“If you aren’t in the moment, you are either looking forward to uncertainty, or back to pain and regret.”

Jim Carrey

This year one of her target races was Pike’s Peak Ascent.  Pike’s Peak Ascent is a crazy cool race, but one that requires dedicated training.  Participants come from all over the world; many never get to train at altitude or in the mountains.  I once met a guy who was from Texas, and yes I know Texas isn’t all that worldly, although he was from Austin, and I wondered how he got ready for the altitude.  He used heat training-your heart rate elevates similarly in heat as it does in high altitude.  Anyhow, my point is that we are lucky to have the mountain in our backyard to train on.  So, I got to have an adventure with Laura climbing Pike’s Peak!  Unfortunately, I have been really scatter-brained lately and once again, I forgot my camera-so no pictures.  But needless to say, we had a great time and Laura is killing it these days.  She is a pack horse- steady and strong.  Never really attacking, but running with some gumption and determination.  It has been really cool seeing this girl who had only completed 5K’s and sprint triathlon grow into an “I can do anything” athlete.

But you may be wondering why this story is name Pike’s Peak Revisited.  Well, a few years ago I signed up for and trained for the ascent.  Everything was great.  I ran Mt Evans Ascent for training and did lots of trail running.  The week of the race came and I got really sick.  I figured I would just lay low and take good care of myself and by the time Saturday came I would be healthy. Well Friday night came and I felt better but still was running a fever intermittently , but I still decided to drive down with the girls and see what race morning held.  It was pouring rain on our drive down to the Springs and chilly to boot.  Everyone was a little concerned about the weather and the race being cancelled.  It was an opportunity to get out of town and enjoy a beautiful hotel room and good times with good friends- so on we went.  Race morning was the same:  both health and weather.  I decided not to run the race as it was not my number one goal of the season and getting healthy was more important.  It was a difficult decision but the right decision.  The 2 girls I traveled with headed out to run and I waited in the warm hotel.  One of the gals got about 5 miles up before the race was cancelled and Michelle got about 10 miles in before it was called.  Her day was tough as she had only planned on running 13 miles and ended up running 20!  When the race gets cancelled you just turn around where you are and run back down to the bottom.  Awesome!  It was a good thing I decided not to go as the conditions just got worse the higher up the mountain you got.  So running with Laura up Pike’s Peak was a way for me to enjoy the mountain and show myself again that I was capable of conquering the mountain.

Maybe someday I will run the race, but for now I am content where I am.  Adventures make me happy and not having goals at the moment feels healthy.  For the longest time I believed you had to always have a goal and always be working towards goals to be considered a successful athlete.  How wrong I was.  Even pros take breaks and take time to enjoy the simple pleasure of going out on an adventure.  It makes the times that you are focused on your goals more enjoyable.  If you do the same thing day in and day out it becomes a little mundane.  And that is what I have been doing for the last 5 years.  I rode the same rides, ran the same runs, swam the same swims and, while I will admit it built a sense of tenacity in me, quite frankly, I got a little burned out!  Now when I am faced with running the same running route to prepare for something it seems fun again to have the desire to train and perform.  I know I have to run to run well and I know have time constraints, so I know I am running in the same place but I am willing to do it because I have a more balanced approach to my sport.

I haven’t done a Sprint distance race in years.  They are short and fast.  Coming off on an Ironman and a 70.3 this race was over before it even began for me.  To put it in perspective, most people finish a sprint race before some people are finished with an Ironman swim.  This ended up being a pretty special race for me because it was Father’s Day and Steve 6.0 and I had his kids, Shaun,  and his mom with us for the day.  His kids made the cutest signs for cheering us on at the race.  Full color plastered with stickers and Happy Father’s Day messages for Daddy.  It was awesome.   My plan for the day was to do the race, eat some food, and take off on my bike for home to make the day a longer training day for Louisville.  Steve and I made it out to the race by 5:15, got great transition spots and went back to the car to chill out before suiting up to warm up for the day.  The swim was quite lovely and very enjoyable.  No issues.  Sighted great and swam great.  Transition to bike was great.  I love the sprint bike course.  No hills to speak of.  Not a flat course, but not hilly either.  Keith loaned me his TT bike and race wheels for this race because he is going to let me ride the Isaac for Louisville, so I had a good time on the bike.  However, in the interest of honesty and not sugar coating my life, I have been feeling very not strong and definitely not very fast, but more important, I haven’t been feeling like I am racing.  The feeling is more like I am just going through the motions.  I am not feeling competitive.  Granted, I don’t ever win my age group, but I always feel like I am racing.  I don’t want to be passed and I give everything I have to give.  I have to acknowledge this to figure out what the issue is.  Maybe it is my mind, maybe it is my inconsistency in training this year, or maybe I am just tired.  Not sure.  So I thought I was pushing a bigger front ring on the TT bike than I was-it was a good excuse while it lasted!!  The run was a pre Ironman Andrea run.  It was not my best, but not my worst either.  Last year I learned what it was like to actually race while running.  It is that feeling of knowing when to respond and that when you do respond that you will win.  It is knowing that you have done everything you can do to be prepared for the day.  It is knowing that you are doing your best and if you gave anything more you would fall over dead or poop your pants.  I didn’t have any of that in this run, but I did run the whole thing and I was happy.  It was more a training day than a race.  I don’t think I like that.  Overall, I had a great day being outside, enjoying my family, and getting to see people in my community that I haven’t seen since I divorced and moved.  I did make one fatal error this day.  An error that I know how not to make, but I was lazy.  I did not pack food to eat after the race to fuel myself for the ride home.  The food after the race was cereal.  Yeah-Wheaties.  REALLY??  Cereal and milk.  This makes me a little sad that WTC, the entity that bought the Boulder Series, is going to do with these races.  Anyhow, LESSON LEARNED again:  Be responsible for myself and my needs.  I didn’t ride my bike home.  We hung with the kids in the water and took Steve out for Father’s Day brunch instead and discussed what we wanted to do for Boulder Peak.

“Why is this thus?  What is the reason for this thusness” -Artemus Ward

Boulder Peak:  I didn’t want to do Boulder Peak.  However, I had to stay close to home this year, so I signed up.  Packet pick up day rolls around and I am still not feeling the love for Boulder Peak.  Don’t get me wrong-it’s Boulder and there is great competition at this race.  It is the premier race in Colorado, but it is Boulder Peak.  I have done it a million times and am over it.  The run course is always brutal.  Granted, it is flat, but it is HOT!!  There is no shelter from the sun and did I mention it is HOT!!  What do I do in this situation?  It is foreign to me.  I have never not wanted to race.  I love racing.  It is the reward for all of the sacrifice and the hard work.  Waking up early in the morning to swim or run.  It is the diamond the sweat and the tears shed on the track  have formed.  It is the finish line for a moment.  Friends are gathered.   Threats are marked.  Egos are checked.  It is the end of a process.  The beginning of the next process.  The storm after the calm.  It is racing.  It is awesome.  It is what drives me to get out of bed in the morning.  Not this time.  Again, what do I do in this situation?  I don’t know this feeling.  Go through the motions.  Yes.  That is the answer.  By the time I get my wetsuit on and jump in the water I will be fine.  Off to packet pick up.  Packet pick up issues that were experienced at Boulder Sprint were fixed and we were in and out in no time at all.  Still not feeling the love.  10pm rolls around.  I better get my race stuff together and put my number on my bike.  Alright.  Going through the motions.  I will be fine.  Wake up.  Don’t want to get out of bed.  It is very tempting to just turn over and go back to sleep.  Go through the motions.  Get up.  Get dressed.  Eat breakfast.  Drive to the reservoir.  Put my bike in transition.  Go back to the car.  Still not feeling the love.  Go through the motions.  Sunblock on.  Body Glide smothered over my body.  Wetsuit slides on.  Go swim.  The water is lovely.  Line up.  Go through the motions.  Buoys set up funny-40 degree first turn not 90.  Remember that.  Horn goes off.  I swim.  I think, I love swimming.  It is easy for me.  It is where I am most confident and comfortable.  Waves, hurricanes, current-bring it.  Just keep swimming.  Off course-made a 90 instead of 40-fix it.  Swim swim swim.  There is the finish.  Still not feeling the love.  Get on your bike and get going.  Take it one step at a time and before you know it you will be crossing the finish line.  I don’t want to climb Old Stage today.  Get on your bike.  I don’t want to run the course today.  Get on your bike.  Biking.  Swerving while putting my feet into the pedals.  Still feel like I am pedaling a bike that has both brakes squished tight against the wheels.  Just bike, get warmed up.  One thing at a time.  People passing.  Don’t care.  Don’t want to ride my bike today.  How does one DNF?  I’m not really sure.  Do I say I flatted?  Do I say I had a mechanical?  Just ride silly.  Don’t care.  Hit bumps.  Make a sharp right turn on a dirt road.  Ahh relief.  Come to a crossroad.  Get off my bike and sit on the side of the road and smile.  I am not going to climb Old Stage today.  How does one DNF?  Wait a few minutes.  Enjoying the stillness.  Ride my bike back to the reservoir.  Run into Jordan-”What are you doing-specatating today?” he asks.  ”Nope.  I just quit.  I didn’t want to race.”  That is how you DNF.  Saw Michele B on the way out maybe she is still there on the side of the road waiting for Anthony to come  back from his bike ride.  Put my bike in the car.  Put my sundress on.  Find Michele.  Talk.  She is worried that I am not alright.  But funny thing is that I am more alright than I have been in a long time.  That is how you DNF.  You just stop.  Put your bike away.  Put on your clothes and walk back to the race and cheer your friends on.  Smile.  That was easy.  Steve 6.0 had a PR and a great day and I got to see him coming back in on the run.  How awesome is that?  But still-why is thus?

“It is better wither to be silent, or to say things of more value than silence.  Sooner throw a pearl at hazard than an idle or useless words; and do not say a little in many words, but a great deal in a few.” Pythagoras

This was the first time I had the possibility of running into Steve Pye and Sarah since his affair and our split. How will I handle it?  I put my thoughts together on how I want to handle the situation and felt good about my plan.  I did indeed see  Sarah and Steve together at the beginning of the day and much to my surprise I smiled and found myself feeling rather undisturbed.  There is no hurt or anger, only a feeling of extreme peace and happiness. Unbeknownst to me right after good Steve crossed the finish line Steve Pye was sitting not 2 feet away from us.   He is sitting and there are 3 women surrounding him rubbing his shoulders, touching his leg, and being as close as they possibly can to him.  Mind you Sarah is still off racing and not one of the 3 surrounding him.  Again, a wave of peace comes over me and at that moment I am left with that happy feeling again.  I stand a little taller and I smile a little bigger.   It is no longer mine and it never was.

LESSEN LEARNED: I should have never signed up for a race I knew I didn’t want to do.

LESSON LEARNED: I have myself back and I am surrounded by goodness.

LESSON LEARNED: Rely on myself for my special needs

LESSON LEARNED:  Life is practice.

“If you aren’t in the moment, you are either looking forward to uncertainty, or back to pain and regret.”-Jim Carrey

I’m not even sure congratulations are enough for this accomplishment.  Sonja has put her heart and soul into doing all the things necessary to better herself in her sport and has been willing to sacrifice and put the hard work into achieving the goals she has set for herself.  But bigger than this, and by “this” I mean the training-this girl has grown into an amazing woman, mother, wife and has earned the title of friend by many people.  Triathlon seems to be the area where we see this girl shine.  And she shines here because she lives on a foundation of honesty, eagerness, passion, hard-work, ethics, love, and a zest for life.

Her growth over the years has been amazing.  From seeing her cry at the “agony of defeat” to crying for the “thrill of victory” and winning her Kona spot-her adventure through the “human drama of athletic competition” has been worth every moment because of what she has turned it into.  I cannot wait to follow her journey to Kona!  GRRRR is up girl.

Follow Sonja to Kona:

GoSonja.com

Let me start by saying Boise is a COOL town!  I guess when people describe it they call it a little Denver.  I could see why-I mean, gosh, they have a Proto’s too.  Which, on a side note, is where I ate lunch one afternoon where I watched the Ironman crew set up the finish line.  With all of that being said Ironman Boise 70.3 was a kickin’ good time!  With the finish right downtown in the evening it really felt like an Ironman 140.6.

Some things the same and some things different.  This race is unique in my opinion for 2 reasons:  First, it is a Saturday race, and second, it starts at 2 in the afternoon.  So the new beau, who really isn’t so new anymore in terms of time in our relationship but is still new to me because he stirs things in me that have never been stirred before, and well, quite frankly that is still new to me…but back to our story cuz this really is about triathlons, Boise 70.3 specifically, and not my love life.  We departed Denver on a 10pm flight that got delayed until 10:30pm.  Now this you must already know since you are reading a triathletes blog-we triathletes have a hard time staying up past 9pm!  Airplanes really aren’t that comfortable of a place to sleep, but I did manage some zzz’s on NB’s shoulder and in his lap-and a little bit on the other cute boy sitting next to me, quite by accident of course.  We arrived in Boise around midnight and caught the shuttle to the hotel and laid our heads on the pillow around 12:45am.  Not too bad.  Under normal race circumstances I would never fly on such a late flight, but we had Friday to sleep in, check out the course as best as we could without a car, and pick up race packets in the afternoon.  And, we didn’t have to rise and shine o’dark thirty for a race the day after either.  So…alas the trip to Idaho was uneventful and had no negative impact on us really.

The next day we were up around 9am, strolled down for the hotel breakfast and ran into GoDoreen who had so lovingly met a gentleman traveling alone and with a car!!  Bike course scoping time!  It was really nice of Richard to offer to let us tag along to scope out the reservoir and the bike course.  This race is a point to point event which always makes me a little nervous- just cuz I am a little forgetful sometimes!  Ironman Louisville is a point to point race as well, so I figured Boise made good practice for not forgetting things.  The bike starts out of transition with a mild downhill, with a short climb up onto the dam  and then a should be screaming decent heading to the outskirts of town.  A couple of climbs, a couple of technical turns, a tight turn around and then back to do it all over again except head downtown-slightly uphill but not too noticeable in the car and then a long straight road to T2.  Good stuff.  Hills to get out of the saddle, technical turns to have fun, and long straightaways to hammer.

Packet pick up at the Qwest Arena was well organized and super fast and super simple even though there was a line.  Great shopping at the Ironman Store-too bad it is all way out of my current budget.  Schwag was alright.  K Swiss bags and T shirts and a Headsweat cap.  With all the work finished for the day we headed out for lunch at Proto’s and hooked up later  with Keith, who so lovingly drove our bikes from Denver.  Once again we headed to the reservoir this time to drop our bikes the night before the race.  Here is another interesting thing about Boise 70.3.  Bike check in the day before is optional.  The event organizers offer racers and spectators the option of purchasing an $8 shuttle ticket for race morning and do not allow bikes on the bus, rightfully so.  However, this is interesting to me because the race start at the reservoir is about 10 miles away from the downtown area where all of the hotels are.  In my opinion, not a bikeable distance before a half.  Also, the parking at the reservoir is very limited and has you walking about a mile up a pretty steep hill.  I decided shuttle tickets were the way to go, but part of me really feels like the shuttle should not have cost participants extra money.  If you are going to offer a point to point race you should include the cost of transportation in the race.  But now that I have said that-there is A TON of police support and road closures on this course, so maybe the money is better spent there and what is 8 smackers really?  Bikes tucked in for the night, time for for dinner and bed!

So 2pm starts, first of all, call for  beer at a local brewery for dinner, but also make for a great morning.  Leisurely get up enjoy breakfast and pack some extra food-peanut butter and jelly bagels, bananas and waters for lunch time snack.  The shuttle to the start was simple to catch, they were a little behind schedule but everything went well regardless.  We chose the early shuttle and got all set up with plenty of time to find a shady area under a truck to lay down and stay cool.  Another interesting situation with this event is how they set up the bike transition.  They call it a “clean transition”.  Which translates to:  Everything for your bike must stay in the bike bag provided by the race.  Helmet, bike shoes, sunglasses, race number etc.  It was really no big deal with everyone having the same situation it is what it is right.  I just set everything up in my bag like I would have if I had a transition towel.  It went quite well except for one itty bitty thing.  I decided to get out of transition with my race belt in hand.  I figured I would clip it on while on the flat dam road or right as I started to descend.  I can ride without hands alright on my bike for a couple of minutes-in theory this seemed like a good idea as I was getting out of transition.  So here is where I begin to tell you how windy it was.  There was no hands free riding for me up on that dam road.  The cross wind was wicked.  So I stopped really fast, yes I even stop really fast, and buckled my race belt on my fanny.  And off I went towards the what should have been screaming decent.

I know I mentioned it once already, but it was WINDY!!  The entire ride.  Headwinds, crosswinds, and some tailwinds.  The triathlon gods were sort of smiling on us when they gave the tailwinds on the biggest climb of the course!  That made me happy.  The ride was hard for me.  I found myself fighting the wind a lot having to remind myself to just relax.  The volunteers on the course were awesome.  One was so awesome that he handed me an open chocolate Power Gel.  Yeah, I’m gonna let your imagination run with that one!!  I find myself interesting.  As I was sticking the gel in my back pocket I realized I had gel everywhere, I never think angry thoughts.  This is good.  Instead I spray myself and my bike down with a water bottle (I knew there was another aid station close) and laugh.  It brings back an old memory of a guy who had white bike shorts on during a race who had chocolate gu running down his butt.  I chuckled for quite awhile wondering if I had chocolate gu running down my butt.  Other than the wind and the open chocolate gel the bike was uneventful.  The long straightaway back to transition was brutal, and I was ready to get off my bike and go for a run!  Wait…did I just say that?  Yes, I was ready to run.

In true Andrea fashion, the first mile is good then I let myself take a break.  Had to potty, nowhere to pull over on the side to potty, so waited for a portalette.  Got going again.  Hooked onto a guy and chatted a little bit.  Anyone who runs with me knows that I hook on close and bump elbows, not sure why I feel the need to get so close, but I do and it helps me.  However, this guy got a little stronger and I couldn’t hold on.  Had to poo.  Got to a portalette again and did my business and felt much better.  Saw Steve.  Saw Keith.  Run run run.  Go past the finish.  Killer crowd ROARING.  Second lap much better.  I had a guy hook onto me and I just run run run.  My second loop must have been WAY better than my first because somehow I seem to manage a 12:00 pace.  True Andrea fashion.

For the training I have been putting in this race made me happy.  Can I do better?  Yes.  Do I have more?  Yes.  Is this where I am at the moment?  Yes.  Am I alright?  Pretty alright.  I always want so much more from myself but haven’t quite figured out how to get it out of myself.  Expectations and hope need to be backed with good, solid work.  That’s where I’m at.  The good, solid work stage.

Sorry for the lack of pictures…everyone was a racin’!  Congrats to Doreen, Keith, and Steve on amazing days!  Love you guys.

Running through the Switzerland of America

Another day living the Sweet Life.  Steve and I decided to head up the Million Dollar Highway and find a place to run/hike after our bike ride to Telluride.  We found some amazing things on the drive up.  A river flowing under the highway.  Some mountain flowers.  A little lake at the top of the pass.  Avalanche blowouts.  And lots of places to run.  There must be a million hidden treasures of trail runs in these mountains.  I know I am only seeing the tip of the iceberg.  It makes me want to go back and explore every weekend.  I have always said I never want to own a vacation home because I would have to spend time in one place.  Instead I would rather explore all different places.  Well Ouray may very well be changing my mind.  I think I could explore here every season of the year.  After a little bit of exploring we settled on a trail run called the Bear Creek Trail.

This trail is an old mining trail that takes you back to the Grizzly Bear Mine.  From the Grizzly Bear Mine you can connect to the Yellow Jacket Mine than eventually you would end up on a jeep trail called Engineer Pass, which is the first half of the “Alpine Loop” with Cinnamon Pass completing the second half of the loop. It is extremely scenic and very long.  Our trail for the day starts at 8400 feet and climbs to 10,000 feet in 2.4 miles.  The trail is part dirt and part broken slate and mostly switchbacks.  It is absolutely gorgeous and like nothing I have ever experienced.  I decided I wanted to take my time and really take in the experience of this trail.  All I could think about were the old miners traversing with their  carts and mules.  Insane!!  Spots on the trail were covered with avalanche debris.  The picture at the top of this post is a HUGE tree that had been pummeled by an avalanche!  It was absolutely crazy.  In one spot there was still snow sitting over the trail that if you slipped or the snow broke you would fall and die.  Here is why I love him:

Steve (stern and concerned): “Baby we are not going over that.  I am not letting you go.”

Me (unsure of how to handle someone telling me no): “But baby, we need to get to the mine.  I think we will be alright.”

Steve (hesitant, serious and father like-unsure of being with a crazy woman): “You are crazy.  There is no way we are going over that.  No.”

Me (desperately wanting to go over continuing to explore ways to get to the other side and satiate my need to explore):

” Look, there are footprints.  We can totally do it.”

Steve: (hesitant and scared) “Let me see.  Geez.  Why don’t you ever give up?  Alright, let me go first.”

Me (excited but now a little worried cuz my man could fall to his death):”Yeah!!”

Steve (a bit worried about falling to his death but somewhat playful): “Now you don’t think this is so fun do you.  I could fall and die!”

Me ( a bit worried):” Go baby!!  You will make it!!”

Steve (really worried cuz it’s my turn) ” Just follow my footsteps and you’ll be fine.  Take your time.”

Me: (thinking about how I could arrest a fall) “Holy Shit!  This is freakin scary!”

We made it

By the time you hit Yellow Jacket Mine you are at 11,100 feet after 4.2 miles.  There was a storm front blowing in so the top of the mountain was super windy and we could see a storm blowing in, so we headed back down to the car.  What took us 2 hours to ascend took us 30 minutes to descend!!  And just like that we were down and on our way back to Denver.  What an incredible weekend/beginning of the week.

Again, my Steve, thank you for being the voice of reason.  In the 9 star ki I am 1 water and you are 8 soil.  You are my rock.  You keep me grounded and flowing with purpose. I love you.

This past week has been AMAZING!  For me it was the big kick off for super long bike training for Ironman Louisville.  Friday we took off from snowy, cold, wet Denver and headed to snowy, wet, cold Buena Vista for the Buena Vista Bike Fest Century ride.   From Buena Vista Steve and I were headed to Ouray to sit in the hot springs, get another hundred miler in on the bikes, sit in the hot springs, get a good trail run in, sit in the hot springs, get a little recovery swim in, and sit in the hot springs.  Did I mention the hot springs?  Cuz they are INCREDIBLE!!  Lots of bike riding planned and some good training for Louisville….but would the weather spoil our plans?  Not when you are living The Sweet Life!

Saturday morning was the century ride; the snowy ride into BV left us a little worried it wasn’t going to happen.  However, with Bethie along for the ride and determined not to let the weather win and steal a hundred mile bike ride from her,  the plan was to get up and at least start the ride no matter the weather and see what it got us.  We woke up to about 2 inches of snow and a fog covered valley.  The event director cancelled the event for the first time in 12 years.  After much deliberation amongst ourselves as to whether we should just go for it and get some mileage in or go to breakfast and get a good run it, we decided it probably wasn’t safe to be out there on our bikes.  The pass was closed up to Leadville so we wouldn’t have been able to go to the pretty part of the ride.  Breakfast followed by a 2 hour run prevailed.  Buena Vista is a cute little town with some great local offerings.  We ate at the Rooster’s Crow and headed back to our host’s home where we could run up the road and hit the Colorado Trail.

The run was hilarious.  We never did find the Colorado Trail, instead we blazed our own trail up the snow covered mountain.

It was actually a pretty brutal start heading up a mountain at 9000 feet of elevation!  My little heart was a poundin’!!  It ended up being a great climb up to a vista where we followed some animal tracks back to the roads,  and did a little loop around the neighborhood.  After hot showers we all got together at Priscilla’s sister and brother in laws for a feast of a dinner.  Everyone pitched in and made an incredible spread of butternut squash soup, chili, salads, guacamole and chips, fruit, cheese and crackers, all with wine, beer, and water!  I am always so grateful for the friends I have especially when we get to meet new people and sit together at family style dinners.  Over dinner plans were laid for the ride on Sunday as the forecast was calling for a clear, beautiful, albeit a little windy day.

Anyone will tell you living with Colorado weather is wild.  One day we will have snow and the next day it will be 70 degrees.  Lucky for us the forecast was correct, and we woke up to clear, blue, sunny skies and the possibility of an incredible day for biking.  The plan was to head from Buena Vista to Salida.  Refuel in Salida then head back to Buena Vista for another food and water stop  before heading as far as we could to Turquoise Lake in Leadville.  The lot of us got ourselves breakfast and headed out the door.  The weather was a little cool but really quite comfortable for riding.  We discovered we would have a tailwind with us on the downhill to Salida and therefore, a headwind on the uphill back to Buena Vista and into Leadville.  We had a great ride.  Lots of chatting and working together.  Little bits of speed work on the way into Salida and then a good strength workout, both mental and physical, back to Buena Vista.  After coming back into Buena Vista we decided not to fight the headwind into Leadville and called the ride at a metric century.  The surly group of us got back to our homes, changed into running shoes and did a quick 30 minute run, ate leftovers for lunch, then headed to the Mount Princeton Hot Springs.  The Mount Princeton Hot Springs was alright.  It is simply 2 swimming pools with hot spring water in them.  There are also some soaking spots along the river, but they weren’t accessible because of the high waters in the river.  It was nice floating around and chilling with B&P, BT&John, and Jewels.  After a quick soak, it was back to pack and for Steve and I to head off on the 3 hour drive to Ridgway.

I am made for road traveling. I love packing the car up, getting good snack foods, and making my way to destinations while being able to check out the areas in between.  Having the bikes along on this trip was exciting because not only did we get to enjoy a drive together but I also knew we were going to get to experience the area by bike.  After our little drive into town and checking into our hotel, we were off to the springs for an evening soak.  Orvis Hot Springs is very nicely kept and very clean.  The little gardens around the pool are quaint and filled with great plants and flowers.  With the pools being outside and away from light pollution at night you soak in the pools covered by a blanket of stars.  The first time we came to the hot springs was New Years this year.  There was a full, blue moon the night we arrived and we were instantly enchanted and fell in love even more while floating around in darkness.  While melting away the ride from the day before and the drive into town we decided to check with the local bike shop in the morning to decide which route to bike the following day.  The options we came up with were:  to ride to Silverton via the million dollar highway or ride to Telluride via Highway 62.  Danika from Peak to Peak Bicycles was great and informed us of conditions on both routes.  She didn’t speak down to us at all and gave us options for all kinds of riding.  She never made judgement on what kind of riders we were, she just gave us information and left the decisions to us.  I always hate going into bike shops where the staff thinks they are all that and treat you like dork cuz you’re a girl.  I really appreciated her approach to educating us about the different rides in the area.

The ride to Silverton was a hard climb over the pass with no shoulder and a decent amount of traffic.

Video of the Highway

Warning it is 10 mins long and it’s not mine !  But great video of the pass.

Our second option, she told us, was a more gradual, gentle climb over Dallas Divide.  There was plenty of shoulder and much less traffic during the week.  She said it was a gorgeous ride as well and let us know about an additional loop we could add on if we wanted to make the ride longer than the 37 miles each way and add a little more climbing.

We hadn’t driven either of the routes or seen them in our lives, so we didn’t really understand the scope of what she was telling us.

After a cup of Joe from Cimarron Books and CoffeeHouse

and a bomber of a breakfast burrito from the Ridgway Mountain Market

We were off to Telluride!

The day was gorgeous and I couldn’t help but keep looking around.  It was difficult to stay focused on anything except how pretty it was all around me.  Good thing I didn’t have focused training to do!  The goal was to just get more miles on my legs and enjoy the day.

The route to Telluride is 37 miles.  I just can’t seem to do the day justice with my writing.  We climbed 2000 feet in about 12 miles to the top of the Dallas Divide, snapped a couple pics

and headed down the backside of the divide.   It was a nice 13 mile and 1650 foot descent into Placerville.  Although, to be perfectly honest, the long descent planted a little seed of worry into my head for the return trip.  What goes down must go up, right?  I knew I would be hitting the climb back up the divide at about 60 miles into my ride.  So the next thought that went into my head was: “Girl, you rode the double Epic Loop which is just a sick amount of climbing, 160 miles, 12 hours long and you were fine.  This will be tough but you are strong.”

After a quick potty and refueling stop in Placerville…

off we went on another climb into Telluride.

The road travels alongside the San Miguel River.  The fact that we were following a river flowing the opposite way we were riding told me we were going uphill, but it didn’t really feel like that much of an uphill.  However, I guess I was going pretty slowly because Steve pulled alongside me and told me we needed to average 15mph to get to Telluride and start back before it got dark!  He pulled in front of me to block the wind and picked the pace up and off we went.  There was one more crazy climb to get into the little town and to get to lunch!

Telluride lay just ahead.  I wanted to be there so badly!  It was a long straight road into town and in the distance you could see this switch back going up the mountain.

We thought it was Imogene Pass, but after a little research I think it is actually Black Bear Pass.   As I was riding into town, I was thinking to myself that I should go run that and then decided I didn’t want to  Maybe sometime in the future.  We found a great burger place, had a fantastic lunch, and headed back out to get home!

The ride home was sick fast!  It took us about 4 hours to get to Telluride, including our stops for various things and 2 hours to get back to Ridgway.  I had no idea how much climbing we actually did.  And the back side of Dallas Divide, that climb I was worried about… well I kicked that little hill’s butt.  Yeah, I averaged 10mph for the 13 mile ride back to the top.  Boo Yaa!

Thank you to Steve for being my partner and always being the guy beside me telling me how strong I am and how great of an athlete I am.  You are my rock.  Solid and strong.  Always behind me 100% no matter the situation.  You are the one who holds it all together and keeps us moving forward as a solid, strong unit.  You make life a little SWEETER-I love you!

]]> http://epicenduranceevents.com/andrea/2010/05/the-sweet-life-day-one/feed/ 0 http://epicenduranceevents.com/andrea/2010/05/the-first-race-of-the-season/ http://epicenduranceevents.com/andrea/2010/05/the-first-race-of-the-season/#comments Mon, 10 May 2010 19:40:56 +0000 admin http://epicenduranceevents.com/andrea/?p=167

Even though it was not a triathlon (jealous of Beth,Tony, goSonja, gofastMichelle, and Tyler who got to tri in Knoxville at Rev3), it was a race.  I was nervous because my winter was different from my last 7 winters of training hard.  This last winter consisted of some running some biking, and some swimming-but nothing I would really call training.  Three weeks ago I decided I wanted to work with someone to coach me and so my training really began then-for the Colorado Marathon.  People work like 3 months getting ready for marathons-what was I thinking?!  Would I really be able to run a marathon?  The last marathon distance I set out to run saw me get 23 miles in 6 hours and a hurt IT band.  We decided I had enough base that I could finish the marathon and that I would use it as a stepping stone for getting my running mileage back up for the real goal of the year-Ironman Louisville.  So with three solid weeks of great training I was off to run a marathon without letting my heart rate go above 160.  Leave my ego on the bus.

Saturday afternoon we headed up later than I would have liked to packet pick up, got our stuff, and met up with Nicole, Christine, John, and Keith at the hotel and decided to go out to dinner together.  Every place in old Fort Collins was packed and had a waiting list of an hour and a half, which would have put us eating at 8:30 at night!  Stressful!!  So we split up into 2’s and put reservations in at 3 different restaurants….John and Keith got us in at Rasta Pasta!  Yeah.  I had Jamaica Tortellini Mon which was tortellini, rotini pasta, bananas, pineapple, and grapes.  It was light and delicious and I ate the whole thing-oops!  By the end of dinner I was pooped!  The stress of getting to packet pick up, finding food, and then having to find a friend’s house where we were staying was getting me.  After our good luck and good night hugs from friends Steve and I were off to find our bed for the night.

His friend’s front yard was SO COOL!  There was a little picket fence surrounding a really cool water feature that was all lit up for us.  There was no way I could hold on to the little bit of stress I was carrying around after walking to the front door.  Steve’s friend was staying with his girlfriend so we had the place to ourselves, which was a good thing because I really wanted to get my stuff ready for the morning and go to bed.  Now you all have to remember, I have spent years percolating perfect pre race conditions, so the first race on my own and I let a few things go, like having a glass of wine at dinner and getting to packet pick up really late, and eating later than I would have liked, but I couldn’t let the “I have to be the first person there” monkey go.  The bus was taking us up at 4:00am.  After getting our stuff all set for the morning I set the alarm for 3:15 and hit the pillows at 10:15.  3:15 jump out of bed (Sorry goSonja-no picture of the jump out of bed), dressed, fill water bottle, make an egg sandwich, and get to the bus station at 3:50.  Damn I’m good-Steve thinks I am a little crazy, but it was perfect for me.  We got to sit together on the way up and rest, we didn’t have any problem getting a parking spot, and I was comfortable.  Honestly, I was nervous about the marathon, so taking the stress out of race morning was important to me.  I put my headphones in on the ride up and used the time to relax and visualize my day.

The marathon start is up in a canyon and right alongside the river.  It was beautiful, albeit a little bit cold at 4:55am.  I was glad I had Steve to snuggle with on a park bench to try to stay warm.   We got to be the first people to use the porta potties without having to wait in line at all.  Just being able to hang out and relax before the race even though Steve was sniffling a little bit about being there too early, and whose silly idea was it to run a marathon, and next time we will….  Wait…did he just say there was going to be a next time?  I think he’s hooked  Before we knew it we were stripping out of our warm clothes, putting sunblock on, and heading over to the start line!  I saw Keith and John and got my good luck hugs and looked for Doreen without luck.  The gun went off and off I went.

Steve and I ran the first mile together and then he was on his way and I settled into myself and took a moment to enjoy the canyon, listen to the river, and be grateful for my life and smile.  The last run I had before the marathon was really hard and it was really uncomfortable and I was very happy that I was feeling good.  Lately, I have been having to use my inhaler.  Most people don’t know this, but I have asthma and have had it since I was 3 years old.  For some reason, this last few months it has been bothering me.  That last training run that didn’t feel good, I did not use my medicine before the run and I was wheezing.  So, I used my meds before the marathon and once during and it helped me breath a little easier.  The last lung capacity test I took showed that I used 70% of my lung capability, so for me using an inhaler just brings me to almost normal lung capacity.  Anyhow, LOTS of people passed me but I knew right where I supposed to be.  Heart Rate needed to be at 135-140 and I did that knowing it would help me the last few miles.  A few minutes into the run I knew I was going to have to use a bathroom.  There was no place to sneak off into the bushes on this course!  Every aid station had porta potties but they all had lines and it wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t wait for a bathroom without a line.  Finally, around mile 8 there was an aid station at the fire house where there wasn’t a line.  So into the bathroom I went, did my thing, and headed back out to run feeling much more comfortable.  From that point I was actually racing.

I put my tunes in, took off my jacket, and started picking people off.  No one passed me from that point on.  Not one person.  I was amazed that I was racing.  It was very exciting to me to be having these feelings of competition.  Last year at Rage was the first time I discovered that sense of competition.  I really did not expect it for the marathon and was quite excited to have it rear its head so early in the season. I would see someone in front of me and just put my head down, stay within myself and catch up.  From there I would take inventory for a quick second:  Should I stay on this person’s shoulder or should I keep going?  Every time I kept going.  One after the other after the other.  Big hill mile 18-19.  Run up the hill-you are strong on the hills girl. Everyone is walking.  Pass em up.  I just kept going and going and going.  I was working, but keeping my heart rate down, staying in control never crossing that I’m going to die line and just fascinating myself.  I really have to take moments like these and think about how cool it is that I can go out and run a marathon without really training.  While it is not the most ideal circumstance and I don’t recommend it, it is cool to know I have enough fitness to get me through a marathon.  This leaves me feeling like I am well on my way to Louisville.

The last nine miles were tough.  I broke them up into three 5K’s.  While I was not fast by any stretch of the imagination the only time I walked was when I took on fuel.  Running strong into the finish was pretty cool.  My perception of  26.2 miles is totally different than the first time I ran a marathon.  Having done multiple 30+ runs in the last year, finishing an Ironman, running rim to rim to rim at the Grand Canyon, running the Catalina 50 mile race, and having a 17 hour training day have really done great things for my mind and body.  While I know not everyone wishes to do these types of endurance events,  they have given me confidence.  However, the coolest thing about the entire day was when I finished Steve was there with a huge smile on his face!  Not only was I proud of myself, but he was proud of me too.  A few times during the run when I wanted to slow down or walk I thought of the people who have been behind me this past year and it helped me feel like I was giving something back to them.    There is nothing in the world I would trade for the friendships I have made, the relationship with my family, and for the man I am creating my ultimate partnership with.  These are the things that help keep me running!

Congratulations to:

David Hart: 3:05:21  3rd Overall Masters

Michelle Hart: 3:49:02   Qualified for Boston

Keith Negri:3:46:06 (Doing 50 races in his 50th year-Congrats dude!)

John Murtaugh:4:10:51 ( One of my favorite people to see come get me at the end of a long day)

Steve Rogers: 4:17:13 (first marathon in 10 years!!)

Doreen DeRoss: 5:20:51 (Getting ready for Ironman Louisville)

Sooo…BAMF= Bad A$$ Mother F**&$#@!  And SAMF=Stupid A$$ Mother F*&%$@*.

Today I was a BAMF, but could have been a SAMF.  I started my ride from Boulder to Littleton (about 50 miles) at 2:30.  It was cold and raining.  I didn’t really want to go, but I had my kiddo take me up to Boulder and drop me off with my bike and take off.  All the way up as it was raining I kept saying I didn’t think it was a good idea, and that I was pretty sure I was stupid.  He, very lovingly mind you, said, “Mom, you are a pussy.  I play rugby in snow, melting snow, rain, sleet, freezing cold and you don’t ever hear me complain.”  I was shut up by my 17 almost 18 year old.  He was right.  I have never had the opportunity to race in acclimate weather, but what if it happens?  Am I prepared?  I intentionally do not sign up for the Harvest Moon Long Course in September because the chances of the weather being cold and wet are high.  I do not like to be cold.  So here was an opportunity staring me in the face.  Get on my bike and go!

Well, I did it.  Averaging about 15mph I rode my bundled up butt home from Boulder.  I was lucky enough to have the beau with me to freeze as well.  I am so proud of him because he did a 20 mile run in the morning and then met me to drag my arse all the way back to Littleton.  What a stud-I’m just sayin.  We had a great time and even stopped at Wendy’s  really fast for a bite to eat cuz neither one of us ate lunch (bad coach, I know…).  This was my first time riding on the Morgul-Bismark course from the Coors Classic.  The hump-not so bad.  The WALL-  a one mile gradual incline that ends with a 12% grade.  Not so bad either, so I was left wondering why everyone who talks about that course talks about the wall like it was something super evil.  Well come to find out the wall is at the end of a 13.1 mile loop that racers looped 8 times!  Yeah that is 104+ miles.  Yikes!!  The Wall is kinda crazy 8 times in a race!  After climbing the wall and heading into Golden the weather really cleared up.  We took our rain jackets off and enjoyed the rest of the ride in pretty dry, moderately cool conditions.

So, Shaun I am not a pussy!  However, I do know that my preference is to exercise outside in nice weather, who doesn’t really?  Overall, I am a tough cookie and am willing to head out on an adventure and get a little dirty and I like that about myself. I just commented to the beau, who is lying in bed reading, that we didn’t take any pictures either.  He said, “Really do we need to take pictures?  I am not a picture kinda guy.” Really? Does he not know that I love my pictures?  Next time there will be pics

On Janury 17, 2010 it was announced by the Boulder Daily Camera the city of Superior Colorado is bringing back the race beginning Memorial Day weekend 2010. The race is being re-named “Superior Morgul Classic”. The three day event will encompass a wide range of race events, art festival, music, and a public showing of the movie “American Flyers”. The current plan is to continue the event until 2014 – depending on its success.

Good luck to Doreen and Cory racing down in Vegas this coming weekend.  Can’t wait to hear all about it!