stevebradley's Mentor Group FULL (Page 224)

hey steve,

we are definitely still going to columbia.  the more distractions, the better.  sunday was a quiet day, and i did not do well. 

Fortunately, we have the columbia oly, jim mcdonnell lake swim, reston sprint and eagleman in that order for the next 4 weekends. 

i missed a lot of workouts last week, but still managed to log 9 hours.  it was not the build up for eagleman that it was scheduled to be, but you can't plan these things.  i have really struggled to find the motivation to get my workouts in.  things that were really important to me two weeks ago, i suddenly find myself not really caring about.  eagleman is 4 weeks from sunday and i have made the committment to myself to hit every workout between now and then.  i just need to buckle down.

we did the eagleman bike course this past saturday.  i used it as a race simulation...race wheels, aerohelmet, nutrition, etc.  i'm really glad i did, too, because it was REALLY windy and that feels really scary at first on my race wheels.  i found myself being tossed around all day.  at first that is a really scary feeling, but after about an hour i got used to actually having to lean into the wind in order to not get thrown around.  my weight has dropped to about 116lbs, so i'm like a freaking sail out there.  all in all, i did the course in 2:50.  that was a 15 min pr from my race last year.  i was happy with that.  hopefully i can pick up a few more minutes during the race.  we rode another 14 miles afterward easy and then  bricked 3 miles.  i ended up averaging 7:13s for the brick.  that was super fast for me.  i don't think it is sustainable for the full half, but hopefully i can get a little time in the bag during the first half of the run.  ideally, my goal is to average 7:34s on race day.  we'll see. 

it's a funny thing about this sport.  i find myself going from confident to not and back again every day.  i was worried that i had "lost fitness" during last weeks drama, but all i can do is have faith in the work i have put in up until now. 

so, as for columbia, i'm a little nervous because i haven't done much hill running lately...  or at all for that matter. 

we will be heading down on friday and coming home sunday.  i'll go back and read your previous post about your plans and get back to you.

i hope everyone is well.

lisa

ok, i'm back steve.  read your note and talked to ryan. 

we are leaving for columbia mid day on friday and will pick up our packets then.  depending on when you get in on saturday, we can meet you at the expo or at the lake for bike check in.  also, depending on when you get in, lunch sounds lovely. 

we are staying with ryan's dad in ellicott city.  you are also more than welcome to come over for dinner on saturday if you would like.  probably around 6:30pm.  his address is 9213 maple rock dr, ellicott city, md 21042.  my cell is 703.371.1540.  dinner will probably be something like grilled chicken and pasta salad. 

let me know!

ryan asked where you are staying?

Lake Placid Training camp/Volunteer/Next year sign up trip

several members of my tri group, team fexy, are renting a house in lake placid for a week during this years IM.  There are still several slots open.

here is the house:

http://www.century21highpeaks.com/bin/web/real_estate/AR136263/EXTRA_LISTINGS/Lake+Placid/1268063772.html?ZKEY=&acnt=AR136263&action=EXTRA_LISTINGS&inwindow=&hs_action=VIEW_DETAIL&listing_id=REAGAD35971642&start=0&grp=ALL

it can hold 18 and we currently have 11 committed.  costs will be determined by the number of people we get in the house.  currently at 11 people, the cost per person would be around $570 for the week.  with 18, the costs would be $350.

the house can be rented either tues-tues or wed-wed.  i don't think any firm decision has been made.  dates are roughly 7/21-7/28. 

only 1 person of the 11 is actually racing.  the rest of us are going there to use it as a training camp, volunteer and/or register for next years race.  this race is one of the most popular IMs and has sold out in the past before it even opens to the general public.

ryan and i are going to use it as a training camp and get a feel for the IM experience.  i think it will be a game time decsion whether we register for next year.

if you are interested, let me know, and i can put you in contact with the woman organizing it.

thanks!

uh oh steve.

are you sure you don't want to come in on friday?

MEET & GREET THE PROS:

Where: The host Hotel, The Sheraton Columbia Town Center in the Terrace (lower level) Patio and Gallery overlooking Lake Kittamaqundi.

When:   Friday, May 21st at 6:30 pm

Don’t miss this opportunity to meet some top tier professionals, among them 2 -time Ironman World Champion, Tim DeBoom, and 6-time Ironman World Champion Natascha Badmann available for questions, autographs and motivation!  They will be joining you on the racecourse on Sunday morning!

Columbia Triathlon 2010 features over 20 of the finest and most competitive Professional, Elite Amateur and Age Group fields ever!  There should be quite a battle on the hills!

hey steve,

just a few quick things as we are heading out the door.

1.) no cheese is no problem for saturday, whatever you decide is fine

2.) no need for a formal plan, when you get close, give us a ring.

3.) if you are looking to sell the computrainer, probably best to bring it.  if ryan and i don't end up buying it (we haven't really talked about it), i would be happy to sell it for you within our team and forward you $$.  it will probably be easier for me to sell it here and mail you a check than it will for you to ship it somewhere.  whatever you decide is fine.

yay!!

again, my cell is 703.371.1540

ryan is 703 407 0697

see you tomorrow!!!

....oh, and it wouldn't be any problem at all for you to just come to LP for the day and jump in on a workout or two.  the more the merrier.  as it gets closer our group might also be open to breaking the cost up into individual day slots too for folks who can't do the whole week.  not sure.   a lot of the people who are going are also doing columbia, so you will no doubt meet them on sunday......hey if you sell your computrainer for $800 that is 3-4 nights at the lake house AND 2011 LP registeration fee

What a weekend!!!! 

steve, it was so nice seeing you again.  how lucky i've been to be able to race with you twice in the last two years!! 

it was a successful race for steve, ryan and i.  i will let steve share his news, but ryan and i placed 2nd in the married couple division (yay!) with a combined time of 5:04.  I placed third in w30-34.  this was quite a shock since my race got off to a challenging start. 

it was a rough swim start for me.  definitely aggressive.  my goggles filled with water, then i lost my contact.  i would not have been able to start the bike with only one lense.  i have VERY bad vision and it would not have been safe at all.  i stopped, treaded water, confirmed that i had, indeed, lost my lense, reached up and found it on my lower lid.  miracle of miracles.  somehow admist the jostling of the swim start i managed to tread water, put my contact back in and continue on.  by this time, though, i was fairly rattled.  had a bit of trouble breathing, got mildly panicked and back stroked for a minute until i regained my composure.  i had a goal of placing here, but the negative self talk started in the swim.  "there is no way i can place now with a terrible swim.  why bother?"  fortunately i was able to push through that and plug along.  i ended up feeling pretty strong on the second half of the swim and only finished 6 seconds slower than last year even with the contact/panic debacle.  i will turn that into a positive thought as i head into eagleman in 3 weeks.

my watch wasn't working after the swim, so i had no idea what my time was.  i knew i wasn't going to place anyway so i just hammered along.  didn't feel like i "crushed" the bike, but i passed a TON of people.  men and women.  i also noticed that compared to years past the course didn't feel hard at all.  this definitely is a testament to the training my coach has had me doing this year.  it's funny that things that once seemed hard suddenly feel much easier.  i finished the bike feeling strong, not tired at all, and hit the run.  i had no idea what pace i was going, but i did notice that i was passing a lot of fit, fast looking guys.  then, about  2 miles into the run i started passing a bunch of women in my age group.  in the back of my mind i was thinking maybe there was a shot i could still hit the 5th place spot (columbia gives awards 5 deep). 

i had no idea what time i finished in because my watch didn't work, but once the times were posted i came in 3rd in AG with a 2:35:59.  my original "perfect race" goal was 2:36.  HA!  This was just over a 15 minute PR from this race last year and a 27 min PR over this race 2 years ago.  it's been really gratifying to see the improvement.

I finished the swim 27th in AG, finished the bike in 10th and finished the race in 3rd.  only one woman who finished out of the water before me dnf'ed (my teammate, due to a flat).  i'm really happy with the improvement in my standings in the bike and the run.  if i could only get the damn swim down.  ugh. 

36/519 women (including pro's and elites).  i'm really happy with it.

i was also super stoked that ryan and i got an award for 2nd fastest married couple.  it's nice that columbia has this award.  it's fitting, too, because i would have NEVER even tried this sport if it weren't for him.

steve raced really well and did awesome!!!!  ...but, again, i'll let him tell his own story.  it was great seeing him again.

looking forward to seeing jess and nathan(?) in a few weeks!!!!

how's the foot, neil?  better or worse?  i'm keeping my toes crossed for you!

Congrats to the racers!  Lisa, I couldn't help wondering after reading your post, how well you would have done without the contact problems!  What a great accomplishment!  Steve, your place is always well deserved, almost expectted at this point (which probably isn't fair, I know.)  Anyway, congrats to you both, and Ryan too.  Sounds like all had a great day.