Wednesday, July 31, 2013

The Debacle of the Results/ Gorgeous Pics From New Bike Route

These are several of the comments on the facebook page about the triathlon last weekend.  There are still no official results and I am beginning to question that there ever will be.  It is too bad as it was such a fun race and this leaves a sour taste.  I hope they change timing companies next year - they HAVE to.  

Back40 listed me as the overall female winner...any truth to this? I know my times are accurate... Just not sure about anyone else's!

 i emailed them yesterday that I am not included at all, I definitely finished. I still have not heard back from them.

the results are still not correct....

My name isn't listed either and I was awarded the top female. Why would they post results if they are so inaccurate? Makes me wonder if the times listed are even correct. My friend timed himself at 1:27 they listed him at 1:24. Great job to everyone who raced!!

In the Half, the women's age group 50-54 is completely missing from age group results. Also, I am not listed at all in the overall results. Please advise!

 noticed that times/placements posted so far on 40 timing company are different than what was presented at ceremony.

eah I finished and am listed as DNF... Oh well.. Wish I had a finisher medal so I could prove it...

I wasn't listed either and definitely finished, nor was my friend who also received an award. Maybe they are still working on it??

 was NOT even listed, never mind listed as DNF. And yet was given an age award at the finish.

 I hope they choose a different timer for next year.  
I feel pretty lucky I am listed and have the right times minus the transitions.  I am in the wrong age group but I am not missing or called DNF!  

These are some pictures from my Monday bike ride. I took a route I had never taken.  It was delightful and beautiful.  I have ridden twice this week and both times were completely new routes.  Love it!








Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Mascoma Lake Triathlon - The Return

There are so many good things about this triathlon as well as some not so good.

First and most important I don't think I can tell you how much fun  I had doing it.  I was so jazzed during it and when I was done that I think I was grinning for hours. I am still completely amazed at how much I love this sport that I started so late in life.  It has really taught me not to assume I can't do things and to go after it.  Today there was a banner I saw on the side of the road for The Biggest Loser Race and it said:

Find your comfort zone.  Then leave it.

Love it!  That is certainly what has happened to me with regard to tris and I don't regret leaving that comfort zone at all.  More than once during the race (quite honestly always on the bike)  I found myself grinning widely!

I went into this triathlon with some real mixed feelings.  The organizers posted that no wet suits would be permitted.  The water temperature was too warm.  I have never been in a tri without one. I attribute my faster times - than in the pool - and faster is VERY relative - to the buoyancy the wet suit gives me.  Plus of course the added confidence of not drowning.  I googled the issue and that made it worse. Everything I read convinced me I needed the wet suit. But I am nothing if not competitive and I was not going to do this tri simply for fun. At my age awards are easier to come by because of lack of numbers so I wanted to try.  Yikes!
Love my little buddy coming to cheer.

Race morning started out a little hectically and I arrived at the race late and harried.  But I got to the start.  Jameson and Jaxon showed up to cheer me on and I was ready. I noticed a lot of people wearing wet suits and assumed they were okay with not trying for awards. I heard some people discussing it but was surprised particularly in my wave - the older wave - at the large number of people wearing wet suits.  I thought there would be no one left to get awards.
No wetsuit.  I'm in the back looking this way.

Love the breast stroke.

Out!


Starting the run up the hill.

Jaxon is making sure I am doing it right this year.


The swim course was a little different from last year but I actually liked it better. It was pretty straight forward and easy to follow.  I thought the water felt cold but I'm not the one in charge so in I went.  Before I knew it it was time to go in and I was swimming out toward the middle of the lake - without a wet suit -.  I mostly did the breast stroke. I can see where I am going and I feel less panicked.  I got around the first buoy and felt quite good as I headed to the second. I didn't feel very different from when I do wear a wet suit but would I really know? I was at the back of my wave which is pretty typical.  I rounded the last buoy right next to it and headed to shore. I could see a guy a few feet ahead of me and thought I could pass him.  What ?  I'm considering passing someone while swimming!  I could also see the kayak coming in so knew I was one of the last swimmers. Well, I "took off" and did pass the swimmer and according to my son on shore I passed a few swimmers.  No results up yet.  I came out of the water and looked at my watch and saw 10 something.  Wow!  This is great for me. I had to run up a hill, and on through a field - about 1/4 mile.  It seemed to take forever. I passed a couple swimmers before the mat so I assume I beat them too.  At this point my time was 11:55 (13:44 last year) which was better than last year although last year I made a big goof running up to transition which was part of it.


I knew transition would be faster because I wouldn't forget my timing chip and I had no wet suit to take off. I did feel like putting on my bike gloves took forever and wondered if it was worth it. Thoughts?
Soon I was running my bike up to the mounting place and off I went.  I knew the course was hilly but I was excited at my swim (I'm beginning to like it) and ready to roll.
On my way out happy to be on the bike.

Jaxon gets lots of play time in while I am on the bike.


I am by Jameson (aqua shirt) and headed to the transition.

I passed a woman right away who soon passed me back.  Well, I passed her again thinking that we would be doing this the whole race but she never passed me again.  I passed a lot of people - 20 in fact - I counted each and every one. After awhile I made it a goal to pass 16 in all.  I easily did that and no one passed me!  Even though I knew it was hilly there were a lot of hills.  When I ride with my speedy friends I feel slow on the hills but there are people out there who make me look fast on the hill! My confidence was building.  I can pick people off while biking, catch up and pass which I can't do when I'm running.  I know as I'm approaching that the pass will happen.  There was one hill that went on and on and then you got to the top to see that it was a false top and there was a lot more yet.  The good part though is you know you'll come down it later. There is a lot more up on the way out than on the way back.  I had a lot of fun on those hills on the way back and that is where the big wide grins came in.  It got a little tricky as I got near the transition as there were cars and runners.  I  had seen Jameson on my way out on the bike but I could see that he didn't see me as I was coming back. No one ever is ready for me on the bike!  I jumped off my bike and wheeled it into transition. I pushed my lap on the watch but I think it was the mat for coming out. So many mat and a little confusing. So I think my bike is a little short and the transition a little long.  But it was better than last year!  And ever so much fun.
My time was about 59:07 but I think I pushed the button on the wrong mat. That made my transition 2:48.  Last year 1:01:54 for bike and 1:59 for transition. So I think the bike was closer to 1:00 flat.
Wondering why Jameson is on the phone telling Emily I am coming.


Jaxon has more play time while I am running.

I am almost done!

I head out to run. When I put on my bike shoes and my running shoes I plopped right on the grass - a  chance for a brief rest and no struggles with balance.  I took the time to add my Garmin to the watch on my wrist.  As I approached Jameson I heard him say, "Emily, here she comes."   I wasn't sure what he was doing. He surely didn't think I was going to stop for a quick chat did he?  What he was doing was putting her on speaker phone so I had both my kids cheering for me. I could clearly hear her, it was awesome. Favorite moment of the day.  I kept going.  I didn't have the dead leg feeling and my pace was in the 9s. I was very pleased with this.  My pace held pretty steady. I wasn't passing people like I did last year. In fact two men passed me.  One I clearly remembered passing on the bike. Now it was his turn.  The miles seemed to go on forever but finally it was time to turn in and finish.  I was thrilled because I knew unless I stopped to chat on the phone or read a book I was going to have a decent PR in this triathlon from last year which is what I wanted.  Jameson and Jaxon were there and I.WAS.DONE!  My run was 31:43.  Last year it was 31:34.  Pretty close.


Time to relax.

I ate, got some food for Jaxon, and we lounged and waited around for the award ceremony.  We went down to the water with Jaxon so he could cool off and play some more.  Then it was time for awards. I was feeling really good about my time and confident about an award.  
More play time.  He was tired on the way home!

A great shot if I do say so myself.
This is where it gets not as good.  First of all I had wondered how they knew who wore wet suits and who didn't.  Well, apparently it didn't matter. Awards were given for age groups with no concern about who wore a wet suit.  That would be fine if they hadn't sent an email out about the water temp and the rule we all had to follow.   I fretted over this and didn't need to.  I learned I can do it without but I am irked over the way this was handled.

Then I got no award.  Well, two awards were given and none to me. That made no sense as three are given. So I found out who to ask and went over to the timers.  They found that my age was not saying what it should and fixed it.  Then they told me my time was 1:58 not 1:48.  More about that later.  Back to the award because I clearly got one.  I got blueberries and a pint glass. Jameson made a point of loudly saying my name so they would announce it and people would clap.
My age group awards.

With my chief spectators.

We stopped at MacDonalds (I know) for iced coffee and a caramel shake. We hung out in the shade for a bit as I continued to recap my highlights of the tri.  Jameson thought it was quite fun to watch - lots going on  and was impressed or so he said with my performance.  It was a great great time.


Okay back to the time.  I went over my time every way I could think of.  When I got home I used my watch against my phone timer to see if the watch was running slowly.  Nope.  My garmin run time was the same as my watch run time.  I have a time for each lap and they are all reasonable times. I pushed the button between each lap and stopped it at the end.  My time was NOT 1:58.  I find this very irritating.  I have been waiting for the results, checking often.  They are not up yet even though it was stated they would be up last night (they were last year) or today.  So far nothing. That makes me wonder if they are finding problems???  How could they mess up my time by 10 minutes?  They said they had me  in the right swim wave.  I worked hard for it and I want credit for my PR.  I am also dying to see how I did against the other swimmers, bikers etc. and overall.  

Making sure my watch is working correctly.

My loot!
Okay I have been waiting for the results to finish this but the results seem to be a real mess.  Lots of comments about names being left out etc.  I do see the times for my individual things and my rank so will talk about that. The times are right but I would guess the ranking would change.  It went from them saying I was 1:58 to being up for 1:43.  That's not right either. It doesn't include transitions.  So strange.

But at this point......my ranking is 99/136 overall.  I am going with my watch time of 1:48 not the 1:43 listed there. I have a 5 minute PR and I am thrilled with that.

Swim - 11:56 (last year 13:44) and this was without a wetsuit.  I was 118/140. I beat 22 swimmers.  Yes, I beat 22 swimmers.  22 swimmers came in after me!! So the swim is a win!

T1 no official time. My watch said 2:25 which is way ahead of last year 4:24 (expected as I blew it last year)  a win

Bike 59:55 Last year was 1:0l:54 so two minutes faster - a win and a blast!!!! I was 97/140

T2 around 2 minutes the same as last year

Run 31:45  Last year was 31:34.  I call this a win.  I have been slower lately and am very pleased with this.  93/140

So lots of improvement in this this tri.  A totally fun and satisfying day!

It looks like this swimmer is last because the kayak is 
coming in with her but SHE IS NOT!



Monday, July 29, 2013

A Chairlift Ride in the MIddle of a Race

I signed up for this race months ago- it was probably cheaper by a certain date.  I was smart to not sign up for the 15K but really - a 5K the morning after a triathlon?  I went for it because it was unique and included a chairlift ride.  I always like different races.

But while I was running the 5K part of my triathlon I clearly remember thinking - "I don't want to do this again tomorrow."  But I did want to do the race. Christa was walking it and I texted her to see if she wanted a walking partner. She did and life was good again!

The other part I didn't give a lot of thought too was all the driving I would be doing. Both races were at least 90 minutes away which meant very early mornings and more time in my car than I really cared to be spending.  But I did it and both were fun.  Well one was fun and the other was fantastic.
Me, Darlene, Christa

The weather Sunday was iffy but it only ever sprinkled.  It was a bit of a bloggy meet up as Christa, Darlene and myself were all there.  There were a lot of people there, I would guess many many were doing their first race.  None of us got the memo about wearing the race shirt but believe me it was a sea of green.  Former contestants on the Biggest Loser were announcing. I haven't watched the show in recent seasons and didn't recognize anyone.

One funny thing.....I was at a family reunion the night before and found out my cousin's daughter was going to be here.  I was at the start line with many many people and looked and she was right next to me!

It was a fairly hilly course and I was really glad I made the decision to walk it. I was lame from the day before but truthfully I am even lamer today from the muscles I used walking it. Christa is a brisk walker!  It was pretty but cloudy so not as nice as it could have been.

We met Darlene who was doing some running although very carefully!! She looked great.




The chairlift ride was fun if a little surreal. I was glad I wasn't doing this race for time as - yes, they subtracted 6 minutes but the lift stopped twice so I'm sure those extra seconds were in there. If you were really racing it that would matter.  And then the walk back down was on a rocky road/trail that made me nervous. I am very leery of uneven surfaces since spraining my ankle. I don't want to go there again. So we slowly made our way down that part.

The 3 of us waited and watched at the bottom for Christa's friend, Becky, who did the whole 15K on a very hilly course.

This race was great it that it got a lot of people out there racing who probably never thought they would enter a race.  It had medals always a plus in my book.  I don't think I'd do this again but I don't regret at all doing it yesterday.

I did this race on Sunday and my triathlon was on Saturday. I am still waiting for results before I publish that race report although I may give up.  They must be having problems as they said Saturday night or Sunday. Now you can't even access the race site as it isn't working.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Do I Wear A Wet Suit?

Help Help Help!

Wet suits are illegal at my tri on Saturday!  I have never been in a tri without one. It is  my security blanket.

If I wear one I can't qualify for an award.  Last year my first tri - this one- I was 4th in my age group.  (being old does that).  There was no one in the 60 - 64 age group which I think I'm in although who knows.  They have me listed at 58 in the results last year, not the 59 I would be in that calendar year.

So I guess it is not impossible I would win an award although by no means a definite.

It is a 500 yard swim. The one I did a few weeks ago was 600 yards so this is a bit shorter.

Wet suits help me with buoyancy and confidence.

Thoughts?

And goals while I'm on this thought is to beat my overall time from last year with also improving some other times.  I HAVE to do better in transition 1. I think I was next to last  overall with that.  Left my timing chip on the towel. Brilliant.

Jameson is going with me so I know I'll have fun!


A Beautiful Summer Day in Vermont!

The hot weather is gone.  The skies and lakes are a beautiful blue and many many people are out enjoying it as they should be. Today on the causeway one would be forgiven for thinking the first language around here was French!  What a treasure the causeway is. I am so glad it was repaired after the flooding destroyed it.  Today was all about just enjoying the day and scenery and not having to work on this beautiful summer day!
Heading out to the cut on the Causeway.  There is a space near the end
where boats can go through.

You can see the Causeway far off in the distance.


A sailboat goes through the cut.


It was crowded out there today.



Now headed back.


When you're riding on the Causeway it seems straight but it curves a lot.


A quick stop at Sand Bar State Park after to bundle up and read.



Tuesday, July 23, 2013

50 Years Together Celebrated

Last Saturday night we went to an anniversary party for a 50th wedding celebration.
Pat and Bob


  I remember when I thought anyone married 50 years was ancient.  Well I don't have that view anymore!

This party was spectacular.  The weather completely cooperated.  A different cousin hosted the party and her gardens were beyond beautiful.  I only captured photos of a small part of them.







I got to see many cousins I don't see often.  One of my cousins had a huge health scare last year and almost died.  She was there healthy and happy and it was so good to see her!
Cousins and more cousins


 There was an outstanding band and everyone got into the dancing.  The food was excellent and there were BOTH cake and cupcakes.  Yum!



All cleaned up and ready to party.




The next day Mr. AJH got out his old car and we went for a Sunday drive after the relay.    A nice weekend in Vermont!