Getting Ready for Ironman WI

My bike had been cleaned and is ready for the trip. I still need to put race wheels on it and do a pre-race check over but at least round one is done.
I actually washed all my nasty running shoes. I did not think that I could stand to be in the car for 14 hours with any of them. They look like new now!
Yesterday I spent at least an hour getting my old tubular tires off and putting the new ones on. I have blisters on my thumbs to show for it. I have not had new tires for 2 years so I figured it was time.
These are all the remnants of stuff I ate on long rides. I have been throwing everything into a bowl in the kitchen. I figured while I was cleaning and packing that I should clean this out. Nothing in here looks appetizing! (Goldfish, Donuts, Power Bar, Peanut Butter crackers, Jelly Beans, Clif bloks, ibuprofen and money for "real" food)
On the long list of things I need to do in order to be ready to get out of here tomorrow...dog sitter instructions. Here Hairy Harry and Ziggy wait their turn for some extra love. I feel so guilty leaving them. Did I mention I just emptied 150 lbs of dog food into bins for them?

Getting ready to go to any race is a lot of work but leaving for 10 days AND doing an Ironman takes some serious organization. Today all I am doing is packing, cleaning, laundry, spinning. Tomorrow at this time I should be in the car on the way!

Perseverance

This is a picture of Andy after the Greenville Triathlon after winning the Clydesdale division. As you see from the picture Andy took a little spill on the bike. At that point he picked it back up, got back on and got back to business. The way I see it Andy could have used his crash as an excuse to stop racing but instead he was able to stay mentally focused and race through the pain. Of course Andy was lucky too, he did not have any major injuries and his bike was still in working order. Does the win in his division mean more because he triumphed despite a set back - you bet! Please let Andy set an example for all of us. Never give up until you cross that finish line and keep your sense of humor. Much of racing is between our ears, it is mind over matter.

5 Turtle Run (1 Turtle per mile)

It finally rained here on Tuesday! I was so happy to see rain that I could not wait to take the dogs out for a run in it. They too were thrilled to find pig puddles to splash in and to be able to stay cool. Normally our summer runs have been limited to only 3 miles because of the heat but on Tuesday we pushed the limit and ran 5 together. Duke might have set a turtle record on this run of finding at least 1 turtle per mile. It really is an amazing ability he has to be able to sniff them out. He gently picks them up, presents them to me and then lets me take them out of his mouth and place them safely back in the grass. After giving me the turtle he never goes back for it again but instead intently begins "hunting" the next one. After 4 miles and 4 turtles I was actually rooting for Duke to find at least 1 more to set his record. He did! It was a great wet run even if the pace was 1 turtle per mile.

The end of an era...

Today I was on my last long run before Ironman WI. An easy effort on some of my favorite trails and around the lake. Long runs are always full of different emotions. At first I usually don't feel very good, then I fall into a pace and put it on auto-pilot. Sometimes I let my mind wander to places I have been, conversations I have had, how to handle life better. Today was no different but at mile 5 I encountered something unexpected. I was running along the Olympic Trail in a historic horse farm here in Tryon, called Cotton Patch. For the last year as I would crest the hill I would look over a pasture with 2 ponies in it.

The one pony, Manny, had been my friend since I was 7 years old. We moved here with Manny when I was 12. When my parents purchased him for me he was 7 too but had never been ridden. He was off the pony race track where he had raced as a "trotter" with a sulky behind him. Manny as we called him was officially known as Aristocrat's Stylish Man. He was a "hot" pony who had lots of energy and was terrified of big rocks and cows. He could trot faster than most horses could canter. He was the pony who really taught me to ride. Manny was also quick at going sideways so if I was not sitting tight he would dump me. Occasionally after he did this he would go home leaving me to walk back in my riding boots! (ever wonder how I took up cross country running?) Sometimes he would stick around to let me have another chance. The first summer we moved here I would get up in the morning and go out riding with a woman named Pinkney. We would literally ride all day until it got dark out. We explored every trail there was and to this day I have her and Manny to thank for my extensive trail knowledge.

When I got older and out grew Manny a nice woman named Doris agreed to take Manny to use as a driving pony. When I was in high school I would sometimes go with her to the driving shows where Manny would get to strut his stuff. Since Manny and I are the same age it was always easy to keep up with how old he was getting. Luckily I would see Manny often in the pasture grazing and when I would call to him he would look up and come to me. Last year he was moved to Cotton Patch to enjoy his official retirement.

Today when I crested the hill there was a mound of dirt in the of the pasture. I know all too well what that means. I could not stop the tears from flowing. He was 35 years old, a great spirit and an amazing athlete. He now has a special resting place right in the middle of an area where we had gone on so many rides. He overlooks the Olympic Trail where Olympians trained for the equestrian event back in the 1940's.

Needless to say this was not something I expected to deal with on my last long run but that is the way long runs go. You never know what you will see or how you will feel but the beauty of the long run is that no matter what happens you always have lots of time to review, revise and regain momentum.

A day in my life

(Ziggy - taking a break before destroying his stuffed milk-bone in record time - 58 seconds)

I know most people think I sit around home and drink coffee and watch Oprah but honestly that could not be further from what my typical day looks like. My days and weeks are typically scheduled about a week in advance to allow me to schedule my workouts, training sessions with athletes, volunteering, taking care of dogs, and maybe even catching up with a friend. Here is how my day goes:

5-6 wake up and take care of dogs, empty dishwasher, do laundry
6-8 first workout of the day
8-9 walk, feed and clean up after the herd
9-10 or 11 depending on the day - sit at desk and go through e-mails. Accomplish about 1/4 of the things that actually need to be done. I get anywhere from 30-80 e-mails per day that need some sort of response. 5 Dogs usually at my feet while I am in my office.
11-afternoon I can fit in another workout or run errands, go to volunteer meetings, take dogs to vet etc etc
4-5 take care of the crazy dogs again before I head out for an evening coaching sessions
6-8-8:30 Sessions with athletes at least 3 times a week
9 - take care of dogs again!

Somewhere in between I manage to eat, maybe even cook a meal, clean the house and give the pups lots of love! I know it is a rough life but someone has to do it!

Greenville Sprint Triathlon

This is just a quick update about the race for those of you taking your Monday morning "smoke break". I admit that most of my posts are short, quick and to the point but who really wants to hear all the gory details of my race?

For those of you who were not there the day started off with a bang...as in thunder and lightening. We have not had rain for so long I forgot what it is like. Thankfully it passed quickly and we were able to have a swim (400 m) in the pool. You would think as a runner I would have been happy if it had changed to a duathlon but honestly I don't enjoy running 2x and for some reason I find a swim before a bike and a run relaxing. The swim was over faster than I could even get warmed up. The bike (15 miles) was treacherous and I prayed that I would not fall. I admit that I rode very cautiously. All the work I have been doing training for Ironman WI could be undone all too quickly. Despite going a little slower downhill and taking corners carefully I still managed a good bike. My legs did not feel great but who cares since they did the work. On to the run (3 miles) which I LOVE! This run is rolling with a long gradual dirt hill in the middle that you get to run up and down 2x. It is really a fun run course. I ran with that attitude as well and managed a good run time. I was still minutes behind the leader, but she is wicked fast, so I was very pleased with my day in finishing 2nd overall. My time was 1:09 which is typical for me on this course.

After I was finished I went out and ran laps going in the other direction so that I was able to see many of those I coach and cheer for countless others. I love this part of a race just as much as racing. While I was out running I also realized that while many Malone Coaching athletes were racing there were some volunteering as well. Volunteering is hard work and often more tiring than racing but there were Fred, Monica and Pam all out there working for hours to make sure the rest of us could have a good race. I thank them for doing this and setting a good example for the rest of us. Meanwhile there was a huge crowd of Malone Coaching athletes setting PR's - Jim, Audrey, Wanda, Tiffany, Chris Dillard, Chris Smutzer (unfortunately crashed but is ok), Lisa, Laura, Andy (still won the Clydesdale Division even after crashing), Brad, James, Don and Mike.

That is all for now!

Palmetto Trail - Blue Wall Passage

Today was a 20 mile run which should have been easy after all the training I have been doing. Of course I am never satisfied with just an easy run so I wanted to go exploring. I kind of had an idea that the trail might be vertical but honestly I had no idea. I think mile number 4 was an 18 min mile. No kidding. The sign at the top said something about 1500 feet of climbing in 2-3 miles. Oops! The run was breath-taking in many ways but the view from the top and the fresh clean air was the best thing for my sole after a busy week. Who cares that it took 1:05 to run the first 5 miles - it was fun and an adventure. There is even more trail to be explored but that would have taken me all the way to Saluda and I was just not up for that today. The rest of the run seemed easy. The jog around Lake Lanier a piece of cake. I even felt good enough to finish up the last 2 miles at 8 min pace.