GO! Saint Louis 1/2 Marathon

This would be my second real half marathon race. And the first of which I have actually trained for. My first half was the Joker's Wild put on by Ultramax in 2007. It was a miserable 2 laps of Creve Coeur Park on a 100 degree day in July. I had never run that far in my life. It was hot. There were not enough water stops. I hit a wall at 11 miles. But all I had to do was finish to get points toward the Ultramax Championship Series (of which I ended up winning!).

So back to this year's race. I bit the bullet in January or so and registered. Seeing as how I had been running throughout the winter, I figured why not. Training was going well. Running on a treadmill was not the most fun I've ever had but I got through it. Then came spring in St. Louis. Maybe it's just me but it seemed like we skipped it. I was able to go from running indoors every day to running outside every day in little more than a tee-shirt and shorts at times. I was running higher mileage weeks than I have ever done (40 miles) and training on hills. Now I'm sure it was a culmination of things including overuse... but I acquired a pain in the ass. And no, I'm not talking about Jason. Nope. I'm talking the kind of pain that made me fear my run every afternoon. The kind that was so painful I felt as if I was only running with my right leg and dragging my left behind me. Hills were soon out. Running outside quickly followed. I resorted to running on the treadmill the last week or so before the race. I just couldn't bear the pain. And it wasn't just when I was running. It was longer car rides and sitting in chairs. I prayed to just get me through the race.

Race day came. Woke up early and had a bite to eat. Left the house without the customary race morning poop. That worried me a little bit. That's part of the morning in all my important races. Putting it out of my mind, I arrived downtown. There was a single port-o-potty right by the parking lot so I figured I'd use it since once I got to the start line, there would probably be a bazillion people. It was super nice not to have to wait in line. And I finally pooped. That put my nerves a little more at ease.

Now seeing as how this is only my second half I took to heart the words of advice from those who had raced before. This was mostly from my fellow dietitians at work who had run before. They reported that it was possible that I would not cross the line for near 10 minutes after the gun went off. I am not afraid to admit that this fact scared me. What?! There are so many people that I might not start for 10 minutes... you have got to be kidding me. Well, once I got there, I came to the conclusion that they were wrong or I was expecting to run much faster than they anticipated I would. My goal was a 1:35 (ambitious since my first was 1:42) so I lined up with the 3:10 marathon group. And to my surprise, my friend Kevin was racing the marathon and that was his goal. So I got to run some of my race with someone I know! Neat.

After the gun went off, I'm pretty sure I crossed the line within 30 seconds or so. There were not all that many people ahead of me considering there were like 20,000 people racing. Scary stuff. So I ran with the 3:10 marathon pace group for a while. I was actually feeling kinda sluggish from the get go. I felt heavy for lack of a better description. But I was running okay. Stayed with the group until the hill near 6.5 miles. It killed me. I tried to hold some semblance of a pace but could not. And I did not want to anger my butt. So the pace group left me. Although I was able to keep them within 15-30 seconds or so until they turned off on the marathon course. Miles 8-11 had been relatively uneventful. But the last 2 miles felt pretty horrible. I was struggling. And it had gotten warmer than most had expected. The last 2 miles are not easy. I don't care what anyone says. I wanted to kill the woman standing on an overpass yelling at me to "Keep moving, don't walk, you're almost done." Excuse me? Listen here lady, I'm still holding 7:30 pace. I'm still RUNNING. And you are just standing there. Don't I look like I'm running? Because I sure felt like it!

Anyways... I finished in 1:36:38. I was a little bit off my goal but I was pleased. I guess I could run the NYC Marathon if I wanted to now... ha. I only had to run 1:37 or better to qualify with a half but would have to run a 3:23 to qualify with a marathon. I don't think I'll be pulling out a 3:23 marathon any time soon so I think I'll pass.

St. Patty's Day Run

Wow... I had only done this race once before but this year it was BIG. So big that it was by far the largest road race I have entered to date. I didn't know where to start. My bib was yellow meaning that I was supposed to start down past Clark St. which was forever and a day away from the start line. I mean really, there were people with jogging strollers ahead of me. Jason insisted that I just move up and start closer. So I timidly placed myself about 25 yards from the start line and hoped I didn't get in trouble.

Once the race started, I quickly realized that, yes, I should have moved up even closer. There were still people with jogging strollers and walkers in my way. I actually ended up running on the sidewalk for the first half mile opting to dodge mailboxes and newspaper stands instead of humans. I must have been pretty excited because I came through the first mile in 6:05. Yeah. My mile PR (as an adult) was 6:13 last year. So I was thinking, oops, that was a little fast.

Came through the finish line in 34:18! Fastest race to date....

Castlewood Cup

Long story short... I felt great and raced well. I had been working the hills during the winter quite a bit and dropped about 10 minutes off my Pere Marquette time from the previous year. So I headed into the Castlewood Cup with a pretty nice base. I settled in with a woman from Ghisallo who was running at a decent clip. Towards the 5 mile mark, we came up on about 4 or so girls running together. She tucked in behind them and I was left with a choice... stay or go? What the hell, I went. And nobody followed. I raced the last 4.5 miles by myself and ended up coming in 2nd. Had I known that the girl in front of me was only a little over a minute ahead... ah, oh well. I was pleased with my effort. Especially because the course was a mess this year. I think everyone agreed that the ruts left by the mountain bikes on the upper parts of the course were really tough on the ankles. And the lower half of the race was still a wet, sloppy mess from recent rains. Needless to say, my shoes didn't make it out alive. I think that means I get to buy some new ones!!

Running Fool

I am a terrible blogger. Inconsistent at best. But I'm trying. So an update on 2010 so far... The first half of the year was consumed by running. And pretty much only running. Jason and I got a little crazy and signed up for both the Frostbite Series and Snowball Series (long of course). All of this was a ploy to keep us running throughout the winter. Jason has seemingly never had a real problem with this besides the fact that he can't feel his hands 5 seconds after he steps out the door.

Me on the other hand, well, I am pretty much terrified of cold weather. I train and race in the temperate months only. For the past 10 years or so, it is safe to say that I stop training and racing in late November or early December and I don't come out of hibernation until April. This usually does not bode well for early spring races. But this year... I got crazy. Signing up for long distance races lit a fire under my a@% ! Never one for running on a treadmill, I was religious. I headed to the hospital gym nearly ever day after work and put in the needed miles. Let me just preface that impressiveness with the fact that I DON'T DO TREADMILLS... EVER. Until this winter that is. And not only did I run on a treadmill but I actually went outside on the weekends (yeah, I wasn't going to drive to work to run on the treadmill). I was that girl running down the road in 4 long sleeve shirts and a windbreaker, often 2 pairs of pants, 2 pairs of gloves, a hat/headband, and the trusted Oakley shades (more for wind protection mind you). Jason gave me a hard time about wearing so much clothing but I figure if it got me out the door and was working for me then so what...

Anyways, the Frostbite and Snowball Series came and went and I did pretty good... especially for someone who has NEVER run all winter before.

Summer is HERE!

It has been a sweltering 90+ degrees for nearly a week now so I think it is safe to say that summer has arrived. Normally I LOVE the heat of summer. I live for it. I constantly complain about how cold I am whether it be the winter, spring, or summer. I just get cold easily. Working outside at pools all summer for years upon end really built up an immunity to the heat that affects so many others. Which is why I have always loved to race in the heat of the summer. It's not that I race better but I have always been less affected by that heat than my rivals. However, I don't think this is the case anymore. The daily grind of my inside job has likely put an end to my immunity to racing in the heat.

I was on the fence too long regarding registering for the summer version of the Rec Plex Triathlon. I finally bit the bullet a week prior to the race knowing full well that I would be one of the last to start this year. Once Fleet Fleet posted the swim start times and the weatherfolk were predicting a 95 degree weekend, I knew I was in trouble. The only help was that the organizers of the race moved the start time up a half hour from the normal 6:30 start to 6:00. As racer 432, I was set to start at 7:47. This is actually still earlier than most other tris start so I thought I had a chance... I did not.

The swim was slower than I would have wanted but I had a feeling it would be as I was waging battle with some lane hogs who weren't incredibly gifted in the water. Transition was likely no slower or faster than normal. The bike was actually better than I've felt in a while. It was by no means my fastest on this very flat course but it was the fastest bike split I've had in the past 2 years. So I was happy with that. Rolling into transition I thought I was ready for a good run. Ha. The heat had other plans. I started off at a blistering 8:00 mile pace expecting to drop that pace substantially as I ticked off the miles. Nope. It just wasn't in the cards this time. With the heat index that I swear had to be approaching 100 or more, I just settled for finishing the race standing up. I did. I didn't walk. I didn't quit. I just finished. Not the results I expected but not utterly disappointing either. I was 10th OA and 4th in my Age Group.

The most important part of the day was that my family was there. I had talked my mom and brother into driving my dad to the race. My dad took me to my first triathlon ever (Lake Saint Louis 2001) and hasn't seen me race since. So with the race falling on Father's Day this year I thought it would be nice to have my dad there watching me do what I love. Something he helped get me into in the first place. Even though it was hot, I think everyone had a good day. We all went out for lunch afterwards and likely headed home to take a nap by midday.

My first race of the year was OctoMax out at Innsbrook this year. I really wasn't ready for it but Jason had won a free entry to QuarterMax so I thought I might as well do it if I was going to be out there anyways. The swim was fine (I chose not to wear a wetsuit although most did). The bike was absolutely atrocious. I have never been strong on the hills of any bike leg and it showed. The run was a challenge as I had my left calf cramp up and left me walking a couple times. Got the cramp worked out and continued running. Not my finest hour but I somehow managed to win my Age Group nonetheless which included a bottle of Les Bourgeouis' cheapest, dry, white wine!

I would love to say that these races have served the purpose of my typical early competitions and lit a fire under my ass but alas they have not. I am content with enjoying one more year without the competitiveness I have shown in past years. With getting married, working to finish my Master's degree, remodeling the condo, selling the condo, looking for a house, and who knows what else... I will likely continue to train as I am able and just sit back and enjoy another triathlon season.

Sick of Being Sick

Not that my training regime was really headed anywhere fast to begin with this spring, but coming down with something (definitely more than a cold) really took every once of desire and strength I had to train out of me.

I started getting sick last Saturday. And I'm still sick today. First it was just a sore throat. Then it got so bad that I winced every time I had to swallow. Wow did my throat hurt. Bad. And no drug store remedy was doing much to relieve me of my pain. Next, I pretty much lost my voice. Then I entered this realm of congestion vs. constantly draining. This usually only occurred at night seemingly just to rob me of the sleep my body so badly needed.

All of this was really convenient as my job as a dietitian dictates that I speak with patients on a daily basis. Needless to say, I didn't see any patients the last week unless I absolutely had to. And if only they knew why I didn't see them, I'm sure they'd be very very glad that I didn't drop by to leave my germs.

So I imagine that I am finally on the upswing of this thing. However, I still sound like a chain-smoking 60 year old, my nose will not stop forcing a pleasant green phlegm out, and I'm still very tire.

I did manage to ride the trainer for a whopping 30 minutes yesterday. Maybe I'll run today. Who knows... Happy training!

I Hate To Be Cold

Winter is the most miserable time of year for me. Every year I tell myself that I'm going to keep running, swim if I have access to a pool, and ride the trainer consistently. Well I successfully ran through December with my last long run of 10 miles successfully kept at 7:30 pace. After that, I was pretty much done for. As for swimming, well I certainly had access to a pool (heck, I had access to an entire civic center) and only managed to use the faciliy one time... and no, that one time did not involve use of the pool. Damn. Indoor trainer usage was minimal. I think I had the bike on the trainer all winter so far and managed to get on the darn thing all of 3 times. I did get a "solid" 30 minute ride in on one occasion. Ha. I was not built for cold weather. I was not built for windy days. I was not built for sleet, snow, or ice whatsoever. I was designed for those 90 degree days when most people can't stand in the sun without sweating profusely much less compete successfully in a sporting event. These are the days I long for. The days when the heat makes your car so hot you burn your legs on the seats, the days when even the pools start to feel like bath water, the days when your sno-cone melts before you can even get the first spoonful of 1/2 watermelon, 1/2 wedding cake icy goodness to your mouth, the days when you can run in nothing but a pair of shorts and a sports bra... ah, how I long for some nice hot days.

2008 Race Schedule (tentative)

3/15/08 St. Pats 5 Mile
4/19/08 MaxTrax Duathlon
5/4/08 Race for Sight
6/15/08 Rec Plex Triathlon
6/22/08 Kirkwood Webster Connection Run 5K
7/5/08 Jokers Wild 1/2 Marathon
7/8 or 7/13 South County YMCA Triathlon
7/13/08 Ballwin Triathlon
7/20/08 Show-Me State Games Triathlon
7/20/08 Missouri State Time Trial Championships
8/2/08 QuarterMax
8/2/08 Steelhead 70.3
8/?/08 Wood River Triathlon
8/?/08 Babler Beast Triathlon
8/17/08 Alligator Creek Triathlon
8/30/08 Lake Saint Louis Triathlon
9/1/08 JCC Labor Day 5k
9/14/08 NEMO Triathlon
10/11/08 Rec Plex Fall Triathlon
10/18/08 Halfmax – USAT Long Course National Championship (Las Vegas, NV)
10/18/08 Pumpkinman – USAT Club National Championship (Las Vegas, NV)
11/27/08 Kirkwood/Webster Turkey Day Run 5k

No Excuse

I have absolutely no excuse for not posting race reports this season. I just didn't want to do it. I had a bad year and didn't really feel like sharing much of it.

A lot has gone on since the Spring though... I graduated from Mizzou for the second time, started a second summer job, was recruited by BJCs Parkland Health Center in Farmington to be their clinical dietitian, quit the second summer job, continued working two jobs for the month of June (one was in Farmington, the other in Columbia about 3 hours away), finally resigned from my job in Columbia, ended a long-term relationship, completed my first and second 1/2 Ironmans, qualified for Duathlon Worlds, almost killed a $3000 tri bike, found a pretty amazing guy despite not looking, and just kept enjoying only being an hour away from St. Louis.

I'll have a tentative 2008 race calendar out soon...

2007 Race Schedule

4/21/07 - MaxTrax Duathlon
5/6/07 - Race for Sight
6/17/07 - Rec Plex Triathlon
6/23/07 – QuarterMax
6/24/07 - Octomax
6/30/07 - USAT Age Group National Championship
7/9/07 – South County YMCA Triathlon
7/14/07 - Tour de Donut
7/15/07 – Ballwin Triathlon
7/21/07 - Show-Me State Games Triathlon
7/22/07 – Kirkwood Triathlon (volunteer)
7/22/07 - Missouri State Time Trial Championships
7/28/07 – Prairie Duster Duathlon (Worlds Qualifier)
8/4/07 – Steelhead 70.3 (extremely tentative)
8/12/07 – Wood River Triathlon
8/13/07 – Babler Beast Triathlon
8/19/07 - Alligator Creek Triathlon
8/26/07 – Jackson Country Triathlon
9/2/07 - Lake Saint Louis Triathlon
9/3/07 – JCC Labor Day 5k
9/9/07 - NEMO Triathlon
9/15/07 – Halfmax – USAT Long Course National Championship
9/16/07 – Octomax – USAT Club National Championship
9/30/07 - USAT National Long Course Duathlon Championship--Powerman Ohio
10/7/07 - Rec Plex Fall Triathlon
10/21/07 – World Long Course Duathlon Championship – Richmond, VA
11/22/07 - Kirkwood/Webster Turkey Day Run 5k
12/31/07 – First Night 5k

The Look

I needed some inspiration that I can keep on hand... so here it is. I think that watching "American Flyers" this evening might be the final touch.

Driveway Rash

This would be "road rash's" cousin... I suppose I will never learn "not to run in the house" or out of it for that matter. I have always had this strange urgency to run up my driveway to my car or run down the driveway to my house. I cannot walk. This driveway does not allow the word "walk" in its vocabulary.

So I found myself heading out to the car to get something out of the trunk. I walked out the back door. I walked down the stairs from the deck. But once I hit solid ground... I RAN... but not for long. The driveway that had been my running buddy for over 2 decades turned on me...

I have run up that driveway 1000s of times in my life and have never fallen, not even once. Today everything changed. The driveway reached up and grabbed my foot... I began to fall... slow motion style... to the ground. I have always chuckled to myself when I hear "old people" recount falling and how they "just don't roll like they used to." Well, I think I've become an old person because I sure as hell didn't roll. I hit my driveway like a ton of bricks. First came the hands... I felt one hit followed by a bolt of pain, the second hit moments later with keys in hand and I knew that one was gonna leave a mark. Next came the knee... oh, god, not the knee that has been plagued with pain and stiffness for the past few months... oh, yes, that knee. I could feel the sting of a nice ripe strawberry (I hoped for the best) through my pants. Why didn't I roll? I'm only 24. I'm too young for this kind of fall... the kind of fall that causes bones to break, and egos to bruise...

But alas, I was on a mission... I needed that bag (of miscellaneous items) from my car. And by god, I was going to get it. So I walked it (hobbled) off and got the bag. Once inside, I could tell that my limbs were going to retaliate against me. My hands began to sting uncontrollably. My knee was already stiffening up and becoming glued to my pants.

Headed to the bathroom my mother could only bow her head in disbelief as she scavenged for medical supplies as if I were 4 years old and just fell on the playground. I knew it was coming... "When are you going to learn how to walk?"... I ignored her. With hydrogen peroxide staring me in the eyes, I defiantly chose to clean my wounds with tap water. I'll rely on my own immune system to take care of these little puppies. I had had enough pain for one night. So, the irrigation process was complete but I still had to take care of the debridement process... carefully trimming those poor pieces of skin that had been torn from my hands and knee. Finally, at long last Bandaids were applied so that I didn't bleed all over the house.

I have this nagging feeling that I'm not as young as I used to be... and tomorrow is going to hurt a lot more than when I was 4 years old...

Kirkwood Webster Turkey Day Run - November 23, 2006

Sucked... my knee really hurt. I had it wrapped up in everything but the kitchen sink. Mile 1 - 6:30, Mile 2 - pain, somewhere in between 2 and 3... I stopped... yeah, I actually stopped running because my knee hurt so badly...

And then I saw Sparkle (yes, that is actually someones name) and vowed that my knee didn't hurt badly enough for her to beat me...

So I sucked it up and ran to the finish... along the way I saw out of the corner of my eye a familiar figure with sunglasses on running the other direction on the side... hmmm... and then the finish line swallowed me up and spit me out... I was not happy. Tony was there. I think he ran okay. I just kept walking... all the way back to the car...

Rockbridge Revenge 10k - October 22, 2006

Coming soon...

Land Rover Pumpkinman, Las Vegas - October 15, 2006

Coming soon...

Rec Plex Triathlon - October 1, 2006

This was by far the best race that I had during the entire 2006 season. My swim wasn't fast by any means but I certainly wasn't tired out by it either, although, truth be told I never am. I started early this race which I usually hate doing since its so cold this time of year but it was sooo much warmer this year. I'm talking shorts and tee shirt weather... yay! But the morning was still slightly cold. Once out of the pool, I definitely felt the chill but it was sunny which I knew would make my time on the bike so much nicer... I had my fastest bike split of the entire year... I felt good and it really showed. I almost averaged 21mph. That was my goal but I always forget that the end is slightly more technical than the rest of the ride and that usually brings averages down a bit....

now for the best part of the entire day! The run? Yeah, the run... I felt amazing. I had my legs. I mean really had them. They not only could move but they could move fast. I started out really quick and tucked in between a guy from St. Louis Triathlon Club which was the best move of the day. The guy was holding a pace that was comfortable but quick and one I knew that I would not be able to hold on my own. I also took a look at his race number and noticed that he had started a couple minutes ahead of me but in reality I was actually a couple of minutes ahead of him if I could stay with him... ah, reminded me of "American Flyer" when David Sommers and the "Cannibal" were racing in Hell of the West, ya know. Anyhow, We ran together the entire run leg although there was never any communication or formal acknowledgement that we were doing this. He led during the flats. I pulled him up the hill in the subdivision parts. He promptly passed me and took the lead again once we were out of the hills... and continued to sprint ahead of me at the finish... I didn't care in the least bit... I was already on cloud nine before I even saw the time clock... and boy, when I saw that clock I thought I was seeing things. That clock had to be wrong... there is no way that I could have finished a full 5 minutes faster than in the spring on the EXACT same course. When the results were posted... it was true. And to top that off, those 5 minutes actually came from the run. I had averaged nearly a full minute faster per mile than the spring version of the race. I had run 6:56 pace for 5 miles!

And I finished 3rd... that's right no longer the 4th place loser that I had come to know so well this season. I got 3rd, a plaque, and $50... a check for 50 bucks too, not a gift certificate... AWESOME!!

NEMO Triathlon - September 10, 2006

Ah, NEMO... and I'm just now posting a race review in... February. I am terrible. I can't find the splits for the race anymore as they are no longer posted online. But I'll do my best to recount the experience...

Last year I got 6th OA, 1st AG... and cursed at the hills during the entire run. I vowed that 2006 would be different. It was... I got 5th OA, 1st AG.

The swim was as cold as always. My swim time was 20:17 compared to 20:00 last year. At least I can swim consistently when I only actually get in the pool about 4 times a year. Definitely something I need to work on...

Out of transition and onto the bike... I had a pretty quick bike last year but was still hoping to improve upon my time since 2006 has seen my fastest bike times ever... 53:06 out on the bike this year compared to 53:14... a whopping 8 seconds faster than last year... not quite the improvement I was expecting but at leat its not slower than the previous year...

on to the run... my nemesis... those hills that can break my spirit in half... the hills that saw me in 2nd place last year at the start and that brought me to my knees in a 6th place finish as women just kept passing me mile after dreaded mile. My run split was 37:38 this year compared to 39: 21 last year. I will most certainly take that. The hills and I came to terms with each other. I certainly did not conquer them but at least they did not conquer me...

JCC Labor Day Run

Hilly 5K... I really had no idea that Creve Coeur had those hills. Olive seems so flat but jet up on Old Olive a little and you'll find some decent rollers.

Anyways, I wasn't really feeling this 5K much at all and I'd had a rough week prior to it. But I paid for it, so I figured I'd show up.

I ran a 21:25 which comes out to 6:55 per mile. I was impressed. I haven't run that fast since my sophomore year in high school. Wow. And it was really hilly too so I've really gained some confidence in my running ability. Whether that will transfer over to the triathlon runs has yet to be determined...

I guess I'll find out next weekend up at NEMO where the run course is a real bitch...

Lake Saint Louis - Short Course

Coming soon...

Alligator Creek Triathlon

Pretty good race if I may say so myself... Tony and I woke up pretty early and made the drive from Columbia to O'Fallon. I set my alarm for PM instead of AM so I woke up a little late but only by 8 minutes. Somehow I woke up on my own.

After a little over an hour of driving we got to O'Fallon. The race site was easy to find and down came the bikes as we did the routine checkover. Okay, basically I just wanted to put air in my tires and make sure that it rolled. Transition was decent. The bike out was going to be downhill so that was nice. The only bad thing was that the dismount lines were pretty far away from the racks on both ends. Neither Tony nor I had ever done this race before so we were racing blind in terms of the course. Here goes nothing....

I have the worst luck with swims these days. I actually felt really good in the water... which is probably why I caught the guy in front of me (15 second intervals mind you) by the time I did the first 25. On the way to the 50 yard mark, I tapped his feet a couple of times but to no avail. And he proceeded to swim down the middle of the lane. Well since it was a serpentine swim, I couldn't just pass him as I might take out someone swimming in the other direction. At one of the walls, we touched at the same time and I pushed off first only to to discover that the idiot had pushed off on top of me... are you kidding? So this continued pretty much up until the 200 yard mark when I finally passed him and took off...

Running to transition was almost brutal as we climbed a mountain of stairs and then still had some running uphill to do after that. Wasn't the quickest transition but it was okay. Once on the bike, I powered up the first set of hills before settling down into a more relaxed rhythm on much flatter roads. Upon looking down to see what my average pace was, I noticed that I was going 0 mph. Thinking to myself, the computer must just be wet, it'll kick in soon... wrong. I had left my magnet on my training wheels back in Columbia. Damn. I have never ridden a race without my computer. The only thing I had was the clock on the computer which had my accurate biking time. Some quick math told me that I'd have to do the 18 mile course in about 54 minutes to average 20 mph. I didn't have any problems out on the bike, and actually felt better than I have in a very long time. It might have had something to do with the fact that I returned to racing with my old Spinergy Rev-Xs but at least the rims are solid and I'm not afraid to brake with them. Rolled into transition at 54 minutes and some change.

Transition to the run was really slow. I need to get some new shoes as the heels of my current shoes are broken down really badly and aren't as easy to slip on as they used to be. Got a little disoriented leaving transition and had to ask people which way to go but nothing too bad. Once out on the run, I was really worried because everyone said that the hills were horrible. Great... my weakness. I have been trying to avoid the MKT trail lately and do some hillwork throughout the week and I think that it paid off. The course was definitely the second hilliest of my season but I didn't feel very bad. I kept a pretty consistent pace and didn't fall apart. I averaged 7:49 which doesn't seem all that fast but considering the hills, I'll take it. Especially with averaging something like 11:00 minute miles at Quartermax.

I finished with a time of 1:26:17. Good enough for 4th (or should I say just shy of placing... bah humbug). So this would be my second time this season that I've missed the podium by a hair. Some cyclist named Sara Nelson came out of nowhere and beat me by 29 seconds. Hmmm... the regulars aka Jennifer Meyer and Helen Alexander-Kratz beat me but I was expecting that.

Great race... I liked the course enough to make a return trip next year. Hopefully I'll have a better result as well...

Show Me State Games Tri

"Not too shabby..." would be my summary for today's race. There were definitely more participants than last year which is pretty nice to see. I won last year and I wanted to win again this year.

The swim started out pretty messy. I got battered and beaten by men twice my size which wasn't very fun. I know that my time was slow although I didn't even look at my watch to see. I would later learn that I had beaten the important people out of the water (Kim M. and Jen R.).

But the reason that I know I beat them out of the water is because they proceeded to pass me on the bike. Jen Reisdorf caught me just before the flat corn fields and I should have repassed her as I'm very strong on the flats and that's about all that I can use to my advantage these days. I tucked (legally of course) in behind Jen and pretty much just figured that I could follow her in on the bike and then take her on the run. Wrong. Kim Mouser decided that she would pass us both on the hills (I have got to work on those big time...). Right before the rolling hills on U, Mouser dropped her chain for about 5 seconds and I yelled at Jen "Let's go get her!" With my breaking issues (I don't want to talk about it), the Gillespie Bridge turn was killer and I got repassed by Kim. Jen, however, stayed behind me for the rest of the race. I battled to catch up to Kim the rest of the way thinking that I could real her in on the run.

Well I was right. I probably had a quicker transition than Kim and I was running faster. I could see the gap closing between us on the out and back 5K course. And then we hit the turn around where I lost my advantage. Kim saw me coming and saw how much ground I had made up. Needless to say, she poured it on over the next 2.5K and she won. I came in 2nd probably between 30-40 seconds back.

See you out on Sapp and Easley and running hills...... grrr

USAT Age Group Nationals

Oh boy...

Race Calendar

MaxTrax Duathlon- 2nd OA, 1st AG
Race for Sight- 14th OA, 1st AG
QuarterMax- 26th OA, 2nd AG
Rec Plex Triathlon- 4th OA, 1st AG
Kirkwood/Webster Connection Run 5k- 17th OA, 6th AG (20-29)
USAT Age Group Nationals- 11th AG
Show-Me State Games Triathlon- 2nd OA, 1st AG
Alligator Creek Triathlon- 4th OA, 1st AG
Lake Saint Louis Triathlon- 2nd OA, 1st AG
JCC Labor Day 5k - 3rd OA, 1st AG
NEMO Triathlon- 5th OA, 1st AG
Rec Plex Fall Triathlon- 3rd OA, 2nd AG
Pumpkinman: Club National Championship- 14th OA, 1st AG
Rockbridge Revenge 10K- 1st OA, 1st AG

Kirkwood/Webster Connection Run - June 25, 2006

Ran 7:15 per mile for a 22:18. Sucked. Ran faster than that at Race for Sight after the swim and bike. Plus the course was completely flat. I'll be back next year for redemption.

Rec Plex Triathlon - June 18, 2006

Lost 3rd place overall by 4 seconds. Lost 2nd place by 8 seconds. Lost 1st by only 1:30 or so. Had I run the same pace as I did last fall, I would have won the whole thing by about a minute. Damn. Only won my age group as a result.

All I have to say about this race is the following....

1.) I need to start running.
2.) I can still beat Tony in the water.
3.) My biking ability is the least affected with a lack of training.

QuarterMax - June 10, 2006

Hills... 'nuf said.

Okay, I'll give it some thought. I spent most of Friday helping setting up at Quartmax which was held at Innsbrook Resort. I hadn't been there in years but it looked exactly as I remembered it.

Race morning rolled around and the last thing I wanted to do was race.... or even participate for that matter. My "racing my way into shape" philosophy of the summer definitely wasn't cutting it especially with the horrible hills at Innsbrook.

The swim was nice (no wetsuits thank god). I felt okay but I know with my background I should be going faster in the water. I just need to put in the time and hit the pool for some training. Made my way up to transition and off on the bike I go.

The first five miles were pretty bad but I was expecting that since the park is hilly and once you get out of the resort its flat. Chrissy and Jen passed me in those 5 miles. At some point I pulled Chrissy back in on the flats but Jen was preparing for Ironman CDA and had much more in her than I did. I averaged a little under 20 which is slightly disheartening given how I did last summer but I know that I've neglected training to be with Tony.

Once out on the run, I was really questioning my reasons for doing this crazy race. The hills were so horrible that I walked up each and every one. Chrissy repassed me at about mile 2. Oh well. All I wanted to do was finish. I didn't care how many people passed me. I think I averaged about 10 minutes per mile but I finished the longest race that I've ever done so that counted for something.

And I somehow managed to get 2nd in my age group too.

Race for Sight - May 7,2006

First race of the year and only a week after Tony's accident...

Tony came along to see everyone but the long day really took everything out of him. The timing also failed miserably (and I'd like to think it was because Tony wasn't there to do it...)

So Tony and I both woke up early and got to the race site around 6 or so I think. I put my bike and bag in the transition area and then just kind of shuffled around talking to people.

Finally, I made my way into the pool wearing a fastskin with legs since I had a feeling that it was going to be cold like every other year. The swim went pretty poorly. I lost my goggles almost immediately and couldn't see the walls which kinda sucked but oh well, so my time wasn't the fastest... but then again, its not like I was putting in time in the pool training either so what could I expect. Jessica beat me out of the water but I was expecting that too.

Transition was quicker than I thought since I didn't end up putting any extra clothes on. The sun was shining and I really wasn't cold, so I grabbed my bike and ran with it... plus I still had "pants" on to keep me warm.

Once out on the bike, I realized that I hadn't been on it for over 2 weeks and I could definitely tell. The hills took everything out of me but I managed to keep it above 18mph regardless... I was focusing on catching Jessica for part of the time but never found her so I figured she was beating me on the bike too... (I later found out that I actually beat her out of T1).

Onto the run, which hurt like hell but I had a "Tony cape" to remind me that the pain I might endure on a measily 5k run was nothing compared to being hit by a van. I managed a 7:15 pace which made me happy.

I won my age group... I don't know how... I hadn't done one single bit of training in over a week... but I'll take it anyways.