Things that come out of nowhere...

While en route to the Haney to Harrison Relay last Friday, I was in a car accident. The first in 20 years, to be exact. When you respond to someone else's accidents for a living, it's easy to disassociate yourself from what's gone on; you assess the situation, determine safety and begin doing what is necessary to help. When you're actually "in" an accident it's a whole other story. I felt as though I was a bit on "auto-pilot", but was able to call the guys at work (as well as RCMP and BCAS) for help. It was such a relief to see them arrive.
I was OK, though had some low back pain, of which I got looked at that evening by a Doctor. I was told to take some time off work and go for some physiotherapy. As the dust settled, or even in amidst the dust, I was scared to acknowledge that training, work and life as I knew it could possibly be compromised. In reality, I got off extremely fortunately...for this, I am ETERNALLY grateful. What "could have been" was an unsettling prospect, and, sadly, possibly a reality for one of the persons involved.
So, here I was...time "off" work/play, and a bit worse for wear. I have a great physio and chiropractor who have got me back to functional again. It's a slow process, they tell me, but are very encouraging in resuming "normal" daily activities...yahoo! I am grateful for being fit and strong, but it's funny how everything can change in the blink of an eye.
I'm happy to say that it's been nice having time off...time spent with friends and family, eating good food and yes, even drinking some wine (...insert "gasp" here...)! But...with Doctor's note firmly in hand, I went back to work 6 days post accident and am feeling good. I spun with the girls this past Friday and it felt great. I had a little swim tonight, which also felt great...it's good to be back.
Oh, and for the record...ALWAYS wear seat belts...they save lives!

A run through the park...

After Grand Coulee, I felt I needed to focus on the area of my race that needed the most work; the RUN. Ugg! This was a bitter-sweet task, in that, I've always liked to run, but have never had any formal training and knew that this was going to be quite a challenge. I mean, come on, how hard is running? Well, as I am beginning to see, it's a hell of a lot of work, but something that's coming together quite nicely.
If I had to describe my running style I'd say I was a "plodder"... a function of too many years playing basketball, I guess. Running was always something you did to get to the other side of the court...I never really thought about how I accomplished it. And I was never told "how" to do it faster or better. So, after many years of staying within my comfort zone I decide to show up to a track workout and set foot outside the "zone" and see what changes could occur. I joined up with Andrew, Ginny and the BPR crew to see what I could learn. I'll admit, I was a bit daunted to be running with such accomplished athletes, but what I was shown has open my eyes to what I think is the start of a new love affair with running.
Andrew and Ginny set to task in providing a few very useful suggestions that have resulted in a more efficient stride, a greater sense of body awareness and speed! Holy crap...these legs are pretty speedy!
This past Sunday was the Rats X-Country Run in Kal Park. I did it last year and I think my time was just over an hour...1:03 and change, I think. This year, after a bit of training and some serious determination on my part, I finished in 53:28 and left it all out there on the trails. Man, did that feel good!
I can sense a new confidence growing with running. I have a good base built over this past year and am now combining it with some functional awareness that I can feel working. I look forward to more improvements, big and small, that can enable me to complete the run at IMC with grace and confidence.
For now, I'm pretty happy with Sunday's run and relishing in bettering my time from last year...

Ain't technology FUN?

I bought a new camera the other day...and have a funny feeling it will become a pretty valuable training tool. It's shock proof, dust proof, and best of all...waterproof! I took it to Master's this morning and got a bit of fun footage!

Randy...all smiles after a hard day!

Craig...part dolphin, part man!

And last but not least...Ally in her Nemo Swim Cap...I wear it for motivation!

Victoria Half Marathon October 12, 2008

I recently completed my first "Personal Best" in a running race. Having always been pretty lax when it came to race day, I wanted to see just what I could accomplish with some focus and determination. Well, I did it...1:52:11, my best time ever for a Half Marathon. This, of course, has me thinking about what I can accomplish for a Marathon time...but, that's something for a later date. I'm more concerned about IMC. And this training will help.

I had traveled to Victoria with a good friend, Erica, who was also running the Half (it was her first ever...and she did brilliantly...especially considering she had never run farther than 10kms!). The drive to the ferry was uneventful and the weather crossing was spectacular...so we had ample opportunity to gaze at some unbelievable scenery. Sadly, I didn't bring a camera, but you get the picture (....nice pun, eh?!)

It had been years since I had been to Victoria and I was amazed at how beautiful that city is. We stayed downtown at the Island Ocean Hostel (very reasonable and was blocks away from the start line...which was a total score). I was a bit dubious of staying in a Hostel, but asked when making the reservation if we could have a quieter, private room and it was great. A bit squishy for 3 adults, but you couldn't beat the price. And to have access to a kitchen really helped on the keeping the costs to a minimum.

Unfortunately, as soon as I got there I fell into the "race brain" mono-focus that befalls most competitors, I think. I wanted to get my race package and then keep my feet up. I didn't want to walk around, which was a shame because it was perfect weather for cruising the town, I wanted to be well rested and ready to race. I had come off night shift the day we drove down to Victoria, so was understandably exhausted on the first night there. We, Erica, Trish and I, found an incredible restaurant just down the street from the Hostel called The Black Olive and partook in some incredible food for our Pre-Pre-Race meal. I admit, I had a glass of incredible red wine that seemed to take the edge off the traveling and it helped to loosen me up a bit...or help me sleep, not too sure which?! Who cares...it was just what the doctor ordered and the Berry Tiramisu for desert was decadent!

Enough about food...

Race day came early and we were up and at it right on time. Erica and I had to start our race at 0730 and Trish, who was doing the Marathon started her race at 0830. A tasty bowl of porridge with fruit was comfortably consumed, a few trips to the toilet (more like 10!) and Erica and I were heading out the door to the start line.

The weather was perfect for running...not too cold, not too warm ( I brought gloves and kept them on for most of the run...poor old circulation!) and the biggest surprise was that it wasn't raining! It was truly a perfect day for this race.

As I mentioned, I went to the bathroom at least 9 or 10 times. No word of a lie! Call it pre-race jitters, girl bladder, whatever...I wanted NOTHING in my system before this race. I had run a few races in the past where peeing was an issue and I really just wanted to run without distraction. Well, as luck would have it, as I was walking to the start line, as if my bladder knew that there was no chance in hell that I could get to a toilet conveniently, I had to go...AGAIN! Well, it was at that point that I decided that if it wasn't reabsorbed I would just pee my pants...and hopefully no one would be the wiser. This stressed me out a little, but I had to keep my goal in mind. I wanted to run a sub-1:55 Half and my bladder was not going to stand in my way. Or so I told myself. :) Once I got to the start line, the line-up for the porta-potties was WAY too long; again...this stressed me out and made me want to pee more...damn! Again, I reassured myself that if I still HAD to go then I would. "BANG!" The race had begun! Crap...now I really had to pee...As I was about to cross the start line timing mat, I looked off to my right...and there they were...as if placed by Angles...porta-potties WITH NO LINE UP! I thanked God, Buddha, Allah and anyone else up there for their part in putting those little lavatories there and for having them free of people so that I could pee in peace. This race was starting off brilliantly!



Ahhh, now I could get down to business.



I had, before ducking out to pee, established myself in the correct pace group. With the little detour I had fallen back into a slower pack and it proved to be a bit worrisome regarding pace. There was at least 5,000 people in this race and I felt like I had to get in front of most of them to achieve my goal. The feeling I had was much like what a salmon must feel like swimming upstream. Ducking this way, dodging that way...I couldn't get a consistent pace and that worried me a bit. I turned my iPod up and got into my groove and just ran.



Before I knew it, I was 3 miles into it and feeling pretty good with the speed I was currently maintaining. I wasn't speaking with anyone, so couldn't gauge whether I was actually able to carry a conversation, but it felt good. I kept looking at my Garmin and was surprised at how fast I was running. I did remind myself that I had to keep some gas in the tank for the second half of the race, but I was feeling good.



I got a tap on my shoulder from some random lady at one point..."your friends said to say, HI"...I was a bit confused and turned around just in time to see Brock and Cindy waving madly! It was so nice to see friends on the route. Support is incredible!



I'm not sure whether it was the music, the weather, or the alignment of the planets...but I was having a blast! The miles just seemed to fly by and I was often surprised at the mileage markers. My Garmin confirmed that I was where the signs said I was; 3 miles, whoosh, 7 miles, whoosh, 10 miles....Holy Crap, the damn race is almost over! And I was running faster and faster and faster! It was unbelievable to me, the non-runner, at just how fast and how comfortable I felt, Don't misunderstand me, it hurt, but it was a "good" hurt.



The last 2 miles were a complete blurr! The last time I looked at my Garmin, I was at about a 7:35/mile and was FLYING! I crossed the finish line to the cheers of Lisa, Noelle, and Andrea and did so in under my goal time. 1:52:11 I was so proud! I just might become a runner, yet!

Grand Coulee Half Iron

It's taken me a few days to wrap my head around this past weekend's race.

Did it have the outcome I expected?

No.

Did I learn something?

Yes.

Did I still love triathlon...you bet!

Lisa came up from Vancouver to spend a few days with me in Vernon before we headed south to Grand Coulee. It was great to spend a few days with Lisa hanging out and "prepping" for the race. As I was tapering for the race, we kept our activity pretty low key (I struggled with being over-tired before the race in Oliver in June, so I didn't want to make that mistake again). We got a few lake swims in but generally hung out...in Lisa and Ally fashion...Starbucks, movies, good food and LOTS of giggling! After 20 years, somethings never change...and I hope they never do.

We headed south on the Thursday before the race. I gave Lisa the play-by-play of all the places I had ridden this past summer (...poor girl, must have completely bored her to tears, but she puts up with me...most likely tunes me out, but whatever...). The Century Ride (from Hell...), the Oliver Bike course, the "almost Ironman" bike course, the Ironman bike course...and countless references to "this" hill or "that" hill. Can you say mono-focused? Knew ya could... I digress.

We arrived in Grand Coulee to find that the motel we were staying at was about 250 metres from the start of the race. Nice.
I'm not sure we could have planned that any better. My friend, Ryan, came out from Wenachee for the evening and had dinner with us on the patio overlooking the lake. It was good to just chill and relax into the surroundings.

On Friday we did a bit of reconnance work. We drove the Olympic bike course (which was the first part of the Half Iron course as well). It was a daunting course even from the comforts of the car. In retrospect, I'm glad that I had the opportunity to come down and pre-ride it, as you just don't get the same perspective until you're out of gears and only a few metres up the hill.

We got up onto the Mesa and it was just as I had remembered it...vast and golden. It's pretty quiet up there and it went on for miles and miles and miles.

The course has you going over the Grand Coulee Dam which was interesting. (...I'll get to that a bit later...) T2 was across the dam and had you running alongside the river which, I thought, would be a great place to run. I'm shaking my head....it was miserable...but, I get to all that shortly.

The night before the race was not unlike most pre-race nights....completely amped at 11pm, then tossing, turning, checking the alarm, watching the hours tick by, peeing at least 5 times, i was not going to get any sleep. Oh well, there's plenty of time to sleep when you're dead, right?

Race morning came quick despite the slow cadence of time during the dark hours. The Ironman athletes hit the water at 7am to near perfect conditions. There was a slight breeze, but a welcoming one considering it had been so hot the day before. Little did I realize how hot it was going to get...uggg!

The male Half Iron athletes started at 9:30, the women started at 9:35. We all got together for a pre-race photo and the encouraging words flowed freely in anticipation of the day's events. It's interesting to see everyone's little rituals; iPod inserted, stretching, eating, giggling...it was great to be with everyone.

The men started enmasse...the women were a bit more civilized...a bit of breathing room between us and lots of encouraging words as the gun sounded. We were off! I LOVED the swim. It was incredible...at no point was I tired and, as I rounded the last buoy, I was sad to know that the swim portion was almost over. All that swimming in Jade Bay amounted to that moment. Done. There was the beach...I could see the exit and it was done. I vaguely remember hearing a few people cheering my name, but every time I get out of the lake after swimming I'm a bit dizzy and we had a hell of a haul up the grassy slope to get to transition...I couldn't wave, I couldn't look up...it took all I had to drag myself up the hill to the eager volunteer that had my T1 bag.

I got into the changing tent and basically brain-farted. I can't really explain it any better than completely gapping on what I had to take off, what I had to put on, what I needed to apply and where...it was all a bit overwhelming, really. I was off in la-la land, to be honest. I just could not get my shit together. I snapped back to attention when I saw my Coach, Ginny, fly into the tent after me and fly out like she was on fire. Ok, Ally...get it together...this IS a race after-all. Get going for crying out loud!!!

I made it out of the tent and grabbed my bike and hit the road. I had neglected to squeeze a gel into my mouth before hitting the water, so I was pretty hungry by the time I got on the bike. I slurped back a gel and then popped a Cliff Shot Block into my cheek and sucked on that for a while. The first turn had us starting the climb that confirmed that I MUST invest in a larger rear cassette, or a compact crank, or SOMETHING that would keep my legs spinning a bit faster than the snails' pace I was currently maintaining. Oh well, it would be over soon enough. I fell into a reasonable cadence and was observant of my HR and just kept pedaling. I came across a dead rattle snake, yeesh, and said, out loud, "...I don't have the energy to deal with you right now"...and kept pedaling. No panic attack, no tears, no drama...I was on a mission! (....gee, does this mean that I'm making "progress" in conquering my phobia?...Lord, I hope so!)

Once on top of the Mesa, I grabbed another gel and picked up the pace. It was beautiful up there. The temperature was very comfortable and there was a slight tail wind which was a great help. One of the things I did well in this race was to nourish on the bike. I had a gel every 35-40 minutes and between gels I sucked on Shot Blocks. The only thing I would change for next time is to be more attentive to hydrating a bit better. I figured the ride would take me about 3 hours (it took 3:21) and I had 3 bottles of E-Load and I managed to drink a bit more than two. Not enough...though, I didn't figure that out until 8 miles into the run. Too late....more on that later.

So, I was really enjoying the bike ride so far...eating religiously, trying to drink, managing my HR, going silly fast where appropriate...I flew through Grand Coulee on route to the Damn. No, that wasn't a typo...I am seriously afraid of heights and had a full-on panic attack at the thought of riding across that thing. Aack. This was frustrating. Well, all alone, and about a mile from transition...I had no real choice except to keep pedaling. I mean, I rode past the snake, right...this is just a big block of concrete. Man, I could employ one therapist on a full-time basis with all this crap...I kept riding. Sobbing, mind you, but I got across. Yeeesh...

T2 was a bitter sweet place. I was pretty happy to be done biking, especially after getting off the damn dam, but a bit reluctant to start the run. I think it was mostly in my head as I knew that in the past, it was about this time that things start to fall apart. I had my water belt, which contained 2 gels ( I should have brought more; note for next time!) and a bottle of E-Load...but it was HOT. And got HOTTER! Ugg. It was miserable, to be honest. Early on, I saw Andrew (who's wise words of "stay focused" were an ominous mantra I would learn the true meaning of...) looking like a rock-star...then Mike, also looking fantastic...then there was Joel...Holy Crap...these guys make it look easy! Then Ginny...wow, what a vision...big smile...then Katherine...then Cindy....oh...it was right about then that I did the math and determined that I was going to be finishing pretty far behind my goal of a sub-6 hour time. Oh, and did I mention it was HOT? I was out of juice, the aid stations were really far apart and I was getting uncomfortable.

I'm aware that I have to work on my "mental game". This race showed me that. It's evident in the finish photo...my head is down, my body language said everything I was feeling, I felt broken crossing the line. And, when I really look back on it, WHY? I FINISHED! I did well! It was REALLY tough course and I did the best I could do on that day. That's what this sport is all about. Training really hard and giving it all on that day. There was no point (...oh, except for T1 where I seemed to be camping out...5 minutes?! Who spends 5 minutes in transition???) where I could have gone faster. I raced well. The only thing I regret is not smiling crossing the line...I failed where that was concerned. I can correct that...I will NOT be grumpy crossing anymore finish lines from now on. I PROMISE!!!

The run was super flat...and super hot! I heard Lisa cheering me on from Myra's car as I ran alongside the river. I had fallen into step with this really nice man named Brad from Omak. At first, he did all the talking...I was pretty caught up in my dark thoughts, but he drew me out. We laughed, we talked...it was great. I started gulping the flat Coke at the aid stations and found PRETZLES...yahoo! Those little gems are money! I'm eating them at IMC, for sure! And the ice was glorious...I stuffed it in my shirt, sucked on it, slurped the cold water as it melted...it was glorious. But, short lived. At long last, the finish line was coming closer. I ran under the bridge and saw Nick, the guy from New York we were staying beside in the Hotel, cheering me on, and then started up the nasty little hill to get to the finish line. We had to run around the block and then down the finishing chute. It was glorious to stop. I was happy to see Lisa and everyone else there cheering! As I said before, I promise to smile when crossing the next finish line...I guarantee it!!

It was a good race, despite my glucose-deprived thought processes during the race. :) I completed it in 6:27:48. My swim time was 32:38 (I improved over Oliver by almost 6 minutes!!! WOW!), bike time of 3:21 and a run time of, ahem, 2:26. Overall, I placed 12th in my age group and did well! I still love this sport and look forward to building on this experience for IMC.

A few days out...

Today was the first day I wished it was race day...funny, eh? It's like Christmas...it never gets here fast enough and then, when it does arrive, it goes by too fast. Well, something tells me that I'll have plenty of time to relish in the warm fuzzies of it all grinding it out on the bike.
Ok, back to being nervous about it...damn it. I go from being super psyched to wondering if Mexican Jumping Beans do really exist and if I have mysteriously consumed an entire cans' worth just recently. How does this happen?
Lisa is here and is also getting ready for her race, too. She's got such a great outlook on this race. And, wether she knows it or not, has been instrumental in keeping my feet on the ground (or my head out of my ass...not too sure which is more appropriate at this juncture...) about it all. As she says, "...Ally, it's just a swim, and then a bike ride and then a run...you've done it before, right?". Well put, Lisa.
After tonight's sleep, it's only 2 more sleeps...and, you guessed it...the pendulum has brought me back to being excited again. :)

The Mental Game

It's a little over a week from the race and mentally I'm feeling like shit. I'm tired and sore from a hard last week of training and am trying not to let my head get the better of me. I remember feeling this way before Oliver and I tried to train through it...that didn't work. All I got was MORE tired. I want to go into Grand Coulee well rested, so I am starting my taper tomorrow (a few days earlier than scheduled). I feel like I'm letting myself down by not following my "plan".

I have done all the hard work and it will pay off come race day. My biggest challenge right now is to keep my spirits high and not let my fears and insecurities get the better of me. I'm not sure what it is that makes me think that I'm not good enough to compete, or don't deserve to be there...those are probably normal feelings, but ones I know in my heart to be unfounded. I have worked really hard for this race and feel the strongest I've ever felt (in comparison to Oliver). I'm ready for the race.

Part of the allure of doing these races is working on my mental toughness. Physically, I know I can do the distance; I can swim 2 kilometers with no problem, I can ride well over 90 kilometers and just yesterday I ran 18kms very comfortably...so where's the issue? The issue I face is one of self doubt and fear of not succeeding. What constitutes "not succeeding" I'm really not sure of...maybe not achieving the goals (specific times) I've set for myself? On one hand, the "rational" hand, the times are set to gauge my effort...if the times are too slow or too fast it's unrealistic. So, there has to be a happy medium somewhere; Andrew once said to "set some goals and then work your ass off to achieve them"...fair enough. Times aside, another goal will be to mitigate the unnecessary negative mental thought processes that will take way from my more important goals...LIKE FINISHING THE DAMN RACE WITH A SMILE ON MY FACE! :) (...which is going to happen regardless...)

As I sit here to finish this entry, I've just gotten off the phone with Lisa (...thank you, again, for listening...), and know that (the mental training) is going to be the bigger challenge I will face in the next year. Where in the world do you get a schedule for that, I wonder?