Other than the fact that I am ending November on a non-running note due to weird pain while running. I felt November was a successful month and in comparison to last November, I did extremely well. December should be even better. I am starting to run either Wednesday (if I have my way) or Saturday (if my husband, who loves me and may be the voice of reason in this situation, has his way). I feel stronger now than I did 2 weeks ago. My legs are finally feeling better. I do need to up my bike and swim miles and keep my running about the same but I have progressed well this month . I have some great distances under my belt for November. Another bright thing that has happened in November is that I started strength training and yoga again!!! Yoga is my sanity and I missed it so. I am happy my yoga instructor is also my friend Melinda so I feel bad when I do not attend thus I must attend. Strength training and core strength is a weakness of mine and I am happily working on it. I am happy with my progress right now! I am happy with myself!
November 2009 stats:
Run time: 11 hrs 11 min
Run distance 60.6 miles
Bike time: 4 hrs 30 min
Bike distance: 50.7 miles
Swim time: 56 min
Swim distance 1.1 miles
Yoga time: 4 hrs
Total time: 20 hrs 37 min
Total miles: 112.4 miles
As a comparison, November 2008 stats:
Run distance: 82.75 miles (I did a marathon last year in November)
Run time: 15 hrs 32 min
Bike distance and time: 0
Swim distance: 1.2 miles
Swim time 2 hrs 5 min
Total time: 18 hrs 37 min
Total distance: 83.95 miles
Good enough for now!
I am excited to have finished the 2009, 2010, and 2014 Lake Placid Ironman, 2016 Ironman Mont Tremblant, the New Jersey Marathon, Rock n Roll Arizona and San Antonio Marathons, ING NYC Marathon, Mohawk Hudson Marathon, and the Vermont City Marathon. I have also run lots of other running races and several 70.3 races. I love racing and triathlons. This is a blog about training and racing!
About Me
- Kelly
- I am a biology teacher by day but a crazy triathlete and runner at all other times.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Friday, November 27, 2009
Troy Turkey Trot
The tradition of running in the Troy Turkey Trot continued yesterday. After a really bad weekend, I didn't run at all on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday but went to Yoga on Wednesday. Race started at 10:45 am which is funny since I haven't had a race start that late in a while. The race started and I sucked the first 2 1/2 miles but then finally got into somewhat of a groove and finished. It was a 1:06:13 - yuck! Oh well. New shoes now so maybe I will be better soon. We can hope!
By the way, Joe won his age group and ran very well!
By the way, Joe won his age group and ran very well!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Phildelphia Half Marathon
Preview of the weekend:
1. In September, I was denied then let into the half marathon downgrading from the Marathon - just a sign of what was to come
2. Staying on the Temple campus - What? Who planned that?
3. Incorrect information on getting to the race site by public transportation at the Race Expo
4. Not being allowed late checkout even though we were running
5. Being gouged $15 for parking when the signs and race website said it would be $8
6. No coral for Kelly
7. Bad planning on porta potties on course and my need to use one
8. Pain, pain, and more pain
9. Where's the results tent
10. GPS wasn't helpful
Went to Philly for the weekend. The trip started well on Friday. The song "Empire State of Mind" was on the radio lots of time (an omen to stay in NY, we heard it about 10 times during the entire trip). Not too many problems getting out of NY and into PA but once we got to Philly, we had major issues finding the hotel. We were staying at the Conwell Inn but didn't know that it was actually on the Temple University campus and the street that it is on isn't open to traffic. The GPS was going crazy with directions and "recalculating". We finally found parking and the hotel, checked into a beautiful room and worried that with all of those college kids around it may be loud at night. Actually, we didnt' have any problems with noise the entire time we were there. We went to a bar/pizza place that was on campus. We got a couple of slices of pizza (buffalo chicken pizza was yummy) and then got the Sam Adams Winter Lager. I thought this was funny because it was a college bar and, unless things have changed a lot since I was in college, when do college kids drink Sam Adams, Guiness, or Blue Moon as their beverage of choice? The night was great in our room - two big beds with lots of pillows and an almost perfect sleeping temperature.
We woke up at around 8 am the next morning and I looked on-line to see if I could find what we wanted to do during the day and find the public transportation information since we don't like to drive and park in big cities. It is unusual for me to not have a plan of action before we leave for a place but I didn't plan at all for this trip other than to book a hotel and register for the race. So, we tried to go to Saxby's for breakfast but all they had was really expensive coffee and no breakfast foods so we ventured to the Reading Terminal Market for breakfast. By the way, I want that here. That was a great experience. A fantastic muffin and a great cup of coffee was a perfect way to start the day. We headed off to the Convention Center for the Expo. It was easy to get all of our stuff but there weren't enough retailers for shoe sales and I was looking for a new pair of running shoes. We asked if we could use public transportation to get to the race site because there wasn't enough information on the race website but we were told that we wouldn't get there in time if we took public transport as they weren't running that early. We toured the liberty bell, went to the Campos for lunch (they were rated as one of the best Philly Cheesesteaks in Philly) and had a fantastic Philly Cheesesteak. We toured the water front and then headed back to the hotel for a nap. During the time we were walking around, my legs were really bothering me. I had horrible runs this week with some weird muscle pain all week long and it was bothering me while walking today (not a good sign). The nap was fantastic and needed. After napping, we asked about getting a late checkout time so we could race and shower and were told that they really couldn't but would be able to give us until 1pm at the latest - the woman at the desk was not helpful with the subway information as well, it was like pulling teeth. We headed to South Street to eat dinner at Jon's Bar and Grill, home of Larry Fines. I ordered a cheeseburger and fries with a Sam Adams Cherry Wheat beer. It was the best burger I have ever had. The beer was great too. The people watching there was even better. On our way back to the subway, we found Phileo Yogurt. It was fantastic - even better than tangy sweet in DC. We got back to Temple in time to see the Temple v. Siena game. What an exciting game. Weird though, during a break in the 1st half, they loaded packaged hot dogs into an air gun and shot them into the stands. Weird! They flew!!! This was the most excited crowd I have ever seen at a basketball game so it was a lot of fun. Siena lost in the last minutes of the game but it was a great game. We then went back to our hotel, got all of our stuff together for the next morning, found on the race website the parking areas that were cheap (between $6 to $10) and then went to sleep.
I was up nice and early 4:45 am on race day. We were out of the room by 5:20 am. We got in the car and headed to our 1st parking area. They were charging $15 so we went to another lot (getting lost on the way and me, driving, getting really frustrated). This lot told us to just park so we did. It was on the race webpage as $8 and the signs said that if you were in the lot on weekends it was a flat rate of $8. We took off toward the race site, about 6 blocks. Funny though, as we were walking, we saw a city bus delivering racers to the race site (remember we were told it wasn't running early enough at the expo) and we found out that the subway had opened at 5:00 am. Great! We found porta potties easily - I did not have a successful trip to the potty. We found our baggage check area and put our clothes in a bag. Joe went off to his race corral and I checked our bag. I went to find my orange corral and couldn't find it. I asked a volunteer and she told me it was back further but then a group of us were all the way at the end of the corrals and there was no orange or purple corral. Weird. So, we just jumped in when the groups moved up. We heard the 3 groups ahead of us take off and then we were on the way (~18 min after the first group - not too bad). So, we were off. My goals for this day had started as: A) In June, PR in the marathon B) In September, do well in the half-marathon C) 2 weeks ago, be comfortable in the half marathon D) today, finish the half marathon in less than 3 hrs and go home. Within the first mile, I was in pain. At mile 2 we passed a Starbucks and I debated stopping, getting a coffee and waiting for Joe to come back. But I pushed on. I missed most of the sights except the LOVE sign and the Philadelphia Zoo balloon because I was trying to focus on the race not on the pain. At mile 5 or 6, my intestines felt like they were going to explode so I stopped and sat in a line at the porta potties. Another thing with this race, there were not enough porta potties open on the course so the lines were ridiculous. That mile was a 16 min mile with the bathroom stop. Now, I had to get back going again. It took 2 miles and then finally I felt like I was doing ok, not great, not even good, but ok. So, then I thought I had 4 miles left (funny how long runs make your math skills horrible) and then realized as I approached mile 8 that I had 5 miles to go. I tried to convince myself that anyone could run 5 miles (not really a successful sell). But, I was picking up speed and in less pain at this point. By mile 11, I was finally in a groove. So, the finish was nice because it was over but also because Joe was on the corner and gave me the thumbs up that he had qualified for the NYC marathon for next year. In the end, I ran a 2 hr 36 min 53 sec 13.1 mile race - NOT GOOD but I finished and I was able to laugh about it sucking. Joe keeps telling me I accomplished plan D and should be happy with that. I think this was one of my slowest half marathons ever. At least Joe accomplished his goal. I did get a good Philly Pretzel in the finishing area so I guess that is exciting.
We were looking to leave but Joe wanted to see how he did in his age group and to see if he would qualify as an elite in next years race. But we couldn't find the results tent. We asked volunteers who brought out a map of where the tents should have been but it wasn't where it was supposed to be. After 5 calls to other volunteers, no one knew where this tent was so we left. We went to leave the parking lot and were told that it was a $15 parking fee - WHAT?? The sign says $8 and the website said $8!!! We were livid! Plus, our GPS wasn't helping us get back to the street that we needed - it just said go to Broad Street (well how the f*$% do we get there).
Back to the hotel, check out before noon. Legs are sore. Subway to the Reading Market again to eat a fantastic Cranberry Turkey sandwhich and get coffee then back to the car and headed out. Ride home was pretty painless. I am thankful to be home! The highlight of the trip was traveling with Joe and we had fantastic food the entire time. BUT... There were so many low points that I don't know that I would want to do it again. No running for me until Thursday - hopefully it will be fairly painless. Yoga on Wednesday with Melinda. Turkey Trot on Thursday with Grace.
1. In September, I was denied then let into the half marathon downgrading from the Marathon - just a sign of what was to come
2. Staying on the Temple campus - What? Who planned that?
3. Incorrect information on getting to the race site by public transportation at the Race Expo
4. Not being allowed late checkout even though we were running
5. Being gouged $15 for parking when the signs and race website said it would be $8
6. No coral for Kelly
7. Bad planning on porta potties on course and my need to use one
8. Pain, pain, and more pain
9. Where's the results tent
10. GPS wasn't helpful
Went to Philly for the weekend. The trip started well on Friday. The song "Empire State of Mind" was on the radio lots of time (an omen to stay in NY, we heard it about 10 times during the entire trip). Not too many problems getting out of NY and into PA but once we got to Philly, we had major issues finding the hotel. We were staying at the Conwell Inn but didn't know that it was actually on the Temple University campus and the street that it is on isn't open to traffic. The GPS was going crazy with directions and "recalculating". We finally found parking and the hotel, checked into a beautiful room and worried that with all of those college kids around it may be loud at night. Actually, we didnt' have any problems with noise the entire time we were there. We went to a bar/pizza place that was on campus. We got a couple of slices of pizza (buffalo chicken pizza was yummy) and then got the Sam Adams Winter Lager. I thought this was funny because it was a college bar and, unless things have changed a lot since I was in college, when do college kids drink Sam Adams, Guiness, or Blue Moon as their beverage of choice? The night was great in our room - two big beds with lots of pillows and an almost perfect sleeping temperature.
We woke up at around 8 am the next morning and I looked on-line to see if I could find what we wanted to do during the day and find the public transportation information since we don't like to drive and park in big cities. It is unusual for me to not have a plan of action before we leave for a place but I didn't plan at all for this trip other than to book a hotel and register for the race. So, we tried to go to Saxby's for breakfast but all they had was really expensive coffee and no breakfast foods so we ventured to the Reading Terminal Market for breakfast. By the way, I want that here. That was a great experience. A fantastic muffin and a great cup of coffee was a perfect way to start the day. We headed off to the Convention Center for the Expo. It was easy to get all of our stuff but there weren't enough retailers for shoe sales and I was looking for a new pair of running shoes. We asked if we could use public transportation to get to the race site because there wasn't enough information on the race website but we were told that we wouldn't get there in time if we took public transport as they weren't running that early. We toured the liberty bell, went to the Campos for lunch (they were rated as one of the best Philly Cheesesteaks in Philly) and had a fantastic Philly Cheesesteak. We toured the water front and then headed back to the hotel for a nap. During the time we were walking around, my legs were really bothering me. I had horrible runs this week with some weird muscle pain all week long and it was bothering me while walking today (not a good sign). The nap was fantastic and needed. After napping, we asked about getting a late checkout time so we could race and shower and were told that they really couldn't but would be able to give us until 1pm at the latest - the woman at the desk was not helpful with the subway information as well, it was like pulling teeth. We headed to South Street to eat dinner at Jon's Bar and Grill, home of Larry Fines. I ordered a cheeseburger and fries with a Sam Adams Cherry Wheat beer. It was the best burger I have ever had. The beer was great too. The people watching there was even better. On our way back to the subway, we found Phileo Yogurt. It was fantastic - even better than tangy sweet in DC. We got back to Temple in time to see the Temple v. Siena game. What an exciting game. Weird though, during a break in the 1st half, they loaded packaged hot dogs into an air gun and shot them into the stands. Weird! They flew!!! This was the most excited crowd I have ever seen at a basketball game so it was a lot of fun. Siena lost in the last minutes of the game but it was a great game. We then went back to our hotel, got all of our stuff together for the next morning, found on the race website the parking areas that were cheap (between $6 to $10) and then went to sleep.
I was up nice and early 4:45 am on race day. We were out of the room by 5:20 am. We got in the car and headed to our 1st parking area. They were charging $15 so we went to another lot (getting lost on the way and me, driving, getting really frustrated). This lot told us to just park so we did. It was on the race webpage as $8 and the signs said that if you were in the lot on weekends it was a flat rate of $8. We took off toward the race site, about 6 blocks. Funny though, as we were walking, we saw a city bus delivering racers to the race site (remember we were told it wasn't running early enough at the expo) and we found out that the subway had opened at 5:00 am. Great! We found porta potties easily - I did not have a successful trip to the potty. We found our baggage check area and put our clothes in a bag. Joe went off to his race corral and I checked our bag. I went to find my orange corral and couldn't find it. I asked a volunteer and she told me it was back further but then a group of us were all the way at the end of the corrals and there was no orange or purple corral. Weird. So, we just jumped in when the groups moved up. We heard the 3 groups ahead of us take off and then we were on the way (~18 min after the first group - not too bad). So, we were off. My goals for this day had started as: A) In June, PR in the marathon B) In September, do well in the half-marathon C) 2 weeks ago, be comfortable in the half marathon D) today, finish the half marathon in less than 3 hrs and go home. Within the first mile, I was in pain. At mile 2 we passed a Starbucks and I debated stopping, getting a coffee and waiting for Joe to come back. But I pushed on. I missed most of the sights except the LOVE sign and the Philadelphia Zoo balloon because I was trying to focus on the race not on the pain. At mile 5 or 6, my intestines felt like they were going to explode so I stopped and sat in a line at the porta potties. Another thing with this race, there were not enough porta potties open on the course so the lines were ridiculous. That mile was a 16 min mile with the bathroom stop. Now, I had to get back going again. It took 2 miles and then finally I felt like I was doing ok, not great, not even good, but ok. So, then I thought I had 4 miles left (funny how long runs make your math skills horrible) and then realized as I approached mile 8 that I had 5 miles to go. I tried to convince myself that anyone could run 5 miles (not really a successful sell). But, I was picking up speed and in less pain at this point. By mile 11, I was finally in a groove. So, the finish was nice because it was over but also because Joe was on the corner and gave me the thumbs up that he had qualified for the NYC marathon for next year. In the end, I ran a 2 hr 36 min 53 sec 13.1 mile race - NOT GOOD but I finished and I was able to laugh about it sucking. Joe keeps telling me I accomplished plan D and should be happy with that. I think this was one of my slowest half marathons ever. At least Joe accomplished his goal. I did get a good Philly Pretzel in the finishing area so I guess that is exciting.
We were looking to leave but Joe wanted to see how he did in his age group and to see if he would qualify as an elite in next years race. But we couldn't find the results tent. We asked volunteers who brought out a map of where the tents should have been but it wasn't where it was supposed to be. After 5 calls to other volunteers, no one knew where this tent was so we left. We went to leave the parking lot and were told that it was a $15 parking fee - WHAT?? The sign says $8 and the website said $8!!! We were livid! Plus, our GPS wasn't helping us get back to the street that we needed - it just said go to Broad Street (well how the f*$% do we get there).
Back to the hotel, check out before noon. Legs are sore. Subway to the Reading Market again to eat a fantastic Cranberry Turkey sandwhich and get coffee then back to the car and headed out. Ride home was pretty painless. I am thankful to be home! The highlight of the trip was traveling with Joe and we had fantastic food the entire time. BUT... There were so many low points that I don't know that I would want to do it again. No running for me until Thursday - hopefully it will be fairly painless. Yoga on Wednesday with Melinda. Turkey Trot on Thursday with Grace.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
October 2009
October 2009 was a little less intense than I would have liked it to be. I am still struggling with recovery but seem to finally be able to find a good scenario where I am not sore all of the time any more. I am finally running more distance, not fast at all, but running more. I feel like after this week I will be ready for the Philadelphia, not the day I was expecting it to be, no marathon, no PR but it is ok. At least I am trying to get back to where I need to be so that I can start Ironman training this month. I started lifting weights and doing ab work too. I always slack off in the biking and swimming after my last triathlon of the year and start to focus mostly on running so it wasn't so surprising that I did it again this year. I love running in the fall though. So, even though my stats aren't great for the month, they are ok. November will be even better! Question though, once you have done an Ironman, can you ever feel like you are doing enough when you are not training for an Ironman (I used to do these times and distances on a good month before training for Ironman now I feel like I am soooo out of shape). I just want to be happy with not killing myself in the gym and on the road. Be ok with taking 2 rest days a week so that my body can heal and recover normally. Be happy with a run of 1 hr instead of thinking that it isn't long enough. Some day I think I will be normal again!
October 2009
Swim distance: 0.76 miles
Swim time: 32 min
Bike distance: 47.52 miles (on the trainer again so the distances are lower)
Bike time: 4 hrs 3 min
Run distance:43.78 miles
Run time: 8 hrs 21 min
Total distance: 92.06
Total time: 12 hrs 55 min (I used to do that in 1 week!!)
October 2009
Swim distance: 0.76 miles
Swim time: 32 min
Bike distance: 47.52 miles (on the trainer again so the distances are lower)
Bike time: 4 hrs 3 min
Run distance:43.78 miles
Run time: 8 hrs 21 min
Total distance: 92.06
Total time: 12 hrs 55 min (I used to do that in 1 week!!)
Thursday, October 22, 2009
It's been a while
I know I haven't blogged in a really long time but life has been interesting. After Ironman I took 1 full week off and then started to bike and swim and then about 3 weeks later I felt up to running. I felt ok during the summer when I was exercising but that is about it since I was in Keene Valley and on vacation too. I have since gone back to work (teaching) and my legs did not like to stand all day and then go out and exercise. My body did not like to run at all once I went back to work. The North Elba 1/2 marathon was put on hold. The Lake George Triathlon was not done. I have had to change the Philadelphia Marathon to the half marathon in November. I have really raced (except for the Rutabega 5K in Keene Valley) since Ironman. My upper back has been really effected by Ironman and I still have knots under my shoulders. The cut I got on my leg the Wednesday before Ironman isn't completely gone - still in healing/scarring mode. I gained 8 lbs in 10 weeks (not sure why), finally I am down a couple now which is great. I was not recovering from workouts the way that I used to and I just felt horrible when I was exercising. I decided that maybe if I started eating meat again I would feel stronger muscularly. 3 weeks later, I am not sure if it is making a difference yet since my intestines don't like meat very much and I hate the taste of it. So, I am basically taking one day at a time, listening to my body, and hoping that all will be ok. I would like to start training for next years Ironman in November so I am training and trying but now I am lifting and trying to get my legs and momemtum back. It will happen, I just need to be patient. I am excited to get back into yoga and have been doing much more in October after taking an entire week off again in September. I will be stronger and I will be better next year. I will be great.
Here are August Stats and September stats:
August:
swim distance: 2.1 miles
swim time: 1 hr 30 min
Bike distance: 129.39 miles
Bike time 9 hrs 13 min
Run distance: 13.75 miles
Run time 2 hrs 29 min
Total miles: 149.24
Total time: 18 hrs 57 min
September:
Bike distance: 56.14 miles
Bike time 3 hrs 57 min
Run distance 35.16 miles
Run time 6 hrs 34 min
Total miles: 94.3
Total time: 12 hrs 7 min
Total mileage through September:
Swim distance 67.01 miles
Swim time: 45 hrs 38 min
Bike distance: 2002.13 miles
Bike time: 150 hrs 5 min
Run distance 445.91 miles
Run time: 84 hrs 54 min
Other distances 12.01 miles
Other time 18 hrs 22 min
Total miles 2527.06 miles
Total time 298 hrs 59 min (about 12 1/2 days)
Wow!! That is a lot of working out. More to come to.
Here are August Stats and September stats:
August:
swim distance: 2.1 miles
swim time: 1 hr 30 min
Bike distance: 129.39 miles
Bike time 9 hrs 13 min
Run distance: 13.75 miles
Run time 2 hrs 29 min
Total miles: 149.24
Total time: 18 hrs 57 min
September:
Bike distance: 56.14 miles
Bike time 3 hrs 57 min
Run distance 35.16 miles
Run time 6 hrs 34 min
Total miles: 94.3
Total time: 12 hrs 7 min
Total mileage through September:
Swim distance 67.01 miles
Swim time: 45 hrs 38 min
Bike distance: 2002.13 miles
Bike time: 150 hrs 5 min
Run distance 445.91 miles
Run time: 84 hrs 54 min
Other distances 12.01 miles
Other time 18 hrs 22 min
Total miles 2527.06 miles
Total time 298 hrs 59 min (about 12 1/2 days)
Wow!! That is a lot of working out. More to come to.
Monday, August 31, 2009
In the news
http://www.altamontenterprise.com/Weekly%20Pages/Feature_Story.html
I was interviewed and was the feature story!!! Crazy!!! I don't even know how they knew about me or how they knew I did the Ironman!
I was interviewed and was the feature story!!! Crazy!!! I don't even know how they knew about me or how they knew I did the Ironman!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Video link of Ironman Weekend
Here are the links to two videos on youtube that my father edited together. It shows the weekend and the chaos that surrounds it very well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFkxlCM6cws
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIUPgPJMtC4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFkxlCM6cws
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIUPgPJMtC4
Monday, August 3, 2009
July Stats and recovery update
So, after Ironman was just a huge feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction. Like our new shirt says "Life is better after 140.6 miles." It is just an amazing feeling that you can do anything. Legs one week out are feeling better but I am missing the training. I went out for my first workout post-Ironman yesterday and it felt horrible. My upper back still has a lot of muscle soreness and pain but I am stretching regularly. Hopefully this week will allow for better active recovery. I can't expect much as I did do 140.6 miles in one day and I need to heal.
Here are my stats for the month of July and overall stats for the year (it is amazing that one person can do all those miles). If you had asked me 4 years ago if I could do this, I would have said it was impossible. Remember for July, 2 weeks were for tapering and I took an entire week off after Ironman and 140.6 miles of that was done in one day, crazy:
July stats:
Swim 10.66 miles
Swim time 7 hrs 7 min
Bike 413.99 miles
Bike time 30 hrs 7 min
Run 96.12 miles
Run time 19 hrs 16 min
Total miles 520.77
Total time 56 hrs 30 min
2009 year to date stats:
Swim 64.91 miles in 44 hrs 7 min
Bike 1816.6 miles in 136 hrs 55 min
Run 397 miles in 75 hrs 51 min
Other 5.01 mi in 11 hrs 1 min
Total 2283.51 miles in 267 hrs 55 min (a little more than 11 days of working out)
Here are my stats for the month of July and overall stats for the year (it is amazing that one person can do all those miles). If you had asked me 4 years ago if I could do this, I would have said it was impossible. Remember for July, 2 weeks were for tapering and I took an entire week off after Ironman and 140.6 miles of that was done in one day, crazy:
July stats:
Swim 10.66 miles
Swim time 7 hrs 7 min
Bike 413.99 miles
Bike time 30 hrs 7 min
Run 96.12 miles
Run time 19 hrs 16 min
Total miles 520.77
Total time 56 hrs 30 min
2009 year to date stats:
Swim 64.91 miles in 44 hrs 7 min
Bike 1816.6 miles in 136 hrs 55 min
Run 397 miles in 75 hrs 51 min
Other 5.01 mi in 11 hrs 1 min
Total 2283.51 miles in 267 hrs 55 min (a little more than 11 days of working out)
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Ironman Posts
I am so sorry that they are so long but it was a 140.6 mile race. I posted them so that they go in order Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday. They can all be read separately or together or you can just go to Sunday and read about the race if you don't have time to read them all. I will have pictures soon to share as well.
Thank you to all who supported us. I really appreciate it!
Thank you to all who supported us. I really appreciate it!
Thursday, July 23
We woke up to “It’s a Beautiful Day” by U2 just to get in the right frame of mine. The theme of the weekend was U2 and Black Eyes Peas “Good, Good Day” musically since these are very motivating songs. We packed up our swim materials and went up to Lake Placid to participate in the Gatorade bag check but we didn’t get our act together quickly enough so we didn’t make it in time to check our bags – oh well. When we got to the beach there were so many people and I had to remind myself that I belonged here. We got our wetsuit on, which was interesting because on Wednesday I had caught my leg on the door to my car and had a gash and a massive bruise exactly where my wetsuit rested on my leg. We got into the lake and started to swim. I couldn’t believe how many people were in the water. It was amazing. I just wanted to remain calm during the loop so I went out with the intent to just relax. I found my “zen” place when we were out. It was amazing. I swam my fastest loop of my training on the Thursday before Ironman with the little effort. I was getting a little nervous and caught up in the craziness because I had a moment when I though “I didn’t do enough today. All these people did so much more than I did today. Maybe I need to go for a run” but I calmed myself and made myself stick to my plan!!! I was ready and I needed to do what I was supposed to do.
We got changed and went to registration. I knew what to expect here because I had worked it last year and understood the process but I was still just really nervous as this meant I was actually going to do this thing. Joe and I were separated because I had a USAT card and he didn’t which was a little scary for me because he was my rock through all of this, reassuring me that I belong here. I got through the sign your life away line without crying and went to the weighing station where I was told that the head nurse needed to talk to me. Cora (the head nurse) was asking about my pain level from ankylosing spondylitis and shared her concerned with my asthma. She told me that I was to bring my inhaler to her at the start and if I needed it, then it would be easily available when I exited the swim between loops. She even highlighted my blue form and put it aside so that the people on the swim course knew that number 2001 had a medical issue. They wanted to be prepared just in case. I then was sent to Tammy another volunteer who gave me my wrist band and all of my stuff in an Ironman bag (which was really exciting because I didn’t know we would get that). Tammy was amazing, happy, and so excited for all of the athletes. She was the 4th volunteer that we encountered on this entire journey and all of the volunteers were absolutely amazing (THANK YOU!) When we left registration I couldn’t believe we were actually registered and were a part of this amazing race.
We went into the oval where we got to see all of the vendors and buy Joe a new watch as his broke when he had taken off his wetsuit today and I got Baker’s Breakfast cookies, Newton socks, and a t-shirt. Once we were done at the oval we went back to the camp to relax, eat dinner and watch a movie. Just unwind and then get a good night sleep.
We got changed and went to registration. I knew what to expect here because I had worked it last year and understood the process but I was still just really nervous as this meant I was actually going to do this thing. Joe and I were separated because I had a USAT card and he didn’t which was a little scary for me because he was my rock through all of this, reassuring me that I belong here. I got through the sign your life away line without crying and went to the weighing station where I was told that the head nurse needed to talk to me. Cora (the head nurse) was asking about my pain level from ankylosing spondylitis and shared her concerned with my asthma. She told me that I was to bring my inhaler to her at the start and if I needed it, then it would be easily available when I exited the swim between loops. She even highlighted my blue form and put it aside so that the people on the swim course knew that number 2001 had a medical issue. They wanted to be prepared just in case. I then was sent to Tammy another volunteer who gave me my wrist band and all of my stuff in an Ironman bag (which was really exciting because I didn’t know we would get that). Tammy was amazing, happy, and so excited for all of the athletes. She was the 4th volunteer that we encountered on this entire journey and all of the volunteers were absolutely amazing (THANK YOU!) When we left registration I couldn’t believe we were actually registered and were a part of this amazing race.
We went into the oval where we got to see all of the vendors and buy Joe a new watch as his broke when he had taken off his wetsuit today and I got Baker’s Breakfast cookies, Newton socks, and a t-shirt. Once we were done at the oval we went back to the camp to relax, eat dinner and watch a movie. Just unwind and then get a good night sleep.
Friday, July 24
Joe and I got up and did a 10 min swim in Chapel Pond, a 15 min bike ride, and a 15 min run from the camp just to get the muscles responding. It felt great. Kate and Jeff arrived at the camp from Phoenix (yes, people came from all around to see us do this race). My dad was at the camp and we just hung out during the day. My dad also cleaned and lubed our bike chains and helped put on our numbers to prepare our bikes for the day ahead. My mom and my nieces arrived in the afternoon with the t-shirts for our Iron Spectators which Lila organized very diligently for us. We had a very nice lunch at Cedar Run with Kate and Jeff and watched very nice bikes come down the hill – it was nice and relaxing. Then we started organizing our run/bike gear bags and special needs bags. I had made a list of all of the things I needed in my bags before hand because my friend Melinda said that that was the best strategy so that you knew you had everything. So, I was sitting on the floor with all of my bags out in front of me placing all of my gear and food in the appropriate places. Because I am horribly anal, I had my cousin Kate read off my list and show her that I had it, then I took a picture of all of the gear in each bag so that on race morning when I was freaking out that I didn’t have everything, I would have a visual of each thing in each bag. We then packed ourselves up and went in for the athlete banquet and mandatory meeting. The athlete banquet was fantastic. They played a video that was very motivational that at the end said “You WILL be an Ironman”. They brought up the youngest and oldest participants who were amazing. They showed the story of Matt Long who was the everyday hero. He was almost killed and is now doing an Ironman with his physical therapist in support of the I WILL foundation. They brought up the people who lost the most weight during training, they had those who did a previous Ironman stand up (the man with the most Ironmen completed had done 104 total); they had all of the IronVirgins stand up. The whole thing was so motivational and exciting!!! I was so glad that I had Joe with me the entire time experiencing this from an athlete perspective as well because it made it all the better. Then the rules meeting started and they started freaking me out with all of the rules and the constant reminder of the time cutoffs. I knew the cutoffs and was worried about them already but had gotten myself to a place where I knew I could do it and they were undoing all of my good mental work. I knew that if I could just make it out of the water and off of the bike, I was going to be an Ironman so having someone keep telling me about the 1:30 and 5:30 time cutoff was torturing me. We left as soon as we possibly could because I was getting too worried.
We met up with Kate and Jeff at the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery for a beer after where I found out that Jeff had proposed to Kate at the lake while we were at the banquet. We were soooo excited for them. (That story is probably for another blog) We were in for a fantastic weekend with a start like this. Then we headed home for a nice nights sleep.
We met up with Kate and Jeff at the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery for a beer after where I found out that Jeff had proposed to Kate at the lake while we were at the banquet. We were soooo excited for them. (That story is probably for another blog) We were in for a fantastic weekend with a start like this. Then we headed home for a nice nights sleep.
Saturday, July 25
We woke up earlier to go to the pancake breakfast with my Mom, Dad, Lila, Kaelah, Sierra, Kate, and Jeff. It was a lot of fun and the people from North Country Ministries (the people who put on the free pancake breakfast) were great. The kids got a kick out of it because they could go up and get as many pancakes as they wanted and were served by people with a smile on their faces and very kind words to say.
Joe and I left the family to go and sign up for next year’s race. Yes, that is right, we signed up without doing the first one just on shear faith that it would be a great experience. We met another wonderful volunteer who was from Amsterdam, NY, which is right down the road from where we live, who wished us the best of luck on the day ahead. The line was quick and easy and we were registered before we knew it. It was great to not stand in line on Monday morning after the race to sign up.
We then brought my family down to the Janus tent where they made motivational signs for us and then got free snow cones from the North Country Ministries tent while Joe, my Dad, and I went to get our gear bags and bikes and checked them in. We then left as soon as possible to get out of the chaos and relax before our crazy day ahead.
Our friends started to arrive that afternoon – Brenda and Scott from Pittsburgh, PA, Kim and Cady from Springfield, IL, Amy, Grace, Alynn, Erin, Melinda, and Kristie all from the Albany, NY area – they all came just to see us do a race. I couldn’t believe it. Not only did they all come to see us but they traveled at least 2 hours to get here but some traveled for 8 to 10 hours just to see us do this race. Aren’t they amazing people!! Scott and Brenda also took some time to make fun signs to show us when we were out on the course. They all got to know one another pretty well so that they could have fun with each other for many hours the next day. We rewarded them by giving them food and then going to bed at 9 pm (yes, we all were in bed by 9:30 pm).
Joe and I left the family to go and sign up for next year’s race. Yes, that is right, we signed up without doing the first one just on shear faith that it would be a great experience. We met another wonderful volunteer who was from Amsterdam, NY, which is right down the road from where we live, who wished us the best of luck on the day ahead. The line was quick and easy and we were registered before we knew it. It was great to not stand in line on Monday morning after the race to sign up.
We then brought my family down to the Janus tent where they made motivational signs for us and then got free snow cones from the North Country Ministries tent while Joe, my Dad, and I went to get our gear bags and bikes and checked them in. We then left as soon as possible to get out of the chaos and relax before our crazy day ahead.
Our friends started to arrive that afternoon – Brenda and Scott from Pittsburgh, PA, Kim and Cady from Springfield, IL, Amy, Grace, Alynn, Erin, Melinda, and Kristie all from the Albany, NY area – they all came just to see us do a race. I couldn’t believe it. Not only did they all come to see us but they traveled at least 2 hours to get here but some traveled for 8 to 10 hours just to see us do this race. Aren’t they amazing people!! Scott and Brenda also took some time to make fun signs to show us when we were out on the course. They all got to know one another pretty well so that they could have fun with each other for many hours the next day. We rewarded them by giving them food and then going to bed at 9 pm (yes, we all were in bed by 9:30 pm).
Sunday, July 26
RACE DAY!!! This day was my 30th birthday present to myself – what a present!!
I was sleeping really well until around 1 am when I woke up and had this horrible feeling that I couldn’t do this. I had to spend a good ½ hour telling myself that I could do this and went back to sleep. My stomach was in knots already. This is also when the rain started. It down poured!!! I couldn’t believe that we were going to have a repeat of last year. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to descend the hills as I wanted to if it was raining like this during the race. I also felt sorry for our spectators if it kept raining like that. I didn’t sleep well the rest of the night but got in enough sleep to feel rested. We actually had an alarm go off at 4 am and got up to get ready. I was totally freaked out at this point. I mean I had to do 140.6 miles today – who does that?? I got downstairs and the first thing I saw was my husband with the video camera telling me and everyone else over and over again that we have trained in this weather all summer long and were ready for this race. He wasn’t doing this for himself even though he was doing the race as well he was doing it for me because of how freaked out I was. That was my mantra the past few days and he just kept repeating it for me to hear. I ate my Baker’s Breakfast cookie and had a glass of water for breakfast even though I felt like I was going to puke the entire time I was eating. I would realize later that this was not enough for breakfast on an Ironman day but I didn’t know how to get anything else down with a stomach that was unstable. All of our friends and family started to wake up and wish us luck and reassure us that we could do this. When we were getting ready to go I decided that I wanted my raincoat but I couldn’t find it and thus we left about 15 minutes later than we had anticipated which freaked me out even more. During the ride into town, I sat in the back of the car with my eyes closed trying to center myself and calm down, it worked slightly but not as well as I wanted it to.
We arrived and grabbed our special needs bags and bike pump and started walking down to the special needs area where we checked our bags and then headed back to the body markers and the oval. The body markers that I had were great. She could tell that I was nervous and kept reassuring me that I could do this while marking my body with 2001 and my age 30 while my cousin Kate was taking pictures of me and the journey that we were embarking on. Once we were marked, we went into the transition area to pump the tires, put the bottles of Infinit on the bike, go to the bathroom, and then find a dry place to put on our wetsuit since it was raining like crazy at this point.
We then headed back out at exactly 6:30 am and saw people being denied access to the transition area because it was after 6:30. Kate took another picture of Joe and myself in our wetsuits to show a before. We headed down to the beach to find the medical table to check my inhaler and head to the start. We ran into a parent of two of our former athletes there and said hello which is when I promptly started to cry when he asked how we were doing this morning. He told me that I was going to be fine and that it was good to be this emotional over the race. It meant that I was invested. He also said something that I will remember for a while, he said “There will be times when you think, this is impossible, I can’t do this. But you can, you say a prayer, do something to get yourself back then take it one mile at a time.” He was very supportive. This is his 9th or 10th Ironman so I take his advice to heart except the advice he gave me last year to not sign up for the race, I didn’t take that one obviously. I went to find the medical table and couldn’t find it and started to freak out again. This random man from ART (active release therapy) not sure what they were doing for the start of the race but this man took me by the shoulders, navigated me through this sea of 2400 people to find Cora the head nurse to turn in my inhaler. I was so moved that someone cared this much to help me this much and I was so full of fear/nerves, that I lost it again. He gave me a hug and told me that I would do great and to enjoy the day. I had lost my husband at this point which was freaking me out even more but I went through the chip pad and found a spot to stand and take it all in. Joe found me though and gave me a big hug which calmed me down. We went over to where we wanted to start. I told him again “I did the training and I belong here”. Another athlete heard me saying this and started asking us if this was our first. When we said yes, he said “You will get beaten up in the swim but just envision it as a swim with 2000 of your closest friends and family.”
It was funny though because from here everything moved really fast – the anthem was sung and then all of a sudden the cannon went off but there was no “Beautiful Day” played. I waited for the mass of people in front of me to leave and as I was being pulled out into the lake I kept telling myself to wait and stick to my strategy of waiting for the area to get cleared out. I started to swim exactly 1 minute after the cannon had gone off. There was open water all around me. I found myself to be completely calm and just couldn’t believe that after all of these years of watching and volunteering I was actually a part of this race. I wasn’t right on the line the first loop but I was being very methodical about being under control, not freaking out, and following all of these people that I could see on the line. It made for a really easy first loop. I loved when you turned and were about ½ way back, you could hear Mike Riley talking and the big screen made for easy sighting. I came through on my first loop in around 47 minutes which was fine with me since I spent one of those minutes standing on shore. I got back into the water and found the line pretty easily. I didn’t spend the entire second loop on the line though as I was faster than a lot of people and kept navigating easily around people the whole time just in amazement that I was actually doing this. When I could hear Mike Riley again on the second loop I wanted to smile in the water because I knew I was going to be out of the water soon and heading to the wet suit strippers!!! I had stayed calm in the water the entire time and was very pleased with myself and my swim. I got out after a second loop of about 46 minutes which gave me a total swim time of 1:34:12. This was a solid swim for me. I grabbed my inhaler from a volunteer, and then was shuttled to another 2 volunteers (wet suit strippers) who grabbed my inhaler, swim cap, and goggles and then started to pull. It was so nice to have someone doing this for me. I ran to the transition area (wow, didn’t realize how long it actually was even though I have walked it several times) and saw my friends Melinda and Kristie cheering and then all of our friends and family in their Team Joe and Kelly t-shirts screaming their heads off at me. I unfortunately didn’t see the poster that Scott had made for us that said “Only 138.2 miles to Go” when I exited the water. 1/3 of the event down, only 2/3 left to go. The only problem with the swim was that I got hungry during the second loop. I hadn’t eaten enough for breakfast. I knew I had to get in some calories during transition to keep up the rest of my day.
T1 went really well. I grabbed my gear bag and ran into the change tent where I was shocked to find it completely full with no seats available, volunteers running around like crazy people trying to keep up with all of us, and athletes frantically trying to get ready for the bike. I was surprisingly calm though at this point. I changed into my bike shorts, put my food into my pocket, put on my shoes (big mistake), bike helmet, and glasses, asked a volunteer to put sunscreen on my back where I couldn’t reach (SPF 70 just to make sure I didn’t scorch), rechecked that I had everything, put all of my stuff back into my bag and asked a volunteer what I needed to do with it and she just took it from me and said “Good Luck!”. What fabulous volunteers!!! I retrieved my bike from a volunteer and asked another to open my Sharkies for me and headed out. I was only in transition for 10 min 32 sec.
Bike: I mounted the bike and tried to clip in while stuffing Sharkies down my throat and going downhill – great combo. Problem #1 on the bike occurred immediately. Because of the crazy rainy summer and the horrible rain that night, I had gotten gunk in my speed-play pedals and couldn’t clip in. This had happened to me at my 1st ½ IM last year too. I knew not to freak out but got off the bike and tried to clean out the garbage. It didn’t help. I pulled over again and had someone pour water down and in the cleat and clean the pedal and then got back on and finally clipped in. So, I was on my way with some delay. I climbed slowly out of town taking my time as was everyone else which was so neat to see a line of people climbing out of Lake Placid just spinning. I hauled ass down the Keene hills which was fantastic. I love going downhill and had practiced on this course 5 times prior to race day (I am lucky that I live here during the summer so I train on the course from June to race day). I was doing well until I hit mile 22 where my calf started cramping a little. I am not sure why it started to happen nor why it started to happen to me about 3 weeks ago during training but at the next two aid stations I made sure I got a banana, drank more of my Infinit, and took in more water. The weather at this point was sunny and in the low 70’s which isn’t really what we have been training in due to the cold wet summer here in the Adirondacks and wasn’t the forecast for the either. Once we started the climb on Rte 86, I didn’t feel great. Hazelton Road went well even though this is where problem #2 occurred – my chain fell off for the first time ever!!! I had to unclip on an uphill which proved to be a problem as my left cleat was still being weird due to the mud. I got the chain back on and continued on. After getting back on the bike though, it the pedal started making this high pitched squealing sound. I couldn’t mentally fathom dealing with this terrible, ear piercing sound for the next 70 miles. I rode back up through the Wilmington notch feeling spent, dreading the second loop and feeling like my legs were not functioning. When I got back to the special needs area, the volunteer held my bike and let me take all that I needed from my bag and then sent me on my way still squeaking away. I rounded the hot corner in town to see my dad waiting for me and then a huge group of family and friends cheering loudly. I waved and used the adrenaline from seeing them to push me back up the hills. I saw a sign that said “Kelly you are an Ironman (My Hero)” which made me laugh. I stopped at the first aid station to see if they had any lube for the pedal to stop the ear piercing sounds that was emanating from my bike but they didn’t so I kept going and miraculously just stopping and readjusting my foot made the sound stop. It came and went for the last 56 miles but was bearable. I was at Cascade Lakes before I knew it and then climbing on 86 quickly after that. I kept repeating my friend Melinda’s “song” in my head “In life there are hills” but I kept coming back to “Why does it take so many hills to become an Ironman” and “Just keep Spinning”. Just before Hazelton Road there was a sign that said “Suck it up Princess” and I did. On Hazelton Road I was doing the math, I had 2 hours to complete 22 miles – plenty of time even though I had some of the toughest climbs ahead of me. The entire last 22 miles I kept redoing the math to make sure that I could get back before 5:30. It was tough to remain positive when a couple of people around me where really afraid that they were not going to make it but I have ridden this course many times and know it well and knew I was going to make it. Not only that but I knew that I hadn’t done all of that run training to not get off of the bike and head off on the run. It felt easier the second loop though. On the way back after Hazelton Road, I made sure I took in a more food and Infinit to be ready for the run. I found my dad at the top of the Papa Bear hill waiting for me freaking out that I wasn’t going to make it. He yelled for me to keep going and then called to tell our cheering section that I was on my way. They were waiting for me when I got back cheering like crazy. I finished the entire bike course in 8:35:29 which leaves a lot of be desired but I got back before 5:30 so I was golden. Due to the cleat problem, a volunteer had to physically take my foot and move it with force to get my foot out of the pedal. I have to say that on the bike course the volunteers and spectators were just amazing the whole way though – cheering, motivating, bringing out goats to the road (I think that is what they were, really big goats).
T2 went by really quickly. I gave my bike to a volunteer, grabbed my gear bag, a volunteer met me at the tent and open my bag and started to hand me things. I changed into my tri shorts and started to put my socks on before she put a bag under my feet to make sure I didn’t get my feet wet. She put more sunscreen on me and went through my entire bag to make sure that I had everything that I needed. She even put all of my bike gear back into my bag – now that takes a special person to voluntarily touch anything I had been wearing on the bike since it was disgusting. I stood up and realized that I had to run a marathon now. I was out of transition and on the run course before 5:30 with only 5:18 spent in T2.
I started out on the run and my dad met me right at the top of the first down hill telling me just to keep putting one foot in front of the other and I was going to make it. He also told me that my husband was right behind me going out for his second loop. I did the math and realized that as long as I kept moving with 15 min miles I was going to finish before midnight. My family and friends were screaming for me which gave me lots of energy. I was so excited because I was going to be an Ironman. This is what I had trained for and wanted for the past 6 years. I decided to use the porta potty at the first aid station and still ran a 10:40 first mile. The spectators on the course were fantastic. I loved having my name on my bib because everyone was yelling “Go Kelly!” which made me smile and kept me moving forward. My goal was to run most of the first half only stopping at the aid stations to drink and eat. For each mile that I was under 15 minutes that meant that I had time in the bag and would finish before midnight. I really wanted to run the marathon in 6 hours or less. I am a slow runner with my fastest marathon being a 4:50 so I was expecting to be slower on the run anyway. I met Kathleen who was also doing her first Ironman and we talked for a little while and enjoyed the scenery. I was overtaken by my husband about a mile before the turnaround and told him that today we were going to be Ironmen. I just kept plugging away at the miles knowing that I had a cushion and I was making it closer to 11:30 than midnight for my finish. I went by the Ford Ironman Motivation Station and saw my message to myself “They’re Waiting 4 U” and knew I needed to get to my family. I passed my husband who was walking around my mile 8 his mile 19. He was having horrible calf cramps and we had a small interaction about nutrition but I just kept going. Around mile 9 my stomach was sloshing and I wasn’t feeling great but the thought that I was going to be an Ironman was overwhelmingly powerful enough to keep me smiling and going. As I was headed up the hill onto Main Street, my dad and my niece Lila came out to walk with me up the hill as I had consciously made the decision not to run this hill as it always killed me during training. Lila said to me why aren’t you running and touched my shoulder and then told me that I was really gross. My dad was really supportive and when I told him about not wanting to eat or drink he told me that I needed to make sure I was hydrating. I headed out on the out and back with all of these people with their Ubu’s on the side of the road and the smell of beer permeating the air and enjoyed the boisterous yelling. Joe overtook me again here and I told him to enjoy the oval and I loved him to which he returned with “I Love you too” as did another man who was passing me. I laughed and he laughed. Joe headed into the oval as I was heading out to do my second loop – how nice, I got to see how excited he was which allowed me to be even more excited about what was coming for me. I loved doing this with Joe; it made the entire experience even more amazing. I headed back down the hill to a few of my family members yelling for me since most of them had already run to the finish to see Joe finish. As I was heading down though, my stomach was really upset and my legs and feet were starting to hurt. I couldn’t really take in food at this point, just liquids which were not giving me the calories I needed to refuel my muscles. The spectators were amazing and just so happy. It started to get dark at this point and I was walking and jogging with a couple of people from Team Z. We were all having stomach issues but were pushing through it. As it got darker on River Road, I was inhaling mosquitoes and choking on them. The volunteers were great handing out cola and making sure we were hydrating enough, even walking with us and asking what we needed and then going to get it and making sure we ate or drank what they gave us. At one point as I was walking I looked up and there was the moon – a perfectly clear beautiful night!! It was going to be my night!! We got our glow sticks so they could see us. River Road gets really dark at night. Spectators were still out on yelling and cheering even tough it was past 10 pm. I started to realize that walking was faster than running at this point and I found Jennifer. Jennifer and I didn’t look at each other the entire time but talked and hauled ass together. Her husband had also done the race and finished in the 13 hour range as had my husband. We both were maintaining about 14:45 miles at this point by walking and when we tried to run it would drop to close to 16 min miles. My feet hurt and my legs were tired but I just wanted to get to that finish line. All of us were suffering but I knew that was going to be part of my day when I signed up. My dad found us at the Horse Show Grounds and walked with us telling me how great I did. There was a group of people who were rowdy with a microphone and singing and I sang along with them as they cheered for us. We got up the hill back onto Main Street where my friend Melinda had her Ipod hooked up to speakers and had been playing music for all of the athletes but when she saw me she put on the Black Eyed Peas song “I Gotta Feeling, that tonight’s gonna be a good night” and started to run along side of us playing my song. Jennifer told me that this was great because it allowed her to feel like she could move faster. I was laughing and singing with the song and then we started running again with a renewed vigor. One of the other spectators said “That is a good friend”, I agree!! We got to the next little hill and walked to the turn-around where this older couple was yelling/screaming “Here come two more Ironmen. Someone tell the oval that we have two more Ironmen coming!!” They were fantastic. We got a little ways from the turn-around and we found Brenda and Scott. Brenda asked how I felt and my response was “Like I just covered 140.6 miles in a day.” We started running now and Jennifer took off. I had a huge smile on my face. I have watched this for the past 10 years and now it was going to be me. The crowd got louder and louder, you could hear Mike Riley telling people they were Ironmen. It was an amazing feeling. All of the pain in my feet that had deterred me from running disappeared. As I entered the oval I couldn’t stop smiling. Joe was at the turn showing me the way with his metal around his neck. I was giddy!! I entered the finishing straight and was overwhelmed by how amazing it was. It was like you were a rock star!!! There were so many people screaming and cheering. I gave high fives to a whole bunch of guys with their hands out. I saw my mom and niece Sierra screaming for me. The lights were so bright. The Ironman arch was beautiful. And when I crossed the line the crowd cheered and I was an Ironman. I didn’t hear him say it but I knew I had done it. I almost wish I had slowed down and enjoyed the moment a little more. The volunteer gave me a hug, escorted me to the pictures, got me my shirt and sent me on my way. I was an Ironman at 11:24 pm with a finishing time of 16 hours 24 min and 8 sec. A man in the shoot told me I did great and gave me a hug – a random man was happy for me. I kept walking to find my family and when they found me, my friend Alynn gave me a hug and told me how proud she was of me with tears in her eyes. Then my support crew all gave me a hug and took pictures. A random guy gave me a handshake and told me I did well. After we were done with pictures and everything, my family and friends went to get to their cars and I went to get my bags and bike. While we were in there we heard Matt Long finish and the last person come to the finish. It was absolutely a fantastic night.
I have to say that without all of the volunteers that were out there that day, none of us could have done this. I was a volunteer once but had no idea how much the athletes actually rely on the volunteers to get them through the race. I can not say enough about how fantastic these volunteers were. They rock!
This race was more than I would have ever imagined. It outlived every expectation that I ever had for it. Having both myself and my husband become Ironmen on the same day was just fantastic. WOW!!! Even though I have written a lot, words cannot express what an amazing experience this has been. I became an Ironman Rock star!!! I told my dad that I made the most of my money by taking as long as I did (I was kidding) but it was just an unforgettable experience.
I was sleeping really well until around 1 am when I woke up and had this horrible feeling that I couldn’t do this. I had to spend a good ½ hour telling myself that I could do this and went back to sleep. My stomach was in knots already. This is also when the rain started. It down poured!!! I couldn’t believe that we were going to have a repeat of last year. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to descend the hills as I wanted to if it was raining like this during the race. I also felt sorry for our spectators if it kept raining like that. I didn’t sleep well the rest of the night but got in enough sleep to feel rested. We actually had an alarm go off at 4 am and got up to get ready. I was totally freaked out at this point. I mean I had to do 140.6 miles today – who does that?? I got downstairs and the first thing I saw was my husband with the video camera telling me and everyone else over and over again that we have trained in this weather all summer long and were ready for this race. He wasn’t doing this for himself even though he was doing the race as well he was doing it for me because of how freaked out I was. That was my mantra the past few days and he just kept repeating it for me to hear. I ate my Baker’s Breakfast cookie and had a glass of water for breakfast even though I felt like I was going to puke the entire time I was eating. I would realize later that this was not enough for breakfast on an Ironman day but I didn’t know how to get anything else down with a stomach that was unstable. All of our friends and family started to wake up and wish us luck and reassure us that we could do this. When we were getting ready to go I decided that I wanted my raincoat but I couldn’t find it and thus we left about 15 minutes later than we had anticipated which freaked me out even more. During the ride into town, I sat in the back of the car with my eyes closed trying to center myself and calm down, it worked slightly but not as well as I wanted it to.
We arrived and grabbed our special needs bags and bike pump and started walking down to the special needs area where we checked our bags and then headed back to the body markers and the oval. The body markers that I had were great. She could tell that I was nervous and kept reassuring me that I could do this while marking my body with 2001 and my age 30 while my cousin Kate was taking pictures of me and the journey that we were embarking on. Once we were marked, we went into the transition area to pump the tires, put the bottles of Infinit on the bike, go to the bathroom, and then find a dry place to put on our wetsuit since it was raining like crazy at this point.
We then headed back out at exactly 6:30 am and saw people being denied access to the transition area because it was after 6:30. Kate took another picture of Joe and myself in our wetsuits to show a before. We headed down to the beach to find the medical table to check my inhaler and head to the start. We ran into a parent of two of our former athletes there and said hello which is when I promptly started to cry when he asked how we were doing this morning. He told me that I was going to be fine and that it was good to be this emotional over the race. It meant that I was invested. He also said something that I will remember for a while, he said “There will be times when you think, this is impossible, I can’t do this. But you can, you say a prayer, do something to get yourself back then take it one mile at a time.” He was very supportive. This is his 9th or 10th Ironman so I take his advice to heart except the advice he gave me last year to not sign up for the race, I didn’t take that one obviously. I went to find the medical table and couldn’t find it and started to freak out again. This random man from ART (active release therapy) not sure what they were doing for the start of the race but this man took me by the shoulders, navigated me through this sea of 2400 people to find Cora the head nurse to turn in my inhaler. I was so moved that someone cared this much to help me this much and I was so full of fear/nerves, that I lost it again. He gave me a hug and told me that I would do great and to enjoy the day. I had lost my husband at this point which was freaking me out even more but I went through the chip pad and found a spot to stand and take it all in. Joe found me though and gave me a big hug which calmed me down. We went over to where we wanted to start. I told him again “I did the training and I belong here”. Another athlete heard me saying this and started asking us if this was our first. When we said yes, he said “You will get beaten up in the swim but just envision it as a swim with 2000 of your closest friends and family.”
It was funny though because from here everything moved really fast – the anthem was sung and then all of a sudden the cannon went off but there was no “Beautiful Day” played. I waited for the mass of people in front of me to leave and as I was being pulled out into the lake I kept telling myself to wait and stick to my strategy of waiting for the area to get cleared out. I started to swim exactly 1 minute after the cannon had gone off. There was open water all around me. I found myself to be completely calm and just couldn’t believe that after all of these years of watching and volunteering I was actually a part of this race. I wasn’t right on the line the first loop but I was being very methodical about being under control, not freaking out, and following all of these people that I could see on the line. It made for a really easy first loop. I loved when you turned and were about ½ way back, you could hear Mike Riley talking and the big screen made for easy sighting. I came through on my first loop in around 47 minutes which was fine with me since I spent one of those minutes standing on shore. I got back into the water and found the line pretty easily. I didn’t spend the entire second loop on the line though as I was faster than a lot of people and kept navigating easily around people the whole time just in amazement that I was actually doing this. When I could hear Mike Riley again on the second loop I wanted to smile in the water because I knew I was going to be out of the water soon and heading to the wet suit strippers!!! I had stayed calm in the water the entire time and was very pleased with myself and my swim. I got out after a second loop of about 46 minutes which gave me a total swim time of 1:34:12. This was a solid swim for me. I grabbed my inhaler from a volunteer, and then was shuttled to another 2 volunteers (wet suit strippers) who grabbed my inhaler, swim cap, and goggles and then started to pull. It was so nice to have someone doing this for me. I ran to the transition area (wow, didn’t realize how long it actually was even though I have walked it several times) and saw my friends Melinda and Kristie cheering and then all of our friends and family in their Team Joe and Kelly t-shirts screaming their heads off at me. I unfortunately didn’t see the poster that Scott had made for us that said “Only 138.2 miles to Go” when I exited the water. 1/3 of the event down, only 2/3 left to go. The only problem with the swim was that I got hungry during the second loop. I hadn’t eaten enough for breakfast. I knew I had to get in some calories during transition to keep up the rest of my day.
T1 went really well. I grabbed my gear bag and ran into the change tent where I was shocked to find it completely full with no seats available, volunteers running around like crazy people trying to keep up with all of us, and athletes frantically trying to get ready for the bike. I was surprisingly calm though at this point. I changed into my bike shorts, put my food into my pocket, put on my shoes (big mistake), bike helmet, and glasses, asked a volunteer to put sunscreen on my back where I couldn’t reach (SPF 70 just to make sure I didn’t scorch), rechecked that I had everything, put all of my stuff back into my bag and asked a volunteer what I needed to do with it and she just took it from me and said “Good Luck!”. What fabulous volunteers!!! I retrieved my bike from a volunteer and asked another to open my Sharkies for me and headed out. I was only in transition for 10 min 32 sec.
Bike: I mounted the bike and tried to clip in while stuffing Sharkies down my throat and going downhill – great combo. Problem #1 on the bike occurred immediately. Because of the crazy rainy summer and the horrible rain that night, I had gotten gunk in my speed-play pedals and couldn’t clip in. This had happened to me at my 1st ½ IM last year too. I knew not to freak out but got off the bike and tried to clean out the garbage. It didn’t help. I pulled over again and had someone pour water down and in the cleat and clean the pedal and then got back on and finally clipped in. So, I was on my way with some delay. I climbed slowly out of town taking my time as was everyone else which was so neat to see a line of people climbing out of Lake Placid just spinning. I hauled ass down the Keene hills which was fantastic. I love going downhill and had practiced on this course 5 times prior to race day (I am lucky that I live here during the summer so I train on the course from June to race day). I was doing well until I hit mile 22 where my calf started cramping a little. I am not sure why it started to happen nor why it started to happen to me about 3 weeks ago during training but at the next two aid stations I made sure I got a banana, drank more of my Infinit, and took in more water. The weather at this point was sunny and in the low 70’s which isn’t really what we have been training in due to the cold wet summer here in the Adirondacks and wasn’t the forecast for the either. Once we started the climb on Rte 86, I didn’t feel great. Hazelton Road went well even though this is where problem #2 occurred – my chain fell off for the first time ever!!! I had to unclip on an uphill which proved to be a problem as my left cleat was still being weird due to the mud. I got the chain back on and continued on. After getting back on the bike though, it the pedal started making this high pitched squealing sound. I couldn’t mentally fathom dealing with this terrible, ear piercing sound for the next 70 miles. I rode back up through the Wilmington notch feeling spent, dreading the second loop and feeling like my legs were not functioning. When I got back to the special needs area, the volunteer held my bike and let me take all that I needed from my bag and then sent me on my way still squeaking away. I rounded the hot corner in town to see my dad waiting for me and then a huge group of family and friends cheering loudly. I waved and used the adrenaline from seeing them to push me back up the hills. I saw a sign that said “Kelly you are an Ironman (My Hero)” which made me laugh. I stopped at the first aid station to see if they had any lube for the pedal to stop the ear piercing sounds that was emanating from my bike but they didn’t so I kept going and miraculously just stopping and readjusting my foot made the sound stop. It came and went for the last 56 miles but was bearable. I was at Cascade Lakes before I knew it and then climbing on 86 quickly after that. I kept repeating my friend Melinda’s “song” in my head “In life there are hills” but I kept coming back to “Why does it take so many hills to become an Ironman” and “Just keep Spinning”. Just before Hazelton Road there was a sign that said “Suck it up Princess” and I did. On Hazelton Road I was doing the math, I had 2 hours to complete 22 miles – plenty of time even though I had some of the toughest climbs ahead of me. The entire last 22 miles I kept redoing the math to make sure that I could get back before 5:30. It was tough to remain positive when a couple of people around me where really afraid that they were not going to make it but I have ridden this course many times and know it well and knew I was going to make it. Not only that but I knew that I hadn’t done all of that run training to not get off of the bike and head off on the run. It felt easier the second loop though. On the way back after Hazelton Road, I made sure I took in a more food and Infinit to be ready for the run. I found my dad at the top of the Papa Bear hill waiting for me freaking out that I wasn’t going to make it. He yelled for me to keep going and then called to tell our cheering section that I was on my way. They were waiting for me when I got back cheering like crazy. I finished the entire bike course in 8:35:29 which leaves a lot of be desired but I got back before 5:30 so I was golden. Due to the cleat problem, a volunteer had to physically take my foot and move it with force to get my foot out of the pedal. I have to say that on the bike course the volunteers and spectators were just amazing the whole way though – cheering, motivating, bringing out goats to the road (I think that is what they were, really big goats).
T2 went by really quickly. I gave my bike to a volunteer, grabbed my gear bag, a volunteer met me at the tent and open my bag and started to hand me things. I changed into my tri shorts and started to put my socks on before she put a bag under my feet to make sure I didn’t get my feet wet. She put more sunscreen on me and went through my entire bag to make sure that I had everything that I needed. She even put all of my bike gear back into my bag – now that takes a special person to voluntarily touch anything I had been wearing on the bike since it was disgusting. I stood up and realized that I had to run a marathon now. I was out of transition and on the run course before 5:30 with only 5:18 spent in T2.
I started out on the run and my dad met me right at the top of the first down hill telling me just to keep putting one foot in front of the other and I was going to make it. He also told me that my husband was right behind me going out for his second loop. I did the math and realized that as long as I kept moving with 15 min miles I was going to finish before midnight. My family and friends were screaming for me which gave me lots of energy. I was so excited because I was going to be an Ironman. This is what I had trained for and wanted for the past 6 years. I decided to use the porta potty at the first aid station and still ran a 10:40 first mile. The spectators on the course were fantastic. I loved having my name on my bib because everyone was yelling “Go Kelly!” which made me smile and kept me moving forward. My goal was to run most of the first half only stopping at the aid stations to drink and eat. For each mile that I was under 15 minutes that meant that I had time in the bag and would finish before midnight. I really wanted to run the marathon in 6 hours or less. I am a slow runner with my fastest marathon being a 4:50 so I was expecting to be slower on the run anyway. I met Kathleen who was also doing her first Ironman and we talked for a little while and enjoyed the scenery. I was overtaken by my husband about a mile before the turnaround and told him that today we were going to be Ironmen. I just kept plugging away at the miles knowing that I had a cushion and I was making it closer to 11:30 than midnight for my finish. I went by the Ford Ironman Motivation Station and saw my message to myself “They’re Waiting 4 U” and knew I needed to get to my family. I passed my husband who was walking around my mile 8 his mile 19. He was having horrible calf cramps and we had a small interaction about nutrition but I just kept going. Around mile 9 my stomach was sloshing and I wasn’t feeling great but the thought that I was going to be an Ironman was overwhelmingly powerful enough to keep me smiling and going. As I was headed up the hill onto Main Street, my dad and my niece Lila came out to walk with me up the hill as I had consciously made the decision not to run this hill as it always killed me during training. Lila said to me why aren’t you running and touched my shoulder and then told me that I was really gross. My dad was really supportive and when I told him about not wanting to eat or drink he told me that I needed to make sure I was hydrating. I headed out on the out and back with all of these people with their Ubu’s on the side of the road and the smell of beer permeating the air and enjoyed the boisterous yelling. Joe overtook me again here and I told him to enjoy the oval and I loved him to which he returned with “I Love you too” as did another man who was passing me. I laughed and he laughed. Joe headed into the oval as I was heading out to do my second loop – how nice, I got to see how excited he was which allowed me to be even more excited about what was coming for me. I loved doing this with Joe; it made the entire experience even more amazing. I headed back down the hill to a few of my family members yelling for me since most of them had already run to the finish to see Joe finish. As I was heading down though, my stomach was really upset and my legs and feet were starting to hurt. I couldn’t really take in food at this point, just liquids which were not giving me the calories I needed to refuel my muscles. The spectators were amazing and just so happy. It started to get dark at this point and I was walking and jogging with a couple of people from Team Z. We were all having stomach issues but were pushing through it. As it got darker on River Road, I was inhaling mosquitoes and choking on them. The volunteers were great handing out cola and making sure we were hydrating enough, even walking with us and asking what we needed and then going to get it and making sure we ate or drank what they gave us. At one point as I was walking I looked up and there was the moon – a perfectly clear beautiful night!! It was going to be my night!! We got our glow sticks so they could see us. River Road gets really dark at night. Spectators were still out on yelling and cheering even tough it was past 10 pm. I started to realize that walking was faster than running at this point and I found Jennifer. Jennifer and I didn’t look at each other the entire time but talked and hauled ass together. Her husband had also done the race and finished in the 13 hour range as had my husband. We both were maintaining about 14:45 miles at this point by walking and when we tried to run it would drop to close to 16 min miles. My feet hurt and my legs were tired but I just wanted to get to that finish line. All of us were suffering but I knew that was going to be part of my day when I signed up. My dad found us at the Horse Show Grounds and walked with us telling me how great I did. There was a group of people who were rowdy with a microphone and singing and I sang along with them as they cheered for us. We got up the hill back onto Main Street where my friend Melinda had her Ipod hooked up to speakers and had been playing music for all of the athletes but when she saw me she put on the Black Eyed Peas song “I Gotta Feeling, that tonight’s gonna be a good night” and started to run along side of us playing my song. Jennifer told me that this was great because it allowed her to feel like she could move faster. I was laughing and singing with the song and then we started running again with a renewed vigor. One of the other spectators said “That is a good friend”, I agree!! We got to the next little hill and walked to the turn-around where this older couple was yelling/screaming “Here come two more Ironmen. Someone tell the oval that we have two more Ironmen coming!!” They were fantastic. We got a little ways from the turn-around and we found Brenda and Scott. Brenda asked how I felt and my response was “Like I just covered 140.6 miles in a day.” We started running now and Jennifer took off. I had a huge smile on my face. I have watched this for the past 10 years and now it was going to be me. The crowd got louder and louder, you could hear Mike Riley telling people they were Ironmen. It was an amazing feeling. All of the pain in my feet that had deterred me from running disappeared. As I entered the oval I couldn’t stop smiling. Joe was at the turn showing me the way with his metal around his neck. I was giddy!! I entered the finishing straight and was overwhelmed by how amazing it was. It was like you were a rock star!!! There were so many people screaming and cheering. I gave high fives to a whole bunch of guys with their hands out. I saw my mom and niece Sierra screaming for me. The lights were so bright. The Ironman arch was beautiful. And when I crossed the line the crowd cheered and I was an Ironman. I didn’t hear him say it but I knew I had done it. I almost wish I had slowed down and enjoyed the moment a little more. The volunteer gave me a hug, escorted me to the pictures, got me my shirt and sent me on my way. I was an Ironman at 11:24 pm with a finishing time of 16 hours 24 min and 8 sec. A man in the shoot told me I did great and gave me a hug – a random man was happy for me. I kept walking to find my family and when they found me, my friend Alynn gave me a hug and told me how proud she was of me with tears in her eyes. Then my support crew all gave me a hug and took pictures. A random guy gave me a handshake and told me I did well. After we were done with pictures and everything, my family and friends went to get to their cars and I went to get my bags and bike. While we were in there we heard Matt Long finish and the last person come to the finish. It was absolutely a fantastic night.
I have to say that without all of the volunteers that were out there that day, none of us could have done this. I was a volunteer once but had no idea how much the athletes actually rely on the volunteers to get them through the race. I can not say enough about how fantastic these volunteers were. They rock!
This race was more than I would have ever imagined. It outlived every expectation that I ever had for it. Having both myself and my husband become Ironmen on the same day was just fantastic. WOW!!! Even though I have written a lot, words cannot express what an amazing experience this has been. I became an Ironman Rock star!!! I told my dad that I made the most of my money by taking as long as I did (I was kidding) but it was just an unforgettable experience.
Monday, July 27
We woke up to all of our stuff that needed to be unpacked and friends and family still sleeping because I think it is harder to watch sometimes than it is to participate – just standing all day and waiting is exhausting. We were tired and a sore but overall felt better than we had expected. I still can’t believe that people can cover 140.6 miles in one day even though I actually did it. So, what do you do when you become an Ironman, you go shopping!!! We went back to the oval and spent a lot of money on Ironman gear. We put the stickers on my car that day as well. We went to the awards ceremony and saw the volunteer video and the video of the day. It was a beautiful day to become an Ironman, wasn’t it!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
4 days until I become an Ironman
Today brought Brenda pretending to be a triathlete (or biathlete). She went on a 30 min run with me and a 15 mile bike with me. She enjoyed it throughly!!! I am ready. I am excited! I am looking forward to the challenge of the day!
Monday, July 20, 2009
7 days until I am an Ironman
I am so excited. The weather looks ok - maybe a little warmer than I would have liked but it will be ok. I am still a little sick - which is annoying the hell out of me. We have people coming to visit starting today and then we will have company all the way through to Tuesday morning. I am excited to be involved in all of the prerace stuff this year and not feel like a poser as I usually do when I go up and ride, run, or swim during Ironman time of the year. I actually belong there with all of the other people. What a great feeling.
I got our bib numbers today - I am #2001 and Joe is #256.
Those sound like fantastic numbers!
I got our bib numbers today - I am #2001 and Joe is #256.
Those sound like fantastic numbers!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Visualizing Ironman
So, I have been visualizing Ironman for the past couple of weeks. Here is how it goes:
Swim: I get into the swim start area and breathe deeply and settle down for about 10 minutes. Calm is how I will feel. The cannon will sound and off the main field will go but not me. I will continue to breathe and wait 2 to 3 minutes until it thins out and then find my space and start swimming. I will get hit but it will be fine, and I will remain calm. The first loop will consist of me breathing and enjoying the water (it is just me, the bouys, the water, and Kate smiling at me telling me that I am doing well). I will finish the first loop in 44 to 47 minutes which will be fast enough for me not to get passed by a group of people (maybe the elite women but they are such a small group that I will just enjoy the pull). I will get out, wave to the crowd, breathe deeply and head back in for the second loop where I will cruise along on the line comfortably for another 44 to 47 minutes. Then I will get out of the swim smiling because the Ironman is 1/3 of the way done. I will be roughed up by a wetsuit stripper and told to go to transition. (What a great day when you get to meet and be stripped by a wetsuit stripper)
Bike: I will go into transition, change my shorts, have a volunteer put on some sunscreen, and head out on my bike by 8:50 am. I will head off slowly, taking my time to make sure that I do not go out too fast (Remember Joe: don't go out to fast, don't go out to fast or you will not last). I will repeat to myself up the first hills out of Lake Placid that I love this race, enjoy the mountains, watch the buffalo, and then scream down the hills into Keene where there will be crowds yelling for us to do well. I will get down in aero and feel confident in my ability to finish the race while on Rt 9 and enjoy the river and the scenery while not pushing too hard. I will just keep spinning when we turn left onto Rt 86 up the hill to Hazelton Road. On Hazelton Road, I will sit back and wait and enjoy the road and watching all of the people biking on it. Maybe I will even see my husband and wish him luck. We will head back into Lake Placid just spinning on the hills in front of Whiteface while thinking how beautiful the mountain is. We will hit River Road and I will know that I will be almost back to my family so that they aren't worried too much about me. This first loop and my stop at the special needs area will take about 4 hours. I will then head out again not pushing too hard on the first hills and at this point know that I can do this. I will not push too hard and remember my mantra that the breathe leaving my body is taking the pain with it. I will hear Melinda telling me to just breathe. I will keep telling myself that I CAN do this. I will hit the hills outside of Whiteface again feeling like I will become an Ironman and just keep spinning until River Road where I will realize that I am going to finish the race by just making it back to the transition before 5:30. This second loop will take about 4 hours and 10 minutes and getting back into transition between 5 and 5:10 pm. I will want to cry because getting off the bike I know I will be an Ironman today. Ironman is 2/3 of the way done! During this entire time I will be hydrating appropriately and eating PB and J and pretzels and enjoying my Infinit nutrition.
Run: In transition, I will change my shorts, get some fluids, eat a powerbar gel cap, have a volunteer put on more sunscreen and take off to find my family on the run course. I will run down the hill allowing my muscles to stretch out and waving and smiling to my family because now they know that I will be an Ironman too. I will reach River Road feeling good and walking through the aid stations to make sure I am getting enough calories and fluids. I will head back up the hill to the Horse Show Grounds and then find it easy to run back into Lake Placid. I will walk the hill that leads back to Lake Placid and will keep moving. I will see my family again and have a boost of energy from seeing them. I will run up Mirror Lake Drive feeling excited that I just have 13.1 miles left to go. I will run down the hills back to River Road when I will run for 5 minutes then walk 1 minutes and walk through the aid stations. It will be getting dark there but I will be motivated by the motivational mile telling me "I got a feeling, that tonights gonna be a good night!" I will picture my husband, family and friends, at the finish line waiting for me. It will be tough but the adrenaline will keep me moving. I will walk the hill again into Lake Placid and then be joined by friends running with me telling me to keep moving and it will all be over soon. I will do the out and back hearing the announcer tell people that they are Ironmen and I will know it will be me soon. I will enter the olympic oval excited with a second/third/fourth wind and run around and then see the finish line and smile because I am an Ironman. I will hear the cheers and know that I worked hard to get here and harder today than I have ever worked today. I will be done with the marathon in 6 hours 10 minutes (about) which will leave me becoming an Ironman at around 11:30 pm!!!
I am going to be an Ironman in 12 days!
Swim: I get into the swim start area and breathe deeply and settle down for about 10 minutes. Calm is how I will feel. The cannon will sound and off the main field will go but not me. I will continue to breathe and wait 2 to 3 minutes until it thins out and then find my space and start swimming. I will get hit but it will be fine, and I will remain calm. The first loop will consist of me breathing and enjoying the water (it is just me, the bouys, the water, and Kate smiling at me telling me that I am doing well). I will finish the first loop in 44 to 47 minutes which will be fast enough for me not to get passed by a group of people (maybe the elite women but they are such a small group that I will just enjoy the pull). I will get out, wave to the crowd, breathe deeply and head back in for the second loop where I will cruise along on the line comfortably for another 44 to 47 minutes. Then I will get out of the swim smiling because the Ironman is 1/3 of the way done. I will be roughed up by a wetsuit stripper and told to go to transition. (What a great day when you get to meet and be stripped by a wetsuit stripper)
Bike: I will go into transition, change my shorts, have a volunteer put on some sunscreen, and head out on my bike by 8:50 am. I will head off slowly, taking my time to make sure that I do not go out too fast (Remember Joe: don't go out to fast, don't go out to fast or you will not last). I will repeat to myself up the first hills out of Lake Placid that I love this race, enjoy the mountains, watch the buffalo, and then scream down the hills into Keene where there will be crowds yelling for us to do well. I will get down in aero and feel confident in my ability to finish the race while on Rt 9 and enjoy the river and the scenery while not pushing too hard. I will just keep spinning when we turn left onto Rt 86 up the hill to Hazelton Road. On Hazelton Road, I will sit back and wait and enjoy the road and watching all of the people biking on it. Maybe I will even see my husband and wish him luck. We will head back into Lake Placid just spinning on the hills in front of Whiteface while thinking how beautiful the mountain is. We will hit River Road and I will know that I will be almost back to my family so that they aren't worried too much about me. This first loop and my stop at the special needs area will take about 4 hours. I will then head out again not pushing too hard on the first hills and at this point know that I can do this. I will not push too hard and remember my mantra that the breathe leaving my body is taking the pain with it. I will hear Melinda telling me to just breathe. I will keep telling myself that I CAN do this. I will hit the hills outside of Whiteface again feeling like I will become an Ironman and just keep spinning until River Road where I will realize that I am going to finish the race by just making it back to the transition before 5:30. This second loop will take about 4 hours and 10 minutes and getting back into transition between 5 and 5:10 pm. I will want to cry because getting off the bike I know I will be an Ironman today. Ironman is 2/3 of the way done! During this entire time I will be hydrating appropriately and eating PB and J and pretzels and enjoying my Infinit nutrition.
Run: In transition, I will change my shorts, get some fluids, eat a powerbar gel cap, have a volunteer put on more sunscreen and take off to find my family on the run course. I will run down the hill allowing my muscles to stretch out and waving and smiling to my family because now they know that I will be an Ironman too. I will reach River Road feeling good and walking through the aid stations to make sure I am getting enough calories and fluids. I will head back up the hill to the Horse Show Grounds and then find it easy to run back into Lake Placid. I will walk the hill that leads back to Lake Placid and will keep moving. I will see my family again and have a boost of energy from seeing them. I will run up Mirror Lake Drive feeling excited that I just have 13.1 miles left to go. I will run down the hills back to River Road when I will run for 5 minutes then walk 1 minutes and walk through the aid stations. It will be getting dark there but I will be motivated by the motivational mile telling me "I got a feeling, that tonights gonna be a good night!" I will picture my husband, family and friends, at the finish line waiting for me. It will be tough but the adrenaline will keep me moving. I will walk the hill again into Lake Placid and then be joined by friends running with me telling me to keep moving and it will all be over soon. I will do the out and back hearing the announcer tell people that they are Ironmen and I will know it will be me soon. I will enter the olympic oval excited with a second/third/fourth wind and run around and then see the finish line and smile because I am an Ironman. I will hear the cheers and know that I worked hard to get here and harder today than I have ever worked today. I will be done with the marathon in 6 hours 10 minutes (about) which will leave me becoming an Ironman at around 11:30 pm!!!
I am going to be an Ironman in 12 days!
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Mini Tri, June Stats, and Year to date stats
Don't know why I didn't post the June stats before but here they are:
Swim miles: 9.82
Swim time: 7hours 3 min
Bike miles: 335.63
Bike time: 10hours 28 min
Run miles; 55.65
Run time: 10 hours 28 min
Total miles; 401.1
Total minutes: 42 hours 13 min
Stats for the year to date (which if you compare back to last year they are crazy). These numbers are shocking to me:
Swim miles: 58.29
Swim time: 39:42
Bike miles: 1617.27
Bike time: 121.60
Run miles: 356.55
Run time: 67.15
Other miles: 5.01
Other time: 11:01
Total 2037.12 miles
Total time: 239.57 (about 10 days)
Monday night mini tri:
Goal: To be loose and have a good night. Not necessarily racing but getting in some decent speed work.
Outcome: not a bad night. My swim started well and then I started having breathing problems. I think it is because of the cold I have, the cold weather (only in the high 50's), and I swallowed some water. All in all, a good swim. The bike was fine. Cold but fine. My hamstring is a little tight so I need to stretch a lot over the next few days. The run was good, started slowly then picked up the pace when it started to downpore. It was a cold, cold rain. It stung when it hit you. It wasn't a pleasant rain but I laughed when it started raining and felt bad for Joe who was waiting for me at the finish line.
Total time: 1:29: 39
swim: 9:55, bike and transition: 47:57, run and transition 31.47 (forgot my watch at the camp so I don't have completely accurate times).
After the race though, I cooled down so quickly. Joe and I jumped in the car, turned on the heat on full blast, and drove straight home. I didn't even get changed because we didn't have any dry towels because of the rain. I was sooooo cold that I was shaking uncontrolably. Joe let me out of the car so that I could go take a bath and warm up while he unpacked the car but I was so cold that that only helped slightly. I couldn't feel my fingers or my toes. I got out of the bath and put on several layers of clothes and then had a cup of hot chocolate. I finally stopped shaking an hour later but didn't fully warm up until around 1am when I got really hot under all of the blankets that I had on. I feel much better now and actually have an off day - not sure what to do with myself especially since it is a rainy, cold day in the Adirondacks.
I am looking forward to a visit from Brenda next week and will be planning my menu for the week today. I may finish my book Julie and Julia which is fun and entertaining. I may take a nap. I may make zucchini blondies. Wow, what a plan for the day!
Tomorrow, just a swim on the Ironman course - full 2 loops hopefully and then laundry. Wow, these one workout days are so simple. I am getting antsy already.
Swim miles: 9.82
Swim time: 7hours 3 min
Bike miles: 335.63
Bike time: 10hours 28 min
Run miles; 55.65
Run time: 10 hours 28 min
Total miles; 401.1
Total minutes: 42 hours 13 min
Stats for the year to date (which if you compare back to last year they are crazy). These numbers are shocking to me:
Swim miles: 58.29
Swim time: 39:42
Bike miles: 1617.27
Bike time: 121.60
Run miles: 356.55
Run time: 67.15
Other miles: 5.01
Other time: 11:01
Total 2037.12 miles
Total time: 239.57 (about 10 days)
Monday night mini tri:
Goal: To be loose and have a good night. Not necessarily racing but getting in some decent speed work.
Outcome: not a bad night. My swim started well and then I started having breathing problems. I think it is because of the cold I have, the cold weather (only in the high 50's), and I swallowed some water. All in all, a good swim. The bike was fine. Cold but fine. My hamstring is a little tight so I need to stretch a lot over the next few days. The run was good, started slowly then picked up the pace when it started to downpore. It was a cold, cold rain. It stung when it hit you. It wasn't a pleasant rain but I laughed when it started raining and felt bad for Joe who was waiting for me at the finish line.
Total time: 1:29: 39
swim: 9:55, bike and transition: 47:57, run and transition 31.47 (forgot my watch at the camp so I don't have completely accurate times).
After the race though, I cooled down so quickly. Joe and I jumped in the car, turned on the heat on full blast, and drove straight home. I didn't even get changed because we didn't have any dry towels because of the rain. I was sooooo cold that I was shaking uncontrolably. Joe let me out of the car so that I could go take a bath and warm up while he unpacked the car but I was so cold that that only helped slightly. I couldn't feel my fingers or my toes. I got out of the bath and put on several layers of clothes and then had a cup of hot chocolate. I finally stopped shaking an hour later but didn't fully warm up until around 1am when I got really hot under all of the blankets that I had on. I feel much better now and actually have an off day - not sure what to do with myself especially since it is a rainy, cold day in the Adirondacks.
I am looking forward to a visit from Brenda next week and will be planning my menu for the week today. I may finish my book Julie and Julia which is fun and entertaining. I may take a nap. I may make zucchini blondies. Wow, what a plan for the day!
Tomorrow, just a swim on the Ironman course - full 2 loops hopefully and then laundry. Wow, these one workout days are so simple. I am getting antsy already.
Monday, July 13, 2009
Boilermaker 2009
The Utica Boilermaker 15 K is so much fun that we keep going back year after year. This year instead of trying to race the course, I was trying to enjoy my taper, go for my long run of the week, and feel strong and ready for Ironman which is 2 weeks away. Mission Accomplished!!!
I enjoyed the weather which was high 60's with no humidity. I enjoyed the company. Running with Melinda was fantastic. We weren't in a rush, we were enjoying the scenery, and we were talking about Ironman and other random things. We talked about how people who have never experienced an Ironman don't really understand what to expect for their first Ironman experience and there is no real way to prepare them for it. We talked about Newton shoes and my new cruiser (which I get to purchase after I finish Ironman). We talked about weddings and half marathons. It was a good day.
I finished in a 1hour 46 min time which was fine for my goal. I felt great the entire time.
The fun of boilermaker is summed up with all of the random things that I saw. Here is a list of some of them:
A man in a FX Max Beer Can
A man dressed as "ShamRock" man
A man dressed as a chicken
A woman dressed as a fairy
A turtle at the Utica Zoo
A donkey at the Utica Zoo
Two very large rabbits at the Utica Zoo - I think that there were two
Kelly's Popcicle Stand - and yes, I had a popcicle
A little boy playing in band with lots of adults
A Leprachaun giving out Irish Luck
Nic and the Nice Guys - the band at the after party
Good beer - Saranac Pomagranite Wheat Beer
Snow Cones - the only time during a year where I get to indulge in a snow cone
A very round man playing a fake guitar in front of very large speakers
Two little girls named Lila cheering for their moms - I have never seen another child named Lila other than my niece
A really skinny man with "I Need A Beer" written on his back
Lots of Ink!!!
These are just a few of the things that were there along with streets lined with bands, people, cowbells, and much more. This is an amazing race!!!
Just as a side note, Joe ran it in 58 minutes - he has never run it faster than an hour. He is in fantastic shape.
Another side note, by this time in 2 weeks, I will be an Ironman!
I enjoyed the weather which was high 60's with no humidity. I enjoyed the company. Running with Melinda was fantastic. We weren't in a rush, we were enjoying the scenery, and we were talking about Ironman and other random things. We talked about how people who have never experienced an Ironman don't really understand what to expect for their first Ironman experience and there is no real way to prepare them for it. We talked about Newton shoes and my new cruiser (which I get to purchase after I finish Ironman). We talked about weddings and half marathons. It was a good day.
I finished in a 1hour 46 min time which was fine for my goal. I felt great the entire time.
The fun of boilermaker is summed up with all of the random things that I saw. Here is a list of some of them:
A man in a FX Max Beer Can
A man dressed as "ShamRock" man
A man dressed as a chicken
A woman dressed as a fairy
A turtle at the Utica Zoo
A donkey at the Utica Zoo
Two very large rabbits at the Utica Zoo - I think that there were two
Kelly's Popcicle Stand - and yes, I had a popcicle
A little boy playing in band with lots of adults
A Leprachaun giving out Irish Luck
Nic and the Nice Guys - the band at the after party
Good beer - Saranac Pomagranite Wheat Beer
Snow Cones - the only time during a year where I get to indulge in a snow cone
A very round man playing a fake guitar in front of very large speakers
Two little girls named Lila cheering for their moms - I have never seen another child named Lila other than my niece
A really skinny man with "I Need A Beer" written on his back
Lots of Ink!!!
These are just a few of the things that were there along with streets lined with bands, people, cowbells, and much more. This is an amazing race!!!
Just as a side note, Joe ran it in 58 minutes - he has never run it faster than an hour. He is in fantastic shape.
Another side note, by this time in 2 weeks, I will be an Ironman!
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Learning
I have learned a lot about myself over the past year.
1. I am stronger than I thought I could ever be. I am more capable than I thought I was.
2. I am a mental case - I wish I wasn't but I am and for a long time, I would give up when I thought it was too hard. I am capable and I just need to convince myself of that.
3. I don't like the word NO or YOU CAN'T do something. When I was little and had severe asthma I was told that I shouldn't do things by my doctors- why not??? When I was diagnosed with anklylosing spondylitis when I was 21, I was told to stop running - why??? I can do ANYTHING!!! If I can do what I have done, then why are so many people not doing anything.
4. I would never be as sane as I am when I am training by swimming, biking, and running. It is my therapy and I couldn't survive without it. Even though in the late stages of Ironman training as well as in the late stages of marathon training, I am a little edgy.
1. I am stronger than I thought I could ever be. I am more capable than I thought I was.
2. I am a mental case - I wish I wasn't but I am and for a long time, I would give up when I thought it was too hard. I am capable and I just need to convince myself of that.
3. I don't like the word NO or YOU CAN'T do something. When I was little and had severe asthma I was told that I shouldn't do things by my doctors- why not??? When I was diagnosed with anklylosing spondylitis when I was 21, I was told to stop running - why??? I can do ANYTHING!!! If I can do what I have done, then why are so many people not doing anything.
4. I would never be as sane as I am when I am training by swimming, biking, and running. It is my therapy and I couldn't survive without it. Even though in the late stages of Ironman training as well as in the late stages of marathon training, I am a little edgy.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Monday night mini-tri and the weekend of training
Wednesday of last week, I got a flat tire. I fixed it but my CO2 cartridge didn't work well and had to get a ride back to the camp by a complete stranger. If I wasn't Ironman training, I would have gotten changed and had a beer and a nap but NO I am going to be an Ironman so I went back out to do the loop I wanted to complete.
Thursday of last week - 3 hour (15 mile run). Felt ok. Only one left to do. Figured out that River Road will be a lonely dark place at night. I better get used to the dark and the funny noises in the woods.
Friday of last week - it rained when we got to Lake Placid to do a bike and a swim with Melinda (already an Ironman). I got on the bike during a downpore and rode slowly because I couldn't see where I was going. The bike ride in itself was easy and not painful at all (ony 15.5 miles). Got in the water and started to swim. Had a great, easy swim with Melinda. Went to the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery for dinner with Melinda, Kristie, and Joe and had some good beverage, good food, and good company even though they asked us to leave our table because there were people waiting. Joe and Melinda had just finished their beers and we were wrapping up the evening and they couldn't wait. It is funny because at other times we have been told to take our time when we left early and went to the bar because people were leaving. We spend a lot of money there to be ushered away from our table that quickly. I was very disappointed.
Saturday of last week - my Dad's birthday - it was a rainy, cool day. Not a nice one but for running it was great. Got in about 5.3 miles in 1 hour. Felt pretty good other than the knee being sore for a little while.
Sunday of last week - rode the Ironman course + 16 miles on River Road with Melinda for a grand total of 72 miles. It felt really good. The Ironman course felt easier than it did the first time. How exciting. The day was perfect too with wonderful temps and it was sunny. I really felt like I could actually become an Ironman after today's bike ride.
Monday - Monday Night Mini-Tri at Mirror Lake - it had rained for about an hour from 3:30 to 4:30 then we left for mini tri. 400 yrds swim, 12 mile bike, and 3 mile run - piece of cake right?? NO! I was so cold before we started and as soon as we entered the water, I just couldn't catch my breathe. I started having an asthma attack but needed to finish the swim. I tried to make my stroke longer on my breathing side to make sure that I was getting enough air but sighting became my issue because it would make me short of breathe again. So bad. I got to transition and did my inhaler which I had to find in my bag, then headed out on the bike. Bike was fine - tough with the 72 miler under my belt from Sunday but fine. T2 was slow. Run was painful. I am not in sprint shape, what was I thinking would happen if I tried to race a sprint. Overall time was a 1:32. Not too bad but not good either. Here is the rundown.
Swim: 10.18.53
T1: 2:36.16
Bike: 47.26.07
T2: 1:43.10
Run: 30.08.32
This is what made me question (again) my ability to become an Ironman. I hate this back and forth crap.
Today, swim. Tomorrow, long run and swim. Thursday, bike. Friday, swim long, bike long. Saturday, off day taper begins. Sunday, Boilermaker!!!!
Thursday of last week - 3 hour (15 mile run). Felt ok. Only one left to do. Figured out that River Road will be a lonely dark place at night. I better get used to the dark and the funny noises in the woods.
Friday of last week - it rained when we got to Lake Placid to do a bike and a swim with Melinda (already an Ironman). I got on the bike during a downpore and rode slowly because I couldn't see where I was going. The bike ride in itself was easy and not painful at all (ony 15.5 miles). Got in the water and started to swim. Had a great, easy swim with Melinda. Went to the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery for dinner with Melinda, Kristie, and Joe and had some good beverage, good food, and good company even though they asked us to leave our table because there were people waiting. Joe and Melinda had just finished their beers and we were wrapping up the evening and they couldn't wait. It is funny because at other times we have been told to take our time when we left early and went to the bar because people were leaving. We spend a lot of money there to be ushered away from our table that quickly. I was very disappointed.
Saturday of last week - my Dad's birthday - it was a rainy, cool day. Not a nice one but for running it was great. Got in about 5.3 miles in 1 hour. Felt pretty good other than the knee being sore for a little while.
Sunday of last week - rode the Ironman course + 16 miles on River Road with Melinda for a grand total of 72 miles. It felt really good. The Ironman course felt easier than it did the first time. How exciting. The day was perfect too with wonderful temps and it was sunny. I really felt like I could actually become an Ironman after today's bike ride.
Monday - Monday Night Mini-Tri at Mirror Lake - it had rained for about an hour from 3:30 to 4:30 then we left for mini tri. 400 yrds swim, 12 mile bike, and 3 mile run - piece of cake right?? NO! I was so cold before we started and as soon as we entered the water, I just couldn't catch my breathe. I started having an asthma attack but needed to finish the swim. I tried to make my stroke longer on my breathing side to make sure that I was getting enough air but sighting became my issue because it would make me short of breathe again. So bad. I got to transition and did my inhaler which I had to find in my bag, then headed out on the bike. Bike was fine - tough with the 72 miler under my belt from Sunday but fine. T2 was slow. Run was painful. I am not in sprint shape, what was I thinking would happen if I tried to race a sprint. Overall time was a 1:32. Not too bad but not good either. Here is the rundown.
Swim: 10.18.53
T1: 2:36.16
Bike: 47.26.07
T2: 1:43.10
Run: 30.08.32
This is what made me question (again) my ability to become an Ironman. I hate this back and forth crap.
Today, swim. Tomorrow, long run and swim. Thursday, bike. Friday, swim long, bike long. Saturday, off day taper begins. Sunday, Boilermaker!!!!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
First week in Keene Valley
What fun it has been to be in Keene Valley. It is my place to de-stress, sleep, and get rid of the end of the school year cold!!! I am finally feeling like myself again after suffering from that horrible sinus infection for about 3 weeks. I am finally feeling strong again which is helping my confidence when it comes to Ironman. It has been great training on the Ironman course. I actually did my 3 hour run on the run course today and found out that 1) it will be lonely on River Road at night and 2) the hill coming back into town is torture, it is short but steep and brutal. This may be a walking hill to save the legs for the later portions of the marathon. Only 1 more long run and 2 more long bikes until I start to taper. 24 days!!! I can almost hear it "Kelly Sullivan, you are an Ironman"!!!!! Oh, the tears that come to my eyes when I think about it.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Tupper Lake Tinman 2009
I am super excited about my race experience at Tupper Lake this year. Last year, this race was my key race and this year since I am in training for IM Lake Placid I was excited to see how my training would allow me to do in the half distance. Last year I had tapered for this race where this year I had a full workout week last week and still did really well. I was so excited by my finish yesterday.
I started my preparation the day before the race when I packed everything up and made my PB&J sandwhiches and Infinit nutrition and then let it go. We even put the bikes on the race the day before the race. This way the only things that had to be done the morning of the race was getting out of bed, getting dressed, eating breakfast, and hitting the bathroom. I then took a bath where I visualized the entire race from start to finish envisioning my pacing, my mental state, and all of the strategies that will be used during the race. I felt very confident in this race before it ever started. That was a first!
First, I slept really well the night before the race and even fell asleep in the car ride to Tupper Lake (about an hour drive). That was a first for me ever that I got a full night sleep before a race - with everything packed up and ready to go the day before the race I think it just made me so much more relaxed. Second, it was raining when we woke up and it continued until I got off of the bike. Third, the sun came out during the run. Wow, that is reminiscent of last year when I fried and looked like a lobster after the race. This year, we were prepared with sunscreen even though I know know that I can't reach the middle of my back and didn't think about my armpit area (yes, some burn but not much).
The swim was ok. I struggle in the swim usually keeping my cool but I tried to find a strategy that worked for me envisioning it just being me, the bouys, and the water and sometimes seeing my cousin Kate's face telling me how well I was going to do. It seemed to work. I had someone else from my heat that was swimming the same pace as I was and breathing in the opposite direction as I was so I was focusing on her the entire time just to keep calm. (I don't think she knew she was my calming factor but I thank her for that anyway.) I swam a 44 min 1.2 mile - this was 7 minutes faster than last year. I was really excited seeing that time exiting the water and carried that excitement through transition onto the bike.
Transition went pretty well. I had an orange and put on sunscreen which wouldn't rub in but I still put it on, it was raining too and I still put it on (4 hours on a bike is a long time if the sun comes out and you don't have sunscreen on). I found out about 10 miles into the bike that my timing chip had stayed in my wetsuit. I wasn't too concerned as all I needed to do was put it back on after I got back and wear it during the run to get a finishing time.
The bike was much easier than last year even though I did go out too fast - the hills seemed really easy this time after training on the LP IM course. It was raining most of the way so everyone was covered in road spray so I spent a good amount of time eating road gook when I drank out of my bottles. My poor bike was so disgusting by the end of the ride that it was making crunching sounds because of all of the road grime working its way into the gears. Yuck. I was making sure my nutrition was going well the entire time - I even ate a few bananas because I was worried about cramping. Infinit nutrition is fabulous and kept me feeling great for most of the bike and run. I rode the 56 miles in 3 hours 47 minutes. This was 4 minutes faster than the bike last year. I wish I was faster on the bike as this is my area of concern when it comes to Ironman. I am hoping that the next 4 weeks of biking on the hills of the Adirondacks will make me stronger for Ironman and make me faster on the course.
I learned last year that if you are in transition and need to use the porta poty, do it because otherwise somebody will see you peeing in the woods. So, I used the jon and still had a t2 time of only 3min 33 sec. T2 was actually pretty quick and I hear my dad has video of me during this time. I haven't seen it but he though I was leaving transition but I was entering the porta potty.
The run started out really well. I ran the hills at the beginning which I didn't run last year. My legs felt really great. The mile markers were off since my last 1.1 miles registered at 3 min 3 secs, this actually made me feel like I was going much slower than I actually was which may have made me go faster. (Or if you want to look at it in a different way, I may be the fastest woman on the earth in the mile) I walked through the water stations after mile 8 because I was starting to feel dehydrated - but my stomach was just sloshing around even though I really wanted more water. I don't tolerate gels and gatorade well so I was sustaining myself at this point on oranges and water and hoped that I got enough solid nutrition on the bike with oranges, bananas, infinit (the only thing that doesn't kill my stomach), and PB&J. This guy ended up running with me from mile 6 to the end - funny though, he could have been going faster but decided to run with me. He talked to me a lot and that allowed me to be distracted enough from the pain that I just kept trucking, plus I was thinking, why is this man running with me and chatting like he has known me for years. I was not much of a chatterbox though, he did most of the talking, for those of you who know me, this is unusual. It was interesting. I did the half in 2 hours 31 minutes (I did the half last year in 2 hours 41 min). I was very happy with this time. It was actually only 6 minutes slower than the Lake Placid 1/2 marathon 2 weeks ago. I am really excited about this time. My legs felt good and my mind was in a good place during the run so I am very happy with this performance.
Total time was a 7 hour 11 min race. That is a full 20 minutes faster than last year (not including my bogus drafting penalty from last year which I am still bitter about). I am so excited. I just hope Ironman can treat me as well. I am really concerned about the bike portion of Lake Placid Ironman but I keep telling myself that my legs will be fresh instead of beat up and tired when I start IM because of a taper and that everything will be ok. I really had a great time at Tupper though and hope that that high of doing well will keep me going through the next 4 weeks of training.
I started my preparation the day before the race when I packed everything up and made my PB&J sandwhiches and Infinit nutrition and then let it go. We even put the bikes on the race the day before the race. This way the only things that had to be done the morning of the race was getting out of bed, getting dressed, eating breakfast, and hitting the bathroom. I then took a bath where I visualized the entire race from start to finish envisioning my pacing, my mental state, and all of the strategies that will be used during the race. I felt very confident in this race before it ever started. That was a first!
First, I slept really well the night before the race and even fell asleep in the car ride to Tupper Lake (about an hour drive). That was a first for me ever that I got a full night sleep before a race - with everything packed up and ready to go the day before the race I think it just made me so much more relaxed. Second, it was raining when we woke up and it continued until I got off of the bike. Third, the sun came out during the run. Wow, that is reminiscent of last year when I fried and looked like a lobster after the race. This year, we were prepared with sunscreen even though I know know that I can't reach the middle of my back and didn't think about my armpit area (yes, some burn but not much).
The swim was ok. I struggle in the swim usually keeping my cool but I tried to find a strategy that worked for me envisioning it just being me, the bouys, and the water and sometimes seeing my cousin Kate's face telling me how well I was going to do. It seemed to work. I had someone else from my heat that was swimming the same pace as I was and breathing in the opposite direction as I was so I was focusing on her the entire time just to keep calm. (I don't think she knew she was my calming factor but I thank her for that anyway.) I swam a 44 min 1.2 mile - this was 7 minutes faster than last year. I was really excited seeing that time exiting the water and carried that excitement through transition onto the bike.
Transition went pretty well. I had an orange and put on sunscreen which wouldn't rub in but I still put it on, it was raining too and I still put it on (4 hours on a bike is a long time if the sun comes out and you don't have sunscreen on). I found out about 10 miles into the bike that my timing chip had stayed in my wetsuit. I wasn't too concerned as all I needed to do was put it back on after I got back and wear it during the run to get a finishing time.
The bike was much easier than last year even though I did go out too fast - the hills seemed really easy this time after training on the LP IM course. It was raining most of the way so everyone was covered in road spray so I spent a good amount of time eating road gook when I drank out of my bottles. My poor bike was so disgusting by the end of the ride that it was making crunching sounds because of all of the road grime working its way into the gears. Yuck. I was making sure my nutrition was going well the entire time - I even ate a few bananas because I was worried about cramping. Infinit nutrition is fabulous and kept me feeling great for most of the bike and run. I rode the 56 miles in 3 hours 47 minutes. This was 4 minutes faster than the bike last year. I wish I was faster on the bike as this is my area of concern when it comes to Ironman. I am hoping that the next 4 weeks of biking on the hills of the Adirondacks will make me stronger for Ironman and make me faster on the course.
I learned last year that if you are in transition and need to use the porta poty, do it because otherwise somebody will see you peeing in the woods. So, I used the jon and still had a t2 time of only 3min 33 sec. T2 was actually pretty quick and I hear my dad has video of me during this time. I haven't seen it but he though I was leaving transition but I was entering the porta potty.
The run started out really well. I ran the hills at the beginning which I didn't run last year. My legs felt really great. The mile markers were off since my last 1.1 miles registered at 3 min 3 secs, this actually made me feel like I was going much slower than I actually was which may have made me go faster. (Or if you want to look at it in a different way, I may be the fastest woman on the earth in the mile) I walked through the water stations after mile 8 because I was starting to feel dehydrated - but my stomach was just sloshing around even though I really wanted more water. I don't tolerate gels and gatorade well so I was sustaining myself at this point on oranges and water and hoped that I got enough solid nutrition on the bike with oranges, bananas, infinit (the only thing that doesn't kill my stomach), and PB&J. This guy ended up running with me from mile 6 to the end - funny though, he could have been going faster but decided to run with me. He talked to me a lot and that allowed me to be distracted enough from the pain that I just kept trucking, plus I was thinking, why is this man running with me and chatting like he has known me for years. I was not much of a chatterbox though, he did most of the talking, for those of you who know me, this is unusual. It was interesting. I did the half in 2 hours 31 minutes (I did the half last year in 2 hours 41 min). I was very happy with this time. It was actually only 6 minutes slower than the Lake Placid 1/2 marathon 2 weeks ago. I am really excited about this time. My legs felt good and my mind was in a good place during the run so I am very happy with this performance.
Total time was a 7 hour 11 min race. That is a full 20 minutes faster than last year (not including my bogus drafting penalty from last year which I am still bitter about). I am so excited. I just hope Ironman can treat me as well. I am really concerned about the bike portion of Lake Placid Ironman but I keep telling myself that my legs will be fresh instead of beat up and tired when I start IM because of a taper and that everything will be ok. I really had a great time at Tupper though and hope that that high of doing well will keep me going through the next 4 weeks of training.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Lake Placid Half Marathon
Today was the Lake Placid Half Marathon. I finished in 2 hours 25 min and 31 sec which isn't bad since I had to take a week off with knee pain and I was not feeling very well. My throat was killing me when I woke up yesterday and it was accompanied by a stuffy head this morning. I took Advil and Sudafed and left for the race. The problem was that on the way to the race my stomach started to get really upset. We made our way to the start and took off in really nice weather. The first hill was my test for the knee and it passed! Yippie!!! I did realize fairly quickly that it was humid which made it feel much hotter than it actually was. I didn't know what to expect today since I had run a max of 2 miles on a track this past week and hadn't hit over 11 miles in probably 4 weeks because of my sinus infection and the injury. I did well for the lack of running - I am not in the best run shape but I am in great bike shape and it is shocking how much biking helps with running (the opposite is not true though, running doesn't help with biking). The run went by really quickly and I felt pretty good for the training that I had. I did have an upset stomach the entire time and felt like I was going to puke but it wasn't the end of my world. I didn't PR (which I had planned on doing before the injury) but I was only off by about 2 minutes which isn't bad. Nice day for a run and I was happy with my performance. We had planned on swimming after the run but both Joe and my stomachs were very unhappy and we didn't want to be in the middle of the lake with stomach issues. Hopefully this week we will get in an open water swim and then get in Mirror Lake next weekend (weather permitting).
The afternoon consisted of a thunderstorm and then planting my garden. Wish me luck! I really want to have fresh vegetables this summer! I really want to have a green thumb when it comes to growing vegetables but so far (3 gardens) I have not had great success. I think this is my year! I got 11 cubic feet of soil (garden soil, light top soil, and some kind of special garden soil) and I had seedlings that I put in the ground. This is the year! I just know it.
The afternoon consisted of a thunderstorm and then planting my garden. Wish me luck! I really want to have fresh vegetables this summer! I really want to have a green thumb when it comes to growing vegetables but so far (3 gardens) I have not had great success. I think this is my year! I got 11 cubic feet of soil (garden soil, light top soil, and some kind of special garden soil) and I had seedlings that I put in the ground. This is the year! I just know it.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Animals
Turtles and hawks and blackbirds and rabbits and chipmunks and squirrels, oh my! I saw far too much wildlife on my ride yesterday. The weather was weird and the animals were all acting wacky! Maybe it is me who is acting wacky from being on my bike too much??? Going to try to run today after a week off because of the knee. I am afraid because it feels better but not 100%. We have the Lake Placid 1/2 marathon this weekend so hopefully the knee will cooperate.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Tour de Cure 2009
This years Tour de Cure happened in Saratoga Springs, NY. Last year it was held on a different course and I had never seen any of the course but I did see the elevation profile which made me more mentally prepared than I thought I was going to be. As you know, I have had knee pain since my long run on Thursday which was finally getting better yesterday and I was unsure how I would fair on the bike today. Waking up this morning, my knee hurt a little (maybe a little more than a little) and I was a frustrated by the fact that because of my neighbors (crying cats, barking dogs, yelling drunk people out of a window, hysterical child, and the automatic light going on in the backyard due to something in my backyard) and because of my mental psychosis where I dwell on random things when I should be sleeping (last night it was will they let Joe ride since he didn't do the fundraising and I did and please remember the checks) I had only slept for a maximum of 2 hours. We packed the car and then took off to Saratoga. We checked in with the first of many extremely friendly volunteers who insisted that we take powerbars and made sure we had our pins, tags, and most importantly our maps. We left to eat breakfast (yes, they provide us with breakfast) and then headed out to get our bikes and get ready. I was anxious to get started so I waited for a couple of minutes for Melinda but just decided I needed to know how my knee was going to cooperate so I took off. It was a good thing too because I needed to concentrate on my pedal strokes and how I was pedaling to find where my comfort level was (I could tell you where it was - UNCOMFORTABLE). I made the decision that I wanted to bike for 2 hours before giving up so I was out there for a while, I may as well find a place/way to pedal that was comfortable. The first 14 miles hurt. I was worried. I got to the first aid station where the volunteers were so excited to have us visit them. I had an orange and pretzels, stretched, and saw a casuality of biking. A man had been run into by another cyclist who wasn't paying attention, fell, and probably broke his colar bone (there was an obvious deformity). He couldn't put any weight on his left arm at all and thus had issues controlling the bike and was incredibly uncomfortable. By the way... he fell at mile 4.5 of his planned 100 - which he didn't end up doing. You always know the risks but seeing them happen and knowing that they can happen to anyone is scary. I got to the second aid station and spoke to a man about how I had no idea where I was in Saratoga County and if I got lost, I would have no idea which way to go. Subsequently, I missed a turn and got lost in Saratoga County. Luckily, the man I had talked to, his son, and another biker had also missed the turn and they had already asked for directions. I followed the directions and learned nothing about where I was in Saratoga County - I know that I did add more distance to an already long ride though (and a few hills for good measure). We found the first craziness of the course though while getting back on the course. One aid station for all of the course at the same time. Ugh!! The signs said "Left first loop, Right second". I was confused and people don't know how to mount and dismount their bikes or stop their bikes in an appropriate distance of other bikes which was really scary. We then left the aid station and headed out on a long gradual uphill. The conversation that was had by two riders was "Which do we like best: short big hills or long gradual hills?" I don't know the answer to the question as I have that discussion often with myself on long rides. We continued on through Corinth, Hadley, and Lake Luzerne. It was a beautiful ride. Perfectly balanced with hills, flats, and downhills. There was a volunteer at mile 75 that made me my own PB&J sandwhich made to order. When I entered the last aid station, the volunteers were so nice - they were asking me about my riding, how much I normally ride, what did Ironman entail, how did I get my tour de cure jersey (from fundraising over $500 last year), giving me these fantastic muffins made by 2 of the riders who own the 4 corners lunchenette in Delmar, asking if I wanted water or fruit. As I entered the station (which was the same station as the midway one that was crazy), the chaos had calmed down and the bike people from LLBean were bored. As soon as I got off the bike, they asked me if the bike needed anything, how was it riding. I cannot say enough about all of the volunteers - the ones at the aid station were just the friendliest people I have met, the LLBean bike guys really wanted to be helpful, the guys from the Downtube were fantastic at fixing the bikes of those on the course that needed help, those who were cheering people in as they came back to the high school had so much energy even after having been there for hours, the people from Friendly's who gave me ice cream at the end were asking me all about the ride and how much I generally ride, one of the riders who was also on the course committee asked me where I got lost to make sure that they revisited that area again next year. This event is one of the best to be a part of.
My knee had loosened up at around mile 30 so I was really excited to be riding through most of the ride. What kept me from deciding to quit at mile 24 was the fact that so many of my friends and family members had donated money to me to ride this distance and I felt like I was not living up to my end of the bargain if I stopped early. I also didn't stop because my mom and dad didn't answer their phone when I called twice to ask what I should do (yes, it hurt so much that I wanted someone else to tell me that I needed to stop). I know they would have understood but I really wanted to ride since Ironman is 7 weeks away and people had supported me and I am stubborn and didn't want to get off the bike yet (Ironman training is tough - physically and mentally). I am glad I stayed on the bike now even though I really didn't expect my knee to feel better but it did, not sure why or what I did but the pain really just went away and was just nagging at times but most of the time it was fine.
This ride wasn't as exciting as last year from the prospective that I didn't have deer jump out at me or a peacock in the middle of the road but this years ride was better than ever before just because I was comfortable for most of the ride and felt really strong! I felt confident that I could do the 100 this time after the Hilly 100 two weeks ago. One interesting thing that happened during the ride was that I was asked 3 times if I was doing the 50 because they thought that I was lost. I kept telling people that I was doing the 100 and they would let me keep going. At the last aid station, he explained why I was being asked - I had been given the wrong color bib number so everyone was confused by me being on the 100 mile course. Even though I didn't start with a riding partner, I had some great riding partners on and off, here and there, depending on my speed. It was such a nice day too - mid/low 70's with overcast and no humidity. This was an improvement over last year too (last year was 90 degrees, sunny, and humid).
I really can't say enough about those who run Tour de Cure and the riders that do it. The riders are so nice - not competitive, but helpful, interested, and having fun for a good cause. This is a great event and I can't wait to participate again in the future.
Next up, Lake Placid Half marathon next weekend (hopefully - depending on how the knee progresses this week and how running on it goes). I may take the week off from running and only run on Thursday to make sure it heals completely so that the next 7 weeks are complete training weeks. I need the swim time anyway. By the way next weekend also brings me to my first open water swim of the season!!! I can't wait to be sexy in my wetsuit!!! For those of you who don't know, no one is sexy in a wetsuit (except me - haha)!!! I can't wait since this weekend generally means the start of our time on a consistent basis up at the camp and the actual start of triathlon season.
My knee had loosened up at around mile 30 so I was really excited to be riding through most of the ride. What kept me from deciding to quit at mile 24 was the fact that so many of my friends and family members had donated money to me to ride this distance and I felt like I was not living up to my end of the bargain if I stopped early. I also didn't stop because my mom and dad didn't answer their phone when I called twice to ask what I should do (yes, it hurt so much that I wanted someone else to tell me that I needed to stop). I know they would have understood but I really wanted to ride since Ironman is 7 weeks away and people had supported me and I am stubborn and didn't want to get off the bike yet (Ironman training is tough - physically and mentally). I am glad I stayed on the bike now even though I really didn't expect my knee to feel better but it did, not sure why or what I did but the pain really just went away and was just nagging at times but most of the time it was fine.
This ride wasn't as exciting as last year from the prospective that I didn't have deer jump out at me or a peacock in the middle of the road but this years ride was better than ever before just because I was comfortable for most of the ride and felt really strong! I felt confident that I could do the 100 this time after the Hilly 100 two weeks ago. One interesting thing that happened during the ride was that I was asked 3 times if I was doing the 50 because they thought that I was lost. I kept telling people that I was doing the 100 and they would let me keep going. At the last aid station, he explained why I was being asked - I had been given the wrong color bib number so everyone was confused by me being on the 100 mile course. Even though I didn't start with a riding partner, I had some great riding partners on and off, here and there, depending on my speed. It was such a nice day too - mid/low 70's with overcast and no humidity. This was an improvement over last year too (last year was 90 degrees, sunny, and humid).
I really can't say enough about those who run Tour de Cure and the riders that do it. The riders are so nice - not competitive, but helpful, interested, and having fun for a good cause. This is a great event and I can't wait to participate again in the future.
Next up, Lake Placid Half marathon next weekend (hopefully - depending on how the knee progresses this week and how running on it goes). I may take the week off from running and only run on Thursday to make sure it heals completely so that the next 7 weeks are complete training weeks. I need the swim time anyway. By the way next weekend also brings me to my first open water swim of the season!!! I can't wait to be sexy in my wetsuit!!! For those of you who don't know, no one is sexy in a wetsuit (except me - haha)!!! I can't wait since this weekend generally means the start of our time on a consistent basis up at the camp and the actual start of triathlon season.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Pain and Training
Tour de Cure is tomorrow. I am really excited for it except for the fact that I have managed to hurt myself. I went for a run and to yoga Wednesday night and felt that my left knee was bothering me. I went for my long run on Thursday. I left my car with the intention of running for 2 hours and 15 minutes but within the first 15 minutes, I knew that may be a stretch. I was having knee pain. I thought that at the 40 minute mark that I probably should go back to the car but I didn't. I kept running. At the hour mark, I was in pain and decided that I was done and needed to go back to the car - funny though, instead of walking back I ran. I am regretting that now. I have been limping around for the past 2 days and am a little worried about what I did. Right now after two days of heating, icing, heating, stretching and resting (yes, I have taken two days off in a row to ensure that I am not using it), it is feeling better. I hope tomorrow will be ok. I have decided to take it one mile at a time and, if it doesn't feel good enough to do the 100 miles, then I don't do the 100 miles - I do what I can. I have to think of the big picture (Ironman) instead of the little picture (tomorrow). I am hoping that I will be up and literally running by next Wednesday since next Sunday is the Lake Placid Half Marathon.
On another note. Lila (my niece) participated in her first science fair this week. She blew away the teacher and the other students with her detailed project on bones and the deer. She was so proud of her project and I was so proud of her. Poor child may be taking after me.
Cooper's 2nd birthday was today. His party was a lot of fun. His diaper was so full of water after he jumped in the pool that his diaper was down around his knees (see picture below). It reminded Joe and me about the first triathlon we did where this man wore his bike shorts in the pool and at the end was running with the padding around his knees (by the way, he beat Scott in that triathlon which was even funnier - we haven't let him forget it either). Happy Birthday Cooper!
I will let you know how the Tour goes. I hope for the best.
On another note. Lila (my niece) participated in her first science fair this week. She blew away the teacher and the other students with her detailed project on bones and the deer. She was so proud of her project and I was so proud of her. Poor child may be taking after me.
Cooper's 2nd birthday was today. His party was a lot of fun. His diaper was so full of water after he jumped in the pool that his diaper was down around his knees (see picture below). It reminded Joe and me about the first triathlon we did where this man wore his bike shorts in the pool and at the end was running with the padding around his knees (by the way, he beat Scott in that triathlon which was even funnier - we haven't let him forget it either). Happy Birthday Cooper!
I will let you know how the Tour goes. I hope for the best.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
May Stats - UGH!!! Allergies
Here are my stats for May - they suck!!! I have been sidelined twice during the month of May because of my allergies. (It has been a really bad allergy season here in the Northeast) Due to my allergies, I have not done as much swimming as I wanted to because when I am feeling allergic the chlorine in the pool generally kills me. Plus, with this sinus infection for the past week, I haven't been able to workout for 4 days in a row and then really light workouts for two days in a row. 8 weeks left and I am going for it!! I have faith in my next few weeks. Everything will be great!
Run distance: 46.4 miles
Run time: 8 hours 13 minutes
(FYI - my average pace was a 10:37 which is really fast for IM training)
Bike distance: 293.2 miles
Bike time: 21 hours 41 minutes
Swim distance: 6.7 miles (yuck)
Swim Time: 4 hours 29 minutes
Yoga - 1 hour
Total workout distance: 346.3 miles
Total workout minutes: 35 hours 23 minutes
Total calories burned: 19,034
Run distance: 46.4 miles
Run time: 8 hours 13 minutes
(FYI - my average pace was a 10:37 which is really fast for IM training)
Bike distance: 293.2 miles
Bike time: 21 hours 41 minutes
Swim distance: 6.7 miles (yuck)
Swim Time: 4 hours 29 minutes
Yoga - 1 hour
Total workout distance: 346.3 miles
Total workout minutes: 35 hours 23 minutes
Total calories burned: 19,034
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Allergies and Sinus infections
I have been sidlined twice this month due to allergy issues. I am on a 3 day non-exercise binge because of my allergies and a sinus infection. I have not felt well since Saturday when I was out on my bike with the extremely high levels of pollen. I am hoping to get out on my bike tomorrow and run in Freihofer's Run for Women on Saturday. (I know I have exciting plans, right?) I have not felt up to doing anything other than keeping my head on a pillow and listening to the TV (no, not watching - that hurts too much). You know you are not doing well when your students ask you why you came in to school and telling you that you should be at home. Usually, they don't notice if you are sick, hurt, or upset but when you are really sick, they notice. Maybe I will be able to sleep tonight instead of keeping myself awake because of coughing and stuffiness! I just want to train!!!!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Self Doubt and my first century ride
This weekend was the first weekend up in Keene Valley. Usually that is a great thing. This weekend was interesting though. We got to the camp on Friday night after stopping in Lake George at a Mexican restaurant. We made an early night of it because of the century ride on Saturday. We got into bed and I smelled something mildewy but thought it was just my crazy sense of smell and went to bed. By the time I woke up in the morning, my throat was scratchy but I wasn't too concerned with that because I had a 100 mile bike ride to do. We got up at the normal hour of 6:15 am, got ready, and left the camp. We got to the Price Chopper in Lake Placid where we were dropping off our car and then heading down to the start place. We got to the start where we learned that they called it the HILLY 100 and found out that it was actually 103.8 miles. Mentally, I was concerned but was excited to get out on some hills. We started and everyone was immediately a long way ahead, oh, and by the way, we started uphill. The first 19 miles were on the Ironman course - a part that I haven't been able to ride before. It was so nice to go on that part and experience the hill and then descending the hills (so much fun). As I was going down the hill, I noticed a thumping noise/feeling everytime I hit the breaks. I couldn't figure out what was happening. I got to the first aid station and had some oranges, cookies, and pretzels - I love long distance biking since I get to eat all day long when I do it. I left and got to my parents camp where I filled my water bottle and had my dad look at my break but couldn't figure out what was wrong. I left and headed up the hill to Chapel Pond and then to Elizabethtown where I was looking forward to my second rest stop. On the way to Elizabethtown, I ended up being run after by 2 dogs. I couldn't believe this was happening again. I yelled at the dog and crossed the street - it didn't follow. I kept looking for the rest stop and I couldn't find it. Joe later told me that after he left the rest stop, he saw the person manning the station pack everything up and drive past him on the course, so there was no rest stop for me because I was so far back. I thought I missed it and was confused about where I was so I stopped to ask a resident if they road I was looking for was coming up and as I was asking, the SAG vehicle found me and showed me the way and let me get food from the truck. I had done 40 miles by myself at this point. I kept going and that is when I saw it - the biggest f-ing hill I have ever seen in my entire life. I averaged about 3 mph up this thing while I was breathing as hard as I possibly could. It was a beast. I made it though and went down the hill to the road that connects Keene and Elizabethtown where we started a 4 mile long climb which was gradual but was where my legs just stopped working on the hills. I was now having problems staying in my middle gears because the chain kept sliding down when I was in the middle area of my gears. Still thumping when I was breaking too. Once on the other side of the hill (and enjoying the descending too much) I headed to the next rest stop at mile 60ish. I got on the road to Jay which was great and also a part of the Ironman course and looked for the rest station. I didn't find it. It wasn't there. 60+ miles alone on a bike at this point. I stopped once I got to the turn and ate my sandwhich and stretched. Rode up a massive hill on Trumble Hill Road and then another wall of a hill. Felt like I wanted to stop but I really wanted to do 75 miles so I kept going. I got to another road and got chased by another dog - why don't people keep their dogs on leashes or have fences??? I don't enjoy getting chased by dogs. The SAG vehicle went by and really wanted me to say I was done but I said no. I got to mile 75 and had some cramping in my left calf so I made the decision to get off my bike every 5 miles until the end in order to keep myself from cramping up too much. That worked for a little while. I got to the last aid station and got told that I was way back from the others and that they thought that I was the last person but at least I got food. I remounted the bike for the last 14 miles and immediately started uphill - at this point all hills were tough but flats were ok. I was averaging 4mph on the hills which is really bad. After 4 miles on the bike, I had gotten a text from Joe and called him. I was at my breaking point. I just didn't see how I could continue and make it back. He told me that I was close and I hung up on him - I was almost in tears at this point and frustrated by my bike problems. I got back on my bike though and thankfully I hit a short downhill and knew the rest of the course pretty well. There were a couple of hills but they were nothing compared to the other hills I had already done. I finally got back to the starting point where I finally got off my bike where no one remained because I was so much slower than everyone else. (We had expected this because Lake Placid is known for its good cyclists and triathletes) I drank a coke, ate some pasta salad, and then quickly packed everything away in order to get my bike down to Placid Planet to have it fixed. At the end of the ride, I was convinced that this was the worst ride I could have done for my confidence. I was doubting my ability to complete the Ironman course in the amount of time I needed to do it in. I was convinced that I couldn't finish Ironman at all. I was a mental case. I am glad that I did the ride though because I will probably never see hills like that again and if I could do those hills, I can do any hill. Plus, it was good training. I have spent the last 2 days convincing myself that I can do Ironman though because the course isn't half as bad as what I did on Saturday. I am looking forward to my next 100 miler because it has to be better than that one was and it is Tour de Cure with great rest stops and lots of help if you need it and hopefully it will be a self esteem booster. I just want my confidence back though - it isn't quite there yet.
Placid Planet looked at my bike and figured out that I had warped my tire when I got my flat last week - one flat in six years and I break my wheel. $300 later and I have new wheels for my bike which can now allow me to break appropriately. I also had my bike tuned up so that it wouldn't slip in and out of gears. Yippie! I got to spend more money on my bike - not what I had planned on using my money on.
Slept on Saturday night and was not feeling well. Woke up on Sunday feeling horrible. Took a 3 hour nap because I was feeling so badly. I went back to sleep for about an hour later in the day too because of how I was feeling. Went to bed and slept ok. Woke up today and felt better than I did Sunday night but still really bad. Went to pick up my bike and go for a run on River Road in Lake Placid. Felt ok on my run considering how I was feeling - acutally my nose cleared on my run so I felt better. As soon as I stopped, I was stuffy again and then my lungs started to hurt. This is where I am now. Feeling horrible because of allergies. Really between the mildew and the huge amounts of pollen in the Adirondacks, I just got hammered from both angles. Now I am just trying to feel better. Hopefully, I can recover fully by tomorrow.
So, this week is an easy workout week but I have the Coldplay concert on Wednesday night, a school event on Friday night, and Freihoffers on Saturday. Then 4 hard weeks in a row then 1 easy week, 1 hard week,and then I taper. Ironman is almost here. I keep telling myself "I think I can! I think I can!" but I am feeling more like "I hope I can!" I need to get to "I know I will" in the next two weeks. Why can't I be more mentally stable when it comes to endurance activities and stop doubting myself. I am normally much more confident in myself but when it comes to triathlon I doubt myself all of the time.
Placid Planet looked at my bike and figured out that I had warped my tire when I got my flat last week - one flat in six years and I break my wheel. $300 later and I have new wheels for my bike which can now allow me to break appropriately. I also had my bike tuned up so that it wouldn't slip in and out of gears. Yippie! I got to spend more money on my bike - not what I had planned on using my money on.
Slept on Saturday night and was not feeling well. Woke up on Sunday feeling horrible. Took a 3 hour nap because I was feeling so badly. I went back to sleep for about an hour later in the day too because of how I was feeling. Went to bed and slept ok. Woke up today and felt better than I did Sunday night but still really bad. Went to pick up my bike and go for a run on River Road in Lake Placid. Felt ok on my run considering how I was feeling - acutally my nose cleared on my run so I felt better. As soon as I stopped, I was stuffy again and then my lungs started to hurt. This is where I am now. Feeling horrible because of allergies. Really between the mildew and the huge amounts of pollen in the Adirondacks, I just got hammered from both angles. Now I am just trying to feel better. Hopefully, I can recover fully by tomorrow.
So, this week is an easy workout week but I have the Coldplay concert on Wednesday night, a school event on Friday night, and Freihoffers on Saturday. Then 4 hard weeks in a row then 1 easy week, 1 hard week,and then I taper. Ironman is almost here. I keep telling myself "I think I can! I think I can!" but I am feeling more like "I hope I can!" I need to get to "I know I will" in the next two weeks. Why can't I be more mentally stable when it comes to endurance activities and stop doubting myself. I am normally much more confident in myself but when it comes to triathlon I doubt myself all of the time.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Foot Pain and bruising
I get attacked by a dog on Sunday on the ride. It got me enough to leave a bruise on my left ankle. It didn't penetrate the skin so I am ok. Yesterday at school, I ran into something with my right foot which really hurt. Today I went for a long run and my foot fall was a little off and my foot was a little sore but I didn't think anything of it until I took off my shoe and saw the bruising. Now my little toe and the surrounding area are a nice purple color and my whole foot is sore. Not sure if it was bruised before the run - I didn't look but now it is bruised. Why is the universe trying to hurt me? Icing and taking Advil tonight to make it feel better. Tomorrow is a biking day and Thursday is GHI Workforce Team Challenge. I am excited about the new course. Hopefully my feet and ankles will be better.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
I am afraid of dogs in general but especially when I am on a bike!
Lets start with last weekend then get to the dog....
Sunday, May 10 - Ran with my mom at the Mother's day race. I went out for a 20 minute warm-up and then got ready for the race. It was cool (around 50 degrees) with a little wind but not too bad. I got to the starting line and took off. It felt like the longest mile ever but it was under 10 minutes by a lot which was what I wanted. The next 2 1/2 miles went about the same way but I was getting faster. It is so hard for me to run that hard for that long. I am more of a distance runner - find a pace and keep it for a very long time and then, if you feel good, go faster and pass a whole bunch of people. I ran a 32.18!! I PRed. It felt good. I ran a little after (total of 1 hour 15 minutes) and then got to go to Tulip Fest and got to hang out with my entire family at dinner.
Monday and Tuesday - I had great workouts and felt really good.
Wednesday - Day off - I just didn't feel very good and I felt very tired. Felt like I had legs of lead. Better safe than sorry???
Thursday - Swim and Run. I felt like I couldn't get into a rhythm and couldn't find my balance. The entire short time I was in the pool, I was getting frustrated. I also had a run to do. My mom's work does a run at the Crossings on Thursday night so I went. It was supposed to rain and it did on cue - as soon as we decided to start running. I started and didn't feel too bad but within a couple of minutes the legs of lead returned. I ran for my hour but it was really difficult. Oh, well - maybe it was the weather, maybe it was the day off. Not sure. Not worried either.
Friday - National Ride Your Bike to Work day!!! - I got up at 5:15 am and was out of the door by 5:45. It was extremely foggy!!! Fog is scarry to ride in! Not so excited about this. I had major issues the entire time. I figured it was because I hadn't eaten breakfast yet and figured I would get better on the way home. Not so. I got on the bike and immediately felt my legs of lead not wanting to work. I got about 1.5 miles from home, had the option of hitting sand and going down, getting hit by a car, or hit a hole. I hit the hole and immediately knew I had a flat. I pulled over, worked to change the tire (had a couple of questions which my dad answered over the phone) and then went to fill it with my carbon dioxide canister. Then as I thought I was being successful, I hear a BANG!!! It sounds like a gun firing. No more tire. Called Dave and had him come and pick me up since my husband was out on his own bike ride and I had to get to prom. Nap time was completely obliterated by my hour of dealing with a flat tire and waiting for a ride!!
Saturday - got home at 1:15 am from prom - day was wasted. I was exhausted.
Sunday - went out to Stillwater to do the 63 mile course. I was so tired still from Friday night and getting up earlier than I was prepared to this morning that I fell asleep on the ride from Joe's Mom and Dad's house to the high school. Got to the high school and felt ready to go. It was a little chilly (55 degrees and windy). Got started and wanted to just be - not try to hard - prepare for the IM course and not pushing at the beginning. Got out there and had some hip and groin problems but I wasn't too worried. Got to eat my PB&J uncrustables at an hour and a half and was excited. Struggling but ok. Upper back was sore and my "undercarriage" was suffering from the bike seat (I really can't figure out how to stop both of those things from being annoyingly sore while I am riding). Got to the place where the 63 mile course was supposed to turn and rode passed it. Turned around and found my way back to the right place. Kept riding and then got to the end of a road without an arrow and didn't know which way to go - I picked the wrong way, of course. As I am riding on this unknown road, I hear a dog barking. This little white haired dog starts running down toward the road. My first though is "There must be an invisible fence." My next though was "It won't cross the road." My next thought while I am yelling at the dog is " Oh s%$t, what do I do - keep riding faster or stop." As I am telling the dog to stop it is nipping at my ankle and barking. At no point was the owner visible or yelling for their dog that is attacking me. I was convinced I was going to be bitten by that stupid dog. I am already afraid of dogs and when they come at me while on my bike, I get even more afraid. I pushed it into another gear with the help of some adrenaline and got up to 24 mph while on a slight uphill telling the dog to stop and go away. That was a fast little sucker though - he/she followed me up to 19 mph. I was afraid of the dog running into my back wheel and me falling too. It was not nice. After the dog was gone, I realized I really was not on the correct course, had no idea which road I was on, and knew I wasn't going back the way I had come as to avoid another introduction to the dog. I called Joe to see where I went wrong but he hadn't taken the same course and couldn't help me. I continued down the road and found a road that looked familiar but I didn't know which way I should be going - of course, I picked the wrong direction. At least it was on the 50 mile bike course so I just turned around and followed the arrows. At this point, my legs were tired, my upper back hurt, and the wind was just not fun. 20 miles left to go. Kept on truckin' though. It was a slow battle with the wind. It was not fun at all. Had another sandwhich which didn't effect me or my mood. I finally got back to the high school 60 miles later. Another workout that didn't feel good. Something really has to change before next weekends 100 mile ride.
GHI Workforce team challenge is on Thursday night. I am in-charge of our team at school with 27 people. It should be a good time as long as my lowerback pain and my groin/hipflexor muscle pain goes away by then.
I just don't understand why I could feel so good 3 weeks ago and then now feel like such crap!!! Maybe this is how training goes but I don't know. People keep asking how training is going, am I going to be ready but I don't know. I won't know until race day since I haven't done this before. I am a little frustrated now though. Hopefully, all will get better this week!!
Sunday, May 10 - Ran with my mom at the Mother's day race. I went out for a 20 minute warm-up and then got ready for the race. It was cool (around 50 degrees) with a little wind but not too bad. I got to the starting line and took off. It felt like the longest mile ever but it was under 10 minutes by a lot which was what I wanted. The next 2 1/2 miles went about the same way but I was getting faster. It is so hard for me to run that hard for that long. I am more of a distance runner - find a pace and keep it for a very long time and then, if you feel good, go faster and pass a whole bunch of people. I ran a 32.18!! I PRed. It felt good. I ran a little after (total of 1 hour 15 minutes) and then got to go to Tulip Fest and got to hang out with my entire family at dinner.
Monday and Tuesday - I had great workouts and felt really good.
Wednesday - Day off - I just didn't feel very good and I felt very tired. Felt like I had legs of lead. Better safe than sorry???
Thursday - Swim and Run. I felt like I couldn't get into a rhythm and couldn't find my balance. The entire short time I was in the pool, I was getting frustrated. I also had a run to do. My mom's work does a run at the Crossings on Thursday night so I went. It was supposed to rain and it did on cue - as soon as we decided to start running. I started and didn't feel too bad but within a couple of minutes the legs of lead returned. I ran for my hour but it was really difficult. Oh, well - maybe it was the weather, maybe it was the day off. Not sure. Not worried either.
Friday - National Ride Your Bike to Work day!!! - I got up at 5:15 am and was out of the door by 5:45. It was extremely foggy!!! Fog is scarry to ride in! Not so excited about this. I had major issues the entire time. I figured it was because I hadn't eaten breakfast yet and figured I would get better on the way home. Not so. I got on the bike and immediately felt my legs of lead not wanting to work. I got about 1.5 miles from home, had the option of hitting sand and going down, getting hit by a car, or hit a hole. I hit the hole and immediately knew I had a flat. I pulled over, worked to change the tire (had a couple of questions which my dad answered over the phone) and then went to fill it with my carbon dioxide canister. Then as I thought I was being successful, I hear a BANG!!! It sounds like a gun firing. No more tire. Called Dave and had him come and pick me up since my husband was out on his own bike ride and I had to get to prom. Nap time was completely obliterated by my hour of dealing with a flat tire and waiting for a ride!!
Saturday - got home at 1:15 am from prom - day was wasted. I was exhausted.
Sunday - went out to Stillwater to do the 63 mile course. I was so tired still from Friday night and getting up earlier than I was prepared to this morning that I fell asleep on the ride from Joe's Mom and Dad's house to the high school. Got to the high school and felt ready to go. It was a little chilly (55 degrees and windy). Got started and wanted to just be - not try to hard - prepare for the IM course and not pushing at the beginning. Got out there and had some hip and groin problems but I wasn't too worried. Got to eat my PB&J uncrustables at an hour and a half and was excited. Struggling but ok. Upper back was sore and my "undercarriage" was suffering from the bike seat (I really can't figure out how to stop both of those things from being annoyingly sore while I am riding). Got to the place where the 63 mile course was supposed to turn and rode passed it. Turned around and found my way back to the right place. Kept riding and then got to the end of a road without an arrow and didn't know which way to go - I picked the wrong way, of course. As I am riding on this unknown road, I hear a dog barking. This little white haired dog starts running down toward the road. My first though is "There must be an invisible fence." My next though was "It won't cross the road." My next thought while I am yelling at the dog is " Oh s%$t, what do I do - keep riding faster or stop." As I am telling the dog to stop it is nipping at my ankle and barking. At no point was the owner visible or yelling for their dog that is attacking me. I was convinced I was going to be bitten by that stupid dog. I am already afraid of dogs and when they come at me while on my bike, I get even more afraid. I pushed it into another gear with the help of some adrenaline and got up to 24 mph while on a slight uphill telling the dog to stop and go away. That was a fast little sucker though - he/she followed me up to 19 mph. I was afraid of the dog running into my back wheel and me falling too. It was not nice. After the dog was gone, I realized I really was not on the correct course, had no idea which road I was on, and knew I wasn't going back the way I had come as to avoid another introduction to the dog. I called Joe to see where I went wrong but he hadn't taken the same course and couldn't help me. I continued down the road and found a road that looked familiar but I didn't know which way I should be going - of course, I picked the wrong direction. At least it was on the 50 mile bike course so I just turned around and followed the arrows. At this point, my legs were tired, my upper back hurt, and the wind was just not fun. 20 miles left to go. Kept on truckin' though. It was a slow battle with the wind. It was not fun at all. Had another sandwhich which didn't effect me or my mood. I finally got back to the high school 60 miles later. Another workout that didn't feel good. Something really has to change before next weekends 100 mile ride.
GHI Workforce team challenge is on Thursday night. I am in-charge of our team at school with 27 people. It should be a good time as long as my lowerback pain and my groin/hipflexor muscle pain goes away by then.
I just don't understand why I could feel so good 3 weeks ago and then now feel like such crap!!! Maybe this is how training goes but I don't know. People keep asking how training is going, am I going to be ready but I don't know. I won't know until race day since I haven't done this before. I am a little frustrated now though. Hopefully, all will get better this week!!
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