The Longest Run...

This Sunday I'm going to attempt to finish a marathon. I have run three half marathons (each one progressively slower), I have a few triathlons under my belt (haven't drowned yet), I sort of followed my training plan (16 weeks is a long time), I have run 20 miles in one day (it hurt), but nothing... nothing, seems to compare to this next challenge looming on my not too distant horizon.

If the 20 mile training run is anything to judge by, I will be in large amounts of pain by the 16 mile mark, by 20 I'll be struggling to keep moving forward and for the next 6.2 miles I'll wonder why I ever willingly signed myself up for something that tests every ounce of my mental and physical strength.

I think the answer is this... From time to time I think a little struggle in life is necessary. We need to know we're capable of overcoming challenging situations. As we explore our physical and mental limits we may yet find a small piece of the never ending puzzle of who we are. These last 16 weeks or so have been challenging to say the least. I have given up and then rallied, turned an ankle, limped, fought back tears of failure then found pride in a good run. I have held on to moments of runners high, walked too many times to count, gave up my weekends, slept all afternoon to recover, iced and rolled out, forgot why I ever liked running, and then remembered. No matter how much it sucks sometimes, the good will always outweigh the bad. That's why we keep running. I am a healthier happier person because I do this. I'm in the best shape of my life. I can run for 5 consecutive hours. I no longer say to myself, "just another 5 minutes," I say "only one more hour." Even if I'm not fast, even if I finish last, even if I have to walk a hundred times... I'm capable of so much more than I ever thought possible, and the will to keep going is what got me here. At the end of the day it's worth the struggle to fight through pain and boredom, sickness and every type of emotion, to come out the other end knowing you're capable of meeting a challenge head on and defeating it. You run... run some more... and keep running til you cross the finish line... and the next one.... and the one after that. You pick how many races to run and plan how you'll get to the finish, but what you discover about yourself along the way is what will keep you coming back for more.

In running "slow and steady" doesn't usually win you any races, and definitely doesn't look particularly impressive in the race results, but it does get you across the finish line, and in this day and age the Tortoise and the Hare both get medals.

I'll be embracing my inner tortoise this weekend :)
Here's to a great race weekend!


listening to: Man on Fire/ Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros

Run Down

Time to catch up. As in get faster, run longer, and just in general, improve. Not to mention once again own up to my training, make some new goals and chronicle our adventures in leisurely athletics. So with that in mind...

Ever since the mental/physical breakdown that was the Lake Effect Half Marathon, I've been trying to fight my way out of the downward spiral of defeat. Everyone has off days, sometimes training doesn't go as smoothly as expected, and then things happen like falling down a flight of stairs 2 hours before a race. It's hard not to get discouraged when things don't go as expected. Training has been made more difficult this year as winter refused to relinquish it's icy cold grasp on the world until Spring battled it's way in with some wicked humidity. I feel like I traded a demon for the devil. My plan was to maintain what little stamina I had worked up to through spring, eyeing the Mountain Goat as the first big race of the season. I handled the Shamrock Run 4 miler well enough, but sooner than expected I had had enough of the cold weather runs, and layer upon layer of clothes that are an unfortunate necessity of winter running. Soon my desire to avoid frozen extremities had me skipping runs. Lo and behold I was back at the 5k distance, the Mountain Goat left to be tackled by stronger runners than I.

On the upside as winter slowly slackened it's grip, Boomer and I found it near perfect weather to run the Six Legged 5k. With the two legged Dan at our side, Boomer pulled me through my fastest mile time since middle school, 8:10 (I usually run a 10:00, or on a good day 9:00 at best). We slowed down a bit after, but I was still happy with our performance. Even more recently, Dan's mom's goal to run her first ever 5K was accomplished as a big group of us ran together in the Komen Race for the Cure this past weekend. She faithfully kept up with her training plan and ran the entire distance with a smile on her face. When I think back on my first 5k I seem to remember a few walking breaks...

It's a curious thing but as runners I think we often loose perspective on all that we have accomplished. It's easy to get caught up in the idea of going faster, or longer, to compare ourselves to "real runners." During the unending quest for our next PR we seem to forget that everyday we drag ourselves to the gym, run in a snowstorm, or stand at that starting line to run another race, we're working towards achieving something that started out as a fitness goal and has turned in to much more than what we could have hoped for. Taking the opportunity to better ourselves each and every day and attempting what we may have once thought impossible is a pretty impressive accomplishment in my book. Many of us have found along the way that we're capable of much more than we once thought, and the act of surprising yourself can be just as alluring... so in the spirit of attempting the impossible, and chasing down another ambition...

Bring on the Marathon!

                 

                                     


Listening to: Red Hands / Walk Off the Earth

Cool Runnings

Roughly 10 weeks ago I was talked into signing up for another half marathon. In February. In central New York. I missed the registration but quickly got onto a waiting list, a few weeks later I was in... if a little behind on my training...

Then I got a cold and then I got another cold. By the time I should have been logging in the long distance runs I was suffering through 3 and 4 milers. Long story short, I did what I could but only managed a 7 miler as my longest run and had to hope adrenaline could pull me through the rest of the way.

It didn't quite work as well as I'd hoped, but I have a medal to show for my efforts none the less. Here's the rundown:

I should preface this by saying, earlier this week I slipped on an icy patch and needed to comically flail out my arms to right myself... and wrenched my back. Luckily it was only a dull ache for a few days and I didn't take much notice. This morning I slipped into a new pair of socks, grabbed a hamper full of clothes and a full glass of water and took to the stairs... and then I went down. Hard. After giving myself a terrible charlie horse and probably wrenching my back a second time I had to mop up the stairs, collect my strewn laundry and then head off to the race. Not the best start to the day.

The temperature of race morning steadily went down leading up to the race. At the beginning of the week we were looking at almost 40 degrees, lining up at the start it felt like 25, sometime around mile 5 the temperature seemed to take a dip or possibly the wind just kicked up... either way it was cold! Dan and I ran together til we hit the two mile mark and then I stopped to tie my shoe and he went ahead. I felt pretty good for the first 5 miles... which makes total sense because I was perfectly trained up for a 5 mile run, unfortunately I still had about 8 and a half to go. At mile 7 I was already thinking I just had to get to 8. I stopped just short of 8 to walk for a few seconds and stretch out my back and protesting right hamstring. It was sort of the beginning of the end for me at that point. From that point on I stopped to walk or stretch about 30 times. I somehow made it to mile ten, downed a green apple gel, which was a good choice on my part, and told myself- 3 miles to go, just 30 more minutes. I struggled a lot during those 3 miles though. My back felt like someone took a bat to it and my right hamstring and arch of my foot were seriously messing with my mind. Around mile 11 I found myself running close by another girl, as I walked/ ran we passed each other over and over. Soon she was coaching me to keep running and by the last half mile she was the only thing that pushed me to run across the finish line. I was in so much pain I couldn't get my head around running until I heard her over my shoulder routing for me to run. I finally crossed the finish line at 2:24: something and thanked my lucky stars I was done. Dan finished his first half marathon at 2:13:something. Not bad for training through any sensible person's off season :)  

 After downing some chicken noodle soup, we went to lunch and after sitting for 10 minutes I could hardly put weight on my right foot. Happily, after two ibuprofen I once again have use of my right leg and am hopeful that my back will stop hurting before it's time to run the Tipp Hill Shamrock Run!

For now though I'm going to call it a night... and get some well earned sleep!

These are the awesome signs Laura made us!

We had a great cheering section who enthusiastically encouraged us on our way, I was even complimented on my cheering secion as I ran by :) 

These are the semi happy faces of mile 7

Dan finishing up, running through the pain

 Almost done at this point, and my impromptu "coach" behind me

Thank You Cheering Section! You rock for staying out in the cold that long!!!

Pain in the Asphalt

After many athletic endeavors over the last three years or so I can finally say that today I accomplished something I doubted I ever could. I ran my first Half Marathon! Possibly my last, depending on the development of my current aches and pains over the next few days.

The biggest lesson I learned today was that I need to train a lot more for long distance races. I've been told if you can run 10 miles, you can run 13. While I believe that it is in fact possible it is most definitely not advisable. I should also mention that I stretched this notion by thinking 9 miles is basically the same as 10, so if I can run 9 I should be able to run 13.1. Not the greatest logic as my barely  functioning legs can attest.

I have always wondered why some days are good running days and some leave you struggling to finish 2 miles. I can never seem to figure out what factors into those rare good days, and today it would have been helpful. At the two mile marker I was already trying to ignore pain in my groin and feet. Normally I get a break on the aches and pains until at least mile 5. By mile 8 I was just telling myself to get to 9 because I knew I could. Every minute of every mile afterwards either found me hobbling up hills, wishing for water stations, maneuvering steeply slanted roads and just in general avoiding becoming marathon roadkill. All this while a raging battle to walk or keep running was being fought between my common sense and will power. I'm happy to report will power won out and I ran the entire race. Unfortunately having poorly prepared for this race my body took a beating and I can honestly say, I've never had to fight through so much pain in a race before. From my lower back to the bottom of my feet everything hurts. I have been picking my legs up with my hands to lift my foot up high enough to climb stairs. It's a bit dramatic I know, but I feel it's necessary until my groin decides to reconnect my left leg to my body.

It wasn't all pain and no fun though, there were a lot of people and huge cheering sections. As I've never been to Philadelphia it was an interesting way to see the city and there was a lot of interesting architecture, statues, parks and of course the Rocky Steps! We had a great post race sandwich at the Reading Terminal Market and a nice dinner at Maggianos. I really liked the shirts we got for this race but the medals could be a bit more interesting... but I suppose the point is to run and meet your goal not get a medal, but it' still a perk :)

Angela finished 2:24:59 and I finished 2:21:31

My longest run thus far was 9 miles and hers was 7... I'd say we did pretty well considering!

Kris finished the Marathon in 4:09:00 even with the killer second half!

And Dan was there to cheer us on, all in all a good weekend!

Mind over Milage

I woke up this morning in a less than pleasant mood, anxious over a long run I was pretty sure would be torturous. After taking a short afternoon snooze to attempt to clear my head I finally dragged myself out into the brisk 42 degree windy day and began my run. At first I thought maybe I would cut corners and run a shorter route if I wasn't feeling up to my lofty goal of 9 miles. There were many points that I thought about the short cuts and slowing to walk but I forced myself to keep putting one foot in front of the other and get the run over with. I ran what I thought was slightly slower than my normal pace and at about 5.5 miles I think a bit of runner's high hit me as I imagined myself coasting through the finish line at the Philly Half. Then miles 7-9 I got a reality check as my knees feet and right Achilles began protesting while my right arm slowly started going numb. Luckily I had Honey Stingers to distract myself and managed to find two working water fountains along the way. By the time I hit the last half mile I knew that this race is going to hurt and probably be the hardest physical challenge yet (and that's saying something since the flyer). As I gave myself a preemptive pat on the back for finishing my first ever 9 mile run I hobbled into the house to see that it had taken me an hour and 45 minutes... much slower than I had hoped. At least I know I can do 9... this half will take me 2:35:00 at my current pace. My goal had been 2:15... I'll have to reassess I suppose... finishing might just be enough for me!

Listening to: Now is the Start/ A Fine Frenzy

Gotta Run

Asics Gel DS Trainers 17

So here it is... my 100th post! And to celebrate I bought myself a flashy new pair of running shoes.

Actually, I bought them because my previous pair have turned the last month or so of runs into a slow torture fest of never ending blisters, achy knees, sore feet and generally miserable runs. What I discovered after visiting Fleet Feet was that my Mizunos while technically a good fit for my foot, are a  stability shoe best for runners with overpronation issues. In addition to wearing a stability shoe I further increased my arch support with green Super Feet inserts, the combination of which would over correct even the worst overpronation issues. Turns out that I have one foot that slightly overpronates and one that is fine. No wonder my arches took a beating. This is why you go to the people who know what they're doing before you jump into half marathons and other athletic endeavours slightly beyond your current capabilities. So I wound up buying a light stability shoe and adding my green super feet after a few runs and so far so good.

Escaping from Fright Nights

I ran my last race in the Mizunos and have retired them to the role of hiking sneakers. Speaking of my last race, we ran a 2.5 mile run at the fair grounds in a misty rain/ torrential down pour in the Escape From Fright Nights run a few weeks back. I ran it shortly following a 6.5 mile run the day before thinking 2.5 miles should at this point be a piece of cake. I was sorrily mistaken. Among the many problems with this scenario were that along with having just run 6 and a half miles in badly fitting shoes, I started out with some serious blisters and inevitably added a few more. Wet feet with cotton socks = bad news. Since becoming aware of this equation I have also recently purchased new running socks to wick away moisture. The run was a rude awakening, I am supposed to be running 13.1 miles in little under a month and 6.5 followed by a 2.5 miler was defeating me. I'm pretty sure they don't give you 4 days to complete a half marathon. Since then however I got the right equipment and am attempting to get back on track. Yesterday I put in a 6 miler and with any luck I'll be able to maintain a few 3-4 mile short runs with my long run mileage creeping up closer to my lofty goal of 13.1... it may not be pretty but I'm determined that this won't be the race that defeats me.

I also discovered a new motivation at the Escape from Fright Nights run... apparently all you have to do is put doughnuts at the finish line and I will run through a down pour being chased by creepy costumed characters casually ignoring the throbbing pain in my feet. I maintain that the Boston Cream I had post race was the best doughnut I've ever tasted. Maybe I should make arrangements for the half...

Four weeks from today!

Listening to: Anything Could Happen/ Ellie Goulding

Late Lowdown

I've been terrible about bloging this summer, having planned our vacation shortly after the big race there was a lot more stress than usual on us. I'll use that as my excuse for why this post is so late. As I'm actually writing it over a month after the fact, this will most likely be the overview...

Race morning came early as it always does, and just like always I was running a bit behind. The dash was reading much too high a temperature for so early in the morning but with transition to set up I wasn't too bothered by it. Once my transition was all set to go Elyssa pointed out I had set it up on the wrong side, after moving it I reassessed my position and decided I'd switch it back and set it up wrong so I could go faster through transition. Later on I think it paid off but next time I'll just make sure my bike is racked the correct way. 

As usual the swim course looked much longer than I thought I was capable of, so I was sure to note the locations and quantity of Kayaks on the lake in case I needed to stop and have a chat with any of them. The anxiety of being in the second or third to last age group is unreal. You have to sit through like 8 other swim starts and try not to let loose the nervous break down threatening to morph you back into a terrified child running from the water and screaming for your mother.  I managed to keep these feelings in check and lined up like the grown woman that I am about 30 minutes into the wave starts. Up until the point where I actually entered the water I was terrified, once I was about waist deep I knew it would turn out fine, so off I went. I quickly realized that starting towards the back kept me from being clobbered and drowned however I also wasn't actually going anywhere. It didn't take long to switch to plan B and make my way to the far outside. Once there I got into a rhythm and swam relatively well (if you excuse the gasping for air on every single stroke thing). Happily bypassing the kayaks I rounded the far buoy and turned for home, only I may have kept turning here and there and made quite the zig zagging approach back to the beach. It cost me some time but I made it back alive and the sigh of relief after dragging yourself out of a triathlon swim is a big weight off your shoulders.

I flew through transition and happily took off sprinting on my bike, only to realize my lungs had just about had it after the swim. Slowing down I tried to pace myself and get into a rhythm. Things were going well up until the approach to the railroad tracks. About a mile a way I heard a train whistle and really didn't put two and two together until I turned a corner and saw people up ahead stopping. As we slowed down Elyssa caught up to me and we both pulled the bikes to a stop for the unfortunately scheduled train that was blocking the course. On the bright side a volunteer took our numbers and said there would be time adjustments. So as the train past we all took off again, my motivation was sort of shot at that point because I knew no matter what my time would be at best, an estimate. I road as hard as I could but it felt slightly slow for me, we were battling some winds so that might have been the problem.

me in transition

I made it through the bike and grudgedly traded in the wheels for running sneakers, taking a bit more time to catch my breath and recover momentarily for the run. I knew it wasn't going to be pretty but I was hoping the urge to walk would hold off at least til mile 1.5-2ish. I managed not to walk at all but I'm not entirely sure the pace I was keeping could be considered running. Thank God for the volunteers! People had their hoses out, music cranked and were cheering and clapping for everyone, the water and Gatorade was much appreciated as well. I always like it when people have their dogs out too, it gives me something to distract myself from being exhausted. Anyways, as soon as I could sprint to the finish I did, and I was very happy I made it through yet another Iron Girl Triathlon! My first official time was exactly 2 seconds faster than last year and, 13 seconds faster than the first year... I'm nothing if not consistent! After the train adjustment I had 2 minutes taken off and finished as follows:

So a decent swim, not too shabby on the bike and a fairly slow run, but I suppose I have to leave room to improve for next year! Another great year of hitting the gym, pavement, pool, weights, etc., etc... not to mention hanging out with tri buddies and making new friends. I may complain from time to time but at the end of the race when that medal is hanging around your neck and your cheering section and fellow athletes surround you, it's hard not to think that's it most definitely worth it!

Angela in transition

almost done!

Racked and Ready

The night before jitters have hit hard in the past hour or so. The high temps and humidity brought my training down to a somewhat pathetic level. I feel like I peaked too early in the season and have been on an endless downward spiral ever since the Century and Flyer race. On a more optimistic note, there's still a part of me that is excited and wants to hit that bike course with all I have to see what I'm capable of. Mostly I'm nervous because I want to improve upon last year and feel I should after the many improvements in training this year. I feel like we've had some good advice and I want to show that it made a difference.

This year the race could be a lot harder based on the heat alone. Normally my goal would be to break an hour on the bike, but if it's at all windy or hot I just want to finish feeling I gave it all I could. It's a especially inspiring year as over the past week there have been a steady stream of Olympic Athletes breaking world records and inspiring me to find that competitive spark inside myself and do better than I think I can.

There's been a lot of sacrifice to get to this point, time spent away from anyone who doesn't train with me, eating dinner at 10:00 just to get in a late night workout, swimming at 5:30AM, or 8:30PM,  running in 90 degree heat, riding my bike for 2, 3, 6.5 hours, sucking down nasty energy gels, that one hill work out we did, bricks, running- biking or swimming when all I wanted to do is sit down in front of the TV, having a smoothie instead of anything else, dragging the bike everywhere with me, breaking in new shoes, sprinting laps in the pool, riding in the rain, and in my opinion the worst... running on treadmills. The thing is for some reason it's all worth it once you cross the finish line and can take pride in the fact that you challenged yourself, not only on race day, but all year long to be better than you thought you could be, and even though you might not finish first you showed up and finished. All those crazy hours spent getting to that point and the sacrifices you made are nothing compared to how much you've enriched your life by participating. Even though I'm nervous and the swim still triggers butterflies the size of parrots in my stomach, I know that even if I grab a kayak, get a flat or have to walk during the run I will be happy that I got that far... we've had a lot of fun tri-ing.


I'll report back tomorrow!

Listening to: Home/ Dierks Bentley

13.1 Here We Come!

Bit the bullet... still not sure about the "Best time of your Life" thing but you never know. At the very least I won't feel bad about any extra helpings at Thanksgiving dinner later that week, that is almost entirely why I run... to eat more food :)


Listening to: Run / Snowpatrol

Two Weeks Notice

Somehow the summer has yet again flown by and exactly two weeks from today is race day. I am experiencing the usual pre race apprehension and stress. I'm worried about the swim... not so much drowning this year, but rather things like start strategies, pacing myself and hoping someone hears my prayer to keep all other competitors from kicking, slapping, elbowing and swimming over me like triathlon road kill.

Angela and I rode the bike course today in 1:05:00 (-ish, I still have to figure out my computer). I thought that was decent considering the heat and wind. Speaking of weather this summer has been just plain mean. It's been unbearably hot and very dry. I don't so much mind the lack of rain (I actually heard the lake is more shallow because of it), I just feel like the day of the race will be the day Central New York has it's first monsoon.

I've been running here and there. Still not so thrilled with the new sneaks, might actually rock the old pair if they don't fall apart on me. Still looking into the whole half marathon thing.

On a side note planning a 3 week overseas vacation shortly after your big race of the season piles on a lot more stress than I originally would have guessed. It will be nice to kick back and enjoy some time off but next year's vacation is going to be scheduled a long way outside of tri season.

Fingers crossed that this week's workouts will somehow morph me into a legit triathlete, just in time for taper week : )


Listening to: Runaway/ The National

Flyer Flown

Today was an interesting day. Angela and I signed up for the Owasco Flyer about a week ago or so. It's a 36 mile bike race with a few big hills... or at least that is what I was told...

I was pretty nervous about being in a bike race again after the Tour de Loop last year just because I feel like everyone who races is legit and serious bikers, unlike say, us. Don't get me wrong, we ride a lot and occasionally push ourselves outside of our comfort zone but bike races are insane. The people who won today beat us by about 50 minutes. That's a significant difference. There were only 24 women who rode, 199 riders all together. Props to the woman who won overall female, I bow down to her athleticism 1:35:29! Our time by the way was 2:18:14 which I was guessing earned us a big old DFL but turns out we beat a handful of people. 2 Girls in my age group and 2 in Angela's, so at least we beat someone. I've been patting myself on the back for even riding in the race since it was by far the hardest race I've ever been in, not to mention all the women who didn't even attempt it, I mean we get points for that right?

Anyways in typical fashion we started way the eff in the back. Once we lost sight of the pack we went it alone for awhile until I latched on like a leech to a nice gentleman who was just slightly faster than what I would consider a comfortable pace. Once we were drafting with a few people it became significantly easier to ride a respectable pace. After the first big hill that seemed to go on forever I felt alright, besides a few tight muscles. The down hills were really nice but the uphills started very quickly after, when the second hill began to climb it literally never ended... luckily it levels out in places but I kept thinking the second hill, which was supposed to be the worst, was over and then around every corner there was another climb. Just to clarify by climb I mean sort of like the face of a cliff which I could have easily walked up faster. Granny gear all the way! So after the mountain they call a hill, there really wasn't much of a down hill, just a bunch of rollers and sort of big hills that I kept thinking must be the third big climb. I'm not entirely sure where that last one was, it just seemed like I had died and sinned heavily in a former life and was now paying for it in my own personal hell of never ending hills. My computer was happily reporting my mph but nothing else so when I turned to Angela and asked how much further like a kid on a car trip to California, we had 6 miles left. My response was let's get this effer over with and we had a very short lived burst of energy til we spotted hill after miserable hill and realised we had a ways to go. With one mile left I was picturing myself chucking my bike in Owasco lake. The last four hills forced me into granny gear and so close to my physical/mental breaking point I almost cried... and I am not exaggerating. I will say there were men in front of us walking their bikes up hill, granted faster than we were riding, but we did manage to remain on our bikes, we take our accomplishments wherever they come :)

The finish is at the top of a short but steep hill and as we rolled across the line I was at least happy we weren't any slower and that there were in fact people behind us.

Overall a good experience, it should make the Iron Girl seem like a cake walk. Hopefully someday soon we will learn how to ride our bikes faster and compete with fellow cyclists but until that day we will at least hold our heads up high for attempting a monster of a race and finishing it!

Listening to: Good ol' Fashion Nightmare/ Matt & Kim

Century: Check!

100 Miles... DONE!!!

And what a ride it was...

Kris took us and our bikes down to Oneida packing up Big Red to the brim. It has to be said that the less expensive bikes got to ride in the bed of the truck while the fancy Cervelo got to ride in the cabin with us... although I can't really say that I blame him with that decision : )

Anyways we made it up there, had great accommodations and a nice pre race dinner with friends (who also generously donated to each of us to ride, Thank you Gisella & Eric)! We woke up around 5:00 AM to a brisk overcast Sunday morning and sleepily managed to pull ourselves together. We checked the weather  while I chowed down my peanut butter and banana bagel and sipped my tea. A passing shower possible, around midday, other than that clear skies, it sounded pretty good to me... but more on that later. Upon arriving at Verona Beach we promptly picked up our numbers and then proceeded to loose track of time until about a minute before the start, rushed around to throw everything together last minute, and finally lined up just in time. I made the last minute decision to ditch my long sleeve shirt and just rock the short sleeve jerseys and bike shorts. To give you an idea of how poor this decision was, most of the other riders had both arm and leg warmers on, with rain jackets on top. I had goose bumps for a good 10 miles, until finally the adrenaline kicked in and warmed me up.

It was amazing how fast we lost almost the entire pack of cyclists. I was certain we'd be dead last. We made a quick stop at the first aid station and then skipped the second trying to make up time. The peanut butter sandwiches, bananas and pretzels were a big help but upset my stomach a bit so by the next rest stop I decided to switch over to the orange slices and nutritional problem solved. Thank goodness for fig newtons as well, they proved to be a wise and handy choice for biking for the better part of a day. By mile 50 I was surprised at how well we were doing, everyone felt good and we were keeping up over a 16mph pace. Then came the wind, closely followed by the sprinkles, closely followed by the down pour. From mile 50 to 90 there was a steady rain, heavy around 65-90. Then there were rolling hills to deal with, Angela's knees were giving out, my pinkie and ring fingers were uselessly numb, everyone's shoes were soaked, our feet were numb, we were freezing every time we stopped and bike shorts in combination with rain, road grit and chamois cream is about the most uncomfortable mix you can imagine. So needless to say it wasn't a pretty finish. When we had about 10 miles left I flipped my computer over to mileage and then miserably watched as the miles slowly ticked up to 100. It was insanely hard to keep pedaling but when I finally saw the computer click to 100 miles I couldn't help but feel it was worth the pain.

Kris, Angela and I have this ability to rally when one or two of the others is fading and it actually works out that we maintain a respectable pace because we all try to stay together and strong for one another. I'm happy to say that it took us 6 hours and 15 minutes ride time, 7 hours total with stops. We maintained about 16 mph for 100 miles... not a bad day.

It was quite the accomplishment for all of us and since finishing we've been told that now we can consider ourselves "real cyclists."

I'll take that : )

Food Glorious Food

Currently there are bike shorts and jerseys strewn haphazardly throughout my room, slowly but surely drying in the markedly cooler breeze coming through my window. Tomorrow is game day. 100 miles riding, roughly 7-8 hours in the saddle, a good 6 hours of that likely to be pretty uncomfortable. To date my longest ride has been 45 miles. That day I maintained a 16.25 mph pace (relatively slow when you consider it was mostly flat, but I did keep it up for 2 hours and 45 minutes). At that rate 100 miles would take me 6 hours and 9 minutes if my math is correct. There is absolutely no way I can keep that pace up for 100 miles, and when you factor in stopping here and there I'm guessing we'll roll in around the 7.5 hour mark. 7AM to about 2:30-3ish.... a veryyy long day!

According to figures I've read online a person can burn anywhere from 5000 to 7500 calories (or more) biking one hundred miles. So that means we have to try to take in calories on the bike as we go. This will be more of a trial and error type deal for us since we've never had to continuously ride for any longer than 3 or 4 hours. My goal is to balance real food with the energy/ fuel products made for endurance athletes. I've been sampling products here and there and have decided on using Hammer's HEED for electrolytes, Perpetuem Solid tablets for later on in the ride, Clif Shot Bloks and PowerBar's Energy Blasts because I like them, Stinger Waffles for right before the ride and possibly to combat hunger at some point. I will also bring a few PowerBar Energy Gels. As for real food I think I'll make a peanut butter sandwich and bring some Fig Newtons. I'll either be well energized and never hungry or sick to my stomach. I'll report later...

We're all anxious to get started tomorrow and hoping the day finds us all energized and feeling our best with no rain in sight. 6 AM check in will come early, so for now I've got to go pack up my stuff, make some pasta salad for dinner and make sure my newly cleaned bike is in peak condition for tomorrow! Wish us luck and if you're anywhere near Verona Beach stop by to support a great cause!

Fit for a Queen

Well I may not be royalty but about two weeks ago I finally had my bike fitted. I always sort of felt that my Trek was a little too small, my legs constantly felt cramped, and I usually thought I was crowding my handle bars. My expert solution to this problem was to pull my seat back as far as it could go to extend my reach... problem solved right? Apparently not the greatest logic as I still felt like a giant on my bike. 

So despite my reservations about changing my position on the bike, I took it to a real professional. The changes he made seemed small enough; lower the handle bars, lengthen the stem, and finally raise the seat and bring it forward. The next day when I got to take it for a ride I was impressed with how much bigger the bike felt. It was  much easier to get into aero position, I felt like the strength in my legs was being utilized more efficiently and I didn't feel so scrunched up through my back. I wish I had gone for a fitting a long time ago.

The bike is taking some getting used to but I think once my muscles have adjusted to the correct riding position I'll be getting a lot more power out of my legs and hopefully avoid any problems with my knees this year. 

A big Thank You to Gene from

for fixing up the bikes for us!

Check him out if you ever need a fit!

http://www.fulltiltfitting.com/

Lessons Learned (fingers crossed)

This is exactly why I purchased SPF 85 spray on Sunscreen today.

This is two showers + additional scrubbing later, you can imagine the mark in it's original state.

Listening to: We Own the Sky/ M83

Soaked up the Sun, Got my 45 on

                                                       Yep the odometer says 45 miles :)

Possibly tomorrow I will post a picture of wicked sunburn # 2 of the year... although I did attempt to put sunblock on today, I couldn't be bothered to reach around to my completely exposed shoulders. As it stands now I have funny burn lines outlining my tank top and hand prints in addition to the cycling shorts tan I acquired last weekend. Wish I had a camera with me to record the excellent example of a chain ring tattoo that I so artfully crafted over the entirety of my right leg when I came to an abrupt stop at an intersection. I've heard they're also called "rookie marks" so I better try a bit harder to avoid touching the right side of my bike. 

It was phenomenally large, even for me : )

It's also worth mentioning that ice cream, while an excellent choice post ride, consuming while still on a bike ride is not so much a good idea. Guess we'll have to look into nutrition for long rides, GU's and Shot Bloks just aren't going to cut it.

Coming to a City Near You!

I've been meaning to write this post for sometime now, haven't had much down time lately but it's too big a deal to keep quiet any longer. Angela, Kris and I are riding our very first Century in a little less than 4 weeks! We've all signed up for the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure. I'm getting pretty excited about it, if a little nervous. As of today my longest ride is only a 35 mile trek. While my overall mileage is slowly growing, I wish my puny muscles and endurance would follow suit. I am at least trying to prepare. If the weather would cooperate it would be a bit more helpful.

However, in the last 12 days I've managed to ride the following:

31 miles of the Syracuse 70.3, 17 miles with hill repeats, a FAST 18 of the Iron Girl, 30 on the Tour de Loop course with a 5 mile detour to Fair Haven Beach, a recovery 12 on the Iron Girl course in the rain, and a 14 miler on our normal roller route on the Loop. A grand total of 127 miles. While I wish that number was higher I should mention that I also did the 5k and a few swim workouts, lifting, and short runs on top of all the biking.

So as usual we signed up for a ride that's a bit over our heads and probably going to leave us walking funny for a good week, but man will it feel good to ride across that finish line! And the best part I think is the cause we're riding for, to raise awareness and funds for the American Diabetes Association. There are so many people that are affected by Diabetes, who deal with it on a daily basis whether it be themselves or a family member, I feel like the least I can do is show up to ride, raise a little money and give a worthy cause my support for the day. Hopefully I can bring in a few more donations and get some long rides in before the 100 miler!

Let the Fur Fly

 6 Legged 5k! 

 This morning we ran our first 5k of the season. After a 31 mile hilly bike ride yesterday we were both dragging a little, lucky for me I had Boomer to literally pull me through. It was a fun race and the proceeds went to a great cause, The Syracuse SPCA. There were a lot of fellow dog lovers all out enjoying themselves with their furry friends. We ran past a girl and her black lab who had decided he had enough of running and did a belly flop into a big mud puddle. I love that animals never take themselves too seriously. I thought this was a great race to start off with, lots of fun distractions, fun people and their canine counterparts and a very laid back atmosphere... my kind of race!

Boomer and I crossed the finish line at around 28 minutes and then he ran the last 100 yards with Angela as she finished shortly after.

I was certain Boomer would misbehave and definitely trip me at least once but he behaved like a perfect gentleman and happily made doggy friends jogging along like an old pro. He made me proud : )

He's been pretty much out cold since we got in the car to drive home and a few minutes ago he was catching a snooze giving his paws a well deserved rest!

Running Buddies!

Listening to: One Foot/ Fun.