Mike and I went for a mountain bike ride this afternoon.
We got kinda stuck. Ended up in an orchard. Fenced. And the fence topped with barb wire. So we ended up hiking and bushwacking our way out (going back how we came is too easy ;).
And Mike’s pedal fell off.
Good times 
I love my mom a lot. So much that if she asks me to I go out in the rain, and wait until she goes on the porch to go back on it. I didn’t even bark. I have a harder time going back in the rain again. Mind you this is not for any real reason other than that it is raining! But I did it. I went over to her. Finally she went back inside, so I could, too. And I got a toweling that was nice. Then I sat and laid down when she asked me to on my nice DRY pink blanket. Yup, I earned that half a bone. Maybe a whole one next time Mom? I do put up with a lot from you!
With love,
the damp puppy
PCF. Patience, consistency, frequency. It’s about getting stronger one day at a time. It’s not about PRs in training and breaking yourself, but about building and progressing to a strong self (and with that PRs at the races). A movement closer to potential.
With that in mind, lets take a look at the swim today. A couple 50s FAST and pushing it, a 100 strong and relaxed as part of recovery, lather, rinse, repeat. Using the clock to make sure I get rest and can do well, and focusing on killing the 50s. Well on those 100s, strong but not feeling like really really crazy pushing it, I was hitting about 1:50.
Now take a step back. To June, actually, and a particular swim workout then. 15×100 on 1:55. I was worried about making it, and thrilled with my 1:51 times. Wait, really? Now that 1:50 is what I expect on strong hundreds. Nice.
Another step back. To January and another particular swim workout. There my cruise pace was 1:55-1:57, and I was thrilled to hit 1:50 on my fast FAST 100s. That was after I first started working with Marky, and he was just giving me tips and not a complete training plan.
The big picture. You know, the one that gets lost in trying to remember the workout scheduled, and working, and making lunch and cleaning the house? The one you ignore because that hard run just sounds good? The one that has you out of the water for months because hey it’s “off season” (whatever that is)? Yeah, that one. He doesn’t forget it — my workouts are moving me in the right direction.
PCF baby! Patience, consistency, frequency. Yeah, I get it. I’m in!
It is that time of year — tomorrow we’ll get to meet the kids in the neighborhood as they are out decked out and looking for candy! To make sure they knock Mike and I carved a couple pumpkins this evening. We are pleased with how it turned out! Here are Jack and Pupkin 
Today was one of those days when I felt a bit under the weather. I backed out of the awesome Saturday ride (that always drops me — I’ve never done the whole course and always shortcut to get back on!) and relaxed. The puppy slept, and licked, and I browsed online, playing on Facebook, buying another running skirt, and generally just being lazy.
It didn’t last long. Gracie woke up, and was full of beans (if you ask me) or piss and vinegar (if you ask Mike). We played with Ropey in the backyard, but I wasn’t feeling up to sprinting. So we went for a walk. And Gracie learned that sometimes paths are not for the best footing, but for where cars drove over wet grass. And that that means soft gooey mud! And that mud puddles are fun to drink out of, but stepping in them makes them less tasty. We headed the route that Mike would be biking back at the end of the Saturday ride, but we “only” walked for about an hour and forty minutes and we beat him home by about 4 minutes.
Somepuppy was covered in mud, and smelling a bit… well… doggy. So it became bath day, and then a short walk to dry off a bit more. Mike and I headed out, and ate a massive amount of yummy BBQ food, and then more relaxing with the family (oh, and talking about new chiro clinic plans since we might have found the perfect site!).
Then, since it is still October, and we haven’t missed a day yet, it was run time. We tried out a new LED flashing light leash for Grace and it worked really well. I like her to be lit up like a Christmas tree!
So the day started sleepy, and is ending that way. I still don’t feel awesome, but it was a good day. And has left me with a contented smile. Mmm
October rocks this year. Every day is a run. And not just any run. A run with my husband and my puppy. It’s amazing I love it!
Other things are also good — a couple classes just ended at school, and working on putting together a swim clinic for the tri club (with the help of MarkyV). I’ve been enjoying pool time, too. Now to just get pedaling more!
With all that, I’m tiiiiired! So bed time. I promise to try to post more often! Really!
It’s a good day to be a puppy! Not only did I get to go for a 6 mile run this morning, but I also got to snarf some grass on my way back And then there was food to eat, naps to take, pets to enjoy, and Ropey to chew on. Ahhhhhh
I have been working on a new website, and it is ready to be shared! Please check out www.kyliedonia.com.
And please let me know what you think. The blog is not yet moved over there, but will be soon. It’s not a super interesting site, but I’m having fun with pictures and my completely own blog and such. But I’m also not really a web developer, so I know some things in it might be odd or not work (so if you find one let me know).
I have a super-tall uncle. He was the uncle we used to argue over who got to ride on his shoulders: at 6′8″ish it was fun to try not to get knocked off at doorways. He always tried to duck He is also super-active, and always has been: baseball, basketball, all of those team sports. He’s now in his 50s but still active.
The day after my wedding, my uncle had a stroke. His 10 year old daughter was smart and called her mom, and then 911, and he was taken to the hospital. He was in ICU for a while, but was eventually moved, and soon ended up in the ARU (acute rehabilitation unit, I think). Since he lives in Orange County, Mike and I are the (geographically) closest family outside his immediate family, and so when my mom came into town to see him and we went took her. And we were amazed: we were ready for the worst, but he actually was looking pretty good. He was talking, swallowing, feeding himself, and just looked so much better than we had feared. I kept waiting for him to get up, as I’d forget there was anything wrong. It was just my uncle, and I was so relieved to see that.
This last weekend we saw him again. Since he won’t be able to live on his own any more, he is moving in with his fiancee. Mike and I were hoping to help him get moved, but his friends had it all done before we arrived. And we were given a couch and some coffee tables. So we now have a “grownup” living room, as I call it. So thanks Uncle Kelly.
He is doing so well that each time they evaluate him, they move up his release date. He surprised everyone in each therapy session and with each of their markers of progress. And now it is set for tomorrow. He will get to go home tomorrow. I’m so glad my uncle is ok!
While we have both lived in southern California for years, I haven’t seen him or the kids as often as I would like. I think this was a reminder: don’t take advantage of being so close that you can see them whenever. Each day can bring a surprise. I’m glad I will get to visit him another time, and I am going to try to not wait so long this time!
Muskoka 70.3 was the focus race for the year. Mike and I signed up long long ago — in fact, I don’t even remember signing up! It was before we even got engaged. Once we were engaged, we started planning a wedding. And the question of when to have it came up. We knew we didn’t want a bazillion year long engagement, and we like outdoors, so we settled on Fall 2008. We also knew we’d like to have the wedding in California, and then a reception in Canada for the members of Mike’s family that couldn’t make it to California. Well, with the race near his family and in September, it was the perfect timing for a reception — and we didn’t want a reception that far after the wedding, so our race date was set as the weekend before the race. Yes, you do have to sign up for some races farther in advance than you need to plan a wedding…
I was SOOOO GLAD I had Marky helping me get ready for this one. It was definitely a crazy summer. Yes, a wedding to plan. And school to attend, and work to do, and a new city to move to, and a dog to welcome to our family. Plus the training, and I am glad I didn’t have to also think through and plan out each workout! I just had to “get ‘em done”. I knew the training and prep was all in place, and with his help, I got to the race confident and excited. Tapered as well, at least from workouts, thanks to a couple weeks of family and wedding and travel and more family
My goal on arrival was to PR, as it almost always is when I race (now that I train smart). I was thinking I would PR for sure, having had such better prep. My goal was about 7s: swim 37, bike 3:07, and run 1:57. But what I was forgetting was that the race was 4km long on the bike, and that they found the most “fun” (ie fun looking rollercoaster profile) they could for the bike, run, and yes, transitions! So after driving the course, I was no longer sure what would happen (esp on the bike, where I was really hoping to see one), and I was again glad to be racing with power. I knew where I should stay to have a successful race, and I just didn’t worry about it.
The race was taking up all the parking at the resort hosting it. So we had to park on the airstrip about 2 miles away. However, there were shuttles regularly, and we just ran it once just to get a quick leg-shaker in. It was something we were curious to see how it would go, but the race directors did a great job with it.
Registration was easy. The expo disappointing. I mean, it was my honeymoon race. You think I would by *something*. But they had decided to only make men’s jerseys, and the smallest size was a medium that was about right for Mike. When we asked if they had any women’s jerseys, we were told no, and that there were plenty of other clothes to buy and to go pick one. Umm sorry, but a cotton fitted baby shirt and a bike jersey are different. So my credit cards got a break there.
We headed to Mike’s brothers, got the bikes all set up (it’s easy when all you need to do is stick on a couple stickers!) and put our race stuff together. I was really excited about our outfits: bride and groom jerseys, bike shorts with “just married” on the butt, and for the run “just married” visors thanks to Tribabe (mine enhanced with a veil thanks to my sis and Holly). The next day we checked in our bikes and got in a practice swim. We were ready to go. Off to our wedding reception, and then bed time!
I woke up part way into the night to some rain. Ok, not some rain, but sheets and sheets of downpour. I love the sound of rain, so apologised to my bike for leaving it out in that and went back to sleep. Still not sure how the whole shuttles from parking would work on the big day, we arrived at the race nice and early. And it was still raining. Not pouring now, but more a constant drizzle. Other than the electrical tape on our wheelcovers the bikes were just fine. And the tape was just to stop the sound of it rattling on some bumps, so it was no big deal. We set up our bike shoes and helmets, deciding to place glasses nearby but forgo them if it was still that wet when climbing on. Our run shoes and socks were placed in a plastic bag beside the bike stuff. A bottle of carbopro/nuun (600 cal in the bottle) were placed on each bike, and the aerobottles filled with water. We were done, and just had to chat while waiting for the start.
We had met another couple while at the practice swim - he was in Mike’s AG, and she was in mine. They got married at Kona last year. So we chatted a bit with them, maybe too long — or we all forgot how long it took to walk to the swim start. So Mike and Scott got down to the water as their wave was ready to go. Leanne and I had a bit more of a wait, but soon we were also off!
I started to the outside on the swim as our wave had a number of the older and sometimes big and rough guy age groups in it. It was a smart choice, as I had a somewhat clear swim. There were always people right around me, but never much of a washing machine. I even caught a draft for a while, thinking about how Marky had told me to try it and given me some tips. Out of the water in 38:40 for a 2:00/100m pace (as I learned later - I don’t keep race time during races). Good enough for 11 in my AG, which I believe is my best AG swim placing ever.
The run to transition was not short, and not easy. It was a crazy-ass climb, and about 300m long!! An a fairly serious climb. So I took advantage of the wetsuit strippers and just cruised on up, already chanting my T1 mantra. Shoes, helmet, inhaler, blocks. Shoes, helmet, inhaler blocks. At my bike I dropped the wetsuit. The inhaler and blocks in my helmet were put into my pocket, helmet on my head, shoes on my feet and I was off. I had a great rack spot with an easy exit route! T1: 4:21.
(photo by Paul Graham)
I was looking forward to the bike. I knew I could do it, the hills weren’t scaring me, and I had my lovely yellow PowerTap friend smiling up at me. Until one of the many rough spots in the first couple miles, when the back of the craddle broke and my poor little PT CPU went flying. Shit shit shit… do I stop? Go? For a race this distance, and not having another watch to know timing and nutrition, not to mention the cost of that computer, I stopped and grabbed it. Back on the bike, with the PT now in my pocket, all I could think was how Marky said I should ride on feel And then wondered if he somehow caused this.
I enjoyed the bike course. Up, down, around, up, up, down, up, over, around, up again… Never a dull moment, and beautiful scenery. But I was good, and only glanced at it out of the corner of my eyes. I felt good on the bike. It was still raining, and then it started raining more seriously. It was like needles on my arms and legs, but it wasn’t cold, so it was actually kind of comfortable. Every now and then I’d pull the PT CPU from my pocket and check what I was at — was about where I wanted in effort, nutrition was on, it was just a slow day for what I had hoped for. But that’s racing: it’s not a course you know, an a know scenario. It’s an experience.
There were a couple pairs of drafters, and people who would try to draft anyone near them and then get dropped. I just don’t get it — especially when you are at a place in the race where it’s not about podium spots. It just gave me a desire to ride clean: I made sure I dropped back before repassing (dudes who pass and then quit pedaling: it’s ok to ride your own race. Please ignore me and let me do the same to you). And to the guy who (I think) made a snarky comment about using a wheel cover: it worked just fine and I had fun, thanks for asking.
Then a big descent, and a guy passing me goes down, HARD. Starts sliding across the pavement, right in front of me, rollling into a ball. I somehow manage to barely miss him and keep on the edge of the road. Hoping Steve is ok (we’d been near each other for a while) I thanked my lucky stars my day wasn’t over and kept going. A right turn, and I was on a fairly rough stretch of road. It was almost like it wasn’t paved, but it was just bumpy and not really pot-holey. About on the home stretch now, and ready to get running. I like biking, but I was tired of being on a bike in the rain, and I love running. Plus the attention-whore in me was ready to have my visor and to run like a bride Off the bike: 3:26:34 (58.4mi, 16.98mph).
T2 mantra was going: Helmet and shoes off, watch, socks, shoes, visor. Helmet and shoes off, the watchband of my Garmin into my mouth, socks and shoes on, and visor in hand I ran on out. 1:51.
One thing I love is seeing Mike on the course. At IMKY last year, I happened to be right where the loop joins itself as he started his second loop and that was just amazing. We knew it would be close, so for the first mile I focused on not running to hard and watching for him. I never saw him, but we found out later we had just missed. And no matter how easy I made myself go, I was flying! 8:17 for the first mile! And I thought I was going nice and easy. I guess I was more excited than I thought to be off the bike Like the bike, and T1, there wasn’t much flat about the run.
But I was having fun. I ran with a girl from the area for a while, I ran with a girl in my age group for a bit. Through it all I felt I was going just maybe too hard, but I felt maybe just maybe I could hold it. Along the way many people told me they had seen the groom, and lots loved the outfit. Some asked if I was running to the alter, and I asked if they thought I should turn back. I focused on maintaining on uphills, and cadence on the down. I cursed and thanked Marky both ways as his words on turnover and effort and such rolled through my head. It was again pouring at times, and I just enjoyed the drops on me keeping me nice and cool.
(photo by Paul Graham)
I reached the final 5k and thought I had stepped into an Escher poster. It was on golf course paths, and there were runners everywhere, but you couldn’t tell where they were from or going or how much farther it was. I kept going, knowing it was only a 5k — I can hold this pace that far! I kept telling myself. So I did. I saw Mike, and he encouraged me, and I knew it was only about 3k left. Oh. My. God. Longest 3k ever. I thought my Garmin might have started going backwards. It was hilly and hard and I hurt and just had to keep going. Marky said to neg split, just barely. So I couldn’t slow now — that would be the same as admitting I had gone too hard on the bike! So I didn’t. And somehow my legs listened. And we just kept on going. And going. And finally it was the last turn. Nope, I was wrong. Maybe now? Nope… at least one more… But then it was the last uphill, and the finall slight down right into the finish chute! I relaxed, let the person by me go on and through, and had my own moment at the line. My watch read 1:56:00 (and sportstats matched it) but I’m going with 1:55:59 like the tracking had :). A half marathon PR. And on <a href=”http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/6786816″>that course</a>, and that weather. 4th fastest in my AG.
Total: 06:07:24, and 8/37 in my AG. I think that’s my best placing in a big race so far. Not the sub-6 I was hoping to repeat, but a tougher course and day, and I had a blast and felt I executed really really well. So I’m happy with it. But as Marky said of his last race, it is only going to get better.
A post-race massage, and then a hunt for warm food and to the awards. And then — a warm shower and REAL FOOD. Ahh it was good
I will let Mike post his race report in full later — but I’m so proud of him that I’m going to give some of it away! 4th out of the water in his AG, and then he led the AG race through the end of the bike! He ended up in 3rd in his age group and looked stylish doing it
