GCT, Stuff, and Plans

Greetings peeps!

Last weekend was pretty good! Two of my kids participated in the kids' triathlon at Headland's Beach in Mentor. My daughter Jaime had to miss it as she had swim team championships all weekend. BTW, I'm SO PROUD of her for starting her first year of swimming, sticking to it when it was hard, and improving exponentially!! She's just amazing and I hope she had as much fun with it as I did in watching and being her fan! So, just Samantha and Kevin participated in the triathlon this year.  The lake conditions were perfect and it was a great day! 

Kevin went off first. His swim was pretty good, and he came out about middle of the pack. His T1 was lickety split! His biking went well and then T2 also pretty darn quick.  He had been complaining about a sore left ankle for the previous few days. In my brilliance, I had him and Jaime accompany me on a run with them on their bikes - THE DAY BEFORE THE TRIATHLON.  Epic FAIL on my part. Why did I not see that maybe that was not the day to be doing 7 miles on a bike??  Just because it's how "I" roll, doesn't mean that's how they should roll! Boo.  He said the bike didn't bother his ankle, so there's that.  And I adjusted his bike to better fit his height. You'll be hard pressed to see a smidge of me in that boy - or Sam for that matter, as they are tall and lanky and lithe.   So, on Kevin's run, he did the run/walk to adjust for his sore ankle.  He finished strong and got 4th place. And yes, there were more than four 7 & 8 yr olds. (He's 7) - there were maybe 12.

Then Sam's turn.  Now she's been doing OWS with us recently and THAT week did about 2000 yds in the lake! She really fell into the groove and felt "like she could swim forever" once she got her breathing down. She's got a gorgeous stroke.  I'm still trying to talk her into swim team next year - the deal breaker is the early practice time :(  She came out in the first 1/3 of the pack. Her T1 was FAST and off she went for 6 loops. Now she had mentioned that her gears won't shift ... yes, mother of the year, I was all over that. NOT. Never once did I address that! I suck.   I did, however, PUMP HER TIRES ... doesn't that count?  So, round and round she goes ... in GRANNY GEAR! Ugh! At least she'd be loose off the bike!  Every time she came around, Ted, her grandparents and brother, and I would cheer, and she'd look away. I knew she was hurtin'!!  She says she just doesn't want to see us.  Okay, whatever ... But before I knew it, she was in T2 and out like lightning. I then realized, I hadn't seen any girls!!!  So, then I started getting really excited ... she's going to place!!  She went out slower than in the past, but she managed to maintain that slower pace, which was working for her.  No blowing up!  So as the boys started coming in to finish, no girls!! OMG!!  Then: A girl!  No age, and she LOOKED older than 12, but these days, you just don't know.  Next, I see Samantha!!  So, she's got 2nd place locked up ... almost.  There's a girl on her tail, gunning for her. I wanted her to know. I'd want to know. Sam is competitive, like me, so I knew she'd want to know someone was on her tail and reaching for her.  Ted didn't want me to emphasize her PLACE, which I get, but I just couldn't help myself from putting up 2 fingers showing she was in 2nd place. Then I ran over to the finish line and told her someone was on her tail and she had to DIG, DIG, DIG to hold that place the last 25 yards.  Yes, I was Jillian Michaels!  I only know that I'd want that done for ME!  And my BFF Katie responds to that too. Samantha knows me, and that I would be proud no matter what place she gets, but I didn't want her to look at me and say I didn't know she was 3 steps behind me!  She finished strong and I was SO PROUD!!! She had the look of pain - PROUD pain - and I know it well! I was happy to hug the sweaty mess that she was after that amazing race! 

Lo and behold, the girl that finished ahead of her? 14 yrs old! Samantha took FIRST PLACE in her AG!!  Boo yah! She proudly donned her 3 finisher medals (from previous years) and headed to Jaime's swim meet to show her dad, step mom, and sister, as well as a number of school friends, her proud accomplishment! 

Next year, I'm going to let Samantha use Esmeralda - my Cannondale road bike. She's ready. She's 5', I'm 5'2". I also bet she'll do more training next year. It's her choice, I never ride her about it, but she's getting a taste of competition and is liking it. Yeah, she's my daughter!  Next up for all 3 chicklets: Flag Football! It's really an awesome program! Can't beat half-hour FB games on Sat. mornings!!!

Sunday, I raced GCT.  The lake was ANGRY!  Mikey, the RD, made the wise decision to move ahead with the triathlon (vs. canceling and doing a duathlon) but allowed any swimmer to, once going around the start and finish buoys, to come in as shallow as they needed to move the 1500 m from start to finish.  Some tried swimming, but it really was brutal. I'm told that about half did the "walk of sham" (not my term - Mike M. coined it).  As long as the ankles were in the water, you could advance to the finish and circle the buoy. 

Now, I was SANS wetsuit!!  I was getting a lot of surprised looks, but I just felt I'd be fine without it. In hindsight, I'd put on the wetsuit. I felt good - this race was going to be a training day for me. No PR hopes, just a strong effort in all disciplines. So, I SWAM. THE. WHOLE. THING.!!   Here's how it went wrong: The waves were very large and we were swimming UPSTREAM. I stayed out PAST the buoys so I could miss the breaking waves. Still, the waves were too high for me to sight the next buoy.  So, I used the beach as my guide. Which wasn't all that brilliant of a move, because .... after swimming for what seemed to be an appropriately long time, I approached the "finish" where the crowd was. Came ALL THE WAY IN ... only to look for the chute ... and be told, "oh, honey, this is the SPRINT START, not the finish"!    O. M. G.   What a wasted effort!!!   I then swam back out past the buoy and headed further west. At one point, I was part way to Canada. A kayaker lifeguard came out and tapped me on the head with the paddle and said I was heading to Canada, I needed to redirect 180 degrees!  What a CF!!!!   By NOW I can see the finish buoy and I finally got the the end. Swim time 28 ugly minutes. BUT!!!  But, I swam the whole thing ... and then some! I. am. proud.   And NO HR elevation, no panic, just some logistical errors, everything else felt fabulous.

T1 - fast. Happy with it.  Off on Felicity and had a strong bike leg.  Yes, I dismounted wand walked 75 yrds of the steepest climb, however, I regained my position in the race and have ZERO shame about it :) That's my energy conservation strategy! Bike was respectable. No idea of my time. 

T2 - fast. Forgot my sunglasses :(  Otherwise, no issues. Off for the run.  Kept an even pace, and a little outside my comfort zone. Nothing impressive, unless you factor in how very little I've trained to date, THEN it becomes IMPRESSIVE!! :)  Walked a few spots, but it's SO motivating to have other CTC peeps and friends there to call you out encouragement (as well as busting you walking!) so I know I ran more than if you all weren't there!!  Said hi to Ed Slovenkay at his mile 5 and my mile 1 - he didn't recognize me! (No Tribetes kit!!! I'm sporting new CTC kit!)  He told me later he was hurting ... I didn't know that boy could hurt :)  (kidding!).   Ed got 1st in his AG and 2nd OA (or maybe first ... something awesome!)

By mile 5 I was ready to be done. I was doing my "last walk" as my goal was to run the entire way once I returned to the park. Teresa Stanek came by, strong and steady, and asked if I was okay (walking). I was, and she was inspiring me, so I started running before re-entering the park, and was hoping to work together with her to encourage a strong finish for us both. Teresa was my inspiration for mile 6.2!!   I kind of have only one pace: on or off. Once on, I think I was pushing Teresa outside her comfort zone, so I respected her desire to focus on her own strategy and not enforce my will on her. I remember how hard it was to tell Vic K. that I really didn't want him to run that last mile of IMFL with me, as it would stress me out and mess with my head, and how he totally respected that.  So, I just did my own thing. I felt energized, and I'm crediting Teresa for that! She definitely positively influenced a stronger finish for me! Thank you girlie!!!   I was rounding the bend and there were 2 guys there, I knocked off one (not literally!) and then had the other in my sights. He knew it, and sped up. Me too. Then we came to an all out SPRINT - balls to the wall kind of finish.  I ran through, he slowed up, but his "man-ness" allowed him to hold me off by a tenth of a second. That was FUN!!  Great job! I think he was ticked, but I said thanks for the push! And I meant that with kindness and respect!

I later learned I got 2nd in my AG! Woot! Totally unexpected. And, of course, inspiring to recommit to training, a constant struggle recently.   Well, less so now, as I'm really pumped about my base fitness - it's not as bad as I thought. I still have base to tap into!

Those of you that follow me on FB - The name change is for fun. I've always wanted that name. I like the sound of Dr. Devereaux! Eh, don't over-interpret it. Life is pretty good right now. I feel ... pretty good!  My family is healthy and happy ... or working on that. I am healthy and uninjured. I have started working at the Vet Tech program again and working with BFF, as well as other cool chicks, makes work fun, enjoyable and rewarding. I love doing surgery and I'm teaching Anesthesia this quarter, and enjoying it a lot. Getting to see KT twice weekly brings me joy!  Discovering the awesomeness that is voice text messaging has allowed me to safely communicate with Elizabeth while driving. Having amazing friends and a wonderful sister, family has allowed me to stay afloat during challenging times. I look around and see people I love and care about struggling with life, too, and I know that things WILL BE OKAY. I feel I'm in a good place and working toward a better place, so it's all very good and hopeful.

Lastly, I'm going to drop a bomb here ...

I am seriously considering signing up for IMSG for 2012. Yes.  It will be different this time. Some redemption. Something I CHOSE, not that was chosen for me. There will be some down time between REV3 and IMSG, should I choose to do it.  And, best of all, I BELIEVE I CAN DO IT!!!  So, don't be surprised if it happens.  HS friends Tom, Mike and if we can tear him away from his very important MIT lab, Jim are all considering IMSG. How can I NOT consider that reunion???  I'm weighing in stuff now and will decide by September 30th I believe.  I think I'll see how Rev3 goes, then, you know, there's the post-IM blues ... and it's very real! This could be the cure!!!

Okay, THIS is my parting thoughts: I am SO EXCITED to have many of my Triabetes friends join me in doing Rev3.  Initially we were all in for the full, but life has taken it's toll, and some have dropped to the half. Don't think I haven't considered it! But, I'm in, for the full, with miss Annie Bacon ... aka: the Baconator, and only girl of our team to finish IMSG! Annie will rock Rev3. My Triabetes peeps coming in for Rev3:
Annie Bacon - California
Jenny Crandall - Arizona
Andrea Huston - Hawaii
Vic Kinnunen - Georgia (Kona lotto winner 2011!)
Daniel Vincent - Washington

Brian, Christian, Sarah, and any other of my 'betes peeps, please join us, if you can, if only to Ironfan - which is a blast! I've got tons of CTC peeps here to show you just how it's done! :)

Having these people at Rev3, along with so many of my CTC peeps, will make September 11th an amazing day, no matter what the outcome!!! It's all good!!!
Hugs,
Tiff