The Spirit of Hope 5K Race Report

I've been working hard on my speed and I had high hopes for this 5K.  But come race day my legs were just heavy.  I ran a 22:56 and my goal was 22:30.  I had to work really hard to keep my cadence high.  I was disappointed but I did run faster than last year.  Now it's time to move on to the next race, the CASA 5K this weekend in Center, TX!

Don’t Panic….it’s just the niggles

Well, I have a big year planned for next year, not to mention I want to break my half-marathon PR in Nov.  For the past couple of weeks I have been focusing on the run and I’ve only gotten in 2 bike rides.  I had a great speed workout at the track last week and a good steady 7 mile run, but now my left knee is hurting.  It is also bothering me mentally.  But I have to remember that I’m stressing my body it’s normal to have these little aches and pains which I like to refer to as a “niggle.”  I closely monitor my niggles and take a day off and rest if needed.  However, I can’t help but feel a little panicked when I develop a new niggle!

Gulp….I Took the Plunge

After contemplating over this for over a month I finally took the plunge and signed up for Ironman Texas 2015!  When I signed up for IMTX 2014 I got a sick, nervous feeling afterwards but I wasn’t expecting this to happen this year.  But again I immediately broke out into a cold sweat and felt nauseated after I immediately received the confirmation email.  Ha, and that’s only registration! 

 

 

I’m very excited and I’m grateful for my wonderful husband.  When we were discussing my possible participation in IMTX 2015 I told him, “But I want your support” and he replied, “you know you’ve always got it.”  What more could girl ask for?!

Running Refocus

Now that my official triathlon season is completed I’m looking forward to refocusing my efforts on my first love, RUNNING!  Since I’ve traditionally been a strong runner I have been focusing on swimming and cycling. The hard work has paid off because I’ve gotten stronger and faster in both areas; however, my running has stalled out.  It’s not that I haven’t been working hard and making gains, the improvement just hasn’t been as pronounced as my swimming and cycling gains.  Mentally running has not been my main focus.  Since I completed Ironman Texas in May I know my engine is stronger but I’ve just got to get it fine-tuned and revved up.  Overall, I feel that I’m strong and I can recover faster.  I’m hoping to break my half-marathon PR of 1:46:22 that I ran in 2013 at the Cowtown Half-Marathon.  Hey, it doesn’t hurt to work hard and dream big!

Rose City Triathlon Race Report

This was my last triathlon for the 2014 season and I had been working hard to get faster (especially on the run) so I had really been anticipating this race.  I have also been very busy at work and I was looking forward to going out of town with my friend, Andrea.  We are total opposites, I have an over organized Type A personality and she is a laid back Type B, it works out great! 

I took off work early Friday and had lunch with my husband, mother, grandmother, and Andrea at my aunt’s sandwich shop.  The trip was already starting off great!  Afterwards, Andrea and I drove to Tyler and stopped at Racket and Jog before chinking into the Sleep Inn.  The Sleep Inn staff was so nice and they had hot cookies at the front desk (always a plus for hungry triathletes)!  In previous years packet pick-up was at the hotel but this year it was at the race location in Whitehouse.  Since it was a new venue I was glad that we drove out that afternoon.  Packet pick-up was organized and efficient but it was raining and a little on the chilly side.  We got a nice ladies tech shirt, which was better than previous years where we all got a men’s size shirt.  I’m very petite and a men’s size small hung to my knees.  Next, we drove back to Tyler and ate at Jason’s Deli in honor of our Coach, Becky McMorries.  We made a quick stop at the grocery store before heading back to the hotel.

Race Day

I woke up at 5:00 am and turned on the coffee pot.  Then I got ready and we headed down to the car at 5:30 am.  Because our bikes were in our hotel room we had to make 2 trips.  Then we headed out to the lake.  The parking was very organized but once we got out of the car I realized they had parked me where someone had burned garbage and there was broken glass everywhere.  We very carefully un-racked the bikes, aired up our tires, and headed to transition.  Sitting up in transition was uneventful but as race time neared I could tell that it was getting colder.  I think it was around 62 degrees and for the first time ever I couldn’t wait to get in the water.  The water temperature was a warm 82 degrees and my age group was the last to start.

Swim: 16:31(2:32/M)

I wasn’t nervous at all.  I was just ready to get started.  Overall, my swim was good.  The wind was blowing pretty hard and I got off course a few times but the buoys were close together and easy to sight.  Others complained about the conditions but it was nothing compared to the Half Ironman in Galveston last April.  I finished the swim strong and ran to transition.  I’m finding that I’m not really that disoriented after the swim anymore.  I’m calm and focused on transition.

T1: 1:04

Bike:  41:31 (17.3mph)

I have made a lot of gains on the bike this year so I was looking forward to going fast!  The course was hilly but definitely faster than the old course.  I caught several people on the bike and I felt great!

T2: :41

Run: 25:37 (8:16) 

Ok, this is where I was looking to improve from my other races this year.   I felt great coming out of T2 but we had to run toward the lake and the wind had really picked up.  The course was OK but we kept having to run sown these cul-de-sacs which was really annoying.  I felt like I could really stretch out and run the last mile.

Overall, I placed 4^th in my age group, which is an improvement from my 5^th place finish last year.  With more hard work I plan to be on the podium next year.  Our NET team had a lot of racers and I enjoyed visiting with everyone.  Overall, it was a wonderful weekend.

 

Heartbroken: My tri bike broke

My beloved Javelin Arcole broke on Labor Day, I was heartbroken.  The piece that holds on the front derailleur broke off.  It was welded onto the aluminum frame.  After numerous calls to the manufacturer and bike shops I finally found someone in my small hometown to fix it.  He built a whole new bracket and bolted it to the frame.  I could not be happier, it’s is stronger and better than ever.  My father owns a convenient store in our small town and we know just about everyone.  I felt good knowing that I could trust the welder with my bike.  That’s one of the things that I love about living in a small town.  We are ready for our last tri of the season this weekend.  Rose City Triathlon here we come!

Broken

 

Fixed with new bracket

 

 

 

Iron Legs to Speed Legs

I had some speed workouts during my IM training but the majority was long slow distance (LSD).  I have to admit that it has taken some time to get my speed back and I’m not quite where I want to be.  I’ve completed to sprint tri’s since IMTX and the run was a complete shock to my system. But my runs have gradually gotten faster and I’ve been working hard.  My last tri for the season is Rose City Triathlon on Sept. 13 in Tyler, TX.  I can’t wait to test out my speed legs!

Itching for 2nd Ironman

I completed IMTX on May 17, 2014.  It was a miserable day but I LOVED it!  I still can’t believe that I’m an Ironman and I thing about it daily.  During training (Feb.) I posted the following:  Letter to IMTX. Well, it’s still true.  While I was happy to part ways Ironman is still on my mind.  May be I put a lot of pressure on myself during training, I’ve never not finished something.  Now that I know what it’s all about I want to do better, I’m ready to have that drive and focus again.  Sure, I do have a goal now to get faster on sprint tri’s and I have a half-marathon coming up but it’s not Ironman.  I struck a compromise with my husband that I would do an Ironman every other year and so far he’s holding firm.  But I haven’t given up yet.  (I have already reserved hotel rooms for my entire family for IMTX May 2015!)