Icy Hot

The last two weeks have been very intense. With all the hard hot training, I have resorted to icing and frequent sessions with the icy hot goodness of tiger balm and the soothing aid of arnica with traumeel to keep my muscles happy and mobile.
Speaking of heat, the weather here has still been really warm; some days it’s so intense but most days it’s been bearable. Luckily most of our hard run and bike sessions have started before 6am. My parents are down in FL for a quick vacation, and it sounds like their weather has been great too.
Finally, I have decided that my first races will be at the end of this month one in Mooloolaba and an ITU continental cup race in Wellington, NZ. In New Zealand, I am hoping to get some much-needed points. I am eager to have a good first race too in Mooloolaba to get the kinks out after all this hard training.
Well that’s all from down under for now.

Highs & Lows

The first two weeks of training camp are almost over. It’s been a great start to the season. Though I am a bit worn out, I look forward to working even harder in the next few weeks. I know everything I do now will pay off during the racing season.

Some of the highlights thus far were our team outing to Surfers’ Paradise after our long ride on Sunday. The waves were amazing, and it was fun to play around in the surf with my training partners. And our long ride through the hills west of the coast was gorgeous with some challenging climbs to rival those in Boulder. One part of the descent was so steep it felt like my handlebars were pointing straight down the bumpy chip seal road, and my sweaty hands were gripping the bars so tightly that I was afraid my arms would cramp. It was a little scary but needless to say I survived. Another highlight was our team BBQ at our apartment complex last week; it was nice to unwind with some good food and great friends. Finally, getting the opportunity to ride in a local cycling crit the last two weekends has been a fun experience and definitely is helping to improve my pack riding not to mention cornering and sprints since each loop of the course includes a 360 degree turnaround.

Not to many lows, mostly just a few miserable workouts that I suffered through painfully and was relieved to forget about as soon as the session ended. And missing Jeff, my parents, and friends in Colorado. I didn’t think I would get homesick at 29, but I was wrong. It's been a bit of culture shock with all the changes this past month from quitting my job and moving to flying down here and really becoming a full-time athlete. The last low light I hate to complain about with friends and family freezing at home but it's really hot here....so hot in our little room that Mary bought an XL fan to help cool us off and even that hasn't helped much.

I am attaching some pictures from the Gold Coast in Australia. These were taken by an expert photographer and my teammate, Mary, just across the street from our apartment complex. On another note, my favorite triathlete, chef, asst. coach, and support crew leader just set up a blog, Stories from the Sidelines.
Well that’s all the news for now....signing off from down under.

G’Day from Down Under

My teammate Mary and I completed the 25+ hour journey together from Boulder to the Gold Coast of Australia. It was pretty uneventful except for a few fun details like when my bike trainer was confiscated at the gate because it was clearly a deadly weapon. The manager of ticket agents grabbed the offending trainer out of my hands and proceeded to lunge aggressively at me with the trainer to exhibit how it could easily be utilized to strike anyone on the airplane. Mary and I were both shocked by his display and despite my objections that I would not be using the trainer to hit anyone over the head he still insisted upon confiscating it. Another highlight of the trip was our continuous trips to the bathroom….we were amazed that our seat mate went only once on the 13 hour flight vs. our 5 or 6 trips. The trip was going swimmingly until Mary’s bike did not arrive in Brisbane, turns out it decided to stay in Colorado instead of traveling down here. It finally arrived a few days late but was missing a seat post bolt, clearly a sacrifice to the bike box gods. After getting a bolt, she’s now up and running. But we’ve both been plagued by some gastric issues….Mary has been struck my some bug from the plane while I seem to have gotten a case of food poisoning. Luckily, we are both recovering and should be a 100% imminently.
Now to the destination, Australia is an beautiful scenic country, and the weather has been amazing. The Super Sports Center in Runaway Bay is a great facility with a 50M swimming pool, running track, cycling crit, weight & cardio machines, sports med., and more. (I have been battling an injury to my hip joint capsule and unable to run so the pool is also excellent for water jogging in the interim. Much improved over Flatirons where I have only a 10 meter stretch to use.)
And our team is all looking forward to Siri’s arrival here so that we can really get to work.

The Joy of Riding Outside!

Finally, after weeks of snow, ice, and cold temps....I made it outside for a long ride. Don't get me wrong, I actually like riding my trainer. But after 5 weeks of long rides inside, it was a treat to get outside on a moving bicycle. Even 2 flat tires and freezing digits, fingers and toes, on the downhill couldn't dampen my mood....well maybe for a nanosecond but not for too long.
And less than a week until I leave for Australia. I am nervous, excited, and can't wait to get in some great training; I am sure there will be some awesome sessions and a few horrible suffer-fests. It's a bummer that I won't have my new custom Elite Bicycle before I leave, but it also gives me an extra incentive to hurry back to Colorado in April. And if I can ride well on my old bike, imagine how fast I'll be on the new one!
On another note, I am officially a resident of Thornton. The move went very smoothly - fast and efficient like a well-oiled machine. I am not sure about the 'hood but my two new roommates couldn't be better.

4 Shots A Day...Keeps the Doc Away

I am officially unemployed!
Kind of crazy...luckily I haven't gotten bored yet. Actually, the last two days have been a whirlwind of tedious errands and appointments...and today's highlight 4 shots at the doctor's office. The shots were to prepare for a continental cup race I am planning to do in Thailand, a remote area of Thailand on the Laos border. Hopefully the shots along with the malaria pills will protect me from typhoid, polio, malaria, and any other diseases. If not, I guess I'm SOL. The CDC also had a warning about any exposure to fresh water due to Schistosomiasis, an incurable parasitic infection caused by infected snails that release large numbers of larvae (mmm...) that can permeate any mucous membrane exposed to the water.... does that include the Mekong River where I'll be swimming for the race? Could I swim in a full-body dry suit? Maybe a few ITU points aren't worth it.
On another note, the shots in the arms certainly did not help my swimming tonight. It was a pitiful sight, but at least I didn't drown in the pool. Our coach, Siri, warned us that once we get to Australia, she's gonna really put the hurt on us. I kind of though I was already feeling it, but I am sure all my definitions of pain and suffering are soon to be rewritten.
One of my other big tasks for this week is packing up for the big move this weekend. A big shout out to my FCC, Jeff, who will be helping to supervise the loading of my 10 ft, not 10 inch as the Budget rental agent clarified for me, moving tuck. It's funny, I started packing in January and did a great job for the first few days but haven't made much, or any, progress since oh about January 6th. Maybe I'll get back to it now or maybe wait till Friday night. Who doesn't work well under pressure?
Well, the boxes are calling or is that MTV with another bad reality show?

Training Hard in Boulder

Welcome to my new blog!! I am a 2nd year professional triathlete who is leaving my position at Corporate Express and pursuing my dream to be a world class athlete full-time.

Starting in late December, it was back to the grind to get ready for the upcoming 2007 season. As it is my 2nd season as a pro, I am excited to see even more improvements this year and hopefully learn from each race what I can do better next time. Last year, I learned a ton and defnitely suprised myself with some amazing races. But, I know that I have a long way to go and putting in lots of hard work now will pay later this season. Unforuntealy, this winter in Boulder has been snowy & cold. For the past 4 weekends, it has snowed at least 4 inches. Not to mention the snow left over from the blizzard in December! Needless to say my bike hasn't seen pavement since I was visiting my family for Christmas. My teammate and I have spent plenty of quality time on our trainers either at home in the garage or in our coach Siri Lindley's basement. And the running hasn't been much better. But luckily, Boulder plows it's bike paths, faster than the roads, so I have been able to venture out for some miles instead of spending hours on the treadmill. And it helps to know that the snow & cold are only temporary at least for our team. In 3 weeks and counting, I'll be headed on a jet plane to the outback for some hard training and racing in Austrailia. I can't wait... biking outside, not having to run over ice and snow to the outdoor pool, feeling the sun, and of course training my butt off!