Omaha Triathlon and Lake Marion Triathlon

I did two races in August. The first was Omaha Triathlon. The race started at 6am, ouch! My swim was not the greatest. The swim venue was good and the water ok. Bike course was far hillier than I expected! That and the fact that I just couldn't hit the watts I needed to for an oly race made for a bad bike. Run- hilly also! My run went pretty well considering my injury earlier and time off. First time I felt like I was actually able to run rather than just suffer and survive.

 

 
Next up was Lake Marion Triathlon. Another 2nd place, getting old! The swim was in Lake Marion, a lake I have been boating and playing on with family many times. Good swim course except, just like at Omaha, we ran into sprinters at the end of the swim. Bike course here was good but my performance was again sub par. I have been training for 70.3s again, and when I do this, it just seems I CANNOT push harder on the bike. Bummer. Run was about the same as at Omaha. So run is heading in the right direction, and hopefully this means when it comes time for halves, my bike will be right on track also.

Evergreen Triathlon and Vacation!

Last weekend I raced the Evergreen Triathlon. It went okay for me. The swim was alright, either a bit long or I was really slow. The water temp was in the 80s and the swim course had to be changed due to low water levels. It was warm but tolerable and the first wave was elites/collegiate so it was nice to swim with people not too far from me the whole time.

The first 3-5 miles of the bike are nice, with trees on either side of the road that twists and turns a bit. Then you get into the corn field. Roads are a bit rough, the wind picks up, and besides an occasional barn, just more corn and wind. I was happier with my bike performance here than I have been with my other bikes all year. Still not were I want to be, but heading in the right direction. I pushed hard for the entire bike, minimized mind wandering, and remembered that I was racing out there on my bike.

My run performance was another story. I think it will just take more time not only for my running to come back after those 4 weeks I had to take off late spring/early summer, but even more time for me to get speed back after training for 2 ironmans. I am definitely frustrated right now, but that just keeps me working harder and motivated to get out and train. Especially those track workouts that make me feel like I might literally explode. The run course was out on open roads, also a lot of which were in the fields. It had become overcast, so we did not have to run in the blazing sun, but it was sooo humid, it felt like I had run throw floating puddles. Even my shoes were soaking wet.

All in all I ended up pretty disappointed with my performance here, but looking forward to continuing to train and improve and get out there and race again. Disappointments are part of racing. They help us focus, push us harder, and keep us going. Next up, Omaha Triathlon on August 5th!

After Evergreen my mom and I drove from Bloomington, IL to Bloomington, MN. Including our stops (gas, cheese shop, Norske Nook) it took us 9 hours. NEVER AGAIN. That is too long to be in a car in one day, but worth it for the fun I had on Sunday. Sunday was a day at the lake with the family! I didn't get nearly as many pictures as I would have liked because my camera died, but here are two of me and my little cousin tubing.

I have had the rest of the week off also. Monday was more family fun. Tuesday breakfast with a friend and shopping with my mom. Wednesday I came back to Iowa and went to Zoo Brew...and saw real live PENGUINS!!!! Thursday was Jenny's birthday so we went for a little bike ride and then out to the lake! After we went to Jasper Winery for their summer concert series. Friday morning we went swimming at the outdoor pool. After the crazy week, I was pretty lazy the rest of Friday! Time to get out for my ride today, happy training everyone!

Back to Racing!

After IMTX I wound up with a knee injury that stuck around for 4 weeks and pretty much prevented any training besides any swimming with easy flip turns.

Three weeks post IMTX I attempted Trinona olympic distance. I made it through the swim and bike, but immediately after dismounting my bike and taking a few steps, I knew I would not be finishing the run. My first DNF. This was a very hard decision to make, but I knew it was better to not finish this race and heal up then push through and miss more races.

That proved to be the right decision. A week later I completed my first run since the ironman (30 whole minutes!). Then one week later I did Copper Creek Sprint. Not the best way to go into a race- on one week of training after four weeks off. BUT, I was RACING!!! Ended with not quite the results I had hoped for, but alright given the circumstances, and, did I mention I was RACING!?!? And that was enough to really get me going and very excited for more training and some shorter racing where it feels more like true balls to the walls racing unlike longer courses.

Ironman Texas

Canal, swim exit to the right

Ironman Texas..well, I finished. I can't say much more about my performance than that. However, it was a good course, I had a fun time, and an awesome home stay. The swim course was pretty good. I could see how age groupers would have a difficult time in the narrow canal. My swim time was alright, I got in a pack of people and just cruised along, goal in swim accomplished.

Bike Course

I hopped on my bike and headed out, picking up speed quickly into a 90 degree turn with barricades on either side. I was wet, my bike was wet from dew, and I wasn't quite used to the brakes on the race wheels. This all combined for a nice little wipe out within the first mile of the bike. Bad news is I had to bike over 111 miles on a TT bike with road rash on my elbow. Good new, my injuries were no worse than road rash and a nice large bruise on my hip.

The rest of my bike was a bit less than stellar. I had minor issues throughout but no other major issues other than being much slower than I had hoped. My elbow bothered me on and off, it's hard to say how much it really affected me, physically and mentally.

My run started off at an ok pace for 16 miles. The pace I was going would have made for the slower end of my goal run time. Except after mile 16 everything fell apart. I couldn't drink enough, I didn't have enough calories, my knee started to hurt, and I kind-of wanted to cry! The last 10 miles of this race were probably some of the hardest miles I have ever done. I did finish, but now wonder if that was even the best decision as my leg still isn't quite right.

 The race was far from what I had hoped and thought I was capable off, but I learned a lot and overall had a great time in Texas. Thanks to everyone who supported me along the way- DiscountTriSupply.com, Kyle's Bikes, TYR, Krueger Chiropractic, my parents, my homestay, and all my other friends and family.

Galveston Race Report and Training Since

Galveston Race Training Report- the day ended up as much more of a great IM Texas training day than an actual race. I think the days and weeks leading up to the race were just too jammed packed with everything for me to really feel like I could race. Too much work, training, life, everything. Not enough sleep, rest, or just time to sit down or think. From the very beginning of the bike I just didn't have any of that 'extra' to give to actually be able to race. In the end I like to think that is all good news for IM Texas, that that leaves me with more of a build up leading to IM Texas so when I do get real and adequate rest (in all areas of life).

Running

My uncle. No shirt. Compression socks. His typical antics.

I really liked this house, now if I could just win the lottery...

Training since Galveston has gone pretty well. I'm a little disappointed at the number of my longer bike rides that have had to be inside. Last fall I was much more lucky with my long rides landing on days where I could get all or almost all my ride done outside. This spring seems opposite. Today is sunny and I have the day off...so I'm going to go outside, later!



Almost Race Time!!!

Less than 2 weeks until race time! Training has been going well. Iowa has had some AWESOME weather. The one downside to this incredibly summer-like weather- no time to acclimate. I had one long run that was just disastrous and I came home and just laid on my floor. In in the end I think it is a good thing, the conditions were most likely similar to what Galveston and the Woodlands will be like and I fought through it and didn't give up. One major bonus of this weather- I acquired a spring break-like tan just by riding around Ankeny, Slater, Elkhart, Cambridge, Altoona, and other small towns in Iowa.

Galveston 70.3 should be fun and I am soo excited to get out there and see where I am at. There are 35 pro gals on the start list-should be interesting to see how many show up. If there are 30ish girls racing I think it will make it that much more fun. It is a fast flat course, so times will be fast.

The DiscountTriSupply.com team received some AMAZING TYR gear. Galveston will likely be wetsuit look, if so, I'll be rocking the Freak of Nature wetsuit. I'm quite excited about that.

Happy Training!

T4 Days 2 & 3

T4 (Tami's Tucson Training Trip) days 2 and 3 were full of great riding and wore me out. Day 2 I swam at the Pima YMCA. It was an outdoor pool with an awesome view. I have a few photos but they are on my other camera, so I'll upload when I get home. It's no surprise, but I kind-of forgot how easily it is to get some color while swimming. When I got home I was pleasantly surprised by my swim suit tan lines! After swimming I ate lunch and drove south a ways, parked, and rode toward Madera Canyon.

Once you get through the town at the bottom, its all climbing. On day 3 I rode all the way to the top of the canyon (ok 0.6 tenths from the end of the road-I didn't know the end was so close and it was getting steep!). It was a beautiful ride, especially once I got into the park.

Climb climb climb!

Long slow climbing

After riding we hiked around at the top just a bit. One can hike ~5.5 more miles with another 5,000 feet of climbing, but we didn't go near that far. It would have been fun, but would have taken a long time and I prefer running over walking. If it were socially acceptable I may even run from my car into the grocery store and down the Target isles. Get-r-done, right? 

Classy

I rode from down there somewhere all the way up here!

Snow on the top of those mountains!

Pretty steep at the top

Awesome riding, who's coming with me next year??? Maybe I'll hold an official triathlon camp. Could be a nice career change...

Tami's Tucson Training Trip (T4) Day #1

For my first full day in Tucson I rode Gates Pass. Besides the temps (highs in the 70s) and the cacti doting the scenery, the big climbs reminded me that I am not in Iowa. Coming from Iowa, even the littlest ant hills seem like big hills to be. And they are tough! But I love every second of climbing and descending them. In my future I see more training trips and more driving from my home before starting long rides so I can ride more varied terrain.

But I digress, back to Tucson. It is AMAZING! Bikes lanes everywhere in town. Share the road sides everywhere outside of town. Bikers everywhere. Central campus of the university even has 'bike valet' (and it was a giant area to park bikes, I mean giant) I have not seen a single driver get upset about a biker, graze too closely, yell at, honk at, or anything else negative at a biker. Drivers here are so respectful of bikers and pedestrians. They wait for you to go by or cross rather than try to rush in front of you or get stopped in your way. It is wonderful to feel like the roads and paths really can be shared by all. Those doing good for themselves and the environment (by walking or biking) are respected by motorists, so far I feel quite safe biking here.

Later in the day I went for a run with no route in mind, just enjoy the city of Tucson. I ran through some of the University of Arizona campus. It reminded me of Iowa State University in April. People were outside everywhere you looked. Walking, running, biking, throwing a football, and it's February! The campus was very pretty and I would have liked to explore home but Mom said to be home before dark so I headed back toward home. Until I wasn't quite sure which way home really was. I only had to ask for directions once and did make it home safely before dark, per mom's instructions.

Down one side of Gates Pass

The road meandering thru the desert

Up Gates Pass

Climbing

View from the top of Gates Pass

View down the other side of Gates Pass, Tucson way down there

Next up will be an outdoor swim and maybe a long ride!

Winter Training

Winter training is in full force! After 3 big weeks, this past week was a recovery week. I would like to say that means I got a lot of other stuff done, but laundry and soup making is about it! We did finally get some snow here, forcing my run test to the treadmill. However, I was able to get outside and play around with my new camera. It was cloudy and gray out, but still fun trek around in the snow and realize how much I have to learn about using the camera! 

The next 3 weeks of training will be big weeks again. The 3rd week will be in Tucson! I'm so excited I feel like a little kid!