20 mile run with 20 days left to go...

20 days.  That's it! 480 hours until Ironman.  Sunday, I will be doing my final LONG workout prior to the race.  A 20 mile run with my friend Beth.  Can you believe this amazing person is going to help me do this run.  She was suppose to do Ironman but fell during the 1/2 marathon in Virginia Beach and sustained and hairline fracture in her shoulder.  NO Ironman this year..but she plans to do it in 2009.

Running is my nemesis! This run on Sunday has me scared.  I hope I can survive it.  We are suppose to be in the 90's tomorrow so we will be starting a little before sunrise!! 

Ill give you the update when I return!!

Putting your feet on the floor is the hardest part of the workout

435am...and the alarm is ringing......UGH! My poor alarm clock.  After a year of Ironman training, it has almost been beaten into submission.  This morning it went off with a new "tone"...it sounded garbled and tired...kinda like me.

I get up early so I can "enjoy" my morning routine of coffee and oatmeal but it has to be the hardest part of my workout day.  Just getting up and getting moving when your body is screaming for sleep is a challenge.  When I have a difficult time getting motivated, this is when I think of all those people who wish they were in my position.

I think of the men and women 10 years ago who embarked on a clinical trial for the gastric bypass and lost their lives on the operating table.  By God's grace, I survived.  I think about my Godson who told me it was hard having Cancer...but he was going to beat "Vader" (thats what he called Leukemia). And I think of myself when walking around the mall felt like a marathon.  I am so very blessed to be up at this unholy hour of the morning and getting prepared for a day in the saddle.

Time to hit the road...and go log some miles :)

A special run for a special little guy..

On Saturday morning, October 11th at 730am, several hundred runners, walkers, joggers and stumblers like myself will run in Lake Louisa State Park in the "Christian Stafford Feel the Force 5k" to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training and in memory of Christian Richard Stafford.  Christian was a very special little boy in so many ways and he continues to touch my heart and my life every day.

Christian was my Godson who was diagnoised with Leukemia at age 6.  At first, things looked pretty good for my favorite little Jedi who loved Star Wars with a passion.  He got his first round of chemo and immediately went into remission.  The good news, however, turned bad when he bounced out of remission and required a marrow transplant.  The transplant failed and on March 6th, 2005, we lost Christian to this cowardly disease.  

Prior to his death, Christian entered a clinical trial for a drug that is now helping children throughout the world stay in remission.  If it had not been for his bravery, many families could have suffered the same fate the Stafford family endured on that March day.  He was a fighter and I gained alot of knowledge and strength from his experience.  This little guy taught me how to be tough in the face of pain and adversity.  He taught me to see the positive side of a bad situation and showed me grace in the darkest hour.  My hope is that I can use some of the things that Christian taught me as I go through my Ironman experience.

If you are in the Central Florida area, we would love to have you join us.  Use the link below to become part of the "force" that will do good for those battling Leukemia!!

www.feeltheforce5k.com

May the force be with you....always :)

Facing the Numbers..and some serious fears...

I made a promise to myself when I started this blog a year ago that I would express my true feelings about my training and about my emotions as I entered this endurance event.  Right now, I won't lie: Im scared and worried.

For those that are reading this blog and can run a 10-12 hour Ironman, you will probably giggle at the numbers I set forth below but I hope you understand from where I came.  In May 2000, I ran my first Danskin triathlon at Walt Disney World.  That year, the race was less than a 1/4 mile swim, a 10 mile bike and a 2 mile run.  I finished the race (and not in dead last) in 2 hours and 20 minutes.  The first time someone timed my mile, I was walking and it took 21 minutes.  My fastest bike use to be in the 12 mile an hour range.  It is from this world that a unique Ironman athlete has emerged.  

I spend a bit of time at the computer with the triathlon calculator trying to figure out if I can really beat the 17 hour cut off.  I have told my friends who are going to be supporting me at Panama City that this isn't ONE Race...for me..its THREE RACES.  Each goal is such a huge step forward for me.

THE SWIM

A year ago, I was at Ironman Florida supporting my business partner and dear friend, Rick Stafford.  We arrived early and we took advantage of the open water swims each morning.  The first two times, I was too scared to do the whole loop.  From the balcony of my condo, it looked like the course was halfway out to the shipping lanes (which it sorta IS) and it was overwhelming to me.  On Friday before the race, I got up the courage and got my swim skin on and did one lap.  It took me an hour an 10 minutes...that would BARELY make the cutoff time.  Fast forward 1 year and I now do that loop in around 55 minutes. I think Michael Phelps' gold medals are safe but if I can make it out of the swim in 2 hours, I will be very pleased.

THE BIKE

Last year, I made my first attempt at completing the bike course.  I made it to mile 50 and began throwing up and couldn't stop.  My day was definitely done early.  This year,  I completed the full bike course in 7.5 hours.  Again...not setting any land/speed record but that would get me into transition under the cut off.  If I can get into transition in 8 hours, I will be very happy and another "race" completed.

THE RUN

Which leaves my weakest link: the marathon.  I have only run two marathons in my life.  One took me over 8 hours and the other took me 7 hours and 48 minutes.  With an 8 hour bike, this leaves just 7 hours to transition and complete the marathon.  This is where my fear lies.  My running is horrible but if I can give myself enough time to do an 8 hour marathon...I know I will be fine.  A 7 hour marathon I have not attempted...but its interesting what you can do when you are under the gun.  I have run ONE race in my life with negative splits.  It was Ironman Florida 70.3 where I almost missed the run cutoff for the last loop.  By running the negative split, I made it through the loop entrance with 45 seconds to spar and became one of the final official finishers.  If I can continue that mentality, I may run my 7 hour marathon.

As the big day approaches, nothing but math runs around in my head. As I did my 90 minute bike and 45 minute run this morning, I kept checking my GPS to make sure I was running faster than I needed to.  

The ticking of the clock is my enemy....I plan to beat the crap outta that enemy on November 1.

These guys are not my friends...How to race with an allergic reaction..

This weekend was NOT what I had hope for prior to Ironman.

I had to DNF my first triathlon in my 8 year career of racing.  There have been alot of races where I finished DFL...or close...and I pushed as hard as I could before my body said..no more.

I got up at 4am...had my coffee and oatmeal and followed my routine as I normally do prior to any race.  I was out the door at 5am and was at the race site by 520am.  Since I was in a new town that I didn't know well, I thought it best to leave early.

Got body marked, set my gear and talked to alot of triathlete and looked at alot of bikes.  I have found that if you walk through transition and look at people's setups, you can learn alot.  I asked about wheels, bottles, and other interesting things in people's transition areas.  I grabbed my wetsuit and have my friend Kathleen from the Central Florida Tri Club help me put it on.  In 8 years of triathlon, I have never done a wetsuit swim.  Today was going to be my day to test my new wetsuit in a race.

We found a mere 20 people in our wave with Kathleen and I being the only Athenas in the entire race.  We were excited.  If we finish, were going home with hardware.  Little did I know what was to come.

The gun went off and we ran into the water watching our step as we made it over the sandbars.  The water was a perfect temperature, calm and beautiful.  The sun was coming up and the buoys were easy to spot.  Going to be a great swim.

At the second buoy, it felt like a bee had nailed me under the arm.  Then again.  Then it felt like it was inside my wetsuit on my chest.  I came upright in the water and took a deep breath.  Let me tell ya, the ones on your arm can hurt, but a sting to the chest will get your undivided attention.  I couldn't breathe.  I know this was just my reaction to the situation but I made the decision then and there to remove my wetsuit.  A lifeguard saw me struggle and brought his kayak over to me.  I asked him to take my wetsuit.  He looked a little shocked that this woman was disrobing 1/2 mile from shore but I knew that I would feel better if I could just get the suit off my body.  I finished the swim 10 minutes slower than my normal 1.2 mile swim and hit the beach.

Being a diver, I KNOW for a fact that I am highly allergic to jellyfish.  I evaluated my condition after exiting the water.  The stings were painful but I felt ok overall.  Maybe I would be lucky this time.  I went to transition and I was the last one out.  This isn't the first time I have been the last on the road.  I got myself together and hit the road.

I started to feel bad as I made my way up the Amelia Island Causeway.  I felt a little dizzy, my head hurt a bit but I pushed forward.  It wasn't until Mile 40 that I started to feel the rash travel across my chest and I got itchy.  At mile 45, my stomach got upset and I had some serious shortness of breath.  This was a beautifully organized race but there were no medical tents on the bike course.  I decided to head into transition and hit the medical tent there.

I was assessed by the staff at the medical tent.  I took Benedryl and they applied vinegar to my stings.  I even slept for a bit  in the tent as the Benedryl took effect and made me drowsy but got myself together enough to grab my gear and head back to the hotel.  The nurses were so nice and professional.  They even helped me carry my stuff to the car.

Returning to the hotel, I slept for 3 hours.  The itching stopped about 7pm and my shortness of breath stopped about midnight.

I am very sad that I had to abandon this race.  The feelings of failure flooded me as I sat looking at the beach from my hotel balcony.  Saturday was to be a night to celebrate.  Instead, I felt like such a loser.

This morning, I got up and drove home.  All my friends called to check on me, which was very sweet.  Even the race director called to make sure I was ok.  As I was driving, I heard a song by Rascal Flatts that seem so appropriate.  I love the words:

'Cause when push comes to shove

You taste what you're made of

You might bend, til you break

'Cause its all you can take

On your knees you look up

Decide you've had enough

You get mad

You get strong

Wipe your hands, shake it off

Then you stand...

Everytime you get up

And get back in the race

One more small piece of you

Starts to fall into place.....

I will live to fight another day.  My hope is that ALL the pieces fall into place for Ironman Florida.  One more long weekend of training and then its time to taper and rest.  Im having my pity party this afternoon but I am ready to shake it off and STAND UP TO BE AN IRONMAN!!

30 days left...The countdown begins

1 month from today and counting!!! After more than a year of working out and working towards this goal, I can not believe we are in the final stretch.  30 days! Alot can happen in 30 days but I am so excited and scared, I wish it were tomorrow!!  Approximately 743 hours.  Today, I am working at Disney but my mind will be on this race.  I still have to figure out what I will wear during the event.

My weekend challenge

After a discussion with Hector, we decided to throw in a Half Ironman race this weekend.  Doesn't that sound crazy.?  Lets do this Half Ironman as a workout and a warm up for Ironman Florida.  The course is flat (thank god) and the weather report shows light winds and sunshine for race day so I am hoping that I can get through this with much success!! Ill keep you posted!