Swim Workouts . . . sort of

Finally I am getting swim workouts in this week! Liam is at a basketball camp that lets out at 3:15 each day, so I am going to work early and leaving early to get him. The routine is to head to the pool where Conor is at camp and swim for 45 minutes to an hour. This means I am swimming with a few hundred of my friends -- who are mainly interested in jumping in from the side and throwing balls at each other. It is actually kind of fun to swim through and around groups of kids playing, teenagers groping each other, and adults bobbing around the water. Good training for navigating the race swims! At 4:00 the kids have to get out and I get 15 glorious minutes to swim in the 50 meter outdoor lanes -- going from yards to meters is brutal, but I'm getting used to it.

I went to my PT on Monday and my hip was really messed up. I'm wearing my trusty "butt band" around most of the day and will stop in to see him tomorrow and hope I'm still in place. I race in Morgantown on Sunday, so I'm hoping I can keep my hips in check for a whole week!!

Bill will be racing his first International Distance race there too! I can't wait for him to jump up from sprint to a longer race.

. . . and fast guys!

OK, the pic of the week is Liam's relay team for the Junior Olympics. Coach Dave sure looks proud of the guys. Liam is second from the right. The team got passed at the end to finish second by a split second. Mav and Jacob are moving on to this week's competition in individual events!! Good luck guys!

As Bill likes to call me -- "Mother Hen" clucking about her soccer guys.

Tough chicks!

Natascha on her way to a WORLD RECORD!!!

Me on my way to a -- uh, no world record, just another Snickers Girl finish!

Eagleman Half Ironman June 10, 2007

Background

As we traveled to Eagleman, my first tri of 2007, I thought about the last 16 years of racing and how thoroughly unprepared I have been at times (ignorance truly is bliss). This time I understood that my low training volume and totally unstructured (OK, absent) training plan put me in a tough position for the race. I planned to treat the day as a “training day”, but I also know that I lack the ability to turn off my competitiveness once the air horn starts the race.

The lack of training was due to a couple factors – primary was my heel spur that developed last year. The heel that got whacked with an errant baseball bat in April ’06 has never been quite right. During my last race in September it really started to hurt and I followed that with a marathon at the end of that month. Finally, walking around in Kona with really bad sandals sealed the deal in October. After spending the winter starting and stopping repeatedly with my running (and massive amounts of Vitamin Advil), I took my podiatrist up on trying an Extracorporeal Shockwave Treatment in mid-March. The only hook was no anti-inflammatories and no running for four full weeks. The treatment was amazing and I couldn’t believe how much better it felt the next day. I began running in mid-April with a 20 minute run and steadily built up. Unfortunately, four weeks ago my long run was only 5 miles. Over the next few weeks I essentially crammed for Eagleman by bumping my distance to 8, 10, and 12 miles each weekend.

Unfortunately my running wasn’t the only discipline taking a hit this year. I’ve been managing Liam’s soccer team since last summer. Between practices, organizing events, communications, reporting scores, photos and articles, I’ve been busy. Conor is also in soccer and baseball, so my time to train has pretty much evaporated. So I decided to shake the dust off my 18 year old Trek 1400 road bike – which I rode for my first 13 years of racing – and begin to ride to work 1-2 days each week. Once gas eeked up over $3.00 a gallon, it didn’t take much convincing to give it a go. My first ride in back in March scared the heck out of me. Mind you I’m carrying about 15 lbs. on my back with all my work clothes, purse, makeup, etc. Climbing the hills shot my heart rate to 198, but I made it! Viola! Bike training! These trips to work have been the only cycling I’ve done outside of my weekend ride. But even the weekend long rides have been sparse with traveling and soccer engagements. Bill and I rode 36 miles a couple weeks ago and I put in a solo 54 mile one week before Eagleman. That served as my confidence booster for the race. Not ideal, but I knew I should finish.

Surely swimming wouldn’t be affected? Ahhh, yes, my swimming has been relegated to a mere one swim a week. With trying to bike two days, run 1-2 days and taking one day off (I just can’t seem to get up on Monday mornings after Desperate Housewives!), I only have one morning to head to the spa to swim. I managed to swim twice the week before the race, so again, that was my confidence builder. Now, all I had to do was put it together and hope for decent conditions.

Race weekend

So, the Eagleman race -- a flat, fast course with potentially tough conditions. Hmmm, I haven’t raced a flat half Ironman course since Muncie in 1996. We arrived late Friday night and unloaded everything at the Hyatt and crashed. Saturday we popped up and headed out around 10:30 for check-in and a swim. I hit registration just right and sailed through the line, getting a free Spinervals DVD in the process. I got my bike checked and the headset tightened (so that was the squeaking noise!) then hopped into the Endless Pool for a free video of my stroke. I swam for a while and had fun, then when I went to get out, they realized they didn’t put a tape in! Do over! So I swam again and got my tape. We took off for the race site so I could get a swim (yes, my first swim) in with my new long sleeve wetsuit top. When we arrived at the swim, I met Missy Kuck from Columbus. I recognized the name and quickly discovered that she has placed in the top 10 age group at Kona the last two years! When I looked it up, I found she swam a 58 minute swim in Kona ’06 – WOW! Makes me laugh that I tried to keep up with her when we swam on Saturday!! She is really sweet and we tried to entice her to Greater Cleveland Tri in August. Anyway, I got my swim in and the wetsuit worked great. Plus, there were no jellyfish in the river. I rode and got back just in time to rack my bike and take off for lunch. The boys played in the pool while I had a couple beers and took an Epsom salt bath. Dehydrating, sure, but I really wanted both. I took a nice nap while the boys played, then we got ready for dinner. We couldn’t find an Italian place online, so we just drove. We finally stopped at Denny’s so the kids could eat free (always looking for a bargain!). They didn’t really have a great carbo type dinner so I had a grilled chicken salad. It hit the spot and we tooled back to the hotel and I set all my stuff up for the morning. Around 10:00 PM, I hit the bed and was out until the alarm went off at 4:15 AM.

Race day

I got up and did my usual pre-race stuff – shower, coffee, sunscreen, protein shake and pack up. We checked out and took off following a parade of cars to the race site. We tried to follow Chuck and Naira’s advice for parking and pulled into a side street before the parking lot. It worked great as the next road was blocked from parking. We grabbed my stuff and headed to transition for body marking. Probably the most unusual event of the day occurred while the guy in front of me got marked. The lady behind me looks at him and says, “you’re marking him as 1630 and I’m also 1630 . . . .”. This guy was actually 1360! What are the odds of that happening? So I get marked, but I know it will rub off by the time I hit the water (this is important later on). I get all set up in transition and my friend, Kathy Curtis, finds me and says hello. She was my massotherapist for 10 years before moving to Naples, FL. She was in the senior wave just after the pros – nice! Anyway, I do the usual stuff then get my wetsuit on and watch some of the pros heading out of the swim. The water is nice and calmer than what I’ve heard about in previous years. The winds have definitely died down from Saturday. My wave starts almost an hour after the pros, so it seems like forever before I actually get into the water. I can’t help starting by the front even though I know a lot of the girls are here for a Kona or Clearwater slot. My age group (40-44) was the largest female age group this year. I knew it was going to be a tough start. Once we took off, I fell quickly into a rhythm and tried to avoid getting squeezed by other swimmers. I didn’t have too much trouble getting out to the first turn. I caught a couple of guys from the earlier waves before we made the turn. I hadn’t previewed the course, so I didn’t realize that we didn’t have three equal lengths to swim. Once we made the last turn, it was just a short jaunt to the boat ramp and out of the water. I got out and realized that I hadn’t thought about my wetsuit once (love the deSoto!) and that I had just swam under 35 minutes!! Not that it is a blistering pace, but it was definitely better than I expected given my minimal training. The boys were there so I gave them quick high fives as I hobbled to transition. I haven’t been shoeless for more than a couple steps since my shockwave treatment, so this was one of the hardest parts of the race!

I started the bike and tried settling into a nice pace for the 56 miles. The wind was not a problem on the way out and I started to notice my bike computer was showing my speed below average when I was at 19.5 mph. I was excited and concerned at the same time – what if I paid the price late in the bike or worse, on the run? I really didn’t have my usual knowledge of my body to know how much to push or back off – and I didn’t like it too much. I dueled with a lady back and forth for the first 20 miles then I passed her and never saw her again. I did see what looked like puffs of smoke above the fields and discovered they were swarms of gnats or something similar. The course was so amazingly flat and smooth, it was wonderful. People were great on the ride and would let you know they were passing (always a jolt to have someone just whiz by!) I made the fluid handoffs without issue and stuck to my fluid and gels. I decided pre-race that I would skip the solids entirely. I have issues with the thought of eating and finally decided to skip the dread and the solids.

There were only a couple of noteworthy spots – one was a small section of choppy road literally littered with water bottles, gel containers, and bottle netting that popped out everywhere. The other was the two dead snakes I saw along the course. I had seen not one but two snakes on my ride the week before (ok, only one of them was dead) and was starting take this as a sign. Mind you, I’m irrationally afraid of snakes (even the dead ones) and wasn’t thrilled with these little reminders of my slithery friends. The winds started to pick up and the sun came out to make the ride back in tougher than the way out. By the time I made it back to transition, the clouds were back, my legs and hip were sore and I asked the volunteer if he was sure I hadn’t signed up for the Aquacycle division (swimming and biking, but NO running!).

I pride myself on usually fast transition times, but once I got into transition and racked my bike, I finally made a pit stop (better to have that time on my transition than my bike or run times). Both transitions were awful -- the swim to bike was a 3:58 split, then my bike to run left me with a 4:19. I headed out onto the run with sore foot, hip and knees. I had a feeling this was going to be a long, long run.

The run was basically flat too. I was surprised with a mile one split around ten and a half minutes. I really felt like I was going to be shuffling painfully the entire run. The boys had again chalked up the road with messages for me and Conor was clanging his cow bell. Mile two had a bit of a downhill (well, as downhill as it gets on a “flat” course) and I split a nine and a half pace. Hmmm, maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all. So I kept clipping along looking for Kathy, Missy and others I’d met this weekend. I wasn’t sure if the nutrition thing would catch up with me and if I’d bonk as a result, so I just tried to keep pushing a little bit each mile. I really started to feel better (numb to the pain?) after the first few miles and once I hit the turnaround, I really wanted to get back. Knowing we were headed to Myrtle Beach immediately after the race was another incentive. I talked to some more nice folks on the way in and caught up to Winston Allen – 77 years young. I met him at the Sylvania Tri in the early 90’s. He’s my role model. In the last mile and a half, I came upon David Rozelle, the amputee who returned to Iraq and completed Kona last year. I yelled to him and he gave me a high five as I passed. He had a tough day as he had forgotten his cycling shoe and had to borrow one.

I rounded the corner and saw the boys. Conor ran out to give me a kiss and that gave me just what I needed to finish with a 9:16 mile. I hit the finish mat for a final 5:41:20 – my second fastest Half Ironman time! My fastest was in 1996 BK (before kids), and only by 20 minutes. So, let’s see, I barely train, I eat and prep horribly pre-race, I’m wearing a brand new race outfit and wetsuit, . . . and, I pull off one of my better times?? I may never train again! OK, just kidding!

Before my adventure could be over, I had to pack up and get out of transition. Well, long story short here, it was like Hotel California – you can check in, but you can never leave. All my race numbers had rubbed off and even though I had my race belt and number, the “guard” wouldn’t let me out. My bike number, which had rolled up and was shoved into my bento box by mile six, wasn’t attached to my bike. I ended up having to walk to the far end of the transition, losing Bill and the boys in the process. I was not happy at this point.

Once we got to the car, we decided to skip the AAA route and take another route suggested by some of the guys I ran in with. I had intended to pass out in the seat faster than Lindsey Lohan after a night of “clubbing” once we hit the road. But with this last minute change, I stayed awake nearly the entire ride. We didn’t arrive at our resort until after midnight and I was definitely out of it by the time I hit the sack around 1:30 AM. On Monday morning, I felt surprising good. Whew, only three more weeks until the Morgantown HIM . . . . and I’m not planning on a training day there!

I ended up 35th in my age group and 176th woman and 920th overall (there were almost 2200 in the race). Natascha Badmann set the world record – which had been held by Karen Smyers, set in Muncie ’96 -- hmmmm, seems like when I turn up, they set another record!

SWIM: 34:42
SWIM TO BIKE TRANSITION: 3:58
BIKE: 2:50:48
BIKE TO RUN TRANSITION: 4:19
RUN: 2:07:36
FINISH 5:41:21

Eagleman -- Saturday pre-race

This is the only way I can swim near Missy Kuck -- she finished 5th!

Trying the Endless Pools at the pre-race expo -- this is NICE!

Eagleman results . . . the real story to follow . . .

Here are your official times:
SWIM: 34:42
SWIM TO BIKE TRANSITION: 3:58
BIKE: 2:50:48
BIKE TO RUN TRANSITION: 4:19
RUN: 2:07:36
FINISH 5:41:21

You can view the complete and expanded race results for all finishers here - Eagleman Results.

35th in my age group (which was the largest women's age group). This was less than 20 minutes off my PR --- set in 1996.

Training Day, my arse!

Coffee and travel trials and tribulations

What??! Do I have to take a page from Lance and bring my entire coffee machine when I travel??

OK, we got to the resort last night and hit the room just before midnight. Once we're in, I discover this queer little coffee contraption that only makes one cup at a time --- with their supplied "packet" of coffee. I've got my own little "coffee bag" all prepped with a fresh full bag of my favorite Starbucks Italian Roast -- BOLD, baby! So, I make a cup with the supplied coffee this morning -- uh, definitely not up to my preferred kick. So I get fancy and cut up a filter to fit this thing and scoop in my 'bucks and return to find . . . . . grinds and coffee oozing all over the counter top!

I hope this isn't indicative of my weekend . . . .

The drive was interesting. We didn't leave until 3:00 PM, which was two hours later than I planned. It took all of ten minutes for me to take my little "happy pill" to survive riding with Bill. Now I know that sounds rash, but trust me, I brought it up with my doc after April's Myrtle trip and she suggested this option. It must have worked because I didn't have a coronary when he drove straight into a fluorescent freakin' orange barrel in the middle of the service area parking lot!! I yelled stop, but alas, too late! If it had been a prison escapee in that orange jumpsuit -- that would have been the end of them.

The electrical storms we drove through were awesome -- the boys ooohhhed and ahhhhhed throughout. An accident backed up the highway for 3+ miles in Maryland, so we found a little detour and didn't lose much time there. Unfortunately, my "happy pill" ran out right around the DC beltway -- not ideal. Bill moves into the left lane two miles before our exit -- wonderful . . . . maybe I need the extended dose of this sucker . . .

We're here, we're safe -- off to check in and back to relax :-)

Eagleman . . . . or bust!

OK, soccer is over (for now) and hopefully I can train more diligently. Not that I haven't done a decent job of squeezing workouts in between soccer games and Junior Achievement classes, but a half Ironman race with minimal (and I mean minimal) training under my belt, is NOT my idea of a great game plan.

I really wish I were just doing the pre-race "I'm so sick, under-trained, sore, . . . . fill in the blank" excuse, but truly, my only biking has been to and from work on my road bike and a longer ride on the weekend. Most -- ok, all but one bike was under 40 miles. Last Saturday, I did do 54 to boost my confidence. I've jacked up my long runs the last 4 weeks from 5 to 12 (thanks, Tina!) miles. And swimming (my personal favorite) has suffered to the tune of only 1 workout each week -- 1800 to 2200 yards. YIKES, when I look at it like that, I'm a little nervous, but Sunday is a training day (someone remind me of that at the start . . . .).

Anyhoo - I haven't been online to see who will be there from the Cleveland Tri Club, but I hope to spot someone out there. My friend, Kathy, called and is headed there from Florida. Two years ago she got here Kona slot here, so we'll see what happens this year. My guess is she's angling for Clearwater.

Enough for now -- I must finish packing before Bill pulls in. We shove off soon. I hope to have time to post from Maryland or Myrtle Beach (our final destination this week!).

Stay tuned . . . .