And I Thought Our Rednecks Were Crazy

OR "Pre Riding The Assault On Cherokee Bike Course"

Another early Saturday morning wake-up call. The pre ride for the Assault On Cherokee International was set for 8am and it's almost 1.5 hour drive up there from the house.... So I was in the car by 6.15am.

May I introduce you to Mr. Moose? He has been hanging on my rear view mirror for at least 10 years (different cars). He used to be brown, but now he is all bleached out to this pretty shade of purple. Mr. Moose has seen quite a bit of the world... ;-)

I was up at Camp Cherokee around 7.45 and there were two other cars in the parking lot. That didn't look like it's going to be a big group, but by the time we finally left for the ride (maybe around 8.15am) we were at least 30 people.

On off we were. To describe the course in short: Save the best for last! The first 10 miles are nice and flat to rolling. This is were you can really bank some time. The next 10 miles are rolling hills, but for a big portion of that stretch, the pavement is really really bad. The last 8 miles has some really long hills on them, but also some nice long downhills to rest up a little.

This is a pretty course. The end of the course is nice and in the shade. In a couple of stretches, traffic was a little crazy. But maybe the craziest/ scariest part of all of it, was the dumb a$$ that threw a firecracker in our crowd while we were waiting there to regroup. Two girls that were still on the road did get a firecracker out of the same truck and on top of it, they the passenger stuck out his naked butt out of the window. Oh boy.... You think you saw it all and then this. Fortunately, nobody got hurt.... But I assume that the picture of this big white butt is going to produce a couple of nightmares!

Around mile 10, I felt like I was riding over a bump every couple of yards. When we stopped to regrouped, I had a look at it and my tire had a bubble. We had technical support riding with us and he said, I'll be fine, but I have to be careful on the downhills, because it will be just a question of time until I blow out my tube. On my way back home, I stopped by at Sunshine and they switched my tire out.... It was a warranty issue and I didn't have to pay a thing.

After the ride, the group went down to the lake to also swim the swim course. I didn't know that this was planned, so I didn't have swim stuff with me. But I walked down with the group to at least have a look around.

Later they said that there is a lot of seaweed in the water and the water is also pretty warm. The distance from swim exit to transition is 1/3 of a mile and it's partially uphill on pretty loose gravel. So you have to have shoes there.

After that, I set out to run the run course. I ended up not doing the whole course, just 2/3rds of it. By the time I should have turned to run the out and back, I just had a little bit of water left in my bottle and I was also pretty hungry.

I am glad, that I had the opportunity to go up there and have a look around. They have another pre ride and swim next Sunday, I'll see if I am doing that trip again.

I just had enough time to drive back home (stop over bike shop), grab a shower and then head out to watch
Germany playing Uruguay for 3rd place in the World Cup! And they WON!!! Sweet!

Okay, I am dead tired and tomorrow is yet again an early wake-up call, because I want to get my long run out of the way before church.

So long! ;-)

Finally! It's Friday!

How can a four day work week feel sooooo long?

First things first: Germany lost against Spain in the half final! Sad, so sad! Somebody has to get a hold of this octopus and fry it! But at least he foretold that we are going to win tomorrow. If he continues to be right, we can rethink the frying plans. Once again, we'll huddle around a tv screen and cheer for our team... That was quite a summer sporting event... A lot of FUN! With the World Cup almost over, I may finally be able to focus a little more on the Tour de France! ;-)

After my 5 hour-ish ride* on Monday, recovery took me a little longer than I thought. I guess, I didn't expect the ride to take so much out of me. Well anyways, Tuesday was pretty much a blur. I had the glassy eyes going on and just felt completely exhausted. When I got home, Terry said that he thinks I am running a slight fever, so rest it was for that day.

*I forgot to mention another first on Monday's post and that would be that I crossed a state line for the first time on the bike! ;-)

Other than this additional unplanned rest day on Tuesday, things go pretty good these days when it comes to my workouts. Actually last week, I was able to complete ALL of my planned workouts and it looks pretty good for this week as well.... Of course there is always some moving around of workouts involved, but who cares.

With my first international distance triathlon approaching fast, I still have to tie up some loose ends. The race organizers are helping out with that by offering a group ride tomorrow and next Sunday on the race course. So tomorrow morning, I will be heading up to Blacksburg to ride the 28 mile loop around the Kings Mountain State Park and after that, I want to at least run part of the race course as a brick workout. I don't think I did any bricks since the MTY sprint tri back in June, so it's about time. Also a big X on my training schedule is a 2 hour run on Sunday. The last big thing to get in before the race is an open water swim. Looking at the alternatives I currently have, I think I will join GoTri at the open water practice at Paris Mountain State Park next week or the week after. They also offer a group ride after the swim, so that would give me a swim/bike brick.

Here is a map for the bike course from the race website:

And here is the run course:

I'll definitely take my camera with me, so I can hopefully show some pictures afterwards!

Heading out for some sushi now and then take it easy for the rest of the evening..... Tomorrow is going to be another early morning for me.

Happy weekend everyone! ;-)

Thursday Thunks: Heatwave

Once again, I am joining for the current edition of "Thursday Thunks".

 

It's it fascinating, that where ever in the world you are, people like to talk about the weather. And it's always too cold or too hot, too dry or too rainy..... The weather just doesn't seem to be able to make things right for more than one day in a row! ;-)

Anyways... Yes, we do have a heatwave.... But I am loving it! And that comes from a person that currently doesn't have an A/C in the house! HAH!

Here we go:

1. The temperature in Mooseheadville, Canada was 34 below. Most of the U.S. is in a serious heat wave. In Connecticut, it was 92 degrees in the shade. What do YOU do to beat the heat?

Don't beat the heat! Embrace the heat! As women, we do have it a little easier, since it's socially accepted for us to show legs in the office. A dude with shorts doesn't fly most of the time. Other than that... Make sure to take in lots of fluids.... water if possible and take things easy. Also, an advise that a friend gave me on a vacation in Brazil... "Just don't think about the heat!" Sounds pretty simple, but it actually works, because once you start focusing on how hot you are, you are going to feel more and more uncomfortable!

2. What is your favorite summertime song?


Fastball - The Way

3. Besides nude beaches what's your favorite outdoor summer activity?

With our recent kayaking adventures, I think that is my new favorite summer activity. Followed closely by a nice long bike ride.

4. I'm inviting everyone to a cook-out. What should I cook for you?

I think I just recently had my perfect cook-out food.... Chicken and veggie kabobs, Terry's (famous) baked beans and warmed up naan. Other than that, I am a sucker for pasta salads and a good old burger every now and then!

5. When selecting your swimwear do you go for sexy or practical?

Practical. I hardly go swimming without it being a workout and I normally don't bake in the sun. So when I am in the water, I am more concerned about comfort and not giving a free show at the YMCA pool.

6. Back in the day, did you ever have a summer fling? If yes, do tell. (Names not required.)

I am sure there was a different fling every summer, but seriously, I can't remember any details. It's quite fascinating how much of a memory loss I suffered over the years.... Some people would probably say, that I blocked these memories... Possible... Very possible.

7. Do you know anyone who hates air conditioning? If yes, what is their reasoning?

Probably the person that is most opposed to A/C that I know is myself. I am not saying, that there shouldn't be A/C, but I think it's ridiculous that in some places the A/C is set on 65 degrees throughout the year. It's not only a waste of energy, but also doesn't make sense health-wise e.g. A/C cold etc. Believe me, I would like to have a A/C in our house right about now, but fortunately, I have alternatives in the house and just spend most of my time downstairs where it's about 15 degrees cooler.

8. When and with who was your last skinny dip?

See number 6 and my memory block!

9. How sick of LeBron James are you?

With half of our office being more concerned about the World Cup, I just heard about this whole LeBron stuff a little bit. But my understanding is, people start getting a little peed off about it... Oh well, it's not like you can't avoid the news! ;-)

10. When you were a kid, what was your best summer?

I think we had many good summers as kids. Most summers, we would go on vacation for three weeks close to the beach and the rest of the summer, we just spend in and around the public pool. We had three TV programs, no computers, no cell phone.... No reason to stay inside and at home. One of the more prominent memories from family vacations I have, is the summer when we rented a house in Spain with another family. I think there is still some video footage out there from that time. That was also the summer when our Dad decided to buy water skis and teach us without never having done it himself. But we figured it out and it was a ton of fun!

11. Belly up to the bar. We serve ANYTHING. It's 100 degrees. What should we pour for you?

Mojito

12. Is there a favorite meal that you like to have in the summer?

It's not really a meal, but I am digging my fruit smoothies right now after my evening workouts. Nothing brings me back to life faster!

13. Do you think they will solve the oil spill in time for the Gulf states to enjoy summer?

I hate to be the pessimist here, but I highly doubt that they find a solution for this mess anytime soon.


Enjoy the heatwave and have a great day!

So long! ;-)

I Need A Long Weekend! ;-)

Yes, I am completely aware that I am just at the tail end of a long weekend.... But boy, it was quite action filled. I already told you all about Saturday.

Sunday was a little more relaxed. A fairly short trainer ride in the morning before church. Then after church we took right off on another kayaking adventure on Lake Robinson. After uploading the GPS information from our trip on Saturday and looking at it in Google Earth and seeing how far we already got, we thought it wasn't completely unreasonable to try to cross the lake... In two hours... Because we had a little time constraint due to a planned BBQ that night. The day before we were on there for two hours as well, but we did several breaks, this time we were moving! We still didn't quite make it through but close enough.

But when we encountered a water snake on our back, we of course made a little photo stop! ;-)

Don't worry, it looks much bigger on the picture than it actually was... I just cropped it, so you can see it better! ;-)

It was so much FUN once again, but I faded bad the last 20 or so minutes. We really have to start searching Craig's List!

*****************************

Moving on to today.

The "only" thing planned for today was a 4ish hour ride. A friend joined me for the tour and we planned on riding from Furman University to Saluda.... Around 60 miles.... That would be without a couple of detours and stuff, because we got a little lost in the beginning. Oh well... What doesn't kill us....! ;-)

Here is the elevation profile to give you an idea:

I ended up with the longest ride for me ever, time wise (4h 55 mins) and distance-wise (68.56 miles) with the most feet of climbing (9,911)... I felt fine up to mile 55 and then things got a little ugly. My neck was bothering me a lot and being sore from kayaking the day before sure didn't help matters. But I stuck it out (really, what choice did I have) and made my way home.

Walked in the house and sat down on the dining room table... After two plates of yesterday's leftovers, I somewhat felt human again.... But since getting back I just laid around being lazy and trying to recover. So glad that I don't have another workout schedule until tomorrow evening. I will have a very early night today... No surprise here hmmmm? ;-)

So long!

Can't Beat It!!!

1. Hill repeats go according to plan*? CHECK!

 *4x up the hill and building into zone 5

2. Germany moving on into the half finals? CHECK!

We met at the Bavarian Pretzel Factory and that place was even fuller than the two previous times that I watched games there. We squeezed as many people as possible on our table. The atmosphere was AWESOME... There was a vuvuzela present... NOT so AWESOME. GERMANY WON!!! What a game!

3. Going kayaking with the family? CHECK!

We really enjoyed kayaking at Hilton Head Island, so we decided to rent kayaks over weekend and took them out to Lake Robinson down the road. That lake is BEAUTIFUL and not a lot of traffic going on there, which made for relaxed paddling!

4. Get a recovery ride in? CHECK!

We went out on the Swamp Rabbit for a very easy one hour ride.... I was wearing COTTON! I looked a little like a beach bun! ;-) Not a problem since I almost didn't break a sweat! ;-)

What a great day.... Time to warp things up and get some rest... Tomorrow there will be more activity! Of course!

So long! ;-)

A Nutty Swap

I am not know for a very clean diet. But things have been looking a little better lately and I made an effort on making good choices more than once a day and also cook a little more often. The last couple of weeks have been fairly successful in this department... there were a couple of slips, but at least the overall picture is going into the right direction.

Aside from everything that I mentioned above, the biggest change in my diet was swapping cow milk with almond milk.

Pic is from here.

I never considered myself lactose intolerant, but with my history of IBS spurs, I previously tried to ween myself off the cow's milk. I tried soy milk instead and found out the hard way that cow's milk might not sit well in my stomach, but soy milk basically just runs right through me. In general, I am not fond of any processed soy products, but can digest edamame without a problem... Go figure! After the soy milk desaster, I returned to the cow milk for the next couple of years, without major issues.

But lately (maybe the last six months), I noticed a queasy stomach sometimes after having my morning cereal that would vanish after an hour or two. Nothing major, just feeling uncomfortable. And since Terry complains about having trouble stomaching milk as long as I know him, I thought it was time to try out something new and bought our first almond milk and seriously, I haven't look back. From a texture standpoint, I actually don't think it's very different from skim milk. The taste is of course different, but still good and I actually enjoy it with my cereal or in smoothies*. I haven't had any of the quesiness going on since I switched to almond milk** and that alone is reason enough for my to stick to it. Thumbs up all the way!

*I also started to put spinach in my smoothies and it's true what everyone say... You can't taste it and you get so many vitams and minerals into your body with this addition... Totally worth it!
**First we tried vanilla flavored, but both didn't like it too much. Then we switched over to the original and liked it so much better. Yesterday, I finally found the original flavor unsweetened and tried it this morning with my cereal and I think that's the way to go!

Have you made any nutritional changes lately and if yes, what did you do??

So long! ;-)

Community

Maybe I am repeating myself here, but I had a couple of encounters over the last couple of days, which just made me realize all over again in what kind of community I got myself into when picking up the swim-bike-run.

But all of this really started with the Salsa community here in Greenville. You see, as a German transplant, I pretty much isolated myself with other German transplants for the first year of my stay here in the US. There was certainly the convenience factor that supported that behavior, but it also was the whole cultural shock* thing going on that prevented me from reaching beyond my comfort zone for the longest. You may think that cultural shock stuff is just a sorry excuse, but believe me that it is for real and between that and crazy work hours, the thought of meeting new people and maintaining new connections just completely overwhelmed me.

*It is funny to read the wikipedia explanation of "cultural shock" now after so many years and I seriously don't have any problem at all to identify the phases that I went through.

After some degree of adjustment, I felt like spreading my wings a little again and started Salsa dancing. It truely was a blessing in a lot of ways. Not only was that a start for at least a little bit of exercise, but it also led me to meet so many great and amazing people... I also met my husband there. Even though we don't make it out to the club that regularly anymore, we are still in touch with a lot of the people and at least try to attend all the special occasions to reconnect. The Salsa peeps were also a big portion of our wedding receiption and they made sure that the dance floor was properly utelized!

Then in 2008, I started out on my quest to get fit and healthy again and somehow got set on doing a triathlon. Now a couple of years later and two triathlon into the sport and a couple more lined up for the year, I notice every now and then that the benefits of the sport go way beyond the physical and mental aspects... Both Salsa and triathlon have given me such a big network of people that I never thought possible, especially since I started "from scratch" five years ago in a new country, several thousand miles away from home, speaking a different language and having a different culture from what I was used to.

But the tri community doesn't only have a social component, but it's also a lot about sharing training and racing as well as trading knowledge and experiences. Because the truth is, sometimes you just ask yourself: Is this just me? Only to find out in a conversation with a training partner or random fellow cyclist on a trail that others struggle with the same things. I found people in the swim-bike-run of things to share openly what worked for them and what they struggle with. You trade tips and tricks about training, gear and nutrition. You can ask and you will get asked yourself... Give and take!

Most of the time things are not perfect, but it always helps to know that your are part of community and they know exactly what you are talking about.

So long! ;-)