I'm a member of an online women's forum- kind of like the Knot, but way cooler- and the decade in review came up. I thought I'd add mine here.
2000- Finished my Freshman year in High School! Dyed my hair purple for the first time. Became a cheerleader (omg, seriously!?). Buried a close friend from suicide. Had a crazy summer cheeering and traveling my little brother around from state to state for moto racing. Turned 15. Met my future husband!
2001- Won conference in Humorous Interpretation for Forensics in school, somebody found my storytelling funny. Stopped cheerleading, it never would have worked out, anyway. What I would consider my Swan Song year in swimming- did fantastic at state, and had two relays win gold at nationals (NSG's). Watched future husband and brother race motorcycles.
2002- Swam, but not well. Got distracted by a boy (oh that scoundrel). Started taking college credit courses while still in HS. Husband graduated HS. Became a car hop at Sonic. I wore roller skates and black booty shorts. Seriously, easiest job ever. Look cute, don't fall, smile. Made bank. Started Senior year.
2003- Kept working. Went to school only in early AM's for college credit. First time purchasing a vehicle. My dad thought I was crazy buying a new car when they got me a perfectly good one the year before. Future husband bought a boat. Started wake boarding, well struggled at it. Graduated HS. Started college full time.
2004- Paid off said new car. Between sonic and the bar, I made money. Not kidding! Started getting kind of good at wake boarding, began competing. The boat thing caught on. Started working at future husbands boat dealership. Decided I missed swimming. Went back to club swimming at age of 19. Had to start all over.
2005- Finally requalified for swimming nationals. Tore labrum in right shoulder. Cried a lot. Retired again at age 19. Started getting really good at wake boarding. Earned world ranking of 45 in women's open cable wake boarding. Began looking at homes with future husband.
2006- Bought home with future husband. Started big girl job at hell hole law firm. Graduated college. Thought about attempting triathlon. Purchased bicycle. Did first triathlon. Met some new best friends for life. Did a few more triathlons. Turned 21. Did a half ironman triathlon. Won my age group. Qualified for Triathlon Long Course World Championships. Signed up for Ironman.
2007- Devoted life to training for first Ironman. Busted my ass. Began to worry weather I would ever get married to future husband. Had terriffic year in triathlon. Hated my job. Got engaged- on the beach, at Ironman. Completed Ironman.
2008- Began planning wedding. On cloud nine. Got fired (or, as they so nicely put it, "position is being terminated, and you will be eligible for state unemployment") 7 weeks before wedding. Best thing that EVER happened to me. Got married to WONDERFUL at dream Halloween Wedding, 8 years to the day of our first date. Went on AWESOME honeymoon to Mexico. Came back to job offers waiting for me. Started at new job.
2009- Excelled at new job. Did first stand alone marathon. Got pregnant.
2010- Finally got new car. Had the mustang the whole time. Planning on baby date of July 24. Turn 25 in August. Probably going back to school part time. Maybe new house? Going to have a great life. On to the next decade!
Showing posts with label 2007. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2007. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
*The* Big Scary Run
Saturday morning has a big scary run waiting for me. Most things: distance, heat, mental weakness, I've battled before. Saturday, I battle them all.
The biggest war I've ever had in training was a run with Runner's Edge in 2007. Saturday, I will set out to conquer the course again. Here's the blog from that awful run.
Monday, October 01, 2007
Break down, break-break down…
I want to break down but don't know if I can
I need to break down but don't know if I can-Youth Brigade, Breakdown
It finally happened. I finally had it. The wall. The massive, brick and mortar, steel, barbed wire, mound in-cased fortress of a wall. I knew there was no way I could go all season without hitting it. It would be impossible. In fact, I started to worry about not climbing the mental barricade outside of a race. Well, worry no more. I had slammed head first at full throttle right on in to it.Saturday morning at 7:00 am Julie and myself (along with the rest of Runner’s Edge and Erin and Michele) started off on our run. Julie ran 2 before I met her, so she was actually going to go 22, I was going 20. No worries, I did 18 a few weeks ago and comparatively speaking, it was a breeze- we ran the whole thing. Saturday however, as we started out on the first couple miles I could tell I was working harder than usual. I felt like my effort and HR weren’t matching up, and that everyone else was going at a much easier pace. From what I understand, this could be a symptom of two things: overtraining, or under recovery. Of the two, I’m assuming that under recovery is to blame- I did just do a half ironman 2 weeks ago.The course was an odd layout at best. We started at Ward Parkway mall, went parallel to Ward Parkway, went through Waldo, Brookside, the edge of the ghetto, the Plaza, Loose Park… and then back. I still feel like I’m forgetting a section.Julie and I ran side by side for the first 10 miles; however there’s a long hill between miles 9 and 10- she put in a little distance on me there. It is awesome to see how her running has progress. I’m sure she remembers- just about a year ago Julie and I decided to run from my house, to the fire station and back. Two whole miles. I think we almost died. After our turnaround at mile 10 we had a couple other gals catch up with us. We mostly ran in a pack together as Julie and I explained IronMan and how we train for, eat during, poop when, and the feelings we have. People make you feel like a rock star, but I had to keep explain to these gals “You’re doing a marathon!! It’s the same mentality; we just do some extra training.” For whatever reason, nobody believes that.Julie and another girl or two ended up together and myself and another woman ran along together. Things were getting difficult for me and I was having a dang hard time to keep from going all-negative and dragging the other girl down. After the water stop at mile 14 I tried to run again, but I only could of a little ways. I wanted to run, but my legs were burning and my body wouldn’t listen to my mind. RUN! GO! I kept telling my self, but alas I was walking. So after so was the other gal. We marched along in silence for a long time. I kept taking little running steps every so often, but eventually I thought, Who am I kidding? I’m not running right now. The other girl had to stop to use the bathroom and I went on up ahead… Until I had to sit down. Yes, I sat down. I couldn’t continue to put one foot in front of the other. I just couldn’t do it. In fact, I was pleased with myself that I sat on a park bench, versus the intersection like I wanted to. After sitting and stretching for a minute my legs felt the burning go away, so I got up and started walking again. At this point I felt like I might actually be ok, so I started running again. Nope. I got nothing. It hurt. So, I was walking again.Once in Brookside and back on the Trolley Trail I was feeling a flush of emotions, I knew I only had 4 miles to go, and if I were running I’d be done in 50 minutes. However, I was not running. As I was moving along two older gals ran up along side of me and asked how I was doing. I just looked at them and said “fine.” One of the ladies said “Oh honey, you are not fine.” And started handing me sport beans and clif blocks. “You need something with a pep,” one told me. They asked if I had gels and sodium. I did, and was taking them like clockwork, which I believe helped to ward of the leg cramping. “We’ll stay with you for a while.” Hearing that I decided I couldn’t let these women walk too, so I jogged along side of them while they gossiped back and forth about people in their Bunko group (Ok, seriously, they were in their 60’s, and yes, they were going faster than me). At mile 17 I was walking again, and told them to go ahead. Within minutes I was sitting again. This time, on the trail, stretching, petting passersby’s’ dogs, stalling. The gal I left at the bathroom had caught back up, so I got up and walked with her. Again, we marched in silence. I could feel tears brimming in my eyes, but I felt like I needed to be strong in front of a stranger. Then I heard her sniff. I looked over and she too had tears in her eyes. Finally I said “All I want to do is go home lay on my bed and cry,” she said she thought she would right then if she could find a decent spot to lay down. My watched beeped reminding me of the time. I reached up and yanked my HRM strap off. I was over it. My HR didn’t matter to me. Forward motion did. The stranger at my side started to jog. “Come on” she whispered. I took about 10 steps in what at the moment felt as if it were a sprint. “I can’t” I said as she slipped away. She wasn’t looking back and I didn’t want her to. I didn’t want anyone to see me. Me, in my bright blue spandex shorts and butterfly tank top. This isn’t me. This is someone else in my body, someone else in my head. I’m a fighter. I claw my way through workouts, I literally scream, yell, urge myself on. Instead, I was shrinking. I felt like a fake.At just over 18 miles I came to the final aide station. I poured a cup of Gatorade, and plopped down on someone’s front steps. As I fumbled through my salt capsule pack the person picking up the RE’s stations pulled up. “You want a ride back to the mall?” I didn’t answer. I wanted to pretend I was invisible. “Hey- you want a ride?” The man asked again. I shook my head no, and opened my lips to say thanks, but I don’t believe any words would come out. In my body I was kicking and screaming yelling YES! Take me back! Please! I want out! I want to be done! I quit! I quit! I stood up, got some more water, and started to walk again. At this point, I was completely by myself. Some people were out walking, and I tried to pretend to be one of them, just moseying along, enjoy the first of fall weather (however it was over 80 degrees).It took me 30 minutes to go less than 2 miles. I simply couldn’t move any faster. As I started to walk back into the mall parking lot, head hung low, Julie pulls up. “Hey. You okay?” I actually had to smile and laugh to keep from crying. “I’m fine.” “You want a ride?” Ride. Ride? Ride! To go back!? To go the last 200 yards, by God, phuck that. I am going to drag my arse the last of the way if it kills me.I made it back into the mall to check in with Eladio and let him know I was done. “How’d it go?” he asked with a look of apprehension. “Not good, not good. I totally fell apart.” Now, the tears came. I was admitting aloud that I had a crash, that I was toasted before mile 14, and that in some aspects I had failed. He discussed in his coach-ie way how I was likely not recovered from my difficult half ironman, and that after all I would be so much stronger for pushing through and completing the miles.Which, I did do. I made all the miles. And it sucked. Bad. However as much as it sucked, I still completed every last foot under my own power.After I got into the car to drive home, my mind flooded with emotions. I was thankful I had the opportunity to push through a wall that big. While I did not run again at the end, I did keep moving. I had constant forward motion.I turned on the radio, and Tom Petty started to rock me a song about breaking down.Loudly, I sang along.
Posted: 8:45 AM
Discussed: blog, IronMan
The biggest war I've ever had in training was a run with Runner's Edge in 2007. Saturday, I will set out to conquer the course again. Here's the blog from that awful run.
Monday, October 01, 2007
Break down, break-break down…
I want to break down but don't know if I can
I need to break down but don't know if I can-Youth Brigade, Breakdown
It finally happened. I finally had it. The wall. The massive, brick and mortar, steel, barbed wire, mound in-cased fortress of a wall. I knew there was no way I could go all season without hitting it. It would be impossible. In fact, I started to worry about not climbing the mental barricade outside of a race. Well, worry no more. I had slammed head first at full throttle right on in to it.Saturday morning at 7:00 am Julie and myself (along with the rest of Runner’s Edge and Erin and Michele) started off on our run. Julie ran 2 before I met her, so she was actually going to go 22, I was going 20. No worries, I did 18 a few weeks ago and comparatively speaking, it was a breeze- we ran the whole thing. Saturday however, as we started out on the first couple miles I could tell I was working harder than usual. I felt like my effort and HR weren’t matching up, and that everyone else was going at a much easier pace. From what I understand, this could be a symptom of two things: overtraining, or under recovery. Of the two, I’m assuming that under recovery is to blame- I did just do a half ironman 2 weeks ago.The course was an odd layout at best. We started at Ward Parkway mall, went parallel to Ward Parkway, went through Waldo, Brookside, the edge of the ghetto, the Plaza, Loose Park… and then back. I still feel like I’m forgetting a section.Julie and I ran side by side for the first 10 miles; however there’s a long hill between miles 9 and 10- she put in a little distance on me there. It is awesome to see how her running has progress. I’m sure she remembers- just about a year ago Julie and I decided to run from my house, to the fire station and back. Two whole miles. I think we almost died. After our turnaround at mile 10 we had a couple other gals catch up with us. We mostly ran in a pack together as Julie and I explained IronMan and how we train for, eat during, poop when, and the feelings we have. People make you feel like a rock star, but I had to keep explain to these gals “You’re doing a marathon!! It’s the same mentality; we just do some extra training.” For whatever reason, nobody believes that.Julie and another girl or two ended up together and myself and another woman ran along together. Things were getting difficult for me and I was having a dang hard time to keep from going all-negative and dragging the other girl down. After the water stop at mile 14 I tried to run again, but I only could of a little ways. I wanted to run, but my legs were burning and my body wouldn’t listen to my mind. RUN! GO! I kept telling my self, but alas I was walking. So after so was the other gal. We marched along in silence for a long time. I kept taking little running steps every so often, but eventually I thought, Who am I kidding? I’m not running right now. The other girl had to stop to use the bathroom and I went on up ahead… Until I had to sit down. Yes, I sat down. I couldn’t continue to put one foot in front of the other. I just couldn’t do it. In fact, I was pleased with myself that I sat on a park bench, versus the intersection like I wanted to. After sitting and stretching for a minute my legs felt the burning go away, so I got up and started walking again. At this point I felt like I might actually be ok, so I started running again. Nope. I got nothing. It hurt. So, I was walking again.Once in Brookside and back on the Trolley Trail I was feeling a flush of emotions, I knew I only had 4 miles to go, and if I were running I’d be done in 50 minutes. However, I was not running. As I was moving along two older gals ran up along side of me and asked how I was doing. I just looked at them and said “fine.” One of the ladies said “Oh honey, you are not fine.” And started handing me sport beans and clif blocks. “You need something with a pep,” one told me. They asked if I had gels and sodium. I did, and was taking them like clockwork, which I believe helped to ward of the leg cramping. “We’ll stay with you for a while.” Hearing that I decided I couldn’t let these women walk too, so I jogged along side of them while they gossiped back and forth about people in their Bunko group (Ok, seriously, they were in their 60’s, and yes, they were going faster than me). At mile 17 I was walking again, and told them to go ahead. Within minutes I was sitting again. This time, on the trail, stretching, petting passersby’s’ dogs, stalling. The gal I left at the bathroom had caught back up, so I got up and walked with her. Again, we marched in silence. I could feel tears brimming in my eyes, but I felt like I needed to be strong in front of a stranger. Then I heard her sniff. I looked over and she too had tears in her eyes. Finally I said “All I want to do is go home lay on my bed and cry,” she said she thought she would right then if she could find a decent spot to lay down. My watched beeped reminding me of the time. I reached up and yanked my HRM strap off. I was over it. My HR didn’t matter to me. Forward motion did. The stranger at my side started to jog. “Come on” she whispered. I took about 10 steps in what at the moment felt as if it were a sprint. “I can’t” I said as she slipped away. She wasn’t looking back and I didn’t want her to. I didn’t want anyone to see me. Me, in my bright blue spandex shorts and butterfly tank top. This isn’t me. This is someone else in my body, someone else in my head. I’m a fighter. I claw my way through workouts, I literally scream, yell, urge myself on. Instead, I was shrinking. I felt like a fake.At just over 18 miles I came to the final aide station. I poured a cup of Gatorade, and plopped down on someone’s front steps. As I fumbled through my salt capsule pack the person picking up the RE’s stations pulled up. “You want a ride back to the mall?” I didn’t answer. I wanted to pretend I was invisible. “Hey- you want a ride?” The man asked again. I shook my head no, and opened my lips to say thanks, but I don’t believe any words would come out. In my body I was kicking and screaming yelling YES! Take me back! Please! I want out! I want to be done! I quit! I quit! I stood up, got some more water, and started to walk again. At this point, I was completely by myself. Some people were out walking, and I tried to pretend to be one of them, just moseying along, enjoy the first of fall weather (however it was over 80 degrees).It took me 30 minutes to go less than 2 miles. I simply couldn’t move any faster. As I started to walk back into the mall parking lot, head hung low, Julie pulls up. “Hey. You okay?” I actually had to smile and laugh to keep from crying. “I’m fine.” “You want a ride?” Ride. Ride? Ride! To go back!? To go the last 200 yards, by God, phuck that. I am going to drag my arse the last of the way if it kills me.I made it back into the mall to check in with Eladio and let him know I was done. “How’d it go?” he asked with a look of apprehension. “Not good, not good. I totally fell apart.” Now, the tears came. I was admitting aloud that I had a crash, that I was toasted before mile 14, and that in some aspects I had failed. He discussed in his coach-ie way how I was likely not recovered from my difficult half ironman, and that after all I would be so much stronger for pushing through and completing the miles.Which, I did do. I made all the miles. And it sucked. Bad. However as much as it sucked, I still completed every last foot under my own power.After I got into the car to drive home, my mind flooded with emotions. I was thankful I had the opportunity to push through a wall that big. While I did not run again at the end, I did keep moving. I had constant forward motion.I turned on the radio, and Tom Petty started to rock me a song about breaking down.Loudly, I sang along.
Posted: 8:45 AM
Discussed: blog, IronMan
Thursday, September 4, 2008
June 2007
http://sponsorhouse.loopd.com/Members/CourtCrutcher/Blog.aspx?month=6&year=2007
Friday, June 29, 2007
Popped Collars, Short Shorts, Rainbow Bikinis
Popped Collars, Short Shorts, Rainbow Bikinis
So I just went on a mini shopping spree for the weekend. Eric’s shop is doing the big KC Riverfest thing (www.kcriverfest.com) with a ski show, slider pool with George Daniels, Kenny Bartram doing freestyle motocross, and all kinds of crazy stuff. So I want to look cute. It sucks seeing all the 18 year old girls in their size 3’s strut around- especially the ones that come up to Eric. All I can do is shake my head and just go with it. At least I can honestly say girls think he’s hot! But I tell you what, none of them are sportin’ the bu-donk-a-donk and lady lumps that I am. That’s fo’ sho’.
In a daring effort to find that cuteness I so desired (and to scare away the little girls) I went to American Eagle. I know, it’s like the store for all of the 14 year old kids toting daddy’s credit card in the Dooney and Burke purse he got her (okay, so I have a Juicy Couture and countless Kathy Van Zealand bags my mom has bought me, but I digress). In that store who’s ad campaigns scream “teeny bop look at me my collar is popped and it cost more than Abercrombie and Fitch” (another taboo word in my vocab) I actually found a pair of shorts that I liked- and they FIT. Albeit, they say size 14 (strange, if I go to any “normal” store and purchase in the Ms. section, I wear a 9-10) I purchased them. What’s so amazing about this? They’re denim. So what? I haven’t bought a pair of shorts that aren’t made to surf in or sleep in in over THREE YEARS.
Why in the hell did I feel the desire to do this? I was feeling a little high after climbing out of the pool this morning and feeling the fat pad that sits under my butt, and I realized... “It’s going away! It’s actually diminishing!” YES! Also on a bittersweet note, my favorite swim suit is getting pretty baggy and it’s a poly suit, so it doesn’t really stretch. So that’s good too. Last week I posted a 3.5lbs weight drop, which was awesome. Hopefully I can keep that up. I guess I shouldn’t have ate that popcorn at lunch, huh?
When JMoore asked me to “watch her try on jeans” I knew I wouldn’t get out of a mini shopping spree. So she tried on pair after pair and went with no on them all. Walking out she said, “OOOHHH AE is having a sale.” Dammit. Sales get me every time.
So, two tank tops, a pair of shorts, one dangly belly button ring, and a set of socks for Eric later (and $70 poorer) we headed back to work. But, I have to say, my see thru white and lime and white striped racer back (it’s racer not RAZOR like the girl at AE kept saying) tanks will look damn hot over my rainbow swim suit... and my sparkly dangly belly ring will make those dark denim shorts look gooooood.
Even if there is still a little fat pad.
Thanks TXT for making me tan and keeping the bike short lines at a minimum!
posted @ 6/29/2007 1:47:52 PM (0) Comments
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
130 ...and It's the Simple Things
It's the simple things.
There are two things that made my day and it's only 8:45am. 1. The weight is finally starting to come off. =) this makes me HAPPY. 2. Fruit on the Bottom. I LOVE fruit on the bottom yogurt and last night at Nature's Pantry (haha I accidentally type PANTY and had to edit it) - its the "Hippy" natural food store I shop at- they were on sale for .40 cents! YESSS!
130
130 days to Ironman. wwhhhooo-hooo. My buddy Jared Kuntz from spin class did IMCDA last weekend and went 13 hrs. Even with a blown out tire. 'Said he had to wait for an hour and a half for the support van. Ouch. Note to self. Carry an extra tire.
Anyway, my intense workout schedule seems to be paying off in the form of weight loss. Weightloss = happy Corky. So, I'm glad about that.
OH! And Robyn get's her cast off today so that is terrific news!
posted @ 6/26/2007 6:58:05 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 25, 2007
Quartermax Recap; Trouble in Swim for OctoMax Racer; letter to the RD
QuarterMax Race Recap: June 23, 2007 Village of Innsbrook, Mo
1056yard swim (.6miles) / 28 mile bike / 6.5 mile run
(Thank you: TriSports.com, Freeride Bike and Skate, Defined Fitness Training, Tropical Xtreme Tanz, Just Ride Sports)
Just to start, I am having mixed feelings about this race. Those will be outlined at the end of the recap, so if this doesn’t seem like my normal bouncy recap, you will later understand why.
Friday before race- Julie and I picked up our packets, and I handed out free TriSports.com stuff like brochures, stickers, tattoos, and most importantly, my cards! Just an FYI- if you buy something on TriSports.com, use this coupon code: CCrut-S it will get you great discounts. I talked to a woman from Texas quite a while and she was looking for info on how to apply for sponsorships. She recently earned herself a Kona slot and decided it was time to start looking for some help. I figured she was about 40 years old, but to my surprise I saw her the next day on the run and her calf actually said 59!! I was like, NO WAY. She looked AMAZING. Also, one thing I love about doing stuff for TriSports.com, is that people learn your name. When she (dang it! I can’t remember her name!) went past me on the run she yelled “Let’s go, Courtney!” which was pretty cool. Hey, at least I was ahead of her until the run!! I want to be like her when I grow up ;-)
Swim .6 miles (official split time not yet available, watch from start to water exit, 15:00min) Official split time, including run to TA, and T1 19:28.200
Run in start. Standing at the water talking to the other gals, I realized that about 12 of them swam in college. So much for getting out of the water up front! The gun went off and out we went. I was able to grab some faster feet right away. The first 150 yards were really good and then most of the gals started swinging outside of the buoys. No way! What’s the quickest way to get from point A to point B? Go in a straight line! UltraMax GPS’s their swims so well, that you can legally skip all the outside buoys as long as you round the corner buoys. This helped me quite a bit and I was able to get past some of the gals that wanted to swim and extra 20 yards. However, the faster gals did the same thing I did. Those girls were booking it, so I decided that I needed to just swim my own race. On the way back into the shore I could feel the water getting choppier and choppier and I was feeling that “roll” that you get when you’re on a boat. I actually thought I could get “seasick.” With about 150 yards to go me and another girl got hooked up on one another and smacked each other a couple times pretty well. At first I thought it was a DFT girl, Leslie Curley, but I think she may have actually passed me on the run up to the TA.
PS- if you don’t know who Leslie Curley is, look her up. She is like the female Chuck Norris of Age Group Triathlons!
T1 (official split time not yet available) Um, like 900 yards! :)
Speaking of the TA. It was about 750 yards out of the water, and straight up a hill. When Jules and I walked it on Friday we knew it would be gnarly. And of course the timing chip pad was way up by the TA, so my “official” time for the swim will have to include about 600 yards of vertical running. I was passed by probably seven gals between the water and the chip mat. Also, my bike was at the far far end of the TA so I had to run through that as well. I went past Leslie and yelled “Go Defined Fitness, go Leslie.” That was fun :)
Sunglasses on, helmet on, grabbed an extra GU and was gone. Also, I tried the rubber band thing again with my shoes… it was flawless. I passed two girls coming out of the TA right away because they were fumbling with getting on their bikes. (If you can see the pic at right, this was less than HALFWAY to the TA. See the water?? Then you had to run at least that distance again, still going up hill to TA! ARGH!)
Bike 28 miles (official split time not yet available) overall watch time including swim and TA, 2:00 hr even
Official split time including T2: 1:43.20 (16.3 mph)
I was on the bike and off I went! However, I could feel something dragging in my wheel then I was hearing this ba-bang ba-bang ba-bang.. WTF!? My dang bike sensor had flipped around into the spokes. While riding I reached down, grabbed it, and pulled it up, which got it stuck in my brake pad. So now instead of the bang noise, it was whistling. Like crazy- Like my rim was about to explode. DAMN! Off the bike I went. I grabbed the zip ties and got them as tight as I possible could, then got back on. The sensor wouldn’t pick up at all- and it may now be broken! What I don’t get is when I warmed up on my bike, why was it okay then? I think someone may have bumped it in the TA and it slid down, because I warmed up about 10 minutes on the bike and everything was smooth. Who knows!?
After the computer sensor problem I decided I would just have to go off of my HRM and let that help me decide my pace, etc. Also, UltraMax (the event promotion company) is so great, the road was so well marked and there were mile markers everywhere. I was just fine without my bike computer, and it was actually nice not to be stressing about my speed, etc. This was another case of “race your own race” and I let a few gals go that were hammering because my HR was in the right spot at the right time and I didn’t want to mess with it. But right after that, I hit a speedbump and my sponge for my aero bottle went flying. I turned around to see where it went (leaving things on the course is a big no-no), but I think it actually may have rolled off the road because I didn’t see it and the girl behind me yelled “Not there, just go!” So I went!
The first 6-8 miles or so are pretty dang hilly, so that was gnarly, but I was ready. I actually passed quite a few gals on the hills- yes, even me, the heavy slow girl! :) Once you get out of the park you are on really nice rolling county roads. Yet again UltraMax did an excellent job coordinating the volunteers and police officers at all intersections. Then you gradually start to descend your way back to the resort. The last four miles again are quite hilly, and there’s no messing around, they are out for business!
At the end of the bike I was really beginning to wonder what happened to all the men. They had given the women an 8 minute handicap (hey this is “Who Tri’s Harder”), but I knew there’s no way I could be that much ahead of the leading men still at this point. I began to wonder what was going on back there. Every time I would hear a woman come up on me, I would think to myself This has to be the men’s leader! Where are these guys?? I got back up to the TA and still hadn’t seen a single QuarterMax guy, although I had passed plenty from the OctoMax. Later I learned they had a 54 minute delay. That sure explains a lot!
All together, I felt really smooth on the bike. My bike, named GoldMember, went fast like he was supposed to! I have only one gripe about the bike portion- there needs to be more bike marshals. At about mile 10 I am sitting about 10 meters (outside of the draft zone) off of a girl that I was working up the bones to pass, when zoom-zoom-zoom goes a total PACK of about 6 women. The back two girls weren’t even pedaling. At all. They were completely getting pulled. They got up just ahead of the gal in front of me then dropped into a perfect pace line. The leader sat up, the other moved forward and she re-joined on the back. NOT FAIR. That is down right cheating. When I passed the girl in front of me I looked over at her and she looked at me. She said “Did you see that!?” of course I saw it, there were still in sight but pulling away FAST. “I thought ITU was last weekend,” I replied. I looked forward. The most recent leader was sitting up and the next girl was moving in to take over the work. How ridiculous. The thing that pissed me the most off, was the non-peddlers in their little peloton were in my AG. I remember one of their numbers, but telling the RD would be pointless, they didn’t see it, no marshal saw it, what would they be able to do? Nothing. So saying something was no good.
Also, the skies clouded up and the wind really started in, but it wasn’t NEARLY as bad as loop two at HalfMax last year.
T2 (official split time not yet available) –Time included in bike split
Perfect execution of the jump-off bike and go. I love it. It makes me feel cool. I know, it’s the small things. Bike racked, socks and shoes on, helmet off, grab visor and race belt. AKA Get the hell on!
Run 1:18.53 (12:43 min/mile)
The run was an “easier” version of that of HalfMax, and it was a two loop out and back with a circle- image running the outline of a sucker. This was just okay. Nothing spectacular. It took the first two miles to get the burning out of my legs. They were producing lactic acid way faster than my body could move it away and it hurt. I do NOT like that feeling, but I went with it. :) When I was headed back into the hills/woods for the second loop I saw Julie coming out to start hers. I was only about a half mile or so a head of her and she was closing fast. She looked SO good. Those Runners Edge training sessions are really paying off! I really thought she would catch me. I had this feeling that we would be racing to the chute. :) Luckily, I narrowly avoided that by about 3 minutes.
I would like to take another moment here and say what a terrific job Mark and Amy Livesay and the entire UltraMax crew did. I go to UltraMax events expecting the best races, the best volunteers, the best awards, food, everything. And they DELIVER. Please, when deciding where to spend your money, choose UltraMax events. Too often we talk about the bad race directors, but don’t credit the really terrific ones. I had a brief moment to speak with Mark after the race and I made sure to tell him that his crew does an amazing job and they should be proud of the product they put out and that I would be at every race of theirs I could. Their shirts say 71.3, I know, 71.3?? What’s that? It’s because they go the extra mile! It’s such a perfect fit to their program.
Unofficial finish time 3:20 Results and photos aren’t yet available. I will edit this blog once they are.
Official Finish Time 3:21.42 Julie’s Finish 3:24.56 DANG. Just at 3 min.
Julie finished only a mere 3 minutes behind me and right afterwards we got to the massage tent where we were talking with Leslie (whom by the way finished THIRD OVERALL!!!) and her husband. Julie asked if I had seen the helicopter come it, and that it was a life flight. I hadn’t seen it but Leslie’s hubby (sorry, I don’t know his name!) said that they pulled some guy out of the water! Scary! Also the reason the men where so far behind was because the athletes went out in the water to help find the drowning man before the start of their own wave. What great people triathletes are. I love how everyone cares about each other even though it’s someone they have never met. It’s a close knit community!
Sadly, the young gentleman pulled from the water did pass away upon arriving at the hospital. Below is a news snippet on what happened.
High Ridge Man Dies During Triathlon
Created: 6/24/2007 5:06:08 PM
Last updated: 6/24/2007 10:20:20 PM
http://www.ksdk.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=122783
KSDK) - Services will be held later this week for a High Ridge, Mo., man who died Saturday near the end of a triathlon being held for a charity.
Kevin Hunt, 28, was just finishing up the 500-yard swim of the Ultramax triathlon. He was less than 50 feet from shore when he went under at Aspen Lake at Innsbrook (Mo.) Resort."They said he looked like he took a breast stroke and just went under water," said Mark Livesay, racing director for Ultramax Events.Soon after, dozens of other triathletes jumped into the water, including Martin Goebel."Someone was organizing everyone into a big line and once we were in a big line we found him within 30 to 40 seconds," said Goebel.Goebel said people were performing CPR on Hunt prior to getting him to shore, where an ambulance and doctors were waiting.Hunt was taken to St. John's Mercy Hospital in Washington, Mo., where he was pronounced dead.Goebel said the Ultramax is the safest and most thought out triathlon in which he's participated."If I was the person drowning, that's how I would want them to react. I don't think that anyone could've done anymore for (Hunt)," said Goebel.But Hunt's family disagrees. His father said he heard his son call for help just before he went under. That's why they feel there should have been more supervision in the water.But Livesay said Ultramax actually exceeds the guidelines of having one lifeguard for every 50 swimmers.Livesay said other witnesses he spoke with, including an athlete who swam next to Hunt during the race, did not see signs of distress."He said, 'Not once did I ever think he was in trouble or having difficulty of that magnitude.' So it just doesn't add up to me," said Livesay, who is also associate director of the Missouri Lion's Eye Research Foundation. Funds raised at the triathalons go to the foundation's community programs.Hunt's family said he was "as strong as a horse" and didn't have any medical conditions. An autopsy will be performed but results won't be available for several weeks.Visitation for Hunt will be held Wednedsay from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Kutis Funeral Home, 10151 Gravois Road in Affton, Mo. A funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at Concord Baptist Church, 13775 Tesson Ferry Road in Sappington, Mo.In lieu of flowers, Hunt's family suggests memorial contributions be made be made to the Lance Armstrong Foundation.
** I just learned that Mr. Hunt COULD NOT swim. He had previously attempted the course twice on a training day and failed both times. He did not exercise discretion and attempted the race anyway. Further proof that it was not a fault of UltraMax. Further more, Mr. Hunt wore a nose clip. This is an ABSOLUTE NO NO. You CANNOT inhale or exhale if you nose is plugged. If you swallow water and have to choke it out, you can’t breath thru your nostrils like you are biologically made to do if you have your nose clipped. Please, racers, from a coach/swimmer/life guard’s point of view- nose clips are a TERRIBLE idea.**
My open letter to race director Mark Livesay:
Courtney Crutcher
Courtney.crutcher@southlaw.com / triswimcoach@yahoo.com
2808 SE 3rd St. Blue Springs, MO, 64014
816.674.9460
June 25, 2007
Ultramax Eventsc/o Missouri Lions Eye Research Foundation404 Portland St.Columbia, MO 65201
Mark Livesay and the entire UltraMax/ Missouri Lions Eye Staff:
I wish I could congratulate you and your staff for a perfect event, although it is known that the race did have a terrible debacle. The tragedy that took place in the swim Saturday with Mr. Hunt will undoubtedly overshadow the majority of the racing season for your crew. However, I want you all to know that myself, along with hundreds of other racers and spectators fully believe that you did everything in your power to be as safe as possible in this, and all of your events. This is the second of many to come UltraMax races that I have participated in and I was again astounded with how well everything was organized, how polite and friendly all of the staff and volunteers were, and what an amazing venue you had.
I raced HalfMax last year and was at the back of the pack, yet all the volunteers still yelled for me, even at mile 12 of the run when they had been there for over 6 hrs! The aid stations were completely stocked with everything you could possibly need (I love the wet towels and sponges idea), and there was dinner and a cold beverage waiting for me at the finish.
This again was the case this weekend at QuarterMax. By pairing up with Innsbrook Resort, I fully believe that these events could become premier races not just regionally, but nationally as well. UltraMax with USAT and Innsbrook Resorts offers the best races with the best venues that I have ever been to. I very much appreciate all of your efforts to put on such terrific races. I will be a lifelong customer to UltraMax.
Mark, I would like you to know that there are a lot of USA Triathlon members, as well as other triathletes, volunteers, and spectators that believe in your ability as a great race director with a terrific staff. I have never felt more secure in my safety at a triathlon than I do at UltraMax events. I am sure that your team did everything in their power to help Mr. Hunt. After everything I heard and saw, I think that the rescue team as well as the other athletes responded very quickly and every effort was used. If I had been in Mr. Hunt’s position, I would only hope that I would have so many caring people come to my aide. It is an absolute heartbreak the Mr. Hunt was not able to pull through, and my deepest sympathies go to his family, as well as to you and the UltraMax family.
As triathletes we all understand the inherent risks of the sport. There are hazards on each leg of a race. The run is no more dangerous than the bike than it is to the swim. We all sign our names on the dotted line and agree that we, ourselves, and only ourselves are responsible for what happens at anytime on the course or at the venue. However, I will never think that I need to be concerned for my safety at any UltraMax event.
If there is anything that you take away from this misfortune, please tell your staff to be proud and sure that they did everything that could possibly be done to make this and all of your events as protected as possible. I hope that your season continues to march on as planned. I did not know Mr. Hunt, however I do know that he was a triathlete, and as I am sure all triathletes that have been to your competitions will agree, UltraMax puts on the absolute best races, and no hardship should take that steam away.
I look forward to racing at HalfMax (USAT Half Distance Champs) and Club Champs in September.
Sincerely,
Courtney L. Crutcher
QuarterMax Event Participant
cc: Shandra Chapman, Assistant Race Director, UltraMax Events
Sanctioning, USA Triathlon
Terri Walters, Nick DeVreese, USAT Sanctioned Event Coordinators
Ron James, VP Marketing, Innsbrook Resort
Kelsey Richardson, Activities and Events, Innsbrook Resort
posted @ 6/25/2007 7:37:26 AM (0) Comments
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Upcoming: Quartermax, T-Bird's Wedding
Okay so Jules and I leave for QuarterMax in the morning. yippeee! I love traveling to races with Jules because we can co-exist without driving each other bonkers. Usually, actually, she drives, I sleep. :)
Also, after the race on Saturday I'm having a family reunion of sorts while still in STL- ie: Catholic family wedding. T-Bird (my cousin Teresea) is marrying this guy named Stanely. I haven't met him so he better be good to her or I'll throw down.
~~~~
My friend sent me this email about her husband this morning. I am editing the names to protect the innocent (but he knows who he is)... and its pretty dang funny. poor guy...
So, last night "Dave" decided that he was going to ride his bike (my old one) down to (bar) in Olate with "Bud" for some guy's going away happy hour. "dave" has ridden the bike once since I got my new one, for maybe 5 miles. And prior to that, he's ridden a bike MAYBE 5 times since he was a kid. It's about a 20 mile round trip down there from our house. But I knew better than to say "I think thats a little far for you to be riding since you havent ridden AT ALL". I had to go to a work meeting, so he said he'd plan on being back by 8 so we could go eat. I knew that wasnt going to happen. My meeting ran long, so I called him at 8:30 when I was leaving the meeting and he was only a mile from the bar, so they had pretty much just left. So I went ahead and ate on my own, and about 9:40, I got a call from him asking me to come pick him up at 103rd because he couldnt go anymore. I drive down to where he was, and he was laying in some person's driveway, and could barely move. I chewed him out pretty good, which I feel kind of bad about now, but it made me mad because he thought he could just hop on a bike and ride 20 miles when he hasnt ridden at all. Um, no, thats not how it works. Hopefully he learned his lesson, and realizes a little more now why I HAVE to do all this training.
I had to post this for all the spouses that just don't know what it's like. If you have a tough time (and let me say, this "Dave" guy is in pretty darn good shape!) riding 20 miles with a rest in between, imagine what it will be like when we race for 140.6 miles!!!! THAT is why we do the training that we do. :)
Also, it was too funny not to share. Thanks "Dave" and "Friend" that allowed me (well i didnt ask, i just did it anyway, hehehe) to post this!
posted @ 6/21/2007 12:52:08 PM (0) Comments
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
You know you’re a Triathlete when…
You know you’re a Triathlete when…
The trunk of your car smells like chlorine
Your kitchen has more cans of pre, during, post workout and protein powder than cans of coffee
You know what WIN detergent is
You buy WIN detergent and use it more than the regular stuff
You know which antiperspirant leave little white snow balls under your arms
You’ve taken a crap in the woods
One entire rack in the dishwasher is devoted to your water bottles
Your spouse finally stopped asking “What’s that smell?”
You have only been a member of SlowTwitch for 6 months but have made 1328 posts
There’s a sign in your office at work that has a countdown to your big race
Your hair stops turning green but the pool has started to go blonde
You keep a tub of Vaseline on your night stand, but for a different purpose
The smell of BioFreeze turns you on
Your garage has an overpowering aroma of cycling shoes
Chamois Butter makes your elbows soft and you know it
You can tell if someone is a swimmer and not an active floater by their body language
Imodium AD is your best friend on Sunday morning
Instead of saying “I’m not available,” your voicemail says you’re “on a 6 hr ride and are using your phone as an MP3 player so the caller will need to leave a message”
You have a cabinet dedicated to your water bottles, camelpaks, tablet bottles, Gu dispensers, fuel belts, and bar packs
You don’t set your bike trainer up to ride and take it down when you’re done- it has a permanent spot in the living room
You brand yourself with a trademarked symbol and don’t get paid for it- in fact you pay to have someone do it to you
You know that HRM, Vo2, PR, PB, RPE, TA, SBR, T2, IM, and GU are not variable letters in a math equation
You have a Heart Rate Monitor tan line
You are okay with having a cameltoe or trisuit butt floss
If you traded in your car or bike you would get more money out of the bike
There’s at least 5 stickers on your car screaming that you love to swim –bike - run, plus the license plate holders
You start signing every email, forum post, letter with “(Bike Brand) Mafia member since (insert year here)”
You’re excited about “only” spending $90 on a race fee
You have changed your tire by yourself during a race or ride
You have puked on yourself during or immediately following a hard workout
You like puking on yourself
A toenail has fallen off from the 45 miles you ran the week before, but you painted the skin anyway
Your kids have PJ’s that look like a trisuit/wetsuit
You have or have had a crush on somebody of the same sex just because they are ridiculously fast (Ok, Desiree, you can drop that restraining order now)
You have a picture of said athlete taped to your refrigerator, your gauge screen in your car, and the computer in your cubicle at work
You truly love the taste of Powerbars
You would kill to get a job a CliffBar
You cut your hair so it’s easier to put in a swim cap/helmet/visor
All of the t-shirts in your closest say “Finisher” or “This race, such-and-such date”
Your training partner has filled for separation and you’re not even married
You get up at 4:25am so you can “enjoy” an 8 mile run in the dark at 38 degrees before work
One quarter plus of your yearly income is delegated to something triathlon related
You take power naps at lunch
Juice Plus+, G3, and Pharmonix are kept in production because you give them all your business
Killer quads mean more to you than some crazy guys on fourwheelers
You have actually yelled at the guy who almost ran you off the road. He is Bubba, the 280 lb. man driving the beat up lifted Chevy truck with the plastic balls hanging off the read hitch while you hold onto 18lbs or carbon fiber between your knees whiles wearing bright yellow and pink spandex from knee to elbow
Since I have only begun my 20 week Ironman plan, look for an updated version of “You Know You’re Training for an Ironman When” in about 9 to 12 weeks.
-Courtney
posted @ 6/20/2007 6:33:09 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 18, 2007
Training and Racing Etiquette
138 Days until Ironman Glory!
I am guilty of a few of these. After seeing so many people swerve around the road at a race, or people running 5 wide down busy roads, I thought maybe this could be reviewed. I pulled this article off of www.USATriathlon.org
Etiquette
Then next time someone blows by you on their $6000 aero carbon fiber rocket ship bike or swims over the top of you like they are wrestling an alligator, smile and say, “Thank you. Have a great day!”
While that may be a difficult thing to do in reality, there are some things you can do in terms of etiquette and sportsmanship to ensure that you and your fellow competitors have a great race or training day.
Below are a few suggestions on multisport manners. I’m sure many of you have a long list of etiquette violations you would have liked to offer to some athletes but the best thing you can do as a coach and athlete is to be a mentor and example. Actions will speak louder than words in training and racing!
During training:- Be on time for the group ride, runs and swims. No one wants to wait around.- Don’t ask your running partner to carry the gels or water just because they have pockets. - Don’t make workouts races. Why bike or run with someone if you continually pull ahead?- Do ask permission to swim in a lane before getting in at the pool.- If there are two swimmers in a lane there is no need to circle swim but more than two you will need to circle swim in a counterclockwise direction.- No hand paddles when swimming in a lane with others.- To pass another swimmer in the lane, tap their toes and the quickly accelerate around them. - No spitting or snobbers when pack riding! Pull away from the group when spitting or snobbering.- Always ride as straight a line as possible when group riding or racing. - I strongly discourage aero bar use during group rides.- When braking on turns and descents be sure to yell out “braking” so others know you are slowing down.- Ask your running and cycling partners to select the route and don’t take pleasure in pushing them during aerobic sessions. ~ We are all guilty of this!- If you are pacelining during a training ride, be sure you understand the rotation so that you keep the pack moving in a smooth order.- Never use headsets when riding unless you are indoors.- Set the example for the other athletes during training. Be a mentor not a monster training partner. - Do point out road hazards and signal your intentions on group rides. This includes commenting when cars are up and back (when two abreast) and when you are stopping at a traffic light.- Do smile a lot and make positive fun conversation. No one likes a whiner/ complainer.- If you are training on the local running track stick to the outside lanes if you are a slower runner or recovering. Let the speedsters have the inside lane.- When walking always stick to the outer lanes.- If you are trail running or riding let the person on the way up have the right away. - Dogs are great companions on the trails but keep them away from other runners and riders. I’ve seen some terrible falls occur because a dog got tangled up in someone’s feet running. At the race:- Don’t monopolize someone’s time race morning with chit chat. They and you should be focusing your energy on the race, your equipment and the course.- Observe all race rules at all times. - Don’t use a radio headset during the bike or run. - Don’t place your bike and equipment on top of someone else’s in the transition area. Respect the athlete’s space and equipment. - If you are a slower rider stay on the right side except when passing. Keep a straight line when riding. Only discard your water bottles and trash at an aid station. If you have to discard a bottle, make sure you throw it away from the other athletes.- There is no littering on the race course. - If you have mechanical problems, pull off the course on the right. Always let the rider ahead know you are passing on the left. And above all obey all safety rules on the course.- Keep your pets at home if you are racing. Do you really need another distraction?- The swim is always tough, but I’ve seen athletes actually push and crowd others away from their start positions. Don’t grab, push or pull others during the swim. It’s not combat swimming!- During the run keep to the right except to pass. When you do pass someone or see them at the turnaround offer a word of encouragement. - Be careful at the aid stations. This is usually the area where most of the items like gel packs and bottles are dropped and the pavement can be extremely slick. There is plenty to drink for everyone. Give each other room to drink and go. After the race:- When you cross the finish line, don’t be dramatic. You did a good job by finishing, now remove your chip or number, get a drink and move away from the finish chute without a lot of drama!- Treat the finish line workers with respect. Your day is over they still have a lot to do.- After you recover a bit, cheer on the other competitors and talk with the athletes. Pat all the youth on the back and offer words of encouragement when they finish!- If you stick around for the awards then wait until all the awards are given out. I know it is tough at times but support the other competitors till the end. - Good or bad race - “Be your own HERO!” after the race. Smile, hold your head high and take pride inside. You stepped up to the start line and you did it, you put yourself in the heat of competition and you finished even if the only person you were competing with was yourself!
Volunteers and Race Directors:- Thank them! Never ever yell at the race volunteers.- Make an extra effort to thank the race director. Without them there would be no race!
Authored by:
Alan LeyUSA TriathlonCoaching EducationAlan@usatriathlon.org
posted @ 6/18/2007 11:16:30 AM (0) Comments
Friday, June 15, 2007
Sacrifices
Sacrifices
I’ve been having a bit of a freak out about starting the 20-week countdown to IMFL. It’s getting damn hard to get shot into reality. Reality being that from here until November 3, my life really will be swim-bike-run(-eat-sleep-repeat). I knew what my training would be and the commitment that I would be making. But thinking of commitments I didn’t realize that meant true sacrifices. Right now I’m having a hard time focusing on the big picture- what I’m going to accomplish and all that jazz. Currently I can only think of the sleep time, home time, down time, family time, Court and Eric time that I have to surrender. To my surprise, training for an Ironman requires a lot of TIME. Duh.
Julie and I talked about it a lot this week. We both feel like we will be excluded from our friends and family. In actuality, it’s us doing the excluding. We are, in essence removing ourselves from society for the next 136 days(I know it’s 139 right now, but I am clinging to the last few days). We both were invited to float trips. I so badly want to go with Alyson, I’ve hardly been able to hang out with her this spring and it makes me sad. She has begged me to go, but it’s so hard to explain that I can’t. I am afraid that every time I turn down an invite to do something with someone, float trips, cruising the mall, grocery shopping, sitting on the coach with Eric, it’s like I’m saying I have something more important that you that I need to do right now. I don’t want my friends and family to think that. They are the only people that can support me thru the months to come. Some may have thought that over the last 7 and 1/2 months that I’ve been a bit on the loony side. We haven’t even touched the surface.
To touch back on the sacrifices, I realized something I may be forgetting. My sanity. I am sacrificing my sanity to do this. I am a total nut job right now and it will likely get worse. For the past few weeks since the decline in training after Lincoln, I have been averaging about 4-6hrs a week of training. Honestly, that might be on the high side. Next week my training hrs will be 7.9, not including prep time. My highest hour week? 18hrs which will come right around HalfMax. Luckily I will back off some before the race so I can get in a mini-taper. Not only is my sanity going to the wayside, but so will Eric’s, Julie’s, Dan’s and our families. Our significant others- Eric and Dan will want to strangle us. They will hear nothing but our constant Ironman banter.
To my friends, I am sorry, but I-cannot-will-not-but-not-because-I-don’t-want-to go to Happy Hour, the Movies, the lake, floating, mountain biking, the mall, out to eat, your house for drinks, Taco Tuesday, clinics, Moto night at Justin’s… because, I am dumping every ounce of my energy into this thing they call Ironman. By the numbers, I will swim 2.4 miles in the ocean, bike 112 miles through the humidity of Florida, and run a full 26.2 mile marathon on trashed legs- under 17 hours. And that is the EASY part. That’s where you get to ENJOY all of the hours of training, icing, hurting, crying, sleeping, sacrificing. Between Monday, June 18th, and Saturday, November 3rd I will spend about 234 hours on training.
I better start charging the iPod now, huh?
I hope that everyone that sees me dismiss all of their fun ideas for my “something better” understands that this is just something I HAVE to do. I have to be scared about my training. I have to be scared about how I’m going to tackle laundry, the budget, house chores, dog baths, cooking, gardening and the like. I have to be scared that I may fail. These sacrifices and things that frighten me are the only things that can get me to the waters edge at 7:00am on November 3rd. It’s also these things that will put me across the finish before 11:59pm.
posted @ 6/15/2007 12:38:47 PM (0) Comments
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Commencing Countdown… 10.. 9.. 8.. 7...
Ground Control to Major Tom, Ground Control to Major Tom:
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on
Ground Control to Major Tom: Commencing Countdown Engine’s on
Check ignition and may God’s love be with you…
Julie and I started training for the marathon at 22 weeks before the race, I believe. Our Ironman training plans start at 20 weeks. Guess where we are right now? 20 1/2 weeks. Yes, folks, that’s right, just slightly over 20 weeks to being an Ironman participant, an Ironman Competitor, and Ironman Finisher, and an Ironman for a Lifetime.
Thru email yesterday Julie and I pinged back and forth discussing our nerves, emotions, etc., upon realizing that we will be rolling our bikes down the trailer park highway in no time flat. I used to have nerves of steel, but something Jules said in an email actually made me feel sick, like really, I had to go potty... Here’s part of the to me email:
I was just looking at (our training plans) and wishing I had my Runners Edge schedule to put into it. I just about pooped myself when I really thought about the fact that it starts NEXT WEEK. Seriously, my social life is going to die. No more happy hours, no more just deciding to skip a workout for no good reason, it's going to be hard assed, by the book training. Ugh. I am kind of looking forward to it, but I'm also kind of dreading it. Like, I have a 90 minute ride scheduled for the day after QuarterMax. I sure as hell am not going to feel like doing that, but I'll have to just suck it up and do it.
Up until this point if I just haven’t had that drive to go do a workout, I’d skip it, or change it to meet what I wanted to do instead. Eric and I or our friends would go out and get a beer (or two or five) on Fridays and the occasional mid-week trip to the bar. I could eat a few Taco’s and a couple Corona’s at Taco Tuesday and be okay with it. I could go into a race with only one run, one ride, and no swim that week and call it good. NO MORE. No longer do I get to drink like a fish on any given Thursday, no longer do I get to make a run to Sheridan’s to indulge into an Oreo concrete, no longer shall I come home from work sit on the couch eat cheese and drink wine instead of going for a run even if it is 89 degrees with a humidity level 85%, no longer do I get to sit on the couch (it’s a recurring theme) with Eric at 10:40 pm just for the sake of sitting with him.
I am going to turn into an Iron Machine. And I may hate it. I may thoroughly hate the 5:00am swims, the twilight runs, despise the Friday night tempo rides on the trainer while my friends are upstairs barbecuing.
-BUT-
I will LOVE dropping an hour off of my HalfIron PR. I will love to feel the waves and salt sting my hands and face as a round the last buoy with the lead pack back to the shore, I will enjoy the sounds of people cheering, screaming my name because it’s on my bib when I head out in the mild morning of fall in Florida, the sounds of my bike shifting, clicking into my big ring, I’m gonna thrive on the sound my feet gently slapping the pavement as I run on through the night, and I will relish in the sound of Mr. Ironman Announcer Guy (Mike Rielly) telling me, yes, me “COURTNEY CRUTCHER, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!”
This is ground control to Major Tom, you’ve really made the grade!
And the papers want to know shoes shirts you wear,
Now it’s time to leave the capsule if you dare…
Now here I am, 143 days from Ironman, 20 1/2 weeks. It won’t be much longer until I tell about how amazing I did at HalfMax, how tired I am of training, and what a life changing experience it is to be an Ironman.
posted @ 6/13/2007 10:12:31 AM (0) Comments
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
It's Not That Bad
It’s Not That Bad
Throughout the day today I have been commiserating with some gal pals about how terrible life is. Here are a few of my gripes:
I'm so broke. I mean broke. I don't have any extra money to pay for my extra things that I "have" to pay for to do tris, especially everything for IMFL, so that puts a strains on things that I really "have" to pay for.. Like ya know, food, gas bills...I am 144 days away from IM and I'm kind of hitting a mid season slump. It's not mid tri season, but since I have been training pretty hard since January, I’m having a hard time getting motivated. Not good since I’m only 21 weeks from IM…I dread coming into work everyday…My grandpa has cancer and it's God awful. It makes me so sad to see him…My friend just died and I'm torn up about it…The weight just WONT come off. I don’t know what to do. I hate feeling fat…
As I was telling my friend about all of these terrible things, I realized, ya know, life could be so much worse. Whenever Eric gets his woe-is-me the world is out to get me” attitude I always tell him to just stop and that his life is so good in comparison to others. So is mine and I can’t sit around and bitch all day. This may be a deranged way to cheer yourself up, but I felt better after counting these up (pick and chose what applies to you, this is what I went with):
I am young…I am fairly attractive…I have a loving boyfriend that looks like Travis Barker from Blink 182 (or the Aquabats, BoxCar Racer, Transplants, Expensive Taste, +44)…I have a beautiful home, a car that runs, a boat, a truck, amazing bicycles (thanks Freeride Bike and Skate!)…I still have my grandpa and I am lucky to have his spirit and qualities…I have a steady job that helps to pay the bills. It has good benefits…I get to coach swimmers in masters and do personal training which I love… I am involved in the great sport of triathlon…I have a really great group of friends. Not so long ago I used to tell Eric that I didn’t have any friends. Now I have a couple that are VERY close to me, and even more that I can call and talk to about anything. Thank you to all of you…I have my family…My great dogs… I don’t live in Darfur or Ethiopia or Cuba or anywhere like that… There are people my age in West Asia and Eastern Europe dying while fighting to protect me… I will live to see the sun rise another day…
All in all, Life really is Good. So, it is my goal, that when people say to me “How are you” or “what’s going on” my response will be
I have nothing worth complaining about.
posted @ 6/12/2007 8:49:45 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 11, 2007
145 Days to go, Weekend Review
Work is busy so this will be the short run down. :)
Friday evening after the visitation for Dustin I talked with Stephanie’s family for a bit. When I headed home I called JMoore to see what she was up to. She won tickets from our boss at work in a drawing for the Royals vs. Phillies game, so she and I got out there in the bottom of the 5th inning. Amazingly, the stadium was really full (well, for a Royals game. Their record is probably like 6-832). We had great seats, drank some margaritas, saw the Royals actually WIN a game, and got to see very cool fireworks.
Saturday morning I coached then went to Stephanie and Stefan’s Couple shower. Fun stuff. Saturday afternoon, evening, night was spent preparing for the race on Sunday.
Sunday morning Eric and I got up about 4:40 an left for the tri. We got all the way out to Shawnee Mission Park, pulled in, and met a stream of cars going the other way. The race was cancelled from lightning/ storms. WTF!? Ever hear of a rain delay? I didn’t get it. I was rather irritated because just a couple hours later Julie called and said she was out there riding and it was nice out. Grrr. I hate that. Once Eric and I got back to Blue Springs we ate at First Watch (yum!) and went back to the house. I tried to sleep, but Eric was so hoped up on coffee that every time I’d doze off he’d wake me up (punk!). I gave up and just pulled out all the house décor I had planed on doing and hadn’t made it around to yet. I crafted all that and put it up while Eric washed the dogs.
Eric went and rode with Scott Gebken and Dennis Jonon later in the day at Grain Valley- the track had been prepped for a race but it rained out, to. I have pictures so I need to get those posted. The boys were muddy but the sun was out so it wasn’t bad. JMoore came and met me out there too. After the boys rode we cooked them grilled lemon pepper chicken breast and long grain rice with potato salad, dinner salad, etc. We then went and saw the movie Knocked Up. Funny, but not all that I had hoped for, but I laughed out loud a lot so I was happy.
So here I am tired on a Monday morning- the usual. I actually overslept this morning and was late getting to practice. I hate that. But, everyone except Randy was also late, so it worked out okay.
This week will be another long hectic one. Nick Weinacker and Sonja Scheffler will be in town along with some of the LF girls, so we’ll have a full house. Weeks like this make me wish I still worked full time at the shop. Oh well, I take what I can get.
Hope you all had a nice weekend.
Courtney
posted @ 6/11/2007 7:56:36 AM (0) Comments
Friday, June 08, 2007
Weekend Preview
What's happening this weekend:
Dustin's Visitation and Memorial Services
Coaching
Stephanie and Stefan's Couple's Shower
KC Corporate Challenge Tri- wish me luck!
House Cleaning!- Preparing for a house full of pro wakeboarders! Eek! (www.justridesports.com)
Race at Grain Valley Motocross Park
posted @ 6/8/2007 11:12:48 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
The Day the Music Died
The Day the Music Died
When I was a kid I had this little music box, it had a plastic ballerina that would pop up and pirouette in circles while the songs played. It was one of my most prized possessions.
Today after master’s practice I was thinking about the differences of people. I notice this at work, at master’s practice, at spin, even on the run trails seeing random people.
You those that you know work hard. You observe those that seem to put in the work only when someone is watching. You see those that just don’t care.
Back in the day (yeah, in swimming), I was the former. Everyday I clocked in, clocked out and busted my ass. Everyday. Everyday for over 10 years. I followed that damn black line. Up. Down. Up. Down. Even over 12,000 yards a day for some periods. Do you know how many laps you have to do to swim 12,000 yards in a 25 yard pool? 480. Four-hundred-eighty laps- every day.
It’s no wonder I eventually fell out of love with the black line, the squares on the bottom of the pool, the floating lane lines. The sound of each arm stroke slapping the water irritated me. The whistles, the smell of the chlorine, the wet hair for the first classes of the day, the constant dry skin, hairy legs, the water bottle collection on the floorboard of my car- I started to hate it all.
If my swimming career was that music box, it needed a lot of winding; the ballerina just wasn’t whirling anymore.
I quit. I just let it die. I just stopped going to practices, I got a job. I was over it. I came to a local college in the KC area and worked on my studies, not my strokes. I was spending more time with my family, with Eric and I was happy not to get up every morning at 4:30 am to swim, sit thru class, and do it again. The bliss of the swimming absence didn’t last too long, I got bored, became “normal,” was no longer somebody special.
The music box was wound and fresh batteries were installed. The dancer was spinning perfectly to the rhythm.
I eventually came back to it here with a local swim club late summer of 2004. It happened to be with one of the greatest swim clubs in the country- the Kansas City Blazers (www.kcblazers.com). Happening in August of 2004 was Olympic Games in Athens- and a former competitor of mine from Wichita, Caroline Bruce, was competing. I saw all that I gave up and decided to go back to the concrete pond.
The coaches were hard nosed and tough. I loved it. They got in your face. I loved it. They told you to GO! Swim! Move! What are you doing? You’re not even trying! KICK! It was amazing. I was in a place where I wanted to be. I had requalified for nationals after so much time away. I could have walked on to any collegiate team if I had chosen. I had an amazing short course season after the initial difficulties of getting back in the water. I even set a lifetime best in my worst stroke. Things were coming together.
Just before short course season ended I started to have some trouble in my shoulder. It was minor, just irritating, not a big deal. I swam thru it. Eventually I started to ice it after each practice. The dryland hurt. The pulling hurt. Then it hurt during fly, then to every stroke in free. It was getting progressively worse.
I mentioned it to my chiropractor. We x-rayed and cracked on it, but nothing seemed to help. I wasn’t telling my coach. I wasn’t telling my parents. I only barely mentioned it to Eric. I was afraid that if I spoke the words out loud, I was some how making it more true. My shoulder was slipping and I knew I wouldn’t have it for long.
I wasn’t about to give up on the long course season. I was a Blazer, swimming under one of the greatest coaches in the country. I was swimming almost as fast as my peak, something I hadn’t done in years. I was the child prodigy that everyone knew was coming, I was going to be a star, the star- but I just never made it. This was my redemption. I was going to say to the swimming world I AM BACK- DON’T WRITE ME OFF.
It was a mid May early morning workout. The main set included 4x 400 reverse IMs. I was on number 3, starting the second 50 of the freestyle portion. I was about half way down the pool and doing everything I possibly could to distract my mind from the down right pain in my shoulder. For the last couple weeks each workout was excruciating. But I felt if I just sucked it up, I could make it through this season. Just one last hoorah, a final close to this chapter in my life. I had finally decided to tell my coach about a week before, but I told him I would be fine and it was probably just sore, he advised me to take it easy, something I rarely did. I didn’t tell him that it had probably “just been sore” for the last 3 months.
I remember taking a stroke and my mind imploding on itself. I stopped in the middle of the pool, grabbed the rope with my good arm and reached across to grab my right shoulder, I dropped my head on the lane line. My right arm just dangled in the water. I was sobbing. The thoughts were rushing thru my mind so quickly- You’re fine, just get going. I’m not fine, my shoulder is destroyed, I’m done, no nationals, no comeback. You just need rest. You’ll always be a has been, a shoulda been. Quit crying. Cry! Scream! Wail! It hurts. It’s okay. It hurts bad. You’ll be alright. It fucking hurts really bad. It’s not going to be alright.
The water was crystal clear, sky blue. The lines were made of the most beautiful navy tiles. The flags were the teams dazzling colors: Royal Blue and Gold, colors of kings and champions. I heard the water gurgle in the gutter, the other swimmers with their functioning arms gently slapping the water, the sweet smell of the chlorine, the whistles. The vivid florescent lights around the pool deck seemed to dim, as if to say Well, kid, we had a good run, didn’t we? My world shifted to black and white.
The music box halted; the ballerina departed.
…No angel born in hellCould break that satan’s spell.And as the flames climbed high into the nightTo light the sacrificial rite,I saw satan laughing with delightThe day the music died…
-Don McLeon
***
150 Days to Ironman Florida
posted @ 6/6/2007 8:43:43 AM (1) Comments
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Drive SAFELY!!!
BE SAFE!!
Yesterday I left work and headed to Clinton, MO to meet with Eric and his folks for dinner. I took 71hwy South since I left from OP, KS. About a half mile before the Peculiar, MO exit EVERYONE slammed on their brakes. I was driving the Yukon and just praying that nobody hit it (Hey, I can’t pay to fix that monster!) and that I didn’t die. I saw a white SUV in the northbound lane go spinning across the grass median to the southbound lanes, about 800 yards a head of me. Well, the semi behind me did stop and I didn’t die. Sadly, someone did:
Woman Killed In Highway 71 Collision
Officials: Female Driver Crossed Into Oncoming Traffic
POSTED: 8:59 pm CDT June 4, 2007
UPDATED: 9:51 am CDT June 5, 2007
PECULIAR, Mo. -- A rush-hour crash Monday evening killed one woman on Highway 71, officials said.
Cass County authorities said three vehicles collided on the highway just north of Peculiar when the female driver of a Ford Explorer swerved around a slower mowing vehicle and lost control.
The Explorer crossed the grass median and struck a Dodge Durango southbound on the highway, sheriff's deputies said. The Explorer was then struck by a southbound pickup truck.
The driver of the Explorer was killed. Authorities identified her as Christine W. Muhia, 21. The sheriff's office said Muhia is from Kenya and had been living in Belton.
Two women and two children in the Durango were injured and taken to a local hospital, officials said. The driver of the pickup was also injured.
The wreck caused traffic to back up for several miles.
(www.kansascitychannel.com)
Although my convenience was the last thing on my mind, I was able to off road the Yukon to the outer road and only had to wait about 30 minutes in traffic. 71 Hwy South was shut down for about 2 1/2 hours.
posted @ 6/5/2007 11:33:50 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 04, 2007
Early-to-bed-Friday, Mega Workout/ Date Night Saturday, Lake Sunday, YES!
The weekend run down…
To start off, Friday afternoon I made myself into a total jackass to a friend of mine. I responded to an email in a manner in which I shouldn’t have responded- for I had never intended to actually send it. But, like a moron, I hit send and didn’t know it until I got a response back. WHOOPS. So we ended up getting into via email, which by the way, is similar to taking two mildly retarded people, tying one arm behind their backs and handing them pool noodles and saying “Fight.” We both apologized and I think we’re fine, but I had that chip on my shoulder most of the weekend.
Right after work I met up with Julie to have a couple drinks at the local Paddy O’s. Her hubby Dan joined us a bit later with his friends and I left shortly there after. I got home and tidied up a bit waiting for Eric. We were both laying on the bed talking about what we wanted to do for dinner, and of course we fell asleep… at 8:15pm on a Friday. I woke up about midnight, confused on why we were asleep, put the dogs to bed and went back to sleep myself.
Saturday morning came way too early. I climbed out of bed trying to convince myself that it would be much easier to just drive to the pool, but I knew I had to run. I headed out the door late to run and make it there on time. I was about eight minutes late, so that wasn’t too bad. We also had a new guy, LaDrue, join our masters team, so that was great to have a fresh face. We did a lot of drill work and then I did some personal coaching, and swam myself. I ran back home. I figured it would pour on me for sure from the clouds that were forming on my way in. Nope. It was sunny and very humid. After I got back to the house I did some errands, took Eric lunch, and got ready to ride with Jules.
Julie got to the house just before 1:00 pm and we finished getting ready and headed out for a beautiful ride around Lake Lotawana. We did the full lake and got to see a sail boat race in the process.
-While I’m thinking about it, I want to say that Julie is straight up kicking ass. It wasn’t very long ago that I could out ride her, but I would say that we are about dead even altogether on the bike. I think I’m a little balls-ier in technical down hills and corners, but she is out climbing me and she’s starting to kick it up in the flats too. What’s crazy is I know that I have gotten faster on the bike, so she has exploded on it. Also, the Runner’s Edge training has really given her some great skills and I think she will be super impressed with her season this year! I’m stoked it see how she does. -
Once we got out of the lake section we cruised down Colbern Rd., stopped and got more water- we were both completely out. It got hot fast and was really soupy. We then road on down to this long rolling subdivision with these massive houses and rode thru there and back out. We made a “pit stop” at Stonehaus Farms Winery and ended up getting a bottle each. We just wanted to each get a glass, but they only sell bottles! GREAT. So we each had about 3 glasses- and then they wouldn’t let me take it home in my water bottle to put in a bottle there. SO, we had to leave the rest of our bottles. Let me tell you, that was some expensive couple glasses of wine. BUT it was so worth it because they were getting ready for a wedding and we got to sit there and poke fun at the bridesmaid dresses (OMG) and the 387 flower girls. Seriously, I think we counted 6 flower girls. How ridiculous! We then rode the last 6 miles or so home… no, we were not (that) tipsy!
Saturday evening I took Eric out on a date. We went to TomFooleries on the plaza. I love that place. We ate and drank for less than $30! We walked around a bit and stopped at the local bar. The worst karaoke singers in the country congregate there. We couldn’t take much of it so we called it a night and went home.
Yesterday morning I cooked breakfast. Justin came over so I made food and swatted him away from the bacon platter. The boys went to the shop and got the boat ready to go out and I took the Yukon to go get the cooler filled up and met them at the lake. By the end of the afternoon we had Justin, Ashley (Head Artist / Piercer and Owner of Gypsy Rose tattoo in Grain Valley, MO- she’s done quite a bit of work for Eric, Justin, myself and a lot of our friends. She is the best, so check her out!), Thomas, Auburn, Eric and myself. We got Ash out in the water for her first ever wakeboarding attempt. She got up on the board a couple times so that was cool. I surfed and I didn’t realize how much I missed being on the lake. Eric used to give me a hard time for being a girl wakeboarder- the stigma was it’s a guys sport- but on Friday he asked me why I didn’t ever ride anymore (after the 2005 Cable Tour I was ranked 4th in the US and 47th in the world for Women’s Open Outlaw. I also had a wakeskate ranking, but it wasn’t that great. The majority of wakeskaters are guys, so I was competing against them). It’s for various reasons that I stopped riding, mostly because I found tris, but he said he wished I still did… WTF!!?? Silly boy. I had actually considered riding on Sunday, but the water was a freaking bathtub so I had no interest in going out and getting repeatedly worked. I’m sore from surfing, even!
When Eric and Justin were pulling the boat out of the water, Justin handed his boy, Ryder- he’ll be a year old at the end of this month- to me… I was like, “Um, what do I do with this?” Justin’s response: “Hold him and don’t drop him.” GREAT. I ended up doing the baby on the hip thing… uh yeah. Picture this:
ME- rainbow string bikini, tattooed, sun burnt, beer in hand, kid on hip at the boat dock of Blue Springs lake, hollering at the boys about how they were pulling the boat out. … well at least I fit in with all the other Whiskey Tango people out there- there was even a chick there standing on shore in front of all these families in a leopard print thong. She didn’t have much of a butt, and what she did have was flat and saggy. Eeek! Thank goodness I’m a triathlete- so if people were thinking I had popped out a kid, they would have been thinking I was in good shape! J It was classic.
But Ryder did great and didn’t cry or anything- good thing because I probably would have just stood there.
After we left the lake we went back to our place and cooked out. Nice way to end the weekend. EXCEPT one of my neighbors told us stories about another neighbor- and he’s crazier than we all thought, so now Eric is all worried about my safety. I don’t think I’m too worried about it, but homeboy is very strange and I would like to see the guy go away and get out of our neighborhood.
Lessons learned from the weekend: Don’t argue in email; Stonehaus only sells by the bottle; I am definitely not ready for a kid and in no way look the part of mom; and my neighbor is crazier than we thought.
posted @ 6/4/2007 8:05:09 AM (0) Comments
Friday, June 01, 2007
Things That Annoy, Irritate, and Bug the Eff Out of Me
Things That Annoy, Irritate, and Bug the Eff Out of Me
Since I am so incredibly cranky this week, I thought I would compile a list of things that have been bothering me lately. It’s very likely that if you are reading this, there could be a thing (or two) that you do on here. This doesn’t mean you annoy me, just something that you do. I might be over it in a week, but don’t get offended. It’s all in good fun, mine, mostly.
In no particular order:
People that aren’t sick (or aren’t that sick) and try to make themselves sound sick for attention. Along those lines people that are sick- or faking- that talk about being sick. When you’re truly sick you want to be left the eff alone.
Runners going 2 or 3 wide down a street with no shoulder
Cars that don’t move over for runners or cyclists
Cars that yell, cuss, throw things at said runners and cyclists
People that ride bikes- with or with motors- with out a helmet. However, this could aid in self de-selection. They simply remove themselves from the gene pool
People that act like they know what they’re talking about
Name droppers
Butch women, swishy men (for either gay or straight- if you’re a girl it’s okay to be a girl and like girls… you don’t have to be a man to be a lesbian and vise versa)
Unnecessary ignorance. I’ll even own up to this one, I wasn’t going to but I can’t be a hypocrite. Last night I was taking my front wheel off my bike when it donned on me- you don’t have to take the skewer completely out to take the wheel off. D’oh. For over a year when I’ve been taking the fronts off my bikes, I’ve pulled the skewer all the way out. Dit dah dah.
When Eric doesn’t make the bed. Nevermind that I can’t seem to do laundry more than one day a week, or even put away the laundry or hang up clothes that were worn once and not dirtied… it’s him not making the bed that’s the worst. J …however, if he made a list I’m sure there are 100 things that annoy him that I do!
Cyclists, women especially, that don’t wear their helmets on TOP of their heads but instead off to the back slightly so it doesn’t mess up their bangs
When people run with their iPods up so loud they can’t hear the person next to them
People that get stuck on one subject. If you want to talk to them be ready to talk about that subject because for three weeks that’s all they will have to say
Commitment breakers. If you say you will do something, by God you better do it
When someone’s consistently late (yes, Moto, this is you, but you are not alone)
When coaching, I tell someone to do something and they blatantly ignore me
Fake, false people; backstabbing
T-Bone on the Johnny Dare Morning Show here in KC. I love the show but that guy screeches and stutters so bad that I have to change the channel
People, usually men, who see my Mustang and say “Is that your car?” or “So you drive a Mustang?” This happens most often at gas stations
Why someone doesn’t even try, including people that say they can’t when they haven’t tried
Men that don’t open doors for women, the elderly. In this group there’s also the guys that get out of the car and are 10 steps ahead of the wife/ girlfriend instead of waiting for her (Yes, Sweetie, you do this a lot and it drives me bananas)
Rap music that is so ghetto. Same thing for country that’s so twangy whiny. Get over it
People that try to look like gang bangers. Usually the 19 year old kid in the old grand am leaning off to the side with his over sized white T shirt, ball cap with sticker still on, “Jesus piece” around the neck, listening to Little Jon, err, excuse me, Lil’ Jon, while his trunk rattles because he couldn’t afford $20 of dynamat. Ever see the video of OffSpring’s Pretty Fly for a White Guy? Yeah, that’s the kid I’m talking about…
Road construction
Traffic that slows down for no reason. Or better yet, traffic that slows down to read the KC SCOUT sign that says “One Lane at I-35 North and I-70” and you’re only at I-470 and View High Drive- KC people, you know exactly what I mean
Kids that drink under age
People that drive, boat under the influence of drugs/ alcohol
People that do drugs. Even better, the ones that openly talk about using drugs
Smokers
Bars, restaurants that still allow indoor smoking
Girls with their ta-tas hanging out at the grocery store or some family eatery at 8:45 am on a Sunday morning
90% of the people that live in JoCo J
Fat chicks that call ME skinny. Um hello, I’m like a size 10-12
When said fat chicks talk about the weight they want to lose while their riding the elevator to the second floor with a foot long chili cheese dog in one hand and a 55 gallon drum of coke in the other
Crack whores. Pronounced: Who-u-er-s
Trashy people
My brother wasting his talent
Robyn’s Fractured ankle, my knee and shoulder, Julie’s foot
When in a race on the bike you yell “ON THE LEFT” when overtaking a rider, and they turn look to the left and swerve in that direction
People that draft in a tri
When someone commits to something and doesn’t follow thru, join in, participate, or just simply pretends that it doesn’t exist
The person at work that makes it obvious she’s not working and is broadcasting the news that she’s reading off the internet to everyone at work. Usually celebrity gossip
When my uterus bleeds
Hugs from people I don’t know. Please, Don’t touch me
When someone tries to make small talk with me before a race. Race morning there’s one thing I’m thinking about. The RACE. Please, don’t talk to me unless it’s race related. And even then…
People driving around with sub woofers turned up in their cars before 11am on any given day
There’s no such thing as motorcross. It’s MotoCross
Just because you have done a tri, a cross race, a 5k, wakeboarded, skated, sky dived, whatever- you are not a triathlete, a X racer, a runner, a wakeboarder, a skater, a sky diver. Do it at least three times, maybe twice, even to say that’s what you are. Don’t undermine the work, time, practice that people put into a sport by saying you “do” something when you’ve actually “tried” or “done” it
Getting a cold the first week of June
People that drive too slow in the fast lane
People that drive way to fast in the slow lane
Whoever hit my car and dented the fender, and whoever scratched my rear bumper. Probably same person that asks “So you drive a Mustang” or the 90% of JoCo drivers
Pimples
People that think they are cooler than they really are
People that think I am cooler than I really am
Suck ups, brown nosers and the like
My paycheck
Mortgage payments, utility bills
My mailman. I never get my mail and I get everyone else’s
Squadra. Their quality is amazing. Customer service, and sizing, not so much
Paying taxes
My long body and stubby legs. Seriously, who do you know that’s 5’10 with a 31 inch inseam? I got dunked in the gene pool
This woman that works for a client with the initials of KG
Paperwise
Children. From ages 0-13. Very few are excluded here.
People that bring little kids to movies- especially the retards that brought a 3 year old to the movie 300 and then let her cry and bawl the entire time
Crying kids in restaurants, and the parents that don’t take them outside
Work
Okay, so I’m running low on things that irritate me, and I feel much better. Thanks!
Oh, and don’t forget, it's a new month, so if you're trying to find my previous blogs, you’ll have to go to the month of May or before. There’s some good ones on there, and yesterday’s will make you laugh.
Good luck to everyone racing this weekend. I’m gonna put in a hard bike tomorrow and a decent run Sunday if the weather holds up.
155 days to IronMan. Holy Shit.
Court
posted @ 6/1/2007 8:36:28 AM (1) Comments
Friday, June 29, 2007
Popped Collars, Short Shorts, Rainbow Bikinis
Popped Collars, Short Shorts, Rainbow Bikinis
So I just went on a mini shopping spree for the weekend. Eric’s shop is doing the big KC Riverfest thing (www.kcriverfest.com) with a ski show, slider pool with George Daniels, Kenny Bartram doing freestyle motocross, and all kinds of crazy stuff. So I want to look cute. It sucks seeing all the 18 year old girls in their size 3’s strut around- especially the ones that come up to Eric. All I can do is shake my head and just go with it. At least I can honestly say girls think he’s hot! But I tell you what, none of them are sportin’ the bu-donk-a-donk and lady lumps that I am. That’s fo’ sho’.
In a daring effort to find that cuteness I so desired (and to scare away the little girls) I went to American Eagle. I know, it’s like the store for all of the 14 year old kids toting daddy’s credit card in the Dooney and Burke purse he got her (okay, so I have a Juicy Couture and countless Kathy Van Zealand bags my mom has bought me, but I digress). In that store who’s ad campaigns scream “teeny bop look at me my collar is popped and it cost more than Abercrombie and Fitch” (another taboo word in my vocab) I actually found a pair of shorts that I liked- and they FIT. Albeit, they say size 14 (strange, if I go to any “normal” store and purchase in the Ms. section, I wear a 9-10) I purchased them. What’s so amazing about this? They’re denim. So what? I haven’t bought a pair of shorts that aren’t made to surf in or sleep in in over THREE YEARS.
Why in the hell did I feel the desire to do this? I was feeling a little high after climbing out of the pool this morning and feeling the fat pad that sits under my butt, and I realized... “It’s going away! It’s actually diminishing!” YES! Also on a bittersweet note, my favorite swim suit is getting pretty baggy and it’s a poly suit, so it doesn’t really stretch. So that’s good too. Last week I posted a 3.5lbs weight drop, which was awesome. Hopefully I can keep that up. I guess I shouldn’t have ate that popcorn at lunch, huh?
When JMoore asked me to “watch her try on jeans” I knew I wouldn’t get out of a mini shopping spree. So she tried on pair after pair and went with no on them all. Walking out she said, “OOOHHH AE is having a sale.” Dammit. Sales get me every time.
So, two tank tops, a pair of shorts, one dangly belly button ring, and a set of socks for Eric later (and $70 poorer) we headed back to work. But, I have to say, my see thru white and lime and white striped racer back (it’s racer not RAZOR like the girl at AE kept saying) tanks will look damn hot over my rainbow swim suit... and my sparkly dangly belly ring will make those dark denim shorts look gooooood.
Even if there is still a little fat pad.
Thanks TXT for making me tan and keeping the bike short lines at a minimum!
posted @ 6/29/2007 1:47:52 PM (0) Comments
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
130 ...and It's the Simple Things
It's the simple things.
There are two things that made my day and it's only 8:45am. 1. The weight is finally starting to come off. =) this makes me HAPPY. 2. Fruit on the Bottom. I LOVE fruit on the bottom yogurt and last night at Nature's Pantry (haha I accidentally type PANTY and had to edit it) - its the "Hippy" natural food store I shop at- they were on sale for .40 cents! YESSS!
130
130 days to Ironman. wwhhhooo-hooo. My buddy Jared Kuntz from spin class did IMCDA last weekend and went 13 hrs. Even with a blown out tire. 'Said he had to wait for an hour and a half for the support van. Ouch. Note to self. Carry an extra tire.
Anyway, my intense workout schedule seems to be paying off in the form of weight loss. Weightloss = happy Corky. So, I'm glad about that.
OH! And Robyn get's her cast off today so that is terrific news!
posted @ 6/26/2007 6:58:05 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 25, 2007
Quartermax Recap; Trouble in Swim for OctoMax Racer; letter to the RD
QuarterMax Race Recap: June 23, 2007 Village of Innsbrook, Mo
1056yard swim (.6miles) / 28 mile bike / 6.5 mile run
(Thank you: TriSports.com, Freeride Bike and Skate, Defined Fitness Training, Tropical Xtreme Tanz, Just Ride Sports)
Just to start, I am having mixed feelings about this race. Those will be outlined at the end of the recap, so if this doesn’t seem like my normal bouncy recap, you will later understand why.
Friday before race- Julie and I picked up our packets, and I handed out free TriSports.com stuff like brochures, stickers, tattoos, and most importantly, my cards! Just an FYI- if you buy something on TriSports.com, use this coupon code: CCrut-S it will get you great discounts. I talked to a woman from Texas quite a while and she was looking for info on how to apply for sponsorships. She recently earned herself a Kona slot and decided it was time to start looking for some help. I figured she was about 40 years old, but to my surprise I saw her the next day on the run and her calf actually said 59!! I was like, NO WAY. She looked AMAZING. Also, one thing I love about doing stuff for TriSports.com, is that people learn your name. When she (dang it! I can’t remember her name!) went past me on the run she yelled “Let’s go, Courtney!” which was pretty cool. Hey, at least I was ahead of her until the run!! I want to be like her when I grow up ;-)
Swim .6 miles (official split time not yet available, watch from start to water exit, 15:00min) Official split time, including run to TA, and T1 19:28.200
Run in start. Standing at the water talking to the other gals, I realized that about 12 of them swam in college. So much for getting out of the water up front! The gun went off and out we went. I was able to grab some faster feet right away. The first 150 yards were really good and then most of the gals started swinging outside of the buoys. No way! What’s the quickest way to get from point A to point B? Go in a straight line! UltraMax GPS’s their swims so well, that you can legally skip all the outside buoys as long as you round the corner buoys. This helped me quite a bit and I was able to get past some of the gals that wanted to swim and extra 20 yards. However, the faster gals did the same thing I did. Those girls were booking it, so I decided that I needed to just swim my own race. On the way back into the shore I could feel the water getting choppier and choppier and I was feeling that “roll” that you get when you’re on a boat. I actually thought I could get “seasick.” With about 150 yards to go me and another girl got hooked up on one another and smacked each other a couple times pretty well. At first I thought it was a DFT girl, Leslie Curley, but I think she may have actually passed me on the run up to the TA.
PS- if you don’t know who Leslie Curley is, look her up. She is like the female Chuck Norris of Age Group Triathlons!
T1 (official split time not yet available) Um, like 900 yards! :)
Speaking of the TA. It was about 750 yards out of the water, and straight up a hill. When Jules and I walked it on Friday we knew it would be gnarly. And of course the timing chip pad was way up by the TA, so my “official” time for the swim will have to include about 600 yards of vertical running. I was passed by probably seven gals between the water and the chip mat. Also, my bike was at the far far end of the TA so I had to run through that as well. I went past Leslie and yelled “Go Defined Fitness, go Leslie.” That was fun :)
Sunglasses on, helmet on, grabbed an extra GU and was gone. Also, I tried the rubber band thing again with my shoes… it was flawless. I passed two girls coming out of the TA right away because they were fumbling with getting on their bikes. (If you can see the pic at right, this was less than HALFWAY to the TA. See the water?? Then you had to run at least that distance again, still going up hill to TA! ARGH!)
Bike 28 miles (official split time not yet available) overall watch time including swim and TA, 2:00 hr even
Official split time including T2: 1:43.20 (16.3 mph)
I was on the bike and off I went! However, I could feel something dragging in my wheel then I was hearing this ba-bang ba-bang ba-bang.. WTF!? My dang bike sensor had flipped around into the spokes. While riding I reached down, grabbed it, and pulled it up, which got it stuck in my brake pad. So now instead of the bang noise, it was whistling. Like crazy- Like my rim was about to explode. DAMN! Off the bike I went. I grabbed the zip ties and got them as tight as I possible could, then got back on. The sensor wouldn’t pick up at all- and it may now be broken! What I don’t get is when I warmed up on my bike, why was it okay then? I think someone may have bumped it in the TA and it slid down, because I warmed up about 10 minutes on the bike and everything was smooth. Who knows!?
After the computer sensor problem I decided I would just have to go off of my HRM and let that help me decide my pace, etc. Also, UltraMax (the event promotion company) is so great, the road was so well marked and there were mile markers everywhere. I was just fine without my bike computer, and it was actually nice not to be stressing about my speed, etc. This was another case of “race your own race” and I let a few gals go that were hammering because my HR was in the right spot at the right time and I didn’t want to mess with it. But right after that, I hit a speedbump and my sponge for my aero bottle went flying. I turned around to see where it went (leaving things on the course is a big no-no), but I think it actually may have rolled off the road because I didn’t see it and the girl behind me yelled “Not there, just go!” So I went!
The first 6-8 miles or so are pretty dang hilly, so that was gnarly, but I was ready. I actually passed quite a few gals on the hills- yes, even me, the heavy slow girl! :) Once you get out of the park you are on really nice rolling county roads. Yet again UltraMax did an excellent job coordinating the volunteers and police officers at all intersections. Then you gradually start to descend your way back to the resort. The last four miles again are quite hilly, and there’s no messing around, they are out for business!
At the end of the bike I was really beginning to wonder what happened to all the men. They had given the women an 8 minute handicap (hey this is “Who Tri’s Harder”), but I knew there’s no way I could be that much ahead of the leading men still at this point. I began to wonder what was going on back there. Every time I would hear a woman come up on me, I would think to myself This has to be the men’s leader! Where are these guys?? I got back up to the TA and still hadn’t seen a single QuarterMax guy, although I had passed plenty from the OctoMax. Later I learned they had a 54 minute delay. That sure explains a lot!
All together, I felt really smooth on the bike. My bike, named GoldMember, went fast like he was supposed to! I have only one gripe about the bike portion- there needs to be more bike marshals. At about mile 10 I am sitting about 10 meters (outside of the draft zone) off of a girl that I was working up the bones to pass, when zoom-zoom-zoom goes a total PACK of about 6 women. The back two girls weren’t even pedaling. At all. They were completely getting pulled. They got up just ahead of the gal in front of me then dropped into a perfect pace line. The leader sat up, the other moved forward and she re-joined on the back. NOT FAIR. That is down right cheating. When I passed the girl in front of me I looked over at her and she looked at me. She said “Did you see that!?” of course I saw it, there were still in sight but pulling away FAST. “I thought ITU was last weekend,” I replied. I looked forward. The most recent leader was sitting up and the next girl was moving in to take over the work. How ridiculous. The thing that pissed me the most off, was the non-peddlers in their little peloton were in my AG. I remember one of their numbers, but telling the RD would be pointless, they didn’t see it, no marshal saw it, what would they be able to do? Nothing. So saying something was no good.
Also, the skies clouded up and the wind really started in, but it wasn’t NEARLY as bad as loop two at HalfMax last year.
T2 (official split time not yet available) –Time included in bike split
Perfect execution of the jump-off bike and go. I love it. It makes me feel cool. I know, it’s the small things. Bike racked, socks and shoes on, helmet off, grab visor and race belt. AKA Get the hell on!
Run 1:18.53 (12:43 min/mile)
The run was an “easier” version of that of HalfMax, and it was a two loop out and back with a circle- image running the outline of a sucker. This was just okay. Nothing spectacular. It took the first two miles to get the burning out of my legs. They were producing lactic acid way faster than my body could move it away and it hurt. I do NOT like that feeling, but I went with it. :) When I was headed back into the hills/woods for the second loop I saw Julie coming out to start hers. I was only about a half mile or so a head of her and she was closing fast. She looked SO good. Those Runners Edge training sessions are really paying off! I really thought she would catch me. I had this feeling that we would be racing to the chute. :) Luckily, I narrowly avoided that by about 3 minutes.
I would like to take another moment here and say what a terrific job Mark and Amy Livesay and the entire UltraMax crew did. I go to UltraMax events expecting the best races, the best volunteers, the best awards, food, everything. And they DELIVER. Please, when deciding where to spend your money, choose UltraMax events. Too often we talk about the bad race directors, but don’t credit the really terrific ones. I had a brief moment to speak with Mark after the race and I made sure to tell him that his crew does an amazing job and they should be proud of the product they put out and that I would be at every race of theirs I could. Their shirts say 71.3, I know, 71.3?? What’s that? It’s because they go the extra mile! It’s such a perfect fit to their program.
Unofficial finish time 3:20 Results and photos aren’t yet available. I will edit this blog once they are.
Official Finish Time 3:21.42 Julie’s Finish 3:24.56 DANG. Just at 3 min.
Julie finished only a mere 3 minutes behind me and right afterwards we got to the massage tent where we were talking with Leslie (whom by the way finished THIRD OVERALL!!!) and her husband. Julie asked if I had seen the helicopter come it, and that it was a life flight. I hadn’t seen it but Leslie’s hubby (sorry, I don’t know his name!) said that they pulled some guy out of the water! Scary! Also the reason the men where so far behind was because the athletes went out in the water to help find the drowning man before the start of their own wave. What great people triathletes are. I love how everyone cares about each other even though it’s someone they have never met. It’s a close knit community!
Sadly, the young gentleman pulled from the water did pass away upon arriving at the hospital. Below is a news snippet on what happened.
High Ridge Man Dies During Triathlon
Created: 6/24/2007 5:06:08 PM
Last updated: 6/24/2007 10:20:20 PM
http://www.ksdk.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=122783
KSDK) - Services will be held later this week for a High Ridge, Mo., man who died Saturday near the end of a triathlon being held for a charity.
Kevin Hunt, 28, was just finishing up the 500-yard swim of the Ultramax triathlon. He was less than 50 feet from shore when he went under at Aspen Lake at Innsbrook (Mo.) Resort."They said he looked like he took a breast stroke and just went under water," said Mark Livesay, racing director for Ultramax Events.Soon after, dozens of other triathletes jumped into the water, including Martin Goebel."Someone was organizing everyone into a big line and once we were in a big line we found him within 30 to 40 seconds," said Goebel.Goebel said people were performing CPR on Hunt prior to getting him to shore, where an ambulance and doctors were waiting.Hunt was taken to St. John's Mercy Hospital in Washington, Mo., where he was pronounced dead.Goebel said the Ultramax is the safest and most thought out triathlon in which he's participated."If I was the person drowning, that's how I would want them to react. I don't think that anyone could've done anymore for (Hunt)," said Goebel.But Hunt's family disagrees. His father said he heard his son call for help just before he went under. That's why they feel there should have been more supervision in the water.But Livesay said Ultramax actually exceeds the guidelines of having one lifeguard for every 50 swimmers.Livesay said other witnesses he spoke with, including an athlete who swam next to Hunt during the race, did not see signs of distress."He said, 'Not once did I ever think he was in trouble or having difficulty of that magnitude.' So it just doesn't add up to me," said Livesay, who is also associate director of the Missouri Lion's Eye Research Foundation. Funds raised at the triathalons go to the foundation's community programs.Hunt's family said he was "as strong as a horse" and didn't have any medical conditions. An autopsy will be performed but results won't be available for several weeks.Visitation for Hunt will be held Wednedsay from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Kutis Funeral Home, 10151 Gravois Road in Affton, Mo. A funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at Concord Baptist Church, 13775 Tesson Ferry Road in Sappington, Mo.In lieu of flowers, Hunt's family suggests memorial contributions be made be made to the Lance Armstrong Foundation.
** I just learned that Mr. Hunt COULD NOT swim. He had previously attempted the course twice on a training day and failed both times. He did not exercise discretion and attempted the race anyway. Further proof that it was not a fault of UltraMax. Further more, Mr. Hunt wore a nose clip. This is an ABSOLUTE NO NO. You CANNOT inhale or exhale if you nose is plugged. If you swallow water and have to choke it out, you can’t breath thru your nostrils like you are biologically made to do if you have your nose clipped. Please, racers, from a coach/swimmer/life guard’s point of view- nose clips are a TERRIBLE idea.**
My open letter to race director Mark Livesay:
Courtney Crutcher
Courtney.crutcher@southlaw.com / triswimcoach@yahoo.com
2808 SE 3rd St. Blue Springs, MO, 64014
816.674.9460
June 25, 2007
Ultramax Eventsc/o Missouri Lions Eye Research Foundation404 Portland St.Columbia, MO 65201
Mark Livesay and the entire UltraMax/ Missouri Lions Eye Staff:
I wish I could congratulate you and your staff for a perfect event, although it is known that the race did have a terrible debacle. The tragedy that took place in the swim Saturday with Mr. Hunt will undoubtedly overshadow the majority of the racing season for your crew. However, I want you all to know that myself, along with hundreds of other racers and spectators fully believe that you did everything in your power to be as safe as possible in this, and all of your events. This is the second of many to come UltraMax races that I have participated in and I was again astounded with how well everything was organized, how polite and friendly all of the staff and volunteers were, and what an amazing venue you had.
I raced HalfMax last year and was at the back of the pack, yet all the volunteers still yelled for me, even at mile 12 of the run when they had been there for over 6 hrs! The aid stations were completely stocked with everything you could possibly need (I love the wet towels and sponges idea), and there was dinner and a cold beverage waiting for me at the finish.
This again was the case this weekend at QuarterMax. By pairing up with Innsbrook Resort, I fully believe that these events could become premier races not just regionally, but nationally as well. UltraMax with USAT and Innsbrook Resorts offers the best races with the best venues that I have ever been to. I very much appreciate all of your efforts to put on such terrific races. I will be a lifelong customer to UltraMax.
Mark, I would like you to know that there are a lot of USA Triathlon members, as well as other triathletes, volunteers, and spectators that believe in your ability as a great race director with a terrific staff. I have never felt more secure in my safety at a triathlon than I do at UltraMax events. I am sure that your team did everything in their power to help Mr. Hunt. After everything I heard and saw, I think that the rescue team as well as the other athletes responded very quickly and every effort was used. If I had been in Mr. Hunt’s position, I would only hope that I would have so many caring people come to my aide. It is an absolute heartbreak the Mr. Hunt was not able to pull through, and my deepest sympathies go to his family, as well as to you and the UltraMax family.
As triathletes we all understand the inherent risks of the sport. There are hazards on each leg of a race. The run is no more dangerous than the bike than it is to the swim. We all sign our names on the dotted line and agree that we, ourselves, and only ourselves are responsible for what happens at anytime on the course or at the venue. However, I will never think that I need to be concerned for my safety at any UltraMax event.
If there is anything that you take away from this misfortune, please tell your staff to be proud and sure that they did everything that could possibly be done to make this and all of your events as protected as possible. I hope that your season continues to march on as planned. I did not know Mr. Hunt, however I do know that he was a triathlete, and as I am sure all triathletes that have been to your competitions will agree, UltraMax puts on the absolute best races, and no hardship should take that steam away.
I look forward to racing at HalfMax (USAT Half Distance Champs) and Club Champs in September.
Sincerely,
Courtney L. Crutcher
QuarterMax Event Participant
cc: Shandra Chapman, Assistant Race Director, UltraMax Events
Sanctioning, USA Triathlon
Terri Walters, Nick DeVreese, USAT Sanctioned Event Coordinators
Ron James, VP Marketing, Innsbrook Resort
Kelsey Richardson, Activities and Events, Innsbrook Resort
posted @ 6/25/2007 7:37:26 AM (0) Comments
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Upcoming: Quartermax, T-Bird's Wedding
Okay so Jules and I leave for QuarterMax in the morning. yippeee! I love traveling to races with Jules because we can co-exist without driving each other bonkers. Usually, actually, she drives, I sleep. :)
Also, after the race on Saturday I'm having a family reunion of sorts while still in STL- ie: Catholic family wedding. T-Bird (my cousin Teresea) is marrying this guy named Stanely. I haven't met him so he better be good to her or I'll throw down.
~~~~
My friend sent me this email about her husband this morning. I am editing the names to protect the innocent (but he knows who he is)... and its pretty dang funny. poor guy...
So, last night "Dave" decided that he was going to ride his bike (my old one) down to (bar) in Olate with "Bud" for some guy's going away happy hour. "dave" has ridden the bike once since I got my new one, for maybe 5 miles. And prior to that, he's ridden a bike MAYBE 5 times since he was a kid. It's about a 20 mile round trip down there from our house. But I knew better than to say "I think thats a little far for you to be riding since you havent ridden AT ALL". I had to go to a work meeting, so he said he'd plan on being back by 8 so we could go eat. I knew that wasnt going to happen. My meeting ran long, so I called him at 8:30 when I was leaving the meeting and he was only a mile from the bar, so they had pretty much just left. So I went ahead and ate on my own, and about 9:40, I got a call from him asking me to come pick him up at 103rd because he couldnt go anymore. I drive down to where he was, and he was laying in some person's driveway, and could barely move. I chewed him out pretty good, which I feel kind of bad about now, but it made me mad because he thought he could just hop on a bike and ride 20 miles when he hasnt ridden at all. Um, no, thats not how it works. Hopefully he learned his lesson, and realizes a little more now why I HAVE to do all this training.
I had to post this for all the spouses that just don't know what it's like. If you have a tough time (and let me say, this "Dave" guy is in pretty darn good shape!) riding 20 miles with a rest in between, imagine what it will be like when we race for 140.6 miles!!!! THAT is why we do the training that we do. :)
Also, it was too funny not to share. Thanks "Dave" and "Friend" that allowed me (well i didnt ask, i just did it anyway, hehehe) to post this!
posted @ 6/21/2007 12:52:08 PM (0) Comments
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
You know you’re a Triathlete when…
You know you’re a Triathlete when…
The trunk of your car smells like chlorine
Your kitchen has more cans of pre, during, post workout and protein powder than cans of coffee
You know what WIN detergent is
You buy WIN detergent and use it more than the regular stuff
You know which antiperspirant leave little white snow balls under your arms
You’ve taken a crap in the woods
One entire rack in the dishwasher is devoted to your water bottles
Your spouse finally stopped asking “What’s that smell?”
You have only been a member of SlowTwitch for 6 months but have made 1328 posts
There’s a sign in your office at work that has a countdown to your big race
Your hair stops turning green but the pool has started to go blonde
You keep a tub of Vaseline on your night stand, but for a different purpose
The smell of BioFreeze turns you on
Your garage has an overpowering aroma of cycling shoes
Chamois Butter makes your elbows soft and you know it
You can tell if someone is a swimmer and not an active floater by their body language
Imodium AD is your best friend on Sunday morning
Instead of saying “I’m not available,” your voicemail says you’re “on a 6 hr ride and are using your phone as an MP3 player so the caller will need to leave a message”
You have a cabinet dedicated to your water bottles, camelpaks, tablet bottles, Gu dispensers, fuel belts, and bar packs
You don’t set your bike trainer up to ride and take it down when you’re done- it has a permanent spot in the living room
You brand yourself with a trademarked symbol and don’t get paid for it- in fact you pay to have someone do it to you
You know that HRM, Vo2, PR, PB, RPE, TA, SBR, T2, IM, and GU are not variable letters in a math equation
You have a Heart Rate Monitor tan line
You are okay with having a cameltoe or trisuit butt floss
If you traded in your car or bike you would get more money out of the bike
There’s at least 5 stickers on your car screaming that you love to swim –bike - run, plus the license plate holders
You start signing every email, forum post, letter with “(Bike Brand) Mafia member since (insert year here)”
You’re excited about “only” spending $90 on a race fee
You have changed your tire by yourself during a race or ride
You have puked on yourself during or immediately following a hard workout
You like puking on yourself
A toenail has fallen off from the 45 miles you ran the week before, but you painted the skin anyway
Your kids have PJ’s that look like a trisuit/wetsuit
You have or have had a crush on somebody of the same sex just because they are ridiculously fast (Ok, Desiree, you can drop that restraining order now)
You have a picture of said athlete taped to your refrigerator, your gauge screen in your car, and the computer in your cubicle at work
You truly love the taste of Powerbars
You would kill to get a job a CliffBar
You cut your hair so it’s easier to put in a swim cap/helmet/visor
All of the t-shirts in your closest say “Finisher” or “This race, such-and-such date”
Your training partner has filled for separation and you’re not even married
You get up at 4:25am so you can “enjoy” an 8 mile run in the dark at 38 degrees before work
One quarter plus of your yearly income is delegated to something triathlon related
You take power naps at lunch
Juice Plus+, G3, and Pharmonix are kept in production because you give them all your business
Killer quads mean more to you than some crazy guys on fourwheelers
You have actually yelled at the guy who almost ran you off the road. He is Bubba, the 280 lb. man driving the beat up lifted Chevy truck with the plastic balls hanging off the read hitch while you hold onto 18lbs or carbon fiber between your knees whiles wearing bright yellow and pink spandex from knee to elbow
Since I have only begun my 20 week Ironman plan, look for an updated version of “You Know You’re Training for an Ironman When” in about 9 to 12 weeks.
-Courtney
posted @ 6/20/2007 6:33:09 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 18, 2007
Training and Racing Etiquette
138 Days until Ironman Glory!
I am guilty of a few of these. After seeing so many people swerve around the road at a race, or people running 5 wide down busy roads, I thought maybe this could be reviewed. I pulled this article off of www.USATriathlon.org
Etiquette
Then next time someone blows by you on their $6000 aero carbon fiber rocket ship bike or swims over the top of you like they are wrestling an alligator, smile and say, “Thank you. Have a great day!”
While that may be a difficult thing to do in reality, there are some things you can do in terms of etiquette and sportsmanship to ensure that you and your fellow competitors have a great race or training day.
Below are a few suggestions on multisport manners. I’m sure many of you have a long list of etiquette violations you would have liked to offer to some athletes but the best thing you can do as a coach and athlete is to be a mentor and example. Actions will speak louder than words in training and racing!
During training:- Be on time for the group ride, runs and swims. No one wants to wait around.- Don’t ask your running partner to carry the gels or water just because they have pockets. - Don’t make workouts races. Why bike or run with someone if you continually pull ahead?- Do ask permission to swim in a lane before getting in at the pool.- If there are two swimmers in a lane there is no need to circle swim but more than two you will need to circle swim in a counterclockwise direction.- No hand paddles when swimming in a lane with others.- To pass another swimmer in the lane, tap their toes and the quickly accelerate around them. - No spitting or snobbers when pack riding! Pull away from the group when spitting or snobbering.- Always ride as straight a line as possible when group riding or racing. - I strongly discourage aero bar use during group rides.- When braking on turns and descents be sure to yell out “braking” so others know you are slowing down.- Ask your running and cycling partners to select the route and don’t take pleasure in pushing them during aerobic sessions. ~ We are all guilty of this!- If you are pacelining during a training ride, be sure you understand the rotation so that you keep the pack moving in a smooth order.- Never use headsets when riding unless you are indoors.- Set the example for the other athletes during training. Be a mentor not a monster training partner. - Do point out road hazards and signal your intentions on group rides. This includes commenting when cars are up and back (when two abreast) and when you are stopping at a traffic light.- Do smile a lot and make positive fun conversation. No one likes a whiner/ complainer.- If you are training on the local running track stick to the outside lanes if you are a slower runner or recovering. Let the speedsters have the inside lane.- When walking always stick to the outer lanes.- If you are trail running or riding let the person on the way up have the right away. - Dogs are great companions on the trails but keep them away from other runners and riders. I’ve seen some terrible falls occur because a dog got tangled up in someone’s feet running. At the race:- Don’t monopolize someone’s time race morning with chit chat. They and you should be focusing your energy on the race, your equipment and the course.- Observe all race rules at all times. - Don’t use a radio headset during the bike or run. - Don’t place your bike and equipment on top of someone else’s in the transition area. Respect the athlete’s space and equipment. - If you are a slower rider stay on the right side except when passing. Keep a straight line when riding. Only discard your water bottles and trash at an aid station. If you have to discard a bottle, make sure you throw it away from the other athletes.- There is no littering on the race course. - If you have mechanical problems, pull off the course on the right. Always let the rider ahead know you are passing on the left. And above all obey all safety rules on the course.- Keep your pets at home if you are racing. Do you really need another distraction?- The swim is always tough, but I’ve seen athletes actually push and crowd others away from their start positions. Don’t grab, push or pull others during the swim. It’s not combat swimming!- During the run keep to the right except to pass. When you do pass someone or see them at the turnaround offer a word of encouragement. - Be careful at the aid stations. This is usually the area where most of the items like gel packs and bottles are dropped and the pavement can be extremely slick. There is plenty to drink for everyone. Give each other room to drink and go. After the race:- When you cross the finish line, don’t be dramatic. You did a good job by finishing, now remove your chip or number, get a drink and move away from the finish chute without a lot of drama!- Treat the finish line workers with respect. Your day is over they still have a lot to do.- After you recover a bit, cheer on the other competitors and talk with the athletes. Pat all the youth on the back and offer words of encouragement when they finish!- If you stick around for the awards then wait until all the awards are given out. I know it is tough at times but support the other competitors till the end. - Good or bad race - “Be your own HERO!” after the race. Smile, hold your head high and take pride inside. You stepped up to the start line and you did it, you put yourself in the heat of competition and you finished even if the only person you were competing with was yourself!
Volunteers and Race Directors:- Thank them! Never ever yell at the race volunteers.- Make an extra effort to thank the race director. Without them there would be no race!
Authored by:
Alan LeyUSA TriathlonCoaching EducationAlan@usatriathlon.org
posted @ 6/18/2007 11:16:30 AM (0) Comments
Friday, June 15, 2007
Sacrifices
Sacrifices
I’ve been having a bit of a freak out about starting the 20-week countdown to IMFL. It’s getting damn hard to get shot into reality. Reality being that from here until November 3, my life really will be swim-bike-run(-eat-sleep-repeat). I knew what my training would be and the commitment that I would be making. But thinking of commitments I didn’t realize that meant true sacrifices. Right now I’m having a hard time focusing on the big picture- what I’m going to accomplish and all that jazz. Currently I can only think of the sleep time, home time, down time, family time, Court and Eric time that I have to surrender. To my surprise, training for an Ironman requires a lot of TIME. Duh.
Julie and I talked about it a lot this week. We both feel like we will be excluded from our friends and family. In actuality, it’s us doing the excluding. We are, in essence removing ourselves from society for the next 136 days(I know it’s 139 right now, but I am clinging to the last few days). We both were invited to float trips. I so badly want to go with Alyson, I’ve hardly been able to hang out with her this spring and it makes me sad. She has begged me to go, but it’s so hard to explain that I can’t. I am afraid that every time I turn down an invite to do something with someone, float trips, cruising the mall, grocery shopping, sitting on the coach with Eric, it’s like I’m saying I have something more important that you that I need to do right now. I don’t want my friends and family to think that. They are the only people that can support me thru the months to come. Some may have thought that over the last 7 and 1/2 months that I’ve been a bit on the loony side. We haven’t even touched the surface.
To touch back on the sacrifices, I realized something I may be forgetting. My sanity. I am sacrificing my sanity to do this. I am a total nut job right now and it will likely get worse. For the past few weeks since the decline in training after Lincoln, I have been averaging about 4-6hrs a week of training. Honestly, that might be on the high side. Next week my training hrs will be 7.9, not including prep time. My highest hour week? 18hrs which will come right around HalfMax. Luckily I will back off some before the race so I can get in a mini-taper. Not only is my sanity going to the wayside, but so will Eric’s, Julie’s, Dan’s and our families. Our significant others- Eric and Dan will want to strangle us. They will hear nothing but our constant Ironman banter.
To my friends, I am sorry, but I-cannot-will-not-but-not-because-I-don’t-want-to go to Happy Hour, the Movies, the lake, floating, mountain biking, the mall, out to eat, your house for drinks, Taco Tuesday, clinics, Moto night at Justin’s… because, I am dumping every ounce of my energy into this thing they call Ironman. By the numbers, I will swim 2.4 miles in the ocean, bike 112 miles through the humidity of Florida, and run a full 26.2 mile marathon on trashed legs- under 17 hours. And that is the EASY part. That’s where you get to ENJOY all of the hours of training, icing, hurting, crying, sleeping, sacrificing. Between Monday, June 18th, and Saturday, November 3rd I will spend about 234 hours on training.
I better start charging the iPod now, huh?
I hope that everyone that sees me dismiss all of their fun ideas for my “something better” understands that this is just something I HAVE to do. I have to be scared about my training. I have to be scared about how I’m going to tackle laundry, the budget, house chores, dog baths, cooking, gardening and the like. I have to be scared that I may fail. These sacrifices and things that frighten me are the only things that can get me to the waters edge at 7:00am on November 3rd. It’s also these things that will put me across the finish before 11:59pm.
posted @ 6/15/2007 12:38:47 PM (0) Comments
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Commencing Countdown… 10.. 9.. 8.. 7...
Ground Control to Major Tom, Ground Control to Major Tom:
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on
Ground Control to Major Tom: Commencing Countdown Engine’s on
Check ignition and may God’s love be with you…
Julie and I started training for the marathon at 22 weeks before the race, I believe. Our Ironman training plans start at 20 weeks. Guess where we are right now? 20 1/2 weeks. Yes, folks, that’s right, just slightly over 20 weeks to being an Ironman participant, an Ironman Competitor, and Ironman Finisher, and an Ironman for a Lifetime.
Thru email yesterday Julie and I pinged back and forth discussing our nerves, emotions, etc., upon realizing that we will be rolling our bikes down the trailer park highway in no time flat. I used to have nerves of steel, but something Jules said in an email actually made me feel sick, like really, I had to go potty... Here’s part of the to me email:
I was just looking at (our training plans) and wishing I had my Runners Edge schedule to put into it. I just about pooped myself when I really thought about the fact that it starts NEXT WEEK. Seriously, my social life is going to die. No more happy hours, no more just deciding to skip a workout for no good reason, it's going to be hard assed, by the book training. Ugh. I am kind of looking forward to it, but I'm also kind of dreading it. Like, I have a 90 minute ride scheduled for the day after QuarterMax. I sure as hell am not going to feel like doing that, but I'll have to just suck it up and do it.
Up until this point if I just haven’t had that drive to go do a workout, I’d skip it, or change it to meet what I wanted to do instead. Eric and I or our friends would go out and get a beer (or two or five) on Fridays and the occasional mid-week trip to the bar. I could eat a few Taco’s and a couple Corona’s at Taco Tuesday and be okay with it. I could go into a race with only one run, one ride, and no swim that week and call it good. NO MORE. No longer do I get to drink like a fish on any given Thursday, no longer do I get to make a run to Sheridan’s to indulge into an Oreo concrete, no longer shall I come home from work sit on the couch eat cheese and drink wine instead of going for a run even if it is 89 degrees with a humidity level 85%, no longer do I get to sit on the couch (it’s a recurring theme) with Eric at 10:40 pm just for the sake of sitting with him.
I am going to turn into an Iron Machine. And I may hate it. I may thoroughly hate the 5:00am swims, the twilight runs, despise the Friday night tempo rides on the trainer while my friends are upstairs barbecuing.
-BUT-
I will LOVE dropping an hour off of my HalfIron PR. I will love to feel the waves and salt sting my hands and face as a round the last buoy with the lead pack back to the shore, I will enjoy the sounds of people cheering, screaming my name because it’s on my bib when I head out in the mild morning of fall in Florida, the sounds of my bike shifting, clicking into my big ring, I’m gonna thrive on the sound my feet gently slapping the pavement as I run on through the night, and I will relish in the sound of Mr. Ironman Announcer Guy (Mike Rielly) telling me, yes, me “COURTNEY CRUTCHER, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!”
This is ground control to Major Tom, you’ve really made the grade!
And the papers want to know shoes shirts you wear,
Now it’s time to leave the capsule if you dare…
Now here I am, 143 days from Ironman, 20 1/2 weeks. It won’t be much longer until I tell about how amazing I did at HalfMax, how tired I am of training, and what a life changing experience it is to be an Ironman.
posted @ 6/13/2007 10:12:31 AM (0) Comments
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
It's Not That Bad
It’s Not That Bad
Throughout the day today I have been commiserating with some gal pals about how terrible life is. Here are a few of my gripes:
I'm so broke. I mean broke. I don't have any extra money to pay for my extra things that I "have" to pay for to do tris, especially everything for IMFL, so that puts a strains on things that I really "have" to pay for.. Like ya know, food, gas bills...I am 144 days away from IM and I'm kind of hitting a mid season slump. It's not mid tri season, but since I have been training pretty hard since January, I’m having a hard time getting motivated. Not good since I’m only 21 weeks from IM…I dread coming into work everyday…My grandpa has cancer and it's God awful. It makes me so sad to see him…My friend just died and I'm torn up about it…The weight just WONT come off. I don’t know what to do. I hate feeling fat…
As I was telling my friend about all of these terrible things, I realized, ya know, life could be so much worse. Whenever Eric gets his woe-is-me the world is out to get me” attitude I always tell him to just stop and that his life is so good in comparison to others. So is mine and I can’t sit around and bitch all day. This may be a deranged way to cheer yourself up, but I felt better after counting these up (pick and chose what applies to you, this is what I went with):
I am young…I am fairly attractive…I have a loving boyfriend that looks like Travis Barker from Blink 182 (or the Aquabats, BoxCar Racer, Transplants, Expensive Taste, +44)…I have a beautiful home, a car that runs, a boat, a truck, amazing bicycles (thanks Freeride Bike and Skate!)…I still have my grandpa and I am lucky to have his spirit and qualities…I have a steady job that helps to pay the bills. It has good benefits…I get to coach swimmers in masters and do personal training which I love… I am involved in the great sport of triathlon…I have a really great group of friends. Not so long ago I used to tell Eric that I didn’t have any friends. Now I have a couple that are VERY close to me, and even more that I can call and talk to about anything. Thank you to all of you…I have my family…My great dogs… I don’t live in Darfur or Ethiopia or Cuba or anywhere like that… There are people my age in West Asia and Eastern Europe dying while fighting to protect me… I will live to see the sun rise another day…
All in all, Life really is Good. So, it is my goal, that when people say to me “How are you” or “what’s going on” my response will be
I have nothing worth complaining about.
posted @ 6/12/2007 8:49:45 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 11, 2007
145 Days to go, Weekend Review
Work is busy so this will be the short run down. :)
Friday evening after the visitation for Dustin I talked with Stephanie’s family for a bit. When I headed home I called JMoore to see what she was up to. She won tickets from our boss at work in a drawing for the Royals vs. Phillies game, so she and I got out there in the bottom of the 5th inning. Amazingly, the stadium was really full (well, for a Royals game. Their record is probably like 6-832). We had great seats, drank some margaritas, saw the Royals actually WIN a game, and got to see very cool fireworks.
Saturday morning I coached then went to Stephanie and Stefan’s Couple shower. Fun stuff. Saturday afternoon, evening, night was spent preparing for the race on Sunday.
Sunday morning Eric and I got up about 4:40 an left for the tri. We got all the way out to Shawnee Mission Park, pulled in, and met a stream of cars going the other way. The race was cancelled from lightning/ storms. WTF!? Ever hear of a rain delay? I didn’t get it. I was rather irritated because just a couple hours later Julie called and said she was out there riding and it was nice out. Grrr. I hate that. Once Eric and I got back to Blue Springs we ate at First Watch (yum!) and went back to the house. I tried to sleep, but Eric was so hoped up on coffee that every time I’d doze off he’d wake me up (punk!). I gave up and just pulled out all the house décor I had planed on doing and hadn’t made it around to yet. I crafted all that and put it up while Eric washed the dogs.
Eric went and rode with Scott Gebken and Dennis Jonon later in the day at Grain Valley- the track had been prepped for a race but it rained out, to. I have pictures so I need to get those posted. The boys were muddy but the sun was out so it wasn’t bad. JMoore came and met me out there too. After the boys rode we cooked them grilled lemon pepper chicken breast and long grain rice with potato salad, dinner salad, etc. We then went and saw the movie Knocked Up. Funny, but not all that I had hoped for, but I laughed out loud a lot so I was happy.
So here I am tired on a Monday morning- the usual. I actually overslept this morning and was late getting to practice. I hate that. But, everyone except Randy was also late, so it worked out okay.
This week will be another long hectic one. Nick Weinacker and Sonja Scheffler will be in town along with some of the LF girls, so we’ll have a full house. Weeks like this make me wish I still worked full time at the shop. Oh well, I take what I can get.
Hope you all had a nice weekend.
Courtney
posted @ 6/11/2007 7:56:36 AM (0) Comments
Friday, June 08, 2007
Weekend Preview
What's happening this weekend:
Dustin's Visitation and Memorial Services
Coaching
Stephanie and Stefan's Couple's Shower
KC Corporate Challenge Tri- wish me luck!
House Cleaning!- Preparing for a house full of pro wakeboarders! Eek! (www.justridesports.com)
Race at Grain Valley Motocross Park
posted @ 6/8/2007 11:12:48 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
The Day the Music Died
The Day the Music Died
When I was a kid I had this little music box, it had a plastic ballerina that would pop up and pirouette in circles while the songs played. It was one of my most prized possessions.
Today after master’s practice I was thinking about the differences of people. I notice this at work, at master’s practice, at spin, even on the run trails seeing random people.
You those that you know work hard. You observe those that seem to put in the work only when someone is watching. You see those that just don’t care.
Back in the day (yeah, in swimming), I was the former. Everyday I clocked in, clocked out and busted my ass. Everyday. Everyday for over 10 years. I followed that damn black line. Up. Down. Up. Down. Even over 12,000 yards a day for some periods. Do you know how many laps you have to do to swim 12,000 yards in a 25 yard pool? 480. Four-hundred-eighty laps- every day.
It’s no wonder I eventually fell out of love with the black line, the squares on the bottom of the pool, the floating lane lines. The sound of each arm stroke slapping the water irritated me. The whistles, the smell of the chlorine, the wet hair for the first classes of the day, the constant dry skin, hairy legs, the water bottle collection on the floorboard of my car- I started to hate it all.
If my swimming career was that music box, it needed a lot of winding; the ballerina just wasn’t whirling anymore.
I quit. I just let it die. I just stopped going to practices, I got a job. I was over it. I came to a local college in the KC area and worked on my studies, not my strokes. I was spending more time with my family, with Eric and I was happy not to get up every morning at 4:30 am to swim, sit thru class, and do it again. The bliss of the swimming absence didn’t last too long, I got bored, became “normal,” was no longer somebody special.
The music box was wound and fresh batteries were installed. The dancer was spinning perfectly to the rhythm.
I eventually came back to it here with a local swim club late summer of 2004. It happened to be with one of the greatest swim clubs in the country- the Kansas City Blazers (www.kcblazers.com). Happening in August of 2004 was Olympic Games in Athens- and a former competitor of mine from Wichita, Caroline Bruce, was competing. I saw all that I gave up and decided to go back to the concrete pond.
The coaches were hard nosed and tough. I loved it. They got in your face. I loved it. They told you to GO! Swim! Move! What are you doing? You’re not even trying! KICK! It was amazing. I was in a place where I wanted to be. I had requalified for nationals after so much time away. I could have walked on to any collegiate team if I had chosen. I had an amazing short course season after the initial difficulties of getting back in the water. I even set a lifetime best in my worst stroke. Things were coming together.
Just before short course season ended I started to have some trouble in my shoulder. It was minor, just irritating, not a big deal. I swam thru it. Eventually I started to ice it after each practice. The dryland hurt. The pulling hurt. Then it hurt during fly, then to every stroke in free. It was getting progressively worse.
I mentioned it to my chiropractor. We x-rayed and cracked on it, but nothing seemed to help. I wasn’t telling my coach. I wasn’t telling my parents. I only barely mentioned it to Eric. I was afraid that if I spoke the words out loud, I was some how making it more true. My shoulder was slipping and I knew I wouldn’t have it for long.
I wasn’t about to give up on the long course season. I was a Blazer, swimming under one of the greatest coaches in the country. I was swimming almost as fast as my peak, something I hadn’t done in years. I was the child prodigy that everyone knew was coming, I was going to be a star, the star- but I just never made it. This was my redemption. I was going to say to the swimming world I AM BACK- DON’T WRITE ME OFF.
It was a mid May early morning workout. The main set included 4x 400 reverse IMs. I was on number 3, starting the second 50 of the freestyle portion. I was about half way down the pool and doing everything I possibly could to distract my mind from the down right pain in my shoulder. For the last couple weeks each workout was excruciating. But I felt if I just sucked it up, I could make it through this season. Just one last hoorah, a final close to this chapter in my life. I had finally decided to tell my coach about a week before, but I told him I would be fine and it was probably just sore, he advised me to take it easy, something I rarely did. I didn’t tell him that it had probably “just been sore” for the last 3 months.
I remember taking a stroke and my mind imploding on itself. I stopped in the middle of the pool, grabbed the rope with my good arm and reached across to grab my right shoulder, I dropped my head on the lane line. My right arm just dangled in the water. I was sobbing. The thoughts were rushing thru my mind so quickly- You’re fine, just get going. I’m not fine, my shoulder is destroyed, I’m done, no nationals, no comeback. You just need rest. You’ll always be a has been, a shoulda been. Quit crying. Cry! Scream! Wail! It hurts. It’s okay. It hurts bad. You’ll be alright. It fucking hurts really bad. It’s not going to be alright.
The water was crystal clear, sky blue. The lines were made of the most beautiful navy tiles. The flags were the teams dazzling colors: Royal Blue and Gold, colors of kings and champions. I heard the water gurgle in the gutter, the other swimmers with their functioning arms gently slapping the water, the sweet smell of the chlorine, the whistles. The vivid florescent lights around the pool deck seemed to dim, as if to say Well, kid, we had a good run, didn’t we? My world shifted to black and white.
The music box halted; the ballerina departed.
…No angel born in hellCould break that satan’s spell.And as the flames climbed high into the nightTo light the sacrificial rite,I saw satan laughing with delightThe day the music died…
-Don McLeon
***
150 Days to Ironman Florida
posted @ 6/6/2007 8:43:43 AM (1) Comments
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Drive SAFELY!!!
BE SAFE!!
Yesterday I left work and headed to Clinton, MO to meet with Eric and his folks for dinner. I took 71hwy South since I left from OP, KS. About a half mile before the Peculiar, MO exit EVERYONE slammed on their brakes. I was driving the Yukon and just praying that nobody hit it (Hey, I can’t pay to fix that monster!) and that I didn’t die. I saw a white SUV in the northbound lane go spinning across the grass median to the southbound lanes, about 800 yards a head of me. Well, the semi behind me did stop and I didn’t die. Sadly, someone did:
Woman Killed In Highway 71 Collision
Officials: Female Driver Crossed Into Oncoming Traffic
POSTED: 8:59 pm CDT June 4, 2007
UPDATED: 9:51 am CDT June 5, 2007
PECULIAR, Mo. -- A rush-hour crash Monday evening killed one woman on Highway 71, officials said.
Cass County authorities said three vehicles collided on the highway just north of Peculiar when the female driver of a Ford Explorer swerved around a slower mowing vehicle and lost control.
The Explorer crossed the grass median and struck a Dodge Durango southbound on the highway, sheriff's deputies said. The Explorer was then struck by a southbound pickup truck.
The driver of the Explorer was killed. Authorities identified her as Christine W. Muhia, 21. The sheriff's office said Muhia is from Kenya and had been living in Belton.
Two women and two children in the Durango were injured and taken to a local hospital, officials said. The driver of the pickup was also injured.
The wreck caused traffic to back up for several miles.
(www.kansascitychannel.com)
Although my convenience was the last thing on my mind, I was able to off road the Yukon to the outer road and only had to wait about 30 minutes in traffic. 71 Hwy South was shut down for about 2 1/2 hours.
posted @ 6/5/2007 11:33:50 AM (0) Comments
Monday, June 04, 2007
Early-to-bed-Friday, Mega Workout/ Date Night Saturday, Lake Sunday, YES!
The weekend run down…
To start off, Friday afternoon I made myself into a total jackass to a friend of mine. I responded to an email in a manner in which I shouldn’t have responded- for I had never intended to actually send it. But, like a moron, I hit send and didn’t know it until I got a response back. WHOOPS. So we ended up getting into via email, which by the way, is similar to taking two mildly retarded people, tying one arm behind their backs and handing them pool noodles and saying “Fight.” We both apologized and I think we’re fine, but I had that chip on my shoulder most of the weekend.
Right after work I met up with Julie to have a couple drinks at the local Paddy O’s. Her hubby Dan joined us a bit later with his friends and I left shortly there after. I got home and tidied up a bit waiting for Eric. We were both laying on the bed talking about what we wanted to do for dinner, and of course we fell asleep… at 8:15pm on a Friday. I woke up about midnight, confused on why we were asleep, put the dogs to bed and went back to sleep myself.
Saturday morning came way too early. I climbed out of bed trying to convince myself that it would be much easier to just drive to the pool, but I knew I had to run. I headed out the door late to run and make it there on time. I was about eight minutes late, so that wasn’t too bad. We also had a new guy, LaDrue, join our masters team, so that was great to have a fresh face. We did a lot of drill work and then I did some personal coaching, and swam myself. I ran back home. I figured it would pour on me for sure from the clouds that were forming on my way in. Nope. It was sunny and very humid. After I got back to the house I did some errands, took Eric lunch, and got ready to ride with Jules.
Julie got to the house just before 1:00 pm and we finished getting ready and headed out for a beautiful ride around Lake Lotawana. We did the full lake and got to see a sail boat race in the process.
-While I’m thinking about it, I want to say that Julie is straight up kicking ass. It wasn’t very long ago that I could out ride her, but I would say that we are about dead even altogether on the bike. I think I’m a little balls-ier in technical down hills and corners, but she is out climbing me and she’s starting to kick it up in the flats too. What’s crazy is I know that I have gotten faster on the bike, so she has exploded on it. Also, the Runner’s Edge training has really given her some great skills and I think she will be super impressed with her season this year! I’m stoked it see how she does. -
Once we got out of the lake section we cruised down Colbern Rd., stopped and got more water- we were both completely out. It got hot fast and was really soupy. We then road on down to this long rolling subdivision with these massive houses and rode thru there and back out. We made a “pit stop” at Stonehaus Farms Winery and ended up getting a bottle each. We just wanted to each get a glass, but they only sell bottles! GREAT. So we each had about 3 glasses- and then they wouldn’t let me take it home in my water bottle to put in a bottle there. SO, we had to leave the rest of our bottles. Let me tell you, that was some expensive couple glasses of wine. BUT it was so worth it because they were getting ready for a wedding and we got to sit there and poke fun at the bridesmaid dresses (OMG) and the 387 flower girls. Seriously, I think we counted 6 flower girls. How ridiculous! We then rode the last 6 miles or so home… no, we were not (that) tipsy!
Saturday evening I took Eric out on a date. We went to TomFooleries on the plaza. I love that place. We ate and drank for less than $30! We walked around a bit and stopped at the local bar. The worst karaoke singers in the country congregate there. We couldn’t take much of it so we called it a night and went home.
Yesterday morning I cooked breakfast. Justin came over so I made food and swatted him away from the bacon platter. The boys went to the shop and got the boat ready to go out and I took the Yukon to go get the cooler filled up and met them at the lake. By the end of the afternoon we had Justin, Ashley (Head Artist / Piercer and Owner of Gypsy Rose tattoo in Grain Valley, MO- she’s done quite a bit of work for Eric, Justin, myself and a lot of our friends. She is the best, so check her out!), Thomas, Auburn, Eric and myself. We got Ash out in the water for her first ever wakeboarding attempt. She got up on the board a couple times so that was cool. I surfed and I didn’t realize how much I missed being on the lake. Eric used to give me a hard time for being a girl wakeboarder- the stigma was it’s a guys sport- but on Friday he asked me why I didn’t ever ride anymore (after the 2005 Cable Tour I was ranked 4th in the US and 47th in the world for Women’s Open Outlaw. I also had a wakeskate ranking, but it wasn’t that great. The majority of wakeskaters are guys, so I was competing against them). It’s for various reasons that I stopped riding, mostly because I found tris, but he said he wished I still did… WTF!!?? Silly boy. I had actually considered riding on Sunday, but the water was a freaking bathtub so I had no interest in going out and getting repeatedly worked. I’m sore from surfing, even!
When Eric and Justin were pulling the boat out of the water, Justin handed his boy, Ryder- he’ll be a year old at the end of this month- to me… I was like, “Um, what do I do with this?” Justin’s response: “Hold him and don’t drop him.” GREAT. I ended up doing the baby on the hip thing… uh yeah. Picture this:
ME- rainbow string bikini, tattooed, sun burnt, beer in hand, kid on hip at the boat dock of Blue Springs lake, hollering at the boys about how they were pulling the boat out. … well at least I fit in with all the other Whiskey Tango people out there- there was even a chick there standing on shore in front of all these families in a leopard print thong. She didn’t have much of a butt, and what she did have was flat and saggy. Eeek! Thank goodness I’m a triathlete- so if people were thinking I had popped out a kid, they would have been thinking I was in good shape! J It was classic.
But Ryder did great and didn’t cry or anything- good thing because I probably would have just stood there.
After we left the lake we went back to our place and cooked out. Nice way to end the weekend. EXCEPT one of my neighbors told us stories about another neighbor- and he’s crazier than we all thought, so now Eric is all worried about my safety. I don’t think I’m too worried about it, but homeboy is very strange and I would like to see the guy go away and get out of our neighborhood.
Lessons learned from the weekend: Don’t argue in email; Stonehaus only sells by the bottle; I am definitely not ready for a kid and in no way look the part of mom; and my neighbor is crazier than we thought.
posted @ 6/4/2007 8:05:09 AM (0) Comments
Friday, June 01, 2007
Things That Annoy, Irritate, and Bug the Eff Out of Me
Things That Annoy, Irritate, and Bug the Eff Out of Me
Since I am so incredibly cranky this week, I thought I would compile a list of things that have been bothering me lately. It’s very likely that if you are reading this, there could be a thing (or two) that you do on here. This doesn’t mean you annoy me, just something that you do. I might be over it in a week, but don’t get offended. It’s all in good fun, mine, mostly.
In no particular order:
People that aren’t sick (or aren’t that sick) and try to make themselves sound sick for attention. Along those lines people that are sick- or faking- that talk about being sick. When you’re truly sick you want to be left the eff alone.
Runners going 2 or 3 wide down a street with no shoulder
Cars that don’t move over for runners or cyclists
Cars that yell, cuss, throw things at said runners and cyclists
People that ride bikes- with or with motors- with out a helmet. However, this could aid in self de-selection. They simply remove themselves from the gene pool
People that act like they know what they’re talking about
Name droppers
Butch women, swishy men (for either gay or straight- if you’re a girl it’s okay to be a girl and like girls… you don’t have to be a man to be a lesbian and vise versa)
Unnecessary ignorance. I’ll even own up to this one, I wasn’t going to but I can’t be a hypocrite. Last night I was taking my front wheel off my bike when it donned on me- you don’t have to take the skewer completely out to take the wheel off. D’oh. For over a year when I’ve been taking the fronts off my bikes, I’ve pulled the skewer all the way out. Dit dah dah.
When Eric doesn’t make the bed. Nevermind that I can’t seem to do laundry more than one day a week, or even put away the laundry or hang up clothes that were worn once and not dirtied… it’s him not making the bed that’s the worst. J …however, if he made a list I’m sure there are 100 things that annoy him that I do!
Cyclists, women especially, that don’t wear their helmets on TOP of their heads but instead off to the back slightly so it doesn’t mess up their bangs
When people run with their iPods up so loud they can’t hear the person next to them
People that get stuck on one subject. If you want to talk to them be ready to talk about that subject because for three weeks that’s all they will have to say
Commitment breakers. If you say you will do something, by God you better do it
When someone’s consistently late (yes, Moto, this is you, but you are not alone)
When coaching, I tell someone to do something and they blatantly ignore me
Fake, false people; backstabbing
T-Bone on the Johnny Dare Morning Show here in KC. I love the show but that guy screeches and stutters so bad that I have to change the channel
People, usually men, who see my Mustang and say “Is that your car?” or “So you drive a Mustang?” This happens most often at gas stations
Why someone doesn’t even try, including people that say they can’t when they haven’t tried
Men that don’t open doors for women, the elderly. In this group there’s also the guys that get out of the car and are 10 steps ahead of the wife/ girlfriend instead of waiting for her (Yes, Sweetie, you do this a lot and it drives me bananas)
Rap music that is so ghetto. Same thing for country that’s so twangy whiny. Get over it
People that try to look like gang bangers. Usually the 19 year old kid in the old grand am leaning off to the side with his over sized white T shirt, ball cap with sticker still on, “Jesus piece” around the neck, listening to Little Jon, err, excuse me, Lil’ Jon, while his trunk rattles because he couldn’t afford $20 of dynamat. Ever see the video of OffSpring’s Pretty Fly for a White Guy? Yeah, that’s the kid I’m talking about…
Road construction
Traffic that slows down for no reason. Or better yet, traffic that slows down to read the KC SCOUT sign that says “One Lane at I-35 North and I-70” and you’re only at I-470 and View High Drive- KC people, you know exactly what I mean
Kids that drink under age
People that drive, boat under the influence of drugs/ alcohol
People that do drugs. Even better, the ones that openly talk about using drugs
Smokers
Bars, restaurants that still allow indoor smoking
Girls with their ta-tas hanging out at the grocery store or some family eatery at 8:45 am on a Sunday morning
90% of the people that live in JoCo J
Fat chicks that call ME skinny. Um hello, I’m like a size 10-12
When said fat chicks talk about the weight they want to lose while their riding the elevator to the second floor with a foot long chili cheese dog in one hand and a 55 gallon drum of coke in the other
Crack whores. Pronounced: Who-u-er-s
Trashy people
My brother wasting his talent
Robyn’s Fractured ankle, my knee and shoulder, Julie’s foot
When in a race on the bike you yell “ON THE LEFT” when overtaking a rider, and they turn look to the left and swerve in that direction
People that draft in a tri
When someone commits to something and doesn’t follow thru, join in, participate, or just simply pretends that it doesn’t exist
The person at work that makes it obvious she’s not working and is broadcasting the news that she’s reading off the internet to everyone at work. Usually celebrity gossip
When my uterus bleeds
Hugs from people I don’t know. Please, Don’t touch me
When someone tries to make small talk with me before a race. Race morning there’s one thing I’m thinking about. The RACE. Please, don’t talk to me unless it’s race related. And even then…
People driving around with sub woofers turned up in their cars before 11am on any given day
There’s no such thing as motorcross. It’s MotoCross
Just because you have done a tri, a cross race, a 5k, wakeboarded, skated, sky dived, whatever- you are not a triathlete, a X racer, a runner, a wakeboarder, a skater, a sky diver. Do it at least three times, maybe twice, even to say that’s what you are. Don’t undermine the work, time, practice that people put into a sport by saying you “do” something when you’ve actually “tried” or “done” it
Getting a cold the first week of June
People that drive too slow in the fast lane
People that drive way to fast in the slow lane
Whoever hit my car and dented the fender, and whoever scratched my rear bumper. Probably same person that asks “So you drive a Mustang” or the 90% of JoCo drivers
Pimples
People that think they are cooler than they really are
People that think I am cooler than I really am
Suck ups, brown nosers and the like
My paycheck
Mortgage payments, utility bills
My mailman. I never get my mail and I get everyone else’s
Squadra. Their quality is amazing. Customer service, and sizing, not so much
Paying taxes
My long body and stubby legs. Seriously, who do you know that’s 5’10 with a 31 inch inseam? I got dunked in the gene pool
This woman that works for a client with the initials of KG
Paperwise
Children. From ages 0-13. Very few are excluded here.
People that bring little kids to movies- especially the retards that brought a 3 year old to the movie 300 and then let her cry and bawl the entire time
Crying kids in restaurants, and the parents that don’t take them outside
Work
Okay, so I’m running low on things that irritate me, and I feel much better. Thanks!
Oh, and don’t forget, it's a new month, so if you're trying to find my previous blogs, you’ll have to go to the month of May or before. There’s some good ones on there, and yesterday’s will make you laugh.
Good luck to everyone racing this weekend. I’m gonna put in a hard bike tomorrow and a decent run Sunday if the weather holds up.
155 days to IronMan. Holy Shit.
Court
posted @ 6/1/2007 8:36:28 AM (1) Comments
May 2007
http://sponsorhouse.loopd.com/Members/CourtCrutcher/Blog.aspx?month=5&year=2007
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Mortgage Gods Hate Me & Liz's "INTRODUCING 40.0"
The Mortgage Banking Gods Hate Me…
In February Eric and I decided that we were going to re-finance our home loan to get a better interest rate and to be able to apply much more to principal. We both decided that we could afford our payments to go up at $150 a month, as long as that extra money was going to principal. A friend of his that helped us get our first mortgage, so we went back to him for his. Now just to start, let me say that this guy has bent over backwards to help us out, especially as he was doing all of this at now cost to us.
That was in February. This has been dragged out and dragged out. The first time that I had understood was we would be closing on March 21. Wrong. That’s when the Fed was supposed to be lowering rates. I follow mortgage banking. I work at a foreclosure and bankruptcy law firm that was one of the first firms in the mortgage banking industry. I knew the Fed wasn’t lowering rates. I wanted to close then. Surprise! The Fed didn’t lower rates. So we decided to forge ahead at the already decided rates. It then took my wonderful boyfriend about 45 days to turn in all of his appropriate paperwork. I was told that we would close on such and such day in April and that we wouldn’t be making a house payment in May. So I spent some of that money on much needed work clothes (for those of you that have never had to buy nice business apparel, newsflash, pants and a jacket will cost you well over a hundred dollars just for those two). We ended up not closing and I had to use a good portion of the money I got for selling my bike to cover my ass on the mortgage. So, I’m down quite a bit of extra cash. Now since then I have been told over and over and over that we would be closing on 5/31 (TODAY). I talked to the loan guy and he said some stuff would be delayed but we would be closing no later than tomorrow, June 1st. SO I asked twice saying “Can you guarantee we will close by this day and I do not need to send in may June payment?” Yes, I was told, do not pay it. You will not be making a payment until August. Perfect. We were supposed to be going 2 months without a payment (equating to around $2000). With the money saved I was supposed to be paying off my bike (which I wouldn’t be doing since I had used some of the money from selling the first bike already) because I only have 6 months allowed to pay for it, and would be buying plane tickets for Florida . And the rest of the money would go to house stuff like fixing the bathroom that is still effed up from AUGUST.
Here it is, May 31, and we were finally supposed to close on the loan by tomorrow. Guess what? Loan Guy calls and says he miscalculated our payoff figures and that including the closing costs in the loan as we had planned would make our loan higher, with high payments still and no more money going to principal. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I called Eric. He said he told Loan Guy to call me because I would have the answer. I told Eric I wasn’t about to go pulling the trigger on something that we would potentially be paying for for the next 30 years with out talking to him. When he told me the way he understood things we both decided that we will just stay in the Godforsaken loan we are in now. Not that it’s bad, but I feel like I should be on our mortgage, not just with the house deeded to me, and that we should be applying more money towards principal. So now we can stay in the same loan, take that extra $150 and month and just pay it forward, and we’d be better of than if we were doing the new deal that we have been dicking around with for over four months. That’s all fine and dandy, except I was repeatedly told that we wouldn’t be making a house payment for two months. So now I have to scramble to come up with the extra money to pay off my bike, etc. What a heart ache and pain in the ass. I know, it’s no body’s fault but my own, and Loan Guy did the right thing (obviously) by calling me and telling me before we went into sign that the loan was all screwy.
But I mean, SERIOUSLY!! DO THE MORTGAGE GODS REALLY HATE ME THAT MUCH?
So, yeah, if any of you out in blogger land decide you want to “donate” some money to the “Help-Courtney-Pay-For-All-Of-Her-Ridiculously-Expensive-Triathlon-Related-Crap-Fund” please, let me know.
***
On a bit of a peppier note, Julie found the blog entitled “Introducing 40.0” on Liz’s site. I read it and it at least gives some comic relief. For all of you with the man trying to keep you down, here it is, reposted with permission from Elizabeth Fedofsky (Blog date 12/13/06) http://elizabethfedofsky.blogspot.com/
Announcing......40.0
Surfing the triathlon-related sites the other day, a press release caught my eye. 101.06? This couldn’t be. Yet another distance and series of races? That’s right, a new 2007 series cleverly called one-o-one with 4 races covering true long course distances; 4K swim, 120K bike, 30K run.With the release of this new race series, it seems an appropriate time to for me to jump on the bandwagon and introduce a new, number-related race that has been stirring around in my head for some time.Introducing………40.0.As in, 40.0 work hours in a week. As in the number of hours you need to work to be considered full-time, as in the numerical value of selling your soul to some company in exchange for what they consider generous and what you consider embarrassing as a yearly exempt salary. Exempt as in exempt from over-time, double-time, freetime, or any good time that you could be having if only you didn’t have to work 40.0 damn hours each week.As such, this race will showcase the finest training that a full-time, 8 am – 5 pm, work schedule has to offer including swimming at peak pool usage times, biking along rush hour busy roads, and running in complete darkness.The only qualifying factor for entry into this race is proof of full-time employment. Full-time employment denotes that you show up at a desk – not within your own home – by a certain time each day or someone in a position above you will question your absence and discipline your disappearing ass if you don’t show.To verify employment status, all athletes must present a copy of last years W-2 form on race day. Just for an added kick, we will pin your W-2 to your back so when you get passed by some maniac athlete they will not only have the option to shout on yer left! but may also opt to ostracize you for the meager size of your salary. Chances are if they are passing you, they make twice as much money to buy twice as fancy equipment at retail cost to kick the ass of people like you two times over.Now, stay-at-home moms and work-at-home employees, we at 40.0 believe you work just as hard as the rest of us. In fact, you probably work harder. However, this is not the competition for you. You just don’t qualify. To be fair, we will have a lottery and for a small fee you can get a chance at a slot to compete in this highly awaited and highly coveted event. We accept all forms of bribery, pity stories, and pleas as entry into the race. And we will automatically enroll anyone with celebrity status.The race will start after work at 5 pm. Here at 40.0 we completely reject the standard 7 am race start time knowing that most of you are either up at 4:30 am training before work or out until 8 pm training after work. The only people ready to race at 7 am are the unemployed, graduate students, and professionals athletes. The rest of us have barely choked down 5 ounces of our 21 ounce cup of coffee and are still wondering if we left the house fully dressed.The race will begin at a local gym with a 1000 yard swim directly after work on a weekday. Note that this tends to be a time of heavy usage in the pool. Unfortunately, participants will not have special pool privileges. In fact, expect to sit and watch time tick by for 10, maybe 15 minutes while waiting for half of a lane to open up because all of the lanes will be double stacked with people doing some semblance of swimming but unsure if they are drowning or just waving. By chance that you actually do get into a lane, the swim portion will consist of snaking your way up and down over 4 lanes filled with other pool users. Consider it a version of pool steeple chase, if you will.In Lane 1, you will find a woman walking laps back and forth while you take the other half of the lane against the wall. Since this woman is swinging foam weights in each arm as she walks, you can expect to swallow approximately ½ of the water in the pool including ½ of the stuff that seeps off of all those band-aids that keeping sinking to the bottom and some gum. Also, being pinned against the wall, you can expect to swallow another ½ of the pool water after it hits the wall and then bounces back in tsunami force at you. Because of this woman’s girth, space will be very limited and you can expect to scrape your entire body against the wall at least once every lap adding blood and skin to the other specks of suspicious items floating around the pool at any given time.Lane 2 will contain a man doing breakstroke back and forth while overkicking the black line making a swift kick to the ribs or stomach punch a likely inevitability. When he finally does an entertaining version freestyle swimming, his flailing arms will make contact with you at least every 50 yards and you will lose your goggles at least one. After each lap, he will stop at the wall and stretch his hamstring over and over again, hogging half of the wall in the process, making any turn impossible.Lane 3 will consist of the group we shall refer to as the two noodles and a kickboard club. We’re not sure what they’re doing in the pool or why they need to do it in water, but one thing is certain – they are not getting out anytime soon because they have a strange affinity for floating in chlorinated water and freakish endurance for mind boggling boredom and inanity as they coast up and down the lane with these inflatable toys.Finally, in lane 4, participants will be faced with the biggest obstacles of all – a water aerobics class designed specifically for pregnant women. As these mommy’s-to-be move up and down in the water, kick their legs side to side, their collective weight alone causes all of the water in the pool to move in the fashion of a swirling vortex ready to suck in any unassuming swimmer as they go by. Their chattiness is deafening, their penchant for bad eighties music set to techno beats is nauseating. Even worse, the instructor insists on talking to all 6 of them in a screeching, high-pitched voice while she jumps around like a monkey on the deck completely oblivious to the fact that no one in the class is even watching her. But the hot tub finds it highly entertaining. After a few laps you will feel grateful you spend most of the time submerged underwater.Upon completing the swim, you will jump in your car and drive to the bike course at approximately 5:20 pm (because commuting from work wasn’t enough, because you just couldn’t wait to commute for your work out as well). Since it is after 5 pm, you will not have time to drive the 30 – 40 minutes to any decent roads. Instead, you will ride right from home. The bike course will be 20 miles of out-and-back along a very busy, four lane road again at the peak of rush hour. Just to be sure your average speed doesn’t get too high, there will be a stoplight planted cleverly every ½ mile.Participants will bike along the shoulder of the road. At times, this shoulder may be 4 feet wide, at other times about 4 inches. And sometimes, for no reason, there may be no shoulder at all. Expect to flat 2 – 3 flat tires as you ride through debris most commonly found along a shoulder, including, but not limited to, glass, random pieces of metal, remnants of headlights, paper, plastic bottles, hubcaps, large clumps of grass or dirt, cigarette butts, old shoes, a bumper, and other assorted items that you have no clue how people lose from their car going 50 miles per hour.50 miles per hour is also the speed limit along this road. And so you best pack an extra pair of shorts because at some point along the course you will get scared shitless and soil yourself after a far-too-close encounter with a semi-truck or a suburban housewife driving a Lexus SUV shouting senseless and rude cuss words at you while either driving her kids home from soccer practice or driving to Target to buy juice for the fourth time that week.Part of the bike course will also take you through a neighborhood. This will showcase some of the finest and safest cycling available to those that ride after 5 pm. In the neighborhood, you will complete 10 loops of the same 1 mile circuit. If the sheer monotony alone does not cause you to drop out after 10 loops or throw up from going in circles, you will go back and do the same 10 loops in reverse.Along the bike course, there is also the slight risk that you will be verbally assaulted by a genius. Yes, a rare genius that has somehow mastered how to drive a car and talk at the same time while informing you with window rolled down as they come squealing around a corner that bikes belong on the sidewalk, not on the road because the road is for cars. Who knew.And as for other wildlife, beware the wild turkeys along the side of the road that get scared silly when you ride by and start gobbling which will send you in a panicked frenzy swerving into oncoming traffic. Do not approach the angry geese that do not look both ways before crossing the road. As for the squirrels, they are fuckin’ fearless so watch out.When you hit the turnaround point, you will make your way back to experience all of the joy, love, and fun of riding down a busy road during rush hour in tight black shorts, a colorful jersey, and matching socks but this time you get to do it in reverse. Before reaching the end of the bike course, you will go under what is referred as the bridge of death – a tricky descent down a 45 mph road on which you on a bicycle can reach 35 mph right before going under the bridge with no shoulder to save your sorry two-wheeled ass so you must keep turning your head back while simultaneously praying to god that no car drives under the bridge at the same time. If perchance you make it through the bridge alive, as you sit at the stoplight catching your breath a car will pull up to you, roll down their window, and say “Oh you think you’re fast, do you?” provoking you to sprint out of the light to catch up with them, tap on their window, and flip them the bird – also another type of wildlife you will need to watch out for.If by some miracle you survive the bike course unscathed, you will then transition to a 5 mile run. You will run through neighborhoods in complete darkness because by this time night has arrived. To avoid traffic, you will run most of the course in the gutter. You’ve been treated like crap the entire course of the race so it is most appropriate for you to finish it in the gutter like the rest of the street trash. By the way, running in the gutter is great for your IT Band and balancing out your hips.Along the run course expect to be chased by at least one small dog that thinka it is 10 times it’s size. Mostly like this will be a pug that the owner has leashed but still has not learned – after 2 years of runners running by it – that the pug tends to lunge at runners when they approach in the dark, yanking the owners arm and leash far enough to run into the runner and attack them in a vicious frenzy of barking and small sharp teeth.Part of the run course will take place on a path through a local forest preserve. You will maneuver your way along the path in total darkness while avoiding large branches, nocturnal wildlife, and large piles of horse crap. It is best to attach bells to your shoes for this portion of the run so those enforcing the forest preserve’s deer management program don’t confuse you for a deer or else you risk getting a few rounds of buckshot in your ass.At some point along the run course, your stomach will drop. At that point, you will have two choices – hold it and risk the massive bowel movement being reabsorbed by your body or sneak into some dense shrubbery to drop the anchor that is sitting in your ass. Whatever your choice, choose wisely – you could pay for it either way.The participant who completes the course first will be crowned the 40.0 champion. Other than the intrinsic gratification of calling yourself a champion, there will be no other accolades, awards, or prizes. Of course, next year we will either completely change the series or eliminate it all together so your championship title will become obsolete.The 2007 date won't be announced for another few months. But, registration will be open soon and we will gladly take your $600 entry fee any time.Cheers!
posted @ 5/31/2007 9:13:23 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
It's a RollerCoaster- follow me here, people!
This one is a multi-header… stay with me, folks…
Blazeman
Yesterday I happened to be, um, “working” when I came across the website for Jon Blais, or Blazeman, an ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) patient, who in 2005 was the last finisher across the line at Kona. This past November when Kona aired on NBC Jules and I sat sniffling (okay I was straight up bawling) because he was then in a wheel chair, barely functioning, but watching his dreams live on in contributors and racers such as Brian Breen. I clicked on the Blazeman’s site, only to read RIP Jonathan Blais. He passed away on Sunday, the 27th, from his ALS. Yes, of course I cried sitting in my cubical. But after I cried I donated a little money to his foundation, you should do the same. www.alswarriorpoet.com
I am woman, hear me cry, bitch, moan, freak out, complain about the heat/cold, and in general turn into a spazoid for a week
You’ve seen the commercial. The new one for the BC pills that claim to help with, well, all of the aforementioned. It lists the symptoms, my particular favorite “the deep sadness and emotional instability associated with PMS symptoms, which may cause the overwhelming feeling to cry, weep, blubber, sob at any and everything” (Okay so that’s not verbatim but that’s pretty much how it went). Of course there’s me: Seat for one with room for my emotional baggage, please. I happened to see this ad during that blessed time o’ the month and guess what happened? I started crying! As I’m using my long sleeved PowerBar shirt for a tissue, it continues. “These symptoms may be more than PMS. They could be related to PMDD- Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder.” Of course they are. Of course they are…
So last night when I was having of my many mini-meltdowns (cute, I know) over misplacing a $20 bill I almost sat down on hardwood floor to kick and scream and bang my arms against the floor like one of those brats from Nanny 911. Then I went into a rant (read: blubbering disaster rivaled only by Chernobyl) to Eric about my job, my weight, IronMan, training, Dustin, masters swimming, bloating, dirt on the carpet, the dogs, Eric yelling at the dogs… and just after I calmed myself from that storm I found my $20 bill. For that sparkling moment I found it and I was happy. THEN I realized that I had just had a freakout about misplacing (I knew it wasn’t lost or stolen) a $20 bill. So I started crying about that… which was the time Eric said “Are you pregnant?” Attention Guys: Here’s what a woman thinks if you ask her that- she LOOKS pregnant, not that she could be the most depressed and angry lead singer of Hawthorne Heights or any other screaming Emo band. I’m just going to let this thought trail away into oblivion because I cannot type the thoughts I had. … … .. .
Moral of this story: Call OB/GYN ask about new BC. Use in heavy doses.
IronMan and Training
I am having a hard time getting motivated. Here we are, at the start of the race season, 157 days from IronMan and I can’t get out the door. Aside from the Thursday night sessions with the DFT ladies, I am having a very hard time swimming/ biking/ running. Especially running. I feel as though I am almost self sabotaging and I am afraid to put it all out there, then fail. I rode 18 miles in the pouring down rain on Sunday and was proud of myself for it. However, when I got home and took a shower, I came out to see blue skies and a double rainbow. Almost as if the sky was giving me the bird and laughing. Last night I got home early enough to get an hour run. I could tell it was going to storm so I thought I would hold off. I did and it did. So while it was raining I again sabotaged myself by stuff handful after handful of barbeque potato chips in my mouth, so that I knew I wouldn’t be able to run with all that crap in my body. Which brings me to what I a feeding myself. I still don’t have the perfect (I would say it’s “close to mediocre”) handle on my nutrition, as shown by Example A. The time is ticking and there is only 22 1/2 weeks until Florida. That will make you freak out. I am trying to find something that will get my ass into highgear, but I haven’t found it yet. A new blog I have been reading (Liz Fedofsky’s http://elizabethfedofsky.blogspot.com/ ) makes me want to work out, and I am hoping that a new edition to team DFT of Leslie Curley will give me the desire to train. Or just help…
Then there are girls with so much burning desire to train that can’t- yes Robyn, I am talking about you! Robo fractured her ankle before Memphis in May, raced anyway, but now has a cute (but sucky) pink cast on her ankle. She asked the Dr. if she could where the boot instead. His response? “I don’t trust you.” Classy. Very nice.
So now I sit here at my desk, fighting off the afternoon nap that wants to grab me by a choke hold. Oh, and speaking of choking, my throat is swollen, red and icky. My nose won’t stop dripping, and my eyes won’t quit watering and itching. It makes me want to cry and hope that the ceiling tile falls on me when I’m sitting at my desk. That would be the icing on the cake. This has been the month from hell and there’s still a few days to be over with…
posted @ 5/30/2007 11:22:16 AM (0) Comments
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Memories of Dustin Francis
Memories of Dustin Francis
On Saturday, Amy Parks (Dustin’s former girlfriend of a few years), and I went to the Francis’s. I had planned to go by myself, but I was almost to Belton and I was thinking about what I would say to Kim and Allot and I almost turned around. I called Amy and asked if she could go- she said yes as she couldn’t see going by herself either.
We pulled up to their driveway about 4:15pm. I couldn’t quite turn the steering wheel onto the gravel. Just seeing the driveway brought back so many memories. I looked at Amy and we both took a deep breath as I pulled in. There were a lot of cars in the driveway, most I didn’t recognize. As we pulled into park my uncle, Gary who was in from Chicago, was in the driveway talking to Allot. The two of them have been close friends for ages, and it surprised and relieved me to see him there.
When I got out of the car I realized I hadn’t spoke with Allot in a very long time. It had been over a year since Eric and I moved away and it was probably better than a year since that when I talked with him last. I felt so bad. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t just come over to say “hi” or “how are you” in that time. I hugged him but no tears came, and I turned to Amy to let her do the same. Allot told us to head on in, he wanted to talk with Gary some more.
We started up to the front door- neither of us wanting to be the first one through. I reached down just to give her hand a squeeze but I found we were gripping each other tightly. We each needed something- someone to hold onto.
I opened the screen door and it slammed shut with a bang. Kim was sitting on the ottoman of their over stuffed chair. She was looking right at us, but it was almost like she didn’t see us. She was seeing through us. I ran to her and dropped on my knees grabbing her. She let out a sob and then just a quite sniffle. I knew that I needed to be strong. She had cried so much for so long, she needn’t do it again on my account. I backed away and let Amy hold her as well.
I don’t know how long we sat there in silence. There were others there- friends, family none did I recognize. Eventually someone made some small talk to avoid the silence. Every time it would quite somebody would interject to break it up.
Amidst the conversations I found myself sitting in the living room of a home I had been in hundreds of times. It seemed strange. Have you ever gone back to an elementary or middle school you used to go to? You know the feeling- everything is so small compared to what your mind says it should be. This was the opposite. I felt so small, so miniscule looking at the walls and the ceiling. I should have felt like the house had shrank, but instead it felt as if I had diminished.
There were dozens of photos scattered on the coffee table. Most of Dustin and Ryan as kids. This was how I generally thought of him. I picked up one photo and chuckled to myself. They both had the whitest, bushiest blonde hair- my little brother had the exact same. I saw a photo across the table that I dared not to pick up. It was of Dustin and I playing in my sandbox at about age 7 or 8. I probably wouldn’t have recognized myself except for the bright purple swimsuit I demanded that my mother let me wear everyday through the summer. I felt a deep pang in my heart. I looked away, searching for something, anything, to focus on, to keep the burning of the tears in my eyes away.
My center of attention landed on the refrigerator which had a recent photo of the Francis family pinned to it. Absolutely nothing abnormal about a family photo on a fridge, except this family should be on a cover for a magazine. Such a beautiful family, I thought. And they were- Kim, thin, tan, impeccably high check bones and a beautiful smile (She is, after all a dental hygienist, and if nothing else, every six months since I was old enough to hold a tooth brush she and I would visit-most recently just 3 weeks ago). Allot, handsome in his own right and the source of the boy’s white hair whose own turned a beautiful silver over time, stood next to his wife both crouched over the boys. Ryan, 2 1/2 years our senior and Dustin both were caught laughing- big, open mouthed laughs with bright sparkling eyes.
Amy and I sat and visited for a while, but decided it was out time to go. With hugs for all we headed out the door. As we pulled out of the drive, I mentioned some things to Amy that I had just begun to remember after being there. The memories came flooding back for the rest of the weekend…
The bathtub pond in front of their house. It held lilies and fish.
Their dogs. In succession, Aspen, Sierra, Dakota. Dakota was friendly and loving while we were there.
Dustin getting caught on fire when I was in 6th grade! Accidentally, of course, by a friend. Seeing him at Children’s Mercy Hospital was so scary.
Joint Easter Egg hunts.
The games. Dustin and I frequently entertained ourselves with wild games of Cops and Robbers, Cowboys and Indians, and baseball games. One of Dustin’s childhood passions was baseball. We would “play” ball and he always got to be George Brett. I had to be Mrs. Brett. I never wanted to be Mrs. Brett, I wanted to be George Brett.
Hopscotch in the driveway.
Dustin using a four letter word while playing in the sand box and me tattling on him.
At about age 7 we thought that we should learn how to kiss in case the time ever came that we would need to know how. I don’t remember how it went but somebody got licked by somebody and we were both traumatized.
My older brother, Travis, pulling Ryan out of the pond when he fell in.
The boys and I playing in the pond off of a makeshift dock my grandpa had fashioned for us during summer.
Dustin crashing his Blazer after first getting his license. I saw him a few days later and told him he was an idiot to be driving on the roads that we grew up on like that. I told him not to scare his family or kill someone or even himself.
Jumping out of the old barn on their land into piles of hay.
Walking thru the woods where our property lines met. This was usually during a case of cowboys and Indians.
Drawing big smiley faces on the construction cones in the back of the Francis property. I remember Allot calling my mom about it. We both adamantly denied it.
My mom made me dump out our little plastic pool and move it. I told Dustin I would “pay” him to help me. I think I gave him a nickel and some pennies. He accepted. Later, Kim sent him back to the house to give me back the money and apologize for being “paid” to help a friend. I remember being mad that he told my mom because I got in trouble for asking for help. I through the money in the trash can.
I got in trouble for something and couldn’t come out to play. I wanted to play and so did he. I sat inside the window and cried while he sat outside the window and cried.
Dustin and Amy at prom. He had switched to a private school, so I rarely saw him as we grew older. We sat and talked for a while and he looked miserable in a tux. He had pulled the bow tie half out.
Riding my horse up and down the fence of my grandparent’s land while he drove their four-wheeler on their side of the fence while we talked.
…I’m sure more will come but these are some of the things I thought of in the last few days.
It’s amazing the feelings memories give. From utter joy to the darkest depths of sorrow.
The underwater search for his body was called off late last week. There were hopes someone would find him over the long boating weekend, but alas, nothing. The hardest part isn’t that he’s gone, but that his parents don’t have him. They have nothing to say good bye to. It hurts them. It hurts us all.
posted @ 5/29/2007 9:54:44 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Sheer Stupidity killed this friend. WHY WHY WHY?
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=%22dustin+francis%22&ie=UTF-8&scoring=n
I lived next to Dustin Francis for almost 20 years...
Boat hits wake, man disappears
By Joyce L. Miller/Lake Sun
LAKE OF THE OZARKS ' Recovery efforts near the 3-mile marker continue for a 21-year-old Belton, Mo., man who fell off an open-bow boat early Tuesday morning.Dustin Francis was last seen about 1 a.m., lying across the bow near the light of the 20-foot boat he was a passenger in when it hit a small wake that threw him overboard. Francis is believed to have held onto the boat for a short period of time.Two passengers sitting in the open bow with Francis said he lost his balance when the boat hit the wake. Several other passengers were on the boat but were sitting in the back near the driver.According to the Missouri Water Patrol, the driver thought Francis had fallen in. When the driver made a hard left to turn around and go back for the victim, Francis lost his grip.Francis was apparently hit by the propeller.The group of friends had been out for the evening and were returning from a lakefront bar at the 7-mile marker. (Ed. Note. THEY WERE VERY INTOXICATED) They were headed to the 2-mile marker when Francis went under near Atlantis Island.The passengers used a cell phone to call for help. The call went to Morgan and Miller county dispatching centers.The driver, Justin Johnson, 21, of Manhattan, Kan., was arrested for boating while intoxicated.
Francis is the second drowning on Lake of the Ozarks in less than five days.Last weekend, a 20-year-old man drowned in a swimming accident at the 6-mile marker.Although divers were using the side scan sonar in the search for the body, Water Patrol Capt. Matt Walz said the area where Francis is believed to have gone overboard varies in depth from 40 to 90 feet and much of the lake bottom is covered in heavy brush, which makes it difficult to get a clear location on the body.If the body is not recovered by this weekend when tens of thousands of boaters arrive for the Memorial Day holiday, the Water Patrol will have to scale back the search. Instead of using the sonar, they will conduct visual checks of the area.The water temperature is still cool enough to slow the decomposition process and keep the body under water for a longer period of time, he said. http://www.lakesunleader.com/articles/2007/05/23/news/01.txt
Belton man dies in boating accident on Lake Ozark
The Associated Press
LAKE OZARK, Mo. A Belton man died early today when he fell off a boat in the Lake of the Ozarks, authorities said.
Dustin Francis, 21, was riding in the bow of a boat with two other passengers when the 20-foot craft hit a small wake. Francis lost his balance, fell in the water and was struck by the boat’s propeller, the Missouri State Water Patrol said.
The accident was reported about 1 a.m., the patrol said.
*****On this up-coming Memorial Day Weekend, please use EXTRA caution. I can't have more friends dying from stupidity. Dustin's mom is at home, bawling, a complete wreck- and of course she is! Just two weeks ago she was telling me about how worried she was about Dustin and his friends having this lake house and small runabout boat on such a dangerous lake. Why do we, young people especially, have to act without thinking!?
PLEASE everyone, DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE, DO NOT DRINK AND BOAT. Both are crimes and BOTH kill people! Use your heads, please stay alive, and please don't be a murderer.
Courtney
posted @ 5/23/2007 1:28:52 PM (0) Comments
Monday, May 21, 2007
Heritage Park Race Recap
Heritage Park Triathlon
May 20, 2007
587 Yard Swim/ 11.5 Mile Bike/ 3.1 Mile Run
Warmup
I arrived about an hour before the race start (and my start, I was in the Open Heat) set up my TA, got body marked and chit chatted with the girls. I then took my bike out for quick spin to get the HR up and clip my shoes in. Pulled back in, checked out the run and bike in/outs, banded my shoes down, and pulled on my wetsuit. I had only about 45 seconds to warmup in the water before I had to check in at the dock. I was supposed to have about 5 minutes, but they started us almost 5 minutes early. But hey, whatcha gonna do about it?
587 yard Swim 9:09
I was in the open heat so there were only 3 or 4 gals and like 30 guys. It’s a really small area for that many in a heat so I decided to be patient and sit back a bit instead of starting right in the front. I knew that most of the guys would be swimming 7:30’s, so I decided not to get drowned in the front line. Once the guys hammered into each other after the gun I was able to find what I thought was a clean line just off to someone’s feet. Apparently that someone decided to pause and then BAM kick me in the head. It rung my bell pretty good but I just kept on keepin’ on. It is a rectangular course and when we rounded the first corner buoy the sun was in my eyes to spot, so I had to keep hoping that the feet I was following were going the right way. After the second corner buoy my goggles were totally fogged up, so looking forward to spot was and exercise in futility and breathing to my right blinded me. So again, I just kept hoping I was going in the right direction. In the last 200 yards I just couldn’t get my arms to turn over. I don’t know if it was being in a good wetsuit for my first race, or whatever, but I couldn’t get my elbows up and my arms to pick up. I was relieved to get to the beach because I just didn’t feel like myself in the water. Watch time was 9:01, chip time 9:09. I was the 5th fastest split of the day.
Transition 1 1:41
This was pretty slow for me. My right arm didn’t have any strength from the swim so I pretty much stripped my wetsuit off with just my left side, and it got caught on my heels. It felt strange not needing to get into shoes. All I had to grab was my helmet which had my sunglass already attached. I also had to run with my bike quite a ways. I was able to run and jump on my bike and my pre-attached bands executed perfectly. However, I didn’t get my feet in them so well.
Bike 39:35
I had a lot of problems trying to get my feet in my shoes, I actually jammed both feet above the tongues, which pulled out the straps so I had to reach down, untuck the tongues and then reattach the Velcro. Ugh. So I was all kinds of worked up. Going up the first big hill I kept trying to get into a ring smaller than what I have so of course, the derailleur dropped the chain to the inside and I had to get off my bike to get it back on. GGRRRR! I then had to chug along the rest of the big hill because I had lost all of my momentum. The second two loops were uneventful. On the second loop DFT Julie came up to me (she was starting her first loop, she was a few heats behind me) and we chatted for a minute. She looked really good and it was nice to see her out going strong. On each loop I kept hearing Nancy Strickland (somewhat of my mentor) and I wanted to look over at her, but I was trying to just be focused. I really tried to push hard, and my HR was pretty good, but with all the traffic it was difficult. By the 3rd lap, most of the 500 some participants were on the 3.8 mile loop. To do the math, that’s 131 people per mile. Of course there were the people that were riding on the left when I was trying to pass them, and when you call on your left, that’s the direction they swerve (and inevitably it is on the sweeping 38mph downhill corner). That got frustrating.
T2 1:10
I was able to pull my feet out of my straps quickly coming into T2 and switched my leg to side saddle. Of course this girl doing a team tri swerves in front of me right by the dismount line, then unclipped one foot at a time, put both feet down, and then swung her leg over. I just kept saying “Go go go go go!” She was blocking the entire dismount line and there was going to be a huge crash if she didn’t get moving. Luckily I was able to get around her, but I heard a couple guys that were behind me say some things that I can’t really type. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were penalized for it. I was able to run my bike quickly to my TA, and when I was rushing thru I heard them announcing my name on the PA. Very Cool!
When I got to TA, I put my feet into my socks (they had blisters that weren’t healed before race day and I didn’t want to make them bigger) put on my shoes and grabbed my TriSports.com visor and race belt. Off I went.
Run 29:12
I was slow going the first mile. I wasn’t wobbly from bike legs, but I was just trying to get my legs to go. on the out and back part I saw Cheryl from DFT and then a bit later Melanie from DFT came up behind me. They were both doing the Duathlon. I tried to run with Mel for a bit, but she’s a strong runner and I didn’t have the legs. I just kept on going and after the climb at 1.25 miles I felt good. Pretty much everything from there is either downhill or flat and I was able to get my legs about me. At the 2 mile run mark I looked down and saw I was at 1:12 on my watch. I had set a major goal for the season to run a 28min 5k at this race back in November. I wasn’t sure what my split was before the run, but I knew that if I could run an 8-something mile (and negative split the run) then I had a chance of coming in at 1:20. Last year, at my first tri at this same race, my time 1:32.46.
Overall 1:20.46
Well, I came in under 1:21. While I didn’t make my goal of a 28 min run, I was still really happy with the 29.12. That’s my fastest ever (even as a non-split), so I was pleased. I am really happy with my time and my major disappointment was my retardedness on the bike. BUT, my new bike is SO fast!!
The bummer thing was after I crossed the finish I reached up to grab my medal and sharp pain went thru my right shoulder. This was the shoulder that I tore the labrum in which I never had surgically repaired and caused me to end my swimming career. I haven’t had any problems with it in 2 years, but I spent all of yesterday afternoon icing and rubbing it out. I drove to work this morning with ice on it, and after I finish typing this, I’m re-icing it. My next race is in two weeks, I would really like to swim, but I think I know better on this one. I’ll see how it’s feeling Thursday and maybe I can get in some drill work Friday morning.
I’d like to thank TriSports.com for the race gear- especially my wetsuit and trisuit, Freeride Bike and Skate for my great Specialized Transition Expert bike, Defined Fitness Training for all the support, and Tropical Xtreme Tanz for giving me the best color of all the ladies at the race!
RESULTS:
5th in AG
31st OA
5th fastest swim split
Here are some photos right after the finish (Sweaty, greasy dirty! Yum!) in my TriSports.com Orca trisuit, and with the Defined Fitness Training club team gals.
In the DFT photo, from left to right:
Erin, Monica, Courtney, Michele, Cheryl, Dawn, Julie, Melanie
Oh and a comparison from last year and this year. Also, This year was FAST! both men's and women's classes went much faster!
31 124 Courtney Crutcher F2024 Blue Springs MO 5 9:09 14 1:41 34 39:35 15.2 26 1:10 46 29:12 9:44 1:20:46
43 246 Courtney Crutcher F2024 Blue Springs MO 12 10:55 8 1:00 46 46:34 14.8 8 0:44 53 33:35 11:12 1:32:47
posted @ 5/21/2007 8:05:05 AM (0) Comments
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Heritage Park coming up, Lake Lotawana Ride
3 days until Heritage!!
I am so excited. Three days until Heritage Park. Last year Heritage was my first ever tri. I can’t believe it’s already time for it again. It feels like I have been in multisport forever. I know that really, I am quite new, but I have made friends with a few seasoned vets (Thanks Melissa Kelly, Leslie Curly, Nancy Strickland, Peggy Donovan, Greg Goodman, Glen Bohanon…) that have helped me learn the ropes pretty quickly. I still have so much to learn but I think I’m getting experience quickly.
Last year I got in 5 sprint tris, an Oly, and even a Half Ironman. This year I’m doing a full IronMan. I talked to Leslie Curly about a month ago at a seminar and she was so excited for me to be doing a full. She said she has never done one and just so looks up to the people that are doing them and how amazing they are, and she wanted to hear EVERYTHING about my training. She was so genuine. It’s people like this that I look up to myself- and the people that make doing triathlons so great. I am so excited to become a top dog veteran like her.
Last night my swim client and I didn’t meet, so I too my new bike, GoldMember out for a spin. I just got my Orca trisuit from TriSports.com and I had to try that out. Note on that: It fits so well. It’s probably one size too big, but I don’t mind. I really like the chamois, the zipper racer back, and the highneck coverage. I tried calling Sheryl, Cheryl, Sarah, Amy, Melissa… NO ONE could ride with me… or answer their phones. SO I set off on my own. I planned to do about 45 minutes.
I headed out of town and jumped on Cook rd. I followed that down past Colbern to Lake Lotawana. Amy showed me a different loop thru there earlier this week so I went that way. It’s a little shorter and there really aren’t any demanding climbs, but, technically it is difficult. High speed S curves make for fun and to see how big your balls are. Mine, sadly, are just starting to drop. After I completed that out and back I decided that it was so nice out and I was having so much fun to just keep cruising. I turned right and headed over towards the dam. These are also challenging sections but there are big ascents that curve and crazy fast descents after. The link below is my route and it is so much fun. Definitely check it out. I didn’t map everything because I think I took a side road or two, and I went my Sheryls house to see if she was home to ride. My total ride was about 28 miles and it took me 1:58 I think. I should have wrote it down so that may be off by a bit.
http://www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=129482
This was the longest solo ride I have ever done, but I loved it. I thought that I would be bored but the “course” was so challenging and I was loving being out on my bike.
It was a great way to spend an evening by myself.
Tonight I am going out to SMP for our “team” training session. I’m afraid that the team will be me and me and me. Julie has a work meeting, Michele said she might come out but has to be at a movie at 7:00…. maybe one of the girls from work will go out be she only runs… so I might make another solo ride myself. I feel like I should run, but I really don’t want to. I am learning so much on my bike right now, I never want to get off of it. My knee is a little sore too, so I’m not feeling the run.
I am so pumped for this weekend. I get to pick up my packet tomorrow and Erin from Vegas is coming in town to race. I can’t wait to meet her. We are also having a team photo and brunch afterwards. So exciting.
It’s also Monica’s first race. I hope she does well!
Robo- Hey, I just want to give you a public GOOD LUCK at MEMPHIS IN MAY. You’re going to do awesome.
Okay, well that’s it for now! Have a nice evening. Go out and RUN!
posted @ 5/17/2007 11:45:15 AM (0) Comments
Friday, May 11, 2007
Running Shoes? Check. iPod? Check. Map? Ah, we’re good. Phone? We’re just staying in the park…
Running Shoes? Check. iPod? Check. Map? Ah, we’re good. Phone? We’re just staying in the park…
My friend from work, Jennifer (JMoore), and I drove out to SMP to meet up with Cheryl S., Melanie, and Julie. I told Jennifer that she needs to join the team and she wasn’t so into the idea.
Anyway, we had discussed going about 8 miles, but we decided we would just to do long course tri run section which is 4.5. I was still a little sore from Lincoln, and JMoore’s long run was about 5 miles. So, we got out of the car with out the course map, and decided that since we’d just be in park, we wouldn’t need cells phones.
We talked to Melanie and Sheryl for a bit and then headed out for our run. I TOTALLY forgot to wait for Julie. I knew she wasn’t running, but I had planned to talk to her for a bit, so yeah, I’m a jackrod, sorry Jules! The first 2 or 3 miles went pretty smoothly, but it got HOT FAST. I wasn’t used to running in the heat. All while training for Lincoln I had been running in freezing cold, so this was a switch. I ended up with my tank top rolled up within 20 minutes. I was so not accustomed to the heat and humidity. Even though I had water, I was already suffering.
The whole run should have taken about 52minutes at most, for a mere 4.5miles. I kept looking down at my watch trying to figure out where we were. There was a little off trail that we had briefly gone down and the decided it wasn’t correct and turned back to keep going straight. I kept second guessing that decision.
We were moving along just fine until I felt my arms- totally dry. I had been running in front of or next to JMoore until about minute 34. I thought she had kicked it up another gear, but I think I had actually just slowed significantly. She was gone. I had to start walking the hills and at some point I got chills. I was shivering, not sweating, and it was 85 degrees out. Oh, AND WE ARE LOST.
We stuck it out on the route we were on until we came up to a sign. The Midland Drive trailhead. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME?! We missed out turn off by 2 miles? While I was running I kept thinking, I wonder why Julie hasn’t called me yet? Well, when I grabbed my pocket I knew why. I left my phone in the car because we knew where we were going and we were staying on the immediate tri course. GREAT. GREAT. GREAT. No phone, 6:45pm, and we’re lost. A-freaking-mazing. And, of course, those extra two miles wee some of the hilliest ever!
I just stood there, staring at the map shaking my head. I think Jennifer was slightly ticked. J We turned around and headed back. Turns out we should have turned just after the little off shot road. Whoops. And, we ran out of water, so I started filling up my bottles out of the streams. Hope it doesn’t make us sick, but we were hot and thirsty and it was cold and liquid!
I forced myself to walk a while which helped me gain control back of my body temp and stop the chills. We made it back to the car in 1:48.21. Total distance 8.5 miles. Jennifer did awesome for her first “long” run. On the way home she said to me “I think I’m going to join your team.” Good idea!
Lessons learned:
Take a map.
Bring your phone no matter what.
Don’t leave for your run before your friend gets there.
posted @ 5/11/2007 7:50:46 AM (0) Comments
Monday, May 07, 2007
Lincoln Half Recap
Courtney Crutcher
30th National Guard Lincoln Marathon
Half Marathon
Time 2:28.47
Pace 11:17
Julie, Dan and I headed up to Lincoln early Saturday afternoon for packet pickup and the Carbo dinner. After we got our packets we drove the course for the half and full marathons. Dan and I were doing the half, Julie the full. This was Julie’s first full. I had previously done a 13.1 but that was in the Half Ironman, so technically this was my first attempt at it on fresh legs. My split time in the HIM was 3:20.22.
The course winds through downtown and just outside of it- mostly flat and the “hills” are kind of a joke. Now, there are a few, but really, none of them are Adams Dairy Parkway hills, so we all felt pretty prepared. It had been raining quite a bit that morning so when we drove through the park area that Julie would run through, we saw that a bunch of the benches were half under water. Yikes! After we drove the course and checked in at the hotel we went to the pasta dinner on campus. It was good, whatever it was- some kind of noodle and marinara sauce. I wanted to eat 2 plates, but my stomach told me that wasn’t a good idea. The sky had been threatening rain since we left for the dinner, but when we came out it was a downpour. It was unreal the amount of rain coming down! When we headed back to the hotel we had to pull into the median because of the water of the road- a car was even stranded in the river that was once the road! Then the hotel parking lot was more of the same. It was ridiculous!
We got into our room and turned on the TV to watch a movie, thinking that the rain would HAVE to let up. I kind of thought that maybe the rain would be psyching Julie out- I was kind of nervous but not bad, but I had gone that distance before and she was doing the full! However, she stayed pretty calm. I think her being focused and relaxed helped me not fret over it, usually I feel like I am the calm one with my friends when it comes to racing, but I was SO IMPRESSED with how relaxed Julie stayed. We turned off the lights about 9:30 and feel asleep listening to the rain fall. I guess at some point in the night Dan got up to go check if the car was underwater- the rain had never stopped. Funny, because I had a dream that we got to the start and they were handing out swim caps and goggles because we had to swim instead of run.
The alarm went off at 5:00am and I pulled open the curtain just to have a look outside Please let it be clear, Please! I thought to myself. Instead it was the exact opposite. It was coming down like it had after dinner. I just started laughing. Julie asked me what was up and I told her that the only thing I could do was laugh. Luckily, Jules had enough sense the night before to stop and get clear trash bags for us to wear to keep up warm and dry. Good call!
We all went down for breakfast and Dan went outside to see how bad it was. He came back and made some comment about it blowing sideways. I thought he was joking so I went to see for myself. When the doors opened I could swear I was in the middle of a typhoon. I came back laughing again. After a few minutes Julie had to see for herself- the look on her face was priceless. I think we all had the same dread about us but no one wanted to really say it- THIS IS GOING TO SUCK.
Amazingly, after we got parked and to the start line it had let up a little, but by no means had stopped. We got organized and I decided to start back with Julie. I knew she’d run at a slightly slower pace (she’s running the full!), but I really wanted to get to run with her. She and I went through the chip mat about 8 minutes after the start and that was the official beginning of our race. We ran side by side for the first mile. We saw a guy running up a head with an M-dot (Ironman) tattoo on the back of his leg. We both wanted to catch him but decided not to push the pace. Julie had been training with this “Run a mile walk a minute” routine that was working really really well for her, but I wanted to run so when she started walking we split up. The first mile split was 12:40. It turned out that it was great for me to start out slower because I didn’t rush and was able to settle into a good pace. I actually caught up with the M-Dot guy and his wife and discussed Ironman racing with them for the next two miles. They were running 10:10 miles and I wanted to hear everything they were saying so I kept running with them. Then the wife wanted to walk, so I kept on trucking. For the next few miles I ran mostly by myself or here and there with various groups and people. I was holding pretty consistently about 11:00 minutes a mile. I finally took off my trash bag about mile 5. It hadn’t stopped raining, but I was way to hot to keep that thing on. At about mile 9 or 10 I came across an older gentleman (that was ahead of me!) running along he said his name was Brown and I ran with him for about a mile and a half. Another gal name Krista joined in with us. We listened to him tell stories about how he was 78 years old and this was his 50th something marathon. So amazing. When he stopped to walk I realized that we had slowed down to his pace which was 12- something and I felt like I could get up and go so Krista and I took off. The last time I hit a split on my watch was at mile 11, so I didn’t get my 12 mile or 13 mile split times. However, after the finish the last split I had on my watch was 22:20, so for the last 2.1 miles we ran about 10:40 pace. It was helpful to have Krista with me because she knew the campus well and knew exactly where the finish was. Nearing the end the wind picked up and I had her drop behind me, she was really short and petite and I knew I could block the wind for her because she was starting to struggle. I really pushed as hard as I could and I actually dropped her just before mile 13. My actual finish time was 2:28.47, I don’t remember the clock time.
Dan had finished about 15 minutes before me (at 2:13.58) so we went and waited for Julie to come thru the Half point and cheered her on. Her 13.1 split was 2:48.29 and she looked really strong. She actually surprised both Dan and I (I was in the middle of switching into a dry shirt when she was coming up the street so I was trying to dress myself and cheer her on at the same time) with how quick she came up. He and I then went and took showers and met back up to drive out to see her by the turnaround. When we saw her then she wasn’t quite looking all that happy, and she was walking, but she was walking fast. You could tell she was hurting, but she wasn’t stopping, for damn sure. Dan and I found Julie’s parents at the finish and we waited for her to come through the line. She did (running at that!), and her time was 6:08.07. She did great and I am SO PROUD!! She never gave up and I am really jealous I couldn’t do it with her.
After the race we ate lunch with Julie’s folks, and then Dan drove us back in the monsoon to KC.
All in all, a great race weekend (besides the tsunami).
Results are available at OnlineRaceResults.com
180 days until IronMan!!!
posted @ 5/7/2007 7:49:53 AM (0) Comments
Thursday, May 03, 2007
HOT AIR
HOT AIR
I ate lunch at my desk today with the intentions for taking a 20 min break and going to the bank and going to the gas station to put air in my tires. At 12:00pm I leave and go straight to the nearest QT.
When I pull in, I can see that the 3 closest spots to the air hose are full. I get as close as I can, and then try reach the hose to my car. Someone sitting inside their car in one of the spots pulls out. Great, I just whip right in. Now I’m in the middle parking space, one space over from the air machine. There are people standing at the back of the “3rd spot car” just starring at me: I’m in 3.5 inch stiletto work heels, black sateen pants, and a pressed button up shirt. IT’S RAINING. Stop looking at me!
I am struggling to get the air hose to the front wheel of my car (all four tires are extremely low- I can’t believe I waited so long to fill them) and it just barely reaches. I’m crouched down trying to put air- 26lbs actually needed- into my tire. I get the feeling some one is starring at me- the guy whose truck was in the actual air up spot was standing there eyeballing me. I just turned around and looked at him. “Oh, I’m sorry, I am parked in your way.” me: “Yeah that’s fine.” He’s still just standing there. me: “Are you going to move?” So he gets in and pulls out. Right then this lady in a truck in a business suit pulls up into the spot about 1/2 way and jumps out. She grabs the hose and was like, “That guy was creepy, here, I’ll help.” Phenomenal. There have been 3 men gawk at me and not one offer to help, but another woman dressed in business attire is the only one that will. Now, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t expect for anyone to help me. HOWEVER, nobody should just be starring at me! So I get to my last tire with that woman’s help (I wish I had gotten her name), and am finishing it up… some random guy walks over and says “How many pounds?” I was like WHAT? He then started to explain to me that pounds were the amount of air you’re supposed to put in your tire. I wanted to be like, YEAH I GOT THAT. IT’S 51 I’M AT 38, I CAN READ AN AIR GAUGE, WHY ARE YOU ASKING ME HOW MANY POUNDS!!?? Instead, I just said “It needs 51, I’m at about 40.” The response: “Oh, okay” and then just stands there… What is with people starring!! Seriously, offer to help or MOVE.
Then I did the lady’s tire- she only needed one- and a guy from inside QT comes out “You need anything?” The lady and I just looked at each other and shook our heads.
I never expected help, but I didn’t expect to be hassled either. Why must people be so dang rude!!??
It took so long I never even made it to the bank. Drats. I’ll try again tomorrow.
posted @ 5/3/2007 11:28:13 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Larry the bike: Being Tougher: Master's Swim
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
Overhead while volunteering at the Trolley Run. An older lady to a younger guy next to here- both running "I thought you said this was all down hill!!... YOU LIED, CHIP!"
Last night I met up with Rick so I could deliver to him my old bike. He’s the nice guy that bought my Multi-Sport, Larry. I think they will do well together and I told Rick I expect the bike to be out front. J I got to chatting with him and realized how nice it is that there are so many people learning and trying to get into the sport. I still am new myself (at least I think I am) but it’s great to get to offer up some advice to the people that are just starting to think about their first race… hopefully it’s not wrong or bad advice though! J But, I know that I so love hearing from other people involved in the sport- especially the veterans. Locally I have really looked up to Glen Bohanan (the KC Godfather of Tri), Nancy Strickland, Melissa Kelly, Jeff Dorris, Greg Goodman, Kelly Dippold and Peggy Donovan. There are a lot of others that when I see them at the races- even during the races- I get starry eyed and just get that “WOW feeling.”
That feeling really registered with me at the MO State Games last year. After a brutally hilly bike I took off on the flat run, but couldn’t get my legs going. It was a sprint and I think a 4 mile out-and-back run. I was less than a mile out of the transition when the lead pack of women (and I do mean pack, there were like 4 of them!) passed me headed the opposite direction. I was so amazed. They were straight up hauling ass. And you could just read the pain on their faces. Some were grimaced, one I know had snot running down her face (yeah, Meg H.- like you!) but they were battling. There was just less than a mile and none wanted to drop off. When they were gone I just kept plugging along, but I kept thinking about how hard they were pushing. And I was sure that they had swam and rode against each other the entire way (oddly enough, I checked the results later, and I had actually come out of the water ahead of two of them- but barely. Dammit, why couldn’t I be faster on the bike/run!?).
So, I have decided to really understand what it’s like to hurt. Yes, my focus this year is IM distance, so that’s more a completion vs. competition there, but, I want to really be a contender mentally. Yeah, I’ve always been tuff, but not like that. I may not be as physically honed for the short distances, but I want to be there in my head. You can accomplish a lot by just willing yourself to do it. So come Heritage Park, I may blow up in a sprint race, but I can guarantee I will push myself harder than I ever had. I think I need that mental break through. I read in a book not so long ago (I think it was in Going Long) that the difference between pros and amateurs is their ability to hurt. There a lot of very well trained am’s (albeit, they may not have 40 hrs a week to devote to training) that could physically out race an elite but they can’t. And for one reason- mental toughness. The elites can take their bodies to beyond because their minds will them to do it. I want to establish that ability in myself. I also have a friend or two that could really benefit from extreme mental focus.
And also along those lines, Michele sent me this (with some great IM pictures- thanks Moto), and I thought I’d share:
“Okay so the basis behind this article is a sales pitch, but he's got some good points. Instead of actually being productive, I downloaded some IMFL pictures from the racer's perspective so you can visualize kicking ass at IMFL.
Enjoy,
Michele” …
High Velocity E-Zine
Visualizing is the Key to Realizing
What is it that separates the highly successful individual from the average or even successful individual? Why is it that one person seems to achieve extraordinary results on a consistent basis and another, with nearly the same training, hits and misses their accomplishments?
The success technique to which I am referring is visualization. I guarantee that "visualizing your results is the key to realizing your results." Visualizing is one of the most important techniques you will ever learn and one that is utilized by all high performers.
Visualizing is your key to success for two reasons: Your mind thinks in pictures and images; Your unconscious mind drives your behavior.
Your unconscious mind doesn't know the difference between something that is real and something vividly imagined. Whatever picture (goal) you consistently think about will drive your actions to create that exact picture. When you continually see yourself in possession of your goal, your unconscious mind will move you into actions that align with the mental image you hold.
Here's a quick visualization overview to assure your goal achievement:
Create a clear mental picture. You must associate a picture to your goal. You should picture yourself in your vision, rather than watching yourself achieve your goal. This "fine point" separates the masters from the masses. You must create a picture that is so real you believe you already have achieved your success.
You must "experience" your vision. You must be in your picture, looking through your own eyes... seeing, hearing and feeling everything as if you have already achieved your goal. You must create the emotion of the moment in your own body.
Visualize your goal at every opportunity. Bring up your mental picture while waiting at a stop light, when you're on a break, before your next meeting. The more frequently you plant your picture into your unconscious mind, the more rapidly you will begin to realize increased results in your life.
Visualize first thing in the morning and last thing at night. The best time to visualize is in the morning right after you wake up and just before you go to sleep. These are the times when your unconscious mind is most open to influence. When your conscious mind relaxes, your unconscious becomes very receptive to your thoughts, dreams and ideas--particularly ideas with high emotion.
So make a commitment right now to create your picture of achieving your goal. All great masters have taught that we become what we constantly think about. Think about your goals to the exclusion of all else and watch your personal and professional results skyrocket!
***
Master’s Practice today went quite well, I believe. I was a little disappointed with the numbers (5 showed), but when I got in the office today I had 4 emails from people saying they would be joining sometime this month.
The members are:
Moto-Michele: Seems to be a frequent partner in crime. However, as a swim client she really took direction and I’m looking forward to her putting that to good use and really taking her swimming to the next level. She’s recovering from a broken hip, so there’s going to be lots of dryland mods for her.
Amy: Amy is returning to swimming after some time off (and a hubby and kids it sounds like). She told me she would be the very bottom of the group, but I think she is going to surprise herself as the practices go on.
Jules: My IM training partner. Her weakness in Tri’s is swimming, and I think her getting in some group workouts with a coach on deck or in the water will really be helpful to her. She is another one that will see some drastic improvements just by having scheduled workouts and time in the water.
Justin: Talks too much. J Last one in the water. He’s is probably the most technically sound as far a strokes go, but he’s got some bad habits in stroke mechanics that will need working on. Having structured workouts will be beneficial to him. He asked when the “real workouts” would start. When they start he might ask me when they’ll stop. J But seriously, he’s done Silverman (it’s an IM distance race in Vegas) so I know he’s a hard worker.
Randy: Couldda Shoudda been collegiate swimmer. He’s looking for a master’s team to be more competitive and workout in a structured environment. I look forward to really seeing his skills progress. Probably has the most raw talent, but with a lot of room for improvement.
posted @ 5/2/2007 10:20:57 AM (0) Comments
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
There is no cure.
It's so scary to think that things can be moving along fine and then your world be completely rocked. My grandpa who has once fought cancer and lived to tell about it is now fighting again. I just lost one grandfather to cancer in June last year, and a great uncle less than two.
Right now there is no cure for cancer. Sure, there are some things you can do to lessen your chances, but I really doubt anyone reading this has made it through their lives with out battling the disease themselves or being touched by someone who has.
If at all possible, volunteer, donate, voice your thoughts, prayers- ANYTHING you can do to help those whom fight the hardest battle anyone can endure.
I had someone tell me not so long ago that "Those LiveStrong bracelets aren't really fashionable anymore." The idea that someone would wear a bracelet that means so much to so many just to look cool apalled me. I wear my bracelet for my grandfathers, uncles, best friend's mother, mom's best friend, friend's friends, and for total strangers. Do what you can to support those that need your support.
Please tell those that you love that you love them and spend as much time with them as you can. You'll be thankful that you did.
Courtney
posted @ 5/1/2007 11:58:18 AM (0) Comments
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Mortgage Gods Hate Me & Liz's "INTRODUCING 40.0"
The Mortgage Banking Gods Hate Me…
In February Eric and I decided that we were going to re-finance our home loan to get a better interest rate and to be able to apply much more to principal. We both decided that we could afford our payments to go up at $150 a month, as long as that extra money was going to principal. A friend of his that helped us get our first mortgage, so we went back to him for his. Now just to start, let me say that this guy has bent over backwards to help us out, especially as he was doing all of this at now cost to us.
That was in February. This has been dragged out and dragged out. The first time that I had understood was we would be closing on March 21. Wrong. That’s when the Fed was supposed to be lowering rates. I follow mortgage banking. I work at a foreclosure and bankruptcy law firm that was one of the first firms in the mortgage banking industry. I knew the Fed wasn’t lowering rates. I wanted to close then. Surprise! The Fed didn’t lower rates. So we decided to forge ahead at the already decided rates. It then took my wonderful boyfriend about 45 days to turn in all of his appropriate paperwork. I was told that we would close on such and such day in April and that we wouldn’t be making a house payment in May. So I spent some of that money on much needed work clothes (for those of you that have never had to buy nice business apparel, newsflash, pants and a jacket will cost you well over a hundred dollars just for those two). We ended up not closing and I had to use a good portion of the money I got for selling my bike to cover my ass on the mortgage. So, I’m down quite a bit of extra cash. Now since then I have been told over and over and over that we would be closing on 5/31 (TODAY). I talked to the loan guy and he said some stuff would be delayed but we would be closing no later than tomorrow, June 1st. SO I asked twice saying “Can you guarantee we will close by this day and I do not need to send in may June payment?” Yes, I was told, do not pay it. You will not be making a payment until August. Perfect. We were supposed to be going 2 months without a payment (equating to around $2000). With the money saved I was supposed to be paying off my bike (which I wouldn’t be doing since I had used some of the money from selling the first bike already) because I only have 6 months allowed to pay for it, and would be buying plane tickets for Florida . And the rest of the money would go to house stuff like fixing the bathroom that is still effed up from AUGUST.
Here it is, May 31, and we were finally supposed to close on the loan by tomorrow. Guess what? Loan Guy calls and says he miscalculated our payoff figures and that including the closing costs in the loan as we had planned would make our loan higher, with high payments still and no more money going to principal. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I called Eric. He said he told Loan Guy to call me because I would have the answer. I told Eric I wasn’t about to go pulling the trigger on something that we would potentially be paying for for the next 30 years with out talking to him. When he told me the way he understood things we both decided that we will just stay in the Godforsaken loan we are in now. Not that it’s bad, but I feel like I should be on our mortgage, not just with the house deeded to me, and that we should be applying more money towards principal. So now we can stay in the same loan, take that extra $150 and month and just pay it forward, and we’d be better of than if we were doing the new deal that we have been dicking around with for over four months. That’s all fine and dandy, except I was repeatedly told that we wouldn’t be making a house payment for two months. So now I have to scramble to come up with the extra money to pay off my bike, etc. What a heart ache and pain in the ass. I know, it’s no body’s fault but my own, and Loan Guy did the right thing (obviously) by calling me and telling me before we went into sign that the loan was all screwy.
But I mean, SERIOUSLY!! DO THE MORTGAGE GODS REALLY HATE ME THAT MUCH?
So, yeah, if any of you out in blogger land decide you want to “donate” some money to the “Help-Courtney-Pay-For-All-Of-Her-Ridiculously-Expensive-Triathlon-Related-Crap-Fund” please, let me know.
***
On a bit of a peppier note, Julie found the blog entitled “Introducing 40.0” on Liz’s site. I read it and it at least gives some comic relief. For all of you with the man trying to keep you down, here it is, reposted with permission from Elizabeth Fedofsky (Blog date 12/13/06) http://elizabethfedofsky.blogspot.com/
Announcing......40.0
Surfing the triathlon-related sites the other day, a press release caught my eye. 101.06? This couldn’t be. Yet another distance and series of races? That’s right, a new 2007 series cleverly called one-o-one with 4 races covering true long course distances; 4K swim, 120K bike, 30K run.With the release of this new race series, it seems an appropriate time to for me to jump on the bandwagon and introduce a new, number-related race that has been stirring around in my head for some time.Introducing………40.0.As in, 40.0 work hours in a week. As in the number of hours you need to work to be considered full-time, as in the numerical value of selling your soul to some company in exchange for what they consider generous and what you consider embarrassing as a yearly exempt salary. Exempt as in exempt from over-time, double-time, freetime, or any good time that you could be having if only you didn’t have to work 40.0 damn hours each week.As such, this race will showcase the finest training that a full-time, 8 am – 5 pm, work schedule has to offer including swimming at peak pool usage times, biking along rush hour busy roads, and running in complete darkness.The only qualifying factor for entry into this race is proof of full-time employment. Full-time employment denotes that you show up at a desk – not within your own home – by a certain time each day or someone in a position above you will question your absence and discipline your disappearing ass if you don’t show.To verify employment status, all athletes must present a copy of last years W-2 form on race day. Just for an added kick, we will pin your W-2 to your back so when you get passed by some maniac athlete they will not only have the option to shout on yer left! but may also opt to ostracize you for the meager size of your salary. Chances are if they are passing you, they make twice as much money to buy twice as fancy equipment at retail cost to kick the ass of people like you two times over.Now, stay-at-home moms and work-at-home employees, we at 40.0 believe you work just as hard as the rest of us. In fact, you probably work harder. However, this is not the competition for you. You just don’t qualify. To be fair, we will have a lottery and for a small fee you can get a chance at a slot to compete in this highly awaited and highly coveted event. We accept all forms of bribery, pity stories, and pleas as entry into the race. And we will automatically enroll anyone with celebrity status.The race will start after work at 5 pm. Here at 40.0 we completely reject the standard 7 am race start time knowing that most of you are either up at 4:30 am training before work or out until 8 pm training after work. The only people ready to race at 7 am are the unemployed, graduate students, and professionals athletes. The rest of us have barely choked down 5 ounces of our 21 ounce cup of coffee and are still wondering if we left the house fully dressed.The race will begin at a local gym with a 1000 yard swim directly after work on a weekday. Note that this tends to be a time of heavy usage in the pool. Unfortunately, participants will not have special pool privileges. In fact, expect to sit and watch time tick by for 10, maybe 15 minutes while waiting for half of a lane to open up because all of the lanes will be double stacked with people doing some semblance of swimming but unsure if they are drowning or just waving. By chance that you actually do get into a lane, the swim portion will consist of snaking your way up and down over 4 lanes filled with other pool users. Consider it a version of pool steeple chase, if you will.In Lane 1, you will find a woman walking laps back and forth while you take the other half of the lane against the wall. Since this woman is swinging foam weights in each arm as she walks, you can expect to swallow approximately ½ of the water in the pool including ½ of the stuff that seeps off of all those band-aids that keeping sinking to the bottom and some gum. Also, being pinned against the wall, you can expect to swallow another ½ of the pool water after it hits the wall and then bounces back in tsunami force at you. Because of this woman’s girth, space will be very limited and you can expect to scrape your entire body against the wall at least once every lap adding blood and skin to the other specks of suspicious items floating around the pool at any given time.Lane 2 will contain a man doing breakstroke back and forth while overkicking the black line making a swift kick to the ribs or stomach punch a likely inevitability. When he finally does an entertaining version freestyle swimming, his flailing arms will make contact with you at least every 50 yards and you will lose your goggles at least one. After each lap, he will stop at the wall and stretch his hamstring over and over again, hogging half of the wall in the process, making any turn impossible.Lane 3 will consist of the group we shall refer to as the two noodles and a kickboard club. We’re not sure what they’re doing in the pool or why they need to do it in water, but one thing is certain – they are not getting out anytime soon because they have a strange affinity for floating in chlorinated water and freakish endurance for mind boggling boredom and inanity as they coast up and down the lane with these inflatable toys.Finally, in lane 4, participants will be faced with the biggest obstacles of all – a water aerobics class designed specifically for pregnant women. As these mommy’s-to-be move up and down in the water, kick their legs side to side, their collective weight alone causes all of the water in the pool to move in the fashion of a swirling vortex ready to suck in any unassuming swimmer as they go by. Their chattiness is deafening, their penchant for bad eighties music set to techno beats is nauseating. Even worse, the instructor insists on talking to all 6 of them in a screeching, high-pitched voice while she jumps around like a monkey on the deck completely oblivious to the fact that no one in the class is even watching her. But the hot tub finds it highly entertaining. After a few laps you will feel grateful you spend most of the time submerged underwater.Upon completing the swim, you will jump in your car and drive to the bike course at approximately 5:20 pm (because commuting from work wasn’t enough, because you just couldn’t wait to commute for your work out as well). Since it is after 5 pm, you will not have time to drive the 30 – 40 minutes to any decent roads. Instead, you will ride right from home. The bike course will be 20 miles of out-and-back along a very busy, four lane road again at the peak of rush hour. Just to be sure your average speed doesn’t get too high, there will be a stoplight planted cleverly every ½ mile.Participants will bike along the shoulder of the road. At times, this shoulder may be 4 feet wide, at other times about 4 inches. And sometimes, for no reason, there may be no shoulder at all. Expect to flat 2 – 3 flat tires as you ride through debris most commonly found along a shoulder, including, but not limited to, glass, random pieces of metal, remnants of headlights, paper, plastic bottles, hubcaps, large clumps of grass or dirt, cigarette butts, old shoes, a bumper, and other assorted items that you have no clue how people lose from their car going 50 miles per hour.50 miles per hour is also the speed limit along this road. And so you best pack an extra pair of shorts because at some point along the course you will get scared shitless and soil yourself after a far-too-close encounter with a semi-truck or a suburban housewife driving a Lexus SUV shouting senseless and rude cuss words at you while either driving her kids home from soccer practice or driving to Target to buy juice for the fourth time that week.Part of the bike course will also take you through a neighborhood. This will showcase some of the finest and safest cycling available to those that ride after 5 pm. In the neighborhood, you will complete 10 loops of the same 1 mile circuit. If the sheer monotony alone does not cause you to drop out after 10 loops or throw up from going in circles, you will go back and do the same 10 loops in reverse.Along the bike course, there is also the slight risk that you will be verbally assaulted by a genius. Yes, a rare genius that has somehow mastered how to drive a car and talk at the same time while informing you with window rolled down as they come squealing around a corner that bikes belong on the sidewalk, not on the road because the road is for cars. Who knew.And as for other wildlife, beware the wild turkeys along the side of the road that get scared silly when you ride by and start gobbling which will send you in a panicked frenzy swerving into oncoming traffic. Do not approach the angry geese that do not look both ways before crossing the road. As for the squirrels, they are fuckin’ fearless so watch out.When you hit the turnaround point, you will make your way back to experience all of the joy, love, and fun of riding down a busy road during rush hour in tight black shorts, a colorful jersey, and matching socks but this time you get to do it in reverse. Before reaching the end of the bike course, you will go under what is referred as the bridge of death – a tricky descent down a 45 mph road on which you on a bicycle can reach 35 mph right before going under the bridge with no shoulder to save your sorry two-wheeled ass so you must keep turning your head back while simultaneously praying to god that no car drives under the bridge at the same time. If perchance you make it through the bridge alive, as you sit at the stoplight catching your breath a car will pull up to you, roll down their window, and say “Oh you think you’re fast, do you?” provoking you to sprint out of the light to catch up with them, tap on their window, and flip them the bird – also another type of wildlife you will need to watch out for.If by some miracle you survive the bike course unscathed, you will then transition to a 5 mile run. You will run through neighborhoods in complete darkness because by this time night has arrived. To avoid traffic, you will run most of the course in the gutter. You’ve been treated like crap the entire course of the race so it is most appropriate for you to finish it in the gutter like the rest of the street trash. By the way, running in the gutter is great for your IT Band and balancing out your hips.Along the run course expect to be chased by at least one small dog that thinka it is 10 times it’s size. Mostly like this will be a pug that the owner has leashed but still has not learned – after 2 years of runners running by it – that the pug tends to lunge at runners when they approach in the dark, yanking the owners arm and leash far enough to run into the runner and attack them in a vicious frenzy of barking and small sharp teeth.Part of the run course will take place on a path through a local forest preserve. You will maneuver your way along the path in total darkness while avoiding large branches, nocturnal wildlife, and large piles of horse crap. It is best to attach bells to your shoes for this portion of the run so those enforcing the forest preserve’s deer management program don’t confuse you for a deer or else you risk getting a few rounds of buckshot in your ass.At some point along the run course, your stomach will drop. At that point, you will have two choices – hold it and risk the massive bowel movement being reabsorbed by your body or sneak into some dense shrubbery to drop the anchor that is sitting in your ass. Whatever your choice, choose wisely – you could pay for it either way.The participant who completes the course first will be crowned the 40.0 champion. Other than the intrinsic gratification of calling yourself a champion, there will be no other accolades, awards, or prizes. Of course, next year we will either completely change the series or eliminate it all together so your championship title will become obsolete.The 2007 date won't be announced for another few months. But, registration will be open soon and we will gladly take your $600 entry fee any time.Cheers!
posted @ 5/31/2007 9:13:23 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
It's a RollerCoaster- follow me here, people!
This one is a multi-header… stay with me, folks…
Blazeman
Yesterday I happened to be, um, “working” when I came across the website for Jon Blais, or Blazeman, an ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) patient, who in 2005 was the last finisher across the line at Kona. This past November when Kona aired on NBC Jules and I sat sniffling (okay I was straight up bawling) because he was then in a wheel chair, barely functioning, but watching his dreams live on in contributors and racers such as Brian Breen. I clicked on the Blazeman’s site, only to read RIP Jonathan Blais. He passed away on Sunday, the 27th, from his ALS. Yes, of course I cried sitting in my cubical. But after I cried I donated a little money to his foundation, you should do the same. www.alswarriorpoet.com
I am woman, hear me cry, bitch, moan, freak out, complain about the heat/cold, and in general turn into a spazoid for a week
You’ve seen the commercial. The new one for the BC pills that claim to help with, well, all of the aforementioned. It lists the symptoms, my particular favorite “the deep sadness and emotional instability associated with PMS symptoms, which may cause the overwhelming feeling to cry, weep, blubber, sob at any and everything” (Okay so that’s not verbatim but that’s pretty much how it went). Of course there’s me: Seat for one with room for my emotional baggage, please. I happened to see this ad during that blessed time o’ the month and guess what happened? I started crying! As I’m using my long sleeved PowerBar shirt for a tissue, it continues. “These symptoms may be more than PMS. They could be related to PMDD- Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder.” Of course they are. Of course they are…
So last night when I was having of my many mini-meltdowns (cute, I know) over misplacing a $20 bill I almost sat down on hardwood floor to kick and scream and bang my arms against the floor like one of those brats from Nanny 911. Then I went into a rant (read: blubbering disaster rivaled only by Chernobyl) to Eric about my job, my weight, IronMan, training, Dustin, masters swimming, bloating, dirt on the carpet, the dogs, Eric yelling at the dogs… and just after I calmed myself from that storm I found my $20 bill. For that sparkling moment I found it and I was happy. THEN I realized that I had just had a freakout about misplacing (I knew it wasn’t lost or stolen) a $20 bill. So I started crying about that… which was the time Eric said “Are you pregnant?” Attention Guys: Here’s what a woman thinks if you ask her that- she LOOKS pregnant, not that she could be the most depressed and angry lead singer of Hawthorne Heights or any other screaming Emo band. I’m just going to let this thought trail away into oblivion because I cannot type the thoughts I had. … … .. .
Moral of this story: Call OB/GYN ask about new BC. Use in heavy doses.
IronMan and Training
I am having a hard time getting motivated. Here we are, at the start of the race season, 157 days from IronMan and I can’t get out the door. Aside from the Thursday night sessions with the DFT ladies, I am having a very hard time swimming/ biking/ running. Especially running. I feel as though I am almost self sabotaging and I am afraid to put it all out there, then fail. I rode 18 miles in the pouring down rain on Sunday and was proud of myself for it. However, when I got home and took a shower, I came out to see blue skies and a double rainbow. Almost as if the sky was giving me the bird and laughing. Last night I got home early enough to get an hour run. I could tell it was going to storm so I thought I would hold off. I did and it did. So while it was raining I again sabotaged myself by stuff handful after handful of barbeque potato chips in my mouth, so that I knew I wouldn’t be able to run with all that crap in my body. Which brings me to what I a feeding myself. I still don’t have the perfect (I would say it’s “close to mediocre”) handle on my nutrition, as shown by Example A. The time is ticking and there is only 22 1/2 weeks until Florida. That will make you freak out. I am trying to find something that will get my ass into highgear, but I haven’t found it yet. A new blog I have been reading (Liz Fedofsky’s http://elizabethfedofsky.blogspot.com/ ) makes me want to work out, and I am hoping that a new edition to team DFT of Leslie Curley will give me the desire to train. Or just help…
Then there are girls with so much burning desire to train that can’t- yes Robyn, I am talking about you! Robo fractured her ankle before Memphis in May, raced anyway, but now has a cute (but sucky) pink cast on her ankle. She asked the Dr. if she could where the boot instead. His response? “I don’t trust you.” Classy. Very nice.
So now I sit here at my desk, fighting off the afternoon nap that wants to grab me by a choke hold. Oh, and speaking of choking, my throat is swollen, red and icky. My nose won’t stop dripping, and my eyes won’t quit watering and itching. It makes me want to cry and hope that the ceiling tile falls on me when I’m sitting at my desk. That would be the icing on the cake. This has been the month from hell and there’s still a few days to be over with…
posted @ 5/30/2007 11:22:16 AM (0) Comments
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Memories of Dustin Francis
Memories of Dustin Francis
On Saturday, Amy Parks (Dustin’s former girlfriend of a few years), and I went to the Francis’s. I had planned to go by myself, but I was almost to Belton and I was thinking about what I would say to Kim and Allot and I almost turned around. I called Amy and asked if she could go- she said yes as she couldn’t see going by herself either.
We pulled up to their driveway about 4:15pm. I couldn’t quite turn the steering wheel onto the gravel. Just seeing the driveway brought back so many memories. I looked at Amy and we both took a deep breath as I pulled in. There were a lot of cars in the driveway, most I didn’t recognize. As we pulled into park my uncle, Gary who was in from Chicago, was in the driveway talking to Allot. The two of them have been close friends for ages, and it surprised and relieved me to see him there.
When I got out of the car I realized I hadn’t spoke with Allot in a very long time. It had been over a year since Eric and I moved away and it was probably better than a year since that when I talked with him last. I felt so bad. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t just come over to say “hi” or “how are you” in that time. I hugged him but no tears came, and I turned to Amy to let her do the same. Allot told us to head on in, he wanted to talk with Gary some more.
We started up to the front door- neither of us wanting to be the first one through. I reached down just to give her hand a squeeze but I found we were gripping each other tightly. We each needed something- someone to hold onto.
I opened the screen door and it slammed shut with a bang. Kim was sitting on the ottoman of their over stuffed chair. She was looking right at us, but it was almost like she didn’t see us. She was seeing through us. I ran to her and dropped on my knees grabbing her. She let out a sob and then just a quite sniffle. I knew that I needed to be strong. She had cried so much for so long, she needn’t do it again on my account. I backed away and let Amy hold her as well.
I don’t know how long we sat there in silence. There were others there- friends, family none did I recognize. Eventually someone made some small talk to avoid the silence. Every time it would quite somebody would interject to break it up.
Amidst the conversations I found myself sitting in the living room of a home I had been in hundreds of times. It seemed strange. Have you ever gone back to an elementary or middle school you used to go to? You know the feeling- everything is so small compared to what your mind says it should be. This was the opposite. I felt so small, so miniscule looking at the walls and the ceiling. I should have felt like the house had shrank, but instead it felt as if I had diminished.
There were dozens of photos scattered on the coffee table. Most of Dustin and Ryan as kids. This was how I generally thought of him. I picked up one photo and chuckled to myself. They both had the whitest, bushiest blonde hair- my little brother had the exact same. I saw a photo across the table that I dared not to pick up. It was of Dustin and I playing in my sandbox at about age 7 or 8. I probably wouldn’t have recognized myself except for the bright purple swimsuit I demanded that my mother let me wear everyday through the summer. I felt a deep pang in my heart. I looked away, searching for something, anything, to focus on, to keep the burning of the tears in my eyes away.
My center of attention landed on the refrigerator which had a recent photo of the Francis family pinned to it. Absolutely nothing abnormal about a family photo on a fridge, except this family should be on a cover for a magazine. Such a beautiful family, I thought. And they were- Kim, thin, tan, impeccably high check bones and a beautiful smile (She is, after all a dental hygienist, and if nothing else, every six months since I was old enough to hold a tooth brush she and I would visit-most recently just 3 weeks ago). Allot, handsome in his own right and the source of the boy’s white hair whose own turned a beautiful silver over time, stood next to his wife both crouched over the boys. Ryan, 2 1/2 years our senior and Dustin both were caught laughing- big, open mouthed laughs with bright sparkling eyes.
Amy and I sat and visited for a while, but decided it was out time to go. With hugs for all we headed out the door. As we pulled out of the drive, I mentioned some things to Amy that I had just begun to remember after being there. The memories came flooding back for the rest of the weekend…
The bathtub pond in front of their house. It held lilies and fish.
Their dogs. In succession, Aspen, Sierra, Dakota. Dakota was friendly and loving while we were there.
Dustin getting caught on fire when I was in 6th grade! Accidentally, of course, by a friend. Seeing him at Children’s Mercy Hospital was so scary.
Joint Easter Egg hunts.
The games. Dustin and I frequently entertained ourselves with wild games of Cops and Robbers, Cowboys and Indians, and baseball games. One of Dustin’s childhood passions was baseball. We would “play” ball and he always got to be George Brett. I had to be Mrs. Brett. I never wanted to be Mrs. Brett, I wanted to be George Brett.
Hopscotch in the driveway.
Dustin using a four letter word while playing in the sand box and me tattling on him.
At about age 7 we thought that we should learn how to kiss in case the time ever came that we would need to know how. I don’t remember how it went but somebody got licked by somebody and we were both traumatized.
My older brother, Travis, pulling Ryan out of the pond when he fell in.
The boys and I playing in the pond off of a makeshift dock my grandpa had fashioned for us during summer.
Dustin crashing his Blazer after first getting his license. I saw him a few days later and told him he was an idiot to be driving on the roads that we grew up on like that. I told him not to scare his family or kill someone or even himself.
Jumping out of the old barn on their land into piles of hay.
Walking thru the woods where our property lines met. This was usually during a case of cowboys and Indians.
Drawing big smiley faces on the construction cones in the back of the Francis property. I remember Allot calling my mom about it. We both adamantly denied it.
My mom made me dump out our little plastic pool and move it. I told Dustin I would “pay” him to help me. I think I gave him a nickel and some pennies. He accepted. Later, Kim sent him back to the house to give me back the money and apologize for being “paid” to help a friend. I remember being mad that he told my mom because I got in trouble for asking for help. I through the money in the trash can.
I got in trouble for something and couldn’t come out to play. I wanted to play and so did he. I sat inside the window and cried while he sat outside the window and cried.
Dustin and Amy at prom. He had switched to a private school, so I rarely saw him as we grew older. We sat and talked for a while and he looked miserable in a tux. He had pulled the bow tie half out.
Riding my horse up and down the fence of my grandparent’s land while he drove their four-wheeler on their side of the fence while we talked.
…I’m sure more will come but these are some of the things I thought of in the last few days.
It’s amazing the feelings memories give. From utter joy to the darkest depths of sorrow.
The underwater search for his body was called off late last week. There were hopes someone would find him over the long boating weekend, but alas, nothing. The hardest part isn’t that he’s gone, but that his parents don’t have him. They have nothing to say good bye to. It hurts them. It hurts us all.
posted @ 5/29/2007 9:54:44 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Sheer Stupidity killed this friend. WHY WHY WHY?
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=%22dustin+francis%22&ie=UTF-8&scoring=n
I lived next to Dustin Francis for almost 20 years...
Boat hits wake, man disappears
By Joyce L. Miller/Lake Sun
LAKE OF THE OZARKS ' Recovery efforts near the 3-mile marker continue for a 21-year-old Belton, Mo., man who fell off an open-bow boat early Tuesday morning.Dustin Francis was last seen about 1 a.m., lying across the bow near the light of the 20-foot boat he was a passenger in when it hit a small wake that threw him overboard. Francis is believed to have held onto the boat for a short period of time.Two passengers sitting in the open bow with Francis said he lost his balance when the boat hit the wake. Several other passengers were on the boat but were sitting in the back near the driver.According to the Missouri Water Patrol, the driver thought Francis had fallen in. When the driver made a hard left to turn around and go back for the victim, Francis lost his grip.Francis was apparently hit by the propeller.The group of friends had been out for the evening and were returning from a lakefront bar at the 7-mile marker. (Ed. Note. THEY WERE VERY INTOXICATED) They were headed to the 2-mile marker when Francis went under near Atlantis Island.The passengers used a cell phone to call for help. The call went to Morgan and Miller county dispatching centers.The driver, Justin Johnson, 21, of Manhattan, Kan., was arrested for boating while intoxicated.
Francis is the second drowning on Lake of the Ozarks in less than five days.Last weekend, a 20-year-old man drowned in a swimming accident at the 6-mile marker.Although divers were using the side scan sonar in the search for the body, Water Patrol Capt. Matt Walz said the area where Francis is believed to have gone overboard varies in depth from 40 to 90 feet and much of the lake bottom is covered in heavy brush, which makes it difficult to get a clear location on the body.If the body is not recovered by this weekend when tens of thousands of boaters arrive for the Memorial Day holiday, the Water Patrol will have to scale back the search. Instead of using the sonar, they will conduct visual checks of the area.The water temperature is still cool enough to slow the decomposition process and keep the body under water for a longer period of time, he said. http://www.lakesunleader.com/articles/2007/05/23/news/01.txt
Belton man dies in boating accident on Lake Ozark
The Associated Press
LAKE OZARK, Mo. A Belton man died early today when he fell off a boat in the Lake of the Ozarks, authorities said.
Dustin Francis, 21, was riding in the bow of a boat with two other passengers when the 20-foot craft hit a small wake. Francis lost his balance, fell in the water and was struck by the boat’s propeller, the Missouri State Water Patrol said.
The accident was reported about 1 a.m., the patrol said.
*****On this up-coming Memorial Day Weekend, please use EXTRA caution. I can't have more friends dying from stupidity. Dustin's mom is at home, bawling, a complete wreck- and of course she is! Just two weeks ago she was telling me about how worried she was about Dustin and his friends having this lake house and small runabout boat on such a dangerous lake. Why do we, young people especially, have to act without thinking!?
PLEASE everyone, DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE, DO NOT DRINK AND BOAT. Both are crimes and BOTH kill people! Use your heads, please stay alive, and please don't be a murderer.
Courtney
posted @ 5/23/2007 1:28:52 PM (0) Comments
Monday, May 21, 2007
Heritage Park Race Recap
Heritage Park Triathlon
May 20, 2007
587 Yard Swim/ 11.5 Mile Bike/ 3.1 Mile Run
Warmup
I arrived about an hour before the race start (and my start, I was in the Open Heat) set up my TA, got body marked and chit chatted with the girls. I then took my bike out for quick spin to get the HR up and clip my shoes in. Pulled back in, checked out the run and bike in/outs, banded my shoes down, and pulled on my wetsuit. I had only about 45 seconds to warmup in the water before I had to check in at the dock. I was supposed to have about 5 minutes, but they started us almost 5 minutes early. But hey, whatcha gonna do about it?
587 yard Swim 9:09
I was in the open heat so there were only 3 or 4 gals and like 30 guys. It’s a really small area for that many in a heat so I decided to be patient and sit back a bit instead of starting right in the front. I knew that most of the guys would be swimming 7:30’s, so I decided not to get drowned in the front line. Once the guys hammered into each other after the gun I was able to find what I thought was a clean line just off to someone’s feet. Apparently that someone decided to pause and then BAM kick me in the head. It rung my bell pretty good but I just kept on keepin’ on. It is a rectangular course and when we rounded the first corner buoy the sun was in my eyes to spot, so I had to keep hoping that the feet I was following were going the right way. After the second corner buoy my goggles were totally fogged up, so looking forward to spot was and exercise in futility and breathing to my right blinded me. So again, I just kept hoping I was going in the right direction. In the last 200 yards I just couldn’t get my arms to turn over. I don’t know if it was being in a good wetsuit for my first race, or whatever, but I couldn’t get my elbows up and my arms to pick up. I was relieved to get to the beach because I just didn’t feel like myself in the water. Watch time was 9:01, chip time 9:09. I was the 5th fastest split of the day.
Transition 1 1:41
This was pretty slow for me. My right arm didn’t have any strength from the swim so I pretty much stripped my wetsuit off with just my left side, and it got caught on my heels. It felt strange not needing to get into shoes. All I had to grab was my helmet which had my sunglass already attached. I also had to run with my bike quite a ways. I was able to run and jump on my bike and my pre-attached bands executed perfectly. However, I didn’t get my feet in them so well.
Bike 39:35
I had a lot of problems trying to get my feet in my shoes, I actually jammed both feet above the tongues, which pulled out the straps so I had to reach down, untuck the tongues and then reattach the Velcro. Ugh. So I was all kinds of worked up. Going up the first big hill I kept trying to get into a ring smaller than what I have so of course, the derailleur dropped the chain to the inside and I had to get off my bike to get it back on. GGRRRR! I then had to chug along the rest of the big hill because I had lost all of my momentum. The second two loops were uneventful. On the second loop DFT Julie came up to me (she was starting her first loop, she was a few heats behind me) and we chatted for a minute. She looked really good and it was nice to see her out going strong. On each loop I kept hearing Nancy Strickland (somewhat of my mentor) and I wanted to look over at her, but I was trying to just be focused. I really tried to push hard, and my HR was pretty good, but with all the traffic it was difficult. By the 3rd lap, most of the 500 some participants were on the 3.8 mile loop. To do the math, that’s 131 people per mile. Of course there were the people that were riding on the left when I was trying to pass them, and when you call on your left, that’s the direction they swerve (and inevitably it is on the sweeping 38mph downhill corner). That got frustrating.
T2 1:10
I was able to pull my feet out of my straps quickly coming into T2 and switched my leg to side saddle. Of course this girl doing a team tri swerves in front of me right by the dismount line, then unclipped one foot at a time, put both feet down, and then swung her leg over. I just kept saying “Go go go go go!” She was blocking the entire dismount line and there was going to be a huge crash if she didn’t get moving. Luckily I was able to get around her, but I heard a couple guys that were behind me say some things that I can’t really type. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were penalized for it. I was able to run my bike quickly to my TA, and when I was rushing thru I heard them announcing my name on the PA. Very Cool!
When I got to TA, I put my feet into my socks (they had blisters that weren’t healed before race day and I didn’t want to make them bigger) put on my shoes and grabbed my TriSports.com visor and race belt. Off I went.
Run 29:12
I was slow going the first mile. I wasn’t wobbly from bike legs, but I was just trying to get my legs to go. on the out and back part I saw Cheryl from DFT and then a bit later Melanie from DFT came up behind me. They were both doing the Duathlon. I tried to run with Mel for a bit, but she’s a strong runner and I didn’t have the legs. I just kept on going and after the climb at 1.25 miles I felt good. Pretty much everything from there is either downhill or flat and I was able to get my legs about me. At the 2 mile run mark I looked down and saw I was at 1:12 on my watch. I had set a major goal for the season to run a 28min 5k at this race back in November. I wasn’t sure what my split was before the run, but I knew that if I could run an 8-something mile (and negative split the run) then I had a chance of coming in at 1:20. Last year, at my first tri at this same race, my time 1:32.46.
Overall 1:20.46
Well, I came in under 1:21. While I didn’t make my goal of a 28 min run, I was still really happy with the 29.12. That’s my fastest ever (even as a non-split), so I was pleased. I am really happy with my time and my major disappointment was my retardedness on the bike. BUT, my new bike is SO fast!!
The bummer thing was after I crossed the finish I reached up to grab my medal and sharp pain went thru my right shoulder. This was the shoulder that I tore the labrum in which I never had surgically repaired and caused me to end my swimming career. I haven’t had any problems with it in 2 years, but I spent all of yesterday afternoon icing and rubbing it out. I drove to work this morning with ice on it, and after I finish typing this, I’m re-icing it. My next race is in two weeks, I would really like to swim, but I think I know better on this one. I’ll see how it’s feeling Thursday and maybe I can get in some drill work Friday morning.
I’d like to thank TriSports.com for the race gear- especially my wetsuit and trisuit, Freeride Bike and Skate for my great Specialized Transition Expert bike, Defined Fitness Training for all the support, and Tropical Xtreme Tanz for giving me the best color of all the ladies at the race!
RESULTS:
5th in AG
31st OA
5th fastest swim split
Here are some photos right after the finish (Sweaty, greasy dirty! Yum!) in my TriSports.com Orca trisuit, and with the Defined Fitness Training club team gals.
In the DFT photo, from left to right:
Erin, Monica, Courtney, Michele, Cheryl, Dawn, Julie, Melanie
Oh and a comparison from last year and this year. Also, This year was FAST! both men's and women's classes went much faster!
31 124 Courtney Crutcher F2024 Blue Springs MO 5 9:09 14 1:41 34 39:35 15.2 26 1:10 46 29:12 9:44 1:20:46
43 246 Courtney Crutcher F2024 Blue Springs MO 12 10:55 8 1:00 46 46:34 14.8 8 0:44 53 33:35 11:12 1:32:47
posted @ 5/21/2007 8:05:05 AM (0) Comments
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Heritage Park coming up, Lake Lotawana Ride
3 days until Heritage!!
I am so excited. Three days until Heritage Park. Last year Heritage was my first ever tri. I can’t believe it’s already time for it again. It feels like I have been in multisport forever. I know that really, I am quite new, but I have made friends with a few seasoned vets (Thanks Melissa Kelly, Leslie Curly, Nancy Strickland, Peggy Donovan, Greg Goodman, Glen Bohanon…) that have helped me learn the ropes pretty quickly. I still have so much to learn but I think I’m getting experience quickly.
Last year I got in 5 sprint tris, an Oly, and even a Half Ironman. This year I’m doing a full IronMan. I talked to Leslie Curly about a month ago at a seminar and she was so excited for me to be doing a full. She said she has never done one and just so looks up to the people that are doing them and how amazing they are, and she wanted to hear EVERYTHING about my training. She was so genuine. It’s people like this that I look up to myself- and the people that make doing triathlons so great. I am so excited to become a top dog veteran like her.
Last night my swim client and I didn’t meet, so I too my new bike, GoldMember out for a spin. I just got my Orca trisuit from TriSports.com and I had to try that out. Note on that: It fits so well. It’s probably one size too big, but I don’t mind. I really like the chamois, the zipper racer back, and the highneck coverage. I tried calling Sheryl, Cheryl, Sarah, Amy, Melissa… NO ONE could ride with me… or answer their phones. SO I set off on my own. I planned to do about 45 minutes.
I headed out of town and jumped on Cook rd. I followed that down past Colbern to Lake Lotawana. Amy showed me a different loop thru there earlier this week so I went that way. It’s a little shorter and there really aren’t any demanding climbs, but, technically it is difficult. High speed S curves make for fun and to see how big your balls are. Mine, sadly, are just starting to drop. After I completed that out and back I decided that it was so nice out and I was having so much fun to just keep cruising. I turned right and headed over towards the dam. These are also challenging sections but there are big ascents that curve and crazy fast descents after. The link below is my route and it is so much fun. Definitely check it out. I didn’t map everything because I think I took a side road or two, and I went my Sheryls house to see if she was home to ride. My total ride was about 28 miles and it took me 1:58 I think. I should have wrote it down so that may be off by a bit.
http://www.usatf.org/routes/view.asp?rID=129482
This was the longest solo ride I have ever done, but I loved it. I thought that I would be bored but the “course” was so challenging and I was loving being out on my bike.
It was a great way to spend an evening by myself.
Tonight I am going out to SMP for our “team” training session. I’m afraid that the team will be me and me and me. Julie has a work meeting, Michele said she might come out but has to be at a movie at 7:00…. maybe one of the girls from work will go out be she only runs… so I might make another solo ride myself. I feel like I should run, but I really don’t want to. I am learning so much on my bike right now, I never want to get off of it. My knee is a little sore too, so I’m not feeling the run.
I am so pumped for this weekend. I get to pick up my packet tomorrow and Erin from Vegas is coming in town to race. I can’t wait to meet her. We are also having a team photo and brunch afterwards. So exciting.
It’s also Monica’s first race. I hope she does well!
Robo- Hey, I just want to give you a public GOOD LUCK at MEMPHIS IN MAY. You’re going to do awesome.
Okay, well that’s it for now! Have a nice evening. Go out and RUN!
posted @ 5/17/2007 11:45:15 AM (0) Comments
Friday, May 11, 2007
Running Shoes? Check. iPod? Check. Map? Ah, we’re good. Phone? We’re just staying in the park…
Running Shoes? Check. iPod? Check. Map? Ah, we’re good. Phone? We’re just staying in the park…
My friend from work, Jennifer (JMoore), and I drove out to SMP to meet up with Cheryl S., Melanie, and Julie. I told Jennifer that she needs to join the team and she wasn’t so into the idea.
Anyway, we had discussed going about 8 miles, but we decided we would just to do long course tri run section which is 4.5. I was still a little sore from Lincoln, and JMoore’s long run was about 5 miles. So, we got out of the car with out the course map, and decided that since we’d just be in park, we wouldn’t need cells phones.
We talked to Melanie and Sheryl for a bit and then headed out for our run. I TOTALLY forgot to wait for Julie. I knew she wasn’t running, but I had planned to talk to her for a bit, so yeah, I’m a jackrod, sorry Jules! The first 2 or 3 miles went pretty smoothly, but it got HOT FAST. I wasn’t used to running in the heat. All while training for Lincoln I had been running in freezing cold, so this was a switch. I ended up with my tank top rolled up within 20 minutes. I was so not accustomed to the heat and humidity. Even though I had water, I was already suffering.
The whole run should have taken about 52minutes at most, for a mere 4.5miles. I kept looking down at my watch trying to figure out where we were. There was a little off trail that we had briefly gone down and the decided it wasn’t correct and turned back to keep going straight. I kept second guessing that decision.
We were moving along just fine until I felt my arms- totally dry. I had been running in front of or next to JMoore until about minute 34. I thought she had kicked it up another gear, but I think I had actually just slowed significantly. She was gone. I had to start walking the hills and at some point I got chills. I was shivering, not sweating, and it was 85 degrees out. Oh, AND WE ARE LOST.
We stuck it out on the route we were on until we came up to a sign. The Midland Drive trailhead. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME?! We missed out turn off by 2 miles? While I was running I kept thinking, I wonder why Julie hasn’t called me yet? Well, when I grabbed my pocket I knew why. I left my phone in the car because we knew where we were going and we were staying on the immediate tri course. GREAT. GREAT. GREAT. No phone, 6:45pm, and we’re lost. A-freaking-mazing. And, of course, those extra two miles wee some of the hilliest ever!
I just stood there, staring at the map shaking my head. I think Jennifer was slightly ticked. J We turned around and headed back. Turns out we should have turned just after the little off shot road. Whoops. And, we ran out of water, so I started filling up my bottles out of the streams. Hope it doesn’t make us sick, but we were hot and thirsty and it was cold and liquid!
I forced myself to walk a while which helped me gain control back of my body temp and stop the chills. We made it back to the car in 1:48.21. Total distance 8.5 miles. Jennifer did awesome for her first “long” run. On the way home she said to me “I think I’m going to join your team.” Good idea!
Lessons learned:
Take a map.
Bring your phone no matter what.
Don’t leave for your run before your friend gets there.
posted @ 5/11/2007 7:50:46 AM (0) Comments
Monday, May 07, 2007
Lincoln Half Recap
Courtney Crutcher
30th National Guard Lincoln Marathon
Half Marathon
Time 2:28.47
Pace 11:17
Julie, Dan and I headed up to Lincoln early Saturday afternoon for packet pickup and the Carbo dinner. After we got our packets we drove the course for the half and full marathons. Dan and I were doing the half, Julie the full. This was Julie’s first full. I had previously done a 13.1 but that was in the Half Ironman, so technically this was my first attempt at it on fresh legs. My split time in the HIM was 3:20.22.
The course winds through downtown and just outside of it- mostly flat and the “hills” are kind of a joke. Now, there are a few, but really, none of them are Adams Dairy Parkway hills, so we all felt pretty prepared. It had been raining quite a bit that morning so when we drove through the park area that Julie would run through, we saw that a bunch of the benches were half under water. Yikes! After we drove the course and checked in at the hotel we went to the pasta dinner on campus. It was good, whatever it was- some kind of noodle and marinara sauce. I wanted to eat 2 plates, but my stomach told me that wasn’t a good idea. The sky had been threatening rain since we left for the dinner, but when we came out it was a downpour. It was unreal the amount of rain coming down! When we headed back to the hotel we had to pull into the median because of the water of the road- a car was even stranded in the river that was once the road! Then the hotel parking lot was more of the same. It was ridiculous!
We got into our room and turned on the TV to watch a movie, thinking that the rain would HAVE to let up. I kind of thought that maybe the rain would be psyching Julie out- I was kind of nervous but not bad, but I had gone that distance before and she was doing the full! However, she stayed pretty calm. I think her being focused and relaxed helped me not fret over it, usually I feel like I am the calm one with my friends when it comes to racing, but I was SO IMPRESSED with how relaxed Julie stayed. We turned off the lights about 9:30 and feel asleep listening to the rain fall. I guess at some point in the night Dan got up to go check if the car was underwater- the rain had never stopped. Funny, because I had a dream that we got to the start and they were handing out swim caps and goggles because we had to swim instead of run.
The alarm went off at 5:00am and I pulled open the curtain just to have a look outside Please let it be clear, Please! I thought to myself. Instead it was the exact opposite. It was coming down like it had after dinner. I just started laughing. Julie asked me what was up and I told her that the only thing I could do was laugh. Luckily, Jules had enough sense the night before to stop and get clear trash bags for us to wear to keep up warm and dry. Good call!
We all went down for breakfast and Dan went outside to see how bad it was. He came back and made some comment about it blowing sideways. I thought he was joking so I went to see for myself. When the doors opened I could swear I was in the middle of a typhoon. I came back laughing again. After a few minutes Julie had to see for herself- the look on her face was priceless. I think we all had the same dread about us but no one wanted to really say it- THIS IS GOING TO SUCK.
Amazingly, after we got parked and to the start line it had let up a little, but by no means had stopped. We got organized and I decided to start back with Julie. I knew she’d run at a slightly slower pace (she’s running the full!), but I really wanted to get to run with her. She and I went through the chip mat about 8 minutes after the start and that was the official beginning of our race. We ran side by side for the first mile. We saw a guy running up a head with an M-dot (Ironman) tattoo on the back of his leg. We both wanted to catch him but decided not to push the pace. Julie had been training with this “Run a mile walk a minute” routine that was working really really well for her, but I wanted to run so when she started walking we split up. The first mile split was 12:40. It turned out that it was great for me to start out slower because I didn’t rush and was able to settle into a good pace. I actually caught up with the M-Dot guy and his wife and discussed Ironman racing with them for the next two miles. They were running 10:10 miles and I wanted to hear everything they were saying so I kept running with them. Then the wife wanted to walk, so I kept on trucking. For the next few miles I ran mostly by myself or here and there with various groups and people. I was holding pretty consistently about 11:00 minutes a mile. I finally took off my trash bag about mile 5. It hadn’t stopped raining, but I was way to hot to keep that thing on. At about mile 9 or 10 I came across an older gentleman (that was ahead of me!) running along he said his name was Brown and I ran with him for about a mile and a half. Another gal name Krista joined in with us. We listened to him tell stories about how he was 78 years old and this was his 50th something marathon. So amazing. When he stopped to walk I realized that we had slowed down to his pace which was 12- something and I felt like I could get up and go so Krista and I took off. The last time I hit a split on my watch was at mile 11, so I didn’t get my 12 mile or 13 mile split times. However, after the finish the last split I had on my watch was 22:20, so for the last 2.1 miles we ran about 10:40 pace. It was helpful to have Krista with me because she knew the campus well and knew exactly where the finish was. Nearing the end the wind picked up and I had her drop behind me, she was really short and petite and I knew I could block the wind for her because she was starting to struggle. I really pushed as hard as I could and I actually dropped her just before mile 13. My actual finish time was 2:28.47, I don’t remember the clock time.
Dan had finished about 15 minutes before me (at 2:13.58) so we went and waited for Julie to come thru the Half point and cheered her on. Her 13.1 split was 2:48.29 and she looked really strong. She actually surprised both Dan and I (I was in the middle of switching into a dry shirt when she was coming up the street so I was trying to dress myself and cheer her on at the same time) with how quick she came up. He and I then went and took showers and met back up to drive out to see her by the turnaround. When we saw her then she wasn’t quite looking all that happy, and she was walking, but she was walking fast. You could tell she was hurting, but she wasn’t stopping, for damn sure. Dan and I found Julie’s parents at the finish and we waited for her to come through the line. She did (running at that!), and her time was 6:08.07. She did great and I am SO PROUD!! She never gave up and I am really jealous I couldn’t do it with her.
After the race we ate lunch with Julie’s folks, and then Dan drove us back in the monsoon to KC.
All in all, a great race weekend (besides the tsunami).
Results are available at OnlineRaceResults.com
180 days until IronMan!!!
posted @ 5/7/2007 7:49:53 AM (0) Comments
Thursday, May 03, 2007
HOT AIR
HOT AIR
I ate lunch at my desk today with the intentions for taking a 20 min break and going to the bank and going to the gas station to put air in my tires. At 12:00pm I leave and go straight to the nearest QT.
When I pull in, I can see that the 3 closest spots to the air hose are full. I get as close as I can, and then try reach the hose to my car. Someone sitting inside their car in one of the spots pulls out. Great, I just whip right in. Now I’m in the middle parking space, one space over from the air machine. There are people standing at the back of the “3rd spot car” just starring at me: I’m in 3.5 inch stiletto work heels, black sateen pants, and a pressed button up shirt. IT’S RAINING. Stop looking at me!
I am struggling to get the air hose to the front wheel of my car (all four tires are extremely low- I can’t believe I waited so long to fill them) and it just barely reaches. I’m crouched down trying to put air- 26lbs actually needed- into my tire. I get the feeling some one is starring at me- the guy whose truck was in the actual air up spot was standing there eyeballing me. I just turned around and looked at him. “Oh, I’m sorry, I am parked in your way.” me: “Yeah that’s fine.” He’s still just standing there. me: “Are you going to move?” So he gets in and pulls out. Right then this lady in a truck in a business suit pulls up into the spot about 1/2 way and jumps out. She grabs the hose and was like, “That guy was creepy, here, I’ll help.” Phenomenal. There have been 3 men gawk at me and not one offer to help, but another woman dressed in business attire is the only one that will. Now, don’t get me wrong, I didn’t expect for anyone to help me. HOWEVER, nobody should just be starring at me! So I get to my last tire with that woman’s help (I wish I had gotten her name), and am finishing it up… some random guy walks over and says “How many pounds?” I was like WHAT? He then started to explain to me that pounds were the amount of air you’re supposed to put in your tire. I wanted to be like, YEAH I GOT THAT. IT’S 51 I’M AT 38, I CAN READ AN AIR GAUGE, WHY ARE YOU ASKING ME HOW MANY POUNDS!!?? Instead, I just said “It needs 51, I’m at about 40.” The response: “Oh, okay” and then just stands there… What is with people starring!! Seriously, offer to help or MOVE.
Then I did the lady’s tire- she only needed one- and a guy from inside QT comes out “You need anything?” The lady and I just looked at each other and shook our heads.
I never expected help, but I didn’t expect to be hassled either. Why must people be so dang rude!!??
It took so long I never even made it to the bank. Drats. I’ll try again tomorrow.
posted @ 5/3/2007 11:28:13 AM (0) Comments
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Larry the bike: Being Tougher: Master's Swim
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
Overhead while volunteering at the Trolley Run. An older lady to a younger guy next to here- both running "I thought you said this was all down hill!!... YOU LIED, CHIP!"
Last night I met up with Rick so I could deliver to him my old bike. He’s the nice guy that bought my Multi-Sport, Larry. I think they will do well together and I told Rick I expect the bike to be out front. J I got to chatting with him and realized how nice it is that there are so many people learning and trying to get into the sport. I still am new myself (at least I think I am) but it’s great to get to offer up some advice to the people that are just starting to think about their first race… hopefully it’s not wrong or bad advice though! J But, I know that I so love hearing from other people involved in the sport- especially the veterans. Locally I have really looked up to Glen Bohanan (the KC Godfather of Tri), Nancy Strickland, Melissa Kelly, Jeff Dorris, Greg Goodman, Kelly Dippold and Peggy Donovan. There are a lot of others that when I see them at the races- even during the races- I get starry eyed and just get that “WOW feeling.”
That feeling really registered with me at the MO State Games last year. After a brutally hilly bike I took off on the flat run, but couldn’t get my legs going. It was a sprint and I think a 4 mile out-and-back run. I was less than a mile out of the transition when the lead pack of women (and I do mean pack, there were like 4 of them!) passed me headed the opposite direction. I was so amazed. They were straight up hauling ass. And you could just read the pain on their faces. Some were grimaced, one I know had snot running down her face (yeah, Meg H.- like you!) but they were battling. There was just less than a mile and none wanted to drop off. When they were gone I just kept plugging along, but I kept thinking about how hard they were pushing. And I was sure that they had swam and rode against each other the entire way (oddly enough, I checked the results later, and I had actually come out of the water ahead of two of them- but barely. Dammit, why couldn’t I be faster on the bike/run!?).
So, I have decided to really understand what it’s like to hurt. Yes, my focus this year is IM distance, so that’s more a completion vs. competition there, but, I want to really be a contender mentally. Yeah, I’ve always been tuff, but not like that. I may not be as physically honed for the short distances, but I want to be there in my head. You can accomplish a lot by just willing yourself to do it. So come Heritage Park, I may blow up in a sprint race, but I can guarantee I will push myself harder than I ever had. I think I need that mental break through. I read in a book not so long ago (I think it was in Going Long) that the difference between pros and amateurs is their ability to hurt. There a lot of very well trained am’s (albeit, they may not have 40 hrs a week to devote to training) that could physically out race an elite but they can’t. And for one reason- mental toughness. The elites can take their bodies to beyond because their minds will them to do it. I want to establish that ability in myself. I also have a friend or two that could really benefit from extreme mental focus.
And also along those lines, Michele sent me this (with some great IM pictures- thanks Moto), and I thought I’d share:
“Okay so the basis behind this article is a sales pitch, but he's got some good points. Instead of actually being productive, I downloaded some IMFL pictures from the racer's perspective so you can visualize kicking ass at IMFL.
Enjoy,
Michele” …
High Velocity E-Zine
Visualizing is the Key to Realizing
What is it that separates the highly successful individual from the average or even successful individual? Why is it that one person seems to achieve extraordinary results on a consistent basis and another, with nearly the same training, hits and misses their accomplishments?
The success technique to which I am referring is visualization. I guarantee that "visualizing your results is the key to realizing your results." Visualizing is one of the most important techniques you will ever learn and one that is utilized by all high performers.
Visualizing is your key to success for two reasons: Your mind thinks in pictures and images; Your unconscious mind drives your behavior.
Your unconscious mind doesn't know the difference between something that is real and something vividly imagined. Whatever picture (goal) you consistently think about will drive your actions to create that exact picture. When you continually see yourself in possession of your goal, your unconscious mind will move you into actions that align with the mental image you hold.
Here's a quick visualization overview to assure your goal achievement:
Create a clear mental picture. You must associate a picture to your goal. You should picture yourself in your vision, rather than watching yourself achieve your goal. This "fine point" separates the masters from the masses. You must create a picture that is so real you believe you already have achieved your success.
You must "experience" your vision. You must be in your picture, looking through your own eyes... seeing, hearing and feeling everything as if you have already achieved your goal. You must create the emotion of the moment in your own body.
Visualize your goal at every opportunity. Bring up your mental picture while waiting at a stop light, when you're on a break, before your next meeting. The more frequently you plant your picture into your unconscious mind, the more rapidly you will begin to realize increased results in your life.
Visualize first thing in the morning and last thing at night. The best time to visualize is in the morning right after you wake up and just before you go to sleep. These are the times when your unconscious mind is most open to influence. When your conscious mind relaxes, your unconscious becomes very receptive to your thoughts, dreams and ideas--particularly ideas with high emotion.
So make a commitment right now to create your picture of achieving your goal. All great masters have taught that we become what we constantly think about. Think about your goals to the exclusion of all else and watch your personal and professional results skyrocket!
***
Master’s Practice today went quite well, I believe. I was a little disappointed with the numbers (5 showed), but when I got in the office today I had 4 emails from people saying they would be joining sometime this month.
The members are:
Moto-Michele: Seems to be a frequent partner in crime. However, as a swim client she really took direction and I’m looking forward to her putting that to good use and really taking her swimming to the next level. She’s recovering from a broken hip, so there’s going to be lots of dryland mods for her.
Amy: Amy is returning to swimming after some time off (and a hubby and kids it sounds like). She told me she would be the very bottom of the group, but I think she is going to surprise herself as the practices go on.
Jules: My IM training partner. Her weakness in Tri’s is swimming, and I think her getting in some group workouts with a coach on deck or in the water will really be helpful to her. She is another one that will see some drastic improvements just by having scheduled workouts and time in the water.
Justin: Talks too much. J Last one in the water. He’s is probably the most technically sound as far a strokes go, but he’s got some bad habits in stroke mechanics that will need working on. Having structured workouts will be beneficial to him. He asked when the “real workouts” would start. When they start he might ask me when they’ll stop. J But seriously, he’s done Silverman (it’s an IM distance race in Vegas) so I know he’s a hard worker.
Randy: Couldda Shoudda been collegiate swimmer. He’s looking for a master’s team to be more competitive and workout in a structured environment. I look forward to really seeing his skills progress. Probably has the most raw talent, but with a lot of room for improvement.
posted @ 5/2/2007 10:20:57 AM (0) Comments
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
There is no cure.
It's so scary to think that things can be moving along fine and then your world be completely rocked. My grandpa who has once fought cancer and lived to tell about it is now fighting again. I just lost one grandfather to cancer in June last year, and a great uncle less than two.
Right now there is no cure for cancer. Sure, there are some things you can do to lessen your chances, but I really doubt anyone reading this has made it through their lives with out battling the disease themselves or being touched by someone who has.
If at all possible, volunteer, donate, voice your thoughts, prayers- ANYTHING you can do to help those whom fight the hardest battle anyone can endure.
I had someone tell me not so long ago that "Those LiveStrong bracelets aren't really fashionable anymore." The idea that someone would wear a bracelet that means so much to so many just to look cool apalled me. I wear my bracelet for my grandfathers, uncles, best friend's mother, mom's best friend, friend's friends, and for total strangers. Do what you can to support those that need your support.
Please tell those that you love that you love them and spend as much time with them as you can. You'll be thankful that you did.
Courtney
posted @ 5/1/2007 11:58:18 AM (0) Comments
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