Elements of Erin 337

It really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas.   Saturday was the annual Steveston Craft Fair and official start to my holiday gift buying.  It was great to see so many familar faces selling and buying crafts and baked good.   Today started by participating in the Run Inn The Woods to support the BC Cancer Foundation.  Thank you The SAA for supporting the event and thank to The Run Inn for hosting for a 17th year in a row.  The event included either an 8km run or 3km walk in Pacific Spirit Park.  The  weather was a cold -5C but the coffee and treats back at The Run Inn helped thaw everyone out. This afternoon, I gave blood.  This is only my 2nd time giving blood.  The first time was over 5 years ago.  The process is relatively painless.  The anticipation of the needle is worse than the reality of it.  Once it is in, you don't feel a thing.  Best part of the process is chatting with other people who donated while cons...

Today there was snow in the forecast for Vancouver.  Alternate plans were made to accomodate my training but the snow never came.  So after a 1.5 hour indoor spin class at Speed Theory, and after coffee and breakfast with friends, I headed outside on my bike. Armed with hand warmers, a water bottle I hoped wouldn't freeze and my favourite Pearl Izumi thermal bike wear and my SAA thermal jacket I rode from Richmond out towared UBC.  I stopped just before UBC for some fun hill repeats, then rode home.   Even though the temperature was just above zero, it was sunny and glorious.  Not bad for a training day in February. Happy Training!

Welcome to 2014!  Ok, it is a bit late but better late than never? 2013 ended pretty uneventfully for me.  After having a terrible run at the Fall Classic Half Marathon, I made an appointment with my Dr. to see why I was struggling so much.  Blood tests revealed I was completely normal.  Ugh!  My iron levels were a little low but not enough to explain why my running was suffering so much.  After another visit to the Dr and some more questions and test, I was put on an inhaler.  Seems that when you can't get enough oxygen into your system because your lungs are tight, you don't perform very well when running.  Well, let me tell you, this inhaler has made a world of difference.   Christmas and New Years came and went very quietly.  Most of December saw me working out regularly but not at the same intensity and volume as in the summer.  I also took time out to eat and drink pretty much whatever I wanted.   Although I no long...

On September 15th, Tim and signed up for the Chuckanut Century ride.  After finishing Challenge Penticton, I still felt like I had some more to give.  I was not ready to finish my season. We drove down to Bellingham, WA the morning of the event.  The weather this summer had been amazing but fall was starting to set in.  It was misty and foggy but we thought it would lift as we started the ride.  Well, that is not what happened.   The weather never really improved and it started to rain at one point in the ride.  We were moderately prepared for the cooler temperatures and rain but not so much.  At the 45 minute mark, Tim got a flat tire.  At the 1 hour mark of our ride, we came across a cute coffee shop where a few cyclists were sitting.  We figured "why not?" and stopped for an Americano European style with actual cups (not paper cups!) After about a 45 minute coffee, we continued on our route through Samish Island, WA .  Wha...

After finishing Challenge Penticton, I didn't have any other races in the plans for 2013.  I usually suggest that athletes have a race planned after their 'main event' to avoid post race blues.  However, I hadn't taken my own advice. Frantically, I began looking for swimming, cycling, and running events to end my year.  After a lot of internet searching I decided to sign up for two half marathons.   My next race will be the Sprit Half Marathon in West Vancouver/North Vancouver on Sunday October 6, 2013.  Hopefully the weather will be as nice as it looks in their website photo. My final race of 2013 will be the New Balance Fall Classic Half Marathon in Vancouver on Sunday November 17.  Typically the weather for this race is terrible.  The year pictured below there was ice and snow on the ground.   Happy Training!

So it is October 2nd and I am updating my blog after giving it a long rest.   After my training camp in July, I regrouped, reviewed my training and racing plans for the remainder of the year and refocused on my goal of Challenge Penticton.   Needless to say, this took a lot of time and effort.  Training for any endurance race takes a lot of time and training and an iron distance race is no exception. Here is my race report, better late than never.  It is a bit choppy and detailed around nutrition ______________________________________ Wake Up -  3:15am Pre Race Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs Large White bagel with natural PB 1 banana 1 500ml bottle IMPerform Race Start  6:35am Swim:  1:13:44 Nutrition: none Morning was warm but windy.  Choppy on the water but no whitecaps.  Felt the chop on the way out. Sighting was challenging with the swells.  Eased up on the way back a bit.  Swam alone, th...