We are leaving town this morning on route to Grants, NM for the Mt. Taylor Quadrathon. Over the past couple of days we spent numerous hours searching, finding and packing up all of the gear that we would need for this race. Jackets, gloves, booties, hats, bike, ski's, snowshoes, running shoes, ski boots, (can't forget the orthotics that go in each footwear), food etc..
Mt. Taylor Quadrathlon. is a race that consists of 4 events, bike/run/ski/snowshoe. We start in the little town of Grants, NM and work our way to the top of Mt. Taylor and then back down again.
We start off with a 13 mile road bike ride,with 1200 feet of climbing. At the 1st transition we drop the bike, put on running shoes and run 5 miles on a dirt road with the occasional snow and ice... climbing 1100 feet. At the 2nd transition, we switch from running shoes to ski's with skins on the bottom of them so we can climb the next 2 miles, gaining another 1000 feet....oh yeah, we are carrying our snowshoes on our backs so when we get to the 3rd transition we can drop off the ski's, put the snowshoes on and run up the final 1 mile and 800 feet of climbing. Then the fun begins, we get to do it all over again in reverse!
Doing this race is so much fun but logistically it can be a nightmare as you try to guess what the weather is going to be and what you might possibly want at each section of the course. So, in each of my gear bags I put a hat/gloves/ glove covers/food/one or two jackets a light one and rainproof one...depending on if I think it might rain or snow. Then I have to figure out exactly what "outfit" I will wear for the entire 5 plus hours going from warm weather, to cold, to blowing snow, back to possibly warm, possibly cold and usually windy.
We left Evergreen about 7:45am and drove straight thru to Grants. We arrived at 4:45pm, exactly 8 hours of driving. The roads were pretty good once we got out of the Evergreen/Conifer area.
Once in Grant's we drove straight to check-in to drop off our 2 transition bags, along with the running shoes, ski's, and snowshoes. We duct tape our 2nd transition bag/ski's/snowshoes together and that gets put on a truck and sent to the mtn. first thing in the morning. Then the numerous volunteers un-duct tape everything and have it all ready for us in numbered racks so it's easy for us to find when we get there. The first transtion bag just has our running shoes (extra hat/gloves/jacket) in it and that is much easier to pack up. EVERYTHING gets labeled with our names and our numbers, especially if you want to see it again. The transitions can get pretty hectic and stuff just gets left out and so we hope that the volunteers put everything back into the rightful owners bag!
After having this stressful part of the race over with, we checked into the hotel and then headed back for the free Carbo Load Dinner that the town was putting on for the racers. Grants is not very big, in fact, not alot is going on this town but everyone seems to be involved some way or another in the biggest event of the year. The High School students were the ones serving the pasta dinner and they were great, a nice group of kids.
We were back to the hotel by 7:00 and watched the weather channel nonstop for the next couple of hours, still trying to figure out what to wear in the morning!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Thursday: Swim
Swim: 1:00 3000 meters. 4:15pm-5:15pm
Since yesterday was a full on rest day I needed to do something today. I didn't get to bed until late last night as I was packing for the Quad. Way too much gear to figure out for one race! I decided to sleep in and try and find a pool that I could swim at after work.
Work was good, just very hectic as our office mgr. was out. I got out of the office early enough to run a couple of quick errands and hit the pool by 4pm. I went to Green Mountain as I knew they had 4 lanes available for lap swimming...much to my surprise, they had 6 lanes and only 3 of us in the pool. Just as nice as 5:00am!! I had a good 1 hour workout and then back home to finish packing and getting the house picked up.
We leave for Grants, NM tomorrow morning about 8:00am. Talked to Andy this evening and he said he was getting a head cold. Bummer, I know I will probably end up with it just hope it's well after the race on Saturday. I don't have any other races that I want to do or was planning on doing until the middle of March and that is just a swim race if I even decide to do it.
Since yesterday was a full on rest day I needed to do something today. I didn't get to bed until late last night as I was packing for the Quad. Way too much gear to figure out for one race! I decided to sleep in and try and find a pool that I could swim at after work.
Work was good, just very hectic as our office mgr. was out. I got out of the office early enough to run a couple of quick errands and hit the pool by 4pm. I went to Green Mountain as I knew they had 4 lanes available for lap swimming...much to my surprise, they had 6 lanes and only 3 of us in the pool. Just as nice as 5:00am!! I had a good 1 hour workout and then back home to finish packing and getting the house picked up.
We leave for Grants, NM tomorrow morning about 8:00am. Talked to Andy this evening and he said he was getting a head cold. Bummer, I know I will probably end up with it just hope it's well after the race on Saturday. I don't have any other races that I want to do or was planning on doing until the middle of March and that is just a swim race if I even decide to do it.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Tuesday: Swim
Swim: :55 2700 Meters. 5:10am-6:05500 W/Up
10x75 Pull on 1:20
100K
6x75 Fr/ba-br/Fr on 1:30
100K
6x75 Fr. on 1:20
100K-200 cooldown
No matter how much I hate getting up at 4:00am to be to the pool by 5:00 I feel so much better afterward. I just love swimming in the morning when no one else is in the pool. I feel great knowing that by 6:00am I have finished one workout for the day!
Got a call from my Dr. today about my foot x-ray. It is confirmed that I have a heel spur and was given a few stretches and other instructions over the phone. No bare feet for a few weeks, not even in the middle of the night, ice it 3 x's a day and do my calf/Achilles stretches 3 times a day. She said it would go away on it's own if I am very diligent about my rehab. So, after work I am headed to the shoe store to pick up some good shoes for the house. I have read that Birkenstocks have great support and those will be easy to put on and take off while at home.
Worked a full day, Dr. Spencer mentioned that one of our hygienists Joanne was planning on retiring sometime this summer and he asked if I would take over her Wed....of course I said yes. I have been working in Idaho Springs for a few years but would like to get back to Denver another day of the week. Idaho Springs has been great but I need a change right now.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Monday; Rest Day
Today was an all out rest day and boy did I need it. Got some good sleep, e-mailed my physician first thing this morning about getting a bone scan on my left heel. She asked for an x-ray first so I drove down to Denver this morning for one and I should get the results tomorrow. The x-ray should tell me if I have a bone spur or not. My foot still has a dull ache to it so I am hoping it is nothing serious and I am able to do my race this Saturday.
Got off of work a little early, Andy had dinner made and we sat and watched a couple of episodes of Lost...it's getting really good (not like it wasn't' before!).
I am up early tomorrow for a swim, off to work and then nothing planned for the afternoon:)
Got off of work a little early, Andy had dinner made and we sat and watched a couple of episodes of Lost...it's getting really good (not like it wasn't' before!).
I am up early tomorrow for a swim, off to work and then nothing planned for the afternoon:)
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Green Mountain, what I hiked and Andy ran today.Swim: 1:00 3000 yards.
600 w/up
4x50 work on stroke
500 Pull
400 Swim
300 Back/Breast
200 Fast (2:41)
100 K
8x75 on 1:15-1:30
100 cooldown.
This morning we slept in again, this time until 8:00am. Pretty unusual for us but we didn't get to bed until about midnight. We stayed up late last night watching "Ghandi". I can't believe neither one of us had seen it, what a great movie. It was quite long and it actually had an intermission half way thru!
After doing a few things around the house we headed down the hill so Andy could run at Green Mt. I decided to do a little hike and take a few pics of the day. Andy wanted to run about 1:10 and I hiked about :45 min. or so. The weather was actually much nicer than forcasted, a little cloud cover but virtually no wind and temps in the low40's.
I was a little bummed that I couldn't run as the weather was perfect for it, however, no running for me for a few weeks until I can get my heel figured out. It was bothering me after today's hike so I know it was a good decision to take some time off. Oh well, I figured I would be able to get in a good workout in the pool as soon as Andy finished up his run.
Me hiking on Green Mountain... 
My hike up the Zorro trail, overlooking redrocksWe drove over to Carmody pool for a long swim....or so I thought. I got in the water and felt like I hadn't swum in over a year. My arms were tired, my legs were tired, I was tired and I had no oomph! I was hoping to get in at least a 4k but it was all I could do to finish a 3k. I looked over at Andy has he was literally hanging on the side of the pool and asked him if he felt as bad as I did. He said he hadn't felt this bad in the water in years. We both came to the conclusion it was due to our long days of working out the past 3 days finally catching up to us. We both got in some good yardage but couldn't wait to get out of the water and get some food in us.
We went straight out for burgers, something I crave after hard workouts....not like todays' workout was all that hard physically but it was tough just getting thru it! A little shopping afterwards and then home to just chill out. Plan to watch another movie, possibly "Lawerence of Arabia". Have never seen that one either.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Saturday: Ride
Ride: 3:05 46miles. road bike. 53*
I actually felt pretty good going up Lookout. It usually takes me about :32 min. and I think today I did it in about :37 so I was happy with that since it was only Feb. and we rode long yesterday. I averaged between 7 and 9 mph. It was a little breezy but relatively warm when we started out but 2 hours into the ride the clouds had rolled in, the sun was gone, the wind picked up and the temperature dropped. I had a fairly long descent back to the car so I stopped and put on all my extra clothing. All I could think about at this point was food and hot tub!
Here are a few pics of the day.
Annie on the hog back.
The Genesee Exit view looking west.
Andy at the end of a great ride.
The start of the ride...
Slept in today which I think was about 7:30am....finally had a good night sleep. We have plans to meet in Morrison for a long bike ride. Andy is meeting up with some guys and I was planning on riding on my own. I am in no shape to be trying to hang on with the big boys.
We started our ride about 10:15am and it was 8 guys and me. They said they were riding easy and talked me into going with them. Well, I hung on for about :40 min. and then I told them not to wait for me anymore. I figured since we were doing an out and back I would just turn around on their return. That worked out great. They decided to ride up Lookout Mountain, which I thought would be good for me as well. We took different routes to get to the base of Lookout and I was surprised to see that we got there at the exact same time. I was able to snap a few pictures as they were approaching the climb.
I actually felt pretty good going up Lookout. It usually takes me about :32 min. and I think today I did it in about :37 so I was happy with that since it was only Feb. and we rode long yesterday. I averaged between 7 and 9 mph. It was a little breezy but relatively warm when we started out but 2 hours into the ride the clouds had rolled in, the sun was gone, the wind picked up and the temperature dropped. I had a fairly long descent back to the car so I stopped and put on all my extra clothing. All I could think about at this point was food and hot tub!
Here are a few pics of the day.
Annie on the hog back.
The Genesee Exit view looking west.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Friday: Swim/Ride
Swim: 1:15 4,000 yards. 7:25-8:40am
600 w/up. 8x50's stroke work. 2x[500 pull/400Swim/300 BA/BR/200 Fast (2:40)/100K
Ride: 3:45 53 miles. Mtn. bike. Big Bike Path loop. 11:45am-4:00pm
Today was a great day. I got up early for my swim at Evergreen Rec. Center. It was a little crowded but was happy that I got to do my entire workout. I had to share a lane with 2 other guys that were not really swimmers....I think I passed them every 50!
I had a chiropractor appt. with Dr. Katy today to have her check out my heel. I have now been told I have a heel spur, bursitis and bone bruise. Dr. Katy recommended that I don't run for a few weeks to let things heal up, along with ice, new orthotics, Advil and Bromelain. I may try to do a hike this weekend but I have a feeling it won't feel all that great. Dr. Katy says a bone scan would tell me if I have a stress fracture, something she says I might get if I continue to run. Better to rest now then later in the season. I will try to get in for a bone scan this week if my physician will allow me to have one.
After the appt. Andy and I headed down to Morrison to do one of our easy bike path loops. We decided on the Mt. bikes due to possible gravel/ice/snow on the bike path. Good choice as we did have some sketchy parts. It was a beautiful day despite the wind. Starting in Morrison we headed north thru Golden, with a slight cross wind. From Golden we headed East on Clear Creek bike path with a wonderful tailwind, south to REI for a quick coffee and pastry. Makes the ride that much more enjoyable when one has a destination, on this loop ours is always the Starbucks at REI! Continued south on the Platte River trail to Bear Creek Bike Path. By this time the wind had died down a little but we still had a slight headwind going thru Bear Creek Park. Finished up in 3:45....not too bad for early season.
What a day....packed up the bikes and headed home to the hot tub. Neither one of us was in the mood (or had the energy) to cook so we went downtown (Evergreen) and tried out a new restaurant, "Bistro Blue Mexican Cuisine". It was pretty good and not too terribly expensive. It's nice to have another choice to eat up here, we are so limited in good restaurants.
600 w/up. 8x50's stroke work. 2x[500 pull/400Swim/300 BA/BR/200 Fast (2:40)/100K
Ride: 3:45 53 miles. Mtn. bike. Big Bike Path loop. 11:45am-4:00pm
Today was a great day. I got up early for my swim at Evergreen Rec. Center. It was a little crowded but was happy that I got to do my entire workout. I had to share a lane with 2 other guys that were not really swimmers....I think I passed them every 50!
I had a chiropractor appt. with Dr. Katy today to have her check out my heel. I have now been told I have a heel spur, bursitis and bone bruise. Dr. Katy recommended that I don't run for a few weeks to let things heal up, along with ice, new orthotics, Advil and Bromelain. I may try to do a hike this weekend but I have a feeling it won't feel all that great. Dr. Katy says a bone scan would tell me if I have a stress fracture, something she says I might get if I continue to run. Better to rest now then later in the season. I will try to get in for a bone scan this week if my physician will allow me to have one.
After the appt. Andy and I headed down to Morrison to do one of our easy bike path loops. We decided on the Mt. bikes due to possible gravel/ice/snow on the bike path. Good choice as we did have some sketchy parts. It was a beautiful day despite the wind. Starting in Morrison we headed north thru Golden, with a slight cross wind. From Golden we headed East on Clear Creek bike path with a wonderful tailwind, south to REI for a quick coffee and pastry. Makes the ride that much more enjoyable when one has a destination, on this loop ours is always the Starbucks at REI! Continued south on the Platte River trail to Bear Creek Bike Path. By this time the wind had died down a little but we still had a slight headwind going thru Bear Creek Park. Finished up in 3:45....not too bad for early season.
What a day....packed up the bikes and headed home to the hot tub. Neither one of us was in the mood (or had the energy) to cook so we went downtown (Evergreen) and tried out a new restaurant, "Bistro Blue Mexican Cuisine". It was pretty good and not too terribly expensive. It's nice to have another choice to eat up here, we are so limited in good restaurants.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Thursday: Run/Ride
Run: :50min. 5:50am-6:40am
Bike: 1:30 3:45-5:15pm
Another early day, loaded up the bike for my afternoon ride and got down to Denver to run 2 loops at Wash Park by 5:50am. Wore my new orthotics and they felt great. I was getting a little twinge just under my left knee cap but it never really bothered me or hurt. My heel was feeling good, I like the cushion of the new orthotic. I can't believe I was able to run in them the first day out. I also wore them all day at work in a different pair of running shoes with no problems, they were quiet comfortable.
Got out of the office at 3:00pm and drove to Matthews Winter parking lot. On the mountain bike by 3:45 and temp was 65*. I Rode up Hwy 40 to the first Lookout Mtn. exit and then rode over Grapevine, down the canyon and up the C470 frontage road and hogback back to the car. It was starting to get chilly as the sun was behind clouds and the foothills. The temp said "58 degree's" but it felt more like 45*. Felt okay on the bike, nothing too fast, legs still a little tired, hoping they feel better for our long ride tomorrow.
Had dinner with Lara at Wildflower Cafe for Sushi tonight. Hadn't seen her in a while and we discussed the Quad next weekend. I know she will have a great race, she is so stinking fit right now, no matter what she says. Andy was at work today so he missed a good dinner.
I got my blood work results back, very interesting, will post the results soon. Some of the things I thought I was sensitive to were confirmed with a few others in there that I was surprised to see. I made an appt. with my acupuncturist in 2 weeks so he can go over my results with me to see what I need to do next.
Tomorrow I plan for a swim/Chiro appt. and a long bike ride.
Bike: 1:30 3:45-5:15pm
Another early day, loaded up the bike for my afternoon ride and got down to Denver to run 2 loops at Wash Park by 5:50am. Wore my new orthotics and they felt great. I was getting a little twinge just under my left knee cap but it never really bothered me or hurt. My heel was feeling good, I like the cushion of the new orthotic. I can't believe I was able to run in them the first day out. I also wore them all day at work in a different pair of running shoes with no problems, they were quiet comfortable.
Got out of the office at 3:00pm and drove to Matthews Winter parking lot. On the mountain bike by 3:45 and temp was 65*. I Rode up Hwy 40 to the first Lookout Mtn. exit and then rode over Grapevine, down the canyon and up the C470 frontage road and hogback back to the car. It was starting to get chilly as the sun was behind clouds and the foothills. The temp said "58 degree's" but it felt more like 45*. Felt okay on the bike, nothing too fast, legs still a little tired, hoping they feel better for our long ride tomorrow.
Had dinner with Lara at Wildflower Cafe for Sushi tonight. Hadn't seen her in a while and we discussed the Quad next weekend. I know she will have a great race, she is so stinking fit right now, no matter what she says. Andy was at work today so he missed a good dinner.
I got my blood work results back, very interesting, will post the results soon. Some of the things I thought I was sensitive to were confirmed with a few others in there that I was surprised to see. I made an appt. with my acupuncturist in 2 weeks so he can go over my results with me to see what I need to do next.
Tomorrow I plan for a swim/Chiro appt. and a long bike ride.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Wednesday-Swim
Swim: :35min. 1750 yds.
400 w/up
10x75 on 1:15 (I had :13-15 sec. rest)
Mix of swim/kick/pull easy.
Today I got up later than I had anticipated. I wanted to get to the pool by 5:45am but when I woke up at 5:00am I was way too tired. I didn't have a good nights sleep, tossed and turned most of the night. My legs and stomach were doing a number on me. I did put some ointment on the legs hoping it would help them recover....not so sure as they are still sore tonight. I think it was the massage and all the stuff it released into my lymph system that got my stomach feeling weird
Anyway, I slept until 6:45am and as I was leaving for work at 7:15 my boss called and said my first patient canceled. Yippee!!! I booked it over to the pool to get my workout it. I only had time for :35 min. but it was still good enough to get the blood moving.
Saw Shawn today at Xtreme Footwerks and received my new orthotics. They seem to feel pretty good, I will have a few days where I need to break them in but hoping they help with my heel pain. I did get a lift for the left shoe as my left leg is shorter than my right. I had him make me an extra one as I move the orthotics from different shoes.
It was a beautiful day....Andy had a nice ride home however, he rode early so it was still on the cool side when he was coming up the canyon. I heard it got to 70 degrees in Denver today. Tomorrow is supposed to be just as nice so I am hoping to go for a ride after I get off of work. The sun is setting a little later so hopefully I can get in about 2 hours.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Tuesday-Run/Massage
Run: :50min. Wash Park, 5:45am
Massage: 1:45
Was planning on getting up and running at least an hour but somehow I managed to get out of the house a little later than I had hoped for. The temp. for Denver said 42*, which I thought was pretty nice since it was 28* up here. Once I was down in town the temp in the car was reading 31*, much colder than I had anticipated so I was happy I threw in some extra clothes just in case.
My run was good, easy warm-up for about 15 min. and then I did some faster paced stuff, 10 min. at first, then dropped to 5 min. and then did a few pick-ups. My legs were so sore before I started today so I really struggled. I have scheduled myself a massage in the afternoon and I can not wait.
Went to see Kelly, one of my massage therapists, she is great...not too deep (which I really needed) but glad she didn't go there as I don't think I could have handled it today. I almost fell asleep on the table. I had scheduled a hour and a half and she worked on me for 1:45...very nice.She is working in a Chiropractic office and I am planning on trying out the new Chiropractor. She seems really nice and Kelly said she was good. I need to have someone take a look at the bursitis/heel spur on my left heel. Bothers me after my runs and it's keeping me from running 2 days in a row. Hopefully she can help me out. Have the appt. on Friday.
Quiet night at home, watch a little "Lost" and then head to bed early. Andy rode his bike down to work today so will look forward to hearing how the ride was. He can sure handle the cold better than I can.
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