Lakefront Marathon--10/6/13

My second attempt at this marathon, I felt extremely confident.  On the heels of a surprisingly successful race season my training was solid, my form lithe, my spirits high. 

I couldn't say the same for Lydia, shown here in true pre-breakfast mood.

My lobsters dropped me off about half an hour before the gun.  I figured that was plenty of time for a pre-race photo, a warm-up/stretch, and a trip to the port-a-potties.

It wasn't.  With three minutes to the start of the race I was still (last) in line at the potties, and hopes of expelling, ahem, everything were dashed.  A quick pee, then the gun went off.  I felt the need to nearly sprint to the start, strip off my outer layer, and dash off at a 10K pace even though my timing chip would prevent a late start penalty.

My start was rushed and a bit frenetic but I soon settled into a rhythm.  I forced my first walk break at 30 minutes and then forgot to walk again for another 20 minutes.  Feeling strong, I chose to extend the breaks to every 8-9 minutes instead of every seven as planned.  Perhaps that was the start of the demise.  The soreness kicked in around Mile 9, and the GI issues (relieved at Mile 11 with a three-and-a-half minute delay) meant for a more challenging race than expected.  Luckily I had my cute athletic supporters.

Even with soreness and GI it brightens everything to see your athletic supporters.

Here I am saying something unintelligible:

And blowing kisses:

It turns out that Erika contacted the friends we have in the area seeking more spectators.  I have awesome friends.

My girls remained chipper.  Frequent snacks helped.

At Mile 15 I veered off the path to give some kisses.  I was in so much pain I just needed to stop for some lovin'.

I finished in 4:26, about 16 minutes faster than my previous marathon time and four minutes faster than my goal pace.  I don't recall ever being in that much pain when I finally stopped running.

After a chocolate milk and a beer I felt more like myself and we posed...with smiles this time.

Waterloo Fit City Triathlon--8/11/13

To end my stellar tri season I was hoping to feed my obsession for more hardware (an obsession that had begun with a 2nd/AG finish at this very race last year).  So when the email arrived listing lane assignments for the race, I began to scour the list in embarrassing fashion:

-How many females are in my age group?  (8)

-How many females are there total?  (34)

-How many from last year's top ten females are returning this year?  (none)

-How many females claim to have an equal or faster swim time than me?  (2)

And so on.  Why the obsession?  The one so-far elusive achievement was finally within reach--the Overall Hardware.  And my focus had officially shifted.

So when I found myself too fast to stay behind the dude in front of me in my swim lane but too slow to pass him in one length's time or less, I got frustrated.  I didn't have time for this.  And when the Lane 4 volunteer frenetically told me I had swam an extra 50 yards because I didn't see him put the kickboard down (distracted with passing Other Dude, no doubt), I was downright pissed.  Was my chance at Overall down the drain?

Still grumbling, I whipped through T1 in a rainy mist and discovered in the mount that my wet shoes weren't cooperating with wet feet.  Slow shoeless mount, wet slick roads, mist turned to sprinkle, more frustration.

I biked the 14 miles in solitude.  We were so spread out that minus getting passed once in the first five minutes and passing a small cluster in the last five minutes, I wasn't within 50 yards of another cyclist the whole time.  This helped me calm down a bit.  I figured I'd only lost a minute or so, and since everyone else has to transition and bike in the rain, there's no disadvantage there.  I continued to give it what I had.

Quick dismount and off on the run.  The rain has stopped, I'm still by myself, but ready for this race to be over.  Just not feeling it, I guess.  And maybe that's a result of the shifted focus.  A glance at my watch after the swim showed a swim time a fair amount faster than last year's, despite very little pool training this summer.  That's something to be proud of.  The bike split ended up half a mile per hour faster than last year's, despite riding in the rain.  That's something to be proud of too.  And when I crossed the finish line my run split was nearly a full minute per mile faster than last year's.  Remarkable.  But if I'm all about the hardware, how can any of that be good enough?

In the end, I pulled off 2nd Overall--a source of pride as well as an effective motivator.  But spending a fair amount of this race in surliness has been a lesson in attempting to keep my focus on my own achievements, not just as they compare to other's.

Arrival:  Excited, Ready to roll

Bear helps me carry the helmet

Everyone gets body marked

Time to rack

Down time

Let's do this

 I still have the cutest athletic supporters in the world.

 Pooped out.

 My Lobster, Athletic Supporter Extraordinaire

 2nd Overall

Tri-ing for Children's--7/28/13

I had done Tri-ing for Children's once before.  I signed up for the Olympic distance in 2010 and a few weeks later my two biggest fans arrived at my doorstep and training came to a screeching halt.  Darned if I would DNS though, so we showed up and I came in about as close to dead last as one can come.

While "only" the Sprint this time, I came to Ottawa State Park this year with one word in mind:  Redemption.  In a new age group and the best shape of my life, I wasn't planning hardware like I'd managed the past few races but I did expect FOP (Front of the Pack) and maybe even a 20 MPH bike or a run PR.  Plenty to shoot for.

My athletic supporters stayed home again.  My Brave Bear was getting her tonsils and adenoids removed the next morning and we valued her sleep more than her presence.  I arrived, checked in, set up and waited the hour or so for my wave, shivering violently with chattering teeth.  Was it really the end of July?!  Cloudy, 55 degrees and breezy made waiting for the start the most difficult part of this race.

And then we were off.  The water is warmer than the air and my drafting is exquisite.  I'm sighting like a maniac (lesson learned from Rock Roll n Run) and even passing people.  This wasn't expected--my time in the pool this summer has been embarrassing and I'm surprised to say the swim has become my weakest leg.  But the stars aligned that morning and I finished a reputable swim.

Quick transition--I'm getting pretty good at those things--and I'm off.  Damn, I can't feel my toes. Why won't they go into those shoes?  Eventually we worked things out and I settled in for the bittersweet ambivalence of a mostly-flat course with a headwind.  I did what I could but settled for a 19 MPH average in the end.

Ready to run, but can't feel my feet.  The first half-mile was like running with rubber brick-feet, a most bizarre sensation.  But thanks to the looping run course I'm now seeing few if any females my age ahead of me.  Could I place after all?  Suddenly a runner with "41" (her age) whizzed past--guess not.  I was passed again by a "43" so with dwindling chances to place I focused on my best race.  Here I am getting the crowd riled up for my finish:

No idea why my face looks like this, and I really have to do something about those chicken arms.

When results were posted I took a gander:

3

Third in my (new) age group after all, which made up for the no-PR run and 19 MPH bike.




Next up, Waterloo Fit City.  

Rock Roll n Run--7/6/13

First tri of the season, first race without my lobster (home with tired kids), first time-trial start, first river swim with a current...I was anxious to feel the rush (literally) so I set up in transition, walked down the beach to the starting pier and hopped into line.

It was another smaller race and the possibility of hardware was there, giving a push comparable to the flood-stage river.  What I wasn't counting on was my sighting technique, or lack thereof.  Coasting with a current isn't enough to keep you on track, and after a substantial veer to the right (and the struggle to get back where I belonged), I shamefully climbed out on the beach with a swim time a good two minutes longer than it needed to be.

A quick T1 and I was off.  On the map the bike course had a moderate climb for the first four miles or so, but it felt more like normal rollers.  It's a nice change of pace when hills are not as bad as you anticipate.  Not much to write home about this bike--pace was one of my highest, and I was only passed once.

One of my longstanding short-term goals stuck in my brain throughout this run:  "9 minute miles".  When I hit the quarter-mile cliff-of-a-hill about halfway through I wondered if it was still possible, but..."9 minute miles".  The results page posted after my finish gave me 8:27 miles, and I took it with a smile.  So why I look so uptight in this photo I'll never know:

In the end I was 3rd in my Age Group, missing 2nd by three seconds and first by 30 seconds.  Stupid swim.

Beautiful weather, great volunteers, fun ride in the river (just watch where you're going), scenic bike and fast run....I'll be back.

Delafield Duathlon--5/19/13

Coming fresh off a new Half-Marathon PR, I was ready to start the race season.  I'd spent the long winter months changing deeply set (and deeply bad) eating habits and working out religiously and smartly (read: in the morning before work, previously unthought of). I was excited and proud of the results--over 20 pounds slimmer and the best shape of my life.

I stumbled upon a race in its inaugural year--the Delafield Duathlon.  Practically in our backyard, early in the season and without an open water swim, it seemed like a nice cheap option.  With no idea what to expect, we arrived.

The girls were set.

This race, we soon discovered, was small.  Each of the six waves had about 20 racers.  The man said "go" (literally) and we were off.

A subtle reminder...

Most of the run was on a grassy golf course, a surface I don't enjoy.  I pushed myself nonetheless and the split was (for me) near-PR.  Then came the bike, the leg in which I hoped to gain some ground on the runners who passed me.  (My efforts to stay focused on my own self-improvement often give way to the competitive spirit.)

Nailed the shoeless mount...

The bike route was relatively flat and windless, perfect conditions to cruise.  And I did, with a near-21 MPH average.

Excellent dismount in the tiny transition area, and I was off.  Legs are cement-like now.  They're moving along, just very very heavily.  My pre-race plan to match the first 5K pace quickly gave way to "just get through it".

The girls waited patiently for the big finish.

I can safely say I gave this race my all.

Special thanks to the very-pregnant Brzeski's for the athletic support.

Shortly before this family photo I discovered on the Results listing that I had won my age group.

While waiting for the Awards ceremony my lobster let Nya try out the camera.  Not bad.

Waiting for awards can get boring, but we do it anyway because it doesn't happen very often.

Finally.