Thursday, May 31, 2012

Almost There

Ironman training is trucking along.  At times I think Dirk is (literally) trying to kill me.  Like during last night's run.  He comes up with these interval workouts that look so innocent on paper and then they end up being like 15 miles in total and you just want to lay down on the side of the trail and take a 20 minute nap halfway through.  Oh wait, maybe that's just me... 

Of course I also have days where I think "okay Dirk - what do you have for me - I'm READY!"  I surmise that a coach's goal for Ironman training is to create highs and lows such that the athlete is ready for the same thing on race day.  If so, Dirk is a master at this.  :)

Anyway, I'm incredibly thankful to be happy and healthy and ALMOST THERE!  Hard to believe my first Ironman of the year is only 3 weeks away!  (to me Ironman = October = a full summer of riding in my legs...YIKES!)

In other news, my beloved Petey (my bike of the last 3 years) has a crack in his frame.  Devastating.  I found it right before we left for Columbia.  I have no idea how it happened or even how long it's been there but it's BIG (and growing).  I took the risk of riding on it for the race because the other option was not racing at all but when I took it to the bike shop the next day, they definitely cautioned me not to ride outside on it any longer.  The good news is, Cervelo is sending a brand new frame under warranty.  The bad news is, until the frame arrives I've only been riding on the trainer.  Which is KILLING me.  I didn't have a whole lot of riding last week but this week I have about 19 hours.  All inside.  While it's 85 and sunny outside.  This is when it's useful to have more than one bike!

Of course worse things have happened and although I have a 5 hour ride tomorrow and a 6 hour ride Saturday and I REALLY don't want to do them on the trainer, I will if that's what needs to be done.  The way I see it, if I can withstand the mental fatigue of riding on my trainer for those types of hours, the mental fatigue of Ironman might not be so bad.  (at least that is what I'm telling myself)  And if the new frame doesn't arrive by Monday I'm going to drive to Canada myself to pick it up!!!!!!!!!!!!!  :)

And in other, other news, Oscar and I joined a CSA!  Our neighbor alerted us to the fact that there is a CSA that is a mere 5 miles from our house.  Who knew?  We haven't picked up our first installment yet but when we do, I'll be sure to blog with pictures.  In the mean time, here is a picture of one of the residents of the farm:

Cute


Also, I implore you all to go buy some Cookie Crack at Trader Joe's RIGHT NOW!

Yum

Okay...and just ONE last thing (I promise).  If you want REAL excitement on your morning commute, you need to come to Pittsburgh.  We have "sharply dressed" pigs roaming the parkways!


8 comments:

  1. You're almost there! That's sweet about Cervelo covering your frame under warranty, I feel like that never happens. And I saw that Cookie Crack at TJ's the other day and would NOT let myself buy it, I would eat the entire jar in one day! I'll just enjoy it vicariously through you. :)

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  2. Oh goodness gracious, I wish I would have known sooner because I would have met you in Breezewood or up at Columbia to let you borrow my road bike for a few weeks. That is awful. You're almost there, can't wait to see you rock IMCDA!

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  3. Ught waiting for a new frame must be so frustrating...but even more....6 hrs on a trainer!!! Holy cow!

    My boyfriends mom and sister do a csa, but i recently signed up to have weekly home delivery of organic fruits and veggies!

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  4. Keep up the hard work, like you said your almost there. Jess and I are excited to watch you kill it!! That crack fuels workouts well I hear ;)

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  5. Sorry to hear about your bike and the fact that you are stuck on the trainer during this really nice weather. You will love the CSA, we started up with one this year and the abundance of fresh vegetables is great - we plan our meals around it.

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  6. Poor Petey! He joins L'Oiseau on the injured and retired list. Thankfully the crack was found before catastrophic frame failure on a future bike ride. I kept thinking about that for myself riding the Lanzarote bike course...if my bike guy had not found the crack in my bike before that I have no doubt the frame would not have survived that course! Hope your new frame comes faster than mine (I'm still waiting!)
    3 weeks?! Wow! Hard to believe late June is so soon! Enjoy the taper and all your CSA yumminess.

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  7. Poor Petey is right! I quess trainer rides at this time of year will get ya mentally stronger :-0 if it doesn't make ya batty first!

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