Three Thing Thursday

1. In the HTFU attitude that seems to be going around blog world this week. I had a short brick (45 minute ride 30 minute run) workout this week..Temp around 98 degrees when I was driving home after work, I was not really feeling this but went ahead and got changed and headed out to put some stuff on the bike...check tires....flat rear tire...really not feeling this...go ahead and start to change it, took me less than 15 minutes (including a bunch of goofing around looking for things) and I hardly got my hands dirty! My first rear flat! Very pleased with myself, but still not feeling this...continued to half heartily get ready and soon headed out on my ride. Mile 5...hit a detour..What! the trail is closed and I must ride on some streets that are in a not real bike friendly area but ok do it any way...mile 6.5..stopped by train on the detour...REALLY?!?.....still not feeling it but must continue at this point..mile 7.5 feeling much better about things, wow it’s nice to be on my bike, and wow it really rides nice since I had it fixed up. Ride finished up with a couple hills to help with confidence level, and on to the run. Run was hot but not near as bad as I thought it would be and managed to keep a decent (for me) pace. As usual..you never regret the workout you did..only the ones you didn’t.

2. Swimming I’ve done some of my longest swims ever this week, coming in at 2500/2600 yards. Feeling pretty good about these but a little disappointed in my numbers for the month. Biking and running are down from last month, but swimming is up. I will have to attribute this to the week that I didn’t train for a good portion of it and took it easy the rest due to the rib issues.

June's totals:
Bike: 15h 52m 57s - 220.11 Mi
Run: 10h 25m 27s - 51.95 Mi
Swim: 4h 39m 30s - 11225 Yd

May's totals:
Bike: 20h 25m 24s - 344.09 Mi
Run: 10h 52m 19s - 55.14 Mi
Swim: 3h 28m 33s - 8650 Yd

3. Up at 4 am this morning to hit the pavement by 4:30 ( early even for me I’m usually out by about 5) for 8 miles before work. It was slooowwww really slow but got it done and feels good not to have to worry about doing it the heat this afternoon.

Old Stage - 1 Julie - 0

Today was to be a test run on the upcoming Boulder Peak Olympic bike course. I've heard many things about Old Stage as I've said in earlier posts so I really had no idea what to expect. After some of the rides I've had I was feeling pretty confidant but still very nervous. I was also planning on trying out two new things today. First a new pair of tri shorts that I picked up this morning and secondly, riding with no socks. I can use any help I can get speeding up, and if I don't have to put socks on that's bound to give me some time in T1.

I met up with Kathleen and a friend of hers, Lisa, at about 1:00 Kathleen was doing a run before the ride and needed some time after so she told Lisa and I to go ahead and she would catch up. So about 1:30 with temps of just over 80 we headed out to see what all the fuss was about. We started out really easy, Lisa and I chatting and getting to know each other since we had never met. I realized about one mile in that I hadn't started my Garmin. I keep doing that! At about mile 4.5 we hit a spot that is being repaved and is currently a gravel mess, it lasted about 1 mile and then Old Stage hill...

This does not really do it justice. All is well until the last 2/3 of a mile. As you can tell from the title of this post, it didn't go well...I got off and rested..truly I thought my heart was going to burst. My lungs were dying, I was dying....I got back on...I rode a little farther...I gave up...I walked. I think I took these photos on the 2nd stop but may have been the first I really just don't know. I didn't really have to walk that far before I got back on and although it was still a small uphill nothing like we had just come up. IT SUCKED!

Looking up where I still must go, I don't think these pictures truly show just how steep it is... (15% grade)

And back down what I just came up. Once we got through the worst of it went a short distance and came to the waiting area. It was a beautiful view!

Then the real fun began, a fantastic descent, with much riding the breaks, and much beauty. This part of the ride was awesome and I really should have taken some pictures. At about mile 11 Kathleen caught up to us as we were waiting to get across a very busy highway. The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful after that one hill the course is really very easy as you can tell from the profile.

A little break in the shade at the bus stop. By now the temps were approaching 90 so it was getting a little warm. I have to say despite getting my ass handed to me on the hill I felt really good, my feet were having no problems being sock-less and my new tri shorts were feeling pretty good too. And seriously after the adjustments my bike guys made..It was like riding a new bike! The brakes fantastic and the shifting, smooth! Woo Hoo!

The question that remains... is it possible to get any better on hills in just 2 weeks or will I just be walking the hill again during the race?

Three things Thursday- Speaking of....

1. Had some work done on my bike this week. I just wanted to have it looked over before I get any closer to the HIM. Some issue with the brakes, possibly a result of the issue I had during the metric century. It appears to have caused the break cable to be just on the edge of breaking and boy am I glad that’s fixed. With some of the rides I have coming up the last thing I want to do is end up without a back break. Lucky for me I have “a bike guy” who’s previous (and now side job) is “fixing what’s fun between your legs” So if you need "a bike guy" in the Denver area let me know. I would be happy to pass on his name.

2. Speaking of rides coming up.... the plan for this weekend is to ride the Boulder Peak course with Kathleen and see just what I’m up against with Old Stage hill. I’ve heard many things about this “hill” and none of them make me any less worried. It comes approximately 6 miles into the bike course, and climbs about 600’ over about 2/3’s of a mile at a 15% grade. I’ve heard there are people standing along the sides cheering, or waiting for you to fall over... I’m not sure which. I’ve also heard that many people end up walking this “hill” during the race. Coming down the other side, because of the danger they have imposed a 35mph speed limit. And sadly a man was killed on this descent just last week.

3. Speaking of the HIM....45 DAYS!!! OMG! A MONTH AND A ½!!!!! 6 ½ WEEKS!!!!

Borrowed from Run with Jess

Today water is not my friend- 5430 Sprint Race Report

So I went in to today not really having an idea of what it would bring. After having done nothing to speak of training wise for a week, I didn't know if that would mean I was well rested or my body would have no idea what to do. I had gone for just an easy 400 yard swim on Saturday just to see how things would feel with my shoulder/rib. I was a little nervous. While it didn't pop out when I was done I could feel an ache. I decided there was nothing to do but give it a go.

After a really pretty good nights sleep, I only woke up once and was able to go back to sleep, I arose at 4:45 with the plan of leaving around 6 to be at the lake by 6:30. I had my normal pre race breakfast of a bagel thin, peanut butter and a banana. Getting parked was easy as can be and I was soon in transition. I got my area set up, body marked and made a trip back to the car to get my sunglasses and a pair of old shoe I wanted to donate, I started looking for Kathleen and Sarah. We chatted for a bit before heading out of transition as it was getting ready to close.

Kathleen, Me, Sarah

Kathleen and I had quite a wait as we were in the 2nd from last wave and didn't take off until like 8:20. When it got close we got in the water to get used to it and do a little warm up. The water temps were around 68 today much better then the 60 from two weeks ago. I think the air temps were around 65, a pretty good day for a race! I did just a little swimming and things felt pretty good. Before we knew it we were in the water and about to take off. The announcer said we had the biggest wave. Women 40-49. There seemed to be quite a few ladies. I lined up to the left and about the middle although I usually line up at the back. The horn sounded and off we went. It was with out a doubt the worst swim I've ever had. I could not get any clear water, except when I was so far off course that no one else in their right mind would be there. I could not catch my breath. It felt like I was gasping the whole time. It seemed very choppy which I don't understand since I didn't notice that it looked extremely choppy. I don't think I did more then 6 strokes without then having to side stroke or breast stroke to catch my breath and to top it off for some reason one side of my goggle kept filling with water...not a good swim. All most everyone I talked to about the swim also thought it sucked, even if they did ok.

Swim 19:29 (this is just a little less then the time from 2 weeks ago, however that swim time included a long run up to transition where as the swim time for this one ended when you left the water.

T1

3:46 I believe I had an improvement here as the time 2 weeks ago was 3:18 and as stated above did not include the run time. I felt pretty organized and the folding my socks in half to get them on seemed to work much better.

I had a long run out of transition to the bike start but felt pretty good, managed to get on and clipped in pretty good, although I soon noticed that one of my shoes didn't get closed, but it didn't bother me to much and as soon as I got going good I reached down and did it. I was working pretty hard on the bike at the start and still trying to get my breath. I had a Cliff shot and that seemed to kick in pretty quickly and help a lot. I tried really hard this race to not get stuck coasting behind anyone and if I came up behind them I just passed even if it mean they would pass me again. It seemed to go pretty good and I think only one girl passed me back. I felt like I was working really hard on the bike and hoped to come up with a better time. There was a bit of head wind in some spots, not real strong but it was there. The ride was pretty uneventful.

Bike 1:00:08 (2 weeks ago 1:00:34) so I obviously didn't improve like I had hoped. Difference being that last time I didn't feel like I gave it my all, this time I did. Could have something to do with the fact that I had not been on the bike at all since the Century last weekend.

T2- 2:18 This felt really good (2 weeks ago 2:12) Not a huge time difference but this time included a potty break which was in my run time for the last one. I also got some Yankz so that helped too.

The run started out a little slow. Not enough bricks for sure legs felt really heavy and of course there is that darn little hill to start the run. I had a few walk breaks. The first mile seemed pretty fast but the 2nd mile seemed to go on forever and ever and ever! After an older gentleman ran by going the other way in just a speedo a lady ran next to me and made a comment that had me laughing so hard that I yelled to her that wasn't fair. I couldn't laugh and run. The temps were really perfect out for running, I think it was right around 70 and while it got a little bit warm it was not bad at all. By the third mile I started to feel a little better and I think I picked it up just a little, but still not breaking any records crossed the finish line strong and feeling pretty good.

Run 33:23 10:45 pace (35:02 2 weeks ago)

Totals

1:59:04 (2:00:42 2 weeks ago)

Div 42 out of 56

Gender 362 out of 495

Paul, Sarah, Me, Kathleen

Overall I was a little disappointed in my race. Especially the swim. It also got me nervous to think that the oly is coming up in 3 weeks. After this past week and with these shoulder/rib issues I'm nervous about what they will bring. And speaking of...while I really didn't have any problems during the race, as I sit hear this evening typing I'm pretty sore. I think a 4th visit to the chiropractor might be in order tomorrow or possibly a good therapeutic massage.

After arriving home and cleaning up it was time to get dinner going. We were having my parents over for dinner for Father's Day (Happy Father's day Dad!) Then I was trying to get a little cleaning done, I was in the bathroom cleaning when all of the sudden there was a funny noise and water going everywhere. After finally figuring out it was not the toilet (which I had just flushed) but under the sink I started trying to turn the water off but of course it was the hot water and it was HOT! I went running to the kitchen for some towels thinking I could protect my arm, but I just had to keep reaching in til I could get it off. Yes it hurt... luckily it didn't really burn me although it's still a little tender and I had a heck of a mess to clean up as it drains right down to the basement which has one of those drop ceilings and into the florescent fixture...as I said water is NOT my friend today....

Dinner however, dinner was good and desert, yea that was good too. :)

Whats in a number?

Tomorrow kicks off the Boulder Tri seiries. The 5430 Sprint, next month is the oly Boulder Peak and then August brings the Boulder Ironman 70.3. As you may remember on my last race my number was 666. Tomorrow's race number is 1147. When I first saw it I thought that's cool, my birthday is in November and I'm racing as a 47 year old this year. hmm...then when I picked up my stuff and they told me to grab a timing chip strap, I pulled one out and as I walked off looked at it and it was marked with 1122...my birth date in November is the 22nd. So on the 22nd of the 11th month I'll be 47....any chance this is good luck and I'll have a great race? I'm hoping so. Went this afternoon to do just a really short swim and see how the shoulder/rib thing is and make sure I still know how to swim after not having done it for nearly 2 weeks!!! I gotta say I'm a little nervous. It felt really great today but I could feel it a couple times on the swim and I can feel it more in the shoulder blade area now after a measly 400 yard swim. So hears hoping I have no problems tomorrow and even more importantly that it doesn't cause me to miss any more training. I'm going to start to feel like I'm even more behind if I miss any more.

Hoping everyone is having a great training/race weekend!

What's for Dinner? Lasagna Cupcakes

I've been wanting to give these a try for awhile now. I've actually had the stuff sitting around for a couple of weeks too. Tonight however I decided to try and make some ravioli with the won-ton wrappers. I made a couple of them and boiled them and the taste of the cheese was fantastic but the boiled won-ton wrappers...not so much so I decided to go ahead with a meatless Lasagna cupcake.

Lasagna Cupcakes

Based on the recipe from Hungry girl

won-ton wrappers

1 Cup ricotta cheese(I used an organic ricotta and I have to say the taste of this was out of this world. I've noticed a huge difference in different types of ricotta cheese so buy a good quality cheese.

a couple handfuls of fresh spinach

small amount of diced onion (1/8 cup)

1/4 cup mozzarella cheese + extra for topping

1/4 cup Parmesan

jar or homemade pasta sauce

Saute spinach and onion until just wilted.

Mix ricotta with egg mozzarella and parmesean add seasonings to taste. Garlic salt or powder and pepper.

Spray muffin tin and press one won-ton wrapper in and up the sides. Add cheese mixture, spoonful of pasta sauce and another won-ton wrapper and repeat cheese and sauce. Top with a little mozzerella.

Bake at 375 deg. oven until brown crispy and delicisous looking! 15-20 minutes

These were seriously very good. All the flavor of lasagna with none of the hassle. They recipe above made 6 muffins which I would say 2-3 servings depending on whose eating. I served these to my youngest son (almost 15) who thought they were very good also. I will defiantly be making this again...soon.

Three thing Thursday!

Liked it so much last week I'm going to keep it up!

1. Ribs that move? Huh...who knew...seems I have one and it’s not been very happy with me lately. I was having some issues last week and had been to the chiropractor on Thursday and all seemed well by throughout the century. Come Tuesday morning when I go to do my hair...POP! Pain! Can’t breathe deep...great....just great.... To the chiropractor both Tuesday and Wednesday. I’m skipping today, it’s better, I think the pain I have now is more from them beating me up to get things moved around. Will see how it feels tomorrow and maybe hit them up again. Still planning on the race Sunday but will play it by ear. Have not done any training since ride on Sunday. That 70.3 isn’t getting an farther away...so no training is not real good.

2. Newsflash...riding 100 miles does not mean you can eat whatever you want....Scale up 5 pounds after an overly indulgent weekend and no training this week!!!

3. Heat it’s arrived in Denver. The Boulder courses are notoriously brutal in the heat, which there usually is in July and August (oly and HIM) and since I like any other sane person prefer to train when it’s cool, I’m going to have to acclimate to that. Anyone have any good tips for dealing with the heat. Often times in the heat my fingers swell when I run, I think this is an electrolyte/salt thing. Any and all advice welcome!

Happy racing to all this weekend!

It's just a hill...get over it! Denver Century Report

The day started pretty early since we planned to meet up at 5:30. I crawled out of bed at about 4:15 after not having slept well at all. But what a beautiful morning it was. Cool with an amazing sunrise peaking around the corner of Invesco, home of the Denver Broncos, where the ride would start.

We started the ride with 5 of us. Kathleen, Sarah, Paul, Jill and myself. Kathleen and Paul being the strongest riders were soon gone. Sarah, Jill and I were together until the first aide station were Jill and I stopped to potty, and have a couple of adjustments made to Jill’s bike and Jill talked the very nice young man into keeping her jacket for her until she could pick it up at their shop later in the week. Then it was time for the climb up Lookout that Jill and I had completed a few weeks ago. It felt much easier this time around we went all the way up with no stops and I once again narrowly avoided getting hit by a deer jumping across the road. We then hit one of the best down hills of the ride. I saw speeds of between 30-35mph which for me is crazy fast, but of course there were people passing us. Always at those speeds I have to force myself not to think about what would happen if I crashed. As you ride next to Red Rocks amphitheater and down into Morrison it is gorgeous.

Morrison is such a cute little town although kind of hectic to try and ride through but is only a few blocks. As we left Morrison we came to the 2^nd aid station where we met up with the whole group.

Sarah, Paul, Kathleen, Me, Jill

We tried not to spend much time hanging around but let me just say they had the biggest brick of cream cheese I have ever seen in my entire life and it tasted so good mounded on one of the freshest bagels I’ve ever had. TO–DIE-FOR! Continuing on in the beauty that is our backyard, we headed through what I guess is the lower part of Deer Creek canyon where the views were not to be believed.

I forget how spectacular the area around Denver is. You get a whole different view of it from the seat of a bike. As we exited back out of the canyon area, remember what comes down must go back up, we came to the 3^rd aid station and I think this may have been the point that Jill started to say some unkind words about me, although we look happy enough.

Me I was just wanting to get passed the turn off at 50ish miles mark that would take you back on the metric century route so that I could no longer have that as an option. Things leveled out briefly as we made our way toward a suburb of Denver that both Jill and I have come to dislike quite intensely. (I believe Jill said she would not live there even if you gave her a house!) It is I guess what is called “rolling hills” although they seemed to roll more up then down. It was during this point and miles 50 to 55ish that I had a pain in my toes on the left foot that was so sharp I truly thought I was going to cry. I kept moving my foot around and was able to relieve some of the pain and finally we reached the 4^th aid station and the start of what would be the last really tough climb of the ride. As soon as I walked around my foot was fine and I had no other real pain for the rest of the ride.

Jill was defiantly saying bad things about me now...and I was getting conflicting reports on just how long this hill was going to be. It went up and up and up some more, at least it seemed that way. But we did eventually hit the top and then turned back towards home or at least Invesco. The ride to the next aid station was pretty uneventful. It was not that pretty and not that difficult although the wind had picked up a little and we were pretty much out in the middle of nowhere.I kept wondering what this street was doing in the middle of nowhere and exactly where were all the cars on it were going We soon hit mile 77, our next aide station and Jill decided on quick nap.

Ok not really she actually had a brief moment of not feeling so well, but was able to conquer that quickly and we once again moved on. As you can tell Jill and I pretty much stuck together and would run into the others at the aid stations. Sometimes it was everyone, sometimes just Sarah. At time during the ride Jill and I would chat and others we just rode and went deep into our own thoughts (or private hell which ever you prefer. ) It wasn’t long before we reached the final aid station at mile 87. By this time some glorious clouds had come out and it looked as we could get a bit a rain. I was amazed how good I felt and the sentiments were echoed by Jill and a guy standing next to us. The last miles were on a bike path that both Jill and I were familiar with and we got behind a group of other bikers and we moved right along. Thankfully the path was not that busy and we were able to finish the ride strong. As we got close to the finish I remarked to Jill that I was not going to quite make 100 miles and I discussed the idea of riding around a little to get that last ½ mile or so... I then decided that it really wasn’t that important to me and I just wanted to get off my bike. As we neared the finish line we cut to the right towards the parking lot instead of actually going across the finish line. We put our bikes away, changed our shoes and I replied to a text from my Dad saying we were done and headed for burgers and beer. Imagine my surprise when we rounded a corner and there were my Mom and Dad. They had been waiting at the finish line to see us. It was so good to see them I felt terrible that we didn’t actually go across so they could see us.

We chatted with them for a moment and then headed off to buy an event jersey which I somewhere along the line decided I needed as this was my first Century and then over for that burger and beer and a chat with Sarah and Paul.

We didn’t hang out to long as all of began to get pretty tired. When I arrived home I found this waiting for me.

A gift from my oldest son, It of course thrilled me that he left this for me (the boys are out of town with their dad) and that he remembered how much I love the chili/chocolate combo. How thrilled I am to have so much support from my family.

The day was a raging success and I thank all of those that rode with me and helped me to be able to finish it. I have to say that I cannot imagine a better experience. I never really felt like I hit the wall. There were some miles that were hard sure, but I never really wanted to quit (although I joked about it) or felt like I wouldn’t make it. I credit Jill with much of the credit for keeping my spirits light. One day after and although I’m tired (didn’t sleep well again) and STARVING I feel great. I’ve got no soreness to speak of and can’t believe my legs feel as good as they do...not to mention my a$$! :)

Summary

99.32 miles 7 hours and 35 minutes ride time (started my garmin late so these are from my bike computer)
Average pace 13.1 Top speed 38.5

Heart Rate 118 Ave 153 Max
5057 calories burned...I hope this is true because between Sunday and today I've consumed at least that many extra!

Favorite quotes of the day:

From Jill-
“If I had a gun.. I would shoot you!”
“We must have climbed at least one fourteener today”

Random lady at the first aid station talking to the mechanic.
“I’m having a problem with my gears, I knew before I started they were going....”

Random girl met in the bathroom line and then passed by on the ride.
“I’ll have my eye on you Julie” after I said I couldn’t wait to get passed the 50 mile turn off to do the metric century, thus avoiding the temptation to cut the ride short.

“I can’t wait to find out about the octopus” as she passed me at mile 70ish...referring to the fact she was reading on the back of my shirt in the potty line.

Random people in the bathroom line at aide station 4.
Random person #1“I heard there were 2 more miles of climbing”
RP#2 “Wow because I heard 20 more”
RP#3 “That’s funny because I heard 12 more miles”

Random guy at final aide station
“AMEN SISTA!”

Now...to somehow talk these wonderful ladies into an all women’s century (or metric century) coming up in August.....

Three thing Thursday?

I’ve never done Three thing Thursday before although many of you do but it seems like just the think I need right now to get a quick post done.

1. This weekend is the Denver Century! I’m pretty nervous excited! Mostly because I will be riding with Kathleen and Jill and a couple of others so should be a good time if I can keep up! I hope that the fact that the longest ride I’ve had is 67 miles is not a problem. :) It will be interesting to see just what it’s like riding with all of these riders, especially when we get to the portion that takes place on the bike paths. In addition to all the people doing the DC you will have all the people who are just out enjoying the day that is supposed to be beautiful 80 degrees.

2. Let’s talk socks and tri shorts. The socks I usually wear for biking and running work just fine, I’ve never had any issues with blisters or any other kind of problems. What I do have a problem with is getting them on my feet in transition. They are kind of tight and end up all twisted and are just generally a pain in the butt to get on wet feet in a hurry. So the question is this, do you have a brand/type you like? Do you go without? For the bike and the run? If you go without on the bike do you have tri shoes or road bike? Next up are the shorts. I noticed in my tri last weekend that my tri shorts were actually a little baggy. I was thinking that I might need to invest in some better ones for the HIM anyway, so tell me what kind you like?

3. Last but not least I wanted to say thanks to everyone for all the kind comments on my last (and really all of) post. It means a lot to me that you take the time to read about what I’m doing and cheer me on as well as answer my silly questions. I’m amazed by how great the blogging community is and it’s been so much fun to meet people that I otherwise never would have met. And it’s been fantastic to actually become friends with some of you! I also want to say that I read most of your posts (occasionally I get to busy and skip some) but with this new comment issue it’s made commenting a problem. While I’ve “fixed” it on my home computer by changing to Google Chrome. I don’t want to change my work computer and I often read blogs on my lunch hour, thus no comments unless I have time to make it back to blogs in the evening. So thanks again for spending of your time with me!

Sunrise Sprint - Race Report

Or how nice of the fast girls to stay home!

Or is 666 my lucky number?

The Colorado weather finally decided to warm up this last week which is fantastic but it was not enough to warm the water at the Rez much. I spent a few minutes hours this last week worrying about getting in the water for my first open water swim. I called the recording at the Rez once numerous times to check the water temps. "The water temps are 61 degrees and the deep end of the swim beach will not open unitl the temps reach 64"...great I can hardly wait. I gave a little thought to changing to the Du when I was reminded about it after seeing a post from Aimee at I Tri To Be Me but then decided I might as well bite the bullet and get in the water as I'm not sure I'll have another chance before the Boulder tri series kicks off in two weeks.

At packet pickup I checked the roster and find there are only about 7 people in my age group. This is a pretty small race, which would make it that much nicer to use as a "practice race". After arriving home I figure it must be time to find all my stuff, that's been hiding since last season. Luckily it came together pretty easy and I didn't forget anything. I slept really great which I was surprised at, must be due to the fact that I really wasn't thinking of this as a race just a brick workout and a chance to get things together. I did start getting a little nervous on my way up and it was really nice that when I got into transition and looked over two rows who should I see but Aimee setting up her area.

Me and Aimee

She has a very calming way about her and I felt like I instantly relaxed. As I set up my area I joked with a few of the ladies around me. It was nice and relaxed and they were a friendly group. Before long we headed down to the swim beach thinking we were getting ready to go...but that was not to be as apparently the ambulance had not shown up yet and we were being delayed. Not wanting to get in the water to early we just stood around and chatted some.I had a gel and wished for some water to wash it down with. Finally it appeared we were getting close to starting so it could be put off no longer I headed down to the water. I slowly made my way in...standing on my tiptoes and holding my arms out of the water (I have a sleeveless wetsuit) as I lost feeling in my feet adjusted to that I decided it was time to go under. Shocking yep that's what it was....do it again...and again...swim a few feet...ok I think we can do this. Finally about a half hour late we were finally set to go. I was in the last wave of 6. Things started out a little slow, I just couldn't quite get going. I couldn't find a rhythm and breathing was a bit of a struggle. I could tell though that I was staying with the group as I approached the first turn I was finally getting it together some and I was passing some of the slower people from the wave before me. At the next and last turn we joined those doing the olympic distance, I just kept my head down and kept swimming. I felt like I did a fairly good job of sighting and swam all the way in. It was a run up the hill and into T1.

SWIM- 750m- 19:38

I was happy to see that what appeared to be almost all the bikes were still there. I was really shaky in T1 which was very weird. I don't know if it was the cold or what, but could feel my hands shaking and I felt a little unsteady, I sat down to dry my feet and put my shoes on, I was worried at first about the unsteady feeling but went about my business and headed out. Note to self...work on transitions

T1 3:18 (yea I know)

Heading out of the Rez there is a hill, not a huge hill but hill and I always struggle with, cold from the swim and don't have my legs yet I decided that I would just spin easy and warm up a little. The first 6 miles of this ride is a steady gradual uphill, I continued to spin and was happy to find that I was passing some people. I continued to try to keep a high cadence on the bike but to also push it a little. This year I'm trying to learn a little bit more about just how all those gears on my bike work. I was feeling really good on this ride I went back and forth with one guy, he ultimately passed me and I couldn't catch him but he finished in my sights, and I was feeling good knowing he had started long before me. Until we joined up with the olympic riders I really wasn't passed at all and I was watching for women in my age group and never saw any. I felt really good every time I passed a 20 or 30 something female. I really have to say I felt pretty strong on this ride. I feel like I pushed but I'm pretty sure hoping that I didn't give it my all and that I will be able to do it a little faster in 2 weeks. One thing to work on is not getting sucked into riding along behind someone because I don't think I have enough in me to pass. I need to just give it a go and if they end up passing me again, so be it.

Bike 1:00:34- 17.2 miles (17.2 mph)

Again, way to much time. All though I hadn't noticed on the bike as soon as I put on my shoes I could tell that my toes or more the whole front of my foot on both feet but mostly my right were pretty darn numb. Not really sure why that is. Usually if I have a problem it's on my left foot and it's a little different feeling.

T2 2:12 (yep still sucky!)

Right out of T2 I hit the port-a-potty. It would be really good if I could learn to hold it for a sprint, and truthfully I probably could have but I always worry that I'll get out there and not have a bathroom. Again at the start of the run is a hill...I hate hills, biking running it doesn't matter I hate hills...I tried to run but I believe I had a bit of a walk break. There were lots of people around me but again all of them were olympic, and fast. I was feeling pretty good for the most part and just kept plugging along. I had a few walk breaks, passed up the first water station but had another gel and some water when I passed it on the way back. As usual the run is hard for me although I felt like I did ok. Again I pushed myself but I'm hoping that I can pick it up a little in two weeks. It was nice to pass Aimee (the Du started long after all the tri waves) in the first mile of her 2nd run, as I was in the last mile of mine. Gave me a little pick me up.

Run 5k - 35:02 (11:18 pace)

Total 2:00:42 (I find it funny that the first place guy in the Oly finished in 2:00:40)

After seeing Aimee finish I went over to check the on the results, imagine my surprise when I was listed as second in my age group! I had thought there was a possibility of being close to the top, I mean after all there were only 7 of us! The girl in first was wayyyy faster than I and actually ended up placing 3rd in the overall awards so you know what that means....FIRST PLACE IN MY AGE GROUP!!!!

As I was the only one there I felt a little ridiculous and didn't give Aimee much time to snap a picutre.

Wow...how about the bags under those eyes!

Apparently 666 is a lucky number for me.

What's for Dinner? Sweet Potato Crust Pizza

This recipe comes from Jason over at Cook Train Eat Race as part of his Athlete's Plate series, where he puts together menus for different bloggers. He has some awesome food as well as information on top of being a fantastic athlete. Make sure to check him out if you don't already follow him. I cut this recipe in half as I was making it for only myself and didn't need the temptation of to much around. I thought this was very good although it wasn't exactly pizza to me as I love my dough crust. :) But the nutty/sweet flavor was fantastic. I would really like to try and make this crust into a cracker as I think it would be fabulous with some of my spicy pumpkin hummus!

Red quinoa before grinding

Red quinoa after grinding. I could have ground this a little finer but I liked the texture.


Sweet Potato Crust Pizza
Serves 8
Ingredients:
2 C mashed sweet potatoes, (will take 2 large potatoes)
2.5 C quinoa flour (raw quinoa blended in a high-speed blender until flour-like, or you can purchase from most stores),
I added a bit of whole wheat flour becuase I was just a little short of having enough quinoa.
2 tsp baking powder,
.25 C cold water,
2 T olive oil,
dash of sea salt,




1/2c Low-Fat Ricotta Cheese,
and pizza topping of your choice. I used spinach, onions, red peppers and mushrooms as well as Parmesan cheese.
Directions:
Process all ingredients (not incl. ricotta, tomoatoes, garlic or asiago) in a food processor. Once combined, place dough in bowl and use hands to form 2 balls. On a baking sheet (silicone, or pizza stone) roll dough into circular shape about .25 inch thick. Should yield 2 - 8" crust.


In a preheated oven, bake crust at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove from oven.
Spread ricotta cheese thinly over crust then toppings and cheese over the top and place pizza back in oven until cheese melts.