Wildflower.....HOT Mess

HEAT + Julie + Racing = ONE HOT MESS  

As I am working today in the 90+ degree heat complaining non stop to my dogs  I am pondering how I will fare on Saturday.   1/2 Ironman, 95 degrees and a 9:00 start.  Can you saw WTF....  My husband is already up there so looks like I am going...

1- it is what it is
2- be a hot mess all week- no AC in our house so suffer away

Hope this is not what the swim start looks like 

3- hydration began today- constant fluids and lots of electrolytes
4- I do this for FUN
5- re-read 4 and consider that at mile 9 of the 1/2 marathon on the trails when if is 95 degrees and a 11% grade
6- re- read #4
7- relax..  " you can control one thing today and that is your attitude" thank Mike Reilly saying this at the start of most Ironman races
8- Racing an Olympic Sunday after the 1/2 on Saturday- was so gutsy when I signed up - now... we shall see.   Let me survive Saturday first.
9- re- read #4
10- we are sleeping in an RV vs camping with 5 peopl and 95 degrees
11- I have a lot of cookies to share
11a-  There is not enough water in the lake so we have to run 2 miles to where there is enough water- so we have T1 and T1A. Split run, logistics are confusing but I am rolling with this one and will see how that works out
12- reading about racing in the heat and being light is best.. thinking a juice cleanse today will not bode well for racing, So will race with the body as is
13- working all day in Palm Springs tomorrow is NOT what I want to do  will be better heat acclimation as it is over 100 degrees there and I will be touring hotels
13- really a little wine will not dehydrate me
14- Lots of fun people and I do love the WF experience  once I am done racing 
15- Coach has a swim in the lake on my schedule Friday- that would entail 2 mile run in my wetsuit, swim and another 2 mile run back- in 95 degrees.  I'll do arm swings and pour water over my head
15 Update from Wildflower- Water is not Potable - hope the aid stations don't run out... Giardia is not fun....although can be effective in getting to race weight.

Good on ya!

Do you podcast?

If not... you should!  there is so much amazing content in the world of podcasting and it is SO easy.  I am downloading/updating a bunch today for my drive to Palm Springs, which is not on the way to Wildflower.  Work calls...nothing like 6+ hours of walking hotels in 100+ degrees 2 days before a race.  Not my A race....it's all good not really but well it pays the triathlon bills. 

If you have an iPhone, go to the App store and download the Podcast App,  If you don't don't have an iPhone buy one.   I'm sure Android podcasts too I just can't help

Open the Podcast App and then search...

Here are my favorites:

• The Competitors  radio show- ANY triathlete MUST have this.  Weekly interviews by Bob Babbit and sometimes Paul Huddle.  Recent interview... Ryan Hall on Boston,  Heather Wurtele, Joe Gambles, Crowie, Chrissie Wellington, Frank Shorter.... really you cannot go wrong here
• 60 MINUTES- I don't have a TV and love this show- so audio version is great 
• NPR Fresh Air- Love Teri Gros and the awesome part of podcasting - if you don't like it, end it- you are not stuck listening in the car 
• TED Talks - so diverse and so interesting.... 
• Stuff You Should Know - everything from how the ACLU works to Halitosis: Worst Smell Ever to Natural Selection and Burlesque

Walking the dogs, standing in line at the store, tired of NPR begging for money  Membership Campaign. Speaking of which I ALREADY gave this year- stop asking for more. 

In any case....what is your favorite Podcast? 

Traincation and blog intimidation

This blog is killing me.....formatting issues, then did not auto save, then had weird font...then published and was not right... ARH! 

Blog Intimidation :  to be worried my blog does not stack up against others. Fear my blog is not as tech savy, as well written or laid out as well  as  as others...  :to overawe or cow, as through the force of personality or by superior display of wealth, talent, etc

.    Some of my friends are awesome writers, have savvy blogs and pics and I sometimes get shy - negative talk  (whiny voice) "my block sucks"  and then I don’t write…over it- back to blogging

Onward...  Traincaation:  to train all day and vacation at the same time.  Preferably with fun peeps. A week ago Thursday  I picked up Courtney, whom I have spent all of maybe 30 min total combined minutes and that includes sightings at races and a hey how are you?.  

We piled in my car, both fairly confident we would be okay (due to mutual friends who would have warned us respectively if either or both we psycho) and hit the road. By the first Starbucks stop - 20 minutes into the road trip, we both let out a sigh and knew it was going to be a Thelma/Louise weekend without the guns and murder. But you get the idea. We drove 9+hours to Marin County for "minicamp" with coach Chris (our mutual coach)  he offers camps to his athletes on occasion and we were both eager to bend his hear, tap into his knowledge  train with coach for a few days.  Camps are small 8-10 max and entail swim, bike, run.  No sag, no hand holding but there was wheel sucking, and it was great.  We rolled into San Rafael and hit the Whole Foods- stocked up for the weekend and made dinner - WF salad bar is simply second to NONE.  LOVE it - and we were to unpack our 100 bags, bikes and eat in our room relaxing after a long drive.  Lots of kale, dark chocolate and liquids (sodium based vs alcohol)  

Thursday started with a very tame (both in time and effort) coached swim at 9:00 at the Tiburon Peninsula Club at 9:00.  Easy 3k swim and on our bikes.

The map sent out was google maps with 77 + turns. Court and I were sure we would be lost forever.  We stayed together as a group getting out of town.  Ride described 3-4 hours ez.  I am freaking out here - I plan rides, map them out and know nearly within 5 min of how long they will take.  I had to just let go.... I had no idea how long or where we were headed- so I did, just let it gl.  Once out of town it was so beautiful....trees, trees and more trees.  

We were riding through redwoods and then on the coast,  and in Pt Reyes, Stinson Beach, Oyster beds.. all over!   - it was stunning. Our group of 4 did get lost or we made a wrong turn and somehow were behind the group...but I was 90% ok except when myself and the 3 guys ( who all know the area) stood at a

these are real tree's...jsut sayin

T discussing which way to go for 5+ minutes. Debating what each direction mean - all of this was foreign to me.  LET’S JUST RIDE!  So we did... and on this nice easy ride at 3 hours we climbed MT Tam- always wanted to and it was stunning.  I miss trees- real trees. Palm
Trees are like sticks with hats.  I kept asking are we 1/2 way, are we almost there.... Kevin surely was annoyed with me and said "just go to the top"   All in all an awesome day.  We rolled straight to dinner at The Plant Cafe in Mill Valley-  

Happy girl (kale salad)  Court and I finished off the day shopping at Athleta- we need one of those in San Diego and were in bed by 8:30

serous tri geek- foam rolling outside Plant Cafe

Sat am, we rolled at 8 from McGinnis Park with another cryptic map of 80-90 miles.  Let the control go-no clue if ride was hilly or flat but it was zone 2. C and I got to ride with Jordan for the first bit and then Chris the rest of the day.  His zone 2 and mine a are bit different but I sucked his wheel and more importantly had hours to bend his ear and get to know him a bit better.  

Having a coach who is 500 miles away is VERY different. 

The scenery was amazing, the Oysters places and the water and the trees.... before we know it we were back to the lot and time for a T Run - 9 miles- what 9 miles?  Just run he says... so I did.  Ran around lagoons that were perfect soft trails with a wicked wind- heading out it was easy, heading back it was well not easy.  But with a hot lap around the parking lot- did 9 on the spot. Sunday was more swimming and a long run..... Legs were complaining but again the change of scenery, new training partners and coach running as well- we got it done.    

The camp was a blast. New friends, letting go of control, not limiting your body (listening to your mind) and a hotel room.  When the focus is eat, train and sleep it makes is doable.  No dogs, no house,  no spouse, no real life other than then emails and work all day Friday -   The benefit of owning my own business and thank goodness for the iPhone- every stop I was making calls, reviewing contracts and actually missed the T Run due to a conference all- but I got in most of the 1st day. ... I would not trade my life but once in a while it is kinda fun

You get what you pay for.....

I know people who continually rant and complain about Ironman and how expensive the races are ($227-$350 for 70.3 and $650 for Ironman). I am so tired of the complaining....#1 it is a CHOICE ( no one is making you participate in this sport) #2 there are alternatives (but note my blog title "you get what you pay for")  So take HITS which is a new(er) company offering Triathlons  ($100 for 70.3 and $300 for Ironman distance - with early registration)  So definitely less $ ...

BUT...theme of this blog-  you get what you pay for!    I have had friends race HITS and have heard rumblings about gravel roads, course not marked, open roads, running out of nutrition etc.

I had an athlete  I coach and friend race Napa HITS 1/2 Ironman this weekend and learned first hand how unorganized the race is..the biggest factor was the bike course.... website stating 1600 feet of elevation but at the athletes meeting it was disclosed 3500 feet.  That is a fundamentally different race.  The run was described as flat but had over 800 feet of climbing.  ..... this along with many other logistical issues is why I am willing to pay the $ for a known entity.  I like the bigger races, I like 80+ competitors in my age group vs 80 in an entire race (but that is my preference)   I want to know the course, know it is safe, have enough nutrition on the course...  It is a choice and we all can choose!  I choose to pay for quality and competition.  You can choose not to....

There are definitely non WTC (Ironman) races that do a great job... SOMA for one and I have heard fantastic things about REV3.  

Dog Text = Coach Text

disclaimer....after reading Les's blog I realized I too have dog text tendencies 

If you have a dog or find dogs funny...check out http://textfromdog.tumblr.com/   I find it beyond hillarious.....  sample to the right,  In any case, I was relaying a recent story to Les and I realized it was similar to dog text.

COACH;  do you have a trainer
JULIE: why?'
COACH:  to give trainer workouts
JULIE why? btw I HATE the trainer
COACH:  did you not see my previous response?
JULIE: yes and yes I have a trainer- I can dust it off
COACH:  I send out Thur trainer workouts on Wed
JULIE:  Ok, I've never received a trainer email?
COACH: I've never given you a trainer workout
JULIE:  Ok, I don't see the email
COACH: It's Tuesday
JULIE:  LOL, One more question, does the trainer workout have to be done on the trainer?
COACH: It's a trainer workout
JULIE:  ok

TIme away from Triathlon

Mom giving a beautiful tribute to her
husband 

A weekend filled with goodbyes, tears, hugs and laughing....all in honor and memory of my Stepfather Billy.

He was the life of the party, the eternal jokester, making friends with any and everyone and always thinking about golf.

At a beautiful Celebration of Life I met and interacted with over 70 people who loved and cherished him.  He brought a smile to so many....his passion for golf, food and life - a central theme.

I was proud of JD and Riley for speaking about their Papa... and it was a wonderful day.  With family in town we were busy with dinner, brunch, lunch and time being together.  It was what Billy loved- family together having fun.   Nice to have JD home and to spend time with my sis and her family from Boulder.   I even squeezed in a baby shower-  WOW, babies.....seems so long ago.  

With JD home I wanted to do something with JD/RM and me.  So we snuck away to Universal Studios for a day of LA tourism and a fun night in a hotel.  With my adult son and nearly adult daughter....we had fun, Road trip, movie night,  Hollywood Blvd, lots of coffee and fun.    While it was only 48 hours we laughed, talked and enjoyed each other.    

Silly fun in Hollywood

This was a near 4 day break from training after a recovery week... panic I need to be training.   Recovery week is necessary, even after a sub par race, it was still at 5 + hour effort and that requires recovery.   Ez swimming, biking and no running (PF flare up running 13.1 miles on the concrete)  With the help of Dr John I am hoping for some relief.  Come the weekend I knocked out a social ride with Amy, early AM swim Sunday and then 2 days of vacation- lots of walking and no training I an not panicking, it is only 2 days.   


With 2 days off I am emailing coach asking to ride longer tomorrow....

With Wildflower around the corner...time to get back at it. Not to mention I miss my friend.... #chattingonthebike   

I was proud of JD and Riley for speaking about their Papa... and it was a wonderful day.  WIth family in town we were busy with dinner, brunch, lunch and time being together.  It was what Billy loved- family together having fun.   Nice o

Oceanside 70.3 2014... not the best but not the worse

well it was not the day I hoped for but with some perspective I can accept it for what it was.

race week was sketchy, but I have experienced that before, so I did not want to make any race day assumptions based on how I felt.  I was tired, took a few naps, legs were heavy- as in fatigue going up stairs, never had the spring in my step, had major lingering neck pain from the near car/bike crash 3 weeks ago,  It was a struggle...but you never know what will happen race day.



this year was different, with 14 of my athletes racing, the day was not just about me. race week was reviewing plans, talking with my athletes, planning and prepping and I loved the distraction and was nervous and excited for each of them as well.

i decided to rent a room in oceanside to make race am easy. it worked out well as my mom was able to join me. we had a great friday with dropping my stuff in t2, finding a great local pizza place with thin crust pizza to order. dinner was over 7 and mom says now what?  bed time... i bought her a glass of wine and she took an ambien  lights out 8pm.  have not had a sleep over with mom in a while and it was special especially since we were not in a hospital. 

up at 4am with my 1.5 almond butter and honey sandwiches, 1 banana + almond butter (500 calories) and 2 cups of really crappy coffee.  mom was wide awake asking me every 5 minutes, have you eaten?  just like being 7 years old again.

around 4:30 les texted me saying she and jim are in the parking lot hanging out- so I say come on up. party in our room at 5.  fun racing with friends.

we rolled out around 5 and stopped in t2 and rode our bikes to t1 in the dark. i was having fun with friends and i was  not really worried about my race.  got racked and set up and then went to find my athletes - i found most, gave hugs and then settled in on my race .

gina and i scouted out the swim and i went to the end of the jetty to watch the pros - i  was confused about the orange buoys-  do they all have to be on  my left? or just the red buoys ?  i watched the paddlboarder turn a pro back to keep orange on the left,  I asked 4 officials and said yes orange on the left and 2 said red only on the left.  crap.... what to do?  i ended up taking all orange on my left and swam long.... red only were race rules, but being unclear an risking a penalty or dq was not in my plan.

swim: 27:49  i was sure i had a 25+ in me and not sure what happened - swam hard, went a bit wide and had a LOT of caps to swim over,  it seemed more congested than in years past. please please if you are racing a 70.3 and want to do breastroke please do not swim in the main part of the couse!  i  felt good and was out...running NOT WALKING  as sooo many were into T1- they really need a walking mat and a running mat.  i started my "on your left" "on your left"  in and out and on the bike

bike: 2:43:40 (3 min off my pr)  my legs were not there, power was not here. 1st 20 miles (in years past I have had to really hold back) and this year i could not hit my target power,  I gave up stressing and just rode... 1st climb i started to go hard (to make up my deficit) and 3 min into the climb i dialed it back ( i know better) Coach even saw it on my power file- 3 min of threshold + power and then a fall off, yes that was deliberate, I rode with what I had and it was not 100%.  last 10 miles I lifted power, lifted HR and felt the best I did all day- definite sign of fatigue meaning it took me 2 hours to warm up.  nutrition 3x 22 oz bottle.  2 x  180 calories Ignite IN Carb + refresh. 1: Refresh only.  1.5 bonk breaker- total calories: 725.

run: 1:49:24 (7 min slower than my last oceanside)  i ran as coach said, 1st 2 miles by feel
(looking back too fast ) but I went out and tried to hold on.   all was ok, except i had not peed since 7am.  I always pee at least once on the bike.   by mile 4 the pain settled in crap not mile 8, but mile 4.  so i started ticking off 1 mile at a time and it was a slow death.  it was painful and not fun but every time i saw a friend, family or athlete i was able to smile and wave, it was painful, have i mentioned how painful it was,  and dark but that is what racing is sometimes.  mile 7 les blew by me and she was on fire- as much as i wanted it to be my day, i'm glad she had her day. the chick the ran by me a 12.7- ugh...but she was on fire, i was dying and well so be it.  4th place. 5:05:17-  almost 7 minutes slower than my last oceanside.  nutrition was not good- 2x ignite gels and not sure about liquids. could not get any coke, seems i was to ask for cola.  did not fuel well on the run...#toooldtobemakingrookiemistakes

i finished and was thrilled to see my mom, riley, thao and so many other friends..... the tears of frustration were put away and i was happy to have so many who love me there to cheer me on.  and then it was about my other athletes, finding them, seeing them finish.  the day flew by and it was awards.... always honored to be on the podium and the 70.3 Worlds Slot to Trem Blanc rolled down so I took it.

all in all the day was amazing...after reviewing the race in detail with my coach I have perspective  I did not run from September 8th- Jan 15th-  so really 9 weeks of running...hard to expect a lot coming off the bike. i of course can hope but realistically know better.  When I started working with Chris the goal was Ironman Whistler July, Oceanside B race and a test.   so I will take it for what it was,

nutrition/hydration was an issue - i did not pee until 5:30 pm and i ended up calling urgent care - blood in urine is not a good thing.  flooded my body with nuun and the floodgates opened up and i was up every hour but that was ok.

so we move on, keep building and work towards wildflower x3 and really Ironman Whistler.

I am so thankful for my devoted family, all the nytro girls out cheering and the HERev girls cheering too!! fun times and i really really love my SD friends.. and a huge congrats to my friends that rocked it...les, amy, erin!  tremendous races ladies!

oceanside is a touch race, with tough competition but to race locally with family, friends, TCSD ...it is the best- even on a really tough day.  I appreciate all the words of encouragement out there!

and i am proud of all my athletes- some had good days, some struggled, but they all persevered and finished - i hope they all had moments of joy and are stronger athletes today!