WOW

Last night's storm was out of control! It woke me up at about 11:30pm with hail hitting our bedroom window. Rick and I are always scared that a storm will rip up the tree in our backyard but thankfully it didn't happen last night.

We lost our power for about five hours and now we know why. All of the power lines on 40th St from Shea to Cactus are down and we live right in the heart of it, as does our friend Hollon.

Nevertheless, Ironman training continues. I've been mtn biking and hiking all week as well as a gym workout today with Dave. It was a super tough workout that included lifting 20lbs! I've been doing well with 15 so adding additional weight is exactly where I want to be.

We are headed to Vegas Sunday for some fun with friends and more biking so expect some fun posts next week!

Happy Trails!
(click on the image to enlarge - it's amazing!)

Butt Butter??

This week has just been outstanding. I've been spending lots of time with my friends who are also going to be my teammates during the Gilmore Adventure Race next month. We've been logging lots of mountain bike time as well as hiking followed by Dave's workouts....speaking of.....

Today I was on the CompuTrainer again for a special treat - mountain biking! It was pretty cool and I was able to add additional miles towards this months 250 miles goal.

Okay, who has used Butt Butter? Sounds pretty gross but I can't stand the chaffing that my poor cheeks are getting. So how does it work? You slather up your ass and then put your shorts on or squeeze it into your shorts and then put them on? Any ideas or solutions would be appreciated please.

So Rick and I are headed to Vegas this weekend after his Nav clinic for some fun and some mountain biking! Watch for updates and photos by next Tuesday....

My hairy legs....

My friends Jennifer and Leslie on top of Squaw Peak. It only took us 30 minutes to reach the top and that's a time I'm proud. It was humid today on the mountain and I didn't have a dry patch on me - yuke.

You know, I'm not afraid to admit that I don't shave my legs every dang day. They get hairy and pretty fast. I'm blessed with the hairy gene and the maintenance is just too much. As I get older I don't give a sh*t anymore ya know....

Of course it's when I haven't shaved in about two days that Dave, for whatever reason has to touch my legs. Today he was helping me do some parallel bar apparatus, I don't know what it's called but nevertheless he was holding my legs up and all I could think about was poking him in the fingers with my overgrown stubble :) Sorry Dave...I'll try to shave more...maybe.

This weekend was non-stop so I'm ready to take it down a notch today. (that's code for NAP TIME!) See you outside ;)

A Day of Firsts....

I know, I'm behind on my posts. These past few days have been action packed but with the few minutes I have, I've got to tell you what I've been up to.

First, I'm feeling much better after my last post. Dave gave me a much needed chat and well, I'm going to try and relax a bit. Things will be okay for me I'm sure.

A Day of Firsts:

1. Biked with a women's group
2. Spent time with Vickie's sister Christine
3. Got lost
4. Fell off my road bike

Well, I finally did find that women's riding group that I was searching for and today was my first ride. Vickie's sister Christine came along and that really made a difference seeing a familiar face. I'm glad she decided to join.

Off we go and right off I knew that I would have to work hard to keep up. Those women mean business when it comes to riding. Christine and I were doing well enjoying a good chat and then we started to climb some hills. If you read my blog you know that hills are a challenge for me. Christine and I broke up and ugh...the first hill was done. Somebody has to be last so why not me.

Our separation didn't last long and we were together again...until the next hill :0 About this time we are near Camelback and the hills are getting really steep. I had two choice, I could take the easy route, which some women opted to do or ride the hill Christine was going up. I really wanted to work on my leg strength so up the hill I went. Getting passed is not a big deal to me until I realized that I was almost at a stand still and nobody was behind me. I tried something new and stood up on my bike to pedal up the hill. Man, my legs were toast and I quickly ran out of breath too. I just don't have the leg endurance yet for those kind of hills.

I needed to rest for a second but oops...didn't get unclipped fast enough and down I went! It didn't hurt because I wasn't moving fast enough lol. As I lay there with my bike over my legs I realized that I was alone and nobody knew I was there. I was alone and I better get the lead out. Unfortunately I was so far behind that I didn't see which way my group turned and now I was lost.

For a while I felt like a lost child looking for my mommie. It was crazy and I was bummed that I had missed the end of the ride....I headed back to the start. To my surprise the group arrived shortly after I did.

Fortunately several women wanted to continue so I was able to add an additional 10 miles to my ride. I was happy ending the morning with 30 miles under my belt.

See you next Sunday Christine!

I've got some things to say

My girlfriend and I were mountain biking this morning and low and behold, there is a snake! YIKES. He was not happy to see me and I'm so thankful that I didn't fall on him.

So I have some pretty serious things to say today. First, this is a reminder to all my readers that this blog is my personal journal. It just so happens that it's public but I don't want the fact that it's public to stop me from saying what I need to say.

This whole experience has been really good for me. I have remained super positive and steadfast in the belief that I will finish the Ironman in 09. I have visualized the finish over and over and sometimes I feel it..deep inside my heart I felt the victory. My life has become this race in everything that I do. I schedule things around upcoming events and around my training. I rally people around me to help push me past some plateaus and I've done everything I can think of to surround myself with like minded people. I've certainly conquered my fears along the way. I'm happy....right?

Yesterday during my workout something happened to me. Something I'm a little afraid to say out loud because I might make it happen if I do. When I was finishing up my last mile I was miserable and I thought to myself that if this is how I feel during the Ironman, I'm not going to finish it. Here is the worst part....not finishing is simply another failure and I'm ready to accept it, is what I thought.

Some of you will write me and say that not finishing is okay and I appreciate that but here is what you don't know. I have accepted "failure" or second best my entire life. I've talked myself out of success or greatness perhaps because I didn't feel qualified for it. It's only been recently that I faced my fears head on and started to steer my own destiny but yesterday was a step backwards and I'm a little frightened by it.

I don't want to be the person I was. The person who accepted failure based on lack of effort because I got hot or tired or because things were just too hard. I know this is a process and exercising my mind is just as important as exercising my body.

During part of the bike section yesterday I was moaning and groaning about the heat. We made it to a little down hill section and Dave said something about how nice the breeze was...his cup was half full and that's the kind of attitude I need. So maybe Dave is teaching me more then how to physically prepare for the Ironman and I just didn't see it before (thank you Sensei Dave).

Maybe it was just a really hard day, and maybe it's not as complicated as I think it is....

How about this...maybe I'm in the "transition area" of my first discipline? (cute huh)

Today's Duathlon

Dave put me through a duathlon today at Papago Park. I'm going to be honest here and say that I'm a big baby when it comes to running in the heat. I really am and I know this. The tantrum starts and my attitude sucks. I don't like that about myself.

After the duathlon I was not feeling so great. I was hungry and tired but part of me wanted to go with Dave to swim so we loaded up the truck and off we went.

Jumping into the pool was great but several laps in I started getting a headache and just wasn't having any fun. At this point I decided I was done...I needed to go home and take a nap. Low and behold I forgot to bring a change of clothes! Nice photo huh....what you didn't see were my running shoes...I'm glad I didn't get pulled over in that outfit!

Anyway, I came home with horrible stomach pains, bloating and the toots.....really bad toots too...The bloating got so bad that I looked about 3 months pregnant and it HURT. I know that's too much info but hey, if you know about the Maxi Pads under my bra you should know about my toots too. I finally went to bed and three hours later I'm feeling much better. Sometime during my nap I had the baby and alls well now :) My family is glad too.

Really fun bike drills

I'm not sure what was more fun...running into a tree with my bike or stopping on the downhill to balance without putting my feet on the ground.

Today was just pure fun and I needed it...I've been working really hard and to laugh at myself doing some of these crazy things was what the Dr. ordered.

Let's cut right to the fun stuff! Dave is teaching me balance and self-confidence on my mountain bike. After a few other drills we did something unusual (well, not for Dave) and that was to ride my bike into a tree, balance, turn and keep riding all without putting one foot onto the ground. Totally FUN!!! Try this at home folks. At a steady pace ride your front tire into the tree, bounce, balance then turn and ride away..LOVED IT! I could have done that 10 more times it was so fun. I wonder what the people around us were thinking when they saw us :)

Another fun one was to stop my bike and balance while in the downhill position. Again, LOVED IT! We had already practiced balancing the bike without putting one foot down so adding the hill was perfect. Down I go, stop in the middle and balance without putting my feet down and then continue. I could have done that 20 more times....

What a refreshing workout...if you see me ramming my bike into the side of things, it's just practice...no need to panic ;)

Only 78 miles to go!

Wow.....I just added up how many miles I've done so far this month and it's not as bad as I thought. Actually, I only have 78 more to go before I reach Dave's monthly goal, which is 50 more then I did last month. I can't remember the last day I didn't ride my bike...

Dave's back in town from his Colorado event. He's NUTS! Him and Windy did some crazy race up a mtn and guess what...it rained, hailed, dropped some snow flurry and on top of that tried to blow them over with 30mph winds. I'm glad you're back in one piece.

Today I said the dreaded words..."I can't"! Yep, I said it and I can't believe it either. My legs are just tired and I knew it as soon as I started riding to the gym this morning. I biked 60 miles, did Rick's Dreamy Draw mtn bike section again and ran 8 miles in just a few days....TIRED PEOPLE! It seemed, however, that after a couple of miles they loosened up a bit and I felt okay. My gym workouts always start with ball squats. Yeah, sounds easy enough right. We're talkin about Dave here folks. Do a bunch until your legs are shaking, then add half squats until it's painful. Seriously, it's painful! Well, my knees refused to bend. He says, "half way down" and my legs say, "Um...no but thanks for asking" and the words came out...."I can't" :0

It was a little funny really (well not then but looking back on it). Dave says, "that's the wrong way", as I try to stand back up. Nevertheless I finished them up and pressed on through the workout. Brutal...but bring it on brother Dave!!!

To end this story I'm going to update you on my swim class. I decided last Wednesday that I would not be going back to the Masters for a while. The class has grown so much that we were swimming 5 and 6 per lane and that's too much for me. I need my own space and I don't think you can coach that many people effectively. So, I'm now on my own....You can catch me Mon/Wed and maybe Fri at Cactus Pool between 6 - 7pm if you want to join me. I LOVE COMPANY! Since I'm planning on doing a 1000meters next month for the Splash n Dash, I need to keep on top of my swimming...

Happy trails and one last thing....Don't let fear stop you from living a full life! :)

It's done!

Today wraps up the last of my 60 mile ride/8-mile run homework from Dave. WOW! It pretty awesome.

My day started with a 6:00am mtn bike ride with my friend L.J. (name hidden to protect the innocent) and it was super fun!! We went around, up, over, down and through some great trails at Papago Park and I'm thrilled to say that I didn't fall one time today! (I've had some challenges on my mtn bike :) Thanks for a great ride L.J.

Knowing that I needed to finish up my 60 mile ride today I brought both of my bikes, (see photo) so I headed to Tempe Town Lake to finish-er-up. I knew of a great trail thanks to Dave and so off I went. What I quickly discovered was that I like clipless pedals. What a huge help they are on hills and again, not one fall! I played around some by pulling my feet off and on while riding just to get use to them until OUCH....the nose of my seat kinda got in the way. Enough play time, let's get busy.

What I dreaded the most was the 8-mile run I saved for today. Ugh...it's SO HOT! Nevertheless I headed home to drop off my bikes, medicate my sick puppy (see below) and change clothes. Here I go..of to the gym. I'm pretty good just over 3 miles and then the sweat is so bad that by the time I wipe my forehead, it's dripping again. I could feel it dripping off my elbows...I was pretty miserable. At this point I decided I was getting overheated so I took it down to a half mile walk half mile run....it took me about 90 minutes to finish it up and thank God! I could not have done a minute more.

Before I left home I grabbed my swim bag just in case I had a little extra energy to swim 400 meters. After the run I was more interested in just cooling off so I changed, hopped in the pool and just relaxed for several minute. My body is tired, but if I could just do 400 meters I will have done a great job today so here I go...25 meters at a time and WHAM, my 16 laps are done and I can now go home.

Waiting for me at home is my sweet dog Jack. He's very sick with Kennel Cough and the Dr. says he's near pneumonia. Even though Jack was vaccinated for Kennel Cough, it's not a guarantee. Watch for signs...Jack started coughing and hacking and his happy-go-lucky personality changed almost overnight. He's lost weight and although he's been on medication for nearly a week, he's not getting any better. Our Dr. told us it could be 10 days to a month before he shows any signs of recovery.... :( Get well soon Jack....

My New Clipless Pedals

Well, it's done. I'm now riding clipless pedals on my road bike. As you can see from the short video taken from Rick's camera, I'm a little scared about the whole thing. After practicing in the doorway I did a short ride up and down my street just to see how they feel but tomorrow is the real test. I'm riding my last 20 miles before Dave gets back. Any scrapes, bumps or bruises I'll post for you :)

Fast Four Day

I've been given the assignment to run 8-miles and bike a total of 60 miles over the next several days . Dave's been gone since Thursday and I have until Monday to get it all done....

Rick and I rode just over 20 miles this morning and it sure was fun...in fact, I think that was one of the most enjoyable 20 miles I've done in a long time. There was a little cat and mouse going on but really, I can never keep his pace. Thanks for the ride babe....

I did it! I FINALLY bought clipless pedals and shoes. Now I just have to learn how to use them and I'm scared. What if I'm riding the canal, lose balance and end up in the water? The sales lady told me, "you will fall", which seems like a poor sales tactic to me!

Doing a big mtn bike ride tomorrow and then I think I'll do my run just to get it out of the way.

Oh, in case you are wondering about my rash, I'm healing well. The maxi pads work great! I was going to post a picture for you but Rick won't let me...probably for the best....

Maxi Pads Saved the Day!

Here's the real deal....I've got some rashes. Why, I'm constantly sweating and now I'm chaffed and rashed in all the wrong places. My bike shorts get sweaty and then I get a rash. My sports bra gets sweaty and then I get a rash. The rubbing is making it worse so what do I do? My girlfriend had a GREAT idea! Use MAXI PADS...

I've never had to stuff my bra until now and man, it sure feels good! I used Maxi Pads under the lining of my bra and it really worked! No more rubbing!!! My skin is so raw right now that I can't wear a regular bra comfortably. I run around the house holding my boobs up so they can air out....not that Rick minds but ugh, I needed this solution...Maxi Pads saved the day today because did 25 total miles on my bike. Hey, maybe ALWAYS will sponsor me!!

Now let's see...if I line the inside of my legs with Maxi Pads will that help the chaffing there too? Hummmm....I'll let you know....

Back on top

Lately I've been looking for a women's bike group to join. I've really be slacking on my long rides and I'm suppose to do 250 miles this month...I'm only at 84...eekkkss..... I need to get my butt in gear here. I have some prospects but if anyone is interested in a long ride (40 or so) on Sunday, please let me know.

Can you believe that I completely forgot about my swim class last night! I was watching the Olympics and around 7:30 realized that oops, I was suppose to be in the pool myself!!!

Can I just say that roll-out push-ups make me want to toss my cookies every time I do them...ugh...

Tonight I'm doing this run interval class with Hollon at Shadow Mountain and I'm looking forward to it. There are two class offerings. Those training for a 5k - 1/2 marathon and those training for a full marathon. The difference really is pace and recovery. I'll be curious to see if I can pace myself properly because with Dave this morning I just couldn't get it right. That's something I really need to work on...pace setting. Should be fun...

The way I see it....

The way I see it the Ironman race started back in March. This is not a 17 hour event for me, this is a race that lasts for over a year. I'm only in the beginning leg of the event and so far, I'm doin real fine :)

This weekend was fantastic. I raced solo in Rick's Extreme Heat and hit all my checkpoints and made all the time cutoff's without any real problems. The race started with a hiking section that had 5 CP's scattered throughout the Phoenix Mtn. Preserve and they were well placed. They were far enough away to challenge my running skills and close enough that I never felt overwhelmed by the distance. I had two things on my mind from the start. Pace yourself and don't let Dave catch you walking. Not knowing where Dave was on the course made it a little intimidating for me...he could creep up behind me at any point! On the road I ran...or shuffled really and on the trail I walked the uphill and ran on the downhill...just like most I think. I made it back 1 1/2 hours before the cutoff so I knew at this point I doing fine.

The bike section was really hard mentally and physically. My legs were pretty tired at this point so as soon as I left the TA I stopped, popped about 5 E-Caps, downed a cereal bar and started on my way. I was pretty confident where the first 2 CP's were but after that I was just hoping my navigation was correct. As it turned out, I was spot on!

The downhill portions where really fun, and pretty scary. Finally there was one last climb up to CP 5 where I had not just run out of water, but I had run out of steam. It was really hot by this time and the cut-off was only 30 minutes away. I found my way to the road and it all came back to me...the hours of road biking was going to pay off right here! I could hear Dave's voice talking to me "go...gooo....GOOOOO...." as he always says and I needed that voice at that moment.

As I turned the corner to head back to the TA I had a special proud moment. This was 4 hours of me finishing my first solo race with the physical strength and endurance that I had earned through hours of really hard work. Having all of my friends at the finish line was just the cherry on top. First things first, hug and thank Rick for letting me race in his event. His ear to ear smile as I came to the finish said all I needed to hear.....Second, share this victory with Dave....it was a prideful moment to sit next to him and see the look in his eyes when he said I did a great job! It was like getting my father's approval....A moment I won't soon forget.

Long story short...I swam an approx 1800m open water today....I'm such a bad ass! Let's just end it with that :)

Tomorrow's Race

Rick has finally agreed to let me compete in one of his Adventure Races! I'm excited and nervous. I worry most about how my biking will be and will I find all the CP's. This will be my first solo race so it's all on my shoulders and that's the exciting part. Since he told me I could race I've been looking at every area map I could find so hopefully I've done all my homework. Lookout teams! Here I come!!!

I find myself struggling with motivation these past few days. I'm not having the best week and I hope that I can pick up my momentum soon. This is not a rut I can afford to stay in for long! Maybe it's the heat...or the fact that I can't sleep at night or both I don't know but I just feel about 85% right now....

Virtual Kim vs. Real Kim

A month or so ago I blogged about doing this bike drill stuff at Dave's house where my bike is hooked up to all this high tech equipment and I've got wires hanging from my ear yada...yada...yada... well what I didn't know then was that I would be racing myself! How do I explain this.... The screen shows a girl (me) riding a bike in I think it was Seattle or something on this really nice path. All the important information about how I ride, my cadence, heart rate, RPM's, which legs works harder then the other.... etc. all show on the bottom of the screen... really cool stuff right. Well yesterday I raced her! Dave split the screen so I was racing myself a month ago! This is the coolest thing I've seen in a long time. It was so much fun to see how much better I've gotten in just a month. I beat myself by a 1 - 1/2 minutes....which adds up over the course of a race to something really exciting! (The picture above is not from yesterday. Just an example of the program I found on Google)

Today we did some sand running at Tempe Town Lake and man was it hard. It's REALLY humid but I was able to get it all done and not toss my cookies. We've had workouts where I told him that it really sucked but today I just wanted to yell at him. As he's saying, "go....GO....GGGOOO..." I wanted to say a few things myself. I'm trying to run while I'm thinking...are we at that point in our relationship where I can yell back, "I WILL IN A MINUTE!!!" or not? Should I say, "I'm done" or should I just keep trying? I opted to keep trying and keep my mouth shut. Both very good choices in retrospect. I have a huge amount of respect for Dave even though I sometimes don't feel like being the nicest person towards him....

Here's to the smiley man

I left for the gym on my bike this morning and felt like a ton of bricks. Do you ever feel like that? My arms and legs were just dead weights I was trying to drag along. I tried just about everything to keep myself motivated during the ride....

Well, I made it to the gym and just couldn't get my head in the game. I felt like a floppy fish and knew that I could do much better...I'm much stronger then I gave Dave today. Though he said I did great, I could have done fantastic. The only way to redeem the workout would be during the journey home.....the Dreamy Draw hill! Would I be able to maintain my 8mph up the hill as tired as I was. YES!! I did it and I think I exercised my thoughts more then my legs for it. YEAH....

There was an older gentlemen on the trail who had an ear to ear smile. The kind you see and can't help but smile back, no matter what mood...it was nice, and I could see the smile in his eyes too. He was happy to be outside, jogging and in that moment, he made my heart smile....thank you smiley man....thank you for giving me back my smile today...

The smell of sweet victory!

Winning races is not something I've done much of. Partly because I haven't been in a ton of races, and second ... I'm not really that fast, which is totally okay with me. However, when you get a taste of a win I think that something happens to you....let me explain.

Today I met some of my friends for a Ride-n-Tie at Reach 11. (read about a ride-n-tie)
My team today was Dave and his wife Windy, both bad ass racers and good at everything they do. Dave is training me for Ironman and I knew that there would be no room for rest during the entire race. I did feel the added pressure of being teamed with such elite athletes. I didn't want to let them down...I want to be a good teammate.

The race started off super fun! Windy and I were on bikes and Dave started the run portion. We had already strategized about when to drop bikes etc so we had a good plan from the start. Dave and Windy are so fast that by the time I stopped to drop my bike for whoever was running, they were almost caught up! The new plan..I need to bike and drop farther! Okay, that's easy enough.

I had a really great time watching the various teams ride, drop and run during the times we were bunched together. It was real cool hearing teams communicate and support each other. It didn't take me long to realize during lap 3 that my team was in 1st place.

I looked back at the half way mark and thought, where did everyone go? Certainly they will be catching up to us soon! I could see my teammates up ahead and tried with all my leg and will power to get to them. At this point I went into survival mode....help my teammates survive that is!!! I knew that they had been running so long because I couldn't catch up to them that I wanted to give them my bike too....I wanted to give them a chance to rest. By the time I drop my bike they pick it up and give it back because I just can't run far enough ahead fast enough. This is crazy insane to me.

Everyone out there played hard and it was awesome fun! This story ends with a victory. Dave, Windy and I won the race and it was sweet! That's really all I wanted for them...

Another small success

This morning I woke up and met my friend Jennifer, along with Rick for a Dreamy Draw ride. It's the hill from Glendale Ave up Dreamy Draw to 32nd St that has really been kicking my butt. Maybe it's because I'm tired by the time I reach it or maybe because I have it stuck in my head that it's hard but either way, I tried to break it down into small goals...the first being to ride it without getting off to walk. Done... I've stopped to regroup a couple of times, I've admitted that but not to walk. Goal 2 - increase my speed going up by not giving in to tired legs....DONE!!! That's right! Today I did it.

Rick and I left the house this morning and my legs felt like bricks. So heavy that I put my gear into the second ring right out the door! (Dave REALLY kicked my butt yesterday). I was afraid to think that again I would fail to reach my goal. Easy for some, absolutely! For me this is a pretty big deal. My goal again was simply to keep it at 8mph for round one and 7mph for round two from the bottom of Dreamy Draw to the top. I did better then I had planned! I did 9mph for round one and 8mph for round two!!! SHUT UP! I really wanted to push my legs as hard as I could for as long as I could and WOW, they really pulled through for me today.

The really cool thing was having Rick wait for me at the top with a high five....he's definitely my biggest supporter in all this craziness. I think my new goal for a few weeks will be to just maintain what I have achieved today. If I can push my legs to keep working when they are exhausted that's an accomplishment in itself.

Today's LONG workout

For the past two weeks I've been hiking and biking prior to meeting Dave for my regular workout. I'm sad to say that the fun is over..I'm back to my regular work schedule so getting in those long workouts is over :(

I ended my fun week the right way...up Squaw Peak, then to see Dave followed by a 3 mile run with Rick and Hollon at the YMCA. Total workout time was 4 hours. WOW. What I learned - I need to fuel my body better. I did that 4 hours on one cup of cereal that I had at 4:30am and that was not enough to get me through. I could have pulled off 4 or 5 miles on the run but I could feel my legs start to cramp up and my hunger pain was giving me a headache. Rick and Hollon are getting ready for Gilmore (and Ironman) so it was really fun to spend some training time with them. I'm up for a run at the gym anytime boys!

My friends Sonja, Jennifer, Leslie and I are all doing the upcoming Gilmore Adventure Race in Sept so we are going to start our training tomorrow with a bike ride. Sunday is a Ride-n-Tie followed by swimming so it's a full weekend ahead. LOVE IT...

Enjoy the new photo. That was taken today on my way up Squaw Peak....