First Outdoor Ride of the Year

Well, I sort of have a general biking rule that says I don't go out unless the thermometer reads 50 degrees. Running is a different story. Any temp is fair game, but since I don't have a lot of fancy bike gear (like gloves and ear protection for under my helmet, I reserve the right to refuse to ride outdoors.

Saturday was the long run of the week - a recovery, so only 11 miles. Yesterday the sun was shining, and the thermometer hit 51, a real heat wave around here, and a little seed was planted in my brain that said I should go out and test the roads. When my brother Matt called and asked if I wanted to ride, it sealed the deal.

Now Matt's a pretty solid guy. I like riding on flat roads with him because he's 5'10" and 220 pounds of solid muscle. He provides a great draft, and when he first started biking at the end of last summer, I could for the most part keep up with him. This year, I'm really going to have to work to keep up. Our conversations yesterday went something like this.

Matt: "So, um, yeah...I've just been setting my trainer on the highest resistance it will go this winter and just pushing as hard as I can."

Pharmie: "Wow, that's pretty good."

Internal Pharmie: Oh, sheesh, well, I've been to 1-2 spinning classes per week and have hopped on the trainer a couple of times... This could be interesting.

The plan was to go out for an hour or so just to enjoy the weather and get in a nice ride. A few miles into it, I knew it would be a little more than an easy Sunday on the bike. I was pushing HARD and still struggling to keep up.

Matt: "Hey, how ya feeling?"

Pharmie: "Oh, all right I guess. I think my legs are a little sore from the 11 miler yesterday."

Internal Phamie: Why does everyone get so much better than me? I used to be able to run with Steve, now he's winning 5Ks. Now Matt's blowing me out of the water.

The "out" portion of the trail is 3/4 uphill. It's one of those deceiving rides where you can't tell that you're going uphill until you turn around. We were also in a 10-15 MPH headwind. My speedometer wasn't working all day, so I had to ask Matt what our speed was.

Pharmie: "Hey, how fast are we going?"

Matt: "Oh, looks like just over 18."

Pharmie: "Well, that's not too bad!"

Internal Pharmie: No wonder I'm feeling like I'm going to die! Uphill? Against the wind? Sore legs from the run yesterday, and we're going 18 freaking miles per hour?

Matt: "So, um, do you feel like we're working here? 'Cause I gotta be honest with you. I'm not even really breaking a sweat."

Pharmie: "Oh."

Internal Pharmie: Uh Oh.

He waited for me at a couple of intersections, but for the most part, I just kept sucking wind and keeping up. We turned around somewhere between 11 and 12 miles in. The tailwind downhill return home was very welcome, and he either let up a little or there really was a huge difference between the out and back.

Matt: "Hey, my legs are finally starting to warm up. The beer and Jägermeister are finally working their way out of my system. Man my friends and I had fun last night. I think I was still a little drunk when I woke up this morning."

Pharmie: "Glad you're feeling better!"

Internal Pharmie: Holy crap! That ride out was your legs feeling BAD?!?!

Over all, it was a little chilly, but it was so fun to be riding outdoors again. I was covered in mud splatters by the time I got home, and it made me feel like a little kid. I have no idea how much of the ride yesterday was my legs being tired from the run the day before, how much was just lack of training over the winter, and how much was the fact that I was on my old bike instead of my new one. Since I am looking to build up my speed and endurance this year, though, I really do want to be able to keep up with Matt and Steve. I don't want to have to ride all by myself this summer, especially since there's no Ironman in my future, and I don't need to train myself to be lonely out there!

7 Things About Me

I was dually tagged by Runbubbarun and XT4 to list 7 things about me. So, without further ado, here it goes:

1. I'm a two-time Ironman, but I've actually done very few triathlons. In total, I have completed a duathlon, 2 olys, 2 half-iron distance, and my two Ironmans at IMMOO. I started doing tris 5 years ago when I was in grad school and married to another grad student (read: flat broke). In residency, my every other weekend work schedule wasn't very conducive to racing and even training for that matter. This summer will be the first summer where I may actually be able to afford to race, but I still work every 3rd weekend, so we'll see.

2. My only B in high school was in Phy-Ed. I'm still a little bitter about that 9 years later.

3. I've never lived alone. I moved from my parents' house where there were 7 of us to the dorms in college with a roommate to my college house where there were 6 of us girls. Then I married Steve. I really don't mind being alone, but I find a lot of comfort in being around other people.

4. I always knew I would run a marathon. When I took up running in 10th grade, running a marathon became on of my "things to do before I die." I just didn't know it would happen so fast. I finished my first one the day after my 20th birthday.

5. I asked Steve out nearly 11 years ago. We've been married for nearly 5 years now. He's my best friend.

6. Most people have no idea what I actually do. I am a pharmacist but do not work behind a counter at a retail pharmacy. I work on the floor in a hospital. I have between 30 and 60 patients a day. Each day, I look at every one of my patients' profiles. I make sure hat each drug they are on is appropriate for their age, weight, kidney and liver function, condition, and allergies. I look back at the medications they were taking at home and help the doctors decide when it's appropriate to restart them. I help the physicians make sure we're not forgetting to add any medications or to discontinue medications when they're no longer needed. I check for drug interactions in patients' profiles, I monitor drug levels, and I look at labs each day, including cultures, to help the physicians determine the best possible therapy for each patient. A lot changes in 24 hours in a sick patient, so I do it every day for each of my patients. I leave when my work is done, not when the clock reads a certain time. It challenges me every day, but I love it.

7. Diamonds are supposed to be a girl's best friend, but I prefer athletic gear!

I think this one has been going around the blogosphere for a while, so if you haven't been tagged yet, you're it!

Race Me, I'm Irish!

I really am 1/4 Irish, so the title is at least partially true, but I use the word race rather loosely. I really think I've forgotten how a little bit, and that's what this year is for - to relearn it.

Sunday was the “Saint Patrick’s Day Human Race” 8K, the first 8K race I've run in 7 years. It was a rather interesting start because the race was only 3/4 of a mile from our house. Steve had pre-registered us, so we left the house just about 12 minutes before the gun was scheduled to go off. We snapped this picture right before we left.

I know any warm weather readers out there are shuddering at the thought of shorts when it's 32 degrees outside (and at the sight of our pale, pale legs), but in Minnesota at the end of winter, that's a heat wave. In fact, after our jaunt to the start of the race, I put my number on my shorts anticipating possibly needing to shed the long sleeves. Two miles into the race, I was in shorts and a short sleeved shirt, and that's how I ran. Even then I was sweating like I was on some beach in Mexico!

My splits were all over the place. I had my ideal goal time of 40 minutes, which I had no idea if I could really do, my decent run goal of 42:30, and my last resort goal of 45 minutes.

Mile 1: I went out at what I thought was a pace between 8 and 8:30 and felt OK. When I hit the lap button, it read 8:18. Not too bad for where I was hoping to be.

Mile 2: Just trying to keep the pace and assessing whether I would be able to hold it for another 3 miles. This is also where I went for the short sleeves and blinded everyone around me. Pace: 8:22 Still doing OK.

Mile 3: They had us go around a little loop before heading back. I contemplated whether I really needed to stop for water, but I ended up doing it. I also had to stop dead in my tracks when a volunteer stepped right in front of me. Time: 8:43 - not great, but expected.

Mile 4: I have no idea what happened here. I thought I was pushing it, but the clock read otherwise: 8:42.

Mile 5: I started kicking it with a mile left. "Just like training, just like intervals," I kept telling myself. One after one I was passing people. I heard Steve cheering for me at the finish line, "Go Sarah, way to go Sarah!" Somehow It did not surprise me that he had managed to hijack the microphone. I hit my watch one last time: 7:24.

Something tells me I probably should have run the first 4 miles a little faster, but it's all part of racing again. Total time was 41:28, right between goals 1 and 2. Place was 545 out of 1033, so I didn't quite make the top half. There was some really tough competition there though, so I don't feel to bad about it. I had a great time and hope to do it again next year!

Does This Workout Make My Butt Look Big?

So, first, an update: the past month has looked something like this: work, family time, squeeze in a workout, repeat. Work is still crazy. The hospital is busting at the seams with no end in sight. But alas, wrestling season is over, our new nephew has officially been dedicated at church, birthdays have been celebrated, and a good time was had by all. Well, almost all.

Our wrestling team didn't make it past the Goliath that is JCC, and neither did any other team in our class for that matter. After winning our section, they creamed everyone at the state meet. My little brother Mike won the section meet in his weight class (215), and I am so proud of him. He lost in the first round at state, though, in a match he should have easily had. It just wasn't his day. Seeing his face after that match was heartbreaking. On the flip side, his buddy Jake won the gold at state for the 140 pounders, and it was so much fun to see him and a lot of other kids we've watched over the years finish out their high school careers on the mat. I'm slowly getting over the withdrawl.

Marathon training started last week, which reminds me, I should probably get to those 1200s I'm scheduled to do tonight. We found a 3 day a week running program called the FIRST program. It'll be a good one for me for several reasons. It'll make me get more out of my runs, which admittedly I've not been doing the past few years. It will hopefully make me faster, and it leaves plenty of room for tri training. One run per week is intervals, one is tempo, and the long run is supposed to be at a pretty good clip too. No fluffy runs. The past few years have been really busy with a wedding, rotations, residency, and Ironman(s). My runs were spent getting in miles of any quality. Hopefully that will be changing this year.

I took my measurements before I started back to base training this year. Two months later, I've lost an inch in my waist and gained nearly an inch in the hips (read: booty). I guess the extra speedwork combined with the spinning workouts at the Y are shifting the proportions around a little!

We're finally warming up! Thirties to fifties this week, and the shorts are back out. YAHOOOOOO!!

Round Two

Dome intervals again tonight! Unfortunately, it's the only running I've gotten to do in a week. I had to work the weekend, and the extra snow and cold temps have kept me inside at spinning class. So, last week I said I felt faster already, and apparently I am. I did 2 more intervals (8) with 20-30 seconds less time in between. Drum roll please...they were about 5 seconds average faster than last week!

I've got wrestling fever. No, it's not something I caught as a result of Valentine's Day. My youngest brother is wrestling this weekend in team section tourneyment, and it's all I can think about. We're seeded #4 in state, and we have to get by the #1 seeded team to make it out of our section. I probably won't be able to talk on Monday. I'm a screamer. Updates later!

I Feel Faster Already

So this year... me, speed, trying to combine the two. It sounds easy but I assure you it's not. I am S-L-O-W, but last night, I felt a little faster. I decided to take advantage of a program held Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Metrodome (where the Twins and Vikes play). It's only a dollar, and you can run for up to 3 hours. Since my marathon training program will require me to start doing intervals, I figured I'd better get used to them. Minnesota sidewalks in February = tretcherous, so running inside sounded like a great idea.

The dome "track" measures approximately 630 meters per lap on the side that I was running, so my goal was to run 5 intervals at 7:30 pace with two minutes rest in between. I know 2 minutes is a long time, but I wanted to ease into them a little bit. I liked them so much, I did 6. I'm not even joking. The goal was to hit my laps at around 3 minutes, which would be just a little over 7:30 mile pace. (I do realize that this is slower than Steve's half marathon pace a week ago).

Splits:
3:06
3:02
2:57
2:56
2:58
2:54

I've got a lot of work to do before June, but I felt really strong the whole time, and I'm actually excited to go back next week. Maybe this speed stuff will be fun after all!

I Want My Belly Button Dimple Back! You Can Keep the Porno Boobs.

Well, It's winter, and I've put on my usual layer of Christmas cookie chub. The extra layer usually just makes me extra curvy, and it goes away in the spring. At least it usually does. But my metabolism isn't the same as it was a couple of years ago, and my activity level while I'm at work is basically nil since I'm on the computer so much. All of this plus no Ironman training have me a little worried that the chub may be a little harder to take off this year.

A couple of days ago, I noticed that my "second belly button" is getting smaller. It's an indent right above my regular belly button where the muscles come together. I've always been pretty proud of it, and I want it back! Here's a pic of my abs from a couple of years ago. The face has been removed because, well, let's just say we were in Mexico, I'd had a couple of frosty beverages, and the resultant expression in the pic was not flattering.

If you look close, you can see my second belly button.

It's always been one of my secret goals to get a 6 pack. I may have had one briefly in high school. Not really sure if it's possible, but I at least want my old abs back! My sister's boyfriend seems to think that 6 packs don't belong on girls. Anybody else got an opinion?

As you may have guessed from the title, the winter curviness has occurred everywhere. This may make Steve happy, but it's not too much fun to squeeze into a sports bra that was hard to breathe in in the first place. Those girls gotta go.

I'm super excited that my marathon training starts in 4 weeks! I'll talk more about the plan later. It's really going to focus on speed, and it only requires 3 days of running per week - perfect for triathletes. The last couple of years have been spent running for the sake of logging miles. I'm excited for my runs to have a purpose again. That means intervals, though. Ugh. I haven't done running intervals in years, and tonight I start at them again. Wish me luck!

St. Paul Winter Carnival Half Marathon Sherpa Report and "Winter" Running in Minnesota

Saturday was the St. Paul Winter Carnival Half Marathon. A month or so ago, I had planned on running it, but my longest run in the past month has only been 8 miles. I knew I wouldn't have a problem finishing, but I've done plenty of runs lately because I can, not because I'm ready. Plus, I was really excited to e Steve break 1:30 - his "crazy goal time." He wasn't sure he could do it. I knew better :) We got there about an hour early, and while Steve stretched, I snapped photos and looked for other bloggers. We saw Jeremy pretty early on, and IronGirlNyhus spotted me near the start line. IronMomJenny wasn't far behind her. We stopped for a quick photo before the start with one of their friends. I feel terrible that I can't remember her name!.

After the gun went off, I started out for my own run. I had hoped to go 8 or 9 miles, but some quick mental math and I realized that I may not make it back to see Steve finish, so I backed it off and only went 7.5. My legs were a little hashed from a couple of hill workouts in spinning class Wednesday and Friday anyway. I wanted to make sure I was at the finish line with plenty of time to spare just in case Steve way exceeded his goal, so I got there 10 minutes early. He was right on time, though, and he finished 1:29:13. I knew he could do it! I'm so happy that someone in our house is fast! We waited around for a while, and it wasn't long before Jeremy crossed the finish line. IronGirlNyhus came in a little while later, but I didn't get to see Jenny finish. By then most of my body was frozen, and I needed to warm up. Sorry Jenny!

Today it was 40 degrees! I managed to only work an 8 hour day and made it home with daylight to spare. I donned my hawt new running skirt and was soon out the door for a tempo run. At the turn around, I was overheating a little, and by the time I got home, I was in short sleeves too. I got a couple of crazy looks, but it did make my splits faster. I negative split my return by about a minute. Tomorrow we're back to normal January. It's supposed to cool off 40 degrees in the next 24 hours and be below 0 by tomorrow at this time.

Spring Cleaning!

Things are looking a little different around here. I thought I'd spiff up the the place since cobwebs collected in it for so long. Plus, the heat wave we're getting this weekend (30s!) has me excited for spring. Profile updated? Check. Title updated? Check. Bloggy buddies updated now too. I'm sure I'll think of more blogs that I like to stop in on, but for now, this is what I've got. If I've forgotten anybody, please leave a comment or send me an email. I'd love to link you! Coming soon: my 2008 race schedule. It looks to be a speedy year!

I'm Back!!

Well, after a much needed hiatus, I'm back. I figure since I'm now officially signed up for my next marathon, I should really be posting again. More on my 2008 season plan to come soon. A brief update on my last 2 months:

* My car was stolen in late November. It was quite a educational experience. Who knew that an 18 year old car with 190K miles on it would be so easy to steal, and who knew the whole thing would be such a pain in the butt to deal with? It's amazing how many times over you're victimized when your car is stolen. I took the bus to work most days. Sometimes Steve gave me rides. The thought taking the bus to the Y for a workout after I finally made it home for the day though, was not very enticing. Needless to say, I didn't make it there for the full month that my car was being fixed. My workouts were limited to running outside for a month or so.

* After the radio and window were fixed and the steering column was replaced on my car, a huge hole blew threw the muffler, and we decided smokey had to go. So, this is what I've been driving around for the last 3 weeks:

Since I've never had a car with less than 160,000 miles, it is a little scary to drive a car that's only 2 years old, but I'm getting very used to doors, locks, and speakers that work. Plus, the remote start has come in handy this week. Bonus: both of our bikes should fit in the hatchback this summer!

* I spent 6 weeks in November and December sick. A nasty cold, another nasty cold, and a horrible case of food poisoning to top it off. Um...not fun. I think I'm finally on the upswing though.

* Two weeks ago, we had a warm spell in Minnesota. It was around 35 degrees, and I ran in shorts. Today, the high here is -2 degrees. I am so not a Minnesotan.

Man...I Don't Even Come to My Blog Anymore!

It's true. For the last couple of weeks, I've maybe visited my blog twice, and even that's probably being generous. Steve's blog has been much more fun to read lately. Going to my blog just reminds me of one more thing I'm behind on, and that's not really anything I want to worry about now. Plus, there's really nothing to report. I've essentially taken 2 months off since Ironman, aside from a marathon, a couple of runs, a bike ride or two, and some inline skating. I haven't even been in the pool since September. Yeesh. I've really let myself go.

Work has been crazy lately, although when is it not? I switched from the Surgical, Trauma and Neurosurg Unit to a General Medicine floor. I knew the switch would happen in October when I was hired in July, but I didn't really stop to think what that would mean for me - learning a whole new area, new teams, new nurses, and a new way to structure my day. Needless to say, I'm still learning all of that. I started just over two weeks ago by working a 70 hour week to begin a 10 day stretch. I get home at night and am so exhausted from being "on" all day that I can't muster much of anything. Looks like this week will be another long one. Is it Friday yet?

We no longer have free dial-up (ie any sort of internet access) at home, so if I want to get up a blog post, I need to stay at work after already having been on the computer for at least 10 hours. Lately, I've been choosing to catch up on others' blogs and then going home. Sorry folks, there's really not much to report here anyway.

I haven't completely been ignoring triathlon and running, though. 2008 is just around the corner, and I've been working on The Big Plan. It's been a while since I had a fast season, so it's about time I dug one up again. The last two years have been very slow as far as race times go because I trained my body to do that for Ironman. This year, there's no Ironman to slow me down, and I've got PR fever. More on all of this later. For now, just wanted everyone to know I'm still alive. I'll try to report on something a little more exciting next time!

26.2 and 27

Yeesh. Well, it's been a while. So what have I been up to? Well, I have been putting my life back together in the form of deep cleaning my house, sorting through our basement (which hadn't been touched since we moved), working some extra hours (those were nice paychecks), getting Tony fitted so we can officially ride together next season, and trying desperately to reconnect with the friends and family I have abandoned for the past two years. Oh yeah, and I ran a marathon two days ago.

I know I posted a while ago that after last year, I had resolved not to run a marathon so close to Ironman. When it came time to sign up for the TCM this year, though, I just had to. The promise of an extra week of recovery time, my sister signing up for her first, the chance to run 8 in a row, and the race being on my birthday all pushed me to do it, and before I knew it, I had forked over the money last May.

I honestly didn't know what to expect on race day. The marathon was pretty much a C race for me. I had put in the training for IM and knew it would be enough to get me through the marathon. I spent the month in between the two recovering and hoping that the terrible pain I experienced during the marathon last year wouldn't show up if I took it extra easy, so that's exactly what I did. A few short runs and some inline skating was the extent of my workouts between September 9 and October 7. My ultimate goal was to be there with Steph and to run with her all the way to the finish line, but I knew that given the circumstances, it might not be possible.

As most of you probably know, Steve spent the weeks leading up to my birthday scheming for one heck of a surprise for race day. He, my brother Matt, Steph's boyfriend Jon, and my brother Mike all dressed up as a farmer and 3 crazy barnyard animals to come cheer us on. I never peeked at his blog, or his car, or his studio, and I about died when I came downstairs Sunday morning to find them in full costume. When we were stuck in traffic on the off ramp trying to get to the start, they were dancing up and down between the stopped cars to the tune of horn honks, people shouting and cheering, and a whole lotta laughs and smiles. It's an image that will be burned in my memory for a long time!

In the 8 years I've done this marathon, there have been all sorts of temperatures and conditions, but this year was a hot one -the hottest day the marathon has ever had. I found out Sunday night that they were 1.5 degrees from cancelling the day altogether. We started in the low to mid 70s with 90% humidity and full sun. We worked our way up to 84 degrees with 60 to 70% humidity. I know that for a lot of people, this really doesn't sound that bad, but people trained for the 50-60 degree average, and with that humidity, you're basically in a pressure cooker. It was just plain miserable.

I stuck with Steph for the first half, but when I started to feel like I was going to lose my Shot Blocks, I told her to go on so I could walk. I knew that If my food didn't start digesting, I'd be in big trouble. Plus, I had been slightly cold with goosebumps all over my body for miles and was a little concerned that the heat was getting to me (lots of people did go down with heat stroke, a few of them with body temps of 108 degrees). So I run-walked the rest of the race. I found Steve and the gang at mile 15, and they were having a blast. I've never been a race where it was so easy to find my support crew, but you don't miss a bright yellow chicken standing next to a pig and a cow with the farmer close by! My theme of the day was "it's my birthday and I'll walk if I want to." I saw my friends Sarah, Trevor, and Maddy a little further into the race, and they all wished me happy birthday. I gave them all very sweaty hugs.

I was dumping water on my back and head, but the soaking wet front was all me.

The rest of the race was pretty uneventful. I did run/walk intervals and took ice whenever I could get it. I was really disappointed that the race never provided any, but TCM is known for its spectators, and they came through with flying colors the second half of the race. I did my usual ice in the hat, sports bra, and mouth and was so much more comfortable. It wasn't long before I saw my farm animal support crew along with my parents, my grandpa, and my friends Jess, Tony, and Rachel just before mile 26. I asked them how Steph did, and they told me that she finished really strong (total time 4:41 - over her goal of 4:30, but everyone was over their goal times given the heat). I started to get really choked up. I am so proud of her. I saw her on the way down to the finish line and got choked up again. I crossed the finish line in 5:27, my second slowest marathon ever by far (I did beat last year's pneumonia race time).

I met up with the farm animals and Steph and we stopped for a few pictures.

Matt the Cow, Mike the Farmer, Steph, Jon the Pig, Me, and Steve the Rooster

Can you tell we're sisters?

We went home and cooked a big meal for our cheerers. We finished it off with the perfect birthday marathon food - birthday cake!

Steph (Nov 15th), Mike (Oct 12), and Me (Oct 7)

What I learned from the weekend:
1. I am not an IronJenny. My race times really suffer when my body doesn't have enough time to recover. I'm still not sure whether it's mindset or body recovery time, but I do know that I'm sorer now than I was the Tuesday after Ironman.
2. I am an ice person. When the temps start to creep up, I need ice during races.
3. Never underestimate Steve's creativity. The costumes totally made my day. I love you honey!

Ironman Wisconsin Race Report

I have the day off today! I went back to work Tuesday after Ironman to find that I was scheduled to work 18 of 19 days in a row. Since I worked 10 days straight up to Ironman to get my 4 days off, I was not exactly excited. Yesterday I found out that I actually only work 17 of those 19 days, and today was a bonus day off. Yahoo!! So, first thing this morning, I’m getting this very long overdue race report up. It will likely be a very long one, so grab a cup of coffee :)

Pre-Race

Ironman is different the second time around in many ways. The most comforting for me this year was that things were much more familiar. Steve and I stayed at the same bed and breakfast in the same room. It was our fourth trip to Madison and the first time that we knew we wouldn’t need directions. We knew where things were at The Terrace. Packing was much more relaxed and methodical. The plan was set.

Best of all, the people that we kind of knew this time last year all felt like old friends.

Friday was all about meeting up with and hanging out with friends. Some of them were old friends by now, some were bloggy friends that we hadn’t yet met in person, and some were brand new faces, but they were all amazing people. The athlete’s dinner on Friday was a blast. I haven’t laughed like that in a long time.

Saturday our personal support crew got into town. My sister Steph, my brother Matt, and Steph’s boyfriend Jon made the trip out, so we treated them to supper. They were there bright and early Sunday morning after a night of debauchery in their hotel room. What great race support!

Race Morning:

Steve and I woke up early, ate our oatmeal, and headed to the Terrace. We took care of a few last minute things in transition, handed our clothes over to Steph, Matt, and Jon, and then the two of us just quietly sat together for a few minutes in the Terrace. Before we knew it, it was time to don the wetsuits and make our way down the helix. It took us over a half an hour to get from the top of the helix into the water. We were all packed together, and Mike Riley kept yelling at everyone to get in the water and move away from shore. The music was blasting, Steve and I were walking hand in hand, and all of the nervous energy was palpable. We finally made it into the water with just a few minutes to spare. We heard Mike Riley tell us we were going to be Ironmen today, smooched one last time, and then the cannon sounded.

The Swim:

Most people have seen pictures by now of the swim. It’s as crazy to experience as it is to look at. There are hands and feet and bodies and heads everywhere. Thankfully, the visibility was pretty good, and I managed to avoid all but one kick to the head. There was plenty of other contact, though, and a few times were downright viscious. Twice I had someone grab my calf and pull backward and once I had someone deliberately shove me from the side. Somehow I managed to be swimming in a pack of people that preferred to be perpendicular to the buoys. There were several times when I looked up only to see a very off-track wetsuit swimming directly across my line of vision, colliding with everyone along the way. For the most part, though, my swim was pretty uneventful. I started far to the right of and behind the buoys, worked my way to the inside, and stayed there. I drafted when I could, which was fairly often, and after I had rounded the buoy that signaled I had 1/4 of my swim left, I knew I was on my way to a big PR. I swam relaxed, but at the same time, I knew I needed to keep up the pace because I didn’t know what the bike would bring. I had no idea. I exited the water in 1:34:07, nearly 20 minutes faster than last year.

T1:

Robby B! He was the first face I recognized coming out of the water. A quick visit to the strippers, and my wetsuit was off! I ran into T1 super excited. I waved escitedly to my famly while running up the helix, and they told me that Steve was already out of the water. He’d had a great swim too.

Secretly, I had been hoping to PR this year, and I knew that I was well on my way. Between my fast and easy swim and the beautiful weather predicted, I was set up to have a great day. I peeled off my swim suit, and a volunteer helped me to get dressed. Before I knew it, I was running out the door. I stopped at the sunscreeners, but apparently not for long enough (I had some CRAZY burns by the end of the day!) I grabbed my bike, and I was out – 8:32.

The Bike:

As a huge group of us were mounting our bikes right out of T1, one guy just plain fell over. I think he was OK, but I felt really bad for him. What a terrible way to start the bike! I braked down the helix – no need to get crazy here. I had a lot of miles ahead of me. As I made my way onto John Nolan, I noticed that my odometer was acting funny. I looked down at it for a couple of seconds to figure out exactly what the problem was, and I did something really stupid. I stopped paying attention to the road. I think it was only for a few seconds, but all of my adrenaline and excitement probably clouded my judgement. The next thing I knew, I was flying through the air and hitting the pavement. Hard. I have no idea how I landed, but judging from my bruises and scrapes, it was sort of sideways Superman style. I looked over at my bike to even see what happened, and by now you probably know that I hit a construction cone. Of all of the embarrassing things to hit on your bike, a 2 foot high bright orange cone has to be the worst. The spectators let out a horrible noise when I landed. Total shock and concern. One guy ran over to me to make sure I was OK. I was so embarrassed, and I just wanted to get on my bike and get out of there. I have never wiped out like that before. A quick eval revealed that I had some pretty big scrapes and sore spots, but I didn’t think anything was broken on me. I picked up my bike, still a little delirious. I looked down and saw that the chain had come off, so I went to put it on. That’s when I realized that I had a big problem. The chain went on fine, but I couldn’t get the back wheel to move when I turned the pedal. I checked my brakes. They weren’t locked. My handle bar was bent in, though. I bent it back thinking that maybe it was pulling funny on my cables. Still nothing. By now, I was working with a sense of slight panic, extreme embarrassment, and deliberate urgency. I grabbed the brakes and shifted them a little to the side, and finally, the wheel moved, barely. A guy next to me was trying to help. I politely thanked him but told him I didn’t want to get disqualified. I turned the pedals. The wheel was now moving, but it couldn’t make it a full rotation without catching. It was bent. I decided to get on my bike, see how it would work and reassess the whole situation after I had been on it a bit. When at I got on it, the whole crowd cheered, just like they cheer when an injured player walks off a football field after laying there for a few minutes. Totally. Embarrassing. I have no idea how long I was stopped there. Maybe five minutes? Maybe ten? It didn’t matter. I was back on my bike and on a mission. I made it another mile or two before I needed to stop. My odometer magnet was rubbing on my frame, and the wheel was still rubbing against my brakes. I readjusted and forged on. Still rubbing. My wheel was just totally bent, and I knew there was nothing more I could do. Lots of people passed me, which is normal when I start the bike leg, but instead of light spinning, I was working hard to muster a 13 mph average with the wind on my back. That’s when I realized that I’d never make it. My legs were already feeling fatigued after only a few miles. There was no way I’d get over the hills on that wheel. A couple of people mentioned that my wheel looked like something was wrong as they passed me. One of them was Bob, a great guy that I had met at WIBA and had seen again at the Chisago half. I told him about the crash, and he wished me luck.

I felt a little sorry for myself, but I knew it was my own fault. I had thrown away a good swim and a beautiful day because I had stopped paying attention for a couple of seconds. I normally pray a lot on the bike leg during triathlons. It’s definitely the lonliest part and the part where the most can go wrong. I prayed even more unusual this day, though. I prayed to God, and I prayed for my Grandma Aggie to be with me.

I know I’ve mentioned my Grandma before. She died of a massive heart attack 5 years ago at the age of 62. She was an amazing woman, my hero. She learned to downhill ski in her 50s. She took us grandkids on roller coasters and any other adventure we could talk her into, and she was always, always there for us. Call it what you will, but I’ve always felt her presence with me during tris. At about mile 6, I asked her to be with me, and in my head, I knew that she was telling me that she was but that there was nothing she could do. I had to get to the next aid station. I pedaled on. At mile 12 or 13, I hit the aid stations. I hoped there was either tech support there or someone who could call tech support for me. I was in luck! One of the Inside Out guys was there! “Can you true a wheel?” I begged. I thought that even if he could straighten it a little, I may still have a shot at making it the next 100 miles. “Well, let’s see here, I might have…” He trailed off. “Let’s go back to my car.” We walked several hundred feet back to his race support vehicle, and then he did the most amazing thing. He pulled out a shiny new wheel that he said I could use for the rest of the bike (they put the broken one back on in T2). I breathed the biggest sigh of relief and started telling him and the other guy working there how much I loved them. I didn’t know that the race support guys offered such extensive services. He put my cassette on the new wheel, made sure everything else looked OK, and around 20 minutes later, I was off and absolutely grateful. Good thing I didn’t need a front wheel. They had already given that one away, and I got their only back wheel. Guess someone really was watching out for me. (Side note: I sent Inside Out Sports a love letter Tuesday after Ironman. I never got a reply, so I really hope that the right people got the email.)

I spent the next 100 miles telling myself to keep moving and that I was nt allowed to complain. It was truly a gift to be able to ride those miles at all. The accident could have been so much worse. I could have been seriously hurt or my bike could have been completely out of commission. I was riding on a borrowed wheel and a prayer – lots of them actually. I enjoyed the other riders out there. I took in the scenery once again, and I had fun with the fans. I got to see Triteacher, Matt from WIBA, and Jeremy from the Chisago half. I thought of Steve many times out there, especially when I passed the alfalfa fields. He’s such a farm boy. He loves that smell. I prayed again for now flats and for a smooth finish. I knew that 20-30 minutes to spare would be cutting it close, but I made it in with a smile on my face. Bike time: 8:36:30 - WAY slower than last year’s time in the cold rain, but considering the circumstances, I am happy I finished it at all. My cheering section was waiting for me at the end of the bike. I was so happy to see them and relieved when I found out that they hadn’t seen me crash 111 miles earlier. I told them about the crash, and they told me that Steve was doing well on the run.

T2:

IM Able once said that the reason that the marathon is so doable after a 112 mile bike ride is because you’re so darn happy to get off the bike. She is absolutely right. My butt and feet couldn’t have been happier to be off my bike. I saw Siren on my way into the change room, and she helped me get my bag. I changed my clothes and was about to run out the door when I heard a “SARAH!” I turned around to find Iron Wil just behind me. We had both thought that given our times in races all summer, we’d probably meet somewhere on the run, but I had assumed that my bike crash had nixed that possibility. “TRACEEEE!” I squealed like a four year old. Then we gave each other the biggest hug. “Here, I’ll wait for you. Let’s get you dressed. We’re gonna DO this!” That girl is one speedy changer, and in just a couple of minutes, we were out the door together.

The Run:

We ran together off and on for miles. I told her the story of my crash, and we both kept saying how we couldn’t believe that we had found each other in T2. I was so excited for her. She looked strong, and I knew that this was going to be her year. The run was actually pretty uneventful. I saw Steve at about mile 3 or 4 (his 11 or 12), and he said that he wasn’t feeling so good. I was all prepared to give him a pep talk the next time I saw him, but he looked really strong, and I knew he’d be just fine. I am so proud of him. I met up with Bob from WIBA again at about mile 14 1/2. “You made it!” he exclaimed, and I told him my story. I reminded him that we needed to be at State Street by 10:30 and then it was all about the finish. I knew I’d soon be able to call him Ironman. I also saw Erin, Stu, Tri Dummy, and a few others I knew out there - all ahead of me of course, and they looked great!

Miles 21 to 25 1/2 were pretty tough for me. My quads were giant knots, and I ended up walking most of those miles. I was disappointed that I wasn’t going to beat last year’s time, but I was grateful for the day and for the chance to finish at all. In retrospect, I’m not sure if it was the extra cranking on the bike or dehydration that did me in. I only peed once during the whole race. I think the dry air on the bike made me underestimate how much fluid I needed to be drinking. My skin felt salty, but I was never visibly sweating. I was a little worried that I was drinking too much, and being a health care provider, I couldn’t help wondering if I was secreting too much ADH and that’s why I wasn’t peeing. By Monday afternoon, I was still 4-6 pounds down from my pre-race weight, so I was really dry after all. Live and learn!

At mile 25 1/2, I started running again, knowing that I couldn’t finish the race walking. I saw Steph just up the road, and she was on the phone with my mom, who was apparently telling me to hurry up and finish already! I ran down the chute high fiving everyone like I was some kind of rock star or something. I sure felt like one. I waved to Matt, Jon, and Steve. Mike Riley was standing in the chute telling me that I was an Ironman, and then the race was over. 16:19:45, 27 minutes slower than last year. Xt4 put a finisher’s medal around my neck and gave me a huge hug. Thomps came up to tell me that although the second time around is harder than the first, I didn’t need to make it harder. More hugs. I got my picture taken with my medal and then turned around to see Wil. She finished just around a minute behind me. We both lost it. We’d done it. We were Ironmen, both of us, and we just sat there in a big sobbing embrace knowing what that meant.

I got to see Steve in the finisher’s area. It was the first time I saw him as an Ironman. I am just so proud of him. What a beautiful gift for us to be able to do this together.

Then I saw Bob. Bob, if you’re reading this, I absolutely knew you’d do it. I got your comment, and my email is lind1126@umn.edu. I’d love to read your story. I think I interrupted a moment between him and his wife to tell him congratulations. More hugs and tears.

Steve and I met back up with my family. They put in a crazy amount of hours that day just to cheer Steve and me on out there. I hope they know how much it meant to me. I shared with them the full battle story and showed them the resultant carnage.

Bruise on my left leg.

My right hip

My left hand. Notice the nasty bruise on the heel.

The real stinger - my right elbow.

I got to See TacBoy and Greyhound as finishers and told them my story. Soon after, I learned that IM Able, though she put up a great fight, just didn’t have her day. I am so sorry, girl.

We collected our bags and bikes and walked back to our hotel. I showed them my broken bike, and it was so hard to drag that Matt just carried it the whole way. I don’t know how I made it those first 12 miles.

I didn’t sleep that well. Usually after long workouts, I sleep like a rock. After really tough ones, though, it hurts every time I move. Still, that king sized bed with the really great sheets couldn’t have felt better.

The next morning, we went back to The Terrace to buy some finisher’s gear and to pick up our certificates. I saw Bubba and Stu who both had amazing PRs. Great job guys! Then Steve and I drove home so he could teach a class and I could get started on 10 loads of laundry and lots and lots of dinner.

If I’ve forgotten anybody in my race report, I’m really sorry. Everyone out there at Ironman helped to shape my experience, and it meant the world to me. It was a pretty rocky day, but I wouldn’t have traded it for anything. Guess I just had to earn this one!

The Aftermath

I know that I owe a whole lotta race report. I finally got caught up on everyone else's blogs, but I think I need go get home and finish the 10 loads of laundry I started yesterday so I can still have early lights out. So... I thought I'd throw up a quick post about my battle wounds. Steve has pics, and I'll get them up sometime soon, but I've been showing them to people for the last two days. Somehow I think they make me look cool, so I've been acting like a proud 5 year old.

Bruises:
right hip
inside of left knee
top of left knee
palm of left hand
right elbow

Scabs:
inside of right ankle
sports bra mark at the top of my abdomen/bottom of my chest
right elbow (that one's a beaut!)
back of neck (my wetsuit has never rubbed there before)

Sunburn:
patchy areas all over my body - guess I should have spent more time in T1 with the sunscreeners!

General Soreness:
all over, but not too bad - all of the above actually hurt worse

Yes, I am an Ironman, and I've got the scars to prove it! More on how I got 'em to come :)

Ironman Times Two!

Just a quick post to say that I finished IM MOO #2 this evening. My time wasn't stellar compared to last year, but boy to I have stories to tell! More after I've slept a little.

Race Day Tomorrow!

Yikes! Well, I guess it's go time. Off to bed soon. It will be an early morning alarm clock. I am SO excited to be toeing the line with my best friend tomorrow. It's been a whole year since we decided to sign up together, and I couldn't be prouder of him.

Hopefully by this time tomorrow night, Steve will have finished and I'll be coming in soon. A reminder - Steve is number 386, and I'm 2023. You can track us on Ironman Live here.

Good luck to all the other athletes tomorrow!

Ironman Powers Unite!

This just in from Steve. I was too busy writing a nasty letter to Specialized since they decided not to cover my brother's bike under warrenty.

This is Phamie and I along with a bunch of our blogger buddies after getting checked-in at Ironman! Everyone rubbed my smooth body for good luck – I wasn’t ready for that! We now have our official IM bracelets on that give us all access.

We got to our hotel, unloaded our bikes, walked to the Terrace (IM headquarters) to get registered, grabbed a quick bite, met up with bloggers, hit the free pasta meal, and sat through the meeting of all of the rules.

Afterward, Pharmie and I found our spots in transition. She’s 2023, and I’m 386:

Tomorrow, we’re going for a final test swim in Lake Monona, load our bikes and gear bags in transition, and meet up with some family and friends.

Distractions

Am I excited for Ironman? Yes. Am I nervous for Ironman? Of course. It's the way I feel the week of any big race, so I'm doing what I do before every one- I'm ignoring it. I'm choosing to do or think things that keep me from wasting all of my energy on nervous excitement. I'll let myself get excited when we roll into Madison Friday morning. In the meantime, I'm having no trouble focusing my attention elsewhere, especially after Monday night. Apparently they don't call it LABOR Day because it's fun. It started with an early alarm clock and then off to work - day 8 of 11 in a row. It was a whole lotta craziness, and 11 hours later, I was more than happy to be leaving for home. I had hoped to get in one last medium bike ride as per my plan, but it gets so dark so soon now. I guess I'll have to trust my training and know that that last 45 miles isn't going to make that big of a difference on Sunday.

When I got home, I found that my mom, God bless her, had sent back two grocery bags of fruits and veggies. I started in on making some zucchini bread only to get a phone call. "Hey, can you come pick us up? We got into a pile up and our bikes are out of commission." It was my brother Matt. A couple of detours in the ghetto and two phone calls later, we finally found each other in the dark. Matt's bike was a mess. His carbon rear fork had broken into 3 pieces on one side, his tire was missing several spokes, and that's just to start with. He had swerved to miss a toddler on training wheels who had torn out in front of him. The kid wasn't wearing a helmet, so 2 220 pound guys cruising at 20MPH very well could have killed him. Thankfully, Matt and Logan were OK aside from a little road rash.

On the drive home, I joked that my car was making some funny noises and that it was about to die. Matt agreed to look at it when we got home. My car had other ideas. Waiting at a stoplight, we heard a THWUNK, and then the funny noises stopped - not a good sign. We guessed it was the serpentine belt, and the immediate rise in engine temp confirmed it. We made it to a side street before ruining the whole motor, but we weren't getting home. All we could do was laugh sitting there on the curb at 9 PM on a holiday. Matt and Logan vowed to never forget their IDs again since there was a bar 4 blocks away and they couldn't gain admittance.

Long story short: more phone calls, Steve came with backup car #2, Logan called AAA, car got towed to our house (Matt put in a new water pump last night), Matt's bike is in the shop (nobody there had ever seen this happen before. They're evaluating whether they'll replace the whole frame for free), Logan's bike is heading to the shop this weekend. Oh, and our washing machine died last night.

Taper Nutrition

More on Ironman in a day or so. Just finished work and gotta get home to get in a short ride. Steve and I went to the Minnesota State Fair this week and indulged. Not as much as we could have, but we indulged. Final count: Itialian fried zapollis (sp?) with canolli cream inside, a huge piece of turkey jerkey, a strawberry malt, breadsticks with cheese and sauce, a pronto pup (that was all Steve, I couldn't eat one of those things), oh and the COTTON CANDY.

Hey, we could have gotten much crazier. It ended up being just over $20 for our night of junk food...enough to last us another year.

Message That Made Me Smile Yesterday

Um, hi. this is Matt from your local bike shop, and, well, I think your bike's rear wheel needs its bearings replaced. It's probably gonna cost another $25. Just give us a call and let us know if it's OK to go ahead. (pause) Looks like this bike's got a LOT of miles on it.

Yes, yes it does.

The Ride That Did Not Break Me

Let me first start this post with a disclaimer. I take good care of my bike, I really do (well, often with Steve’s help). I wash her and lube her and take her in for her maintenance when it comes do. I figured that it would be coming do really soon; might as well get in one more long ride before taking her back to the LBS. She was fine when we left the house on Sunday. She was coming due for a new chain but that was about it. Please keep this in mind.

I woke up at 8:30 on Sunday and my friend Jess’s fabulous cabin. I had only spent 36 hours there, but it was exactly enough time to do some much needed catching up with my amazing undergrad friends. I even managed to get in a 5.5 mile run and a 75 minute swim in on Saturday. Steve and I left the cabin early so we could get in our last bike ride. I was hoping for 112 miles. We were home around 11 AM – plenty of time to get my bike ready and prepare all of my nutrition. I guess there’s something to be said about that “too many cooks in the kitchen” saying. Seconds after warning Steve to steer clear of my uncapped bottle of Carbo Pro, I managed to knock his bottle onto the floor, the cupboards, and myself. Thank God it wasn’t my bottle. I had 16 scoops of carbo pro in mine (over 1700 calories), his only contained 6 scoops. Either way, it ended up being a super sticky mess and took us a good 10-15 minutes to clean up our splattered kitchen, not exactly in my pre-ride planned time allotment.

If I had been preparing for last year’s Ironman, the conditions would have been perfect. It was mid-50s and misting when Steve and I left the house. This time around, though, I was a little better dressed!. We rode together for a couple of miles before wishing each other luck.

The first 20 miles or so were pretty uneventful. It misted and sprinkled off and on, and even though it was a little chilly, I didn’t even need my windbreaker. Then it started raining. It never quite poured, but it came as close as it possibly could. It rained for two or three hours before reverting back to a sprinkle. Honestly, I sort of lost track by that point. My feet were soaked as was the rest of me. Everything was covered in mud and sand, and I made it my goal of the day not to eat too much of it. I probably lost more fluids in spit than in sweat over the course of my ride. I was pretty miserable for a while out there and thought of so many reasons why I should turn around and go home, but I persevered. I rode The Big Nasty 4 times, squeezing my brakes with everything I had each time, afraid of what would happen if I slipped on the wet roads going more than 30 miles per hour. My bike squeaked and creaked with every shift. The chain lube had long washed off and had replaced by sheer grit. By the end of the ride, it took some crafty work to get it to shift at all. Around mile 60, one of my aerobar rests died. They are spring loaded so I can lean down on them or put my hands under them when I’m not in aero, but one of the thousands of bumps in the county road must’ve been the last straw. It ended up in the down position, floppy and lifeless, but it still worked so I pressed on. Around mile 80, I realized that there was no way I would fit in a full 112. My average MPH was actually higher than last week’s, even with the wind, the rain, and 4 trips up Big Nasty. I had a near miss with an overzealous car turning left earlier in the week, though, and didn’t want to take another gamble. I decided to go for 107. By the time I hit 2 miles from home, there wasn’t a glimmer of daylight left. On the last 1/2 mile pedaling toward my house, I knew something didn’t feel right. Sure enough. I was halfway to a flat rear tire by the time I reached my front steps.

106.5 miles of hills.
One very squeaky bike that refuses to shift on command.
A flat, floppy arm rest for my aerobars.
Over 8 hours of rain.
A heck of a cold day.
A flat on my Gatorskins (that's only happened one other time in 3 years).

Despite all of it, my attitude for the day was actually pretty good! I took my bike to the LBS yesterday, absolutely embarrassed for anyone to see her in this condition. I know they’ll take good care of her, though. Turns out that in addition to the aerobar, the tire, the overdue chain, and the general servicing due, my rear hub has also come loose. She’ll be there for 4 days :( I just hope she comes out of it OK and that we can still be friends. I’ll need her help again in under 3 weeks!

How Do You Get Over a Bad Swim?

You go for an amazingly fast bike ride! Steve and I tried out a local outdoor 50M pool a couple of days ago. It wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was imagining the sun on my back, a crystal clear pool, cool calm water, and no ladies on noodles. Bear with me people. I'm used to the indoor Y, and my last outdoor pool experience was at a posh hotel's adult only pool in Florida. Reality check: the locker room smelled a lot like pee, the pool was full of leaves, huge pool monkeys, and other random chunks, there was still a water aerobics class taking up half the pool, and the water was really choppy. I'm not sure if the choppiness was coming from the wind, the aerobics class, the other swimmers, or a combo of all 3, but I felt like I was going to drown for most of my swim (side note - I'm used to choppy water. I just wasn't expecting it in a pool). It was one of the worst swims I've ever had. It was a good mental toughener, though, which is exactly why I'll be going back next week.

Right after the swim, I went on a beautifully flat ride with my brother Matt. Those pedaling legs I wasn't gifted with apparently went to him. The guy is a machine. I struggled to keep up with him a bit, but I wanted to get in a good fast ride, so I pedaled my butt off instead of begging him to slow down. I cheated a little on the way back and drafted behind his 225 pound frame. Wish I could take him out to MOO with me. He makes an amazing draft! We were pulling 18-22 mph most of the ride, which is probably average for most people on the bike, but for me that usually requires a downhill of some sort. I love going fast! If only I could do it all of the time. Back to my hilly course this weekend...sigh. At least I can get some speed heading down those nasty hills!

I Did The Big Nasty Three Times

...um hill that is. I found out that its official name is Myrtle Hill, but I think The Big Nasty is more fitting. It's the type of hill that you have to ride your brakes all the way down for fear of death (especially since it takes you straight into downtown Stillwater), and on the way up, you feel like you'll die for a different reason. It's practically straight up, and it's 0.6 miles long. Every time I went up it, my average dropped about 0.3 MPH. We won't talk about what my average was at the end of day.

Thursday was my big ride of the week. It was my comp day for working last weekend, and since I had family coming to town this weekend, I thought it would be a better day for a ride. Ninety-five degrees and humid are perfect conditions for 106 miles of solid hills, no? Well, apparently not for me. I had a few nutrition issues, which is out of my norm and could only manage a meager 2 mile run after it was over. I was afraid that I was drinking too much on the bike, but when I weighed myself when I got home, I was 2 pounds down. I think I need to rework the enduralytes and water plan for next weekend's 112 miler. I I'll be doing the same course with another loop to hit up Big Nasty 4 times. The whole darn ride is hills, but I know I'll need it in 4 weeks.

Last night Steph and I went on a 20 mile run. I wore my GPS but kept having to mentally recalculate how far we'd gone because the miles flew by. My body felt like it normally does after hitting the pavement for that long, but mentally, it was the easiest run of my summer. Today I have that calm sense of quiet peace that comes with a physically tiring workout. And for some reason, soreness after running is my favorite kind. Maybe it's because it's the most familiar. I've been doing long runs for longer than I've been doing long bikes or swims or weightlifting. Even though it hurts, it feels good in some weird twisted way, more than just a "I must have gotten in a great workout yesterday" kind of way. I'm pretty sure this makes me crazy.

Other highlights of the week: Monday's 3 mile swim went really well, aside from the foot cramps that plagued me off and on. Does anyone else get these?

Last week of full training! This both excites and petrifies me. Parts of me know that I'm ready, but parts of me could use, oh, say another 4 months or so. I remember being at this point last year, having put in the training and going over the "what ifs". I guess you just never really know until you've crossed the finish line.

My 9/11

I know that the two don't even compare, I really do. Cerebrally I can distinguish thousands of people being lost and injured in a terrorist attack against our whole country from (likely) structural collapse of the busiest bridge in my city. I know the difference between the meanings of the two events, between the scale of the two events, between the outcome of the two events. But my heart aches the same way today as it did nearly six years ago.

Ironically, I was on a workout when I found out about both tragedies. I was a mile from home in 2001, just wrapping up a nine miler before class - training for my second marathon. A woman outside a coffee shop told me to go home and turn on my TV. Last night my brother Matt and I were on a great bike ride when we passed an electronic billboard that stated that the I-35W bridge had collapsed into the river during rush hour. When we got home, we found 8 missed calls on his cell phone - worried family and friends. Every channel on TV had the same story. Coverage of the rescue efforts, speculation on the cause, descriptions of the injuries, and the death toll flooded our living room. I watched till I decided I shouldn't anymore and went to bed. We woke up this morning to Matt Lauer reporting from our city. Dozens of reporters were presenting the news outside the hospital where I work. It all seemed so surreal. When I worked up my patients, I actually only had a few from last night's horrific accident. Their injuries are no different than the injuries I see every day, but they somehow seem different. I can't explain it.

The pictures and stories and buzzing rumors are everywhere. I try separate myself from them like I do with all of the rest of the news that spews out of my TV and radio. This time, though, I can't. It's in my backyard. I was just running under that bridge a week ago on my long run. I biked by it a few days ago. The news won't stop telling me how many bodies are estimated to be at the bottom of the river. Those people are members of my city, my community.

It's not just the now that has me sad and anxious. An estimated 100,000-200,000 cars cross that bridge each day. Where will all of those cars go? I'm starting to worry whether I will still be able to get to work ok. The new detour will take cars a mile from my home, a route that is already chronically clogged, and the rebuilding will take years. If you don't live in or near a town built along a large body of water, it's hard to imagine just how vital these bridges are to our entire infrastructure as a community.

So as the stories of death and survival and searching and rebuilding and friends and family and community continue to surface, I've decided that it's ok to be sad today. Tonight, though, I'm shutting off my TV and going for a run.

Check In

It was with a heavy heart that I came in to work today, especially since I work on a trauma unit. Many of you have heard about the tragedy of one of our major bridges collapsing during rush hour. Just wanted everybody to know that Steve and I and our families are all safe, but please keep our community in your thoughts and prayers.

I Have No Bike Legs

When I was growing up, a hobby of my family was to participate in kid's pedal tractor pulls. It's basically where they slap a bunch of weight behind pedal tractors of various sizes to accommodate different age groups. The weight moves up the ramp, so it gets progressively heavier. Whichever kid in that age group pulls it the farthest wins. They gave out trophies for the top three finishers in each age group. I never won a stinkin' trophy. The closest I ever came was 4th, and that was usually if there were 4 or 5 participants. My 4 other siblings all won trophies at nearly every event. They all qualified for the state match. Steph and Matt even made it to the national and international meets. It was a pretty big deal. But me? I had to settle for the free can of Dr. Pepper for participating. Every. Single. Time. I am reminded of that today. I don't think I'm genetically programmed to have pedaling strength.

My half Ironman race at Chisago this weekend actually went pretty well. I went into it just hoping to finish around last year's time. I was secretly hoping for at least a little PR, but like I've said, this year's training has not been the same volume as last year. Well, I did PR - by nearly 15 minutes. I have been feeling pretty good about it until today when the official race results came in. My Place? 63 out of 68 women (74 if you count DNFs). I am darn slow in triathlon. Now I've never been fast, but in running races I can usually finish somewhere in the middle. Don't get me wrong. I've never gone out to win a race and found out a long time ago that I cannot compare myself to anyone but myself. Holy cow, though. I had the second slowest bike split of all the women, even though I cut 6 minutes off last year's bike time. So... Here's the lowdown:

Before The Race:
I looked in all of the local bike and run retailers for a suitable tri outfit since I have never owned one. In the past I have either done the whole tri in my swimsuit or changed in transition. After sifting through limited selection in St. Paul, I made the trek out to Gear West, where of course they had plenty of clothes to chose from. I found a great pair of shorts that did not make my legs look like sausages and a top that actually covered my belly button while giving me the extra support I need for the girls. Bonus: I thought I actually looked pretty good in it.

Steve and I got up the morning of the race bright and early at about 0400. He went to work putting our bikes on the car while I filled up the water bottles and lined up anything we hadn't packed the night before. We enjoyed early morning booty music and good conversation during the car ride, and before we knew it, we were in Chisago City. We checked in, set up transition, and joined the masses waiting for the swim start.

The Swim:
Last year, the water was so choppy that I couldn't see they buoys. We swam in a gigantic triangle and I must have swallowed a gallon of water. This year, there were no white caps on the water. I was actually pretty smooth. It was an out and back, which I had never done before in a tri, but it's my new favorite as far as swim courses go. Total swim time: 47:50. Still lots of room for improvement here, but I'm fairly happy with it.

T1:
I threw on my stuff, including an extra pair of bike shorts and my top, and I was off: 3:33.7 later.


The Bike:
I got passed by quite literally everybody on the bike, especially since I started in wave 2 of 6. I ate more than I ever have on the bike, but I was still hungry. I managed to consume 3 packages of Cliff Shot Bloks, 1 pack of fig newtons, my entire water bottle containing 7 scoops of Carbo Pro and 2 scoops of Gatorade, 3 bottles of water, and some Enduralytes. I have never eaten that much on the bike before, but like I said I was hungry. I have said before that this course is fairly comparable to IMMOO, although it is a little easier. It's never really flat and has a couple of pretty descent hills. Parts of the road were TERRIBLE. I remembered them from last year - the road is so rough that you can never really get into a rhythm because you're always bracing yourself. Overall I had a really good bike. I kept a good cadence and was singing to myself for the last mile (the Gambler by Kenny Rogers if you must know). I'm sure I could have gone faster. I just don't know how much faster before totally hashing my legs.

T2:
Off came the bike shorts, on went the running shoes, and I was out: 1:22.1.

The Run:
I started the run feeling a little crampy in my abdomen, and that feeling took a while to go away. It may very well have been all the food I ate on the bike, but I never felt nauseated, just like I had to back off a tad. I knew I was on track to PR over last year's time, so I tried to keep it in gear. I saw Rural Girl for the first time of the day when she had just a couple of miles left. She looked great! I found Steve on his way in a few more miles down the road. He looked spectacular too. He said that his knee was a little sore, but I knew he was going to make it well under 6, the time he expected to come in. We exchanged a smooch and didn't see each other again till the finish line. Turns out I missed seeing Iron Jenny and a few other bloggers out there too. I did stop for 3 minutes to walk halfway through the run to get rid of a little stomach sloshing. I also walked through the water stops. There was ice at nearly stop, and boy did I take advantage of it! I had it everywhere - under my hat, in my sports bra, eating it. It was heavenly! I finished fairly strong. Total run time: 2:18.39, 5 minutes slower than my half mary earlier this season.

Comparison To Last Year (my only other HIM):

Chisago Lakes 2006:
Swim: 50:18
T1: 3:53
Bike: 3:41
T2: 2:25
Run: 2:23
Total: 7:01.59


Chisago Lakes 2007:
Swim: 47:50 PR
T1: 3:33 PR
Bike: 3:35 PR
T2: 1:22 PR
Run: 2:18 PR
Total: 6:47.10 PR

Steve and me after the finish sporting our medals.

The Aftermath:
Well it seems that although I loaded up on sunscreen, I still got crispified. I have been wearing a sports bra to work for two days now because my burns are worst over my shoulder blades where my top came in. Steve and I enjoyed a glorious 45 minute nap after we got home from the race, and then I got to work cooking. I knew that with our race, Steph's 18 mile run, and my brother Matt's 40 mile bike ride, we'd be a hungry bunch. So I made a double batch of sweet and sour chicken with rice, pasta salad, 14 ears of sweetcorn, a turkey tenderloin, and washed up a couple of pounds of grapes. Time it took to all get eaten: 36 hours.

IM Moo, here we come!

Um, Eww

So I don't normally get grossed out. I am a healthcare professional, and as such, my lunches usually consist of discussing topics involving parasites, bodily fluids, or worse. I see and smell things on a daily basis that would leave many people scarred for life. So when I head to the local Y to swim, not much grosses me out there, either. Now I'm not talking about the sights in the locker room. However unpleasant, the naked elderly ladies who just finished their water aerobics class are nothing I haven't seen before. The slimey floor under my feet often prompts me to wear my sandles in the shower, but I can deal with that. The pool monkeys (those gigantic clumps of hair that lurk at the bottom of the pool and follow you till they wrap themselves around your fingers)... well the pool monkeys aren't my friends, but I suppose they're just a part of swimming pools. The other day, however, when I thought I saw a small turd float into my lane, well, that was my tipping point.

I couldn't tell exactly what it was at first. It was small (about the size of a marble) and sort of round. It was staying put for the most part. I tried to ignore it. I told myself that it must be something else. My goggles are getting pretty old and scratched, so I can't see the best. I swam another lap. It was still there, sitting at the bottom. A huge groupe of little kids in the lane next to me got and out and left. I knew I wouldn't be able to finish my workout wondering what the heck it was, so I called the lifeguard's name. She handed me a small net and I scooped it out. I still couldn't tell what it was at first - a rock maybe? I prayed that it wasn't a turd. I handed the net to her. She made the final diagnosis - a bandaid, rolled up really funny. Whew! False alarm! Bandaids do not gross me out. There's lots of them in the bottom of our pool, especially during the summer. I finished my swim and headed home.

My Version of WIBA

If you want to read a really great recap of WIBA 07, head to Steve's or Wil's or Rural Girl's blogs. They've got some great pictures and awesome descriptions of the weekend. Steve put most of our pics on his site, so if you want to see our wetsuit Christmas card worthy picture (amongst others), head on over there. Been working on this post for over a week now. 'Bout darn time I get it up.

I have to admit that I was more than a little nervous heading out to WIBA, for lots of reasons. As I mentioned in my last post, my training hasn't been as strong as I had hoped it to be by this time. I'm certainly not ahead of last year's training and in fact may be a little behind in comparison. Also, being one of WIBA's first year crew, I just didn't think it would be the same. I'm usually more of a small group get to know everybody kind of person. I knew WIBA would be big this year. I just couldn't fathom how big. Steve and made it to dinner just a little late Friday evening (still had to put in a full day at work), but once we got there, my worries started to fade. Our group was HUGE but familiar faces like Tri Al, Wil, Stu, Robby B, and Thomps stood out right away. I also recognized other bloggers from pictures but always feel like a stalker introducing myself, so I waited till Saturday to meet a lot of those folks. We got to sit by some amazing people from Bloomington, IL, and I was quickly reminded that this one thing called Ironman is an instant bond maker. Suddenly our huge group wasn't so scary, and by bedtime Friday night, I was really looking forward to Saturday's swim and ride.

Saturday morning came sooner than I would have liked, but we were up bright and early to squeeze into our wetsuits. We got to meet Taconite Boy at the swim. I was afraid of looking like a stalker introducing myself, something like, "Yeah, you're Tac Boy, right? Um, yeah, I've read your blog." But he was totally cool. Soon Steve, Wil and I jumped into the water and had an amazing time swimming stroke for stroke with each other. Of course we did have to take a few seconds here and there for a good laugh and to make sure our fellow swimmers weren't getting picked off by the ski team practicing a little too nearby. Then it was on to T1!. A little creative changing in the parking ramp helped to prevent Run Bubba Run from seeing a little of Pharmie than he needed to. Before we knew it, we were heading down the ramp toward the rest of the group. The next time I bike down that ramp will be during Ironman. Only 8 weeks away! Steve and I had decided to go with the 72 mile group right away. We didn't know how his knee or my training would hold up, and we were more out to see the course and have a little fun than kill ourselves in the heat. Our group started out really small (only 4 of us decided to do the 72 miler), but it turned out that most of the big group ended up just going 72 anyway. The heat and the hills got to 'em.

My mini group started out as Steve, Thomps, and Widget. I'm not sure if it was because I was the only female, lack of training, or the fact that I'm just plain slow and steady, but I just couldn't cut it with those guys. I tried and I tried, but I was killing myself to barely keep up with their "easy" pace, and even then they were stopping to wait for me. I'm usually the waiter, not the waitee, and for me, it was humiliating. After I told him multiple times, Steve and the guys finally dropped me at around mile 30. I met up with Run Bubba Run and his friend Pam soon after that, but I really couldn't keep up with them either, so I told them to go on. I think Bubba was appalled that Steve would have left me. Honestly, though, I actually felt better once they had all gone. I could finally make it my ride, just enjoying the hills and meeting up with other bikers here and there. I finally got to meet Triteacher, who is just as sweet in person as she is on her blog. I also got to meet a great guy named Mike from the Twin Cities who is training for IM Moo. I had sort of thought that this weekend would be a make or break for me, but it was really neither. It just reaffirmed that I need to kick it into gear even more in these last two months. Steve and I met up at the end of our ride and just went for a one mile run. It was hot and I was in great need of a shower. Day 2 accomplished. We met up with the group at the Great Dane for supper, where Steve proceeded to eat his famous "man burger" with pizza for dessert. I stuck with the sensible fish, vegetables, and rice. The hotel had fresh cookies waiting when we got back, and we both ate those too. Delicious!

Sunday we met up with the group fairly early to try to beat the heat. I ended up running with Wil and Chris Sweet's wife Cara. I can only hope to look like her when I'm 5 months' pregnant someday! The three of us ran together for a while through the early morning streets of Madison before Cara stopped at her car. Wil and I ran together for a while longer and just talked about life and Ironman. It was great to have her there. I can't wait to tow the line with her again on September 9. She put so much work into the weekend along with Stu and Robby B, and it turned out fabulous. WIBA 2007 was another success!

Funny as it sounds, WIBA weekend was a very much needed vacation, even with all of those workouts. For two whole days, I slept, ate well, got to spend some alone time with Steve, and didn't think about remodeling houses, selling houses, paying bills, finishing residencies, starting a new job, or squeezing in my training. I left all of those thoughts on the course, where they belong. It also rejuvenated my training. I know what I have to do to get this done again. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a 2 hour bike ride planned...

Race Report and Confessions

So… What’s in been, like six weeks? I owe anyone who still stops by to see if I’m breathing now and then an apology. I won’t make excuses. First, I guess I’m long overdue for a race report… New Prague Half Marathon. May 12. This was the first race that I’ve run with my sis, Steph, since we did a 5k around 3 years ago. As I mentioned in my pre-race report, I wasn’t going for time. We just wanted to have fun. Plus, I am slow as molasses lately. It was proving to be a gorgeous day as we checked and put on our numbers, and it didn’t take us long to start spotting familiar faces. We saw four different people from our high school there. Turns out my class’s track star is getting pretty big on the local running scene (he ended up placing second with a time of 1:09.25!). I made my customary few trips to the porta potties, so when I felt like I had to pee at the beginning of the race, I chalked it up to nerves. After the start, I realized that I indeed have to go again, so I kept my eyes peeled for another porta potty. Turns out there wasn’t one. I looked for bushes. It was a rural course with lots of hills. Nothing. Since it was just early May, there wasn’t even a cornfield to duck into! By mile 7, I felt my eyeballs floating and couldn’t think about much else, so I when I spotted a potty sitting at the side of the road, I thought it was a mirage. I was in luck! It was the only one on the course, and I had to wait 2 minutes (a long time in a half), but it was SO worth it. Steph and I finished strong. Our splits:
10:09
10:07
10:05
10:22
10:09
9:57
12:25 (bathroom stop)
10:11
9:59
10:04
9:48
9:51

Total time: 2:13.29. Average around 10:16 a mile (just about exactly 10 without the BR stop). The only time I have to compare it to was the half I ran there in 2003, when my time was 1:56.44 with an average of 8:55. Am I settling for mediocrity now? Maybe, but four years ago was a very different time in my life. Someday I’ll go for PRs again. Just not this year. To end a great race with super fun company, we moved 4 Uhauls full of stuff to our new house. I could hardly walk by the end of the night. Oh, and the race shirts? Not ugly! They’re a nice dark grey with blue writing – way cuter than the day-glow yellow ones they gave out a few years ago.

So other confessions… There are lots of reasons I haven’t been writing. I've still been quietly lingering at most of my favorite sites but totally slacking on my own blogging. I have been super busy, but I think deep down, I don’t really want to talk about my training. I had all of these expectations for my Ironman this year. I was going to start my training really early. I was going to get super fast. I was going to set myself up for a great big PR. I knew when I signed up for this one that it would be a challenge. I’d be smack dab in the middle of my residency. Steve and I would be buying a house. I just hoped that my superwoman powers would overcome all of these potential obstacles. I can blame my consistent 10-14 hour days at work. I can say that my many of my long bike rides aren’t happening because I’ve been working weekends that some days are so mentally, emotionally, and spiritually draining that I missed my exit off the freeway to get home, and when I did get there could hardly muster the energy to talk, much less get off the couch. I could blame moving, remodeling, and all of the deadlines associated with both of those as affecting the training. The truth is, though, I just blame myself. None of these should matter. I am an Ironman, and I want to make it all happen again. I know I’m not really far from where I was at this time last year, and I have gotten in some really quality workouts, but like I said, I want to be better than I was at this time last year. I don’t want to show up at WIBA in a couple of weeks and look like a total dork who just can’t cut it.

There will be no race report from the Liberty Half Ironman. I skipped it. Mentally, I knew I could do it. If I can run a marathon a couple of weeks after IMMOO with pneumonia, I can convince my body to complete a half IM, even without being in peak physical condition. I elected not to, though, because I wanted to get in a longer bike ride. I also managed a couple of other quality workouts and lots of house stuff, so I don’t regret it. It was my first DNS, though, and it makes me sad to think about it. I’m sure with decades more of racing to do, there will be more DNS for various reasons, but I’m not the type of person who is OK with signing up for things and then backing out.

Booked our hotel for WIBA today. It’s going to be a blast. I can’t wait to see last year’s crowd and meet some new bloggy friends! Training has been patchy but not terrible. I guess we’ll see how I’ve been doing when I get back on those hills!

Residency is over in 10 days!!! Yahoo!!! You know, not like I’m counting or anything. I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything, but the truth is, I’m ready. I’m ready to be making a full salary. I’m ready to not have to report to my preceptors. I’m ready to join my new team. The fact that I’m staying at the same hospital makes it all that much easier. I have learned so much this year. It’s amazing to look back and think where I was at this time last year (waiting to see if I had passed boards, scared to death of being on my own). I’ve come a long way, baby.