Okay so I'm back. I guess since Rianman took a few months off, so did I. But since he's training for IMOO 2010 I figured I needed to get back in the blogging saddle.
January 1 started with a very very cold run. Rianman, Steve and Andrea (visiting from Lexington KY) went for a 10k led by Coach Ken. It was 7 degrees when they left the house! I should have gotten a pic with them with all their cold weather gear on.
Okay so March Madness has begun. If you don't know (I'm not sure what American wouldn't)...the madness occurs every year when 64 NCAA men's basketball teams compete to all the way to the Championship. Why madness? Well it causes people to bring t.v.s to work, call in sick, and ditch their wives, girlfriends, etc.
It apparently also causes some to skip their workouts. I know this because Rianman came home and has been glued to the t.v. ever since...skipping his spin class. This is definitely the year AFTER the Ironman.
I guess what's one day? Oh, well the madness lasts for 2 weeks so let's hope the not all the workouts conflict with the games.
Well I may not be the best...but I have to toot my own horn. I was up at 5:30 this morning so I could accompany Rianman to the local high school track. "Did you run," you ask. Heck no!
I sat on a towel with pad and pen shivering in the morning chill. The sun wasn't even up. As Rianman ran laps as fast as he could, I took down his heart rate as he shouted it as he past me.
He ran past me about 18 or 20 times...I don't recall. It is a wonder I could write while barely awake. When he was done, I drove us home but made a stop at the golden arches for a healthy breakfast of a nonfat latte and egg mcmuffin (no cheese). Rianman had a scrambled egg. Yes, you can order just an egg there.
When we got home it wasn't even 7 am...the time my alarm goes off on normal mornings. I'd say I was a pretty good sherpa today. Wouldn't you?
Tonight is the first night I've been able to just relax at home in a week. I traveled for fun then traveled for work. I got home exhausted last night and am just trying to catch up tonight. So when Rianman asked me to help him tomorrow, I thought, "Sure. What do you need me to do?"
Rianman: I need you to go to the track with me to take my heart rate and time.
Natalie: In the morning?
Rianman: Yes...at the track.
Natalie: It's going to be freezing. Can't we go to the gym?
Rianman: Let me check my schedule. Um... no it has to be the track.
Natalie: Ughhh....okay, what time?
Rianman: 5:30
Natalie: AM? Uhh...no.
So, Rianman rearranged his schedule and we'll do it on Sunday. That's how you compromise with a triathlete.
What's that got to do with being a TriSupporter, you ask. Well, it doesn't exactly except that when Punxsutawney Philwas seeing his shadow, Rianman was up and at the gym getting his fitness on. Today was the start of his official training season. His alarm was set for 5...something (I wasn't up) and he was gone while it was still dark. He has been sleeping till 7 am for the last 2 to 3 months and this, post-Superbowl morning, he was up before dawn. Rianman did not see his shadow.
This means:
two workouts a day most days for the next 6 or 7 months
the baby bottle dryer has to come out from hiding and take up space even though we are child-free
those damned water bottles filling up my sink
powered mixes will dust my black granite countertops
sweaty Road IDs and FuelBelts will be left to dry on those said countertops
eating dinner alone most nights
the water bill going up to accomodate all the cycles of laundry
the numerous road trips to races staying in fairly crappy hotels
my car, which is the Trimobile, will see more empty, sticky gel wrappers
I could go one but I think you get the idea and if you are a TriSupporter you could probably add to the list.
So, Happy Groundhog Day. I hear we've got 6 more weeks of winter. Great! That means salty, wet sneakers drying in the kitchen.
For those who like their weather report early, the weekend was hot: high 90s with Heat Index well over 100 degrees Sat and Sun.
This past weekend started big: Ri-guy got fitted on his new bike and even took it on a test run. He loved it!! Said it felt so smooth, comfortable, fast. He looked happy...I guess he looked the way little boys do when they get a cool new toy. While he toyed with the bike, I went to Caribou Coffee and surfed on my laptop.
After the test ride, it was determined that he *couldn't* (gasp) bring his baby home. Scott and his guys at Epic are working on fixing a problem with shifting to the big ring. Let me just say that Ri-guy loves Epic. If you want a shop where they really care, are laid back, happen to all be adults (and you happen to live in the KC area), check them out.
Anyway....I asked Ri-guy if the big chain ring was important...is he in that big ring very much. Apparently a stupid question. Yes and it needs to be fixed. On my Specialize hybrid, I'm never out of the middle ring...I'm just too lazy to shift with my left thumb ;-)
Not having the bike was okay though because Coach Ken had Ri-guy on a 90 mile ride scheduled on Saturday and Ri-guy wasn't going to use the new bike for such a long ride. Here's a poor video of Ri-guy testing his new bike--it's so bad because I used my camera phone.
So maybe you're saying, "Get to the razors already!"
Next post my friends...where there will be pictures.
Oh where did the week go??? Heck, where did the summer go? It's already August 1st. Only 37 days till IMoo (IM Wisconsin)!!
Well Ri-guy is on his way to Epic Bike to get fitted for the new bike. (He did call the bike shop on Wednesday to confirm and of course tell them to take care of his baby.) I think he's both excited and nervous. At lunch today I joked that he was nervous about being able to handle such a speed demon. Not sure that eased him.
Last night Ri-guy's training was to ride an easy 45 minutes on a flat course. I decided to go with him...yeah I can ride a bike for 45 minutes, on a flat course. I actually did say we had to find a flat course. You probably don't believe this but Kansas is NOT flat, at least not where we live. It surprised us when we moved here. My little 4 cylinder CR-V does not like some of the 'rolling' hills. Can you see the all the hills in the terrain map below (btw don't you love Google Maps???)
Anyway...Ri-guy had been told about this flat circuit around the downtown airport but he'd never been. So last night, I looked up the route on MapMyRide.com. It's only about 20 minutes from where we live so off we went.
We arrived after a minor detour (we missed the ramp) and found that we were not alone. Cyclists, runners, and walkers were on the move. We did 2 easy laps on then were on our way to get a wonderfully healthy....burger....at ChefBurger...a gourmet burger place that opened in the $800 million Power and Light District in downtown KC aka the Urban Core (I find that a weird name but that's for another blog, one I don't actually write). I had a very yummy BLT burger with the T being of the Fried Green variety.
That brings us back to today. It's Friday. It's the Summer. There are people across the country gearing up for a race this weekend. Best of luck to all those going to Steelehead (Pharmie) or any other triathlon big or small!!
IronWil posted the photos from WIBA and she was kind enough to let me use some. You can see some of the photos in our Flickr set here.
Below is a favorite of mine. Yeah, I know. Ri-Guy isn't in it. But it's beautiful isn't it. It is a dock on Lake Mendota. It's hard to believe that in just a few short hours, the weather would change so drastically.
Recent Comments