Wildflower Practice Weekend

This past weekend I met up with the Silicon Valley Team at Lake San Antonio for a practice run at the Wildflower course. It was an absolutely amazing weekend. Last year it was cold and rainy. This year we had sunshine, but it wasn't terribly hot. AND I wasn't sick and at death's door like I was last year. So, just by those two things it was 1000 times better than last year. Anyway, here's how each portion of the course went...

SWIM - 1.5k
We didn't do the actual swim course because it wasn't marked out, but we did an equivalent length. Unfortunately, I didn't think to time the swim. I got a new wetsuit this year and I believe it fits me better. It's a half size smaller than my last one. I think in getting used to the different wetsuit and not being very well warmed up, my triceps really felt the swim. I had forgotten how different it is to swim in a wetsuit. Anyway, the swim isn't the part that I'm worried about.

BIKE - 40k
It was really good to be out on the course and to get a refresher on what it all looks like. Lynch hill was about as bad as I remembered, but I think with some work on my quads I'll be able to fly up that hill. Ok, maybe I won't fly, but I'll at least be able to get to the top without getting off my bike. After Lynch I think I counted 3 or 4 good sized hills before the turn around, and the same amount on the way back. I felt pretty good on the bike, but I really need to work on getting my legs in shape. I think it took me about 2.5 hours to do the course with a few stops along the way. That was my time during the race last year, so I'm already ahead of the curve :)

RUN - 10k
Going into the run this time around I was in much better shape. During the race last year I was dehydrated at the start of the run. I had to walk a good portion of the course because of a side cramp. This time I was ready to go. I still hate running, but the course didn't seem so bad this time. I ran most of the way, stopping only to catch my breath or to stretch out some sore muscles. I finished the course in about 1:17. My race day time was about 1:30. I'm hoping to get some more miles under my belt in the next few weeks so I can get my body used to running.

Overall, I was quite pleased with my performance this weekend. I came back with a set of goals for the next 7 weeks until the race. My goal for the race is 4 hours. Hopefully I'll be able meet or beat that. I've just gotta stay healthy and get stronger.

GO TEAM!

New Beginnings

Well, I have officially moved back to Sacramento and I'm living with my grandparents. Tonight I have my first workout with the Sacramento team in Folsom. We'll be swimming instead of running, and the team, as I understand, is fairly small. About 30 people was the last I heard. This will be a completely different experience than training with the Silicon Valley Team with about 100 teammates.

Anyway, this morning I tried taking my cousins dog on a run, but she was too distracted by all the smells and other interesting things that seem to be in the grass. I quickly turned around and took her home and then went out on my own for about 20 minutes. I probably ran about a mile and a half, stopping only once to get a cramp to go away. I really truly hate running. I'm gonna need to find a running partner or I'll have a repeat of last year's run at Wildflower, which was not terribly pleasant.

Tonite I swim, Saturday we bike and run, and next weekend I'm joining the SV Team for their Wildflower practice weekend. I'm looking forward to it.

GO TEAM!

Saturday Workout

Well, today we had a nice long workout and I was elated when I found that there wasn't a cloud in the sky. For those who do not know, it has been raining pretty much non-stop here for the past 7 days, so you can see why I was so pleased to see that the ground was dry and the sun was out. Anyway, today I went out on the bike first. We went from Mountain View High School to Foothill Expressway. We went all the way to El Monte, past Foothill College (where we have our Thursday workouts) and into a nice hilly neighborhood. The hills very much resemble the hills we will encounter at Wildflower. Last year, on my mountian bike, I cursed at the hills and stopped in the middle for a breather. Today, with my sleak little road bike, I didn't stop on ANY hills! I was so proud of myself. Anyway, the whole ride took me about 1:45 and I have been told that it was about a 19 mile ride. One thing I've learned is that I REALLY need to work on my leg strength.

After the hilly ride it was on to the pool. Here's the workout...
300 warmup
8x50 drill
100 easy
20 minute marker set - 44 laps, PE=7.5
300 misc. drills

I was tired and hungry when the workout was finished, but I felt like I had accomplished something. I am hoping that I will be able to kick up my training. I want to work more on my core strengthening and on strengthening my legs. Practice weekend is in a few weeks. I guess I'll see how I'm really doing then.