Catching Up (yet again)

I can't believe it's December (again).  2014 has flown by.  And once again I have slipped off on my blog duties.  I haven't written a post since mid-August, which was week EIGHT of my 30 week marathon training.  Week 8.

Yeah, 26.2 is almost here.  On Sunday.  A meager 5 days away.

It wasn't so long ago I used to ride in my car and see people running, thinking "I could never do that."

So, what's been going on since August.  A lot.  We went on vacation.  School got in to full swing for the kids, and that's played a large part in my inability to keep up with ANYTHING.  I totally DID go for 70.3.

It annoys me to get this far behind, because there have been so many awesome moments that I haven't documented.  A part of that is simply trying to be present in the moment with my family though, instead of being behind the computer writing things down.  I finally am back in the technological age, in terms of my phone, so that should help immensely.

So, the past 3.5 months in pictures.
We went on vacation in August to Mammoth Cave National Park.  This is one of my favorite places to go, because of the sheer scale of things.  Its absolutely amazing, the things that water can do underground.  We FINALLY got to go on the 5 hour wild cave tour, something that has been 3 years in the making.  Spending 5 hours spelunking in the worlds largest cave system?  Pretty freaking cool.  I was covered in bruises after.  Even my son, who is 8, strapped on a headlamp and got to go caving with a group, without either of us along with him. Pretty darn epic stuff.

The kids went home with their grandparents, allowing hubby and I to escape to the LITERAL wilderness for a few days.   We've always been a fan of off-the-beaten-path, and Linville Gorge was about as rugged as it gets in the eastern US.

In my mind there is nothing that substitutes for nature in terms of healing the soul.  The hustle and bustle of every-day life can be overwhelming, and it was lovely to just get away from everything for awhile.  We drove up the Blueridge Parkway and then hiking into the wilderness.  We spent a night sleeping in a hammock under the stars (and hoping not to get eaten by bears).  We climbed to a precipice and I cried, because it makes you feel small and insignificant and reminds you how big the world is.   It was wonderful and beautiful and the pictures really don't do the trip justice.  

We came home, and the kids came home right on our heels.  School for both kids entered full swing, and that was a challenge.   I finished out August with a 17 mile run, and the next weekend hit 44 miles on the bike. The weekend after that (9/14) was the bonus round in the Triathlon Trilogy.  I honostly can't even remember the race at this point, except that it was my first race on Karma and she FLEW.  It was amazing how much smoother the ride was on her, compared to my old bike. 

Cool video from the folks at Multirace showing how gorgeous the course is.  It's been such a pleasure racing with them this (and every) year.

Multirace Mack Cycle Bonus Round 2014 from Multi Race on Vimeo.

 The results from that were good enough for 1st place Athena for the series. 

 The following weekend was a 14 mile/5.5 mile bike run brick.   The weekend after, 9.28, was the Escape to Miami Triathlon.  Its kind of hilarious looking back, I was incredibly nervous about this race.  I have a thing about stepping outside my comfort zone--I don't like doing things when I'm not sure how they will go.  Until this year, I can barely manage to do one new thing a year.  I did my first half marathon in March 2012.  The biggest things I've tackled since then have been the Ragnar Relay and finally getting up the courage to do an International Triathlon in November 2013.  I haven't really pushed the envelope in several years. . . I have been living in my comfort zone.  Last year, that International was a stretch, I was exhausted afterward and the thought of an Olympic Distance Tri was a bit overwhelming.  I hadn't yet fully committed to doing a Half Iron at Miami Man in November this year, and I was planning on using Escape to Miami as a testing ground to see if 70.3 was doable, or just a little bit too far beyond the realm of sanity.

So. Next up. Escape To Miami.  

.9 mile swim, 24.8 mile bike, 10k run.