YAYAYAYAYAY
Here's a couple of pictures I took on the way...
We headed down to Hoover Dam - this is a picture I took of the new road under construction - the road will sit on top of that arch - I remember when the arch wasn't complete... pretty cool to watch this road being built... it'll be cool to run on that road when it's finished! I took the picture from the switchbacks (no passing on the switchbacks) overlooking the parking lot... you can see that we ran across the parking lot, then down to the next level, where the pro's took our picture with the Dam in back of us... I hope it turns out good!
This is how beautiful the lake looked today... too bad I didn't bring my suit, great day to take a dip!
This is the coolest medal ever!
out on the course somewhere
in front of the Dam
FINISHER with medal
Thanks for reading - and Thanks for all of the support over the past year and a half... I don't think I would have continued running after my injury if it wasn't for all of my support... you guys are AWESOME!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Pumpkin Man
2009-10-17
Las Vegas, Nevada
United States
Sunny
Triathlon - Sprint
Total Time = 2h 33m 26s
Overall Rank = 267/340
Age Group = Athena 40+
Age Group Rank = 1/2
Short Version:
My 3rd and last Triathlon this season - It was a VERY challenging Bike Course, and I never completed it in training without having to stop several times to rest... During the race, my swim went ok, I rode the FULL bike course without stopping, and I had shin pain and an overall bad run... BUT, I managed to come in FIRST PLACE in the Athena 40+ Category!
gender:F
location:Las Vegas, NV
overall place:267 out of 340
division place:1 out of 2
gender place:112 out of 149
time:2:33:26
swim:21:38
t1:4:09
bike:1:23:25
t2:2:02
run:42:13
VERY LONG VERSION:
Pre-race routine:
Friday afternoon, I left work a bit early. Came home and washed my bike and my helmet, then Jerry and I rode the motorcycle down to Boulder City for packet pick-up & expo.
We ate lunch at a cute diner down town and walked over to the park for packet pick-up. I decided that I wanted to change my Division from AG to Athena as I didn't lose the weight that I should have lost therefore more than qualifying for the Athena Category. The lady said, "Sure" and wrote me on the list of "changes".
I put my shoes and my hand-held water bottle in the bag and tied it to the bike rack in transition and wrapped my number belt on top of the bag so it would be easy to spot. My rack was the first one, so it was easy to find too...
I spent some time at the expo and talked to a couple of coaches and bought some NUUN... couldn't find the Sports Beans, so I stopped at the Multi-Sport store on the way home and picked some up... they had a different brand, but I went with it.
Went home and packed my transition bag and got my bike in the car...all I needed to do in the morning was get dressed and go... I tried to relax and tried to get some sleep... set my alarm at 4:30 ugh...
Woke up with the alarm, got dressed, ate an instant oatmeal... and off I went.
I got to the race pretty early - thought I'd get a good parking spot, but they were parking people in rows, and I was WAY at the end of the 2nd row.
It was still VERY dark when I got there... I unloaded my bike and pumped the tires and walked it all the way over to transition... and set-up T1... they would be sending my wetsuit down to the finish when it was done, so I only left what I needed and walked my transition bag all the way back to my car. Then I went and picked up my chip which was WAY on the other side of Transition...
I saw a few friends who were arriving later than me as most of them were doing the Olympic which started Half hour AFTER the Sprint Start... Also I saw a friend from work - neither of us knew the other did tri's... too cool!
Event warmup:
I tried something new on race day - shhhhh don't tell... About 20 minutes before race start, I took a Gu and finished the bottle of water I had...I've taken Gu before my long runs, but never before a swim or tri... I think it helped! I couldn't find a trash can, but a friend said she would throw it away for me... AWESOME, Thanks Kelly!!
I did a short warm-up swim to the green buoy, rounded it and swam about 25 yards north... then swam back to shore... I tried to swim enough that my shoulders got passed the "burn" stage.
Talked to the official about the course, then lined up and it was time to go...
Swimming
00:21:38 | 750 meters | 02m 53s / 100meters
Age Group: 2/2 (17 seconds)
Overall: 254/340
Performance: Good
Suit: wetsuit
Course: Triangle shape course swam counter clockwise
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current: Low
Comments:
It was a wade start, and since the Half Ironmans swim started 1/2 hour before ours, some SUPER SPEEDY swimmers were already coming in before we started... For some reason, they had ALL Sprint women starting at the same time...and we started BEFORE the Men... that was a FIRST for me as my 2 other races, I started in the LAST wave...
I stayed toward the back... there was some confusion and MANY people started swimming during the 10 second count-down... but I waited til the front people were off, then I heard the horn...and off I went
My swim started pretty good as there were lots of people to draft off of...We were told to swim to the left of the Green Buoy, then we were told to swim to the right of the Green Buoy... I just followed the rest of the group...
Siting went ok, we had to swim to the Large Orange Buoy (past the green one), But thankfully, they put a smaller buoy out there for siting.. I sited on it and thought it was the end, then figured out that I had to go further... I swam to the next buoy and rounded it well (except for a small crash with someone else - Swimming is a contact sport??)... then my swim to the next buoy went OK, but no one to draft off of... rounded that one and started the swim back to shore
About halfway to shore, I got passed by one of the speedy men who started 7 minutes after us... I figured I was swimming a good line... but I still sited and corrected when needed... FINALLY got to the shore (it seemed like it took FOREVER) and they had set up a matt so we didn't have to walk on rocks, we had to walk on the rocks anyway as the matt didn't go far enough down into the water, then I tripped over the matt, but didn't fall...
I had trouble unzipping my wetsuit, so I walked slowly up to transition while trying to get the top half of my wetsuit off - as my rack was the first one in transition... my time includes my slow walk to transition.
What would you do differently?:
I just need to work more on my technique, and strength - speed will come
T1
Time: 04:09
Comments:
My T1 is kinda long since my rack was the first rack in from swim - which means I had the LONGEST run (with bike shoes) out to the bike start... didn't take me long to get my wetsuit off and put in the bag, took off my Ironman watch, put on my Garmin, sunglasses, helmet, socks & shoes, grabbed my bike and walked my bike out to the mounting line.
What would you do differently?:
I guess I could have run up the hill with my bike, but didn't want to waste the energy when I knew the bike course was tough...
Biking
01:23:25 | 14 miles | 10.07 mile/hr
Age Group: 1/2 (16+ minutes)
Overall: 191/340
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: A course change was announced the day before the race... but it added about a mile and a half to the ride. I clocked it at 14 miles, but I saw 2 other Race Reports, one had 13.8 miles and the other 15 miles... it'll be interesting if the RD puts the official mileage up - all I know is it WASN'T the 12.5 miles as advertised.
It started up hill out of transition, then made a right turn onto Lakeshore Drive for a few miles... some pretty decent hills to climb there, but got to come back down those after the turn-around... then out past the toll-booth... then we crossed the street to enter the River Mountain Trail... They had to stop traffic for us to pass... once on the Trail, it was some rollers - mostly uphill - up to the wash, up hill in the wash to the tunnel to cross the main street - then up hill to the parking lot - where we rode around it as a flat rest area til we got to "The Hill" (cause none of those other hills counted LOL), then a short flat & down hill to transition.
Comments:
History:
Every Saturday for the last 9 weeks, there was a group swim out at Lake Meade, I went to most of them... after the swim, we would do a bike ride... Of those rides, two of them were practicing the bike route for Pumpkinman.
The first time I tried the ride, I had to stop and rest twice before we got to the wash, then I stopped at the Parking Lot - I was DONE - and waited for my friend to go the rest of the way up the hill...
The 2nd time - it was VERY WINDY, I made it all the way to the wash without stopping, but then had to stop at the wash, had to stop at the parking lot, and stopped at least once on the final hill... I forgot my Garmin, but thought I timed it on my Ironman watch - I thought I timed it at 1:20 to go from Boulder Beach to Governers Park... and that didn't include the first part of the ride ugh...
I had done the 5-6 miles BEFORE heading up to Boulder City, but never put it together with the climb up to Boulder City, and I had never ridden all the way up to Boulder City without stopping... so that became my goal for this ride... Just get it done without stopping! And I did!
The Race:
I walked my bike to the mounting line, and there was Jerry - waiting to get on the motorcycle to escort a race official on the bike course - it was cool seeing him! I realized that I forgot to check my gears, but luckily, I was in the small ring and easy gear - whew... so, I climbed the first hill out of transition and got onto the main road - I was riding along, when Jerry passed me on the Motorcycle - he honked twice and waved - too cool - but that would be the last I saw of him til after the race...
I passed a couple of women, but got passed by some women at this point too, mostly got passed by REAL SPEEDY Men on SUPER cool bikes! One lady and I kept passing each other as she was faster on the ascents and I was faster on the descents - of course she finally passed me for good as we had no more down hills... And soon enough I was at the turn-around...There was a lady going SUPER slow at the turn-around... I think she expected me to pass her on the u-turn? I passed her just after we turned around...all was good til we were passing the street that goes down to Boulder Beach... all of the cars were backed up, and there were traffic cops ahead... then I saw it, a person laying on the ground and emergency people all around... I thought I saw a body bag, and it freaked me out... but as I passed, it seemed the athlete was alive and conscious...I'm assuming from the timing of it that he was a Half Ironman Athlete. I hope he's okay!
**I just got word that the Athlete was a FEMALE, and she's OK
We got past the toll booth and had to cross the street to meet the trail... I had come DOWN the hill this way, but never went up this way, since they had changed the route - we never practiced this... it was a bit confusing on which way to go, one of the speedy men asked which way - then I saw the sign...
I rode part way up with a 38 year old woman (I love having ages written on people's calves) that was fun... I passed a 15 year old girl on a Mountain bike with platform pedals and tennis shoes - I told her she would do AMAZING on a road bike...
The 38 year old finally passed me and went ahead, then I passed her just past the tunnel going up to the parking lot - she had to stop and rest - I kept going :)
In the parking lot, I kept it in an easy gear and just took it easy before the BIG Hill coming up... I took a drink from my water bottle in the cage since I had run out of water in my aerobottle... Rode through the parking lot with a young man who told me this was his FIRST Triathlon - he wanted to stay in shape after he got out of the Marines...I told him this was my 3rd, but I'm still new at this - of course when we started up the Hill, he passed me... WTG ex-Marine!
FINALLY made it up "THE HILL" and took it easy on the final way to transition...
Yep, you read it right.. I DID NOT STOP TO REST!!! I MADE IT!!! I'm pretty happy with my time too, being it took 1:15 to go 7 miles in the wind... this was 14 miles with no wind, but it only took 1:23... I know it's still slow, but I'm happy with it!
What would you do differently?:
Train more on hills
T2
Time: 02:02
Comments:
My rack was the first rack coming off the bike... not much time to think... get there, rack the bike, get my shoes & water bottle out of the bag, change shoes, take off the Helmet - check to make sure my Helmet is off - hit start/stop on Garmin... and run all the way through transition to the run - out...
What would you do differently?:
Hit LAP button on Garmin... didn't realize this til I was well into my run... other than that, it went smoothly.
Running
00:42:13 | 03.1099 miles | 13m 34s min/mile
Age Group: 2/2 (4 minutes)
Overall: 308/340
Performance: Below average
Course: Out & Back on residential roads through Boulder City... very slight inclines - can't even call them hills after that bike ride!
Comments:
Why oh Why can I not run after I bike??? Why oh Why do my shins hurt during triathlon races and not any other times I run???
For some reason, I ran through transition, and hit start/stop on Garmin again... I looked at my watch, and noticed it was still on BIKE - WTF? Then I realized I should have hit the LAP button - DUH... so I hit the Lap button and went on with my walk/run...
38 yo (from the bike ride) ran past me, and said "you made it up THAT hill, you can certainly run!" I told her my shins were killing me... she understood and ran on...
It took a good 2 miles til I could run, of course by then I was DONE...I saw a photographer when I was walking, I asked her to NOT take a picture then, but she could get me on the way back... she said she was only pointing one way, but if I called out her name, she'd take my pic the other way... when I was coming back, sure enough I could run by then, I called out her name, and she snapped my picture - all of the photographers on the course were AWESOME... not sure what company they are from, but I look forward to seeing the pictures...
On my way back from the turn-around, I saw my friend Kris from work, I was REAL surprised that I was ahead of her as she's in REAL good shape!
I managed to find the strength to run in the last tenth mile
I'm not sure of the exact splits since the "start/stop vs laps" debacle, but the splits I do have look like this:
mile 1: 14:56
mile 2: 13:51
mile 3: 11:50
I need to "fix" this before next season!
What would you do differently?:
Learn how to run off the bike...
Post race
Warm down:
Crossed the finish line, and again forgot to stop the Garmin... lol... ate some orange wedges and half bagel, drank a bottle of water and walked around a bit...
I was on my way up to the port-a-potties (I had to go since before the bike) I was looking for a place to set my water bottles down, and I came across a couple of men standing around enjoying some beer - we started talking and they offered me a beer - SCORE... I didn't care that it was 10am, I enjoyed every sip of that beer! Then I went to visit the port-o-potty... I waited THAT long, I could wait to drink a beer!
Then I went down to the finish line just in time to see Kris come in... Gave her the High 5's and went walking around a bit more... came across the food booth and got a burger for my "beer buddies" - delivered the burger - they were happy with that... then came across the Massage booth - SCORE! Had a 5 minute Massage - is that all? guess I'll take what I can get for free...
They had just started the awards ceremony right near the massage, so I went over and sat while they read each category and people got up to receive their certificate for their custom plaque... the VERY LAST category was for Athena 40+ and they called MY NUMBER... for FIRST place!! I got excited and jumped up on the podium... (I always wanted to do that)... Then, they called another number for 2nd place! Nobody else jumped up...so I stood there alone on the #1 for a few seconds, then got down... So I didn't get a default medal! someone actually came in AFTER me :)
I walked around some more, found Jerry, then saw Kara (swim coach) we talked about the swim, etc... then I saw Jenn run through transition with her bike... I would have LOVED to stick around to see my Oly friends finish, but I had to go to work :(
I collected all my stuff (they had brought T1 stuff up to the finish) and we got it packed into the trunk of the motorcycle, and I rode my bike down the hill to get my car... I hit "Start/Stop" on my Garmin on "The Hill" again just to see how fast I was going... I was cheering on the HIM athletes who were still trudging up the hill... I can't imagine riding up that hill after 53 miles!
So, even at my Penguin paces, I won in my division... I'll take it :)
What limited your ability to perform faster:
Still stumped about what goes wrong between bike & run... I think I'm going to look for a coach who can help me with this problem. Also, I think I'd do better at the longer distances as I seem to be able to run after a couple of miles... the thought of longer distances scares me though... the Sprint already takes a lot out of me...
Event comments:
They were charging a buck for a beer - while a GREAT deal, I didn't have any money with me as I left it all in my car at the bottom of the hill... They could have given a free beer or two to the athletes.
Overall, I had a GREAT time and wish I could have stayed there longer.
Sorry so long, but I want to remember it ALL...
Thanks for reading :)
2009-10-17
Las Vegas, Nevada
United States
Sunny
Triathlon - Sprint
Total Time = 2h 33m 26s
Overall Rank = 267/340
Age Group = Athena 40+
Age Group Rank = 1/2
Short Version:
My 3rd and last Triathlon this season - It was a VERY challenging Bike Course, and I never completed it in training without having to stop several times to rest... During the race, my swim went ok, I rode the FULL bike course without stopping, and I had shin pain and an overall bad run... BUT, I managed to come in FIRST PLACE in the Athena 40+ Category!
gender:F
location:Las Vegas, NV
overall place:267 out of 340
division place:1 out of 2
gender place:112 out of 149
time:2:33:26
swim:21:38
t1:4:09
bike:1:23:25
t2:2:02
run:42:13
VERY LONG VERSION:
Pre-race routine:
Friday afternoon, I left work a bit early. Came home and washed my bike and my helmet, then Jerry and I rode the motorcycle down to Boulder City for packet pick-up & expo.
We ate lunch at a cute diner down town and walked over to the park for packet pick-up. I decided that I wanted to change my Division from AG to Athena as I didn't lose the weight that I should have lost therefore more than qualifying for the Athena Category. The lady said, "Sure" and wrote me on the list of "changes".
I put my shoes and my hand-held water bottle in the bag and tied it to the bike rack in transition and wrapped my number belt on top of the bag so it would be easy to spot. My rack was the first one, so it was easy to find too...
I spent some time at the expo and talked to a couple of coaches and bought some NUUN... couldn't find the Sports Beans, so I stopped at the Multi-Sport store on the way home and picked some up... they had a different brand, but I went with it.
Went home and packed my transition bag and got my bike in the car...all I needed to do in the morning was get dressed and go... I tried to relax and tried to get some sleep... set my alarm at 4:30 ugh...
Woke up with the alarm, got dressed, ate an instant oatmeal... and off I went.
I got to the race pretty early - thought I'd get a good parking spot, but they were parking people in rows, and I was WAY at the end of the 2nd row.
It was still VERY dark when I got there... I unloaded my bike and pumped the tires and walked it all the way over to transition... and set-up T1... they would be sending my wetsuit down to the finish when it was done, so I only left what I needed and walked my transition bag all the way back to my car. Then I went and picked up my chip which was WAY on the other side of Transition...
I saw a few friends who were arriving later than me as most of them were doing the Olympic which started Half hour AFTER the Sprint Start... Also I saw a friend from work - neither of us knew the other did tri's... too cool!
Event warmup:
I tried something new on race day - shhhhh don't tell... About 20 minutes before race start, I took a Gu and finished the bottle of water I had...I've taken Gu before my long runs, but never before a swim or tri... I think it helped! I couldn't find a trash can, but a friend said she would throw it away for me... AWESOME, Thanks Kelly!!
I did a short warm-up swim to the green buoy, rounded it and swam about 25 yards north... then swam back to shore... I tried to swim enough that my shoulders got passed the "burn" stage.
Talked to the official about the course, then lined up and it was time to go...
Swimming
00:21:38 | 750 meters | 02m 53s / 100meters
Age Group: 2/2 (17 seconds)
Overall: 254/340
Performance: Good
Suit: wetsuit
Course: Triangle shape course swam counter clockwise
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current: Low
Comments:
It was a wade start, and since the Half Ironmans swim started 1/2 hour before ours, some SUPER SPEEDY swimmers were already coming in before we started... For some reason, they had ALL Sprint women starting at the same time...and we started BEFORE the Men... that was a FIRST for me as my 2 other races, I started in the LAST wave...
I stayed toward the back... there was some confusion and MANY people started swimming during the 10 second count-down... but I waited til the front people were off, then I heard the horn...and off I went
My swim started pretty good as there were lots of people to draft off of...We were told to swim to the left of the Green Buoy, then we were told to swim to the right of the Green Buoy... I just followed the rest of the group...
Siting went ok, we had to swim to the Large Orange Buoy (past the green one), But thankfully, they put a smaller buoy out there for siting.. I sited on it and thought it was the end, then figured out that I had to go further... I swam to the next buoy and rounded it well (except for a small crash with someone else - Swimming is a contact sport??)... then my swim to the next buoy went OK, but no one to draft off of... rounded that one and started the swim back to shore
About halfway to shore, I got passed by one of the speedy men who started 7 minutes after us... I figured I was swimming a good line... but I still sited and corrected when needed... FINALLY got to the shore (it seemed like it took FOREVER) and they had set up a matt so we didn't have to walk on rocks, we had to walk on the rocks anyway as the matt didn't go far enough down into the water, then I tripped over the matt, but didn't fall...
I had trouble unzipping my wetsuit, so I walked slowly up to transition while trying to get the top half of my wetsuit off - as my rack was the first one in transition... my time includes my slow walk to transition.
What would you do differently?:
I just need to work more on my technique, and strength - speed will come
T1
Time: 04:09
Comments:
My T1 is kinda long since my rack was the first rack in from swim - which means I had the LONGEST run (with bike shoes) out to the bike start... didn't take me long to get my wetsuit off and put in the bag, took off my Ironman watch, put on my Garmin, sunglasses, helmet, socks & shoes, grabbed my bike and walked my bike out to the mounting line.
What would you do differently?:
I guess I could have run up the hill with my bike, but didn't want to waste the energy when I knew the bike course was tough...
Biking
01:23:25 | 14 miles | 10.07 mile/hr
Age Group: 1/2 (16+ minutes)
Overall: 191/340
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: A course change was announced the day before the race... but it added about a mile and a half to the ride. I clocked it at 14 miles, but I saw 2 other Race Reports, one had 13.8 miles and the other 15 miles... it'll be interesting if the RD puts the official mileage up - all I know is it WASN'T the 12.5 miles as advertised.
It started up hill out of transition, then made a right turn onto Lakeshore Drive for a few miles... some pretty decent hills to climb there, but got to come back down those after the turn-around... then out past the toll-booth... then we crossed the street to enter the River Mountain Trail... They had to stop traffic for us to pass... once on the Trail, it was some rollers - mostly uphill - up to the wash, up hill in the wash to the tunnel to cross the main street - then up hill to the parking lot - where we rode around it as a flat rest area til we got to "The Hill" (cause none of those other hills counted LOL), then a short flat & down hill to transition.
Comments:
History:
Every Saturday for the last 9 weeks, there was a group swim out at Lake Meade, I went to most of them... after the swim, we would do a bike ride... Of those rides, two of them were practicing the bike route for Pumpkinman.
The first time I tried the ride, I had to stop and rest twice before we got to the wash, then I stopped at the Parking Lot - I was DONE - and waited for my friend to go the rest of the way up the hill...
The 2nd time - it was VERY WINDY, I made it all the way to the wash without stopping, but then had to stop at the wash, had to stop at the parking lot, and stopped at least once on the final hill... I forgot my Garmin, but thought I timed it on my Ironman watch - I thought I timed it at 1:20 to go from Boulder Beach to Governers Park... and that didn't include the first part of the ride ugh...
I had done the 5-6 miles BEFORE heading up to Boulder City, but never put it together with the climb up to Boulder City, and I had never ridden all the way up to Boulder City without stopping... so that became my goal for this ride... Just get it done without stopping! And I did!
The Race:
I walked my bike to the mounting line, and there was Jerry - waiting to get on the motorcycle to escort a race official on the bike course - it was cool seeing him! I realized that I forgot to check my gears, but luckily, I was in the small ring and easy gear - whew... so, I climbed the first hill out of transition and got onto the main road - I was riding along, when Jerry passed me on the Motorcycle - he honked twice and waved - too cool - but that would be the last I saw of him til after the race...
I passed a couple of women, but got passed by some women at this point too, mostly got passed by REAL SPEEDY Men on SUPER cool bikes! One lady and I kept passing each other as she was faster on the ascents and I was faster on the descents - of course she finally passed me for good as we had no more down hills... And soon enough I was at the turn-around...There was a lady going SUPER slow at the turn-around... I think she expected me to pass her on the u-turn? I passed her just after we turned around...all was good til we were passing the street that goes down to Boulder Beach... all of the cars were backed up, and there were traffic cops ahead... then I saw it, a person laying on the ground and emergency people all around... I thought I saw a body bag, and it freaked me out... but as I passed, it seemed the athlete was alive and conscious...I'm assuming from the timing of it that he was a Half Ironman Athlete. I hope he's okay!
**I just got word that the Athlete was a FEMALE, and she's OK
We got past the toll booth and had to cross the street to meet the trail... I had come DOWN the hill this way, but never went up this way, since they had changed the route - we never practiced this... it was a bit confusing on which way to go, one of the speedy men asked which way - then I saw the sign...
I rode part way up with a 38 year old woman (I love having ages written on people's calves) that was fun... I passed a 15 year old girl on a Mountain bike with platform pedals and tennis shoes - I told her she would do AMAZING on a road bike...
The 38 year old finally passed me and went ahead, then I passed her just past the tunnel going up to the parking lot - she had to stop and rest - I kept going :)
In the parking lot, I kept it in an easy gear and just took it easy before the BIG Hill coming up... I took a drink from my water bottle in the cage since I had run out of water in my aerobottle... Rode through the parking lot with a young man who told me this was his FIRST Triathlon - he wanted to stay in shape after he got out of the Marines...I told him this was my 3rd, but I'm still new at this - of course when we started up the Hill, he passed me... WTG ex-Marine!
FINALLY made it up "THE HILL" and took it easy on the final way to transition...
Yep, you read it right.. I DID NOT STOP TO REST!!! I MADE IT!!! I'm pretty happy with my time too, being it took 1:15 to go 7 miles in the wind... this was 14 miles with no wind, but it only took 1:23... I know it's still slow, but I'm happy with it!
What would you do differently?:
Train more on hills
T2
Time: 02:02
Comments:
My rack was the first rack coming off the bike... not much time to think... get there, rack the bike, get my shoes & water bottle out of the bag, change shoes, take off the Helmet - check to make sure my Helmet is off - hit start/stop on Garmin... and run all the way through transition to the run - out...
What would you do differently?:
Hit LAP button on Garmin... didn't realize this til I was well into my run... other than that, it went smoothly.
Running
00:42:13 | 03.1099 miles | 13m 34s min/mile
Age Group: 2/2 (4 minutes)
Overall: 308/340
Performance: Below average
Course: Out & Back on residential roads through Boulder City... very slight inclines - can't even call them hills after that bike ride!
Comments:
Why oh Why can I not run after I bike??? Why oh Why do my shins hurt during triathlon races and not any other times I run???
For some reason, I ran through transition, and hit start/stop on Garmin again... I looked at my watch, and noticed it was still on BIKE - WTF? Then I realized I should have hit the LAP button - DUH... so I hit the Lap button and went on with my walk/run...
38 yo (from the bike ride) ran past me, and said "you made it up THAT hill, you can certainly run!" I told her my shins were killing me... she understood and ran on...
It took a good 2 miles til I could run, of course by then I was DONE...I saw a photographer when I was walking, I asked her to NOT take a picture then, but she could get me on the way back... she said she was only pointing one way, but if I called out her name, she'd take my pic the other way... when I was coming back, sure enough I could run by then, I called out her name, and she snapped my picture - all of the photographers on the course were AWESOME... not sure what company they are from, but I look forward to seeing the pictures...
On my way back from the turn-around, I saw my friend Kris from work, I was REAL surprised that I was ahead of her as she's in REAL good shape!
I managed to find the strength to run in the last tenth mile
I'm not sure of the exact splits since the "start/stop vs laps" debacle, but the splits I do have look like this:
mile 1: 14:56
mile 2: 13:51
mile 3: 11:50
I need to "fix" this before next season!
What would you do differently?:
Learn how to run off the bike...
Post race
Warm down:
Crossed the finish line, and again forgot to stop the Garmin... lol... ate some orange wedges and half bagel, drank a bottle of water and walked around a bit...
I was on my way up to the port-a-potties (I had to go since before the bike) I was looking for a place to set my water bottles down, and I came across a couple of men standing around enjoying some beer - we started talking and they offered me a beer - SCORE... I didn't care that it was 10am, I enjoyed every sip of that beer! Then I went to visit the port-o-potty... I waited THAT long, I could wait to drink a beer!
Then I went down to the finish line just in time to see Kris come in... Gave her the High 5's and went walking around a bit more... came across the food booth and got a burger for my "beer buddies" - delivered the burger - they were happy with that... then came across the Massage booth - SCORE! Had a 5 minute Massage - is that all? guess I'll take what I can get for free...
They had just started the awards ceremony right near the massage, so I went over and sat while they read each category and people got up to receive their certificate for their custom plaque... the VERY LAST category was for Athena 40+ and they called MY NUMBER... for FIRST place!! I got excited and jumped up on the podium... (I always wanted to do that)... Then, they called another number for 2nd place! Nobody else jumped up...so I stood there alone on the #1 for a few seconds, then got down... So I didn't get a default medal! someone actually came in AFTER me :)
I walked around some more, found Jerry, then saw Kara (swim coach) we talked about the swim, etc... then I saw Jenn run through transition with her bike... I would have LOVED to stick around to see my Oly friends finish, but I had to go to work :(
I collected all my stuff (they had brought T1 stuff up to the finish) and we got it packed into the trunk of the motorcycle, and I rode my bike down the hill to get my car... I hit "Start/Stop" on my Garmin on "The Hill" again just to see how fast I was going... I was cheering on the HIM athletes who were still trudging up the hill... I can't imagine riding up that hill after 53 miles!
So, even at my Penguin paces, I won in my division... I'll take it :)
What limited your ability to perform faster:
Still stumped about what goes wrong between bike & run... I think I'm going to look for a coach who can help me with this problem. Also, I think I'd do better at the longer distances as I seem to be able to run after a couple of miles... the thought of longer distances scares me though... the Sprint already takes a lot out of me...
Event comments:
They were charging a buck for a beer - while a GREAT deal, I didn't have any money with me as I left it all in my car at the bottom of the hill... They could have given a free beer or two to the athletes.
Overall, I had a GREAT time and wish I could have stayed there longer.
Sorry so long, but I want to remember it ALL...
Thanks for reading :)
Saturday, October 03, 2009
Training Swim/Ride
Question for you guys - how do you turn an Open Water Swim into a HARD Open Water Swim? How do you turn a HARD up hill bike ride into a HARDER up hill bike ride??? Well, just in case you can't answer the question, I'll tell you... ADD WIND!!!
OMG, it was SOOOOOO incredibly windy today!!! The waves were HUGE, but after my bike ride, they were even HUGER, so I shouldn't complain... it was hard to swim against the waves, but it was nice swimming back with them I soooo didn't feel like doing ANYTHING today - I told my friend that I didn't feel like riding, but after the swim, I got my bike ready, and we headed out... The good news, is that I didn't have to stop and walk at the same place I did last time, but I did stop and take LOTS of rests along the way... we FINALLY got to the top of the hill according to my watch it was an hour and 15 minutes... and I was told we had gone 7 miles - It felt like 15!!!
There was a guy taking a rest break where I had to stop last time, and I saw him taking another break on my way back down... at least I'm faster than someone
I felt bad for my friends that had to wait for me at each turn and at the top... I guess they didn't mind the breaks either... 2 weeks til I have to do this route in a race
It was FUN coming back down the hill , but unfortunately, we don't get to do that in the race, the bike is a point-to-point... at least I heard the run is flat... but I've seen some RD's idea of flat, and it's usually different than my idea of flat...
I had taken my running shoes with me, but decided my legs had enough, so I'll save my running til tomorrow's 10 miler...
This isn't the exact route as we took a path that's not on Mapmyrun, but you'll get the idea...
OMG, it was SOOOOOO incredibly windy today!!! The waves were HUGE, but after my bike ride, they were even HUGER, so I shouldn't complain... it was hard to swim against the waves, but it was nice swimming back with them I soooo didn't feel like doing ANYTHING today - I told my friend that I didn't feel like riding, but after the swim, I got my bike ready, and we headed out... The good news, is that I didn't have to stop and walk at the same place I did last time, but I did stop and take LOTS of rests along the way... we FINALLY got to the top of the hill according to my watch it was an hour and 15 minutes... and I was told we had gone 7 miles - It felt like 15!!!
There was a guy taking a rest break where I had to stop last time, and I saw him taking another break on my way back down... at least I'm faster than someone
I felt bad for my friends that had to wait for me at each turn and at the top... I guess they didn't mind the breaks either... 2 weeks til I have to do this route in a race
It was FUN coming back down the hill , but unfortunately, we don't get to do that in the race, the bike is a point-to-point... at least I heard the run is flat... but I've seen some RD's idea of flat, and it's usually different than my idea of flat...
I had taken my running shoes with me, but decided my legs had enough, so I'll save my running til tomorrow's 10 miler...
This isn't the exact route as we took a path that's not on Mapmyrun, but you'll get the idea...
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Kokopelli Triathlon
kokopelli
2009-09-26
St. George, Utah
United States
BBSC
77F / 25C
Sunny
2009-09-26
St. George, Utah
United States
BBSC
77F / 25C
Sunny
Short Version:
I did my 2nd triathlon - only 2 weeks after my first:
Triathlon - Sprint
Total Time = 1h 59m 28s
Overall Rank = 217/238
Age Group = 45-49
Age Group Rank = 8/8
Overall Rank = 217/238
Age Group = 45-49
Age Group Rank = 8/8
Splits:
swim (750m): 22:40
t1: 2:19
bike (20k): 53:14
t2: 1:23
run (5k): 39:54
Yep, I'm in the BOP, but I met my goal of sub-2 hours 
Long Version:
Pre-race routine:
This was my first away-from-home triathlon, it was 2 hours away in St. George Utah. So, I left work early on Friday to do the drive and pick-up my packet and check-in to the Hotel. I also had a work-shop on Boundaries in relationships to go to on Friday night at 5-8:30 which was the exact times of the Pasta Party, so I didn't get to go to the Pasta Party, but the workshop was worth it!
After the work-shop, I went back to the hotel and bought a lean cuisine chicken fettuccine dinner and bottle of water... ate the lean cuisine and tried to get some sleep... pretty much tossed & turned all night, then the alarm finally rang, I woke up, ate an instant oatmeal, got dressed, packed up all my stuff and I was off to the races
I got to the race - it was still REAL dark! I got my bike out of the car and had trouble putting my front wheel on in the dark... someone offered me a flashlight and that helped bunches! Thanks! Then, I pumped up my tires and proceeded to the transition area and found my rack, they had us rack our bikes by our race number, so it made it easy... but, I was in the last rack from the bike exit, but closest to the run exit...
As I was setting up my transition, I realized that I had left my sun glasses in my car... so I had to walk all the way back to my car to retrieve them...I had plenty of time, so it wasn't that bad.
I put on sunscreen and had my neighbor spray my back - he didn't want to rub my sunscreen on and get his hands greasy before he put on his wetsuit... understandable..., then I put on my wetsuit - that I hadn't put on since March - it still fit whew - Then I started to head down to the lake, but it was real rocky, so I went back and got my sandals and went down to the lake. The Elite Olympic wave had just started.
Event warmup:
I did a short out and back in the lake... the water was perfect! And my wetsuit felt so buoyant in the water!
I waited til it was our turn to start and chatted with a few folks... one man was 70 years old, and he had been doing triathlons for about 7 years now - yep, he started at 63 years old... AWESOME!!!
It was a LONG time between my warm-up and when I got to go...
Swimming
00:22:40 | 750 meters | 03m 01s / 100meters
Age Group: 4/8
Overall: 188/238
Course: Swim straight to the first triangle buoy, turn left to the next buoy, then turn left and head back in.
Start type: Wade
Water temp: 72F / 22C
Comments:
It was finally our turn to start, we walked over the timing matt to the doc and jumped into the water - it was rocky on that side, so I found a large smooth rock and stood on it til it was time to go... another short woman shared the rock with me, it was perfect! Then we were off...
Yes, I was in the middle of things... that's where the rock was - oops! I tried to find my place while swimming and soon enough, the faster swimmers passed me and I had space to move... but I couldn't move! It seemed SO far to the buoy... I did a lot of breast stroke... and tried to swim freestyle as much as I could... I finally made it to the buoy and was able to swim around it without a problem... I did breast stroke almost all the way to the next buoy... why can't I swim??? I made it around the next buoy, and finally felt like I could swim... I sighted on the Transition sign and pretty much swam freestyle all the way back in - I had FINALLY warmed up and was able to swim...
As I grabbed my sandals, I noticed that there were still swimmers in the water, YAY I wasn't last :)
As I jogged up the boat ramp to transition I unzipped my wetsuit and took off my cap & goggles and the top half of my wetsuit, then I crossed the timing matt... My watch says I did the swim in 22:08, so I guess it took about 32 seconds to get to transition.
What would you do differently?:
I need to take longer on my warm-up and do it closer to race time... It took at least 12 minutes of the 22 minute swim to warm-up... not good! I could do better!
T1
Time: 02:19
Comments:
I found my bike easily - as I was in the BOP on the final wave, my bike was just about the only one left on our rack. I quickly removed the rest of my wetsuit, took off my ironman watch (left it running) and put on my Garmin, put on socks and shoes, helmet, glasses and I was off...
What would you do differently?:
My T1 time was 94 out of 238, and that included jogging my bike all the way through transition with my bike shoes on... I think I did pretty good - I'm not sure what I could/would change...
now that I think about this more, I could get the new 310xt Garmin that I could wear in the water so I don't have to switch watches... some day...
Biking
00:53:14 | 12.43 miles | 14.01 mile/hr
Age Group: 7/8
Overall: 210/238
Course: As described on the race website: Exit T1 at the South end, ride to the main road and make a LEFT hand turn on the main road. (You will have accelerated quite a bit at this point, so please be safe making this tight turn.) About 3.3 miles down this road you will hit "The Hill". This will last approximately less than a mile and it is about a 6% grade. Go all the way to your turn around. You will have your own turn around chute in the middle of the road to keep you separated from the long course cyclists. (You cannot miss it) There will be volunteers and a wide mat at the bottom of "The Hill" going over the cattle guard. Make a RIGHT hand turn back into the park area and get ready for your run!
Comments:
I started out on the bike okay...but forgot to start my Garmin til after the first turn... oh well...at least I remembered now...
Then I see the Hill... Holy Crap!!! The RD's never published the elevation profile for the bike portion, only described the course... I was told it was a 6% grade, it looked more like 10%, and felt like 15%!!! I tried to ride up the hill... there was a woman walking her bike, I thought no, I can do this, but my muscles started shaking with fatigue, my breathing was heavy... so I did the only thing I could do, I got off my bike and started walking it up the hill - grrrrrrr... I was about 1/3rd up the hill when I started walking... I got to about 2/3rds up the hill, and got back on the bike and rode the rest of the way to the top... passing the 2 walkers... one of the walkers said she was impressed with me, I said, "No, I walked some of it too"... when I got back on my bike, somehow it felt a little easier - although still hard... I was glad when I got to the top!
Then on the downhill and flats, I passed a few people who had passed me on the hill - that's always fun... there was one woman who kept passing me and I would pass her, this happened about 2 to 3 times - that was fun! Then we came to the turn around - a tight u-turn and back we went...
I got to the BIG downhill and tried to let loose, but it was a bit scary! There was a cattle guard that they put a matt over while coming down the hill... there was a lady in front of me, but I was afraid to pass her and wipe out on the cattle guard, so I slowed WAY down and let her go over it first... then I passed her wheeeeeeee - I love going fast!
When I got to the bottom of the hill, you could see a nice view of the lake, it was such a beautiful day! I took some time to just enjoy the day and the ride - at that point I wished I had my camera with me... it was beautiful!
I rode towards the transition area, and there were runners going this way, there were riders going that way, and I got confused on where to go... I almost came to a complete stop and yelled to a volunteer - which way??? She pointed straight - DUH... so I kept going straight and got to transition... dismounted and crossed the timing matt...
What would you do differently?:
more Hill work!
T2
Time: 01:23
Comments:
Jogged with my bike - with my bike shoes on, all the way through the transition area to my rack, and someone racked their bike right in my spot... oh well, I racked my bike next to it... I removed my helmet and bike shoes, slipped on my running shoes - those Yanks are GREAT, I grabbed my water bottle and off I went... the timing matt was REAL close this time :)
What would you do differently?:
My T1 time was 126 out of 238, and that included jogging my bike all the way through transition with my bike shoes on... I think I did pretty good - I'm not sure what I could/would change...
Running
00:39:54 | 03.1099 miles | 12m 50s min/mile
Age Group: 8/8
Overall: 229/238
Performance: Below average
Course: As described on the website: Exit the NORTH end of the transition area (where you ran in FROM the swim) Cross parking lot and run the length of the parking lot to the desert. You will be running the SGTRI run course in reverse. ( No huge hill to run up on this one!) Aid stations will be at every mile out on the course, you will have HEED, Water and Hammer Gels at each aid station.
As described by me: They are full of CRAP!!! What do they call that HUGE incline if not a HILL??? Not only did we go out into the desert, but it was soft sand! Did they mention that? NOoooooo...
Comments:
After my disaster run 2 weeks ago, I had a new strategy... I was going to walk the first 3 minutes, then run 1 min/walk 30 seconds til I got to the 10 minute mark, then go to run 1 mile/walk 1 minute... I was hoping to do this run in 40 minutes, as my BEST 5k is 34:23 and I knew I couldn't come close to that after swimming & cycling...
So, I started out with a 3 minute walk... and lots of folks passed me... I was surprised at how many people were behind me... but, lots of them were doing the olympic distance... okay... so, I get to the run portion and right away, pain in my shins... grrrrrrrrr... but I thought I could run for a minute!! so I did... when I got to the HUGE uphill, I walked the thing and went back to timing a 1 minute run/30 sec walk... I continued this for longer than 10 minutes as my shins were KILLING me! I felt like crying... ok, I did a few "oooohhh, ouch," whines out loud when I was by myself... I still ran for a full minute when I could... after about 22 minutes, I could finally run! I took 2 more short walk breaks after that, but mostly ran it in... at the last water stop, I tossed my water bottle away - it was almost empty, and I knew I would get water at the finish... it was uphill on pavement after the water stop... I ran up the hill and asked myself if I had any kick left... not much...but I tried to kick it in anyway - and finally crossed the finishing matt - tried to smile for the camera...
They had a clock at the finish, but it was WAY wrong as it was started for the Elite Wave, so I wasn't sure of my finish time... secretly, I wanted a sub-2 hour finish...
What would you do differently?:
I'm at a loss... this shin pain has got to stop!
More Bricks!
Post Race:
Warm down:
As I crossed the finish line, someone removed my chip, and I was handed a bottle of water and a medal - it's a nice medal :)
I ate a couple of orange wedges and mini bagels, and chatted with a couple of people as I cooled down in the shaded tent. Then I went over to transition to pack up my stuff. I picked up my ironman watch and noticed that the time was 2:07... It was nice to see that I got close to my 2 hour time goal... I didn't know the final results til the next day!
What limited your ability to perform faster:
I sooooo want to blame the elevation in St. George... but it's not THAT much higher than Las Vegas... the weather was soooo nice, unlike Vegas, it more than made up for the elevation... so, I guess I'm just slow... get over it!
Seriously, I need to lose weight and train more...
Thanks for reading
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)