XTERRA Indian Peaks Race Report

1K Swim, 18K Bike, 6.3K Run
Eldora Ski Resort, Colorado - 9500ft
1st Amateur, 2nd Overalll

Ahhh...sleeping in my own bed, eating my usual breakfast, driving only 40min up a beautiful canyon...it's kinda nice racing close to home :)

Everything started off smoothly with the packing of the moto and meeting Sasha at the court house at 6:30am. We drove up to the Eldora Ski Resort with no troubles and arrived in plenty of time to set up, warm up and watch the La Sportiva 10K run begin and end. I was already feeling a bit off and not having much of an appetite so I wasn't able to get much down before the race...it was going to be less than 2hrs so I really wasn't worried. Was it the altitude again?

Swim - BRRRRRRRRRRR...at 9500ft, no matter how big or small the body of water, it's gonna be cold...and it was. I guess the faster you go, the faster you can get out of it, right? After all limbs went numb, I was finding a good rhythm and sighting the best course I think I've ever swam. After getting pulled out of the slick exit, I found my shoes in the giant pile outside the lake, ripped off my wetsuit and began the 650m dash to transition. It's pretty hard running straight uphill on rocky terrain carrying your wetsuit but I loved it...true XTERRA style!

Bike - I geared up and headed out on the course as quickly as possible. After not training hardly at all the week leading up to the race I was unsure how I would feel out there. I planned on starting off easy and gradually building into race pace throughout. Unfortunately, the course was poorly marked and right off the bat I made a wrong turn with some other people and after realizing it, turned right around and tried to get back on course immediately...this wrong turn and one other early in the ride definitely spiked my heart rate and I ended up getting frustrated and going harder than I wanted for the first half. Luckily most of the final sections were all super fun downhill trails so I was able to relax a bit before heading on the run. With a better marked course, this is definitely going to be one of the best bike courses on the XTERRA circuit for sure :)

Run - Had a very quick transition and was out on the run course in no time. Because it was a time trial start, I wasn't quite sure my exact standing in the race, but I didn't know that of the few girls who got in the water before me, I had passed 3 of them on the bike and was certain that at least 1 or two were still behind me on the run. After hitting the short out and back section, I saw a few girls who I had passed on the bike in front of me on the run...hmmmm...I got a little frazzled and just pushed harder. Then, like last weekend in Crested Butte, I began to get another slosh in my belly. I had not taken but 3 sips from my bottle on the entire bike and hadn't consumed anything on the run that far. What in the world? Since it was only 6.3K, I really didn't think about it, just tried to ignore it as much as possible and get to the finish line. After making a sharp turn out of some tall grass, I could see the finish and the never-ending run was finally over.

The Madness - Turns out there was one section on the bike that a lot of people went straight instead of right at making the course about 15min faster. They issued penalties to those whose times were 'obviously' wrong, but for others, it was up to them to fess up or have others who know their ability say something. It was definitely not a pretty end to a race but things happen and not everything can always go perfectly.

The Outcome - After all the penalties were issued, I ended up being the first amateur and 2nd overall to Melanie McQuaid. I was also the 20-24 Triple X Champ for having the fastest combined time for Buffalo Creek, Crested Butte and Indian Peaks! WHHOOAAAAA :)

10.5 and 12

That is how many hours of sleep I got Saturday and Sunday night, respectively. Thinking I needed some sleep, what do think?

After feeling tired, crabby, unmotivated and somewhat burnt out last week, I regrouped myself and drove the motorcycle (and the bike) up to Eldora to partake in an Xterra event. I'll post a formal race report with pics and such later, but in summary, it went alright...1st amateur, 2nd overall, made a little moola.

As for right now, I'm really hoping that whatever nastiness that went through my body yesterday is gone and I am able to be fully functional today. I woke up with the most awful headache and stomach ache ever and didn't do anything all day except attempt a yoga class that only made things worse. Following the class, I neglected to eat dinner (not that I had eaten anything all day anyway) and went right to bed around 7pm...I didn't wake up til 7am this morning...

XTERRA Crested Butte Race Report

July 27th, 2008
1st AG, 14th Overall

It's never fun to elaborate on crappy races so I'll just make it short, sweet (or not so sweet), but to the point!

After arriving in the most beautiful place in Colorado on Thursday night, I was super excited to finally get that 'perfect' race together. However, after running and pre-riding the course on Friday, a totally different mindset kicked in. I was feeling beyond lethargic, had nothing in my legs and almost nauseas-like. Was it the altitude?!? I mean, we were at 10,000ft for goodness sake. Other than a short swim and picking up my packet, I spent the better part of the day in the hotel trying to rest up and let my body do it's thing. Even though I was being super optimistic about everything making a 180 before the race, it didn't happen. I felt just as bad race morning and definitely did not perform at any level of my ability. I was breathing out of my mind on the swim, delirious on the bike and crashing all over then walked the better part of the run because of an upset tummy :( BUT I FINISHED!!! Not a happy camper about the whole situation but I am learning that every race can't always go as planned and things that are out of your control happen. This is the first of 4 races in 4 weekends so I have plenty more opportunities to go out and prove myself that I AM a kickass athlete and that CB was just a fluke!

After the race, Will and I headed to Gunnison to hang out at Brian and Jenny Smith's place and do a little BBQ. Although probably not the greatest of ideas, we did an amazing and long epic ride the next day on the never-ending trails in CB and it was awesome! Check out the video below for more excitement :)

Rhode Island Video

To the Butte I go!

Crested Butte that is...and boy am I excited. It's one of the most beautiful places in Colorado and the fact that they host an XTERRA race is just plain awesome!

I'll be traveling down with some friends from Denver then staying with Sasha and Val. Will Kelsay, Blake Voges and many other CO off-road folk will also be there making for a super fun weekend. I just need to get through this 6am masters, which I haven't done in years, and a half-year financial webcast conference at FRG. Then I'll be all set and hopefully on my way! I'll be attempting round 2 of the video madness so stay tuned :)

The first of many silly videos...

So these are both the very first attempts to create fun videos for people to see what it's like at races, sponsor's corporate headquarters, behind the scenes, etc. NO LAUGHING...I still haven't figured out how to put audio in the background, but I'm working on it. Also, I apologize for the shaky camera skills, I'm learning :) If you know anyone who is savvy in video production and wouldn't mind giving me a few pointers, hook a girl up! Alright, enough babbling. Enjoy.

Pat Griskis Sprint Triathlon



Timex Corporate Headquarters Tour

Oh the love of mechanicals...

After the back latch of my trunk got stuck and we had to dismantle my bike to get it out of the side doors, it's safe to say that my day was definitely not starting out as the best it could have yesterday! I just ignored it as there is a reason I hardly ever drive that piece and it's either getting sold or driven into the ground soon so might as well deal with the annoyances :)

At any rate, Melanie, James and I drove up to Nederland (8500ft) to escape the 100 degree heat in Boulder and get some quality mountain biking in. Right from the get-go, I knew something wasn't quite right with my shifting and chain but again, ignored it and kept riding so that I didn't have to make everyone else stop. After hearing the obnoxious noise, James told me to switch bikes so he could try to figure out the issue. He immediately told me that the pulley on the rear derailleur was totally worn out and that the chain was using the cage (which was also completely shot) to stay on the pulley instead of the teeth of the actually piece. Nothing we could do about it there so I told him it would be fine and to continue with the ride. About 15min later, the chain lost its path and I snapped the cage that was keeping the chain in line...crap. While Mel rode in circles, James switched the front and rear pulleys in hopes that it would stay on for the duration of the ride. It worked for a good 20min, then somehow my entire wheel popped off the bike and bent my rear rotor causing another 15min stop. Okay, back to the trail...After another 15min of riding, the rear pulley wasn't hanging on without the cage and kept popping off...no biggie, I'd just hop off and realign the sucker ever 2-3min and not cause a fuss! Well that worked about 10 times or so until we went up a steep section where a little torque on the bike snapped the pulley and what was left of the cage right off!!! SHIT!!!! James did a little surgery on the bike and made it into a fixed gear so I could at least make it out of the trail and get to the car...THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!! Could you imagine what would have happened had James not been there? Well Mel and I sure couldn't, we'd be an absolute mess.

After getting to the car, we made a pit stop at the Co-op so I could get James a huge muffin for his efforts and patience. He has since taken 'the carcass', which he has named my bicycle, home with him to rejuvinate and make ridable for another adventure today!!! What a rockstar he is :)

SHEP, WHEN ARE YOU COMING HOME?????

Providence 70.3 Race Report

July 13th, 2008
2nd AG 20-24
7th Overall Female

I'm pretty sure that I asked myself the following questions about 5 or 6 times throughout this race...What in the world am I doing out here? Where are the rocks, dirt, trees, people crashing all over? Man, I've been running forever, am I done yet? It wasn't that wasn't having fun out there, because I definitely was, it was just the first half Ironman/road race of the year and I just couldn't seem to find my rhythm. Luckily, nothing disastrous happened and it ended up being an alright day :)

The Swim - Let's just say that starting a race at 6am that is about an hour away from the finish doesn't really make for a good night's sleep. I woke up at 3am to walk down to Keith's hotel and drive to the ocean with him, Devon and Brooke. We got there in plenty of time, set up, warmed up, then tackled the crazy waves and current of the sea. The running start into the crashing waves was something I don't really handle well and ended up being washed up several times before making it out to the first buoy. Not exactly the best way to start a race, but I tried to keep my head in it, stay focused, concentrate on not swallowing the entire ocean and sight as much as possible between the giant rolling waves coming over my head. Again, not the best of swims, but considering my history of panic attacks in the water, I was thrilled that nothing completely horrible went on.

The Bike - Aerobars, TT helmet, shoes already on the bike, what's this?!? Just kidding...it did take me a while to get into a groove though as I've honestly only been on my race bike a half dozen times before this race and it still felt a little foreign. I did manage to settle in a bit and start cranking through the masses of people (I started in the second to last wave). The roads were somewhat sketchy and the course was pretty crazy as well. It was beautiful riding along the coastline but the endless crossings through intersections was pretty scary and the people being held up for the race were not the happiest of people. In some ways, dodging the cars and riding over bumpy/uneven road surface was somewhat Xterra-like. Throw in some good hills like we had and it was definitely a good match :) Although I felt super flat (no pop whatsoever) and had some derailleur issues, I managed a decent bike (6th fastest) without feeling absolutely spent at the end.

The Run - My favorite part...usually. This time was a bit different. I started the run with super tight hips and figured everything would loosen up as it always does. WRONG. Within the first mile, we hit a super steep hill that required small shuffling steps in order to get up it and I'm pretty sure this locked up my hips even more. At this point, I was already off pace and just not feeling motivated. I made a point to stop at every aid station to give myself something to look forward to, but the unusually high volume of fluids I consumed/poured on me only lead to a sloshing belly and squishy shoes which is even more annoying! Focus chica, focus...yeah, not today. I went through the motions and completed the race knowing I hadn't won my age group which meant I wasn't getting my slot to Clearwater which was disappointing as that is what I came there for. Little did I know, there were actually 2 spots available for our age group! Clearwater it is...

The Aftermath - Seeing the entire Timex Crew at the finish line was the highlight of the day and definitely a huge attitude changer for me. Not every race can be perfect and go smoothly but knowing that you have a huge support group there no matter was happens is absolutely amazing. I only lucky girl to be part of such a spirited team with gratuitous amounts of energy and passion. This is honestly one of the most motivating factors for me in this sport and I couldn't be more appreciative :)

MORE PICS AND VIDEOS TO COME!

Erin on the news!!!!

So it's a darn good thing I'm not a news reporter or interviewee as a living...I'd be one broke little girl :) Check out these 2 videos from news interviews I did while in Providence this weekend...and NO laughing...I've already done enough of that on my own!

ABC 4pm News

FOX SPORTS 11pm News

Quick Recap

This past weekend in Providence was an absolute blast. I didn't have the best race of my life, but had a great time out there with the entire Timex crew. Having it be the first road race of the season, I guess I couldn't have too many expectations, right? I was, however, able to snag a slot to Clearwater after a second place finish in my age group, take 7th overall in front of several pros and turn in the 6th fastest bike split of the day which is huge considering how flat I felt out there. My teammates all had killer races as well! Richie Cunningham was second overall after being hit by a car, Chris Thomas grabbed the first overall amateur position, Keith Meyer broke his previous 70.3 time by 15min, Emily had an amazing finish after completing IMCDA and getting married 3 weeks ago, Ian Ray looked amazing out there and came flying by me on the bike after a killer swim, Oakes Ames (age 55) won his age group by over 38min and was 25th overall, and lastly, our East Coast regional sales rep for Timex, Devon, completed his first half ironman with the biggest smile ever on his face, it was AWESOME!

More details to come but as you all know, I'll be running around like crazy for the next few days getting all my clients squared away with quarter end reviews and half year reviews, etc. Check back in a few for a full race report with some funny stories, good pics and interesting video :)

My new toy!!!

Get ready for video because this girl's got a new mini camcorder that is not only small enough to fit in my bike jersey pocket, but shockproof AND waterproof!!! OH YEAH...lots of footage to come :)

Don't have time to get into details now, but let's just say that between the craziness of air travels, evening sprint races, truck driving, expo setting up, evening news videos, working, and a bit of training here and there, I've been running like a race horse. I've been having an absolute blast with the Timex crew and can't wait to race on Sunday! Stay tuned for lots of fun updates.

3hrs of sleep and it's go time!

After getting all packed up and ready to go, I finally got into bed at 11:30pm last night. Just enough time to squeeze in a little 3hr nap before I had to get up again to drive to the bus stop to catch the 3:30am bus to the airport for a 6am flight to Connecticut. I always tell myself I won't take these early flights ever again while I'm doing it, but the arrival time on the east coast is just too appealing!!!

Anyway, I will be in the area visiting the Timex Corporate headquarters as well as helping out with a local sprint race this evening. I will then drive with our team manager Tristan to Rhode Island for the 70.3 Providence Half Ironman race on Sunday. Yes, first road race of the year...should be interesting! However, before the event, I will definitely have lots of fun media snipits to report on so stay tuned :)

Is it really July already?!?!

Guess time flies when you're having a good time!!! Between photo shoots with David Pahl (above pic) and working like a dog to get ahead of schedule before I leave next week, I really haven't had much free time at all so apologies on the lack of posting.

As my first road race of the season approaches, I've been switching gears a bit and getting back into the longer distance training as well as the TT bike riding. I'm not one to write about my workouts, power output and crap like that, but I do have to mention that riding and racing off road has made me a much stronger road rider and it's super fun to see the difference from the same time period last year! From my trainer session to the track, it's only been huge time and wattage improvements and today during a 3hr ride/90min run brick with several efforts, I couldn't believe how great I felt! JZ has got some serious props coming her way...especially if I can pull off a good race next weekend in Rhode Island :) Until then, enjoy the 4th and don't blow any limbs off playing with fireworks!!!

Yeah, Shep can put a bike on that!

This post is long overdue because of the other random things happening in my life, but here it is. This is how I commute on a daily basis and while the attempt is NOT to cause accidents, people just can't help but stare :)

Many of you have already seen or heard of the bike on bike ordeal going on in Boulder, but what you haven't heard is how absolutely sweet, perfect and pristine these masterpieces really are. Thanks to Shep's bicycle thinking brain and man skills (I'm talking about the ones with tools, metal and building shit), he has been able to design a fully custom bicycle rack that with a little tweaking can fit on any motorcycle! Yeah, he's THAT cool.

Check out his post below for more info and if you are interested in rack yourself, please give him a shout at ashep81@gmail.com

'Yeah, I can put a bike on that'

Yes, I have a fohawk!

Yesterday marked another Locks for Love round for this girl. After my giant rat's nest of a ponytail kept coming undone during a 45min run, there was no way I was going another day with long, heavy and obnoxious hair. It has only been 1 year and 8 months since my last extravaganza so I was going to have to take off quite a bit more than the previous time...see last year.

However, I was totally cool with it and actually quite excited. I just told the lady to go short, spiky and allow me the ability to put up a mohawk if I wanted!!! Snip, snip, snip...there goes 2 ponytails of over 11 inches of hair...snip, snip, there goes a little more...squirt, spray, there goes some product to make it stick up...AND VOILA!

The pictures really don't do justice as to what it really looks like, but it's cool and fun and light and easy. I'm definitely gonna have to throw some crazy colors in at some point (maybe a little orange for Timex...) but I didn't have time for that yesterday. Pretty extreme, but hey, that's kinda how I live my life, so why not have some sort of crazy hair style to match it, right?!?!

R&R...for Real?

Who likes to rest and recover when you're a type A adrenaline junkie?!? Certainly not me! However, it's a good thing. I had a bit of a burn out last year from not resting enough and forcing myself to take it easy will only be a huge benefit during the latter part of the season! Since the training time has been cut down, this has been a great opportunity to get caught up with work and other personal things that need to get done. Not to keep you on the edge of your seat or anything, but I can assure you that the next couple posts will be quite interesting....bwahahahaha :)

XTERRA Buffalo Creek Race Report

June 21st, 2008
Bailey, Colorado
1st AG, 5th Overall (3rd Amateur)

3 races in 3 weeks?!?! Yeah, that's definitely a first for me, but wasn't really all that bad!

After lots of catching up with work and little to no training after Richmond, I was feeling pretty good about kicking some serious butt in my home state. However, after eating some questionable Chinese food Thursday and being up all night with some serious tummy problems, the thought of doing anything other than laying in bed on Friday was totally out of the question. This meant I wasn't going to pre-ride the course nor was I going to camp at the race site the night before. Oh well, things happen and I need to learn how to deal with situations that don't go exactly as planned :)

After a great night sleep, the alarm went off at 4:30am and I was ready to drive 2hrs and race like a rockstar! After getting setup, warming up and hanging around transition for a bit, I got into my wetsuit and hopped in the water to make sure the arms were feeling good...holy shit was that water cold. I've been used to 80* and higher bath water swims and high 50s/low 60s felt like swimming in ice cubes. I didn't have my hoodie either so my head was freezing! Oh suck it up, it's only 1500m...and that's what I did. I also forgot that the race was at 8000+ft high and going from racing at sea level to that is quite different. Had a few breathing issues at first and almost fell over in transition from being so light headed after the swim, but eventually adjusted and began feeling better. Since I had no idea what to expect on the bike, I rode like a giant wienie. I figured taking it easy and not bombing down something I didn't know what was at the end was better than crashing and getting hurt like lots of other people seemed to be doing. Also, I was getting bottlenecked on all the singletrack which is always frustrating from starting in the last wave, but I wasn't too concerned as I just didn't feel like I had the energy to go hard anyway. Got on the run and felt decent except for the giant slosh in my gut from pounding a huge bottle of water 10min prior. I realized I was completely dehydrated on the last part of the ride so I thought it would be a good idea to get all my fluids in at once...hmmmm, not such a great plan. Anyway, got through the run just fine and finished with a decent time. Not where I would have liked to place, but not disappointed. I got through 3 back to back races and that's all that matters, right? Oh, and I won a set a killer set of tires!

XTERRA East Championships Race Report

June 15th, 2008

Richmond, Virginia
1st Amateur Female

After racing in Alabama, I flew directly to Washington DC to meet up with my parents (who came from Michigan) and my Aunt, Uncle and cousins who live just outside the city. Because this race was the weekend after, I didn't see any point in flying all the way back to Colorado and then fly back a few days later. Plus, I hadn't had the opportunity to see my 8 month old twin cousins so it was perfect! I'd never raced back to back before so I wasn't really sure how to train and rest for this race so I kinda just did whatever worked out with everyone else's schedule :) It was hard to get motivated as the weather was hitting record highs and pretty much unbearable to even stand outside much less train! I did, however, manage to squeeze in 3 pre-rides on the course which were much needed. Again, lots of twisty, turning, and rooty singletrack with several steep power climbs. Although I took some pretty hefty crashes, by the third time, I was starting to get the hang of it. I was super relaxed going into the weekend and enjoyed a great pre-race dinner at an Irish restaurant with the family. I was sleeping like an absolute baby the night before until the fire alarm went off at 4:30am (in the race hotel) and we had to evacuate the building. Let me tell you how sucky it is to have to walk down 14 flights of stairs when you're half asleep. We met everyone outside to just laugh about the situation. About 20min later we got to walk back up the 14 flights of stairs to hear the alarm go off every 15min for the next 1.5hrs! Not exactly the best pre-race sleep, but hey, whatcha gonna do about it?! Everything else went smoothly so no complaints here. Plus, it was Father's Day and I can't remember the last time I got to see my dad on this specific holiday :)

The swim - this was by far the most interesting swim I have ever done. Because the water levels in the James river were so low, the entire swim was in water 1-3 feet deep with gigantic rocks and debris that you could stand on top of. Talk about an 'Xterra' style swim! We even got to swim to an island in the middle of the river, run across it, then get back in the water and swim back to where we started! Being stuck in the last wave made for even more obstacles to maneuver through and although it slowed me down quite a bit, it was absolutely comical!

The bike - since the course was predominately singletrack, all the people who started in front of me were bottled up on the course. I attempted to pass as many people as possible, but it was really sketchy and the last thing I needed to do was fall off the trail or take another crash. The goal for this ride was to keep the rubber side down (i.e. tires on the dirt, not in the air). I wasn't really sure how many girls were in front of me, but when we went through a steep and rooty section, the guy in front of me crashed making me have to get off my bike as well and run the rest of the section. As I was doing that, a train of 3 girls flew right by. I jumped on my bike and began to absolutely hammer in attempts to catch them. They must have passed another group of guys because I got stuck behind another group that again washed out forcing me to dismount and run. This time I was determined to bring those chicas back. I was feeling pretty good for a good 10min or so until I completely blew up and got really frustrated. I let off the gas and just cruised in with a pretty negative attitude and just wanted to get the run over with.

The run - immediately starting the run, I felt incredible. The cadence was there, I had gotten in all my nutrition on the bike and I was relaxed because I figured my race was as I like to call 'in the shitter'! Well that wasn't the case and I was about to prove it. I picked off the first girl within the first mile and she told me the others were pretty far ahead. Perfect motivation for me to kick it in gear, get my head back in the game and go catch them. Girl #2 was about 5 min later. As we were climbing up the 'Mayan Ruins' (a huge full body climb up a series of broken down stairs, wood planks, etc.) I picked off #3. Oh baby, oh baby, here we go. As I got to the section where we run across the rocks in the river, I hit #4 and I was pretty sure there was only one more to catch. At about mile 4, I saw her! My plan at the time was to just sit behind her and then make a move close to the finish line, but I just felt so damn good that I decided to keep my pace and just cruise by. SWEET...to the finish line it was. I notched it down at about mile 5 as no one was anywhere in sight behind me and just enjoyed the last part of the run.

The finish - It was so great to have my parents and family at the finish line waiting for me. I saw them a few times on the course and it was super encouraging. My aunt even took one for the team as she got plowed over by a rider while cheering on the course! It was a great day for everyone. Tyler, Igntaz, DeCook, Craig and Will all had stellar races as well.

After the awards and a few pics with the twins, it was a 2hr drive to DC for me to catch a flight home and get into Denver at 11pm :( I jumped on the bus and got home pretty late only to get up at 5:30am to begin working like a madwoman for the next few days in attempt to catch up with all the work I wasn't able to do while gone! Thanks to everyone including friends, family, sponsors, the Xterra crew, etc for all the support and super fun times!!!

XTERRA South East Championships Race Report

June 8th, 2008

Pelham, Alabama

1st Amateur Female

Extreme heat + insane humidity + great hospitality + killer race course = Fun times in Bama!

After a good night's sleep and a delicious breakfast, an excited clan headed to race site. After about a minute of being outside the car, I was already covered in sweat. No joke. It was so humid and hot at 8am that I knew it was going to be a rough day. I ingested several salt tablets and kept drinking as much fluid as I could to stay hydrated. Since I'm so used to starting races between 6am and 7am this 9:30am start just felt weird. At any rate, I was ready to have fun and kick some butt!

The swim - holy bath water hot. 'm talking 82* hot...yuck! Nothing too exciting happened other than I was able to stay on someone's feet the entire race and swim a straight course which never happens. I definitely swam way easier than I should have, but because I was overheating swimming easy, I'm pretty sure I would have drowned had I pushed it.

The bike - twisty, turny and rooty forest singletrack. This is terrain that I am very unfamiliar with so I definitely stayed on the slower side in hopes of keeping my bike under control for the duration of the race. Although most of the course was covered with trees, it still felt like riding through a rain forest and sweat and sunscreen kept getting in my eyes and burning like none other.

The run - as I was heading out of T2, the announcer mentioned that I was the 2nd amateur female and only 3o seconds back from 1st...COOL! I grabbed my hat and race belt and started turning my legs over like a little road runner. I saw the girl I needed to catch and went right after her. I caught her within the first half mile and just stayed right on her heels for a good 10min until she completely started to fade and I made my move. I knew the last few miles of the course had about 6 super steep hills that were almost impossible to run so wanted to get as much of a gap as possible. As I got to the top of the first hill, I could see all the way to the bottom and knew my competition was nowhere in sight. As I trudged up the second hill, I started getting goosebumps from being so overheated. This was my first sign that I needed to slow down and just cruise home. I proceeded to walk each of the gigantic hills as well as use trees and other surroundings to pull myself up and trot the downhills while attempting not to slide out on the loose terrain.

The end - I finally made it to the finish where I was immediately asked if I wanted to join the rest of the field in the med tent and get an IV (they went through over 80 bags of fluid this race). Since I took it super easy during the last segment of the run, I felt great and just wanted to have really cold water dumped all over me :) Great experience racing in extreme weather conditions and couldn't have been any happier!

Alive and slammed!

Had an amazing time with my family in DC and a great race at the Xterra East Champs in Richmond, Virginia. After several pre-rides and numerous crashes on the bike course, I was feeling pretty good about my race. Went in with a great attitude and ended up having a decent day (1st amateur female). I am in the process of writing detailed race reports for both Bama and Richmond so stay tuned. Until then, I'll be catching up on all the work I wasn't able to get done while gone and resting up for the Buffalo Creek Xterra in Bailey, CO this weekend! I have posted a few pics from the East Champs on the 'My Pics' link as well. WHOOOAAAAA!!!

The Life in Washington DC

A little ride to spin out the legs (which weren't really all that sore) on Monday morning, then off to the airport to catch a plane to DC! Flying Southwest Airlines is always a hoot. From the madness of people choosing their own seats to the comical flight attendants, you're bound for some sort of crazy experience. Fortunately I didn't have anything out of the ordinary happen, just a few good laughs :)

Once I got into the airport, I met up with my Mom, who flew in from Michigan, then drove to Alexandria to my Aunt Katie and Uncle Tim's beautiful home to see their 8 month old twin girls! Very cute babies :)

Got in a short run yesterday morning in the swealtering heat and humidity then got my very first pedicure! Oh yeah...fun times. I even let them put clear polish on my toes :) A little shopping and lots of work was done throughout the rest of the day then a delicious lasagna dinner!

Quick Update from Bama

The past weekend has been filled with lots of great times, fun stories and good pics, but since I'm about to head out the door for an easy spin, I'll give you a very simplified version of the race report to come over the next few days. Check out the 'My Pics' link on the right to see some of ridiculousness of the weekend!

Got into Birmingham on Thursday night and met up with Will, Ryan, Marne and Christine at our incredible homestay! Jerry is one of the coolest guys ever...and to let 10 people stay in his house is pretty amazing!Friday morning we went and 'swam' the run course in the blazing heat. I say this because we came back looking like we had actually gone swimming we were so wet from sweating. Then a quick dip in the lake which felt like bath water then home for a little lunch, rest and for me, a lot of work. Later that afternoon we pre-rode the course and met up with Ryan Ignatz, Danelle and her family, all who were staying with us as well. A great dinner from the grill was prepared and lots of laughs were shared.

Saturday was another hot, hot day. A quick swim, short bike and easy run got the body loosened up for the race then it was off to Hooters for lunch...Will was actually showing off more leg than the waitress with his split running shorts and the girls LOVED it! More R&R (rest and recover) was had that day, then a big pasta dinner to top off the evening...mmmmm, good!

RACE DAY - whoooaaaa! A 9:30am start with a heat index of over 100...gotta love it. Like I said, I will post a more detailed race report, but all in all, it was a good, smart and fun day for this girl. Played it super safe while swimming on someone's feet really easy in the swim, totally chilled on the bike while drinking as much as possible and staying cool, then cruised the run and walked most of the steep hills to save myself from joining the rest of the field in the med tent after the race. They actually had a record high of people in there this race...I am racing 3 weekends in a row and once I sealed the first female amateur spot, there was no reason to push any harder as it wouldn't have made any difference monetarily :) Great post race party with everyone in the evening and again, lots of good laughs!

More to come, but I have to say thanks to everyone who has been part of getting me into this off-road scene. I couldn't be a more excited and happy girl about the XTERRA world :)

I LOVE MY RED WINGS!!!

Nothing more to say except...HELL YEAH!!!! Is that better Marky?

East Bound

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry...

I've been so busy with work and trying to get ready to leave for 10 days that I haven't been able to do much of anything include sleep, train or think straight. I am currently sitting in the airport about to head to Birmingham to meet up with Will and Ryan to race the Xterra Southeast Champs. I will do my best to keep you updated as I'm sure there will be some good stories and funny pictures so stay tuned!

Rock on.

A little scattered...

So I'm pretty sure that leaving for 10 days at month end and during 3 payrolls is probably not the smartest of things, but hey, I've got some fun races to take names at, family to see and great times to be had. Yes, that is my excuse for not being punctual on updating...I've been a little busy trying to organize my life and such.

As for news in Erin's life...hmmm...well, I've still got the whole smoker's cough going on. I'm now thinking it's allergies, but we'll see. Training has been going well and I'm definitely ready for a solid series of races over the next couple weeks. As for my poor Pistons, I'll just keep quiet. Jon (my roomie) and crazy Celtics fan, had a bet that whoever lost the series had to take out the recycling for the rest of the year. This is what it looked like before I took it out this morning!!! Pretty ridiculous.
As for the Red Wings...sorry Penguins, but the Cup is OURS!!!!!