An Outdoor Life – Page 33 – A blog about running, hiking, dogs and seeing the world

June 4, 2020June 4, 2020

Ironman Races Ranked

I have been training for the Ironman distance since 2008. I lived in Colorado while training for my first two Ironman races. Living at 8,000 feet while training really helped my race day at lower elevations. In 2016 I finished two Ironman races in a year: Arizona and Lake Placid; my last finish to date. I DNF’d my last two Ironman races in Florida and Mont Tremblant, coincidently while living back in New Hampshire.

I’m currently training for Mont Tremblant despite it being rescheduled to 2021.

Below is my ranking of my favorite Ironman races based on finishing time, fun with friends on race weekend and all around venue enjoyment.

#1 Lake Placid, New York, July 2016, age 45
Swim: 1:32, Bike 7:08, Run 5:30. Total: 14:24
Division Rank: 53

Post Race with Mark, Ironman Lake Placid

My all time favorite race day. My family and Mark’s family came to support us racing. It was hot and humid. It was my worst race time-wise despite coming from elevation in Colorado. Ironman Lake Placid was a tough day but a great race experience. I loved the town of Lake Placid and driving to the top of Whiteface the day before the race. Swimming in the lake was refreshing, I actually biked a little bit with Mark on the bike course but then never saw him again and the run was pure hell in the humidity. Ironman Lake Placid is a race weekend I will never forget. Best Support Team Ever.

#2 Ironman Arizona, Tempe, November 2010, age 39
Swim: 1:24, Bike 6:18, Run 4:46 Total: 12:42 – PR
Division Rank 33

My best race ever. My PR. I was lean and ready to race. Coming from elevation, I could breath in Tempe and felt like a million bucks. Race day brought favorable conditions all day long. The swim was a mass start treading water in Tempe Town Lake. The bike was pretty flat with a few long hills and a bit of wind but not bad. The run was loops and loops and finishing in the dark. It was a good race day.

#3 Coeur d’Alene, Idaho 2009, age 38
Swim: 1:29, Bike 6:50, Run 5:00. Total: 13:34
Division Rank 58

My first Ironman. My parents flew out to Idaho to cheer me on. Perfect conditions and a great race day that I will always remember. It’s one of those races that you sign up for when you live in Colorado so you can drive to it; so many friends in Colorado do this race. It was a gorgeous drive through Wyoming and Montana; and a great place to race. I met my BFF Mark Nash on race morning and we’ve been racing together ever since.

#4 The Woodlands, Texas, May 2015, age 44
Swim: 1:40, Bike 6:42, Run 4:59. Total: 13:37
Division Rank: 31

Training for Ironman Texas was the best training to date. I lived in Tucson and I put in the training time. I finished well despite the heat and humidity. Placing 31st in my division group was my best placement to date. Looking back I see the progress that is possible when you put in the time and train well without distractions.

#5 Ironman Arizona, Tempe, November 2016, age 45
Swim: 1:37, Bike 6:50, Run 4:58. Total: 13:41
Division Rank: 56

I was hoping for a PR but it was not to be had. I was living in Colorado, hoping the elevation training would help. This was a tougher race than I remembered. The wind on the bike was leg-deadening, and running in the dark was sucky. But I had great support from friends and that made it memorable. I raced with Mark who did much better than I did, as always. Thank you to the support team: Than, Kathy, Mary, Scott, Kassandra.

#6 Ironman Wisconsin, Madison, September 2013 age 42
Swim: 1:33, Bike 6:48, Run 5:128. Total: 13:50
Rank 63

The months leading up to Ironman Wisconsin turned out to be the worst training blocks ever. I lived in Tucson and didn’t have altitude training to help me on race day. Injuries and adopting Winnie three months before the race were contributing factors to a less than stellar performance. But I LOVED Madison; a great place to visit and a great race venue. Swimming in the Lake Monona was a treat. Mark and I were interviewed by a local news crew while we practice swam. I had a great time racing with Mark and trying to find him on the course (I never did). Another great support team: Than and Pat.

Florida and Mont Tremblant – I will finish your race before I die. Note: both were awesome vacation races despite the DNF. Florida especially was so fun swimming in the ocean and eating seafood everyday. Of course, both with Mark.

June 1, 2020June 1, 2020

It’s June 1 – the New Normal

Let’s start with the temperature this morning: 35 degrees. The morning dog walk at 5 a.m. was COLD. My winter coat was put away. It was a brisk walk.

Today the YMCA opens and I have a reservation for a lane in the pool at 12:15. Yes! I actually like knowing I will have a lane to myself at a particular time. The weight room isn’t open yet but once it is I’ll be happy to reserve a time.

Also today, I start a triathlon training plan. I’m not exactly sure what I’m training for but I’ll be ready when a race is open. Ironman did announce the rules for their races, yesterday. It looks like Ironman Florida could be an option. Plus they fixed their website urls; they were all wonky. Stuff like that drives me crazy.

Also today, I will be eating at a restaurant. That will be interesting. It’s the new normal.

Races Canceled So far:

The White Mountain triathlon is canceled and race organizers are allowing registrants to race Lake Sunapee triathlon or defer to next year. It would be fun to swim in Lake Sunapee. However, September 19 is the 50 miler at Gunstock, bummer. So I’ll defer to next year.

August 7 is the Ragged Mountain Stage race. This isn’t canceled yet, but I’m half expecting it to be. I have two months left to train for it and I’ll be ready. It’s okay if it is postponed to next year.

So much is changing in the world. Here in New Hampshire, in my corner of the world, all seems calm and somewhat normal. I know it’s not, really. Everything that is going on in the big cities, the violence and looting can be stopped with action, writing letters and taking part in conversation. I will do my part. As Anne Lamott says, I’ll pick up trash.

May 28, 2020May 29, 2020

First time riding Bear Brook

Do you ever just know you’re going to love something and avoid it because you know that it may take over your life?

Well, this happens to me a lot because I love trying new things and having new experiences.

So, there is this happy place called Bear Brook. I’ve been hearing that the mountain biking is awesome. I’ve been avoiding going there for two years because I knew I would love it. It’s just easier and less time consuming to ride from my house to the Concord trails. It’s so much work packing up my bike and gear to drive to a trailhead.

But, the trails at Bear Brook are AWESOME and totally worth the effort to get there. I’m addicted and will be going as much as I can. Talk about FLOWY. I’m grown accustomed to so many rocks and roots and elevation gain in Concord. The loop around Bear Brook was fun and adventurous; and VERY mosquito-y tonight. I’m not usually one for so many caps in a blog post, but there you have it. What a great ride.

I’m ready for more trails and exploring outside of Concord for bike trails. Despite everything: I’m ready for Summer 2020.

Well. So. But. Life Is Good. You just need to get on the trails.

May 27, 2020May 27, 2020

Suddenly Summer

It happens every year.

One minute you are sitting in your house freezing and wearing long tights on a morning run.

The next minute you can’t stay cool in your house and are sweating bullets in shorts on a morning run.

Today, on a hot, muggy morning I ran 8 miles on roads and trails. While the temperature on weather.com reported 70 degrees and humidity at 67% it felt higher and I was melting. Ugh. I seriously don’t know how I lived in Tucson for three years.

I just looked at the details of my Strava and it states that the temperature was 63 and humidity 88%. That sounds a little more correct than weather.com

Either way. Hot and muggy with full sun exposure. I liked the route though: through the quarry trails and over to Winant to run an interesting 8 mile loop before starting work.

I’m going to try and get away for a short bike ride at lunch time since the weather is so nice; nice bike weather means not windy and rainy. The high today will be 80. I hope to follow the training plan this week and maybe get a 4,000 footer in on the weekend.

This morning I read a Twitter post about the death of David Clark. I read some posts about his passing last week but only his name was mentioned and I didn’t know who he was; at that time there were few details. I found the story today from Rich Roll who gave a tribute to him and I was instantly drawn into Clark’s story.

His story is about how an obese alcoholic who loved fast food found a new life in running. And not just running – ultra running some of the hardest races. As someone who struggles with so some of the same things I wanted to know more about his story and bought his book, Broken Open. I’ll let you know what I think once I pick it up from Gibsons.

May 26, 2020May 26, 2020

Weekend Recap Bike, Run, Hike

“that New Hampshire bluff, that promontory of a state … will longest haunt our dreams” Thoreau on Monadnock in 1844 (pictured above)

Such a fun weekend:

Mountain Biking in Concord on new trails

I had great outdoor adventures with friends but alas running didn’t go so well [sigh]. Starting again today with 8 miles. It’s warm this morning: 55 degrees after waking up to low 40s for the last few days. It’s officially running in shorts in the morning weather – I hope from now on.

After hiking and mountain biking I really feel like mountain biking helps my hiking. I think it will help my running however my run on Saturday was not so great. I felt tired and my legs felt like lead. It will be interesting to see what my run this morning is like. My ankle is close to totally healed but it’s still a bit swollen and it is achy sometimes while running on uneven surfaces.

Week 7 Plan

I’m looking forward to this week of running and biking. The weather forecast shows some warm days coming up. Summer is almost here. Time to get back on track, hike some 4,000 footers and explore the world (well, locally until travel restrictions are loosened).

One year ago today, I finished my first 50 miler at Pineland. While I didn’t know it at the time that would be my best finish and last ultra race I finished in 2019. It was seriously, one of my best days ever. Thanks, again, to my BFF Mark Nash for pacing me and having the race of my life.