Some updates...

....I've been one busy girl the past couple days!

The tax season is here and work is very hectic at the moment. Planning travel for pre season training and and early season races has almost been quite a challenge as well :) However, I always seem to find time to be surrounded with great people and have some good times!

Other than the excitement of the Superbowl on Sunday, it was a rather typical weekend of training and relaxing. After swimming and riding in the brrrr cold, I had a very nice dinner Saturday evening with Tom, James and Melanie at Carelli's which I had never been to before...mmmm. Sunday was the usual long run, but Tingle and I commented on how much faster we were going using the same effort as normal...cool! That means we're getting faster! Watch out!!! Then of course was the Superbowl game. I really didn't care too much who won as long as it was a good game. We headed over to a friend's place who has a newer loft/condo at Pearl and 20th and watched the exciting game there. Sorry all you Pats fans :)

Monday was a fairly usual day as well with some payroll wrap ups at work, a hard swim and jog in the morning and power lifting yoga in the afternoon. I do have to say that I loved the quote our instructor used in class from Woody Allen; '80% of success is just showing up'. I was really tired after my morning workouts and contemplated not going, but did anyway. Once I was there, I had a great time and put in 100% effort...it's so true how hard it can be to get your butt out the door sometimes, but once in the groove, it's worth every second of irritation you face to get there!

Tuesday was a busy, busy day! Intervals on the trainer in the AM, work at the law firm, talk cycling shoes with Tony at Pearl Izumi, run with Tony, swim masters, work with Brad at Colterra, power sculpting afterwards then dinner with some friends....

That leaves me to right now...I'm sitting on my butt and eating lots of food while catching up on some work. I think it's going to be an easy day for this one :)

We are officially Tucson bound!!!

Yep, that's right. Tickets are booked and we are set to go...well kind of. Still working on the lodging part, but I think that should be fine as I just got off the phone with Cisco's wonderful sister who lives down there and promises to have a place lined up for us! We have such a great group going down and Tingle and I can't wait. That's pretty much all we talked about on our killer run this AM at the Rez.

The weather has been so weird around here. Snowing and 12* one day and 45 and sunny the next. Hopefully it will hold out this weekend so I can get back outside and ride...cross your fingers :)

Still getting packages :)

I know, I know...by age 23 I really shouldn't be receiving killer packages from my momma, but I have to admit, they're pretty fun! Especially when they're packed full of deliciousness from Trader Joe's...how come we can't have those out here, not fair :(

A POEM ABOUT OUR GIRLFRIENDS

Someone will always be prettier.
Someone will always be smarter.
Some of their houses will be bigger.
Some will drive a better car.
Their children will do better in school.
And their husband will fix more things around the house.
So let it go, and love you and your circumstances.
Think about it!
The prettiest woman in the world can have hell in her heart.
And the most highly favored woman on your job may be
unable to have children.
And the richest woman you know, she's got the car,
the house, the clothes might be lonely.
And the word says, 'If I have not Love, I am nothing.'
So, again, love you. Love who you are.
Look in the mirror in the morning and smile and say,
'I am too Blessed to be Stressed and too Anointed, to be Disappointed!'
'Winners make things happen, Losers let things happen.'
Be 'Blessed' Ladies

This was in an email sent today by my mother and couldn't have been more appropriate...

The last couple weeks have been such a perfect beginning to a successful season. With an improved attitude about life, a new approach to training and a killer group of ladies to train with, I am beyond excited to see what kind of athlete I am capable of becoming over this next year.

As for the poem, I don't think I could describe my feelings towards my girlfriends and training partners any better than through Jax's blog in her post titled 'A peaceful run with great thanks!' We are all so fortunate to have each other as both friends and competitors. Although it's nice to be able to have great people to train day in and day out with, the constant reminders of how amazing we each are along with the everlasting support that is true and genuine is probably the most motivating part about it. Since we are all on different levels in our lives and in the sport, we have no reason to judge or be jealous of each other. Rather, we embrace and learn from each of the aspects we bring to the table...I LOVE IT!

Like the poem says, 'Love who you are'. I promise it will make you a much happier individual :)

Power Sculpting?!?

I haven't really decided how to approach these crazy classes I'm starting to do...with the other girls of course! I feel like the biggest goober ever while I'm doing them, but they sure do work every little muscle in your body! Just after 75min of that crap, I am sooo sore. I guess it doesn't really matter how ridiculous you look while doing it if the results are worth it. I'm kind of banking that will be the case and the FAC Power Sculpting classes will be my ultimate key to success in 2008!!! Well that and the combination of all the yoga I've been doing too :)

DEXA Bone Scan

After a series of broken bones in 2005, I decided to have my bone density checked last year. It wasn't a surprise that it was actually quite low for my age. Although my daily activities should be enough to help build bone mass, they're also helping to contribute to the loss of it as well...hmmmm.

At any rate, after finding out those numbers last year, I have been very conscious about taking in more calcium, adding in more strength training and not getting too lean. After a full year of intense training without any injury, I was certain I had increased my bone density. I had another scan done on Monday and unfortunately I am exactly where I was last year. Grrrr....

It's not the end of the world and it's not at a dangerous level, but I would rather see it climbing rather than descending or remaining the same. Guess it's time to start supplementing again :(

A whole lotta fun :)

A very typical but amusing weekend is never a bad thing, right?! Saturday was a pretty uneventful day of training that ended with a margarita at the Rio (which made me beyond buzzed) and a few pizookies at BJs. Got the roomie to finally get his butt out and join Jen, Shep, Josh, Mark and I. Good times, good times!

Yesterday began with an AMAZING 2hr run on the trails from my house and around Tellar farms with absolutely stellar weather. After getting a little work done and watching some football (I was somewhat forced), I got on the trainer to spin the legs out, met up with Tingle for some yoga then hit the movie theater with the clan. I'm not one to go see 'Chick Flicks' but 27 Dresses is pretty funny. It's definitely a girly movie, but very cute. After the movie, Jax, Tingle and I decided we will be headed to Tuscan the last week of February for a short training trip...more to come, but we're SUPER excited!!!!

Fun trip to the dermatologist?!?

Not if you call getting a mole biopsied and having a saddle sore drained fun...yea, yea, yea, it's probably not what you wanted to hear, but hey, it happens to all of us. At any rate...ouch, that's all I have to say.

So I have successfully done yoga 4 straight days this week! Yeah, pretty freakin' crazy considering I can't stand it. However, I've gotten so much more flexible that I am doing poses I couldn't even pretend to do a month ago....whoooaaaa.

More randomness - not so much into racing in the cold and after being bailed on by the crew for a wild night in Denver, I decided to bag the race down there tomorrow too. Hopefully we can get a good girl's run in place instead and a fun night on the town here in Boulder. Well that's all I've got. Off to go watch movies with the roommie :)

Warm to cold....BRRRR!!!

Well the wonderful and beautiful 40s and 50s are no longer hovering over Boulder. It's been in the single digits the past 2 nights and quite frigid! It was so cold the other day that I had to have my car jumped because the battery was completely dead...hmmmm...sign to get a new battery?!?! I'm thinking so.

Training has been a little on the lighter and crappier side, but I'll get out of it. I'm still a little sore from the PT on my neck and shoulder and have been feeling a little under the weather so I'm trying to relax and take it easy. Maybe next week it will warm up and give me a little more motivation to get out there :) Sorry for the boring post, but I figured I'd write something rather than nothing at all!

Riding outside has never felt so good :)

Boulder has been quite spoiled the past 3 days with absolutely beautiful weather. 40s and sunny is the most perfect riding weather during the winter and that's all we've had!

After a killer run with the ladies on Saturday morning, I set out with another group of girls for a longer and super fun ride to Lyons. We finished off the day with a late lunch at Turleys and then went to see Will Smith's 'I am Legend'. I thought it was ridiculously stupid, but the others thought it was okay. I guess I'm just into funny movies and don't really enjoy that sci-fi crap!

Unfortunately I hadn't eaten enough on Saturday to compensate for all the training and when I woke up Sunday morning I was famished and felt as though I had been hit by a truck! I started eating as much as I could but there was no way I was going to make it out the door for a long ride with the boys at 10:30am so I just relaxed and met up with the ladies at noon. Mel and I decided to just ride the 'Fruit Loops' again since the roads were clear and as we headed home through Hygiene we saw the boys stuffing their faces with cinnamon buns and hot cocoa outside the gas station. Poor Tom who had done the entire ride with us the day before on his mountain bike had bonked pretty badly and had a rough ride home :( Luckily we got back and made some delicious fajitas at Tony's and had a very chill evening!

Almost done - so I'm planning on doing this little duathlon (1.5mi run/4mi bike/2.5mi run/6mi bike) this Saturday down in Denver so I figured I'd try a little run off the bike yesterday. After a 2+hr spin I was able to comfortably hold a decent pace for about 45min off the bike. A lot better than I thought it would be, however, I haven't done any speed work so my short runs will probably be at the same pace as my hour runs...oh well, it's All in Good fun, right?!?!

And I thought my shoulder was just sore!

Well not exactly...

After my lat muscle completely seized up on me during my run Thursday morning, I was pretty sure there was something going on. I decided to take the day off swimming and see if the pain went away, but after riding a few hours in strong cross winds on the bike, I'm pretty sure I irritated it even more. That evening, while watching the Pistons kick the Spurs' butts at Tom's, Jen was working on it and told me how much 'crap' there really was in my shoulder. When I got home, it just felt worse and after heating and icing, I still couldn't really sleep. When I got up yesterday morning, my shoulder was the size of a grapefruit and more painful then ever. That called for a trip to the best Physical Therapist in Boulder (Doug Hanna) at Physical Therapy of Boulder. I was fortunate enough to jump right in and after doing just a few checks on the neck, he was a sure of the problem immediately. I had less than 70% rotation in my C1 and C2 vertebrae in my neck...WHAT? I definitely don't sit at a computer all day, but I guess cyclist are prone this from looking up with their neck while riding all day.

Hmm....well all I knew was that whatever Doug was going to do to fix it wasn't going to be fun. After several manipulations of the spine and neck and some deep tissue massage, I was in a world of hurt...a good hurt. I proceeded to down more vitamin I (or IB Profen) for those of you who are unfamiliar with that term than I have all year. I sat in bed and iced and heated and ate pretty much all day and I surprisingly feel much better this morning!

I'm off to do the longer run with the Chicas at 8am and possibly ride with another group of girls at 10:30am :) I'll bring the bottle of vitamin I and see how it goes :)

The Ladies are BACK!

The last few days have been very fun and exciting! Saturday morning the girls got together for a casual longish run at the rez that turned out to be absolutely ridiculous. The winds were so strong that you could be maxing out and only running 15min miles...no joke! It was still a blast and fun to be out there with such awesome people! Although the Pistons lost to the Celtics that evening, it was a fun time getting a good crowd together at the Lazy Dog for some good food and great laughs. Afterwards, Jen, Jess, Miles, Andy and I headed to enjoy a pizookie (pizza cookie) and a few beers from BJ's Brewery which topped off the night! SOOOO GOOD!

Sunday was a good time as well. A chilly run in the morning with Andy then a relaxing lazy day was exactly what I needed to get ready for a productive week of work and training!

I was finally able to get my booty outside for a longer ride with Shep yesterday and then meet up with the gang at the Lazy Dog again to watch the Wings put the Avs in their place for the second time this year 1-0!!!! Oh yeah, gotta love the Red Wings!

11 in a row BABY!!!

That's right, the Detroit Pistons are on a roll and now hold the longest active winning streak in the NBA. After giving it to the Toronto Raptors last night, they now to put up a good fight back home in order to put the Boston Celtics back in their place :) WHOOOAAAA.

Anyway, it has been a few days since I've updated anything, but I've been pretty busy catching up with work, training, friends, etc. The weather here has warmed up a bit and I was finally able to get out on my bike for a few hours yesterday afternoon. Today I'm hitting the Rez for a run with the ladies then a longer road ride with the boys afterwards. We'll see how that goes since there are already 45mph and it's only 6:50 in the morning!

Have a super fun night planned tonight! Andy is driving up from Winter Park to check out the Boulder scene so it's a must that we show him a good time :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Hope everyone had a safe, fun and exciting New Year's celebration! I sure did. I spent the evening up at Winter Park with some friends from high school and had an absolute blast. Although the skiing this morning didn't go as planned, it was so nice to wake up to the sun shining in bright, blue skies over big, beautiful mountains :) Thanks for a killer time Andy and crew!

IT'S 2008 BABY!!!!!!!!!!

Red Wings & Snow

Game #1 against the Avs on Wednesday night was absolutely STELLAR! Another win for the good guys and a great display of how truly well Detroit plays even when not having 2 starting players! Watched the first period at home, then headed down the Lazy Dog with some other Michiganders and watched the rest. Good times :)

So it's definitely winter here in Boulder and I'm LOVIN' it! However, the other athletes in the area are not so much...they're actually all flocking to San Diego over the next couple days because they're going absolutely insane!!! Whatever. I love seasons and I love doing every winter sport there is so I'm totally fine. On that note, I have decided to stay on my same training plan (do what I want, when I want) for the month of January and then get back into it in February. My first race isn't until April 26 and it's a shorter off road race so I should be fine! The thought of doing intervals right now is just depressing :) Well, off to jump on the trainer and hit the pool with Jen Jen before I get my hair cut and beautifully styled for the first time in over a year and a half! Yeah, I'm gross, but I never wear it down and I just wait until it's long enough to donate and then get it all chopped off...Hopefully our good Russian friend Alex Fomenko will give me a killer new do :)

What a MERRY Christmas it was :)

Wow...I think that's just about all I have to say about how Christmas 2007 unfolded! A short but sweet trip by the family to the mountains couldn't have been more perfect. Below are some fun pics taken by the bro, but they can't even begin to express what an amazing time we had!

On our way to Winter Park Resort over Berthoud Pass

Jerry and me on Christmas morning

Mom, Jerry and me...yes, we did wake up to 8 fresh inches of powder!!!

They opened the backcountry terrain for the first time of the year that morning for fresh tracks almost every run :) How about that for a Christmas present?!?! IT WAS AWESOME!

And it pretty much snowed all day...yes, I'm on skis...half day ride, half day ski!

Can you believe this kid graduated in my high school class and I never hung out with him?!?

We got into a little spat...I was kicking his butt, but eventually I lost :(

Me and my little bro...this was the end of the day and he was POOPED!

The drive home down the pass...it snowed the entire way which made for a long drive!

You know Christmas is close when...

Your advent calendar looks like this...

Only 2 more chocolate windows to open!!!

So what else is new...well not all that much. Wednesday, Shep and I rode outside for almost 2 hours then watched 'Reign over me' which was a super great movie! Who would have known Adam Sandler could be such a good 'serious' actor! Thursday I did nothing except eat all day. Yesterday I swam, played on the elliptical, did a little yoga, spun on the trainer then went out with my good friend Jake from Denver and Jen and got hammered off berry cider at BJ's Brewery! Guess I wasn't too bad since I was able to pull off a stellar 2hr run at 7:30 this morning in 18* weather!!!

Now I'm going to spend the rest of the day cleaning and getting errands done before the family arrives from Michigan tomorrow evening! WHOOOAAAA, it's holiday time :)

I couldn't be more surprised!!!

After the dog, the gerbils, the frogs, the hamsters, the fish, and all the other random critters we've had in our house over the past 10 years or so died, my mother was adamant about having NO MORE PETS!!!

Since my brother no longer lives at home and I have been gone for almost 6 years, I still think the 'empty nest' syndrome is heavily felt over there :( Well that, and the fact that my dad always has to be doing or cleaning up after something...On that note, I got a phone call a week ago informing me that he had purchased 2 parakeets! BIRDS?!?!? I've been replaced by a bird?!? Hmmm....

I think my father's true intentions are to teach them to speak and say dirty things...especially to my mom when she's home by herself during the day! HAHAHA. Just kidding. I think it's absolutely hilarious. Take a look at these pooping machines. Apparently I'm supposed to help name them...any thoughts?!?

White Elephant Madness

Last night was the annual 'I look hot in a speedo' holiday party at Pete and Brad's clubhouse. As always, there were lots of fun times, good laughs, great food and delicious jello shots...thanks to Mark Shenk :) We also had a White elephant gift exchange which was a total riot...especially since Billy (dressed as Santa) was directing the show. For those of you who don't know what that is, everyone who comes to the party brings a wrapped item from their home that they want to give away. Everyone who brings a gift must draw a number. When your number is called (it goes chronologically) you can either open a gift from the pile or steal an already opened gift from someone else. I was fortunate to have drawn a higher number which meant I had lots of options for a good steal. Below is the game I ended up coming home with. I know you want to come over and play...and no comments from the peanut gallery :)

The love of the mountains :)

Early Wednesday morning, Jen, Jess and I drove up the icy mountains roads to Copper where we spent most of the day! Although the drive was a little sketchy, it was still worth every second of it because the mountain had great, fresh snow with hardly anyone on the slopes :) I decided to hit the skis for the first part of the day, then jump on the board for the second half! Good choice as I wouldn't have been able to walk had I skied the entire day. Again, there's nothing better in life than spending good times with great people. Thanks ladies, it was super fun. I can't wait to do it again!

Leaving Boulder in the early AM

Being Silly in the car!

Jen & Jess psyched to get on the slopes!

Breakfast time!

Aww...how cute!

The Gang about to depart...

Let it snow, let it snow :)

We're definitely getting the first big snowfall of the year and it is AWESOME!!! You know what else is awesome...good times with good people :)

Yes, Jen and I had an absolute blast making white chocolate and cranberry oatmeal cookies for Wolfgang's holiday party on Saturday which was a complete riot. I'm pretty sure we came with about half the cookies we actually made after we indulged ourselves in the batter and several of the final product! It was worth every second of it.

On the work side of things, I've been really busy getting ready for year-end and tax season. That's going to be coming up quite soon and being prepared makes life a lot easier during that insane time!

On the training side of things, I'm feeling pretty decent. I've been doing a lot of very random excercise including hopping on the elliptical, doing some yoga here and there and well, I guess just going with the flow. I hit the pool for the first time in a few weeks yesterday and I suprisingly felt pretty good. However, I'm pretty sure my shoulders and pecks are about to fall off today. Hopefully a little shakeout swim in a few will help out...we'll have to see!

Hittin' the slopes tomorrow for some skiing in the AM and snowboarding in the PM...stay tuned for some fun pics and good stories :)

Let the partying begin!!!

I know you are all wondering what's going on with the vision, but as of late, nothing new has changed...it still fluctuates daily but I do find out today when I can finally get back in the water!!! Taking 3 weeks off from swimming was not really what I had intended, but I'm hoping it will be a bigger benefit down the road. I've been spinning a fair amount on the trainer and doing some running here and there along with some really random cardio to keep myself somewhat fit for the holidays, but starting in January, I will really start to get it in gear. I just put together my schedule for next year that needs to be reviewed by the coach before released, but I promise it will be quite a shock to many of you.

Well at any rate, I'm off to jump on the trainer with the new roommie and then get things together for all the fun things going on over the next few weeks...holiday and birthday parties, visitors from out of town, friends moving this way, etc...We're expected to get a huge snowstorm so lots of skiing is planned to be done as well!!! WHOOOAAAA....

It's getting better...and worse!

But that's a good thing...I think...well at any rate, my eyesight has been going from great to crappy to good to shitty and everything in between over the past couple days. According to the doc, that is totally normal and it should settle down over the next couple weeks. Patience...yeah, learning that the hard way. It's soooo hard to see everything blurry and be totally disoriented 90% of the time and even worse when you're totally behind in work and can't do the work because you can't see the computer! Blah, blah, blah...I'm getting there slowly, but surely.

Haven't been doing too much training and still won't be able to get in the pool until next week at the earliest, but I have been sitting on the trainer here and there and going out for a jog or two. Jen and I have starting doing a little lifting and I'm hoping to get in a few yoga/core/strength classes a week as well!

It was over 70* here in Boulder yesterday with insane winds, but the mountains are getting blasted with snow which is awesome! I can't wait to get up there and actually see some significant snow this year...soon enough!

I CAN SEE!!!!

Well kinda...

I can see enough to write a small message to those who do read this silly thing and let you all know that the last couple of days have been absolute hell, but today I woke up pain-free with enough vision to make my own coffee, get on the computer and walk around in the dark without sunglasses! I have honestly not taken off my sunglasses since the procedure (even in the dark)! So I'm thinking that things will only get better from here but I do know that I will not regain full vision for another 2-3 weeks which I'll just have to live with. As long as I can function and see enough to go outside and walk around or at least spin on the trainer, life will be just fine!

I also moved into my new place on Friday, (which was an absolute disaster), but with a lot of help, everything worked out. I'll post some pics once Jon and I get things organized and actually get some furniture in here :)

The time has come...

For Lasik, baby...or PRK should I say. I'll explain later. Anyway, I am getting my eyes fixed and that's all that matters!!!

Wish me luck :)

The Michigan Way Part 2

The rest of the trip was full of fun and excitement even though the Detroit Sports teams had totally sucked it up on Sunday! Monday was a chill and relaxing day with the fam. Lots of sitting around and eating then played a little Euchre which was an absolute blast. Tuesday we went to the gym for a spin class with my mom and then out to Windsor, Canada to do a little gambling and allow the 19 year olds to get their drink on legally. Wednesday I hit the dentist to get some work done and then went to the Red Wings vs. St. Louis Blues hockey game downtown which they won 3-0!!! Thursday was Turkey Day of course and we drove to Kalamazoo to visit my mom's side of the family and eat until I almost exploded...no joke.

The boys doing Jager Bombs at the bar in Canada...
Go Evan go!!!
It was definitely nice to see everyone and with a midday flight home Friday, the trip went by super fast. I have to admit that it always feels good to get home after a long trip, especially when you have a lot of work hanging over your head, but it sure was great to venture from the 'Boulder Bubble' for a bit! Now it's back to the grindstone and lots of craziness. I have my lasik surgery on Wednesday and then move into my new place on Friday. I have been packing like crazy, but every time I close another box, I feel like I haven't gotten anywhere. Where in the world do I accumulate so much crap from?!?!

I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend and has lots of wonderful things to look forward to as Winter/Christmas season turns the corner!

Fun in Michigan Part 1

Oh geez...where to even start!?!? Well last Friday evening I flew into Detroit where my little brother picked me up and we headed back to his place in Ann Arbor. It was the Michigan/Ohio State football game the next day so they had friends from other schools up visiting and ready for a good time. After buying the house four 30-packs of Bush Light, the following pictures can more than describe the rest of the evening.

Jerry and I kicked some serious butt together in beer pong!I know I've talked about the infamous beer pong table, but here it is in full use!!!
This is the 'Black Widow'...an 8 person beer bong!
I had nothing to do with it...I swear!
Oh being in college...how I don't really miss any of it!
Drink up boys!
After Michigan lost on Saturday to Ohio State, I had the rents come get me early. It was a damn good thing because the boys went back out that night to party like rockstars and I just wasn't having any of it. I've been spending some quality time with the rents which is always nice and seeing some of the family. Stay tuned for more ridiculousness :)

70.3 World Championships Race Report

November 10^th, 2007

4:48.15– 32:47 Swim, 2:33 Bike, 1:37 Run

4th 20-24 Age Group

WARNING…All components of this race including the final weeks of preparation leading into it fall under the ‘Big Learning Experience’ category! And boy what a learning experience it was…

As a very new athlete in the sport with only 3 years under my belt, I had not actually completed an uninterrupted season of hard training and consistent racing until this year. My first year was pretty much a joke. I had never swam, bike or ran EVER in my life and pretty much just went with the flow and eventually found my true passion in life. My second year I went out a little too hard without much base and developed a giant stress fracture in my hip forcing me spend almost the entire race season aqua jogging in the pool! This year I had 2 main goals – the most important was to complete a full schedule and have an injury-free season and the second to finish top 3 in my age group at the 70.3 World Champs. Although goal one was a success, placing 4^th at Worlds was where the learning came into play.

What happened on race day? Unfortunately it was a combination of mental and physical burn out a few weeks prior to the big day. I began training quite hard in December and January and raced/trained straight through until October when I began feeling incredibly unmotivated, fatigued and uninterested in going hard. Since I had never gone that long before with consistent training, I hadn’t found my body’s limits and sadly hit the wall about 3 weeks before I was due to depart to Clearwater. Bummer. I knew the instant I was more excited to go skiing then go out for my favorite workouts in beautiful fall weather that something was up. I tried to push through the mental toughness but I kept finding myself breaking down and getting really upset for not knowing why I was feeling this way a few weeks before my biggest race of the season. I had a good chat with the coach and we agreed that beginning my taper a few weeks early would be a good idea and hopefully I would be really rested and pumped up to race. Although it sounded like a great idea, I still had a hard time getting those workouts in too and flew into Worlds very flat and highly unprepared. Lesson learned: NEED MID-SEASON BREAK!!!

When I toed the line the morning of the race, I was more relaxed than I had ever been before which is never a good sign for my super-agro-type A personality. It was a crappy feeling, but I knew right away that my heart just wasn’t into the race and that I was going to be out there just to enjoy the day. As the gun went off, I was so relaxed that I immediately fell into a great rhythm and joined the first swim pack. As we made the turn straight into the sun, I sighted the buoys on the opposite side and ended up swimming into the middle of the ‘rectangle’ and into a kayak who redirected me back on course. Oops. Coming out of the water I was a little irritated that I hadn’t put together one solid swim the entire year but knew I had improved greatly on the bike so it was time to go out and fly. Well, that’s what I thought at first until I realized my legs weren’t quite functioning the way they normally do. I just couldn’t turn over the pedal and was getting passed left and right. It was definitely tough to take, but instead of getting upset, I just kept chugging away knowing that it wasn’t my day. Getting off the bike was a great delight and I was very excited to head out for the run which is always my favorite event. Since I knew there wasn’t much hope to catch that place I was after, I just decided to cruise the half marathon and enjoy every minute of it. I crossed the finish line with emotions of frustration, irritation, disappointment, and joy. The race was finally over and it was the end of the year and I accomplished the number one goal of staying healthy without any injuries. Although I didn’t really ‘race’ what I had picked to be my ‘A’ race at the beginning of the year, it was okay. Nothing disastrous happened and I was able to spend some quality time with the Timex family and enjoy the rest of my trip with my mom who has been a huge supporter throughout my entire triathlon journey.

Thank you to everyone for all the encouragement and support during the 2007 season, I couldn’t have done it without you!

Where has the time gone?

It feels as though I just raced 70.3 Worlds yesterday but it's actually been almost an entire week! What have I been doing? Well, I'll tell ya how incredibly busy I've been!

I won't go into detail about the race because I'll post a race report soon, but lets just say I'm none too happy with it and quite irritated with my performance, blah, blah, blah...However, the post race party with the Timex squad was an absolute blast with some seriously good times. I spent an additional day down in Florida with my mom which was relaxing but was also another reason I feel like I have no idea where the past couple days have run off to! Once I arrived back in Boulder, it was time to catch up with everything at work, sign my lease for our new place, unpack,try to work ahead as much as possible, repack, and jump on a plane to head out to Michigan this afternoon! Yeah...talk about insane. Anyway, I really don't have time to sit on here and babble. I promise to keep more posts flowing over the next couple weeks while I'm home and getting ready for the big move and Lasik surgery the week after Thanksgiving!

Here we are!

I am just about to get into bed but figured I'd write a short blurb since I've completely slacked on keeping everyone updated this past week.

I had a pretty hectic week before I took off for Florida catching up with work, finding a place to live when I get back and packing of course, but everything panned out quite well. After arriving in Clearwater on Thursday, I met up with Ben, my mom and the couple who hosted me at their home in Mexico at the welcome dinner down at the beach. Great food and good to see everyone.

Today was fairly chill. Went for a little run with Benny in the morning, registered for the race, got everything taken care of with my bike - thanks Doug, you're the BEST mechanic EVER!!! - ate lots of powerbars from the truck, checked in all the gear at transition, had a pasta dinner and now just relaxing and getting ready for the big day. Check out the link below for a live athlete tracker and of course, stay tuned for a race report within the next couple days!!!! WHOOOOAAAAA

http://ironman.com/

This is what you do when you have a day off training!!!

Leave at 8pm on a brisk but clear evening and drive your motorcycle up the canyon to 10,000ft on a sketchy dirt trail and set up camp!

We could possibly be the biggest BMW moto snobs around, but hey, it's all good, right!?!

I'm stealing all of Shep's pics before he posts them...check out his blog for his side of the story :)

Mmmm....coffee and oatmeal. I love camping!

Shep decided to cook breakfast from the tent because he was cold...what a wienny!!!

The dirt road in the far left of the pic is what we cam up on! How freakin' cool...and fun of course!

Shep likes to tell people I am a 'badass' because I drive a motorcycle...Come on, I'm the farthest thing from that. Look how innocent I am out there!!! Haha!