Camp, Tahoe, Training... oh my!

It's been a busy end to the summer with lots of training/ racing fun to get me ready for my final smashfest of the season... Ironman Arizona.  With 6 1/2 weeks to go, I'm entering the final stages of preparation.  This year has been all about building bike strength.  I've put in hours upon hours in the saddle.  Climbing hills.  Climbing mountains.  Racing hard.  Racing hills.  Racing elevation.  Training intervals.  Big gear intervals.  Max power intervals.  You name it, I've probably seen it in the last 9 months.

When someone asks me now, 'what's your weakness?' I think I can finally, with confidence, answer: "I don't really have one."  I'm not saying I'm the best triathlete in my age group.  But I feel much more well rounded now.  I've turned my bike into a strength.  My swim, somehow, has continued to improve.  And well, my run is there.  It's still waiting for it's day in the sun, but there are other factors that have limited my run performance thus far.  Namely, hydration and nutrition.  I'm no longer running poorly because I biked out of my league.

Smash Camp

Throughout the year on different occasions, I've been sent to Mt. Lemmon with the instructions to smash myself from mile 0-20.5, which is the official Mt. Lemmon climb.  Each time I've taken a little chunk of time off-- a minute here, a couple minutes there-- gradually increasing how much power I'm able to sustain for the effort.  Over Labor Day weekend I participated in the Smashfest Women's Camp in Tucson.  On Sunday we climbed Mt. Lemmon, and chased by my teammate, I took 7 minutes off my previous best time- the biggest chunk of time I've taken off at one time.  I should also note that during these Lemmon test events, I've also been working on my descending and each time I am becoming more and more comfortable, and my times are decreasing there as well.

Mt. Lemmon Smashfest!

On Monday we headed over to the local community college for a track session.  4 of the women training for upcoming Ironman events (including myself) were given one workout, while the remainder of the group training for half IM events tackled another one.  It was one of the most brutal single workouts I've done.  I've had long, hard training days, but I can't remember the last time ONE workout took so much out of me.  But as Coach so happily pointed out, that's the purpose.  If I can do THIS workout, I can tackle the run on race day no problem.

The 4 of us pacing out our intervals.

Building mental strength.  

Ironman Lake Tahoe

View from our hotel.

Two weeks later, I headed off to beautiful Lake Tahoe for the 2nd and final edition of Ironman Lake Tahoe.  I competed in IM Lake Tahoe in 2013.  You can read about that: Here.  In 2014 the race was cancelled due to wildfires.  We had heard rumors that the race was going to be canned due to low participation numbers and I wanted a chance to experience the course again in something warmer than 29 degrees so in August I signed up for the full, and DB signed up for the half.

I (heart) Lake Tahoe!

I am so thankful that we did because a few days after a very successful race (on the part of Ironman) the announcement was made that they would not be continuing to host the event in Lake Tahoe.  It's so disappointing to those of us who truly appreciate everything the race had to offer.  It is absolutely stunningly gorgeous.  It's challenging both from the elevation standpoint, but also the climbs that are on the course.  And the lake is THE BEST swim venue of all the races I've done.  The water is crystal clear, chilly but not cold.

Checking in my gem on Saturday.

I'm not going to go into every last detail about the race but I'd like to share some highlights.

The swim
I felt FANTASTIC.  The best I've ever felt in a swim.  Ever.  The course was two loops and though I started near the front, by the time we got into water deep enough to swim I was probably several hundred people back.  Within no time, everyone who ran full speed ahead into the water and subsequently became hypoxic faded behind me.  I have dialed in my swim pace in training so I was able to just put my head down and swim.  By the time I passed the 3rd turn buoy on lap 1, I pulled ahead of the small group of 4 I was with and ahead of me were clear waters for hundreds of meters.  At the start of lap 2, I caught the pack in front of me and continued to pass people (a majority of them on lap 1 still) all the way to the finish.  I exited the water with a new swim PR of 54 minutes 30 seconds, 1st in my age group, 6th female, and 33rd athlete overall out of 1423 athletes.  32 people swam faster than me.  4 minutes faster than my previous best.  And the beautiful thing was, it felt so easy.  Effortless.  I can't wait till IMAZ.  I honestly think I can go faster.

My First Out of The Water ROKA Swim Award!

If you look closely at the photo-- you'll see that my Garmin tracked my swim as 2.48 miles.  I'm not saying my Garmin is 100% accurate, but it is the same tool I use in every single open water swim race so it is, if nothing else, consistent.  And the course was not short.  (Everyone's first thought when you post a 4 minute swim PR.... haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate, thank you T Swizzle).

T1:  Uphill, in ankle deep sand...

The bike
The weather was hovering around 40 degrees when we got out of the water so I grabbed a jacket and some gloves in T1.  I hated putting them on, and creating excess drag, but I was so thankful to have them as I was chilly through mile 40.  I dropped them at an aid station before the final big climb of loop 1.  The bike course is fun.  Hilly.  Challenging.  Slightly technical in spots.  Enough to keep you on your toes.  The volunteers are amazing.  I was happy to ride consistently, and my first 56 miles matched the time of my second 56 miles.  The climb up Brockway is B.R.U.T.A.L.  5 miles from start to finish and steep.  Literally a 30 minute grind each time.  And the speedy descent back into King's Beach is over way too quickly.

Captured on the climb.  

The run
Well, I'm not gonna lie, I'm not happy with my run.  But that's ok.  Early on when I knew it was going to be a very bad marathon I made the decision to just get to the finish line, no matter what.  I had hours and hours to get there.  I wanted to be one of the few people that can say she finished both editions of Ironman Lake Tahoe, a notoriously difficult race.  I wanted the bear medal.  (Did you see the picture above?!)  I had seen the medal in the expo on Friday and I knew I had to have it.  Bear is my nickname since, like, birth.  Combination warm and cuddly and don't fucking mess with me or you're gonna hear me roar.  Anyway... I also had to finish the race in order to be awarded the ROKA Swim Award for my age group win.  It doesn't matter what the rationale is, on race day everyone has to find their own reasons to get across the line.

Coming out of T2.

The first lap of the run is about 18 miles.  Leaving only 8 miles for lap 2.  My friend Michel had been keeping an eye on me during lap one, especially after I disappeared off the radar for a while.  At around mile 16 she offered to run/ walk the second lap with me.  I circled through Olympic Village and back out onto the bike path where she was waiting for me.  I was hurting pretty badly and so glad to have her there with me to make sure I was still eating, drinking and moving forward.  One of my teammates caught up to us and ran with us for a couple of miles.  Feeling the pressure of the girls behind her she eventually ran ahead to secure a 3rd place finish in her age group.

Heading out of the village with my husband at the start of Lap 2.  

There's a lot of solidarity out on the course when the sun goes down.  The fast folks have finished and are enjoying a nice shower and dinner.  The remaining group of athletes has to dig a little deeper to make sure they are making it in before the cutoffs.  Everyone acknowledges each other's suffering and encourages each other.  So as much as I love to be in when the sun is still high in the sky... every once in a while I need to be on the other end, giving and receiving support from my fellow athlete.  With 2 miles to go, Michel left me to head to the finish line.  I ran the whole rest of the way.  My pace was slow but I was happy to be running.

Pre race, with my HPB Teammate!

The finish line
Ironman Lake Tahoe was number 18 in my Ironman career.  And every finish deserves respect and celebration no matter how slow.  I shed a few tears in the chute and threw my arms up in my typical finish line fashion.  And it was done.  I had goals I didn't reach, but I have no regrets.  I would sign up again for Ironman Lake Tahoe in a heartbeat.

This pretty much says it all.

The next phase
I recovered quickly from Tahoe and had a few days off of work to take advantage of some extra sleep.  To be very honest, cause really I don't know how to be any other way, I'm a little down.  Some stuff happened, and I went for a little roller coaster ride that I really hadn't intended on, and I'm left feeling a little lost.

6 years ago, my (now) husband was run off the road while biking and though his injuries were not more severe than some broken bones, it was a wake up call.  For the first time, I realized that I could lose him and it terrified me.  I had sworn for 5 years of our relationship that I would never get married, and after that accident I knew that I wanted to marry him.  I knew that it was important to him, and suddenly the thought of being without him was frightening.  I wanted to make 'us' official.

Recently, I had another wake up call.  No broken bones this time, and no cars involved, but nevertheless... I found myself terrified of losing him all over again.  I took a step back and realized that I don't want to be the over-reactor... waiting for something bad to happen to remind me of how good my life is.  I want to appreciate and love my life every single day.  I have taken a lot for granted over the years.  Especially lately as life has gotten so busy, and there never seems to be enough time in a day or a week.  It's time to stop.  It's unsettling.  And I don't know exactly how to move forward, so I feel a little stuck.  I don't want my actions to seem unauthentic, but at the same time my instinct is to grab hold of him and never let go.

I have some fun insights into my upcoming training, but I'll save that for another day when I feel a little spunkier.  I'll leave you with some lyrics from a song by Meghan Trainor...

So I'm gonna love you, like I'm gonna lose you.  I'm gonna hold you, like I'm saying goodbye.  Wherever we're standing, I won't take you for granted.  'Cause we'll never know when, we'll run out of time.  So I'm gonna love you, like I'm gonna lose you.

My husband qualified for the 2016 Half Ironman World Championships in Australia next year.  He jokingly suggested taking a month off to enjoy Australia... and right now, that's sounding pretty darn good.