Miami Man Half Iron Triathlon

So.  I talked my husband in to the whole marathon thing because it was close to my birthday and I have always said "someday, I want to do that."  

When my bike was stolen this winter, I realized my "someday" for a half iron distance tri was going to have to (most likely) wait.  The idea of doing one had been in the back of my mind for awhile, especially since I had a good summer in the water this year--I had several swims over a mile and multiple open water swims.  But suddenly, my bike was gone, and not only would I probably not do a half iron this year, but my triathlon season was probably over. 

Somewhere in there, I told myself that if I somehow ended up getting my bike back, I would just go big or go home.  I would sign up for 70.3 and try not to die in the process.

Then Diamondback Bikes came in big for me, and the difference in the quality of the bike made me absolutely certain that I could handle 56 miles in the saddle. I knew, with marathon training in the works, that I could handle 13.1 no problem.  Putting it all together, on the other hand, was crazy. 

Triathlon is a little bit of a logistical nightmare to begin with.  It's equipment heavy---you need your gear to swim, your gear to bike, your gear to run.   There are about 1,000 things that can happen in 56 miles on a bike.  I have never, in the three years since I've had a road bike, flatted, and I'm perpetually worried about it happening during a race.

Transition

The day before the race, I was in freakout mode.  My training was completely derailed in October--I hadn't bricked, I hadn't swam.  Longest ride on the bike was 44, and I hadn't done a mid-distance brick after a long ride.  I was exceptionally worried about the cutoffs, and was trying to mentally prepare myself for a DNF, because I was almost certain it was going to happen.

One of the Multirace staffers talked me into switching to the first wave on race morning.  I am SO GLAD she did.  Once I made it out of the water on the swim, I KNEW I had plenty of time and it allowed me to really sit back and enjoy things.  

View of the swim from near transition.  Two loops around the lake, and you had to exit the water at the end of each loop. 

I very much stuck to the back and took my time on the swim.  This lake is my favorite swim of the season--its clear and calm and you can (usually see) very well.  Race morning was overcast and disgusting, the weather outlook was terrible, and we were just thankful for no lightening. 

When I exited on the swim, I heard tri-friend Madison screaming my name, which was awesome.  I hadn't drowned.  Yay!

1.2 mile Swim:  53:38, which works out to over 3 minutes/100 m but my only goal was to finish it under an hour, so I'll take it!

T1 was not memorable, nothing major happened. 2:50

Its really hard to even begin to explain the rest of the race after T1.  The skies opened up and it poured.  POURED.  Here. . . just watch.  56 miles of wet, rural, open roads in the pouring rain. You can see how much wetter things get as the video progresses. 

2014 Mack Cycle Miami Man Triathlon & Duathlon from Multi Race on Vimeo.

The bike went much much MUCH better than I was expecting. I held above a 17 mph pace pretty much the whole ride.  I was really expecting to be much slower than that.  My lower back started screaming around the 35 mile mark, so I started trying to really stretch as much as I could.   As we neared the end of the 56, I realized I was going to finish this thing, as long as the weather didn't force a close on the run course.  

56 mile bike: 3:09:37  - 17.71 mph

When it was over, it was hard to walk.  Its actually kind of funny to be in T2 of a half iron after doing so many sprint triathlons.  People move slowly and take their time. Many are in pain, and I was definitely one of them.  My back was miserable, so I took some time to stretch as I switched shoes.  I thanked my lucky STARS that I had covered my running shoes with a bag in the morning, because they were dry.   My feet were pruned and felt disgusting from 3 hours of being in cleats, soaking wet.  So dry socks and shoes felt lovely.  Popped a couple of advil and off to run 13.1

T2 - a very slow 4:45.  It was worth it. 

I can't say enough about the Galloway method for running.  I would have probably had a melt down if I hadn't been able to say "just three minutes" as I left transition.  Those first few intervals were awful.  I also spent a lot of time attempting to avoid puddles because my feet were so happy to be dry.  I started loosening up, and it started raining again, so after awhile, it was just plowing through puddles.  The run course was WET.  Part of it is on trails, and there were a bunch of unavoidable puddles.  I saw friends around the 4 mile mark, got some hugs and was recharged to finish the first loop.  Saw Brad hunkered in a rain slicker at the finish as I passed for my first lap.  (He had done the international distance--bless him for standing in the rain for 3 hours to wait for me while I kept going) It was pouring again, and started thundering right after I passed.  I worried again that the weather might cause them to stop us.  But it moved through quickly, and I felt good enough to pick up ever so slightly.  Knowing I would see familiar faces again kept me going.  

I was really surprised that I never reached a wall.  Maybe I wasn't pushing enough, but I genuinely had much more fun than I thought I would.  I love doing Multirace events because its always a bunch of familiar faces, and you can always find someone to say hello to.  It may have been a totally different ballgame if the sun had been blazing, but it was really an incredible experience.  

When I came to the finish, I was, OF COURSE, bawling.  These are things some people never even consider doing, and certainly things I myself never thought I could do until very, very recently.  

13.1 run:  3:05:02  - 14:07 min/mile.

Total time: 7:15:50.77

Much, much faster than I was expecting.  I can't wait to do another one, this time with proper training.  I should be able to shave a good chuck off of that.  Glad to have the first one under my belt--its putting yourself out there and going for it, not knowing if you have it in you, that is absolutely the hardest thing in the world. 

I didn't even manage to get many (ANY) good pictures after the race, because the rain continued to come on.  I ate (a LOT) when we were done, hoping it would stop so that I could get my phone and take a few pictures, but it never did.  Couldn't even change out of my soaking wet kit, because we would have gotten soaked again getting back to the car.  The warm bath we took when we got home was literally the BEST BATH EVER. 

Big thanks to my awesome friend and training buddy Julie, who not only kept my kids, but also fed us dinner afterward.   And to everyone who listened to me whine about how I didn't think I could do it, and told me that I could anyway.  To Diamondback Bicycles for my awesome ride.  To everyone who I have the pleasure of training with regularly this year--Julie, Jess, Tiffany, Karen, Susan, Rosie, Peggy . . . and of course to my hubby, who thought I had lost my marbles when I did my first sprint.  I love that I'm slowly dragging him over to the dark side.  To all the ladies on Team Tough Chik, who gave me the courage to think big.  And to my kids, who made me want to be a better version of myself.  A version of myself that was comfortable in my skin.  It's kind of hard to hate a body that can carry you through 70.3 miles. 

Tonight, we head up to Palm Beach for the last big adventure of 2014.  26.2 miles covered by nothing but our own feet.  2014 has been a year of firsts for our household.  Scary and so incredibly worth the wild ride. 

Key Biscayne Half Marathon + The Rest of October

October 5, 2014

One week after Escape to Miami, we had signed up to run the Key Biscayne Half Marathon.  No part of me really wanted to go run this race, especially since I knew I had to tack an extra seven miles on after to hit my first (and as it turned out ONLY) 20 miler.   I spent the week in active recovery--running only 5.5 miles and spending around two hours on the bike.

Had an absolute BLAST doing this race just because we had a huge contingent of Tough Chiks present.  My friend Jess, who will be running Palm Beaches with me this weekend, Karen, who has been my training partner for a lot of the long runs I have done this year (and has calmed me at every freakout), and Gillian, who runs with us regularly and is just awesome sauce.  Seriously love these ladies.  Oh yeah, my hubby was there too, but its not like we run together soooo . . . :-)

Gillian grabbed this pic of Jess and I during one of our walk intervals as we hit the bridge.  Yeah, this girl and I are going to absolutely slay 26.2 this weekend.  Wouldn't do it with anyone else. <3

I really, really REALLY love how Multirace does videos of their events--it allows those of you who aren't locals to see the beauty we are spoiled with on our runs. 

2014 KB Half Marathon & 10K - A MultiRace Production from Multi Race on Vimeo.

After finishing the half, Jess and I handed our medals to our hubbys (because we are crazy people) and took off for another 5 miles.  It was so nice to catch up. 

I came home and still did an extra three more in the evening, to make it all the way to 20. It was a crazy crazy crazy day.

Unfortunately, back to back weekends of racing + every day life kicked me in the butt.  We all got sick, and it derailed my training significantly.  I ended up with a 25 mile bike the following week, instead of the 50 I was planning, and then was promptly knocked on my butt, missing a whole weekend of training.  I bumped down the schedule 23 miles I had for the end of October to 17.   Then suddenly it was November, I found myself feeling incredibly undertrained for 70.3 on November 9th.  Commence freak out.

Next up: Miami Man Half Iron Triathlon

Escape To Miami Triathlon Recap

September 28, 2014

I have never done a race quite like Escape.  And granted, its not like I have done a bunch of huge races, but Escape to Miami marked my 18th triathlon.  This race, at nearly 2500 entrants, in the sprint and Olympic distances, was H-U-G-E.  This was also my first triathlon that wasn't put on by Multirace, which made things a little more nerve-wracking for me.

Because this is a big race, its complicated.  You have to pick up your packet early and drop off your bike the day before.  In downtown Miami.  *Yay*  This means a logistical nightmare when both you and your spouse are doing the race and you have two little people.  Thankfully we have awesome friends who make it possible to do these things.  (Monica, you rock!)

The bikes, all locked and loaded in the truck.  

See that little island out there?  Yup, that's Escape Island.  We get to swim from there to where the picture was taken. NOT in a straight line. :-)  

But it was fun to get to hang out on a beautiful, windy day with my incredible family 

Race morning started a TWO AM.  TWO AM.  That's early even by triathlete standards.  I finally figured out that if I get up early the day before the race, I will have no problem sleeping the night before the race.  I usually have major issues sleeping on race right. Really glad I tested this on this race because BOY did getting a good night's sleep keep me from wigging out at TWO AM.

Set up my stuff under the bike, and was thankful the guy next to me didn't show because the bikes were packed in TIGHT TIGHT TIGHT.   Made the first in many, many errors in this less than perfect race when I accidentally stuck my index finger in the spoke of my front tire while checking it.  Awesome.  So throbbing finger and I went to find our crew (Brad, our friend Julie, Chris, and Alfredo, the vet among us who had done this race at least 7 times). 

We were supposed to board the ferry at 4am.  Yes, board ferry. Jump off ferry. Swim the rest of the way to island.  Yes, we pay to do this!

 Really though, this aspect of the race was so cool.  It was weird to jump off a boat in the dark.  We sat on the island and chit chatted, hung out, and just generally had a good time.  Watched the sun rise.  I freaked out more than a little, but it was awesome.  And then there wasn't any more time to think, because our wave started.

My swim was slow.  #2 on the long list of things that could have gone better on this race happened, and I got stung by jellyfish under my arms and in my top. Fun times.  It started raining 3/4 of the way through the swim, HARD, which was disorientating.

I felt like my swim lasted forever, and was glad when it was over.  I promptly forgot the go stick for my bia in transition, so I didn't get to track my bike with my GPS. It ended up being no big thing--the bike was a blast, lovely weather and pretty views.  My front derailleur was apparently out of adjustment, because I couldn't shift.  Thank goodness the bridges were small.  This was only Karma's second race, but I was again blown away by the differences on this bike.  24.8 miles was lovely, and I got off the bike feeling great.  I even managed to chik a few of the guys on tri bikes in the turns--I love tight turns, its fun to come off of them quickly.  Had so much fun on the ride.

T2 was a mess, I had to find the go stick for my bia and was so focused on that i almost forgot to take off my cycling gloves. It was HOT by now, and the run was a shadeless wasteland of South Florida humidity.  The best part of the run was the cool towels they gave us at the sprint turn around.   It's times like this that I really appreciate the Galloway method, which kept me from getting overheated in pretty brutal conditions.  I saw lots of familiar faces on the run, and felt good despite the heat.  I love the camaraderie of triathlon--since no one runs with music, you end up making friends.  I shared my water with an older gentleman who was overheated in the last few miles, ran in to my friend Jeanette and chatted with her for a bit.  The last mile came and went quickly.

When it was over, both the older gentleman and my friend Jeanette said GO FOR IT in terms of 70.3.  Both of them have done that distance before.  So when I came home, I upgraded, and freaked.
Stats:    Swim  00:45:46     03:04 min/100m
               T1    00:02:29
            Bike    01:28:21       16.88 mi/hr
              T2     00:02:32
            Run      01:23:08      13:23 min/mi
            Total :  03:42:14

Brad did great too, even though it endlessly annoys me that he was under-trained and finished a good 12 minutes ahead of me

By a complete freak thing, I ended up placing.  There were only a few women in our division though. I don't get WHY there are not more Athenas--I have a hard time believing there are only a handful of women over 165lbs who chose to do Triathlon. They do divide based on age (over 39 and under 39), but I wonder if there is a stigma against racing as an Athena.  I don't care, though, I'll do it anyway--I like to own that I'm not your typical picture of a triathlete--you don't have to be a size 2 or 4 to enjoy this sport. Medal was pretty cool. 

Really enjoyed this race.  I probably wouldn't do it again, because the logistics were just a bit too much, but jumping off the ferry was by far my favorite part. 

No rest for the weary though--Key Biscayne Half Marathon/first 20 mile run was due the following week.  

Race Report - Triathlon Trilogy #2

I feel like its been forever since I've written a race report.  Probably because it has been.  It's been six weeks since my last race (Trilogy 1) and THAT alone seemed like forever.  The last race I blogged about was Ragnar back in February and I never even finished writing about that.  Sigh.  Have to do better on the balance.

This race was by far my BEST race this season, so far anyway.  Also my best race on this course.  This is my third season doing the Triathon Trilogy, although the course was changed up this season by the return of the Rickenbacker Causeway to the bike course.  I actually miss all the loops of the old course--the Uturns made it a technically challenging course it was slightly longer.  The challenge presented by the climb is fantastic though.

Here's the low-down on the course.

 And how things shaped up for me.

The swim--AWESOME.  I have been spending a lot of time in the water focusing on improving my technique.  My friend Julie is an AWESOME teacher.  This was a PR on this course for me by 1:07.  Which is HUGE for a 400m swim.  The conditions were near perfect too. 

The bike-I had hubby's road bike for this race.  I am flat out floored by what a different ride it is, between the carbon fiber frame and the upgraded components.  The climb over the Rickenbacker Causeway was SO MUCH EASIER on his bike than it was on mine.  Its just crazy.  The pace above is incorrect though (as much as I would like to say I really did break 20) because the course distance is incorrect.  Either way, using his bike shaved 2+ minutes off my bike time from last race.  The only downside is that his bike is a bit too big for me and my shoulders/back are SCREAMING today.

T2-My T2 times used to be under a minute, but since switching to clips on the bike (I used to ride in cages) I can't seem to trim T2 down.  12 second improvement this time, so I'll take it.  I also managed to run in my cleats this go-round, which is a bonus.   Lots of room for improvement here.

Th run- by the time I hit the run course, it was hot.  I ran most of the first mile and then switched to Galloway 3/1.  Best thing I ever did.  I felt physically strong for the duration of the run, and this time was only 3 seconds off my personal best for this run course.  It's a challenging multi-surface run course--part of it is over sand.  Looking forward to breaking the 11 minute mile barrier in September, since I hope marathon training will continue to make me a stronger runner.

All in all, good enough for an almost 7 minute course improvement over last race, a 3 minute PR for this particular race, and 3rd in my division.  My friend Julie rocked it out for 2nd, despite back pain and a nagging knee injury. 146th overall and 47th female. 

This was my first race with my bia.  It's still a work-in-progress, learning how to use it.  I really enjoy the fact that it can automatically post my tracks (it has a built in cellular connection, which is pretty freaking cool).  The Triathlon mode is on rollout and I missed the shout out to get it in time for this race, so I missed getting that in time. As a result I missed the first .6 miles of the run while my bia was doing an upgrade.  But its all good--The go stick stayed snug during every stage of the race. 

The place medals were super fun this go-round--a spinning place number with a spinning multirace emblem inside it.  Loved them!  Here's a pic of the goodies.

 I am totally bummed that I will miss the 3rd round of the trilogy because of our vacation.  I have done every race in the trilogy for the past 2 years.

Ragnar 2.0 - In the Books

This year was so incredible, I'm having a crazy hard time recovering from it.

Because it was damn near perfect.

Sure, there were little snafus.  Like when we got to exchange 24 at midnight Friday night in an INCREDIBLY sleep deprived state, expecting a nice major exchange with OH, I dunno, a building.  Or at least a bathroom with running water.  And got a grass field.  An UNMOWED grass field.  With port-o-johns as the ONLY facilities.

But I digress.

This year's Ragnar Keys was AMAZING.  This was our second year doing the event, and our first as team captains.  Technically BRAD was the team captain.  Technically.  We had a great group of really strong runners.  Half of our crew had relay experience.  The weather didn't cooperate with us, but it didn't absolutely flatten us like it did last year--the heat was bad but the night runs, at least, were manageable. 

I can't say enough about how much fun this group of people was to hang out with in between runs.   Left to right, Gigi (Running on Candy), Brad, me, Nick (went to college with Brad), Kristen (friends with Allison), and Rich (Kristen's brother-in-law).

 Rich and his crew of "Tarts and Tartans" were awesome.  Steady and strong for every single leg.  All while wearing kilts.  Back row, left to right:  Allison (we know each other from the gym), Susan (friends with Allison), Dawn, Rich; front, Mike and Melissa.  Dawn, Rich, Mike and Melissa all know each other and had run together previously.   Steady and STRONG, I say!

 

We started at 5:10 am (10 minutes later than we were supposed to) and finished 34 hours later, while the sun was still out, which was a great treat :-)

 

Fantastic experience.  Shower Pill DEFINITELY made things more pleasant for us, keeping the stinkiness to a minimum.  We really appreciated those Shower Pill wipes when we were stuck at the exchange with no running water, let me tell you.

I'll write three separate posts over the next few days highlighting the three legs.  But suffice to say this was an AMAZING experience with a bunch of great people.  I couldn't help but think of our Ragnar team from last year often--another amazing experience with a bunch of strong, resilient runners.  I was glad that we had an injury/incident free year this year!

Race Report and Review: Superhero Scramble Villain

 So . . . we signed up for the Superhero Scramble using a deal on Living Social a LONG time ago.  When we did it, it was for the Intimidator course, which was supposed to be 8 miles.  When we did it, I figured it would be a fun "last long run" before Ragnar (before I knew how crazy I would get it my training, to the point 8 miles really isn't a "long run" anymore . . . )  It was meant to be a fun chance to do something crazy with a bunch of girls at the gym, except most of them bailed/moved/were injured.  So it ended up being just Brad and I.  Brad and I don't usually run together, because I run an 11 min/mile +/- and he runs in the 9:30 min/mile territory.  Those two just don't mix well.     At some point, the powers that be at Superhero Scramble decided to add a "Villain" course to this race, which is advertised as "13+ miles".  They also moved the race from Miami up to Deerfield Beach, a LONG way from our house.

Whatever, we rolled with the punches.  We somehow ended up registered for the Villain.  Don't ask me how, I still have no idea.   We debated downgrading to the Intimidator, but decided we could swing 13 miles.    We headed up to stay with my friend Jess on Friday night, and she watched the kids.  The first wave wasn't supposed to start until 9:00, and our wave at 9:15, but we headed up to the park at 7.  We arrived by 8, and there was already a line for parking.  A short line, but a line all the same.  After we got our numbers, we started chatting with a couple ladies from New York, who said they were told the course was 20 miles for the Villain.  Wait, what?  What happened to "13+"?  That's a lot of "+".   But then the MC for the event announced 8 miles for the Intimidator, 16 miles for the Villain.  Okay, that's still a lot of "+", but better than 20, right??  RIGHT???   Right after that the MC announced parking was such a disaster that they would be delaying the start.   Our wave, which was scheduled for 9:15, didn't start until 9:40.  During this time, I managed to down half my hydropack, because it was already hot and humid.  In a major case of forshadowing, there was no water at the finish line water station, so I couldn't refill.  Oh well.  I ditched my shirt, because it was seriously hot.  I'm super selfconcious, but if we *were* running over 15 miles, I wanted to stay cool.  So whatever. 

Here we are before the race

Race started, there were some simple obstacles along the way.  And then we hit the trails.  HOLY TRAILS.  We were literally running black diamond single track mountainbiking trails for 4-5 miles.  It was INTENSE.  And hot.  And there was only a single water station on the entire course.  But we held our own.  I didn't fall on my face, which was a WIN considering how intense those trails were.   The entire time though, I was thinking what a PERFECT Ragnar training run it was.

Then, after what felt like hours, we finally got to an obstacle that wasn't a wall, and the chance to get wet.  The "Leap of Faith" is a 20-30 leap into the lake, followed by a 250ish yard lake swim.

Photo Courtesy of Superhero Scramble

When we got there, things were a little crazy.  Multiple people were having to be rescued.  There was  a rope for people to hold on to, but it went across the ENTIRE swim and was swamped with people.  We waited for a good 10 minutes while they sorted that out.  It got cloudy and started raining.  We finally got to go.  SO FUN to jump from that high, and the lake swim wasn't a big deal.  It was just awkward swimming in shoes and with the hydropack.

Climbed a net to get out of the lake.  Passed the *only* other water station on the course immediately after that.  About 10 minutes later, we stopped to provide medical assistance to a guy who had immobilizing leg cramps and was probably majorly dehydrated.  At some point we passed a mile 7 marker.  Only the 2nd mile marker on the entire course.  But whatever.  There was a balance beam obstacle, which was cool.

There was the Arach-net-phobia, which was seriously cool.   And no, I didn't mange to climb the rope.  I used to be scared to death of heights, so I felt pretty bad ass doing this obstacle.

Photo courtesy of Superhero Scramble

Other than some rock walls, which are always fun, there weren't any other "awesome" obstacles.  There was a row of deep, steep pits that were challenging.  There was a cinder block pull and a sandbag carry.  *Yippee*  NO mud.  Although it was nice reminder of how much Body Pump pays off.  :-)

As we were heading through the parking lot, we started strategizing how we would survive the next loop of the course.  Because it had DEFINITELY been way more than a mile since we had seen the "Mile 7" sign.   We stopped at the car to get extra nutrition and refill the hydropack.  Then headed out for our second loop.  We saw a guy right after the split for the Intimidator course who had clocked 9.5 miles on his GPS.  Yeah, NOT 8. 

We managed the 2nd loop.  But things were dire back at the first waterstop.  They had run out of cups, there were lines, 2 jugs, and everyone drinking from the jug.  DIRE.  We refilled our hydropack.  The 2 guys working the water stop said that they only had two jugs of water left.  We walked a lot on the trails during the second loop, but still passed a lot of Intimidator people from the later waves.  When the trails finally ended, we did the "Leap" again, and swam the lake.  Balance beam was harder the 2nd time around.   Similar conditions at the 2nd water station (no cups, 2 jugs, NO volunteers).  After that point, there were very few volunteers anywhere on the course. 

The end of the course was a total fail, IMO.  There were several obstacles at the end . . . a fire jump followed by an ice pit.  The ice pit had collapsed.   Here we are jumping over fire though.

Then the wall climb (which we skipped, because I watched a girl fall almost from the top and no. After 19 miles in the heat and humidity . . . Just no.)

Photo courtesy of Super Hero Scramble

The slide was FUN.  That's actually us.  One of the things I *did* like about Superhero is downloading race photos is included in the package.

The final obstacles were supposed to be a slime pit, mud pit, and battling past some people with giant pads.  EPIC FAIL.  The slime was dried up, the mud was dried up, and there was one person just standing there with the giant pad.  Oh, and Brad managed to cut his hand in the mud pit, which had all sorts of fun sharp objects in it.   Insult to injury, there was no water pressure in the hoses and no place to change after.

Shirts and medals were cool.  Except wait, what year it is??   Yeah, 2014.  The medal and shirt both say 2013.  Superhero says it is because it is because it is the end of the 2013 season.  Okay, whatever.  It would still be nice if it said the year we raced it in.  Oh well.  Otherwise, the shirt is awesome. 

Final thoughts:  We had a BLAST, and it was definitely great Ragnar prep.  AND I've been stuck at 14-15 miles for my max long run, so this got me over that hump.  But considering the hydration issues and issues on the swim, I am surprised no one died.  And I'm not joking when I say that.  I thought the obstacles at Warrior Dash were better.  Having *MORE* obstacles doesn't really do anything for me if its the same thing over and over, or if half the obstacles are dried up/broken/whatever by the time I get to them.   My biggest thing though, is I do NOT SEE how a race organizer can not let participants know the correct distance before the start of an event.  We were fortunate, because we overpacked, but there is a HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE difference between 13, 16 and 19 miles.  Its impossible to bring proper nutrition and water if you don't know the proper distance.  There was no nutrition on course and only 2 water stations over 9.5 miles.  I get that this race wasn't a supported race, but how do you bring proper fuel when you don't know the actual distance? There's even a pretty big difference between 8 and 9.5 for the Intimidator people.  Overall, this race was poorly executed, especially for a "World Championship."  We only do Obstacle Races once a year, and I don't think we'll do Superhero again. 

Miami Beach Halloween Half 2013 . . . the one that almost didn't happen

I wasn't entirely certain I could handle a half marathon in October, when my tri season wasn't ending until the 2nd weekend in November.  But alas, hubs and I committed to the do the Miami Beach Halloween Half.  I worked this race last year and it looked super fun--lots of people dressing up in costumes.   In the weeks leading up to this badboy, I was secretly hoping for a new half marathon PR.

Then my oldest son got sick. Then I spent the whole week coughing up a lung and fighting a horrible sinus thing.  Brad got sent out of town on a whirlwind two day business trip.  I didn't sleep.  I was pretty sure that not only was PR NOT happening, I was probably going to be taking my first DNS (Did not start) because I couldn't walk around the block without feeling like I was going to die.

The night before the race, I took nyquil and spent most of the night sleeping in a chair (AGAIN).  I resigned myself to the DNS, but decided to pack my race clothes "just in case" because I knew I would regret it if I didn't.  We always work these races, so even if I wasn't racing, I was still going to help out.  I was undecided until 30 minutes before the race started.  It was SUCH a beautiful day.  I finally decided what the heck.  It was 4 miles from the start to where we ran by the finish line for the first time.  If I felt bad, I would just stop there.  Dead Last > Did Not Finish > Did Not Start.   So I got dressed.

 We were supposed to be Gilligan and Mary Anne, but I failed getting Brad the signature hat and didn't really do it to the full extent we could have.

I started off SUPER slow, just willing myself to get warmed up and *not die*.  At this point I had zero expectations and just wanted to enjoy the moment.

The view as we passed the finish line the FIRST time (mile 4).  I was feeling good, and kept going.

 And all things considered, THIS was a beautiful way to spend a Saturday morning.  We had to run half a mile on the beach on the way out, and then the same half mile on the way back (around mile 11).  No biggie on the way out.  On the way BACK on the other hand . . .

At about mile 5, I felt INCREDIBLE so I decided to pick up to my goal pace.  I knew PR wasn't happening, so I decided to make this a training run and go for a negative split.  It so happened that my music stopped working, so I ran 3.5 miles between a 9:25-10:25 min/mile pace. (Fast fast fast for me) I was feeling ON FIRE.  And then, two things happened.  # 1 was that there were no water stations  for 3 miles.   #2 was we turned on to the famous Lincoln Road, which is APPARENTLY not my cup of tea.  I did not dig the detour, I was thirsty, and I crashed quickly.  I slowed down and never got my mojo back.  I know nutrition was an issue, because I wasn't feeling well and didn't eat like I normally would have leading up to a race. 

Back on the beach stretch I got to hang with Dr. Dribble , which was fun and entertaining.  Even HE had to carry his balls across the beach stretch. 

And THEN came the biggest letdown of the race . . . we had to run PAST the finishline AGAIN for the last 1.5 of the race.  All the way to the site of the after party.  Then turn around and run BACK to the finish line.  No secret to those that know me that I am NOT a loop girl.  I am an out and back girl.  I don't run by my house because I WILL quit.  This was totally because of a last minute course change the city required, but it was PAINFUL.   My mental toughness was gone.  I walked way more than I should have. I was SO GLAD when I finally crossed that finish line.

My time for half marathon #3 was 2:36 and change, just under a 12 minute mile.  Not what I was hoping for going in, but not as slow as my first half.  It was a total learning experience.   Things I learned:
-Speed work pays off.  I CAN maintain a faster pace for a prolonged period.  All of my tempo runs have been in the 3-4 mile range, and if I expect to maintain a faster pace for 13.1, I need to start upping my tempo runs.
-I actually stay on pace better with music.  I think from now on, music is for the last half or so.  Or maybe the first 3rd and last 3rd.
-I still need to carry my own water, because if I don't drink, I crash.
-I can ABSOLUTELY kill my run at Miami Man this coming weekend, and hopefully do it under an 11 minute mile pace if things go well.  I CAN RUN FAST(ER) if I focus. 
And, your TMI for the day . . . if you run with a head cold, it drains, and it causes tummy trouble. NOT FUN.

Recovery coming off this race was not great, simply because I felt so crappy after that I didn't even stretch like I should have.   I have felt under the weather for the week and a half since, and haven't really done much of anything.  Mostly because Miami Man is this weekend, and as my "A" race for the year, I want fresh legs.  Another thing I learned about myself is that scheduling too much to close in means I end up undertrained.  I haven't really trained since the first week in October, between recovery from the Columbus Day Tri, this race.  Soooo ready to be done with Miami Man so I have two months to just FOCUS on miles and speed before Ragnar and the spring half marathons.

Hoping YOU had an amazing October. 

Race Report - Mack Cycle Triathlon Trilogy Bonus Round - Mostly in pictures

In 2012, I was amazingly pleased with myself just for completing all four races in the  Mack Cycle Triathlon Trilogy.  (Yes, Trilogy means THREE, but there is a bonus round).  I got a new bike and spent a lot of my season learning how to ride it well.  This season, the trilogy was different.  I learned that I could be competitive. 

This race was super special because after Brad thinking I was NUTS for doing this stuff, he decided to JOIN me.

Getting ready to head out in the wee hours of the morning.

 After racking our bikes in transition

 And really, what beats this??  It isn't about winning or losing or how fast you go.  Its about meeting the day, rising to the occasion, and living each day to its fullest.

 I got to pass Brad on the bike once.  Other than that I didn't see him.  He was waiting at the finish for me, but in the end I had him by a scant amount of time.  Of course, HE was on a mountain bike and it was his first race.  I was actually sad when I saw my run time, I was expecting to kill it because I felt AMAZING.  My time last month was faster. 

 After

 Really liked the Tough Chik Zoom Zoom top.  It didn't chafe and stayed in place and was kind to all my lumpy places.  I snagged the matching shorts for the Columbus Day Triathlon, where I'll accompany my long-time run bud Jess on her first Tri.

 Times were good enough for another 3rd place.  I had a personal best in almost everything.  The currents were in our favor for a change.   I also managed 3rd place Athena for the series.  Sooo close to 2nd, but close only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades.  Was happy having my little miss on the podium with me, arms raised in victory.

 We managed to finish up the awards ceremony before the storms started rolling in.

Beautiful day.  Brad had fun, and will definitely be back for more next season. His only response to his time was "I should have practiced a brick."  :-)  Ever so slowly pulling him over to the dark side.

Don't forget Team Tough Chik registration is still open, through the end of the month!