GOALS for 2013

 

 

GOALS for 2013:

 

 

1) (2) 70.3 Triathlons

      Potential Races: June 1, Auto Car Tough Man 70.3, Richmond, Indiana

                                 

                                 July 13, Muncie Half Ironman 70.3, Muncie, Indiana

 

                                 September, 29 Augusta Half Ironman, Augusta, Georgia

                                

 

2) (3) Half Marathons

      Potential Races: April 27, Derby Half Marathon, Louisville, Ky

 

                                 May 5, The Flying Pig Half or Full Marathon, Cincinnati, Oh

 

                                 October 13, Midway Half Marathon, Midway, Ky

 

                                 October ?, Louisville Half Marathon, Louisville, Ky

 

                                 November ?, The Sports Commission Half Marathon, Louisville, Ky

 

3) Make the gym a priority!!  (No Excuses!!)

 

4) Lose weight and keep it off! (Make better choices!!)

 

5) Blog More!!!!

 

 

 

     The year of 2013 is going to be a difficult year to get my races in.  I may have to work several Saturdays and I only have so many vacation days.  So I have to choose my races wisely this year.  My priority is completing at least one 70.3 race, hopefully 2.  My half marathons I would like to  get faster.  So that means I have a lot of speed work to do!!  (Not my Favorite!)  Losing weight is another big challenge for me.  I can't seem to keep it off!  I really want to make some good healthy changes in my eating and food shopping.  No more eating out!!  I know that it is not totally possible because of all the traveling we do with swim and soccer.  But I am going to really work on it and minimize it.  My last goal is to blog more!  It seems I always feel that way but I never do anything about it.  This is one more thing I need to work on.  So, 2013 is going to be a year that I have a lot to work on!  I am very excited to take on the challenges.  BRING IT ON!!  :)  

 

 

What are your goals for 2013?

 

 

Do you have several challenges?

 



Marshall University Marathon

     Marshall University Marathon is my 5th marathon.  After completing the Louisville Marathon in October 2011 and ING NYC Marathon in November 2011 I was not planning on running another marathon for while, at least for a year or two.  I was planning on becoming a Half Ironman at Augusta in September 2012 but it just didn't happened.  I decided not to compete in Augusta because I was not ready.  I could have done it but I would have suffered too much and I thought if I do that then I would never want to compete again.  So after a long time I decided not to go to Augusta.  I couldn't talk about it to anyone for a long time because I was upset. This is something I really wanted to do this year but life got in the way.   It is very hard to fit in all the training when you have 3 kids playing soccer, swimming, cheerleading, and cross country.  I didn't want to miss anything so my training suffered.  I was still running thru all this but I wasn't getting in the bike rides or the swims.  Plus a couple of my friends were training for their first marathon.  Tami who was adamant about me and Jim running this marathon, I kept telling her I do not have any desire to run another one right now.  So what does Tami do? She finds the perfect training partner for me! Really???  Yes!  She found Karen and James who are training for their first marathon.  Who would ever think 2 total strangers would meet one day and start running together.  It was a very unique situation.  She would always ask for my advice about marathons since I had 4 under my belt so far.  I kept telling her I love  to run but I am not doing another marathon.  I will train with you but I am not running a marathon this year.  We were running all our long runs on Saturdays and then I couldn't anymore because of my kids playing soccer.  They were playing anywhere from 2-5 games every weekend.  So my weekend training had become very limited.  Thank goodness her schedule during the week is flexible like mine and we started doing our long runs on Thursdays.  Karen kept telling me if I register for the race by a certain time I would get a Brooks jacket, a tech shirt, a medal and it's only $60!!!  WOW!!  That's a really good deal.  Of course Jim is always game for a challenge and a good deal!!  So we finally both signed up for the race! 
    

 On November 10, 2012 Jim, Tami, and myself loaded up the van and drove to West Virginia to packet pick up. It was a very small expo. It was held by a local company at Marshall University. Me, Jim, and Tami met up with Karen and James at packet pick up. We all drooled over our new Brooks jackets and tech shirts. We were so excited about them!! 

                                                                              

               After packet pick up we walked around campus to check out part of the route.

                                                 These are a few of the things we saw!

                                                                                 Coy, Tami, Me, Jim, James, Karen, and Lonnie

 

                                                                    Our Running Crew      

     Sunday, November 11, 2012 it's race day!!  I was getting ready to start my 5th marathon.  Before we came to West Virginia we decided that we were going to do the Jeff Galloway method to make it thru this race.  We planned to run 4:30 and walk 30 seconds.  I needed to try something different to try and PR today!!  Coy ( First in Philly) was running with Tami to help her complete her first marathon.  Karen, Lonnie, Jim and myself all stuck together until mile 12.  Karen and Lonnie were staying ahead of us and they were looking great!!  We told them to go on because I started way too fast and needed to slow down.                                                        
                                                                                    

                                         

 

      The Jeff Galloway method was working wonderfully!! I was 2 minutes ahead of when we ran our 22 miler.  Each mile was getting harder but I still felt like I could complete it with a PR!!  Our walks were getting longer than the 30 seconds but once we started running again our runs were longer too to make up our walk time.  At mile 24 I felt hungry but I could not take another GU! My stomach wouldn't let me.  The last 1 1/2 we managed to run the rest of the way even tho it was getting harder and harder.  We came into the stadium  at the top of the hill and we heard, "From Paris, Ky!!" I was like YEAH!!  That's us!!  and then they said, "Karen Cooper" I actually got to see her cross the finish line!!  That was very exciting since we had done all this training together.  Then we had to run down a steep hill into the stadium, then onto the astro turf to run around the field to the finish line.  Right before we got to the finish line they gave us a football to carry with us.  This was a very exciting time for me since I PR'd by 20 minutes!!  OMG!!!!  I couldn't believe I just finished this race in 5:04:11                                          

 This was a very special moment for all of us and I am so glad I got to share it with all these people!!

 Thanks Marshall for bringing us all together!!!

Lame Duck Triathlon 4 weeks ago

     The Lame Duck Triathlon is one race I have chickened out on twice!!  I finally decided that I was going to do it this year.  The problem with this tri is not the distance but the hills you have to bike and run because I HATE HILLS!!  We were going to do a practice ride on the course a month before the race but of course something came up and we couldn't do it.  That is probably a really good thing because the hills were very intense. 
     The swim was an open water swim.  All the guys got in and started, they had a 5 minute head start.  Then us girls got in and started.  As soon as we started I put my head down and started swimming.  I looked up to make sure I was going in the right direction and there was only a few us around.  I thought dang those girls can swim.  I liked the swim because it was a straight shot to the other side.  The closer I got to the dock the more people I started to see.  I might be slow but I stay at a steady pace.  I even passed a few guys.

SWIM .54 mile: 23:57min

 

 

TRANSITION 1: 2:01min. (Sorry!  I had to take pics!)

      I was excited to get the swim over with but nervous to get on the bike.  It was awesome to come out of the lake and see my husband, 2 of my kids, and 2 of my friends cheering me on!! I even took time to pose for some pics.  As soon as I came out of transition I had to go straight up hill.  I made the first hill but it was the second hill that got me.  I think my adrenaline got me too excited, I was out of breath and in the wrong gear.  I had to walk/run my bike up part of the second hill.  I was starting to have second thoughts about if I should have done this race or not and if I would ever do it again.  After that moment I had to rethink my situation.  I got back on my bike and made sure I was in the right gear every time I went up a hill.  I finally started enjoying the race again.  Going down those hills were so much fun. 

BIKE 9.1 miles: 44:04min 12.4 pace
    
     My goal for the bike was to complete it in 45 minutes or less.  I did it!!  When I got into transition and got off my bike my legs were shaking so bad.  So I knew I had pushed myself on the bike. When you see 12.4 pace it seems slow but the hills were so steep and this is what the race is known for, the whole course is all hills. 

TRANSITION 2: 2:02min

     Off to the run and straight up the hill I started my bike with.  The run was good.  It was tough.  I just put my head down and shuffled my feet along the way.  I just wanted to keep moving and not walk.  I messed up my garmin so I didn't know what my distance was through my run.  I think I could have run a little faster at the end but I was afraid to take off too soon.  I had a few people that were leaving the race telling me I was almost there.  I kept picking up the pace and thank goodness the ending was down hill!! 

RUN 2.6 miles: 28:09min
 
     Overall this race was a success!!  I finally conquered my fear and ran the race!! I ended up getting 4th out of 5 in Athena.  If I would have competed in my age group 30-34 I would have placed 3rd out of 4.  Oh well!!  I even changed it to Athena that morning.  If I wouldn't have changed it I would have gotten an award.  Oh well!!  Maybe next time!

OVERALL TIME: 1:40:14

    These are my fans!!  It meant a lot that they all came out and cheered me on!!  Thanks guys!!



Have you ever been afraid to do a race because of hills?
Of course you know I have!  Lol!

Do your friends ever come out and cheer for you?
Sometimes, usually if it's close or in town.  It makes the race so much fun when you can share it with your family and friends!!

Buckhead Border Olympic Tri 2012

    On July 15, 2012 I completed my first Olympic Tri!!  It was also my first race with an open water swim.  Once I signed up for it I became very nervous for some reason??  I guess it was the open water swim and my longest tri ever. 
           
Swim .9 mile 41:54
    
     The swim was really neat.  We swam across the Ohio river.  They bused us over to the Louisville side to take off.  We got delayed for almost an hour because they were waiting for the ambulance to be on the other side before we started. Finally the race started, the first group took off.  They went around the buoy the way they were suppose to.  The next group went in the water ignored the first buoy and went straight for the second buoy.  So we were all watching and the people in the kayaks were not stopping them or correcting them.  So my group decided to take the shortest route too!!  When it was our turn I hopped in the water and scooted to the back.  I want to finish this race without getting beat up.  Swimming across the river was not bad at all.  Once we got across we had to swim down the shore line.  That's when I could feel the boat wakes while I was swimming.  It wasn't too bad just made me nervous that it might bother my stomach later.  Jim was on the side cheering for me to move faster so they could get their race started.  Jim was doing the sprint tri.  He couldn't start until we were all out of the water.  Once I finally made it to the end I had another task to conquer, getting out of the water.  When you got to the end you had to walk or crawl thru mud to get to the exit and then climb a steep hill.  I made it to the top of the hill to get hosed off and I was handed a wash cloth to clean off.  REALLY a washcloth??  Half my body is covered in mud and they think a wash cloth is going to work.

Transition 1 1:54

     I got to my bike in the transition area, the girl next to me was sitting on the ground taking her time cleaning and drying her feet.  I wiped off a little and told myself to get going!!  As I was leaving the transition area I heard that I received a text but I knew I couldn't look at it or I would get penalized, so I went on.

Bike 1:29:05

     The bike ride was mostly flat.  The bike ride was a 2 loop course with a total of 26 miles.  It was a little scary on the turn around.  I needed to turn around but the 2 guys behind me needed to go straight to finish. I ended up going a little further so they could pass me and then turn around.  I think they could have laid that out better.  On my second lap I had 1 person pass me.  I passed at least 6 people.  Once I got into the transition area again Jim was there cheering me on.  He had already finished his triathlon.  Then he became my photographer and #1 cheerleader during the rest of my race.  I got out of transition after posing for a few pics. 

Transition time was messed up?
 
Run 1:11:50

      The run was starting to get hot especially since the race started an hour late!  The run was really flat too.  I think there was 2 hills total in the race.  I had 3 people pass me on the run.  I passed a few myself.  When I was getting close to 3 miles I saw the hill I had to run down.  I wanted to cry because I knew I was going to have to run up it on the way back.  Once I got to the turn around I noticed my garmin said 3.25 miles.  Wow!  They were off just a little bit. I turned around and made it back to the hill.  I decided I needed to walk the hill because there was no porta potties out there and I needed to go to the bathroom.  Walking that little bit up the hill helped me survive the rest of the run.  Once I got to mile 5 Jim was there taking my pics and was going to run my last 1.2 miles with me.  I really needed the conversation to make the time go by faster.  I kept telling him the mile markers were way off.  When I finished I had run 6.5 miles instead of 6.2 miles. 
    The race was over and I had survived!!  After the race we took our bikes back to the hotel and came back for awards.  Jim got 2nd out of 12 in Clydesdale for the Sprint Tri.  I got 2nd out of 3 in Athena in the Olympic Tri.  We got our first ever Tri awards!!  We were so excited!!  I couldn't believe it.   This was a test to help me know if I can do a Half Ironman 70.3 in September. I now know what I need to work on for September 30, 2012 Augusta 70.3.  I have a ton more training to do for my big race in September and I am looking forward to it.

Total 3:26:23

Remember the text I mentioned earlier? This is what it was:

This is the sweetest text ever!!  My 12 year old daughter sent it to me while I was racing!  I will always remember it!


Do you do triathlons? 


What is your favorite distance? Sprint, Olympic, 70.3 or 140.6
   So far mine is the Olympic distance.

What is your favorite event?
     My fav is the run.