Events #37 and #38, Sally's Y 5k and Sally's Y 50K Sunday April 25

Two for one special today...just like last year, I was able to do the 5K prior to the cycle event (thank you Melissa Lasarsky and race directors) and got to ride and hang out with a lot of good friends.

Mike Ferretti, Jim Russell, Cat Reid, Cheryl Ryan, Greg Counts (all did the 100K) Kevin Collins, Justin and Tricia McCord - we did the 50K. Thanks everyone for coming out and making the trek up north to do the ride. Awesome seeing you all!

Beautiful day for the events - albeit a bit windy. Extremely well run and seamless. Well supported - challenging course with some great hills to test out the legs. Loads of fun.

For those who don't know, the Y in Denver, soon to be Sally's Y is being built in memory of Sally Clark, who was tragically killed in a car accident in 2004. Her passion for life and spirit will be commemorated in the future home of Sally's Y - being built through the collaboration of her parents, David and Jo, to give back to the community - just as they know Sally would.

Due to the recent rains, the run was on the road, versus a trail run - a double loop - easy enough to navigate and fun to run - even if it was by myself.

Finished the run and changed up for the bike - different shorts (changed in the car) a lot of sunscreen and inflated the tires....shortly after I finished the run, we were off.

I can't say that I was really hammering on the bike. It's been awhile since I was on the road for an extended ride, so it was one mile at a time. Justin and I kept changing position up front - well - mostly Justin up front really....I kinda lagged behind.

We all had an awesome ride and a lot of fun. Nice to be out with good friends on a challenging course on a beautiful April afternoon.

Dedications for these events are forthcoming.

5K approx 23 minutes
50K 1:50:22

Go TEAM!!!

Event #36, Skyline 5K, Saturday April 24

Ugh...tired....really sleepy when the alarm went off this AM. I abused the snooze and got up pretty much at the last possible minute to make it to the race on time. But I did.

Good fun race. And a bigger crowd than I expected given it was drizzling this morning. Went and picked up my bib number and dropped off the stuff in the car. Went and lined up and thought to myself "self, hmmm no timing chips. OK, just watch the clock and figure out your net time. No biggie"

Then we start, and as we approach the starting line, and I hear a familiar high pitched beeping noise. TIMING MATS - what?!?!? I didn't think to ask about the chips (part of my running late issue) and so - rookie mistake. Good news is - my time can be anything I say it is.

So - I came in dead last - yep, they were rolling up the finish line as I crossed...no - not really..but I might as well have.

As we're lined up I could hear folks strategizing, "OK, so we'll aim for 8 minute miles the first mile, the a little faster....", "If you want to take off, go ahead, I'll be right behind you", "should we take water on the course? do we need it?" A lot of folks were running their first 5K. Pretty impressive and the banter was a lot of fun to listen to.

Good course - covered some of the Great Harvest Bread Company course from last year and the Elizabeth 8K from last weekend. Long gradual hill for the first mile or so - which bodes well for the last mile (downhill baby). Didn't really have the bounce in my step that I was looking for, but had fun nonetheless and ran a negative split (second half was faster than the first).

Today's race is dedicated to Elizabeth Crowther the grandmother of a friend Keith Fleming, whose aunt was the person I dedicated last weeks race to. Elizabeth is 82. Here's a little bit about her battle

"My non-Hodgkins lymphoma was diagnosed in December 2004, chemo and radiation followed and I have been in remission since then. Thank God! I had a lymphoid tumor on my spine which was completely different from Sheila (Keith's aunt) who had a large tumor in her abdomen. Our courses of treatment used the same drugs, timing, etc. so the treatment hasn't changed much in the past five years."

While the treatments haven't changed much, the life expectancy of a blood cancer patient has improved. 40 years ago, a blood cancer of any sort was almost assuredly a death sentence. Through your generous support, this much needed work and improvements in quality of life and length of life have been made possible. But there is so much work to be done.

I saw Matt Woodliff, our internal audit partner - having a strong race. Also ran into Jenny from TrySports - she broke 21 minutes...holy cow. I also met Jordan, the Karhu/Craft rep for the area. He ran some crazy time of 15 + minutes. Great job everyone!!!

Next up, Sally's Y 5K and 50K (bike ride) tomorrow, if the weather holds up. It's a little iffy, so let's hope for great weather.

GO TEAM!!!

22:25

so - what's up this weekend? Events 36,37 and 38

What are your plans for the weekend? I plan to run 2 5Ks (one each Saturday and Sunday) and do at least a 30+ mile bike ride (Sunday).. why? I am within striking distance of the 40 races I set out to do a year ago...and am within, well at least the same zip code of the fundraising goal ($40,000) to support the LLS. I am relying on my trusty Karhus and Craft gear....and a little rest -to get me through...I am also looking forward to the support from Kevin Collins, a TnT coach and fellow Bank of America Associate, and his friends to keep me (relatively) sane during the ride on Sunday....pray for nice weather.

Go TEAM.....

If all of my FB friends forwarded this to their friends and everyone donated at least $10....I bet we could make $40,000 EASY......think about it...I have 300+ FB friends....I suspect many of you are MUCH more "popular" than I am.

Event #35, Elizabeth 8K, Saturday April 17

Great day for a run of any sort....cool, sunny..I got about 10 hours of sleep - bonus.

Made it to the race site about 7:10, saw Elvis out front...same dude as last year - very funny. Caught up with Mike T from work and his wife Megan - got my gear and changed the shoes....do not walk in my running shoes - EVER

Went for a warm up with Mike - this is pretty much the only time I could ever run with him - much faster than I am. By the time we got back they were lined up and we jumped into the crowd...we were both checking out the guys and gals up front - and were like - so, who do you think will win? I don't think either of our choices won...

As I missed mile marker 1 - about 14-15 minutes in I was thinking, we better be past mile one otherwise I'm taking my ball and going home...didn't really seem to have it and was a bit tired. But then I saw it - mile marker 2 - OK - not so bad - keep going.

Seeing as Mike is faster than me, my goal was to keep him "in sight" as much as I could - ideally I'd see him cross the finish line - but after mile 3 and with all the turns - and the fact he increased the gap from me - that didn't happen...

Yeah - all the turns....there are a ton of 90 degree turns in this race...not a lot of long straightaways - given the fact it goes through the residential neighborhood of "Elizabeth" that's not shocking but something they could contemplate improving upon.....

End of the day - good event...as it was last year. Ironically enough, my time (haven't been able to find the results online yet and didn't wear the garmin) was pretty much the exact same time I posted last year...

is that good? Is that bad? given I had one heck of a week at work - I'll take it as a plus.

Number 35 down - five more to go...next weekend I'm looking to do three. One on Saturday, and two on Sunday. Anyone want to join me? Let me know

Looking at the Skyline Run Saturday, and the 5K and 50K bike ride on Sunday at Sally's Ride for the Y

Today's race is dedicated to Ms. Sheila Hufnagel the aunt of a friend of mine. She is a survivor and on the road to recovery, her brief synopsis of her battle is as follows - and this was all last year:

Admitted to the hospital in June with blood clots in lungs where they diagnosed a large abdominal tumor (follicular lymphoma stage 4) and began chemo; had 6 rounds of chemo finishing in October; had 17 days of radiation in November; had the final scan and officially finished treatment in complete remission the middle of January; and have started on the quarterly checkup routine – first appt next week

We'll be thinking of you - and hoping for the best!

Thanks to all of you and your support, research and treatments have improved vastly....most importantly - the number of folks who do survive, who come back from the battle - continues to improve...

Go TEAM!!!

37:40

#35 on tap - Saturday AM

tough week at work and I think I ran all of 10 miles this week...and that may be generous...Elizabeth 8K is tomorrow - hope to see some co-workers Mike, Adam and Steve there. That is if I don't sleep through the alarm - getting home from work a little late is NOT conducive to training - it's official...but it's "fun" in a sick and twisted way.

we're over $26K now - come on - $30K and the paint goes on the noggin...

Let the games begin...

With 6 more races, I am now entering what I call "crazy season" at work (a quarterly phenomenon associated with what I do) where the days are long, but extremely worthwhile - and unfortunately the nights are short...like right now....it's a delicate balance between work, training and "life"....

I am preaching to the choir though - as so many of my friends, followers and my wife Sheila (who all follow the blog) - struggle to find the balance... do I get in miles, or a couple extra minutes or hours of sleep...and then hit the desk.

I am so energized about the last 6 (at least) races for the 40 in 40...and ironically enough have had so many folks at work, at the gym and at races ask about it recently ...that it adds to it all.

All I need to do is manage my own balance....and get to the goal. What do you think? is 3 hours of sleep enough to run 8-10 miles? Or swim a mile? Biking, I act like it is is on auto-pilot sometimes - which is why it is better to ride with folks..better for me and the cars on the road.

Nutrition helps balance things - eating better makes it do-able, but the Dunkin Doughnut I had at the office today doesn't quite fit into that....that's my own fault though. Who can resist a boston creme Dunkin? Come on now....

20+ miles this week (running) 20-30 on the bike and a mile (or more) in the water will help with the balance.

Who else here feels they are "better" when they maintain their workout schedule...even if it means an hour less of rack time? I sure do.

Number 35 in a few days...time to sleep...but not time to rest. The LLS has a daunting challenge in front of it...makes an hour less of sleep seem like a cake walk.

As a side note - but no less important...the fundraising event in Raleigh helped raise over $1,000...initial estimates were closer to $500 - but with donated food and follow on donations, we raised more than $1,000 for the LLS!!!!

Again, a huge thank you to Mike Tadych and Denise Mullen (no "blood" relation), Mary and Al Tadych - and of course Sheila....Glyn Jones from PF Changs in Raleigh and all the folks who turned out for the event...

We couldn't have done it without all of you.

#34 CoolBreeze Triathlon, Sunday March 28

Holy crap that alarm went off early....although truth be told - I didn't sleep much after we got home at midnight. Tri bag prep (prior posts go into my concern over that) and getting the bike ready and rack on my car...hit the rack around 1 AM - woke up pretty much every half hour concerned I slept through the alarm.

Then when it did finally go off at 5:15, I over used the snooze - assessing "what is the latest I can get up and make it to the race to get set up and ready?" Turns out that was 5:45....

Grab some pre-race chow and head for the race. make it to the site at 6:45 - plenty of time before the race starts - and even more before I have to jump in the pool. Get set up in transition, bike racked, clothes set up, all stickers/numbers affixed properly. Go get my numbers written on me at body marking....this is when it hits me - once again - we're so close to the end of the 40 in 40.

In Triathlon (and apparently in the race on Saturday) they do what is "aging up". If your birthday occurs after the race but during the calendar year of the race, they mark the age you will become (in my case 40) on your right calf. The reason for putting ones age on their leg is twofold....

One - to tell everyone just how old the person who just dusted you on the bike or run is
Two - to know if you should chase them - if they fall into your age group (5 year groupings - I am now in 40 -44)

Back to transition - and the guy next to me in the racks informs me my bike is racked incorrectly - to those of you who haven't done a tri - this could result in a penalty of 2 minutes - which in any tri - especially a short one - can make a big difference...not that I'm going to win - but still.

So I explain - no its not and why...net-net - he feels he doesn't have enough space for all his transition stuff...waa waa waa. So I double check the rules - and no I am in fact racked properly. So I leave it.

About 15 minutes later - they announce incorrectly racked bikes and other potential penalties over the PA system "#426 your bike is incorrectly racked"...guess who #426 is...ME.

So - I move it - but as I do a USAT official ( the folks who figure out who is potentially in penalty - and record/report it accordingly) is walking by so I ask him....is my bike incorrectly racked this way? He's like nope - you're good....

OK - I'll catch this little bugger, #425 on the course and make up for him tattling (incorrectly) on me...ya big space hog baby.... :-)

I am somewhat sympathetic as for many this is a first time tri - short course, pool swim early in the season - and while it's my first of the season, and I clearly could have made a mistake - however, just like there's no crying in baseball, there's no tattling in triathlon. I did in fact move my bike to accommodate #425 - not wanting to make his first tri (or one of his first tri's) a bad experience.

Today was like a TNT reunion of sorts....ran into and chatted with Jay Reid TNT Coach and husband of the wonderful Cat Reid - who was a Tahoe teammate from last year (his first tri EVER - as prep for the Austin TX Olympic), Abby Miller - TNT Director, John McLean, TNT Alum and Full IronMan finisher (I haven't done that...don't imagine I could) and Cheryl Reid - also a Tahoe teammate who is doing her first (I believe) TNT Tri in June....

Also saw Theoden Janes, Charlotte Observer blogger and running aficionado who just completed his third marathon in 4+ months last weekend....

All of them - with the exception of Jay - were all out volunteering to help make this a great event. John McLean of course was giving me grief on the run...."come on, get up this hill"...but it helped.

Net - net...

Swim - which was short (250M) was harder than it should have been
Bike was fast - due in part to the fact that pieces of the course were familiar due to other training rides and previous tris
Run was good - especially given the fact that we did the 5K yesterday...and I pushed a little harder than I expected to.

I passed #425 (mr tattle tale) about mile 5 on the bike - and saw him come in from the run...I was already hanging out drinking water and stretching and chatting with Jay....go re-rack YOUR bike pal.... (sorry - just an irritant)

I also met Patrick (didn't catch his last name - maybe he didn't have one - like Fabian....) who was doing his first ever Tri today and Jennifer - a mother of 3 who was doing her first tri too.....I love meeting folks who are just getting into a sport - their enthusiasm, their nervousness, their energy....and questions - help me feel like - no matter what - if I helped them get through this race - or prep for another one - or give them something else to think about - such as the 40 in 40 and the LLS mission - then - it was a great day. And I know - based on seeing them at the end - they'll be out there again and again.

Official times aren't up yet - but based on the clock - looked like about 1:14...not my best time - not my worst - but #34 is in the books and we're getting closer to home.

Also - #33 - yesterday in Raleigh (also - official results aren't posted) Sheila came in under 27 minutes, Mike around 30 and Denise around 35.

It was a great race - but some technical issues with the start time, the actual start - they counted down out loud versus using a horn or gun...and the course....the first half was fine - but as we looped back we literally ran across the stream of outgoing runners to get back on the road heading to the finish....I mean...we're running - "they're headed right for us" and you'd hate to impede them at all or break up their pace. Come on Raleigh and the race organizers...you had several hundred out there for the 5K - possibly close to a thousand including the half marathon - and this is what you offer? I'll be submitting feedback once official results are posted.

Thanks to everyone out there today with kind words, support and cajoling.

Thanks also to Denise and Mike for training for the 5K and letting me come in ahead of them- and more importantly - organizing and planning the fundraising party where we raised nearly $500.

Thanks also to Mary and Al - for hosting the party and helping to organize and make it happen
Thanks as well to Sheila for getting us home as early as possible and making sure I got out there and made #34 happen.

You all ROCK!

Congrats to all finishers today. Will be providing heroes and folks I am doing these races in honor of shortly.

Go TEAM!!! We're over $25K - who gets me to $30K?

Let me know how I can help.

Next up - looks like the Elizabeth 8K - April 17, 2010.