Triathlons Are Like Summer Camp

I've been meaning to write this post for awhile and I'm choosing to write it now because I think I need the friendly reminder :)

What I love about triathlons is that the race is basically like a day at summer camp. Swimming! Biking! Running! All activities that we so eagerly looked forward to as kids. Especially biking. Biking was our first opportunity at independent transportation and was our own little method of freedom. FREEEEEEEDOM :)

I'm choosing to remind myself of this fact today because I had quite the painful bike ride this Saturday. The Timberman course has this super nasty hill. I made it through but holy crap...it was hard. My new speed fill straw kept jumping around and smacking me in the face (this is why we do training rides with new equipment) and I realized I must wear biking shorts on race day. Then it came time for the post bike ride brick run. I actually felt pretty great and the view was exactly what I needed. Out and back right along Lake Winnipesaukee with beautiful lake homes to keep you entertained. I realized, although there is that hill that makes me want to not do the race all together, the venue, the people, the ability to even consider doing such a race, is what is actually making me excited to do the race. 

This tri-season has been different without Black Fly. I always loved Black Fly because a whole bunch of us Zoomers went up to NH for the weekend and hung out and raced together for the 3 days of the event. I feel like Timberman is going to be that weekend...except all the racing will be done in one day! I'm really just reminding myself, it's not everyday you get to swim in a beautiful lake surrounded by mountains, bike on country roads (and maybe you go over some of those mountains) and run next to the water as boats are coming by and people are out just enjoying the gorgeous view from their homes. Adult summer camp :) And hell, I guess you can always walk-I'm going to try very hard not to though! I figure, if last year I ran a half marathon spraining my ankle 2 weeks prior, I can do this. It just may not be so pretty. 

I was also reminded of how fun racing can be the other day. Last week was a crazy mess for a whole number of reasons (including leaving my wetsuit at Walden-D'oh!) and one of the nights I was bolting over to Waltham (stuck in tons of traffic) to attend the Tedy's Team meeting about the Falmouth road race. I rushed in starting looking over the logistics, formulating a plan in my mind about how to accomplish this "task." In my mind I went over when was the best time to leave Boston, when to pick up my packet, how to be dropped off on race day, where to meet up on race day etc... and then I heard the words "after party". O right, this is a fun race, Tedy will be there, we will all be hanging out and celebrating after. RACING IS FUN :)

We don't look for worse of the wear after biking and running the course, right? Do I look a year older now?

I'm also sad I don't have any photos to post from Saco Bday weekend or other riding/running events. Now I have a new camera so more photos to come! A big thank you to +1 for driving to and from NH last weekend and this past weekend. (I was also kind of a whiner on the big hill and he gave lots of great encouragement to get me through it.)

Here we go Camp Timberman! TRIATHLONS ARE ADULT SUMMER CAMP :)

-Older (wiser?) but still a bad triathlete

Attitude re-adjustment still in progress but 2 years a triathlete!

O well hello there!

I know my last post was kind of a bummer. I can't say I feel 100% back to my usual self but I'm taking it day by day. I still haven't regained my faith and positive outlook on the general population but hopefully that will come in time. I had a pretty great and relaxing 4th and that was a major help.

In case you weren't following my NEW badtriathlete tweets (wait why aren't you?? https://twitter.com/Imbadtriathlete)

I'll provide some general fitness updates with badtriathlete flair and pictures :)

The weekend started off by battling the traffic down to Gillete to run the 10k that finishes on the 50 yard line of Gillete stadium. Holy hot/humid day! I was really trying to hit my 55min goal but goddddamn it was hot. I also had boloco on the drive down (oops!) so I had mega stomach pain the whole time. I did pretty well the first 5 miles but then bonked hard/felt like I was going to faint/got goose bumps and all my regular bad triathlete symptoms. Oops! It was nice having so many friends doing the race from my Reach the Beach Team, Zoom, Tedy's Team etc... and +1 (aka Chris) did his first official 10k! I think I was more proud of him than I cared about my time.

After the race we drove down to Hyannis. And yes, there was still traffic at 11pm :/ The Cape is so pretty and I didn't realize the house was pretty much on the Hyannis Half Marathon course that I ran in February!

I tried to be good about getting in training but it was so freakin hot! I tried going out for a run and sticking near the shore for the sea breeze but it wasn't too helpful. There was a girl running behind me and when I stopped to take a picture of the pretty view she passed me with something interesting in her hand:

 Running with a bottle of wine! Brillant! Why didn't I think of that?! Such a bad triathlete move!

Her next move confused me though:

Umm...? Chick that white wine belongs on the fridge if you are saving it for later!

I suffered through some more heat and finally it was time to go to the beach. We decided, despite the heat, to bike over to the prettier bigger beach on the other side of the bay. As we were biking home Chris gets into aero. TOOL! ;) Who gets into aero wearing a bathing suit after the beach? And then I suddenly felt empowered. I wanted to finally ride in aero too! So yes, the first time I fully rode in aero was when I was wearing my bikini top and jean shorts biking back from the beach like a tool. Can you think of a more badtriathlete first time for aero?

The rest of the trip was full of more Tour de France watching, Cape Cod beer drinking, beach attending and great hospitality by Chris' cousin. Here are some more pretty pics:

I didn't realize we were so close to the Kennedy Compound

Pic from my run

+1 refused to remove his sweater at the beach hehe

Right before the fireworks :)

After we got back to Brighton, we jumped on our bike trainers and biked while watching the Tour (stolen idea from Sherpa). What a great way to get some miles in! We did a brick run after and it felt like woof. All that humidity, makes me feel so nauseous when we run. O well.

I attended a nice butt kicking core fusion yoga class last night taught by a fellow Tedy's Teamer. I realized, yoga may just be what I need right now. This class was fast and intense but there is just something about only working with your own body that is very peaceful no matter what the speed. Lululemon is putting on these free classes on Tuesdays for the next couple of weeks and I'm going to try to attend. I'm hoping it will help with the mental re-adjustment I have been looking for.

With my second Olympic this coming Sunday I reluctantly headed out to Walden this morning. Chris' commitment to data is so intense that he spirited back out to his apartment at 4:30 this morning to grab his forgotten garmin before Greg came to pick us up. I've been trying to be better about data as well and I've been wearing my heart rate monitor every workout including this morning. I was so proud of myself for wearing after we finished the swim. I was then informed it does not work in the water so I basically wore it for nothing. Trying to make me feel better, I was informed I could see my heart rate before and after the swim though! Great.... haha At least I didn't wear it to see Coach tomorrow for our swim lesson and look like a dummy then!

The Timehop app also reminded me that today is a very important day: It's my two year anniversary of my first ever triathlon!!! My how the time has flown. It seems like just yesterday Curmudgeon was ripping the reflectors and kick stand off my mountain bike that I had lugged up to Black Fly Tri in NH. Talk about being nervous! I had no idea how two years later I would be about a month out from my first half Ironman and how much triathlons have changed my life :)

In the spirit of a picture filled post, here are some pics from start of my badtriathlete lifestyle!

So.Freakin.Nervous.

No really, I rode my mountain bike before I got my road bike to make sure I "liked" triathlons..hehe road/rode/rowed

Sprinting to down the finisher's chute!

My Mom and godmother drove up and surprised me! Aww my old car! Definitely did not finish #1... haha

There is your picture filled update, happy July :) I'm going to try and bring my mindset back to the girl in the picture above who was just so happy and amazed she finished her first triathlon. I never knew I could ever be capable of finishing such an event.

If you have time check out: My exciting Tedy's Team update!

But more on that to come later :)

Happy training everyone! Follow me on twitter for more up to the minute badtriathlete action :)
-cat

Lost bad triathlete?

 Sorry bloggy, I know I've been neglecting you....

The truth is, I'm not really sure what to say. It was a rough June.

My grandmother passed away at the age of 93 and just a few days later we experienced a tragic loss of one of Chris' friends while we were on the Trek Across Maine.

The marathon events still live inside my thoughts every time I go running. I can so easily picture myself just standing in the middle of Kenmore so confused and upset.

Basically, everything has been a little off lately.

I have forced myself to keep training but it's been really hard. I've lost a lot of faith in humanity. I don't want to bike any more. Cars are just jerks. I know there are a lot of people on bicycles (I'm not going to call that type cyclists) who act terrible when they are on the roads and put drivers/pedestrians/themselves at risk when they are out on the roads. I can assure you that myself and the people I ride with are not like that. The saying you learn when you first start biking is, "it's not IF you are going to get hit, it's WHEN."  You have to think though, as a driver is it really worth killing or permanently injuring someone who is on a bike? I know it can be frustrating driving around bikers but you basically have that biker's life in your hands when you drive past them. Do you want to explain to your friends/family/children that you killed a cyclists? It's just not worth it...

Nonetheless, I keep trucking along. I know this isn't the happiest of posts but I think I just needed to get my thoughts out there.  I really love everything triathlon has brought into my life and it just makes me sad that I've been feeling flat lately and scared to do the activities I love.

However, I finally had a great run the other night where I finally felt like my old runner self again. 6.24 quick miles where I got a nice healthy dose of runner's high. A bunch of teammates and I are doing the Patriots Place 10k where you finish across the 50 yard line in Gillette Stadium so I'm hoping that will help my racing spirits to be lifted.

We can all laugh that the "C" in "CAT" that I wrote on my arm for the Marathon is still permanently fixed to my arm:

Here's to a happier July (it is my birthday month after all!)