New "gear"

My road ID arrived in the mail yesterday.
Ever since I started hearing the stories about accidents and seeing pictures of dented cycling helmets, I'd been thinking about getting one of these.

I chose the ankle style instead of the wrist because I guessed (and was correct) in noting from the pictures that it might also hold a timing chip.

The metal plate has six lines in which information can be etched, and the white band on the velcro is reflective. They come in red, blue, and black, and you can also get them in wrist bands, "dog tags," and a little pocket that fits on your shoe.

I feel safer already!

What do vegan triathletes eat, any way?

I just got back from food shopping for our 10-day trip. This is, as I've mentioned previously, our first vacation together, ever, without children. Ever. Did I mention we've never had a vacation without children? Never. This is our first. Ever.

The mission: bring food so we 1) don't get caught in a town where the height of cuisine is Denny's (Cheese: It's the new salt!) 2) don't spend our retirement eating, 3) can prepare it with a hot pot and an electric skillet, 4) have plenty to eat because we're doing two triathlons in this trip (more on this later) and finally, 5) still have room in the Honda FIT for our bikes, clothes, and tri-gear.
-->Contrary to popular belief, it's not about salads with us. Myles doesn't particularly like them, and most restaurants ruin any chance for them to be healthy by using iceberg lettuce (pretty nutritionally deficit) and/or adding ham, eggs, fatty dressings, cheese, fried chicken...

We've done a lot of wilderness backpacking, so I like to think of living out of hotel rooms and our car as a type of luxury camping. When you look at it that way, it's pretty awesome to have running water, electricity, beds, ice, walls, a/c...but even cooler, because there will be no kids along. Did I mention we're doing this ALONE??
So, how do Vegans pack light and cheap for a trip?

1. TVP. This gets reconstituted with boiling water, and takes the place of ground beef in a variety of settings. Each 2 ounce serving has 160 calories, 30 grams of soy protein, 18 grams of carbohydrate 12 grams of fiber, 20 mg iron, and less than 1 gram of fat. With this, we can make spaghetti sauce, sloppy joes, tacos, and add it to the chili.
2. instant and canned foods. Instant chili, instant mashed potatoes, instant brown rice, instant spicy lentils, instant refried beans, generic crystal light drink, canned veg-all mixed vegetables, canned low-sugar fruit, boxed vanilla soy milk. Bring a can opener and a hot pot.
3. think, "base of the food pyramid" Sandwiches, burritos and entrees using whole what rolls, breads, and buns, taco shells, whole wheat tortillas, whole grain cereals, brown rice, sliced italian bread, pasta, and oatmeal give us our "food pyramid" base, provide lots of complex carbs, and fill us up.
4: Seitan. We eat a lot of this. It's got similar properties to the TVP, except it's made with wheat, and takes the place of larger pieces of meat in fajitas, stir fry, and even sliced for sandwiches. I'm going to make a mess of this stuff, brown it up and season it and bag it for various meals. It keeps well in a cooler (one of the benefits of not eating meat is that you don't have to worry about it going bad). Meat eaters even like this stuff.

5. Avoid too much junk. No fried foods. Baked Lays, granola bars, and generic wheat crackers for snacks.
Today I'll be making a whole mess of seitan, as well as de-boxing and bagging other things.

5 days until vacation starts. Woo-hoo!

Hold onto your pants! part 2 (race report)

Gosh, this was a blast!
This sprint, almost a mini-sprint, really, was held at Bottomless Lakes State Park. The main lake where they hold the swim is pretty saline, but cold and calm. I was standing at the shore in my wetsuit, talking to Karen (my other Athena nemesis/friend) about how I always get so breathless in the water. But you know what? That didn't happen this time. Cool! I took off in the 2nd wave (women and older men) and it was just stroke, stroke, stroke. I was "gliding", doing this thing where you stop as your hand approaches the water for 1 second, and then catch and pull. I felt like I was flying, as it were, through the water. It was 400 meters, and out and back swim, (I think the swim was a bit longer than that and several athletes agreed with me) I exited the lake between two orange buoys, and a guy was standing by with a hose as I ran into transition to hose off my feet. Off with the wetsuit (I'm getting more efficient at it these days) and then on with the bike gear. I skipped trying to dry off my feet - never seems to work anyway - and forced on my socks and and shoes and grabbed my gear and headed out on the bike.
Swim split: 10 minutes

The road was rougher than I thought it would be, so I didn't get down in the aero bars much. About a quarter mile out you climb up about a grade 6 or 7 hill, and then it's rolling for most of the rest of the 14K (8.4 miles). At one point, I actually passed Karen, who I never pass, and she says that woke her up! She then passed me and there was no catching her after that.
Average bike speed: about 16.8 mph

On the 4K run, I was starting to get pretty hot, so I dumped water from the two aid stations on my head and sipped on my bottle of HEED. I tried my "1 minute sprints", and although my time was only slightly decreased (by about 30 seconds or so per mile) I felt better than I can recall, and I can tell I'm getting faster. I never did catch up to Karen or the other Athena, who I didn't recognize, but came in as the third athena.
Average run time, about 12 minutes per mile.
Results: 3rd overall Athena
I'll post a picture of Husband's plaque soon. It's cool; it says, "Hold Onto Your Pants!" 2006 Bottomless Triathlon. They have to mail us ours, they accidentally had "MALE ATHENA" etched into and have to get them redone.
I highly recommend this fun, fast, triathlon just outside of Roswell, New Mexico.

Hold onto your pants!

It's the Bottomless Triathlon!

I know what you're thinking, but there's no way conservative New Mexico would EVER go for that.

This sprint is held at the Bottomless Lakes. It's a short, short sprint I'll be doing tomorrow morning: 400m, 14K, 4K. It's just the sort of thing I need to feel better after the Grady Williams Death by Sand Triathlon last weekend. Most of all, I'm excited because I want the T-shirt (HOLD ONTO YOUR PANTS! etc) and maybe somehardware, but also because this race is very special, as it is the race I viewed last year in which I said, "okay. I'm definitely going to try this triathlon thing". So, it has a special >sniff< meaning in my heart.

Jane's Freedom Run (report)

Jane's Freedom Run is done every year on the 4th of July, sponsored by Albuquerque Fleet Feet in honor of Jane Bryl, who died of melanoma. Procedes go to support research in that area.

I loved watching the itty bitty kids do the 400 meter event: parents trotted next to their kids, encouraging them, and the determination of a 3 year as he kicks it and head for the finish line is a joy to see. I enjoyed cheering on Mini-me as he did the 3K. He had asked independently if he could do that race, and I nearly fell over with excitement signing him up, because it was his idea, instead of mine.
Local runs feel so casual; you put on shoes, you show up. No transition area, no worrying about flats. You show up, you run or walk. Whatever. They don't care. I love it. It was a friendly, happy, festive, well-organized race. Just what I needed!
I did the 8K, and so did Myles, who was hurting - he just came off being on the injured list for about a month for a hip stress fracture and he's got a cold. I think he was a little discouraged, but it's all good - I think he'll bounce back quickly.

One thing I love about runs is that you can wear headphones. So why did I forget my headphones today? I don't know. Because I forgot them, however, I was able to try something new that I would have never tried if I'd had them on. Here's what I did: On my run splits, I'd been slipping in 1 minute walk breaks, but once I start walking, it is really hard to run again. The first mile of the 4.97 mi/8K, I ran my usual slow pace, and started setting my timer to go off for the 1 minute walks.

Then it came to me: "what if I tried 1 minute pickups instead?" I alternated running slowly (recovery) for one minute, with running as fast as I could manage for a whole minute, which wasn't as fast as one might imagine, but it was faster than my usual running pace and sent my heartrate up into the lower end of zone 4. I did this the rest of the race, and here's how it worked out:

• Mile1: 13 minutes (slow pace, mostly uphill)
• Miles 2 and 3: about 11 minutes each (flat, and then turning downhill)
  
• Last 1.97 miles: about 11:30 each half, mostly flat with a small uphill area
  

Overall, faster than I usually run. Awesome! I'm going to incorporate this strategy into my other runs and see if it helps improve my time.
I had a blast. Know what I mean? Plus, after DNF-ing at the Grady Williams Death by Sand Adventure race, I fell like I finished something this week.
So glad I did this run. Right now, the way I'm feeling, my "S" is for Sassy.

Grady Williams reflections, post-hissy fit.

Now that I've calmed down, had some time to rehydrate, think, and reflect over the weekend's event (I received a gracious apology from the race director who, I should stress, is not the same turd who verbally thrashed me for getting lost on the course that he personally marked) I've decided what I'll probably do differently next year at the Grady Williams Sandy Death Adventure Race.

No, you don't need to clean your glasses. I actually wrote that.
Next year. Grady Williams.
Sigh.

There's something about the predisposition of multi-sport athletes to punishment, mainly self-inflected. We're a stubborn lot, aren't we? I in particular, pride myself on my stubborness in terms of always finishing what I started. I'm not a quitter; it's so, so, embarassing. As evidenced by my race results, no matter how slow, tired, or hot I am, it's hard to discourage me. You will keep that finish line up. You will continue to follow me in that slow-moving vehicle. You will keep the clock running. Sonner or later, I'll be there even if I'm walking, or crawling.

So now, with grim determination, I've decided that I don't want to do this, I must do this next year. I will do it and finish it, because I can't stand having that DNF on my record, and because, until I was resigned to being hopelessly lost, I was enjoying myself. I enjoyed the swim, the scenery was nice, the weather was good, I was running in a soaking wet skin suit, which felt AWESOME, and I think I was doing pretty well.
GAWD, I'm so pathetic. It's like I'm a battered wife. "It's a really nice course, when it's not trying to kill me...you just have to understand it...it doesn't mean to be difficult..."



There are lessons to be learned from every bad experience, and these are mine:

Lesson 1: I need a lot of money or I need to become a faster runner. A lot of money would be to get a GPS setup so that I can find my way through the desert if they have the same man mark the course. Faster would be so I can latch onto one of the other runners who can find their way through, and follow them.

Lesson2: Er, come to think of it, just because they're faster doesn't mean they know where they're going. I want to try to walk/jog at least part of the course the day before.

Lesson 3: I was right to bring a bottle full of HEED, sunblock, and drink lots of water before the race and at the first water stop, and I'll do it again.

I'll get a two-bottle "Ultimate Direction" hydration belt. When I got back to Albuquerque, after having drunk 3 bottles of various fluids and eaten a meal, I was still three pounds down. That's nearly a quart and a half of fluid. Lesson 4: I will ignore any and all rude and arrogant course markers who attempt to blame me for their lack of foresight and planning. Or spray them with mace.

363 days until the 2007 Grady Williams "Death by Sand" race. And counting.

General tips and tricks for race directors (Race report).

NOTE added 7/20 If you're reading this because a guy named Jeff linked to this race report and was freaking over this race, just ignore him, and move on. He loves to start trouble.

Note: If you don't feel like reading all of this, skip to the recommendation (paragraph below, in bold). It's important.

So, you want to be a race director?
Well, lets say, hypothetically speaking, you want to direct a race in Farmington, New Mexico. You decide to call it the Grady Williams Memorial Olympic Distance Triathlon. Here's some tips and tricks to ensure the people might want to come back next year and nobody is seriously hurt.

1. When triathletes who have been lost in the desert for over two hours without water finally come in, a really, really good thing to say would be something like, "Are you okay? Do you need any water? We thought we marked that course and we're so sorry you had this experience!"
You would not want them to have the following experience:

Marker-boy: "How on earth did you get lost?

Me: "That course was not clearly marked"

Marker-boy: "yes it was; I marked that course myself last night. I watched the chalk fall down myself."

Me: "I saw some chalk lines before I got to the first water station. After that, I never saw another chalk line, and I never saw another water station."

Marker-boy: "You're wrong. There's not a part of that course that isn't clearly and completely marked. I'll prove it. Come back to the course with me [7 miles back to the lake] and I'll show you.

Me: "I don't want to go back there. You know, I've done 14 of these this year. I'm not stupid."

Marker-boy: "Well, then you've done as many as I have".

First of all, that last comment was completely unnecessary and unhelpful, and generally speaking, a triathlete who just spent over two hours lost in your F---ing desert doesn't want to go anwhere with you. She doesn't want anything but some concern and some water, so kiss my ass.
Oh, and the upside to the suggested response is this:
when it becomes clear that at least a dozen people lost their way on the run course, including many professional and seasoned triathletes, and at least one of whom has done the race before, you won't look like a complete asshole.
(The downside, of course, is that whomever did the markings won't get to puff up his chest and act like a self-important jerk. )
Hypothetically speaking, of course.

2. Be familiar with AT rules, especially if you insist that you're going by AT rules. For instance, you would register people as their age as of December 31st, not age on race day. For most this may not matter. For masters and non-masters clydesdales, it's going to matter a lot. The upside is that when a triathlete, hypothetically speaking, asks someone working in the race about following AT rules, they don't get a blank stare.

3. Have medical personnel at the transition area. For a race this long and challenging, you may need them. This is especially true if you ignore tip #4.

4. If you use chalk to mark your course, chalk lines should not be placed in the center of a path of loose dirt where people will run over them and obliterate them.

5. Have a pre-race meeting.

6. Putting, "The course will be clearly marked" on a race map is useless unless you say how it will be marked. Tape? Chalk? Flaming monkeys juggling batons? WHAT? And maps are useless unless they indicate that you will come to intersections. That way, when the path splits off into several different directions, you'll know where to go.





Recommendation: I would not recommend this race to my worst enemy unless they correct very serious and dangerous problems, or change the name to "Grady Williams GPS Adventure Race through the Desert" It was estimated that somewhere between ten and twenty triathletes, including profesionals, lead runners, seasoned multi-sport veterans and a blind triathlete and her guide lost their way on the run course. Nobody associated with the race apologized, they made excuses. Nobody looked for any of the lost triathletes, and when another triathlete's partners told race officials that his partner was an hour over due, he was brushed aside and ignored.
There are several other quality, well-run Olympic distance events to be enjoyed where they actually like athletes; they are not trying to kill them, such as the Buffman and Squeaky (Texas) or Las Vegas (New Mexico) triathlons.

What happened, Results: DNF. My first. I'm happy to have had a companion in this debacle but unhappy that it happened at all. In the over-two hours we spent running down several paths and dirt service roads, Helen and I saw ribbons tied to junipers, painted surveyor's stakes of various sorts, different colored flags and signs. We never saw the markings for the run course, because they were mainly rubbed out. We were the only Athenas, and had been following faster runners, who themselves had gotten off course, but when they rounded the bend in front of us - the paths and roads were all very winding - they vanished, and we were left running through the desert in July, without a clue as to where to go next. Although off course, they had turned off and eventually did manage to get to T2 on foot, but we continued down the wrong road, hoping to see them ahead.

After a while, it was clear that although we were not the last people out of the lake (the order of this triathlon with swim-run-bike, with two separate transition area locations) nobody had ever passed us, and so we attempted to find our way back to the lake. Three hours after the start, after swimming 1500 meters, then unable to to find the right 10K path through the desert to the next transition area (there were two) Helen and I decided to call it quits. Helen had no water, we had left the correct path and so had no access to any, and all I had was a small bottle of HEED on my race belt. It was getting dangerous. We flagged down a passing surveyor, who gave us a ride back to the lake, where all volunteers and T1 were already gone.

We found our back to my car parked up the hill and behind some trees, having left Helen's car at T2, and drove back to T2.

People that successfully completed the run told me that they worried as they ran along, hoping that the people in front of them knew where they were going, and wondering how anyone could find their way. Some were passed twice by lead runners.

ADDENDUM: I would like to add that when I arrived at T2, there was no way to replenish carbs or electrolytes. I was asked if I was "one of the missing triathletes," and I gave my race number. The volunteers then wondered away without asking if I was okay. There was one water dispenser sitting in the sun, dispensing warm water, and two ice chests. One was empty and dry. The other had a single power bar floating in icy water. Good thing I had some warm Gatorade in the car.