I have declared...

the 2012 triathlon season to be officially started!  Completed my first race of the season this past weekend on Saturday 3/24 up in Ocala, FL.  HITS Triathlon Series.  A little less than 90 minutes from home and a good reason to get away for a quick overnight. So first is the stuff you really want to know like distances and times.  Here you go.

Overall Time 3:15:55
Swim 1500 Meters--37:28
Transition 1--3:22
Bike 25 Miles--1:27:37
Transition 2--00:59
Run 6.2 Miles--1:06:29

Things that were awesome about this race:
Perfect weather conditions
Calm and clean water
Spotted an otter playing in the water right before start
First time in full sleeve wetsuit was a success (except for the getting it off part)
Well organized and very friendly staff
Great road surfaces for the bike
Got up to 34 MPH at the bottom of a really big hill
Lots of deputies directing traffic
Inaugural year means small crowd
No cramps, pains, aches, or injuries
Best transition area EVER. A stool with my name on it and a box for my bike.





Things that were NOT awesome about this race:
The guy who ket whacking me in the head for about half of the swim. Next time, I'm hitting back.
Running on loose sandy dirt trail through the woods. Boo to gritty brown toes.
Photos can only be purchased from vendor at the site on race day and not online. Inconvenient.

I will definitely be back next year to see if I can beat my time.  I'm happy with how everything went and how I performed.  Not the best ever, but I know exactly where I need to improve--keeping my heart rate down, not lollygagging in T1, and swimming better in a mass start.  Got the jitters out with one under my belt and can focus on improving for St. Anthony's at the end of April.

My first race...

of the 2012 season is tomorrow.  Olympic distance.  1500meter swim, 25 mile bike,6.2 mile run.  HITS Triathlon Series in Ocala, FL.  Only a 90 minute drive from home but in the middle of nowhere.  Get to escape work early to beat Friday traffic and pick up my race packet.  Coach's instructions are to kick ass on the swim and not worry too much about the bike and the run.  Start at the back of the back, and stay outside to the right to find my groove. I only have to be faster than one other perons to not get eaten by an alligator in the lake.  I am focusing on improving my weakest discipline at this point in the season so that I gain confidence and feel ready to rock and roll by IMAZ.  The water will be chilly (mid 60's) and wetsuit legal which means I get to test out my full sleeves for the first time.  Woo Hoo!  If only all of you out there in blog land could have seen what a TERRIBLE swimmer I was 5 years ago and how I almost drowned and had panic attacks every time I got in the water.  Let me tell you that it is nothing short of a miracle that I can even go 1500 meters.  No secret there but discipline.  Just keep showing up and doing the work.  If you let something that scares you keep you from doing something you want to accomplish, you have defeated yourself. 

Here's the link if you want to check out the race website:
HITS Triathlon Ocala, FL

Tour de Cure

Tour de Cure fundraiser ride to benefit the American Diabetes Association. 77 miles with the team today in sunny Central Florida. THE perfect day for cycling. Among other memorable tidbits was Steve discovering the joy of mentholated European chamois butter. Also known as butt cream. Coach/Cult Leader also declared that anybody who misses swim practice tomorrow morning will be forced to run suicide drills. I am 97% certain that she is not joking.

TODAY'S WORKOUT
Bike 77 miles-Tour de Cure
2300 Calories burned in 5 Hours

Check out the website if you would like to make a donation to a great cause.
http://tour.diabetes.org

Rainbow Brite...

is my new Team Vortex nickname.  Either due to being colorful, cheerful and happy or really gay.  In my case, both.  Just because I have a rainbow towel and wore a rainbow jacket and road a horse with a rainbow mane to swim practice.  They are TOTALLY stereotyping. 

TODAY'S WORKOUT @ YMCA Aquatic Center
525 Calories Burned in 1hr 5min
2700 yards total
300 warmup, 600 drills, 4 x 200 descending to T Pace, 2 x 400 @ IM Pace, 200 cooldown

It's a sign...

that it's going to be a tough workout when the WARM UP is to run 2 miles.  Followed by 100+ high knees and jumping jacks.  Then running in place in bare feet trying to get a high run cadence of 180 strikes per minute.  Not to mention running in circles around poles on a sidewalk. Finished off with abdominal exercises using the infamous foam roller. 

TODAY'S WORKOUT @ Lake Nona YMCA
444 Calories Burned in 1 Hour
2 mile warm up run followed various torture drills

Ahhhhhh...

   I went back to the foam roller muscle massage class today for the first time in quite awhile.  And boy did I need it.  It felt so good to get all the kinks out of my legs and butt.  Coach says that rolling out my IT band will oddly enough keep my knees from hurting.  You know the whole "Knee bone connected to the thigh bone" song.  I have been doing it on my own watching TV at home, but it's never as intense as when I have Coach watching me.  She has eyes in the back of her head. 

TODAY'S WORKOUT
Foam roller stretch and massage (45 Min)
Abs & core workout by Elaine the Dominatrix (15 Min)
Upper body weight training (15 Min)

I forgot to start my heart rate monitor but I estimate that I burned between 275-300 Calories.

Holy Exhaustion Batman...

    Coach kicked our ass with drills at swim practice today. These are bizarre things you would never actually do during a race that help you focus on one specific thing at a time so you can improve your overall form. The most entertaining one this morning was the one-legged kicking drill.  Imagine yours truly clinging to a kickboard and trying to keep one leg out of the water while kicking furiously with the other one.  Funny for coach but not at all pretty to watch.  I went so slow that I may have gotten passed by a snail crawling down the lane line.  At least everybody else sucked at it too.  One of these days I will manage to get a video that I can upload to share with you.

TODAY'S WORKOUT @ YMCA Aquatic Center
560 Calories Burned in 2200 Meters/1.40 Miles in 1 Hour 5 Minutes
500 WU (pull, kick, pull, kick, pull)
300 finger drag, tennis ball, one-armed
200 shark, one-legged
400 easy then 4x100 descending
4x50 on the 1:10 then 4x25 on the :30
100 CD backstroke