Adventures in Cross...

After Kona I wanted to continue to use all my hard earned fitness.  I signed up for the now annual tradition of the Annapolis 1/2 Marathon and had thoughts of running a full marathon 2 weeks after.  Other small detail, I bought a used Cyclocross bike about a month before Kona.  I went over to Erin's backyard a couple times and practiced riding around in the grass, jumping over things and jumping on and off my bike.  Ready, set, CX!

Silly me, I thought I would pick a few races and test this sport out to see if I liked it.  **News Flash** you can race a couple times every weekend!  I went all in and signed up for 2 races the first weekend after I returned from Kona (2 weeks post IMWC).  When you're used to training for 40 weeks for just one race it's kind of like being a kid in a candy store when you can race 2 times in just one weekend.  I'll admit I wasn't coming into cyclocross completely clueless - I'd been working my ass off on my bike for the past 6 years and went into Kona holding the highest power #s I ever had - so let's just say the fitness base was strong.  Erin saw the posting the my CX bike and Pete made the connection to actually get it which certainly helped all this fall into place.  Erin had been filling me in on tips and tricks each weekend she would race and even coached me through the basics in her backyard (don't ever ask me to dismount while holding the top tube).

Off I went, rolling up to the start line.  It had been a long time since I'd put myself on a line as a total newbie, feeling clueless, excited and terrified all at the same time.  I was literally shaking.  The whistle blew and starting off fast was lost on me.  When I get on the bike at Ironman no one cares how strong that first pedal stroke is and if I can get out to the front off the line (heck there is no line haha).  I can't wait to go back to that course because at the time I found it terrifying.  Steep descents and off camber turns that had me squeezing the brakes and just hoping to stay upright.  Thankfully I did and in the end I had a blast.

The learning curve in this sport for me was steep but I put myself back on the line the next day (on a slightly less terrifying course) and actually felt like I was racing.  I was able to slightly improve my start off the line, carry some speed through some turns and actually race enough to land on the podium.  One of the most fun things throughout the (short) season was my own skills and confidence developing.  With more than enough fitness to race for for 30-40 minutes the great potential improvements for me were in skills and learning to read and pick better lines.  Once I had 5 races under my belt I was able to upgrade to and race in 2 separate fields, if I so desired.  I had so much fun the few times I got to race twice on a course.  I rode faster and more confident in the 2nd race of the day each time.

One of the best parts of this whole adventure into cyclocross was getting to race with friends.  Erin and I haven't raced together since some weird swimming thing way back in the day and though we ride and train together all the time we go our separate ways to race.  Off she goes to kill it at road races and I go on my merry way to triathlon.  We had just a couple races where we got to actually race together and many more to come next year!  The last couple weekends of the CX season we got some more triathletes to test out dirt and wider tires.  Turns out they loved it and hence started #tricross.  We even got SuperSherpa, Pete, to get out a race a couple times!  Don't let him fool you, he's pretty talented on 2 wheels.  I'd be remiss if I didn't mention all the new faces and wonderful ladies I met who were at almost every single race with a smile and words of encouragement.  It was a total breath of fresh air after a very long triathlon season.

Below is a short race report on each CX race that I did this year as there's no way I'd ever get around to writing individual entries for each.

Staging at Biketoberfest

Biketoberfest CX W4/5 (8/18) - This was my first CX race so I will fully admit it probably wasn't as terrible as I remember.  Technical off cambers, steep descents, and a small wooded section.  All I remember from this race is being terrified and pulling the brakes on all the descents and being disappointed that I didn't come to any barriers other than a big log in the woods.  I was literally shaking standing at the start line.  Once the whistle blew the nerves subsided and I just focused on staying upright.  It was a beautiful day and we had a ton of fun hanging out and watching the other races.

Tacchino CX W4/5 (4/12) - This was a fun course with some technical turns and a wooded section.  I was more confident at this race and super excited to actually get to hop barriers.  Had nightmares for days of 'PEDAL JENNY' as she wasn't far behind me and I was getting overly frustrated trying to clip in to my mud laden pedals.  Learned that a lot of bike races for 5 deep on the podium and had a ton of fun at this race.

W4/5 Podium at the Ed Sanders Mud Fest

Ed Sanders W4/5(2/19) - This was fun - albeit a SERIOUS mud pit.  There was nothing too  crazy about this course except it turned to complete mud and we were running tons of it!  Lots of tracks around little lily ponds and what I can only assume are fun off cambers when you aren't running them.  I just focused on moving forward as quickly as possibly (on foot or bike).  I was super surprised to hear I was in 2nd as I was midway through my 2nd lap.  Had an awesome remount fail and I basically flew over the bike, but the mud was soft and I entertained a spectator or two! 

Germantown W4/5 (1/20) - Really really great race for us triathletes - lots of areas to just go fast.  The small up/down section was fun and the woods were great.  I wasn't a huge fan of the log coming out of the woods.  Started learning how to ride those after this race but just ran that section every time.  Took the lead within the first couple minutes and just kept after it.  Rory, Kara and Pete were all there to cheer and we headed out for cider and donuts after.  Best day ever.

W4/5 Podium at Germantown

Rockburn CX W4/5 (1/11)  - This may have been one of the most fun courses of my mini CX season.  A little bit of everything, including a sandpit (the only one I encountered this year), a fun up/down W thing, a couple wooded sections and some screaming descents.  Not too mention meeting some super awesome youngins' from BYC that I'd see at a few other races.

Winchester Applecross W4/5 (1/4) W3/4 (3/10) - HOLY TECHNICAL.  Fun course and event with apple cider, apple butter, fireplace etc.  I just don't even know where to begin other than thank god this wasn't super wet/muddy.  Lots of steap little hills that were run ups, 2 Belgian walls and this weird off camber thing between 2 run ups that turned out to just be faster to run unless you could mount your bike from the right side.   It's one of the further away races from DC so the 8am races didn't draw a huge crowd.  First time racing in the 3/4s and learning some lessons in pedaling despite not being clipped in.

Coming over the barriers in Taneytown

Taneytown (MABRA CX Champs) W4/5 (1/8) W3/4 (2/9) - Another fun course with some fun up/down thing, long grass/gravel sections to really push, and a bit of technical stuff around trees.  Pete, Mom, Rory and Kara all came out as well as Erin and Brian (Erin raced the 3/4).  Racing the 3/4s and just trying to stick with her seemed to work out all right!

Capital Cross W4/5 (2/41) W4 (1/20) - They did a huge push to bring beginners out to this race, which worked!   Tons of Cat 5 men and women came out which was awesome.  Unfortunately, with the size of the men's field starting in front of us it made things a bit more difficult.  Decided to not burn too many matches and not even worry about chasing down 1st since I had another race later in the day.  Way more open space and room to race in the W4 race, which was nice.  A fun course with the chutes, stairs and climbs through the woods.   Super happy to get Pete, Katie, Beckie and Shannon out before the end of CX season at this one!

Bike Doctor CX

Bike Doctor CX @ Red Shedman  W3/4 (2/8) - I warmed up at 7:45am and the course was fun and fast.  Then snow started to fall around 9am.  By the time noon came around for my race it was slick and I knew it would be a race of who could manage it better.  Well managing mud, snow and slick conditions don't seem to be my strong point.  I took a turn too hard warming up
and hit the ground pretty hard.  I know this made me a bit skidish going into the race.  Enough open space and climbing in this race to let me use my fitness to chase down some others.  Cool location at a brewery and probably really fun it it isn't freezing and snowing all day!

Bikenetic CX W3/4 (5/17) - Super fun course and last race of the local season.  This year it turned to a snowy muddy mess yet somehow still managed to be fun.  As I stated above managing mud and slick conditions are not my strong point.  Started out well but fell back in the field as we hit some of the muddier areas of the course. I Was surprised to see that I held on for a podium spot.

Welcome to Prime Time ;)

Eagleman 70.3 Race Report

A classic - everything about it.  Classic Eagleman temps, winds, humidity, etc.  My training came along well after White Lake and I was feeling pretty good going into Eagleman.

Pre-Race - Friday
Heather and I headed out to Cambridge Friday afternoon and took care of all the pre-race jazz.  We opted to book a local hotel rather than stick to our original plan of camping, which I'm super glad that we did.  I think everyone involved was much more comfortable in the hotel rather than the alternative.  We hit up a local hot spot, Jimmy and Sooks, for dinner before calling it a night.

Pre-Race Saturday
A short ride/run with Heather on the course and BIG breakfast at Cambridge Diner were really the highlights here.  More pre-race shenanigans - like Heather fashioning the longest straw I've ever seen out of some rubber hose she got at the expo and a sing along party.  Super Sherpa, Pete, had arrived Friday night and was along for much of the fun Saturday.  Once bikes were racked and we were settled in we ate dinner in the hotel room and fell asleep to Titanic.  The laughs and fun I had with these 2 kept the feeling light and the stress at bay, which was so nice!

RACE DAY
The Swim - 37:42 - 1.2 Miles
Wetsuit legal and I felt pretty good about my swimming going into this.  I knew I didn't need a fantastic swim just a decent swim.  I got into a rhythm rather quickly and was sighting well.  On the
2nd leg of the swim (After the first turn buoy) we were swimming directly into the sun.  It wasn't too bad, except you couldn't really tell what colors the buoys were until you were right at them.  I kid you not, more than 1/2 the field turned a buoy early on this leg.  I continued swimming to the proper turn buoy in hopes the course cutters would be sent back (which it doesn't seem they were).  I came out of the water with Ellen and zipped into T1.

T1 - 3:21
Nothing special here - wetsuit off, helmet/sunglasses and shoes on.  Go time.

The Bike - 2:30:16 - 56 Miles
Felt really good and temps were fair for the first 90 minutes.  Got into a strong rhythm and was loving riding one of my favorite courses.  Being a younger female the heat can hit us hard on the bike since we are one of the last waves to start the swim.  And oh did the heat hit us hard.  A bit past the 1/2 point I started to tell that I was cooking but went with my gut and kept my effort steady and strong.  I made quite a few passes and knew that I was on pace to go sub 2:30.  Well, not when there's a no passing zone and messy bike traffic a few miles from transition.  I had to let sub 2:30 go in order to not burn anymore matches.

T2 - 3:03
Quickly in and out.

The Run - 1:56:50
Felt good heading out to run.  Was told I was in 1st off the bike - my reaction a laugh and ha let's see if I can hold it.  I've never raced exceptionally well in the heat, 60s and rainy tends to be more my jam.  I kept the fluids coming in and stuck to my nutrition plan.  The inevitable started happening on
mile 3 - ladies seemingly flying past me from my AG.  The heat was melting me and all I could do was hold on the best I could.  I tried to get the pace back and it took until about mile 11 to bring it down again.  I ran a bit with another woman headed to Kona and she fired me up to finish strong.  I was able to get to the line just in time to hold onto a podium finish.

FINAL THOUGHTS
I have a love-hate relationship with this course.  I love the town, I love the course itself and that I can train on it but it's oh so much better when the temps are at least bearable.  It's pretty much a home-town race for DC Tri and there is tons of support in the crowds and amongst fellow racers, which you don't get at many other M-dot events.  The swim here is never fast, but it's not fast for anyone so it's fine.  I'll probably find myself at this race again at some point...not sure how soon.  It's hard to subject yourself to conditions you know your body doesn't thrive in year after year.

White Lake 1/2 Race Report

I was pretty excited to be kicking off my tri season early and heading down to NC for a 1/2 Iron distance race.  Two years ago I kicked off with an early season half with a solid PR in SC so was hoping for something similar this go 'round.  Seasoned members (Mom and Gary) were making the trip down from Michigan and Pete and I would drive down from DC.  We had a nice house with some friends right on the lake and just a few hundred yards from transition.  Seemed like a perfect way to kick off tri season.

In the couple months leading up to race day I unfortunately had an increasingly worse rash breaking out on my neck.  I had been to the doctor and had an appointment scheduled with the dermatologist (a month down the road).  The doc prescribed an antibiotic 10 days out from race day - it was a 7 day course of meds.  Ok, great I thought, I'll be off the meds by race day (and hopefully this unsightful thing all over my neck will be gone).  Well spoil alert, the rash didn't go away at all.

We packed up and made the drive down on Thursday as it was a Saturday race.  The lake and house were beautiful and we spent a good amount of time enjoying the dock all weekend.  I went for a short
out and back ride on what would be the end of our bike course on Saturday.  A few miles out I hit construction :/ and a completely milled lane in the direction we would be biking on Saturday.  I optimistically thought oh maybe they'll close the road or shift traffic so we can bike on the smooth new stuff and the cars can drive on the horrible surface.

We had a relaxing day Friday which involved a lot of relaxing on the dock and a quick trip to packet pickup before getting everything ready for Saturday.  I was able to meet up with a fellow FYP athlete at packet pickup and chat for a bit.  After packet pickup it was back to the house to start getting all the things ready for race day.  It always seems daunting the first race of the season and easy breezy by the the end of the season.

Saturday Race Morning - PRE RACE
A quick walk over to transition and a close racking spot to bike out was perfect.  Didn't take long to get set up and take care of all the pre race needs.  I spotted Carrie again said hello and quick good luck wishes before heading over toward the water to get into my wetsuit.  The sunrise was absolutely gorgeous.  There was a small delay in the start time as we waited for emergency personnel to get in place and then it was time to go.

THE SWIM - 1.2 Miles - 41:46 ( OA 19/51)
I had been feeling good about my swim going into this race and was definitely feeling good about the wetsuit legal swim.  I tried to hop on feet at the gun but the lead group took off and then everyone else seemed to be randomly spaced out and going all over the place.  I felt good in the swim but upon exiting the water I was quite (unhappily) surprised by my time. Oh well, move on there's still a lot of racing left to do!

T1 - 2:30
Wetsuit off and and quick jump onto the bike.  Nothing exciting here, but that's how we like it.

THE BIKE - 56 Miles - 2:35:35 (OA 1/51)
I started out feeling great on the bike.  I figured I'm make up more than enough time to negate the subpar swim.  By the time I hit mile 30 I felt like I was working really hard - I didn't want to stay aero, I had to used a lot of self talk and dig in and I didn't want to eat my food.  This has never happened to me, not even in a full.  Usually at a half the bike goes by so fast I don't want it to be over.  I felt like I was riding in to a headwind with every turn we made - well we weren't, I just felt like crap.  Then I made the final turn on to what was supposed to be the newly paved road - well nope.  The cyclists were indeed riding on the milled pavement for a good portion of that segment.  Talk about a power suck.

T2 - 1:31
Off the bike, visor on and onto the run course.

THE RUN - 13.1 Miles - 2:04:27 (OA 15/51_
I was feeling decently confident in putting down a solid 1/2 marathon.  My body let me know early on that wouldn't be happening.  There was no energy, it felt like the closest thing to a death march I've ever done and it's the slower 1/2 marathon I've run since my first ever 70.3 race.  All I wanted were cold sponges, I couldn't find a cold sponge or ice until almost mile 7.  Overall the run course was a flat out and back mostly following the shoreline.  It was hot and it was sunny especially for an early season race.  I got myself back to the finish line and for maybe the first time ever, sat down and said "that wasn't even fun".

Results - 5:25:47 (OA 7/51, AG 2/5)

POST RACE THOUGHTS
Well hindsight is 20/20 but looking back at it now my body was just depleted from the meds and whatever else it was fighting off since the meds clearly weren't working (didn't work).  Antibiotics wipe out your system and I'm pretty sure I started feeling the effects on the bike.  This was an early season race or me and I took a legit off season after a big year in 2016 so there was a lot of work to be done.  Good thing is this race lit a bit of a fire in my belly to get after it in all ways.

Overall it was a gorgeous venue and now that the paving is refinished on the bike route probably a super awesome course.  I could be convinced to go back again, not sure if I'll be back soon but I know I can do a helluva a lot better than the time I put down in this performance.

Huge thanks to the great sponsors that have been with me throughout 2017 including Cercacor, Osmo, DC Tri Club/District Taco Elite Team, Rose Physical Therapy Group, Ultragrain, Louis Garneau, Rudy Project, Honey Stinger, Base Performance, XX2i Optics, and Xterra Wetsuits.

#R2K: 5 Weeks Out

We're just under 5 weeks out from race day on the big island.  There have been some big training
days, yet as I write this I'm sitting here staring down the barrel of overload.  I'm cleaning, cooking, doing laundry and trying to get as much as I can situated so I can use any free time during the next 2 weeks to sleep (in the boots).  My body feels strong and healthy, ready for what is coming our way.

Many have asked if I'm ready for the big dance?  In short, the answer is no.  Sure, I could toe an Ironman start line and finish (probably decently well) but I need these overload weeks.  For the fitness, for the confidence, for the chance to push myself, to break barriers, to have quality time with

training partners that inspire me, to learn.  I am confident in the plan and in the process.  I will come out on the other side with a more confident answer to that question.  To steal a line from Jesse Thomas - No expectation, doesn't mean low expectation.

I've started executing a sauna protocol, I've fine-tuned my nutrition, and I've been doing the little things to take care of my body - weekly PT, daily rolling/stretching, core work, taking time out to relax in the boots, and sleep (lots of sleep).  I spent a good amount of time researching and talking to
others who have executed the sauna protocol - there really was no good evidence against it, so I carved out the time to make it happen.  We were blessed with a hot and humid DC summer, that abruptly turned to fall right around Labor Day weekend.  I don't want to complain, but last I checked Kona isn't the most brisk of places - so into the sauna I go.

Keeping the body balanced

I've been fine-tuning my nutrition with the help of Inside-Tracker and Osmo Nutrition and Base Salt.  I was lucky enough to win a free analysis from InsideTracker at Maine 70.3.  Thankfully there wasn't anything super alarming or surprising but little tweaks and suggestions to definitely get some numbers into the optimal range to really get the most out of my body.  Osmo has been in my bottles for the past 3 years and is part of a solid hydration plan that hasn't failed me yet.  I'm complementing my hydration with Base Salt on the both the bike and the run to help prepare for the high sweat rate we're likely to see in the conditions on the island.


I'm excited, I'm nervous and most of all I'm thrilled to have this opportunity.  I can't wait to see what my body can do over the next couple weeks in prep for the big day.  And of course I can't wait to put it all out there when I get to toe the line on October 14th with the best in the world.  Keep your eyes on the blog - as I plan to do a series of race reports this week.

The BIG Cheese for the beginning of Overload!

#R2K: 4 Months Out

For so many months it seemed so far away, just off in the distance.  This intangible thing that I was piecing together but not letting myself focus on.  Well guess what...the time is coming.  Training is slowing building to look more like 140.6 #s and less like 70.3 #s.  The spring season racing is over - lessons learned, podiums conquered, tears and smiles, to put a wrap on the early part of the year.

Breakfast on Aerobars

The training load is building and finally beginning to look like those Ironman training weeks that I remember oh so well.  My mind has completely warped, and I'm well aware, that what I consider a normal training week is likely what some others peak out at for Ironman.  And I felt like I had a ton
of free time when I was cranking out 14 hour weeks.  With the increasing training volume recently I've come to realize I can't do ALL the things ALL the time or see ALL the people.  Lucky for me I get to head to Michigan for a recovery weekend and party with the best of friends for a very sweet 1 year olds birthday.



I've been slowly finalizing all the Kona plans.  Organizing my sherpa team, making sure flights and cars and all the logistical stuff is booked.  Not so covertly encouraging my sherpa team to volunteer on or before race day...and when I googled Ironman World Championship to get to the volunteer page, you know what showed up?  Google pulled up my registration confirmation for the 2017 Ironman World Championships...holy crap...it hit me.  That dream that was so far off in the distance, that even once the ticket was punched and coin collected still seemed unreal is getting very REAL.  We're going to Kona to race.  I am going to Kona to race.  I'd be lying if I said it doesn't scare the crap out of my when I think about it a lot.  I'm choosing to focus on the process, channeling my *get to* attitude and having fun.

My comments on my workouts have recently read something along the lines of...I'm terrible at dissipating heat, this makes me super nervous for Kona....We're pushing through what looks (and I hope) to be a hot and humid DC summer.   Learning how to handle the heat, getting used to being comfortably uncomfortable again, and putting my head down watts out.  I'm racing one more 70.3 in Maine pre-Kona.  While *fingers crossed* the conditions won't mimic Kona, I'm excited for would could be a PR type of course and conditions.

The early season saw 2 70.3 distance races (which I need to write race reports for) White Lake Half and Eagleman 70.3.  Great opportunities to get some racing under my belt again, get Pete some experience attempting to use the Ironman tracker and give me info and deal with all my pre-race, race day, and post race emotions/shenanigans.  I must say he did a great job and was right there at Eagleman to tell me my position coming out of T2 (1st).


This is the part of the process I love - the daily grind, the stacks of laundry, the adrenaline, the fatigue, the empty fridge, the big grocery bill, the choice to rise up and push and see what you're capable of.  It's coming and I'm ready for it.

#R2K: Getting There

So how did I get from one of the most disappointing and frustrating races of my time as a triathlete to punching my ticket to Kona in 6 weeks time?  It wasn't easy and it wasn't a sealed deal that I'd even be racing until about 3.5 weeks out from race day of the 2nd Ironman.  Physically and physiologically we had to make sure my body was up for the challenge.  Recovering from a full IM can take 3-4 weeks in itself and tapering takes another 2-3 weeks...if you do the math that doesn't leave much time for training, let alone peak training.  Mentally we had to make sure I was ready to get back out there, put in the hours, make the sacrifices and do the work.

Priority #1 was making sure I was healthy coming out of Ironman Mont Tremblant.  The first week was a mandatory recovery week - 3 days completely off,  some easy swimming, some easy cycling and some very easy running.  My body felt good and not nearly as sore as I usually am post Ironman. Likely attributed to the inability to push hard and race to my potential due to illness.  Physically my body was feeling good and ready to take on more training after the first week of recovery.  I attribute this in large part to weekly physical therapy sessions at Rose PT.

Upon returning from IM Mont Tremblant and knowing I wanted to try again (likely at Maryland) we resumed weekly PT sessions - working on mobility, stability and anything we could to get me through the training and racing with no pain.  I committed to daily mobility sessions, on my own, post-workout between the 2 races, knowing if I couldn't stay healthy there wouldn't be a start line for me for race #2.   There's no denying that training and racing 2 Iron distance races (as well as a couple
of 1/2 distance races) can take it's toll on the body throughout the course of the season.  Due to some strength imbalances my left shoulder had been starting to bother me with swimming and my left hip with running.

I was fortunate enough to have access to the best treatment in town with my coworkers.  We used dry needling, biofeedback, active release, and manual joint work to help decrease pain and discomfort and normalize and maximize the efficiency of my movement patterns as much as possible in the time we had.  As my training load increases this year I've continued with PT to ensure I stay healthy throughout the year.   We're working on run mechanics, posture, breathing patterns and shoulder mobility to get started.  I'd rather put the preventative time in now rather than try to recover from in injury in the middle of a training cycle.

There were a lot of pieces that all fell into place to make the turn around happen and happen successfully.  A huge part of that was the support system I had behind me throughout both races.  I surrounded myself with training partners that believed in me, pushed me, and were some of my
biggest cheerleaders going into both races and on race day itself.  My coach was on board and family was on board.  The rest was up to me, to listen to my body, be smart with the training, and gain get as much fitness back in the tank as my body would allow.  I prioritized sleep and recovery more than I ever had before during those 6 weeks.  I aimed for 8+ hours of sleep every night and time in the NormaTec Recovery Boots after key sessions.  I focused on my nutrition and made sure my body was getting what it needed to recover and adapt.

One of my favorite photos - so many emotions.
Best friend/training partner watching my finish at IMMD.