Week 2 Day 1... cheating on the trainer.

I was supposed to run for 30 minutes yesterday but my husband wanted to get on his bike trainer last night after the kids went to bed, and I thought it would be more fun to get on my trainer in the basement with him and chat instead of going upstairs to run on my treadmill alone.  So, that's what I did.  It's probably cheating, but at least it's exercise.  I knew that the first 2 weeks of this half marathon schedule was going to be sorta hit and miss since it's the holidays, the kids are out of school, etc.  I'll get into a better routine starting this weekend.

So here's a photo of me, in my jeans, on my bike in the basement.  (Excuse the ugly basement floor.)  This is how I'm being as lazy as possible, but still exercising.  The only thing that would make it worse is if I was eating chocolate or something while peddling.  (Which I was not... but I did have a burger at Red Robin right before.)  I really should look into finding a cheap treadmill so I have one upstairs AND downstairs.  Wow... I have a problem, don't I?  :)  Onward to 2015!

Week 1 Day 3 ~ New running buddy

My half marathon training schedule said to run for 2 miles last weekend.  No big deal.  Well, I got a new running buddy... a 4 year old German Shepherd named Athena.  Our run was a much bigger deal than I thought it was going to be.  She isn't very well trained to run.  Although she's super fast and never looked like she was exerting any energy at all... she pulls on her leash, and darts in front of me every once in a while.  I really thought I was going to trip over her and break my neck!  She tried chasing a squirrel once, she stopped abruptly to drink out of puddles, and she wanted to bark and play with other dogs.  It was a challenge to keep her focused so my pace was pretty slow.  13.28 average I think.  And it was the first time I decided to try using Strava instead of Mapmyride because I'm in the Vanderkitten VIP group on there.  These other kittens are going to think I'm super slow! 

At the end of our two miles, Athena really started to heel and stay with me.  So I think she'll get it, it'll just take more practice.  She'll be awesome motivation since she's super fast and she's having a blast!  ... and she can drag me up hills if need be.  :) 

Week 1 Day 2 ~ No excuses (Elliptical on Christmas)

I was supposed to run for 30 minutes on Christmas... 20 degrees in the ice and snow... in Bend Oregon.  Yeah, that wasn't happening.  There might be some hardcore runners out there that think that would be no big deal, but me?  Nah.  However, I jumped on my brother-in-law's elliptical and did 30 minutes on there instead.  My kiddo even joined me for a few minutes. 

I downloaded a workout calendar app a few weeks ago and put in all my required runs for my half marathon training until May.  It's really satisfying to check off the day as complete.  I'm determined to check off every single one of them. 

So, all in all, I did well on our little Christmas vacation.  I ate healthy (Besides eating my weight in chocolate covered coconut almonds) and stayed active.  We even took the kids to a big bouncy place and I jumped and crawled through obstacle courses with the kids for hours.  So nice to have the energy to do that!

Week 1 Day 1!!!

I decided it's important to document that I started my 21 week half marathon training last night.  I did my 30 minutes on my treadmill with my new ipod shuffle and new playlist (which made treadmill running almost not boring)  .... and then I ate a brownie.  :)

My jaw throbbed a little during my cool down which I thought was weird but all in all, I think it's pretty well healed for this.  Another note... I have a blister on my middle toe from my vibrams.  I don't know what's up with my shoes lately.  I feel like I need to throw baby powder in there or something... or try socks with them again.  I don't know, I may give up and just wear my new running shoes for a while.

21 week Half Marathon Training

Today I'm supposed to start a 21 week half marathon training plan with my BFF.  21 freaking weeks until our Disney half marathon.  Aaaahhh!  I'm feeling completely unmotivated to start training today.  It's 3 days before Christmas and I just want to get through the holidays.  It's been really hard this month since it's the first year celebrating the holidays without my stepmom.  We all really miss her.  Bah humbug this year! 

Also, since I'm now able to chew, after not being able to for weeks and weeks... I'm eating everything in sight.  I've gained at least 3 lbs back.  I can't stop with the evil Christmas cookies.  I need to order an AdvoCare cleanse and get back on track.  I'm feeling very blah.

It's only 30 minutes...
I downloaded hours of new music...
It's only 30 minutes....
It's really not a big deal...
It's only 30 minutes...
Think of how great I'll feel after my run...

The jaw saga

I realize I haven't posted anything about my month of living on smoothies.  I had oral surgery on November 7th.  I had two implants and a lot of bone grafting on the right side of my mouth.  Well, what was supposed to be 3-5 days of drinking smoothies, turned into over a month of smoothies.  My whole jaw hurt so my oral surgeon was afraid I had a fracture and put me on a liquid diet.  I didn't even get to enjoy Thanksgiving.  I'm just now able to eat soft foods again.  Do you know how bad I want a freaking steak!?

Well, I didn't tell my oral surgeon this but a little over a week after my surgery, I did a practice 5K for Girls on the Run.  (I'm addicted I tell you!)  I think that's sorta where things went downhill for me in the healing process.  I didn't realize running would be so jarring on my jaw.  I had to go home that night and take the good painkillers.  But, what's done is done.  I haven't been on a run since.  If I jog even a little bit, my jaw throbs.  I'm taking things super easy because I have to start training for our half marathon in just a couple weeks.

In other news… My husband's broken thumb is 95% better (I can't believe how fast he has healed after his surgery!  If only I had that luck!) So he's been getting on the trainer to ride his bike down in the basement almost every night.  I went down to ride with him over the weekend and as soon as I get on my bike, my middle right toes go numb.  Ugh I thought I fixed this.  I'm sure I've said before but I have a ruptured disc in my low back (L4-L5).  It's been that way since 1999.  I regularly go to the chiropractor, do yoga, get massages, acupuncture, etc.  I've been told in the past that I needed surgery. My chiropractor told me not to do the STP last year because I could give myself permanent nerve damage.  I did it anyway.  Some days I have no problems at all, and some days I'm numb my whole ride.  At the 50 mile mark on the STP, a friend said to try unclipping from my right pedal once in a while and that seemed to help and got me through the next 150 miles that day.  But now I'm worried about continuing to ride.  I really need to get this problem fixed but after the jaw saga, I can't even imagine how long it would take me to recover from back surgery.  I'm too busy for that, and I can't afford the time off work.  It's been really on my mind lately though.

And just so I can end on a good note… I won the weight loss competition with my dad and sister!  I lost 20 lbs on my smoothie diet.  This means I'm 5 lbs less than I was when I rode the STP this summer.  I hope to get down another 10 lbs for running season.  The less weight I have to carry with me, the better!  OH!  And you know what I realized the other day?  I am 100 lbs less than I was when I was 9 months pregnant with my son.  I was 268 back then.  I know that's cheating a little but come on… how much of that weight was baby?  He was only 7 lbs 15 oz when he was born.  I was HUGE!  :)

VK VIP

I was accepted as a 2015 Vanderkitten VIP Brand Ambassador!  That's kind of nuts and I'm really pretty shocked I was chosen.  I'm humbled and honored that they think I kick ass in sports enough to represent their brand.  I was added to the VKVIP closed Facebook group today and was reading all the new member's posts of excitement.  Everyone saying hello, where they're from, and grateful for their acceptance into this group of amazing women.  Honestly, I'm a bit overwhelmed and nervous about the whole endeavor, as there's a lot of hardcore women doing awesome things.  I hope I fit in!

More info on their website if you've never heard of Vanderkitten:  https://vanderkitten.com/2015-vkvip/

Why the West Coast is the best coast… mostly.

I'm sure I've mentioned in the past that I miss living in Salem, Massachusetts terribly.  I miss our amazing friends there that are more like family.  I miss my really cool ghost hunting tour company that gave me the opportunity to be on TV a couple times.  I earned my masters degree while living there, and my daughter was born there.  It's just a wonderful, historical, magical place.  I loved the seasons...  The hot, humid summers, and the blizzards all winter.  I loved the fall colors and spring flowers.  I loved that Halloween lasts an entire month.  It just had the best energy ever.  It was like being on vacation for 4 years.

All that being said… The Pacific Northwest is beautiful.  Mount Rainier, the Seattle skyline, the sound, the islands, the evergreen trees.  I think it's beautiful even when it's dreary and raining.  It's comfortable, and it's home.  And since it's relatively warm all year, you can be outside and stay active almost every single day.  It's so great for outdoor sports (cycling, running, hiking, kayaking… etc.)  In general, people in New England just don't have that outdoorsy adventurous spirit that people have here.  With each new sporting endeavor I've taken up in the past year, I spend more time with friends and family, meet new friends, and feel like part of such a great community. (Side note:  Not specifically in Burien though… I keep thinking that as great of a location we have here, and a great view of the water… it's not a good fit for us… who knows though.)

I wanted to take the opportunity to share some photos from the past year.  These are photos that would not exist, beauty that I would not have seen, if I wasn't so active.  I have truly loved getting outdoors to run, walk, cycle, swim, hike, kayak, and race.   I hope this inspires you to do the same.  Get outside, breathe the fresh air, smell the flowers, the trees, the freshly mowed grass, and the ocean.  Get active.

View from my treadmill

Sunset from my treadmill

The husband and me on our very first day on our new road bikes

Most rainy day… still outside!

A few from our ride on Vashon Island… one of my favorite rides…

The husband and me at the Vashon Ferry Terminal

A few from our ride to Alki Beach…

 

Ride to Gasworks Park (Somewhere I'd never been in the 30 years I've lived here)…

(Yeah, I know, we should have laid the
bikes down on the other side.  I was new!)

Riding across the I-90 bridge was so fun!

On our way to Eastern Washington

A beautiful country ride near Walla Walla

A hike down the steps at Eagle Landing Park…..

Mount Rainer during the Daffodil Classic

Blurry early morning fog

Trip to Long Beach for the Beach to Chowder 5K…

Hiking Crystal Mountain…

Kayaking on Alki with the husband

Posing with some cycling statues with my cycling wife

Waiting for a draw bridge with the husband

And a few of my favorite photos from my races this year…

Crawling through a net at the Warror Dash

Us being badass

Pic stitch of the Bonney Lake Triathlon

Me crossing the finish line of the STP

I just look so freaking happy in these
pics from the Slime Run!

Getting clobbered by my BFF at the Color Run.

My Vanderkitten VIP application

What about Vanderkitten inspires you to be a VIP?

I can't even describe in words what it meant to me to cycle hundreds of miles with Vanderkitten VIP, Megan Stith leading the way.  I want to pay it forward and do the same for other women who are just starting out, terrified like I was learning a new sport and new active way of life.  I couldn't have accomplished what I did this year without her.


Vanderkitten VIPs have inspiring stories that other women can relate to and find inspiration through.  What is it about your achievements or story that other women will find compelling. 

My best friend's husband does the Seattle to Portland cycling event each year with a friend. One night last January he was trying to talk my husband and me into doing it with him.  My initial response was "Oh yeah right.  Only crazy people do that."  He was telling us that a lot of people make it to the 100 mile mark and quit.  He told me there is no way I'd do that.  That when I start something, I finish it.  Again, I thought, "Oh yeah right." and kind of brushed it off.  But later that night I was thinking about how nice it was that he thought that way about me.  And actually, he's right!  When I commit to doing something, I don't quit.  I lost 80 lbs in the past couple years and I was feeling really fit and healthy.  So, why not train to be a hardcore cyclist?  I called my friend Megan since she has also done the STP a few years in a row and asked her to please kick my butt on a weekly basis.  She jumped at the opportunity.  I bought a bike in February.  I didn't even know how to shift!  Megan singlehandedly taught me to be a safe, confident, kickass female cyclist, often leading the men we rode with.  We rode week after week, usually in the pouring rain.  I was terrified of going too fast, and also terrified to stop.  I kept my eye on that kitten on the back of her jersey and I just followed her lead.  We ended up completing the STP in ONE DAY!  If I can do that, I can truly do anything.  I did a triathlon, more cycling events, many 5K's, a 10K, and even a half marathon planned next year!  Who's in?


How have you been involved in your community?

This past year I've joined a local community running group, a cycling group, and I've been actively working to inspire my friends, family, and my children to be active and participate in 5K fun runs and family cycling events.  I've also started a weight loss/fitness competition with my sister and her friends and they're having a blast getting healthy.


Please tell us about your plans or ideas for future community involvement.

Being a teacher, and a mother, I think I'm really well suited to help young women achieve their goals.  I very recently signed up as a running buddy for a program called Girls on the Run.  I think it will be a life-changing experience to run alongside a young girl and encourage her, and cheer her on as she crosses the finish line of her first 5K.  I'm also really interested in starting a women's beginner triathlon group in my city.


In one sentence, describe what women's equality in sports means to you:

Gender does not play a role in how much ass you can kick.  :)


Tell us about your previous sporting accomplishments.

There's been a lot this past year. Completed 5 major cycling events, a sprint triathlon, 7 5K's including the Warrior Dash, and a 10k so far!


What are your sporting goals or major events for 2015.

I plan to do the Seattle to Portland cycling event again next year and find a lot more women to do it with us.  Many more fun 5K's, and 10K's.  I signed up for the Disney Half Marathon in May with my best friend.  And I plan to do a lot more Sprint Triathlons to beat my time!  And I'd love to do the Honolulu Marathon next December but that's not set in stone yet.  By 2016 for sure!

10K!

Sorry it's been quite a while since I've written.  Life has been busy.  My husband finally had surgery for his thumb that he fractured while cycling months ago.  It's been nuts around here taking care of him (in addition to the kids).. and also taking over some household duties that he isn't able to do with one hand.  It has been an anxiety inducing ride.

BUT… I finished my first 10K!  It was the Snohomish River Run and it was the flattest route imaginable and, for that reason, it was a lot easier than I thought.  I decided to walk/jog with my BFF because we're both nursing injuries.  But after 2 miles with no sign of hip pain, I thought, "I'm just gonna get this over with."  So I told BFF that she could NOT quit and that I was going to ditch her.  It was fun to start passing people, and I think it caused her to speed up because she only finished 5 minutes after me.  Hooray!  We did it!!  Now could I have done that distance all over again (plus another mile) for the half marathon?  Eh, not yet but definitely by May.

In other news… I finally put some batteries in my scale and I gained 15 lbs since the STP in July.  I guess a cruise, not cycling, and the death of my stepmom = lots of sitting around and eating chocolate and drinking too much wine.  So my dad and sister and I started a competition.  We each set a goal and whoever makes it there first wins.  If I win, they pay and plan for an entire weekend away for me and my husband, and they watch my kids.  I WANT TO WIN!!  I lost 3 pounds week one and I was pretty proud of myself until they both weighed in and each lost 7 pounds.  Well, this week I weighed in and lost 4.5!  My dad gained 1.5, and my sister lost .8.  Woo!  I'm winning!!!  They're practically starving themselves and I'm eating clean and cutting out all sugars… and getting a little extra help from AdvoCare.  :)  I'm having oral surgery this Friday (freaking out btw) and I'll be drinking my meals for a couple days I think.  Hopefully I'll rock it this week too!  Wish me luck!  12.5 pounds to go!  (My sister has 14.3, and my dad has 18.9.)

Warrior Dash, Slime Run, and Cycle the Wave

2 weeks and 3 different races.  The Warrior Dash was 2 weeks ago, and then I did the Slime Run, and Cycle the Wave last weekend.

The Warrior Dash was two weeks ago and we lived!  (Update: My hip lived too!  Yoga, foam roller, massage, and chiropractic seemed to do the trick! … although after the Slime Run it's sort of sucking again.)  This is year two doing it down in Oregon and it's so much fun.  (Disgusting, slightly terrifying fun… but still fun.)  It'll be something we do every year for sure!  Last year it was the first Adventure 5K we've ever done.  It kicked off this racing addiction that my BFF and I have.  I remember last year there were people who did the Color Run in the morning, and then the Warrior Dash in the afternoon.  I thought those people were completely out of their mind.  ...Next year I think we're going to be one of those crazy people.  I could do that, no problem!  (Isn't that nuts?!)

The Slime Run was fun but there wasn't as many obstacles as I thought there would be…. and we definitely didn't get as slimy as I was expecting either.  My sister came for this run.  It was her first 5K ever.  I was really proud of her for trying it.  She broke her foot months ago and I'm not sure it's completely done healing.  She also has a leaky heart valve so I spent this "run" walking with her.  I really didn't want her to have a heart attack!

So, two pretty similar events, two weeks in a row.  During the Warrior Dash, I would run ahead of BFF with my husband and a couple of friends, and then we'd wait at the next obstacle for her and her husband.  So it was a lot of stop and go.  And then, like I said, I pretty much walked the whole Slime Run for my sister.

Cycle the Wave was a blast.  It's an all women's cycling event full of flowers, massages, gourmet food, photos of hot men in the port-a-potties...  And my cycling wife always pushes me.  We kicked ass.  We flew by other riders over and over going about 25 mph.  "On your left!  On your left!" During the whole ride, only 4 women passed us (all in matching cycling jerseys, which means they're extra badass).  So we were really proud of ourselves!

So here's what I've been thinking about a lot lately….  To wait, or not to wait?  Do I do these races with friends because it's fun and we laugh a lot, or do I really push myself and see what I'm capable of?  Even though I really didn't plan to do the triathlon all by myself, it ended up being pretty amazing.  It was the first race I've done that was me really working at doing the best I could and pushing my limits.  I want to do that all the time, but I also want to have a fun experience with friends.

I want to do the Tinkerbell Half Marathon along side my BFF, but what if she doesn't train like she's supposed to?  She said last year that she was going to work out like crazy, lose a ton of weight, and kill this year's race.  Did she do that?  Not really.  She definitely started running, but not as much as she could have.  Last year's Warrior Dash I only waited a little bit here and there for her, and helped drag her up the hill.  I was super proud of her.  Over the past year, I've been working to get faster and fitter, and she didn't push as much as I did so there was a much larger fitness gap this year.

So, that's what I'm worried about lately.  (I know you're reading this lady.  Get going!)  Do I do all these races for fun, or see what I can do?

Sports injuries galore

I'm like an old lady with a broken hip.... well, two broken hips.  My hips have been bothering me ever since I ran 7.5 miles in Spokane before my cruise.  My right one hurts more, but they both hurt.  I had my husband massage my IT bands and my legs and glutes, and that seemed to do the trick before the triathlon.  (I was a massage therapist for over 10 years so I've taught him well.  Oh and by the way, he told me he can really tell how much more muscle I have than I used to. :) That made me feel good. )  My hips were fine until mile 3 of the run, and then my left hip starting hurting, then my right.  Ugh.  I kept going and I made it, but they still hurt.  I haven't been on a run all week and I've skipped out on going to the gym with my cycling wife.  My husband told me that maybe I should not do some upcoming races until I get this figured out but that's not an option. I paid for them already.  The Warrior Dash is this Saturday, and the Slime Run and Cycle the Wave is next weekend.  No time for injuries! 

I kind of went through this when I started cycling too.  My low back would hurt, I'd figure that out... my right knee would hurt, I'd figure that out... my right foot would go numb, I figured that out (ON the STP... better late than never.)  I've also had plantar fasciitis in my left foot since a 5K I did a couple years ago with bad shoes, and I usually tape my foot before I run.  I haven't even had to do that lately, it's been fine.  So now I need to figure out this hip problem.  I've been googling different stretches and ways to use my foam roller.  I'll figure it out.  It'll be fine... it's just hard to stay positive about it when you're in pain.  So annoying.  I haven't been getting a ton of sleep because of it either.  I thought the dark circles under my eyes were mascara but makeup remover doesn't remove them.  *sigh*

So... stretching, foam rolling, massage, ice, and yoga the next two days!  Cross your fingers!

The Triathlon!

Completed the Labor of Love Bonney Lake Triathlon today!  It has been in the low 80's practically all summer in Seattle (seriously, we broke records) and the day I do a triathlon, Mother Nature screws me over and it downpours!

The last time I did a sprint triathlon was 2003.  I finished in 2 hours and 19 minutes.  My goal was to complete this one (11 years and 2 kids later) in under 2 hours….

The Swim:  Like I've said before, I really have no technique when it comes to swimming.  I can swim to save my life, but I'm not very fast.  I decided to stay in the back of my wave so that I didn't get kicked in the head like I did last time.  I also stayed as far left as I could.  It worked out really well!  I started out and kept up with everyone…  until I looked up and saw how much further that buoy was, and then looked down to see how much seaweed was under me.  I slowed down and someone sorta ran into me and I swallowed an entire mouthful of lake water.  Eww.  The rescue team on the boat asked if I was ok and I said, "Yeah, just drinking the lake, I'll be ok."  But I kinda wasn't ok… I was having a little freak-out attack and felt like I couldn't breathe (I was kind of doing this crazy hyperventilating thing).  My wetsuit was feeling really tight around my neck and I guess I was just feeling overwhelmed.  I decided to swim on my back for a while until I caught my breath.  After that, I just took it slower.  There was still plenty of people from my wave behind me but the elite from the next wave caught up and started passing.  "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…"  I passed the halfway point and a lot of people stopped to hold on to a buoy or a canoe to catch their breath.  I never did, I just kept going.  I was so excited to get out of that lake!  Although when I tried to run to the transition I felt like I weighed a billion pounds after swimming.  (Ugh!)  Finished the swim in 17 minutes.

Transition #1:  I wore my racing capri pants and a sports bra under my wetsuit.  My plan was to strip off the wetsuit, throw on a tank top, and put my bike shoes on.  I could not for the life of me put my stupid tank top on.  It's a double-layer bike jersey and I was soaking wet, and the tank top was just as wet since it was hanging over my bike in the rain.  I swear to you, I got tangled up in the stupid thing and had to take it off and re-try 5 TIMES.  I was about to give up and do the rest of the race in my sports bra.  I was even trying to go all Macgyver and try to find something to cut the inside layer out.  Finally got the stupid thing on, and was on my way… I wasted 7 minutes there!

The Bike:  I got this!  Yes it's pouring but I've cycled in the rain more times than I can count!  I spent most of the ride zooming past other cyclists.  "On your left!  On your left!…"  The only things that slowed me down were hills (there was a surprising amount of them), the rain in my eyes (it was so hard to see when my cycling glasses were covered in spots), and there was a lot of 90 degree turns.  Race volunteers would stand there and say, "Slow way down!  It's slick!  It hasn't rained in such a long time!"  So I obeyed… because I'm overly paranoid on turns even when the road is dry.  I also used the bike time as an opportunity to drink a spark and have an energy goo.  I finished the bike in 47 minutes.

Transition #2:  This was far less eventful than the first transition.  I put my bike on the rack (although someone took my spot which I thought was weird), took off my helmet and gloves, and changed into my five-fingered vibrams.  I also dried out the inside of my swim cap and put my phone inside so I could listen to tunes.  I spent 4 minutes here.

The Run:  So I use an app called Rock My Run.  There's an 11 minute mix on there called HIIT It.  My goal was to play that mix 3 times, and I should be done.  The first time the mix played I passed the 1 mile marker before it was over.  Sweet.  Doing good!  Then there was a ton of rolling hills and I had to walk a bit, so the second time it ended I wasn't at the 2 mile marker yet… but I could see it just ahead.  I grabbed a quick cup of water, and started the mix for the 3rd time.  Again, more hills. (Who designed this course!?)  Same thing happened, the mix stopped, and I could see the finish line ahead.  Pretty close!  I've never claimed to be a fast runner.  Finished the run in 36 minutes.

I was really excited and nervous to see the results, I kept looking at their website.  The time when I crossed the finish line said 2:30..something.  But that's because the clock starts when the olympic time distance starts.  I knew I started at least a half hour after them but I was really worried I didn't make it under 2 hours… especially with my wardrobe malfunction.  "If that stupid tank top caused me to come in at 2 hours and 1 minute, I'm going to be so pissed!!"

When I got home the results were online!  *Drum roll*  1 hour and 54 minutes!  Eeeeeeeee!!!!  I DID IT!!!!  I was so relieved and so proud of myself!  Especially in the pouring rain, the hilly route, and a cold!  (Did I mention I blew my nose in my towel during transition #2?  Nope?  Well now I mentioned it!  You're welcome.  I'm disgusting.)  So then I wanted to know what time the top finisher in my age group was so I scrolled down.  She made it in 1 hour 27 minutes.  Hey, my time was only about 20 minutes later.  Not too bad!  Then I looked at the rest of the top 5, and noticed that #4 had the same time as me.  Wait.  That IS me!  I scrolled all around to make sure I was looking at that right.  I PLACED #4 IN MY AGE GROUP!?  Whaaaaat?!!?!?  No freaking way!!!!  Look!! …..

Oh man, that's the first time I've uploaded a pic here before.  Maybe that's too small to see?  Well, anyway, it says that I'm badass!!!  ;)  

(Bummer...it never occurred to me to stay for the awards ceremony.  I'm pretty sure there's only prizes for 1, 2, and 3, but what if I won something and I wasn't there to receive it?  Darn it.  Note to self:  Stay for the awards because you never know!)

2003 times:

Swim: 23:16  Bike: 52:09  Run: 50:48  Total: 2:19

2014 times:

Swim: 17:34  Bike: 47:59  Run: 36:54  Total: 1:54

I really think that if I had the same route as before (The Iron Girl goes straight across I-90 and back) I would have killed my bike time a lot more.  (And no rain.)  I want to do the Iron Girl next year now so that I can really compare apples to apples.  But in the meantime, I'm STOKED about today!  WOO HOO!!!!