The other day I did yet another 100 mile bike ride.  I am not complaining mind you…..It’s just I have this nagging question….

WHY DOES A HEAD WIND NEVER BECOME A TAIL WIND?????

I thought at first it was just a Colorado thing…you know the old “if you don’t like the weather wait 10 minutes” kinda thing. 

But then I got out here to California and the same dang thing keeps happening.  That darn head wind just doesn’t become a tail wind……

Every time I get out to ride and there is a headwind  I never curse it…I actually am always grateful to be riding in windy conditions because I’m pretty sure Ironman Cozumel (IMCZ) will be pretty windy on the bike.  I know that the more I train in the wind the less the wind will bug me come race day….theoretically speaking that is.

I have learned to embrace the wind.  The wind is my friend and I actually don’t mind it one bit……again- good training for IMCZ- but dagnabit if I never get the pleasure of a rockin tail wind….but I guess that’s part of the training too….Do you think Cozumel might have Tail Winds????

Hummmm—until next time—–”The answer my friend, is blowin in the wind, The answer is blowing in the wind…..”

Last weekend was one of the hardest training weekends that I have experienced since I began training for Ironman.  Saturday was a 15 mile run; Sunday 4+hrs bike ride in the mountains…..

This is how it start.  I set out Saturday morning, not particularly early to run a new-to-me trail on Lookout Mountain.  Well, the instructions I got from a friend first sent me off in the wrong direction. I asked someone on the trail who told me I needed to go out the other end of the parking lot.  I then ran back to the parking lot and started in the right direction…Great- I’m on the trail now- I thought to my self.  Which I was…only problem I was doing more  boulder hoping and crossing of talus slopes than I was running for the first mile……at which point I turned around and headed back to the parking lot.   I figured I had no idea if the trail would ever become runnable, and since it wasn’t the best trail no one was on it, and I do keep the idea of possible mountain lions in the back of my mind.

I made it back to the parking lot and decided I would head to Bear Creek Lake to get my 15 miles in.  So into the car and down the mountain to the Conoco Station at Morrison.  “Great- I’m here and ready to get my run in!”  I start out on my run and within the first mile I end up eating most of the food I had brought w/me.  I had eaten breakfast almost 3 hours ago and had packed sparingly for today’s run….I decided no nutrition was not an option so I headed back to Conoco- grabbed some goodies…and this time set out on my run for real!!!!  (It’s about 3.5 hours after I left my house by now!)

I get going on my run.  I’m feeling good, it’s the middle of the day by now and in the 90′s.  I finally start to get a groove going.  I decided to run a loop around the Lake a few times….so I’m just finishing up the loop and look at my Garmin and I’ve been out almost an hour and have run only 2.94 miles!  “Man I suck today!!!!! What a lame a$$ runner!”, I’m thinking to myself.  A few more minutes pass, I look at my Garmin watch again and realized the GPS is not working as it’s permanently stuck on 2.94 miles….”OK so I’m not such a lame a$$ runner…but this watch SUCKS!  How am I going to know my mileage????  X%$#&^*! “.

I decide that I should do this loop at least twice and starting from the Conoco parking lot should make this close to 14 miles…then I wonder should I count the other 4 I’ve already run earlier or should I do 15 straight.  Then I start to have this thought that I don’t even want to do the run.  I feel like cr@&, I’m kinda pissed off, I’m definitely frustrated, and it’s hotter than hell!  I get back to the point were I would start the second loop and opt to continue!  Remember Cozumel baby, is what I’m thinking….So on I go for a second loop…….

I finish the second loop, after stopping twice and putting my head under water spigots, and head back to the car.  Thank goodness this epic day is DONE!!!!    I figured I ran somewhere between 12-14 miles…add in the other 3-4 miles and I think I came close to 15 miles today….grrrrrrr.  This 15 miler turned into a 6 hour ordeal!  Not exactly what I had planned for today……grrrrr. 

Then comes Sunday.  I wake up exhausted.  My usual biking buddies are either doing the MS 150 or some hellasious steep a$$ mountain ride.  I find myself totally unmotivated and NOT wanting to ride at all.  A get a txt from a friend of mine from California (thanks Howie) who says all the right things that get me out the door….barely. 

My friend Elizabeth and I are suppose to meet up later today after not visiting for over two months, so I give her a call and tell her that I will ride to her house after my ride.  I tell her how I’m feeling and about my plans…and ask if I can check in w/her along the way….(motivation backup!)

So my plan was- to ride from my house to Lookout Mountain-head up and over and back up Lookout- down the back side and then make my way over to her house in Denver West…..

I rode from my house over Dinosaur Ridge and to the bottom of Lookout. It took me an hour!  OMG it’s never taken that long…plus I’m still feeling like cr@#.  I am soooo wanting to bail and head to Elizabeth’s house, but I call her instead and say I’m going to head up Lookout and see how I feel….I can always turn around if I feel like cr@# (my word for the day!), and I if I make it to the top I may ride over the other side……..So- off I went, slowly.  My legs were mush, my breathing was labored and just about everybody and their grandmother (make that great-grandmother) were passing me.  This was a granny gear kinda day…

I made it to the top of Lookout, (w/out stopping), looked at my watch and saw my time was not off that much from what it usually would be- Man was I surprised by that as this felt the hardest it ever had today!  I call Elizabeth- tell her I made it to the top and am going to head down the other side and if I am feeling ok (I was never expecting to feel good today-just ok) I would ride back up the back side….And off I went again.

Well I made it down and finally started to feel ok after a few hours into riding, not great by any means, but at least ok….and decided to head to the top again.  I got back to the top after fueling up at the bottom and called Elizabeth and told her I would be headed her way soon.  She told me she figured I would ride back up and good on me for sticking w/it.  I wasn’t so sure I agreed with that- I still was feeling like cr@#!

I made it to Elizabeth’s house where she feed and watered me. We chatted on her back porch and I opted for the ride back to my house.  She had to go to Whole Foods by my house and I was just DONE for the day!  I did not want to get back on my bike for nothing…..This was another training day I was soooo very glad to have OVER!!!  Actually I was glad to have this whole weekend OVER!  I was actually looking forward to going back to work so I could “rest”, meaning my training would be lighter. 

And that’s how I was Put To The Test this weekend.  I wanted to give up both days, I felt like cr@# both days, I didn’t want to train both days….and I had never been more glad a weekend was over in my training career.  But I stuck it out, did the workouts anyway, and know that I have this time to look back on when I’m in the middle of my Ironman and hurting.  I can remember I made it through this weekend and survived, just by staying w/it and going the distance!

Ironman 70.3 Kansas

Woke up Sunday morning at 3:50am while my two roomies slept a bit longer.  I like to take my time, have some tea and get ready.  I looked out the window and thought ”darn!  No thunderstorms.  Looks like I’ll have to race.” 

We headed to the race site at Clinton State Park.  We had dropped off our bikes the day before at T1 (Transition area 1) which was where we would come out of the water.  Once we navigated the line to get into the parking area it was off for a 10 min walk to T2 to drop off our run stuff  then 5 more minutes to T1 and the swim start. 

By the time I got into T1 I had about 20 minutes before my swim start time.  No time to lallygag.  It was straight to the business of setting up my bike w/nutrition and water and laying out my cycling gear.  I slithered and tugged my way into my wetsuit and headed to the launch where we would begin our 1.2 mile swim.  When I stood there looking out at the buoys I thought- “Dang that’s so far! ” But I let that thought go pretty quickly…..

The waves ahead of me started then it was our turn.  Men 50+ & Women 45+.  In all I heard there were about 150 of us.  The gun went off and there we went…sort of.  I was in about the middle of the pack on the outside, but because it was a boat ramp you had to wait until the people ahead of you started swimming. I finally made it into the water and began to swim, only to get hit and my feet slapped a couple of times. But not to worry- that’s to be expected and I just kept swimming.

As I was swimming I had the thought of the swim just being my warm up for the bike.  I had never approached the swim that way and it took some of the pressure off.  I absolutely love the swim.  It’s the only time you are totally alone and in your own world in a race.  I love the sound of my breathing and the feel of the water as it smoothly moves past me.  Not that I move smoothly through it…but the water just always feels smooth to me.

The swim felt great.  As I rounded the last buoy and was headed back to shore I jumped on some guy in a Ironman wetsuit and drafted him for a while.  I had never done that before.  I could tell when I was in his draft as it took less effort to swim….It was kinda cool.  This whole drafting things is new to me, as I’ve learned to use it in the two century bike rides I just did.  

 Anyway- I got out of the water, looked at my watch to see what my time was, and realized I had not pressed the right button so it hadn’t started.  I got out of the water having NO idea how long it had taken me to swim! As far as I knew I might have been in the water 1 hr. I guessed my time to be 40 minutes as that’s a bit longer than my usual time…..So it was into transition and out of my wetsuit and onto the biking.

I got on my bike and took my time warming up.  The weather was overcast and in the 60′s.  One thing I do is begin to eat as soon as possible on the bike.  So I drank some PowerBar Endurance, had a few sips of CarboPro gel and settled into my bike.

The course was beautiful with perfect roads.  The landscape was green and we passed farms and lakes.  I still was of the mindset of  “this is just a training day”.  I felt like I was just out for a cruise. 

I had been worried about the bike course as many people said it was hard due to lots of hills.  Well after riding Elephant Rock the Sunday before, which is brutally hilly, this course seemed pretty easy.  I was very pleased.  No major events happened on the bike.  I just stayed relaxed and my mind was calm.  Many of the women who had hammered by me in the beginning I caught up with and passed in the last 15 miles or so…..I just pedaled along on my old road bike w/aero bars on it and before I new it I was back at T2 getting ready to run!

It’s is always so hard to start the run.  I felt very stiff after coming off the bike and wondered how I could ever run 13.1 miles…..but then I began to warm up.  The course was 4 laps around a campground.  I decided I would go easy on the first half and then begin to pick it up on the second half.  That seemed to serve me well. 

Ironman puts on amazing races!  The aide stations were the bomb!  They even had these wet cold sponges you could shove in your shirt and cool yourself down.  There was all kinds of people handing water, Gatorade, gels, pretzels…it was awesome!  Every time I passed through a station I grabbed 2 sponges, then two waters (one to drink and one to pour over me).  This seemed to keep me nice and cool for it was hot and humid by the time of the run.

Since we were running a loop I was able to see all my fellow PCers out on the course.  Not that we did much to acknowledge each other but just to know we were out there lifted my spirits and my pace. 

The first mile marker I saw was the 5 mile.  I looked at my watch and thought “No way.  They must have the course marked wrong.”  I seriously believed for the whole run that it must be missed marked.  My time was significantly faster than it had ever been in a half marathon!  I felt strong the whole run…and again, women around my age group who blew pass me in the beginning I began to reel in around mile 10…and here I was starting to pick up the pace!!!  It feels so good to be getting stronger on my run, and to not struggle 12 miles into the run.

Speaking of 12 miles.  That’s when I got this woman into my sights a decided I would pass her before the finish.  She was maybe about 3 or so minutes ahead of me.  I started to pick up the pace and my plan was to catch up to her by 12.5 miles or so.  I did catch up to her and hung off her left shoulder for a minute and then decided to make the pass.  As I passed her and settled back in she came up on my left shoulder.  I could hear her breathing kinda hard and noticed that my breath was still calm…so with that I decided to just kick it into gear and ended up dropping her.  I felt effortless as I picked up the speed and motored the last 2/10s of a mile.  It was pure bliss! 

And as I rounded the corner toward the chute and the finish line…there where all my PCers rooting me which gave me an even bigger burst of speed!  I flew down the chute, passing one more woman and crossed the finished line with a big left in the tank….

The best part about crossing the finish, besides being done, was that Chrissie Wellington was there greeting people.  She is an amazing human being first and an amazing athlete second!  I then went back to my gang and we all ate and enjoyed the other racers crossing the finish line. 

Chrissie Wellington and Us

Overall- I had a great race.  I PRed taking 20′ off my previous best time, enjoyed every part of the race, and this is all despite myself and not wanting to race at all due to my previous few days…..

After some food and festivities it was back in Keith’s Dodge Ram Truck for the 9 hour ride back to Denver.  The weather cooperated and we were all texted each other for updates on our progress home. 

The Ironman 70.3 Kansas is a great race that I highly recommend.  The course is fast and fun.  I forgot to mention that out of the 11 of us PCers who raced 5 qualified to go to Ironman 70.3 World Championships.  I feel blessed to be coached by such gifted coaches and to be surrounded by equally gifted athletes! Practical Coaching Rules!

PCers Recon Ride

Checking in with your coach is not always a good idea on a Saturday morning. Or maybe it is?

There I was driving up to Boulder to get a 3 hr ride in followed by an 1 hr. I had just left my house and phoned up my coach Andrea who asked if I would be up for riding Elephant Rock Century on the next day followed by a 13.5 mile run—”Sure” I said, “I was wanting to ride E-Rock”. So I ended up turning around, swinging by the house, grabing my wetsuit and headed to Andrea’s and then we were off to the gravel pond for a 30′ swim followed by an hour run….
Well that’s how I ended up in Castle Rock at 5:30 in the morning getting ready to ride 100 miles w/some of the PC CREW.

So off we all went for 6 hours of fun and riding. The weather started off sunny, cool and no wind all of us riding together-cruising along and warming up. I had heard that this was a somewhat difficult ride and at first it’s not too bad….Long rollers and views of Pikes Peak.

We rode as a group for the first 50 miles, hitting the aide stations for water, food and porta-poties (aurg). The food was a bit on the skimmpy side and not to spectacular. I was glad I brought my own food for the ride and did not have to depend on their food.

About mile 50 is when we split up and those fast ones took off….I ended up riding w/Chirsty who I hadn’t seen in all winter. We had a splendid time…..it was about mile 50 when the wind picked up. It was brutal…this is the same storm system that created 5 tornados in Denver Metro that day!!! It was windy no matter which way you where riding…A head wind became a side wind and only once became a tail wind.

I spent a great portion of the ride catching up to draft lines and falling in with them to help with the wind. Any time I saw a man over 6 feet I was right on them. They make the best wind breaks and drafting was fun!

The ride ended with even stronger winds and the skies were getting black…I was glad to be 10 miles away from the finish with Christy pulling a MEAN pace line- that girl rocks! She kicked my butt at the end there! But hang on I did and we rolled underneath the finish together…looking for friends and food!

And that 13.5 mile run…didn’t happen due to the weather- but I did jump on the treadmill when I got home for 1 hour…And the good news is I felt pretty darn good running. It wasn’t that bad at all! All in all a great day of fun and training!

Beautiful Buena Vista Colorado. The place where I just rode my first Century Ride (100 miles). Buena Vista is one of my favorite places in Colorado- so much so that I would consider living there….So what a great place for my first Century!

I drove down to BV w/my good friend TJ. She wasn’t riding in the Bike Fest but wanted to get away- and as my others had bagged at the last minute it was great to have her come along. We stayed in this great old hotel and got to bed at a descent time.

Saturday morning came and I was up at 5:30. I have never done a Bike Festival before- I’ve only raced triathlons- so the idea of there not being an official start time was strange. It seems at a Bike Festival you start whenever you want to. I decided a 7:30 start would be a good time for me…

I got up-had my instant oatmeal-tried to figure out what to wear (it was windy, cool and overcast)-decided w/TJ’s help on the clothing- and then went outside. As I brought my bike out, I met a woman from Gunnison who was waiting on her friends. They were about an hour away from being ready so the two of us decided to start our ride together.

We rode for about 45 mins then she decided to ride faster than I was ready to….I soon caught up with two other women who seemed to be riding at a pace I was comfortable with. I told them I was riding alone and asked if I could join them. They graciously agreed to let me tag along. And thus began the 6 hour journey w/ Heather and Michelle!

We had a ball- talking and getting to know each other. Both are rock climbers so we had fun stories to talk about. We hit the first aid station- fueled and watered up- then hit the road for a good 2 hour pedal…..

So this next two hours was the section where we began our serious climbing. We cycled up to Turgoise Lake- rode around the back side and then began the serious climb! The ride around the lake was beautiful and I enjoyed it as it was mostly flat…little did I know what lay ahead ;0

And so began the climb…this is were we seperated to go at our own pace w/Heather taking the lead. I had no idea how long the climb would be and welcomed the top! The climb was HARD and took a lot of effort. It seemed to go on and on and on….and just kept getting steeper! Not sure if that’s true, but it seemed like it to me!

But finally I made it to the top and there I met Pam who needed some food and I gladly shared a PopTart with her. This was just what she needed-and so began the downhill section w/Pam! That’s the fun thing about a Festival as opposed to a race. You get to meet people and talk to them…not just race by them.

After the downhill section-we arrived in Leadville for a fabulous Lunch! I regrouped with Heather and Michelle and we ate lunch together. The best part of lunch for me was the really yummy, stong coffee that one of the local cafe’s made! I soooo enjoyed that w/my turkey burrito!

Following lunch we were faced w/ a climb out of Leadville that took us onto a bike path which circumnavigated the town. This was brutal after cooling down…But after a bit my legs warmed up again and the climb didn’t seem so bad….I must say- I was psyched when we got through w/ those 10 miles of climbing.

The rest of the ride was pretty much downhill. We stopped for fuel about mile 70 and then it was literally the horse to the barn type action. We just pedaled back to Buena Vista in a pace line….Heather wanted to be in front, blocking the wind, the whole way, so Michelle and I obliged her! It was just fun, fun, fun!!!

One thing I discovered in riding my first century-Is it’s a heck of a lot easier than running 30 miles!! I wasn’t even sore when I got done! I couldn’t believe it! There was not stiffining up- or sore anything! And I definatly felt that I could have run when I got off the bike- Not a marathon mind you…but it’s nice to know that this early in my training I would feel good running following 100 miles of biking…..
Whodathunk!

All I can say- is a Bike Festival is a great adventure! The people are great, the atmosphere is awesome, and the time just flies by! I have to give a special shout out to Michelle and Heather- they were very kind to let me ride with them…and being w/ them is part of what made this such a great experience!!!!!

Yeap- that’s right- I spent 4.5 hours in my basement on Saturday. 

What was I doing you may ask?  Biking and running of course.  Isn’t that what everyone does on a Saturday in their basement?  Well, maybe not everyone- but those of us training for an Ironman.

My training for Saturday was a brick workout- which means I was to bike for 2 hours then QUICKLY transition to a 13 mile run.  Given that it was snowing outside and windy I opted for working out in my basement. 

I spent 2 hours on my bike trainer while watching the movie “88 Minutes” with Al Pacino.  Great movie if you haven’t seen it…Plus kept me entertained the whole time.  I love watching action type movies on the trainer- makes me pedal hard!

Next I switched shoes and jumped on the treadmill for a lovely- Hah- 13 mile run….Even though I watched the movie “PS: I Love You” it was kinda torture.  Not the movie, just running that far on the treadmill.  I kept watching the clock and the miles on the treadmill hoping that I might be done soon- But everytime I looked I still seemed to have FOREVER left to go.  This was not one of those enjoyable runs where the time just flies.  But I did it and finished! 

I look at getting through these tough workouts- the ones that are mentally tough-like being stuck in a basement for 5 hours- I look at these times as the ones that will help me when  I  struggle psychologically on the outside…

Oh- and by the way- Sundays workout was at a studio doing a computrainer course- At least this was for only 2.5 hours!!!!

Another really good training week. Lots of running which felt good and it was nice to be on the bike 3 times this week. The best was being able to get outside for 3 of the workouts! YEAH!
Felt good- pretty good sleep- too much sugar and not the best nutrition…but hey- it was Christmas!

Weekly
Swims: none
Bikes: 3 Days- 7 hrs
Runs: 3 Days- 6 hrs 40′
Weights: none
Stretching: 4 days

Sleep: pretty good this week. Got more than 6 hours many nights
Recovery: Chiropractic- that’s about it this week
Mood: pretty good-
Health: Very healthy! No aches or pain or sniffles.

Key Workout:
Description: 17 Mile Run
Location: High Line Canal Trail from Goodson Rec Center
Nutrition: Hammer Perpet; Clif Shot Mocha- 16 oz water
Weather: 27 degrees- clear- breezy
Distance: 17 Miles
Pace: 12:94
Heart Rate Stats: 144 AHR; 159 Max HR
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/1650490

Comments: good run- enjoyable- I felt good on run.