The headline tonight on the news: "Another storm is coming..."
And I am prepared!
It is cold, it is wet, real wet, it is pouring....not complaining, just not much going on except trying to stay dry. My swimming takes place during the times I run from work to the coffee shop and from the car to the track. Soaked non-stop around here. The Uggs came out after being in hiding, however, they couldn't last in the storm. So the highlight in this past week are my new boots!
I even got matching fleece socks for the inside, so they nearly feel like Uggs, my best purchase in a long time, next to the luggage.
.Bring on the puddles and as soon as it dries up I will get back into the pool!
PS. The bike woke up from the box yesterday...I see some cycling in my near future.
Event Planner. This has been my new title this past week. Post Halloween things got busy. More because this procrastinator works best in that sort of mind set.
Chris Lieto called on Saturday night wanting to speak to athletes in Seattle. This is great, but we had 4 days to plan it and the goal was to get 150 people. 200 people later (we stopped counting!) the event was fantastic. Not because of Mark and I, but because Lieto gave an absolutely fantastic presentation about his race this year at Kona. He described the race in detail making everyone that was not there really experience the sights, the sounds, and the heat! He talked about what he did differently and how his mindset was completely different. Audience participation was a must as he had us practicing our own visualization and going in our minds how we shower off each morning (you must attend a presentation to understand that one). And most importantly explained how he can race in a white spandex outfit!
Mark at RRS (well my b-friend too) did an absolutely fantastic job getting this event to go off so smoothly. RRS should be very happy to have him as a staff member because without him the store would not be at its finest! Thanks to Chris, Mark and all the Seattle athletes who came together for this night!
Post presentation, it was full on planning for our Saturday night TNM team party. My only real job was to get the evite out which was done, order the cake, and put together a speech. #1 got done early on, #2 was a disaster, got all the way to Costco in the rain/wind storm in Seattle (that needs to be added because getting anywhere in Seattle is twice the challenge) and arrived without my wallet, my id, anything. So 40 min wasted. #3 I put together on the way to the event. I thought it was good, Mark kept swinging at my leg during the talk to tell me I was talking to much :) Wine, no wine, I would have said the same things!
I could not have pulled this off solo. Amanda opened up her beautiful home to us, her husband did all types of chores so she could get her workouts in day-of-party, Beth put together the below video that would have taken me a over a year to figure out, Bridget (my co-coach) arrived on-time, unlike yours truly, and did all the dirty work. Mark, as usual, kept the crowd entertained until the late nights! And of course the team, couldn't have a party without the amazing athletes!
Congrats to everyone this year. Many more smiles and miles to go for 2010!
After Ironman Canada I received an email from an athlete that claimed she wanted to withdrawal her 2010 Canada entry for this race. My eyeballs nearly popped out of their sockets and I read the email again and then immediately reached for the phone for a heart to heart-without clicking on the link. Suddenly I stopped myself, thought for a moment and decided to find out what race could possibly be more important for this athlete than Ironman Canada.
Nope, it was not April Fools, but if it were she would have gotten me REAL good. Since then I have saved the email and decided today to wonder back too it. I found entertainment in the video, and the race shirt, and when clicking on the race details they have a training program for participants. One that may not be too challenging to follow. In fact, off season is the perfect time to train for this one. Hope all of you find as much humor in this race as I have and thanks to the fine athlete that keeps me on my toes!
Saturday was the day the world ran. This event is for EVERYONE and then in select cities Nike puts on organized races. The catch- 1. must own the Nike Plus system and 2. must be computer literate. You download your time and then you are placed amongst the world for your 10K race. I do not fall into either of the above categories....I just wanted to RUN!
Our super great sponsor Road Runner Sports (Greenlake) was hosting one of the organized runs. Mark's alarm went off at 3:45 in the morning to "finish" things up. He ran the 10K with the mile markers, using his handy dandy hammer to dig the signs into the ground. Then he hurried back to RRS where the DJ had the jams rolling by 6:30 am. The cops arrival was a bit of a surprise due to noise disturbances. But that DJ really kept things exciting for packet pickup at 7am.
Everyone got their Nike run tops WITH their numbers printed on them. Lots of photos and we walked over to Green Lake for our 10K (2 loops). The weather is changing fast around here as you can see the fog lifting off the ground and ourselves, having to hold our breaths for photos (NO- not to look thinner, but to make sure it didn't look like we were smoking pre and post race).
Mark hammered the "start/finish" line into the ground and explained the directions one more time. He did one loop (as fast as he could PRing in a time of 17 minutes), because he was the aid station volunteer too and had to make it back in time to fuel up the 170 athletes.
(the organizer, the announcer, the aid station volunteer, MY everything!)
I had a goal in mind for this race. I had done nothing more than a 30 min run since October 10th, in fact, I am not even sure on October 10th I did a 30 min run...but whatever. I wanted to negative split the run. And that I did. One minute faster on the second loop. I was only 1 min off my best 10K time. That doesn't say much however, my best time was done on Mercer Island which has some great hills and rollers and there is nothing flat about it, where Greenlake is as flat as a skating rink.
(kicking up the smoke. Ha!)
Post Race was AMAZING. There was more goodies (food and freebies) than that of the Ironman World Championships. I think nearly everyone that showed up won something and the grand prize was Nike shoes, Ipod Nano, Nike plus watch, plus the Nike plus system (Yes, one single person wins this!) I am not sure I even see that many gifts under a Christmas treee. It just so happened to be one of Marks super good buddies....hmmm...that took home the grand prize. What cracked me up even more was the fact that since he won his significant other decided it was time to shop! Not sure why Mark couldn't have pulled his girlfriends name? J/K.
(Super Cool TN Multisport Athletes)
Road Runner Sports Greenlake and the Nike staff on hand did an absolutely fantastic job and I highly recommend this event to everyone. It was fun, very well organized, and with how much of a great sponsor and store RRS is you can never go wrong with their events.
(the best finish shot!)
Thanks to TN Multisport athletes for coming, supporting and racing (you all did really well...in fact everyone PR'd minus but coach T), to RRS for everything you do, and to Nike for the fun event.
Seven years ago. I got two baby kittens, not sisters, just to little kittens smaller than the size of my size 8 shoe. I would lose them in the house they were so small, so quiet, so precious. One remains this way, well just about 6 pounds heavier, but for the most part is a gem. The other is that way 50% of the time. The 50% of the time during daylight hours. I am living as if I had a newborn, a kid, a newborn kid....at least from what I am told.
Mark and I take turns sleeping on the couch to take care of our ever needy, loud, scratching through the night cat. No, she is not in heat, been completely ruled out (after hundreds of dollars in tests). First diagnosed with anxiety, now depression. I can tell you the medications are doing NOTHING. We put a bike box in front of the main door EVERY night, then we have a night light on too. We have gone to the extreme of sleeping with the lights on, of sleeping on the floor next to her while she cries, you name it, we've done it.
(preparing for her rendezvous tonight)
So with today being a new day, we got new cat drugs. Vet already warned that at no point would this be a magical cure. I don't think she understands that is what we NEED. So I made a point today to not let her sleep, nope, if we can't sleep neither can she. I am forcing her to play and in her drugged out state she doesn't want to. If this doesn't change by next week I am officially doing all my training from midnight to 3am so she can cry through the night and I can be out and about. Then sleep through the day. I will live the life of an animal.
Really? Is this what it has come to? She is taking over the house...soon she will have a new apartment....this girl knows how to work the system for sure!
In between rain showers I decided to get up and go on a run. Not because I was dying to run or anything, but because this is the one week of all year where I have no plan, no agenda, just do what I want, when I want. I decided after soaking in all the beauty of Hawaii, I needed to share the beauty of the Pacific Northwest with everyone. And the new TNM race hats arrived so I had to "test 'em out" :) The handy dandy sweat proof camera landed right in my sport top and I thoroughly absorbed every view of the fall. So much that I couldn't help but smile as I ran (that could also be because the garmin was dead, within 5 minutes, but oh well). Here is my run on Alki....a 7 mile stretch if you go all the way to the end where the cars load onto ferry boats to travel to different islands.
(gorgeous long straight path)
(Mini trail off the normal path)
(Most beautiful yellow tree of the day)
Then you hit the scenic water views:
The way home I always stop by the kitty adoption center and take a peek. I want to bring them all home with me!
Today was beautiful. I ran at my Ironman Hawaii 2009 race pace so as you know I had a lot of time to enjoy the leaves on the ground, the smell of the clean air, and to take photos to share with you!
.Bring on the puddles and as soon as it dries up I will get back into the pool!
(the organizer, the announcer, the aid station volunteer, MY everything!)
(kicking up the smoke. Ha!)
(Super Cool TN Multisport Athletes)
(the best finish shot!)
(Mini trail off the normal path)
(Most beautiful yellow tree of the day) 
