JHC Triathlon Camp 2014

Swimming outside, weeeeeeee!

My Tour de West Coast came to an end earlier this week, capped off with sitting on my bike for HOURS and getting stuck with a cactus in Sabino Canyon (sigh), all part of the fun at Jen Harrison's annual triathlon camp. This is my fourth year going to camp (2011, 2012, and 2013) and, as always, it was one of my favorite vacations. We had the condos for a week, from Tuesday to Tuesday, and I drove out from San Diego a few days before camp began so I could soak up all the warm Arizona sun, ride my bike, and hang out with my friends who were also arriving a few days early.

Pre-Camp. I had a long-ish ride on my schedule for Wednesday so I decided to ride out to Mt. Lemmon and go up it a few miles. I made the mistake of going mid-day (and let me tell you, riding Lemmon mid-day in the heat is a different experience than riding it first thing in the AM when the sun is low and it's still cool). I figured I'd go up to the mile 6 or 7 marker and then turn around to come back to the condo. Somehow I lost count of the mile markers as I climbed and when I arrived at the mile 8 marker, I was CONVINCED it should've been the mile 9 marker and someone was playing an April Fools joke on all Mt. Lemmon cyclists. To prove I was right, I climbed up to mile 9, fully expecting it to say 10, so imagine my disappointment when I realized I was wrong and nobody was playing an April Fools joke. So I promptly turned around and headed home to do my t-run where my legs felt like lead weights. The upside of my t-run? I did get to see Stacey and Julia fly by in their rented minivan (poor Stacey is on vacation and was still stuck with a minivan - bikes don't fit in Mustangs as easily) on their way to the condo, which gave me a good dose of "hurry up and finish your t-run so you can go hang out with some of your favorite people." Thursday morning was an easy ride with Julia, Stacey and Michaela along the bike path and an easy swim with Melissa when she arrived in town. I also dropped a paycheck or two at Whole Paycheck, buying enough strawberries and guacamole to almost break my shopping basket (true story). Can I tell you how much I loved the girls I stayed with? They brought me CANDY! Mini eggs, peanut butter eggs, SALTED NUT ROLLS. I LOVE YOU ALL.

Day 1: Getting Lapped on a 25 and Baking in Gates Pass. Normally we start camp by climbing Lemmon on Day 1, fresh legs and lots of motivation. This year we changed it up and did a swim and the Gates Pass ride on Day 1 instead. We got to the pool by 7ish and Jen gave us our lane assignments, somehow throwing me in the same lane as superswimmers Melissa and Stacey. Surely there was a mistake? Nope. Be prepared to be lapped on a 25 (and I assure you, when you swim with Melissa, this is a feasible possibility, defying the laws of physics). Dan and I hung on for dear life in that lane and I counted my 1650 time trial laps based on the number of times Stacey passed me (lots). I think we managed to put in 4000yds and, to be honest, it all flew by so quickly that it felt like little more than 2000. It was really, really good for me to swim with the fasties - it made me work HARD, even though I knew I had no chance in heck of actually staying on their feet. Post-swim, we went back to the condos and demolished a carton of eggs before hopping on our bikes at 10:30am and heading out to Gates Pass. We took the bike path over, mostly staying together and stopping once to refill waters at the bike shop on the path (brilliant idea, opening that shop). We got a little more strung out once we hit the roads a few miles from Gates Pass and I popped off the back of the Jerome-and-Dan train while we were riding on a rough pavement road. Once we made a turn onto a nicer road, I tried like heck to catch back up, eventually succeeding. The day was all about working hard. We climbed up to the top of Gates Pass, stopping only to refill our bottles at the sag, and then Julia and I bombed down the other side to do some McCain loops. This was my first year doing a super early-season Ironman (a month from today, eek!) so I knew I would have to put in extra time in the saddle and I was hoping to hit 100 miles on at least one of the rides. I squeezed in three McCain Loops, each one feeling a bit easier than the previous one, and they were a perfect mix of rolling hills and flats. I was drinking fluids like they were going out of style and chowing down on French Toast cakes (these would start to lose their appeal by Day 3) and Salted Nut Rolls (these NEVER lost their appeal). I refilled my bottles again at the top of Gates Pass before heading back out towards the bike path. Jen came whipping by me and I made it my mission to try to stick on her wheel until we got to the bike path. It's all about shameless drafting. We regrouped at the bike path store and headed back towards the condos. I ended up adding in an extra River Road loop so I ended up with 93 miles for the day and then a short 15 minute t-run. The only thing that got me through that t-run was some good old country music. We had dinner at the Abbey that night where I ate a salad that had peanut brittle on it. Perfection. I also had a chance to catch up with some of the other campers staying in the other condos, so that was super nice.

Dinner at The Abbey!

Day 2: Implosion on Mt. Lemmon and Pizza > Cookies (not kidding). Saturday was Mt. Lemmon Day. We were starting early and, since I needed the extra miles thanks to IMTX coming up, I rode to the mountain from the condos. I shamelessly drafted off of Jerome and we made it to Le Buzz, the coffeeshop near the base of Mt. Lemmon, in about 30 minutes. We assumed everyone else had already begun their ride so we continued to haul ass to Mt. Lemmon, trying to catch up. I swear to you I've never worked harder climbing that mountain. The first 6 miles weren't terrible, I was able to hold a conversation and around every bend, we both assumed that some of the other campers would come into view and we'd catch up. Then we got to Mile 7 and that's where things started to get steeper and I quit talking and pulled a Jens Voigt (shut up legs!) and retreated inside my head, only looking at the ground and the wheel in front of me, NOT at the hills and turns that awaited me, and telling myself to just keep pedaling and DON'T STOP. Normally when I ride Lemmon, I'm going at my own pace and not trying to stick on someone's wheel, as Jen and Jerome loop back and forth between campers, and I really only need to make a valiant effort for a mile or two before I breathe a sigh of relief that I'm being left to my own devices again and can drop back to a more manageable pace. Not this time, which I suppose is a good thing because what doesn't kill you does make you stronger. I finally cracked at mile 12, my legs refused to turn over any faster and Jerome's wheel pulled away and I was left, draftless and facing the wind until Windy Point at Mile 14.

View from the Bike: Windy Point.

We regrouped, I ate a ton of grapes and gummy bears at the sag, and then we continued up the mountain. Around mile 17 is where I completely imploded. Hot Mess Central. I definitely burned up a whole box of matches during those first few miles and was paying for it now. How in the heck I rode up Lemmon those first few years, taking pictures of every elevation sign (nerd alert) - I obviously wasn't working hard enough. This time around I was so focused on trying to keep up, I barely remembered to eat my French Toast Cakes at regular intervals. I was so relieved when Mile 21 came into view and I was rewarded with a few miles of downhill respite. I still forced myself to bike up to the Ski Lift (but NO further) before turning around and descending down to the Cookie Cabin. Did you know the Cookie Cabin's pizza is even more fantastic than the cookies? It is - I felt like a new person after inhaling my pepperoni pizza dripping in cheese and grease while tossing back a gigantic hot chocolate (it was chilly, chilly at the top!). We met up with everyone else as they arrived at the cabin, most people feeling chilly as well - and there seemed to be an equal ratio of pizza to cookies this year, a first. I was sort of dreading the descent because I figured it would be cold and I was SO OVER being cold, but it turned out not to be too bad. And even the climb out of Summerhaven was a blessing in disguise, warming you up for the descent. At the bottom of the mountain, Jen C. and I made a mini locomotive and zipped back to Le Buzz while I continued back to the Condos. I refilled my bottles, grabbed some more nutrition, and it took alot of willpower to get myself out the door again for an additional 19 miles so I would hit 101 for the day. I did a 30 minute t-run (again, thank goodness for Eric Paslay, Andy Grammer and Salt n' Pepa) and then laid on the condo floor for 45 minutes because I was too sweaty and disgusting to sit on the furniture, but too lazy to actually shower. Stacey took pity on me and fed me mini eggs (she is the best). Any training day that ends with you being fed mini eggs is a darn good day. My sister Steph came over for pizza and gelato, which is always one of my favorite parts of visiting Tucson.

Day 3: Sabino Canyon Cacti run-in and Mt. Lemmon Time Trials that Ended with a Slurpee. We did Sabino Canyon, a trail run where I have miraculously not run into any cacti - that all ended Sunday. Julia and I ran to the Canyon from the Condos to get in a few extra miles, it was so nice to run with her! Then the group ran Phoneline Trail, which is a gorgeous and challenging trail with alot of technical parts and ALOT of up and ups. I usually start this run WAY too fast and I'm making dying animal noises by Mile 1, so I was determined to pace myself better. I never looked at my watch while on the trail (because I would probably trip and fall) and just ran on feel. Once the trail leveled out and the climbing wasn't so bad, I felt like I was in it, just completely thrilled to be trail running and while things didn't feel effortless, my legs were going with the flow. I didn't trip or fall (oddly enough, I only seem to fall on stable ground, like sidewalks right next to red lights with lots of stopped traffic/witnesses), but somewhere in the first mile my left foot slipped off the trail and got nailed by a cactus. Le sigh. When I made it to the end of the trail, I busied myself with pulling out the needles. This one had alot of soft needles that broke off and stayed stuck just underneath my skin. Lovely. It has been almost a week and my ankle still itches and looks like about 10 kittens tried to feast on it. Everyone did an awesome job on the trail, there was a little blood spilled, but nothing some stitches (and a really expensive Lululemon tourniquet) couldn't fix - Bart was a trooper! I ran back to the condo for some extra miles before inhaling the best egg sandwich the world has ever seen (thanks Julia!).
Next up - Mt. Lemmon time trials. My crotch had tried to forget it had to sit on the bikeseat again for awhile, complete denial until 11am rolled around and I determined the bike was not going to move on its own accord (and one of those banana seats had not magically appeared). I rode from the condos and met up with everyone at Le Buzz and we all pedaled over to the base of Mt. Lemmon together where we started the 5 mile repeats. I am terrible about gauging my effort and really crossing that line and acutely suffering for time trials - I really need to learn from Julia and Dan who NAILED this workout. They both passed me like I was standing still and I'm sure they were in zone 8 while I was piddling my way along, unable (or unwilling) to go there and suffer and make it count. This is why they are such great athletes. It was really impressive. I found myself working harder (but not hard enough) on the second TT. But then I was cooked by the third repeat, fluids were running low and I briefly entertained the idea of cutting it short and turning around at Mile 3. Thankfully I stuck it out and I was so happy to make it to Mile 5 for a third time. I bargained with myself, promising that if I rode to Mile 5 I wouldn't make myself ride back to the condos, I would hitch a ride. By this point, I was out of water, my nutrition was completely unappealing, and I was toast. On the ride back to Le Buzz on the Catalina Highway, pictures of frozen drinks and waters were repeating themselves in my head. Jen and Jerome took pity on me and picked me and my bike up just as I arrived at Le Buzz and we made a beeline to a gas station, where I emerged victorious, clutching a water, a Fanta, a blue Slurpee and a double-caramel Magnum Bar. I consumed the vast majority of it all before we got back to the condos and felt like a new person. Never underestimate the power of ice cream.
After we all showered and cleaned up, we went to YOGA at Lululemon. I should do yoga more often because it felt AH-MAZING to stretch out like that. It was also humbling because I am NOT that flexible.

Yoga before Mexican Food YES!

We topped off Sunday with burritos, guacamole and chips at Blanco. I tell you, I thought about that burrito with every single pedal stroke during those time trials. Not an exaggeration. Dinner was also another great opportunity to chat with the others staying in the different condos and relax.

Day 4: Hilly Run and One Last Hang-On-For-Dear-Life Swim. The last day of camp dawned with a slightly later workout time (7am!) and a hilly run from the condos. Jen said she likes to time trial this route and break her PR every time she is out in Tucson. That was not going to be happening on Day 4 of camp, let me tell you. The first mile, even though it was downhill, felt ROUGH and my legs were feeling the volume of the 240ish bike miles the previous three days. Once I warmed up, I felt a bit better, even as we started going uphill. I miscalculated how many hills we had to climb, thinking we would get to the Craycroft intersection sooner than we did, but no matter. The run went by really quickly and before I knew it, we were back in the condos eating second breakfast. I had a 1:30pm flight out of Tucson and some time to kill in the morning post-run, so I decided to drop my luggage off at the airport before our last swim so I wouldn't be in such a mad dash post-swim. Good decision. I swam with Melissa, Stacey and Jen and the wheels completely fell off, but it was good to work hard. It got to the point that the only way I made their easy interval was to keep swimming with zero break, ha! Swimming outside in the sunshine was the perfect way to end camp, like always. 

Thanks Jen and Jerome for another stellar camp! With IM Texas sneaking up and scaring the crap out of me, I haven't been feeling super confident - but after a solid training weekend in Tucson, I feel much better. The workouts were challenging and I actually really enjoyed adding in some extra miles. Thank you to all of the campers and my roommates for making this one of my most favorite vacations (but we missed you Mia and Sarah and Angelina - it wasn't the same without you three!); catching up with everyone is the best part of the weekend, hands down. I love that, as a result of this camp, I have triathlon friends from all over the country. The only sad thing is, I'm terrible about saying goodbye and I absolutely hate it. 

I know when I was at camp I said I wanted my superpower to be able to take a shower without getting up off the floor and then make dinner magically appear in front of me. I take that back - I'd much rather have a superpower that let me bring together everyone I care about and put them all in one place so goodbyes would be nonexistent. Cheers to great friends, bikes, running shoes, outdoor swimming and, of course, MINI EGGS!

Race Report - Charlotte Running Co 2014 Half Marathon Trail Race

First race report of 2014! Hooray!
Before the season really got started, I had pipe dreams of trying to do a super early season half ironman, but Jen snapped me back to reality (reality being I'd not done rides longer than 2 hours and was still eating cookies for breakfast) and I opted instead to do a half marathon in January and a half marathon in February. There aren't a whole lot of half marathon choices in the mid-Atlantic in January. I found a trail half marathon in Charlotte, NC. Charlotte is a town neither Mr. Sweetie nor I had ever visited (airplane layovers don't count), but it has been on our list. Add to that our good friends and former neighbors Lindsay and Andrew recently moved down to Charlotte and we had set of perfectly great reasons to visit this weekend.

The Charlotte Running Co Trail Half Marathon was held at the US National Whitewater Center on their extensive trail network. In addition to the 13 miler, they also had a 9 miler and 4 miler. The website advertised all distances as "approximate" and at the end of the race, my Garmin registered only 12.25 (but I was pretty thrilled to be done and - at that point - I was hoping the course would be a bit short given how shot my legs were feeling). So, whether it was truly short or my Garmin's satellite reception was crummy with me being in the woods 99% of the race, is neither here nor there. Everyone is racing the same course and time/distance doesn't really matter but placing does.

The race had a 9am start so I was able to sleep in a little bit, which is always a treat. We arrived plenty early to pick up my packet and get situated. I had only done one trail half marathon in the past - it was on an old railroad track bed, nice and wide, gentle false flat on the way out and a slight downhill on the way back. In other words, it was like running on a soft road, no need to pay special attention to your footing or worry you were going to hurtle into a tree at the bottom of a twisty downhill that spins you out of control. So, having had that experience, it was easy to believe that this trail half marathon would be the same thing. Then, earlier last week, I took a look at the trail map for the race site and it was marked with green circles, blue squares, and black diamonds, kind of like a ski map. My first clue this would be a bit more challenging and require some eye-foot coordination - no zoning out allowed! This also explained why the times looked a bit slower than you would normally see in a road half marathon.

The 9- and- 13 mile racers lined up at 9am, while the 4-milers started at 9:30am. I had debated whether to wear heavy gloves and a heavier lined outer layer in addition to my regular long-sleeved shirt because it was chilly. At the last minute I opted for light gloves and no outer layer because the sun was up and it had warmed up - plus, it's always a good idea to add 20 degrees to the temperature when you are warmed up from running. Halfway through the race, my fingers were totally warmed up and it felt like the perfect temperature. I lined up a few rows back from the front - with there being 9 milers mixed in, I knew some people would start off fast fast and I didn't want to get in their way. My plan was to start off at a reasonably sustainable pace, especially since I didn't know how hilly or technical the trails would be, and then try to pick it up halfway through, terrain allowing. At the very least, I didn't want to go out too fast and then get passed by everyone and their grandmother, that's always a bit embarrassing.

The first three-quarters of the race went around a gravel parking lot, up and down a hill, and then out towards the entrance to the single-track trail. I went a bit faster than felt comfortable, to get myself in the best position I could going into the single-track because it would be trickier to make passes there. The single-track was immediately full of ups and downs and bridges and tight turns. It kind of reminded me of the Backyard Burn race held at Hemlock - though these hills were shorter and a bit steeper than Hemlock's and it wasn't quite as rocky as Hemlock. People were really nice and let you know when they were passing and would move over when you made a pass. It felt really crowded for the first 3-4 miles and I often couldn't tell if the people I was passing were part of the 9 or the 13 mile race and I eventually just gave up trying to guess and just ran like they were all in the 13 miler. Often I'd find myself on the heels of another runner and need to assess whether I wanted to stay at their pace or surge ahead at the next opportunity - I feel like trail racing is more tactical than road racing, at least for us age groupers, because it requires quick assessments and decisions and not making the right choices can impact how many seconds you lose because you are stuck (or how many minutes you lose because you decided to go for it and blew up your legs in the process, trying to skitter around all of your competitors). I quickly stopped looking at my Garmin to see my mile splits or do the math to figure out my potential overall time - there's no use comparing a trail race to road race times, especially on single track and technical trails. It was around mile 4, going up a hill, that I had a "holy cow, rein it IN" type-of moment. I stopped trying to sprint up the hills to pass people - steady consistency wins the race. Little steps up the hills and then pick up the pace on the flats and on the downhills as much as possible.

I had passed a few girls in the beginning, as we entered the trails, and after awhile I wasn't seeing too many of them. After a particularly hilly section, I reeled in another girl and I saw she had the same color bib as me. As we started going by water stations, I'd hear from some of the volunteers - at the first station, they said I was 4th female. I didn't know if they meant 4th half marathon female or 4th female in general, including the 9 milers. At a later water station, I heard I was the 2nd half marathon female. And then at another station I couldn't tell if they said I was second or sixth female. It didn't really matter - I had seen one other half marathon female ahead of me by a few minutes and I kept my focus on her, even though it was highly unlikely I was going to catch her. There seemed to be a sizable gap between me and the girl I had passed earlier in the race, so I wasn't running scared - it was more just try to hold onto the place I was in and reel in the girl ahead of me. She would have to have a spectacular meltdown for that to happen, as she had a good 3-4 minutes on me, but it still didn't hurt to put forth the effort. The last 3 miles of the race were flatter and the trail was wider - THANK GOODNESS. My legs were tired and almost-wobbly feeling by that point, after the hills in the earlier sections. I am eternally grateful race organizers put the more technical stuff first - I would've been a hot mess careening down hills and scrambling up inclines later in the race. We went around a small lake and at times I was totally by myself (and hoping I hadn't taken a wrong turn). Once in awhile I'd catch a glimpse of the guy ahead of me, which was reassuring that I was still on course.

Around 11 miles into the race, my watch was well past the 1:30 mark and I felt a bit disappointed about how slow I must've been going and felt almost positive that the volunteers who said I was 2nd half marathon female were completely wrong. As I wound my way around the lake, I could hear the finish line announcer's voice get louder and closer and it seemed like maybe I was going to be done sooner rather than later - maybe the course was short or my Garmin satellite reception was off, but when I emerged from the woods at Mile 12, and could see the finish line in the distance, I did not care. I WAS ALMOST DONE. There was one more uphill between me and that finish line and I crossed the line in 1:46:17. I ended up finishing 2nd female OA, taking home a mason jar AND a pair of armwarmers (win!). Lindsay, Andrew and their adorable daughter came out to watch the finish and we spent the rest of the day catching up with them and eating yummy food. It was a great weekend.

#NewYearNewFood

One of the things Mr. Sweetie and I are going to do this year is to try a new-to-us dinner recipe once a week. We do a relatively decent job at cooking most of our meals at home each week, but we often get stuck in a rut, cycling through the same few recipes each week - some variation of a pasta, veggie quesadillas, pizza, soup, etc. We might get really ambitious and throw in "try a new dessert recipe" each week as well, but that might be asking too much.

We did our first new-to-us recipe last night for dinner. A Moroccan chicken pot pie called Chicken Bastilla. It's a chicken pie full of cinnamon and other spices, baked in puff pastry, and sprinkled with powdered sugar on top (take THAT Mom's chicken pot pie, hahaaaa!). My parents bought Mr. Sweetie and I a Mediterranean cookbook for Christmas and it is chock-a-block full of really tasty recipes, like this one. It was surprisingly easy to make and I think this will definitely be making its way into the monthly dinner rotation.

Please take special note of my trout oven mitts

On the training front - I'm moving along. Going to the pool when I'm supposed to, doing TRX in my basement, running, biking both on the trainer and on the trails if it isn't too muddy. Mountain biking has become exponentially more enjoyable now that I have gone a few times, feel more confident, and don't freak out when faced with small rocks and logs on the path. I've been feeling quite good on most of the runs I've been on, but still feeling sluggish as heck at the pool, that's what I get for forgetting the pool exists for two months straight. Jen's annual swim test will likely kill me, please say your goodbyes now. 

Happy New Year

As I've gotten older, I've really enjoyed New Years more and more. As a kid growing up, my family would always get together with other families and I remember New Years always being so fun with a houseful of friends. Those New Years celebrations were almost always more soul-satisfying than the ones that I ended up spending at a bar in my 20s.

We've been really lucky and established a tradition of getting together with a set of friends every New Years. Each year we get together at someone's house and each couple brings two fancy dinner or dessert dishes, paired with a bottle of wine, and we have a multi-course dinner full of rich food. It's the best way ever to end one year and start another. And we never have to wonder what we are doing in terms of New Year's plans - it's a given that we'll all be getting together and Mr. Sweetie and I look forward to it each year.

Last night we started off with a potato leek soup and salad. Then we moved on to beef tenderloin with a port reduction sauce and sides of brussel sprouts and mushroom bread pudding. And for dessert we had (unpretty) chocolate macarons with an espresso-cinnamon-chocolate ganache filling and bowls of homemade chocolate ice cream and cheesecake ice cream (that ice cream maker I bought for Mr. Sweetie for Christmas is truly the gift that keeps on giving). Sharing a long, leisurely meal with good friends and catching up was really a treat.

My failed, cracked, feet-less chocolate macarons. Cocoa messes everything up - but tastes so good!

I haven't thought very much about New Years resolutions yet. And I haven't done a whole lot of reflection on the past year. But I do know that it was a good year. It was a good year for friends. It was a good year for family. It was a good year for realizing the important role those two pieces play in my life. It was a good year for health. It was a good year for learning new tasks at work and understanding that my growth is up to me, and only me, and requires initiative and hard work - and the ability to take responsibility for my thoughts, words, actions and consequences. 

I've had it easy in life. Sure there were some small financial hiccups when I was growing up and I didn't always get everything that I wanted (or thought I wanted) and had to work hard to get to where I am. But that's not a bad thing. I'm lucky because I still have three out of four grandparents. I have extended family that I keep in touch with and see as often as possible, who are involved in my life and care about me and Mr. Sweetie. I have wonderful in-laws who have adopted me as one of their own. I have a stable job that I also really enjoy. I'm healthy. We have made smart financial decisions and live a comfortable lifestyle. I can count on one hand how many funerals I've ever attended. I can also count on one hand (I think using only one finger, actually) how often I've ever had to go to a hospital. My life is so good, so easy, that I've never said good riddance to a year when it comes to a close. I'm sure, however, there will be a year in my future that I will want to have disappear in the rearview mirror as quickly as possible. And if that happens, I will need to remind myself of this when I need a good dose of perspective:

My friend, the one whose son was diagnosed with leukemia the day before Thanksgiving, posted a new year's status update today that really made me pause. She called 2013 a good year, just one that ended with a few bumps. She was excited about 2014, not to leave 2013 behind, but to keep on keeping on and move forward with enjoying every day. This was a woman who spent the vast majority of December in a hospital room, trying to keep her little boy calm and happy while doctors and nurses poked and prodded him and he underwent some unpleasant treatments. If, through all of that, she can still say it was a good year - then it was a good year. You are alive, you have your family, your friends, and love. The rest is just a bonus in life. 

2013 Off Season in Review

Every year it's pretty typical to do a look-back critique of the past season, see what you did right, what you did not-so-right, and what you can improve on for the following year.

This is not that post.

This is much more important. As Training Peaks workout reminders have started flooding my inbox (and I'm actually welcoming the influx), the off-season is coming to a close. Time to look back and see what I did right, what I did wrong, and what I can do to improve my off-season experience for the next time around.

Pool? What is a pool? I did not swim AT ALL during the month of November. I think I voluntarily got in the pool once in early December, before Training Peaks told me to, and paddled around for about 1,000 yds and then I got out. It was a much needed break. And even though I feel pretty slow in the water right now, I'm also not burnt out and that's going to be key for having a successful 2014 season.

The FDA has altered its food pyramid and it is now filled with chocolate. Lindt chocolate, peppermint bark, chocolate buttercream frosting, chocolate ganache, chocolate macarons. Let's also throw some gingersnap cookies in there, marshmallows, hot chocolate (we are currently on the hunt for the type of chocolate that makes the best hot chocolate - Cadbury is the frontrunner).

Try something new. I think one of the best parts of the off-season (besides the unabashed consumption of chocolate) was not having a schedule to stick to. There was nothing I HAD to do - I was free to do whatever I wanted, when I wanted, and try new things. I gave Pilates a go a couple of times at the Athlete's Studio in Dupont Circle. I never realized how many different exercises you could do as part of Pilates. AND there is a trampoline involved. Did you know that your feet can feel EXHAUSTED and sore after using the Pilates trampoline? They can. I've also been going mountain biking - it's great to get off the road and try out some trails and not be a slave to my Garmin.

Misplaced Training Equipment and Forgetting Your Training Peaks Login. Speaking of my Garmin, I know where my watch is but it's a mystery where my heart rate monitor strap went. Part of me never wants to find it because I detest that thing (it is responsible for 95% of the chafing I experience during training/races). I have ideas on where it could be, but I haven't bothered to look too hard. And it took me a few minutes to remember my Training Peaks login when I went to log my first workout into the system.

Go up a pants size. There's a reason why my winter pants are a size bigger than my summer clothes. Not to toot my own horn, but I ate 4lbs of M&Ms the week before Thanksgiving this year.

Bake so much you cannot stand to look your KitchenAid mixer in the eye. There was one weekend this month that was filled to the brim with holiday parties, brunches, etc. I baked until 2am on a Thursday night in prep for the parties. Macarons, gingersnap smores, homemade marshmallow, meringues. It was awesome until about midnight and then I'd about had it. I couldn't look at my mixer for a week. We also went through 5 boxes of butter the week of Christmas, between the Christmas Eve seafood chowder, the Christmas Bread, the cookies, the BUTTERCREAM FOR THE BUCHE DE NOEL.

Gingerbread cake rolled in eggnog buttercream, topped with chocolate buttercream and decorated with meringues.

All in all, it was a good 1.5-2 months. Exactly what I needed. Success!

That Holiday Tradition You Love and Hate (But Actually Really Love)

I give you... The Holiday Chicken.

I practically need shades when looking directly at the blinged-out chicken beak.
Especially when bathed in the soft glow of electric sex. 

 What has turned into one of our family's greatest (and most obnoxious/most fun - depending on if you are the receiver or the sender) holiday traditions was born out of a friendly holiday cornhole game back in 2007. That year, Mr. Sweetie and I went to World Market (the mecca for ridiculously useless housewares) and found a chicken on the stick. This would be the prize that the cornhole winner would get to take home with them. Needless to say, we all tried to lose. That year, the chicken ended up staying in California and each time we came out to visit, we'd see the chicken laying around the house somewhere and crack a few jokes about it.

Then the chicken made it's way to our house. Mr. Sweetie's parent's were sneaky and left it behind in the guest room after they visited. They made sure to hide it just enough so we wouldn't find it until after they were safely on their plane home. Sneaky.

So we got them back and tried to one-up the sneakiness. Mr. Sweetie arranged a handoff to the person who housesat while the whole family was up in northern CA for Christmas one year. He instructed her to place the chicken on the island in the kitchen, snap a photo, and send it to him. I think we then posted it on Facebook or something and tagged everyone. Or maybe Mr. Sweetie just showed the photo to everyone at the dinner table. Either way, the level of sneakiness had escalated.

During another trip, Allie snuck it into Mr. Sweetie's golf bag, texting us a picture of the chicken next to a sign taped to the golf bag "Off To DC I Go..." We sent the chicken to live at the beach with Jackie. I think it eventually made its way to the Arizona desert to Stephanie's apartment. And then, just a few weeks ago, it made a reappearance to DC. This time with a blinged out beak (have you ever seen something so flashy?), tail feathers, and a santa suit. 

Watch out West Coast Family - we are plotting revenge! 

(though, we will admit, the chicken makes a jolly addition next to the leg lamp)

Don't worry, chicken. We'll be sending you back to CA with a bathing suit and beach umbrella.

Worst Bike Commute in Bike Commuting History

OK, maybe the title is a little dramatic (I suppose the worst bike commute would be the one where you are run over by a car), but this morning's bike commute in was pure MISERY. For the past few days, meteorologists had been forecasting SNOW for DC during the Tuesday AM commute. They alluded to the fact that, with the timing, it had the potential to become another Commutageddon. Metro is crap on a regular day, so I figured I'd play it safe and take my mountain bike out for a snowy commute to work instead. Faster, more reliable, etc. I woke up this morning and the ground was dry so I rushed to the pool, arriving just after it opened and squeezed in the swim that I wasn't able to do yesterday due to the weather-related late opening. By the time I left the pool, sleet was coming down hard. This isn't going to be pleasant to bike in, but at least I won't have to worry about traffic and egotistical drivers causing traffic jams I thought to myself. By the time I got home and had a quick breakfast, the sleet had turned to big, fat snowflakes. I instantly pictured what my commute in would be like - sure, it may be a little wet on the bike trail from the initial coating of sleet, but besides that, I would be riding my bike in a swirling confection of snow, the only sounds being my tires crunching softly over the coating of snowflakes.

Reality couldn't have been more different.

When will I learn that snow in DC is NOT the pretty, dry, swirling snow you see in movies and in places where it normally snows actual snow, not sleet? The snow here is wet slop that soaks your jacket, drenches your butt from all the tire kickup, and sucks the joy from your soul. Instead of a coating of snowflakes, I rode through puddles. By the time my feet were frozen blocks of wet ice, it was too late for me to bother turning around. And the kicker was that the roads were completely free and clear of anything but puddles - including ice and traffic. Never thought I'd utter these words but gosh I wish I had metro'd today. My feet were the kind of cold where, when you take a lukewarm shower, they tingle and itch as the feeling slowly comes back to them. I looked like a miserable drowned rat when I arrived at the office. I also used the excuse that I didn't want to put wet bike clothes back on to ride home to rope Mr. Sweetie into picking me up from work.

There has never been a day where I wished I wasn't riding my bike. Until today. I get shivers of cold just thinking about my morning. Bleck. I don't care if it is wimpy, but I am never going to willingly ride my bike in borderline freezing weather with precipitation. If it is going to be cold, it must be SUNNY and cold. Or at least dry and cold. DC needs to get with the program when it comes to delivering the proper type of snow.

A Kid, Cancer, and How to Help One Family

On Wednesday of last week, Mr. Sweetie and I were congratulating ourselves on getting a jump start on our Thanksgiving holiday, making it out to Pittsburgh without having to fight any traffic. We enjoyed a fantastic Thanksgiving-eve dinner of Indian food with his aunt, uncle and three cousins. We were thrilled to be with family, on a mini-vaca, and on the cusp of the holiday season, which is simply the most wonderful time of the year.

At about that same time that Mr. Sweetie and I were sitting down for dinner, my co-worker and friend, Melissa, and her family were receiving devastating news. Their youngest son - two-year old Christopher - was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on Wednesday evening. Melissa had taken him in to the pediatrician to get a fever checked out that afternoon, with no reason to think it was more than just a bug that needed to be nipped in the bud before the holiday. Seven hours later, her and her husband were being told the grim diagnosis by doctors and they settled in for an extended hospital stay.

Melissa was one of the first people I worked with when I started working at my company back in 2009. Her patience, knowledge, and willingness to help me were some of the main reasons I found success on one of the more complex projects I was assigned to. She has been an incredible mentor on every project I've worked on with her and she is someone I hold in very high esteem. In addition to being a great colleague and friend, she is a wonderful mom to her two boys and her and her husband are truly a parental dream team. Remembering what a crummy big sister I was growing up and the sheer mass of sibling rivalry that existed between my brother and I, whenever I talked to Melissa I always asked how her boys were doing and if her older son still loved being a big brother. He did, he absolutely adored his little brother to pieces from day one, and still thinks he is the bomb.com 2.5 years later. They are an extremely close family and Melissa and her husband have done a bang-up job instilling strong values and love in their two kids. The cancer diagnosis is something they will overcome as a family, but boy I wish this was a storm they did not have to weather.

According to a number of medical websites, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia has a survival rate of at least 90%, which is great news. But I still can't fathom how scary this whole experience must be for Melissa and her family. Their lives are changed forever - no sniffle, fever, or bruise will ever be looked at the same again and there will always be that quiet fear, just below the surface, of a relapse, even well-past the 5 year timeframe when the cancer is considered "cured." This isn't going to be an easy or quick journey to a cure and it will be one filled with uncertainty.

I was hoping people who read this could keep Melissa and her family - especially two-year old Christopher - in their thoughts. They are lucky in that they have many wonderful family and friends to be a support system. They also have health insurance, which is great, but unfortunately don't cover everything and there will be some hefty co-pays coming down the pipeline. If you're interested in lessening the financial burden, please feel free to visit the fundraising website that has been set up (you can also see from the photos on the site what a fabulous little kid Christopher is). Any little bit helps and it would be an incredible gift to take away any financial concerns so they can be free to focus completely on Christopher's health.

Cheers to Christopher and his family; cheers to his ability to smile through the treatments; may his recovery be fast AND may the hospital cafeteria rain cups of vanilla ice cream down on him whenever he feels well enough to eat!

Race Report: 2013 Pittsburgh PNC YMCA Turkey Trot 5 miler

We kept our turkey trot streak alive this year by running the 5 mile race at the Pittsburgh PNC YMCA turkey trot. This was, by far, the biggest turkey trot I've ever done. Back in 2010, when we were last in Pittsburgh for Thanksgiving and ran the 5k option, I don't remember it being nearly this big. There was a 1 mile fun run, 5k, and a 5 miler - in the 5 miler alone, there were 1,542 finishers. But it was so well run (I found a porto-potty with ZERO line) and had plenty of parking that I had no idea there were that many people until I looked at the results online.

I've been lazy over the past month with my running (as in I would go for a 2 to 3 mile run once, maybeeeeeee twice per week, with a couple weeks having zero running). Part of it was sheer laziness coupled with a bit of I-Could-Care-Less-About-Running burnout, and part of it was to let the leg/groin muscles that I felt like I had strained back in October heal up. Admittedly, I probably took the take it easy so my leg feels better to the extreme by barely running at all, but it has been quite nice to feel guilt-free this off-season about not running. If I'm not in the mood, I don't make myself run. Just in the past week I've started to feel little twinges of hmmm, I think I actually feel like going for a run or I won't throw my computer out of my window if I get an email from Training Peaks. I'm going to start next season rested, not burnt out, and my leg feels 100% better. Off-season goals achieved.

That was a long way of saying I had no expectations for yesterday's turkey trot. Each time I've gone out for a run, it has felt like a slow slog and it seems like I'm huffing along at a 9:00 pace that feels like it should be a 6:30 pace given the amount of effort I'm putting forth. Mr. Sweetie was running the 5 mile race as well (he's the type where he can get back into running and within 3 weeks his easy pace is in the mid-7s. I kind of hate him for it). I felt like it would be a reasonable goal to try to hold a 7:30 pace for the race, especially given how sloggy I've been feeling in my run shoes lately. Mr. Sweetie and I decided we would run together and I had a few thoughts of maybe we should just jog this for fun, why does everything always have to be a race, etc. I was feeling slow, out of shape, and thought what is the point? Then we got to the start line, the gun went off, and it was definitely a race - point or no point, slow or not slow.

We started towards the front, but far enough back that the first half mile was spent dodging around people and trying to find open road. By the time we made a loop around the stadium, the crowds had thinned out considerably and we had plenty of space to run our race. I felt like the effort was easy (a bunch easier than my warmup jog from the car to the start line) but the first mile went by in 6:56, which was a nice surprise. I felt fine as we looped by the start/finish area and made it a goal to try and keep my pace consistent for the remaining four miles. We went over a bridge and into downtown for mile 2, passing by the 5k runners on the other side of the road who had started 30 minutes before us - it was a nice distraction seeing the other runners. Mile 2 clicked by in 6:55 and when I made it to 2.5 miles, I reminded myself that I was halfway done and I can do anything for 2.5 more miles. Just past the halfway mark was the turnaround point and I started seeing the leaders pass by on the other side of the road. There were still a number of girls ahead of me and once in awhile I would catch up to one and I tried to look strong when I made my pass so that maybe they would be tempted not to try and follow. I finished mile 3 in 7:02 and by this point, Mr. Sweetie was pulling ahead and I let him go - it was starting to be a struggle to hold my current pace and I was afraid if I tried to go with him, I would implode before the finish. Mile 4 felt like the longest mile ever and I was surprised to see a 6:57 flash on my Garmin. We ran by the start/finish area again to make a half-loop around the stadium for a final time. It was flat but windy and I was on the lookout for the turnaround. Mr. Sweetie slapped me five when he passed me going the other way after the turnaround and in the last half mile I finally got within striking distance of a girl wearing a florescent jacket that I'd been slowly reeling in for almost two miles. In the last quarter mile, I decided to go for it and make the pass, I knew I'd be mad at myself post-race if I didn't at least try. After I went by her, I tried so hard to keep the same pace all the way to the finish. I wanted the race over... NOW. As a result, mile 5 was my fastest in 6:37. I finished in 34:47, with a 6:57 average pace. 2nd in AG out of 150; 9th girl out of 819; and 74th overall.

It was so cold outside, even with the sun shining, that we immediately walked back to the car to warm up and go home. Mr. Sweetie's uncle had a great race in the 5k and he had the car all warmed up by the time we finished. We earned our turkey-stuffing-potatoe-crescent roll-apple pie-pumpkin pie dinners, which is my favorite thing about a turkey trot.

Offseason 2013

I've been in the midst of the offseason for, ohhhh about 4ish weeks now, and I have to say - it agrees with me. M&Ms for breakfast here and there with no shame. My only workouts during the week have been my 20 mile round trip bike commute. For the first couple weekends post-B2B I was doing some trail races but that ceased when Jen reminded me that taking the offseason seriously is IMPORTANT. So last Saturday I did nothing but bake cupcakes and eat icing and homemade fondant.

Every year I enjoy the offseason more and more (not that I've ever been the sort of person who doesn't embrace the off-season in all its lazy chocolate-consuming glory), and every year I worry that maybe I'm enjoying myself so much that I will find it impossible to start up again when the break is over. That hasn't happened yet and I always feel refreshed and happy to be on a schedule again once I'm back in the swing of things. So - fingers crossed that will be the case now (I will say there has been progress - the thought of a Training Peaks email no longer makes me want to fling my iPhone out of a 10th story window).

I've had no problem keeping busy with stuff over the past few weeks, even if "stuff" is actually just going to the store to buy 1lb bags of M&Ms. Or buying large chocolate bars and making them disappear.

Mountain Biking. Sadly there wasn't any cyclocross this year, but there HAS been some mountain biking. Going down to Charlottesville to try those trails this summer was stupid, they were far too technical for me and I had ZERO desire to ride my new mountain bike in the months that followed - suddenly mountain biking no longer seemed like a good idea (maybe getting too old and rational?) Turns out mountain biking can be quite fun on trails that are on par with one's skill level. I'm also lucky enough to have Karen for a friend and she's taken me out and shown me the ropes. It also gives us a chance to catch up. Yesterday we went mountain biking at Lake Fairfax park - SO FUN. The trails weren't terribly technical, with just one section that had some tricky rocks and roots and rollers. I watched Karen go down a particularly skeevy looking section and paid attention to the line she took and successfully mimicked my way down the hill. It was a big boost to the confidence. I also caught myself telling my brain to shut up when it would register that we were coming up on a tricky looking set of roots or rocks so instead of slowing down, tipping over, not trying at all, freaking out, or all of the above - I'd literally say out loud that momentum is your friend, just keep pedaling, this is not that hard. And 99% of the time I'd make it through the tricky section just fine (I did manage to tip over once, but that's also a good lesson in learning how to fall and land properly. Always a lesson in everything). There were a few sections that felt like you were slalom skiing your way through the woods, it was exhilarating. Each time we did the loop, I felt more confident in my bike handling skills and would take the hills a little faster, the corners a little sharper, and roll over bigger rocks and roots without instinctively tapping on my brakes. It also helped that my bike feels as big as a tank that could roll over anything, given enough momentum. Compared to this summer, I feel about a million times better about mountain biking and my ability to make it down a hill without crashing on every root, rock, and tree.

Baking. I know my mom was the one who passed down a love for baking to me. But it pretty much lay dormant in my DNA until about 2-3 years ago when I started trying to make things from scratch and discovered it was pretty satisfying when something tasty resulted from my efforts. And last year my in-laws gave me a KitchenAid stand mixer for Christmas and it has rocked my baking world. As a kid, much to my mom's chagrin, I wanted zero to do with the kitchen. And I think I only used our oven to reheat pizza in college. Post-college it was oreo balls (and that is not technically baking, no oven required just a food processor). But even though it takes more effort to make brownies or cupcakes from scratch rather than a box, I think it's more fun. And when the cold weather comes around, that's when I really want to hole up in the kitchen. Sadly I'm not adventurous enough to experiment and make up my own recipes yet - maybe someday - so for now I follow what's already been written down. I've baked a fair share of apple pies and cupcakes and cookies this fall and now I'm trying to branch out into some different desserts. I've given French macarons a go twice so far. The first time I thought I had already screwed up the recipe partway through so I didn't bother to follow the rest of the directions (turns out it really is important to let the batter set for an hour before sticking it in the oven), the cookies were edible and the ones that actually ended up sitting before baking turned out correctly. I tried them again this weekend, let them sit, and they almost looked like proper macarons. La Duree, watch out! Kidding, of course. I still have alot of work to do - next I want to try to make flavored shells that are pretty colors and branch out from chocolate for my choice of filling.

First attempt back at the end of October. Messy feet.

Second attempt yesterday. Much better feet. Though they do look like little hamburgers, don't they?

I made cupcakes last weekend with pink icing and I tried my hand at homemade fondant (most of the fondant recipes had some scary sounding ingredients, but I found one that just used confectioners sugar, vanilla, and sweetened condensed milk. I think there was a good cup of sugar in each cupcake between the frosting, fondant, and cake itself. So sweet.

Last weekend I told Mr. Sweetie that I would make him whatever dessert he wanted. He chose homemade s'mores. So I made marshmallows (orange-flavored from the Gran Marnier), homemade graham crackers (so.much.butter), and chocolate ganache (I feel like I should just keep a big vat of that stuff in the fridge because I use it for everything). It was all surprisingly easy to make, even though I used a too-small saucepan for the mallow sauce and practically ruined our stovetop when it overflowed. Awesome. This weekend I made salted caramel marshmallows for our hot chocolate.

Homemade s'more!

Eating. Alot of chocolate. The only green things I've eaten lately are green M&Ms and this past week I've been having them as dessert for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (I sort of wish I was kidding but I'm not). I think I finally OD'd on them yesterday because today is my first M&M-free day (I am considering making those signs that they have in warehouses - __ Days Since I Last Consumed M&Ms. I've also been eating all the things I listed above that I baked. And good bread (Mr. Sweetie has found his way back to bread-baking, hallelujah) with fatty fromage. There is always next week for fruit and kale. Always next week. Earlier this week I also had veggie quesadillas with a huge side of Trader Joe's stuffing. Stuffing is the best part about Thanksgiving. Even better than the pie. Mr. Sweetie has been making me hot chocolate with the espresso machine (steamed milk!) and pouring it over melted chocolate ganache. Liquid awesomeness.

Hot chocolate with the homemade marshmallow drenched in confectioners sugar

Stay Out Late, Drink Champagne, and Wear a Little Black Dress. Last night I went out to a party that my friends Courtney and Ron, from DC Tri/Snapple, had at their house. It was a swanky hat and little black dress party and it was SO MUCH FUN to see everyone dressed up, wearing heels, swanky hats, vests, suspenders, and fancy party dresses. I even used my hair dryer on my hair last night, it was THAT special of an occasion. I did a few double-takes when I saw some friends, almost not recognizing them all fancy-shmancy instead of in swim goggles. On the invite, it said the party went until 1am and I remember thinking to myself I will be lucky to make it to 11. Haha, I didn't leave until after 1am, and even then it felt like I was leaving a bit early! It was so great catching up with so many friends!

NO bike jerseys allowed!

Jason, Julie, me and Kendra

We found a puppy!

Doing Anything But SwimBikeRun. I've been biking to work and that's about it. I've taken a long break from running (aside from those two trail races) since my last race. My groin muscle and knee were a bit sore immediately following Beach2Battleship and I really wanted to give things a chance to heal up and get back to normal so I've taken a substantial amount of time away from running regularly. I did go out for two miles yesterday and not only did it feel hard, my shorts were tight. I think I need to reassess the M&M diet. Next week. Last weekend I didn't touch my bike once - instead, Mr. Sweetie and I took Miles on a hike through Great Falls and picked out bathroom paint color from Home Depot. Fingers crossed we pick out a halfway decent color this time around. We've haphazardly thrown the sample paint on one wall and for the past week we'll stare at it and scratch our chins. Who knew it was so hard to make a decision #firstworldproblems. 

If he could have his way, he'd be cliff jumping into the Potomac right about now.

YOU GUYS IT'S A HUGE POOL OF WATER. THIS MEANS SWIMMING. We're big meanies for not letting him .

Other than bike commuting and the occasional 2 mile jaunt down the road, I've not been doing much at all. And I've already twice pushed the start-back-up date further into the future. We're looking at the beginning of the second week of December. Maybe by that point I will want to hear from Training Peaks. Hopefully I will remember my login. And hopefully I will be able to find my pool punchcard, running shorts that fit, and the pain cave once more. That's the sign of a good off-season, when you can't find any of the crap you used to use on a daily basis. Well, I'm off to break my hours-old no M&M streak, goodnight.

Ode to the Last First Date

If it's cheesy to still celebrate your dating anniversary after you're married, then I'd like a whole wheel of triple cream brie. Mr. Sweetie and I had our first date nine years ago today, back in 2004. We were young when we met - early 20s - and while at the time I felt like I was so mature and knew everything in life and exactly what I wanted, I've realized over the past nine years that I was pretty much a kid when it came to "knowing it all" and thank goodness Mr. Sweetie has always been wise beyond his years AND willing to put up with my growing pains as I figured out my goals in life much later than he did and grew into a person who is much different at 32 than she was at 23 when we had that first date.

Happy Together!

And I do have to say, our first date was one of the best first dates out there, which easily led to really great second and third dates which eventually led to an engagement and a fulfilling marriage. Even in just those first few weeks, I knew he was a keeper.

He called when he said he would. This was a big one. There were no games and he never kept me waiting by the phone, wondering if he would actually follow through. Right from the start, he always called when he said he would and that continues to this day. There is nothing overrated about security and reliability like that. I never had to wonder if I mattered enough to warrant a phone call - he has always made me feel like I am worth it.

He asked me on a second date, even though (looking back) my choice of outfit was horrendous. Flared, shiny corduroys paired with a jean jacket. And ridiculous blond highlights. Sometimes I wish I could go slap some fashion sense into my early 20s self. Thank goodness he didn't hold this flaw against me.

 The man cooks! Real food! ALL THE TIME! Stuffed peppers, lentil soup, seafood, pasta with homemade sauce. This was about a billion steps up from the nightly dinners I cooked for myself (cereal and toast all day every day). Not only that, he really enjoyed cooking and creating new dishes. It was pretty neat to be with someone who showed me the value of a well-cooked meal. Now I don't think I could ever go back to cereal and toast dinners if I had to fend for myself.

He loves his family. He had photos of his parents and sisters around his apartment and talked to them regularly, and always always always had great things to say about his mom, dad, and three sisters. He always credits his mom and dad for making him into the person he is today. I think that, in most cases, you can tell alot about a person from the relationship they have with their family and I loved how close he was with his.

Just being around him made me want to be a better person. Mr. Sweetie is, hands down, one of the best people I know. And I felt that way about him immediately. His kind words and gestures that he has always shown me every day, right from our first date, have not only made me feel happy and secure and loved but they make me want to do the same for him. He deserves the very best and while I know I'm not perfect, he makes me want to try to be my best self.

I never realized how young we looked until now. Does this mean I'm old? 

Even after nine years together, sometimes I still want to pinch myself that this life we've built together is real and that I have been fortunate enough to end up with someone as great as Mr. Sweetie. I remember thinking, when we first crossed paths at work, that he was WAAAYYY out of my league - kind, handsome, well-mannered, intelligent, driven, secure, and happy. I have memories of being a teenager and having a talk with my dad and him telling me that he feels like my mom is out of his league and wonders how he got so lucky to snag her. And my mom would always say the same thing about him. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing - instead, it shows just how high in esteem we should hold our significant other. They really should be the best person we know.

Race Report - Wakefield Backyard Burn 5 Miler Trail Race

EX2 Adventures hosts a fantastic fall trail race series each fall - the Backyard Burn, with trail races across northern Virginia - 5 mile and 10 mile options. I've managed to sign up early enough for the Wakefield race to get a spot each year for the past few years. It's one of my favorite races on the circuit - less than a 20 minute drive from home, fun trails, and I always see alot of friends out there. Plus - this year they have added POST RACE BURRITOS to the menu. Win!

I don't think it would've been possible to have a more gorgeous fall morning for a race. Clear blue skies, crisp cool air that warmed up to shorts-and-tshirt-for-a-race as soon as the sun rose high enough. The type of day that you want to bottle up so you can remind yourself of perfection during both the steamy hot summer months or the cold dark winter ones. I was going to race in arm warmers but decided on just tshirt and shorts because it was just warm enough not to need them. The race course was just a tad longer this year than previous ones due to construction - 5.65 miles instead of 5.5. It started on pavement for about the first quarter mile before funneling into the trails, providing an adequate amount of time for the racers to string out and not be on top of each other. I felt like this race was bigger than in years past, at least the female field was in the 5 miler - the ladies packet pickup for the 5 miler was so big it was split into two lines. There were over 60 women in the 30-39 AG alone. I love how popular these races have gotten - and FAST!

So the race starts and I go off near the front. I've been doing a terrible job at negative splitting races lately and Sunday's was no exception. There was one girl in front of me as we neared the end of the paved section and I passed her as we were going up a hill, but that lasted a hot 30 seconds before she passed me back, and then another girl passed me and then another. I was also running an unsustainable pace and check myself before I wrecked myself (I had that phrase running through my head the ENTIRE race, ha!). The three girls ahead of me pulled away and were just far enough ahead that it would take an act of God to get me close enough to overtake any of them without blowing up. So I resigned myself to just running at a pace that felt hard but sustainable. I guess it's kind of hard to figure out exactly what that pace is - and it's dynamic because several times during the race I felt like I was going to fall apart, only to feel worlds better about 30 seconds later and pick up the pace just a bit and the cycle continued. RIP to my pretty pink shoes - I finally ran through a creek with them (no choice!) during mile 2. I will say this - those drainage holes at the bottom of the K-Swiss shoes definitely work - no squishiness! We headed into some single track and I could see the 3rd place girl ahead of me by less than 50yds and she stayed that distance from me for pretty much the remainder of the race, except for the very end when she got even further away. I was lucky that I didn't get bogged down by anyone during the single track, everyone was running at a good clip and I kept my pace up by trying not to let the guys in front of me get too far ahead. We had a few climbs, but this was a mostly flat and fast course that wasn't too technical overall. It was pretty neat how the course snaked its way through the woods and, because many of the leaves were down, you could see people running all over the place - some ahead of you, some behind. Somewhere around Mile 3 I felt like I found my right pace and a second wind. I passed a couple people and would make it my goal to continue my pace so I wouldn't get passed back. I had no idea where the 5th place girl was but I ran like she was right behind me. Once I hit the One-Mile-To-Go mark, I really had to do some self pep talk, especially as I hoofed my way up the final hill. Once I made it up that, I knew I was home free, with a downhill and a flat section to the finish being all that was left. I saw some great Team Zrs cheering at the final left turn to the finish line field and I was so, so happy to cross the line (and so, so happy I had NOT signed up for the 10 miler and two loops of that stuff).

I ended up 4th overall female and 2nd in the 30-39 age group with a 43:20 and brought home another pint glass (Mr. Sweetie just shook his head). I spent post-race talking Pies with Bob and catching up with Kelly Green, who is one of the nicest girls out there. I'm not signed up for any more Backyard Burns, so it was extra nice I ran into some of my favorite people and had awesome weather at this race!

Everyone Needs a "Karen" in Their Life!

Confession. Until today I had not touched my mountain bike (last weekend's failed attempt does not count) since August. This whole mountain biking thing is pretty far outside of my comfort zone and as you get older and more sensible (who thought going down a root-infested trail with a giant log at the end was a good idea), it can be a little harder to travel outside that comfort zone and bomb your way down trails. And road riding really does absolutely zero to prepare you for trail riding. I owned a mountain bike back in 2005-2008 and when Mr. Sweetie and I went on a mountain biking kick, I rode it pretty regularly and felt confident on two wheels. Then I took a long break and I'm currently a complete beginner again.

Today I had a chance to go mountain biking with my close friend Karen. She and I used to race triathlon together before she moved over to concentrate more fully on all things bike - road racing, cross racing, mtb racing. Our speeds were pretty similar in the swim, she was a bit faster than me on the bike, and then it was a tossup as to who would have the better run. It wasn't a rivalry, even though we were definitely competing against each other and trying to go faster than the other, but more of a mutually beneficial friendship on the race course that resulted in faster times for both of us. I think every athlete needs to find their "Karen" - the person who pushes them to race harder, but if there was anyone that was going to cross that finish line first, you are glad it is her.

Racing our way onto the podium at Savageman 2009

Karen is an awesome mountain biker. But you know what I learned today? She is an even more awesome (and patient) teacher on the trails. We biked out at Wakefield (Rosaryville was closed, boo) and did a long warmup on the flat, easy, completely non-technical trails that wound their way under Braddock Road and towards the powerlines. Not going to lie, a part of me sort of hoped that we would stick strictly to these super easy trails. I think Charlottesville really did a number on my psyche and I feel a bit of anxiety every time a see a giant cluster of roots or a creek crossing. After a few miles, our warmup was over and we moved over to the singletrack in the woods. Before heading into the trails, Karen gave me some sound advice - elbows out, butt off the seat when not pedaling/going downhill/getting over an obstacle, pedals at 9 and 3 when not pedaling, ride DYNAMICALLY. My first foray into slightly harder stuff was not dynamic. We got to a slightly tricky downhill that, with confidence I should've been able to do, but instead I got off my bike and walked. Karen waited for me patiently and took me over to a flatter loop that ended up being the perfect mix of speed, small obstacles like roots and rocks, mini downhills and mini uphills. Karen humored me and we ended up doing that loop four times and each time I felt more confident, excited, and got a little faster and more daring - taking turns a little quicker and by the fourth loop I no longer had a terrified look on my face. This was just what I needed - I was able to get a better feel for how it felt to ride over roots and rocks (my 29er is a tank and, it appears, can roll over just about anything given enough momentum), understand that speed was my friend, and realize just how much fun this sport can be. I felt ready to try some other trails. We went over logs - we'd get to one and I'd practice going over it a few times. We went on some twisty, turny, hilly stuff (I did tip over on that one, very low speed, but I was still stuck to my bike when I landed, which made clipping out a little more difficult), we did some rock gardens, did some hills, and I found myself having a really, really good time on the downhills, just barely tapping the brakes and taking the downhills with confidence and more speed. By the end of the ride, I felt so much better and more excited about this mountain biking thing. Getting out of my comfort zone is hard, but I feel like the more great rides I have, with patient, knowledgeable friends, the easier it will be to tackle each challenge on the trail. Hopefully someday I won't be terrified by the wall of rocks at Wakefield and ride up it with ease. One of these days.

Thank you Karen for a really great ride - I am so, so grateful to have a friend like you who let today be all about getting me comfortable on the trails and patiently gave me tips on how to tackle logs, rock gardens, mildly technical downhills. You never left me in the dust AND made me feel like I was doing a great job and never made it seem like I was taking the easy way out if I walked or chose not to try out an obstacle. You are an awesome friend and mountain bike guru! Already counting down to the next ride!

Who's the Brightest of them All?

I know, this title makes it sound like I'm going to talk about being (or not being) the brightest bulb in the box. Which I can do - tangent story here. Lately I keep finding chocolate underneath my chin and I could not, for the life of me, figure out how I was getting chocolate there. It happened again last night and Mr. Sweetie noticed it and he hits the nail on the head - you've been licking your ice cream bowl again, haven't you? I don't know if I'm more embarrassed that I lick my ice cream bowl when the spoon is no longer useful, or that it took me so long to figure out why I kept finding chocolate under my chin.

Moving on. What I'm ACTUALLY talking about is my first winter evening bike commute. I finally have proper lights this year and I was quite excited to take them out for an inaugural spin this evening on my ride home from the office. My sheer laziness in the morning is a pretty big hinderance to getting into the office at an early hour and given how early it gets dark, I think I'll be riding my bike post-sunset quite a bit. In the sunlight the roads are filled with foolish drivers who will think nothing of running over a pedestrian in a crosswalk, and I'd imagine the dark makes this problem even worse - I want to be as visible as possible. Think: Griswold Family Christmas House on a Bike. Last week I popped over to Tri360 to check out their selection of bike lights. They had some great stuff!

I ended up with the Light & Motion Urban Commuter 400 Lumen light for the front (it easily detaches from your bike so you can charge it in your office so it doesn't run out of battery power on your ride home) and the Planet Bike Superflash Turbo red light for the rear (this one attaches to your backpack or your bike). You can also attach the front light to your helmet but it kind of freaks me out when I see, emerging from the darkness on the bike path, a person with a light on both their helmet and their bike, makes me think of a cyclops monster and it just creeps me out. So I'll be keeping just one forward-facing light on my bike. I'm happy to report that the lights made a big difference. I still hate biking through the city at rush hour surrounded by cars (part of me wishes that we could go back to that part of the government shutdown where they closed the Mall to vehicular traffic), but my light was bright enough (and adjustable in that I could lower the brightness and save battery power OR make it blink to annoy the other riders around me) that I had no problem seeing what was ahead of me. Unfortunately, the light lost power when I was about two miles from home - it died a slow, blinky death. This was due to the fact that my brain short-circuited this morning when packing my bag for work - my light charges with a USB cord... my iPhone charges with a USB cord... SAME THING. Haha, not really. So I'll be charging my light tonight.

Tonight's bike commute home was chilly, windy, and VERY quiet, it was lovely. While I will miss biking straight from the pool to/from work in a swimsuit and tri shorts and not having to layer my clothes, having the bike trail almost to myself will more than make up for it. I saw a pretty, pretty sunset on my way home, was in zero rush, and it was a great way to end the day. I'm looking forward to many more cold weather, dark commutes!

Race Report - Rev3 Fall Foliage 11k Trail Race

Rev3 Adventure launched a new race series in the NoVa area in 2013 with trail run options, mountain bike options OR both. If I wasn't an idiot, this would be a race report for both a trail race AND a mountain bike race, but I managed to discover a tiny wrinkle in my race day plan a bit too late on race morning to fix it. You see, back in August when I had my terrifying mountain biking experience in Charlottesville (please read if you'd like a good laugh), I managed to lose a bike cleat in the mud. I haven't made time to ride my mountain bike since then and didn't purchase a new set of cleats until Thursday night when I stopped by Hudson Trail Outfitters. Saturday, in my flurry to get ready to head to Sarah's for an afternoon of eating grilled cheese and watching Honey I Shrunk the Kids (arguably one of the best 80s movies ever - 20 years later I still know far too much of the dialogue), I grabbed my bike shoes out of the front closet and shrugged when a piece of metal fell out of one of them, kicking it into the closet before shutting the door. Turns out that piece of metal was kind of an essential component for attaching the cleat to my bike shoe. Too bad I didn't figure this out until 8am Sunday morning while I was stuffing my face with pancakes in Sarah's kitchen and trying to put the new cleats on my shoes. Mr. Sweetie would've driven them out there to me, but that really wouldn't have been fair of me to ask, given that it's a bit of a drive and he had other things he needed to do. So, no mountain bike race. I've also established a rule that I must get out and PRACTICE riding my mountain bike at least 5 times before I am allowed to sign up for a future mountain bike race.

Tri360 is da bomb. Thanks for all the support this season you guys! And for making super comfy race shirts!

So. The race report. The Rev3 Fall Foliage trail race venue was literally just a few miles from Sarah's house and when we signed up awhile ago, we decided to make it an extra fun weekend and throw in a sleepover. You are never too old to have a sleepover with one of your favorite friends. The lazy afternoon on the couch watching cable tv and eating grilled cheese and tomato soup was pretty much the best thing ever and exactly what I wanted and needed to do. We also had ice cream because that is my lucky pre-race ritual. The race didn't start until 10am on Sunday AND we had the time change Saturday night, so we went to bed a bit later than normal but I still slept like the dead (and still managed to have Walking Dead dreams). We had a lazy breakfast of pancakes, hemmed and hawed over what to wear (it looked chilly outside!) and headed over to the race site.

The race was small and they had the 6k and 11k racers start together. The two distances would split off about 1.5 miles into the race. The first half mile was on pavement before it turned into a field for the next two miles. My pace was just below 7 min/mile for those first three miles and I was pretty sure I wouldn't be able to keep that pace, ESPECIALLY once we hit any harder trail stuff, and I definitely wouldn't be negative-splitting this race. But I figured I'd try to keep that pace as long as I could and the heck with negative splitting because taking a bit of a risk is what these off season, fun races are for. Around mile 3 we hit a more narrow trail with some rocks and roots and it started to feel like true trail racing. There was a guy about 25 meters ahead of me the whole race and I never quite closed the gap on him. And as we finished running through the first field, I looked back and saw a girl about 25 meters behind me and ran the rest of the race convinced she was going to catch me. We ran across another field before bombing down a steep hill and taking a sharp right into the woods. There were a couple times where I slightly turned an ankle or lost my footing as we ran through the woods, but the trail was super well marked and I had no problem staying on course, even when I couldn't see any other runners. I also hate to get my pink shoes dirty (so vain!) if it can be avoided so I slowed down at any muddy points to try and pick my way around them. We had some good hills to go up and rocks and roots to avoid so I stopped obsessively looking at my pace on the watch and only really checked when it beeped. Goodbye sub-7 minute miles. I even had one or two 8+ minute miles sneak in. Right around mile 5 was when I started doing the pep talk of you're more than halfway done. Just two miles to go (or thereabouts, 11k - I've never been good with conversion from the metric system). It was also right around this point that I was trying to figure out where the trail would dump us out - would we have to run back through the field from the beginning with all the tall grass? How about that half mile on pavement? Turns out it dropped us out right onto the pavement and I could see that the finish was just around the bend. Being back on flat, paved ground left little room for excuses and I picked up the pace through the finish, crossing the line in 52:34. I also ended up being first girl across the line - there were only 9 of us in the whole race, but whatever, when you end up first as rarely as I do, a W is a W regardless of how many people were there.

I had a whole cheering section come out for the race. My very favorite Aunt Karen and Uncle Charlie were in town for the weekend at my very favorite Aunt Amy's and they all came out, kiddos in tow. Xander and Lilly had a great time cheering on the runners and slurping down marshmallows from the hot chocolate.

I had the BEST weekend with Sarah and capping it off with the low-key race couldn't have been more perfect. Oh wait - it did get more perfect - HOMEMADE DOUGHNUT BITES. Melt in your mouth amazing.

LOOK at that doughy deliciousness! Covered in cinnamon and sugar and washed down with hot chocolate!

The offseason, fall, doughnut bites, hot chocolate, sleepovers when you're in your 30s, cool-as-heck aunts, uncles, and cousins. My weekend had it all. Thank you Sarah for a super fun weekend and carting me around everywhere! And thank you Aunt Amy, Aunt Karen, and Uncle Charlie for getting me lunch after the race!