Enjoy the Moment

This past Sunday I rode with Ironman veterans Matt and Steve. I took it upon myself to tap this wealth of knowledge and asked them what, with their experience, was the best advice they could give me as I faced this challenging race. They both said hands down it was to enjoy the moment, enjoy where you are at and savor it, because that is what it is all about. Steve also said that he would take it easier on the first half of the bike which is hard to do as you are caught up in the excitement. Oh yeah, and he also said stay away from sugar-free gummy worms. He had first-hand experience with those and it was not a good thing.

As my nerves begin to build I've been reminding myself to enjoy the moment and not panic about the future. I tell myself what a great experience it will all be and honestly I've enjoyed the journey thus far. Robby asked me if I was excited that I was almost done with all my long training and after thinking about it, other than some of the long HOT rides and the heat in general, I've really loved the training. I think in order to train for something like this, you have to enjoy it.

Riding with Matt and Steve on Sunday was a treat. We went out to Fitzhugh where it takes you by Pedernales State Park and there are far fewer cars. It was nice to be on the road and not have to worry about traffic merging or veering onto the shoulder. All we really needed to worry about was the killer yellow lab barking at us behind the fence. My legs were pretty tired from the Saturday hill run, but I still felt okay riding, I just didn't put it in the big gear and cruised along. The route was hilly, but as I've learned hills always look worse than they really are to ride up them. A bonus to my training is I feel like I can tackle a lot of things, hills being one of them (except for maybe Jester, that one scares the you know what out of me) so I just calm myself down and try not to worry about them as much as I used to worry. Matt and Steve rode along horsing around and playing games (like who can make it up the hill the farthest without pedaling and basically coming to a stop before starting again). I was just happy to be in the hill country pedaling along. I had a run after our ride and while it was hard to go home and then start back out, I did and as usual I felt horrible at the start of the run and by the end of the run - great!

Running with the Ship of Fools

Saturday I decided to bite the bullet, wake up early and join Al's ship of fools running group. KB made it a little easier by agreeing to go with me and I knew Gretch would be running with them as well. Running not being my strong suit, I am always a little intimidated by the groups, but have been hearing about this one for so long I wanted to know what the hoopla was about. I met KB at her house and we ran down to Town Lake where the group meets just in time. We met Al and he told us there would be two groups one running 11 miles and the other 8 miles and that today's route would be hilly . I calmed myself down knowing that I'm strong enough and so what if I can't keep up, I'm not here to win any medals. We headed out down the trail and over to Stratford where the hills faced us. There is something fun about running in a group, like a pack of wild animals pounding the pavement. We wound our way up and down the hills and while I wasn't the fastest in the group, I felt pretty good and handled it all pretty well. By the time I was back at Town Lake for the last 5 or so miles I felt good knowing what was ahead and that I could handle it. One of the runners, Ryan, ran with us and then asked our names. "I'm KB," KB said. "I'm MK," I stated. We both looked at each other after we said it and smirked. "Did that seem weird to you?" We both happened to be wearing the EXACT same running skirt that day down to the color and gave our name as initials. "Yeah, I never thought about it before." KB said. We laughed and kept on running. Well I feel like I got a lot out of running with the group. At one point I found myself running faster than normal and thought that I should slow down, but realized I wasn't breathing any harder. Maybe my body is ready for the next step up. I think running in a group helps push you to the next level and out of your comfort zone, so yet again I pleasantly surprised myself.

Hot Child in the City

It has been a hot past week and it looks like there is no relief in sight. The weekend before last really tested me as far as heat and distance goes and hit me hard. I picked myself up last Monday dusted myself off and kept plugging away. I'm feeling good this week and felt good this past weekend. And my training has brought about some great sightings and times. Like the guy and his dog pictured which I saw more than once on my outings. I also saw a cat proudly carrying a mouse back to his owner, and all sorts of beautiful wildlife. I really am liking the weekend mornings as the city is so quiet and feels more like I'm the one faced with the new fallen snow of a new day when I go out. Last night I finally joined the Lake Travis swim group and was once again reminded why it is so great to live here. Twenty minutes from my house and I'm swimming on a lake into the sunset, what a life!

NY State of Mind

Yesterday, on my morning run, I ran by two movie sets, and got to thinking how Austin is turning into NY with all the sets around. It must have been foreshadowing because last night around midnight I found out I made it into the New York marathon on November 2!

real hot, real hilly, real ale

The weather has been hot and I knew we would be in for another one on Saturday for the Real ale ride. I slapped on my sunscreen and caravaned with KB and Nathan down to Blanco for the start. From the get go we were hit with hills as I suspected it being the hill country and all and the head wind pushed us this time as well. I felt pretty good other than the constant tiredness my legs feel, just a gentle reminder to listen to my body. I'm usually sluggish as I warm up and then feel good. I rode along with KB until they headed off at their turn for the fifty mile route and I continued on. "I thought I recognized that bike" I hear as my friend Jeff pulls up next to me. It was great to see a friendly face out on the route and we rode and met at the rest stops the rest of the way. I tackled all the hills with confidence and the heat wasn't too bad as their was a cool breeze. What bothered me the most was the bumpy road and the distress it caused me sitting on my bike. Weird thing is, and it usually does happen like this, I start to feel better after about 60 miles. I'm not sure if it was the road conditions, getting better, me getting used to the bumps, or just knowing I didn't have too much farther to go, but I'll take it. The scenery on the ride was gorgeous and we even had a rest stop at the bat cave near Luckenbach which was fun. Mostly it was just beautiful to take in the countryside at the leisurely pace of the bike. After the ride my Dad met up with me to go on a tour of the brewery and visit which was nice as well. I realized that, as much anxiety I get from my family being at events, I am really lucky they take such an interest in my life and am grateful for their support. And when I got back to my car there was a note from KB and Nathan saying great job on my ride. Well what can I say other than I could not do it without the support of my friends as well and I am definitely one lucky girl.