It can happen to you too....

Another weekend comes to a close and the countdown to Boulder 70.3 is now in the single digits. That's right one week from today at this time I will hopefully have become a ..... 1/2 Ironman? 70.3 finisher? Well what ever I will have completed the race I have been training for all summer. Some days I feel confident, others not so much.

On my bike rides recently I've had some happenings that are a little unusual. The other day as I was riding through my neighborhood a gril was running the other way and I could tell that she was doing that thing where you are looking at someone but don't want them to know that you are looking and the next thing I knew she was on the ground, fell straight forward flat out...I yelled over my shoulder to see if she was alright and she said she was, I'm sure her pride was hurt more then anything all though it couldn't have felt good. Yesterday on my bike ride a runner (although she was walking at the time) crossed the road a ways in front of me and then when I looked again she was gone. As I road passed a little opening next to the road I saw her kind of squatted down, well my first thought was that she was sick so of course I yelled over my shoulder to see if she was alright. Wasn't until I turned around that it dawned on me that she probably was using the...ahhh facilities and was embarrassed to be seen. It's good to know these things happen to other people also.

I'm excited about something new I've just found out I will be doing for the next 8 weeks or so. I signed up to be personal motivator for the Kick Start program sponsored by Skirt Sports. I'm not sure exactly what it will entail but I'm looking forward to the opportunity to help and watch as someone realizes a dream and accomplishes something they had no idea they could do by running the Skirt Chaser 5k on October 1st.

Thursday Three - Yea Baby!

1. Athlete number 347.

2. Swim wave #4.

3. Swim start 6:45

10 more days!

Questions and Answers with Julie -The Answers Part 2 The Final Chapter

Well here it is the final installment of Q & A with Julie It's nearly as exciting as Part 1

Enjoy!

BDD (needs no introduction) asked:

If barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?
- Do penquins have knees?
- How does asprin find the headache?
- If Teflon is stick free, how do they get it to stick to the pan?
- When someone yells "headsup!!" why does everyone duck?

BDD these are all great questions, I however have the answers to none, so I will direct you to one of many with more knowledge than myself.

Terzah BQby40 asked

I hate hot weather for running. But maybe it's actually good for tris. Where do you come down on the weather question?

I prefer the cool weather, hot is not good for tri’s either. A nice 75ish degrees would be perfect...Doesn’t often happen for sure.

Does the idea of swimming in the ocean scare you? Because it seriously freaks me out...

I love, love, love to play in the ocean. Although I’ve never scuba diver, snorkeling is fantastic! However, the idea of doing a tri with an ocean swim and waves...not so much.

Christi Pedestrian Runner asks

When are you going to come do the Incline with me?

I must say I’m a little intimidated by the looks of that climb...but maybe sometime in the near future when you and Jill have no better way to spend a day you can drag my sorry butt up it.

What is your most embarrassing race story?

I cannot think of a single one! Most of my races have gone pretty good, not that I haven’t made some dumb mistakes, like leaving transition without my race belt but I’ve never been embarrassed. Wait does walking up Old Stage during the race count...I found it a little embarrassing....or maybe that was humiliating?

Which SBR sport do you like best?

Biking! I really love to be on my bike. Often when I'm out running and get passed by a cyclist I think "I wish I was on my bike!"

Brad Pitt or George Clooney?
Either is fine...I’ve been on my own quite awhile now. :)

Beer or wine?

I’m not a big drinker these days but depending on what I’m doing, an ice cold Corona is fantastic or a nice glass of merlot...but if I really want to have fun a Lemon drop martini or gosh you know a gin and tonic is sound real good too...I think maybe a good time is on the horizon after I finish this 70.3!

Summer or Winter?

Summer for sure!

What is your favorite color?

I don’t have a favorite but I seem to always be drawn towards pink of any shade.

Adena at She said I needed a goal

A day in the life of your food.. what do you eat in a typical day?

A lot of food! Will just use today since I can’t remember what I ate yesterday

Breakfast

2 egg omelet with a ton of veggies, spinach, broccoli slaw, onion and mushrooms and 2% cheddar cheese, maybe ¾ cup chocolate almond milk.

Morning snack ½ cup blueberries with some Greek yogurt sprinkled with Kashi Go Lean

Lunch: Chicken wrap again with a bunch of veggies, lettuce, red onion, sprouts, a can of Amy’s Minestrone soup, which for the record is not normal, but my freezer is empty of soups, and I didn’t think it was that great, and an apple

Afternoon/pre-workout snack banana and peanut butter

100 minute run – 6 chomps and one gu

Dinner: 3 tostadas with refried beans, sour cream and lettuce

There may or may not have also been a handful of Mike & Ike’s as well as a few chocolate chips.

No wonder I’m not losing any weight these days huh?

What is your favorite of the three sports?

Answered that one above Bike!

Do you play any other sports?

Nope

Are your boys interested in triathlon at all?

Ha, ha! Not one bit, they start to roll their eyes when I talk to long about it. Of course they are teenagers they are really only interested in themselves most of the time anyway.

Most importantly tell me something super funny.

Wow this is a hard one. We laugh a lot around here but off the top of my head the only thing I can think of is something I shared recently on another blog. A year ago or so my youngest son said to my older son “You know Josh you would look just like Mom if you had a mustache.”....gotta love them...right?

JohnP from Lord of the Chainrings

There are only 2 types of people in this world - those that pee in their wetsuit and those that dont admit to peeing in there wetsuit. Which one are you?

I’ll pee in it if I can, problem is a lot of times I just can’t.

What are you scared of the most?

How deep do you want to get here? I’ve got plenty of things that scare me. Everything I keep typing seems deeper then I want to go right now so I will go with one that pertains to triathlon. I’m scared to death that one day I will wake up and find I’ve signed up for full Ironman which is why I’ve given strict instructions to all to slap me hard if I mention it.

What was your most embarrasing moment?

I have absolutely no memory so I’m having a hard time thinking back...I know that I’ve been embarrassed many times in fact I can think of many from my teenage years but nothing more current or that I would consider my “most”.

Did you cheer or cry when Old Yeller got put down?

Cried of course!!!

What drives you to want to do Boulder?

Just to see if I can do it. I know it won’t be fast but with every distance I concur I’m driven to find out if I can do just a little more.

Is it a Myth that ladies NEVER pass gas?

It's a myth.

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed learning something about me as much as I enjoyed learning about you!

I’m tired....

This weekend I met up with Tea for a ride. It was really nice to finally meet up with her. We had a nice ride and some good conversation. During our ride she expressed that she was just tired, that it was a good thing that taper had arrived and that it was time for some rest. I said that I was feeling pretty good still. Well today it hit me. I’m tired. I’m done. I’m ready for this race and everything that brings (the good the bad and the ugly) to be done. My whole right side hurts. I’ve got a crick in my neck my shoulder blade hurts, my ass hurts, and occasionally my Achilles tendon hurts. ( I need to go to the chiropractor!) My left big toe nail is split across the middle. I feel exhausted, which could be from the training, the heat (88 degrees in my house yesterday! No I don’t have A/C despite the fact that I work for a heating and A/C distributor.), lack of sleep, or the fact that I’ve been eating nothing but crap for the last 2 weeks.

I’m tired....

Ok I’m done complaining now.... 13 days and counting....

Boulder Peak Olympic Tri Photos!

I've just gotten a hold of and gotten the chance to post a few of the photos from the Boulder Peak Oly that I did a couple of weeks ago so of course I had to share!

After transition closed but before getting into the wetsuit.

Love those wetsuit photos!

Yea I'm done!

Hmm... I look pretty happy!

I think this may be when I first noticed my Dad standing on the side. My mom is in the background.

And here is the group again, Paul, Kathleen, Sarah, Me and Lisa

Thursday Three- Holla!

1. I have now had more flats in the last month then I have in my entire cycling experience! Saturday morning while trying to complete my 8 x (4:00 run 10:00 bike 4:00 run) I finished my 4th bike and noticed as I finished that my tire was low, I pumped it up before heading out on my run, I could hear a leak, by the time I got back my son who was getting ready to mow the lawn asked me if I had run over a knife as he heard the leak while he was standing next to it putting gas in the mower! Needless to say this time around the tire changing, rear tire, did not go as smoothly, got the tire off and changed easy but had a hard time getting it back on, and by the time I did I didn't feel like I had enough time to finish up the workout before getting ready for our raft trip. The gods must be after me these days! Also very strange, twice in the last month I have ridden off on my bike and gotten around the corner before noticing that I did not put helmet on!?! What is up with that I've never forgotten to put it on before.

2. I will be heading to Boulder to ride the 70.3 course with Tea from Swimming, Cycling & Running...with A(L)titude on Saturday morning, followed by a little bit of running. I've not yet met Tea and I'm looking forward to it. Any one else who would care to join us let me know the more the merrier!

3. Have I said recently how completely unprepared I feel for this little tri that will soon be here? I still wonder just what I was thinking!

17 DAYS!!!!

Questions and Answers with Julie -The Answers Part 1

I just want to say thank goodness I'm not as popular as some, this is a lot of work just for a few questions! Good luck to you all you "cool kids" out there! If by any chance you still haven't posted your question or have a new one feel free to post.

Aimee from I Tri to Be Me asked:

What is one thing you most want to accomplish this year??
Live through the Boulder 70.3. :) and if I do that then I want to try and enjoy my boys and spend a lot of family time together for the next year when my oldest son enters the Marines.

XLMIC at Taking It on asked


Do you like making lunches? What do you usually put in your boys' lunches?

I make my own lunches every day, like it or not, just one of those things I don't think about much. As you can tell from the question above my boys are older 17 and 15 and can darn well pack their own lunches if they need one, but not something that ever happens, they just buy lunch.

What is you favorite workout? now that you mention it :P Least favorite?
Favorite...long easy bike rides. :)
Least...anything that involves pain.

Give us the funniest internet dating story and the scariest. Please?
Funniest....there were many but my favorite is the one where I got left at a restaurant downtown after I told a guy that “no, in fact I was not having a good time.” He asked! At least he paid for the drinks before he left. Scariest, I’ve really never had any scary experiences. Although I did receive some pretty inappropriate pictures...actually that was another really funny story.


Deb from Deb Tris asked
I want to know about your childhood:

Did you ever cheat on a test?
I don’t remember every doing this, if I did I obviously did not feel guilty enough about it for it to have made a lasting impression. :)
Chase boys at recess time?
I remember having a real crush on a boy in Kindergarten...Eric D as he was known. I’m sure I must have chased him a time or two.
Skip school?
I never really skipped school except one time I can remember in junior high, I think it was the last day of 9th grade.

Julie from Adventure is Out There asked

What blog makes you laugh the most?
Wow this is a hard one there are so many good blogs out there. Jill always makes me laugh, be it in person or reading her blog I also find JohnP at Lord of the Chainring quite a riot, his comments usually get me rolling as well as his blog.

What blog have you learned the most from?
Well I’ve learned a lot from SUAR but I’m not telling what. As far as triathlon and equipment goes...it’s gotta be DC Rainmaker

What blog do you HAVE to read every day?
Yours of course Julie! But there are several others I will read as soon as I see a post including but not limited to Adena at She said I need a goal, she also makes me laugh and of course there is BDD I can’t believe that I just found his blog in the last few months, he has some of the best posts everything from funny to insightful. Any one I've met in person always ranks at the top too. :)

What is your high in the sky dream in your professional life? in your athletic life?
Professional life?...yea not so much, I have a job and I just hope to keep it. It like the rest of my life is none to exciting.
Athletic? To have dreams there would have to mean I was an athlete and I don’t often think of myself as one. :=)however I’m not really sure where I want to go from here. My goals/dreams After I complete the 70.3 and having completed the century this year, are met for now. All of this is so far out of the realm of what I ever thought I would be doing that I feel like it is all a huge dream.

Survived!

It was a fantastic weekend!!!! The weather was perfect, the scenery beautiful, the company awesome, the raft trip a kick in the butt! I am totally thinking of a 2 day raft trip next year! And I can only say that I really want to head to this area and ride my bike! Here are a few of my favorite pics from our trip!

Dad, Mom, Josh (in back) and Zach

If you ever have the chance to go white water rafting DO IT! If you haven't had a chance to ask me a question go here and ask away. I will be posting answers soon!

20 DAYS!!!!!

Questions and Answers with Julie

Well my friend Jill over at Run with Jill has been kind enough to make me one of the first recipients of the latest blog craze, ok maybe it's not a craze yet, but it will be. It was started by Chris K of the Manly Runner just days ago and it will soon be sweeping blog world. So the thing is you get to ask me any question that you want and I will answer.

Curious about my training?

Want to hear about my wonderful boys?

Internet dating stories?

Favorite workout?

Most loved food?

Ask away, although my life is quite boring, feel free to ask me anything. My life is an open book, however hope you don't fall asleep while reading because it's a pretty boring one!

As usual part of the rules are that you have to pick 5 other people to bestow this honor on soooo although it is so hard to choose only 5 I will.

1. Julie over at Adventure is Out There I love her blog and she just rocked Pac Crest long course!

2. Aimee at I Tri to Be Me just because she is so sweet and she's a Colorado girl.

3. Terzah at BQby40 Terzah is also a Colorado girl, that I've yet to meet, but will one day is running the Zooma 1/2 marathon this weekend.

4. Mathhew at Go, Smitty, Go is training for his first 70.3 at Steelhead in just about 1 month

5. Deb from Deb Tris I had to include at least one of my friends from up north and I enjoy Deb's blog plus she just recently found some lost pic that she posted including one of her in a dress with her legs still marked ...I love it!

So if I survive both my training coming up Saturday morning 8 x (R4:00, B:10:00, R 4:00) and this I will be back to answer all of your questions.

Have a great weekend all!

Three things Thursday- OMG!

1. Rudi's Organic 7 Grain Bread...To Die For!

2. After the race this past weekend I felt really good! The only thing sore was my right bicep which I attribute to carrying my bike through some of the weeds to and from my car...does that mean I need to start some strength training or get a ligher bike...probably both. :)

3. This weekend I will be doing this.......I'm quite nervous...maybe even scared...not sure if I'm more scared for myself, my babies, or my dad.

Boulder Peak Olympic Tri Race report or Old Stage 2 Julie 0

Let's just get that out of the way first...Old Stage wins and I will never, never, never try it again! :) YOU WIN OLD STAGE! YOU... WIN!!

Pre Race

Ok so now for the rest of the story. I had Friday afternoon off thinking that I could get some light training in and maybe go do packet pick up. The weather however had different ideas about me taking a ride.

We have been having crazy afternoon rains, this one came with a bunch of wind and some hail. Which managed to shred trees and blow things everywhere. I only got about 30 minutes in, but enough to check out an adjustment that I had made to my seat and when I got off the bike I noticed that my cleat had cracked! Boy am I glad that I saw it as I can't imagine trying to ride without being clipped in! So got that taken care of. So Saturday I decide again to try an easy ride with an easy short run off the bike. Got that done and felt good. I then went to lunch with a friend and she went with me to packet pick up. I was there when Tim O'Donnell was doing a talk, I wished I could have stayed to listen but didn't want to make my friend wait on me.

Although the shirt is a nice K-Swiss and fits well, the design leaves a little to be desired. :) I was hoping given that it was the 20th anniversary it might be a really cool shirt...not so much. Fast forward to the evening after getting all packed up I go out to load my bike in the car...FLAT FRONT TIRE!!!! GRRRR! Good thing I'm becoming such a tire changing expert! I change the tire digging out not one, not two but three thorns stuck in my tire! Obviously from all of the stuff blown around the day before. Great now I'll be worried all night that I will end up with a flat on the ride.

Race day

I acutally got a really good nights sleep, woke up a little early at 3:30ish and dozed until little after 4 when I got up. Ate my normal bagel thin, peanut butter and banana coffee and headed out after numerous trips to the bathroom...race day nerves you know. I started to get a little worried as I got closer to the rez as there appeared to be an issue with this lights and it was taking for-ever to get in to the lake so by the time I got in there was no messing around, get set up and they were kicking us out! I was racked right next to Kathleen and she had someone take this pic of us.

Doesn't look like I had a good nights sleep..those bags under my eyes...WOW!

It was a beautiful day cool, although it was suppose to get hot. I wanted to use the porta-potty before the race but the line was sooooo long so for the first time in my history of races I did not hit up the porta potty once or usually twice!

Swim

It wasn't long before our wave was getting ready to start. I did just a quick dip in the water before hand, it was beautiful, and checked out my new goggles. They had us females 45-49 swimming with the males 35-39. I just put myself in the back and tried to stay out of the way. It worked out pretty good to, no real contact, although I swam up on a few people I was able to go around with no problems. After passing the first buoy I got into my rhythm and just swam. I was having some sighing issues at first but then was able to use the sun and feel like I did a pretty good job, and bonus my goggles didn't fog up! Turned the first corner and it was just a short distance before we were heading back in. I always feel like I'm being pushed to the left on the way back in and I seem always to be compensating for it. But still did pretty good. At the 2nd to last buoy I did take a big drink of water that left me choking for a bit but I didn't let it rattle me just got back to it. Although I felt like I was out there forever I was pleased to exit the water and cross the mat and see my time of 34:50. For me a good swim.

T1 it was the normal run up the beach to transition. Felt pretty good about things had a few problems getting my helmet fastened but overall pretty happy with my time, room for improvement sure, but I'm ok with it.

3:52

Bike

I headed out not wanting to hit the bike to hard knowing what was to come in the first 6 miles. It was at this point I realized that I had not taken my gel before the swim so I had some of my Perpetum and a little water but not as much as I probably should have. I was feeling pretty good, and was soon into the climb up Old Stage, it wasn't long before my legs were feeling week, I kept going for awhile before deciding that it would be safer for myself and those around me to just get off and walk, and right after I started walking a girl next to me fell over. I was amazed at just how slow everyone was actually going. I had envisioned some of the strong young men zooming by, but there was no zooming going on. They were moving faster then I on foot, but not by much. It was a pretty tough walk up that hill I got to say, between the 15% grade and the bike shoes it seemed like a long walk, there were probably at least 6 other people in my vicinity also walking. Although everyone lining the road was nice I almost felt like I couldn't make eye contact with them. :) Finally to the top and back on the bike. I had in my mind that it was downhill then...not so much, a quick downhill and then a few more uphills, the first one that I seemed ill prepared for I almost dropped my chain and my heart dropped to my shoes as I though great! Now I'm going over! Luckily it didn't fall off (I've never done that before!) and I was able to continue on. Finally the downhills and they were SWEET! The rest of the ride was really pretty easy a few rollers but nothing of note. I was amazed by some of the inconsiderateness of few ladies out there. One who choose to ride in the middle of the road instead of to the left making it difficult for all to pass, and another two that felt they should ride side by side and chat...for many miles... From miles 15 to 20ish I was able to catch up a little on my nutrition and water and started to feel much better. Although I was really wishing that peeing on the bike was an option for me. I just can't do it.

Bike 1:39:39

T2

Bit of a problem here as I couldn't find my row or spot so spent some extra time fumbling around looking for it. Smooth change of shoes, hat on, race belt on and ohhh THANK GOD! the bathroom.

3:51

Run

Headed out feeling pretty good, glad to be off the bike and I don't think I've said what a really beautiful day it was! There was a cloud cover and the temps were probably under 80 so it was not that bad at all. There is a bit of a hill right out off which I walked most of while getting all arranged. I took a gel right before I got to the mile one aid station had some water and moved on. I had headed in to this run without much of a plan, but soon settled into a rhythm of running for about 2 minutes and walking for about 30 seconds. I walked hills and aid stations taking a water, a Gatorade and then another water to dump on myself after mile 3. I saw my friend Sarah headed in the first mileish and knew that Kathleen was out there somewhere also and I saw her in the 3rd mile I think. One of the really nice things about an out and back is the chance to see friends. Around mile 4, just after the turn around I was a little concerned that I might be having some GI issues and went to stop at the porta-potty, it was occupied and I decided to take my chances and keep going, luckily that paid off. The biggest problem I had on the run was stepping on some rocks that hit directly on what I think is a Morton's Neroma and the pain was pretty intense. It didn't bother me at all other then that, but left me concerned about the 13.1 miles to come on this same course in 30 days. The last mile was pretty fun as the pros had hit the run course and they do 3 shorter out and back loops and it was fun to be running with the likes of Tim O'Donnell and Greg Bennett and Matty Reed. When I got to the finish I was surprised again by my Mom and Dad! How great it is that they come out to support me!

1:14:13 (11:58)
Total time 3:36:25

After finishing my run I got to watch all of the pros cross the finish line! What a great day! As you can see I didn't quite make my goal of 3:30 but overall I'm really happy with my performance. My swim, felt fantastic, my ride, well except for that f'ing "hill" was pretty strong, and my run, even with walking I was happy to have under (just) a 12:00 minute mile. Call me a happy camper. After the race when we went to check our times this guy walks up to me and says, your Julie with the blog right? Freaked me out a little and then he introduced himself as Bill who blogs over at Colorado bikeaholics I've been reading his blog for awhile he has some great info and he's a great athlete! Back in February he did an indoor Ironman triathlon at the Avada YMCA. Check out his blog, you won't be sorry!

Here's a picture of the top 6 Male pros. Tim O'Donnell took the win for the 3rd year in a row!

Next stop...70.3

3:30....

What was I thinking saying I'd be happy with anything under that...Finihsed getting things together and started looking at numbers again and I just don't know...Had 3:23 in my one and only oly last year and while I think I'm in better shape, I just don't know, this course is probably harder. The bike course is tough with that hill....3:30 I'm shooting for it, only time will tell ...

Good luck to all my friends out there racing tomorrow!

Three thing Thursday...So the race looms near....

1. This weekend is the Boulder Peak Olympic distance triathlon. I'm pretty nervous. As you may remember it contains the climb up Old Stage that got the best of me in the pre ride. In addition to that it's only my second oly distance. I just went back and read my report from last year. It was not a pretty race and I anticipate this one to be much different if only because of the size. I'm thinking about my goals for this race. I'm not sure where to set them. I believe that I would be happy with anything under 3:30 which I realize should not be that big of a stretch, but remember I'm slow. :) I do think my run is stronger this year so hopefully I can do much better although it sounds like it's going to be pretty hot.

2. Nutrition. I practiced this on my ride this past weekend and I gotta say I feel like I did a pretty good job of hitting it on the head for the bike. Of course I didn't run after so I'm not sure how it will work with that but I felt great after riding and not like I wanted to eat everything in sight as I usually do. So I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes this weekend.

3. 31 DAYS UNTIL BOULDER 70.3

Long weekend by the numbers with photos

Grant Ranch for open water swimming

1 – hour of open water swimming
2660- yards swam
2 – spots that are chafed and painful from the wetsuit

2- runs
65 minutes of running
5.76 - miles run
1 – fantastic massage
1 – trip to the self serve frozen yogurt shop
3 - kinds of yogurt
5 - toppings added to said yogurt
4 – DVD’s rented
3 - DVD’s watched
2- awesome sons that enjoyed movies and yogurt with me

Veiws from the Elephant Rock Course

Christy, Jill, Ketti

2- bike rides
287- minutes on the bike
67 miles ridden
5 – fantastic people who joined me for above swimming and riding
1 – yummy burger sent home with me from for dinner
2- great parents that gave me that dinner to go.
0 – fireworks witnessed
1 – exhausted happy Julie

What's for Dinner? Macho Gazpacho

Need something quick and easy to take to a picnic on the 4th or any day, try this. I never thought I would like gazpacho but I looovvee it and my boys like it too. We make an annual trip to the water park near by and if I don't pack some of this with our chicken wraps I hear about it. It's so refreshing. Kind of like salsa but not quite.

Macho Gazpacho by Rachel Ray
Ingredients
2 (32-ounce) cans diced tomatoes in puree
2 Tlbs to 1/4 cup cayenne pepper sauce depending on heat tolerance. (I used Tabasco this time however I think I prefer Louisiana Hot Sauce in it.)
1/2 European seedless cucumber, cut into chunks (I used regular this time)
1 small red onion, cut into chunks
2 jalapenos or serranos, seeded and coarsely chopped
2 ribs celery, from the heart of the bunch, chunked
Handful fresh cilantro leaves (I love cilantro but if you don't like it leave it out)
1 lemon or lime, juiced
Coarse salt and black pepper
Lemon or lime wedges, for garnish

Directions
Working in batches, combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse grind into a thick soup. Adjust seasonings. Pour soup into a thermos and chill until ready to serve. Serve in chilled glasses with wedges of lime or lemon for garnish.



try it...I bet you'll like it, make it as spicy as you want. Serve it with wraps, serve it with a quesadilla, or just enjoy it by itself...you won't regret it.

How are you spending the holiday? I'm looking forward to a long ride with Christi and Jill!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!!