And then there was hell week..

This does not look as hard as it was last week:

Mon 5/25
B: 16.00 Miles
R: 1.80 Miles

Tue 5/26
S: 2000.00 Yd
(with Coach)

Wed 5/27
B: 32.25 Miles
R: 3.40 Miles

Thu 5/28
B: 14.00 Miles (hill work with Coach)
S: 2800.00 Yd

Fri 5/29
R: 3.00 Miles
(Speed work on the track w/Coach)

Sat 5/30
B: 40.50 Miles

Sun. 5/31
B: 15 miles
Run: 7.5 miles

I call it "triathlon boot camp, with Coach in town". The three sessions we had with Coach Eric were after we returned from Denver to see Hadley et. all..

Lessons I learned:

My left hand does not cooperate in swimming with my right. 

On the bike: I get to AT much quicker than I thought..

Run: Well, I suck..that is all there is to it!

We took off to Chama after our track workout on Friday. Feedback from Coach on the run: I run "cute" but that does not cut it when racing..Need to pump arms more aggressively, lean forward, longer strides.  Wow alot to remember!..We biked on Saturday to north of the town of Chama, up the pass a bit, high altitude cycling. We wanted to bike 4 hours but alas, Mother nature had other plans! It looked like we were going to get caught in a flash storm, which you do not want to be stuck in out in the middle of nowhere in the mountains so we cut it short. Only 40 miles instead of planned 60+. I sure hope next weekend when we are trying to do a century around Lake Tahoe (America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride supposedly-don't think they have biked around Chama though), I can make it! I feel very under trained for this ride and almost wish we hadn't signed up. It is smack dab in the middle of peak training for Buffalo Springs Lake half IM, which according to the "Beginner Triathlete" training program, we are already under trained by hours and hours, especially in the swim, for this race..I am trusting that the 3 races we did made up for this because it certainly cut out alot of workouts!

We had every intention to swim in a lake near the cabin, either Heron or El Vado. Water temperature hovered around 50 degrees and I am sorry but after IMCDA last year I swore I would never purposely swim in that cold of water again! So another swim workout missed-damn! We did an unusual brick yesterday. I have always done the long ride/short run brick..This one was one hour easy bike, 1 hr, 45 minute run (at 8000 feet). Was a challenging couple of hours. All in all I feel like I am light years stronger on the bike this year and  a little faster on the run. The swim? Yet to be determined..

This is our 12th day of training today. We met with Eric again to do hills on the bike and gosh darn if my Garmin was not dead, AGAIN because I did not charge it all night. I wish I had the profile for this ride-holy shit! There were some kick ass hills, at the end of which I did yell out Uncle!! I think we were suppose to go up that last 15% grade hill but H and I just stopped!  Hey I have my limits! No cursing the young agile athlete though-he is trying to help us and we are paying him for this torture!

I am pooped and we still have a 2600 yd swim today. Then tomorrow-a day off!! I am going to a workshop on ethics just to keep my brain alive and my counseling license current, just in case I need to counsel someone for money I guess. No real logic to it..I just like feeling all professional and all, even if I do not work in the field at all..

Random post Memorial Day thoughts..

Random thoughts and experiences:

We just got back from Denver visiting Becca, Dan and baby Hadley. Hadley is starting to get the happiest disposition on earth. I have never seen a child so happy..well maybe not this year. She brought us more joy in 4 days than anyone can imagine..honestly..I know they eventually outgrow the baby phase and get into the "terrible twos" someday but until that happens, I am happy Grandma Debi . Even the older, more challenging phases are "cute" to Grandma and Grandpa most days!

It rained alot there this weekend but Becca and I managed to obtain and plant some awesome flowers! Seems to be a family tradition between her and I now that we have become "flower gardeners"in the last couple of years. Something I never really saw myself as doing but I do have vague memories of my maternal Grandmother and her "Rose gardens". She would get up everyday in the summer at 5:00 AM to weed and tend to the flowers. A genetic trait part of gardening I did not inherit..

Buffalo Springs Lake 70.3 triathlon is a mere 4 and 1/2 half weeks away. We are meeting with our Coach, Eric for the next 4 weeks for some fast and furious training sessions before the big race for the summer. Eric is an amazing young man, who is the kind that you wish you had if you had a son. He is very motivating, young- yet wise for his years. I leave our workouts feeling like I really could do well despite my age or other limiting factors..

We swam today and I learned that the damn left hand does not cooperate 90% of the time so need to work on that really hard! Also practicing the sprinting at the beginning of the swim so I can get in front of the fray and not have a panic situation that I just experienced at Buffman and Squeaky. This is just something I need to teach myself to do and master. A new skill. The goal is to swim like hell for 300 yards or so, then settle back into an endurance rate. Can I do this? Well, after today I think I can.

I love to travel. I love to see my kids, go to races, be in the thick of a new and exciting world of adventure. But MAN I love being home, sleeping in my own bed. I guess I am a creature of habit that way...getting more like this as I grow older...

We are doing this in 2 weeks. just to say we did it:

Buffman and Squeaky Olympic distance Triathlon Report..

I reached 2 out of my three goals. That is not bad for this middle-aged 3rd week in a row race woman..

We traveled to Lubbock on Sat. AM in the wind and rain. It was disheartening to see the weather. I am thinking it  may not be so fun to race in this 50 degrees rain/wind. Michi and MG rode with us and we laughed and really had the best time all weekend.  We stopped in Clovis, NM on the way, where we met Muffinman for lunch. He told us all the highlights of training there, which took about 5 minutes (just kidding Carl). It was a fun lunch and we were to see Carl again in Lubbock for the race (he rocked it by the way, sailing by his competition for first place). Which made the more "challenging moments" way more fun. We arrived at the Homestead Inn in Lubbock late in the afternoon but decided to hightail it out to the lake to check out H's new wetsuit.We were definitely the only crazy ones out there swimming in the cold/rain/wind! We were literally in there (with 2 ducks) for about 5 minutes. OK, wetsuit works. The water temp was cold, but not too bad actually! I decided the hood was not necessary-I would overheat for sure.

Pre Race night- 

We went to Orlando's, a great Italian place in Lubbock for dinner. I pigged out, of course against my better judgement. I knew without a shadow of a doubt, this would come back to haunt me on the run the next day...it did....

I could not sleep for the life of me that night.  I wasn't really nervous..We had lost an hour in Texas so there I was trying to go to sleep at 9:00 NM time..and getting more frustrated by the quarter hour. I finally managed to fall asleep, where I dreamed I was going back to work. Just as I was trying to explain that I needed ALOT of time off to travel, the alarm woke up-whew! That was a relief!

Race Morning:

Off to the lake early. The weather was perfect.  A little cool-in the 40s but clear, no wind..I repeat no wind! Ever..all day!  This is so bizarre for us! I met 5:38 half IM woman, who looked fast..of course..there goes my first place..I sausaged into my wetsuit which well, to be frank after gaining 10 lbs since I got it, was tight, to say the least. I thought it would loosen up in the water. The water felt cool, but not the 61 degrees the RD said it was...8:05 and boom! We were off! 

Swim: The plan was to stay with MG, who wanted to break the 30 minute mark on the swim too. I started swimming and was getting shoved and kicked and beat up and started to panic a little..MG drifted off..I couldn't catch my breath so I just stopped for a second to re-orient. This seemed to go on forever. I finally swam over to a kayak and just hung on. I kept saying my wetsuit felt like it was choking me but really I am a good swimmer! I felt like quitting then and there! Somehow kept going. I was way behind everyone it seemed by now. I kept swimming, feeling like I was choking..got about 2/3 way there and again felt that panicky feeling. I hung onto another kayak, again telling the guy I really could swim, no really...Like he really cared..probably thinking Yea if you are such a good swimmer-why are you hanging on to this kayak?..He was very reassuring though. I asked him to loosen the back of my wetsuit and that felt alot better so off I went. I was just thinking this was the longest mile swim ever and it was probably taking me an hour. I saw H somewhere in here so knew I could not be that far back. I got kicked  hard in the face at one point, thought I probably had a black eye (but didn't). Oh well, there goes my PR, just finish the race. The goal is to have a training day so just do it! I kept telling myself. Finally for goodness sake, it was over and they were hauling me out of the water at the end (It is steep). I saw Michi so again, knew I wasn't that far back. After a painfully long transition I was off on the bike.

Bike: It was a bit cold at first. The sun was out so I knew I would warm up quickly and I did. The first thing out of transition is a short, steep hill. It was tough but doable. Actually felt so good to get out of that lake, I was just happy to be on the bike. There was another hill or two on the bike but nothing bad. I raced without a watch, had no idea how I was doing but I passed a couple of folks. Saw H out there-he passed me. So did Michi. Just got it done...kept my HR in aerobic zone by feel. The weather was perfect...no wind...around 70 degrees...the most perfect weather you will ever see in Lubbock! I passed a dead snake on the side of the road as big as Texas. That was scary! The last hill came-it is very steep,. I thought I had another hill and what a pleasant surprise when boom I was in transition again. I managed to get my shoes off on the bike and cruise in and hopped off the bike. My feet were numb..

Run: My feet were numb the first 3 miles on the run. This happens to me just about every time I race. I saw a guy with compressions socks and thought Wow should have brought mine with me-that would have helped! Note to self: remember the socks for Buffalo Springs half.. I went to the porta potty at T-2 of course then I was off. I planned to take the first half of the run slow, then pick it up a bit on the second half. Other than the 5 times I stopped to the bathroom, I did do that. At some point some other damn woman passed me in my AG, probably as I potty stopped. H was about 5 minutes ahead of me and she finished just in front of him-damn swim came back to haunt me! I felt so good running, I held back for the most part. It was such a great day at that point! The best part was when a young woman ran up behind me and said You are 55? Man you look so good. I have been trying to run you down thinking you were in my age group! I looked at her leg-it said 33! OK, after my dreadful swim, that made me feel better. I saw MG around mile 2 bringing it home and knew he was having a great race..H was doing really well too. I rounded the corner at the end, saw my 3 teammates and knew it was over! I crossed the finish line in 3:20, a PR by 5 minutes for an Oly! If I just would have had the swim I wanted, it would have even been better. And I held back on the run...This made it all OK..

Post Race: There were disgusting Texas style hamburgers at the end...yuk! We did stay for the awards, which were scrambled because of no chip timing. Everything got messed up but after some confusion, I did end up with 3rd place, behind Kona woman and that other woman that passed me on the run. The other woman took a first place award with the confusion, even though Kona woman beat her-what a beeyotch!! She knew she was second and took the first place! H knew she had not finished first. I hope I kick her ass at BSLT! Just for that reason.. yep they will both be there!!! Kona woman is very nice and she had a stellar race-she will get that Kona slot for sure!

H got first in his AG and PRd by about 15 minutes! 

Not sure of my splits yet as the whole no chip thing is not showing that but the PR is correct overall as I look this AM on the website. First and second in my AG is corrected and I still got third.  Michi said she did a 36 minute swim and we came in at the same time so I guess that is what I did. Which shocks me!! I thought for sure my swim was 45 minutes or more! I must have made up some time on the bike and run..

Coach Eric is getting a call this AM. I need help on that open water swim thing!!! 

Post Race:  We got back to the hotel for a late checkout. Despite a very scary moment when H slipped and fell in the shower because there was no bathmat in the shower and it was so slippery (he is OK), we all fared the race well. Some very tired 4 people drove home from Lubbock in the afternoon after pizza again at Orlandos, ice cream on the way home and much laughter in the car. We had the best time with our friends! This is always my priority at these things-to have fun with friends!!!

Today, I am sore and TIRED!! No more racing until Buffalo Springs Lake half IM on June 28th!

Its a New Day People!

I actually have my passion for triathlon back. I do not know how, after all the negative energy I put out to the universe on Sunday, this could happen but it did. Like a fire lit under me after that race. It may be that I had almost a PR (I wonder if you are 5 years older than your last PR, is it time to get a new PR?)..May be that I FINALLY got out of the middle of the pack, just once at least..

Whatever-I have been training these past 3 days like I really love it again! Did I say I hate racing? Nahhhh...not really! I just hate losing! I hate being average...I work my ass off for this sport and damn-I want to WIN! Now that is probably not going to happen much, I know that genetics has something to do with this, right? For instance, I found out that my competition (one of them) at Buffalo Springs this year did the last half IM at BSLT in 5:38! Huh? I know full grown kick ass MEN that cannot do it that fast! This is so insane, I just laugh...I will never go to Kona, or Clearwater as long as women 50+ just keep getting faster..yep, it is true..I have decided I might qualify if I go and do Ironman China, where some years there are NO women in my AG. If you win your AG, you go to Kona..

So I was sucked into going to Lubbock this weekend by my friend MG, who promised to get back on Facebook if I went. Now here is where you know the addiction has set in-you pray your friends will drink the Koolaid with you and when they don't, you will do anything to get them back to drinking it..I am so easily influenced! He tried this getting us to sign up for Ironman St, George in 2010. Thank goodness I had my senses about me when I turned that one down. Has anyone seen the profile to that race?

So now I just have to suffer through an Olympic distance to get my friend back on FB. Is that crazy or what? Off we go to Lubbock, where we will be doing BSLT in 7 weeks. It is the same course (only shorter), the race is called Buffman and Squeaky and is put on by the same folks. Guess who will be there? The 5:38 woman-there to practice too!!! WTF? She registered in the wrong age group though. Here is a moral dilemma-should I say anything? Is that cheating? If she stays in the wrong one, I will win, because so far I am the only one in the 55-59 year old women..

OK so here are my three goals for this race (my third weekend in a row racing). In this order:

1. To have fun. MG and Michi will be traveling with H and I. Drinking the Koolaid together.

2. To have a great swim. I would like to break 30 minutes..the water is usually cold this time of year but after IMCDA, it all feels like bathwater to me!

3. Go at about 80% and practice the course..can I do this? 

Jay Benson Sprint Triathlon Race Report..

Rule #1:

Do NOT go out the day before a race, when you are feeling body dysmorhic, which seems to be the case alot lately, and try on new bathing suits for the race! It seems my body has discovered back fat-you know the stuff that rolls over the back of a tank suit. I was looking at black one piece tank suits to go under my tri stuff, for the swim, at the end of Sunday's race. I was not a happy camper leaving the sporting goods store, size X in hand..H tries to be good to me when I am in this place but I am totally and ridiculously irrational. It is like there are two parts to me. The part that says, F^&*k it, I love my body the way it is. I am one lucky woman to look so good! Then the evil part chimes in and says OMG, you have never, ever been this big and had such a fat stomach before..and BACK FAT!? Are you kidding me? OK, it was a rough day but finally I resolved to do something about these 10 lbs. I think the hormones have got to go! More BD later..There is an article in Triathlete Magazine called "Body Image..Are Triathletes Obsessed?" Really?..You mean I am not alone?

Night before the Jay Benson Sprint Triathlon: I am still grumpy, not as bad..Eating little solid food so as to: please dear God, do not let me have to go to the BR on the RUN, which is first tomorrow. There are no trees, no bushes, nothing but me and the other 400 competitors out there and please I do not want to have to go! OK so this is a weird prayer for a middle aged woman but about as crazy as the bathing suit incident earlier...Pre race jitters..I am grumpy. I do not want to do this friggin'race. Who signed us up for this damn thing anyway? Oh yes, that was me..H is no help-he does not want to race either! Such a different space than last weekend when I was so excited to rock it with my daughter at the half, AT SEA LEVEL!! I told a friend one day years ago..Honestly, I HATE racing triathlon! I love the training. I HATE the pressure of the actual RACE! He agreed.

Race morning: I wake up before the alarm, still in grump ass mode. Waaaahhhhh!! I am whining before we even get into the car..Why the hell are 2 grown retired folks doing something they do NOT want to do at 6:00 Sunday AM? Well, we decided we were going for the picnic afterwards, which was planned as our team picnic and we LOVE our OUTLAWS!! Our buds! Right away I get a text from Michi, god bless her, saying Happy Mother's Day! A brief breath of fresh air! Thank you Michi..

We arrive on the base a good 1.5 hours before race time..Then I see it...I think it is a mirage! ABOUT 8 PORTA POTTIES outside transition! I have died and gone to heaven...I spent alot of time in those potties before the race..my prayers were answered!

I ran into my friend Anne, doing her 2nd tri, Geekgirl, Sweet Baboo, Dread Pirate, MG and Michi..many more Outlaws including Mark, who had the dreaded official uniform on! That was wierd..

Run:

OK so they decided since half of New Mexico showed up for this race, they would start the race in three waves this year. Let's put the old ladies last..GREAT!! More time to stand around and have to hit the porta potties. The gun went off for us at 8:40, a good 40 minutes past the men's start. I felt pretty good to start but always have a dry mouth in this race to begin with, until some nice lady gave me a drink of her water. I started my watch at the beginning and never looked again until the end. I figured I was running about 9:30-10:00 miles. Longest 3 miles ever in the desert. Just get me to that damn swim!

Run Time: 29:27 ..meh..the usual..

T-1: 18  I did manage transition practice on Saturday because often I can make up my sucky run time here.

Bike: Jumped on the ole' SWTrigal Cervelo and me Zipps and off I went. Again no sense of time but I was pushing it! I passed a bunch of folks, one lady in my AG. YAY!!! I hadn't seen too many in transition, aside from my friend Carol, who always wins, is a fantastic athlete..I have known her 8 years and she has qualified for Kona, etc. I aged up to her AG this year and when I saw her and chatted I knew, Oh well, there goes my first place!  Ha! Like that was a possibility!

On to the bike. About 2/3 into the 12 miles, I was tired...My mental state at this race was light years away from last weeks run, where I felt like an OC Rock Star. This week I felt like a very grumpy old lady..So my thoughts were about to give into give up "F&*^k it" mode when I made a decision: OK instead of giving up here, take all that pissed offness and make it work in the race. Don't give up, get angry!! So I did. I blasted to the end, hopped off my bike and grabbed my cap and goggles.

Bike time: 40.05  A bike PR!!

T-2: 1:37 Why didn't I think to bring my shoes to run from one end of transition on the rocky road like DP did? Oh well, I got to the pool where to my horror were women walking down the ladder to get into the pool. Are you kidding me?

The Swim: Ok, so I had a coach tell me once, You can be a nice person and ladylike and all that but at race time, all bets are off!!! So there I was YELLING, LETS GO THIS IS A RACE-HELLO! and jumped in the water and pushed a couple of ladies out of my way so I could start swimming. Only to be confronted with someone doing the breastroke in the left lane! Now I have had my time doing breastroke in a tri swim, I know what that is like but for god's sake, get in the right side so we can pass on the left. I just pushed her over and swam on. I swam under folks, beside folks..but I passed alot of people. Around meter 300 I got tired, really tired and thought think I will rest for the next 100 then just push it in!  H said he saw me slow down. I just was done...So that is what I did. I think I passed another woman in my AG so there-I think I beat at least 2 women in my AG! Ran across the mat and DONE!! Hit my watch and it said 1:21. That was a relief!

Swim time: 8:52 Not my best but I'll take it!

Post Race:

OMG I was so relieved to have this race over, it was incredible. Stayed to cheer my friend Terry in-her first triathlon at 54 years old!! That was awesome..

As I went to shower before the Awards ceremony, I saw Carol-she told me her time and that she has beaten some other woman right behind her. So I am thinking Maybe 3rd? Is that possible? The results were being posted right then so I asked H to and check to see if I placed, assuming Carol came in first.. I got out there and he said YOU DID IT! YOU CAME IN THIRD! I screamed!!! For the first time in my Jay Benson history I had placed in my AG. I was so happy for about 5 minutes until I ran into Carol at the awards thing. I told her I had come in 3rd and she said no, she thought she had come in 3rd. Oh rats! That means I was 5th!  H hadn't looked above Carol's name because she usually wins but lo and behold 2 other women beat HER...That was so disappointing but soon my mind was on food at the picnic and listening to the announcer read all these ridiculously fast times of winners. Jay Benson is the biggest race in the state and literally people come out of the woodwork to race this Sprint Tri. Folks you will never see, ever again in a season. They must train all year just to do Jay Benson and kick the rest of our asses!!! It is kind of annoying. 

Fast forward this AM. I am thinking I probably got 5th out of 7 in my AG. OK, I wasn't last, right? Then I look and had the surprise of my life! There were 16..count them..16 women in the 55-59 year old age group yesterday! Are you kidding me? My attitude immediately became one of joy. I got 5th out of 16 women!!! 91st out of 262 overall women. I can now say I am a step above middle of the pack, right?

Geez, and to celebrate, we signed up for an Olympic distance tri in Lubbock Texas next week with Michi and MG..I think I really am crazy or masochistic or both!