Muncie Indiana Half Ironman

After not being allowed to finish at Kona in June, I had to have closure on the Half Ironman distance.  About 6 hours away in Muncie, Indiana, the Ironman series offered an event.  I had registered before our place even left Hawaii.

What was I thinking?!  Work got hectic.  I got lazy after coming back from Hawaii.  Work got hectic.  I got lazier.  You get the picture.  Training become non-existent and now I was scheduled to swim 1.2 miles, bike 56 miles, and run 13.1 miles.  Oh man, it's a good thing I'm not a quitter.

Meg joined me at this race.  "Joined" is the nice way of saying she had no choice.  She's my companion on all things crazy.  How in the world this kid managed to entertain herself is still a mystery.  Not even she knows the answer!

We met my parents and brother/sister-in-law in Columbus.  My brother and sister-in-law were visiting for the week and weekend and were kind enough to take Bridget for the next 36 hours.  Bridget was beyond excited to stay with her older cousin, Zoe, so it was a win-win for everyone.  Poor Meg, she would be stuck with me on a 36-hour adventure that would be one of the weirdest for her and I and that's saying a lot!

Pre-Race
We arrived in a little town outside Muncie for the triathlon check-in, mandatory event coverage session and a little expo shopping.  The event was held on the grounds of the Prairie Creek Reservoir.  Gotta love Siri, but she routed us to the opposite side of the reservoir, told us to park our car and walk to the reservoir.  Are you serious?!  We were separated by water...no way we could walk! Ugh, it took us nearly a half hour to find our way around all the county roads before finding the check-in.  The funniest part...there was a super simple direct route that I would eventually find later...and thank goodness.

This is a pretty cool race in a remote location and with a neat camping and RV lot the race start.  I started thinking that if I did this race again next year, we might have to rent a camper.  Might be fun to have an evening under the stores and then to celebrate with S'mores.  Don't you think?

We pick up my race packet, listen to the race announcements, fret, pace, you know the drill.  Eventually, I check in my bike into the Transition area.  This was a much easier, more traditional check-in.  I got to lay out my towel, organize my bike and run stuff.  Not a lot of space between bikes, but at least there was only one transition area.  Seriously, that ended up being so much easier than Kona. I also learned many lessons from Kona...including simplifying my transition set-up.  This would turn out to be a smart move.

We headed back to Richmond, Indiana, about an hour from the race, but the closest place to get a hotel.  I will make sure I book earlier for the 2015 race (and yes, I'll be doing the 2015 race!).  Our carb loading meal was at the Olive Garden (blech!), but when you're in a town of chain restaurants, you can't be picky.  We hit up Kroger to get some food and snacks for Meg's marathon wait and then headed off to the hotel for some shut-eye.

I tell you, Meg and I could have fun in a paper bag.  She's such a good sport of making the most out of a really boring location!

Race Day
Time to get up before the Sun! Phew, it was early.  The Hampton Inn was kind enough to prepare for us a to-go bag, except it was stuff that was so processed, there was no way I was putting that crap in my body.  And I say this "tongue-in-cheek" because the week prior to the race had included late night evenings of work and no healthy food.  I think I had the unhealthiest diet in my 48 years that way alone.  Not a good thing, but it is what it is.

Got to the race start around 6:00 a.m. I did a practice swim, made a quick trip to the port-a-potty, hung around nervously until my neon orange group of ladies entered the water.  Lots of people wore wetsuits because the water temp was slightly below the wetsuit cutoff.  I made the decision to just wear my swim skin, which was smart because you overheat after awhile in the water and I didn't want to dehydrate myself.  It was going to be a super hot and humid day so I needed to be smart about not overheating and drinking plenty of water.


Swim
I was scheduled for an 7:45 a.m. swim start.  My swim went well.  I shaved a minute off my Kona swim time.  I was super impressed considering I had only been in the water maybe 4 times since Kona.  I would have shaved another minute, but I got hit hard by another swimmer within 50 yards of finishing and it disoriented me a bit.  Overall, I was happy.

Now run to the transition area, not walk! Pulled on my socks, cycling shoes, a little lube, a quick bite of Gu, sip of water, slid on the sunglasses and helmet and busted out of that transition area.

Bike
While I did finish under the cutoff, my bike portion was disappointing.  Next time, I will include a steady workout of plyometrics to improve on my leg strength.  I also need to work more on better gear shifting.  I made some key/rookie errors.  My bike is a heavier one (I really missed that lightweight Cervelo I had in Hawaii!).  The course had a lot of rolling hills and was very challenging in the heat and humidity.  It was a bit of a boring course, which made it tough to take my mind off the fact that my legs were like jelly.  I had pulled over for about a 5-minute stretch and inner complaint session when a police officer came over.  She asked if I was ok.  I told her, "Yes, I'm just tired and bitchy, but I'll pull it together."  It was very nice of her to care, but I was 40 miles into a 56-mile course and, yes, I was tired and bitchy! But I'm not a quitter.  So I pulled my act together, got back on that bike and hauled my ass into the transition area.

Run
Well, I made it past the bike cutoff with about 20 minutes to spare.  Not a lot of time.  And I needed to finish the half marathon in under 3.5 hours.  Ok, in full disclosure, since mid-May, my longest run has been 10 miles and that was in mid-May.  My longest post-Kona run was 7 miles.  This half marathon was going to be more mental, than physical.  If I could get my mind to finish this daunting distance, then my legs would suck it up and do it, too.

At one point, I was pretty whiney.  I wanted to quit, but I couldn't because that would be selfish and unfair of me since Meg had been patiently waiting since 6:00 a.m. and I couldn't quit.  What kind of message would I be sending her - that it's ok to quit when things get hard.  It's not ok.  So I trudged along.  At the beginning of the run, I hooked up with another runner and we incorporated a run/walk method of 2 minutes run, 1 minute walk.  It helped and got us through the first half of the course.  We managed to beat the turn around cut-off by about 10-15 minutes.  It was a day of beating the clock.  I eventually had to go on my own because she was wanting to walk more and run much less.  I had to finish under the cutoff.  Disqualification was simply not an option.  So I headed off solo until I caught up with another runner around mile 10.  Funny thing is that he told me he did the whole swim course using the backstroke.  And I remember seeing him in the water. 

We ran two cones, walked one cone until we ran out of course cones.  At that point, we ran one full guardrail, walked a few mailboxes, until the awful hill.  We fast-walked the hill, but did so with a smile because we knew we were within a half mile or less of the finish line.  And we would finish well under the wire! We hustled through the finishing chute to the sound of the Black Keys playing.  The sound of the Akron band greeting me at the finish line was perfect.  But even more perfect than that was Meg greeting me at the finish line.  I actually cried and hugged her because this was one of the hardest things I had done and was so glad and proud that I finished!

Finished in 8:30 and change.  Unbelieveable experience.  I will definitely do this again next year.  Muncie, I'm coming after you!

Prologue
Best story ever from Megan.  I asked her what she did while waiting for me.  She said she wasn't sure, but she managed to kill about 10 hours.  I asked if she slept, she said "No."  I asked if she read her book, she said "not really."  I asked if she ate, she said "some." Hysterical.  Only a 20-year-old could waste 10 hours and not have any idea how.  She did meet the third place male, Andrew Starykowicz, and had fun celebrating with his group.  She got to hang out with some of the faster triathletes and enjoyed people watching.  What a sport!

Two Islands, One Big Race, 50 States

We did it.  We hit 50.  50 states, that is.  And just like that, a goal was reached!

Hawaii was amazing and was everything we thought it would be and more.  We arrived mid day in Kona to one of the most beautiful sights we have seen.  Just look at the view from our hotel.

For the first 5 days we stayed in Kona at the Fairmont Orchid.  Absolutely beautiful with friendly, attentive staff.  Highly recommend this hotel, if you're planning a trip to the Big Island.  First thing we did when we landed late Wednesday was check-in to the hotel which, by the time we landed, was well after our bed time.  Dinner, relax and take in the scenery was all that we planned to do.  And sleep.

The girls enjoying one of the many cool activities at the Fairmont Orchid - lei making!

Thursday, we headed over to Kona to pick up our bikes we had reserved.  I got a sweet Cervelo named Gino and Greg found a Cannondale that would be his ride for the race. We brought our own pedals, but never thought about bringing our own seats.  We would soon learn the importance of that mistake!  Rest of there day was spent poolside and relaxing while squeezing in a little scuba and light open water swim.

Friday, was packet pick-up and athlete check-in.  If we weren't nervous before, we would be now.  We grabbed our packets, ankle timing chip, swim caps, signed our waivers, and drank lots of water.  The race would be hot, hilly and humid.  Hydration was necessary.  Oh, and we hit the expo shop and found a couple cool shirts with all the racers names on the back.  What a great keepsake!


Friday evening, we took our bikes to mandatory bike check-in.  The Ironman 70.3 Honu race was unlike any other triathlon I had raced.  Normally, you check in your bike the morning of the race and lay out your towel, organize your transition area, and then head down to the water.  Not this Half Ironman.  We had to drop off our "T2 Run" bag during check-in.  No room for mistakes at this point.  Then, early Friday evening, we rode our bikes to the bike checkin, which was about 7 miles from the hotel.  Holy crosswinds, batman.  What the hell was I thinking when I decided to enter this race?! I know, I thought "Go big or go home." Now this was suddenly feeling like a super crazy, super insane choice!  We found our assigned rack, checked-in our bikes, and took the bus back to the hotel....in silence...freaking out inside.  We don't get CROSSWINDS in Cleveland.  My right hand and shoulder blades were already aching from the death grip that I had trying to prevent myself from tipping over on the bike from the forceful direction of the winds.  This was after a 7-mile ride.  I had to come out of the water, hop on to the bike, and cycle 56 miles! Uh oh.

The rest of the evening was light and easy.  Early dinner, early to bed.

It's 5am? How can it be 5am? Holy crap, we're doing this.  And off to the Athlete Bus we went with all the other racers at our hotel.

Swim
As soon as we arrived at the T1 Transition Area, I dropped by T1 cycling bag and headed down to the open water swim.  Nerves were on heightened alert.  I knew I could swim the distance.  I even felt comfortable with the open water and channeled my inner Crowie Alexander Got Milk Commercial (The open water is my playground, he says).  I knew I could do this.  But could I do it with nearly 1,000 other athletes, with waves, in salt water, and under 1 hour 15 minutes? And the women were the last wave, so there was no cushion for finishing as the clock started ticking with our group.  Greg and the male group got a 7 minute cushion over the women.

I did.  Made it out of the water in 1:03 and change.  A bit slow, but I'm pretty sure I zigged and I zagged way more than necessary.  My dad always said I ran like a Singer sewing machine on zigzag stitch.  Pretty sure I swim the same way.  But hell, I did it.  But this is where the first of many mistakes began.

I walked across the sandy beach to the showers they had to rinse off the salt.  I piddled.  Seriously, I stood there and enjoyed the rinse.  What was I thinking?! Then I walked the 200+ yard hill to the transition area, thinking I was conserving energy.  No no no.  The (and yes. there's another "then"), I couldn't find things logically in my transition bag, had to dump out the contents, sort through my crap, find my gels (which would NOT slide into my back pockets in my race top because I was soaking wet), and had to insert my gels into my bra.  Mental note, get a bento box and organize your fuel, Robin!  I start to head out of transition and then realize I forgot to apply my hoohah cream.  No way was I going to tackle 56 miles on an uncomfortable seat without the miracle of hoohah cream.  So back to the port potty I went.  By the time I hopped on my bike and exited transition, I spent nearly 20 minutes in transition! Stupid.

Bike
There was a giant hill immediately out of transition.  And this was only the first of MANY hills I would encounter on this fine Saturday morning.  The hills, the headwinds, the crosswinds, and the fact that I was not at a good racing weight, would all challenge me.  I raced a good portion by myself, which also meant I didn't have to worry about drafting concerns!  No penalty tent for this girl.  Since we weren't allowed to have music, it also meant I had a lot of alone time...so I sang.  And I only know the words to a few songs...mostly rap songs.  And my voice is awful!

While the scenery was beautiful, I remember very little about the course other than it was hot, hilly, humid, but filled with breathtaking views of the ocean...and lots of lava rock.  The turn around was in a neat little town called Hawi (pronounced with a "v" instead of "w") and I was so grateful to be able to say I was over halfway!  About 40 miles into the race, I ran into Greg, who was with the medical team due to leg cramps.  I pulled over to check on him and chatted with the medical team to make sure he was ok.  It was a wicked hot day and it got the best of many athletes.

The final 5-mile stretch was through lava fields and I was stunned over just how how my body would soon feel.  I was rounding the last couple miles and a volunteer told me that it was nearly 12:30pm - the cutoff and I better hurry.  As I entered the chute, I was told I missed the cutoff by 4 minutes.  4 lousy minutes! I racked my bike and paced a bit, considering whether I should just dart off on the run anyway.  The run cutoff allowed athletes in the transition area until 12:45pm to get out on the run course.  I still had 10 minutes and only needed to slide my feet into my running shoes, throw on my hat, and head out.  I wanted to do this so bad because I had the legs to do it.  It's my thing, running.  But I'm only a rule follower and that was that.

So I wandered off to the medical tent to see if Greg had checked in.  Afterwards, we grabbed our t-shirts and a couple beers and watched as the finishers came through the run cute.

Amazing experience.  I conquered the swim.  I handled the bike just fine in all the heat.  And I knew I had the legs left for the run.  This could only mean one thing...I just HAD to sign up for another half ironman to prove that I could do this.  I had to have closure.

But first, I needed a shower.  Boy, did I smell!

Thoughts Drifting Off to Hawaii

The half ironman training is in full-swing in this house, but that should not be our only Hawaii-related focus.  Megan, Bridget and I have found our minds drifting off to, what we believe will be, an amazing island vacation! Fashion, food, and island activities.  It only stands to reason that we should spend a little time on Pinterest daydreaming about spending 10 days in a warmer climate...and what better time to do this than now, when we're getting super frigid temps here in Northern Ohio!

We'll be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary while in Hawaii.  This might be a nice outfit just for that dinner!

Luau outfit, maybe? Would be nice for going to dinner on both islands.

Greg has scheduled us for a luau about 3 hours after our expected finish time.  I'm hoping the seats are comfortable and the people next to us don't mind the sweet scent of Icy Hot!

I've always been known as the turtle and not the hare.  Let's hope this little fellow will show me the way to each of the buoys and recognize me as one of his own!

Half Ironman Training - New Year

After coming off some serious knee pain caused by painting two large rooms, I am back to feeling my old self. Phew!

Training is going well.  I am all kinds of exhausted trying to swim, bike and run.  Swimming is where I need to make the most significant strides. I am swimming 1,000 yards right now (slowly) and plan to sign up for a master's swim group to work with swimmers who can help me improve.  I have to say that being in the water feels so good...but it's resulting in a need for napping!

Biking on the trainer is boring as crap.  I've been watching cheesy movies to help the time go by, but no knee pain so I'm not going to complain one bit!

And running I love.  We invested in a good treadmill, which is helping eliminate any cold weather excuses.  Plus, I've been listening to a different album each time I run to make the time go by.  So far, I've been enjoying Eminem's new album, Red Hot Chili Peppers 2012 concert in Cleveland, and the Avett Brothers.  Love singing out loud (family not loving this as much as me!) to make those miles go by better.

If you have any tips to make those miles and training more enjoyable during these cooped-up winter months, please let me know!

And Hawaii Makes 50

Since both the girls are in school, we knew the 50th (and farthest distance) state would have to wait till summer.  Secretly, I knew the race I wanted to tackle.  After thinking about it a lot (I mean, A LOT), I finally shared my crazy idea with Megan.  She agreed that if we were going to finish this insane challenge...this huge travel and racing commitment...then we needed to do it big.  Not a 5k, not a 10k, not a costume-y kind of race.  I then got up the nerve to tell Greg.  To my surprise, he said he was in.  He would race with me...

I had to do it now.  I've been wanting to do this for a long time.  And so I registered.  I emailed Greg my confirmation.  And by the next morning, he, too, was registered.

On May 31, 2014, we will close out this wonderful challenge by racing Ironman 70.3 Kona.  This will be his second half ironman...it will be my first.  Together, we will swim 1.2 miles in the ocean, bike 56 miles along the same course that we've seen on TV, and finish with a half marathon.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a trip to my local bike shop to pick up a second CycleOps trainer as there will be two of us cycling through these cold winter months.

Wish us luck!