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Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Macon Triathlon Pics - Memorial Day 2006

This is the only action shot we got.
Scott & I actually finished together!

We trained together, so I guess for once in our lives we happened to be going at just the same pace.

Kinda sweet, huh?

____


Someone yelled at me just as I was dismounting the bike going into transition, and I almost fell when I turned my head to see him.

Battle wound! Yeah, baby! :)

It's actually a little worse than it looks; It's all scabby & swollen - ick.

One advantage, though. It's bad enough for me to intentionally wear skirts and heels to work all week so people will say, "Ooh, what happened?" :)

____

The best part - hugs from my neices.

I'd planned to grab the little one and carry her across the finish line while the other one ran with us, but I didn't realize they finally made it to the race until we were right at the finish line.

Maybe they'll be inspired to try some races later anyway.

____

Reprezentin' for my Zentri Army peeps:

Forgot the gang sign. (Sorry, guys!)

You can hardly see it, but the sign says Triscoop.

____


Family portrait with our dream bike:

I'm either blowing you a kiss, or asking the photographer to wait a sec while I get the chocolate Clif Bar out of my teeth.

Believe whichever you choose. :)

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Ok, here it is . . .

As you might have already realized by the lateness of this race report, I’ve been looking forward to writing it about as much as a middle-school book report – for a book that I didn’t read.

Let’s just say that the season can only get better.

It’s not the fact that I didn’t place that bothers me. Heck, one more birthday and I’d have been second instead of fifth in my division. And I’d be proud of my time because I beat my 2:15 goal by a minute & thirty-five seconds, but what’s gotten under my skin is that I know I didn’t really try that hard. In fact, I trained much harder than I raced. I’d give you a play-by-play, but what it comes down to is that I just didn’t leave it all on the course. And that's just not me. I don't do anything halfway.

Interestingly enough, it feels somehow as if I cheated. I remember during the swim looking ahead and seeing a full third of the swimmers cut the corners by swimming to the right of the buoys instead of going around them. I was disgusted that anyone would actually cheat in a triathlon. I thought to myself, “No WAY I’m doing that. What’s the point of doing a race if you can’t feel good about the way you did it?”

I was right. What WAS the point?

Since I never want to feel this way again, I've decided it would be best for all concerned that I make the following announcement:

*daintily clears throat and takes a sip of water*

IF YOU'RE ON THE SAME COURSE WITH ME FOR MY NEXT RACE, YOU'D BETTER STAY OUTTA MY FRIGGIN' WAY!!!

*sits down gently, crosses legs at ankles, smoothes skirt, folds hands in lap and smiles ever so sweetly*

The preceding announcement goes for everyone except Renee. NINE minutes ahead of your goal time!?! You're my new hero! Forget parading a stinking trophy around the office - you should be wearing a CAPE! And to think I knew you when you were only “this tall!” *sob* Our little girl's all grown up!

I can't get blogger to cooperate with me today, so pictures will have to follow later, folks. And let me apologize to any Triscoopers reading out there. Sorry, but I wasn't able to deliver a Moonpie transition shot. Someone borrowed our camera and didn't get there until we crossed the finish line. Maybe next time. ;)

My second tri

Yesterday brought hot weather and the 20th annual Macon Triathlon! It was my second tri, and considerably longer in distance than the first -- let's remember that "considerably longer" is relative. The first tri was 600 meter swim, 12 mile bike, 3.2 mile run. The Macon Tri was 1/2 mile swim (that's 800 meters for you metric system folks), 20 mile bike and 3.1 mile run. The first tri had the bike and run sections split into 6 mile bike/1.5 run/6 mile bike/1.5 run. This tri wasn't divided like that -- so it seemed a lot longer!

I arrived bright and early and got all my gear in place. I wasn't nearly as nervous this time around. The only thing that worried me was the mass start. At the last race we went off in waves, but this time we were all starting together. When the gun went off I hung back a few seconds, letting all the hammer heads get a good start in the water. I really don't care enough about my time to warrant getting kicked in the head. The swim seemed L-O-N-G and I had to flip over and do my (now standard) backstroke/side crawl/freestyle swim. It may not be the fastest, but it serves me well. And I noticed this time that I wasn't the only one employing the backstroke technique. I set a swim goal (based on the last tri) at 20 min. I was out of the water at 19.

The bike went great. I just looked at it as a long TT, and used the people ahead of my as my rabbits as I pedaled along. The course was too long to pass a lot of folks, and I couldn't judge how much time I was making up. I passed a few people, and a few people passed me. I set a bike goal of 1:10. I finished it in 1:07.

The run was harder than I expected. In fact, I'd say it was the most difficult part of the tri. The 20 miles must have left me a little more drained than I anticipated, because I had a hard time running and felt like I was going a lot slower than normal. The course was 1.5 miles up hill, and 1.5 miles right back down. I had to break out my walk/run a few times on the uphill, but cruised down the back stretch with no issue. On the start of the run I caught up with a girl in front of me. She was in my age group. I tried to pace her as best I could, but she got away from me on that uphill. I was cruising along to the finish and when I got about 25 yards from the finish, the official standing there said "run faster! you have two girls behind you!" I didn't even bother to turn around to see if they were close my age, I just hauled ass to the line. I set a run goal of 35 minutes. I did the run in 31.



I finished the tri at 2:01!! That's 9 minutes ahead of my goal time. And I got THIRD PLACE in my age group. Sweet!!

I have no idea how many women were in my age group. The race organizers never posted up the results at the race, but said they'd be up online sometime today. Even if I was 3 of 3, my time was only 1 minute slower than second place, so it's not like I was far off. However, the winner in my age group was 6 minutes ahead of me.

This event has left me more stoked than ever about the Xterra race. Alas, I think I will SERIOUSLY get my butt handed to me at that event, but doing tris is just so much fun, it really doesn't matter. Hmmm... that's the same way I look at cross country mountain bike racing. Win or lose, as long as you challenge yourself, beat your personal goals and have a great time, that's all that matters ...

... although, showing off my third place plaque at work was pretty awesome.
:)

Sunday, May 28, 2006

Triple Threat at Fort Yargo

Wow...had a jam packed, tiring, but great day yesterday. Left the house at 7:00 a.m. to meet Lori and Pilar up at Fort Yargo for a full day of exercise and girly fun. A fender bender (I was a witness, not involved) threw me off schedule for about twenty minutes, so I arrived at 9:15 instead of the planned 9:00. One side note...what makes people think that, though the speed limit says fifty-five, they have every right to putz along at forty miles per hour? GRRRRRRR!

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Lori and Pilar...hamming it up pre-swim

It was the first time I met Pilar, but the truck with two bikes in the back near the beach let me know I'd found the right girl. Lori was running behind too, but we made it down to the water at about 9:30. It being a holiday weekend the small swimming area was jam packed with kids...but we manuevered around them the best we could. The small swim area was okay when you were in the middle of your out and back, but the two ends were so shallow you could easily do a crab scuttle with your fingertips instead of a swim. I was pleased to see that my combo crawl/breaststroke manuever works fine and is pretty speedy. Haven't been in the water much lately, so was pleased to see I hadn't lost too much ground. The water was actually quite nice once you got yourself immersed.

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Mallie & Lori...buddies until I threw her in (kidding!!!)

When we couldn't hack the kids anymore we headed in. A woman floating on a chaise offered us much praise for actually swimming and exercising in the water. Little did she know that the real effort was about to begin!

Pilar hasn't done much MTB riding and had crashed on her one and only ride at Ft. Yargo, so we couldn't convince her to join us. She has her first triathlon in a week so decided to ride her road bike and do a little pavement running. Lori and I hopped in our cars for the quick trip down to Entrance B so we could enter the MTB trails in a familiar spot. This was my second attempt at Ft. Yargo, the first being the disastrous pre-diagnosis ride on my wedding anniversary. That first ride found me barely able to slog around the course in the lowest gears of my granny ring. Happy, happy day...I rode most of the trail in my middle gears of the middle ring and only had to resort to granny on the couple climby sections. Huge improvement, though I still have decided shortness of breath issues from time to time. The rain the previous weekend meant we got a bit filthy, but good soldiers that we are we rode straight through the mud puddles (so we didn't widen the trail or make ruts). They hadn't completed one new portion of train when I'd done my pre-ride, so I got to check out a really fun little downhill section that pleased me much more than my pre-ride option which was a second section of granny ring wide open powerline climbing!

Filthy and sweaty, but feeling good, Lori and I put more water in our camelback bladders, she chowed down on some trail mix and I chewed on a half peanut butter waffle (whole grain waffle instead of bread for something different). She grabbed her walking poles and we tromped off on a ninety minute hike. The biking trails are pretty up and down, but certain sections you don't notice as much on the bike, as some seem small in comparison to others. Let me tell you, when hiking, you realize how much up and down this course has. On the bike parts of it give you a false sense of flat. The trek really worked the hams and calves (I started feeling it after the two our drive home, and I currently smell like a Wint-o-Green lifesaver so you know I've got on the Icy Hot), as well as the lungs as you swung arms big time to get up some of the climbs. 45 minutes out, then back and it was 3:00 p.m.

Hot!!! Can you say hot! With the cars running we set the air conditioning to cool them down before we climbed in for our respective rides home. Then the fun of the parking lot change. There was no way we were driving home in the muddy, sweaty, buggy clothing we'd been in all day. Baby Wipes weren't enough. Luckily our swim towels were still damp, so they got the bulk of the mud off, then the wipes did detail work. If you haven't mastered the art of removing damp tight tri-shorts under a towel without losing said towel and flashing other folks in the lot, well you just haven't lived life. It's also fun trying to remove your filthy, damp top and get into a clean bra without flashing some hooter for all in view. But we managed, with careful manuevers between opened front and rear doors. And we called it a day.

I arrived home a bit sore, quite tired (I swear I have driving induced narcolepsy)and really happy with the amount of exercise. I can't wait to meet up with these girls again. Pilar plans to come down to the Maconga to test out the Pig soon and since Lori's joining Courtney and I for the adventure race I'm sure I'll be seeing a lot of her.

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

"hodgepodge"

#1:
OK, so I am going to vent a bit.......I have been on my bike 2 times in the past two weeks. Yikes! I went out today and rode 25 miles on some side roads around Villa Rica. Craig and I took off the other day in the car and found three potential loops for us to do right from our front door- an 11 mile, 14 mile, and 25 mile loop. BUT.....now that my 4 kids (yes, "4" -no typo!!) are about to get out of school I am panicked about how I am going to find "ride time". I don't like the thought of leaving the minute my husband gets home every evening :-( but that may be my only choice. I am going to drag my 14 year old son to spin class w/ me 2 times a week though. Craig is set on us doing the off-road assault of Mt. Mitchell in July and 6 gap in September. If I plan on even attempting to do these or any other race for that matter I need to get my bottom on my bike!
Anyone know a free babysitter? :-) ha, ha!

#2:
Anyway..enough complaining.......I had a good ride today. My legs took a bit of time to warm up but after a few miles I felt great.

#3:
Craig and I are headed to North Georgia Thursday to camp and ride. We are going to ride roads and trails. Yippee! We are taking a long road ride Friday (which will include Hogpen gap and Brasstown Bald) then we are going to ride around Bull Mountain and Bear Creek Sat and Sun. Should be tons of fun.

#4
just for fun here are pics of Craig and I from The Cheaha Challenge Century a couple weeks ago. Great ride!!!



Circle of Life

Nope, not going to break into the Lion King song. I just wanted to tell you guys about something pretty cool that happened the other day.

I was teaching a class at the Wellness Center. I don't have a regular one right now until my work schedule stabilizes, so I'm just on the substitute list. But anyway, I realized during the class that the WC (not water closet, for those of you who think British,) is the gym I originally joined when I was a "big girl." At that time, I'd never set foot in a class for fear of looking goofy, being the fattest one in there, or - horror of horrors - people see stuff jiggle. 34% body fat. Not good. And (*deep breath*) yep, that was me back then, bad hair and all.

But here I was TEACHING ONE! I've taught more classes in the past than I can count, but it meant so much more there. And then I couldn't help noticing through the window on my right this guy just flying on a treadmill. I had to do a double-take. He was wearing a t-shirt from a race that I directed! It's still hard for me to believe how much my life has changed.

I got an e-mail the other day from someone who was in my fitness program at work. She just wanted to let me know that she finally hit the 70lb mark and thanked me for helping her get started on the journey. I could finish an Ironman, qualify for Kona, and the Boston Marathon and never feel better than I did in those few moments. Ok, NOW I'm going to break into song . . .

Lazy Days

I have a love/hate relationship with taper weeks. On the one hand, you feel mighty lazy. On the other, it's kind of nice to take it easy after all that training. I feel pretty good about the race, though. I rode the course often enough that there shouldn’t be too many surprises. I haven’t done the swim at Lake Tobosofkee, but I’ve done plenty of open water already so that should be no problem.

This may surprise you, but my greatest concern is the run. As you may or may not know, I’ve had some trouble with my left foot over the last several months, so I haven’t been running nearly as much as usual. Whenever I go for anything over say, 3 miles, it starts hurting again, so I have to swim & bike for a couple of days until it eases off. Kind of threw my training program off a little, but I tried not to let it mess with my head.

Sorry about neglecting the blog, y’all. I kind of got addicted to
triscoop. I suppose I’ve been a little unfaithful. Forgive me?

Feeling good...

Wow...what a difference a couple weeks make. Seriously...before finding out I needed to supercharge my body's iron levels, I had a hard time not getting winded on a walk around the block or a trip through the grocery store aisles. Now...a couple weeks later, I'm feeling almost like the old me. Almost...

The legs and other large muscle groups feel great. Running and biking (muscle-wise) don't seem to have been greatly affected. The lungs, however, aren't quite up to 100%.

That being said...I've had two really good workouts, two days in a row! I did speed work on Monday (running). Now, I'm a turtle, as you've seen me post before. I can shuffle along for miles on end at my turtle trot pace. But I'm not a sprinter...never have been. So...in an effort to test the lungs and maybe begin increasing speed, I set out for some 1/4 mile hard efforts. Pre-lengthy-poopy-feelingness I was running 10.5-ish minute miles when I pushed it a bit. So going in planning to push it a good bit I wanted to do some 2:15-ish 1/4 mile times. Not fast compared to anyone of you out there doing speed work...but I wanted an attainable goal for this first endeavour back in the "running shoes".

Imagine my surprise after my mile warm-up when I, the turtle named Mallie, ran a 1:58. Yep...and not on a flat dirt track. Up the slight hill on scorching Georgia asphalt that makes up my street...you could feel the heat pulsing off the pavement and slapping you in the face. My entire neighborhood ranges from mild climbs and descents to serious hills. Sure...again...many of you are putting in much faster splits. But I was freaking thrilled. Was it a fluke? Thankfully not. I hit right around the 2:00 minute mark on six of these splits in a row. I walked in between hard efforts and my second 1/4 mile is actually a little bit longer than a quarter mile, and I still hit the time (it's slightly downhill for part of it...so that's what I attribute the same time to). I got in a good warm up, a nice slow run after the splits and a good cool-down and felt great.

Then yesterday, again in my hilly neighborhood, I did standing high-gear hill repeats. Again the legs felt great and I was able to regulate my breathing and recover in a way I haven't been able to do in a long time. I finished off the day with an upper body strength workout and I was quite happy.

It's great to start feeling like me again, turtle and all.

Also, everyone...please send a few of your good vibes Renee's way. She had a nasty wreck on Monday (see previous post) and needs some quick healing in order to kick pardukey at her second triathlon on Memorial Day!

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Crashes?

I don't need no stinkin' crashes!!!
(ok, so, points if you can name the movie)

This weekend I had a great bit of actual training going on. Saturday I hit Arrowhead for a lap. It was slow and steady due to the CRAZY heat. While Beth went back out for a second lap, I tied up the tennys and jogged the trail. My legs felt like bricks! The heat was really taking it out of me. I figured though, better get used to it. It's summer in Georgia, and this heat ain't goin anywhere! After the short jog (ended up being like 40 minutes of jogging/walking/panting) I shored up my courage and jumped in the lake. Those of you who know what the water looks like on the Arrowhead side of Lake Tobo know what I mean. It was COLD and it felt great! I splashed around a bit and cooled off considerably.

Sunday I headed back out to Lake Tobo, this time the Claystone side, for a little swim. The water was cold at first, but felt great. I swam back and forth in the designated swimming area, dodging kids with swimmies and babies in diapers (um ... ew!). The asthma was a little harsh and I had a difficult time breathing, but hey, I'm used to that by now so I swam on.

Afterward I met my "escorts" Jake and Grant for a pre-ride of the Memorial Day Tri road course. I call them my escorts because they were both sporting their Max Cycling Team jerseys. I was wearing a plain red one. At one point they were riding two abreast in front of me, almost like they were my armed guard. It was a hoot. We didn't know which way the loop was being run, so we just picked a direction and went. Come to find out, we rode it backward, but from observation, I think it will be easier the race direction. At least I got a taste for it and a nice spin in! Sunday night brought some ab work -- gotta love those crunches -- that left my belly sore come monday! nice!

So after a successful weekend of riding and playing in the sunshine, I followed my race week plan and set out on one more hard ride for the week. I headed back to Arrowhead last night planning to ride 2 medium-paced laps. Well ... I was going along at a nice pace on the first lap and took the turn into the new section of the trail. I saw that double-dip thing coming and told myself I'd finally balls-up and ride it. So I head for it and all the sudden I realize I'M GOING TOO FAST!! so I grab and handful of brake ... a little too late ... and endo'd into the first dip. I sat on the ground for a while moaning and cursing, as I couldn't get my left foot unclipped during the fall and my bike came down on my back and rolled to the left, twisting my ankle as it went. I managed to get up and hop back to the double track, and one-foot pedaled my way back to the car.

This sucks. I crash exactly one week before the tri. My ankle hurts to walk on, and my knee on the other leg ain't feeling so hot either. It hasn't swolen, so maybe i just pulled some ligaments funny. Hopefully I can go for a nice walk tomorrow and see how it holds up. It had BETTER get BETTER before monday, cause I'm gonna finish that damn tri even if I come in dead last and limping!!!

Arrrgghhh!
p.s. yes, the bike is just fine.

Monday, May 22, 2006

The natural life

I know that most of you know me as the girl who promotes the health benefits of wine, chocolate milk, fried chicken and pizza, but I swear I can eat healthy when I want to, and that happens to be most of the time.

After a recent trip to the nicest Kroger in town (the one on Zebulon Road) I became overwhelmed with the organic and natural foods offerings! Apple and pears! Boca burgers and tofu! Organic yogurt and whole wheat pasta! Oh my!

So I've sampled a few products for your reading delight. Go out and buy them. They are good, and no, I'm not being paid by any of these companies.

First up, True Lemon.

Ever hate the way water tastes? Even filtered water? Do you find flavored water too sweet? Do you loathe the taste of artificial sweeteners such as aspertame? Then you'll LOVE True Lemon. It's little one-serving size packets of crystallized lemon -- nothing else. It's like squeezing a fresh lemon into every glass of water, but without the knife and the lemon juice and people stealing lemons out of the company fridge. Look for it near the gatorade and Krystal Light in the grocery store.

Second up, Cocoa Via.

I first tried these when the company sent us a sampler pack at work, hoping we'd review them. We get all kinds of free crap (and I DO mean crap) at the paper on a daily basis. Most of it is, well, crap, but not Cocoa Via. Do you hate the way chocolate made for protein bars or low-fat Slimfast-esque snacks tastes? I do. But I LOVE Cocoa Via. These candy bars have only 80 calories and 2 grams of fat per bar. They taste great. Look for it in the organic section, near the protein bars.

Finally, Naked Juice brand fruit drinks.

From everything from straight-up juice to my FAVORITE, the protein smoothie, these little drinks are Y-U-M-M-Y. They are expensive, at like $3 a pop, but soooo worth it. The protein drink has 38 grams of protein and is all natural. It's made from blended fruit and soy protein powder. This is a great alternative for people like me, who can't seem to get enough protein in their diets, and don't like the taste of regular protein shakes. Look for it in the produce section, next to the vegan cheese and tofu.

Enjoy!!

Sunday, May 21, 2006

A Day On The Water

To quote Renee, I'm hooked!

Hooked up with Courtney, one of the team members for my first ever adventure race, which happens in late July. She hauled her big old flat bottomed canoe all the way down from North GA so we could indulge in a little paddling training. I've not been in any sort of paddled craft since I was very young and my prankster older brother got his evil kicks flipping me over in a tiny kayak. As I'm the biggest member of our team, I knew I'd mostly likely be paddling in the rear, meaning I had to learn about steering. Courtney was awesome, talking me through until I got the hang of it.

We started our adventure with plenty of ant killing. Court's mother-in-law and sister-in-law were coming to paddle too. They borrowed a two person kayak from a friend, only to find it infested with ants when we got it down to the launch. After much submerging and splashing, trying to kill the critters, we realized the boat was infested. Mom & Sis took the boat back to the friend and swapped for two single seater crafts. Here's Court and her sis-in-law getting one of them ready to launch.

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I'm not sure why Courtney's doing the little leg kick thing...but hey...to each his own.

We spent some two + hours on the water...most of it was pretty benign paddling, though we found we were constantly pulled to the left a bit by the current. Courtney has some shoulder issues, so coordinating strokes was a bit rough, as she had to switch more often than we will during the actual event. We had a blast manuevering some of the large rocky areas of the river, as the water level was a little low. Sure, we came aground more than a few times, but between butt scooting, leveraging with our paddles and the occasional disembark we made it through. I mastered the back paddle and steering, though I did mess up from time to time in the heat of the moment. Court called out obstacles so we only had one potential tip occur. But we came out dry when we both shifted our weight properly as we barked up on the rock!

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I can't forget our "third". Kali the wonder dog sat between us, grinning and sweet, for most of the trip down. She occasionally wanted some attention, so came and sat on my feet for a bit, and managaged to scoot up over mom's legs to pilot from the front as we came to our adventure's close.

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Of course, no advanture would be complete without some foibles. As we wandered several miles and hours down the river, we remembered we hadn't moved a car to the landing spot. And all our cell phones were back in the cars. Luckily we figured that mom-in-law and sis-in-law could grab a ride from grandma and get the two vehicles back while Courtney and I drug the vessels up to meet them. Wow! That was an ordeal. Carrying the two single vessels was a workout, but manageable. Hauling the monster flat bottom canoe was another story. We had to take several rest breaks, but we managed it.

So, sunburnt (despite heavy application of sunscreen), buggy (despite careful application of repellant we both had a couple ticks) and tired, we loaded the canoe up in Courtney's SUV and called it a day!

My arms and back are a bit sore today, but not bad. I can't wait to get out on the water again!

Thursday, May 18, 2006

Back!

Hey all. To anyone who might have missed me...I'm back. I'm not 100% again, but I'm able to actually train again. A couple weeks ago I got fatigued walking the aisles at the grocery store. Now I'm back on the MTB (don't worry...I'm taking it slowly and steadily), back running and will be paddling and swimming starting this weekend!!!

So look for actual training posts again...though I know Renee's awesome tri debut has been a great way to keep you entertained. I'm guessing there will be something fun to post after my first paddle, as I'll be the one "steering" and I haven't been in that role, well, ever!

Y'all come back now...

Monday, May 15, 2006

Triathlon pics

Here's some pics to go with my post below.

WOW! That water is cold!!


Kickin butt on the bike!


A fun run in the woods!


Jake was so proud of me, he put this sign on his door. Here I am displaying my silver medal!

I'm hooked!!

I just completed my first ever triathlon last weekend -- and man did i have a great time!! I was hard, but it was so much fun!
Here's a not-so-brief recap, for those who want all the gory details!

We arrived at Ft. Yargo State Park (site of the previous weekend's 12 hour race) at 6 a.m. Saturday morning! Early! Why do they start so early??!! I asked a lot of dumb questions to the folks working the registration table and then upacked all my stuff in the transition area. I did just like everyone suggested and walked through the transitions a few times to make sure i knew where i was going and what i was doing. It was about 56 degrees outside and the water temp was 70. I went and stuck my feet in the water and was pleased that it felt warmer than the outside air. I stood on the beach all nervous and not wanting to take off my jacket -- due less to the cold and more to the "i'm wearing a sports bra and spandex shorts in front of 300+ people" body image issues. But I bit the bullet and decided that if the 50 year old ladies didn't care, then i shouldn't either!

The gun went off and all the women hit the water together. As soon as I got my chest in, my body went into what i can only describe as "shock." It was WAY colder than I thought and i couldn't breath or move at all. Seriously. I just sat there for a second gasping and flailing around. I considered turning around and getting out. I tried to swim forward and couldn't breathe. Some primal instinct told me to roll over on my back (so my chest and face would be out of the water), so that's what I did. I rolled over and started back-stroking! lol. I started to make slow progress in the water and tried to roll over and swim again, this only produced more gasping and asthma symptoms. I'm not sure what was going on, but i think my lungs weren't happy with the cold water. So I side crawled, back-stroked and yes, doggy paddled, about 90% of the 600 meters. When I started to get close to the shore I kept thinking, "these people will laugh at me if I come in on my back" so I bit the bullet made some desperate attempt to breast stroke my way back in. I even passed one girl! I was surprised though, to realize that there was still about 1/4 of the pack still behind me in the water. It took me 17 minutes. (and no, no one kicked me or pulled on my ankles!)

So I ran out and to the transition area where all went smooth. I got on the bike and the most amazing thing happened. I started to pass people. men. women. more men. more women. what the heck?? Apparently compared to this handful of triathletes, i'm actually a FAST rider!! 22 minutes for 6.5 hilly miles. Afterward I realized that only 12 women (out of the 103 overall) were faster than me on the first bike leg!! sweet!

The rest of the race went great. The run was fun and went by quickly, and so did the second bike and run portions. My legs started to ache during the first 3-4 minutes of the second bike and second run, but then it stopped hurting and I picked up the pace. Jake kept popping up everywhere taking my picture and cheering me on! (He was great by the way -- didn't even complain that i made him get up at 4:45 am!) I ran across the finish line with a big smile on my face and he was right there to pop my picture!

600 meter swim, 13 miles bike, 3 mile run
1 hour, 38 minutes, 50 seconds!!

Good enough to earn me SECOND place in the Athena category (cause i'm big and proud baby!) I checked the times, and if i had raced my age group, i would have come in third!! I even checked the overall times, and came in 30th of 103 women!! I just wanted to finish respectably and I even got a medal!! I'd say I did just fine!

It was enough to get me seriously hooked. I'm SO EXCITED about the next race (memorial day tri in macon) and am totally dedicated to working harder -- especially on cold water swimming!!

Trials & Tribulations of the Trail

Before I dive into my post subject, HUGE CONGRATS to Renee for coming in second in her division at her first triathlon. WOO HOO!!! You rock, girlie! I'm expecting we'll see a post from her sometime today, letting us know all the cool "deets". Apparently Hashi, our "favorite?" Pakistani, is stealing my verbiage.

So...we've had some good hard rains over the past couple weeks. Since most of you know I'm all about the MTB...I don't own a road bike...it means that I'm often kept off the trails when they're wet. But hard rains also cause trail damage and drop debris. Good MTBers that we are (Beth too), we opted to do some trail work this weekend to clean up East Macon.

Two main things happen at East Macon after a rain. Overhang drops with the weight and sometimes makes it impossible to see the trail ahead of you, as well as makes it hard to ride without constant ducking and the possiblility of being swept off the bike. Secondly, trees fall out there. A lot. Beth and I dealt with both.

We were met with a small tree blocking the trail immediately. It was blocking the trail entrance. Unfortunately it was this tree that held the small red arrow showing this was the trail entrance. Beth had forgotten her gloves, so while she ran back to get them, I figured I could move the tree, as it was small. Luckily, it snapped in half when I lifted it (as it was heavier than I'd imagined) and I was able to prop the half with the arrow up so that it still marked the trail entrance.

We went in about 1/3 mile and found a massive bunch of tree and vine that was completely blocking the trail. It was more than we could handle so we noted the spot, planning to let someone with a chainsaw handle it. We continued for another mile or so, doing lots of overhead trimming and debris removal. The overhead was really bad in spots and sometimes we bit off more than we could chew (vines kept dropping the more we trimmed).

We came to an intersection and saw, to our dismay, a huge mass of trees and limbs across the exit of one portion of the trail. For a moment we felt overwhelmed, but then we decided to just slowly wade in and see if we could at least get enough cleared that folks could circumnavigate the rest. With only a hand saw, some loppers and our muscles we started cutting and dragging away limbs. It was dirty, sweaty and painful work (Beth and I both got some nasty scratches), but as we kept going we saw we were making real progress. Every once in a while we came across a limb that, when dragged off, cleared out 1/4 to 1/3 of what remained. After a few such instances we saw that we could not only clear a path, we could clear the entire trail. Sure, a chain saw could have done it in about 5 minutes and it took us about twnty-five. But we DID IT!

We decide to call it a day. Beth wanted to ride a bit and I'm still taking it slow after my anemia diagnosis. We got back to the car and I immediately spotted a tick (YUCK!!!) on my leg. We did the "friend check" (each of us checking under the other's hairline for nasty beasties) and I headed for home. There I spent the next two days finding tiny baby ticks on my person. I did a fill check immediately after I got home, but these things were so tiny they managed to impersonate freckles. YUCK and more YUCK!!!

What's the purpose of this post? Besides giving filler reading until Renee's able to post on her triathlon adventure, it's two-fold: (1) everyone who rides or runs trails can and should make a difference by doing regular trail work) and (2) start and keep wearing the bug repellant every time you go out in the woods...the beasties are out!!!

Thursday, May 11, 2006

I'm gonna TRI it

So this weekend is my first ever triathlon. whew. i get a little woozy just thinking about it. my goal for the event is to finish ... and not finish like 30 minutes behind the person in front of me. finishing last is ok, as long as it's a reasonable last.

i am extremely nervous and apprehensive about the swim, and have been having dreams about creating an efficient transition area. lol. but in all seriousness, i know i can finish the event, and i know it won't kill me, and that's all that matters.

you know, it hasn't even been a year since i woke up one morning and thought, "hey, i want to do a triathlon next season." i didn't really start thinking much about it till mid-summer, when debbie and i decided we'd start a running program. she used to run a lot in college, but me? never. i had never run for more than like 3 minutes in my entire life. i tried before to learn to run, thinking it would improve my cycling, but after one run session (of three minute intervals) i hurt so bad i never tried again ... until last summer. so we started this walk/run program that was really tough, but it followed a specific plan, and this suited my anal-retentive planning needs, and so it stuck. so now i can run about 4 miles before i keel over. i try not to often toot my own horn, but i'm damn proud of myself for making that long-ago goal a reality come this weekend. and i know 4 miles doesn't sound like alot, but we're each different and have different talents and abilities. running was never one of mine. just knowing i can now do it gives me a great sense of pride in myself.

so enough of the yeah renee, and back to the nerves. the bike will be no problem. i could ride around that park all day -- ha! and i did last weekend! the swim has me scared. seriously. i'm afraid that the adrenaline, coupled with the cold water, and the asthma has me a little freaked out. it didn't help that i got online and read all this stuff about how you get kicked in the head and your goggles sometimes come off during a mass start. great. but aside from the physical assaults, i'm worried that i'll get out there, waaaay out there, and have an asthma attack. there's no side to float over to. there's no inhaler close at hand. and if i stop swimming, i'm going to get run over by the 4th wave of swimmers, who start behind me. so what do i do? (insert plea for advice here) i've practiced at the pool trying to fight through the asthma with a change in stroke. side crawl seems to work the best. but then again, maybe i'll just doggy paddle. :)

Monday, May 08, 2006

Ft. Yargo fun fest

We had a blast at the Ft. Yargo Dirty Spokes 12 hour event this weekend!! My 3-woman team (myself, Karen and Beth) took first place in our category (4-person female team). We chose to run a 3-lady team in the 4-person category because we weren't planning on being very competitive -- having fun was the goal -- and we wanted to get more laps in than a 4-person team would allow. So, I registered us in the "4 person team" category. Come to find out, the promoters broke out the female teams separately ... and we were the only one! lol. I'd like to think though, that if there were other teams in our category, we still would have won!

The trail was wet and slick in the morning, but not nearly as bad as our pre-ride on Friday -- some of which was more like a slip-n-slide event than an actual ride. The sun came out Saturday, the trail dried up and it got hot!! Big thanks to Debbie who held down the fort as our "team mom" and fetched me some water and Coke when I was too pooped to simply walk five yards to get it.

Each time I went out on a lap all I wanted was to get passed by Tinker. That's right. Tinker Juarez was there ... and he spanked EVERYONE!! In fact, most of our little team (I'm including our three solo compatriots: my BF Jake, Deb's hubby Grant, and Mr. Mark Duffus) got passed by Tinker more than once. But I never had the pleasure. I like to think that it's cause I was too fast for him. He just couldn't catch me! lol. I knew that theory was crap when I got passed late in the day on the powerline climb by a guy, probably in his 60s, wearing shorts and a t-shirt, riding a steel frame bike, on flat pedals. holy cow! talk about humbling!

So this race made me dread -- and get excited about in a sadistic sort of way -- the 12 hours of Dauset coming up in July. As the temperature climbed this weekend, all I could think about was how 85 degrees in July would be considered quite cool! I'm going to have to get my body ready to withstand the heat all day so I don't pass out somewhere on Huff N Puff. And to make matters more challenging, I'll be doing Dauset on a 2-person team with a guy who rides really fast. So ... not much downtime, and lots of riding!! I think this means I'm going to have to actually (insert sounds of doom here) TRAIN for the event. Oh! I hate calling it "training" cause it takes the fun out of things.

Speaking of training, while racing Saturday I got to talking with solo female racer I Ling Matthews (who was an absolute cool chic and ended up winning her event). You know, it's amazing the quick kinship that develops on the trail. I had just met the gal and we're talking chamois butter and saddle sores. lol. I ended up with a little of both, so I think I'm giving in and trying the butter next time I go for a long ride.

Something many folks out there were complaining of was lower back pain during the race. This has happened to me before at previous 12 hour events, and I'm wondering what's the culprit. Not being used to several hours in the saddle? A need to strengthen my abs (as the opposing muscle group to my back)? I think my bike position is correct, so that can't be it. If any experienced 12/24 hour folks have fought back pain -- and won! -- please offer some suggestions. I feel like I could have ridden longer and harder if it hadn't been for an aching back!

Diagnosis = Anemia

Both the doc and I were surprised by the diagnosis. I'm apparently very anemic. That was the last thing the doc was expecting, as I showed no outward signs (lack of coloration/pigmentation, physical signs of fatigue like under eye bruising, etc) and my diet's pretty good most of the time...but after reading up on it myself this morning, HOT DAMN, it explains all my symptoms (fatigue, depression, dizziness, inability to keep body temperature up, shortness of breath, difficulty sleeping, occasional rapid heartbeat, failure to recover from hard exercise,etc.)!!! I'm not registering in the "acceptable" area for either hemoglobin or blood oxygen. So iron doses twice a day and red meat are the immediate prescription. Then another blood test round in a month to see if that takes care of it or to see if there's an underlying cause for the anemia.

I'd still be anemic even if I weren't engaging in endurance athletics, but my readings are incredibly low based on the kinds of exercise I'm subjecting myself to in order to prep for my endurance MTB events, and the upcoming triathlons and adventure race. Scary. When I almost passed out at Ft. Yargo during my pre-ride, it wasn't an equilibrium thing, it was that my blood wasn't rich enough in oxygen for that level of exertion.

For me to have contunied to try to train through this could have been disastrous to my long-term health. I could have done irreparable repair to my heart and other organs. Scary!

So, I just took the first iron pill and I'm ready for my poo to turn colors (one of the side effects of large doses of iron). I'm hopeful that the mega-dosing will quickly produce some results.

Before I sign off I want to send huge hugs and thanks to all those who didn't think I was being a wuss while dealing with feeling so sick. The husband, el Jefe, has been awesome and supportive. My Maconga gals (Renee, Debbie, Beth, Amber and Karen) have all been understanding and there for me when I felt really low. To Danielle and some of my new blogger friends...thanks for all the online support. And my Sorella Cycling teammates. Thanks for all the on-line and real time shoulders to cry on. And to all those who made fun of me behind my back or made snide, not so behind my back comments, a big F-U!!!

I'm ready to get back to being me. I'm ready to be able to ride the trails again without feeling ill. I'm ready now, because I'm hopeful that in a few days I can stop feeling sick and tired of feeling sick and tired!

Thursday, May 04, 2006

training change-up

Today I went trail running. I felt the urge to spice up my routine a bit. I ran over at Sweetwater Park (West side of Atl)- ran a 4 mile in-and-out. I had a great time. I actually felt better than I expected given that my "montrails" have not been on my feet for quite some time. Before Christmas to be exact. Everything went smooth- saw two deer- Other than that I was all alone in the woods. Very peaceful. The only problem I encountered was at about mile 2.3...... the tube to the bladder in my camelback came loose and all my water came spilling out the bottom of my camelback. Got a little wet. :-)

No riding or racing for me this weekend. My husband is taking on the Cheaha Challenge this Sunday over in Alabama. It is a 100 mile road ride that has 7,400 feet of cumulative climbing, traversing Alabama's highest point- Cheaha Mountain. I am his cheerleader for this one...Not a participant. Should be a fun weekend.
Happy training everyone. :-)

Melissa,

Wednesday, May 03, 2006

A few things I now know aren't plaguing me

As regular readers know, I got a late afternoon appointment with a new doc yesterday. He was great, definitely going to make him our regular family physician. Very thorough, listened to me without making me feel like a spaz or a hypochondriac. Ran a full battery of tests. EKG was normal. He took x-rays of my skull/sinuses to check and see if there are any sinusitus related reasons I'm feeling so bad. Took plenty of blood (I've got a sore and bruised inner elbow) and is going to run a battery of tests.

There are a lot of things that could explain the vertigo symptoms I'm having (dizziness, nausea, fatigue, occasional fever), including thyroid abnormalities (run in my family), severe sinusitis (not likely as I'm not having any sniffling/sneezing issues, anemia (not likely based on my good color), and MVP. Then there are all the scary things. MS, cancer, etc. I'm not even thinking of those things right now. No need. Why worry before you have to.

He asked me not to do the 12 hour event this weekend. Can't say I disagree. I'm allowed easy rides - short and low speed, walks (no running yet) and easy weight lifting. No swimming until we know what's wrong. I'm going to enjoy several days of exercise ease and get plenty of sleep.

I'm ready for Hashi or his alter-ego anonymous to make fun of my "perceived" illness, and I'll smile as I always do. But really, I'm just glad I found a doc who's willing to go the extra mile to ensure we find out what's wrong and fix it, finally and completely.

Hopefully the other girls will post over the next week, as I'm gonna be pretty boring blog/training-wise.

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Not Drowning, Wading

Yeah, before I go any further, I know the quote is actually supposed to be "Not Drowing, Waving", but if you read on you'll see the "quirky symbolism" of my choice of title. Maybe. If not, sorry!

I'm slowly trying to get back to the kind of exercise schedule I was completing before all the health issues arose. Slowly is the key. I'm not going to continue to sit like a dizzy lump on the couch, but I'm also not going to dive right back into the kind of activity that leaves me reeling and exhausted. It defeats the purpose. I want to slowly ramp back up over the next couple of weeks so I'm ready for my first triathlon, the Xterra at Arrowhead Park.

Started things off on the right foot with a nice casual ride with a friend last night. She's pregnant, so we kept it from getting too strenuous (not good for the baby) and caught up on some chatter as we hadn't seen eachother in a while. (I'm omitting her name on purpose...not sure she wants her good news plastered all over the blogosphere - locals in the know, don't mention her name in comments, please). I felt pretty OK...ears didn't start doing any of their funky ringing until the very end of the ride. But I did wake up feeling that funny empty-headed ear ringing and a bit icky this morning. I'm hoping good eating and hydration throughout the day will level me out so I can do some running intervals this afternoon.

Tried out the new Zoot tri-top on my ride last night. Fits great...like the racer-back and love the pockets on the side. I did notice it rides up a bit in the front...but it's not too small. Any thoughts from the tri-masses?

Good news. Just got a call from the doc's office and they're going to try to see me today. Yippee! Right now on the phone with insurance provider, though, as they have my birthday entered incorrectly. They're reporting me six years younger than I am. Can't beat that.

I'll leave you hanging until I get back from the visit!!!

Monday, May 01, 2006

Sooooooooooo Very Tired

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Me, el Jefe, Dad & Mom Dein


So...we had a nice, but short, visit with Jeff's parents this weekend. Drove 2.5 hours Friday night, spent most of Saturday toodling around Savannah and visiting, turned back around for 2.5 hours on Sunday morning. So not a lot of rest and relaxation. My special friend decided to "visit" early Saturday morning, so that added to my general malaise and sense of the "blahs".

I'm pretty sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I'm gonna bite the bullet and go see a doc this week. If it's just the vertigo maybe they can prescribe something that will help me get back on my feet faster than my present regimen. If it's something else, at least I'll know and be able to deal with it.

I hate feeling blah, feeling tired after workouts that used to be a breeze, or missing workouts because I just can't imagine having the energy to get of the couch, let alone get in a workout. So this week I'm gonna take it easy, but I'm going to work out daily (unless the doctor says otherwise). Today a nice, light, conversation paced ride with Debbie, who I haven't managed to see in more than a month. Tomorrow a fun run...just for me. A trail run where I can enjoy spring and get back some of that "lovin' feeling" that exercise usually brings. And weights. I've missed them...and maybe they've missed me!

I'll make the call on Yargo today or tomorrow. I can't do it and take three weeks off afterward. Baker's Dozen is a much easier trail and I'm still not feeling myself (not sure if it's slow, slow, slow recovery or something else) two weeks later. I just want to get the old me back again...steady and dependable throughout a workout or event. I want to turn my eyes toward my first triathlon without worries and self-doubt.

Wish me luck at the doc! I'll let interested parties know once I get an appointment and a "verdict".

Hey Mallie, Remember me?

A bit late for a posting about Bakers Dozen but I what the heck......... I had an absolutely wonderful time. Mallie and I hung out all day Friday just having some "girl" talk. May sound trivial but my life is normally filled w/ taking care of 4 children so my conversations usually consist of subject like homework, stomach aches, dinner menus, progress reports, grades, etc......So a day of girl talk was just what the doctor ordered! I actually was not sure what to do with myself all day without having to make lunches, do laundry, clean bathrooms, did I mention fold laundry? :-)...........anyway, I had a fun time racing and a great time hanging out w/ Mallie.

Mallie, don't be shocked by this next little section and don't worry I have not switched over to the dark side....OK? ha ha!!

I bought my road bike for training purposes but it has grown on me a bit (just a bit)!! Craig and I completed our first century this past weekend. We rode in the BRAG Spring tune-up ride this past weekend. I still jump up onto cloud nine when I think about how many miles I actually rode (which was 105) . My legs are feeling it a bit but not anything terrible. I was good until the last 25 or 30. The last ten were hard. Every slight incline hurt BUT I did it. I am quite proud of myself. 9 months ago I was not even riding a bike and had not done so since I was in college (early 90's) and I would have never guessed I would ever ride 100 miles on a bike in one day! And here I am. Yippy! It was a lot of fun riding that far and I did enjoy my road bike. I actually found myself looking on active.com for the next century. Mallie, this may require an intervention.
choices, choices:

This bike............. (my cute little Orbea)


or this bike...............(my awesome scalpel 3000)


Melissa,

PS- Hey Mallie.....I posted...you know what you have to do now right???!!!!!!!!!!!!!