This past week was First Bite Boulder. At each participating restaurant, you get a three course meal for 26 bucks. The menu you get to choose from is limited with two to four options for each course, but you still get a good sampling of what they do. Since A and I like to share, we each got to try up to 6 different things at each place.
A and I went to four different restaurants, Greenbriar on Saturday, Brasserie Ten Ten on Sunday, Tahona on Wednesday, and Colterra on Friday. My favorite first course was the Mixed Vegetable and Asadero Cheese Rellenos. I'm surprised A shared them with me. My least liked first course was the salad at Colterra as the pear was hard and flavorless and the pecans were soft. For the main course, the steak at Colterra and carne asada at Tahona were both wonderful. At Greenbriar the Pork Tenderloin was anything but tender and very tough. Very disappointing since their food is usually very excellent. The best desserts were the Apple Galette and Mocha Terriene at Colterra. The worst dessert by a mile were the apple enchiladas at Tahona. They were terrible.
A is already suffering from First Bite withdrawal. Only 51 weeks until next year.
-E
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
Hello, world!
Long time no write, for me at least. As E eluded to in his last post, we have been busy. And there has been a LOT of changes around here, especially for me. End of an old job. Start of a new job. Two weeks in between filled with lots and lots and lots of home projects.
One big change with the new job has been a change in internet policy: no more personal internet (read: blogging) while at work. I'd like you to all still think I'm a saint, but most of my previous blogging was done at work. There was a reason I was fervently looking for a new job: I was under utilized (bored) and therefore found myself blogging at work more than I'd like to admit. No more. In fact, if you need to reach me during the day for anything urgent, don't even count on email. I'm trying to check that once a day when at home, but... best to call if you need an immediate response.
Reading blogs has also fell off of my daily routine, completely. My Google Reader account currently has 391 unread blog posts waiting for me. I think it is time to say "I'm done! I quit! No more! Help!" In other words, Google Reader and I may be parting ways for awhile, I will once again have to go to each individual blog (when I get the time) and read posts as I am able. Life is full and beautiful and fabulous, and will be taking over all my free time for the foreseeable future.
Speaking of full and beautiful and fabulous...... lots of good stuff is coming our way. We are enjoying a lighter month of training. This is a much needed break after a 6-month racing season (for triathlon) that included 2.75 Ironmans and lots of quality training. I am now ready for snow (I know that IM AZ is this weekend, but so is the start of Thanksgiving (ski) Camps all over the country, and here we need snow to have camp). Snow. Now. PLEASE?! We are enjoying outside bike rides in mid-November, but it is time for winter.
This coming week is a big one too. Thanksgiving. Sunny visiting. E's dad possible visiting. My parent's anniversary. My sister's birthday. Soon (in a few weeks) a new baby, who will make us a brand new aunt and uncle. Santa Lucia party. Yeah, I look good in a speedo party. Christmas. New Years. Whew! Should be fun... but busy!
In a nutshell, that's what's up here in Boulder.
-A
One big change with the new job has been a change in internet policy: no more personal internet (read: blogging) while at work. I'd like you to all still think I'm a saint, but most of my previous blogging was done at work. There was a reason I was fervently looking for a new job: I was under utilized (bored) and therefore found myself blogging at work more than I'd like to admit. No more. In fact, if you need to reach me during the day for anything urgent, don't even count on email. I'm trying to check that once a day when at home, but... best to call if you need an immediate response.
Reading blogs has also fell off of my daily routine, completely. My Google Reader account currently has 391 unread blog posts waiting for me. I think it is time to say "I'm done! I quit! No more! Help!" In other words, Google Reader and I may be parting ways for awhile, I will once again have to go to each individual blog (when I get the time) and read posts as I am able. Life is full and beautiful and fabulous, and will be taking over all my free time for the foreseeable future.
Speaking of full and beautiful and fabulous...... lots of good stuff is coming our way. We are enjoying a lighter month of training. This is a much needed break after a 6-month racing season (for triathlon) that included 2.75 Ironmans and lots of quality training. I am now ready for snow (I know that IM AZ is this weekend, but so is the start of Thanksgiving (ski) Camps all over the country, and here we need snow to have camp). Snow. Now. PLEASE?! We are enjoying outside bike rides in mid-November, but it is time for winter.
This coming week is a big one too. Thanksgiving. Sunny visiting. E's dad possible visiting. My parent's anniversary. My sister's birthday. Soon (in a few weeks) a new baby, who will make us a brand new aunt and uncle. Santa Lucia party. Yeah, I look good in a speedo party. Christmas. New Years. Whew! Should be fun... but busy!
In a nutshell, that's what's up here in Boulder.
-A
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
From Hero to Zero
Oh bother,
We got a decent amount of stuff to post about, the kitchen project, First Bite Boulder, hiking with Lucas, ...
But, today's post is about pride and how it is a bad thing.
This morning, A and I went for a roller ski. We got an early start and heading over to some gradual inclines (too small to call it a hill) and did some 1 minute intervals. A was on her skating skis and I was on my classic skis (the only ones I have). Since her skis have less resistance we were doing the intervals separately. We did the three sets of 5 on the incline (V1, V2 and no pole for her, stride, double pole with kick and no pole for me).
For the last set of 5 (double pole) we went and found somewhere flatter. Before the last one, A waited for me and I started right behind her. With my shorter poles and more flexible boots, the resistance difference between her skis and mine was less of an issue and I started to catch her. She responded by going faster. I responded by going faster, caught up to her and started passing her.
Well folks, this is where the story takes a turn for the worse as with about 10 seconds left in our last interval, just as I was getting ahead of A, my lower back seized up. Seized up hard at that. I was reduced to a pile of pain on the pavement. It took a while to get up and going at a shuffle pace. A went ahead, got the car, and came back to pick me up. I'm sure that it would not have happened if we hadn't started racing the last interval.
So, the lesson of the day is either to only race the last interval close to home and have pain meds ready or to not race while training. I'll let you choose.
Later,
E
We got a decent amount of stuff to post about, the kitchen project, First Bite Boulder, hiking with Lucas, ...
But, today's post is about pride and how it is a bad thing.
This morning, A and I went for a roller ski. We got an early start and heading over to some gradual inclines (too small to call it a hill) and did some 1 minute intervals. A was on her skating skis and I was on my classic skis (the only ones I have). Since her skis have less resistance we were doing the intervals separately. We did the three sets of 5 on the incline (V1, V2 and no pole for her, stride, double pole with kick and no pole for me).
For the last set of 5 (double pole) we went and found somewhere flatter. Before the last one, A waited for me and I started right behind her. With my shorter poles and more flexible boots, the resistance difference between her skis and mine was less of an issue and I started to catch her. She responded by going faster. I responded by going faster, caught up to her and started passing her.
Well folks, this is where the story takes a turn for the worse as with about 10 seconds left in our last interval, just as I was getting ahead of A, my lower back seized up. Seized up hard at that. I was reduced to a pile of pain on the pavement. It took a while to get up and going at a shuffle pace. A went ahead, got the car, and came back to pick me up. I'm sure that it would not have happened if we hadn't started racing the last interval.
So, the lesson of the day is either to only race the last interval close to home and have pain meds ready or to not race while training. I'll let you choose.
Later,
E
Friday, November 7, 2008
Back at "It"
After lasts week's post, training has become much more regular and my motiviation is back.
Last weekend though was filled with painting the kitchen and all of the prep that goes with it. Actually that was started by Amber during the week with her moving stuff out of the kitchen, but we didn't get started painting until Saturday evening. We did get out to see some the cyclocross races, which were fun. We spent a good portion of them catching up with friends, but did see some impressive performances by the best riders in the country. Part of me wants to get a cyclocross bike, but the wiser part of me knows we need some sort of offseason. Although I'm not sure a cyclocross race would be harder than this morning's workout (more on that later).
Since the weekend, we've had some good rides (in the dark), a roller ski, a run or two, and some swims. They've moved out 6 am swim until 6:30 so they can supposedly keep the pool covered longer, but the main reason that many people go to the 6 am swim is so they can get out at 7 means that the swims have been pretty empty by 7:45. There was one swim two weeks ago where only 3 of us showed up, so they can be pretty small workouts to begin with, but there may be days now that A and I will be the only ones.
This morning was the first hard workout since the Halfmax. It was a time trial up Mt Sanitas, so it was a very hard workout. Yesterday, I found a website with the course records for Mt Sanitas which hasn't been updated in four years. After this morning, I even more impressed with some of the times on the list. My lungs were hurting bad for most of the time, except for when it was too steep to run and my legs were hurting bad. Since we haven't been doing anything hard, our times from this morning will serve as a good base fitness number.
Tonight, A and I are going to the University of Colorado Ski Ball. A fancy affair to support the alpine and nordic ski teams at CU. Should be a good time like usual.
I really hoping that today's strong winds will blow all of the leaves from our yard away so we don't spend the whole weekend cleaning up the yard.
Peace Out,
E
Last weekend though was filled with painting the kitchen and all of the prep that goes with it. Actually that was started by Amber during the week with her moving stuff out of the kitchen, but we didn't get started painting until Saturday evening. We did get out to see some the cyclocross races, which were fun. We spent a good portion of them catching up with friends, but did see some impressive performances by the best riders in the country. Part of me wants to get a cyclocross bike, but the wiser part of me knows we need some sort of offseason. Although I'm not sure a cyclocross race would be harder than this morning's workout (more on that later).
Since the weekend, we've had some good rides (in the dark), a roller ski, a run or two, and some swims. They've moved out 6 am swim until 6:30 so they can supposedly keep the pool covered longer, but the main reason that many people go to the 6 am swim is so they can get out at 7 means that the swims have been pretty empty by 7:45. There was one swim two weeks ago where only 3 of us showed up, so they can be pretty small workouts to begin with, but there may be days now that A and I will be the only ones.
This morning was the first hard workout since the Halfmax. It was a time trial up Mt Sanitas, so it was a very hard workout. Yesterday, I found a website with the course records for Mt Sanitas which hasn't been updated in four years. After this morning, I even more impressed with some of the times on the list. My lungs were hurting bad for most of the time, except for when it was too steep to run and my legs were hurting bad. Since we haven't been doing anything hard, our times from this morning will serve as a good base fitness number.
Tonight, A and I are going to the University of Colorado Ski Ball. A fancy affair to support the alpine and nordic ski teams at CU. Should be a good time like usual.
I really hoping that today's strong winds will blow all of the leaves from our yard away so we don't spend the whole weekend cleaning up the yard.
Peace Out,
E
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
E's motivation level = -10
Coming off of our pretty long tri season, my motivation to train is pretty low. As we posted before, we've started roller skiing for the Nordic season, but with work promising to be all encompassing during January and February, racing then seems out of the question.
Away from training, A is in the midst of her two weeks between jobs. I'm liking it as she made a cherry pie yesterday, but we were too full after trip to Mountain Sun to have any. We also made three pizza's on Monday. The first was a pepperoni and mushroom, the second was a pear, goat cheese, prosciutto, and arugula, the third was a margherita with garden tomatoes.
Oh, there goes my motivation to write more.
Away from training, A is in the midst of her two weeks between jobs. I'm liking it as she made a cherry pie yesterday, but we were too full after trip to Mountain Sun to have any. We also made three pizza's on Monday. The first was a pepperoni and mushroom, the second was a pear, goat cheese, prosciutto, and arugula, the third was a margherita with garden tomatoes.
Oh, there goes my motivation to write more.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
National Champion?
So.... I was 2nd in my age group. But the girl who was first was 2nd overall and was pulled from the age group results. So they called my name for first in my age group. Does that make me the 30-34 USAT Long Course National Champ? But wait, I'm getting ahead of myself........ how 'bout a race report before we get to the results?
The drive there, from Boulder to Grand Junction, and then from Grand Junction on to Boulder City, was smooth and uneventful. We hit Vegas around 2 pm, and except for a bit of construction-related traffic, moved right on through to Boulder City for registration and T2 setup without delay.
Boulder City is a nice, smallish town that we really enjoyed. Our hotel was nothing special (I say this now, after touring The Strip in Vegas) but it was clean and had everything we needed, including being close to the finish/T2 area and within walking distance to dinner. Both factors came in handy, first when we decided to combine our pre-race test ride with a stop at the bike support tent (my rear brakes were riding awfully close to my rim.... not rubbing, but also not looking "normal" and I wanted to get it checked out by a third person) and later when we decided to see what was cooking at the local brew pub, The Dam Brewery, a reference to their proximity to Hoover Dam.
Aside from some last minute scrambling for E (you'd think that after all our years of racing that goggles and CO2 cartridges would be standard things to bring with for a race) we had all our gear set up, laid out, and ready to go for the next day. The only real decisions left to make were what to wear and what to eat for breakfast. But first, some sleep.
We woke the next day and were quickly up and prepping breakfast and race nutrition (or in this case, drink). I decided to go with steel cut oatmeal reheated in the microwave, topped with a banana and a few nuts/pieces of dried fruit. Oh, and coffee.
Breakfast done, bags packed, sunscreen on, now what to wear? On a gamble (hey, we were near Vegas) I chose to go in a plain swim suit. No padding for the bike, no compression for the run. But, this was no ordinary swim suit, it was a Splish, a present from Sunny back in April for my b-day that read "Who rocks?" across the front and "I rock!" across the back. Of my 3 options, it seemed like the best choice for my last tri of 2008.
The drive down to the lake was dark, and parking was a cluster, but we were early enough to get good racking positions (rows were based on your number, then it was first come, first served within your row, I was third in on my rack). There wasn't much to set up (helmet, shoes, glasses, plastic transition bag supplied by the race) so E and I were soon off on a warm-up jog, followed by a trip to the car to drop off all the extra transition stuff (my bag with tape, scissors, extra pins, marker, etc.) and clothes before wetsuiting up. A quick splash in the lake and I was ready to go. Man was that water nice! and the area around Lake Mead is simply beautiful. The lake is surrounded by rugged, rocky mountains and hills that make for a lovely backdrop. And that water! It came almost as far as we did (headwaters in Lake Granby) to be there for the race.
Before I knew it, the men had started and they were letting us ladies back in the water. One more splash, a hard effort out for ~ 50 m, then a slow splash back while I took care of business. I was ready. Then it was time to GO!
It was a short scramble out to the first buoy, then we turned directly into the sun and settled in. I could see a pack of women just up in front of me and one more solo swimmer right off to my left side. I put my head down and charged, trying to bridge the gap to the group out front, but I made up nothing and instead decided to settle in behind the girl who was still right there on my left side. I stuck with her until the next turn buoy when some of the men from the first wave stripped me of her and she was gone. Another power burst and I recaught her feet, where I stayed until ~ 300 m from the end when another train showed up on our right and looked to be a better draft option, so I moved over. Exited the water in the top 10 somewhere I think.
Cap and goggles off, wetsuit off, all stuffed into the bag they provided, string yanked shut, helmet on, glasses on, grabbed the bike and got out of T1.
Exit of T1 was an uphill run on the boat launch, I felt a bit like a salmon trying to swim upstream. Out on the bike I hopped on, grace-lessly and tried to get moving fast enough to balance and get the shoes on the feet. The roads out of the small park/beach area were a bit rough, but once onto the main roads, the pavement was beautiful. Great scenery, challenging hills, smooth roads, all combined to make a great bike. It was a pretty uneventful ride. I got aero and tried to keep moving along at my steady speed as best I could with the hills and breeze. I passed a few women right away on the bike, was nearly blown off the road when the eventual winner and runner up flew by me, was then repassed by 3 women I had dropped earlier, proceeded to play a bit of cat and mouse with one of them near the 24-mile turnaround, cruised back by T1, then got busy with the climb up to Boulder City and T2. I was hoping for a faster/more competitive bike split, but had set myself up well nutritionally and energy-wise for the run. And I had a bit of fun with the other racers around me as I got many, many comments on my race suit.
T2 came and went. All of what I needed was where I left it and I quickly racked my bike (with shoes still attached), took off my helmet, shoved my feet into my socks and shoes, grabbed my visor, drink bottle, and race number belt and took off.
Out on the run, I quickly passed a few women, then got down to business of clicking off miles. The run was nearly all downhill from the start until mile 5, then uphill to the turnaround at ~ mile 6.5, then the same in reverse. From ~ mile 1 to somewhere between mile 5 and 6 I also got to run with my own personal coach. At least that is what this one guy in the middle of the M40-44 race decided he wanted to be. In the end, he probably helped keep me focused and forced me to run faster than I would have on my own, but at the time his antics were getting a bit annoying. In fact, his surging and the waiting for me was fine, and his taunting and conversation did not bother me, but after ~4 miles when I realized that he had passed through each aid station right in front of me, taking all the water and leaving only Gatorade, which I don't like to race on I started to get a bit annoyed. I held steady though, moved swiftly past him when he faded, and even remained unfazed when a bee or something similar stung the underside of my right upper arm. I began to wilt with 2-3 miles left to go and was overtaken by a surging Darcy Eaton in the W40-44. I had recently passed E (urging him to give what he could, then to give a bit more) and they had chatted about me, so she was trying to get me to come with her. My mind was willing, but my legs were done rocking. I pushed, I fought with my own will to slow down, I beat my own doubt and kept up the pace, but it wasn't enough to stick with Darcy. Not even close! In then end, she and I had started and finished the run almost right with each other.
And then my legs let me know they were done. Officially retired for the 2008 tri season.
We snacked, were massaged (sort of), collected our T1 bags, waited (and waited, and waited) for awards and results, rode back to our hotel, cleaned up, made some order to our stuff, then headed out to see Las Vegas after a quick stop at DQ for Moolattes, our newest post-race treat (as of 2008 Mt. Taylor Quad in Feb.).
In all, this was a great race venue (great scenery on the bike and run, good roads for 90% of the bike, challenging but fair course) and a good race that had a few snafus (no chip check at turn arounds, no info about timing for awards, no massage and limited food for slower racers, etc.).
Vegas (the strip) was big, loud, bright, fancy, fun, and tiring. We'd like to go back, but with a game plan of what to do and see. Wandering around together was special in its own way, too, but to go back, us non-gambling types need an itinerary, at least a rough one to make sure we maximize our entertainment, culinary, and relaxing times appropriately. Planning should be easier, now though, since we have scoped it out a bit.
Sunday brought us a looooong drive home. NV, AZ, UT and CO were all very pretty, but it was a long day in the car that had our legs cramping and our bodies ready for bed by 9 or so when we rolled home. Luckily we had stopped for dinner in Dillon (at our second Dam Brewery of the trip) for dinner and a break from the car, so we were not crabby by the end of the trip, just tired.
A good trip. A good race. A good end to the tri race season, 6months and 5 days after our first tri of the year!
Uff da.
-A
Interesting side note, Maggie Fournier, the girl who was 1st in my age group and second overall is also coached by our coach..... small world!
...
The drive there, from Boulder to Grand Junction, and then from Grand Junction on to Boulder City, was smooth and uneventful. We hit Vegas around 2 pm, and except for a bit of construction-related traffic, moved right on through to Boulder City for registration and T2 setup without delay.
Boulder City is a nice, smallish town that we really enjoyed. Our hotel was nothing special (I say this now, after touring The Strip in Vegas) but it was clean and had everything we needed, including being close to the finish/T2 area and within walking distance to dinner. Both factors came in handy, first when we decided to combine our pre-race test ride with a stop at the bike support tent (my rear brakes were riding awfully close to my rim.... not rubbing, but also not looking "normal" and I wanted to get it checked out by a third person) and later when we decided to see what was cooking at the local brew pub, The Dam Brewery, a reference to their proximity to Hoover Dam.
Aside from some last minute scrambling for E (you'd think that after all our years of racing that goggles and CO2 cartridges would be standard things to bring with for a race) we had all our gear set up, laid out, and ready to go for the next day. The only real decisions left to make were what to wear and what to eat for breakfast. But first, some sleep.
We woke the next day and were quickly up and prepping breakfast and race nutrition (or in this case, drink). I decided to go with steel cut oatmeal reheated in the microwave, topped with a banana and a few nuts/pieces of dried fruit. Oh, and coffee.
Breakfast done, bags packed, sunscreen on, now what to wear? On a gamble (hey, we were near Vegas) I chose to go in a plain swim suit. No padding for the bike, no compression for the run. But, this was no ordinary swim suit, it was a Splish, a present from Sunny back in April for my b-day that read "Who rocks?" across the front and "I rock!" across the back. Of my 3 options, it seemed like the best choice for my last tri of 2008.
Before I knew it, the men had started and they were letting us ladies back in the water. One more splash, a hard effort out for ~ 50 m, then a slow splash back while I took care of business. I was ready. Then it was time to GO!
It was a short scramble out to the first buoy, then we turned directly into the sun and settled in. I could see a pack of women just up in front of me and one more solo swimmer right off to my left side. I put my head down and charged, trying to bridge the gap to the group out front, but I made up nothing and instead decided to settle in behind the girl who was still right there on my left side. I stuck with her until the next turn buoy when some of the men from the first wave stripped me of her and she was gone. Another power burst and I recaught her feet, where I stayed until ~ 300 m from the end when another train showed up on our right and looked to be a better draft option, so I moved over. Exited the water in the top 10 somewhere I think.
Cap and goggles off, wetsuit off, all stuffed into the bag they provided, string yanked shut, helmet on, glasses on, grabbed the bike and got out of T1.
Exit of T1 was an uphill run on the boat launch, I felt a bit like a salmon trying to swim upstream. Out on the bike I hopped on, grace-lessly and tried to get moving fast enough to balance and get the shoes on the feet. The roads out of the small park/beach area were a bit rough, but once onto the main roads, the pavement was beautiful. Great scenery, challenging hills, smooth roads, all combined to make a great bike. It was a pretty uneventful ride. I got aero and tried to keep moving along at my steady speed as best I could with the hills and breeze. I passed a few women right away on the bike, was nearly blown off the road when the eventual winner and runner up flew by me, was then repassed by 3 women I had dropped earlier, proceeded to play a bit of cat and mouse with one of them near the 24-mile turnaround, cruised back by T1, then got busy with the climb up to Boulder City and T2. I was hoping for a faster/more competitive bike split, but had set myself up well nutritionally and energy-wise for the run. And I had a bit of fun with the other racers around me as I got many, many comments on my race suit.
T2 came and went. All of what I needed was where I left it and I quickly racked my bike (with shoes still attached), took off my helmet, shoved my feet into my socks and shoes, grabbed my visor, drink bottle, and race number belt and took off.
Out on the run, I quickly passed a few women, then got down to business of clicking off miles. The run was nearly all downhill from the start until mile 5, then uphill to the turnaround at ~ mile 6.5, then the same in reverse. From ~ mile 1 to somewhere between mile 5 and 6 I also got to run with my own personal coach. At least that is what this one guy in the middle of the M40-44 race decided he wanted to be. In the end, he probably helped keep me focused and forced me to run faster than I would have on my own, but at the time his antics were getting a bit annoying. In fact, his surging and the waiting for me was fine, and his taunting and conversation did not bother me, but after ~4 miles when I realized that he had passed through each aid station right in front of me, taking all the water and leaving only Gatorade, which I don't like to race on I started to get a bit annoyed. I held steady though, moved swiftly past him when he faded, and even remained unfazed when a bee or something similar stung the underside of my right upper arm. I began to wilt with 2-3 miles left to go and was overtaken by a surging Darcy Eaton in the W40-44. I had recently passed E (urging him to give what he could, then to give a bit more) and they had chatted about me, so she was trying to get me to come with her. My mind was willing, but my legs were done rocking. I pushed, I fought with my own will to slow down, I beat my own doubt and kept up the pace, but it wasn't enough to stick with Darcy. Not even close! In then end, she and I had started and finished the run almost right with each other.
And then my legs let me know they were done. Officially retired for the 2008 tri season.
We snacked, were massaged (sort of), collected our T1 bags, waited (and waited, and waited) for awards and results, rode back to our hotel, cleaned up, made some order to our stuff, then headed out to see Las Vegas after a quick stop at DQ for Moolattes, our newest post-race treat (as of 2008 Mt. Taylor Quad in Feb.).
In all, this was a great race venue (great scenery on the bike and run, good roads for 90% of the bike, challenging but fair course) and a good race that had a few snafus (no chip check at turn arounds, no info about timing for awards, no massage and limited food for slower racers, etc.).
Vegas (the strip) was big, loud, bright, fancy, fun, and tiring. We'd like to go back, but with a game plan of what to do and see. Wandering around together was special in its own way, too, but to go back, us non-gambling types need an itinerary, at least a rough one to make sure we maximize our entertainment, culinary, and relaxing times appropriately. Planning should be easier, now though, since we have scoped it out a bit.
Sunday brought us a looooong drive home. NV, AZ, UT and CO were all very pretty, but it was a long day in the car that had our legs cramping and our bodies ready for bed by 9 or so when we rolled home. Luckily we had stopped for dinner in Dillon (at our second Dam Brewery of the trip) for dinner and a break from the car, so we were not crabby by the end of the trip, just tired.
A good trip. A good race. A good end to the tri race season, 6months and 5 days after our first tri of the year!
Uff da.
-A
Interesting side note, Maggie Fournier, the girl who was 1st in my age group and second overall is also coached by our coach..... small world!
...
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
E's Halfmax Race Report
Pre-race
A and I arrived in at registration in Boulder City around 2. A few hours previously as we were merging onto I-15 from I-70, I remembered that I had left all of my goggles in my swim bag. Which was back in Boulder. Fortunately, there were a few shops set up at the expo and I found some that fit well. Otherwise, I would probably would have borrowed a pair of Swedish goggles in all their uncomfortableness (for me) from A. Since T1 and T2 were 6 miles apart, we had to drop off our run stuff at T2 on Friday. With the traveling, I didn't stay on top of hydration as much as I should have, but since we were racing in the desert, it shouldn't have been a problem. Oh wait, I guess it might be.
Race morning started early enough at 4 with preparing drink and such. In another stroke of brilliance, I had only a banana before we left the hotel. Setting up went pretty well and A and I got in a little warm up run.
Swim
All of the men in the half started at the same time with all of the half women (that means women racing the half, not half-sized women) starting 5 minutes later. My main goals were to find feet if possible, swim relatively straight, and not have too many women pass me. I found feet at times, swam mostly straight (2nd leg into the sun didn't help), only got a fist to the nose once (hurt like hell) and didn't see too many silver caps (women) go by.
T1
T1 took a while as we had to run up the boat ramp, past 200 rows (or so) of bike racks, and out onto the bike course. As I was leaving T2, I heard the announcer comment about a girl with a swimsuit that says "Who rocks?" on the front and "I rock" on the back, so I new A was just behind me.
Bike
Although we hadn't scouted out the bike course the day before, we had gone over the elevation profile enough online to know that it was going to be tough. According to the website, we were in store for 6500 ft of climbing with T2 being 1200 ft higher than T1. The miles went by pretty quick to the turnaround at the 24 mile mark. I tended to climb a bit better than the heavier guys around me and lose ground on the descents. The first time I got my gel flask out of my Bento box, I managed to drop it. I lost a minute or two going back (uphill) for it, but it was well worth it. I saw that A was pretty close behind me at the turn around with only a few women ahead of her. The way back had some nice headwinds but nothing too bad. It got a bit crazier when we got back to the Olympic course as there were some pretty poor bike handling skills on display. The bike course went past T1 on its way to Boulder City and that is where the steady hill started. Nutrition-wise, my plan was for 200 - 250 calories per hour which is less than what I take in for an IM. This might have worked with a better breakfast and/or better hydration, but I should have been taking more calories in. Unfortunately, I only realized this on the run, so I didn't take my extra gel.The last climb was harder than it should have been. I let some people go as I didn't want my legs to be dead at the start of the run.
T2
Went fine.
Run
The run started fine and I ran a very comfortable pace the first few miles. I started to feel a bit out of it at the 3 mile mark and I took my first gel. That helped and I kept going along. Just before the aid station at 6 miles, my math skills failed me and I expected the turn around to be immediately after that, so I planned on taking my second gel after the aid station and getting water to get it down better when i passed by it again. Unfortunately, "immediately" was really a half of a mile, so I waited with my gel until just before the 7 mile mark. Mistake as I hit full bonk by this point. I was reduced to walking/jogging for a bit until the sugar took effect. Fortunately it did, but I wasn't able to get back to my previous paces. Amber passed me somewhere in the next stretch and I was able to keep somewhat close. Took last gel around the 10 mile mark. You know you have bonked when your main memories of the run are when you took in nutrition. The last half of a mile was a killer as I was fading again. After the finish, I went immediately to the post-race food and ate orange section after orange section.
After the race, I took the bus down to get the car from T1, so A wouldn't miss the awards. I could have gotten the car, went to Vegas, gambled for a few hours (except I don't gamble), and still made it back in time they had issues with timing that took a while to fix.
Overall, I'm frustrated that I was dumb on nutrition after having a number of good races in that regard (stretching back to Buffalo Springs in '07). Training had gone well and I know my legs were ready for a strong run after that bike. Ah well, at least I learned a few things and never gave up.
-E
A and I arrived in at registration in Boulder City around 2. A few hours previously as we were merging onto I-15 from I-70, I remembered that I had left all of my goggles in my swim bag. Which was back in Boulder. Fortunately, there were a few shops set up at the expo and I found some that fit well. Otherwise, I would probably would have borrowed a pair of Swedish goggles in all their uncomfortableness (for me) from A. Since T1 and T2 were 6 miles apart, we had to drop off our run stuff at T2 on Friday. With the traveling, I didn't stay on top of hydration as much as I should have, but since we were racing in the desert, it shouldn't have been a problem. Oh wait, I guess it might be.
Race morning started early enough at 4 with preparing drink and such. In another stroke of brilliance, I had only a banana before we left the hotel. Setting up went pretty well and A and I got in a little warm up run.
Swim
All of the men in the half started at the same time with all of the half women (that means women racing the half, not half-sized women) starting 5 minutes later. My main goals were to find feet if possible, swim relatively straight, and not have too many women pass me. I found feet at times, swam mostly straight (2nd leg into the sun didn't help), only got a fist to the nose once (hurt like hell) and didn't see too many silver caps (women) go by.
T1
T1 took a while as we had to run up the boat ramp, past 200 rows (or so) of bike racks, and out onto the bike course. As I was leaving T2, I heard the announcer comment about a girl with a swimsuit that says "Who rocks?" on the front and "I rock" on the back, so I new A was just behind me.
Bike
Although we hadn't scouted out the bike course the day before, we had gone over the elevation profile enough online to know that it was going to be tough. According to the website, we were in store for 6500 ft of climbing with T2 being 1200 ft higher than T1. The miles went by pretty quick to the turnaround at the 24 mile mark. I tended to climb a bit better than the heavier guys around me and lose ground on the descents. The first time I got my gel flask out of my Bento box, I managed to drop it. I lost a minute or two going back (uphill) for it, but it was well worth it. I saw that A was pretty close behind me at the turn around with only a few women ahead of her. The way back had some nice headwinds but nothing too bad. It got a bit crazier when we got back to the Olympic course as there were some pretty poor bike handling skills on display. The bike course went past T1 on its way to Boulder City and that is where the steady hill started. Nutrition-wise, my plan was for 200 - 250 calories per hour which is less than what I take in for an IM. This might have worked with a better breakfast and/or better hydration, but I should have been taking more calories in. Unfortunately, I only realized this on the run, so I didn't take my extra gel.The last climb was harder than it should have been. I let some people go as I didn't want my legs to be dead at the start of the run.
T2
Went fine.
Run
The run started fine and I ran a very comfortable pace the first few miles. I started to feel a bit out of it at the 3 mile mark and I took my first gel. That helped and I kept going along. Just before the aid station at 6 miles, my math skills failed me and I expected the turn around to be immediately after that, so I planned on taking my second gel after the aid station and getting water to get it down better when i passed by it again. Unfortunately, "immediately" was really a half of a mile, so I waited with my gel until just before the 7 mile mark. Mistake as I hit full bonk by this point. I was reduced to walking/jogging for a bit until the sugar took effect. Fortunately it did, but I wasn't able to get back to my previous paces. Amber passed me somewhere in the next stretch and I was able to keep somewhat close. Took last gel around the 10 mile mark. You know you have bonked when your main memories of the run are when you took in nutrition. The last half of a mile was a killer as I was fading again. After the finish, I went immediately to the post-race food and ate orange section after orange section.
After the race, I took the bus down to get the car from T1, so A wouldn't miss the awards. I could have gotten the car, went to Vegas, gambled for a few hours (except I don't gamble), and still made it back in time they had issues with timing that took a while to fix.
Overall, I'm frustrated that I was dumb on nutrition after having a number of good races in that regard (stretching back to Buffalo Springs in '07). Training had gone well and I know my legs were ready for a strong run after that bike. Ah well, at least I learned a few things and never gave up.
-E
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