Me and The Boys

Ten Years, Eleven Minutes, and First Place - Shoreline Biathlon 2012

The Shoreline Biathlon was the race that started it all for me - the one that got me hooked on running and racing.

Ten years and 63 races later, I knew I'd beat my old PR for sure, and was looking forward to seeing just how much I had improved.

On the way to the race, driving down Route 1 toward Westerly, I got to see the Firmman half-Ironman athletes cruising through the bike leg of their race. Always inspiring to see - and especially so when I was on the way to my own race!

The other 4 times I did this race, it was very small, so I anticipated the same this year, and figured the turnout might actually be even smaller, since this was their first year back after a 4-year hiatus.

It was indeed small - 45 participants total!  I really like small races like that, though. So low-key, and so easy logistically - no parking hassles, no huge lines for the bathrooms, and just a nice, friendly feel to the whole thing - it's almost like you're just out for a really big group run.

I do hope they get a bit of a bigger turnout next year, though. It's a great little race, and I'd love to see it continue and thrive. There aren't very many duathlons around, and it's a great option for people who want a multisport event without having to swim.

I arrived with about half an hour to spare, so had plenty of time to set my things up and get in a quick warmup run, and without too much fanfare, we lined up, the gun fired, and we were off down the road.

I knew I'd go out too fast on the very flat run course, so I just did what I always do, and used the first half mile to try to regulate my pace and settle into what I knew I could maintain over the next 4.5 miles.

I was successful, dropping from a 6:40 pace to just over a 7:00 pace. I found myself settling in around 7:06, and it felt good, so I stuck with it, hoping I wouldn't crash and burn in the final miles.

There were two other women ahead of me when we first started, but I passed them near the end of the first mile, and never saw them again. And I knew there weren't too many guys ahead of me, either. Like I said, this was a very, very small field, so there was not a lot of competition, but it was still pretty cool to be way out in front like that.

It had been 5 years since I had last done the race, but I remembered the run course like the back of my hand. It's a really nice course along the ocean and through some quiet neighborhoods, and with the exception of two small rolling hills, is mostly flat and very fast.

The weather was great, too. The race starts at 11am, and some years that's meant very warm temps, but this year we were lucky and cloud cover kept it from being too warm. I was sticking to a pace right around 7:06, and still feeling great - even wondering if maybe I was holding back. But I reminded myself that I did need to save a little something for the bike.

Miles 1 - 3 felt fabulous. Working hard, for sure, but feeling great and having fun. Mile 4 was a little tougher, and Mile 5 was definitely a challenge. But I repeated the same thing in my head that I repeat in almost every race, when the going gets tough during that last mile - "You can do anything for just one mile."

I was very happy to run through the chute, and ecstatic when I heard the volunteers shouting to me that I was the first female!

That news was more than enough to get me moving quickly through transition, and I was back out on the road in no time, pedaling and grinning ear to ear.

I hadn't done so much as a single brick workout to prepare for this race, but going from the run to the bike is a little less difficult than going from the bike to the run, so I wasn't too worried. And as I figured, my legs felt a little tired at first, but I quickly shook that off and got into a good rhythm, heading down the super flat first stretch of the bike course.

I was in such a good rhythm, in fact, that I missed the first turn on the course!  Ack!!!! In my defense, I don't think the turnoff was even marked. I should have remembered it, since I've ridden it 4 times before - but, it should have been marked.

Luckily it didn't take me long to realize what I had done, and in the end, I only rode a total of .6 extra miles, but it was enough to get me flustered. I had no idea how far behind me the 2nd place female was, but I didn't want to find out.

As I got myself back on the course, I flew past the few guys who had jumped ahead of me, and after a few minutes of pedaling frantically in an attempt to make up for that lost minute or so, I settled back down and enjoyed my favorite part of the course - a nice flat, smooth ride past vineyards and a golf course and farms. So pretty, and so, so fast!

The only real hills are pretty small, and are over quickly, and before I knew it, I was flying past the finish line and heading into my second 8-mile loop (the bike leg is two 8-mile loops).

I didn't have a lot of company on that second loop, but that was ok with me - I knew that meant that I was still out in front, and I was happy to be there : )  There were a few spots where we hit a decent headwind, but overall, the bike was fast and fun, and I was loving every minute of it, especially since I was maintaining just over a 20mph pace.

As I rounded the final corner and knew I had just about a mile to go, I got down in my aerobars and pedaled for all I was worth, and as I flew into the chute with the time showing just over 1:26, I was pretty certain I had held my #1 spot - and I knew for sure that I had just set an 11-minute PR.

Since it was such a small race, the results were posted and awards handed out pretty soon after. It was nice to go over and see my 1st place finish in writing : ) 

I hung around to see almost all the awards handed out, but since I was paying a babysitter to watch the boys (Scott was up in MA, completing a metric century ride), I didn't want to linger too long.

So, the biggest thing I take away from this race is that I've come a looooooong way since I set my PR of 1:37:29 in 2007. My time for the 5-mile run that year was 46:24, which is a 9:17 pace. This year, I ran the 5 miles in just over 35 minutes - an average 7:10 pace.

And that year, my bike split was about 51 minutes. This year, it was 48 minutes.

Training, hard work, persistence, and dedication pay off - this was definitive proof of that - and the jump in those numbers is what I'm most proud of. The 1st place finish is just the icing on the cake.

I keep feeling like that 1st place finish has to be followed by the addendum that "it was a really small race, and not terribly competitive," so it isn't really quite as justifiable as a 'win.'

But on this day, and in this field, it was a win, so I'm still proud of it. Besides, I'll probably never win a race again in my life, so I'm going to really soak this one up and revel in it.

When I came home with my trophy, the boys excitedly asked me what place I came in, and when I told them first, they asked "In your age group?"  I love that they've never done a race themselves, but they already know about age-group awards.

And I also love that I was able to say "No - not in my age group - first place overall!!!" 

I know they'd be my number one fans even if I came in dead last, but it's fun to give them something big to cheer about : )

The numbers -

1:26:35

5-mile run - 35:55 - 7:11 pace

16-mile bike - 48:39 - approx. 20mph pace

1st female finisher

7th overall

The Year of the Half

After my bizarre, out-of-the-blue allergic reaction Saturday night, I was really hoping to have a great run Sunday morning - one of the ones where I felt healthy and fit and strong the whole time. I needed that validation.

Luckily, I got it. I planned to run 10 miles, but was feeling so great that I ended up running just over 12. And I ran an 8:09 pace. And I felt fabulous the entire time. Good stuff.

Since I raced last week, and am racing again this weekend, it'll be a while before I do track work again, and I feel like I actually kind of miss it. I think I do miss the challenge a wee bit, but more than that, I miss my track partner. Now that school's back in session, and soccer has started, it's becoming more difficult for me to get out to group runs, and I'm missing the company.

Hopefully when I'm back in marathon training mode this winter, it'll be a little easier to meet up with people at least for my weekend long runs. I've done plenty of 20-milers solo, but I'd rather not do it too often, if I can help it.

Last year at this time, I was a bundle of nerves, counting down to Hartford, and wondering if I was going to be able to pull of my BQ time. And this year, I'm a bundle of nerves again - I've got my qualifying time, but since I'll be the last group to have an opportunity to register, it remains to be seen whether or not I'll actually get in before the race fills up.

I'm also a bundle of nerves thanks to the next race on my schedule - the Shoreline Biathlon in Westerly. Back to the race that started it all, 10 years ago - the first time I ever pinned a race bib to my shirt.

I fully anticipate a PR, and I think I even have a shot at an age-group award, so I'm excited to get out there and see what I can do. A little nervous, too, but it's more excited pre-race jitters than anything. I'll never get tired of those : )

I'll be feeling plenty of them come October - the race I've been working up to all summer - 13.1 in Newport, the final leg of the Triple Crown, and what will be my 5th half-marathon for the year.

I have one more half before that - Zooma Cape Cod - but I'm not planning on going all out at that one. The main reason I'm doing it is so I can have a weekend getaway on the Cape with a friend, and get to meet Sarah Bown Shea and Dimity McDowell, the authors of Run Like a Mother, as well as meeting up with some of the fabulous women from the Run Like a Mother Facebook community they've created.  The race is just the icing on the cake : )  I'm not going to run it at an easy pace, but I am going to save the real race pace for Newport.

Since Newport was my first full marathon, 4 years ago, this race is even more special to me.

Not only do I get to go back and run almost the same 13.1 miles that I ran in 2008 (the first half of the course is a little different now than it was then, but does cover much of the same territory), but I get to do it as a now three-time marathoner, a Boston qualifier, and a Gansett finisher. I've come a long way in those 4 years, and I think I'm going to reflect on that as I run in Newport again. 

And I'm also going to reflect on how happy I'll feel when I turn off to the finish chute at the 13.1 mile mark, instead of having to run twice that distance!!!  I'm excited to run 26.2 again next year, but happy to not be running it next month!

Last-Minute 5K, and Lots of Racing On the Horizon

I'm usually plan out my races pretty far in advance, but earlier this week I found out a few friends from the running club were going to do a 5K tomorrow night, and I knew I wanted in.

I like weeknight races - no need to mess with our weekend plans - and after an incredible track workout last week, I'm dying to see what I can do in a short-distance race (most of my summer races have been longer ones).

The track workout in question was 1-mile repeats. I planned to do 3 of them, but ended up doing 4, because I felt so great. Yes, I felt great after doing 3 x 1-mile repeats - who says that????  But even better than the fact that I felt fabulous is the fact that I ran each mile repeat at approximately a 6:30 pace!!!!!  And did I mention I did FOUR of them???

For someone who's aiming for a sub-21-minute 5K, a workout like that is a huge confidence booster. I'm certainly not expecting to run a 6:30 pace tomorrow night - I won't be taking 400m recovery laps in between each mile, after all - and I'm not expecting to break 21 minutes tomorrow night, either. But I am expecting to shave at least a little time off my 21:38 PR, and get closer to my ultimate goal.

Weather looks like it will cooperate, too - after two very steamy, muggy days, we're going to be treated to much drier, cooler air - so happy the timing worked out well with that!

After tomorrow, I'm going to focus on getting in a few more good bike rides to prepare for the biathlon; try to decide whether or not I'm doing the triathlon on the 16th; and continue with my weekly track workouts and tempo runs to get ready for the Zooma Cape Cod Half on September 22nd, and the Newport half - final leg of the Triple Crown - on October 14th.

I've been really good about sticking with the track workouts, but last week was the first tempo run I had done in nearly two months. I had no idea what to expect when I set out on my 7-mile loop by the ocean. I was pleasantly surprised. After a 1-mile warmup, I was able to run 6 miles at an average 7:17 pace.

With the 5K tomorrow, I won't be doing a tempo run this Thursday, but I'll definitely fit one in next week. I forgot how much I love the challenge - not quite as torturous as track, but leaves you with a similar feeling of accomplishment.

The other thing looming in September is Boston registration. Registration for the fastest runners opens on September 10th, and after all those super speedy runners have registered (those who have beat their qualifying times by 20, 10, and 5 minutes), the rest of us 'slowpokes' (I beat my qualifying time by 'only' 4 minutes) get our shot.

I like the new registration system - I think it's a much more fair and equitable way of doing things. But it's still going to suck if I don't get in. I want the Boston experience at least once, and I'd really like for it to be this year.

If it doesn't happen, there's nothing I can do about it, so I'm trying not to get ahead of myself, but I will be keeping my fingers crossed that I'm not shut out. Luckily I have all the above-mentioned races to keep my mind off it!

Back with a Roger Schonning 5K race recap later this week!

Running, Swimming, Biking, Biathlon, and the Boys

Two signs of how busy I've been the past 11 days -  1. I haven't blogged once. 2. I'm just now sitting down to watch the women's Olympic marathon, which was run last weekend.

I'm still getting in my workouts, but there's been a lot of ups and downs. Last weekend, due to me traveling out of town to visit some friends, and then us having overnight guests, I ended up going three days without any workouts at all. No long run, no long bike ride, no nothing. It felt very strange, and very uncomfortable. 

But as the third day sans workout rolled around, I kind of made peace with it, and figured that after the previous weekend of back-to-back races, my body was probably enjoying the well-deserved break.

And I figured I'd be feeling refreshed and ready to get back to it on Tuesday morning at the track - the first track workout I'd done in three weeks. Instead, I was dreading it. I'm so thankful my track partner was there, because there's a good chance I would have cut the workout short if I had been on my own.

My motivation overall seems to be lacking at the moment, and I was kind of baffled by that, but then it occurred to me that I'm probably experiencing a small case of the post-race blues. I didn't follow a specific training plan for the Blessing or the triathlon, but I was certainly working hard and preparing for those two races, just as I did for Jamestown last month.

And now that both of those are over, and my next race is several weeks away, and my next 'big' race - the Newport half - is two months away - I'm kind of in limbo, so I think it's natural that I'm not feeling terribly excited about running at the moment. 

I'm trying to get myself more excited about swimming, though. After my last post, I decided to go for it and buy a wetsuit and commit to getting in some open-water swims in these last few weeks of summer.

I've accomplished the first step, and my new wetsuit is hanging in my closet, waiting for me to accomplish the second step - getting in the water. I had planned to join in on a group swim last week, but wasn't able to. Hopefully I'll make it this week. I'm tentatively planning on the Y Not Tri for September 16, but I'm holding off on actually registering.

I did register, though, for another multisport event - the Shoreline Biathlon in Westerly on September 9th - which just happens to be the first race I ever completed, back in 2002. I can't believe I've been running and racing for 10 years! 

I love this race, and am so excited to do it again. It's a 5-mile run, followed by a 16-mile bike ride - a very small field, and very scenic courses for both the run and bike. My PR of 1:37 was from that first year (I did it two other times), and I'd like to think I can easily beat that this year, but I'll find out for sure in a few weeks.

In light of that, I've stepped up my biking a bit, and made it out for two bike rides this week, both of which went great. I've been averaging between 18 and 19mph on my 30 - 40-mile rides, which I'm very happy with. Really enjoying the biking, too - and reminding myself that, although I run year round, the bike will eventually be put away for the winter season, so I need to get out and make the most of it while I can.

Way back when I signed up for the Triple Crown series, I had intended to find a good half-marathon training plan to follow for the October half. I'm hoping for a PR at that race. Initially, I had thought 1:40 was my ultimate half-marathon goal, but since running 1:41 in Jamestown, I'm thinking that in the cool October air, on a course that's not too terribly hilly, I should be able to break 1:40.

I'm not certain that I want to follow a plan, though. I've really enjoyed this sort of 'training but not training' thing I've got going on this summer, and I think I want to just roll with it. It's much less stressful, and I've still been getting faster and setting PRs. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?  

So for right now, I'm thinking that my training for Newport will consist of mostly weekly track workouts, occasional tempo runs, and long runs right around 12 or 13 miles. Hopefully that will get me my sub-1:40, but if it doesn't, there are plenty more half-marathons to be run, and I know I'll get it eventually : )

Quickie updates on the boys - Dante is becoming a really good swimmer, and I'm contemplating having him try swim team at the Y. Gabe's swimming has improved a lot, too, but has no interest in joining the team.

We'll make sure he continues with lessons, but I don't want to push him to do the team if he doesn't want to. But I'd love to see them both become strong swimmers, given that we spend most of our summer at the beach, and I know that the swim team experience would be a great one for Dante. 

Dante also wants to try surfing lessons, and the past few times we've been at the beach, he's been catching waves and trying to stand up on his boogie board. I have a feeling we'll be shelling out some $$ for at least one surfing lesson before the summer's out.

And I have a feeling he might actually be really good at it - he's really good at timing the waves just right. He actually taught me a thing or two when I finally tried boogie boarding with them last weekend. And oh my god, why have I never tried boogie boarding before????!!!!!  I now completely understand why they love it so much!!!

Gabe has soccer camp this week, but his new obsession is Monopoly. He wants to play Monopoly ALL THE TIME. And if you can believe it, I played a game with him and Dante, and they beat me! They caught on really quick.

Carmine, meanwhile, is constantly entertaining us with his shenanigans. I bought him his own mini boogie board, and he drags it around at the beach and pushes it around in the water, and is starting to get a little upset when Gabe and Dante go out boogie boarding and he can't go with them. I think I'll be signing him up for swim lessons this winter.

He is also now, more than ever, repeating EVERYTHING he hears, so I'm really glad that we're generally very careful about what we say, since his new favorite expressions are "What the heck?"  "Oh god!",  and "Oh darnit!"  And my personal favorite - instead of ("Oh geez!") "Oh, cheese.... crackers!" 

He never fails to make me smile.

We Now Return To Our Regularly Scheduled Programming

So I've obviously been a little preoccupied lately with my two big races - it's been a busy two weeks! - but things are quieting down a little now, which is good. 

I've certainly forgotten to write about a lot of cute/funny/amusing things the boys have done, but here's a random sampling - 

I have been known to mutter comments about how the boys are 'driving me nuts,' and apparently I wasn't muttering softly enough, because Gabe started saying that I was driving HIM nuts (as IF!). And of course whatever Gabe says, Dante is soon to repeat. Only Dante put his own little twist on it, and is now telling me "Don't drive me nuts!"  

Last night we had leftover pasta for dinner, and it was pasta with red sauce, rather than with butter and cheese. Dante, aka the human garbage can, heartily consumed very large quantities of it. Gabe, however, didn't touch it. He said he wanted the "white pasta." And when I told him that this was all we were having for dinner, and he wasn't going to get anything else, he said "That's ok. I will eat dinner tomorrow."   He was perfectly content with that, so we were, too. 

When we got back from the race on Sunday, I thanked the boys for coming to see me and cheer me on, and Dante patted my leg and said "You looked good!"  It's awesome enough that my 2 1/2 year-old son compliments me like that, but even more awesome that I know he's complimenting me like that because he hears his daddy doing it all the time. I am one lucky gal : )  

The boys were so cute, too - they woke up just a few minutes before I left Sunday morning, and they wanted to know where I was going, so I told them I had a race to go to, and they immediately started clamoring to go to the race. "Can we go, Mommy? We want to go to your race and cheer for you!"  I love that they love this stuff!!!!! 

In between all the racing and running and biking and swimming, we've been keeping plenty busy with other stuff, too. Scott's sister has been overseas for work for the past 6 months, and got home last Friday, so we had the family over for dinner on Sunday night, and it was really fun. She was shocked at how much Dante has changed in the past 6 months. Gabe has changed, too, but I think it was more surprising with Dante, because he was barely talking 6 months ago, and now he talks almost as well as Gabe. 

It was a fun night, though. We hung out outside and talked and watched the boys run around like maniacs, and were able to eat outside, too, which was nice. 

Not too much planned for us this week. We'll try to get in some beach time, and we're hosting an Olympics-themed playdate here on Friday morning, which should be fun. We'll set up a little obstacle course for the kids, and do some races, and give them all ribbons. Hopefully the weather will be nice. 

Last night was the final night of the Youth Track series. It was very hot, and a little buggy, but we still had a great time. I wasn't sure if I was going to make it - I came down with a bad cold Sunday night (caught whatever both the boys had last week), and felt absolutely awful all day yesterday. If it hadn't been the final week of the track meets, I probably would have skipped it. But I didn't want the boys to miss the last one, so I pulled myself together and I'm glad I did. I would have been really disappointed if we hadn't gone. It's such a great event, and I'm already looking forward to next year's! 

Thankfully, my cold symptoms have subsided a bit today, and I'm no longer feeling like I got run over by a bus. I actually felt pretty great when I woke up this morning, and even made it to the gym and got in a 3 1/2-mile run. 

I'm not planning any big races for the near future, but I am contemplating doing the biathlon in September. I'm always drawn to that race, since it's the first race that I ever did. I wouldn't even need to do a whole lot of training for it, either - I'm at a great spot with my running, and I feel fantastic about where I am with biking, too. 

I'm going to leave it up in the air for now, though, and just enjoy some more relaxed weeks, and just do what I want to do as far as working out, and just do it for the fun of it. I know my competitive drive will be back in no time, and I'll be getting myself all psyched up for my next race, but in the meantime, it'll be nice to take it easy for a little while. 

Finally, A Non-Biathlon-Related Post (Well, Almost)

Ok, so, forgive me for the seemingly endless biathlon talk. It was a pretty huge event for me, though, and it was hard for me to not bask in the glow a bit. I'm done going on and on about it - all I'll mention at this point is that I'm feeling nicely recovered now. I was actually pretty sore on Monday, and still a bit sore yesterday, too. I've still "got it" in terms of being able to complete events like this, but every year I feel it a little bit more, and I take a little bit longer to bounce back.

I made it out for a run yesterday morning, though, and although my muscles were sore, the run felt great - and check out the nice negative splits -

Mile 1: 9:25
Mile 2: 8:59
Mile 3: 8:00 !!!! 

Not too shabby for two days post-biathlon. I also went for a swim later in the morning (1650 meters, mostly freestyle, with some breaststroke and backstroke thrown in). No, I certainly didn't need to do a double workout, but now that I'm getting a good comfort level in the water, I don't want to lose it, and the best way to keep a good feel for the water is to get in it at least twice a week, so in the pool I went - and had a great swim, so I'm glad I did it.

But, ENOUGH about me already! I haven't updated on the boys in ages, so here goes -

Alright, this is also race-related, but I have to share a cute conversation Gabe and I had on Sunday morning. I told him that I was going to do a race, and he pointed to my shirt and said "Is that your racing shirt?" I said "Yes, I guess it is." He thought for a minute and said "Are you gonna get hot at your race?" And I said "Yeah, I probably will get hot when I'm running." Then he thought about it again, and said "Well, that's ok, you'll have watermelon." At his Youth Track meets this summer, they had watermelon for the kids, so I guess he thinks that all races have watermelon : )

Gabe had his first dentist appointment on Monday. It went pretty well. He let the hygenist check his teeth, and he let her brush his bottom teeth, but after that he refused to cooperate, and she wasn't able to brush any more. She said that was pretty typical for a first visit - and that he actually did better than a lot of kids do.

I learned a few things, too - we need to be better about brushing morning and night (we always do nighttime brushing, but aren't so good about the morning); we should really start flossing his teeth (that should be interesting!); and we should gradually switch him over to regular adult toothpaste, rather than the strawberry-flavored kids' kind. All in all, a good visit - the best news, of course, was that he has no cavities!  And he's on a regular dental checkup schedule now, so we go back in 6 months - at which time he'll be FOUR! 

We had an Early Intervention appointment this afternoon, to review Dante's evaluation and discuss the plan moving forward, which is as follows - he'll have a speech therapist come to the house every other week to work with him, and they'll also give me ideas for things I can do in the intervening weeks to help him with his language development. My first assignment is to work with him to make "m, p, and b" sounds. He can make an "m" sound, and yesterday actually said "boo" for boo-boo, so he can do the "b" sound, too, but that's still something I can work on with him.

In addition to that, I'll be taking both Gabe and Dante to a weekly music class that's run by our EI service coordinator. The class will include a lot of vocal exercises that she thinks will be helpful for Dante, and I think both he and Gabe will really enjoy it. And, um, it's free, so why wouldn't I take them??!!! 

So between the music class and the speech therapist, and just his natural growth and development, hopefully he'll be a bit chattier by the time his 2nd birthday rolls around. He also said "uh-oh" yesterday, for the first time ever, so he is starting to talk more all by himself, which is great. One other thing he says is "phew!"  If he lifts or pushes something that's kind of heavy, when he's done pushing it around, he looks up at you and says "phew!" It's a riot : )

And finally, as is standard procedure for kids with a speech delay, we're taking him for a hearing test tomorrow morning. I don't anticipate any issues, but it's obviously better to get it checked out, so that's what we'll do.

He may not be talking much, but he is making no shortage of LOUD noises, and is a champion roughhouser. Last night we were playing in the living room after dinner, and he was just running back and forth between me and Scott, throwing himself at us and laughing hysterically. And I remember Gabe doing EXACTLY the same thing when he was this age. Something that's really crazy to think about is that Dante is almost 21 months old now, which is how old Gabe was when Dante was born. I cannot even fathom being on the verge of having a newborn right now!!!!!!

Gabe is still a constant source of entertainment, of course. One night last week we were eating dinner, and Dante put a piece of roasted potato in his mouth, decided he didn't like it, and spit it out. I said something like "Well, I guess he doesn't like those, huh?" And I guess Gabe was feeling bad for me, so he said "I love these potatoes, Mommy," and popped one in his mouth and started chewing it...... and then promptly spit it out and said "yuck." At least he tried....

We've been listening to some Disney CDs in the car lately, and every time a song starts, Gabe asks me what the song is called and what it's from. He's obsessed with knowing what movie the songs come from, even when he has no idea what the movie is. They're not too bad to listen to - some annoying songs, but most of them are ok.

We went shopping one day last week and got a few Halloween decorations and got Gabe's costume, too. I was going to try to put together a clown costume myself, rather than buy one, but then I saw an adorable clown jumpsuit at the party store for $10, so I grabbed it. It fits perfectly, and he loves it. He tried it on that night, and wanted to wear it to bed!  I love how toddlers have absolutely NO concept of time, though - he kept asking me if it was going to be Halloween after dinner, or after his nap tomorrow. And he's been walking around just randomly saying "Trick or treat!" I guess he's warming up for the big day....

Last night we just happened to dress both Gabe and Dante in Thomas pjs, and they both thought that was the coolest thing. I think Dante was especially pleased to be wearing pjs that were just like Gabe's. They were really getting along particularly well that night, and when we sat down to read books, Gabe reached over and hugged Dante so nicely - it was so sweet. And when they were having their baths, after Scott had washed Dante's hair, Gabe looked at it and said "His hair looks great!"

They're quite a pair. We took them to the park Sunday afternoon, and they wanted to go play in the tennis courts. There was nobody playing tennis, but there was a tennis ball that had been left behind, so Gabe and Dante spent a good half hour running around the courts chasing a tennis ball around. It was a great way for them to burn off some energy, and now Gabe keeps asking to go to the park and "play tennis."

Gabe had me in hysterics the other day, too. He was running around upstairs and dancing - seeing him dance is funny enough,and usually that alone makes me laugh. But as he was dancing, he was also yelling "I'm rockin' out!"  And then he came over to me and yelled "Rock out!" Too funny....

And, as I like to sometimes do, I'll close with a classic Gabe-ism. He pushed Dante the other day at the park, and I made the mistake of saying "Gabe, why would you do something like that?"

His answer - "Because I can."

 

I never should have asked.

My Fourth Shoreline Biathlon

I couldn't have asked for more perfect weather for Sunday - woke up to dry air, blue skies, and a slight chill in the air.

Even though we didn't have to leave until 9:30, I was still up before 6am, and really didn't sleep all that well the night before - too excited and nervous. Luckily the boys kept me busy until it was time to leave Sunday morning, so I didn't have too much time to sit around getting anxious. I had gotten most of my stuff ready the night before, but took a few minutes to go over everything again, and then packed it all in the car. Scott's parents arrived right on time to babysit, we gave the boys hugs and kisses, and headed out right at 9:30.

We got there right around 10:15 - perfect. Just enough time for me to set my stuff up in transition, make a few bathroom stops, and do a very quick warmup jog. My iPod was ready, my Garmin was ready, and I was ready. I always hate those last few minutes before the race starts - the anticipation drives me nuts. We lined up at the start - I'm guessing there were about 70 or 75 of us - were given a few quick instructions, and then we were off.

I did pretty well sticking to my plan of starting out slow on the run. My playlist really helped me keep my speed down, as did my Garmin, which I must have been glancing at approximately every 20 seconds. I'm glad I did, though - Mile 1 came in at 9:18. Perfect. Just about where I wanted to be.

Mile 2 felt fantastic - this is where the course runs right next to the ocean, and the scenery is just beautiful, and the sun was just warm enough - this is the point in the course where, every year I run it, I feel like I could run forever and ever. And once again, my music and my Garmin helped me clock in Mile 2 at 9:24.

I was dying to really kick it into high gear at this point, and I did speed up a bit, but I knew I couldn't go all out just yet, and I took a short walk break at the water stop (right around 2.5 miles), so I was able to keep Mile 3 at a reasonable 9:17 pace.

After Mile 3, I started to allow myself to pick up the pace a bit more, and finished the mile in 8:51. I was still feeling strong, and knowing I was almost done definitely helped.

As I headed into the final mile, all bets were off. I wasn't sprinting, but I was giving it everything I had, and I passed several people on my way down the stretch (which, I have to admit, felt pretty good). As I came into the transition area, my Garmin showed that Mile 5 was completed in 8:47 and the race clock read just over 45 minutes.

I had hoped that Miles 4 and 5 would be a little faster for me (closer to 8-minute miles), but given that I only started running again a few weeks ago, I think I put in a really good effort, and I'm really happy with an overall run time of 45:17, which is actually 24 seconds faster than my 5-miler in Boston on Memorial Day weekend (the last race I ran before the shin troubles began), so I guess that's something to be pleased about.

I ran right over to my bike, said a quick hello to Scott as I slipped out of my sneakers and into my bike shoes, got my sunglasses and helmet on, and decided to skip putting on the gloves. I'm not sure how long I took in transition - won't know until the official results get posted - but I sure felt like I was in and out of there pretty fast.

The first 2 miles of the bike were rough. My leg muscles were screaming in protest, and it took me a few minutes to find my rhythm (the price you pay for not doing any bricks in training, I guess). But once I got through those first 2 miles, things started to click, and I started feeling much more comfortable and picked up the pace a bit.

The course is very flat, with just two inclines. Neither of the hills is terribly steep or long, but on the first 8-mile loop, they both kicked my butt. I just didn't have it in me to attack them, and I really slowed down as I came up each hill, and took way longer to recover than I would have liked. But luckily, those two slight uphills are countered with a loooooooong downhill, so I was able to recoup some of that time.

And for the first time ever, I felt better on the second loop of the bike. And I really, really pushed myself on that second loop. I pushed myself on the first loop, too, but I really pushed myself on the second loop. Every time I wanted to slow down, I reminded myself that that 3rd place finish (in my age group, of course) could be within my grasp, and it kept me going. (And, I have to add - having the aerobars on my bike helped a lot - I spent probably 85% of the ride on the aerobars, and I'm sure that it helped improve my time.)

But boy, was it good to head into the final mile. As with the run, I gave it my all and passed a few people coming down the stretch, and I'm not exaggerating when I say there were tears in my eyes when I saw 1:37:29 on the clock as I headed into the chute. I didn't yet know if that was good enough to place in my age group, but I knew it was a PR, and that was (and is) reward enough.

They were posting the results every 5 - 10 minutes, so I learned pretty quickly that I had just missed the 3rd place prize. It's disappointing, but like I said, having that 25-second PR almost makes up for it : ) 

All in all, it was a pretty perfect race. Could I maybe have pushed it a bit more on the run?  Possibly - but not enough to put me in that third-place bracket. And could I have pushed it a bit more on the bike? Absolutely not. I put EVERYTHING I had into that bike ride. I didn't have my Garmin on, so I don't have the splits for the bike, but I know I finished the 16 miles in just over 50 minutes, which is right where I was in training - and let's not forget, all my training rides were on fresh legs; not on a pair of legs that had just run 5 miles.

Perfect weather, a really fun race, and a PR - what more could I ask for? 

Official results are finally posted. There were 80 participants - I came in 56th in the run, and 42nd overall.

A New PR!!!!!

No, I didn't win third place in my age group. BUT, I did come in 4th in my age group, and I did set a new biathlon PR, coming in at 1:37:29, 25 seconds faster than my 2002 PR.

It was a fabulous day for a race, and I had a fantastic time, and although I'm a little bit bummed that I missed the 3rd place prize, the PR is a really great consolation prize.

A full report coming soon....

Ready to start.

Heading into transition

Taking a quick breather before heading out on the bike

The finish!!!!!

Whew!

Glad to be done : )

Crunching The Numbers

Pretty much all I can think about today is the biathlon. It's all I've been thinking about since Wednesday, actually. I'm going over the course in my head, remembering how it's gone for me the three previous times I've done it, and thinking about the many variables that will affect my finishing time.

The first time I did this race, back in 2002, I came in 6th in my age group. Not too bad, really, considering it was the first race I had ever done (not even a 5K under my belt - I went straight for the multi-sport challenge!), and I was riding a bike I had borrowed from someone, so it really wasn't fitted to me, and I had absolutely no clue about pacing myself during the run, or how best to get out of transition quickly, or any of that stuff..... truthfully, I don't think I even knew it was called "transition" - I just thought it was "the place where I have to put my bike."   

Taking all that into account, my only goal that year was to finish in 2 hours or less, so I was thrilled to come in at 1:37:54. Thrilled!

The second year (2004), I had barely trained at all. I think I ran 3 or 4 times, and biked 2 or 3 times, and not once did I even come close to running 5 miles. I was in terrible shape, having had my first baby 6 months earlier, and I just hadn't gotten back into the swing of things with working out, and it showed. I walked nearly half of the 5-mile run, and was lucky that I was able to get through the 16 miles on the bike in a somewhat respectable time, so that I ended up coming in at 1:53:52.

And last year, after baby number 2, I knew it was time to get serious about getting in shape again, and I got bit by the running bug - bad - and once I started running again in earnest, I knew I wanted to do this race again, and although I didn't train a lot, I did get in more training than I had in 2004, so I was fairly well-prepared, and made a decent showing with a time of 1:47:56 - not the best time, but considering that I had now birthed TWO children, and had only had about 4 1/2 weeks to train, not too bad, either.

So this year, I'm approaching the race, once again, from an entirely different place. I'm in what I would consider the best shape of my life, but due to my persistent shin splint issue, I haven't been able to do nearly as much running as I would have liked to do this summer. But I have done a lot of biking, and although I know that I could have trained harder for this race, I still feel very well-prepared .

I've looked over the finishing times in my age group for the past four years, and times for the third-place finisher in that age group are as follows:  2003, 1:37;  2004, 1:38;  2005, 1:38;  2006, 1:34.  So if I can meet - or beat - my PR of 1:38 for this race, I will have a shot at third-place in my age group. A long shot, but a shot nonetheless. I don't think I've ever wanted to win third-place in something so badly : ) 

So this year, I'm not just doing this for fun. It will be fun - I know that, and I'm looking forward to having fun and enjoying myself. But I am also RACING this thing for the first time ever, and it really puts a whole different spin on things. I have a veritable flock of butterflies in my stomach already, and like I said, can't stop thinking about how things are going to go tomorrow.

My main priority is to start out slow in the run. I have a big problem with starting too fast and paying for it later, so I'm really going to be relying on my Garmin (and my playlist - yes, I have created a playlist with songs chosen specifically to help me achieve negative splits) to keep me in check for the first 3 miles. After that, all bets are off.

And transition - no stopping to chit-chat with Scott this year. I'll wave and say hi, but that's all I'm going to have time for. I'm even debating whether or not I should put my gloves on before I get on the bike, because I'm worried it's going to take me too long.

I have to admit, it's strange to go into a race feeling this way - which sounds like a dumb thing to say, because a race is a race, and aren't you always competing on some level? But for me, every time I've done a race, I've just been competing against myself, trying to beat an old PR. I've never felt like I was competing against anyone else. It's odd, but also pretty exhilirating - really gets the old heart pumping; even before the actual race day!

Weather looks good. High of 67, dry, and partly sunny. It's going to get pretty windy this afternoon, so I'm hoping that the wind dies down before race time tomorrow, because at this point that looks like the only thing that could really slow me down. 

My shin feels good, I'm having a nice rest day (felt odd to not work out this morning, though!), and I had a nice, relaxing bike ride yesterday morning. So relaxed I didn't even bring my Garmin - just relied on my bike computer, which informed me that I rode 9 miles in 32 minutes. It was nice to ride a bit slower and enjoy the scenery.

So there you have it. I'm ready, I'm excited, and I cannot WAIT for tomorrow!!!!!!  I like that I don't have to get up at the crack of dawn for this race (start time of 11am), but I know I'll be up with the sun anyway - I'll be too excited to sleep.

I hope to post a full report Sunday night. May the best 30 - 39- year old woman win (third place in her age group, that is).

A Sign Of The Times

It's that time of year again. The time of year where the first thing I do when I wake up - if I haven't stayed up late enough to watch the end of the game - is check the Sports section to see not only if the Red Sox won, but if the Yankees lost. And I have to tell you, I am very, very nervous about this weekend's games....

Had a good swim today. Did my usual 1 mile, but I swam it a few minutes faster this time. I'm going to start incorporating some drills - reading up on that now - but I am feeling that I'm doing pretty well with my technique. I know there's still plenty of room for improvement, but I also know that I've come a long way since my first swim class in June. It was nice this morning, too - I had an entire lane to myself. I don't mind sharing a lane, but it's awfully nice when I don't have to!

I was asked why I'm not doing a triathlon this year, with all the swimming I've been doing. The main obstacle at this point is that I haven't done any open-water swims, and every triathlon that's taking place around here in the next month (which is basically the final month of tri season in these parts) has an open-water swim. There is one that I was very tempted to do, because the swim is in a lake, rather than the ocean, but I think even that would be a stretch for me right now. I know myself, and I know full well that I will panic the first time I swim in open water, and add all the chaos that comes along with a large group of people entering the water and starting to swim at the same time, and I'm fairly certain I'd be an absolute mess.

I also know that even once I DO get some open-water experience, I'll probably still experience some of that panic in my first race, but I think if I've at least swum in open water a few times, the panic will subside quicker, and my confidence level will be a lot higher. And as for tris nearby that have a pool swim, rather than an open-water swim - no such luck. The only ones I found (you better believe I looked!) are at least a 6-hour drive away, and although I'd love to do a tri this year, I'm not that desperate.

So I'm looking on the bright side, and figuring that this is all for the best. I now have an entire winter to really improve my swimming, read my new book (which just arrived today), and to learn more about wetsuits and trisuits and all the fun gear I'll get to buy! And I'll go into my first sprint feeling like I can do really well, rather than just "getting through it."

In the meantime, I'm thrilled to report that the weather forecast looks pretty near perfect for Sunday's race - a high of 68, and nice and dry. Now all I have to hope for is calm winds. I would really love to go for a short run tomorrow, but I don't think my shin is up to it, so I'll just hit the gym instead, and Saturday will maybe just take the boys for a walk or something very low-key.

Speaking of the boys, Dante had a bit of a rough day today. He's teething pretty badly, and he's still got the runny nose, and he was just not a happy little boy - i.e., there was a LOT of whining going on.
He also totally freaked out when I dropped them off at the gym daycare. He's done that the past few days, and it's really bumming me out, because it's been sooooo long since he's given me any trouble about that at all. I don't know if it's just the teething that has him all out of sorts, but I hope it passes soon - when we go tomorrow, I'm going to try sitting him down with a snack, and see if that helps distract him.

Gabe has his first Arts & Crafts class tomorrow morning. I can't wait to see what he makes! We got our Amazon order today, so after his nap he worked on his new puzzle, and he did really well. I had to help him a little - it's 48 pieces - but he did quite a bit of it by himself. He loves the puzzles - and I really like doing them with him, too, so I think he'll be getting some more puzzles from Santa in a few months.