It Has Begun!!!!

 This past Sunday I went for my first run since the marathon. Some how I decided 5 miles was a great starter. It felt good but goodness I felt wicked out of shape. Usually when I run past someone I can easily say hi or good morning but this past Sunday it was a little different story. I saw a lady coming and as I approached I prepared to greet her. Finally I approached the lady and began to speak. But it wasn't so easy. I gasped for air first and then I said "Good (followed by a gasp) Morning (followed by a gasp). I couldn't believe the "ease" of speaking while running was gone. Long story short I have my work cut out for me. Feeling a bit out of shape makes me all the more determined though. Tomorrow morning I will be doing my first spin. I am excited about starting in but not excited about putting on my biking gear. It's going to be nice and tight. Haha!!! Oh well, just a friendly remind to pedal hard. 

  It's been 5 weeks since I have gone swimming, biking or running. The break has been wonderful in so many ways which I will write about in a future blog. My recovery is over but I won't start fully training until January. The month of December will  be just an intro back into swimming, biking and running. I hope to do one or two of each per week but that's it. My goal is to work only on cardio not speed or intensity. When January comes the training will be like none other I have ever experienced. So, it has begun. Let the training lead to a great first Ironman. Goodness I can feel my nerves a little bit right now!!! Can't believe that my next training season is for an Ironman. It has always been a dream of mine but something I didn't think we would ever be able to do. I say "we" because it's not a one-man sport like so many think. Jamie, Tucker, my dad and mom, and the whole family are all part of the team. We all are working together to make this happen. Can't believe the support I have felt for doing something so crazy. To God be the glory though. He is the only reason we are capable of doing anything. 

Let the training begin, Alicia  

Rest, Periodization and Future Training Plans

So, how is the rest period going? Great question and I will share. This is the first time I have actually totally set aside my swimsuit, bike and running shoes and haven't touched any of them for 2 weeks now. Mentally I was very ready for a break. And to this day I'm not exactly ready to jump on my bike for a long ride. I have been enjoying just looking at my bike and that's about it. The Specialized is sitting in my temporary kitchen (we are re-modeling our kitchen) so I can glance at it several times a day. Just looking at the Specialized gets me excited about the upcoming race season.

  My goal right now is to continue resting for about 3 more weeks. I am exercising, just not training. What does exercise consist of? Well, right now it consists of lots of walking, P90X, push-ups, lots of sit-ups, and hiking. That's it!!! On a day-to-day basis I am mostly doing a P90X DVD in the morning and an hour+ walk later in the day. It feels good to be active and yet not training.

  I haven't ever taken such a break but feel as though it is going to be very beneficial going into my first ever ironman training. What I am practicing is periodization. I am sure many of you have heard of it but for those who are not familiar let me explain what it is. Periodization is a year-long training plan that includes rest, recovery, foundation building, pre-race training leading to peak performance during race season. Basically, the idea behind periodization is to keep the athlete injury free, fit and in top condition during race season. Rest and recovery are necessary in order to reduce the risks of injuries, burn out, and overtraining. The plan breaks the year up into cycles. There are three cycles: macrocycles, mesocycles and microcycles. A macrocycle consist of the entire year of training; mesocycle consists of each month of training; microcycle consists of weekly training and/or daily training. During my off season I have been spending part of it designing and organizing my upcoming macrocycle, mesocycles and microcycles. I have my training mapped out from January to July. Each month is planned, each week, each day. Each month will vary in intensity and volume. I will be training fairly hard for 3 weeks and then take every forth week to recover a bit. During each week I plan on training everyday but one. I will be taking every Saturday completely off for several reasons. First of all because it’s the day I go to church and I firmly believe in keeping the Sabbath day holy as the Bible says. I, personally, cannot train on the Sabbath without getting too much into the sport leading my mind to dwell on other things rather than on God. I find that God blesses me beyond my wildest dreams when I listen, obey and follow Him. Second of all I love spending the day with family and friends. Also it gives my body a physical and mental break. Taking Saturday off prepares my body and mind to tackle another week of training.

 My weekly training will look something like the following starting in January: long bike ride every Sunday. I will be starting the season out doing only 2 hour rides and then build from there. Monday’s I will be doing a long run and an easy spin. Tuesdays I will be swimming in the morning and doing a run late morning. Wednesday I will be biking followed by a short t-run in the morning and doing hill runs in the evening. Thursday I will be swimming in the morning. Friday I will be biking and doing a t-run in the morning. Saturday I will have off and then Sunday I will start all over again. I will also be throwing some strength training into the above schedule here and there, especially core training. This schedule will continue to change during the year but it gives you the basic idea for now. I hope to be able to keep the above schedule up but it’s going to be tough to do while raising a 1 and a half year old, working 4 part-time jobs and taking care of the home, laundry, cooking, grocery shopping, and so much more. I will be blogging about it so you all can read whether it works out or not. My fingers are crossed and I am already feeling slightly exhausted thinking about it. 

  Once my above training schedule starts I will be going to bed when Tuck does and raising several hours before my boys do in order to train mostly before Tuck wakes up and before Jamie goes to work. There will be hardly any leisure time, every minute will matter. First of all I want to start each day with God in prayer and worship, once my early morning training is done then my goal is to focus on Tuck during the day and Jamie during the evening when he gets back from work. So, as you can see I will be squeezing in lots of training around my most important relationships then every other moment will be filled with other daily responsibilities. It’s going to be a roller coaster ride from January until July 22, 2012. I am ready for the challenge; feeling like exhaustion is going to be beating down my back door, but this is my one chance so I’m going to give it everything I’ve got. Here’s to hoping that periodization works!!!!!!!!

Smiles, Alicia

Off Season Can Be Tough

It's the off season for me as it is for alot of people. It's time to literally NOT be in peak condition, to lose fitness, and gain some weight (hopefully not too much). Sounds pretty good, or does it???

 

  I have really been struggling recently with feeling overly tired and purely exhausted. I have been trying to keep up my training (not at the same intensity as before) but continually find myself feeling more and more exhausted. I have to let go. It's okay to recover. In fact, if I don't recover I will be screwed going into my Ironman training starting in January and February. Just the same, something keeps telling me that I need to hold on to my long distance runs and bikes. Thing is, I just don't feel like it. 

 

  Today, I finally put on my "to-do-list" to Google 'triathlon off season recovery' and I found several interesting articles and video clips. All of them were saying that you have to take at least 3-6 weeks off. Off doesn't mean low intensity swims, bikes and runs. Off literally means off!!! In fact there is a 6 time world Ironman champion who literally takes 6 weeks off and does nothing physical except surfing. Seems to be working very well for him. Most of the articles I read also said that you have to lose fitness. You can not maintain your peak fitness during off season and then build upon that to become even more fit. No, it doesn't work that way. You WILL burn out!!! You have to give your mind and body a break, a serious break. This is called periodization!!!! I swear by periodization and have all my clients practice it. So why can't I?? Oh man, what a great question.

 

1. It's tough to lose the fitness you worked so hard on building.

2. It's not fun to watch clothes get tighter.

3. I'm feeling lost in the morning.

4. My days do not seem as successful without a hard training session.

5. As a mommy, if I don't exercise in the morning it often doesn't happen. So I am having a hard time finding something else to do later in the day with my little man.

6. I have to do something since it helps keep me sane.

7. Ironman is 9 months away and I feel its constant pressure.

 

But here is the truth to each above statement:

 

1.  Sounds like many experience the paranoia that lost fitness can never be gained back. Every race season proves that paranoia faulty though. Of course I will lose fitness but it doesn't take long to gain it back and possibly surpass it.

2.  Once training starts again the extra off-season pounds will melt away and I will feel as good as new. I hope. :-) It's expected to gain a little during off-season and especially during the holidays.

3. Sleep in for once and focus on spending even more quality time with Tucker.

4. Mark my success during the off season by getting as much sleep as possible.

5. I can walk, ride bike with Burley, snowshoe in the winter, cross-country ski, and so much more. I know there are options, I just need to be more creative.

6. Go for a walk in the early morning AFTER having an extra long worship.

7. I only need about 7 months to prepare for Ironman which leaves me 2 wonderful months to RECOVER!!!

 

As one of the articles said:

 

So, repeat after me.

“This is the off-season.”
“I will not be in peak condition.”
“I will lose fitness.”
“I will put on weight.”
“This is okay.”

It has to be okay in order to be a success (which means finish) at Lake Placid. So, for the next two months I am going to try really hard to focus on recovery not peak performance. I have to change my mind-set and just see it as a new and different challenge that is VITAL to my training.

 

Happy Off Season Everyone, Alicia 

The Maine Marathon

The weather man said sunny, highs in the low 60's for marathon Sunday. This was the forecast  predicted a week before the event. Day of event; pouring rain!!! :-) The alarm went off, I grabbed my stuff, jumped in the car and drove to Portland in the rain. I kept telling myself the rain would probably stop by the time the race started. Wishful thinking is a powerful thing. Once in Portland I walked up to the Sullivan Gym to get my race number, to pick up my goody bag and to use the bathroom. Needless to say it rained as I walked up to Sullivan Gym and as I walked back to the car. After getting my race number I had some time to spend so I bundled up in all my rain gear and walked around to see the start/finish line. Then I went back to the car to wait until 10 minutes before the start of the race. As I sat in the car the rain pounded down. For some reason the sound of the rain wasn't really helping me get too excited about getting out of the car to run 26.2 miles. I solved the problem by putting Skull Candy in my ears for the remainder of the time. Listening to music drowned out the rain and if I closed my eyes I could pretend it was a beautiful sunny day, then I could start to get my game face on. Well, in no time at all it was time to gear up, glide up and get up. I had to take the Skull Candy out of my ears and face the reality of a very rainy race day. As I was leaving the car I quickly grabbed a long-sleeve race top just in case. I'm so glad I did because I wore it the entire marathon. It was actually a bit windy and cold for me. 

  Once I surrounded myself with all the athletes the rain just didn't matter!!! It was just a little extra twist to the day. Right before the gun went off I saw Tom T. who gave me a big hug and some words of wisdom. He said "Alicia, don't get caught up in the half marathoners. Alot of them will be running by you at a pretty good pace. Be careful and pace yourself according to your training not according to the half marathoners. Don't go out too fast". Tom was so right!!! When the gun went off I started out, one foot in front of the other. After no time at all I glanced down at my HR monitor to see that my rate was well above where I should be. I was keeping up with most of the people around me which was not good. When I reached the first mile clock it said 7 minutes something.   Shoot!!! I knew I was going too fast. Tom's words of wisdom ran through my brain and I immediately pulled back and started relying only on my heart rate. I am not a 7 minute mile marathoner (I would love to be some day) so I knew if I kept up that pace I would screw myself. During my training I was able to keep up a 7 something minute mile for about 13-16 miles but not for 26 miles. Unfortunately my HR monitor wasn't working entirely. It wasn't telling me my pace, distance, etc. Would have been very helpful if it did. I am certain I could have finished in under 3:40. I felt like I had more to give during the marathon but I just couldn't tell what was going on. It was very frustrating to say the least. I also need to have negative splits and feel like I could have if I could have watched my pace very carefully during the entire race. Oh well!! No big deal but hopefully I can figure out how to work my new HR monitor very soon!!! 

  The run went really well for me otherwise.Within the first couple minutes I was soaked. Rain was dripping off my hat and my toes squished with every step. At times it poured, otherwise it was a steady rain.  I used nearly all the aid stations trading between water and Gatorade. My race belt had some pouches attached to it so I was able to carry my own fuel. Physically I felt great until about mile 22. I happened to hit a brick wall at mile 22 and it peaked at mile 24 to 25.  My legs were screaming at me to just walk a little bit. But my brain said emphatically NO!!! Once I reached mile 25 I felt pumped and was able to pick up my pace and finish strong. 

  Two of my Couch to 5k participants, Lisa C. and Kris M. drove all the way down to Portland in the pouring rain and waited for me at the finish line for about 30 minutes. It meant the world to me that they would take time out of their busy schedules to cheer me on. What good sports!!!

  

  Honestly, I am not very proud of my time, 3:43:47, but we all have to start some where. Next time around I hope to improve big time and race on a sunny day. Until then I have my work cut out for me.

   I would recommend the Maine Marathon to anyone. The course is beautiful, the volunteers are amazing, the goody bag was full of great stuff, the massage tent was pure bliss and the camaraderie of the athletes is addicting. Several of my teammates did the marathon with great times. Charlie did the race as well as Andy, Kim, Roy, Anne,  Kathy (who did it in 3:35), Tom (who placed first in his age group with 3:15), and Eric (who cut 30 minutes off his time). It was fun seeing them all there!!! Go MTC!!!

  Running the marathon was an amazing experience. I learned so much which I hope will help me with my Ironman training. I know the marathon portion of the ironman is a totally different beast compared to just running a marathon.  

Happy running, Alicia

Maine Marathon Already???

The day after my half-ironman I was able to meet up with the crew like normal and bike, followed by swimming the following day. By the third day I was ready for a little breather. It all finally caught up to me and I just wanted to be lazy and eat whoopee pies. So that’s exactly what I did!!! I didn’t exercise at all and I ate more than one whoopee pie (yes, Bre!!! I did eat some whoopee pies. I am ashamed to admit it but it’s true. You are stronger than me)!!! J Anyway, I was able to continue exercising after my day off but I wouldn’t call it training; I would call it a recovery routine. The point was to get my heart rate up a little bit, spin my legs out, or swim, or do an easy run. I wasn’t working on distance, time or intensity, just recovery. After about 5 days I was physically feeling ready to hit it again but mentally I was not ready. Actually to this day I am not quite ready to “train”. These recovery rides which include a lot of chatting and laughing are really starting to grow on me. It’s so much fun. Haha!!!

  But, the point is, I have the Maine Marathon this coming Sunday (October 2, 2011). I’m not totally sure how to describe how I am feeling. First of all I feel like it has been awhile since I did a 20 mile run which for some reason makes me feel a bit unprepared. Second of all I am not too nervous going into race day which for me is not a good thing. I perform better with nerves. Somehow I can usually channel my nerves in a way to keep my eyes on the prize (not always though). Honestly, the reason I am not nervous is because I am not competing. I am doing the marathon only to finish and to gain experience going into Lake Placid. This Mama doesn’t even come close to competing at the Maine Marathon. Third of all I feel like I have already peaked at the half. Currently I am on the downward slope toward “time off” until ILP training starts in full force. So I feel like I am going into the Maine Marathon on fumes. Great practice for the ironman since I will be running on fumes during the race!!!

  Anyway, it’s going to be interesting to see how the day goes. This will be my first marathon and the longest I have ever run before in my life. For some 26 miles is nothing (merely a warm-up for ultra marathoners). Goodness, I do not know how ultra marathoners do it!! They are amazing. I couldn’t ever run 50 or 100 miles. In fact I don’t really have any interest in running anything more than 26 ever!!! Haha!!!

  One last point I want to through out there. Many triathlon coaches advice not to do a marathon before an ironman since it could affect your training. I totally agree if the marathon is during the ironman race season or any type of race season. But if the marathon is at the end of the race season or a year before the ironman I highly advice it. The experience is well worth it. It has taught me so much about pacing, where I want my heart rate over the duration of a long run, what fuel works best for me, at what mile I can start to eat, when I should start drinking electrolytes verses water, how much I need to drink and eat, what to eat the day before a long run, what type of clothing to wear, where to smear on Glide, mental games to use, and so much more. The experience has been priceless.

  Running 26 miles after swimming a couple miles and biking 112 will be a lot different than just doing a marathon but there are some similarities.

So here is to wishing everyone doing the Maine Marathon a wonderful day. Good luck Kathy, Tom, Erik, Andy, Charlie, Brenda, Roy, Anne, Jill and Mark (racing in WV) and everyone else racing this weekend. My goal for the marathon: to finish!!!! Simply to finish!!!

Smiles, Alicia

September 11, 2011 Half Ironman

I went to bed at 10pm and didn’t end up waking up again until 1:30a.m., then again at 3a.m. and then again at 4a.m. and finally I woke up for good at 4:50a.m. This was the best sleep I have ever gotten the night before a race. Usually my nerves and adrenaline are so spiked I can’t sleep. I have read about how even elite athletes don’t get much sleep the night before a race, so I’m not alone. So many of us athletes are racing on hardly any sleep at all, which makes the event that much harder. In order to help calm my nerves I listened to Christian music, two songs in particular, and I pray. I strongly believe that God even enjoys being a part of our hobbies and interests. It felt weird asking for the Lord to bless me during this race with everything else going on in this world. At the same time God is to be our best friend and I love to talk to my friends about tri’s and I appreciate all my friends’ words of wisdom, advice and encouragement. So I know God wants to be a part of even triathlons.

At 4:50 a.m. it was go time. I was up and at it. First of all I had to get myself dressed in my race attire and fill all my water bottles, aerobottles, etc with electrolyte drink and water. I grabbed my bag, all my gear and headed to the registration area. After registering I had to get numbered and had to take my bike to the last-minute-bike guys. My bike wasn’t shifting properly and was therefore causing unnecessary resistance. The bike guys were not able to fix my bike before the race since it was a complicated fix but they assured me the bike would work fine during the race. I would just have a little additional resistance. There was no time to worry about it so I decided to just move on to transition area.

Only athletes with wrist bands are allowed in the transition area for safety of all equipment. As I neared the entrance of the transition area there were several men checking for wrist bands. A very friendly lady escorted me to where my transition area was. I got my stuff all set up. It was 6:30a.m.; only 15 minutes away from the mandatory pre-race meeting. Since it takes me awhile to get my wetsuit on and since it was cold out I decided to go ahead and get the thing on before the meeting.

After the meeting, a lady sang the national anthem and then they had a 9/11 tribute. All the athletes were getting pumped as 7:00a.m. was fast approaching. Unfortunately 7a.m. came and went and not one athlete was allowed to start. They ended up delaying the race by about 40 minutes due to thick fog. We couldn’t see the buoys. Finally around 7:40ish the fog lifted and the cannon went off signally the elite athletes to go!!! This race had 8 different swim waves categorized according to elites, aqua/bike championship, sex and age. Females ages 39 and below were the very last wave. We started our swim about 17 minutes after the first cannon went off.

As the second to last wave was about to start I decided last minute to change how I wore my swim cap and goggles. I was going to put my goggles on underneath my swim cap. As I was fiddling around with my goggles I nearly broke them. With not much time to spare I got my goggles back in working order just in time to put them on and dive into the water. Needless-to-say I stuck with what I knew and put my goggles on over my cap.

As I dove into the water I kept telling myself to just relax and chill; do my best but don’t go all out on the swim, just pace myself. I took a breath every forth stroke in order to help with pacing and I tried my best to pick a straight line. There were a lot of people kicking, crawling, and splashing but I was able to make it through the whole swim without getting kicked, slapped or crawled on. What a miracle. Immediately after the swim there is a good hill climb up to the bike transition area. Jamie and Tucker where waiting to cheer my own about half way up the hill. I ran up to them, kissed Tucker’s wonderful chubby cheeks, and continued on my way.  Oh how wonderful those little, soft, chubby cheeks are!! After ripping my wetsuit off I entered the transition area. My mom and dad were standing as close as they could to my bike transition area. As I geared up they cheered me on, yelled out words of encouragement, took pictures and just totally gave me a boost. As fast as possible I got all my biking gear on, grabbed my bike and ran out of the transition area.

  The 56 mile bike was pretty easy, especially since I had been riding 80 or so miles prior to race day. My bike is so comfortable and loves to just move. I kept up an average pace of 21.1mph. I felt like I could go faster but kept trying to pace myself for the run. There was another lady, Melanie, number 470, who was the same pace. We had to ride side-by-side often since we were the same pace but we did not draft off one another since we would then be disqualified. She was so sweet and encouraging. I will never forget her. The bike was over before I knew it. All of a sudden I was racking my bike, grabbing my running gear, and putting my running shoes. Once again two of my greatest supporters where standing as close as possible to my run transition area cheering me on and filling me in on my time and how close my competition was. It was such a meaningful thing to have my parents standing there supporting me. Next thing I knew I was slamming the pavement. Pound, pound, pound, pound.

It took a couple minutes to get my running legs. The run was two, out-and-back loops. The first loop went by pretty fast and was full of aide stations and cheering people. When I started back from my first loop I was able to see how far behind my competition was. It was very interesting. There was one chick, with pink compression socks, that went by me at mile 35 on the bike. I kept her in view but knew she had me. I saw her on the run and noticed that she hadn’t gained much on the bike but she was a stronger runner. I knew I couldn’t catch her so I just wanted to make sure she didn’t have a huge lead on me. I was pretty sure she was in my age group so I was certain first place was taken. As far as I knew I was competing for second place. On the second run loop I was really able to get a hold on where everyone was. I saw several people from my club and several gals from my age group. At mile 11 on the run I hit a small mental block. I felt like being done. I just wanted to stop and walk but I just kept telling myself to go one more mile. Once I saw mile 12 then I would start the home stretch. That one mile between 11 and 12 seemed rather long and slow. It’s funny because the 13 miles I had to cover were nothing compared to the 20+ miles I did prior to the race but adding the swim and bike and doing all 3 events at race pace made me experience some mental battles on the run.  My quadriceps where tightening and screaming for me to slow down but my brain said no. All of a sudden I came around a small little corner and up a little hill and saw the finish chute. What a sight. I could hear the crowd cheering, I could hear the guy announcing over the loud speaker and I saw the tents. There was one more hill that I had to climb. As I reached the hill I saw a very familiar face, my dad!!! He was standing at the top of the hill cheering me on. It was a wonderful sight and a great encouragement. As I looped through the venue entrance and by the registration area I could see my dad running beside the chute trying to get to the bottom before me (which he did very easily). Again it meant the world to see him running down in order to see the finish. The last several hundred feet were downhill which had its pluses and minuses. My quads felt like they were getting even more so trashed with the downhill but I was sure tired of climbing hills too. I couldn’t believe how fast the finish line appeared. I kept telling myself to enjoy every moment, the race was nearly over and I wouldn’t be doing another half for awhile. As I came into the finish chute the big old timing clock was ticking away. The time was 5:23:34. I’m not going to lie, I was a bit sad. Last time I did this particular race I did it in 5:45:40ish. My goal was to do it in 5:22:00. When I saw I was a minute behind I was disappointed. My hopes of being in the top 3 of my age category seemed to slip away. But something just wasn’t adding up. In the mean time my mom went running over to the finisher’s listings and got all my information. As she ran back toward where Jamie, Tucker, my dad and I were she seemed particularly happy. She informed me that my time was actually 5:06: something and that I was first place in my age group and 11th female overall. Wow, I was shocked!!! It totally made sense though. The clock that I saw coming in on the run chute started with the first wave. My wave started 17 minutes after the first wave. Also the gal in the pink compression socks was in the 30-35 age group. Phew!!! Wow, shock and adrenaline hit me all over again. I had no idea I was going to be able to do this race in 5 hours 6 minutes.   

 Everyone else in my club did amazing as well. Tom, Walt, Val, John, Mark, Jim and several others all either placed or reached a new PR. Tom even did the sprint triathlon the day before. He placed first in his age group at the sprint tri and 3^rd in his age group at the half ironman. He is doing another tri a week later as well. Tom is Mr. Crazy man!! I don’t know how he does all of his training and racing. It doesn’t seem like he ever recovers. Truly amazing.

I thank the Lord for an amazing day and for the little extra bonus of helping me place. God is great!!! I also thank my club and all their help with my training. Every one of them has positively affected my training in some way.

My support team deserves a BIG thank you as well. These people are so meaningful to me because they understand how important training and racing are to me. Not many get it. But they understand that this hobby is not only a means of trying to stay fit but it’s also a passion of mine and something I work hard at. It’s an outlet in my life. It’s the important part of my day to spend time with adults, develop friendships, feel support from my club, etc. I always come home in the morning refreshed and ready to focus on Tucker and his needs. The morning training is not nearly as important as time spent with God but the two combined, worship and exercise, help me be a better Mama. I feel the need for both.  

My closest support team is Jamie, Tucker, Mom and Dad. Jamie has been such a huge help to me. He has pushed me when I didn’t have much left. He has encouraged me to continue when I didn’t want to. Jamie has always been proud of the hard work I have put into this sport. Jamie has done everything he possibly can to make my dreams come true regarding training, racing and especially Lake Placid Ironman.  I would not be heading to Lake Placid if it wasn’t for him. Thanks Babe, for taking interest in my hobby and for helping me achieve new and exciting successes.  Tucker is just my favorite little thing. I find my training to be a big help as a Mama, as mentioned earlier. But without fail, every morning while training, I so greatly look forward to coming home and being greeted by Tucker’s beautiful, sweet, loving smiley, dimpled face!!! How precious!!! God is so Great!!!! Tucker also helps me with my training since he loves to charge all over the place. He keeps Mama sprinting all day long. J Tucker loves to get outside and he enjoys it when Mama takes him on walks or bike rides. I cannot wait to bike side-by-side with him!!! It’s going to be so much fun!!! My Dad has always showed interest in my hobby as well. He has been at the finish line of many triathlons waiting to watch his daughter hobble in. He always gives me big hugs even though I am soaked with sweat. Dad drives his motor home to all of these events and provides me with full amenities at race site. There is nothing like waking up at race site having a private, nice smelling, clean toilet to use as opposed to outhouses, and having a shower to clean up immediately after the race. It’s the best. I often see dad on his way to work when I am training in the morning and he always honks and gives me a little boost. Dad also takes pictures at the event providing us all with proof of the craziness. Dad’s support is priceless and greatly appreciated. Mom gets right in to all this stuff. She is the organizer and plans out where we are going to stay, what we are going to eat, where to be every minute of the day during the race, and just simply organizes the best way to be the best support team. She is awesome!! Often I see tears trickling down her face as I come into the finish line which means more to me than she will ever know. Mom use to be a competitive swimmer so I think competitive events is close to her heart. She always goes above and beyond to make me comfortable after the race and I am guaranteed a delicious vegetarian homemade meal in the motor home.

Thank you Jamie, Tucker, Dad and Mom for taking interest in something that is very important to me. It makes me feel like you are interested in my life and that is so meaningful. You never miss a race and you always greet me with hugs, kisses and love at the finish line. It never goes unnoticed and it is always appreciated and means the world to me. Love you!!!!

Lake Placid Pictures