Tennant Time...Fun, Fit & Fast!

Did it work? Am I healed? How's your butt?

2012-02-13T21:23:00.006-07:00

Did it work? Am I healed? How's your butt? This is what I hear from friends and family weekly!

I hope so! I have 135 days left to get conditioned andthen race ready! So many people ask “did it work”? “Are you better?” OMG!

Well I just don’t know. 3 prolotherapy treatments,months of rest and now I am starting to rebuild…slowly. Taking so much time offis just brutal for the body and mind! I know, it is really good for body andmind too! I totally agree. But the transition between Training and accepting Ican’t train and then the transition back from “lazy girl” to “badasstriathlete” (clearly trying to get myself pumped up!) is just brutal.

When I had to stop last April I canceled races, hungup my bike and mentally prepared myself to be a cheer leader and coach. Allthings being equal I think I handled the transition pretty well. There are afew friends out there who I am sure got tired of hearing me say “I don’t wantto watch other people race anymore” I love cheering on friends and coaching and I always will! It is a big part ofwho I am…but I sure did get tired of watching other people exercise, race andrecover!

China was a great respite for me and although thecortisone didn’t do much but promote a nasty eye infection, I am glad I did it.I will cherish Beijing 2011 for the rest of my life!

Time to look ahead.

135 days before I toe the line at IMCD. OMG. That isall I keep thinking. OMG.

I have been training seriously again since January 1^st.My new coach is working me hard while keeping a close eye on my build and myload. It probably isn’t really hard however it feels hard because I got prettycontent sitting on my butt! I can’t even imagine spending 5-6 or more hourstraining right now. I am constantly fatigued and feel like I need 1o hourssleep! And that is after only 3 hours of training! Like I said…OMG.

I have had a few strength workouts on bike andtreadmill and after I overcome the anxiety that I am so out of shape I can’tpossibly do the workout…I not only complete it I feel awesome doing it. 1k hillrepeats on the treadmill made me quiver in my boots until I started the 2^ndone and I felt like I could turn it up and maybe push a little! The last 2 Idid at 8 minute pace! Freakin awesome! I felt strong and confident in myability to push. WOW! I haven’t felt that in months! Best news…NO HAMSTRINGPAIN! No hamstring pain in the “sweet spot” since my last round of prolo! Ofcourse everything else hurts because it is learning to work again. Hopefullyall the muscles are “turned on” and doing what they are supposed to do when Irun or ride. My right knee is constantly tweaked which for now I am chalking upto my right quad actually being engaged and supporting me! Ha!

The other great news is the progress I am making withme swim. Again, once I got over the fact that all my swims would be more than3000 yards, totally new for me, I settled in to making the time to work on myform and really embracing the water! Justin was brilliant in helping me FINALLYsee and feel my stroke. AND he got in the water with me to SHOW it to me.REALLY? I have been waiting for something to click with my swim stroke foryears. So many people said “you just have to swim” which I agree with however “just swimming” with a crappy strokeonly promotes shoulder injury, neck pain and more frustration. Literally Justinwatched me swim, got in the water and showed me what to do and I am doing it. Ihave managed to be an accomplished triathlete with a lousy swim stroke andmediocre swim times. Stubbornness and humility are the only two things that keepmy doing tris. Now I am swimming my 100’s on 1:35 or better and I haven’t beenable to do that EVER! Again…OMG!!

135 days left.

Left hamstring is solid, needs a lot ofstretching and seems to respond to the work
Left shoulder is much better and only flares upwhen I am stressed out
Right knee…better watch this as I progress.Stretching hip flexors makes pain subside…stretch!
Head – getting excited about the prospect ofbeing able to complete the training and joining a huge gaggle of friends andfamily in Idaho in late June!

OMG!!!

Today I Found My Strength and My Stubborn

2012-01-30T21:59:00.001-07:00

The first snow shoe race of the season turned out tobe a snowy, blustery day! If my running shoes weren’t already screwed into mysnowshoes I would have been prepared to run with my yak trax and call it good.I was really thrilled that the snow started to blow as we got to Silverthorne!

Time for a reality check…in July I slammed 3 shots ofcortisone into my left hip, butt and hamstring. Then I created the illusion oftraining for 3 weeks leading up to Worlds 2011 in Beijing. Since that time Ihave been able to do very little. The prolotherapy sessions have been cripplingand it is still unclear if they are helping. I haven’t had any Vitamin I (ibuprofen),ice or massage for months. The goal of prolo is to completely piss off thetendon and ligaments and then let them stew, heal and get stronger.

So what compelled me to think that a 10K snow shoerace would be the smartest “first effort” in months I will never know…but Itied on my badass snow shoes, overdressed by body and headed to the start line.

Here is the funny thing about me…I LOVE snowshoeraces. I always have. I find them ridiculously hard and hysterical. The majestyof the mountains and the beauty of the courses always outweigh the sky highheart rate, gallons of sweat and screaming legs that come with a race! I havenever won, placed or even paid any attention to my results at a snowshoe race.I don’t even win anything from the raffles. It is always about me, winter, themountains and the challenge…plus playing with the other idiots dumb enough tojack up their heart rates and sit in traffic for 5 hours to get home!

The Snowshoe Skedaddle did not disappoint! A crew ofus arrived early enough to have hot tea, catch up with old friends like Melissaand Gary and watch Anthony B warm up! My goal for the day was to simply movefast enough to stay warm, laugh with friends and not hurt myself. SUCCESS! Somepeople who train with me regularly may tell you that I never really get out ofshape. That is just stupid. However, I do seem to have some power/endurancechip that allows me to keep moving; not fast but just moving along at a steadyclip. I think maybe it is survival. I hate to be cold and if I move fast enoughI can avoid freezing! Keith, Nancy and I headed up the mountain for the 10K.Anthony was long gone by the time I climbed the first hill. Michele, Jewels,Melissa, Monica crushed the 5K course in no time.

The 10K took me a longfreaking time. My snowshoes felt great and I would have been golden had I notworn the wrong pants. I really thought there was no snow so I wore some movingcomfort pants that had FAR TOO MUCH cotton in them and after 3 miles I wascompletely soaked and my butt cheeks were FROZEN! OUCH! One more reason to MOVE! I ran all the down hills and flats and cruisedup the climbs with as much power as I could. My hamstring held strong andallowed me to stay steady. I was a little worried during the last 2 miles as Icould feel how tired my legs were and I knew I had no lateral support…if Keithtried to hurt me I was doomed! Ha! Fortunately for me he decided there wasn’tenough snow for a full throttle wrestling match at the finish line so we ranacross the finish line together laughing so hard I had to focus not to pee mypants!

Today I found my strength and my stubborn. I wonder ifafter a long hiatus/injury we question our strength or our resolve toendure…that is why I had to do the 10K! I had to find it again. I will neverforget after my shoulder surgery a couple years ago my coach actually told mehe thought I wouldn’t “come back.” He thought I was done. Clearly he didn’tknow me very well. Just like last time, I had to dig deep and find the stubbornand resolve! I am SOOOOO relieved it is still in there! How much would it suckto train for an Ironman and still wonder if it is in there…

Antibiotics and Lots of Rest!

2012-01-03T12:10:00.000-07:00

Ironman Coeur d'Alene will be referred to for the next 173 days as IMCD because Coeur D'Alene is a pain to spell. :) Yes, it is now 173 days out from IMCD and I am sick and taking antibiotics and have been told if I don't rest NOW then it will take longer to clear my system. DUH! I always know this but I rarely heed the advice. Today I will be a good patient! Today I will rest.

Tyler pointed out yesterday that we could likely be spending close to 480 hours training together over the next few months and I am confident that no one wants to get my germs...so I will rest. Justin and company will have to wait a couple more days...

I can say that although I felt lousy over the holiday I had a great time with friends and family so I am sharing a couple shots of me NOT resting. :)

We ran the Resolution 5K on New Years Eve and it was warm and fun! My Aunt Janet from Clymer New York gave me a Jamestown Bike Shop Cycling jersey! BEST present from an Aunt EVER! Thanks Aunt Janet!

179 Days Left

2011-12-28T08:27:00.004-07:00

Last night, day 180, I went out for a skills/drills workout with John, Tyler, Keith, Nancy, Julie, Barry and Chris. This is going to be a blast! Cold, hard and challenging but a blast!
Best news of the day...I am not sore...Miracles do happen!

180 Days of Cliff Diving!

2011-12-27T22:24:00.001-07:00

Tuesday, December 27, 2011. I have been putting off this post for about 10 days now. Every evening I say "tomorrow is my first day of IM training" and every morning I say "it can wait one more day!" I suspect I am putting too much emphasis on the kick off day but at the same time I really feel like I need to commit. I have basically been "off" since February 2011. In that time I have spent thousands of dollars and hours on doctors, procedures, injections, coaching, travel and watching others race. I think I am done now. I have had my hiatus and it is "Tennant Time!" Remember Hammer Time? Same idea but I could never do that dance.

On Christmas Eve John and I made a commitment to one another outside of "meet me for a run!" After 5 years we have agreed that we want to be together forever and we are ready to take some pretty big steps in that direction! Admittedly we don't know what that really looks like...we just know we belong together and with IM training looming we better find a way to spend more time together outside of a ride, run or swim! So the beautiful ring he gave me helped push me off the commitment cliff. Now it is time to commit to the training, eating, sleeping and training that will be required for me to complete my first Ironman. More cliff diving.

I know there are thousands of blogs about people training for and completing their first, third or even final IM so this blog may not be compelling for many. I hope, however, that my daily adventures with friends, family, training, travel, coaching and more will entertain some, compel others and entertain all. My blog will continue to convey the fun adventures I embrace as well as the good, the bad and the ugly that come with IM training, working full time and trying to have a life! HAHAHA!

So, as they say...today it begins...the countdown...180 days from today I will participate in my first IM with John, Tyler, Keith, Randi, Michelle, Anthony and thousands of others! I am excited and anxious about it as I need to kick ass in my sales job at Stellar this year! I have to develop a much deeper pipeline and get people to BUY! I am also hoping to take on more athletes to coach in 2012 and beyond...so it is GAME ON!

The Christmas holiday was awesome with friends and family and I hope they stay connected as the days roll along!

Chinese Food...the real deal!

2011-11-29T11:38:00.001-07:00

"Real"Chinese food is an absolute adventure at every meal! From entrails to tripe tobirthday cakes to amazing tea services the Chinese take great pride in the food& beverage they serve.
Some of the very bestfood I had in China was made and served in local kitchens by women who had nocounter space and no refrigeration.
Everything is freshand the vegetables were always the best part of the meal! The spices are out ofthis world! Many things were hot and everything was delicious!
At the beginning ofthe trip I committed to trying something new every day. This turned out to be achallenge as the vegetarian thing was limiting. I tried some of the mostinteresting fruits and veggies and they pickle just about anything! You knowhow we deep fry it? Well they pickle it! I was not a huge fan but I tried itall.
Before we left on thetrip we heard all about the water and how people get so sick and we shouldn'tdrink the water! Well we had no issues. Not only did we stay in upscale hotelsthat provided bottles water, each o four bus drivers always had bottled waterfor us to buy. My bigger challenge was finding a freaking cold bottle of DietPepsi! In fact I never did. I had to settle on Coca Cola Light and it wasusually warm! Ewwww! The entire crew was always thrilled because beercame with lunch and dinner! Admittedly it wasn't the best beer....kind of likedrinking Coors Lite, but it was cold and refreshing!
I think the onlyperson that got really sick was Elias because he decided, although we allwarned him, to eat the food from a street vendor cart. I just don't think oursystems can handle that food! He was white as a ghost for a few hours! But herecovered quickly and went right back to tasting all the food he could find!
The most startlingfood experiences for me were both race related. After spending a very long daytrying to get the the ITU pre-race parade and party we were all famished. wesat through the opening ceremonies with promises of a great meal! HAHAHAHA! Itwas pretty funny actually. Apparently they had a noodle bowl for those of usnot accustomed to Chinese food but we never got the memo. Instead we were givena box of food...none of which I could identify and none of which I ate exceptthe pear. It was quite delicious. I stayed away from the sealed chicken feet,boars head and various rice balls! It was really not my cup of tea! Sandihunkered down and powered through most of it! She is my food hero!
The most appallingfood experience I had was the afternoon after my "big race!" We wentto a local restaurant north of Beijing where we had eaten the last 2 days.Great fresh food but not much tofu so as we walked in I asked Santana, mytranslator of choice, to please be sure to order us at least one yummy tofudish! I was starving and couldn't wait!
They served all our mealson big turnstiles so we could pass the family style dishes around the tableeasily. Luckily for me or not, they placed the big plate of tofu right in frontof me and Nicole. It was clearly in a brown sauce and looked like it had abunch of stuff in it along with the tofu! I grabbed my chopsticks and snatchedup this curly bouncy thing...thinking it was of course a vegetable ofsorts...OH MY GOODNESSS!! It was the most vial taste I have ever experienced!IT WAS TRIPE! At least I thought tripe was a fish...who knew! Holy crap it wassoooo nasty and the entire dish was soaking in a fish sauce! SOOOO WRONG! Whoputs tofu near any fish or stomach parts! REALLLLYYY???? At least it madeeveryone else laugh! Phew!
Anyway, check out allthe pictures of the food, food storage and food consumption!

"BICYCLES" in China Are SOO Much Cooler Than Ours!!

2011-10-13T12:38:00.002-06:00

In China bicycles are used for so much more than recreation and exercise! And rarely did we see a helmet or hand signal! Beijing has bike lanes that are far more organized and dangerous than any of our highways. No seat belts, no helmets, 2-3 people per bike and they would carry ANYTHING to transport it from A to B. We treat our bikes like precious cargo and these folks ride bikes that are older than I am, have no air, wiggly wheels and no brakes and they transport, children, food, work, and commerce. It was incredible to see the variety of 2 & 3 wheelers and how they were being used. Check it out!


Family transportation made easy - No DVD is the backseat!

Do you think the wind blows the smoke back in his face?

Never thought to transport my stuff like this!

How about this city bike rental program!

She could have walked!

Prolotherapy Instead of Platelet Rich Plasma? Who knew!

2011-10-09T16:25:00.006-06:00

I have been trying to "fix" my leg and a few other parts for the better part of 2 years and I am sooo tired of it! And I can honestly say it is my fault as I didn't do the right things soon enough and I didn't stop training when I should have. So here I am, almost 2 years later, an entire race season washed under the bridge and I have finally found a treatment I hope will help me heal quickly and permanently.

18+ months ago I hurt my left hamstring on a very cold run. It didn’t get worse or better for many months and then when I tried to increase intensity summer 2010 race season (RED FLAG) it would not respond. I raced through my 2010 season at 75% knowing something wasn’t right but it was tolerable. I have enough tolerance for pain and good people like Dr. Ken who keep me moving...sadly to me detriment.

Last winter I trained for and raced a 55K in Moab. My left leg tolerated the training because it was all slow, on trail and linear. On the rare occasion that I would trip or fall sideways I knew there was a problem because my left leg would not respond. I literally would fall on my face. (RED FLAG!) It was getting worse but I really wanted to finish Moab! Idiot! After Moab the top of my hamstring got sorer, tighter and angrier but I started tri training anyway. I found if I stayed straight it would tolerate more abuse. Then in April I started to increase speed and intensity and I was shocked at how weak, sore and useless my leg became. I did a speed workout with Tyler and gang in Chatfield one evening and it would warm up but stopping and starting was terrible! The next week I was running with Barry and Julie on a soft surface and I was cruising in the middle of the 400 but when I had to restart I was completely ripped with pain. It hurt and would drag behind for the first 100 yards. HOW MANY MORE RED FLAGS DO I NEED? ASK MY 2 X HUSBANDS?

Thanks to Heidi I found Dr. Tim Mazzola at Cornerstone Ortho. He is a non-surgical Ortho and he did all his due diligence: x-ray, MRI, movement analysis. Great doctor with a great attitude. The diagnosis from the MRI was severe tendonosis. Apparently I had so much scar tissue at the top of my hamstring it was choking off the tendon making it useless and apparently I need that tendon to make my muscles run free and happy. After reviewing my pending race season we agreed I would not do Lubbock and Loveland, get PT 2-3 times a week and see if we could address my imbalance and stability issues. PT with Diana Gamache was incredible as I learned so much about my body, my weaknesses and my strengths. I quit doing anything but swimming for 2+ months with the thought that I would consider PRP after a real run at PT. Then at Lake2Lake (I became the perpetual cheer leader this summer!) I ran into an old friend and she knew a triathlete who had the same symptoms I had and he had PRP done and was running 10 days later! Yahoo! It turned out this guys was a Loveland, Kevin, and he emailed me all the info about his doc in Boulder who did his injections.

I packed up my lil medical records and went to see Dr. Roger Nichols, Radiologist at Boulder Community Hospital. A very confident guy who has done thousands of injections and knew what all my symptoms were without me saying a word. He knew his shit and I felt like I was now in good hands. This is not to say that Mazzola wasn't a great doctor however he had only done a couple PRP imjections on hamstrings and I was looking for much better odds than that.

Again we reviewed my history and devised a plan. Now I would not do Long Course Worlds in Las Vegas, a winter marathon or any racing except for Worlds in China. I was going to start and finish that race even if I had to walk my bike and crawl the run! Course correction...get a big fat dose of cortisone in July, let it soak in and then train for 3-4 weeks to the degree that I could, race in China and then, if necessary, do PRP when I returned from China. I hated backing off more big races but I knew after 2 weeks of "training" that there was no way I could get ready for November Worlds so I settled into my decision and focused on Beijing.

The cortisone worked enough so that I could race at 75% and have a blast doing it! By the time I got back from China I knew I wasn't healed...something was still wrong. I called Dr. Nichols and scheduled PRP but I never really felt good about it because he has no plan for follow up, rehab or a protocol for anything after the shot. Take a few days off and then run. If it hurts stop. That may sound logical to you however I was really worried about doing more damage and wasting my $1,200+ investment. PRP is not covered by insurance. OUCH! I also considered having Mazzola do thte injections because he has a sound protocol and that made me feel a little better...honestly neither option felt good and John knew it. He could tell the closer the date for the injection got the more anxious about it I got.

In my search for information I had posted a note on Irongirls endurance on FB and asked if anyone knew about PRP and the like. I had some great conversations and it sounds like others suffer from the same "pain in the ass" that I do! Then Deb emailed me and suggested I check out a local DO who does injections. Dr. Jo Douglas at Regenerative Solutions. She is right down the street from me and she saw me that evening...3 days before my scheduled PRP injection. Dr. Douglas focuses on Prolotherapy and PRP for patients with arthritis and injuries. I had no idea what I was getting into when I walked into the office and now I can say I am a PROLO patient.

http://regenerativesolution.com/

In all my reading about PRP I had seen info about prolotherapy but didn't know what it was all about and I had never had it suggested to me. Her assessment of my issues included a lengthy ultrasound session from the top of my SI joint all the way down and around my hamstring. She is training a young man for his boards so she was very instructive and it was wild to see the good and the bad happening in my butt and leg. It turns out that I have 2 very weak ligaments trying to hold my pelvis in place and since they are failing miserably my pelvis is rotated backwards and my hamstring tendons are under constant strain. Hmmm news to me. And, there are 3 attachment points for my hamstring and all 3 are deteriorating and need help. Enter prolotherapy. Here is the best explanation of prolotherapy I could find:

The term "Prolotherapy" is short for "proliferation therapy." Proliferation, of course, means "rapid production." What Prolotherapy rapidly produces is collagen and cartilage. Collagen is a naturally occurring protein in the body that is a necessary element for the formation of new connective tissue—the tissues that holds our skeletal infrastructure together. These tissues include, tendons, ligaments, muscle fascia and joint capsular tissue.

Prolotherapy helps make collagen through a series of injections, not of collagen, but of mild chemical or natural (such as dextrose-sugar) irritants, which stimulates the immune system's healing mechanism to produce collagen naturally. The making of new collagen makes for strengthened and restored joints. Restored and strengthened joints make for permanent pain relief.

Is that wild info or what? I had no idea that we could treat ligaments or that connective tissue was made from collagen like our skin! So, I bared my butt Friday night and took far too many shots in order to initiate the healing! I would be lying if i said it didn't hurt. Maybe because I was so inflamed or maybe because of the location but whatever the reason it hurt more than most things I have endured! And I was swearing like a truck driver (no offense to truck drivers!) and loudly too. It hurt so much it made me cry! Ugh! The next 3 days were equally bad because I couldn't sit or lie on my back...and NO ICE OR IBUPROFEN! Stupid rules! But they make it clear I don't want to do anything to inhibit the healing process! Ha! I have to admit my hamstring doesn't hurt only because the freaking ligament and needle spots hurt so much! Geesh!

What's next? Little to no activity for 10 days while my body works its magic and begins to lay down new tissue and strengthen and heal! Then I start to run a little, ride a little and see how I feel. I go back to Dr. D. in 3 weeks and will likely have to endure another round but she promised it would hurt less! It better!

Cost for Prolotherapy? I whole lot less than PRP and it covers a whole lot more spots than one injection of PRP! Let me know if you want to learn more as I am going to see this through to the end! IMCD here I come!

The Chinese–Amazing People

2011-10-03T19:08:00.007-06:00

What an amazing culture, people and experience! I loved meeting so many people who were excited to meet us!

The Chinese people were incredible hosts, guides, educators and voyeurs. They are as mesmerized by us as we are by them. We are all just people…just the same in so many ways. They love to laugh, smile and celebrate. They love their children, families and they work really hard. What I learned is that they work hard for different reasons than we do…in many cases they work hard because the government requires it. One of the most incredible moments in the entire trip was when Jewels was talking with Andy, the Bursar on our cruise ship on the Yangtze River. Remember Gopher? Same guy only Chinese. He was in charge of all things guest focused on our 3 day cruise on the Yangtze. Andy is a good looking 30ish man who clearly worked 24/7 at his job. He was the first one around in the morning at breakfast, he was the interpreter for all the amazing sites in the gorges and he was in charge of teaching Chinese, Mah Jongg and anything else to keep the guests occupied on a rainy day. One afternoon while it was raining buckets Andy had a Mah Jongg seminar. I think he thought he would just teach a few foreigners and be off the hook. Let’s be serious…you take a group of overwrought athletes and active people and tie them down to a ship for more than 12 hours! Not only did we learn but we were ready for a full throttle MahJongg tournament with gambling and the like! Bring it! Anyway, Andy was tolerating us as we learned Jewels started to ask him questions about his life. The exchange was profound. Jewels asked him a series of seemingly simple questions…”if you weren’t doing this what would you be doing?” “ “If you could do anything at all what would it be?” The look on Andy’s face was incredible to me…he had never really considered these types of questions. This was his job. This was his life and that’s how he answered…”this is what I do” “This is my job” Jewels asked the question 3 different ways thinking that he didn’t understand the question and in reality he didn’t…it never occurred to him that he could have anything except what he had. His wife worked on another cruise line that went the opposite direction on the river so they were lucky to see each other once a week. Their 4 year old son was with her parents. From December to March they would be home as a family but otherwise both Andy and his wife worked 24/7 on different ships rarely seeing one another. We were all in shock…having just paid for a trip to China they could never afford…doing whatever we want when we want. Starting and stopping jobs. Changing careers…we are SOOOO BLESSED!!! I have never been so stunned at how fortunate I really am…we all are. Triathletes who struggle to decide which race, which bike and which massage! Andy and others helped me see my world through a completely different lens. All our guides were incredible. Yes, some were better at their jobs than others and some were pretty smooth but they were all great to me! I have never been on a trip called a tour with buses and preset tours etc. I had no idea what we were getting into! What a blast!

Let me introduce our guides. Aaron was by far all of our favs! He was with us the longest and he set aside his entire personal life for a week to meet our every demand. He was kind, funny, thoughtful and effective. He loved Pop and Sole equally. He was professional and yet found a soft spot in his heart for the kids and keeping them entertained. He also has a wife and a child. When I met him at the airport he told me he workouts every day. He runs 45 minutes on his treadmill at home and then he lifts weights 4 times a week. This was the first thing he told me as if he wanted me to know he too was a committed athlete. It was awesome. He was so respectful and patient with all of us blathering our needs for birthday cakes, vegetarian meals, bus rides here and there, bike pick up, slower pace, faster pace and on and on. Just amazing!

The rest of our guides had too much to live up to. Our last guide was Jacky…Chan. Yes, this was his English name. Dave and others thought he was arrogant but I thought he was a blast. He lives in Shanghai and he drinks the Kool-Aid about how amazing and how much better it is than any other city in the world! He was a crack up. And honestly he has the city wired. No matter what we needed he “knew a guy!” If we were in New York he is the guy from the Bronx working every angle and every deal! He schmoozed every girl at every ticket counter. He was good looking and knew it. He is also the Bronze medalist for Tai Chi in his country and once he gave us a short demo I was drinking his Kool-Aid. He was amazing.

Shirley took us to the zoo in ChonQuing so she gets props although she was over us quickly. Jessica and Jason were with us in Xian and they were both very classy and helpful. The other guides were from daily excursions and they were a breed apart. I have since decided I have no idea what to believe because they are spewing so much political propaganda but I loved the trip anyway! The only bummer for me about the people is that we were surrounded most of the time by the tourist industry so we never got to “be real” with people. They knew we had money and we knew they wanted to earn some of it. On rare occasions we encountered an exchange when we saw the real people. One day we went on a rickshaw ride…total tourist thing. It’s like when you are in Niagara Falls you have to do the Maiden of the Mist boat ride. It was fun though! They took us to a woman’s home in the back of the city, for sure what we would consider slums, and they made us dumplings for lunch. It was one of the BEST MEALS we had! She was so gracious and the food rocked! Margaret and I sat at a separate table so they could keep the veggies separate. The house was 4 tiny bedrooms and the air was not fresh. She was so kind! Her husband is a famous artist so her house was much larger than most. We sat at small round tables and asked her questions about her family, her work and her life. She was adorable and kind and a great cook! Honestly, I don’t know many people who would even think to walk down her street let alone sit at a table in this house…American standards would call it a hovel maybe? Ugh! We are SOOOOO fortunate! The 4th room in their home was a studio for her husbands painting. Joan was looking for a specific style frame for photos and she saw one on the wall and asked if she could see the studio. The next thing you know Nicole, Margaret, Jewels, Santana and Priscilla and I are all in this tiny room looking through these gorgeous paintings on rice paper. The paper is so thin and frail I was afraid to pick one up. Then Margaret gave me a hoot and showed me these 2 paintings that had she knew I would fall in love with.

The primary color was green and the cranes and landscape are SO elegant and peaceful and me. I could imagine myself sitting in the painting and relaxing! That doesn’t happen often so I negotiated my way down to a steal and managed to carry them around the country with me with no damage!

We also had the chance to spend time with some of Margaret's friends from China, India and England. Santana was on the trip with us! She is as cool as her name would indicate! She used to work with Margaret in Dalian and now works in Honk Kong! Joan is a friend of Margaret’s from when she lived in England many moons ago. Joan is the COOLEST grandmother ever! She is so dry and clever she constantly had me laughing! After Jewels race on Saturday Margaret had arranged for some of her other friends from China to come to the hotel so they could spend some time together and get caught up. I have heard about each of these women for years so it was great to finally meet them! Grace was the only one I had met before. She actually lived in Conn with Margaret for a year while she worked at GE in Stamford. Grace spent Thanksgiving with our family in Myrtle Beach when mom was still. Maggie, Florence and another woman who’s name I can’t say let alone spell, came and hung out with us! It was really fun to meet them and learn about their lives! Since I didn’t get to go on the school visit it was fun to meet the kids and learn about their school.

One of the weirdest things for me about the people is that they all believe we are foreigners and we have money. Every tourist trap we ventured through meant more people chasing us down, pulling on our arms and begging us to buy something from them. I got so tired of hearing “Hello Lady!” That was always the opening line…”Hello, Hello, Hello!” It was crazy to me because they thought if they just kept bothering me I would buy something. Of course what it did for me was make me want to swat them and walk away. Every day we were faced with more opportunities to shop and negotiate. We were told from the outset never to pay more than 50% of the listed price. Ha! That made each encounter stressful at first but after a while you get used to it. Pop and I worked hard one day on getting him some sandals and some scarves for him to take home for gifts. I found that tag teaming was the best method. So if I was the primary then Pop could shake his head and say “no way…I wouldn’t do it” or “that is way too much”! This gave us the good guy/bad guy approach and it seemed to work. Rarely did I pay 40% of the listed price and when I did it was OK because I knew they needed the money and I was worn out. John had much better staying power than I did. Do you know they even want you to pay them for taking their picture? I was in awe of many of the living conditions, cooking styles and food choices. As we walked along any street there were things I had never seen before and I wanted to take a picture however someone would yell and ask for money or no picture. It was crazy. John tried to take a picture of a very old man smoking a very old pipe and as soon as John lifted the camera he started yelling for money One lady told me it was 5 Yuan to take a picture of her making lunch in the street and I laughed loudly and she mocked me right back! It was so funny! We didn't get either of those pictures!

I have to say that Chinese babies are the cutest babies EVER! Seriously! They are precious and I could tour the country taking pictures of their gorgeous serious faces!

I think pictures can tell the rest of the story about the beautiful Chinese people!

China 2011–Race Day 9/11/2011

2011-09-26T19:52:00.005-06:00

I promised I would blog, Facebook and work hard to keep everyone updated on our amazing adventure in China! Ha! Who knew that a Communist Country would be so challenging! There is no Facebook, Blogging or Twitter in China. None. Not allowed. And I couldn’t access my blog. To be honest, between lousy internet service and being busy all the time I doubt I would have been very good at updating my blog regularly..but you never know! Visiting this country is just incredible. IT IS SO HARD to travel in a country where I am clueless about the language! It is great that we have a guide named Aaron who is incredibly helpful and thoughtful and Margaret who speaks the language beautifully but the truth is when we are split up and out of touch with the Chinese speakers we are completely helpless. I feel like I am in a silent movie! I say what I want or need. They respond in Chinese and then we just stare at each other hoping one of us will all of a sudden learn to speak the other’s language. The silence is so funny because in reality no one has a clue what to do. The silence is usually broken by one of us saying the same thing only louder and slower….as if that really helps! Then we move to body language with no words thinking our signs and ideas might be the same. It is really funny if you aren’t in a hurry or in an emergency! All the hotels we stayed in were 4-5 Star which I learned really means toilets with stools, breakfast buffet with at least one western item and front desk staff that speak some English between 7 AM and 7 PM. After that you are on your own. And calling the front desk is really hopeless however they recognize this and always show up at your hotel door. Great service and nice people…just soooo different!

I decided not to keep a traditional hand written journal this trip as I rarely go back and read it and I knew I would want to update my blog so I am only writing in my blog. Plus when I journal I write about a lot of people stuff and I always run out of steam to write about the trip, culture, people, places etc. so this trip I am writing in hindsight based on the photos I have from 6 or 7 of us. It will be different and I think more interesting and easier to keep clean for my blog.

I left home on September 3^rd. John sweetly took me to the airport then turned around and headed home to finish packing and then the rest of the group left for the airport. I spent 6 hours in the Detroit airport before flying directly to Beijing. I arrived tired but excited. I had an entire row of seats to myself to sleep. After rolling through customs where I had to have a special inspection because I was with the triathlon I met Aaron, or Anlei. He introduced himself to me as Aaron. Every Chinese guide we met had selected an “American” name at some point in their lives. The bus drivers kept their traditional Chinese names but all the guides had names. In our 14 days we worked with Anlei, Andy, Summer, Jacky, Teddy, Shirley, Jessica, and of course, Jacky Chan! They were all terrific, professional and had mastered some level of English. One of the greatest challenges for them seems to be that we have words that don’t exist in their language so it is hard for them to grasp the meaning. I loved watching them search for the right words and be so pleased when they nailed it. They take great pride in understanding our culture and knowing our language…at least from their perspective. Each guide would also try to teach us some critical Chinese words…Ni Hao which means hello and Boo Yao (which I know isn’t spelled correctly!) which means I don’t want any! This became a mantra for all of us as we spent each day navigating through the mass of vendors trying to get the rich Americans to buy their products! The tones that are used in the Chinese language are likely harder than the words themselves and after a short lesson about how many ways you can say Ma Ma I decided to depend on Margaret, our guide and Eli, our 17 year old friend (and Sandy’s son) who has been studying Chinese for a couple years and took every opportunity to practice. He was quite good, certainly better than any of us, and he was never afraid to try! Very cool young man!

Blogging about a 2 week adventure like China can get overwhelming and probably pretty dull for the readers so I am going to break this update up over a few days and categorize things for ease of reading. Many of my friends and family are likely most interested in the #1 reason we went to China in the first place…ITU Worlds in Beijing. Race day was September 11^th and I couldn’t think of any better way to honor my country than by racing with USA on my heart! It was simply awesome!

Since my training hiatus May through July I had set my expectations very low for China. I wanted to start the race, participate in the fanfare and enjoy the splendor of the day! Mission accomplished! I started training August 1^st after a huge does of cortisone pumped into my hamstring and butt. Initially I was pretty wary and discovered right away that I would have little strength to bring when in China so I was just going to build slowly and see what happens. I did manage to complete the 78 mile Copper Triangle and cover 15 miles with Laurie Nakauchi at Leadville August so I knew I still had some endurance. Susan and I talked about a plan and she worked in as many bricks and builds as she could…but it wasn’t enough to see if my hamstring would respond to racing. It would just poop out on me. So I went into race day without really knowing if the cortisone was a temporary fix or if it was permanent.

The Chinese government and ITU seemingly went out of their way to make this a challenging event long before we got to race day! There were 4 of us racing from our troupe of 17: me, Jewels, Sandy and Barry. We spent a large portion of Thursday and Friday before race day on the bus, in taxis and traveling around Beijing making sure we were where we were supposed to be. It was really a comedy of errors as we tried to register, get tickets for our crew to attend events and the races as well as figure out the logistics of getting everyone to the venue at 5 AM both race mornings! My goodness it was crazy! I was really upset when they told us that all the tickets for the Opening Ceremonies were sold out. In fact I was livid. We’d spent the better part of 3 hours in a car trying to get across Beijing in time to register, fund the team photo and get ready for the parade and all I wanted was for my family to participate too. In Australia they all missed the opening ceremonies and I was disappointed so I was really ramped up about this year! What a waste of energy! Due to traffic chaos I advised Margaret and the crew to head to the hotel and skip the event anyway. There were security checks, long waits and an unknown meal in our future….THANK GOODNESS they didn’t come to the “stadium” for the opening events. The parade was great fun because in a Communist Country they can do what they want so they cordoned off an entire lane of traffic at rush hour and we were really in a parade. We walked about 2 miles on a main highway with traffic all stopped going the other way and people 4 and 5 deep waving, cheering and whooping it up! It was really funny and fun! We wore our USAT shirts and got into the groove! We waved back, posed for pictures and had a blast! Then we entered the EMPTY stadium. USA was the first country in the parade so we wandered in and took up seats on the bleachers. The rest of the countries came in and the stadium was only 35% full. Thank goodness the ceremony was lame and the food was weird and lame. After a ceremony with bad sound and bad visibility we decided to grab our dinner boxes, grab a hotel and find our hotel. It was a crazy day and we were all toasted. That’s when the adventure really began! We walked out beyond security thinking we would grab a cab! HAHAHAHAHAAA! Not a chance. The only cab company is run by the government and the drivers have no compulsion whatsoever to pick foreigners up…I bet we got passed by dozens of cabs. When one finally pulled over I ran up to him and handed him the address and of course he starts yelling at me in Chinese! I have no idea what he said but I do know it included “NOT A CHANCE” so we started again. Then a woman approached us who had decent English and she explained that no cabs would stop for us but her friend could take us and where did we want to go….I don’t think so! Like everything else, there is a black market for cab services. Once the non-official drivers saw the foreigner bate we were swallowed up by drivers who could help us! It made us all very uncomfortable so we went back into the race venue, back through security and then to find our bus! Once on the bus we were starving so we opened our dinner boxes only to discover a host of interesting and bizarre options ranging from yogurt or milk, not sure, to dried pork and some chicken item, dried fruit, a 1/2 loaf of bread and a generally un-appetizing selection of foods. Mind you the only other thing we had eaten since breakfast was an egg sandwich on white bread and although very satisfying at the time…not really the kind of nutrition any of us are accustomed to!

Of course the day wasn’t over as we had to go back to the Loong Palace Hotel with USAT and then find a cab the other direction to our hotel…The Floral Palace. At one point during the taxi negotiations I wondered if we were going to get back to our crew at all. Phones were dying, patience was dying and hunger was on the rise. FINALLY we got our hotel front desk on the phone with the bell hop at the USAT hotel so that they could explain to one another where our hotel was and how to get there! What a fiasco. We had even managed to worry John, Priscilla and the Garcia kids a bit. Fortunately they ordered food for us and we were safe and sound at our new hotel. We were 30 minutes from the race venue and it sounds like we were as close as you could get. Our bus driver, Jimmy Choo, was awesome at taking us back and forth for bike check and race drop off. Jewels’ raced in the sprint and it turned out to be the first really rainy day we’d had since landing. It just poured with rain and many of our fans decide to stay warm and dry in the hotel! The hard core fans, Margaret and Dave, Walt, John and Nicole and Priscilla along with the kids stuck it out in the wet and cold while Jewels raced her guts out on a slick and sketchy course! She raced well and had a great time! The advantage we had was watching how the race unfolded for Jewels. We learned where bike in/out were, where the swim run out was and a good general lay of the land.

Sunday September 11 was our race day for the Olympic. The sun rose warm and crisp…it was going to be a perfect race day! The venue was tied down with ridiculous security so it was hard for the few fans that actually attended to see the entire event but they had great seats for the swim and run so I guess I can’t complain! Barry, Sandy and I all had later start times so we slept a bit longer and had a relaxing walk to the venue. And Jimmy Choo and Margaret worked their magic and managed to get us a ride to the top right near security so I didn’t have to worry about Pop walking all the way up and down. I was so mellow and chillaxed knowing I had accepted my limiters and would only be having fun. I had every expectation that I would be in the bottom 25% if not 10% and I was cool with that! I would always have my finish picture and the sounds of my father’s voice in my head cheering me on as I ran past the grand stand. As usual it turned out to be a very interesting day. The swim was no wetsuit only adding to my malaise about the race. I hadn’t been swimming much and although I’d found a solid stroke I was hardly race ready! I sat on the pontoon next to a woman from Mexico and a woman from Russia! VERY COOL! They were clearly not as relaxed as I was so I turned and waved to the crowd, whooped it up and then slid into the water to get started. My swim time as 32 minutes…really lame…but my swim stroke was awesome! If I had to be done after the swim I would have been satisfied because I was actually swimming. I could feel and control my pull. Sadly I think I got too caught up in my stroke and found myself falling behind but it just felt awesome to feel the water fly past me! Woohoo! I popped out of the water with a Kiwi woman and we had a nice chat about how we sucked at siting during the swim…again maybe a little to focused on my technique! Ah well! I blew through transition and jumped on my TT, slid into my shoes and blew out of the stadium! The ride was 3 laps of fun! A couple short steep hills and one longer slow grade hill along with some sharp turns. I think the course was best for woman who have bike raced as we know how to take corners, deal with people who are clueless and hold onto our bikes if the road gets unsafe. They had put down some blue carpet through the entire spillway which was great for the run but the seams caught more than a few poor folks off guard and their were at least 2 broken collarbones that I saw as I blew through the spillway a 2nd and 3rd time. I loved the ride. The Chinese fans along the course were clearly interested and entertained by us. They whooped and yelled if I whooped and yelled at them, which of course I did.

My hamstring gave out 2 miles into the 2nd lap. I tried to power up the slow grade and I had nothing. I had to drop into my smaller ring and spin my heart out. By the 3rd loop I knew I had been compromised and decided to keep rolling as I had to get back somehow and plus I was having fun! I flew off my bike and into transition at half mast. My hamstrings were so locked up I couldn’t stand up straight, I struggled to push my feet into my shoes, stretched and trotted out of transition. I actually figured if I had to walk I could and that would be better than DNFing. John said when I went past them the first time I looked really rough. He has such a nice way of saying things. I felt rough! Slowly, as I kept running, I was able to relax my hammies and stand up straight and run faster. Not faster, just faster. Running past the grand stand 6 times was freaking awesome! I could hear the crew screaming and yelling and having fun! It was a spectacular day! I took the last turn toward the finish feeling accomplished and elated because I had done it with class and a smile and that was all I wanted! Sandy came in right behind me as well as a number of other American women. I ended up being 12th in the World (I love the sounds of that!) and the 2nd American. Based on my 4 weeks of training I was thrilled! I ran 8:15s and managed to ride 18 MPH. Really thrilled! After Sandy and I visited with some of our teammates for a while we watched Barry finish his race! He looked so strong and happy! I was thrilled to see him finish knowing he had left it all out there! Congrats to all my American teammates! We made our country proud!

Headed to China!

2011-09-03T16:16:00.002-06:00

I am spending the next 5 hours in the Detroit airport! For those of you who travel on Delta you know that this isn't a bad thing! The Detroit airport, especially the international concourse, is new, bright, clean and has plenty of decent places to eat, shop and drink! I will not be bored! Plus I am updating schedules, catching up with my brother and kids and generally trying to begin the detox process! I am sad not to be with the rest of the gang in Chicago but it will be very cool to meet them all in Beijing 24 hours from now!
I decided to check out the weather in Beijing to see if what I packed might meet my needs! Yeah baby! It is warm and sunny and AWESOME!

China and Elvira

2011-09-01T10:23:00.002-06:00

We leave for China in 2 days and I am so excited! Of course it is stressful to get out of town for 2 weeks but well worth it! For some reason I keep thinking about my mother...it will be 6 years in October since we lost her. I always wanted to go to China with her so that must be why she is in my thoughts so much. She never had the chance to travel the world the way she wanted to. Fortunately Margaret made it possible for her to get to China, India and some other amazing countries and I always wished I was with her on those trips. She loved meeting new people and seeing new places. She was so open minded and welcoming. Her smile and laugh were contagious. I wish I could experience the history, majesty and adventure of traveling through China by her side.
2 days and counting...

China 2011 ITU Worlds Competition - The Adventure Begins!

2011-08-26T21:17:00.004-06:00

I can't remember how old I was when I first wanted to go to China. Margaret lived there on and off for so many years and the timing, money or marriage wasn't right for me to get there...until now. Last fall I competed in all 3 National Championships and qualified for ITU Worlds at all 3 distances. Even then I knew I had a hamstring problem but I thought for sure I would be able to rest and heal it over the winter so that I would be revved up and ready for Beijing and Vegas. Clearly that little 55K I did in February didn't really help in the healing process. So I took May, June and July off completely and now it is August 26, 2011 and I am one week from getting on a plane to China. I decided to take the shot(s) of cortisone to see if it would not only allow me to train for China but also "fix me" completely after 3 months of PT. Well, I can honestly say I think I waited to long to take the shot.
I have been "training" since the first of August and I am happily pain free. Exhausted but pain free. I am really out of shape. Much worse than I expected. Partially because I am accustomed to being REALLY fit this time of year and I can't even workout hard enough to load my hamstring to see if it is better. When I quit training in April I was doing speed work and hitting some really sweet times I just couldn't restart each set because my hamstring wasn't working...details!
Now I am healed to some degree and hoping to make it to the finish line with some degree of dignity. I am thinking about perfecting my parade wave and maybe carry candy so I can throw it to the crowd as I cruise past! Ha! I am very grateful for the fact that I can ride and run at all. I don't intend to taper...I tapered all summer! I am going to keep working on my fitness knowing that the speed and power are temporarily on holiday and won't be joining me at the start line. I will however bust my ass and race as fast as I can because this is not really about me racing. This trip to China is twice what the trip to Australia was! I will be with John, my father, my sister, amazing friends and seeing a part of the world I wondered if I would ever see! And now I get to see it with Margaret and Walt who have both been before, speak the language and actually are my greatest fans! I never imagined my father would care at all about my racing...and maybe he doesn't. If World's were in some remote part of the world that he has no interest in seeing then I am sure he would expect a call to hear how my race went. That's cool. I am so grateful that he has grown to at least appreciate how I live my life. I know he doesn't really get it but he tries and that is pretty cool.
I am going to blog from China regularly as it will be a fun way to keep my friends who couldn't make the trip close!
Beijing here I come!

Amazing Summer Days!

2011-08-05T11:15:00.006-06:00

John took me to Salida and Monarch for a birthday weekend! We had so much fun just hanging out, white water rafting, checking out the Chaffee County Rodeo and cheering on GSers at the road race. Thank goodness I have John to remind me how much fun life can be...without a start and finish line!
White water rafting was awesome with Independent White Water. http://www.independentrafting.com/ There were just 4 of us and our boatman, Prester. The perfect boatman name. The other 2 guests were a river guide and his wife on their days off. Perfect crew for riding the white water through the Royal Gorge! I had never been to the Royal Gorge and it was the perfect way to see it! Through the Narrows, Wall Slammer and Sledge Hammer! Yahoo! I did manage to get sucked out of the water early on while we were riding a rock! One minute I was leaning in to stay safe and the next second I was under the bottom of the boat looking for light and air! I was a little freaked for a millisecond and then just popped up on the side of the boat! It freaked everyone else out a bit too.
This was a totally different experience than the GC! The water is high for the river but still really big and rocky and wild! We were also paddlers and helped direct the boat so we had to pay attention and do what Prester told us to do. He was very patient and a classy boatman. Truly a mountain man with great aplomb and a love for the mountains and water! I loved riding the waves with John as we would both be laughing or screaming at the same time! It was so funny to see how we would both react to some monster wall slammer or head banger rapids! Independent was a great company to ride with. They are small and professional and passionate about what they do. The other companies were putting dozens of boats of kids and families and although I'm sure they were safe their experience was more like a quick trip to Burger King! Ours was more like a 7 course meal that takes all day to savor!
I was shocked at the number of boats some companies were putting in! It was like Disney Land!
The coolest part of the ride was when Prester decided we would try to surf and eddy. Of course I thought by surf he meant ride on top of the water. I was never worried about falling in or floating away...there were plenty of boats and people to scoop us out if we needed it! The eddy riding was crazy! Rather than be on top of the water we were actually completely submerged! John and I were trying to figure out why we were submerged and getting sucked into the eddy but it seemed Prester thought that was what we were supposed to be doing. We were "surfing" the eddy for what seemed like hours but it was only 5 minutes. I thought for sure we were going to get sucked back in forever! I had no idea how we were going to get out. All of a sudden Prester popped us up we were cruising down the river soaking wet and laughing! Really wild!
Dinner at the Boathouse was yummy and we ate too much! Then we went to watch the bucking broncos, barrel rollers, riders and other cool cowboy stuff that I don't know the name of! Really fun!
Sunday we had a great breakfast and scurried over to watch the GS ladies kick butt at the Salida road race! I soooo miss riding with them and it was hard to watch and know that I missed an entire season. Ugh. Tasha, Kendra and others were completely hot and in the race!
The rest of the day will be reported in my wellness update later this week!

ON THE WATER - Grand Canyon

2011-07-18T20:16:00.028-06:00

Rather than bore myself and my blog readers with a daily overview of our EPIC ADVENTURE in the Grand Canyon, I’ve decided to organize my thoughts and photos by category! So rather than days 1-9, I am going to share our adventures “on the water”, “on the trail”, “in camp”, and “Rocks and Plants”. I was mesmerized by everything we saw and did. The entire trip was mind altering and I loved every moment of it. Being “on the water” was relaxing and exhilarating all at the same time. The first day we hit the boat I knew I would be in Heaven for 8 days! Our boats were big blue rafts that held 4 “guests” and 1 boatman. The boatman was the only one who rowed so we just chilled and soaked in the fresh air, the sun and the majesty of the geology. The river was incredibly high so it really changed the “landscape” of the rapids and flat water both. There were eddies everywhere and we had great fun watching the boatmen navigate the waters. The killer rapids that everyone was worried about included Crystal, Lava, Granite. Lava was clearly the “scariest” as the boatmen had already planned a celebratory beer at lunch “if” we all made it through. I found that being on the water got me really excited and pumped up but I was never scared or worried about being “in” the water if I fell out. I think because the water was so high...the very first day when we got in the boats the Trip Captain, Matt, asked if either of us had ever been on white water. John had never been up to that point. I’d been rafting in a number of rivers in the Northeast and Colorado. Matt asked what did I know about being on a raft as far as safety goes. I told him what I had always been told: “follow the bubbles to the surface and point your feet up to the sky” so they don’t get caught in rocks and I get dragged, stuck and drowned. Matt smiled widely and said he could simplify it for me…”don’t breathe under water”. OK, got it! In fact, Matt only had 3 rules for any guest on the trip. #1. Don’t breathe under water. #2 Don’t be stupid. #3. Don’t be an asshole. Apparently if a guest follows these rules he won’t drown, fall off a cliff, get eaten by a large animal, stung by a small reptile and would likely be able to sleep in his own tent every night. I thought they sounded like sound rules and I tried to follow them daily! The key to enjoying a boat trip in a raft is determining where you are most comfortable in the boat. Sitting up front brings with it great excitement, big water, lots of baling, very wet clothing and usually a perpetual soggy chill for most of the day. The back is exciting in a different way. In the front when you go through rapids you are pretty sure if you fall out it is because the waves swept you out when you forgot to hold on for dear life. In the back you generally feel like you are going to actually fall face forward out of the boat as the tail swings so high in the air you can actually see the smile on the boatman’s face. There used to be a ride at the carnival when I was a kid called the Pirate’s Boat. It was just a huge mechanical teeter totter that swung back and forth and the scary seats were in the very back because not only did you levitate out of your seat, you would be upside down and hanging from your belt while watching the people in the middle of the boat scream. I remember thinking it was a very surreal experience as I pondered who I would land on when I fell out. Being in the back of the raft gave me a similar experience. The front of the boat slams into the waves and you fly high and bounce and then get drenched. The back of the boat you roll high and get thrown forward and get drenched but not usually as wet as in the front. I started in the back with Kristi, John’s sister-in-law and watched John and Tom get thrown around and soaked and I knew pretty quickly that I wanted to spend my boat time in the front. There were plenty of people who didn’t want to get wet or have to bale so I had no problems getting my butt on the front of the next boat and keeping it there. The rapids were so much fun! It was not only fun getting tossed around like a pebble it was fun watching John and others get tossed around too! I got a much better feel for how crazy the ride was when I watched the waves crush down on John! It is amazing that none of us fell out, broke bones or at least suffered a concussion! Water can be really hard but the waves of the Colorado River were very forgiving! The water was FREEZING all the time. The kind of freezing where you stick your feet in the water and within 30 seconds your feet ache and you have brain freeze for no good reason. It is that kind of internal ache that makes your tummy roll and your toes curl. Brutal! I never really minded getting wet unless it was early morning or heavily shaded as the chill of the water stuck with you for hours. Of course later in the day when we were hiking I would be wishing I had that cold water all over me! Navigating the river takes a real artist, scientist and adventurer. It is not for the faint at heart. The rapids, no matter how “easy” they look, were never simple for the boatmen. It was wicked when we would get out of the boats to scout an upcoming rapid. We did this for Crystal, Granit, and Lava and it was exhilarating to see the water we would be riding in moments. The noise from the crushing waves is deafening and pretty intense. I would pick a spot in the rapids and watch the water fly by for what seemed like hours…it was hypnotic! I love the sound the water makes. Some of the people we camped with would complain about the noise of the river at night and I found it to be much better than ambient! Lava are the most feared rapids on the river. When we got on the boats the whole group was talking about the day we get to Lava….oooohhhhh! I didn’t really appreciate it until we got out to scout the water. First off, you can hear rapids coming for quite a while so it was easy to move from lounging position to “ready” position for the rapids. This means both feet on the bottom of the boat, one hand on a rope inside the boat and one hand grabbing a rope on the outside. That way I can balance myself depending on which side of the boat is getting slammed with water. It worked well and I was always happy to “get ready” for the water. Lava could be heard for almost a mile up the canyon…whoa! It made my heart race with excitement and wonder! What could be so special about LAVA? What I did know is that the LAVA rapids were created by the lava flows that had run through the canyon billions of years ago! More about lava later! Just as we were about to scout Lava Rapids we saw a smaller raft with 3 people take the right side of the rapids…Matt had already made it clear that the left side of the rapids were the only place to be! Apparently the water was no easier to read as high as it was. Matt told us that the river usually runs at 10,000 CF (cubic feet) and while we were rafting it was over 23,000 CF. We were never in fear of crashing into sharp rocks, or jagged obstacles in the water…the new challenge were eddies. The new flow of the water running over so many new obstacles below changed the flow and the eddies were really fun for us and challenging for the boatmen. So Lava was huge with holes, waves and eddies! Once the boatmen agreed on a path we hit it one boat at a time! None of our boats tipped over in Lava and as soon as we hit ground for lunch the boatmen cracked open beers to celebrate survival! John and I had the luxury of riding Lava in the Dory! “Dories are a unique type of rowing boat originally built from wood without a keel and with the bottom planking running lengthwise. Skiffs usually have the bottom planking running width wise. Dories have a narrow "tombstone" transom running all the way down to the bottom.” Some of our boating friends said we were airborne through the Lava rapids. I felt like we were flying for sure! Bruce, our boatman, said that he never gets any water in the boat! Well we proved him wrong…John and I were both drenched and I had water above my knees! IT WAS AWESOME! The water temperature was really freezing when we got in the boat on day 1. My feet would freeze in about 15 seconds and really hurt. As we floated toward Lake Mead it got more tolerable and by the time we 5 days in I was jumping in and out of the water all the time! It was so much fun! The hardest thing about the water temperature was in the mornings because of the shade! We would hit a waterfall early and swim around and then freeze until the water came over the canyon wall! Enjoy my photos of the water!

2011: The "Unseason"

2011-07-08T10:59:00.003-06:00

Do you remember the “Uncola”? Well 2011 has turned out to be the “unseason” for me. I can trace it all back to a very very cold winter day on the Highline canal. I was not dressed warmly enough and I had done a tough weight session the day before and my legs were ripe for an injury. Isn’t it easy to introspective looking back? Ugh! I was running a long run by myself and it was just one of those days that everything was a challenge. My ipod froze and died, my water froze, my legs hurt and John and I somehow missed each other so that my plan to abort my run at 11 miles failed and I had to cover the full 20 miles to get a ride home. By the time I finished the ride I was miserable and I knew I’d hurt my left leg. At mile 7 or 8 as I was trying to find a comfortable gate I felt a wicked snap and heard a loud pop. I knew it couldn’t be good but the pain was instant and never really came back…this was 2 winters ago. Since that time I have been effectively working my way around a left hamstring injury…until the end of last tri season and last winter.

Last fall I competed in all 3 National Championships and I knew after the Olympic it would be a battle to get my hamstring to hold out. The other struggle was being able to load it as much as I needed to in order to climb quickly and turn up the heat on the run. No matter the distance or how warmed up I was I could only do so much and then my hamstring would grab me and slow me down. I worked with Ken Sheridan on it for months and I’d hoped to manage it during the end of the season and fix it up during the winter months. Last winter a group of us were training for the Moab Red Hot 50K and it required miles and miles of easy trail running. Although Ken was treating me I knew it wasn’t right…my bad. The longer miles were fine as long as I stayed in a straight line and made no sudden movements. My hamstring would not respond and I would take an awesome face plant…it happened a few times and I was really getting worried. I would move to swing my left leg in front to catch me and it wouldn’t respond. My bad. Moab was great and I didn’t really worry about my leg figuring we could fix it right after Moab! That was in February for goodness sakes…surely that would be enough time. I started to train in earnest for tri season and speed work was the final straw. One day Tyler and I were running in Chatfield and I would be fine once I got moving but after we stopped it would really seize and not want to restart. Each interval it took longer to get moving and hurt more to stop…in keeping with my solid decision making skills about my own wellness I decided to try one more week. I ran with Barry and Jewels on the east side of town before Pilates and I could hardly get started for each interval. It got tighter and more messed up with each stride…the good news is that I would be able to stretch it out at Pilates, right? Duh!

Today is July 8^th and I have officially bagged my tri-season. In late April I went to see Dr. Tim Mazzola at Cornerstone Orthopedics; a great non-surgical orthopedist. My kind of guy. He examined me, took x-rays and then moved to an MRI. Chronic severe tendonosis…whatever the hell that means! It turns out that I damaged my hamstring 18 months ago and since then my body has been struggling to let me do what I want by building gobs of scar tissue, shifting my pelvis and making other adjustments that have now all caught up to me. I started PT right away and considered a procedure called PRP. I have not found great research on PRP for hamstrings and it is experimental so my insurance scoffs at it while I have to bring $1,000 to the table. I decided to go “non-invasive” for 2 months to see if PT would resolve my issues. I have been an outstanding patient if I do say so myself. Both my running shoes and bike have gathered dust while I’ve been quite unsuccessful at finding other things to do with my time. It has been great to see friends I usually miss all summer and my golf game is improving so that is all good! The truth is I start each day feeling great and positive and by the end of many days I am pouting and frustrated…especially if I spent the day watching other people workout, race and otherwise move their bodies! I love being a fan however I find it catches up to me later in the day…self pity is SOOOO ugly! So each day I work on that…I know very well that I have friends and family who have much tougher roads and I need to take this time to be grateful for what I can do, have done and will be able to do again someday soon. As I always remind myself…I’m not making any money at this so I might as well cool my jets and ego!

The interesting news is that I met old friends at Lake2Lake, Jenn and Matt, and Jenn knew a guy who had PRP done in Boulder. She introduced me to Kevin who introduced me to Dr. Roger Nichols. Nichols is a radiologist at BCH and a very interesting guy. It turns out that he is a well kept secret as far as I’m concerned. He has been doing PRP on athletes for 5 years. He uses Ultrasound to see where he needs to inject patients. He told me without hesitation that I am a great candidate for PRP and he could fix me. The challenge is that I will need 2-3 months to build back up to full training mode. We talked about my hopeful race schedule; Nationals Aug 20^th, ITU Worlds China Sept 11^th, ITU Worlds Vegas Nov 5^th and then that little race I registered for in June 2012…Coeur DeLene IM. He laughed and told me I wasn’t really helping him help me…thanks Jerry McGuire. So we decided on a new plan…cortisone shot immediately to allow me to train and race in Beijing and PRP when I return in late September. With that plan I would not be able to compete in Vegas which is a real bummer but IM 2012 has become a much bigger goal now…$630 bigger!

Yesterday, July 7^th I received my shot…along with some serious lanacane for pain. I was really anxious about the shot. I hate needles, band aids, hospitals and anything associated with all of it! I was pretty wound up and really happy when Margaret agreed to make the trip with me! It turns out that Dr. Nichols knows Davis Phinney quite well liked to tell stories as he injected me. It was a good distraction and I never really felt much of anything. I could feel the needle moving around inside my leg but It never hurt! Phew! Now I have to wait 7 days to let the full effect of the medicine settle into my hamstring muscle, tendon and butt…so on July 14^th I expect to take a bit of a run around the lake and maybe a ride around Bear Creek.

Time will tell after that. Dr. Nichols said he expects that the cortisone will cure me and I won’t need PRP. This was going to be a “BIG” season! One that I would set some PRs and prepare for longer distances…welcome the “unseason”.

EPIC ADVENTURE in the GRAND CANYON!! - Day 1

2011-06-26T09:51:00.014-06:00

About 18 months ago John asked me if I want to do a float trip down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon…in June. Although I am not a big fan of the “bucket list” idea I am a big fan of the Grand Canyon for someone who has never seen it except from 34,000 feet. I have always wanted to go and really had no idea what a float trip would be like…I only knew it was something I had to do!

In the past we have used the word "epic" for things like a long bike ride in the mountains or a great powder ski day...now I know what the word EPIC really means! Our trip into the Grand Canyon was EPIC for so many reasons! I am so grateful to Tom for inviting us, to John for asking to "let go" of my race season for June and for my life that allows me to enjoy such EPIC adventures!

June is traditionally the kick off to race season so I figured if I committed 18 months out I would be able to build my racing and finances around the trip. John’s brother and sister-in-law Tom and Kristi invited us to join them on a trip with some of their friends so we agreed and set the wheels in motion.

This blog post could be really really long so I think I am going to break it up into a couple posts with tons of pictures. The first part of the trip included a flight to Vegas for some sweet people watching, a shuttle to Boulder City, an 18 passenger flight to the National Park Airport in Grand Canyon National Park and my first visit to the South Rim…aka Disney Land in the Southwest.

It is never easy to get out of town and disconnect from our lives these days and I have to say I couldn’t wait to “disconnect” for a week or more! COULD NOT WAIT! We planned our trip with an Outfitter called Moki Mac out of Salt Lake. Tom Murtaugh had worked with them in the past and knew they were good and I have to agree that they are THE BEST! Annie and Richard helped us coordinate all our plans from DIA to the Colorado River. Our timing was perfect as we arrived at the South Rim with plenty of time to hike a bit, watch the people, eat and meet our guide. Oh, and watch the NBA finals game!

I loved the flight over to the park. The small plane was full of German tourists who were loud and in awe and the motion of the plane kept everyone guessing whether we would end up in the dessert or the canyon! It was so much fun! We flew over Hoover Damn and so much of the country I have never seen before. Truly beautiful and overwhelming and I wasn’t even able to see the canyon! Once we landed we took a cab with another couple to Bright Angel Lodge for our overnight before our hike to Phantom Ranch. The married couple we were riding with drive a tandem 18 wheeler truck and they parked their truck outside the park in order to spend 4 hours on the south rim, He was driving fruits and veggies from CA to the northeast. They were very interesting people and so excited to see the park. They sleep in their truck and share the driving all around the country. Cool gig.

We saw the Grand Canyon train in the station but we didn’t get to see it move as it was settled for the night. Bright Angel Lodge was everything I expected except for 1 thing…it was a freaking zoo! Honestly it was like being in the Disney Resort on a Saturday morning…but this was a Tuesday afternoon. People of all nationalities clamoring for help, food, pictures and more food! Crazy, loud and a bit disconcerting! We checked in and finally walked out to “the south rim” to see the Canyon! Oh My! Oh my! the beauty was overwhelming and so was the noise. Maybe it was more like being at Sea World in the underground portion where everyone crowds to see the whales underwater? I was just shocked at the number of people and the volume and the craziness! A large group of hikers had just come up from the bottom and were gorging on huge bowls of ice cream and laughing about their trip! I felt out of place in my Keen sandals, dry-fit t-shirt and shorts and English as my first language (and only!) Tourists from all around the world poured off busses and out of the ice cream shops to see the Canyon, take some pictures and then head back inside for dinner and X-box! Actually I met a couple nice people from Australia who really did appreciate the grandeur of the canyon. We walk a little ways down Bright Angel Trail to escape the people and catch a glimpse of our 5:00 Am hike the next morning. I was sooo excited I could have run down the trail right then! Instead we had a beer, met some people from Michigan who couldn’t wait to get to Vegas on their tour and then we met Simone our hike guide. Apparently the NPS requires that all commercial outfitters provide hiking guides for their “guests” in and out of the canyon. Tom, Kristi and 14 others had already been on the water since Lee’s Ferry 6 days ago and they were picking us up the next morning while 2 women who only floated the top would be hiking out. Simone was our designated guide and she was an authentic nature loving, river running, trial hiking, living off the grid kind of chick! I thought for a while I wanted her life! She and her husband live completely off the grid down near the Grand Canyon somewhere and they work for outfitters and do other cool seasonal jobs in the southwest. Originally from Alaska Simone has lived in some cool places and had great jobs! I was imagining her life until she told me about “the first” time she had a rattle snake in her house….the stories were all downhill after that and I am happy to live in a snake free zone! Simone clearly meets hundreds of people each summer and has to prepare them for the hike down. It was cute as she explained to us that we would need food and water and we would need to rest every 1 ½ miles until we got to Indian Gardens (4.5 miles down the 9 mile trail) in order to maintain our energy and not get too tired. Of course I am thinking that if I were healthy I would already have run down and back before dinner but we were respectful and she turned out to be a great wealth of information about the canyon, the park and the plants on the trail. She was terrific and I am grateful she was able to hike with us.

When we finally went to our room we needed to repack our packs for the hike down. Tom had sent John a list of all the things we would need and since this was Tom’s 3^rd trip I figured he was the man to listen to! He also works for the Forest Service and has all the gadgets and clothing you could ever need on a trip like this! John and I spend some major bucks getting ready for this trip and I am glad we did. We packed well (except for the white shirts!) and although my pack was awkward it was well stacked and ready to roll. We had poured lotions and sunscreen into not pop-top bottles and we had plenty for both of us! I know some of you would be shocked to know that I didn’t want to fry in the sun and be unable to hike or enjoy the boat so I packed tons of 30SPF and long sleeve shirts for cover. Over Memorial Day weekend we went to REI to shop and I was blown away by the cool camping and casual classy clothes I could buy for millions of dollars! I opted for a pair of zip off capris and a stupid looking safari hat that would essentially cover my entire body. And I finally found a great use for all the race t-shirts I’ve acquired over the years…they are great for rafting and camping. They clean easily, dry quickly and who cares if I get them stained because I have 10 more just like them at home! I was impressed by the great clothing many of the women had on our trip and I was momentarily jealous but I also knew I would rather spend my money on other things! I also packed swim suit, running shorts, hiking shirts and a long sleeve shirt for cold that never made it out of the bag. I do wish I had packed more cotton. No one mentioned cotton and I would have killed for a pair of loose cotton shorts and t-shirt some evenings. Dry-fit gets annoying!

John had a great idea about packing so we rented a sleep kit from Moki Mac and brought our own cocoons to sleep in. Great investment…a cocoon is a light weight sheet that provides cover and protection from the public use sleeping bag and it turned out to be very useful. I also got used to my REI blow up pillow. The one night I went without my neck and back were not happy so I dug deeper to fund I the next night and was very happy. The other thing we didn’t prepare well for was food and beverages. Yes, I went 9 days without a Diet Pepsi! It was great! And Tom had packed me 6 beers so I was a water girl the entire trip and I am sure it was really god for me! Next time I would pack more box wine or lite beer and some healthy snacks. I am now addicted to Pringles and that is just too gross!

We finally crashed and I slept well for about 4 hours! When the alarm went off I was up and ready to go quickly. My last hot shower for a week+ and a quick check of our packs and we were off to meet Simone.

Red Hot 50K

2011-05-29T08:54:00.007-06:00

I am way behind in blogging and since my "season" has come to a blazing stop I thought I really should get caught up. The challenge it that I am trying not to be too "poopy" while I am on IR so I will attempt to reflect how much fun my adventures have been even if right now I am in frozen mode.
In February a large group of us culminated a winter of trail running and stair climbing by running the Red Hot 50K in Moab, UT. The group included...the entire Walton clan including in-laws, outlaws and Mr. Walton, Keith & Nancy, Jewels, Randi, Andreas, Steve, Sean, Jane, Abby, Heidi, our smoking hot campboss, Laurie, and John...and we had a freaking BLAST!!!
Once finished this would be the longest run for many and the most challenging as well. Although my hammie had been acting up it seemed to handle the long slow miles well so I started the run relaxed and ready to roll. Tyler toed the line in the tank, John was mellow and Keith under trained. We were the 50K crew that had trained and planned to race together. Andrea and crew were all really well trained and although we didn't train or start together we were all excited to be out there together and celebrate at the end.
The real highlights for me were two fold...it has been 10 years since I ran the Colorado Trail with Laurie and Maria and when Laurie showed up on the trail (slowing way down to meet us) to run with us I wanted to cry with joy. I was sooooo happy to see her and run with her! All that training and playing so many years ago connected us in a way even our husbands couldn't destroy...only delay!
The weather was pretty crummy and I hate that. The wind, rain and cold made the course muddy and yucky but after 15 miles or so I don't even remember noticing it. About mile 17 or so Laurie and I were both feeling great, Tyler was quiet and keeping to himself, John was lost in his good and Keith had already warned me he was ready to be left alone...so Laurie and I copped a squat and then decided to pick up the pace. It was awesome...we just started singing Barry Manilow songs and running faster. Don't let me mislead you...we weren't blazing but we were cruising along pretty good and counting the people we passed as we cruised. We can both be pretty competitive even in our own weird ways so we started to count the bodies and get caught up on the last 7 years of our lives. It is one of those moments in time that I will cherish forever.
Jewels, Annie and Nancy were very well trained and ready for their 30K run. We left them at the start looking happy and nervous. I was hopeful that they would support and push each other to great success! And they did! Simply awesome! Each found their own "space" on the trail and they seemed to have a great day. The pictures would indicate that they never had a single challenge and I'm pretty sure they can drop 45 minutes off their time next year! Ha!
The other highlight of the day was training and then toeing the start line with John. Because we are motivated so differently out training is very often "off" so when we trained all winter together it was really fun. It is much easier when both of us have to drag our butts out of bed on a freezing morning for a run! We had training days where our water froze, eye lashes froze and I think my pee froze mid-stream! The trails were muddy, slippery and icy and I loved it all! We even manged to get in a few really fun snow shoe runs at Deer Creek OS! Great park for a snow shoe run!
Do you remember that Tour De France Day a few years ago when Lance did his traditional "glance back throw down" and then he just shifted into another gear that no one should have after that many days of racing in the mountains? You know that look he had? I love that look by the way! Laurie and I are cruising along at about mile 25 on some really hilly slick rock and I hear a familiar breathing behind me and in seconds Tyler, who when we last saw him was so in the tank with sickness and exhaustion I didn't expect him to finish, came blowing by us. Not jogging but dropping a sub 8 pace, headphones blasting! He sort of waved and I caught up and asked him what the hell he was doing. He said he felt great and decided to take advantage of it. I suggested we still had a long way to go and he knew it but decided to increase his speed! Awesome! Laurie and I attempted to keep up but we both knew that was a pace we would never be able to hold and finish running. So we let him go and he vanished in the Moab red dust. We could see him climbing each hill in front of us and the disappearing down the back side and he kept getting farther away. It was really incredible. And then all of a sudden he started to get closer...and closer...and then we were next to him as he hammered up a super steep slick rock section. He was toasted and happy to have had the energy to boost him along so far! I always tell people if you are hurting then RUN because you will get it over with sooner! Well Tyler completely embraced that philosophy! The last few miles across the top of Poison Spider were sandy and tough because our legs were not used to flat or sand. The entire course is challenging terrain and it takes a while for legs to adjust every time it changes. Laurie and I are always like horses to the barn and the closer we got the faster we ran. It is so cool to have more in the tank after 30 miles! All the way down the last 2 miles we really pushed each other. It was so much fun! We were flying down the lose rock and ruts and it was really stupid and so much fun! We finished together and laughed the whole way! It made me so happy...and then we waited for John...and waited, waited, waited....so Heidi and I walked up the trail to look for him and it started to get cold again...and we waited and waited and more people finished. I was starting to get worried. I was worried he was stuck, hurt or just done. He was better trained than any of us so I had no clue...after 9 hours we see John way up at the top of the switch backs walking and chatting with people. By the time he hits the last turn he is walking along with a couple women chatting and looking like he's been mall walking with the girls!! Really? It turns out his knee started to hurt when he ran so wisely, he stopped running and then it was fine. The poor guy ended up walking 15 plus miles. He is so much more patient than I could ever be! I would have run and hurt myself just to be done!
After the race we had a big ole pasta party at our condo! And THANK YOU Heidi for doing all the prep and cooking for us! She is the best camp boss ever!
The 30 Kers completely kicked ass! They were smiling more when they were done than when they started! Congrats ladies!
The next day we went for a mountain bike cruise around town and had lunch at Milts! Cheeseburgers, fries and other artery clogging stuff that tasted heavenly!
The perfect weekend with friends that I adore!

2011 in a FLASH!

2011-04-15T10:04:00.008-06:00

2011 is flying before my eyes and I really need to get back on the blogging horse! Since the first of the year I have had a blast with friends training and competing in an awesome ultra-race, reconnecting with Laurie, coaching athletes to great success and starting the bike race by not getting dropped! Ha! And John and I manage to find time to laugh and play although I need to make more time for "us" so it is a good thing he is training like a maniac again!

In a month I will have new neighbors too! Life really is moving fast. My intention is to keep up my blog even if just with snippets of amazing moments, days or thoughts!

Life really is too short...

Margaret & Copper Triangle 2010

2011-02-07T17:09:00.006-07:00

Many of you that know me well know that the last few months has been brutally hard for people I love. My sister Margaret has been getting progressively sicker and it is breaking my heart. As much as we both know (it better be!) that is is a temporary condition it is still very scary and frustrating! She is too far away and it is too cold and crappy in New England for anyone who wants to remain strong and can't handle the weather. Right now she can't even walk down the stairs let alone drive the the Y for a workout. I always kid her about living in an attic and right now she really is stuck in an attic and it makes me so sad and sick.I was looking back through blog posts I had written but never posted and I am ashamed to say that I never posted our Copper Triangle weekend from last summer. What a dope. My sister has one of her most amazing athletic accomplishments and I neglected to spout about it! I know Margaret will be back to her feisty self soon enough and until then we can all send good thoughts and mojo her way!

Enjoy this take on our day chasing Davis Phinney around the mountains!In 2009 Margaret trained for and conquered her first Rocky Mountain bike ride! She shocked me by not just finishing but finishing STRONG and having the strength and energy to play with us and visit with Davis Phinney!

2010 was equally impressive! Her training was not what it should have been thanks to some man (we took care of that challenge!) but there was no doubt her training suffered. Ride day you would never have known it! John, Jewels, Barry, Tyler, Heidi, Matt and I all joined Margaret for her annual Copper Triangle ride. She kicked it again this year! It was much warmer at the start this year and that made it much nicer for all of us! The first climb is always hard because you get no warm up and start climbing…we all struggle a bit but by the time we hit Fremont Pass everyone was all smiles and snacking on PopTarts! Ewww! Margaret is so strong and focused…I had a hard time getting her to play with us. Fortunately Tyler and I are easily entertained so we goofed, mocked and chatted with all the other riders! Jewels and Tyler had great training days in the Big Ring while Margaret hammered her way to a faster finish and a much stronger ride overall. She rode to the top of the Tennessee Pass aid station and she ate when other people would share their food! Thanks John and Jewels!

At the end of the ride Margaret had on her radar and found Davis and Connie hanging out at Endos again so she had a chance to visit as well as meet Cindy from the foundation. It was such a great day! Davis and Connie are so gracious and kind. I really appreciate them for all they do for the PD community as well as for the cycling community! Sadly Tyler and Jewels had to boogie back to town and couldn’t play with us but the rest of us relaxed and had fun! I love Copper Mountain and that event! So awesome!

Congrats Margaret!

2011 - HERE I COME!!!!

2011-01-03T07:54:00.000-07:00

I am finally ready to blog more regularly and keep my coaching, racing and adventures better organized! I even have a note in my calendar to remind me to update my blog weekly. That seems a little sad but necessary, especially when I am traveling!

I stayed in Colorado and had a fantastic holiday celebration with John, his family and our friends! The weather was so nice on Christmas that we rode our mountain bikes through Bear Creek and then we finished the day with concerts by the Murtaugh clan. The week between Christmas and New Years wasn't as productive as I had expected it to be however I really enjoyed the down time. I guess I needed it!

New Years Eve we finally plunged into cold weather and ran the Resolution Run in 17 layers and purple footie pjs! OK, just I ran in them but it was FUN! And really warm! Nicole made us some yummy soup and Keith and Nancy brought the wine! Then over to Mary and Ron's for games and to ring in the New Year!

As I look back on 2010 I have to say it was such an incredible year. I am so blessed with family and friends. One of my #1 commitments for 2011 is to be better at staying in touch...to somehow manage my days and nights to be better at answering the phone and having shorter conversations more often. Ha! We will see what that looks like!

I am also going to boost up my STS sales, grow my coaching business and start to kick around the idea of a 2012 IM. Ugh... I am now coaching with Susan Williams and if you know how weak my swim is you can appreciate what a great decision this is. I am really looking forward to meeting her group, getting in the pool with them and having some peeps to chase!

The race season will be very different for me in 2011. I am going to cut way back on races and focus on the half distance. I am also going to stay on the ground...no bikes on planes if I can help it. not until Nationals in Vermont! Between now and then I will be doing some longer races, 50K, adventures and snow shoe races in the winter, bike racing all spring and early summer and then rolling into the tri-season to prepare for Worlds in Vegas. Yahoo!

And of course there will be the 10-day Grand Canyon trip with John in June! I CAN'T WAIT FOR THAT! I have never even seen the Grand Canyon! We are going to have such an amazing trip! And then in September we will be in China for ITU Worlds in Bejing! Margaret will be our own personal tour guide! Incredible planning for that is starting now!

2011...Here I come!!!!

This holiday season

2010-12-15T12:16:00.000-07:00

I've had so many great experiences this year and I am soooo far behind in blogging about them...and today I don't really care. Today I want to tell the universe how grateful I am for my amazing life. It seems there are so many people I love who are really suffering right now and it hurts so much. I hate it. I feel so useless. I have nothing to offer that can make the pain go away. I can't help sleep come or tears stop. The last time I saw my brother I was telling him how I grind my teeth at night when I get stressed and he laughed at me. He said "What do you possibly get stressed about? Ooooh, what race will I win next, which bike should I ride or what trail should I run today?" As obnoxious and funny as that was...he was right. I am so incredibly blessed and even if something horribly wrong were to happen tomorrow it doesn't change that I am blessed. The only way I know to help my friends with their sadness is to remember how blessed I am and keep sharing, spreading and spewing my love on them. I love the holidays and I love my friends and family and I want to celebrate with them. So I am going to stay the course, hug, hold and likely annoy people so that they know I am here and will be. And I will be grateful every day. Every day.

3 National Championships in 7 Days!

2010-11-02T20:45:00.000-06:00

It seems I am destined to fall behind in the “blogging world” and the ironic thing is that I have so much I want to share. I sit at my computer so much during the work day that I got twitchy about sitting in front of my computer “after” work too…silly since I have friends to email, schedules to write and my own workouts to log. How can I be so stubborn sometimes? Anyway…

The end of my 2010 triathlon season came fast and flew right by me. Last spring Barry had suggested that it would be “fun” to do all 3 national championships in the fall. I hadn’t thought about it up to that point and I had to agree…it did sound like fun. And it was!

Between travel for work and tris the months of August and September were pretty crazy and I appreciate everyone’s help at helping me get to and from with great roomies and awesome road trips!

The first race of the 3 was my “A” race. Olympic distance nationals in Tuscaloosa followed the very next day by the sprint race. The best part of nationals for me is always hanging with friends, laughing and watching everyone excel. This year was no different. Although we were a smaller group we were a focused and funny group. Michelle Ford was injured, Tyler was also travel weary, Cheryl was MIA, Jewels and Sandi wanted Worlds slots BADLY, Barry and Priscilla needed vacations badly and Anthony and Michele were trying to squeeze in a wedding anniversary celebration. Apparently none of us make it “easy” and our version of relaxing includes jamming a #1 race in the middle of the weekend! Ha!

Admittedly I was frustrated when John decided 1 month out that he wanted to go to nationals…and I was so thrilled he was there. He is my biggest fan and is always there with a smile, a hug and a laugh when I finish.

I felt like I was calm and focused for the Oly. I knew my butt and hip were at about 75% and my goal was to relax it as much as I could and drag that leg around the course as fast as I could. Since May I have been fighting an imbalance injury that had my left hip, butt, flexors and psoas so jacked up there were days I couldn’t walk straight. Going back to lifts in my shoes and addressing a “big toe” thing seemed to help however I never really stopped training long enough for my body to adjust…so I toed the start line rebalanced and in pain. It sucked but it was not going to stop me from racing.

The other “little” nuance to my race was my brand new TT bike that I had ridden 3 times before race day! Yahoo! My amazing sponsor, MRae Creations, provided me with a generous gift to buy a new bike, wheels and whatever else I need to get to the next level. I really struggled with when to buy and what to buy and if I should actually race on it at nationals. Then I remembered that I DO NOT get paid and I WILL NOT get paid for my results and I should race that new bike no matter what!

My new Giant Trinity Alliance is incredible. Thank you Margaret. Once I am healthy and can push that new big gear I will be able to KILL the ride more so than I do now! I have to say I was no slouch at the Oly although there were moments on the ride when I had to pull back for fear of my hammie completely shutting down. I could feel it pull and then really pull so I would back off and stay steady and strong. It was a good plan as I still had 2 more races to complete!

Sadly the swim was my weakest event again. I am still sick about it. I have worked so hard on my form and was so excited to have a strong swim…but I could feel the current pull me and I had no power to counter it. Ugh! I could see caps pull away and I had nothing. It wasn’t as bad as last year and my swim was FASTER than my run this year but that is about all I can say for my swim. Grrrr.

The ride was solid and set me up for a strong run. My left side was shot by the time I hit the hills so I backed off just enough and started to reel all those pesky swimmers in one by one. It was a hot day and people were starting to fade. Since I was in the last wave again I really started to see the heat impact people. I love the heat and it never seems to impact me as badly as others and I continued to roll. Michelle and I had warmed up on the bike path and when I hit that section in the race I knew where I was so I tried to push it as much as my leg would let me. When I crossed the finish line I knew I had raced well and that my results, unless I got a penalty, would garner my biggest goal of the season. TeamUSA in CHINA 2011! I was 7^th in my age group and I was pleased with that. What I was most excited about is that I KNOW I can race all 3 events faster and I WILL next season!

This year’s Oly nationals was so wonderful and unique for me. Not only were friends from Colorado with us, my friend Christine and her family were there too! Chris is the reason I am so passionate about this sport and I was so proud to race with her and see her rock her race! She is truly an inspiration to me in so many ways! I loved seeing Jim and Jimmy and meeting their daughter-in-law and new baby granddaughter, Elizabeth Christine! What a beautiful name!

The other thing that made this year unique was it was my first nationals as a USAT coach. I know full well that Tyler, Barry and Jewels would have raced at nationals with or without me so I take no credit. What I take credit for is the amazing joy and gratitude I felt for all of their successes! I have always loved watching people reach goals, succeed and feel proud of an accomplishment. It’s the reason I always wanted to become a coach. I have to say that watching THIS CREW was extraordinary because I admire and love each of them very much. Each works so hard at family, friends and work and still manages to show up for themselves as triathletes! This is no easy feat! I was proud to listen to their race reports and all the feelings that came with each stroke and stride! You guys rock and I can only hope to grow my coaching experience with more athletes like you! Thank you!

The afternoon and evening after the Oly race was a freaking blast! We played in the pool at the hotel, drank some beers (OK, I didn’t but John drank enough for both of us!) and had a great dinner with the whole group. The Mellow Mushroom! Check it out! Awesome food and there is one in Denver now! We ate, drank and ate some more! Regaling stories of the day and kidding each other about our races always makes me laugh! Tyler agreed to go for a late afternoon ride with me so I could spin out my legs before the sprint and we somehow happened onto the Pros Race! OMG! They are just incredible to watch ride. I love to watch them work, push and blaze by!

Being on the podium at nationals was something I have dreamed about for 7 years. Every year I’ve been at nationals it seems as though it was just out of reach. Swimming off course, torrential storms, 50 MPH current…it just seemed as though I was never going to get there. As I type this I have to admit that swimming has more often than not been the cause…more work for 2011!! When Tim called my name and I went up on the stage I’m sure it looked anticlimactic to many. The crowd was loud and distracted and self-absorbed…oh what a shock. But I KNEW RIGHT WHERE I WAS and inside I was doing hand stands! 7^th place for me…working, traveling, new coach, coaching…and there I was…ON THE PODIUM. From Shreveport to Bhama...well worth the wait!

What are the odds…Sunday morning for the Sprint was cool and wet. It rained as Barry, Jewels and I dragged our butts down to the transition area on our bikes. Priscilla, forever our biggest fan, was right there with us while we warmed up, goofed off and got ready to race again. This race was not critical for me so I was relaxed and ready to try the swim in the nasty river again. While we were in the water getting ready to go a woman next to me was sharing her story…she would start her 2^nd round of Chemo the next day and she wanted all of us to race for her. Oh my…I was overwhelmed with her bravery and balls. Later that morning I saw her get her award…bald and beautiful and a total inspiration to all of us at the race.

Enough about another mediocre swim…the ride was wet and a blast. It doesn’t occur to me to worry about the wet or weather so I rode as hard as my butt would let me. It was sore, tight and inflexible by the time I hit the run but it was only 3.1 miles…I have in my head that I can ALWAYS run 3 miles no matter how bad the pain. And I did. It was so much fun splashing through mud puddles and cruising past people. If only I was healthier I would have comfortably covered the distance at a 7 minute pace. I had to be happy with 7:20s! I can live with that.

I never even thought about winning or placing at the Sprint. It was really for fun and to get the blood pumping. Turns out I won my age group and I am a national champion. How amazing is that? I was stunned. Proud and stunned. In the pouring rain Barry, Priscilla, John and Jewels came to watch me on the TOP of the podium. No shit! Better yet, Jewels qualified for Worlds! Yahoo! And Barry qualified for Worlds at BOTH distances! I am SOOOO proud of him as he had a tough training year with bike crashing and knee pain!

Sunday night John and I shacked up with Barry and MP and we hung out to watch the Broncos get beat and relax! Then back to the Mellow Mushroom for dinner with Jim and Christine so we could really talk and catch up! It made my heart feel sooooo good to see them and reconnect. We swear we will get together for a race next summer but I will believe it when I see it! Maybe we will at least play golf!

The next week is all about our rainy Myrtle Beach vacation and on the Halfmax for my 3^rd and final national championship race. I will post a separate blog about our vacation as it was a blast!

Halfmax was on Saturday and as I mentioned, it was Barry’s idea to do all 3 races. Sadly Barry’s mid-season bike crash prevented him from going long so I ended up being the only one to do all 3. Cheryl was there too but we never connected until race morning and then she was already in her zone and I didn’t want to bother her. And, she completely kicked ass in the race and achieved her goal too! I LOVE that!

The race was along the intercoastal waterway at a beautiful hotel in MB. All things were fine until race morning when they had to announce that the swim was canceled. Apparently the 5 days and 21 inches of rain had dragged too much crap into the water and the Ecoli levels were too much for us to swim in! THANK YOU USAT for that decision! I was ready to swim again and see if I could do better but the thought of slogging through the water AND getting sick made me a believer! We started the race at the boat ramp and sprinted to the transition area and jumped on our bikes. It was weird but we all did it so GAME ON! Holy crap the wind was wild! I was on my new bike thankfully as I think I may have blown away on my road bike! I was down low, low down and flying as best I could. The wind made it hard to hear anything so I was ultra cautious about the Officials on motorcycles. Plus it was the beginning of bike week so there were bikes everywhere! After Musselman I am paranoid so I kept my distance and pushed as hard as I could. By the time I hit the run my back, butt, hip and flexors were DONE! Just done! I didn’t think I would be able to pick it up and put it down for 13 miles. Around mile 7 my feet started to hurt as I am sure I was compromising my form. So I stopped and took off my shoes, stretched my feet and body and locked and loaded again…off for the last 6 miles. I got low, forward and focused on relaxing my back and butt. My leg turnover was strong and high and I felt like I would conquer this race after all. The start was a TT start so when I crossed the start line I had no idea who was racing in my age group or where they were. And I have to say I have no idea how old anyone is by looking at them. The BEST PART OF THE DAY was that my father, Walter J, and Betsy were at the race. They drove down from Homer to stay for the week and watch me race. I don’t think my father will ever know how much his interest in my life means to me. For most of the last 20 years I have been the daughter who couldn’t keep a job or a husband and who had some really useless hobbies…like trail running, cycling and triathlons. Oddly, if I were golf pro he would think the world of me! J Having he and Betsy at the race and cheering me on and understanding the event is more than I can ever ask for. Thanks Pop. I really love you. I only wish Elvira could have seen me race in person. She would have glowed for months after my races whether she understood why I raced or not! I look at so many of my friends whose spouses, kids, parents, in-laws, neighbors and grandkids cheer them on and I hope they know how lucky they are! John and I both wish our parents and families were more interested! Good thing we have each other! (Please note this does not include my sister who is MY BIGGEST FAN EVER!)

Coolest thing about the HalfMax results was that Barry was 3^rd and on the podium for the Oly! Not only was it his 3^rd race in 7 days it was his fastest and last in that age group! What a rock star! Great effort to stay focused and finish the season strong! Yahoo!

Halfmax 2010. I placed 4^th by 1 FREAKIN SECOND! Really? If she had been in front of me she wouldn’t have been for long! 1 second off the podium! Ha! No matter! I finished and can finally start to heal. Ahhhh. Good bye racing and hello Dr. Ken!

I couldn’t be happier with me results this season! So many changes and so many great results. Thank you so much to John, Kaytee and my family and friends for caring and supporting me! You guys rock!

2010-09-22T22:15:00.001-06:00

Nationals 2010 in Tuscaloosa...please don't open the gates of the head waters! This is all I ask! And maybe in September 2011 I will get to wear my TeamUSA uniform in Bejing China!

MusselMan Triathlon!

2010-09-07T09:27:00.000-06:00

I should warn you now that this is going to be a longish post since it was a long and wonderful weekend. The Musselman Tri takes place in Geneva on the Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York. I grew up just east of Geneva in Homer NY and spent most summers playing in Skaneateles Lake, one of the smaller Finger Lakes. I honestly can’t remember how we decided to make this such an adventurous weekend…if I wanted to do the ½ or if Nicole wanted to do the Mini first. I am sure she can tell you the order of things since this was her first Tri. Back in Feb she told me she wanted to do a tri and she had signed up for a triathlon class at the local JCC up the street from her house. I was shocked and thrilled for her. As a frame of reference…when I met Nicole back in the early 90’s she said she would only run if she were being chased by a wild animal. Since then she has run the Boilermaker 15K countless times, tons of local races and even a ½ marathon. So you see we can all change our minds! Nicole trained her heart out for the last 15 weeks. She went to class, followed the program she was given and eliminated all distractions from her world….including a man. I never met him but I think it was a sound decision. At one point she had been training for 6 weeks straight and she told me she was tired. We chatted and I learned that she had not taken a day off because it wasn’t in her schedule….yeah baby! She is definitely Triathlete material! However she did need to rest a bit and let her body recover to prepare for more training! We even had the luxury of swimming twice together as I was passing through town on business. It was a blast seeing her work hard and learn! She met a bunch of nice people to train with too. Shortly before the race I reconnected with Christine McKnight as she lives north of Nicole and is very involved in the local Tri Club. Once again I was fortunate enough to be in town so we could all reconnect and I got to see and swim with Chris for the first time in years! She looks so incredible and I am so proud of her efforts! Plus I am perpetually grateful to her since it is all her fault I have become a triathlete! If you want to know more about that story look back in my archives at Worlds 2009.

The other fun thing that was happening while Nicole was training her heart out was that my sister Margaret was training and had wrangled 2 friends to train with her to do the same Mini-Musselman. So we put together a little team of 4 newbies. Linda and Lizzy are a mother-daughter team that would inspire anyone to do more than they think they can! Linda is a school teacher who didn’t really train for the swim or ride…she runs every day and is very fit but we all know how long a race can be with the swim at the beginning! Lizzy was really excited to do her best and see if her riding workouts had paid off. They rented wetsuits which was a crack up because no one I know LIKES to get into a wetsuit and if you have never been in one before. Needless to say it was hysterical to watch the ladies go through the entire process…from body marking to wetsuits to getting into the water for the swim start. No doubt the very best natured ladies I have ever ever met.

Nicole’s preparation was very meticulous and fun to watch. She trained hard, did all the requisite open water swims and runs, bought a new bike and wetsuit and discovered the joy of bricks and traveling with ALL your gear! She certainly has the personality and intensity for the sport if she should decide to keep it up. I even got to NY a couple times to train with her and I was so impressed by her dedication and energy for training and her prep. She, like most women I know, completely undersells her abilities and has SO MUCH MORE in her than she knows it!

Race day Nicole was so cute and it was great to have Christine and Jim McKnight with us to laugh and soak in the experience. I was SOOO HAPPY to be there with my dearest old friends, my sister and new friends! I knew that morning that I had chosen the right path and that I was right where I was supposed to be! Nicole set up her Transition area perfectly; bucket and all and then she went out for a warm up. She looked nervous and so focused. It was so awesome.

Walt and Betsy came out to see the race as well so the 3 of us cheered as the waves started the race. Nicole was first because I wouldn’t let her race with the beginners and thank goodness! She was much stronger than any of the novices! The swim was through a canal and the current helped everyone get to the dock sooner rather than later! Nicole had a great swim! Christine also got out of the water fast and strong. Margaret, Linda and Lizzy had quite a tour of the canal! Lizzy came out strong and confused so I tried to help by screamin at her that it was time to RUN! Margaret came floating into the dock with her feet popped up behind her and chatting with the volunteer! I was crying I was laughing so hard! I never saw Linda get out of the water and I was worried she might not ever get out….

Nicole’s transition was the highlight of the day! She sprinted into T1, whipped off her wetsuit, flipped her bucket over and sat down! WHAT??? Yes, she sat down, put on her sox and shoes and started to run toward me! I was hysterical kidding her about having a snack and lounging around on her bucket! It was classic! Her ride was a6 MPH and AWESOME! She had a huge smile on her face when she cruised into T2! Better yet, she had a HUGE smile on her face as she ran out of T2! She looked so relaxed and happy! I could have cried I was so proud of her! I also knew she had found something she can do…and do faster next time! When she came back in on the run she was thumbs up and smiling! JUST AMAZING!

Margaret, Linda and Lizzy struggled with the run and Lizzy had a flat on the ride and they all finished strong and happy! Linda had a really long ride and her run was simply amazing! I was so inspired when she came across that finish line sweaty, smiling and relieved! Mom and daughter had proved to themselves that they can both do so much more than they ever thought possible!

Christine finished 2^nd AG and looked so HOT! She had great winter training and her new coach must really have the right formula because she is FREAKIN HOT and FAST!

After the finish we hung out and the girls ate their well deserved ice cream and lounging around in the lawn! Pop and Betsy were great fans and really proud of the girls! I was so proud of Margaret. Her training had been detoured by a man and she was not as prepared as I hoped she would be but she still put it all out there! I think when she asked me if she could do the swim backstroke I got really worried. She is so stubborn though and she did it and did it well!

I was so happy to watch each of the girls feel so good about themselves! I JUST LOVE THAT!

The next day I did the half ironman. The day started quietly and perfectly. Good sleep, good tummy and great company! Nicole drove me to T and hung out while I got warmed up. Walt, Margaret and the gang were all there when I came out of T1. I LOVED this course. The ride was really hilly and beautiful and the run was just brutal. UP and down and UP UP. It was such a fun race and I never got bored with the course.

The only bummer of the day was the 4 minute penalty the USAT referee assessed on me at mile 8 of the ride…really? Mile 8? I was the very first penalty of the day and I was stunned. A few of us were trying to get past a woman who had no idea how to ride with her new disc wheel and she was just plan in the way. The referee dinged me when she had just passed me again and slowed down…I wanted scream! Seriously, do you really think I would chat at mile 8 of a 56 mile race? Heck no, trust me! Mile 45 maybe! J Ugh! I protested and the head official pleasantly told me to go pound sand. When I still won my AG by 10 minutes I felt a little better but not great! Winning is great but I hate to get penalties! Grrrr!

This entire weekend was by far the highlight of my summer!

Congrats to Nicole, Christine, Margaret, Linda and Lizzy!

I can't forget to mention the fact that I ran into an old friend from Fredonia! Mike Beegan and Cary Peebles were the best of friends and the last time I saw Mike was at Cary and Alice's wedding and since Alice's daughter is a sophmore in college...well you get it. Mike and his family were at the race and Mile was racing his first 1/2 and he NAILED IT! I was so happy to see how excited he was about hi 7 hour finish time! So cool! His wife Jane, friend Nancy and kids were great company for our post race dinner! Great to see you Mike!

GS Boulder Cat 4s Rock!

2010-08-02T08:50:00.001-06:00

Joining the GS Boulder cycling team was pretty “out of the box” for the triathlete and I am SOOO glad I did it. Not only is the team strong, well organized, fun and committed to the cycling community…the Cat4 Women are freaking bad asses and I am so proud to race with them. I have only been able to do a couple races; the team TT at Haystack – which we won and even beat the Cat 3s! Booya! Hugo 80 mile road race which was a day from hell and if I recall correctly I was in the top 5 or 6. The wind erased my brain before we ever left Hugo! The Niwot Crit, another team race which was sooooo fun! I had done the Mt Evans Hill climb the day before. If you read back in my blog you will learn that this is a 14.5 mile uphill run on the highest paved road in North America. It took me 3:05 and it was a blast but I knew it would compromise my power for the crit. I offered up my services to Tasha and Jennica since they are both in the running for points, “catting up” and big mugs of beer or something. I am not really sure about all the details of bike racing points however I do know that Tasha and Jennica have been racing their butts off all season and have had great showings so decent finish at Niwot would add to their successes.

There were 5 of us who started the race bright and early at 8:00 AM. Tasha, Janie, Jennica, Anne and me. It was fun to start and be in line and shake in my boots. I am not really nervous about racing and placing…just crashing. Last year when Sonja crashed right in front of me at the Bannock Crit I was shell shocked for days. The sound and the anxiety of knowing it can really happen freaked me out. So as they started us at Niwot I pushed thoughts of Sonja out of my head and replaced them with pictures of me cornering strong, pushing hard and hanging tough. The race was a 40 minute PARTY! There are about 10 turns and although the race crew cleaned corners there is still some serious anxiety whenever we hit a turn…which was every 90 seconds! I stayed true to my commitment and tried to pull Tashs and Jennica as much as I could. I would lead out and hammer for a while and then sneak back in to recover a bit. We finally made a break from the pack and I think there were 8-10 of us. Anne was with us and sadly Janie crashed. She slammed her jaw pretty good but I think she came out of it OK. Phew! Jennica pedaled down a couple times and that sound would normally freak me out but I was really centered during the race. I was up there with the youngsters and holding my own. The last 6 laps is when the race really starts and for some reason Jess from Big Ring and I decided it would be a good time to recover? Ugh! I was thrilled to recover but I knew my recovery would be 50% of what hers would be and I would be crushed when she lit it back up! I held on until the last couple of turns and Tasha and Jennica went blazing by me...I was toast. Really fried. I felt great and had achieved my goals; no blood, bike was safe and the girls had great results. I LOVE BIKE RACING! Just for the record!

Plus it was fun because John and Jewels were there and I am always so happy when friends come to watch me race. It is fun to share my crazy experiences with friends!

14,000 Feet in 3+ Hours!

2010-07-21T09:20:00.000-06:00

It's all about the view!!! Some time back in March when Keith was signing up for every race he could get to I challenged him to run the Mtn Evans Ascent with me. This is a 14.5 mile uphill climb from Echo Lake to the top of the mountain (and I do mean mountain) at 14,000+ feet. It is on the highest paved road in North America and although it isn’t really a “race” for most of us it isn’t for the faint at heart.
Keith picked me up and we headed up to Echo. After a brief yet welcome tea and potty stop we got to Echo just in time! Phew. Actually we were there in plenty of time but then we had to park too far away and neither of us was too organized….
I forgot my sunglasses and my Garmin had decided to go to sleep again. I HATE when it does that I haven’t figured out when or why…grrrr
We both had time to pin on our numbers, “trot to the pot” and head out. The day was gorgeous! Sunny, warm and clear. Clear is most important because once we get above tree line the storms can move in fast and furious and no one wants to get stuck on the mountain in a hail, rain or snow storm. No joy in that at all. As we cleared tree line there were a few puffs of clouds but it looked like we were going to have a great day. I had some tummy issues so that Keith had something to abuse me about later in the day…3 potty stops and they were necessary! Ugh! I’m not sure what that was all about but I have to say I don’t think it really impacted our results. Every time I stopped he would chat people up and we would run right back up to where we were when I stopped. We ran into some old friends and made some new friends. Katie O was out there preparing for Leadville and the long run back down (CRAZY!) and our new friend Duane discovered that it isn’t really a sprint but more of a timely slog. He is built like a marathoner and it wouldn’t surprise me to see him killing it on the marathon circuit some day soon! He was good company and a great distraction. I love this kind of race because people are so fun and wacky. On one of my potty stops there was a woman running in place while she waited to use the potty…as if she was going to cramp up at mile 6? And she started pounding on the door to get the guy in the pot moving…really? We were NOT in contention of anything except a beautiful day! Too funny!
When we passed Summit lake at mile 9 we were both feeling pretty sassy and kept a steady pace. Not until mile 12 did the altitude start to press down on my brain and remind me how stupid these efforts really are!  By mile 13 I was over it and we cruised to the finish in just over 3 hours. I am very proud of htat result regardless of the fact that the winners finished more than an hour ahead of us! And the woman who won is the daughter of a long-time friend of mine…a rockstar runner as well! Nice job Kim!
The highlight was really the post race party! We took the shuttle down which was interesting as the driver was about 20 years old and she explained to us that she was not only afraid of heights but it was her first run down the mountain. Mt Evans has a few guard rails but if you aren’t paying really close attention, especially with all the people, cars and animals, it wouldn’t be too hard to drive right off a 1000 foot drop! Yahoo! She managed nicely and Keith and I headed to the party. Sitting in the sun, eating taters and drinking Diet Pepsi. I also sucked down a couple Mix1s before the Diet Pepsi! I promise!
John was up there with us. He rode his road bike from Echo Lake to the top while we were running. I was very happy to sit in the sun and wait for him to finish his ride! He is so freaking strong and makes it look so easy! Whoa!
I love this run and will keep it in my schedule every year I can. There are few things more amazing than running up a mountain and seeing a 360 degree view of the top of the world!

Lake2Lake 2010

2010-06-29T08:42:00.000-06:00

This is always a fun race because so many people from our triathlon community go. In past years there have been dozens of friends and families at the finish line whooping and hollering for the finishers…hopefully cheering them in and inspiring them to finish strong. This year was no different; we were a different group but still a group of old and new friends coming together to test our training, our resolve and our lungs! It was really a fun day! The course is a bit unique because it is a longer ride than usual. I love that part! The ride is gorgeous and fast. The “demon” for me in this race is the run. Until last year I had never felt like I had nailed the run. In 2009 I finally did…I didn’t give up or out and I stayed the course finishing in 2nd 1 second behind Kathy Alfino. We had sprinted to the finish in Vegas and I won and at Lake2Lake she out sprinted me. To be honest I was shocked I caught her so I was thrilled to take second and know that I had slayed the run demon.
This year I had been trying to convince myself that Lake2Lake was no big deal however I found as it got closer to race day I was pretty anxious about it. I continue to struggle in my head with my new “quality over quantity” training model. It absolutely makes sense and intellectually I am 100% on board but the truth is when it comes to being ready to race I always wonder if I have “done enough”. The last few years really distorted my perspective about how to get faster and cover the miles. This year my training specificity is awesome and there are no workouts that are just filler…every workout is for a reason. I love it and I hate it. This race helped me see that I am RIGHT WHERE I NEED TO BE 3 months out from my A race. Yes, it would have been nice to lay down a 7:15 run but a 7:37 is good too and I am so happy to know that I can continue to get faster this season and not want to quit because my races are so spread out.
Race details? The swim sucked. I felt like I was in a washing machine with rocks. They sent the men 45-49 and the Clydes with us and I just got the crap beat out of me. I never really found a spot to have a comfortable stroke. It really pissed me off. I came out of the water fired up because I knew I had ground to make up after the swim. The ride was as fun as ever. I blew up the climbs in my big ring and blew down them the same. The rollers were solid and helped propel me to T2. I was ready to run with no hesitation. The run was harder than I wanted it to be but I am convinced that is all in my head. Elissa Caldwell beat me out of the water and I never saw her on the bike. At the finish she attributed it to her new TT bike! Grrrr! Someday I will have that excuse too! I finished 2nd and was happy to be there on the hill with all my friends enjoying popsicles and diet pepsi! Ahhh…post race meals are the best!
I am looking forward to my next race now. I find each race I feel better about my progress. This is no reflection at all on my coach. Kaytee Petross has been terrific. She is a young, strong Ironwoman and she knows her stuff. She also knows my demons and seems to tolerate me really well. Thanks Kaytee! I will keep listening and behave!

Kansas 70.3 2010 - Great Day for Bad Decisions!

2010-06-13T21:51:00.000-06:00

I really wanted to go back to Kansas 70.3 to kick the run in the butt…there is no other reason to go back to Kansas! It is a 9+ hour drive one way and it is a long dull ride. Eastern Colorado and western Kansas are flat, dry and fast! Yahoo! Barry, Jewels and I actually had a great trip to and from Kansas. We stayed at the Hampton, rented a car and hung out together. Pre-race was all at Clinton State Park and it was 100 degree plus the day before the race. We were told it was going to be cooler on Sunday but it was nerve racking. They announced no wetsuits Saturday afternoon as the water was 86 degrees. This is when I settled into the thought that is was going to be a long, steady day and if I get through the swim I will be golden! The coolest part of pre-race was Orli. I met the rep for Blue bikes and he told me he would lend me his Blue 2010 demo bike for my race in NY. Yahoo! I am so excited to see what it feels like to ride a TT and to see if it really makes a difference. Thanks Orli!

Race day started cloudy and cool! Yahoo! Cool! The water temp measured at 77.8 which is cold enough for wetsuits! I for one was very happy about that! I had visualized the race the night before without my wetsuit so I was ready…the announcement was a gift and a great way to start the day. Kansas is a bit different as there are 2 different Transitions. T1 is down on the water and we left bikes there. T2 is up the hill and around the bend. It takes a little preparation to be sure you have the right equipment in the right place. My bike was racked in the middle…not good or bad. I knew I could find it and that is all that matters!

The swim was AWESOME! It many ways it sucked because it was very combative. I got punched, kicked and rolled around for the first 600 yards. It was tough. I have also decided to go back to the AquaSphere mask to swim in. I know it looks dorky but it keeps me from have circles under my eyes for 2 days after each swim. So I had been in the pool with them a couple times and was ready for go…but my mask kept taking on water. I realized after my 5 time to stop and clear the water that it won’t seal to my cap….only my skin! DUH! So I have to carefully remove my cap and place my goggles while not alerting the boats…usually if you take off your cap that means you are in trouble! All I can say is that when I was swimming I was swimming strong. Really strong and straight. I was soooo happy with my swim! I love that feeling!

The ride was Kansas style for sure! Huge hills that never quit and downhills that you can fly on. One guy I passed going up told me I downhill as if I am in a luge! That was funny! My bike was 4 mins slower than last year and I could feel it. I felt like I was holding back a little for the run and I didn’t have the same strength I like to have at the crest of each hill. I guess that makes sense since I haven’t been climbing much! I don’t like the feeling. I want to feel stronger on the hills. They are my secret weapon!

The run started well but turned out to be a travesty. Mark Plaatjes diagnosed my short leg and left foot issues and I decided to run on a pair of temporary orthotics…really STUPID! I had blisters and my left hammie was crippled. I ended up stopping a bunch of times to try to get my shoes to feel better. I even tried to run in my socks. Ugh. I was 2^nd off the bike and 5^th by the time I crossed the finish line. That never happens to me and it was OK. I hated it but I knew the problem and I had no recourse. It was my own fault and there was no loss. Just a bruised ego and bloody feet!

Both Barry and Jewels had great races and we headed out to celebrate right after the race! We had dinner with Randi, Ross and clan! Then we went to see Robin Hood! A great way to end the day!

I don’t know if I will go back to Kansas. I want to conquer that run but I don’t know how badly I want to conquer it!

Lots of learning moments in Kansas 2010. And I saw Chrissie Wellington at the finish line. She is my hero!

1st Race of the Season in Beautiful Knoxville

2010-06-13T20:02:00.000-06:00

I was surprised at how apathetic I was about racing in Knoxville. I have really been struggling with the Quality over Quantity training method I am using now. Since I am not “over-training” I am trying to be very diligent about getting every workout completed and yet I was nervous. In fact, race morning I was asking myself why I was even there. I felt old, out of shape and out of place. I am not sure where all this was coming from…I know it was partially the new training model and it is also tied to the fact that I miss the social aspects of Practical Coaching. When we traveled to races we traveled with a large group and it was always fun. Knoxville didn’t have that same feel or energy for me so I was struggling with why I was even there.
Let me say that Rev 3, Knoxville and the people were all amazing. The race venue was great although they had some confusion in front of transition. The expo and layout of the race was excellent. The people in Knoxville were warm and welcoming and only a little confused why so many people in bike tights had descended on their city. Knoxville was pretty and offered up a tough race, at least on the ride. I loved the course and would consider doing it again in 2011. It was too bad they screwed up the timing because it left a bad taste in some people’s mouth. I know they were working hard to fix it but it was too late for many of the athletes.
We met Tara Costa from the Biggest Loser while we were in Knoxville. It was her first Oly Tri and she had a great day! Cool lady!
All my apathy aside I managed to have a solid race. I raced at about 75%. I’m not even sure why but as I look back I knew I was not maxing it on the ride or the run. The swim was awesome for me….yes everyone will tell you the course was short or the current helped or whatever…I DON’T care. I swam strong and straight and felt great out of the water! This is a huge success for me.
I am a little surprised at the twist in my gut that my age creates. I guess 46 makes me really think I am on the downward slope…I know I’m not but there are places inside of me that think I am. Ugh! More Parts work!
Anyway…my swim was solid and helped me relax as I started out on my bike. I rode strong and smart. I knew I wanted to hammer on the run so I found myself pulling back a bit on the bike. The ride was gorgeous through the wooded countryside and I loved the colors and smells. Since mine was the last wave in the water I spent the entire bike passing people. This is always weird because it gives me a false sense of speed when in fact I am only racing against myself and the clock. I rolled into T2 and felt good. My legs were ready to run.
The run was fun. I started easy and got faster after the turn back to the finish. It was a great run course because I saw Tyler, Michelle, Sonja and Tony on the course headed home! I finished strong and although my legs felt tired the last half mile I knew I had left plenty in the tank. I didn’t do it intentionally but I did it. I think I was testing my training and my May conditioning. I was really happy with the results.
I placed #1 in my age group which was a nice bonus. I know I will get faster as the season cruises ahead. The other thing about Rev3 I liked was seeing all the pros out and about. Of course my adoration for Matty Reed was fed and nurtured! Tyler stopped me from stalking him at one point as I really wanted to get an autograph. Ah well, maybe next time.
Rooming with Tyler and Michelle and hanging with the Beesons always makes an event extra fun! Plus Eric, Sonja’s dad, was there shooting up the place and Troy and Annie were the premier fans!
All in all it was a great way to start the 2010 race season. Am I over the “age thing?” I’m not sure but I will see how I feel the next time I am ready to race.
Thanks to Kaytee for getting me to the starting line!

2010-05-18T17:45:00.000-06:00

I am so far behind in my blog that I have to go back to March and tell you about my Adventure Race in Moab! I was invited to join a team of 3 men (I thought they were women when I accepted the invitation!) to do a 7 hour adventure race! It was an absolute blast once I got over the pain and agony of the fastest bike ride I have ever been on! Geesh boys! We paddled down the Colorado, it was a mud pit, and then we rode up Longs Canyon to Gemini Bridges...jumped off a 300 foot cliff and then ran 7 miles back to our bikes! IT WAS A BLAST! The last leg of the bike was much better because John and friends were in Bull Canyon waiting for us to rappel and they had food. It was the first time ever that I burned up all my fuel in the first 3 hours of an event and I was so hungry I was delirious! It was wicked! The potatoes and PBJ saved my life! Plus we had “roadies” the entire ride back to the top of Gemini Bridges! It was crazy! Nicole, Kari, Keith, Tyler and Tony were all out there at some point with John cheering us on. I think that Gordon, Matt and Chris may have thought we were all nuts!

The team of guys was terrific. They were all very nice and supportive as I struggled to get my new mountain bike up the canyon. I know I can ride forever but apparently they wanted to ride fast? Really? Who knew! So Matt and I tried to use the tow rope a couple times but it didn’t work very well. It is clearly something that we should have practiced a few times before going sand boarding in the desert. I almost crashed a couple times trying to hang on to the rope…it was only funny because I was working so hard not to fall behind. On the way back I learned that speedy Chris is not a runner so we were slower on the run portion and of course I was thinking “I could run forever out here as long as I don’t have to get back on that saddle!”

Gordon was my saving grace as he told me how he struggled when he started doing these so I shouldn’t feel badly. Ha! You know as well as I do that initially my ego was hurting more than my legs but soon there was a shift and I had no ego just screaming legs! I loved jumping off the cliff! It was one of the most beautiful views I will ever get of the rock formations in Moab! Gemini Bridges is so mysterious and majestic! I loved it!

The last 3 miles turned into a time trial race for the guys. We hit the road to the finish and there were a couple teams in front of us so they decided to hammer up this lil grade to catch them…we caught them and it was so freaking hard! Thanks for pulling me along guys!

Nancy, Gordon’s wife, was our biggest fan as she dragged all our stuff back to the start and dried it all out. She is a great lady! Thanks Nancy! Tim and Bruce took 3^rd place and I think we were 10^th in the 4 man teams. It took us over 7 hours but t seemed a lot longer!

Heidi did the solo and finished close behind us! After the race we just hung out in Moab and cheered on Sonja for her 100 mile race, ran a little to shake out the legs and laughed a lot!

What an amazing way to spend a weekend…old friends, new friends and tons of adventure!

Moab 1/2 Marathon Weekend Fun!

2010-04-01T22:12:00.000-06:00

This is one of my favorite times of the year! John, Barry, Keith, Priscilla and I headed to Moab for the Canyonlands ½ marathon again! I definitely missed Paula, Dottie, John and the rest of the crew from 2009 but we managed to have a blast again this year! Last year I ran to the start with Keith and this year that was John’s fun! Barry and I raced the ½ and Priscilla raced the 5 miler! We had a great day although it was much colder at the finish than we are accustomed to so we headed back to the condo, ordered pizza and hung out in the backyard in the sun! It was awesome! Then we had to do some retail therapy in town…not too much damage…but enough. The entire weekend I was really jacked up because I was hoping for a job offer and I was so excited and stressed I needed to keep moving. This trip we also decided to stay through Monday so that we could really relax and enjoy Sunday all day! We all took our mountain bikes and Barry and Priscilla rented bikes…after a yummy breakfast at Jailhouse we rode our bikes out to Gemini Bridges! The ride started straight up hill and I was so proud of MP and Barry for making the climb! We all had a blast cruising through the sand and rocks and soaking up the beauty of Moab! The ride was incredible and we laughed, sweated and laughed some more! Thanks for a great weekend everyone! I can’t wait to go back to Moab next weekend!

March Madness

2010-03-18T10:09:00.001-06:00

The last couple of weeks have been really fun. I started the month by "kid sitting" for Noell's kids, Zach and Taylor while Noell had her 3rd and FINAL hip surgery! It was great fun to hang with the teens and get to know them. They are really great kids and it was good fun! I still can't believe I took them to see Valentine's Day! Oops! Sorry Noell!

My new coach and I have begun to crank up the training and although the volume seems low it feels great to feel healthy and strong again. I don’t think I got as out of shape as I do some winters but I also haven’t been training 15+ hours/week so it is a very different feeling for

me this time of year. I am headed to the Moab ½ this weekend and traditionally my legs are trashed and I have a painful run and this year I am worried that I am under trained! Ugh! This is going to be such an interesting year…quality over quantity… quality over quantity… quality over quantity…

Last weekend my friend Christine Homer was in town on business and pleasure and as always we had a blast. I had mentioned that I wanted to paint my office since I have lived here for 6 years and never painted a wall…who knew she thinks she is Picasso! Because of other stress in my life I got overwhelmed when she and John started telling me “how to paint” so I let them have at it! I picked the most beautiful “guacamole green” and they went to work. I painted the big spaces with the rollers and otherwise stayed out of the way! I also bought a new desk so I can be better organized and now my office is gorgeous, peaceful, and warm and a space with great energy and creativity! I am going to paint my bathroom and bedroom next. I think I might do it without telling John and Christine just to prove I am capable…

We have been blessed with some awesome weather at least 1 day on the weekend so I have had GoGo out on the roads and climbing up Lookout Mountain. I feel strong and smooth on my bike. I have to say that the velodrome has made me a noticeably better cyclist which I am so happy about! John and I just signed up for another session with Michael. He is a great instructor and the other people who ride are great fun too. Nicole and I also got to try out our first TT practice with some of the gals from GS Boulder. Gelly, a wicked Cat 3 cyclist, came out and gave us instruction as we cruised the Haystack Race course. It was great fun to see the team start to gel a bit. I really love cycling and cruising in a pace line. I am always laughing and singing. I’m not even sure why…I only know I love it! Thanks for your help Gelly!

I have also been out on my new mountain bike FINALLY! It is such a sweet ride and even though the trails are snowy and muddy I am getting some good leg workouts up and down Waterton Canyon! I wouldn't recommend KC Valley yet! What a mud pit! Paula warned me that I would love mountain biking and as usual...she is right!

Well, it is safe to say I am looking forward to some major changes in my life this year and it will all start with the Moab ½ this weekend! Plus I get to party with my Fav MP, Barry, Keith, Andrea and of course Johnny will be with us as he prepares for his big marathon!

Yahoo!

Snow Shoe Race #1 and Only! Beaver Creek, Colorado

2010-03-10T11:57:00.001-07:00

One of the things I enjoy most are the snow shoe races in Beaver Creek every year! The mountain is always gorgeous, the workout brutal, the people awesome and the food delish thanks to Beau Joes! Sadly this season I managed to fit only one race into my schedule but fortunately it is my favorite! The Jeremy Wright 10K at the top of Beaver Creek holds great memories for me and I always love this race. Not only does it start at 10,000 feet the race director manages to make us climb even higher during the race! BRUTAL! I’m never competitive at these races, except with myself and whoever happens to be in the single track in front me. This year a whole group of us went up for the race and Keith, Steve and I agreed we would race the 10K together. Barry and Andrea did the 5K, Anthony raced the 10K and John and Michele were the best cheer leaders ever!

We got to the resort so early that John, Barry and I crashed on a couple couches at the base of the mountain and watched the “beautiful” people of Beaver Creek prepare for their day of skiing. Great people watching and tons of sun!

The weather was almost too hot for the race so we all stripped down and prepared for a suffer fest. The 10K literally climbs straight up for 2 miles. My goal was to start slowly and try to manage my heart rate so the day would really add value to my training. I was doing well until my Garmin started to behave badly…it had my HR at 77 when we were climbing and I could feel my heart in my throat. I would say for at least 85% of the time I managed my HR really well. Keith has been running like a maniac lately, I am under trained for what I am used to for this time of year and we weren’t sure what Steve was ready for so we decided to stay with Steve. Great plan…lousy implementation! We stayed together through the initial climb but then Steve started to feel it and I could hardly hear myself breathe with all of Keith’s complaining! Then the single track downhill started and Keith and I both perked up! If only the women in front of us on the single track would move out of the way…people are so funny. We battled with peeps on and off throughout most of the single track. The snow was rutted and mushy and we were moving pretty good but it is too hard to be on someone’s tail flying downhill. Someone was going to get hurt!

I think it is the best core workout I have had in a long time. It takes so much core and attention to keep from diving left or right into a snow bank. Once “in” it is impossible to get out! Ask Keith! On the very last uphill I decided to see how tired Keith’s legs were so I turned around and pushed him into a tiny lil snow bank. Apparently he had a much harder time getting out of the snow than I had anticipated! He said he felt like a turtle on his back trying to turn over! Andrea’s pictures of it are hysterical! What I had forgotten was Keith’s inability to “take it” without dishing it back out. About 200 yards from the finish line, as I was trotting along waiting for him to catch up to me, he tackled me and completely slammed me into the snow! OMG! I was laughing so hard I was crying. Once I managed to get up I stumbled just far enough to fall right in the middle of the snow cats tracks in front of everyone…again. I was still laughing so hard I couldn’t get a grip. Keith waited for me so we could cross the line together but we were both laughing so hard it was priceless. The women at the finish line were appalled and hysterical all at once.

More than ever I realized today how important my friends are to my training and racing. I miss everyone so much now that we are all moving in different directions. I know it is good for each of us and I am thrilled about the success we will each have…but I still miss our big group of goofballs!

After the race we boogied to Idaho Springs for the required 3 lb pizza and beers. I have to say I was a bit disappointed by Barry’s desire to order the healthy veggie but it was a good choice and it meant I had leftovers! Yippee!

Forever Inspired

2010-02-26T17:11:00.000-07:00

This past weekend John and I had the pleasure of participating in the 35^th Wells Fargo Ski Cup Challenge weekend at Winter Park. It is 3 days filled with skiing, racing, eating, drinking, old friends, new friends and laughter! My old friend Scott Franssen invited John and I to the weekend of events and Audi invited us to ski with the Henry Wurst Inc Ski Team. So we not only got to ski in some great snow, we got to hit the gates on the race course and experience a tiny bit of what it must be like to fly down an icy alpine race course!

The Wells Fargo Ski Cup is a fund raising weekend for the National Sports Center for the Disabled. If you want to learn more about the vast array of programs for NSCD check out their website at http://www.nscd.org/. The coolest part of the weekend for me was twofold; to learn more about the NSCD programs and then meet so many amazing athletes that are associated with them! The ski races are made up of corporate teams and each team is assigned an athlete from NSCD. The Henry Wurst team had the distinct pleasure of sharing the slopes with an incredible woman and athlete named Alana Nichols. Alana’s story is too long and amazing to tell you about here so check out her biography at http://usparalympics.org/athletes/alana-nichols Before Alana started to ski 2 years ago she won her first Gold Medal as a member of the U.S. Paralympic Women's Wheelchair Basketball Team in Beijing. Since then her skiing continues to get stronger and she will be competing for Gold in Vancouver! Needless to say Alana had the fastest time of all her male teammates! John, Tom, Bill, Bob and Tom were all great competitors however they did not ski strong enough to win anything except bragging rights! Dean Hruby was an awesome team coach and Deb and Audi were the best cheerleaders!

I have to say that dinner Saturday night was incredible. Not just because of the incredible pizza at The Pub in Winter Park…because of the incredible company we encountered at The Pub! Alana and some of her teammates were hanging out and having pizza too so we joined them. John and I had dinner with 3 Olympians and at least 1 if not 2 future Olympians! I am quite confident that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity so I want to thank each of the athletes for letting hang out with them. Of course they are young and full of life….but they are also disciplined committed and mildly crazy athletes who train and race with an energy and dedication that I respect and envy! Tyler, a 16 year old alpine skier, is the guy to watch in 2014 as he will be in Vancouver learning the ropes. Brad, a terrific guy who works at the Fraser Tubing Hill when he isn’t cutting trees or killing it on the alpine slopes, is an Olympian who will be in Vancouver. Greg Peck, you may have seen his classic crash at the X Games in Aspen on his mono-ski, has a look of Stifler in his eyes and a laugh that is infectious. John, a Veteran and downhill skier, may not make it to the Olympics because, like many of us, he has to work to support his family. Each of these athletes has their own story and I encourage everyone to learn more about the programs that support their efforts to achieve their athletic goals. I am so grateful for having met them… I am in inspired awe. We had them sign John’s race bib so when they are all in Russia in 2014 we can say “we knew them when…”

The rest of the weekend included connecting with my mentor and friend Bob Litchard. In fact it was an anniversary for Bob, Scott and I…8 years ago this same weekend I had my very own “yard sale” at the base of Vail Mountain while skiing with the Litchards, Scott and our old friend Dana. That seems like a lifetime ago and yet I still feel so connected to each of them!

Many thanks to Henry Wurst Inc, John, Audi, Scott, Bob, Alana, Kristen, Dean and Deb for a great weekend!