Feb 12 Update

Green Swamp 50M Update

I said I would do a weekly update while training for the Green Swamp 50 mile. Unfortunately I do not have much to say as I am currently out with a bone bruise/IT Band issues. I have not been running in about 3 weeks. I am not too upset about it, but I think my husky is!

What have I been doing to heal?

There isn't really much you can do for a bone bruise, except stay off of it. I have been going to acupuncture, and that seems to be helping. I have walked into the office in pain, and walked out pain free many times. I am also swimming again, and I am really enjoying it.

The other thing I have been doing is strength training. (See below)

I lost ~15 pounds during mono. Although I don't feel like I am weak, I can definitely tell that I lost a little strength. I just do simple things that can be done in the living room and takes less than 30 minutes.

How does that change 2015?

I had to DNS at Piney Woods 50k in Feb, and I will be doing the same for Green Swamp 50M in March. I am going to try and make it to the start line for the Illinois Marathon on April 25, and actually race.

Recovering from mono.

If I were smart, I would have decided to just try to complete the Green Swamp 50 in March... But, I wanted to race. Not only did I want to race, but I wanted to win...and set the course record. I felt that I would have the altitude advantage on my side and FL is a flat/fast course. I think I pushed just a little too much too soon. Do I regret it? No.

Other news.

Leadville weather has been weird. It is warm and the sun is melting. I was able to ride 33 miles outside on Feb 7. It was 40 and sunny. It felt gret to jut enjoy the outdoors.

Have a great day!

Favorite Race Moments of 2014

2014 was a year of growth, change, and new experiences. I am very happy with the year overall, and these are my top 5 race moments.

5. Ironman 70.3 NOLA

Just about everything wet wrong nutritionally in NOLA, but somehow I still snagged a spot to Worlds. I went into the race prepared to have a great race. I felt fresh and peppy. A great swim (for me) set me up to have a great day. Unfortunately I dropped my fluids early in the bike, and I was never able to recover from it. I ended up walking and sitting down quite a bit on the run, but I fought through it. Keeping a positive attitude can go a long way in endurance sports - a great lesson to learn.

4. 50k debut

I took a road trip out to California with a new German friend and raced the Malibu Canyon 50k. 6300ft of elevation gain. Set the 25k course record during the 50k. Finished 3rd OA. All of tha was exciting, but so was the actually road trip. He is in the states traveling for a few months and wanted to go from Denver to LA. We left Denver in a snow storm and made it to Vegas that night. It was great to see his reaction as we were driving through to CO mountains, UT canyons, and all of the lights of Vegas. It definitely made time fly by.

3. Marathon Debut - 2:37

Road trip back to IL.

Seeing family and friends.

Elite Athlete meeting with some studs.

Marathon debut.

2:37

I mean what more could I ask for?

2. 70.3 Worlds - 4:28

I had made my retirement from triathlon public the week before. I honestly believe that was the best thing I could have done. There was not any pressure on me to perform and I felt like I could just go and soak in the experience. During the swim something inside me said, "no,you're here to compete - get it done." I ended up with a PR swim and bike, along with a 10 minute overall PR. I couldn't have had a better ending. I still get people that tell me, "you're wasting your talent by not racing tri" or, "it's a shame you quit so young." I may come back to it someday, but I don't have plans to at the moment. New adventures await.

1. Clermont AG Sprint Tri

Giving Jack a high five at the finish of the Clermont AG Sprint Tri is hands down my favorite moment. I could have picked a race win or course record as my favorite moment, but this trumps them all. It was one of those days where things just kind of clicked and then I got to give a buddy a high five. People were like "you just made his day," but really, he made mine. Those are the moments I love about racing.

Thanks for reading. What was your favorite race moment of 2014?

This & That

Rather than bore you with the details of mono, here are some pictures of my move to Leadville, CO.

We are pretty high

Sleepy little Leadville

Looks like great snowshoeing territory

The snowstorm

Mineral Belt Trail

Twin Lakes

More from Twin Lakes

Almost a Christmas card photo

Seriously...I love Colorado

Oh look, my new training partner!

Hot yoga studio or living room?

Tuesday night bingo in Leadville.

So, what's your goal for 2015?

If you were wondering, mono recovery has been going well. I am finally not sleeping 14-16 hours a day. I am also able to go for some light jogs and do some yoga. Sure, it is probably going to be a long time before I feel "normal" but that is okay.

Thanks for reading.

September, October, & November

This is the quick version of race reports from September, October, and November...

September 7

Ironman 70.3 World Championship

M18-24 25th • 4:28 (PR)

September 21

Coyote Classic 5k

1st • 17:25 (CR)

I felt recovered enough from 70.3 Worlds to race a 5k...a week before my first marathon. All I knew is top 3 won a pair of running shoes from the local running store in Golden. Adam and I ran the course as a warm up - 300 feet of elevation gain..gah! First half downhill, second half uphill. I took the lead early and somehow held on to win and set a course record. That was also where I met Anthony (a stud runner also from IL) and started coaching jr high cross country with him.

September 28

Quad Cities Marathon

6th • 2:37:13

(Full RR next)

October 11

Durango Double Trail 13.1

9th • 1:52

I found out within the first mile of this race that I was not recovered from the marathon. It was my first trail race and I just was not ready for the climbing at altitude. I finished 9th OA on day 1, but 5th of people doing both days.

October 12

Durango Double Road 13.1

5th • 1:23

I woke up and considered not racing. I couldn't feel my legs and they were absolutely destroyed from the precious day and the marathon 2 weeks prior. Somehow I still pulled off a decent race and finish 5th OA to move into 3rd for the combined days. I was thrilled as we got some pretty sweet gear for the race.

Durango Double combined - 3rd

November 2

Solemates Collaboration 5k

1st • 15:58

I was not sure how this would go. The previous weekend I did my last long run (21 miles with fast finish) before Malibu Canyon 50k, so my legs were not super fresh. The OA male and female winners won a keg from Left Hand Brewing Co, so I wanted to win! I was not sure who was I the race and I do not race well at altitude -- yet. I took the lead about 1k in and figured if I was going to hurt, I may as well make everybody else hurt too. I came through the first mile in 4:57 and almost had to check my shorts. That was the first sub 5 mile I had popped off at altitude. I came through 2 miles in about 10:10 and was still feeling good. About 1/2 mile from the finish I was able to start shutting it down as I thought I had the win AND I wanted to save my legs for the 10k the following weekend.

Thanks Shoes & Brews and Left Hand for the keg!

November 8

Longmont Turkey Trot 10k

4th • 34:31

I was feeling pretty good about my first sub 16 at altitude the previous weekend, so I decide to just go for it. I came through mile 1 in 5:15 and was already gapped by 10 seconds. Yuck! I ran alone the next 2 miles, until the women's winner pulled up next to me. We ran together for about a mile, and then she pulled away from me. At that point I thought "save it for the 50k next weekend." I finished in 34:31 for 4th OA...which was a altitude 10k PR.

November 16

Malibu Canyon 50k

3rd • 4:35:36 (25k CR)

Already posted.

Over the past few months I would say I had learned quite a bit about myself. I said I was done racing and just wanted to do my own thing...and that is exactly what I have been doing. I have not followed a strict training schedule, but rather going to group runs and having "Saturday Adventre Time." I have been wearing my Garmin to keep track of miles, but I never look at pace. I entered a lot of events that sounded fun. I just went and ran. I have met a lot great people at these events, and for that I am truly thankful. I can't wait to see what exciting adventures are in store for 2015. Here's a hint:

Thanks for reading.

Thoughts and Malibu Canyon 50k RR

Top 5 thoughts after the 50k.

5. What. The. Hell. 31xmile, 2x25k, 10x5k, 5x10k...it doesn't matter how you break it down, it's still 31miles.

4. "Easy course." LOL. Since when does easy include 6300ft of elevation gain, blazin' sun, and up to 40mph winds. Maybe they meant "easy course to follow."

3. That was probably one of the most well marked courses I have very done. I somehow find ways to get lost in a 5k, but was never lost during this 50k.

2. They didn't have peach rings at the aid stations... I wasn't stopping.

1. I laughed, cried, smiled, hurt, and got it done. I could not be happier with the race and wouldn't change a thing.

Race Report

50k (31 miles) 4:35:26 • 3rd OA

I stayed pretty calm until the day before the race. My first freak out moment was when I realized I left my racing flats in Boulder. I was kindly reminded that is is a trail race and I didn't need flats. Whew.

The night before the race I came up with my Top 5 list for before the 50k. That pretty much sums up how I was feeling - excited to be going into the unknown.

I woke up at 4:30am, had coffee, granola, two Toaster Strudels, and some rice. Such a healthy breakfast, right? Anthony and I left around 5:30 Togo pick up Sergio, then we were off to Malibu.

Packet pick up was simple as easy.

The race started at 8:00am. They put the 25k and 50k start together, and the 10k was 10 minutes later.

Within the first mile, there was a pack of about 8-10 of us that broke away. The first section was flat (woohoo) and then you start to climb.

I know I am not the best climber, but I have a pretty simple system - run the flats and downhills, power hike the uphill. I can power hike up the hills faster than I can "run."

Around mile 5 I found myself in the lead group of 4. I started to think that this was going to be the pack that the top 3 OA came out of and they are all stronger climbers than me. With this being a 2 lap course, I did not like my chances of holding them off the second loop. There is a little downhill between miles 6-7 and I decided to make my move. My goal was to open up a gap on the short downhill. Get over the next climb as quickly as possible, then open it up on the descent to the turnaround. I figured if I could put a couple minutes on them going I to lap 2, I might have a chance to hold on for the climb back to the top.

My plan to gap them seemed like a good idea that the time. What I didn't know is that I would come through 25k at tap 2 minutes off the 25k course record.

I was fine for the next flat section, but then the climbing started. I was starting to cramp, and I know I would not be able to run. It was warm, sunny, and winds up to 40mph. I was running scared knowing my lead was probably shrinking by the second.

20.5 miles in, the eventual race winner passed me during the grinding uphill. He said, "run with me," as he went by. Clearly the goal was to run ahead of him, and not with him, but I could not make it up the hill fast enough.

Then at mile 22, the 2nd place guy passed me. I still had a bit of climbing and 9 miles to try and hold on for 3rd.

When I finally made it to the top, all I could think was, "uggh, downhill!" My legs were cramping and it is a very steep downhill. Every step hurt. After a couple miles of downhill I was relieved to finally be on a flat section.

I saw Sergio about 2 miles from the finish and he took some GoPro video. I just remember saying, "I have no idea what is going on behind me, all I know is I can walk and shuffle." About 2 minutes later Anthony came into view again. I had 2 miles to try and hold him off. I just wanted to sit down and be done.

Somehow I crossed the finish like 3rd in 4:35:36, to be closely followed by Anthony in 4:37 (and a big PR).

A fun, great day of racing.

What did I learn? Pay attention to hydration. It was warm and I do not feel like I took in enough fluids. My body was not happy the last few miles.

Thank you all for the support. This has been a fun journey trying to figure out what to do once I stopped racing triathlon. I think this was my last thing for 2014. I'll get the rest of the race reports up soon, along with a season recap, and possibly a glimpse into 2015.

Thanks for reading.

Thoughts Before My First 50k

Tomorrow I will be running my first 50k. I have been slacking with race reports, but I hope to get them all up on the way home. It's around 4:30pm the night before the race, and these are the top 5 thoughts that have gone through my head today.

5. "Oh no! I forgot my racing flats!!" I was not worried or stressed about the race...and then I realized I left my racing flats in CO. Good news - its a trail race. I don't need flats. Whew!

4. So...5900ft of elevation gain over 31 miles. That is ~200 feet per mile. Ain't nobody got time for that!

3. Wait, did I just say I am running 31 miles tomorrow? Well that is basically 31x mile or 10x5k or 5x10k...oh hell, what did I sign up for?!

2. I wonder what kind of candy they have at the aid stations. It just says "assorted candy." What does that mean? This is important!

1. Thank you for all of the support over the past few months. I have gone trough many changes (life/coaching/racing), and I would not have madecitvthrough without all of you. I appreciate the runs we've been on, talking over cups of coffee, and messages/texts/calls along the way.

Tomorrow I will take on the 50k! Leggo!