SheRox Triathlon

SheRox weekend 2012 will always have a special place in my memory. It was packd from Friday to Sunday with sun and inspiration.

On Friday night, our LUNA Chix team hosted a pre-race party. That is where we met the grandma's who were doing their first triathlon. How inspiring they were! We met many others doing their first tri with many questions. Their excitement was contagious.

Saturday was the race Expo day. We had the team tent there all day. We saw the grandma's picking up their packets with big smiles.We met many more and spred the word of our weekly bikes and runs. We had a raffle basket to raise money for the Breast Cancer Fund. At the end of the day, we talked to many more newbies and raise $1025 for our cause.

Sunday was race day. For the first time, I was on a relay team. Flipper had the swim and Snoopy had the run. I got my favorite part which was the bike. The bike course is 2 loops and I was glad to be in wave 3 out of 30. It gave me a clear ride for at least loop 1. It was a little strange to go to a Tri with so little packed. Our relay team had so much fun. We were thrilled, amazed, and humbled by the fact that we finished in 5th out of 58 teams. We all decide to put this on our schedule for 2013!

Waddling into the rest of the season......

PS---The grandmas finished with big smiles and signed up for SheRox Bermuda!!!

SEASON OPENER

This is a big weekend for the Tri team that I am on. It is our 2012 first race weekend. I am a member of the Chicago LUNA Chix Tri Team. It is a great honor but along with that alot of fun and meeting people.

This weekend we are a sponsor of SheRox women's Tri in Naperville,IL. Because of this, we are able to reach out to many women and encourage their participation in athletics. I love this! Tonight is a meet and greet. 2 hours of wine, appetizers, music, and meet the team. We raise money for the Breast cancer fund and half of the proceeds go to this.

Tomorrow from 10-4 is the Race Expo. We have a tent and spend the day talking to paritcipants, handing out samples, andhave put together a great raffle. we hope to promote our Monday night runs and Wednesday night bike rides. So many newbies are afraid to group activities and we hope to change that.

Sunday is race day! This year for the first time, I am on a relay team. I am doing the bike portion. Scout,my Quintana Roo CD01, is anxious and ready to go! Then I will be at the finish cheering all the women to finish. A lot are doing their first Tri this weekend and it is an inspiring weekend.

Waddling into a great weekend...........

FIRST CLINIC

Last night I did my first clinic as a USAT coach. It was a Triathlon Transition Clinic. My focus was on newbies doin SheRox in Naperville. I wasn't nervous at all. I had so much fun. It was a great group of ladies that held on to every word.

I felt bad in the middle of it. The more that I talked about how crazy transition can be the bigger the eyes of the girl on the front row got! I was scaring her. It was not my intent but I wanted to make sure they knew what they were facing in a sprint with 1,000 other women.

They had alot of great questions. I felt like that I learned as much from them as they did from me.

Waddling with a smile.....

TRAINING FOR IRON

Ironman  Louisville is on the book for August. This will be my 3rd Iron that I have trained for and I believe my last. The time commitment is huge. My focus is #1 the bike then the swim. In Florida , I never got to run so if I don't make the 530pm cutoff the run won;t matter.

I am more excited about this race than Florida. Florida was more of a whim. IMLOU was the race that gave me the desire to swim and do Iron. SO it is coming full circle.

I had a breakthrough in swim recently and it is starting to click. My times have dropped and I feel like a swimmer. On my bike, I have Scout, my new Quintanaroo CD01. She flies! 

I hope to update as training continues.

Waddling to go toward another Iron...........

2012 HAS BEGUN

The 2012 year has begun. There are no great expectations for this year just good training and some fun.

January has brought me back to swimming regularly. I really enjoy my Master's in the morning. I have recently done several time trial which showed improvement. The 3 days a week is really paying off.

February took me to Little Rock where I became a certified USAT Level 1 coach. So excited to get up and going with my business TriWaddling.com.

March began with My father turning 90 and some great surprise parties. It ended in Berekely, Ca, at the LUNA Summit which was so awesome. 180 LUNAs from across the country. Wow -so much fun.

April is proving to be a challenging month with my father's health decling and many trips back to Ohio. My Training has been off and on but still happening. I am doing IMLOU this August and it is time to ramp it up.

Waddling toward the season.......

FAVORITE DAY

Today is one of my favorite days of the year. Go ahead and call me a little crazy. But the airing of the Ironman World Championships is something that I have loved as long as they have been on TV. The first one was highlights on ABCs Wide World of Sports in 1980. That continued until 1991 when NBC began the actual 90minute show.

My family knows on this day that for that 90 Minutes my time is sacred. SHUT UP and watch the TV. I am glued to every word, moment and tear.

My craziest part is that I do not just watch this show once but continue watching it until I can tell you every word said and every moment. I also have all of them from 2001 on my DVR. I also still watch these. My son will beg me at times to turn them off but I continue to be drawn to watching them. When you do not know what to watch--turn on an Ironman.

Today, I made arrangements for my tri team to have it put on at a sports bar to watch. Even if I am the only one there, I will be a happy clam. But believe me- everyone  there better keep it down and watch the show.

My favorite was 2001 after Septetember 11th. It showed the world of USA spirit and to watch Tm DeBoom win and carryt eh USA flag. Awesome. My second was with Jon Blaise -the Blazeman. I am reminded there are no excuses.

It's 5:30am and I am already awake on my day off. It's Kona day! And what is more exciting is that next year I hace 2 friends who have qualified and will be there!! Even more fun to watch.

Waddling to watch IM Kona today........

2011 END OF YEAR

Last night was the end of the year banquet for or TriSmart Team. It send me into a time to reflect back to what was achieved or what did not happen as planned.

The year for me began with being asked to be a member of the Chicago LUNA Chix Triathlon Team. It was a huge honor. I believe in what they stand for and what they do. The team does fundraising for the Breast Cancer Fund which is close to my heart. Also they sponsor weekly runs and rides to promote women's health in doing triathlons. Best part was that my BFF Snips was on the 2011 team also.

My "A" race for 2011 was Ironman Florida. It would be my second Iron distance race. I signed up for it with my friend Flipper. More on that later.

My first race of the year was Rev3 Knoxville in May. It was an Olympic that I made an Aquathon. I was OK with how I did considering the hills on the bike course. The swim was a river swim which I had never done before and actually was OK with.

Batavia was my second Tri. It was a Sprint that I had done 3 times before. The month before my race I was put on a special diet for my metabolic syndrome and my training was limited. It was one of my slower times but I felt good and had dropped some weight.

Evergreen sprint was next on the agenda. My swim was respectable. I had a great bike for me followed by a decent run. This got me second place in my age group. I was happy.

Pigman Half Iron in Iowa came next. It was a brutal day. The swim was a lake swim and the temp was barely wetsuit legal. The bike course was one of the toughest and hilliest courses that I have ever ridden. This was followed by a run course that was downhill going out making the returning 6.5 miles all uphill. I was so happy to be done. I did finish 4th in my age group and qualified for Team USA at the ITU World Long Course Championships in Vegas. Unfortunately the same weekend as Vegas.

September brought the TriSmart 101 bike ride. Perfect placement for IMFL. Weather on the day of the ride was atrocious. Wind , Rain, and Cold. I began the ride very detemined to do the entire distance but quickly becam doubtful. It really sucked. At mile 10 when crossing a set of railroad tracks, a biker ahead slid and crashed. I was a fellow LUNA. She had busted her helmet and hit her head. She was OK but her day was done. As Snips, Flipper and I came up to the tracks we got off our bikes to walk across. I still slipped and fell. The group of us decided to continue to the first rest stop and rethink the ride. It ended up that I was the only one to continue. My plan was to go to the next rest stop and turn around. Once there I felt good and thought I would go alittle farther. Next thing I knew, I saw a sign that said "Welcome to Indiana". OMG. At that point in time, my mind was made up to go the distance. After 7.5 hours, I finished. I was so excited! And thrilled to see warm pizza. It was a highlight of my year.

At the end of September, due to a family situation, I discontinued training for IMFL. Too much was happening in my life to focus.

Then came an EMail that changed everything. I had been named the "Everyday Hero" for IMFL and would be featured on TV. Immediately I called my coach friend. I had already tapered and it was time to train for 2 hard weeks. On top of that I becam sponsored by QuintanaRoo and was given a new CD01 to ride.

IMFL becam a amazing experience that I will never forget. The swim was my hardest part. The time cutoff of 2:20 loomed in my head. Also the pink meanie jelly fish that were on the course did not help. I finished but barely at 2:19:30. A friend helped me change in T1 the on to the bike course. The wind gust of 25mph almost knocked me off my bike several times in the first 10miles. I knew my first time cutoff to make was to be at mile 88 by 3:45. I was averaging around 13mph into the wind but knew it would be a great tailwind on the return. I made it to mile 56 and got my special needs bag then continued. I began calculations in my mind on how my time was. The way I had it figured is if I could average 16.5mph on the return that I would just make the cut off times. As I was turning the corner at mile 60, the wind would be at my back. A white van pulled in front of me a a guy told me to pull over. I was stunned to find out he was an official pulling me off the course. I was speechless. I handed over my bike and got in for the long ride back. My day was over. I was numb. Still today I am unable to really process all the emotions.

So back to last night, it was an awesome night with tri-friends. Alot of looking back equaled by alot of talking of the 2012 challenges. For me? I have a free entry to an Ironman race. Now my favorite part of planning begins.

The other excitement for 2012- I am going to become a USAT level 1 Coach. My dream!! I want to help beginners and back of the packers like me face triathlon challenges.

My Motto for 2012--- "No Excuses just do it"

Waddling to the end of 2011 and into 2012.......