It's Always Sunny in Kansas City

Okay, that's a lie.

I've been in Florida for a few days to lay to rest my grandmother's (and grandfather's) ashes. It's been a very tough and emotional trip. However, I got to spend a lot of quality time with my mom, whom I miss dearly, and my brother, sister in law, and one of my niece's (and a slew of aunts, uncles, cousins, second cousins, etc., that I rarely get the chance to see).

While I took my running stuff, I never unpacked my Garmin, let alone the running shoes. Tisk tisk. Not sure if running in 95 degrees would have been condusive to this weekend's marathon, anyway.

Speaking of the marathon: guess what! Mixed reports from drizzle, to run, to, what's this?! Farking SNOW?

Whatevs. This is the updated WeatherUnderground.com report (might not be the most credible, but it seems to be the most positive):

So, it will be cold. According to Brett Anthony (the official meteorologist for Runner's Edge KC) it should be dry all morning, and 48 by noon. And, I'd like to finish by 12:30pm.

I am still planning on Gorilla Multisport Shorts, with the tank, and an underarmour shirt. I'll start the race with the throw-away jacket I got from DFT many moons ago. Never had conditions that I thought I would need the throw-away for, and now I do.

I got some of those $1.00 gloves and almost matching $1.00 headband from Target. That oughtta do it, right?

If not, I may end up in capris, which will probably be the more sensible choice.

Here's the info on the marathon, and my number, in case you'd like to track me!

http://www.waddellandreedkcmarathon.org/

http://tracking.theendresultco.com/2009/kc/step1.php

Ironman Kansas 70.3

Ironman Kansas 70.3
June 14, 2009

Goals: Finish. Have Fun. Touch Chrissie Wellington.

Saturday morning I worked. Same as everyday. Bike check in was also Saturday, which put a bit of time crunch on everything.

However, I made it out to Lawrence- Clinton Lake, in time to ride about 45min of the course (and go past Chrissie Wellington- totally almost crashed), and check my bike in. I met up with Shannan Garcia, another aquatics director, and we rode together. Then, we stood in the lllooong registration line. But, it wasn’t awful. Why? There was a live band playing. Just like Wildflower! I loved it.

After registration Shannan and I walked our bikes down to bike check in. This race was set up a lot differently than last year- two transition areas about a mile apart. The swim to bike TA was right next to the lake (duh). Before we could drop off our bikes, we had to get body marked. I despise night-before body marking, but whatever, I’m not the race director. The TA was tightly packed with about five rows set up in long columns to house the 2200 entries. Goldmember was snuggled up against several hot looking Cervelos, and I kissed him goodnight.

After bike check in, we trudged back up the hill to check out the bike to run TA. This one was much more spacious. We talked about driving the course, but it was already almost 6pm, and Shannan had to drive back to Olathe. I was lucky enough to be staying at my friend Jill’s house, and Julie was meeting me there to Sherpa me. Yay for Half Iron Sherpas.

Jules and I met up at Jill’s and decided to head out to dinner. Dinner is always an experience. Particularly since I am now eating Gluten free. I had shrimp and veggies, which were delish. I watched Julie take a couple bites out of the bread. She swears it wasn’t that good. I don’t believe her.
There were a few others in the restaurant that were racing on Sunday, but none of them were sporting the fancy schmancy compression socks I was. They. Are. Sexy.

After dinner we went back to Jill’s and I packed and repacked my now two transition bags. I was kind of frustrated. I have never felt so unprepared for a race. It was all mental. I’ve been working so much the race was really far off in my mind. When I packed items up for the weekend, I just walked around my house grabbing things and putting them in my bag. I’m glad I got the right stuff!

Jules and I snuggled up in bed- facing each other. Yes, like we are lovers. We totally are. I almost immediately fell asleep. Next thing I realized, the alarms were going off and it was go time!

This was my first race eating gluten free, so instead of a bagel, I ate an apple with natural peanut butter and a banana. Yum.

Sunday morning we arrived in the parking lot the same time as everyone else. So much for being early. It was very nice not having to walk my bike in from the parking lot, and the walk helped to um, loosen some stuff up, if you will.

When we made it to the main festival area, everything looked great. I got my run shoes and visor set up, then we proceeded down to the swim to bike TA. There was definitely a buzz in the air. A guy a few spots down kept asking everyone questions. I don’t know if this was his first race, or if he just had a lot of things to learn. I think it’s great to ask questions about the sport, but the morning of the race is not that time. I am antisocial in the TA. It’s part of my getting my game face on. At 6:20 a volunteer started walking thru the TA letting everyone know it was closing. Ahh! Time to scramble! I grabbed my wetsuit my father in law got me for Christmas (I love it!! It’s the Blue Seventy reaction sleeveless), some Chamois butter, swim cap and goggles. I made my way down to the swim start- very Wildflower-esq as well. The start is between some docks, and Mike Reilly was standing on one side getting everyone reved up. My waved started at 6:40, and had about 90 women in it. I like big swim waves. More feet to float off of!
Swim 1.2 Miles 33:36
I started at the front and inside- my favorite starting position. The sky was very overcast, and I was praying it wouldn’t start storming (IMKS 70.3 in 2008 a stormed brewed right at the finish- I was pulled off the run course with just a few more to go!). I felt really good thru the whole swim. I wasn’t real springy, but I felt good sighting. My one complaint with the swim was that I would like to see more big buoys. But, you get what you get and everyone is one the same course, right? Right. The water was dingy, big surprise for Kansas, huh? It got a little choppy on the way back, but the swim was over quick. Not my fastest time, but I was pleased.

T1 3:27
I completely took my time. It was starting to sprinkle and I knew it was gonna get nasty fast. I was slow and made sure I had everything I needed before hitting the course.

Bike 56 Miles 3:19.27
Right away there’s the gradual climb up to the festival area. Then a flat section, a couple ups and downs, the dam and smaller rollers with some fast sections. I felt like this year’s revised course was much easier than last years. However, after talking to several people, I figured out I’m just in better shape! It took me nearly 3:45 last year! Huge improvement. Saw my dad out on the course too, which was awesome. So glad he got to drive to Lawrence to see me zoom by for 20 seconds. I really was glad he made it out though! Dad was parked right by the last big hill headed back to the lake. I’m not sure what he said, but I think it was something along the lines of “It’s not a hill, it’s a hump.” Which made me laugh. I was bummed by having to stop to pee at mile 30, but it was better to stop for two minutes than waste 10 trying to pee on the bike. For the first three hours, we had cloudy skies, and sprinkles. Then, on the way back, I saw some blue sky start to perk up.

T2 1:58
Again, I wasn’t rushing, but I had a decent TA. I ran passed my slot because I was listening to how Chrissie Wellington went 4:14. Holy shiit that’s fast. Then I back tracked to my spot. Someone else had racked in it, so I had to return to favor to some poor person behind me. Sorry!

Run 13.1 Miles 2:47.33
Well, when I left the TA it was SUNNY. And hot. And humid. I like it. I felt pretty springy so I decided to just sit back and roll with my legs. The course is basically a two out and back with a loop in between that you repeat twice. Sounds confusing, I know, but it was AWESOME. It was a really good chance to be surrounded by spectators. I got to see Julie and her hubs Dan several times. Along with so many friends. Also, it was great to see the other people racing so much. Very very good course! Around mile 6 I was starting to fade a little bit, so with a little self pep talk on how I would only need to suffer another hour, I tried to pick up the pace. At about mile 9 I knew I had to pee and couldn’t hold it any more, so I “stretched” in a squat behind an aid station. OMFG. I had some bad monkey butt and didn’t realize until I pee’d. Yeeooouuuch!

Right after that Julie jogged up next to me, beer in hand, and encouraged me. So jealous. No more beer for me :sigh:

Soon, I was curving home onto the coolest finish chute. The chute had sunflowers down it, and a bright yellow carpet- just follow the yellow brick road! I finished and was stoked. Then a lady said, make sure you get your finisher’s medal from this lady- CHRISSIE WELLINGTON! Chrissie Freaking Wellington put my finisher’s medal on me, and HUGGED ME for a photo. Thus, fully accomplishing ALL of the day’s goals. I almost started crying!

And, after walking around a bit with Julie, we found Chrissie signing autographs and taking pictures. Of course, we stepped up. She signed my finisher’s medal. YAY!

All in all, I had an awesome race, only 6 min off of my PR from 2007. I’m very happy. I got to meet lots of Texas Gorillas (they’re awesome!) Also, the course and race directors were amazing. Great job to those guys.

-

Oh, I still haven't done a recap from the KC Triathlon. I will soon, promise.

Coach Lady Wins!

Way to go Coach Lady Gail Leveque on her AG win at Memphis in May.

Yes, she is a badass.

What I'm Doing.

Over the weekend I worked A LOT. Then I painted a bedroom, moved upstairs furniture down stairs (by myself), steam cleaned and vacummed everything.

Apparently, this managed to twist, torque, pinch and pull something in my back. So, I'm taking it easy. I had a really great 10 days of training prior to that, so I'm a little frustrated. I'm going to give swimming a try this evening, and if it's ok, run after.

5 full weeks left until Kansas 70.3. I've got half of that until my season opener olympic. I'm not really feeling as prepared as I should, but my coach keeps writing awesome workouts, it's just a matter of me getting them in.

We'll see how things work out. Doing all I can with what I can, when I can.

Still Truckin

Yeah yeah yeah. I'm alive. I've been incredibly busy with work. Then got sick. So, I took a couple weeks off of training. It was ridiculously stupid. I could have taken off only half the time, but oh well. I've been training hard since last week again. Looking forward to a ride with Andrea tomorrow. First time we've rode together since 2006. I'm sure she'll put a hurtin' on me, but that will be okay. We have all morning to hurt. We both have 3:30 in the saddle to accomplish, so it's nice to pair up with someone.

I've made some changes to this year's racing schedule. No Redman, probably no Steelhead. But I'm adding in a Two Mile Open water race in August. I've never done and OWS race as a stand alone, and the winner gets a kayak. Sooo, I'm going to try to go somewhere near the 50 min mark. I'm not sure if breaking 50 is a possibility, but I'll give it ago.

Other than that, I'll do a couple extra local races. I will give it my all, and try to be a short distance racer when it comes to triathlons the last half of the summer. We'll see where it takes me. Like Coach Lady said, "It might not be what you really want to do, but that doesn't mean you get to half ass it."

Well said.

There Will Be No Ironman in 2009

They couldn't pick a better time as that in life.

It ain't too early and it ain't too late.

Startin' as a farmer with a brand new wife.

Count me out. Cross me off. Take me off the roster. After much deliberating over the last few weeks, I've decided to removed Redman from my schedule this year. I started a new job in November as an aquatics director for two pools run by one of the largests associations in the country, and my work load has increased exponentially. From what I hear, it only gets worse. I have had some great training from January until the middle of March, when spring swim lessons picked up. In eight days I logged 68 hours on the clock, not including my commute. That's a lot of time taken away from my home, husband, and animals, let alone my training responsibilities. I've not been one to half ass things, and I have a true respect for the distance. I've done an iron distance event to finish one, and now I want to compete in one. If I'm not fully into the training, the recovery, and the nutrition both mentally and physically, I will not have a likely chance at meeting my goals.

This would be an expensive trip to set myself up for failure.

As we have all seen in the economy recently, our expendable income has become tucked neatly under our pillowcases. It makes it all the more harder to justify an expense at which I may not even make the starting line.

Instead, I am going to focus on a local olympic distance race, Kansas 70.3, and Steelhead 70.3. I will add in some August/September local sprints to keep myself occupied, and I am still planning to persue the Kansas City marathon in October.

As coach lady told me, "Going half the distance doesn't make it half as challenging."

I'm still determined to make this my best season yet.

The G-Spot

No, you dirty birdies! I'm talking about Gorilla Multisport!! Coach Lady, et al., have revamped their website! it looks awesome. Not only is the website new and improved, but Gorilla Multisport Coaching, now has THREE affiliates, ok well, four if you count the original:
Gorilla Multisport Coaching - Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
Gorilla Multisport Performance - Oceanside, CA
Gorilla Multisport AZ - Mesa, AZ
Gorilla Multisport SoCal - Carlsbad, CA

Oh, and check it out, I also got myself me own profile! whoo hoo. :)

The Weekend Report with Courtney S.

I can't remember if I mentioned it or not, but Zeus Goose the Cane Corso pup has cherry eye. Joy. Friday after work I took the little guy in to get checked out. After we returned from the vet, I got myself dressed and made my way out the door for a non-iPod, listen to the footsteps and falling snow/sleet only run of four miles. I know, I know, four miles ain't shiznit. But, to me, it really was. At a frigid 25 degrees and wind gusts of 25 mh, I was a bit, um, chilly. I made it back to the house not long after sundown, but was I was nearing my street on that particular patch of street lampless darkness, I remembered a run in which it hit me: I was going to finish Ironman Florida in the dark. I was thinking that maybe I would finish Redman in the daylight, but with a sunset of 7:30pm, I would have to finish at exactly 12hrs, about 30min faster than my goal time. So, maybe there will still be some trails of light on the horizon.

Saturday morning I went to work and taught some swim lessons. Aahh, swim lessons. Nothing like my bright and shinny self at 9am on a Saturday teaching nine 3-5year olds how to put their faces in the water. Actually, the kids aren't that bad (it's the parents.. err. wait..). Once I made it home I threw my leg over the bike and got to pedaling. In my kitchen. I set the trainer up in the kitchen so I could keep and eye on the dogs (and the dog's eyes). Also, some friends of the Husband were at the house laying the slate tile in the fancy-schmancy master bathroom. Be jealous. It's been since August of 2006 that the shower was last functional. My ride was set for two hours, however, after an hour and twenty minutes, I found myself at the vet yet again, to pick up more medication before they closed. I planned to get back on the saddle when I made it home, yet housework was piling up, and I made the executive decision that sometimes house priorities need to come before training. Gasp!

I hung out with Alygator in the afternoon, doing a whole lot of nothing. We tried the new sushi bar in town, which, to our surprise also has 4 hibachi grills as well. The sushi was excellent and after a mere two glasses of white, we called it a night. I feel asleep with the dogs on the couch watching Pineapple Express.

Sunday morning we planned to run early and be done with it. However, Alygator FINALLY set up a Facebook account so we took the majority of the morning for her to explore her new found world of Social Networking Websites. About 3:00 I said enough and got dressed. The temps were hovering around the 19 degree mark, but with less wind, the five miles were not only warmer than Friday's but, dare I say it, FUN. I ran with the iPod this time- after I dug through three purses and two workout bags to find it. These runs were far from fast, but the snowflakes on both trips were fun. Also, it's nice to have the path only to yourself. I never saw another runner Friday, and Sunday my only company was Alyson. Alyson, by the way, made Sunday her farthest run EVER. I remember how exciting those are. Long runs. Well, long enough.

This morning I found myself in the middle of a main set consisting of 10 x 200's build. Yes, 10 x TWO HUNDRED YARDS. My arms are tired but the gradual increase in yardage is good for me, and, well, makes me happy if nothing else.

There's KMA spin class tonight, however, Coach Lady has me to ride only an hr with a lower HR than what the Class workout is, so I'll be doing this in the kitchen too. Then I'll finally get to snuggle up to the husband- he spent the weekend working in Houston at supercross- and drink a glass of wine, which, will ultimately be my night cap. Rest day tomorrow, I'm really looking forward to it.

Get Ready for This

Well, I see this week's workouts. I'm going to have to step out of my current (lazy) comfort zones and HTFU. Well, that includes my husband too. I have to really get him invovled, althought I can always tell that he gets disappointed a touch when I get lazy and out of shape. He told me once he likes telling people that I train a lot, and am a triathlete. It makes me proud when he can brag!

So, here's week one's projected totals:
PLAN Totals
Type Distance Duration
Rest
Stretch 01:00
Weights 01:00
Bike 75.0 mi 04:00
Run 12.0 mi 02:00
Swim 5600.0 yd 02:00
Total Plan Duration: 10:00

Gorilla Multisport Athlete Coaching

I am SO happy to announce it:

I've joined up with Gorilla Multisport to be coached by Gail Leveque. Based out of the Dallas, Tx area, Gail has coached for more than seven years. Her favorite quote is befitting:
Its a little like wrestling a gorilla. You don't quit when you're tired,
you quit when the gorilla is tired.
Gail's personal athletic achievements are awesome- top five finishes at several 70.3's, 3 time USAT all-American, a top twenty age group finish, and top FIVE age group finish at KONA Ironman World Champs (2006 and 2004, respectively).

Gail can be aggressive and straight at you as I am, and that's what I need in a coach. I'm so excited to start with her. We were discussing February, but it looks like workout #1 is Monday.

Yay!!! Go Gorillas!