More Christmas Pics

Here are some more Christmas pics. I ran only a little while on vacation, one time at a gym and twice outside. I did lots of pushups and will make my year's 20,000-pushup goal. Woot! I'll do a complete tally post, but so far I know I've completed the following:

• 30,000 meters swimming
• 20,000 pushups
• 1,000 miles running / walking
• 5,000 miles biking
• 8,000 meters rowing

Runs brought to you by...Seneca Fitness

The ugly-sweater-contest winner got this lei

Ugly sweaters. Who wins this one????

Treasure

In between rain storms I went recycling and found these treasures. I will be going back for more tomorrow!

I made it to MFY for a short (but seemingly forever-long) 1100m swim. It was perfectly sunny and humid, and the water felt great :-)

Berry Peddler RR Recap

It's still a little wet here so not styled yet,
but it's definitely short!

Friday I got my hair cut and am donating the ponytail (13 inches!) to Locks of Love.

13" cut off!

My head feels so much lighter now! Then I went to Lauren's dance recital and enjoyed watching all the different-aged kids perform and worship. I thought I'd know a few from children's church, but I knew only Lauren. Still enjoyed it though.

Saturday we headed to Dayton, TN, for the Berry Peddler RR. The race is 32 miles long with a 4.5-mile climb beginning around mile 6.5. My goal was to start the climb before everyone else, so I attacked 0.1 miles in. Unfortunately for me, no one came with me and I was able to stay away for only about 4.5 miles before I got caught by the field, which meant that I started with everyone else. And it didn't take long before I was by myself, which is how I stayed for the rest of the race. Well, except for around 10K to go when I got caught by a group of Cat 5 men who didn't have a moto official with them. I slid into the back of their group for a 4-mile draft until the moto official came back and we got close to the finish line.

I could see one girl ahead of me nearly the entire time, and she knew I was behind her. But we were going at pretty close to the same pace, so I never caught her. It did help motivate me to keep racing my bike, though! I don't know how far behind the leaders I was time-wise, but I finished 16/24 overall and 8/8 P/1/2. It's about what I expected, though I always hope for better. Team Belladium didn't finish nearly as well as we'd hoped, either, so it was kind of a disappointing race for everyone.

It was pretty similar to last year's race for me, and I thought it had been faster, but I was by myself for more miles this year than last year, so I guess I'm OK with it. I wish I still had all the data so I could see whether the climb was different.

2013 RR Stats: 31.17 miles, 1:50:56, 17.0 mph (36.4 max), HR data is on my laptop
2012 RR Stats: 31.26 miles, 1:50:15, 17.1 mph (36.3 max), 169 bpm (192 max), 3643’ ascent, 2487’ descent

Sunday we got in a great ride. I was definitely tired from Saturday, but we rode pretty steady while still working hard. Plus we had some good chat time--always fun!

After our team ride, I headed to the family's house for some yard work and cooking. It ended up being a beautiful day, so we also set up the net and played some badminton. Lauren and I made supper (with a contribution from Bennett, supervision by ARenee, and grilling by UJohn), and it was good enough that we ate it all!

20 minutes of every day are spent here...
Proper care and feeding of the Leaf :-)

Sunday Rainy Ride

Saturday I got so much stuff done. It was fantastic. I rearranged everything in my living room, including my bookshelves, so I could have a place for all my stuff and the bike rack I put up. Instead of running, I took a super long nap, and although I met Valerie and Catherine in the parking lot, I decided to not ride and instead also sorted through all my papers and such, clearing my desk and kitchen table. At church, Brooks and I had 17 little pre-K kids in our Sunday School class; thankfully Brooks' brother Max was also there and Amy sent in Susan and Mark to help us. With that many kids and that much energy, I couldn't have done it without all the help. Then I headed to Anna and Josh's for dinner and games. We had a blast playing Bezzerwizzer and gave Josh a run for his money when we were a team.

Kat, Kiki, me, Catherine, and AJ

We hit the road early Sunday to try to beat the rain. We didn't succeed, but that was mostly our fault. My plan was to do that first loop until we could tell the rain was coming and then head home. However, I was feeling good and so was Kat, so we decided to go a little farther from home. That meant that when the rain came, we got caught in it. The temps dropped quickly, but we made it home safely and not completely frozen.

Rainy Sunday ride

Later Sunday afternoon I met Aunt Renee, Uncle John, Bennett, and Lauren at Macaroni Grill to celebrate Lauren's birthday. Then I got to drive the Audi sports car. It was only about a 3-minute drive back to my place, but it is a fun little car and was a nice treat.

Early Monday run

Monday I got up early enough to do some quarter-mile sprints before work. It was mostly dry and in the mid-50s, so that meant I could go outside and to the CSY instead of inside at the BFY. Sweet! Then I headed inside to row for a while and that was that.

Office Christmas Party

Pretzels, Hershey's Kisses, and M&Ms...perfect finger food!

Tuesday I rode at T's in the morning, worked, swam a quick 500 (better than nothing, I figure), had a GREAT 5-min ext. slow workout later, and then went to Sambuca in The Gulch for our office Christmas dinner. I was surprised that I actually liked the chicken I ordered, because it did not sound good from the menu but was the only thing on our pared-down menu that I thought maybe I had a chance at liking.

Wednesday I slept in and then trained and walked 30 minutes on the step mill. I always choose Random Play for a set amount of time, and I typically select the max level (9). The stronger I get on the bike, the easier this machine gets. I might have to move away from the step mill and to the TRUE elliptical machine soon. Or perhaps choose a different workout.

Thursday morning's workout was 6-6-6 EDI (another good one), Dalmuti at lunch during work, and T's class again for the afternoon. This week's workouts have seemed harder, but I'm also working at 1% higher watts than last week and a gear harder (first 20min on Tuesday and the entire class today). I have tons of room for improvement and am really liking the 1% increase per week thing, both mentally and physically. I'm thinking I might increase till the end of this session (6%) and then go down 5% and continue the 1% increase per week for the next session, repeating for the rest of the off-/pre-season. That is, unless I test way higher, then I'll re-evaluate. In this class, my mind was MUCH stronger than my legs--if my legs had their say, I'd have been off the bike, down a gear, or down 5% within the first 20 minutes. But I knew I could do it and do it well where I was, so I stayed there. Little victory!

Friday morning's workout was rough. Everything was tired. But I did the 3-min isos followed by 100 phasic reps. Then off to work. Then I went on a great 8-mile hike at Percy Warner. It was beautiful out and I wanted to take advantage of it. We are having a treat day at work on Monday, so I made some stuff. The pretzel/M&M treats pictured above were simple. The chocolate peanut butter bars, not so much.

Looks like it's ready to go...

I thought I was ready to move from the first steps (mixing the first 4 ingredients and spreading into the pan) before melting the chocolate, so I did. But then I looked back at the recipe and realized I forgot one of the four ingredients. I'd have made my mama proud with my baking skills :-)

I really thought I was ready...I even poured and spread!

Instead, I removed it from the pan, put it back in the mixing bowl, and added the missing powdered sugar. It turns out the consistency of butter/peanut butter/graham cracker crumbs is just not what is should be without the sugar. Once I added the sugar it was much better, so it went back in the pan before I melted the chocolate/peanut butter and spread that on top. It turned out much better and tastes pretty good.

Saturday morning, Cath and I rode for an hour on the trainer after I went tot he Y for an hour workout. Then Lee, Cath & Madi, Anna, and Shelly, Megan, & Jess went to lunch at Calypso Cafe before shopping at Lululemon. There is some great stuff in that store. I wished I had more discretionary money so I could spend it all on one running top and one pair of tights that would last forever! In the Giraffe class at church that night, Charlotte, Brooks, Susan and I had 17 4-year-olds to play with and tell about the angels telling the shepherds about Jesus being born. They were excited to act it out :-)

First set of barriers
source

Sunday I walked 2 miles before church and then went out to watch Anna do the 4s state CX race and race my P/1/2/3 race with teammates Kat, Shannon, and AJ and other competitors Andrea, Kim, Amy, Stephanie, Laureen, and Kathy. Our race was 45 minutes long, and I got lapped within 2 to go and rode 7.75 miles. My average speed was under 11mph. Crazy slow! But considering that this was a CX race, on grass, leaves, sand, and mud, that's pretty much normal, I guess. It was a super fun race, but not exciting for me to get last place. Lots of room for improvement! Will was there to watch - he's been training me for something like 3 or 4 years and never seen me race my bike, so it was great to have him see what it's all about and pray with me before the race. We went to lunch at Red Robin, and then I went home and, after cleaning, chilled on the couch for the rest of the afternoon.

Shannon's husband took tons of pictures during the race, and I'm hoping to get a few to share.

Rock and Road Marathon Relay

Anna, Jen, me, and Sarah at the start line

Starting my leg, #2, an 8-mile trail run

Sarah, Jen, me, and Anna at the finish

This is all I have for today. Marathon relay in PW.

• Leg 1 (8mi road): Jen
• Leg 2 (8mi trail): Kailin
• Leg 3 (5mi road): Anna
• Leg 4 (5mi trail): Sarah
• Overall time: 3:41:03
• 1st place female team

It was a beautiful day, albeit a little chilly. The leaves were gorgeous, and I really enjoyed the run through the park.

Finishing my leg
(source)

Saturday night I was in the nursery with 13 4-year-olds and 2 parents who graciously agreed to help so we could let the 6 3-year-olds go into their own classroom (otherwise it would have been 19 kiddos and 3 adults--yikes!).

Sunday was church, a 550m swim, lots of work on the computer, and a nice long walk with Kat. Another amazing day.

Tour of America's Dairyland III and IV: Waukesha and Greenbush

Sunday Crit: Waukesha

Sunday we raced a 40-minute crit in Waukesha. The course was fairly flat and about 0.85 miles; it was clockwise and a little technical. Turn 1 was more than 90* and went from a wide to a narrow road; the finishing stretch was a terrible road. I didn't look up at the clock until we were 33 minutes in. I didn't get tired at all, and I was paying attention to my position and what the other women were doing, so I didn't have time to look at the clock. We were under 6 laps to go at that time, so I did start paying attention. I won a prime in this race and ended up 12th of 34 Cat 3/4 women.

Waukesha - Game face!

Waukesha crit

Photos here

After the race I spent the evening at dinner with my grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins, and then returned to my grandparents' house. I don't get to see them often enough, so it was fun to be there for the night.

Greenbush podium:
Amy (1st), Kailin (2nd), Vanessa (3rd)

Post-race tanning, err, waiting for the awards ceremony

Monday Road Race: Greenbush

2 laps = 20 miles

Monday we raced a 2-lap, 20-mile road race. It was short and hilly. Around mile 4 is a little climb; it is not significant, but it is not nothing, either. It's a little stair-step climb that is pretty much over by mile 5, but when the pace is night it feels a lot steeper and harder than it is. I stayed with the group, and at mile 17 or so we all (25+ maybe) were neutralized for at least a mile while we waited (and waited and waited) for the men to pass us. They should have let us finish our race and neutralized the men, but oh, well, it worked out OK for me. We had a lot of time to chill/drink/think/plan, and I used it well. Since by the time we were able to race again we about 2 miles left, I quickly moved up from my back-of-the-pack position to top 10. Then I waited for someone else to jump and when she did, I went with her. When she let up, I went around her and started basically an early sprint/super-short TT to the final left-hand turn and the uphill finish line. I managed to stay away from most of the riders but not from Amy P, who clipped me at the line. I finished the race in under 60 minutes and 2nd of 42 women. Hooray for a podium!

After the early-morning race, I went home and chilled, went to dinner with Mike and Michelle, and then watched Mike's softball game with M. We saw a few others who I haven't seen in quite a while, so it was definitely a pleasant evening.

Climbing - Not my fave
Photo here

East Troy (6-22-12) stats: 36:38, 14.4 miles, 23.6 mph
Grafton (6-23-12) stats: 42:22, 16.55 miles, 23.4 mph
Waukesha (6-24-12) stats: 39:39, 15.05 miles, 22.8 mph, 182 bpm
Greenbush (6-25-15) stats: 59:41, 20.01 miles, 20.1 mph, 164 bpm

Joe Martin Stage Race Report

This was a super fun weekend. It ended up being only Anna, Kat, and me who went to the Joe Martin Stage Race in Fayetteville, AR. This was my first time racing in Arkansas, which means that I got to add another pin to my map! (Maybe a picture will come; I was going to take one earlier but got distracted and am no longer at home.)

Kat was racing in the Pro/1/2 category, which meant she had to be there by Thursday noon to race her TT on that day (she then had a road race Friday, another one Saturday, and a crit Sunday). We were able to pre-ride the TT course with her as her warmup, and I was really happy to be able to see and ride the course. Then on Friday, before Kat’s race, Anna and I rode the first and last 10 miles (it was a lollipop) of the road race course. We also drove the crit course on two different days, so I felt quite well prepared.

The TT on Saturday morning went about as well as I could have hoped. I knew I could do it in about 13 minutes (though anything faster would’ve been best) and it would pretty much feel like the TTTs we do bi-monthly or so. It pretty much felt just like that. I got passed by one person and passed one person, and I finished in 13:22—about what I expected. This was good enough for 13/18 (Cat 3/4) but put me 1:44 behind the leader. In omniums, which we normally do, time doesn’t matter so much; however, this was a stage race, which means time matters more than finish position, especially in the TT, because in the other races, if you finish in 13th but in the same group as the winner, you get the winner’s time. Then, at the end of the weekend, the person who completed all races in the least amount of time is the winner of everything. Starting out 1:44 down is not a pleasant position to be in.

Our RR was Saturday early afternoon—we had about enough time to cool down for 10 minutes, load our bikes in the car, and drive to the RR start before we had to sign in and get a little warmup in for our RR. The RR was the Cat 3/4 women and the Master Women, so we started with 31 women. The first 10 miles, which I’d pre-ridden, were great for me despite a few of the sketchiest riders I’ve ever ridden with. Then, around mile 15, we hit a decent climb. I was fairly close to the group, if not in it, until maybe a mile later when we were still climbing (or maybe hit another little climb). At that point, I fell off the group. Anna was with me as well, and we worked with 4 other women for at least 10 miles and finally caught back up to the leaders.

At that point, we were all together for the final 10 miles or so, and I tried to maintain a decent position at the front of the group without working too much. The finish was downhill and very wide open, and we came in fast. I thought I finished better than 6th (since we were all together, Masters and Cat 3/4, there were a lot of us), because I thought I was one of the first 6 who crossed the line and there were probably Masters women in those 6 somewhere. However, either all 5 of the ones who beat me were category women or I wasn't really 6th across the line, because my final result was 6th place, same time as the rest of the women in our group. I was happy to have finished with the group, tho, and not have had even more time to make up!

The final race was the crit early Sunday morning (early like before 8 AM!). We raced 25 minutes, and I ended up 3rd of the 15 who started (at the very end of our RR, like after the finish line, there was a massive crash that sent at least 2 to the hospital and caused another 5 to not start either the Cat 3/4 race or the Masters women race). I got a 2-second time bonus, but it wasn't enough to make up any positions; my overall position was 10 of 15, total time was 2:51:10, and time back on the overall winner was 1:44. In other words, not much changed in the overall position or time even though I went from 13th (TT) to 6th (RR) to 3rd (crit). Bummer.

Saturday AM TT: 13/18; 2.5-mile climb, 13:22, 183 bpm (194 max)
Saturday afternoon RR: 6/18; 45 miles, 2:13:40, 20.2 mph (44.9 max), 162 bpm (198 max)
Sunday morning crit: 3/15; 25 minutes, 8.75 miles, 21.0 mph (33.7 max), 174 bpm (194 max)

CompuTrainer Class: Tempo TTT

Today was the first test of the week, but I went with a tempo ride rather than an all-out test ride. These are my results from all the TTs I've done at Todd's:

Date	Test Number	Completion Time	Average Watts
March 27, 2012	TT #8a (tempo)	14:01 (tempo)	212 watts (tempo)
January 26, 2012	TT #7	13:46	226 watts
January 24, 2012	TT #6	13:43	228 watts
May 4, 2011	TT #5	13:37	237 watts
March 3, 2011	TT #4b (tempo)	14:26 (tempo)	202 watts (tempo)
March 1, 2011	TT #4a	13:38	229 watts
January 6, 2011	TT #3b (tempo)	14:58 (tempo)	185 watts (tempo)
January 4, 2011	TT #3a	14:06	217 watts
March 25, 2010	TT #2	13:56	223 watts
January 28, 2010	TT #1	14:22	208 watts

I decided to make today a tempo day. I'd thought about actually testing, but I am still not feeling well and just couldn't do it. It was fun to watch everyone else suffer, though.

1:10 total ride, 141 bpm (187 max)
52:00 warm up, 129 bpm
14:01 ride, 5 miles, 182 bpm
4:00 cooldown, 157 bpm

This week has already been crazy busy, and it's only Tuesday morning. Yesterday I got in 1h on the step mill and a few curls but not much else. I will be happy when this week is over.

Publix GC

Since I got such a nice gift card in the mail yesterday, I went to Publix today to get some groceries. And because I feel like sharing, here is what I purchased and for how much and then how much I saved; there are some great sales on produce this week at my favorite grocery store:

Item; Quantity	Regular Price	Sale Price; Coupon	Final Price
Eat Smart veggies; 8	2.50	1.00	8.00 (great deal!)
Lettuce heads; 2	1.79	1.49	2.98
Cantaloupe; 1	3.29	2.50	2.50
Bananas; 2.14lb	0.59/lb	----	1.26
Strawberries; 2lb	5.98	3.29	3.29
Publix ground beef; ~1.3lb	3.99/lb	----	5.07
Publix oats; 1	3.39	----	3.39
Publix ketchup	1.39	1.19	1.19
No Yolks pasta; 1	2.39	1.89; 0.80 MQ	1.09
Ronzoni pasta; 2	1.69	0.845	1.69
Classico pasta sauce; 3	2.99	1.50; B2G1 MQ	2.99
Publix eggs; 2 dozen	1.69	----	3.38
Wrigley’s gum; 1	3.49	1.75	1.75
Pampers diapers; 1	10.99	9.49; $2 PQ, $2 MQ	5.49
Items: 26	80.38 (4.04 tax)	48.11; $25 Publix GC	23.11, ~$0.89/item

So basically, I paid $23.11 out of pocket for $80.38 worth of groceries, saving ~70% for food that will be good for me and last me a while. However, I will be going back for more veggies before this sale ends. These bags last usually at least a week, and they are so easy—pop them in the microwave to steam them or open up the bag and eat them raw. It’s a great way to get in plenty of vegetables. Though I did laugh when I noticed on the bag that it says “Serves 4”; little do they know that some of us can eat a whole bag in one sitting! However, I figure this is better than eating a pint of ice cream in one sitting, which I can easily do. Sad.

Once I got home, I took care of everything as much as possible, cutting up the cantaloupe and strawberries to freeze them for smoothies, making a box of pasta with a jar of sauce and a bag of broccoli (yum supper!), browning the beef and making sloppy joes (and then measuring it out into separate plastic containers so that it is already ready for lunches, and putting the diapers in my pile for my sister and nephew. It seemed to take forever, but it feels so good to have food in the fridge, extra in the freezer, and a clean kitchen in the middle of the week. The only slightly better way to spend a rest day in my opinion would be a nice hike. I could go for Radnor Lake (another) or Percy Warner Park or Camelback Mountain right now!

Love

Ravi Zacharias quoted this on this morning's Just Thinking program, and I had to share:

When I tell you that God loves you, and then I tell you that I love you, it's the same word but it has a different implication.

When I love you and you refuse to love me, I hurt because I have lost something. When God loves you and you refuse to love Him, God hurts too; God hurts because you have lost something.

I got some fun things in the mail yesterday:

Dear Kohl's, Thanks for reminding me that
I'm not married. Or engaged. But you still
are sending me wedding wishes. How kind.

Dear Pepsi and Publix, Thanks for making
my day by sending me a surprise Publix GC!

Thank you, I Heart Publix, for telling me about the sweeps that I won the GC from. Off to do some grocery shopping!

I Would Seek God

Job 5:8–9 "But as for me, I would seek God, and to God I would commit my cause—who does great
things, and unsearchable, marvelous things without number."

I didn’t take much time to write this weekend, so here’s the now-normal weekend recap.

Friday: It ended up being nice enough for me to get out on my bike after work. It wasn’t warm, but it wasn’t freezing either, so I layered up and rode a good 25 miles. After getting some stuff done at home and running a few errands, I ran 3 miles to the Y, did 7 minutes of work (push up, curl w/8lb, and crunch), and ran 2 miles home. I planned it that way, with a shorter leg home. It’s a pretty good way to get a nice workout in.

Saturday: It was supposed to be rainy (only kinda damp) and cold (definitely cold), so I rode indoors at Todd’s at Endeavor Performance with Shelly, Catherine, and five others. Todd set a course for us, and we pedaled away. Two and a half hours is a long time to spend on a trainer, so 1.5 hours in, we took a 10-minute break. I was off the bike for only 4 minutes, just long enough to make a quick clothes change (hello, sweaty!) and fill up my water bottles. If I’d have stayed off any longer, I’d have frozen, even in the clean shirt. I need to remember an additional pair of shorts for next time; that would have been twice as good. After a 26-minute warm up, I did the next 40 minutes at a tempo pace (174 bpm); it was supposed to have been endurance pace, but I was staying with Rolf and Brien and didn’t want to lose their draft, so I just kept going. Shelly at minute 40 was going to do 20 minutes of tempo, so she asked me then if I was going to join her. I said probably not, and I definitely didn’t. My HR stayed the same for those next 20 minutes (174 bpm), but I was definitely closer to my endurance pace than my tempo pace. I rode another 30 minutes at endurance pace (162 bpm), took our 10-minute break (141 bpm), and rode another 36 minutes (162 bpm). I got a good 2:43:00 ride and made it 40 miles into the 55-mile course.

Lauren frosting the cupcakes

After the good hard ride, I picked up Lauren and we headed to lunch at Blue Coast. Yum. We discussed her birthday party, which I have to get to planning. That will be on the schedule for this week! Then we came back to my apt and made 30 cupcakes for my older sister, who turned 30 today. We had fun coloring while the cupcakes were baking (yes, she’s almost a teenager and I’m not much younger than my sister, and we were indeed coloring with crayons) and then decorating them. Church, no evening workout, and a movie were later that night.

Sunday: This morning I made pancakes, which will last me the entire week. As with supper food, breakfast food is best when it can be made once and eaten multiple times. Then Anna, Shelly, Parri, Valerie, Todd, and I rode a quick 27 miles out north of Nashville. I’d never been out there, and there are some beautiful roads out there. One nice long, mostly flat, not heavily traveled road allowed us to work on a few things together, and the headwind back home made for a hard little workout. 1:33:06, 27.15 miles, 17.5 mph (34.8 max), 143 bpm (184 max).

Now it’s now and time to clean my bike, do some laundry, vacuum, and read the newspaper. And maybe eat some cupcakes. Aloha!

CompuTrainer Class: Aerobic Capacity II

This was our workout today in Todd's class. The scale might be a little off, but it otherwise looked like this.

Today went surprisingly better than I expected. I don't have stats because my Garmin's battery is currently dead, so when I have access to them I'll add them.

12-28-11
12-29-11

• 1:40:40 total, 158 HR avg (178 max)
  
• 10:05, 127 HR to warm up trainer
  
• 20:00, 160 HR; 3 min easy (162): warmup
  
• 4:00, 169 HR; 2 min easy (166): single-leg drills
  
• 11:00, 171 HR; 3 min easy (154): Tempo; I visualized the Chattanooga Crit course
  I visualized the Oak Ridge Crit course
• 11:00, 161 HR; 3 min easy (155): Tempo with single-leg drills in the valley
  
• 11:00, 173 HR; 3 min easy (156): Tempo; I visualized the second Brentwood Crit course
  I visualized the Downer/Milwaukee Crit course
• 11:00, 160 HR; 4 min easy (142): Tempo with single-leg drills in the valley
  
• 2:30, 165 HR: spin-up to 110 RPM for 90 sec
  
• 2:05, 165 HR: Cooldown plus sprint

Team B Ride and Other Weekend Activities

I couldn't stay inside today, so I didn't complete every gym workout I was supposed to have. However, I ran a few more miles than I'd planned on and didn't have to ride on the trainer at all. Hooray!

• Friday Run: 38:10, 3.39 miles (5:49 best pace)
• Warmup: 10:33, 1.04 miles
• Quarter-miles with 2 min rest: 1:43 (6:55 pace); 1:40 (6:41 pace); 1:40 (6:41 pace); 1:36 (6:27 pace) 
• Cooldown: 13:01, 0.77 miles, 16:50 pace

Val, Anna, Shelly, Parri, and I met at the library on Saturday for an awesome ride. It was so beautiful outside that I didn't even need toe warmers--for December, I'll take it!

• Saturday Ride: 2:00:53, 31.91 miles, 15.8 mph (36.1 max), 149 HR (186 max)

Before heading out shopping and to Farkases for some birthday celebration, I got in a little run. It was super windy but otherwise pleasant.

• Sunday Run: 47:29, 5.25 miles, 8:37 pace (6:42 best), 174 HR (186 max)
• Mile 1: 8:35; Mile 2: 8:28; Mile 3: 8:11; (time out to pick up golf balls) Mile 4: 8:52; Mile 5.02: 9:08

Ragnar Relay (196 by 12)

At the start line

I did the Ragnar Relay last year and hadn’t considered doing it this year. However, when Anna asked me to take her place on team The Village People, I happily said yes. My team was a normal, 12-person (that is, not an ultra, 6-person) team, which meant that instead of running 5 or 6 legs, I ran only 3. And instead of having to be in one van with 5 other people the whole time, I could choose to stay in our first vehicle or move into the second vehicle. So there were definitely some benefits!

In the van ready to go

We met early on Friday morning and drove to Chattanooga, where the race started. After we registered, our first runner (Maria) started at 8:30am, we got into our vans, and Van 1 headed to Exchange 1. (One runner goes from Start to Exchange 1, another runs from Exchange 1 to Exchange 2, the next goes from Exchange 2 to Exchange 3, and so on until the finish, which is at the end of the thirty-sixth leg. The runners in Van 1 run the first 6 legs, the runners in Van 2 run the next 6, and so on until the end, when everyone can run across the finish line together.) My first leg was Leg 3, a 5.6-mile run that was mostly all downhill and that I started at 10:46am—it was a great way to start! Zac, our second runner, had done all the hard work, and I got the reward. It was beautiful (albeit a little chilly), it was fast, and it was fun.

The Van 2 crew

After my run, I stayed in Van 1 until Sarah D, Ashley, and Casey all finished their first legs and we arrived at Exchange 6. There, we met up with our other van and I switched vans to stay with the action. Bryan, Jon, Amanda, Heather, Sarah S, and Andrea all ran their legs well (one leg was a tough trek up Monteagle!), and we met Van 1 again at Exchange 12. We continued running in the same order, so I had Leg 15 next, which was a 6.75-mile rolling-to-hilly run in the dark that I started at 8:17pm. I had run into the guys from my team last year before I began my 1^st run, so I’d been looking for them at other exchanges—we seemed to have runners around the same abilities, and we were often at exchanges at the same time. Before I began Leg 15, Brad was there waiting for his turn so that he could run Leg 15 as well. I was happy to know that a friend was coming up behind me (who’d catch me) and that I’d have someone to run the night run with. It was such a blessing to have company for nearly 3 miles, and that made the run go by pretty fast. Then it was back in the van while our other 3 runners finished their legs and we cheered them on.

We arrived at Exchange 18 around 11:15pm, and I again decided to switch vans and see if I could get a little sleep in the back of the 15-passenger van (that had only 6 of us in it). I slept about 40 minutes, but I laid down for a long time just trying to relax and sleep if I could. We arrived at Exchange 24 around 3am, and I moved to the other van. All that moving around was not bad at all. I’d managed to fit everything into a backpack and a cooler, and I took only my cooler with me when I moved back and forth. I figured that if I had food and my phone with me, I’d be OK regardless of where I was. Plus I enjoyed being with the runners and in the “awake” vehicle.

We were nearly 30 minutes ahead of schedule when I started Leg 27, my final run; it was still (and going to remain) dark but also was slightly warmer than I’d expected. This run was for me definitely the hardest of the three mainly because of the hard work leading up to this point and the lack of sleep. I began the 6-mile run at 4:22am, and it was a similar rolling-to-hilly road as the earlier leg. It was also one I’d run last year and a road that I recognized (even though it was dark)—we were nearing Franklin! I definitely took this run a little slower than the first two, just enjoying being outside, running, having fun. It was dark and everyone looked alike, so although they’d been planning to support me halfway through, my teammates never saw me and were waiting at the finish of that leg. Thankfully, everyone out there is so supportive of everyone else—when you’re running at 4am, there’s a camaraderie among everyone.

Our van’s last leg ended at Exchange 30 in Franklin. Healthways was such a welcome, familiar sight! At this point, I didn’t switch vans but rather got my car and went home, where I fell asleep and missed my team’s finish and all the finish-line celebrations. We finished in 29:12:02, about 30 minutes faster than our projected finish time, and team #93 of 211 finishing teams.

The finish line (Thanks to Heather for the pics)

Here are some random notes; they don’t all need their own paragraph, but I want to remember them.

• This year, I took much less gear than last year (a good idea, since we had twice as many people) and did not prepare quite as well for the weather (I’d planned for warmer).
• I thought it was going to be warmer than it was and was happy I’d remembered hand warmers.
• The scenery was beautiful—this is the perfect time to be outside in Tennessee!
• I am happy with how I ran, even though each leg was slower than the one before—I think I was just enjoying it more and taking it all in. Plus I started out so fast that I’d have felt good about anything after that!
• We had an earlier start time than last year and that was so nice! There were tons of people around on the road and at every exchange.
• Running at night when you can see people in front of you is SO MUCH BETTER than running when no one is around.
• Being a part of a 12-person team is quite a bit less intense than being a part of a 6-person team; each has their benefits, and I’d probably do either one again.
• I didn’t see any big wild animals in the middle of the night; the only oddities of note are a train at Cox and McDaniel in Arrington (which didn’t hold up Sarah D) and an incoming helicopter at the hospital in Sewanee (which didn’t hold up Sarah S).
• Because I kept switching vans, I never really spent any time at the major exchanges, so I’m not sure what they were like or what there was to do.

Here are the stats from my three runs:

• Leg 3: 10:46am Friday; 40:41, 5.6 miles, 7:14 pace, 144 HR (182 max), 954’ ascent, 2054’ descent
• Leg 15: 8:17pm Friday; 56:41, 6.75 miles, 8:24 pace, 184 HR (192 max), 612’ ascent, 560’ descent
• Leg 27: 4:22am Saturday; 54:31, 6.0 miles, 9:06 pace, 171 HR (187 max), 507’ ascent, 488’ descent
• Totals: 2:31:52, 18.35 miles, 8:16 pace, 2073’ ascent, 3102’ descent

Hawaii Ironman Pre-race

We've been busy in Kona doing some pre-race stuff, and it's been fun with my cousin Allison because she knows all the pros and all the places to be. We've seen tons of athletes, and I love being around all of them. Every time I come here I get to wanting to do this race eventually. It will have to wait another year or so, but it's still staying high on my list.

This was my view after Dad was done going through transition

Me, Meg (Mom and Dad's friend), and Dad after dinner, in front of the King Kam Hotel

Mom and Dad in their Cliffhanger t-shirts

I haven't done too many workouts since Wednesday (when I ran and did 5×1 min wall sits at an airport: yesterday Allie and I ran, rode, and swam 20 min each with Dad. Today I ran 1.5 miles and then hitch-hiked the rest of the way to my destination. Tomorrow we'll be on our feet all day having fun--I'm thinking about wearing my Garmin to see how far I go total. Having fun, loving life!

Compatibility

I stumbled on this fantastic blog today, I think through Jonathan at Inversion or Michael at Fellowship. This is the part that affected me the most, but I'd encourage you to read the entire thing.

The Truth About Marital Compatibility 

5 Questions for Singles to Ask When Seeking a Biblically Compatible Spouse:

1. How do you know he or she willingly submits to godly authority?
   
   Ladies, if he does not submit to godly authority, he is a dangerous man. Period. Men, if she doesn’t submit to godly authority now (as a single man, that’s not you by the way), she is the kind of woman Proverbs warns you to avoid. 


2. How do you know he or she is teachable?
   
   If he or she likes to argue, they are more concerned with being right than being made righteous. When you think you’ve won an argument in marriage, you’ve actually lost. Marriage is about humbly maturing, realizing you have much to learn for the rest of your lives.


3. How well known and involved is he or she in Christian community?
   
   It’s easy to put on a good front when you are attracted to someone and motivated to marry. If he or she is unknown in community, they are unknown to you. Others need to vouch for the person’s character, integrity, and faith.


4. How does he or she speak of others?
   
   If he or she is critical, demeaning, or flippant in their attitude and words now, it will happen in marriage. Soon, you will become the brunt of their anger and pride.


5. How does he or she respond when confronted with their sin?
   
   When someone tries to hide, misrepresent, blameshift, excuse, or rationalize their sin, they have a distorted view of the Gospel. Because of Jesus, we can confess sin (I John 1:9), repent (Rom. 2:4), walk in the light (Eph. 5:8-9), and be reconciled to God (II Cor. 5:17-21).

My hope today was to have gotten out to run, but it’s been raining since Sunday. So my second choice was to go on the step mill, but that didn’t work either—I had to run errands in Cool Springs, and the CSY doesn’t have any step mills, or even any steps. I went with the next best option, I figured, short of the treadmill: 30 minutes on the elliptical. My goal was to get at least 3 miles in, and I succeeded.

• Mile 1: 9:57
• Mile 2: 9:18
• Mile 3: 9:23

I would have liked for the third mile to have been faster than the second, but I was doing the varied workout and minutes 19–22 were rest minutes, so they were easier. I was trying to not take it easy by keeping my strides per minute to between 180 and 190, but it definitely still kept the distance down. Oh, well, all is not lost, since I did complete 3+ miles in that time.

NC.Com Crit #10

This was probably one of the most interesting Wednesday-night crits we've had in a long time. These races are training races, and it's fun to have different plans and see what plays out. We had a couple different plans tonight and we'd had a couple conversations with riders from the other teams, so we kind of had an idea how it was going to play out. But there were a few wild card riders tonight, and that made most of the race an unknown because we were never sure what they might do.

Valerie, Cali, and I were the three Team Belladium representatives, and we were up against Sandra and Kathy of SVMIC; Amanda, Marsha, Emily, and Chrysa of Cumberland Transit; Shannon and Paula of Team Vantaggio; and 2 unattached riders. The race started calm enough with only a few surges (kind of relaxed attacks), and about 10 minutes in Val and Kathy attacked a couple times. They got away once, but Val was caught in no-man's land and eventually came back to the pack. Kathy stayed out for about 5 laps while CT and Vantaggio chased her down.

Cali and I had to work really hard to stay patient and do no work. It wasn't too bad for 2 or 3 laps, when Valerie was up with Kathy, but when she came back to our group we no longer had a teammate up the road and had no excuse to not work except that we didn't need to. So we waited until 2 laps to go to move, and Cali led for at least a lap before I came around her to take the final 2 corners and the win. Definitely couldn't have done it without those two lovely ladies. And I'm sure we made quite a scene for the spectators who know what normally happens during our races, because this was pretty different—different attackers, different chasers, different riders. But it was definitely one of the most fun.

Downer Crit RR

This was a fun race and course. R, J, G, and GJ were there to watch, and they said it was much more festive here than in Fond du Lac yesterday. It probably helped that it was sunny! The field was quite large, 41 in our Cat 3/4 race, and I decided to go for one of the two primes (both offered within 7 laps to go). I won the first, didn't try for the second, and didn't stay close enough to the front to make any different at the finish. Someday I'll learn--hopefully soon!

Garmin stats: 32:53, 12.85 mi, 23.4 mph (32.4 max), 185 HR (202 max)

Weekend's Racing: State TT, MOAB Crit

This weekend was a fabulous one for racing. Holiday weekends are always good—not sure why, but they make everything more exciting. This one has been no exception. It started out Saturday with the State Time Trial. This was promoted by Tim Hall of NashvilleCyclist.com and Team Belladium. Todd took care of most of our responsibilities, which left us to ride our bikes. And ride we did! Plus he hooked us up with sweet wheels; these made me feel fast!

Catherine took some pictures while she was out there cheering us on, so hopefully she’ll share them so we can see my teammates’ setups, too! This was 40K of “you’re on your own!” trying to catch the women in front of you and trying to keep the women behind you from catching you. I loved it. We’d ridden the course twice before and I was very familiar with it, so all I had to think about was catching or not being caught. Both happened: I was caught and passed, but I caught and passed a few people, too. I rode my best, with no time expectation nor any other goal except to do my best.

This race was a success. My overall time was 1:11:03, which was good enough for 20^th out of 27. Stats: 1:11:03, 24.82 mi, 21 mph (35.2 max), 179 HR (189 max). I am so impressed with my teammates: Parri was 2^nd, Kat was 6^th, Anna was the 3^rd Cat 4, and the rest of us finished in the following order: Lisa S, Lisa C, Cali, me, Valerie, Shelly, and Jonell. I am so amazed by everyone’s races!

Today was a crit over in Murfreesboro. It was another beautiful day, another great venue, another chance for Team Belladium to shine, and another day of action. The 4s raced first, and I watched their race and cheered.

Cat 3/4s lined up

This also gave me a chance to check out the course and get prepared for what I had anticipated would be a hard race. Surprisingly, only 9 women showed up, and 5 of us were Belladium girls.

Lisa, Cali, me, Kat, and Parri ready to go!

We knew we had the numbers, and we had a plan, so I was ready to, again, do my best. Kat played a card early and was off the front for most of the race; Cali and Parri played a few cards later and were together for about half of the race; I had no cards to play and just raced as smart as I could. I stuck with Sandra, an SVMIC lady who I know is strong, and determined to make her do any required work while I sat on her wheel and did absolutely nothing. It worked out perfectly. Kat caught up to us and Sandra got on her wheel; I stayed on Sandra’s wheel again and still did nothing.

Mid-race: Olga, Lisa, Jess, Cali, Parri, Stephanie, me

On the last lap, I played the one card I had: a sprint. Sandra tried to attack up the last hill to catch Parri and Cali, but I knew she was going and was ready to go with her and do everything I could to out-sprint her. I succeeded, and because we’d gotten lapped we finished at the same time as Kat. But this left me in 4^th, Cali in 3^rd, Parri in 2^nd, and Kat in 1^st. Lisa S was able to finish with me, so she took 7^th. Overall, we pretty much dominated this race. It was so much fun, and it was relieving to not have to do too much work. Again, a super-impressive showing by my super-strong teammates!

Stats: 49:43, 17.62 mi, 21.3 avg (29.5 max), 178 HR (203 max)

Overall, the weekend has been amazing so far. Friday included a short ride to get a feel for the wheels and then an afternoon filled with helping Josh and Anna S move. And a little chat with my sister—I can’t wait to see my family in a couple weeks!