2009 Race Schedule

Here's my (Just Tri) race schedule for 2009:

April 5: Cherry Blossom 10-miler, Washington, DC (10 mile run)

May 5: Lake Anna Kinetic Half, Lake Anna, Virginia (Half Iron Triathlon: 1.2 mile swim/56 mile bike/13.1 mile run)

September 12: Patriot's Half, Williamsburg, Virginia (Half Iron Triathlon)

My 30th Birthday Celebration:
October 11: Chicago Marathon, Chicago, Illinois


What's missing? Oh, about 4-6 additional races I usually do! I was so burned out last year I didn't even care anymore. When you get to the point where you say, "Oh, I'll just pull this half-iron out of my arse." you know it's time to re-group. So, this year I'm backing off a bit and taking time to re-think. I'm practicing great restraint not to register for every race that has a cool gimmick. I keep telling myself, that race will still be there next year. Who knows, 2010 might be my Ironman year (as well as the year hell freezes over).

Stay tuned to the TriBabes blog for all our training ups and downs and post race analyses. Once again, we're off and running... and swimming and biking!


"It's good training!" - Just Tri

Bye-Bye AG 25-29

The girls and I will be running the Fairfax Four on New Year's Eve. Somehow the thought of a Nike Hoodie and, more importantly, wine at the finish line has blocked out the thought of running in 30 degree weather. (Hey, I've done it for worse. Remember my first half marathon in 32 degree weather for a green fleece vest?!). Anywho, I realized this will be my last race as an age grouper 25-29. I am moving on up to the AG 30-35.

I really don't wanna go.... That's the toughest age group. I had finally cracked the top quarter of my age group and now this.

However, to help celebrate TriBabes are doing a marathon to help me celebrate my 30th birthday in September. TriMe apparently did this for her 30th too. I guess great minds think alike; or at least masochistic minds do. BarbieGirlNot is probably wondering why she just couldn't just chip in a Starbucks gift card. She got peer-pressured into it, although I gave her the opportunity to stand by for 26.2 miles and watch. So she's a quasi-masochist.

No race has been chosen. If I'm going to run, we're going to do it BIG. Vegas? Ladies, it's going to be fun. Just think, if I really had it my way, we'd be swimming 26.2 miles!

"It's Good Training" - Just Tri Me

Turkey Trot

I told a friend I would help her train for her 1st 5k. I am so proud of her. She is a ma of 2 also. Ipush our 2 youngest sons around while our other kids are at preschool. She just got certified as a ZUMBA instructor so she does that and long walks/runs on the days we don't run together. How motivating is that?!!!! I don't know if it is because I am use to doing longer, slower training runs, but I feel so out of shape when I run with her. She hasn't run competitively since High school and she hated it. But she is a natural!!! I just wish I wasn't slowing her down. Anyway, I am a little upset with myself that I have let all my endurance go in the crapper. But we will be doing the Herndon Turkey trot for any and all those who wish to join us!!! Teammates???????

Off season training?!?!?!

We have officially concluded training???? Really, do we psycho 1/2 ironwomen really ever stop? Ok, I am the first to admit we slack, but in the back of our minds is the next race sometime next year and how much effort do we really want to put into that "startup" training for yet another half???? With all that said I have started an off season training plan that I downloaded off the web site begginertriathlete.com. I would love to say I am following it religiously, but the truth is I am slacking. I hate swimming and therefore have replaced 1 and most the time 2 out of the 3 swims I am suppose to be doing a week with weight training. Which in the actual plan is interspaced throughout the week I just hate to swim. Ok so much for my babbling. I still love that we (all 3 someday hopefully) will keep riding on Sundays and I love that we all still love getting together. I truely love my teammates as I say in every one of these blogs I have done. By the way, I have never blogged before and I have found this to be very fun! Does anyone read these?

Ready, set, no go...

So I don't know if I am mad or relived. The half was cancelled and I am now back at home sitting on my couch instead of firmly planted on my bike. With my projected time I would have been within an hour of finishing right now. Instead, I already ate an apple fritter and am thinking about lunch. What the.....!!!

I am the first to admit I did not want to swim, but not having the chance to do anything is frustrating. I was at least hoping to get the chance to race the Olympic distance on Sunday. I know it takes a lot to set up these events, however, it also takes a lot to get ready for one. The sprint and Olympic are to take place on Sunday(swim for them is cancelled)....seems like they could have shared the road?! Race directors said there wouldn't be enough support for that many athletes...fine with me...kick the sprinters out. I mean J-Lo wouldn't have minded (see previous blog). We paid the most, trained the most and therefore are aloud to whine the most.

I guess it will just have to wait until next year. We have been offered a 50% discount for next year. Wow, how about paying for my hotel, my gas, etc. My whining is free for them! Two of us will be around and might be able to talk the third into coming back out. Who knows, maybe next year will be a 110 out and we fall off our bikes due to the heat.

With no races in sight I am not sure what I will be up to. Time to kick back and reflect on how this training was fun. As much as I just bitched, this year of tris and runs has given me two great friends. We have common interests and goals that without the tris we might not have crossed each others paths. To sum it all up I want to borrow a line or two from some famous commericals...

Tri registration: $175
Hotels, food, gas, etc: $600+
Friendships gained while not even getting to race: Priceless!!!

Thanks for a great year-it makes me sad to think it's kind of over. Maybe we need to find something to do......

Hurricane Hanna & a Half

Our first Half-Iron was in 90 degree heat just a week after a tornado hit. Now, Huricane Hanna is headed up the east coast and over Williamsburg - at the EXACT time we will be racing. No word yet on what modifications they will make to the race or if they'll cancel it (I, of course, am praying for the latter!). I'm sure they'll take away the swim and add more running. Personally, I'd rather take my chances in the water than have to run anymore than required. I've done some races in Hawaii in some 4ft+ waves.... :) Quite honestly, I'm more afraid of getting blown off my bike with my feet still clipped in.

The other girls, of course, would rather do anything else other than a swim. I'm trying to conjure up a 3rd event for them that might be embarrassing, but if you knew what they did to me at a public restaurant, you'd know they aren't easily embarrassed.

I'm actually more excited about this race now than before. It's probably because that remote shot of it being canceled looks likely. It's like one of my students holding out for snow on the day of a major test.

If my next post ends up being from Maine, you'll know I got blown a little off course in the swim. Wish us luck... although surviving is a pretty feasible goal at this point too.


"It's good training!" - Just Tri Me

And this is so special because?????

In this week's issue of People magazine there is an article about Jennifer Lopez doing her first triathlon (!) and six months after giving birth (!!). Wow... she's so special. All hail la Lopez.

It really makes me laugh. Well, J-Lil did her first triathlon six months after giving birth, too. And you know what? My friends and I are doing our SECOND HALF IRON Saturday. We have kids, too. We have jobs (real ones, to boot). Yet we don't get a 3 page spread in People.

So, what am I griping about? Not much. Just wanted to let you know we are way cooler than J-Lo.

Go TriBabes!


"It's Good Training" - Just Tri Me

Close, But No Cigar

At work today I dropped a bookcase on my toe. There was blood, but no broken bones. My first instinct was "oh, not before a race." Then I thought "hmph, maybe this is my ticket out of the Half." As the other girls will attest to, I'm not mentally in this race. I haven't even made my hotel reservations. I guess part of me is still hoping I'll encounter a good excuse not to do it. This is it for the girls, but I still have another two races to go. I know this should be the bigger deal since it's a Half, but I'm just still kaput from the last one.

I have now taken a whole new approach to training. I am referring to it as a"spiritual" based training; as in, "Oh God, please just let me get through this race!"


"It's Good Training!" -Just Tri Me

What Next???

2 Weeks to go till the 2nd craziest (actually this may be the craziest since I already know the type of pain I will be in) thing I have ever done in my life is OVER!!! Man I can't wait. As I was telling my teammates today (on our 5mile run-1st training we all did together for either of our races) I b-tch, whine and moan about my races. Stress myself out to the point where everything in my life seems to be falling apart and going wrong, and then I turn around after the race is over and wonder what race I will do next. Am I a Sadomasachist? Or am I a Triathlete? Isn't this why we do race? To get our life back together? To give ourselves goals and a set schedule to keep our lives active and fit? I don't know if that is why, but I know it is part of why I race. The other part is because without that goal I have no direction. The other reasons I race is because I want my kids to know a healthy life style and a strong, confident woman as their mother. And though my confidence waivers as I near my races I try not to let them know. I keep working out as planned and just keep moving. I hope they know someday the thrill of training for something (anything-football, soccer, lacross, swimming) and the satisfaction when finishing. They don't have to place, just finish or have done the best they ever could. I want them to see me doing these things. Show them how strong women are. By the way, they are 2 and 4 so they have no clue but someday. And maybe someday my teammates and I will meet to do an Ironman!!! HEHEHE!!

I'm baaaaaack

I'm finally back from enjoying my summer vacation. I spent 2 weeks at the in-laws and only gained 3 lbs. (not bad). Then I came home and left right away for a long weekend in Ocean City, Maryland and lost 1/2 lb. (excellent!).

And true to my word I was out running on August 1st. However, I huffed and puffed my way through a 5K (baaaaad!). Then my mother in-law said she didn't feel comfortable with me running since they've had moutain lions in the area (real baaaaaad). So, that was the end of that. I didn't get to hit the Vortex at Mizzou, but I went on a float trip down the Meramec River and got out and swam against a hard current for 20 minutes (fuuuuuuun!). I think people thought I was an idiot who didn't realize I wasn't going anywhere.

Now, I'm back and with a vengence. I subbed 6 AM Spin this morning, did the eliptical trainer for 60 minutes and then subbed 9:30 BOSU Strength. Right now my motivation is my weight. I have to start work soon and need to fit into my clothes again. I know we bagged on BarbieGirlNot for being on Jenny Craig, but I'm getting desperate. I'm on total flush-out/detox this week. I'm doing low-carb (yeah, me! Miss-I-could-survive-the-rest-of-my-life-on-bread) and protein shakes (i.e. Slim-Fast and TriMe's PB & Banana shakes). Plus, I'm trying to add in an extra 30 minutes of running or swimming. We'll see how it goes....

Still doubt I'll be anywhere near ready for the next Half. I've kind of already conceded mentally to the other girls. They've been training hard. I think part of me still thinks I won't end up racing because of a scheduling conflict. I shouldn't have taken so much time off, but I know my body needed it. Although I'm sure my wardrobe might beg to differ....

"It's Good Training" - Just Tri Me

Post-Half Celebration

(L-R: Just Tri Me, Tri Me, BarbieGirlNot)

Summary of our Post-Half Ironman Celebration: Sorry, what happens at Coastal Flats, stays at Coastal Flats.... ;-}

Tri Envy

This whole "I'm not training until August" thing is actually harder than I thought. I am just a competitive person by nature, mostly with myself. I just keep feeling like I need to be training.

I'm completely jealous of the girls. BarbieGirlNot got herself two coaches. TriMe got herself a pretty schweet tri-bike. And I'm sitting around doing nothing. (Even if I'm swimming, ladies, it's not necessarily "training". Some people actually enjoy swimming and do it for fun). I also just found out today that bike check-in for the Patriot Half is on the day of the race, which means I can race. (I was having logistical issues because Tri-Hubby is finishing his training in Georgia the day before the race). So, now, knowing for sure that I'm racing and that the girls are training and bonding, I feel this pull to train. I can handle the not-running-training part, but I feel guilty for not training. I think: I'm going to start training in August with only 4 weeks before the race?!?!?!

I leave next week for two weeks with the in-laws. I'm STILL trying to get off the weight I put on while I was there at Christmas. Even if I wanted to start up training, I don't think the opportunity is there. I might get some running in, but I always feel at the mercy of my hosts that it just doesn't happen. Plus, I'm not very comfortable running the country roads by myself.

The one possibility is going to the University of Missouri Rec Center to swim. They have this cool area called The Vortex. It's a heavy current that swirls. I think "normal" people get in there and let the current push them around the circle. But the one time I went, I started swimming into the current. Man, what an awesome challenge! I was able to hold my location for a minute or two and then I started losing ground and got pushed away by the current. I’m dying to go back and give it another "tri". (har har)

So, we'll see. My body is telling me to take more time off, but my brain is telling me to get real and train. I just wish I didn't care and could be happy with just finishing. Now that we have one Half under our belts, I don't want to finish any slower and the girls are coming out stronger than ever….

Ohhh, how nice it must be to be an ADD triathlete


"Maybe I should be training..." - Just Tri Me

Breaking in the new baby...

Today was my first ride on my new baby. I finally broke down and bought a tri bike. I have raced on a $300 road bike for one race too many. In GA I had gears seize up, my chain locked up and had to listen to a clacking noise the entire race. I'd had enough. So, I started looking for bikes and found a bike way above my needs, but it was a great deal(or so I keep telling myself). I bought the bike of my dreams and promptly put it up in the garage. I looked at it for sometime, went on vacation and now was left with nothing else to do but ride. So when barbiegirlnot asked if anyone was up for a ride I jumped at it. If you have read her blog you know I have tires that are troublesome to change along the way. So of course I would ride with her, she could get the car if I needed it!

The ride started out slow, okay walking my bike to the trail so I didn't catch a nail etc. before we even hit the trail. Once we were on it I felt like I was having an out of body experience. I was hardly moving my legs and my average speed was faster than my old bike when my heart felt like it was going to explode. I am still a little uncomfortable on the bike as my aero bars are too long and will have to be cut. I also had to learn how to grab and replace the water bottles behind me. The first water break was a stop. I did get better and now feel okay with riding, drinking and getting the water bottle back in its spot. We didn't break any land speed records today, but had a great ride and enjoyed each others company more than I enjoyed my new bike.

I had to get on the blog first because I know barbiegirl is going to make fun of me so I wanted to have my say first. I will leave the comic relief to her this time.

Glad to be back in VA with out the Colorado altitude. I did a nice easy 6 mile run, minus falling as I looked at squirrels chasing each other, that's ADHD isn't it? It hurt a little today on the bike and might feel worse tomorrow but it's back to real training. I have the bike, I love the run and hope to get better with some swim help.

Happy running!

Laughing and Training

I know I say this everytime I blog, but Justtrime and Trime are 2 of the greatest women alive. I just love them. How funny is the blog from Justtrime. Yet at the end you will see she said "see you at the pool". HMMMMM! Will she be swimming??!! Trime got a new bike, tires don't come off. Apparently they are glued on. Something Professionals do because they have bike crews(I don't know if that is true) or they just don't finish the race. But for ADD racers like myself, we buy tires that come off so if we get a flat we can finish the race. So, as you all have been guessing both my teammates are OCD Triathletes. But I love them anyway!!!!!

As for me, I got 2 (yes 2) coaches for my swim. I am swimming 4 days a week and have been feeling more chlorinated thatn I have ever felt in my life. Mind you this is my 1st week back swimming. I did not ask for the coaches they have just graciously volunteered to help. I apparently "swim flat", don't reach far enough, and kick like "sh-t". Words of constructive critisism from my coaches. So now most of my swim workouts consist of a warm-up (never knew there was one in swiming), a heart rate set (raising my heart rate till it feels like popping out of my chest) then drills, and a cool down (once again never knew, but this is my favorite part of the workouts). I am not a very efficient swimmer. I don't have to be fast, just more efficient to beat the previous 1.2 mile swim I did in GA. hence the drills. Of course, all of this together is helping me build confidence and endurance in the water. I will let you know at the end of the month when I do my long swim and compare it to the one I did at the begining of this week. I hope to be more efficient, faster, and less tired at the end.

We are doing a 2 hour 30 min ridie on Sunday. If any of you should see 2 women walking, one with a flat tire on her high speed low drag bike, pick us up. She can't change her tire and I won't leave her out there!

Laughing and loving all the crazy things we do!!!!!

EFFD: Bad Day

Escape from Fort Delaware Race Summary: A woman passed me on the bike at mile 14 and shouted over her shoulder, "Don't worry, I'm not in this race." I shouted back, "Don't worry, I don't think I am either!"


I am describing this race as CRAPTACULAR. I'm not even going to put down my race splits or my time. I'll only say that I was 20 minutes slower than my usual Olympic distance tri and was the 8th to last on the bike. (Somehow, though I still managed to finish middle of age group, but that was really by default because the rest of my age group was all lined up right behind me in the final standings.)

The support I received from my teammates is as follows:

TriMe: "SHUT UP AND SWIM"

and

BarbieGirlNot: "stop being an OCD triathlete and start being an ADD one"


I was looking forward to the swim because you get to swim across the Delaware River. I guess in years to come I can say I did that. I got off course 4 times, and it was a straight swim; one side of the river to the other. And it wasn't a "oh, I got a little off course", it was a "I got so off course that the kayakers and police boats had to come get me"… FOUR TIMES!

I really considered packing it up and going home but I paid money and didn't want to waste it. I have to say I was honestly hoping for a bike break down so I could pack it up and go home. But of course, my bike held up and this was one race that had a bike van helping out along the course.

Oh, and the picture that's posted. That's not me at the end of the race. That's me just starting the run...


This race just wasn't any fun for me. Even when I have a not-so-great race, it's still enjoyable. This wasn't. I'm just mentally and physically caput. I have been racing since March 1 of this year and have had no more than a 2 week break from races.

So, I have decided that I'm not training until August. Just not doing it. The girls are planning these bricks and training runs, but I'm out.

If you want to read a training blog, check back for the girls' entries. I might chime in to mention an awesome new routine I’m trying at the gym or how amazing it is when you allow your body time to rest and heal. Happy training ladies, if you need me I'll be lounging at the pool…..

"I'm not training 'til August..." - Just Tri Me

See Mommy Run...at altitude

Back in my home town of Aurora, Colorado for two weeks of vacation is great...and then I go for a run. Growing up here I used to make fun of people who got altitude sickness, now I am one of them. Learing from past trips I took today easy doing a 45 min. run walk. Most of it was running but I took advantage of the walking time. Taking it easy seems to work out better. I feel great and am ready to workout tomorrow.

Lame - but redeeming myself

So, I was lame and registered for the olympic distance Williamsburg Tri while both my teammates registered for the half. I currently am now registered for the half because i felt like such a heel and a traitor/letdown to my team. I feel better now that I will once again race with my team...I hope they know I am loyal. BUT....I will still use the excuse that they talked me into it or at least guilted me into it. I figure the "test of loyalty"story should be a good one. So here I am again stressing about the race. This time I don't have the time set aside for training and I am currently in Cleveland away from all my normal training environments. So I am fat and out of shape and not getting any closer to 70.3 shape. Man I am back to being lame-excuses, excuses, excuses.

2 Weeks down, 11 to go!

I am about to complete my second week of my 13 week triathlon plan. I am doing a lot better at sticking to the plan and the eating is going a lot better. I did miss yesterdays workout due to traveling to NYC to buy a new bike!! It's so nice I am afraid to ride it! I am looking forward to our next tri so much more having this incredible machine on my side. Everyone says I will grow into the bike, don't think that is possible unless I grow some new legs that are really fast.

The best news to report is that all 3 tribabes are again racing the half together! I am so excited and am looking forward to September.

Round 2 Begins Tomorrow!

This time around I am going to have a plan and follow it as much as possible. I have a 13 week plan that I tried to follow last time but life kind of got in the way and brought about 15 pounds with it. Yikes! This time, I vow to not only train better, but also eat better. No longer do I get to say, "Hey, I just ran for an hour...3 cookies are ok aren't they?". I don't plan on doing anything too drastic. Chocolate is still a part of my life and a good glass of wine won't be wasted. However, the extra eating has to stop. The hardest part about our last race was having the extra weight to drag around. It definitely made me slower and less efficient.

So, here I pledge not only to race my second half iron on Sept 6 but to also be 15 pounds lighter!

4 Chicks, 3 Bikes and a Tri

Finish time: 6:59:34 (after the bike, I was elated to get under 7 hours)
Swim: 38:03 with 1/4 mile up-hill sprint to transition; 27th out of 123 women (not bad since I probably did an extra 300 meters by swimming off course)
Bike: 3:48:32; 110th (oops - I'm an ADHD cyclist)
Run: 2:26:57; 68th

Um, so, picking Georgia in June to do our first Half was probably not the smartest idea. With 93 degree heat and "gently (HAHAHA) rolling hills" it made for a wicked race. I was quite intimidated by the value of some of the bikes. I have a great bike, but seeing those tri bikes with their zip wheels I felt completely out of my league. But, being the tight-wad that I am and having spent the money, I was doing the race anyways.

SWIM: On the advice of a friend, I decided to wear the wetsuit. I can't really quantify the benefit but at least I was able to let my legs drag a bit and rest for the bike. Plus I figured it'd add extra protection from snakes in the water… :)

BIKE: I am going to practice restraint while trying to describe the bike… (this is me thinking of what to say using PG language)… Well, it took me almost 4 hours, which was a half hour over the time I was telling everyone (which as you have read is an overestimation of what I was really hoping for). Who knew Georgia had hills?! And they didn't stop! I can't think of more than ½ mile stretch that was flat. Even if it looked flat, when you got there it was a long incline. The highlight was getting up to 36 mph on a downhill though.

I was so thankful I didn't have any mechanical problems on the bike. As my teammates can attest to, I was so stressed out about this. In their eyes, comically so. Namely because I still cannot fix a tire (note to self: learn how to fix a tire before the next race). I even promised a beer to my bike mechanic if I survived the race without popping a tire. As I passed downed-riders, I always asked if they needed anything. This was my way of pacifying Karma.

BarbieGirlNot has this great article about ADHD triathletes versus OCD triathletes. I'm an OCD triathlete overall, but definitely ADHD on the bike. At one point I was trying to catch love bugs. I was whistling Dixie (literally). Trying to guess the species of road kill. I know this is one area I really need to improve on.

On a side note, when the Half and Sprint riders split off on the bike course, I was extremely amused at the volunteer who kept looking at me and yelling, "Sprint turn right! Sprint turn right!". Sorry lady, this slacker is doing the Half today.

RUN: At mile 20 on the bike, I was ready for the run. Yeah, me! ready for the run. I was so naïve to think I could do a 2 hr or less half-marathon followed by a 56 mile bike. I tried to run from the start but I could not get my heart rate down. I really didn't want to start walking because I knew if I started, I would do it again. Turns out, everybody was walking. I also forgot my race number. Doh! Instead of going back I decided to take the penalty. I walked the uphill and ran the downhill. Oddly enough, when I ran, I was averaging less than an 8:30 m/m. This caused people to cheer me on, (my favorite being from a fat, old southern gentleman "You go, Babydoll!"). Guess they thought I was running like that the whole way. I really enjoy the camaraderie that exists during races and the run especially. (TriMe has a great story.) I learned that most of the people that were dying like me were not from Georgia, nor did they think Georgia had hills. And the best part of it, I got my named announced as I crossed the finish line! Woo-hoo!!!

Heroes of the Race:

TriBabes: Because, honestly, who'd a thought!

TriMe, Jr.: For just being awesome and supporting all of us. Like BarbieGirlNot wrote, it was just so nice to see her face after the swim, running along side me to get me up that hill, and then that encouragement after gettting the beat-down on the bike, and being the best medal-girl EVER!

Polka Dot Jersey Guy: Not only did he have the best cycling jersey of the race, a red polka dot jersey, he did the 56 mile bike in tennis shoes and no toe cages. (And he still beat me!)

Sprinkler Neighbor: To that Bibb County resident who put his sprinkler on so we could run under it and cool off during the run and sat out there and cheered all of us on - THANK YOU!!

EPILOGUE: So, I ended up with an IV at the end of the race. The funny thing was that we joked about it on the drive down. TriMe was telling us about how the pros get an IV after a race because it helps speed recovery. We all thought it'd be funny to do this. At the pre-race meeting the director told everyone to leave it to those who needed it. I felt great after the race. I packed up, took pictures of the other girls crossing the finish line, and then TriMe and I ate. Well, I stood up to look for BarbieGirlNot and my stomach flipped and I felt like I was going to hurl and pass-out. I ended up in the medical tent with an IV. (TriMe Jr. was so great and stayed with me the whole time. Such a great kid!). I was a little embarrassed about the episode but better than ending up in a hospital.


It was definitely a profound experience for me. For a girl who couldn't run a mile 2 years ago, I never would have thought I could do something like that. It makes me feel like I've crossed this defining line for triathletes. I was a bit jealous of the girls that they were able to call their hubbies and share with them their triumphs. I guess that's why I detail my races so much here so that he can read them when he can.

TriMe was talking about another Half before this race started. During the bike portion I decided she wasn't allowed to mention Williamsburg until we at least reached North Carolina on the drive home. But, before I even crossed the finish line, I had pretty much decided I'd do it. So, in September TriMe and I will be doing the Patriot's Half in Williamsburg.

"It's good training!" -Just Tri Me




P.S. TriMe, where's my damn 70.3 sticker?!?! ;-P