left.right.repeat group -closed - Full of a bunch of winners...YEAH! (Page 13)

Thanks Marianne and Peter.    I posted the bit about the band because we had talked about St. Patricks Day and then Ireland (farmers in welly boots ). Too much of a coincidence for me not to mention it.

Congrats on the flip turns Marianne! Wow, I can't wait to see what your time for 2000 is with flip-turns! Woohoo!

Awesome swimming Peter! Look how far you've come!! Just wow.

Ok, Bryan? I finally did my sprint (only 5 or 6 days late, lol) but I think I may have done it wrong. Let me know, and I'll do it over, ok? I warmed up on the treadmill. Then I ran for 5 min. at a 12 min. mile pace. Then I sprinted for 30 sec. a 6mph. (Just remember folks - one person's warm up is another person's sprint, lol. *blush*) After the 30 sec. I dropped back to 5 mph for about a min. to recover. (That's where I think I may have made a mistake. Not sure if 3X30 meant 3 consecutive 30 sec. segments.) Anyhow, I picked it up to 6.5 mph for the next 30 sec, then the same recovery speed and time. The 3rd sprint was 7mph. but I needed to walk to recover after that, and it took me about 2 minutes. After that I was able to continue running at 5 to 5.2mph for the rest of the 2 mile run with only 2 or 3 more minutes of walking, total. It was the best running I've done yet. I feel kind of silly reporting on it, when you folks run 5 and 6 min. miles with no problem, but, hey! I can really tell that I'm getting better!

Happy first day of spring to you too, Peter! Here today in south Alabama, it's 69°F with sunshine, blue sky, and azaleas, dogwood, pear trees and assorted flowers and flowering shrubs in FULL BLOOM! I adore spring! Hope you soon see the same kind of weather!

sTRIving on!

10(+) Commandments for sTRIvers
1. Smile, smile, and keeping smiling. This is FUN.

Please forgive this and the following 2 posts. I'm not sure how I managed to post the same message 4 times! EEK. *sheepish*

Greetings sTRIvers!

I took off another day from the gym (today is my wedding anniversary, 33 years, and my awesome life-mate took the day off for it!) so I added to my bike ride this morning - 12 miles of real street riding. And let me tell you folks, it was a magical morning for it! Upper 50s, sunshine, gorgeous robin egg blue sky, and - omg - tiny white petals were drifting through the air from flowering fruit trees! It was like a scene from a fantasy movie! I felt like I could ride forever! But I stopped at, what turned out to be, only 12 miles. Then I ran for 10 minutes on my treadmill (a brick, right?) at a 5mph pace with NO walking and my HR didn't go over 164! The legs did great, Bryan! Major improvement for me! Ok, so I had a mountain-top experience early, then hubby and I played with the dogs outside, watched tournament basketball, and now I'm looking forward to a night out.

I took a few photos of flowers in my yard today for you that are still experiencing winter temps

I hope everyone has an awesome weekend!
sTRIving on!

Check out the middle pic below - blooms on our blueberry bushes - in the bottom left hand corner is a bumblebee!

Happy Anniversary Juanita!!!

Thanks for the lovely pics as well. Suffice to say its not quite as nice here today. We had snow yesterday and today was cold and REALLY windy. I nearly died on my 5k run. My wife though did 16k this morning. I couldn't believe that she managed to hang in there for such a
long time/distance. Y'all are going to think the stereotypes of Canada being snow-bound and everyone living in igloos are true. Right about now even I feel the stereotypes must be true.  In reality though this is just an atypical winter - the worst in many years.

My choir performed tonight for the Easter Vigil mass so I get to sleep in tomorrow . Then I'm cooking a turkey for Easter dinner. Yum, Yum. Plus of course there'll be the odd bit of chocolate to be had

For those of you who were just dying to know, my Varsity Reds made it through the round-robin unbeaten and are playing for the national championship tomorrow night. Yippee!! 

Hope you all are having a nice Easter weekend - regardless of whether it is part of your faith tradition or not.

Happy Easter Turtles....my daughter is in Georgia playing in a golf tournament and they were going to a turtle preserve yesterday but the turtle visit got cancelled due to a delay at the golf tournament. When she told me about the visit I asked her to try to take pics for us....

FBP - thanks for checking out the blog...I always feel like I am writing for me alone to read it.  But what a great journal it is....

Flipper - keep your feet protected....cuts, bruises, scapes, blisters...all cause us problems.  Take care of your wheels.

Mav - so now I guess we have to call you flipper 2 aka sTRIve colorist.....your name is just getting to be too long....smile

FBP - your simulated swim is an excellent example of getting caught up with other people's race.  Please remember to run your race, swim your race and bike your race.  In my first tri, I went out on the swim too hard and my heart rate was sky high when I got out of the water.  I think it also had to do with nerves but my heart rate never came down.  I am just glad it was a short race.  The simulation is awesome as you felt what waves feel like and people bumping (shoving, hitting, crashing) into you feels like.  How was that?  Did you ever get in YOUR swimming rhythm?

Flipper - your interval run was exactly right.  That is precisely what you wanted to do.  Excellent job.  These are the type of workouts that will increase your speed over time.  Just keep working them into a run maybe once a week - they should be done in your shorter runs. 

Flipper and Mr. Flipper - congrats on 33 years....and here is wishing you another 133....I will say the pics were kinda cruel to our friends buried in snow....but to rub it in a little more, it's been in the 70s and 80s for the last several weeks...the grass is pretty green, the trees are leafing out and many many plants are blooming....I love to run outside in the early spring as all the blooms fragrance the air and it smells so clean.

Go Varsity Reds!!!

sTRIve

B

Bryan - I know what you mean about blogging and wondering whether anyone is actually reading it. Like you, I write it for myself really but I am always surprised that just when I think nobody (other than my mom) is reading it, someone leaves a comment.

Since you teased me with pictures Juanita here's a look at the flowers in my yard . I took this yesterday as I was heading out for my 5k. Didn't get out to run today but tomorrow is a holiday for those of us who work in the public sector so I plan to get out for a 12-14k LSD (Long Slow Distance) tomorrow after I do some errands in the morning.

My DD (Stephanie) will be on a bus back to her university (UPEI - the University of Prince Edward Island) tomorrow afternoon. Hard to believe but the next time I see her she'll have finished first year!! Also, she announced plans to switch her major from Biology to Physics. Yikes - I'll never be able to hold an intelligent conversation with her again about school if she sticks to that plan.

Marianne - you mentioned that you were reading my earlier posts while at work - what do you do for a living? I think I mentioned before that I am an HR manager.

Signing off because period 3 is about to start. Score is tied 2-2. Nail biting time. 

Mav - I wondered whether nursing might be it, given the shift work thing. My mom is a nurse in fact. She is 72, still works full-time in an addictions treatment unit at an acute mental health facility in Ottawa. Will not retire (unlike me who would retire tomorrow if I could!)

No joy in Mudsville today as the VReds lost 3-2. What a game it was. They dominated play but the University of Alberta goalie was spectacular.

Weather is a little nicer today. Still cold but no wind so I'll get my run in this afternoon. If the snow doesn't start melting soon I'm going to have to put my new bike in the van and drive south until I find clear roads so that I can try it out!

Mav - like you I guess I need some suggestions for a name for my bike.

What a change, dropping my wife off at work this morning and not having to go to the office myself. I could get used to this !!

(Edit) I did my 14k LSD this afternoon and it was the BEST run in ages. Funny because I was dreading going out. Once I got changed into my running gear though I had no choice and I was 7k into it before it even seemed like work.

FBP - sad for those Vreds....and all that snow....wow

Mav - glad your lived through your stress fracture...if it makes you feel any better Debbie had one in her left ankle and has been off running since September....she is just now free to run a little...like one minute short spurts...she is still dying to run further.  This is why injury prevention is critical.

Bike names....Pedro (mainly because I think it sounds funny)...or the name of a fast girl or boy if you are so inclined....or something deep and thoughtful....I think we need to create an interview sheet of questions that when you answer them some sophisticated matrix type program pairs your answers and personality type with others who have named their bike different names....or you could name it Bob.

FBP - nice run...

Mav - how about Maverick - he was a pilot in Top Gun....seems that it would be like a fighter plane....

sTRIve

B

Mav - your bike's colours made me think of dark skies and lightning so I looked up some of the names of the God's. What about calling the bike "Thor"  - the Norse god of darkness, lightning, etc.

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/t/thor.html

Wow, Marianne! You are already my designated role model. And you are a nurse too?! I think I admire nurses over every other profession. There is no equal in my mind for hard work, dedication, and unselfishness. Wow. And you find time to run, bike, and swim... an eight mile run like is was easy, unreal... you are my hero!

Oh the snow, Peter! Bless your heart! I just can't imagine it! Easter Sunday it was so pretty on the way to church here, that I had tears in my eyes. Surely the 'thaw' is on it's way there, eh? Sending warming thoughts your way! I was pulling for those Varsity Reds of yours. OMG, a national championship game! And sooooo close. You must be proud! Congrats! And you with an 8 mile+ run, too! Just wow.

Marianne, the first name that popped into my head for your gorgeous bike was "Silver Streak" like the fast express train in the movie with Gene Wilder. But I really like Peter's line of thought too. I think it is the Greek god Zeus who's symbol is the thunderbolt but Hermes is unequaled in speed. I tend to look at the other gender for names though, hehe. There are some powerful goddesses out there, too, like "Hera", Queen of the gods. And "Iris", who is winged and was Hera's favorite messenger so she must be fast. *grin* Oh! And then there is Artemis (or Diana, the Roman version) the goddess of the moon! She is the twin sister of Apollo, and a huntress. But she is also the goddess of childbirth which would be PERFECT for you! I also like the word Onyx, for a name. The jewel is beautiful.

Peter your bike is that awesome orange, right? The first name that popped into my head for yours was, Flash Gordon, the super hero. Didn't he have an orange suit? Remember the song in the movie? "Flash! Whoa ohh~!" I love that movie. 

Bryan, thank you for the positive feedback! I'll incorporate those intervals on a weekly basis and try to do the same with swimming and biking once a week. I have to admit, I feel pretty inadequate compared to the rest of you. But you all make me feel like I belong and you just have to know how much that means to me. Thanks!

sTRIving on!

P.S. Thank you for the anniversary greetings. We had a great day.

As I've mentioned before, I am active on a discussion board of (mostly) Canadian runners called Running Mania, found at www.runningmania.com . Two of our "Maniacs" are about to embark on a pretty amazing adventure so for a little inspiration check out:

http://www.tritheworld.ca/

Oh, and just in case you're wondering, IT"S FREAKIN' SNOWING AGAIN TODAY !!!!!!! Supposed to turn to rain this afternoon though so not to worry I suppose.

All other posts will have to wait as I only have a couple of minutes tonight and there is one post I NEED to respond to and I know everyone else will understand.

Mav, my prayers are with you and the doctors and nurses who God will deliver to help you through your trial.  Your brothers and sisters here will be with you as well I know.

It is very strange how close I feel to each of you. Mav, you post just stopped me in my tracks.  I really appreciate you sharing so we can be there with you in spirit if no other way.  Please keep us posted.  I know we will be a low priority (understandably) but please let us know when you can.  I don't know about everyone else here but I would surmise that all or virtually all of our lives have been touched by disease and we will fight it together if we need to and we will celebrate our victory.

As far as the swim...you rock...that is awesome...the fitness you have gained in the last 18 months will help if a battle is necessary.  As far as the race goes, as weird as this sounds, I understand your "bummedness".  But this is one race...there will be more soon after that. 

Let's run this race one step at a time and sTRIve as one.

Oh Marianne! What Bryan wrote... I echo ALL of it. He said it beautifully, too. Oh honey, we are so praying for you. I think I would be thinking the same as you - "wow, I can't race." But that's a good distraction, in a way. It's ok not to think of the more serious implications unless you get to the point where you have to. And Bryan? I think I need to turn over my nickname of "Flipper" to the Mav 'cause no way I could stay with this woman in a pool.. yikes. You rock, Marianne!

Take care girl.. we are here for you. You sTRIve, and we'll sTRIve with you and for you!

Mav - add my name to the list of those offering thoughts, prayers and positive vibes to you. Like Bryan and Juanita said, quite a phenomena that our group has been able to bond in the way that it has. I truly feel so blessed to be part of the collective - I hope our support is able to help you in some small way.

Might I suggest a (virtual) group hug and a verse of Kumbaya ...

Also wanted to say, "Holy Crap, you're fast" Mav !! What a great swim. My own swim class was last night - we mostly got one-on-one instruction on technique (kicking from the hips and not the knees is something I was told to work on).

Yours truly had an article published in a running magazine that came out yesterday. It is the in-house publication of a chain called The Running Room. It is a hugely successful retail specialty operation here in Canada and there are also some stores in the States - midwest I believe. At any rate, here is the article as it appeared in their "Inspiration" section which is a regular feature

Since becoming involved with running I have particularly enjoyed
the many stories of inspiration that have come to my attention
in magazines (like the Running Room Magazine), at online
discussion forums (like www.runningroom.com) and through various
charitable cause running groups (like Team Diabetes Canada and
Joints in Motion). My story of inspiration is about a person that I
met one year ago, and, as you will read, it had to be fate that brought
us together!
While waiting in the holding area on Staten Island for the start of the
New York City Marathon, I met a woman from Arkansas who told
me about her previous experience as a guide for a visually impaired
runner. I mentioned to her that a friend of mine (Perry Monaco) had
done the same thing with a Team Diabetes Canada participant at the
Dublin Marathon and that I would be interested sometime to do
likewise. A few minutes later I decided to stretch my legs by going for
a walk around the holding area and in a crowd of 40,000 I ended up
meeting some fellow Canadians, one of whom was blind, the other her
guide. We chatted about where we were from (they Torontonians, me
a Frederictonian) and then I told them about the conversation I’d just
had. The blind lady immediately asked, “If I come to New Brunswick to
do a marathon, would you be my guide?” I asked her why she thought
she might do this; she told me her story and I said, “Count me in.” We
exchanged some contact information, went our separate ways and that
was the last I ever heard from her until a couple of months ago.
The blind lady that I had met that day was Dr. Myra Rodrigues. The
plan she told me about was to complete a half marathon in every
province and every territory over the course of the coming year to mark
her 65th birthday. She dubbed the journey “Myra’s Marathon” and
decided that in addition to it being a personal celebration she would use
it as a vehicle to raise greatly needed funds for the Canadian National
Institute for the Blind’s (CNIB) alternative form library. As a client
of CNIB’s since childhood, she knew the critical importance of the
library service (without it she might never have completed a PhD). As a
national board member she is aware of the CNIB Library’s tremendous
need for resources: only 5% of published material in Canada is available
in alternate formats.
Myra is anything but a dilettante when it comes to endurance sports.
Since taking up power walking in 2003, Myra has competed in over
50 events ranging from 5Ks to full marathons. She has entered the
New York City Marathon on three occasions. She also loves whitewater
rafting, having taken two week-long trips through the Grand Canyon,
she is an avid cyclist (“How?” you might ask—on the back seat of a
tandem of course!), and for many years she has been an avid scuba diver
in waters all over the world.
On September 17, 2007, Myra completed the Newfoundland
Provincial Half Marathon to start her year-long “Myra’s Marathon.”
One week later, on September 23, I had the honour of participating
in the Saint John (New Brunswick) Marathon by the Sea as Myra’s
partner/guide. Three weeks later on October 14 we did it all over again
in the Prince Edward Island Marathon. Her cross-country adventure
will begin again in the spring with the Banque Scotia 21K de Montreal
followed by nine other half marathons, the last of which will be her
hometown event, the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront (Half) Marathon
on September 28, 2008.
In so many ways, Myra Rodrigues is an inspiration—through her
power-walking, through her service to others and particularly through
her determination not to let “challenges” become “obstacles.” Watch for
her at an event near you!
For more information about Myra’s Marathon and to make a donation
to assist the CNIB Library, please visit: www.cnib.ca/myrasmarathon.
by Peter McDougall

I just want to say how much I appreciate being a part of this.

Flipper - you cannt give away your nickname....it is YOURS.  However I think Mav may forever be known as Rocket Fins and it must be italicized to give it the speed required.

FBP - you continue to amaze me...what a cool article.

Endurance sports are so full of amazing people doing amazing things.  I have had a tough training week due to work and am really looking forward to my two favorite training days of the week - Sat and Sun....

Rocket Fins - aka Mav - keep up the great work....you are one fast turtle girl.....

sTRIve - see you at the finish line,

Bryan

Good Saturday morning everyone !!

Just back from my run - a nice 7k route with a brief stop at the halfway point to look in on the girls' high school provincial championships that are taking place here. There is a strong hint of spring in the air - beautiful sunshine and the temperature is to be above 0c (32f) this afternoon.

This afternoon my wife and I are volunteering at the annual wine and food festival that raises money for the Diabetes Association and in particular for the summer camp where kids with diabetes can go for a week each summer. Our son went for a couple of years in a row and loved it because for once he was with others dealing with the same disease and all the hassles - injections, blood sugar tests, carbohydrate counting, etc. Of course, the bonus of volunteering is that we get to sample all the food and wine too!!

Cheers !!

Pete 

FBP - Let me be the first to say that I am awed with your giving spirit.  You inspire me with your continual work to help others less fortunate.  I admire that "giving back" spirit.  Debbie and I try to do it but our efforts pale miserably in comparison.  Thanks for the inspiration.

I had a great run this morning - 7 miles outside temps in the low 60s....it was almost totally pain free but I run in the hills a lot here and that tends to tighten the old calves from running ups and downs.  Tomorrow morning is a swim and bike brick - assuming it doesn't rain...if so, it will be a swim and run brick.  I was supposed to ride this morning but the roads were wet and I didn't want to spread my skin throughout the neighborhood and surrounding pavement.

Have a great weekend and I will see you at the finish line,

Bryan