Well, the time has come and I'm so excited. We're leaving today for Panama City Beach. We'll break the trip up today and tomorrow so we'll actually be at the condo by about noon tomorrow. Mom and dad will be there by then so we'll hang out with them tomorrow, do some food shopping, get checked in for the race and then grab some dinner. I'm just so ready to get the cleebration started! :)
So wish us luck and the next time I write... hopefully I will have some good news to share!
#2061 :)
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Vegas Pictures
Alright, I finally have a chance to sit down and catch up on my blogging. As expected the last few days have gone really fast. I think Tuesday (the day we're leaving) will be here before I know it. I'm working on staying calm and being excited for the race. I think it's working... for the most part. I've been fine except for when we watched a replay of the 2007 IMFL last night and I cried like a baby. My poor hubby! :)
I promised pictures from the Pumpkinman. At T1 the day before, I got a picture of what transition in the middle of no where looks like! This was only half of the racks...
We got there before the sun was up on Saturday morning. This was a pretty cool sunrise! I think Tom was a bit freaked out by the mountains he'd be climbing!
We got there before the sun was up on Saturday morning. This was a pretty cool sunrise! I think Tom was a bit freaked out by the mountains he'd be climbing!
He had a great swim and looked good at T1. I knew he was ready for the hills! They were 8% grades... and the last one was 6 miles long!
I didn't get a good picture of him running or finishing, but here's a good one of he and his teammate Matt. Way to go Team Type 1! You both did great!!!
And yeah, I'm a tri geek and was pretty star struck watching this guy come in...
I think the guy next to him with the ball cap and no shirt is funny. Bet he didn't know who he was standing by. We heard that Macca forgot his helmet and had to borrow one from a girl in his tri group. Hehehe - even pro's have off days! :)
So that was really the race weekend. This week we've been busy just getting things put away from Vegas, ready for PCB, finishing up workouts, getting work done (oh yeah... we own a company... gotta remember that some days!) and generally just being a little overwhelmed with things. I have lunch plans tomorrow and Saturday, plans with some friends Saturday night for the OSU/Penn State game (GO BUCKS!), and at some point, need to finish everything for our trip. I think the next few days are going to go fast.
Oh boy...
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Quick update
We got back from Vegas last night late - like didn't get to bed until 3:00am late. It was a long day. Weekend was good - I'll post pictures and details when I have a minutes. Tom's race was awesome - he kicked ass. The course was a killer for Tom, but he still managed to come in 10th out of nearly 50 in his age group and run sub 8 minute miles for the entire 10k. Take that West Coasters! His teammate did awesome as well (came in 15th in the same age group) and we had a lot of fun hanging out with him and his girlfriend. I saw Macca and got a picture of him - he was racing in Tom's race (he beat Tom though, even with Tom's new bike! Can you believe that??? :)He only averaged 20mph on the bike if it gives you any idea of how long the 8% climbs were over the 24.8 miles! HA!)
We leave in a week for PCB. I'm starting to freak out a little. It's going to be a busy couple of days! Nuff said.
Bibs were assigned - I'm 2061, Tom's 103. How do they assign numbers because that's about as far away from each other as they get? Tom's so close to the pro's... lucky guy!
That's all for now...
We leave in a week for PCB. I'm starting to freak out a little. It's going to be a busy couple of days! Nuff said.
Bibs were assigned - I'm 2061, Tom's 103. How do they assign numbers because that's about as far away from each other as they get? Tom's so close to the pro's... lucky guy!
That's all for now...
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
I'm in love...
Alright, here she is...
And I just love her. I've named her Flicka. Have you ever seen the movie? It's about a wild house that only a little girl could tame. I thought that was fitting! She's a beaut! Dura Ace crank which is sooooo smooth, all carbon, Bontrager race wheels. I feel so good on her and she's going to do awesome at the Ironman, I can feel it! :) I have Tom's saddle on my bike right now (an Adamo ASI saddle - the funky ones without a nose). I rode on it yesterday for 80 miles and fell in love with it as well. I was having some...um... girl problems while in the aero position (um yeah, that's the only way I ride) and would like to someday have children - this solved it. I came home and ordered one immediately so Tom can have his back! Other than that, she's perfect, although I do have just a slight bit of wheel envy when it comes to Tom's bike. Wow, his is something special. Here's a picture (which doesn't do it ANY justice - and remember that's not his saddle, it's actually mine - he's such a good hubby!)...
So we ended up having a killer weekend in a slightly different order than we expected. Friday we went riding with Tom's mom and step dad (she's finally back on the bike after being hit by a car and just got the same bike as me and well... she's in love too!). We did a quick 42 minute 4.8 mile run and called it a day. Saturday we set out to do 100 on the new bikes, but Tom's aerobars were giving him some troubles. We called it a day at 50 and he spent the evening tweaking with his bike. Sunday we ran a 1:58 half marathon (yeah for another sub 2 under my belt) and then yesterday rode 80 miles and swam 1.2. I was exhausted last night! But it felt so good and my confidence is pretty strong right now.
This weekend we're heading to Vegas for Tom's Team Type 1 Triathlon Team debut (whew... that's a lot of T's). They are racing Pumpkinman on Saturday morning. I'm so excited to get away. We're staying at the Venetian (I go it comped again because I'm good like that!) so we'll have a good time. I'm thinking we'll spend more time at Lake Mead and Red Rock than in the casinos, but that's how we roll! :)
18 days and counting... I'm so excited! Numbers are being assigned on Thursday!!! I hope I get a good one that contains a lot of 5's!
Oh, and this is my 100th post! YIPPIE!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
I've been MIA
Sorry that I haven't written in a while. There really aren't any excuses for not checking in... guess I'm just lazy! :)
Things are great here. The countdown is at like 23 days. YIKES! I'm so excited to go to the beach though and I'm really starting to look forward to the race. This is our last LOOOOONG workout weekend. We're doing a 2.4 mile swim tomorrow, a 100 mile bike ride Saturday and a half marathon Sunday. I think it'll re-boost my confidence and be a good sort of "end of the road" for me. I know I'll still have 2.5 weeks after that, but I'll make it.
Swam 2000 meters timed this past Tuesday and had a great swim. I love the new gym and felt awesome in the water. Of course I know that it'll be different in the gulf, but I felt like I was just gliding which was a nice feeling. We're hoping to get one more open water swim in before I head down there... if not, guess I'll get them Thursday and Friday before the race in the gulf.
A funny for you - so we are doing the Dayton River Corridor Classic 1/2 marathon on Sunday. It's an annual tradition for us - a great race, a great time of year in Ohio since the leaves are changing, a great post race celebration, etc. We're excited. So today I get the mail and there's an envelope addressed to each Tom and I. Inside is a letter that reads something to the effect of "Congratulations, you are one of 100 VIP's at this year's Dayton River Corridor Classic because you registered early. You get this Brooks running shirt and a discount at the local run shop, not to mention a reserved VIP starting spot up front if you wear the shirt." We laughed... what a bumble mess that's going to be having totally random 100 people starting at the front. We're not front of the pack people. hehehe... we'll pass on that "special" feature!
OH... and I got my new bike! I know, how is that not the first thing that I'm posting??? I've yet to ride it - but am hoping to get out tonight. It's in the shop being built and it's a beauty! Tom got his too and wow... that's about all that needs to be said. We'll post pictures when we get them back (probably tonight). I'm thinking of naming him Hank... like Hank the Tank, but I'm not going to chose a name until I ride him - you know, kind of like many women don't name their babies until they see them?
Things are great here. The countdown is at like 23 days. YIKES! I'm so excited to go to the beach though and I'm really starting to look forward to the race. This is our last LOOOOONG workout weekend. We're doing a 2.4 mile swim tomorrow, a 100 mile bike ride Saturday and a half marathon Sunday. I think it'll re-boost my confidence and be a good sort of "end of the road" for me. I know I'll still have 2.5 weeks after that, but I'll make it.
Swam 2000 meters timed this past Tuesday and had a great swim. I love the new gym and felt awesome in the water. Of course I know that it'll be different in the gulf, but I felt like I was just gliding which was a nice feeling. We're hoping to get one more open water swim in before I head down there... if not, guess I'll get them Thursday and Friday before the race in the gulf.
A funny for you - so we are doing the Dayton River Corridor Classic 1/2 marathon on Sunday. It's an annual tradition for us - a great race, a great time of year in Ohio since the leaves are changing, a great post race celebration, etc. We're excited. So today I get the mail and there's an envelope addressed to each Tom and I. Inside is a letter that reads something to the effect of "Congratulations, you are one of 100 VIP's at this year's Dayton River Corridor Classic because you registered early. You get this Brooks running shirt and a discount at the local run shop, not to mention a reserved VIP starting spot up front if you wear the shirt." We laughed... what a bumble mess that's going to be having totally random 100 people starting at the front. We're not front of the pack people. hehehe... we'll pass on that "special" feature!
OH... and I got my new bike! I know, how is that not the first thing that I'm posting??? I've yet to ride it - but am hoping to get out tonight. It's in the shop being built and it's a beauty! Tom got his too and wow... that's about all that needs to be said. We'll post pictures when we get them back (probably tonight). I'm thinking of naming him Hank... like Hank the Tank, but I'm not going to chose a name until I ride him - you know, kind of like many women don't name their babies until they see them?
Friday, October 3, 2008
Oh my...
I'm having a little "oh shit" moment right now. My countdown on my Google homepage says 28 days until the Ironman. Oh... My...Goodness! How can that be? Wasn't it just June and I was doing my first sprint? Am I ready? Am I going to die? Oh... my... Goodness!!!
And then I snap out of it because there's no use worrying myself to death until at least the week of the race! :)
We joined Urban Active Fitness Centers today. Totally stoked by it. It's a really cool gym (10 million times better than the ghetto YMCA that we usually join - and I didn't see a single naked old lady in the locker room today which proves that it's better!) and we got a great deal on our membership since we locked in for 2 years. Now we just can't sell our house fast and move too far from the gym! :) I'm hoping my off season will be a little more enjoyable with all the new machines, cardio, classes, etc. that I can use!
And then I snap out of it because there's no use worrying myself to death until at least the week of the race! :)
We joined Urban Active Fitness Centers today. Totally stoked by it. It's a really cool gym (10 million times better than the ghetto YMCA that we usually join - and I didn't see a single naked old lady in the locker room today which proves that it's better!) and we got a great deal on our membership since we locked in for 2 years. Now we just can't sell our house fast and move too far from the gym! :) I'm hoping my off season will be a little more enjoyable with all the new machines, cardio, classes, etc. that I can use!
Monday, September 29, 2008
Superman
Superman is amazing. He saves the world, never ceasing to amaze the average Joe. He's not cocky and conceded. He just does what he does, loves what he does and lives his life not being affected by his awesomeness (yes, that's a word).
I'm married to Superman. Did you know that? I didn't think so.
This past weekend Tom and I went to Akron for the marathon. We've heard that it's one of the top 10 up and coming marathons and I know why. Every detail was perfected, from the water station volunteers wearing gloves and holding the cups by the bottom (that's a big pet peeve of mine - I hate people's fingers in my water) to race director shaking your hand at the finish line. It was high class!
We went up Friday to check in. The expo was great - small, but worth the 45 minutes or so that we spent looking at all of the booths. We were staying about 15 minutes away and went straight to our hotel after the expo to just hang out for the night. The hotel was great - brand new, comfy beds, a continental breakfast for runners starting at 5am... what more could we ask for? We just laid around Friday night, although very unconcerned with the run Saturday morning. This wasn't like us. Were we setting ourselves up for failure? Why wasn't it a bigger deal that Tom was running a marathon and I was running a 20 miler? Why did we think it would be okay to eat Italian subs, calzones and cookies for dinner instead of our normal pasta dinner? Why were we alright staying up to watch the Presidential Debates, even though the alarm would be going off at 5am? Maybe we're just different now that we're training for an Ironman. :)
When I signed up for the race, I registered to do the full marathon, although I knew that I didn't want to run the whole thing. Tom didn't run a full marathon last year and I was a little worried that it would take too long to recover from. There was a 5 person relay team event that had an exchange point at 6.2 miles. They even bused the second person of the team there. Sounded like the perfect way for me to get my 20 miles in while Tom ran the full marathon. Saturday we got up, ate breakfast and headed downtown for the race start at 7. Parking was easy which was nice. I was super worried that I wasn't going to be able to get on the relay bus. I hid my yellow bib and just played stupid, kissed Tom goodbye, got on the bus and got to my spot. Tom had planned to carry my time chip for me so that it activated (although we found out when it was all done that it never activated - oh well). I sat for about an hour a half until the marathon runners were in full swing around me. Still with my bib covered, I waited for him to get to me and I would just jump in and take my long sleeve off like I'd been running all day. Our plan worked like a charm!
Tom had a great first 6 miles. We took off together and were easily running a 9:01 pace. Sure that we'd not be able to maintain that, we cautiously kept an eye on things and kept telling each other that we'd slow down if we felt like it was too fast. Our goal was to run a 10min/mile. Akron was hilly - much hillier than we are used to. Not only ups, but very steep downs. It was kind of fun - a definitely change of pace. The course was pretty - through campus, residential roads, on a crushed limestone footpath. They had great "you might be a runner if" signs the whole way which kept my attention (it doesn't take much). The miles just ticked by.
Around mile 22, my foot was burning a little (something that I'm having problems with and associated with the uphill miles and landing with my toes bent a little). I stopped to fix my sock and told Tom to go ahead. He was on track to PR and I didn't want to stop him. I could feel myself slowing down a bit. He gladly ran ahead of me and that was fine. The last 4 miles were uneventful for me. I felt kind of like a poser when people yelled for me - I had only run 20 miles that day. I felt like if they knew that, they would have been disappointed or something. It's like I was running with a secret. I just kept going though... what could I do at that point?
I got to the finish line and Tom was there cheering. I was about 6 minutes behind him. He ran his fastest 2 miles at miles 25 and 26!! How about that for training! And, he PR'ed by 36 minutes to boot. (that's according to the race time... our Garmin said that the course was 26.56 miles and that he finished the marathon in under 4 hours at a 8:57 pace which would have been closer to a 28 minute PR). From now on, it's subs for dinner, 4 hours of sleep and no thinking about the upcoming race for us. It worked!!!
Tom's superman. That's all I can say. He gets diagnosed with diabetes and proceeds to do amazing things. And the best part - he's the most humble human being I know. Now if he can only get over his fear of public speaking and realize that he's got an amazing story to tell and should be an inspiration to other diabetics, then his speech this weekend in front of 6,000 runners and walkers for the Cure for Diabetes JDRF 5k should be a piece of cake.
Guess my superman is human after all!
I'm married to Superman. Did you know that? I didn't think so.
This past weekend Tom and I went to Akron for the marathon. We've heard that it's one of the top 10 up and coming marathons and I know why. Every detail was perfected, from the water station volunteers wearing gloves and holding the cups by the bottom (that's a big pet peeve of mine - I hate people's fingers in my water) to race director shaking your hand at the finish line. It was high class!
We went up Friday to check in. The expo was great - small, but worth the 45 minutes or so that we spent looking at all of the booths. We were staying about 15 minutes away and went straight to our hotel after the expo to just hang out for the night. The hotel was great - brand new, comfy beds, a continental breakfast for runners starting at 5am... what more could we ask for? We just laid around Friday night, although very unconcerned with the run Saturday morning. This wasn't like us. Were we setting ourselves up for failure? Why wasn't it a bigger deal that Tom was running a marathon and I was running a 20 miler? Why did we think it would be okay to eat Italian subs, calzones and cookies for dinner instead of our normal pasta dinner? Why were we alright staying up to watch the Presidential Debates, even though the alarm would be going off at 5am? Maybe we're just different now that we're training for an Ironman. :)
When I signed up for the race, I registered to do the full marathon, although I knew that I didn't want to run the whole thing. Tom didn't run a full marathon last year and I was a little worried that it would take too long to recover from. There was a 5 person relay team event that had an exchange point at 6.2 miles. They even bused the second person of the team there. Sounded like the perfect way for me to get my 20 miles in while Tom ran the full marathon. Saturday we got up, ate breakfast and headed downtown for the race start at 7. Parking was easy which was nice. I was super worried that I wasn't going to be able to get on the relay bus. I hid my yellow bib and just played stupid, kissed Tom goodbye, got on the bus and got to my spot. Tom had planned to carry my time chip for me so that it activated (although we found out when it was all done that it never activated - oh well). I sat for about an hour a half until the marathon runners were in full swing around me. Still with my bib covered, I waited for him to get to me and I would just jump in and take my long sleeve off like I'd been running all day. Our plan worked like a charm!
Tom had a great first 6 miles. We took off together and were easily running a 9:01 pace. Sure that we'd not be able to maintain that, we cautiously kept an eye on things and kept telling each other that we'd slow down if we felt like it was too fast. Our goal was to run a 10min/mile. Akron was hilly - much hillier than we are used to. Not only ups, but very steep downs. It was kind of fun - a definitely change of pace. The course was pretty - through campus, residential roads, on a crushed limestone footpath. They had great "you might be a runner if" signs the whole way which kept my attention (it doesn't take much). The miles just ticked by.
Around mile 22, my foot was burning a little (something that I'm having problems with and associated with the uphill miles and landing with my toes bent a little). I stopped to fix my sock and told Tom to go ahead. He was on track to PR and I didn't want to stop him. I could feel myself slowing down a bit. He gladly ran ahead of me and that was fine. The last 4 miles were uneventful for me. I felt kind of like a poser when people yelled for me - I had only run 20 miles that day. I felt like if they knew that, they would have been disappointed or something. It's like I was running with a secret. I just kept going though... what could I do at that point?
I got to the finish line and Tom was there cheering. I was about 6 minutes behind him. He ran his fastest 2 miles at miles 25 and 26!! How about that for training! And, he PR'ed by 36 minutes to boot. (that's according to the race time... our Garmin said that the course was 26.56 miles and that he finished the marathon in under 4 hours at a 8:57 pace which would have been closer to a 28 minute PR). From now on, it's subs for dinner, 4 hours of sleep and no thinking about the upcoming race for us. It worked!!!
Tom's superman. That's all I can say. He gets diagnosed with diabetes and proceeds to do amazing things. And the best part - he's the most humble human being I know. Now if he can only get over his fear of public speaking and realize that he's got an amazing story to tell and should be an inspiration to other diabetics, then his speech this weekend in front of 6,000 runners and walkers for the Cure for Diabetes JDRF 5k should be a piece of cake.
Guess my superman is human after all!
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