Best in the West 2019

School has started and I'm working on getting back into the regular swing of things.  But before we officially end summer one more thing has to happen.  The last big triathlon event for our 2019 season.

The Best in the West 2019.

The name does not lie, it really is the Best in the West!

The Best in the West is three days of events at Foster Lake in Sweet Home, Oregon.  There is everything literally an event for everyone, no matter what your comfort level is something for you to try.  I love that!  I also love how all weekend long it is one big celebration of the fact that people are out there being active!

Because my husband is a little bit crazy he signed up for four events!  He did a 25 mile bike ride on Friday.  I would have done that as well but it was my first week back to school so I didn't think taking a day off would be a good idea.  Joe dropped me off at work in the morning and drove up with the travel trailer and got it parked.  Then he went on his bike ride, came back and got the trailer all set up.  He came back to town to pick me up from work so we could head back to Foster Lake and settle in for the weekend.

Saturday morning we were up bright and early.  Joe was going to help with parking starting at 5:00 a.m. before he started his Olympic triathlon (Event #2).  I was volunteering at the body marking for the races that morning.  My shift started at 6:00 a.m.

I love doing the body marking.  People are kind of all over the place.  Some are really excited and some are really nervous.  A lot of people are both.  Some are focused and don't say much, others chatter away the whole time.  I got to help people figure out where to put stickers on their bike and helmet, how they should rack their bike and lots of other things.  I loved being able to joke with people, help them out and start their race day with a smile.  Seriously makes me just grin from ear to ear all morning long.

I was able to get done in time to watch Joe come out of the water and head up to the bike transition.  We had a lot of teammates racing that day too.  Rebecca and her husband were doing the aquathon, which is a swim and bike.  Cathy, Kellie, Ryan, Kristin and Katy were also doing the Olympic triathlon.  Kristin was the overall female winner, Rebecca got second overall for women in the Olympic Aquathon and Ryan also got second in his age group.  Kari came out for the day and hung out with me cheering for all of our teammates.  It's pretty fun to be part of such a great group of people.

Ryan, Coach Kristin, Rebecca, Katy, Kellie, Joe, me, Kari, Cathy and Coach Jon.

It was a long day but so much fun!  Joe and I headed back to the trailer for a quick nap.  It wasn't long before Joe's Aunt Nancy was there.  Well, she is my Aunt Nancy too at this point.  lol  Nancy did a seven mile walk event in San Francisco last spring with a bunch of girlfriends.  She had a blast, got her t-shirt and her medal and was hooked.  She looked at the events on the Best in the West website when I posted on Facebook that we had registered and signed up for the 5k.  So when she came to get her packet we had her come over to the trailer and have dinner with us.  We had a great evening talking and visiting.

Soon Nancy left to go spend the evening in her hotel, I think she was looking forward to an evening by herself.  Joe and I finished getting things ready for the race the next day we headed for bed as well.  It wasn't long after we went to bed that the rain really started coming down.  And it didn't stop all night long.

We got up Sunday morning to take part in the Sprint Triathlon (Event #3 for Joe, Event #1 for me).  Now it was my turn to get my body marked.  I was starting to get really nervous and wondering if I should just bail on doing the event at all.  My consistency with working out hadn't really improved much since Tri at the Grove.  I was totally going into this race with idea of just having fun but I was really battling the disappointment in myself for not doing what I needed to do in order to do my best at the event.

Then my teammate Kelli spots me.  Big hugs and excited chatter.  I seriously adore this woman!  She was talking about how great I was going to do and I confessed how I was feeling about the day.  She immediately stopped everything and prayed with me.  Such.  A.  Blessing!!!  Just what I needed to adjust my attitude.

Time to put on the wetsuit and start getting ready to get this race done. 

Kari, Kelli, Logan and me warming up before the race.  We listen to our coach!  ;-)

Kelli, Kari and I, pre-race smiles

Joe had pushed the bike ride on the Olympic triathlon the day before and had decided to take the Sprint a little easier.  I mentioned that it would be fun to do the race together and he was all over that idea.  This made my heart smile, big time.  I seriously love my husband for so so many reasons!

Unfortunately he was in one of the first waves to head out on the swim and I was in the very last wave to start.  He had a very long wait in transition for me.  A very very long wait.

But not because I was slow.  Just because I started so long after him.

I had a really great swim.  I mean really great for me!  I did the swim in 14:10!  That's an average pace of 2:12 per 100 yards.  I am pretty sure that is the fastest pace I have ever done in a race.  I felt relaxed and smooth the entire swim.  Was a little disoriented because I was with lots of people the entire swim and usually end up off by myself by the halfway point.  Not this time.  ;-)

Finishing the swim with a bunch of other people!

The rain was getting harder at this point so we were going to have a soggy bike ride.  But it still doesn't compare to the Oregon Dunes triathlon of 2017!!  If you were there, you know what I'm talking about.  It wasn't freezing, or hailing, or dumping cats and dogs.  It was just a warm fall rain.  Very doable.

I headed up to transition to get ready for the bike ride.  Joe was all ready to go and waiting for me.  We left transition together.  I found out later he had waited 25 minutes for me to finish.  A friend told me that he was finishing the swim before I ever got into the water.

We took off on the bike ride.  Even though we were together we couldn't ride side by side because of USAT rules so Joe rode behind me and let me take the lead.  We were still able to talk and joke while we were riding.   I had a lot of fun on the bike in spite of the rain, or maybe because of it.  I was working hard but not feeling like I was struggling.  I know I can do that route faster but all things considering I was able to put in a solid ride for me.

Playing bikes in the rain with my favorite guy chasing me.  😁

The only scary moment was right after we did the turn around and were heading back.  When you go around the turnaround it is a bit of a straight stretch and then you go around a corner that veers off to the left.  We were nearing the corner and we see a car come screeching around the corner.  That was a bit scary but it got down right terrifying when the car started sliding on the wet rode and losing control....while it was coming right at us!  I'm hitting the brakes on my bike and trying to decide which way would be the best direction to try and avoid the car when it regained control and went speeding past.  That got the heart rate going.  Scary!!

We got back to the transition and got ready to start the run.  I had a decent transition and headed out with Joe.  My goal was to do the run faster than I did the run at Tri at the Grove.  That was a flat course so in order to do this run faster on a hilly course I was definitely going to have to run more.  I figured I would fast walk up the hills and trot down them.  It worked pretty well.  I felt good overall but the last half mile or so I was having some pain across the tops of my toes.  I had been having that most of the summer but was hoping it wouldn't happen anymore because I had new shoes.  It took longer for the uncomfortable feeling to start so that was a plus.

As we were heading back to the finish line we passed our fabulous friend Erin.  Erin is part of the Posse that keeps all things Best in the West running and organized.  A very important part!  Erin is the smiling face that keeps the packet pick up and registration areas running and organized.  Over the years we have gotten to know her as Joe was racing.  When I started racing too Erin was so encouraging and supportive.  She was also great at flicking both Joe and I crap and I loved it!  It always makes me smile and always makes me feel like I really am a part of this crazy triathlon community.  Now it was her turn.  She was doing the Super Sprint.  Her first triathlon....and her last.  She says she is going out on top.  She loved being able to go through the experience but doesn't see any reason to do it again. lol

When we saw Erin we both started shouting and had to run up and give her big hugs!!  So proud of her and all the things she had to make work right to do this race.  I loved being able to see her during the race and give her back some of the encouragement she has always shown me.

Soon we were heading past my favorite aid station.  It's my favorite because it is really really close to the finish line.  lol  We got on the trail and headed down to the lake.  Our teammate Rebecca has a friend named Gerritt who was competing in the Sprint and uses a wheelchair.  A special arm crank one for the bike and a different one for the run.  We had passed him during the bike ride but he had caught up with us and passed us during the run.

As we were heading down the trail we see a woman holding onto the back of his chair.  Gerritt told us that he didn't have any brakes on this chair and the hill was pretty steep with a sharp turn at the bottom.  Joe run up and took the chair from the woman and helped him get down the hill.  I had run ahead but once the guys were at the bottom of the hill it didn't take long for Gerritt to go whipping by me.  He had a big ole smile on his face so I'm okay with him kicking my butt.  lol

As we approached the bridge that's when you start hearing the people shouting and you know the finish line is so close!  We were greeted by our teammates cheering for us and as we turned the corner to go across the finish Joe and I held hands.

I loved finished together.  I loved playing triathlon together.  Maybe if we do that again I can be a little faster...going to have to work on that.

Finished...together! ❤

But there was no time to enjoy being done because we had signed up for the Mixed Team Relay and we needed to get things set up, get body marking and get our timing chips.  It was a little frenzied trying to get it all set up and be back by the lake for the race briefing.

There was a bit of a pause in the race briefing as Erin came in to finish her Super Sprint Triathlon.  We all had to cheer (very loudly) and a bunch of the Posse members ran with her to the finish line.  Way to go Erin!!!

Erin probably doesn't like this picture because her eyes are closed but I absolutely LOVE her smile!!

Mixed Team Relay has two men and two women.  Our team was myself, Joe, our teammates Kathryn and Logan.  Our name was Pure-ly for Fun!  Which is good because I was the first leg and that meant we were starting off behind everyone.  lol

The water was a 250 meter swim and you couldn't wear a wetsuit.  The rain had let us some and the water wasn't really too cold so that was fine.  I got out to where we were starting.  There was 10 teams all together.  We got started and at first I wasn't too far behind.  But when I got around the buoys I started struggling.  A little bit with some choppy water and also I think with just being tired from just finishing the sprint.

I have never felt safer in the water then I did the second half of that swim.  I was the only one left in the water and I had most of the water safety people right near me.  I saw a paddle board, a kayak, a jet ski and the sheriff's boat.  I think there might have been more farther out. lol

I took off to get on the bike.  The bike portion is just 3.5 miles so it is super short out and back.  My goal was to get back into transition before someone from the second person on any relay team was out on the bike.  Didn't quite make it.  My coach, Jon, was zipping out of the park on his bike as I was finishing.  I was close.

Now I had a new goal.  To finish the half mile run before Jon finished the bike and then passed me on the run.  I did manage to do that, although he wasn't very far behind me.  lol  I tagged off to Logan and he headed out.  Kathryn was next and then Joe was the anchor.  It was a lot of fun and wow, most of the people on the teams were FAST!!!

I was SO tired when I got done.  It was a very full day.

Last time over the bridge to the finish line for 2019.

Done and still smiling!

Got to have a picture with my awesome coach!!

Logan out of the water.

Logan heading to the finish.

Logan finishing up Leg 2!

Kathryn finishing the swim!

Leg #3 coming into the finish!

Smiles for miles!

Joe finishing up Leg #4

Finishing strong for the team.

Congrats on Event $4 Joe VV

Awesome Teammates: Logan, Joe, me and Kathryn

I am off the ground, I promise.

This one is better! lol

Probably my favorite picture of the entire weekend!

The only disappointment was that in the chaos of trying to switch from Sprint mode to Mixed Team Relay mode I don't know what I did with my Sprint finishers medal.  I am a little sad about that because I totally earned both my medal for the Sprint and for the Relay!!

Two races and one volunteering.  Busy!

Finn loves the camping/triathlon life!

Aunt Nancy rocked her 5k and came in 2nd in her age group and we picked up her bling for her since she had left before we were done to head back home.  I can't wait to see it displayed somewhere.  I'm thinking we need to get Nancy a medal holder for all the bling she has been getting.

Our friend Mark did the Duathlon (bike & run), came in 2nd in his age group and had a lot of fun.  Mark and his awesome wife Jodie stayed to cheer for us during the Sprint and the relay.  Kelli placed 1st in her age group and Kari got 3rd in hers for the Sprint Triathlon.

Overall it was an amazing weekend.  The rain didn't get in the way of having the best time.  We decided to go ahead and pack up the trailer and head for home since we would have to unpack and dry out a bunch of stuff.  We felt bad for the Posse because they had a lot of packing to do in the rain, which had started really dumping again after the relay.  They were going to have to pack it all, then take it home and unpack it so it could dry out and then pack it again.  That doesn't sound fun.  But like all things they did it with laughter, hijinks and shenanigans.  One of the many reasons that I love these events and the people that run them.

Here is the link to all the events that Best in the West puts on throughout the year.  Lots of triathlons and running events.  If you check it out, I bet you can find something that sounds fun.  http://www.bestinthewestevents.com/

Shout Out Time!

• Thank you Best in the West for all the free pictures.
• and the food.
• and the medals.
• and the fun.
• and setting everything up and making all of us feel like we won.
• and being the very best way for me to start and want to keep doing triathlons. 
• You pretty much rock!!
• Thank you to Ron & Rebecca, I "borrowed" some of your pictures off of Facebook.  lol
• Thank you to all the awesome Pure Endurance teammates for just being awesome.  I love being a part of this team!
• Thank you to my coach for understanding this "season" and taking me where I am at.  I've got some plans for next year Coach.  Can't wait to start planning for them! 
• Thank you to the best part of me, my very own partner in our own hijinks and shenanigans.  Joe, your patience with me this year has been extraordinary.  I love you so much!!  Can't wait to see where our adventures take us.  

I've got some things to work and some goals to readjust.  But my last shout out goes to my friends and family that have stood by my side this past season.  No judgement, no criticism just a lot of love and support.  I am so beyond grateful and am pretty sure that as crazy as I felt at times this past year, it would have been much more ugly without you all.  So for the people that hugged me when I needed it, cried with me when I cried, got me to laugh, reminded me of all the things I do right when all I can see is what I am doing wrong, prayed for me and prayed with me, old friends and new...Thank you.  I hope I will be able to do the same for you whenever you need it too.

Pure Endurance Training Camp 2018

This was our second year to do the Pure Endurance Training Camp.  It's actually the second year of the camp so Joe and I have 100% participation so far.  😁

Camp started on Friday evening June 8th and went through Monday June 11th and we stayed at a huge house in Sunriver, OR.  It's about a 2.5-3 hour drive and normally we would have left as soon as I got off of work and been there by early evening.

This year our oldest daughter had a concert with her community college that didn't start until 7:30 p.m.  It was going to be her last concert in Oregon since she will be moving to Boston this summer to finish her college degree there.  Not only was it her last concert here but she also had a solo.  There was no way we were going to miss it!!  It was totally worth it.  Her acapella group was awesome as always and her solo was so beautiful. 

Joe's mom, my beautiful daughter Bri (who is also my swim instructor!) and me. 

While there was no question about staying to see our kiddo's concert, it did make for a long drive in the dark.  The weather had gotten rainy and there was a bit of fog on the road up towards the top of the pass on the highway we took.  It made for some white knuckle moments on the trip.  We got to the house at about 11:00 p.m.  Jon had arranged for us to have the bedroom right by the front door so we were able to grab the essential stuff and get into the house quietly since everyone was asleep.  Neither of us had any trouble falling asleep ourselves. 

We got up in the morning and got to see many of our teammates and meet a few more that live in Idaho and one that is new to the group which was fun.  The house was full of a lot of really great people.  Jon was there (we missed his wife!) and the new Pure Endurance Coach Kristen.  Kristen's husband Ryan and their toddler Trevor were there.  It was fun to get to know them better.  Rebecca, Mike and Chad were there.  Tonya and Kathryn were the new friends from Idaho.  Oh my!  We hit it off right away.  Love people that you just connect with immediately.  There was also a young lady named Stephanie who has started training with Kristen.  She was also very sweet.  She was finishing up some college papers so she had to spend some of her down time working on that. 

Last year it was gorgeous the week before and the week after Training Camp.  We actually had snow when we were getting ready to do our open water swim and had to adjust our bike ride because it was going to be too slick on the Cascade Lakes Hwy that goes around Mt. Bachelor. 

For the second year in a row the weather was gorgeous leading up to camp and the forecast looked like it would be that way after camp.  During camp, not so much.

The agenda for Saturday morning was to head to Wickiup Reservoir to do an open water swim and then head out for a bike ride after.  It was cold when we were getting ready to get in the lake for our swim but it was bearable and it didn't take long to get used to the water.  I did have one small malfunction. lol  I had gotten Joe and I swim buoys.  These are bright colored floaties that have a tether that attaches to a belt that clips around your waist.  I put mine on and everything seemed fine.  But once I got going it just went whoosh and slid down past my butt and off my legs.  Not a problem I expected.  Good thing coach was in his kayak and keeping track of all our little floaties.  He came over and helped me adjust it so it wouldn't fall off. 

Don't we look warm and cozy?  lol

By the time we got that figured out I was far behind everyone.  I wasn't too worried since most of the time I'm behind everyone no matter what.  I decided that I would swim their direction until I met them coming back and then I would turn around and work my way back too.  Going out went pretty well.  I wasn't trying to go fast but really work at my form and my stroke pulling the water better.  Doing it in a wet suit in a lake feels very different from the pool. 

When I turned around the wind began to pick up which was causing some face water to happen on my left side.  Since I usually alternate my breathing when I swim I am very comfortable breathing on either side.  This is an advantage when you need to avoid the face full of water while also trying to suck in air.  This tends to lead to sucking in water instead and then choking and sputtering.  Hard to swim fast or well when all that is going on.  I began just taking breaths from my right side.  No big deal except I realized something right away.  I generally swim a pretty straight line during an open water swim, which is a good thing because sometimes I beat people out of the water at a race that are faster than me because they swam farther than I did.  They either zig zag a lot or they go way wide and then have to work their way back.  But when I was breathing on just the right side I stopped going straight.  I basically was going way to the right and was doing the beginning of a very large circle.  lol  I had to think about ways to compensate for this, still breath on one side and also sight so I could keep an eye on where I needed to go.  I decided to reach my left arm way to the left when I took my stroke.  It felt very exaggerated but it seemed to compensate. 

I wasn't going fast while I was figuring it all out but it was good to have the experience.  I would rather have a slow practice swim where I can figure out what works and what doesn't than be trying to do it during a race.  Kind of the point of practicing!  I hear so many people say they only swim in pools except for on race day.  I just don't get that.  I would rather practice in the real setting as often as possible. 

When we got out of the water we all took the time to change out of our wet things completely and put on dry clothes.  We had to put on several layers because it was cloudy and cold and there was possible rain coming our way.  Kind of a bummer to have to bring along all the winter riding gear when we have had several weeks of shorts and sleeveless top rides.

Last instructions from Coach

Good looking group of crazy people.  ;-)

The plan was to do the long course route for the Pacific Crest 70.3 that would be happening later in the month.  Those of us that didn't want to go that far, Kristin was going to be at Elk Lake to pick us up or see if we wanted to keep going for awhile longer.  That would be a ride of approximately 27 miles, mostly uphill the entire time.  We started out as one big group until we were on Hwy 42 which would bring us to Cascade Lakes Hwy.  The faster group got moving but usually it isn't very long before they are out of sight.  This time I didn't lose sight of them until just a little bit before we turned.  I got a kick out of that. 

I wasn't too sure about this ride since it was mostly up hill the entire time.  There were some rollers but for the most part it is just a steady climb that starts getting steeper the closer to the mountain we got.  I had just decided, much like the swim, to just work on the skills that Jon has been teaching me about riding on hills and using my gears more efficiently.  I was going to have lots of practice! 

I was feeling really solid and just moving along at a nice steady pace.  I didn't feel winded or like my legs hurt so much from the grind that I couldn't do it.  Until about mile 14.  A spot on my lower left back started to get tight and I couldn't adjust my position and get any relief. Then I could start to cause problems all the way down my left leg to my knee.  I saw Jon up ahead and decided to stop and see if I could stretch it out.  I didn't want to cause an injury by trying to push through it but I really did want to get farther than 15 miles.  When I stopped and told Jon what was going on he told me to stretch for five minutes and then we would see how it felt and decide if I should keep going or call it a day.  I didn't realize that Stephanie was right behind me!  She was super quiet and didn't say anything.  When I stopped and she was suddenly there it startled me.  lol  I encouraged her to keep on going, no need for her to wait for me.  It didn't take long and the tightness went away and I was much more comfortable.  By the time I was feeling ready to head out again Tonya had caught up and stopped as well.  She had taken a bit of a hiatus on workouts for awhile and so she was working hard and doing awesome.  She talked about being done but Jon suggested that we stick together so that if my back started hurting again or Tonya was struggling too much we would be together.  Sounded like a great plan and Tonya agreed. 

I'm in the yellow jacket.  We did get some blue sky for the first half of the ride.  

We took off again and things started getting steeper so I knew it was a good thing I had taken the time to stretch before we started up bigger hills. About five miles later Tonya decided she was good with her efforts for the day considering how little she had been working out.  Jon and Tonya cruised by me in the truck and wanted to know if I wanted to be picked up or checked on again.  There was seven miles left for Elk Lake and I really wanted to make it there so I told them to go ahead and I would meet them at the rendezvous.    

About a mile later my back started getting tight again.  Dang it.  But since I had told Jon to meet me at Elk Lake I knew I needed to just keep going.  No big deal.  I could handle it. It had also started raining and getting colder but it was still very doable.

Then it began to snow!  And I mean big huge fat snowflakes.  This wasn't just a quick flurry, it just kept snowing.  I had to laugh.  It was all a bit ridiculous.  There were a few cars that would pass me and that made me laugh more.  Not that long ago I would have seen someone biking on that road in the snow and thought they were absolutely crazy.  Now I was actually the crazy person doing it.  What the heck?

Pretty good little hill ride.  😋

I came around a corner and could see Jon's black pickup with the bright red kayak on top sitting there waiting for me.  While I was bummed that I didn't make my goal of 27+ miles I was very happy to see his truck.  Jon didn't have to do much talking to get me to call it a day.  Stephanie and Tonya were already in the truck.  We loaded up my bike and continued on to find the next rider.  Jon had decided the snow wasn't going to be stopping and he was going to pull everyone off the ride.  Katherine was next, she didn't argue either.  Then we let Kristin know the plan and got up ahead of Chad and Rebecca and let them know what was up and load their bikes on the Yukon.  Now we had to find Joe, Mike and Ryan.  We got up ahead of them, found a spot to pull over and wait for them.  We didn't have to wait long.  '


While we were sitting in the truck, Kristin, Jon and Joe were standing outside talking and suddenly Tonya says to me, "You know, Joe looks just like Bono!"  We all look at him and he is standing where we are looking at his profile.  With his bike glasses on and the hair he really did!  So funny.  Tonya called him Bono the rest of the weekend. 

Chad and Rebecca finishing their ride.

Everyone was pretty great about having to finish early.  We all figured it made for a great story.  Not only did we ride the Cascade Lakes Highway, we did it in the snow for some of the ride.  lol 

We headed back to the house to grab food and relax.  Jon decided that since we had gotten done early he would give his Coach Talk instead of waiting until after dinner.  Basically he talked about his experience at the Hawaii 70.3.  He shared what went great, what went crappy and how he dealt with it all.  All those lessons we all have had at one point or another and ways to deal when things don't go the way we planned or trained for.

It was a very good reminder that no matter how fast or slow you are, everyone has workouts and events that don't go like we want.  It's important to know how to mentally deal with it at the time and then take the time to process and be okay with being disappointed. 

After that it was time for some relaxing time.  Well, for some of us.  Mike went for a run and Rebecca decided to ride one of the cruiser bikes that was in the garage, ring a cowbell and cheer for Mike as he ran.  Oh my goodness it was funny!!  Mike said he kept telling people he didn't know the crazy woman with the bell. 

Joe and Chad were going to do a 13.1 mile run.  They were doing loops through Sunriver and coming back to the house to refill water bottles and get fuel.  On their last loop Rebecca was waiting for them near the trail and jumped out ringing her cowbell.  From the way I understand it, both Joe and Chad took a big jump sideways and yelled out.  I thought Rebecca was going to lose it when she got to the house she was laughing so hard. 

While this was going on Tonya and I went to the hot tub and Kristin sat by it and let her son put his feet in.  (By the end he was totally sitting in it, but it took him awhile to get there.  lol)  We had a lot of fun just chatting about funny things, working out things and serious things.  One of the things I love about a bunch of people staying in a big house doing fun things is the way you can get to know people because you have time between all the activities to just hang out and talk. 

Soon it was dinner.  Everyone was helping set the table and get things ready.  I loved all of us sitting around talking and laughing.  Joe started giving Rebecca a hard time about scaring the crap out of him and Chad and all Rebecca could do was giggle.  She just kept giggling which then got everyone else laughing.  It was so funny. 

After dinner Coach Kristin shared about different aspects of the mental side of being an athlete.  She had several books as resources.  One I have read and I'm looking forward to checking out the other ones.  Next Rebecca shared about something she learned at another Triathlon Camp she went to that was about the importance of having strong toes.  lol Sounds funny but it makes sense.  By having your toes stronger it helps with stability and also strengthens other small muscles in your legs which all connects to being strong overall.  Strong toes.  Who knew?  😉

Unfortunately some of our merry crew had to leave Sunday.  Rebecca took off around 5:00 a.m.  I don't think any of us were awake then.  lol  Sorry Rebecca!  I waved in my sleep.  😍  Chad was had to take off after we finished our swim. 

The plan the next morning was to get up and go to the Sunriver pool called SHARC and do some lap swimming.  Jon was going to video us swimming underwater and then he could go over what he sees with us later.  Pretty cool stuff.  About half of us were in the outside pool.  It was cold outside but the water was about 84 degrees so once we got in and moving it was very comfortable.  For some reason I was struggling a lot with my breathing and couldn't seem to get things going well.  Decided not to fight it and just do what I was comfortable with.  I had woken up with a headache, I had taken medicine for it so it wasn't terrible at that point but I'm sure it didn't help. 

After the swim it was time to head out for a trail run along the Deschutes River.  We eventually found the road to get us to the trail head after a bit of adventuring and got set up to head out.  Everyone kind of did their own thing.  I was struggling, my headache had come back in a fierce way so every time I ran it was not fun.  I ended up just hiking.  Joe was struggling with tight hip and when he had turned around and met up with me I decided to go back to the car with him. 

My new friend Tonya!  

Once everyone was back at the cars Jon set up his video camera and had us run past it a few times so he could show us our form later.  There was a lot of joking around and giving each other crap while this was going on. 
Next up was lunch.  We took care of our own breakfast and fueling during workouts.  Jon provided lunch and dinner each day.  We ate very well!  Yum. 😊 Stephanie had to head out, between homework and family visiting she needed to get back home.

Later in the afternoon there was an optional group ride.  Jon, Kristin, Joe and Mike were going and I decided to go along too.  It was fun and a little frustrating all at the same time.  I forgot that even though I'm a much better rider than I used to be I am still not even close to being as fast as those four when they are just on a casual ride.  I was good until we got to a big traffic circle that is where everyone comes into Sunriver.  I was at the back of the group and when everyone stopped I ended up being at the bottom of a small hill.  When a very nice car stopped to let us go by the time I got up the hill and my shoes clipped traffic had started again because I was so far behind.  I had to wait a bit for a break so I could get across the crosswalk too.  Everyone took off.  Fortunately Mike noticed that I wasn't with everyone and waited for me.  Good thing too because I would not have known were everyone went.  Joe had told me were going to head out Spring River Rd.  When I got on that road we couldn't see anyone.  Mike told me that we were turning left up ahead.  I probably would have seen them but probably not until I was already too far to turn.  Anyway, I got frustrated with it all.  Reminded me that when a bunch of people say they are going to go on a casual ride I need to look at who they are before I decide if I want to go along.  I was going to peel off and just do my own ride around Sunriver but everyone took off at the traffic circle so fast I didn't get a chance to tell them my plan and I didn't want to freak people out that I was lost.  Mike stayed with me until everyone up ahead stopped and we caught up.  He didn't have to do that but it was very sweet of him.

That night there wasn't any set plan for any presentations so we sat around and talked and laughed while Jon talked to different people about their workouts, plans and goals for future events.  I loved the camaraderie that was in the house all weekend.  I had so much fun getting to know some really great people and getting to know others even better. 

One of the big perks of becoming an athlete is the amazing people that have come into my life.  Some have been there from the start and we have just gotten closer.  Others were my friends for a shorter time but I still love the memories of the fun we had during that time.  And still more have become my friends and have let me keep them.  I am a richer person for all the experiences I have had, the memories I have and the friendships I have made. 

We were supposed to go ride the Makenzie Pass on Monday.  This pass is a narrow, winding road and is closed in the winter.  Each spring when the road has cleared of snow they open it to foot and bike traffic only for a few weeks before allowing cars to go on it.  Unfortunately because of forest fires last summer there was a lot of downed trees and rocks in the road.  The road was closed Monday through Thursday for crews to work on clean up and only open to bikes on Friday through Sunday.  Darn it.  I was really looking forward to seeing how far up I could get before the guys came barreling back down the hill.  lol

Instead we did one last lap swim at the SHARC.  Breathing went much better this time and I felt like it was a good swim.  We also all went and spent one last time hanging out in the hot tub. 

All too soon it was time to start packing up our gear, finding all our stuff that was spread out all over the house, help clean up the kitchen and get the party wrapped up.  Lots of hugs and laughs as we said our goodbyes. 

My students couldn't believe I would take a day off work, spend money to go do hard workouts all weekend and have a blast doing it.

Yep!

I'm already looking forward to next year!

Thanks Coach for all your hard work, pushing us out of our comfort zones and putting together a fun weekend for all of us.  Oh, and for letting me steal your pictures for my blog.  Notice I didn't even ask this time?  lol 

ps.  I have about three other blogs started.  Some adventures, some deep thoughts.  Will probably have a bunch in a row.  I know you are excited.  😆

Pure Endurance 1st Annual Training Camp

Just a little more than three weeks since I did the Blue Lake Triathlon.

And yes, I am still smiling about how that went!  Twelve minutes!!  😀

A few weeks ago was the last week of school so there was lots to do.  End of the year projects, final tests, Spartan Olympics (think giant field day!) and the last day of school.

Before I talk about training camp I want to brag on my students.

My homeroom class is who I hang out with for the Spartan Olympics.  Last year my homeroom joined up with the basic skills class and we had the best time.  It was so fun that I decided that I would make it a yearly tradition.  The basic skills class is students with disabilities of varying degrees that make it difficult for them to be in the regular classroom.  Some participate in a class here and there but for the most part they stay in their classroom with their teacher and amazing teaching assistants.

I told my class of 6th graders that our goal for the day was to make sure those kids had the best day EVER.

Mission accomplished!!!!

In every event we participated in my kiddos made sure that our new teammates were involved, cheered for, supported and loved on.  It was a day full of laughter and cheering!  I was so proud of my students and how they worked with these students that are so different from themselves and really, not so very different at all.  I loved seeing the students from the basic skills class have the biggest smiles, give high fives and love on their new friends.

What an amazing way to teach young people empathy.  The teacher for the basic skills class and I talked after school and have decided that we should do some activities together throughout the school year so that we really feel like one team by the time Spartan Olympics come around.  I'm very excited about making that happen and giving my students an opportunity to see how amazing and strong these young people are.

The last day of school was full of goodbyes and hugs.  There were students that I was pretty sure hated me that gave me huge hugs and said I was their favorite teacher!  What?!!  lol  Evidently I do a few things right!

Because we were heading to Sunriver for our First Annual Pure Endurance Training Camp right after work on Friday I had to have all my stuff packed on Thursday night.  Joe came home from work and took me to work.  That way he could load up the car and then pick me up after work and we could head straight for Sunriver.  After a long day with our Spartan Olympics and then getting everything ready for our trip I was pretty much wiped out by the time I got to bed.

Joe was waiting for me after school and we started our drive to Sunriver.  I always enjoy road trips with my husband.  We talk about all kinds of things, listen to music and I just love the time to be together.  We drove the Olympic Tri route for the Pacific Crest event because the plan was to do that for part of our training camp the next day.  I always do better if I have an idea of what's coming.  It looked doable, difficult but doable.  Maybe.  lol

The weather wasn't what we were hoping for.  Central Oregon weather can change on a dime.  It had been in the upper 70's all week before training camp and suddenly the weekend called for cold, wet and rainy.  Oh well.  You never know what you are going to get for weather conditions on race day so might as well suck it up and practice.

The house we stayed in was awesome!  And big!  Which was good since there was eight of the Pure Endurance athletes there for the training weekend, plus our coach.

The original plan was to get up Saturday morning and head for Lake Wickiup for an open water swim. After the swim we would divide into two groups.  One group was going to do the Pacific Crest Half Ironman distance bike course and the other group would do the Olympic distance.

We took two cars, Jon's truck and our Yukon.  Our car was filled to the max!  Which was fun, it's one of the reasons we still like having such a big rig.

On the way to the lake there was an interesting weather development.

It started to snow.

It started to snow and to stick!  What the heck?

Snow in June!

Luckily we have a coach who puts his athletes safety first.  He changed the plan.  The new plan was still to do our swim but then to head back to the house and do a ride in the afternoon from Sunriver once the weather had (hopefully) warmed up a bit.

Lucky for the coach he has a group of athletes that were willing to be flexible.

So we got into our wetsuits.  While it was snowing.  The thought that I must be a little crazy crossed my mind several times.  The comforting part was that I wasn't the only one that was crazy so it wasn't all bad.

It wasn't too long and we were in the lake and swimming.  The water was 57 degrees.  This was much warmer than our group swim up at Foster Lake in April and it was definitely warmer than the air temperature.  It was also just enough warmer that it didn't make my face hurt when I put it in the water.  Cold but bearable, especially once we got moving.

This is when we were done.  Not sure if we are smiling because we kicked butt or because we are done!

I spent the majority of the swim trying to keep up with Melissa!  She is so stinking fast!  I figured if it was a training weekend then I was going to push things a little and just see how I did.  It was hard work keeping up with Melissa but she never got to far ahead of me.  Every once in a while I would see Jon come cruising along side me in his kayak to check on how we were doing.

Next challenge.  Changing out of our wetsuits and getting warm dry clothes on.  It's a process getting a wetsuit off in decent conditions.  Trying to do it and get dried off and into warm clothes without getting everything wet while in a parking lot that it has snowed, hailed and rained on during the morning isn't easy.  But there was an actual bathroom at the park and also a shed for cleaning fish that no one was using so many of use used those to change.  It was so nice to get warm clothes on!  I was also glad that we were going to be waiting a bit to go for a bike ride.

We made it back to the house and had an early lunch.  I was able to get a tiny nap of about 25 minutes before it was time to start getting ready for our afternoon bike ride.  I didn't really sleep but it was nice to just lay down and close my eyes for a while.  The last week of school takes a lot of energy and then going straight to a training camp was already bringing me to the edge of what I could handle.

We gathered up all our warm clothes and got bundled up for our ride.  It was so much fun starting out together.  It took a while to make our way out of Sunriver on the bike paths but eventually we made it.  Joe, Ron, Mike and James all took off for a longer, harder ride.  Melissa, Marcus, Kathy, Jon and I did a flat long ride.

My goal for the day was to once again keep up with Melissa.  The woman is seriously speedy!  I know she has been dealing with a lot of health issues that have kept her from competing.  But also know that the work she has been putting in, in spite of not being able to race has kept her fitter than she gives herself credit for.

The Booth Bunch-Ready to ride!!

Cruising through Sunriver.  There was some blue sky once in a while.  

The weather turned out to not be terrible during the ride.  It didn't rain on us, the wind wasn't blowing hard and with all the layers we were wearing we didn't get cold.

I kept up pretty well with Marcus and Melissa the entire time.  Jon and Kathy continued on for a bit longer ride while Marcus, Melissa and I headed back to the house.  We had some adventures navigating our way through Sunriver.  Those bike paths can be confusing.  😆  Eventually we made it!  It was so nice to take a hot shower and get into comfy clothes.

I have some pretty great teammates and friends!!

Once everyone was back to the house and cleaned up we had dinner.  Our coach had brought everything for our lunches and dinners. It was so good!  He definitely took good care of us all weekend long!

After dinner he had a presentation for us about how to use our bike skills better so that we don't burn all of our matches at the beginning of a ride.  (I have thoughts on this subject for another blog.)  😉

It was cool to be able to hear what Jon had to share, how it applied to all of us even with the wide variety of skill levels and to hear what other people had to say or what questions they asked.

Sunday morning I had an easy bike ride to do but then it was going to be followed by a 10k run.  I was a little worried about this because I was already pretty tired.

But that's what training camp is for, right?  Pushing you hard.  Making you tired.  Working on tired legs.  Mentally getting stronger.

One big bonus was that Joe had an easy ride to do as well so we went on ride together.  That doesn't happen very often.  Usually he has his thing he has to accomplish and I have mine.  I can't keep up with him anyway so most of the time we don't ride together.  So this was a big treat for me.

We ended up riding all the way around Sunriver.  My favorite part was along the Deschutes River.  We saw a deer across the river and then startled a Bald Eagle out of a tree.  It was so cool to see the massive wings as he headed across the water!!

Most of all I loved hanging out with my guy doing something active.  This was probably the biggest motivation for me to get off the couch in the first place and work at becoming an active person.  Still gets me out the door a lot of days where I'm not feeling it.  I want to be able to hang out with my guy doing something active or supporting each other during activities.

No rain again and even a little bit of blue sky.

We got back to the house and Joe took off pretty quick for his run.  It took me a little longer to get situated.  I wasn't too sure how a 10k was going to go on already tired legs and I also knew my energy levels were reaching the beyond empty levels.  At one point Jon did give me the option of not going quite as far but I was determined because the trail we were running on had a waterfall at the end.  I told Jon if I was going for a run I wasn't going to stop short of the waterfall and turn around.

The goal for the run was to run ten minutes and walk two minutes.  I did pretty good all the way out to the waterfall.  Wasn't going terrible fast but it was decent all things considered.  Glad I stuck it out and made it to the waterfall.  It was beautiful!

I was even able to run all the way back up the hill on the path I had gone down to get my pictures of the waterfall.

On the way back with about 1.5 miles to go I started to really struggle.  I just ran out of steam.  I tried to push through it and be mentally tough but once I got off the trail and back onto the path  in Sunriver I walked the rest of the way back to the house.

I was done.

It has been a long time since I have had a tired episode like this.  Which was a good reminder that I do a much better job of managing my energy then I used to.

Originally I had planned on taking a solid nap on Saturday after the swim and bike ride.  That would help me catch up a bit from the week and the morning activities.  But with the weather and the change in the schedule I didn't really get a nap.

By the time I got to the end of my run, after a long exhausting week of teaching and two days of solid hard workouts I ran out of steam.  The   hard part is trying to do what I still need to do without becoming a weepy hot mess in front of a bunch of people.

It's hard to explain what it's like.

I didn't feel good.  It's like suddenly I am sick.  I know I should eat but nothing sounds good.  I get really quiet, mostly because I'm just trying to rest and talking and interacting with people takes a lot more energy then you would think.  I start thinking about whatever I might have to do later in the day and worrying about how I'm going to manage it.  In this case I was supposed to drive home because I had to be at work the next day.  The stress of knowing there is a 2.5 hour car ride ahead of me and that I will be alone adds to the not feeling good.

I know it's bad when people are asking me if I'm okay because I'm being so quiet.

Jon had a debrief while everyone was eating lunch to go over what went well for the training weekend and what could be better next time.  I didn't even have the energy to go sit with everyone else.  I just sat in my comfy chair and listened.

I decided to pack up my stuff and then take a shower.  After the shower I was going to take a nap and then I would see how I felt when I woke up.

I took a three hour nap.  And I mean a solid nap.  I was OUT!  Pretty sure I was drooling on the pillow!  It was wonderful!

That put a big dent in my tiredness.

The second thing that happens is that because I didn't feel good, and I didn't eat after a couple hours of exercise and then I took a three hour nap was that my blood sugar got really low.  Not scary low for most people but for me it definitely is too low.  I've learned that every person who checks their blood sugar has to figure out what is normal for them and when they need to start doing something to fix it.  The chart I was shown says that 80-120 is normal.  I know that when I get into the low 80's I can already tell that I'm off.  If I'm in the 75-80 range I'm not feeling great and anything below 75 and I am probably shaking.  I know other people it has to get much lower before they start feeling it.  Everyone is different!  My blood sugar was at 69 so I definitely was feeling it.

I dug through the refrigerator and got myself some lunch.  Between the nap and the food I was feeling so much better.  Not looking forward to the long drive home but no longer having a mini melt-down over the thought of doing it.

Made it home and took a short walk to stretch out my legs (coaches orders) and then unloaded the car.  Got a load of laundry going and then went to bed.  Morning came all too soon and it was time to head out for my last day of work before my summer break began!

I loved being able to spend the weekend hanging out with some pretty fabulous people and getting to know them better.  There was lots of joking around and fun.  Coach fed us well, everyone worked together on getting things organized and making plans work.  Coach also was great about having some time to chat with each of us about our individual workouts.  The weather wasn't what we had been hoping for but it was still a lot of fun.  I enjoyed the new adventure!

It was also fun to watch Jon sitting with his laptop out and one by one each of us kind of migrated that way and had a chit chat with him about whatever needed to be discussed.  It wasn't formal and seemed to happen rather organically.  I like watching my coach be all coachy with other people besides myself.  😊

I also really enjoyed spending the weekend with a bunch of great people who are all working hard at different things but are having a lot of fun along the way.  I appreciate having a coach that has created a culture of support and encouragement.  It was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to the 2nd Annual Pure Endurance Training Camp already.

While having a tired episode really sucked there was something that came from it that was good.  I really realized that I have done a much better job this past year managing my energy (and my stress) so that I don't get to this point.  I used to have days like this once a month or more.  I don't think I have had a day this bad since last fall.  That is a good thing!!  This helps me remember that I need to keep working at all aspects of my health and that managing my energy is an important part of that.

The first official day of my summer vacation I met up with my coach for the first of our summer bike rides together.  It was a little cold and rainy but we didn't care.  It was an easy ride so we could chat.  Great way to start my break, even with the rain.  😀

Since then I have had lots of workouts and lots of naps.  I really really like naps!

One of my favorite parts of being active is getting to do things with my husband.  My second favorite part of being active is being included in things with awesome people.  My third favorite thing is being about to go out and have some alone time and get some recharge time in the beautiful world we live in.

Here are some pictures from doing all of those favorite things that all happened in the last three days:

Saturday:  Open water swim, bike and run with Rebecca and Joe.

Foster Lake

Beautiful day for a ride!

Also a great day for a run! 

Rebecca, Joe and I.  Workouts for the day done and we beat the heat (100 degrees that day!)

Sunday: Solo run/walk on Bald Hill.

View at the top of Bald hill looking towards Mary's Peak. 

Monday:  Fun hike with my hubby with a spectacular view at the top.

New puppy is coming on Saturday, more about that in a future blog, and the next triathlon already looming in the not too distant future.  Other changes and challenges coming.  Some known, some unexpected.  But I will continue to look at the challenges as ways to grow and focus on the things that bring me joy.

I'm certainly learning to enjoy and appreciate the journey better.

**Photo credit on most of the Team pictures to Jon Booth.  😀






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