Let's get back to basics. . .

Just a week of review for some "not-really-training-for-IMAZ" training:

5/23: Rode for 2-plus hours with Vit. We did hills, hills & more hills. It was fun.

5/24: Walked/ran/hiked for 2 hours with Lola. Nice little workout.

5/25: Rode with Vit & Pimp Daddy J-Z. We did about 34 miles. A nice easy ride since Pimp Daddy has not been riding much. Still, a good ride all in all. Then Vit & I lifted.

5/26: Swam approx. 2,000 yds. I even beat Vit to the wall a few times - a rare occurrence, one I will relish.

5/27: Water walking with Lola. Do not let this exercise fool you; it is a tough workout AND it is easy on your joints.

5/28: Yet another ride with Vit. We did more hills . . . about 20 miles' worth. Boy, are my legs feeling tired!!

5/29: Swam . . . okay, I'll come clean - we did approx. 1,000 yds. until I talked the coach into letting us quit practice early to drink beer. So the 3 of us swimming took our coach out to eat & have a beer.

I love corruption. I am so good at it. hee-hee

5/30: Went for a 7.30-mile walk with Becky C. Nice & casual . . . ya know, just us girls gossiping.

5/31: Oh, and I end my 9 days in a row with an hour swim & another ride with Vit & Pimp Daddy J-Z. I had a headache & was extremely hungry, so I only lasted 1:45 and change. Then got back to my car only to find out I locked my key in there. So I had to ride the extra 2 miles home!!!

I ate toast & eggs. YUMMY.

Well, tomorrow I rest. Finally.

So, for now . . .

Peace & love,
TracerX

Let the insecurities begin . . .

I am not a Marine battling for my life & my country. Nor am I someone battling cancer. I do not have to battle an abusive relationship, or drug or alcohol abuse . . . maybe an addiction to training. BUT, hey - I know I'm not the only one.

So why is it that when I get a call from a writer for the New York Times - to follow me for a story about the leadup to Ironman - I get worried that I am just a 44-year-old, plain suburban mother, married with two teenaged girls, who averages 15 miles per hour on her bike? That I feel like a pimple on an elephant's ass?

Seriously, are there not hundreds of thousands of people just like me trying to get by in life & train for an Ironman, too???

This is where the insecurity lies: that I am a nobody! Average Jane! Who would be inspired by me and my training for an Ironman?

And the answer comes to me: Perhaps other Average Janes or Joes. Perhaps some of the people I work with who think it is "insane," but who have a certain respect for me knowing what I am doing. Or maybe my daughter's friends who think I am "awesome"!

What does it all mean, Basil?

Maybe that I need to just accept it that I am signed up, gonna do the training & do my best to kick some Ironman ass!

And by "kick ass," I mean, "get to the finish line with some semblance of a huge smile on my face & try to do 'the running man' down the finish-line chute!
My daughters get really embarrassed by my dancing when I do it . . . so I thought it would be appropriate. I may just forget &/or fall on my face. We shall see.

Well, gotta get going - tons of errands - then dinner with Vit & Lola.

Much peace & love, TracerX

Girls gone Wildflower. . . .

Or in my case, GIRL gone to Wildflower.

I had a different title, but I forgot what it was. I saw this saying on a T-shirt the past weekend at "Wildflower".

So, I got back the other night after having spent a lovely weekend with the boys. Again, it was just me & my boys. It was not too bad, but I did miss Lola, who had a nasty case of lymphangitis.

I had decided to take a bunch of testosterone (I know, I have enough already . . . ) and just get up to the triathlon & camp like a real man!! That included eating dinner at Big Bubba's Bad BBQ, having it rain on us, setting up my own tent, farting & belching. All of which I managed to do very well. I also got to share a tent with G-Money, & my hubby was O.K. with it. He even really likes G-Money.

Well, Friday night of the weekend was a bit of a restless night - no, not because of G-Money - because I just have a difficult time sleeping when I am camping. OH - and also because Vit's bro-in-law, B-Meister, snored louder than a cat in heat.

Anyway, got up early Saturday & had a great breakfast made by Vit, gathered my gear & took off to the transition area. This was going to be my first-ever sprint triathlon done on trails using a mountain bike. I was nervous & excited. I had done some riding with the bike to get used to the gears, etc. And since this was a .25-mile swim / 9.7-mile ride / 2-mile run, heck, I was just gonna have fun.

I racked my bike like they told me, got my gear in order, chatted with some of my fellow 45-49-year-olds & even had the dumb chick (bitch) that knew everything tell me that the bikes were racked wrong & it was triathlete preference - coughbullshitcough - but she really was trying for a podium spot & has been doing this for 10 years .. . . blah blah blah . . . you get the picture. I told her not to give me any attitude, just explain how she wanted my bike & hers to be placed, since I was just here to have fun and was NOT "going for a podium spot." She did settle down & it was off to the swim.

It was a fun swim start, but I felt so cramped in. I did O.K., felt decent when I got out - thank God, because we had to run up the boat ramp to transition, boogied thru that & jumped on the bike & took off. The bike was 9.7 miles and I had a complete blast!! I just felt good and was having fun! Now onto the 2-mile run. Back into transition, change & get out . . . and up!! STAIRS??!! I love Vit for these little tips he keeps hidden from me. Oh, well - it's only 2 miles & I just go. Again, thank God it's only 2 miles.

I ended up with a total finish time of 1:23:09. And - I had a really fun time! Met a nice lady that I ran with to the finish line & just enjoyed the race.


I reunited with Vit & B-Meister & we hung out in the spectator stand to watch the pros finish.









Andy Potts redeemed himself with an overall win. Nice job . . . and he looked good doing it - I mean he really "looked good."

And I got a picture with him:


He is super nice. Did I mention that he is really good-looking??











After the pros came in we made the long haul back to the campsite to watch the rest of the "age-groupers" run through the campground - it's around Mile 9 for them on the run. I got a great picture of G-Money, who was kind enough to stop & pose.


And, as it turned out, G-Money finished in under 6 hours!!! A PR for this course for him . . . go G-Money!

Saturday night we all had a nice spaghetti dinner & went to bed early. Keep in mind that B-Meister & Vit had a race to do on Sunday.

Sunday morning we all woke up, packed our gear & headed down to the race. I got to be the photographer for the day. I was busy running all over the place to get the best shots I could.

Here is a good one of Vit & B-Meister -



Vit took a minute-plus off his time from last year, & due to mechanical difficulty, B-Meister had to DNF. BUMMER . . . but I must say he took it very well. When he finally came in off the bike he decided to do the 10K run anyway . . . just for the workout aspect of it. Good for you, B-Meister!! Way to get it done!

All in all it was a great weekend with great friends.

I will be going back next year . . . maybe a longer distance?? The long course perhaps?? We shall see. But I will be bringing Lola with me next year. And my hubby, too.

Quite frankly, I love my "boys," but I want some estrogen with me next year. Missed you, Lola.

Here are me & my boys:



Well, that's all she wrote . . .

Peace & love,
TracerX

Oh, by the way - I podiumed with a 4th place finish in my age group!

Hills?? Nobody mentioned hills to me. . .

1857 07:22:17 TRACERX W45-49 61/78 39 1325 39:46 2:06 5:10 59 1814 3:37:26 15.5 3:52 70 2:56:04 13:27

O.K., I'm a little late in getting this race report done. But, hey - I had to go on a mini-vacation with my family over spring break and then I went right back to training. Well, not RIGHT back.

It did take a week-plus to recover. So, without further ado . . .

It was a cold Saturday morning in April. I had slept well the night before, but the alarm went off at 3:30 a.m. Oh-so-comfortable in bed. . . but, I must get up because I am one of those neurotic people who must get to the transition area pretty much the minute it opens. And, I might add, I am not the only one!

So - up I go, get dressed, try to eat & call Vit to ask him a question. Well, guess what? He's not even up yet! GET UP, VIT . . . you're one of the neurotic ones, too. Let's go!

We load up the car with the gear and it's off to the race we go.

With my husband & Vit's wife, Lola, in tow, we get down to the parking area & take off on the bikes to the transition area. I'm feeling pretty good. Only mild anxiety at this point. I think the outfit Vit is wearing is keeping my mind off my fear, with his compression socks & his camouflage shorts. (Thanks for the laugh, Vit. You always cheer me up.)

Into transition, find my rack, locate a nice spot where I can't get my gear thrashed by some dumb chick who shows up late & feels it is her prerogative to fit her bike and her gear into an area that is already filled. It is one of my biggest pet peeves when people do that. BIG.

I'm happy to be near some really nice ladies. Most of them are veteran 70.3 triathletes. All of them are super nice . . . until the dumb chick who shows up late and decides that she'll stuff her bike into a space that doesn't exist. She knocks off the helmet that's on the bike & feels obliged to tell us all how the bikes need to be stacked! Well, kiss off, bitch! (I didn't really say that, but I did think it.)

Now that my area is ready, Vit & I head out to find G-Money & H.R. Pufnstuf. Oh, and to check out the competition. ha ha

After a chat with my friends I'm ready to put on my wetsuit & pee. Yes, pee on myself, in my wetsuit. If you do tri's, you'll understand. If not - well, you might find that gross. Sorry!

The really funny thing is that I REALLY have to pee . . . a lot! So when I finally let loose, at first there's a nominal amount running out the bottom of my wetsuit. Then, it's a large amount forming a pool of urine around me & running across the asphalt. I have to tell the ladies I'm talking to what I've done. The comments they make are not of disgust, but instead they say things like, "Great! That means you're hydrated!" & "Oh, you must be warm!"

I'm still a bit embarrassed, especially for the woman sitting on the ground next to me. She didn't get it in her direction. Once the line moves forward, it's kinda funny to see other women having to stand in my "pee puddle." hee, hee

Enough!!! On to the swim. My group of white caps - Wave 13 - enters the water to swim out to the starting buoy - only 100 yards or so - I'm excited more than nervous. I know I have to "just keep swimming." And that is what I do! I have a really nice swim. Find a nice clean line without a ton of people to crawl over or hit in the face, etc. I do get kicked in the face once, causing my goggle lens to be dislodged from my eyeball. No biggie - I'm able to get it back on without a problem.

Out of the water & into T1 . . . I run into the transition, grab my gear, make a decision to take off & try to get my gloves & arm warmers on while I ride. Which I manage to do, thank you very much. I probably look a little silly.

The first 10 miles I feel like my legs are made of lead. I push on & finally find my groove. At mile 29-ish, I need a pee break, take it at a porta-potty (the one with the Marine yelling the entire time, "Ooo-rah!").

When I get back on my bike, when . . .

what to my wondering eyes should appear? A rather steep hill that would require a small gear!

I don't get discouraged . . . I'm excited to just take the hill as it comes. "Live in the moment," as Vit says.

I have fun with that hill. I talk to other people, watch them go by me, watch them as I go by. Watch one gal hit the curb & almost tip over! Glad she doesn't. I don't think I can stop because it will be too hard to get started! Nice altruistic me . . . thinking about others.

Onward & upward . . . the rest of the ride is uneventful. Except for the head wind that we all have the last 11 or so miles back to the beach. It's just time to put my head down & keep pedaling.

Back at the transition - into T2 - and I cannot run with my mostly new shoes & cleats. I just cannot do it. I also have some horrible back pain. So, I stop in the transition area, take off my shoes & walk at a moderate pace to my area to get ready to "run." I think I will just take my time & not really care about my time. (As it turned out, I learned later that my T2 was faster than T1!! Go figure.)

As I head out for my "run," I'm experiencing a great deal of pain in my right low back with every step, so it's time for some medication. Take some, do my walk/run, hit the wonderful sand, for quarter of a mile (x4) . . . all I have to say is YUK. What a pain in the butt.

By mile 1, I have to take more medication - yup - I'm doping!! But I don't think it helps my performance at all. (Although I did my run/walk in 2:56:04, which is my best half-marathon time.)

It's two loops on the run, so I'm happy to see all my boys - Vit, H.R. & G-Money. I'm also thrilled to see some great friends on the course out there with their big smiles, cheers & kisses.

(Thanks for coming out, Big Daddy D, VAD & their nephew. It was nice to see all your smiling faces.)

Overall, I end up having fun on the run. The support crew, AKA volunteers, are awesome, the woman with the dog who keeps encouraging me & the stoners in front of their house with their cowbell, all keep me going.

When my two loops are done I get to make the left-hand turn into the final stretch to the finish. Oh, boy, does that feel good. I see my hubby, tons of people cheering for me & coming over the finish line feeling delirious & having H.R. there to put my medal around my neck. "What are you doing volunteering?" I think. Even though he's done and finished the race . . . I'm a bit loopy. Vit is there. G-Money, too. And there are hugs & kisses all around. I'm extremely happy to have my 1st 70.3 under my belt!!

What an amazing feeling. One I won't forget - until the Alzheimer's kicks in. Seriously, great feeling. Plus, I got a medal.


OH! - did I forget to mention the blisters? Yes, I got two beautiful blisters on the bottom of each foot. Those were no fun. They squished with every step.

Also, I told everyone after the race that I did not think I would be able to do the Ironman. I said it was going to be too hard & I was going to be unable to deal with it. Everyone said not to think about it, just enjoy the moment.

It wasn't 'til dinner - well the cocktail part of dinner - that I was ready to go do Ironman!! Yeah, baby, let's do it! IMAZ November 22, 2009, here I come!!

Well, I think that is all I have to say . . . except a special thanks again to Lola & my hubby. You two are the best jock straps!

Sorry it took so long to write this, but hey! I've been training for my Ironman.

Much peace & love,
TracerX


Note: Photos will be added soon.

How about a quickie? ? ?

I finished my first-ever 70.3 Ironman on Saturday!

I am sore, sunburned & have two big blisters . . . one on the bottom of each foot.

So, suffice to say that I will write a complete race report as soon as I return from my wonderful family getaway to a lovely spa & resort in Avila Beach. I am looking forward to a nice, relaxing mineral hot springs with a deep tissue massage!! Oh, my . . . it sounds so good.

The quickie is that I am done blogging for now. Good night & talk to ya soon.

Peace & love, TracerX

p.s.-let me give it up for my boys: Vit Tornado, G-Money & H.R. Pufenstuf who kicked butt at the triathlon! Way to go boys.

It's off to the races I go. . . .

Well, the time has come. Only tonight & one day to go . . . T minus 31 hours. Can that be right?

So, Cali 70.3 here I come.

Gonna set a PR!! (That is the good news.)

Gonna have to deal with gnarly back pain . . . That is the bad news.

Gonna be surrounded by friends & my husband. That is the fantastic news.

So, the time has come to get to bed.

I will have a race report next week for y'all.


Peace & love, TracerX

Doctor, doctor! Gimme me the news . . .

As you may or may not know, I have some pretty bad, kinda severe back problems. I have been battling with them since last August when I found out (after the Santa Barbara Long Course) that I had a sacral fracture. I did that triathlon in lots of pain!

I was told not to run while the fracture healed, not to ride out of the saddle, and go ahead and swim but no flip turns. (Thanks for that last one, doc, since I don't freakin' do those anyway.)


So, I abided by the rules and got that sucker to heal. I had an MRI taken of my lumbar spine & my sacrum - that's how I found out it was fractured. It was also noted that I have severe degenerative disc disease at L3-4 & L4-5.

Which translates to bone-on-bone, no cushion, disc dessication & arthritis!!! I know, I know: hang up the damn running shoes & just ride the flats, right? The problem with that? . . . I DON'T WANT TO DO THAT. I want to keep on training & racing even though it is really kicking my ass! Well, my back, actually, which then radiates down to my butt cheek & hamstring. Especially with the running.

So, just walk . . . right? Yes, that is a possibility, especially given that I am not really a runner anyway. . . it just means I will be that much slower during the "running" portion of my triathlon - also known as My Quest Not To Be The Last Person To Cross The Finish Line.

Are these all crazy thoughts? Maybe, but it is how I feel. . . but I do suffer after a training run/walk.



So today I went back to see Dr. Steve for some updated radiographs of my lower back & sacrum.

It still looks crappy!

Again, I was told that running is not that good for me.

Again, I feel like crying & feel like I really picked a bad sport to fall in love with.

Again, I decided that I don't want to do that. After all, I am signed up for my first Ironman! Remember that is what this blog is all about! My road to Ironman. . .

So - keep taking my anti-inflammatories, go to physical therapy, ice my ass, take narcotics & alcohol together. . . ooops - maybe not that last part, but it sure does help. There's nothing like a Darvocet & a Bloody Mary. ****kids: don't try this at home.

K - that's all for now. . .

Peace & love, TracerX