WIBA Weekend in Madison, WI (6/24-6/26/11)

Ironman prep or maybe scare was the purpose of this weekend. I was excited to go out to Madison and preview the course of the bike, swim in Lake Manona, as well as run on Sunday also the run course of the IMWI.

Some people told me the bike would freak me out a bit, but actually after doing 87miles on Saturday I really really enjoyed the course. Don't get me wrong the course is no joke but it was lots of fun! At one point I was going downhill at 39 miles per hour, not even pedaling! It was crazy, I've never gone that fast before. There were also hills where I was in the easiest gear in the front and back and only pushing 6-8mph. There was just a lot of up and down. I really enjoyed getting a sense of the course and being able to run after on tired legs. We ran about 30min. The other thing I really tried to practice was food. I ended up getting in about 850-900 calories on the bike, which was awesome for me!!! I also ate a breakfast before and after our swim at 7am that morning. On the bike the nutrition I did was one bottle of accelerade, pb sandwich, gel, power bar, few shot blocks, and some beef jerky (very good by the way).

I noticed I was really getting sick of all the sweet stuff so I'll have to remember to bring salty stuff with me for the IM.

It was a good day of training Saturday, 1hr ow swim, 87mile bike, and half hour run. I was surprised I wasn't super super tired. Maybe the nutrition payed off.

The next day was a run, ended up doing 16.6 miles about 2:35min with some stops. I was happy with how I felt during the run, I did get a bit hot, but given the load the day before I was surprised at how good I left. I think the training is coming around!

Best part at the BBQ after the Saturday workout there was a margarita maker, see pic above, priceless!

Liberty Half 6/12/11

I was pretty pumped and pretty nervous for this race. Nervous because I felt like this was sort of my first half, since I hadn't done one since 2009 in Chisago. I did feel very prepared and a lot more trained for this one though.

I had all my fuel ready to go, the hope was to consume it all on the bike and maybe a gel or so on the run. That did not happen even though I was very conscious of what I had to do...I didn't learn from my mistake from Chisago. I was thinking if I did a bottle of propetum and gel, 370 calories, 2 gels 200 calories, and three shot blocks 100 calories, that would be enough 670 calories! Well I was short, 1/4 of the nutrition bottle, one gel and three shot blocks. I felt like I was doing so well with the food but I guess not so much. I just have such a hard time eating while exerting myself on the bike and run I really have to slow down and learn to eat, especially for the Ironman. Practice, practice!

Swim went ok, well actually it went really bad. I got way too excited and nervous at the beginning and it took me a good mile or so to get into a rhythm. And by then I was so tired trying got catch my breath I was just really out of it. The water was choppy and I had the hardest time getting a breathing rate which was slow and relaxed for some reason. I knew my swim was going to be slow and it was...

On the bike I was super negative. I think think it was because I felt like my swim sucked and I was not passing anyone and also kept getting passed by wave 3, men 45-49. I tried to just stay positive and ride. I'd say I did that for the majority of the ride, except some of those negative thoughts that came in and out of my head through out the 56mile ride.

When I came into T2 and saw Hilary Patzer and was surprised I wasn't super far behind..So that was encouraging! I had to do the the bathroom right away on the run, and I've never had that feeling. So since there was a lot of miles ahead I decided to squat it out in the woods. The run started out very well for me, I was using my new Brooks Green Silence shoes with yanks. I was feeling pretty strong until about mile 8, and then I sort of crashed. I got pretty bad hot spots on the bottom of my feet near the toes, not sure if that's because the shoe has no support and I need to get used to them or what. I also was just not feeling very strong. That last mile in was about a 10min mile, so I really crashed hard.

I came in 4th place, 6 second behind 3rd place. Overall it's tough to compare this race because I haven't done it before and Chisago is a shorter and faster course.

Times:
39:22 1:52 (swim) 2:42:59 20.6 (bike) 1:43:50 (run) 7:56 TOTAL 5:08:51

Key Takeaway: Need to eat more...and relax on the swim. Oh and not be so negative when I bike.

First Tri of the Season Race Report (New Bri Tri Sprint)

Race: 6/4/2011
The weather had been nice the past week, and I was happy I was able to get out and do an ow swim one time before this race. At least when I woke up this morning the temp was about 57, much better than two weeks before, 43 and raining.

I had all my stuff ready and was out the door to pick up Greta Simpson. We got a little lost going to the race but did get to the race in time to get our numbers and also warm up. Warm up was nothing out of the ordinary. It always takes me a second to figure out the bike in, run out, and so on, so I really had to make sure I knew where my bike was. I think not finding my bike or not being able to find my spot for the run is one of my biggest fears...

The swim started out ok. For some reason all I remember thinking is, that the swim was taking forever and I couldn't wait to get out of the water. The water temp was actually not bad at all. Got out of the water alright, and got right to my stuff and on to the bike. On the way out of T1 I ran right by Hilary Patzer, and I wasn't sure at this point where Greta was, but I did know she was a faster swimmer then I was. I figured she was most likely already on the bike.

I really wanted to go out strong on the bike and I did, but Hilary was right behind me the whole time. I have never had such a rally with a fellow races before. We were both head to head the whole bike. I could not pull away from her and she was not able to drop me...I never did see Greta so I figured she was really far ahead or she had an issue in the water due to her shoulder issue.

Out of T2 Patzer and I pretty much came out together, and she was less than 100 yards ahead of me on the run. I knew she had a pretty strong run so I knew I would need to push it hard. I did just that and managed to pass her about a mile into the run. I saw and passed Greta also who later I found out had to walk due to not getting enough food during the bike. At the turn around I was still ahead of Patzer but I knew she must have been right behind me. With about 2min to go in the race I started to hear a heavy breath, and before I knew it Patzer ran past me so fast that I didn't even know what had happend. She ended up beating me by 7 seconds. I was totally caught off guard and didn't really have a chance to react.

I ended up in second place behind her, but we later found another girl from the non elite wave beat both of us, so I finished third overall. Such a close race though between Patzer and I, super fun, and I think we really pushed each other.

1/2 mile swim 15:14 1:44 per 100 PR for me14 mile bike 22.7mph 37:043 mile run 20:55 6:59 pace Total 1:14.52 Third Place overall.

Key Takeaway: Always be alert during the run, you never know who will come out and pass you last minute =) Props to Patzer though, she's super strong!!

Next up: Liberty Half!