Warning!

I enjoy following several blogs of mountain bike racers. Most of them have been riding and training in super fun, warm places......they post many pictures of long road rides, sunny mountain bike rides....and I have not been doing this!

This is my training dungeon!

It is not actually as bad as it sounds, with a coach now, I am quite enjoying my structured trainer sessions and I am loving my structured treadmill runs! Makes me feel that my training is purposeful and I never miss a workout that my Coach has organized for me!

The most challenging part of my training is the daily early early morning training.....I must be honest I am getting tired (literally) of getting up in the dark and cold every morning to get my workouts done before the kids get up, because even with using all the early mornings to train, I still end up with some evening and daytime training sessions.....and I am really trying to disrupt the family as little as possible with my training.....the whole motherly guilt thing kicks in.

This also means I don't get out to enjoy our beautiful Kootenay winter, no snowshoeing or skiing, no long winter adventures....but there will be time for that when the kids are older!

Anyways......hopefully soon I will be outside a bit more and will be exploring some awesome places!

Whistler Xterra Nationals

Whistler Nationals - Sunday September 5th 2010
Swim- 1.5km Bike - 30km Run -9km.
Well I am almost done my catching up from last summer's races. There wasn't much between Canmore and Whistler, a local race the weekend before...which I should not have raced. Looking back at the few rides leading up that local race, I was feeling so tired and slow, of course like any obsessive racer, I thought it was because I needed to ride more! I was getting slower, not faster. That day was pouring rain and cold! I knew that very night that I was sick....and it got worse over the week, even with bombarding my body with a myriad of natural cold and immune busters!!
Went to the Dr the day before we left and it was another case of bronchitis....but the plane ticket was purchased and hoping to get better the last couple days before the race! I didn't get better....
But it was a nice weekend getaway with Shawn, kids were at my moms...and it was our 5 year wedding Anniversary on Saturday! So splurged on a private room at the hostel (we had a dorm room booked originally!! ) and made a nice pasta dinner at the hostel and went to bed really early!

Race morning, I was feeling pretty awful, but still feeling like I could do this! It was a gorgeous morning at Alta Lake, set up went well and I felt quite relaxed actually...and I was still hoping for a good showing at this event.
My swim felt good....last pro out of the water, but not as far back as I have been in the past.
Heading out on the bike, I felt like I was doing OK....it was a tough course, tough steep loose rocky climbs, really tough single track sections, off my bike and running through the big boulder spots, but the rest was good, felt like I was doing OK, thought I must be getting closer to a couple of the girls, that was until I saw Shawn at the start of lap 2.....he didn't say anything (like "you're catching them" or "they are right there") so I shouldn't have asked if they were close.....because his answer was "no" Boo.... felt punished during the second lap, but a consistent ride (only a minute behind Christine and 3 behind Danelle) so I know I can do better!
The run was tough, so tough. I haven't been getting much running in, so I don't know why I expect to still go out and have a fantastically fast run, you can't get away with that in this company of racers! The start of the run out of transition was fun, great trail system with little ramps, bridges and logs to help me forget how rotten I was feeling, after this it became harder with long steep sections and then a long run (probably 3km...felt like 10) on the road back to the finish at Nita Lodge. I just suffered through this part, it was torture, felt like I wasn't even moving, and certainly wasn't moving very fast.....but down some stairs and into the finish....yeah, I was done and almost passed out when I stopped and couldn't breathe and then started hacking up a lung!!
Well very disappointing, but with lack of training and being quite sick.....I am not sure what else was to be expected?!
I love this sport though and I would like to do better and I would like to be competitive in the Pro Cat.....so I will do what it takes next year to make that happen!

Canmore XTERRA

Racing season will be starting soon, well not very soon for me...but it's coming up, and I am still catching up from last season's races!!
In August Shawn and I went to Canmore to compete in the 2nd Canmore XTERRA, the inaugural one, was won by Yours Truly the previous year! That was a unexpected win for me, but I loved it!! I loved the race, it was my first off-road triathlon, I had so much fun and felt good...and of course I loved winning!!
And this year, of course I was wanting to win again!
I had seen that Danelle Kabush was registered in this event (we raced together several years in the Pro mtb xc circuit) and of course her XTERRA career has been extremely successful!
But having just had a baby a few months before this race....maybe I would have a chance! I felt bad using this for a possible win...but....
Canmore is amazing! I love going there. The mtb course this year was 100% turn around from last year. Last year it was non technical-dbl tracks..but still fun to race, this year, it was technical single track climbs, a few steep chutes, super rooty routes through the trees and twisty rooty corners! And with the rain that Canmore had been getting 2 weeks prior to the race, this made for a very challenging course, but I was hoping that this would be to my advantage...I am not the best technical rider, but pretty darn good!
I didn't have my best swim....improved by 2 minutes from the first year, but not as fast as I wanted to be...
Feeling good on the bike, Shawn telling me after the first lap that I was catching Danelle, and sure enough I eventually saw in heading into the longish climb, this gave me a bit of a burst as I climbed past her, unfortunately I there was a bit of a strait stretch shortly after this just before heading into transition and she took the lead back just before the ride finished.
Of course Danelle is a great runner, and I wasn't able to catch her on the run (but my run was only a minute slower) and I finished second!
Disappointing for sure, but was happy with my ride (fastest ride split) and somewhat happy with my run (I really haven't been getting in much run training this year, really finding it hard to squeeze in)
Next year!

Wasa Lake Tri-kids!

Avery's first triathlon was the day before mine, she completed this triathlon, (and I use the word completed loosely) just 2 weeks shy of her 4th birthday! She had been super stoked to do this race, it is all she talked about for months leading up to it! She chose to wear her two piece pink suit and life jacket for the swim. The life jacket was a last minute decision, as she is super confident in the water. I was the pod leader for the 4-5year old group, giving them to low down on the race course and rules and leading them to the swim start. This is where Avery when entering the water realized that I wasn't going to be leading her through the swim as well, and again I use the word swim loosely! Avery stood there as the rest of the group walked across the 50m course. Shawn headed out and coaxed her across. She was still pretty excited about the bike ride when she came out of the water. She had chosen to ride her Skuut bike for the course, I don't think it was the best choice but oh well! So...I am watching her head out on her first of 5 laps around what would be Sundays transition area...she wasn't moving too quickly :o) As she headed out on her second lap, there a little fireball heading out on her run! This girl was serious man! So I was directing the kids on the run course as it turned around right away, when I got back to watching Avery, I couldn't see her on the bike course. "Shawn" I asked "where is Avery?"
"She's done her bike" he replied. "done! How can she be done?!" So he went on to inform me that after 2 laps she had enough riding and wanted to run, so she headed out on her run.
I didn't see her again until she was coming into the final stretch and then rounding the corner to the finish....her run was amazing! She sprinted the entire way! So she cheated...she was proud of herself, I was very proud of her!

Wasa Lake Triathlon June 2010

Ok! I am a little behind in my blogging! So I will try to do some major catch up!
Wasa Lake triathlon, an amazing, race just outside of Cranbrook BC, where we live! This is a somewhat big race for me, being my first race of the year, and also the local event, and it is my goal to be the first local female finisher, and I achieved this goal again this year, but by much!
It was a bit stressful leading up to the event, tons going on with work, volunteering and a bike catastrophe! 3 days before the race, I was told by the http://www.favorit-cycles.com/ local bike shop that my carbon fork on my custom built Norco road bike was broken, and that I shouldn't ride it! The day before the race I borrowed a road bike from the same bike shop, had time to adjust the seat height and fore and aft....and ride it around the block a few times before trying to get some sleep before an early wake up the next day!
I had a good race, felt pretty relaxed going in the water, I was hoping for a sub 28minute swim. I have been swimming twice a week, every week since October, probably doesn't seem like a enough for other racers, but I was very proud of this! I have always disliked swimming in the pool, and have been lucky if I hit the pool a half dozen times in other full training years!!
So I went for a 32 min 1500m swim to a 28:32! So, slowly than I was hoping for, but set me up for a much better position on the ride from previous years!
I headed out on the bike, not as comfortable on my new bike, but was feeling pretty good! Not as many people to pass after a faster swim! I don't think I had the best bike, I wasn't catching anyone after the turn around and was feeling pretty tired and deflated!
My bike was 1:11:56 the other local strong female competitor, Megan had a 27:56 swim and 1:09:26 ride. I was expecting to catch her on the bike especially since I knew I was close after the swim, but she is super strong this year!
I felt good heading out on the run, but not for long, my run felt forced and tired, didn't think I was moving very fast! Fun though,lots of runners on the course, with some sprinters still out there and some of the Men's field as well! As the turn around approached I saw Megan a little sooner than I was hoping and was getting worried that I may not catch her this year! I kicked it up a notch, and was chasing her down, but without seeing her in front of me, I could just picture that I was gaining on her!
Sure enough as I rounded the corner on to the residential street, and the last long stretch and last feed station of the race, I saw her! Yipppeee! was able to catch her just after the feed station and it was all I could do was just hope that I hadn't dropped my pace, as I didn't feel like I was going very fast! I didn't look back, I just ran! We headed back on to the path...so close to the end, yet so far, soon I could hear the finish line, and they see the finish line! I still didn't look back! I crossed the line in 2:24:04. My fastest Olympic results, third in my age cat, 10th overall female and top local female! Mission accomplished!

Ridiculous??

OK...So, we are heading to Fruita CO and then Moab Utah in a week. Yipppeeee!! There just happens to be a race in Fruita the weekend we get there...again yipppeeee!! So, my dilemma; I think if I don't get a UCI license as a Pro/elite this year, than I have to race as a one day citizen, which I don't want to do. If I get a UCI Pro/elite license ( which go figure, I am able to do) then I can race in the Pro/elite cat there...which I am not sure I should do!? I have been training well this year, but really not sure what my fitness level is, I don't mind not winning (well I kinda mind) but I don't want to be so far behind that I am not competitive. What to do, what to do?
It would be nice to have the license for the SaltyDog, so I can race pro in that race. Maybe if I am doing OK, I will try a couple other mtb races.
Am I slow? Am I fast? Not even sure! Comparing ride times..it seems that I should be OK..but racing is totally different.
I am excited to race, and would like to be pushed, but I want to be competitive.
I will have to decide later today:0)
Tan

Out of my system...

My sis is going to be here soon to drive me to the airport!
Doing a one week training camp with former Olympian cyclists...should be fun!
Funny though, I have so badly wanted to do a training camp, but now that Shawn and the kids have left to pick up Nana..I am soooo sad, and I just want to stay home with my family.
I cried so much, and still am prone to breakdowns!
Before Shawn and the kids, I used to take off every weekend, used to go away ALL the time...now it seems like the biggest deal, just going to Victoria for a week by myself!! Seems selfish!
I hope this is worth it....not sure how I will know if it is worth it! What do I want to achieve?
What do I really want!?!
Did I mention that I keep checking the weather in Victoria and all I see is rain, rain and more rain!! Seriously, why am I heading to the rain!
Well, I am going....we will see what happens. I hope I have fun, I hope I learn lots, I hope I get faster and I hope that I don't miss everyone all week as much as I am missing them now!