Swim, bike, run - How Bad ASS can I be?

Yesterday was the annual Cypress Mountain Hill Climb race. The whole club was supposed to ride it but the green goddesses had to cancel due to work and other life commitments so that left the Amazing Miss M and me to represent the recreational womens "tri" section of the group. Miss M is faster than I am - she is actually where I was last year before the accident so I had a pretty good feeling I would be bringing up the rear. Coach and me talked briefly and she said just go hard and treat it like a training ride so that is what I did. They started the Cat 3 and 4 women with the Masters I was able to hang on to the group for about 300 metres (LOL) and then they dropped me like a bad habit. I was able to see Melinda until we reached the first look out about 5.5 km up and then I lost sight of her as well. My total time up was an hour and 4 minutes to get up 10 minutes or so to get down. You would think I would feel pretty bummed about this but honestly I don't. Ove...

I work in administration but I am a trained nuclear med tech who has not actually done that for over 16 years. I enjoyed the Nuclear medicine but being a casual on-call did not pay the bills or put food on the table so I went into office administration. However over the past 2 years I have come to realize I don't want to do that anymore- well that is not completely true - I like some parts of it but other parts I don't. Currently where I work is OK - I made a major change 7 months ago mostly for $$ reasons and am regretting that decision more and more. There were other reasons but the main reason was $$ and I knew they could not pay me more where I was. I loved the people and the actual work gave me purpose this position not so much. Plus I work with someone who is a lot like me and it has been a little eye-opening and unsettling. This person is great at their job, efficient, accurate, focused but they are also abrupt, intense and impatient - it is like walking on egg sh...

Well I got through the weekend none the worse for it and only missed one workout so feeling pretty good about that. Friday I had to be up and at the hotel to set up for an all day section by 6:45am so I did not get commute to and from workout on the bike in. I was able to get my endurance swim in before I headed off to the stadium to help set up the Kids Zone tent for the next morning at the 24 Hour Relay of the Kids. Pretty sure I must have counted laps wrong because I did 2500 m (or so I thought) and when I hit my timer at the end it read just under 51 minutes?!?! does not seem right but hey maybe a miracle did happen and suddenly became faster. One can certainly hope so! Saturday I had to get a 2 hour run in so I got up at 6 had a bite to eat loaded shower stuff and clothes for the day in the car for Joe to take to the stadium and ran down to the Stadium from the house. The run felt good and leg only started to ache around 1.5 hours and then I started to struggle with the pac...

While I am now a sponsored athlete - YEAH TEAM NATHAN - I am not able to retire from my full-time day job just yet... When I signed up for Ironman I went in with my eyes wide open about the time commitment that would be required and that I would have to learn to compromise - not one of my strongest suits at the best of times. I am a by-the-book kind of gal - if coach says ride for 3 hours and gives me zones I will do that workout as precise to time and zones as possible and I hate having to adjust or change anything but I am learning because more importantly I need to get the workouts in. The next 2 weeks are going to test me to my limits as we have family coming from overseas tomorrow and I have a long standing charity event that I have volunteered at for over 10 years this weekend. My brain almost friztes out when I try to figure out how I am going to do the workouts, play hostess, go to work and do the charity event. Something is going to implode - I am just not sure what. In my...

After the weekend and a volley of email exchanges between coach and myself we have agreed that I need to become more comfortable in open water race situations. So to that end I have registered for 2 open water races and 2km, July 1st and a 3km on July 25th. Just thinking about them causes my anxiety level to rise which is silly because I know how to swim and am perfectly fine in a pool so I am frustrated that I get so nervous in open water tri races. If I am just swimming in the lake or ocean I seem fine just seems race situations I get freaked. I don't know if it is not being able to see the bottom, or the thrashing of the group around me or what. I swam in lakes and rivers all my childhood - you could not get us out of the lake as soon as we were given the all clear by my grandparents, me and my sister were down and jumping off the dock and playing in the lake until we were called for lunch. Once we got the all clear after lunch we were back in the water and sometimes if i...

I wish I could say I crushed the Boy and PB'd Oliver this weekend but it was just not to be. Last year 6:46:31, this year 7:05 on the nose. Now for the post race analysis – Coles notes version – HOLY HEADWINDS BATMAN!!! Swim - last year 51:13 this year 54:13 which now when I look at it I feel better - I had a panic attack. I thought I had started at the back like last year but after 10 or 15 women swam over me it became apparent I had not. This caused me to panic a bit nothing like having your entire body and head shoved under water again and again - I have never been through it - heard stories - and I can confirm I do not like that! So I flipped on my back for a couple of minutes to calm myself down. Once my breathing slowed to normal again I flipped over and made it my mission to spot a yellow cap and pass it. I take from this that if I had not had my moment I would have actually been faster – so something to work on for Ironman. T1- I wanted to improve on this because ...

I will keep it short and sweet. Isis (yes I name my bikes - I am sure y'all have weird things to...) is ready to go. Took her to the shop and they torqued on the quick release and got the back wheel off. Since we were there I had them change the tube and just got a new tire since it was the 5 flat on the back tire and there were lots of nicks and punctures. Bags are packed, hotel is confirmed so only thing to do now is do the race - er I mean training session. Anyhow will send out a report early next week. Wish us luck - here is to cool temps, low winds and no flats. Tah Shaun

Not sure if it is the race, or the the time of year or the fates just messing with me but I say "UNCLE". Seriously this is not funny. It is like deja vu of last year all over again when my bike's back end blew up 2 weeks before Oliver - I did not get it back until the Thursday before the race and it still needed to be tweaked then. Looks like I am on the darn roller coaster again. Had the bike in for a total tune-up last week - rode her Sunday and Monday no issues. Later I was washing the bike and the back tire was flat - no biggy it has been known to happen. So last night after my run I went to change the back tire. Released the quick release - it released right away - sometimes the shop goes a little too tight and I have to fight with it. Then I went to turn the quick release and nothing it will not budge a mm either way then I thought I will push it back in nope nothing.... we take this moment to warn you of explicit language - SON OF A B************! Seriously...

I am not sure how or when it happened but I agree with my friends that I am officially nuts. I was at my masters swim on Friday night and one of the gals said you are racing next weekend aren't you and I said yes but it is ONLY a half Iron. The look on her face made me realize what I had just said. Oh no I didn't! I said to her did I just say it is only a half-Iron?!? Yep apparently I did - how did this happen? When did I officially lose my mind and cross the threshold? Was it not just a year go I was like do you know how far a half Iron is? I guess it is a good sign in that I am feeling more comfortable with the distance. Yesterday's ride went well we were doing Tempo and speed intervals and I was able to stay with the "speedy" girls - don't get me wrong I was hurting but not so bad that I stopped. Afterwards at coffee Judith said it best - that is the difference between a 6 hour and a 7 hour half iron. WOW! I think what surprises me most is th...