June ...here we come!!!

After a leisurely drive, we rolled into Knoxville just in time to see say hello to some team members and see the Glow Run finish – what an amazing tribute to Rev3 and Nicole Gross and her family, who were injured in the Boston Marathon Bombings.    

The Rev3 Knoxville Oly was a ramp up to a 70.3 in June.  My attitude going in was to learn as much as possible for a great performance in June.

Saturday was a whirlwind of events – I got to pick up my new QR and Adamo saddle – took a spin on the trainer under the watchful eye of Rev 3’s expert Alex Poon to make sure all the geometry was set for a solid race Sunday.  Sunday’s race presented the first open water swim … as long as countless hours goofing off sailing don’t count…. One mantra of mine is “you play like you practice.”  Having never put on a wetsuit or braved temps under 75 the practice swim on Saturday was a must for me.   What a difference team mates make -- @tribirdie and @trihollywood were a huge help – nifty tricks like pinching instead of grabbing with finger nails to pull up the wet suit, getting it as far up my lower leg as I can first and spraying the hotspot on my neck!  TriSlide made all the difference in the world getting in and out of the wetsuit – there’s never too much!  The water was …. breathtakingly balmy at a 58.5 degrees F.   I swam around a bit to get my bearings and gage what hurdles Sunday might present.  I got through setting up transition and went to an early dinner at the Knox Mason with my husband.  

Sunday morning came early, cold and wet.  Sleep is rarely my friend and she goes AWOL when I travel.  Due to the predicted temps and precip I was concerned that being tired would amplify the cold.  I can’t say enough how lucky I was to have my husband there to schlep my stuff from one place to another keeping it warm and dry! 

The swim was something else.  I acclimated to the cold but could never quite get a solid stroke rhythm going – coming back with the current was marginally easier.  I had a few hiccups – made the decision to stay relaxed and float and focus on the end game.   The run to transition was miserable for me.  My feet are the first thing to get cold and the last to warm up – the entire run up to T1 I felt like I was running on glass.  Found the bike got geared up and after struggling with stuffing my pockets with nutrition Kristin Deaton’s awesome suggestion that cleavage is a great place to store PowerBars saved the day!  :) Seriously- I wouldn’t have had any food on the ride without that nugget of wisdom.  I've been riding on the road for over 2 years - anything from winds so strong that I've had to pedal downhill to being smothered in sand -- these 25 miles were the most mentally challenging yet.  I made the decision early on to take it safe.  Most of the ride I couldn’t see, my feet were entirely numb and I was ever mindful of the blind curves outlined in the Athletes Meeting.  The QR has different bottle cages that I’ll be practicing with in the next 30 days which made taking in fluids tough.  Due to the wet conditions I was so glad I didn’t have to reach around my back to grab some food – the hills required some calorie intake and it was awesome to have it within “reach.”  ;)  On the back split I was closer to the 16.1mph June pace.   Bike to run transition seemed smooth … getting my feet in my shoes was tough-- the numbness caused some pain –and running on numb feet for about 2 miles was a new experience.  But I was clocking along pretty well – keeping my HR in the right zone – got a big smile from @tribirdie who I was so glad to see having a good run and BAM –it hits me I forgot my race belt back at transition.  I was pretty pissed at myself since periodically on the ride I would remind myself to put it on.  Alas, you can only control your response to events – on the return I went back through transition and got the race belt and kept on trucking to the finish line.  I’m thinking I’ll never forget my race belt again.  ;)

I’ve been reading some other posts and remarks about the weekend.  The cold and rain were miserable.  Endurance training is about the long game, making choices that get you through the current race as well as the next one and sometimes those goals are in conflict.  I wanted a better time Sunday but I made the most of the race and I am more prepped than ever for the Half in June.

As a long time member of the sailing community I have high expectations of an athletic community.  I am continually rewarded by my Rev3 Team mates and Race Directors at the caliber of competitors and race production quality!  What a fantastically fun weekend!!!

The "bike" fit

 Saturday I headed up the Rev 3 HQ in Manassas Va.  It was quite the day - 8 hours on the road-- ultimately worth the time -- a great fit.  I experienced the exceptional attention to detail from Alex Poon and Tim Andrus of Rev3. 
Growing up sailing really set a high bar for me in the sense that I expect "experts in the field" to be generous in sharing their knowledge and experience.  As a community, we send our seasoned sailors out with the new ones to share tips and anecdotal information to nurture the love of the sport.  Over the years I've not always had the same experience in other fields of sport. 
So for me as an embryonic triathlete this was potentially a nerve racking experience.  I like having my questions answered not sneered at and I am a sponge for details.  Tim and Alex not only took in the information I gave them but they also asked lots of good questions.  Within 5 minutes I felt completely comfortable -- so in the spirit of transparency I took ownership of my ride and gave them as much information as I could so they could make informed decisions and give some solid direction on what choices I need to consider.
I have two big races coming up- Rev 3 Knoxville in May and a 70.3 in June. My current bike is sufficient but not enabling me to perform at my best due to some discomfort in the saddle -- when I say discomfort I mean after 40 miles significant pain -- I get that cycling is not like sitting on your recliner watching Bond reruns but at times this is beyond belief.  

 Alex asked me to bring my pedals, shoes and cycling shorts.  I wasn't strong enough to remove them so I just brought the whole bike.... what a treat for me-they were able to take a look at some of the components and give some suggestions. 


I spent several sets on the bike all hooked up to some technology measuring different angles and pressure points -- these guys want me to ride well!  They don't want me focused on shifting around on my saddle finding 30 seconds of comfort -- they want me looking down the road picking off the next competitor.  When I say attention to detail - they were both genuinely interested in any feedback I gave even when it consisted of "wait, I dropped my chin and now I'm back to the pain spots."  I got fed some yummy Powerbars to keep my momentum up!

After lots of pedaling, measuring, retooling and re-measuring I'm sold on the tri-fit.  A QR is in my near future .. the bigger question is do I get it now or wait for the PINK one.  :) 

First Tri - one and done!

Cross pollination in learning is a strength of mine on the rarest of occasions - I think I've spent the last 5 years or so looking at that process and implementing it as often as I can -- I just wish it hadn't take 30 years for me to figure out how valuable it is.  Must be those long zone 2 runs and rides allowing my mind to wander aimlessly.

I jumped on the 70.3 bandwagon last August mostly in with mindset of seeing if I could "just finish."  I could already swim, I cycled to improve my running and I am a runner.  The race is coming to my town -- how could I pass up something where I can practice where I'll actually be competing!  I spent the fall putting on what I now know are called base miles.  My dad spent most of my youth telling me that prior preparation prevents poor performance and if out of earshot of my mom .. piss poor performance.  You Squids out there will recognize the phrase.  Come January I began a formalized training schedule complete with a Coach (@tribirdie).  I decided early I did not want the pressure of having to figure out the training schedule, what I should be accomplishing and how to surmount hurdles other than the workout in front of me.  What an ease to the brain! Just prior to that I was encouraged to put my name in the hat for Team Rev 3 - the amount of colour and underlying support this has added is beyond description - they are a tremendous group of people and give honour to the word team!  I'm sure I'll have more to add as the weeks go by on that experience.

Swim roster

So back to the premise... I've been in finance for over 15 years and it only just hit me last week that training for endurance events is lot like fiscal success - regular contributions to the overall objective - right down to any setbacks.  Since January I have approached training with discipline and even in the moments where I think "I can run faster than this," I've stuck to the plan trusting in my coach to get me to the finish line.  I got sick over President's day weekend in February and I'm still carrying a cough.  For two weeks working out was a daily decision.  I killed it at the end of week two and found myself bed-ridden for another weekend.  At this point I'm losing my mind with worry ... the starting line date hasn't changed just because I"m sick.  The hubris of inexperience ... I took with glee permission for one more day off and eased back in - smarter not harder and have been building up to this past weekend since.

Azalea Sprint Tri-Wilimington 2013

Well ... I raced my first Tri ever yesterday as part of practice for the big day in June.  A multitude of firsts... I took the advice of the race organizers and put myself in the "first time tri" swim group ... yeah should have listened to the veteran Coach ... almost got jammed up but spent a bit of time watching the folks in front of me as I waited my turn and figured out where I might need to hit the gas to get out around.  Number 600 in front of me had great etiquette - she turned around before we even started and told me just to tap her to pass her -- I took her up on it -- always easier when the expectation has been set. 

One decided highlight of the day is having teammates who have finished hours ahead of you hang out to yell support during transition - I think my favourite line was "drop the hammer Rachel!"  :)  Huge shout out to Tara Martine (http://www.taramartine.blogspot.com) and her ENTIRE FAMILY (they were my hosts Friday evening as well - funniest people ever!) and Andrew Corbin - If I forgot anybody by name - please excuse me.  :)  I almost chuckled at the finish when the MC announced ..."and with a determined look, Rachel Stephenson from Raleigh finishes."  A lot different from running when there are too many finishers at once to add any commentary.  :)
I think assuming anyone is interested in reading a blow-by-blow is alarming.. my biggest takeaways go back to the beginning -- putting in the incremental work leads to tremendous success, there are always setbacks and as the old adage goes you can't control what happens to you just how you respond to it.  I read somewhere to practice your response to those setbacks.  I need some more work there but life is full of opportunities to put that into play.  As we say in the sailing community ... fair winds and following seas.

Nice guy putting on numbers asked me if I wanted a smiley face -- why not?!

Flowers from Hubby for finishing

Tri Knowledge in Abundance!

New adventures are always dynamic events. After a weekend at our Rev 3 Team Summit I almost don't know what to do next... all the new friends, coaches by extension and supportive energy borders on the overwhelming. 

We experienced a whirlwind of events and information.  The folks at Pearl Izumi are not only passionate about their gear but incredibly knowledgeable with a great sense of humour! 

More to come ....

The chicken or the egg?

The  WSJ article Hypertargeting talks about how politicians and campaign managers are able to drill down on their audience.  I wonder about the causality and directionality of big data in this instance.  Where there is fear there is money. Campaigns run on political contributions.  Is the hypertargeting of political marketing creating a greater schism in our society or is it exploiting one that already exists?

Mercurial

How quickly the definition of success can change … I got up to race this morning in the cold and rain and the extra special friend of a chest cold settling in.  I was determined to “run my race.”  My goal was stay HR Zone 2 or a low 3.  This has meant running slower than I’m used to which is a mental adjustment ---stay focused on the goal and not on the greater time elapsed.   Right around mile 11 I’m excited to be right on track in my zones and out of nowhere a young lady I coached in GOTR is running next to me – the hug almost brought me to tears.  Success=possibly having a positive impact on a young person’s life.  Enough said.

Sail like a snail not a snake

Little adjustments … ego and success.  I recently succeeded in a goal I set 4 years ago.  In looking back at the path there were places where the vines tangled the desired outcome and emotions took the place of rational thinking.  In talking it over today with a friend I realized that the moment I stopped seeking credit for the outcome and directed my energies at getting the change to occur I was able to see the bigger picture and put the pieces of the puzzle together in a way serving all the constituents involved.  As my dad used to say in sailing  - little adjustments all the time makes for smoother sailing.