Team KiterChick - CLOSED (Page 15)

Went out on my first group ride with the tri group a few days ago. It was great to connect with other like minded people and have fun over the 25 mile loop. Managed to run seven miles today and set a new training PR in the process!! I've also started my second round of physical therapy, this time we are using bands and other exercises to strengthen the muscles. My therpist has me wrapping my leg when I'm running, its a new feeling but my leg dosen't really cause any problems until around mile six or so. We have another group ride tomorrow which I'm looking forward too. They know my A race is comming up and they are helping me become a strong force on the bike and run.

Hope everyone is doing well with their training!

Beth

Hi everyone! It's been a pretty light week for me as I prepare from my last HIM of the season this Sunday. After that, only three more weeks until the IM, then I'm done! I'm really looking forward to the off season this fall, when I can go on rides just for fun. There's a great ice cream place on one 36M loop I've done, and an outside sculpture garden I've been wanting to visit as well. Obviously training has its place, but I could really use a break from the 4-6 hour rides that have been filling up my schedule lately. After this weekend, which should hopefully seem like a break with only 56M of biking, I have a 100M then an 85M ride before the race. One more long run next week too. Phew!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Thanks for the good luck wishes, Beth and Amanda! The race wasn't quite a PR, but it was close, and under six hours, which was what I was hoping for, so it went pretty well. I've posted a race report for anyone who's interested in reading about it. Would love to say that it made me feel ready for my full IM in three weeks, but that wasn't really the case. Still, I'm going to get through this last block of training, then we'll see what I have in me when the time comes!

Beth - I've hit just under 42 mph a couple of times. It's definitely fun, but I also tend to have the thought that it would really hurt if I were to crash cross my mind during those moments too. Have fun, but also be careful!

Sounded like a good race Sarah!  This one is on my radar for next year, so I am happy to hear that its not too bad.  Did you find the hills to be worse on the run or the bike?

Congrats on the race Sarah! Impressive to PR on the swim and the run!!!!!!

I went crazy a few days ago and said "Sure, I'd LOVE to work 12 hours, have 8 hours off, work  16 hours, have 12 hours off, then work another 12 hours!" And I still have the last of my long distances in training to do when I'm off as I put the finishing touches on my Hy-Vee Tri plan.

If I am awake enough I'm going to attempt a 7 mile run when I get off in a few hours followed by yet another session of PT.

Hope everyone else is training well and enjoying the great weather!

Beth

Hi everyone! I took Monday and Tuesday off to rest up a bit, but was back on the trainer for a short, easy ride this morning and then out for a quick run, so I'm getting back into things. Less than three weeks to go until the IM at this point!

Will - My answer to your questions is that it depends. If you'd asked me last year, I would have said the hills on the run were worse. That was because I put in a lot of hill training and was really strong on the bike at that time, so they didn't seem too bad. Then, it was really hot and humid that year, so the run was more torturous, and every little hill hurt. This year, I wasn't as well trained for the hills on the bike, so they slowed me down a bit, whereas the weather was nice, and I did a good job not burning out on the bike, so I felt like I cruised through the run. The hills still sucked, but I just pushed through them. Sorry, that's probably not helpful, but basically, be sure to train for it and hope for good weather and you'll be fine!

Beth - Whew, that sounds like a crazy work schedule. Take care of yourself!

Sarah--Congrats on the Timberman!  I took a look at your race report.  I hear you on the swim (I am extremely slow).  I noticed you mentioned the buoys were small.  I did the Spring Saturday and they had huge inflatable pylon style buoys, I wonder if they switched them out for some reason.

I have been absentee as I was training for the last few months and plenty has been going on at home (buying our first home and pregnant wife, so good things!).  I've been reading everyone's posts to keep track but haven't posted recently (sorry!!).

I did the Timberman Sprint, my one and only tri for the year but nonetheless gave me the bug that I was warned about.  I finished around 1 hour 33 minutes, which felt relieving considering how nervous I was leading up.  Race report to come with more details for those interested.

Mitch- Congrats on Timberman sprint.  Sounds like you had a good day.  A friend of mine at work had the same comment about the swim- she could not believe how shallow the water was.

Hi everyone! Was on the trainer for an hour last night for an easy Z2 ride, then in the pool this morning for an hour. First time in a while where I didn't have to circle swim, which was nice. I was really slow, but at this point, I've adopted a slow and steady mentality going into the IM, so I'm not too concerned about it. I was hoping to get in my last long run today, but I'd be racing the sunset by the time I leave work, so I plan to do it after my long OWS tomorrow morning. Not really an issue, but I also have a 100M ride scheduled for Sunday, so I hope my legs hold up. I'm going to be pretty tired by Sunday night. Good thing Mike has already offered to cook me dinner, since I'm not sure I'd be able to feel myself!

Mitch - Welcome back! Congratulations on finishing your first tri, that's great. Also on the new house and the baby on the way. Sounds like you and Will have had pretty similar summers in that regard. We probably had the same buoys for our race, but I suspect yours were placed closer together, given the shorter distance. I didn't have an issue seeing them when I was close, but sighting the next one when it was a bit off, especially on the leg going into the sun, was a bit difficult.

Will - Since I know you're contemplating the HIM and not the sprint for next year, just to let you know, yes, the water was pretty shallow in the beginning, but it did get deeper for the rest. I honestly didn't even pay attention to how deep, since I was distracted sighting and not running into people, but deep enough where you're not hitting bottom at least.

Hello everyone! Sorry I've been off the boards for a while, life has been hectic.

My training is going well, I've started my taper for the Hy-Vee Tri which is this Sunday. It is also my A race so I'm hoping to set a PR in all the feilds.

Finally got an open water swim in yeserday without the wetsuit, it felt great to feel the cool water against my skin. There were a couple of guys fishing on the pier, the looks on their face when I just jumped and took off swimming was priceless! When I came back 30 minutes later I swam right up to the dock and simply pulled myself up and walked off like nothing ever happened. Again this earned me priceless looks!

Hope everyone is doing well in their personal lives and in training.

Beth

Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't been posting much myself, but rest assured that I have been checking in everyday, so if anyone has a pressing question, I'll be sure to answer it right away. Things have been pretty hectic for me as well. Last weekend was ridiculous! A 19M run on Saturday, then a 2M swim followed by a 107M ride on Sunday. This week isn't much easier, considering it's less than two weeks from the race. Something tells me that I'll be slacking big time next week in the hopes that I'm fully recovered come the big day. Of course I've been feverishly checking the weather reports, even though they don't know this far in advance. Yesterday was rainy and in the 60s, but today has switched to partly cloudy and 70s. Honestly, I think I'd rather have the rain than heat, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that whatever happens, that it stays well below 80!

Beth - I can't believe your A race is almost here. Time has been flying this summer. Stay healthy, and I know you're going to rock it!

Happy Labor Day everyone!!!

Had my last tri yesterday and I had a blast. My race report is posted. I ended up setting a PR on the swim and the bike!!! Overall I've very happy with my performance on the course.

Hi everyone! So I ended up slacking off a bit on my last ride this weekend. I was scheduled to do 85M, but cut it short at 62M. Honestly, I was very mentally burned out , so while I'm sure I could have pushed through and finished it in its entirety, I didn't really see the benefit of doing so at that point. I took yesterday off, and will likely take today off too. I'll fit in some easy running and biking at some point before I head out to OH on Friday, but at this point, I just have to hope that I'm ready and we'll see how this weekend goes!

Beth - Congratulations on doing so well in your last race! It sounds like your bike was awesome, and as usual, you didn't let any mishaps like losing your nose plug slow you down. I'm definitely planning on channeling some of that tenacity when I inevitably get to a point on Sunday where I just don't feel like I can push it anymore!

Good morning everyone.  

I too have been slacking about posting.  I have been lurching for a while now and decided I better start posting again.  My tri season is finished for this year .  Work has become too hectic to get away.  

For the good news, I have committed to 2 big races next year.  I am going to compete in the first Ironman Raleigh 70.3 next June and Ironman Louisville in August.  I am really excited. . 

Ken

Hi everyone! Well, so much for fitting in some easy workouts this week. It seems that I've decided to just sit back and relax until the race on Sunday. Not too worried about it making much of a difference either way at this point though. Currently, I'm focused on packing tonight, then driving out to OH tomorrow and getting into race mode. I'll be sure to spill all the details once it's over!

Ken - Wow, Louisville? Good luck! I pondered it for this year, but was worried about the weather given the area. Apparently, it did turn out to be really hot and humid this year. Then again, you're from the south, so that probably doesn't bother you like it does for us weak New Englanders!

Sarah, I actually volunteered to work there this year to get a feel for the course, heat and setup.  Everything was great.  I am really looking forward to it.  I am a still really intimidated by the swim but I have given myself over a year to prepare.  I should be good.  

Hi everyone, I finally made it back from OH last night and my race report has been posted. All in all, I met virtually all my goals, and felt that I paced myself well throughout, so I was happy with the outcome!

Given that posting here has dropped off quite a bit, and that a lot of our seasons are done at this point, I was thinking of discontinuing the regular posting. I'll still check in a lot, so if any of you have any questions, I'll definitely be here to answer them, but I figured there probably won't be a need for me to be posting just for the sake of posting at this point.

Also, for future reference, I'm going to focus a lot more on sprint tris and cycling next season, so I likely won't be hosting another mentor group. For those of you who may be interested, feel free to PM me if you'd like to stay in touch for any reason over the winter or next season.

Hope you're all enjoying the start of fall, I know I am!

Went out of a bike ride yeserday and when crossing a set of railroad tracks I heard a loud pop. For the rest of the ride my bike has been making a weird squeeking noise at every pedal stroke. The bike handles fine, shifts and brakes with no problems and the brakes are intact. I didn't notice any cracks in the frame and to my untrained eye the rest of the bike looks good. I'm thinking of bringing it into the bike shop tomorrow just to make sure all is well.

Sarah- I'm so happy your race went well! I'm sure your happy its done and over. Hopfully you'll be taking a few days of well deserved rest.

I would also love to keep in touch through the winter and next year. As you all know I have one more race, a marathon then I'm done racing till 2014. I will continue to train but I'll be focusing on healing my hip and getting it back to its full strength and function.

Beth

Beth, I was just checking out your race listing to remind myself which marathon you're doing and saw it's the Twin Cities one. Cool! I was just reading about that one yesterday, since I think I'm going to do another one next year. I likely won't decide to travel that far for one, but it looked like a great course!

Not sure what's wrong with your bike, but hopefully the LBS can sort it out. My roadie is still away getting its faulty rear shifter replaced. Looking forward to getting it back for some fun fall riding! Speaking of riding, or any exercise for that matter, I haven't done a thing since the race. I'm really not sore at all at this point though, so I think I'll venture out for a run on Sunday. I can't tomorrow since I'm having a girls day out with one of my friends.

We can definitely keep in touch this winter. I'm always training for something, and it's great to have like minded people to talk to about it!

So now that my lone race (and first tri) is over for the season, I am getting back into standard running races and training for next year.  I did an adventure race this past weekend, a Warrior Dash 5K.  Not sure if anyone has done these before.  It was OK, but definetly didn't get the same "tri high" feeling that only a tri can give.

I finished in the top 10% of all participants with a time just over 47 minutes, which considering I have never done one of these, I was fairly happy.

I'm doing a century ride this Saturday, not a race though, just a charity ride up the Seacoast here in NH, Maine, and Massachusetts.  I'm already coming to realize that riding around our new house is so much quicker due to being near the ocean and away from hills!

Have a great week everyone!

Hi everyone! Not much going on in the workout department here, although I did get in a 4M run on Sunday as my first workout since the IM. Planning on hopping on the bike for a trainer workout tomorrow morning too. Need to look into getting back into a regular schedule at this point. In other news, I was on the fence about getting a tattoo after my IM, but decided I'm going to take the plunge. I don't have any now, and am not interested in anything big or obvious, so I'm thinking of getting the 140.6 sticker design on my hip. My brother, who already has a few tattoos, is going to go with me, so it should be fun. Just have to find time to get up to VT to get it done.

Beth - Congratulations on getting invited back for the Hy-Vee race, that's so exciting! Sorry you'll be losing your Athena status, but I'm sure you'll use your new AG status as a further motivator to train like crazy. That's awesome you've lost so much weight too. I want to lose 3 lbs. right now before the holidays and I'm worried I don't have the discipline to get it done...

Mitch - I haven't done a Warrior Dash, but I know people who have and they sound nuts. Congratulations on the top 10% finish! Your upcoming century sounds fun too. I've done the Eastern States 20M before, which also goes through ME, NH and MA and it's so cool to know you've exercised your way through multiple states. Have fun!