Pants on fire....

I fear I've lead you all astray. Before you reach for the closest rotten tomato to hurl my way, please let me explain. In the past couple weeks, I have met with many friends and have heard some version of "you are so chipper! Sounds like training is a piece of cake for you!" I'm of course flattered that people think I'm in a good mood all the time and that this training is a breeze, but sadly, this is not the case! There are days when I'm just flat tired of training. Luckily, those days are few and far between, but I'm human. Some days the couch is calling my name so loudly I have to spin a little harder on the trainer to block out the noise.

Take last weekend, for example. While "normal" people looked forward to a relaxing 3 day weekend, I honestly was facing it with a bit of dread. I knew what was on our training schedule and that come Tuesday, I'd wonder what happened to our weekend. Saturday was a 9 mile run with my group, Runners Edge of the Rockies.

Saturday with my favorite runners. Don't be fooled. We aren't always this well-behaved!

Sunday, Freddy and I again woke up at the crack of dawn to do our first OWS (open water swim) event of the season. After days of cold weather and hail, the water was frigid. Freddy did a one mile loop while I braved a 1.5 mile loop. The swim was followed by a 45 minute bike ride which was followed by a 1 hour long bike skills course.

Umm, is this the law or only a suggestion?

Monday, again the alarm went off way too early, and we headed up to Boulder for a 58 mile bike ride with friends. On our way to Boulder, I was a little grouchy. There is nothing easy about getting up every morning before the birds and getting our tails out the door. Nothing. But you wanna know a secret? We chose to have a good attitude about training! And guess what, it makes it much easier. Life is what you make of it. Sure, we could bitch and moan about how hard it is but why? After all, we knew what we were signing up for. We knew there were sacrifices we would need to make. Truth is, we love the challenge! What gets us out the door are two things: 1) we have many loved ones right now that couldn't train if they wanted to. We are so blessed to be healthy and able to train and 2) visualizing the finish line of the Ironman and hearing our names with the words "You are an Ironman" after them. That brings tears to my eyes every single time I think of it. EVERY TIME!!!

Ironmen to be times 5!

Friends, no matter what you do, do it with passion. I promise you if you add passion to your task, it will become much easier!

There is still time to donate and make a difference! Follow this link to our Davis Phinney Foundation page. Every Victory Counts!

2 Races, one weekend

Last weekend was a blur. A fun, crazy blur!

Freddy proudly representing our tribe-the Davis Phinney
Foundation!

Friday night, Freddy did his first ever sanctioned bike time trial in Superior!  Freddy loves speed and has always wanted to race in an official time trial, so with a little encouragement from Coach, he signed up for the Superior Morgul Classic.  I picked up my mom and traveled to Superior to cheer him on for his 8.2 mile loop-keeping an eye on the skies that were beginning to look ominous. Freddy got to the starting line, took off, and immediately the heavens opened and it started pouring. My mom worried about the slick roads. I assured her Freddy was in his element and would be just fine. Freddy, Coach and I all had our predictions about how fast he would do this TT (time trial). Coach thought maybe 27 minutes. Freddy was hoping 25-30. I told both of them Freddy would sub-25 it.  They both raised their eyebrows and thought I was high. 23 minutes after Freddy took off, he came screaming across the finish line-which just so happened to be atop a very long, steep hill.  He loved every second of it and is trying to figure out how he can retire and become a sprinter. We bought two lottery tickets that night. We didn't win, so we are working on plan B!

 

Conquering the giant beast of a hill at the finish!
Mom thought it wasn't very nice of the race
organizers to put that hill there at the end. 

Freddy and my mom celebrating an awesome finish!

On Saturday, Freddy got to rest and I got to head out with my girlfriends for a girls' ride from Sedalia to Palmer Lake-one of my favorite rides! Ann, Molly, Shannon and I arrived bright and early and excited about the day. Until we looked at Shannon's brand new tire, bulging at the rim, exposing her tube. After all of us gave our expert opinions on the state of her bike, we all agreed that she best ditch the ride and head straight to the closest bike shop to get the tire taken care of. And then we were 3. Ann, Molly and I took off and had a lovely ride through the country, chatting, discussing race day strategies, and how we would all have to starve ourselves the next couple months to not look like sausages crammed into the very un-flattering tri kits. It was a great ride-no flats, no drama, no crashes, only some annoying wind and a dead snake to contend with! 

Me, Ann & Molly at our turn-around point. We look so happy because it's all downhill from here!

Sunday morning, Freddy and I awoke again at o-dark-thirty to run the Colfax Half Marathon. I've done some version of this course several times and was looking forward to doing it on the new course. This was Freddy's third half marathon and was busy figuring race day strategies. I told him not to sweat it-that he would once again PR and he once again thought I was high. I don't know why these guys never listen to me!  We arrived in time to cheer on my friend Jill, doing her first full since a nasty foot surgery and recovery. While I was waiting in the corral, I got a text from my friend Natasha who decided at the last minute to jump in and do the half. I was thrilled as I didn't have anyone to run with! The new course was great. It traveled through the zoo, literally through a fire station, had one stretch with all the firefighters from the Denver Firefighter Calendar shoot, scantily-clad, and had a lot of great crowd support along the way. It wasn't a great race for me-it was a humbling day for sure and made me seriously question what I've gotten myself into, but I'm proud to report that I once again predicted correctly and Freddy PR'd by 11 minutes!  He had a great time and I was thrilled that he did so well. After the race, we enjoyed taking it easy with our Runners Edge of the Rockies teammates while sipping on bloody mary's. Overall, it was a lovely day in the park!

This weekend, while all the "normal" folks are sitting on their decks eating brats and drinking beer, we will be logging 6 hours on the bike, doing our first open water swim, and running. So, please, have a brat and beer for us!

Find your inspiration & kick 'em in the balls.....

I didn't want to go to the pool yesterday. Not even a little bit. When the alarm went off as it always does at the un-Godly hour of 4am, I hit snooze and did what I always do when I'm procrastinating: check Facebook. I was scrolling away when I saw that a running acquaintance Vince had updated his blog. Vince is battling stage 4 brain cancer with more strength than I could ever imagine. I read the blog, wiped the tears from my eyes, and got my ass to the pool. As I was swimming, I thought about how lucky I am that I have a choice to either lay in bed or workout. I have many loved ones right now battling any number of issues who would give anything to be able to get out of bed and swim.

During my swims, there is a lot of time to think. I mean, honestly, there's nothing to look at in the aqua treadmill. There are no hazards, no mountains, nothing to do but think. Some of my best thinking is done in the pool. Which is sad-if that's the best I've got! During a lot of my swims, I think of my Papa. Papa and I would spend hours in the pool when we were younger-only coming out for food or the bathroom. Then, after our business, we were right back in. Even when Grandma and mom told us to wait 20 minutes or we would drown. We didn't care; we were willing to take our chances. Papa would cannon-ball into the pool which I thought was the coolest thing ever and I would dive to the very bottom to see if I could find any sharks (I was convinced that Jaws lived in the drain). We would play Marco Polo, I'd climb all over him like he was a jungle gym, and just be silly for hours upon hours. These memories make me so happy-I credit Papa for my love of the water. I also credit Papa for getting me into the world of endurance sports. So, all this training is his fault, really.

Several years ago, in an effort to turn me into a cyclist, Freddy found a ride that he knew I could not say "no" to. It was the Copper Triangle: a loop course beginning and ending in Copper Mountain, and climbing 3 mountain passes. Honestly, it wasn't the ride that got me excited (the thought of mountain riding made my ass twitch). It was the non-profit who benefitted from the ride: the Davis Phinney Foundation. A very quick summary on Davis Phinney: he and his wife, Connie Carpenter Phinney, are cycling royalty. Davis was the second American to win a stage in the Tour de France. Long before Lance, long before our feather-light bikes with more gears than we can count. Connie is a highly decorated Olympic cyclist. Davis was diagnosed with Parkinson's at age 40 and since then has began a crusade on helping people with Parkinson's live better today. Our first year riding in the Copper Triangle, we made the top 5 in fundraising for the Davis Phinney Foundation. Each year since, our goal has been to increase our fundraising goals. And I am happy to report, that each year we have exceeded our expectations!

Freddy, Davis Phinney and I after our first Copper Triangle!

Freddy and I at our last pass-Vail-during our very first Copper Triangle! Yep, you're eyes aren't deceiving you. I am indeed wearing a camelback. I was such a rookie!

Over the past 6 years, we have come to call the Davis Phinney Foundation our friends. We truly believe in their mission and have created great bonds with the staff, volunteers and members. My Papa has been battling Parkinson's for over 10 years now and every day amazes me with his humor, strength, and resolve.

We are not only going through this Ironman journey for ourselves, but to raise funds for the Davis Phinney Foundation in honor of my beloved Papa. His brave fight everyday is what gets me out of bed, gets me to that next mile and will get us both to the finish line on August 3. There are so many wonderful causes out there and it's impossible to chose just one. But this is the one closest to our hearts. Every little bit helps and we appreciate any donation, no matter how small or large! If you would like to donate, please visit our donation page.

Ironman training is tough, no question. But life is tougher. My Grandma taught me at a very young age that if I ever face an impossible challenge, to "kick 'em in the balls". Every day, find your inspiration and go kick 'em in the balls.

Growing gills

I've been "swimming" since I was 6 months old. When I was just a wee little sprite, my mom signed me up for "Mommy and Me" classes where the babies were held over the diving boards like sacrificial lambs and tossed over-board to their moms; who were waiting patiently in the pool. I'm pretty sure in today's world, the mommy and me classes are a bit more civilized. But back in the 70's, we were tough and could handle it. I am so thankful to my parents every day for getting me in the water at such a young age. Because of this, I'm a fish. I may not be a graceful fish, but I am very comfortable in the water and could swim all day (or at the very least for 2 hours, 20 minutes-the cut-off for the Ironman swim). The most common thing I hear when talking about Ironman is "I HATE swimming! I could never do that!". Most people dread the water. I love it! Good thing, too. The past couple weeks, our swimming has sky-rocketed! So much so, that I recently told Coach Marco that I was growing gills. He replied with "gills make you faster!". Awesome! Maybe I will come in well before the swim cut-off and give myself a nice little cushion for the bike!

Our workout volume has continue to grow ever so slightly. In fact, I didn't notice how much our volume had increased until I was looking over our weekly training logs a couple weeks ago. Sneaky, sneaky coach we have! Freddy and I are handling the increase pretty well, if I do say so myself. Luckily, Freddy hasn't had to fly too much but when he does, is usually able to squeeze in his workouts by taking a run around whatever city he is in at the time. My work schedule has increased, but luckily I don't sleep much and when I do, I'm an early riser, so can typically get my workouts in before work. 

Easter Sunday, Freddy got called out on a trip. He was bummed, but we both expected with the holiday that this would happen. I felt sorry for him until I got this photo from him:

Yep, Freddy logged a gorgeous 13 mile run across San Francisco & the Golden Gate Bridge while I rode around Boulder. Boulder is lovely, but it's no San Fran!

I would have been really impressed if he decided to swim from The Rock back to the city, but he said he's afraid of the current or sharks or something. Pansy.....

Today marks our longest swim ever: just over 3,000 yards or 1.70 miles (Ironman is 4224 yards), followed by a half hour run. I haven't done it yet as I'm procrastinating. I'm sure I can find something that urgently needs to be done, like taste-testing my wine for tomorrow's recovery day, wash clothes, play with the cats....

Springtime in the Rockies

There is a tree right outside our window that we see all the time. It's just there, taunting us. We have watched calmly it as it lay dormant all winter. About a month or so ago, we noticed a tiny bit of green on the branches. Oh no! Then a couple weeks ago, those green spots turned into buds. NOOOOOOO! Now, those green buds have turned into full-on flowers. There's no mistaking it. Spring is here. Winnie the Pooh had the Honey Tree, Shel Silverstein had the Giving Tree. We have the "Oh crap. It's blooming. That means spring is here. That means only one more season until IM!" tree. To us, this tree has been like the hour glass the Wicked Witch of the West gave to Dorothy in her castle. Slowly ticking away, reminding us that while we thought we had all the time in the world, Aug. 3 will be here before we know it!

After several days of gorgeous spring time weather, we woke up Sunday morning (at the butt crack of dawn) to a nasty snow storm. You know, those spring snow storms that bring wind, sleet, snow, snain, just all-around nasty. It was Horsetooth Half Marathon day in Ft. Collins, and boy howdy, was it a different experience than the first time I did it two years ago! We loaded all our winter gear into the car and headed up to Ft. Collins, white-knuckle gripping it the entire trip (well, Freddy was driving and he loved it. I had to close my eyes a few times). When we got to Horsetooth Reservoir, the wind was howling, sleet was blowing sideways and it was just frigid. We both just kept cracking up that while normal people were hunkered down with some hot cocoa in their pj's, we were bundling up to go run in this crap for a couple hours.

Once we started, we had a great time! It was perfect running weather and the conditions made the course even prettier than the clear, hot day I had in 2012. Plus, the best part of those conditions is we were guaranteed not to see any snakes! In 2012, a rattlesnake decided he wanted to join in the fun and made his way onto the street while we were running. Luckily, I was too busy taking in the scenery to notice him-I just heard people around me commenting on the snake that joined the race. Some days it pays to gawk-had I seen it, I would have died. And that would have made for a bad day!
I stopped many times along the course to take pictures which slowed my time, but I didn't care. This was a training run and it was just so pretty, I wanted to take it all in.

I crossed the finish line within 30 seconds of my time from 2012, 2:22 (which was an average pace of 10:48/mi/mi. EXACTLY the pace Coach Marco had predicted for me. Kind of freaked me out). Freddy was waiting for me at the finish line with a time of 2:13-a new PR for him! I couldn't be more proud of him. That is a monster of a course and only the second half marathon he's ever done!

I got home and was so excited to download all the photos I had taken only to find out that NONE of them turned out. Not one! Then I was mad-had I known none of them would have turned out, my pace would have been way better. Alas, the photos below are all I've got for ya!

The view from our car. Yeah, it was THAT cold!!! But goodie, we get to climb that hill in front of us!

I was super excited about the pint glass at the end. I would have been more excited if a shirtless fireman gave it to me after he filled it with a margarita. But we can't always get what we want all the time. 

Freddy, on the other hand, was most un-happy with his lack of medal. I felt sorry for the volunteer who handed him an empty pint glass instead of a medal. 

Freddy and I at the finish. Weather was great until we stopped. We are freezing our tushies off!

We are coming off our biggest training week so far, topping out at just over 11 hours of training since last Sunday. My legs will tell you they have trained at least 20 hours more, but my mind says "get ready, this 'aint nothin!" We did two time trials this week: one in the pool followed by the bike the next day. I actually enjoy time trials. For me, they are more mental than physical. I'm used to running time trials, I've been doing these for years with my running group, Runners Edge. The pool and bike are way different though and while I feel these trials went much better than last time, I clearly have a long way to go!  This weekend, we are looking forward to much better weather for our ride and runs. I'm ready to pull out my warm-weather running duds!

Swimming Lungs, Bike Brain, & Runner's High

So here we are in April! And as one of my friends so kindly pointed out, less than 4 months to IM Boulder! Eeek!

Freddy & I during an awesome training run in Parker with our group, Runners Edge of the Rockies

Freddy and I have been ever so slowly ramping up our training. We are averaging a little over 8 hours per week of training and so far, so good! There have been days that have been tougher than others; days where we hit "snooze" on the alarm clock until it's too late to get our workout in in the morning; then curse ourselves that evening when we have to train; days where we look at a brick workout and think "for the love of God, we have to do what????", but all in all, we are very happy with our training and are really enjoying it!

Our swimming is coming along just fine. Neither of us are fast, but we are both very comfortable in the water and truly for an Ironman, I think that is 99% of the battle!  I had a nice treat when my running buddy Molly, who is training for her first Ironman 70.3,  texted me the other night saying "a little birdie told me you train at the Apex", "yes, I do!", I excitedly exclaimed. "Me too", she said. "Awesome! Meet me at the pool at 5 am tomorrow morning for a swim", I hesitantly responded, knowing the response would be the typical "Thanks but no thanks".....Molly surprised me by quickly replying with "Yeah! I'll see you then!" Well, Molly beat me to the Apex in the morning and we had a fun swim together! She even stuck around after and did my plyos with me! 

The biggest thing I am working on in the pool at the moment is speed. The toughest thing about speed is not having my swimming lungs quite yet. My body needs to trust that the air will come and I need to focus on calming my brain down and allowing my body to take over (common theme with me!). I can cruise along at a nice, easy pace for a long time. But increase the speed, and it gets harder to breathe, thus vastly changing my swimming form. Freddy and I can both see improvement from where we started but realize we still have a long way to go. We are really looking forward to getting into the open water-that will be the true test!

Training in the aero bars while cars pass me is
enough to have me begging for a marg!

I look like I know what I'm doing, right?

Of all three disciplines in IM, the bike freaks me out the most. I commonly refer to my condition as "bike brain".   Riding is such a different feeling than running, it takes me a good month of solid outdoor rides to get my bike brain engaged and ready.  After a long winter of only riding on my bike trainer, the weather was nice enough last week to take the ride outside! We have a pretty large group of friends doing IM Boulder, so we always have people to run and bike with, which is great.   Most of the people, however, are super fast and I, well, am not. I decided to meet up with a couple girl friends who are pretty evenly matched with me a half hour before the group started to get a head start on the "fasties". We had a great time riding in Boulder and got about 20 miles in before the peleton caught us! This was also the first time using my aero bars. The first 10 miles, I was a complete disaster. The sight of them through my periphery sent me into a panic. But, I knew I had to get used to them sooner or later.  So, like anything with me, I baby-stepped it. I would put one arm on the bar and keep the other near the brake. Then I would switch. After I felt ok with 

that, I would give myself little goals of putting both arms in the bars for a very short time, getting used to the feeling of my body positioning and how my bike responded. Mile by mile, I would extend my time in the aero position, literally talking myself through it. I'm sure the people who passed me thought I had escaped from the asylum. But I didn't care. It was working. I was becoming one with my aero bars! Am I totally comfortable in them? Not even close! But, I can see the benefit in them and 

the positioning is super comfortable so I'm getting there!

Dude! Where's my road????

Yes, I did include this little detour in my mileage for the day!

Jill, Dan, Teah, Freddy & I
at the Runnin' of the Green finish!

Running season in Denver officially kicks off (well, in my brain anyway) with my favorite 7K, the Runnin' of the Green through downtown. Freddy had the weekend off so joined me, my running group, my family, and 10,000 of our closest friends for the Irish jog. Freddy did great and his time was way better than mine. He's discovered that he's much faster than me on the bike and run. I am pretty sure, though, I've got him beat in the pool for now. Freddy is finding he really loves running and is pretty sure he's found his runner's high a time or two! Next weekend, Freddy and I will be heading north to Ft. Collins to do one of my favorite half-marathons, the Horsetooth Half. The last time I did this was two years ago, not long after my broken leg. It was a small come-back, if you will, so this time, I'm hoping to beat my time. That being said, I'm treating it as a training run with firemen, beer and a medal thrown in. Wish us luck!

Me and the CEO and President of my fan club, Jill
and my favorite girl, Teah at the Runnin' of the Green

Peroneus Tendon, Chinook Winds, & A Make-Over!

February was quite eventful! Our winter here is hanging on for dear life and as I have stated on numerous occasions, I will not run on ice. So, needless to say, I have been logging a lot of miles on the "joymill". I was supposed to run in the Ralston Half-Marathon on Feb. 9 but my Peroneus Tendon had other ideas. I was in dire need of new running shoes, so I headed to my favorite running store, Runners Roost, to pick up my old reliable Mizuno Wave Alchemy's that I have been running in for about 4 years. I about popped a vessel when the salesman said "sorry, those have been discontinued". After a long cry and a bit of a temper tantrum, I decided to try out a new pair of Mizunos. After I tried them out the next week on a 6 miler, I knew I hated them. But I thought maybe they just needed to be broken in, so I had the brilliant idea to try them out for a 10 mile run on the joymill. All was fine until I got home after the run. About an hour after my run, my foot was throbbing and I had difficulty walking. I was PISSED. Coach Marco and I decided that a half marathon in a week was not a good idea, so I iced, iced baby and advil'ed until it felt better. I wasn't too disappointed that Ralston didn't pan out, however. A couple days leading up to the Half, it snowed. And it snowed. And it froze. Race day, the route was an ice rink and I think the high for the day was around 15 degrees. So, my peroneus tendon issue may have been a blessing in disguise! That pesky little tendon has been just fine ever since and I'm happy to report that thanks to the internet, I have bought the last 2 remaining Mizuno Wave Alchemy's to be found!

If there is one thing I hate more than ice, it's wind. I don't know what it is, but this year, we have been cursed with Chinook winds like I have never encountered before. It's been almost daily and the winds have literally shaken the house on many occasions. This has amounted to a lot of sleepless nights and horrible allergies and asthma for me. A couple weeks ago I was to do my running time trial. I much prefer working out in the morning for a lot of reasons, but mostly because morning workouts are better for those suffering with allergies and asthma. I think it has to do with the pollen count or something. I don't know, but I can tell you I do much better in the morning! Well, the morning of my time trial, I was once again surrounded by the stupid Chinook winds so decided to wait until the afternoon to do my time trial. Bad idea. About a mile into my run, I had an asthma attack that would not subside. Since I'm a total bad-ass, I don't believe in running with my inhaler. You know, I've got my rep to uphold and all.  So, I had to suffer through it. Those nasty Chinook winds have continued to wreak havoc on my allergies and asthma so I've been having to work around them. Spring cannot get here soon enough!

Being the "classy" gal I am, I love make-overs. So imagine my joy when for Christmas, Freddy bought me a make-over! Until I discovered that this make-over wasn't for me. It was for my bike in the form of aero bars. I think he's trying to kill me. I understand the science behind them and totally get why you need aero bars, but they terrify me. The thought of zooming down the highway with my hands no where near my brakes just doesn't seem smart to me. But alas, apparently if you want to be an Ironman, you have to have aero bars. Despite my argument to go "old school" and be a purist, I got aero bars anyway. Last Sunday, I went to our favorite bike shop, Wheat Ridge Cyclery and met Brian, my expert fitter for the day. I liked Brian from the start and he was giddy about the whole thing.  I think my bike is super-pretty without the silly aero bars and still wasn't sold on the whole idea.

Poor Brian had his work cut out for him with me. He looked nice enough and reminded me of my cousin, Matt Handeland. Maybe we would get along after all!

Oooooohhh, check out this shiny new saddle! I think that would look awesome on my bike!

After a couple hours, Brian had worked his magic and set me up with some fast-looking, sassy aero bars. The same model that Mirinda Carfrae uses! Hey, if they are good enough for her, they are good enough for me! Maybe I'll even speed by her in Boulder!  I've been trying them out for a week on the trainer and so far I love them. But let's not go crazy. There is no need for me to brake on my trainer. I reserve the right to change my opinion once I get them out on the road!

Yesterday, Freddy and I had an hour and 20 minute run. We woke up to snow and a temperature of 15 degrees. Awesome. Neither of us had any desire to head to the gym for yet another indoor workout so we grumbled and stalled for a little while before heading out the door. My face was numb for the first mile as we were running into the wind. Soon enough, we were on the trail and heading towards the reservoir. My face thawed and I could finally see how pretty the scene was in front of us:

Then Freddy yelled "it's so pretty! Take a selfie!"

We continued our run in silence, he listening to Rush or some other sort of rock, and I, jamming to Shakira before he said "I can't feel my face. I think we should turn around". I swear the temperature kept dropping, but it was so pretty and peaceful I blocked out the cold and thought that I would remember this moment on August 3 when I would give anything to be this cold. Nearing our house, we took a detour when we spotted an awesome sight. A tractor! Ah, it's just like being back on the farm again!

All in all, yesterday's run was lovely. We were happy to be done and even happier when we warmed up!  That cup of hot cocoa never tasted so good!