Now what?

I've been asking myself this question for, well over a week, now. So here goes. I don't really know how to create the sort of buzz that a trip and an ironman did. I'm hoping that whatever I attempt doesn't end up as some sort of referendum on my "regular life". But the URL says it all. I don't know why I've waited so many years (eight? nine?) to claim this blog or web address, but here goes:




http://unencumberedwoman.blogspot.com/

Ironman? What Ironman?

Packed my things. Went on a trip. Did an Ironman. Now I'm back here. Just like the Cold Cows.

The summer of the Eagles....

Lyrics to prove it....


Take It To The Limit lyrics
Songwriters: Henley, Don; Meisner, Randy; Frey, Glenn;All alone at the end of the evening
And the bright lights have faded to blue
I was thinking 'bout a woman
Who might have loved me, and I never knew

You know I've always been a dreamer
(Spent my life running 'round)
And it's so hard to change
(Can't seem to settle down)
But the dreams I've seen lately
Keep on turning out and burning out
And turning out the same

So put me on a highway
And show me a sign
And take it to the limit one more time

You can spend all your time making money
You can spend all your love making time
If it all fell to pieces tomorrow
Would you still be mine?

And when you're looking for your freedom
(Nobody seems to care)
And you can't find the door
(Can't find it anywhere)
When there's nothing to believe in
Still you're coming back, you're running back
You're coming back for more

So put me on a highway
And show me a sign
And take it to the limit one more time

Take it to the limit
Take it to the limit
Take it to the limit
One more time

Take it to the limit
Take it to the limit
Take it to the limit
One more time

Take it to the limit
Take it to the limit
Take it to the limit
One more time
...

these lyrics are last corrected by Sally Mohle

so put me on a highway, and show me the sign....

sealed with a kiss.

the day after.

I've learned that more than one person is checking the blog to see how things went and the least I can do is give a word or two.  Folks might be getting personalized blow by blow accounts, but here's some of my inspiration, just about twenty four hours after I crossed the finish line:

• I finished the event, in 13 hours and 12 minutes and change.  My 3.8 k swim was 1:10, my first transition was 7:09, my 180k bike was 6 hours 38 minutes and change, my second transition was 6 minutes, and my run was 5 hours and 9 minutes.  This total put me in the upper 50 percent of my age group.
• I'm happy that i finished. Canada ironman has been a dream for many years, and last year I failed to finish, so the goal yesterday was to get myself across the finish line.

Tidbits of the day:

• 6:45--pros start, and I'm still standing in the portolet line....oops!  (i still made it to the start on time). 
• 7:00 race begins and I proceed to be pummeled and climbed over by guys for the next 70 minutes.
• 8:30 on the bike.  crowds are screaming on the way out of town.  The layout is awesome and the support on this course is beyond compare.  I see Peter and Nan and the girls and give a big hi.
• The first third of the day consists of riding through spectacular countryside, sunny, beautiful roads, rolling hills eventually turning to mountain passes for remainder of day.
• 12:30. Lunchtime!!!!  We have a special needs bag that we submit so we can stash away any special nutrition.  By this time, I've eaten enough sport nutrition stuff, so I'm craving my specially packed PB sandwich and bagel and cookie that Kathy made for us (have i mentioned how much i adore our host?).  Anyway, I forgot that on this course the SN station is actually a little (quite a lot) beyond the halfway mark, so I was cheerfully calling out *lunchtime!* as we were rolling into the area.  
• My favorite hand-made sign of the day?  "you guys are crazy"....on the ride. Then there she was, later on during the run, with a sign, "you guys are still crazy!"  I told her that she was my favorite and she laughed with glee.
• The hills on this course are deadly.  With 900 first time Ironman athletes, I don't like being passed by somebody going 47 miles an hour down hill when we have one marked lane with cones going down the median and the surface is slick from new rain.
• The run.  Well, a while back I had proposed, what happens if the longest run, ever, in preparation for an Ironman is 14 miles?  I knew from the outset that it would most likely mean a lot of walking and jogging.  And so it was.  I got myself to the 13 mile turnaround in about two and a half hours.
• When I reached the turnaround, I got down on my hands and knees and kissed the electronic mat that we cross over ( i hollered that this was as far as I got last year and the crowd went wild!)  I was off like a bandit and Lady Gaga was playing on somebody's radio.
• I see Peter, the girls, and Nan at mile 22. I give them all giant hugs and Peter and I walk and talk for a while. It's the first time I've seen him in hours, and it feels wonderful.  We talk about the weather and how I was doing and was I going to finish and see you at the finish line.
• The last 3-4 miles are almost entirely populated by appreciative people, cheering, talking, playing music.  I still walked some, but, really.  Time to move unless you're really fried.
• An adorable volunteer also a nurse, Amy, helped me transition out of the event and then set me loose.  So there I am with foil wrapper keeping me warm, with a slice of veggie dominoes pizza and a bag of chips and a cup of melon, looking for my family.  There they were, all smiles by the bandshell.   
• 
  
• Now to get home.  When we pulled up in front of our house, our host had purchased a beautiful bottle of local wine, had a candle lit with a lovely note, and outside of the house were twinkly lights and handmade sign from the girls:

Saturday

hey mom, they gave you that tacky helmet!? -ashby

well, bike and transition bags are in place, everything is on bedroom floor for tomorrow morning, I've got my plan for breakfast and nutrition, about an hour before i start to try to go to bed/sleep. I guess this is what I've been waiting for all along.  I feel rested (finally) and ready (well, that's relative, isn't it).  Peter and I just went out on the deck to have a half glass of wine and enjoy the outdoors.  He said to me, laughing, "it's like one day a year Karen gets whatever she wants, but the next day she has to do an Ironman."  yeah, that just about sums it up!!!!  So tomorrow....what do I plan to do?  I plan to go out there and not get kicked in the head, eat my nutrition and not get too cold, be very friendly to whoever I can, go for a really long bike ride on my perfectly tuned cervelo, then go running and probably also walking for the remainder of the day.  I think this most likely will be my first ironman finish after dark, so I'm considering the joy of coming into town after dark, but not too long after dark.  I want to soak it all in, I want to enjoy Canada and the magnificence of BC and the down to earth nature of people in this region, and finally, I want to enjoy the love of my family that has come so far with me and had a fabulous week here in one of my favorite places.

their energy is replacing mine!!!! this is a good thing.

the peach!

friday night

Not, the Ironman MC, but she'd be great at it.

We decided to bag the whole IM dinner thing and post meal meeting in favor of Japanese restaurant and street festival that Penticton hosts every summer to celebrate Ironman.  We had a great time, although it's gotten cold around here, and I'm trying to factor temps in to my race dressing/special needs bag plans and all.  We noticed a dearth of Ironman types at the street festival.  They must have been out putting in one last ride on their bikes. and hand washing their compression socks.  Peter and I really want to cruise the expo and take a picture of the award winner for most tri-geeked out, but even we may not have the nerve to do that.  But really, it is always funny to descend upon a town and see everybody all glammed out in their gear and finishers clothing etc. etc...And by the way, just checked updated Wunderground for tomorrow: 20 degrees and clear!!!!! OK y'all, time for conversion time? that would be....68 degrees farenheit.  OK, so...if I can't handle this weather forecast, i don't know WHAT I can handle.  Good grief.  Of course, layering is a must and that's not easy to do on IM day, so we'll have to figure that one out.  But, I have most of the rest of today to worry about that....

friday

this has been a pretty good day.  I'm having fun and not feeling terribly ill.  The hill we hiked up last night sort of tweaked some stuff on my back side, but heck, if i can't handle walking up a hill i shouldn't be doing this event....stretch tomorrow, eat tonight....

this was like a walk up the hill in the East Bay.

Registration!!!!!

this gal is racing AND smiling!

HA!

Now that I'm wearing a little green bracelet, I get free food and entry into strange places....do i really need to do the event???

this ain't monona terrace...

transition area

yes...they're all out there...."training....still"....

There's nothing like rolling into town, thinking you've got your nerves under control, then seeing all of these people parading around with their t-shirts and hats and wetsuits and all hugging their friends and talking about how great they feel.  There's always a woman who is squeezing her giant shoulders into a wetsuit and getting ready for a  little practice swim....breathe, karen, breathe....I must say that I didn't see many other cyclists out there this morning:

my last easy ride between Naramata and Penticton

The Bike Barn

Let's smile for the crazy lady, this is gonna be a long weekend.

co2 cartridge? tube? nutrition? we have it ALL.

I was there at 8:55, along with smiling employees and a few other triathletes.  These folks know what they're doing.  I pulled up and a handsome guy grabbed my bike asked me what he could do for me and how I was doing.  I launched into a story about photographs or something, but by the time I left 15 minutes later all of my issues were resolved, and the place was filling up.  I'll be happy if i don't have to return tomorrow or saturday, but something tells me if I do, these folks will make it all right.

Ironman CA tattoo, anyone? right across the street.

Cool as a cucumber

And a fresh new hairdo for race day.  Our host is also a hairdresser!!!

ironman? what ironman?

not in IL anymore

manitou beach forever!!!!!

OK, so I admit...the tan is working for me at this late day, but seriously....the 50 minute run through Naramata this morning was a complete joke.  I started wondering if I was actually at altitude, and at 9 in the morning it was already BURNING HOT.  This is like Napa on steroids....how can it be so sunny so far north???? it's gorgeous and all, but egads.  Of course, it appears that we will be delivered much milder, and possibly cold, wet on Sunday, so you never know....as this fantastical day progressed, the signs of Ironman madness set in.  Ripped men with shaved legs and their beautiful wives and children prowling about town, very expensive bikes ripping up and down the main Naramata road (windy and narrow and hilly), and, well, those women who look like they eat people like me for breakfast (yes, like they have ginormous feet, very long legs and incredibly broad shoulders (they walk fast and usually are not dragging kids around).   One of my favorite new boyfriends was an organic farmer at the market tonight.  He's got a few plots of land that are actually on the bike and run course, and he's racing this year for the first time.  God bless this soul, he actually has BEEN to the UP!!!! As we say: see you on Sunday!!

getting ready to go....

Ironman Fever!

Yellow Lake, IM bike course, mile 80

descent, mile 90 or so....

ram tough!!!!

It's all coming together, despite my terrible nerves.  We pulled up at Kathy's house and it's fabulous! We love naramata, it's beautiful wine country about 20 minutes away from race start.  Parked in the front driveway, ram truck!!!

I'm still so nervous I could die....

bridge to nowhere, or is this me on Sunday?

...or is it some life threatening illness that has invaded my body and I'm going to die, anyway?  Here we go again....breathe.....I can always slow down.....We managed to clock a pretty quick 350 miles today and have a little quiet time in the hotel so my mind can stop spinning.  We have a contest, first one to spot an ironman triathlete....it's only Monday and we're south of Seattle so chances are slim, but tomorrow I've got my eyes peeled....

Easy ride around town, last day in Florence

the river never looks the same. goodbye.

i'm supposed to look more rested than this. oops.

My last Florence run

Last Sunday morning loop with my Sunday running buddies.  I don't want to call K & C old, but, really, if you add their ages they would total over 130 years.  They are fit, gorgeous, and both so totally positive.  Total inspirations, both.  We all exchanged big hugs over the whole Ironman thing, and I got the latest updates on their adventures, families, etc... Not only are they responsible for caring for all sorts of people and animals, but they both are involved in other area sports: exercise class, pickle ball, tennis, driving vans to and from Eugene, the list goes on and on.

Kris & Cathy

Kris & me

Cathy's rufus tattoo




Cathy got her tattoo to celebrate receiving her first social security check!

Chasing Kris

Last night at Mom and Dad's party Kris and I agreed that she would do oldtown then through the casino, to Mercer Lake Road,  and then water break at Fred Meyer and back to Greentrees, which would give her 10 miles for her half marathon in September.  I said I needed to do 8 miles, and we agreed that I could sleep in, then skip Mercer Lake and cut up Spruce and chase her down.  Kris argued that she would take the better part of 2 1/2 to 3 hours but I should have known that was way too slow.  When I left my house at 8 AM I felt so cheerful I decided that I would just shave the casino and freddy's, making it closer to 9 miles, and take the last mile easy alongside Kris.  Well, it sort of turned into, chase Kris for 90 minutes and never catch up.  Later on when we chatted we agreed that she overestimated the time it would take for her to do the course, and me, well, now I'm completely done.  A little spinning tomorrow and it's all jogs here and there. So after a fairly spirited 9 plus mile run today, i feel as comfortable as I'm going to feel in the next week.

Dress Rehearsal

Today was the first day here on the coast that it was sunny when I woke up.  Time for easy run, dress rehearsal style.  I think i'm going to stick to my comfy running shoes, so there's one decision made.

Ironman, Schmironman

if you look close at my hip/waist, almost gone, roadrash, et. al.

And what shoes WILL i wear?????

On the one hand, I want to throw in the towel and bag this whole thing. I mean, really, life isn't getting any easier and this has been another difficult year....then again, I'm getting serious: what shoes *will* i wear?  here I am, testing out the old t1s.

I'm so nervous I could die!

I'd rather be crocheting.

I went out for a jog with Kris this morning.  It was grey, cool, foggy.  I felt tired at three miles and Kris went home, but i went out Kingwood and 35th, making for  a 6 mile loop. What am I thinking?  An hour of running seems perfectly reasonable.  5 or 6 or more hours of jog/walk/running? ugh....

You can take the woman out of suburbia, but you can't take suburbia out of the woman

is the floor brown? now, it's GREY!

I could live in this space!!!!

when a woman tapers in her own home, things tend to get VERY TIDY and VERY ORGANIZED.  So, what happens when a woman tapers about two thousand miles away from home?  Her car gets VERY TIDY and VERY CLEAN.  This is probably the best thing that has happened, just about ever.  After about three solid hours of vacuuming by hand with the rented rug doctor, I realized that there is a metaphor here....If I had shampooed this carpet once a year since we bought the vehicle, it wouldn't take two days to clean the interior.  But now, I have a deadline.  The RD is due tomorrow and I must move on to other activities.  Ironman is the same.  If I had put in a little more focus in say, march or april or even January or February, the challenges of July might not have been so great.   Oh....who am I kidding? I don't want to run twenty miles in February OR clean my car every year!!! Life is too hectic and the world is too harsh.  I'll take what I get, i suppose.  Meantime, I LOVE the way my car looks and feels.  New rule, for the time being: no crumbs, no gum, no coffee.  We'll see if these rules make it out of the state of Oregon.

I'm a Mature Woman

mist, my siuslaw, my cervelo, lovely

just about my favorite bridge, anywhere

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drivers are the same everywhere....

 

 

 

Add caption

Well, it's official. Eleven days to go and finally my roadrash is healed and my knee feels better.  Unfortunately, all semblance of speed, energy, motivation, and confidence has completely drained from my body and soul.  Ironman? What Ironman. Oh well, at least the week in bc will be fun and I'll be out of the states, which is always a relief.  I was able to chug out 33 incredibly pedestrian miles along our fabulous coast.  There was a day when I rode a TT bike and would be embarrassed to go too slow....now, i figure I'm becoming a Mature Woman, and if i have the cajones to go out there on a drizzly day in August, well, i can ride any speed I want!!!


I got buzzed on this bridge this morning. Egads, I guess Buckaroo Banzaii was right, where ever you go, there you are....

12 days left!

tree hugging dirt worshipper

this is where I don't get to ask about my knee/foot/head/etc.

OK, now it's time for some serious nervous energy. The car is completely clean, but i still haven't steamcleaned the carpet yet. Today was a restful day, and we started it out with a bang, on our favorite trail. It's a 5 mile hike, to and from Siltcoos Lake through a gorgeous old growth forest. I had plans to ride for an easy 25, but i got caught up in the family health drama (does addie, after all, have a broken arm?).

Countdown to Canada

Peter wonders if I could embed this in the page, but i think the link is about as fancy as  blogger will get.

http://www.ironman.ca/canclock.html

ten mile run!

Kris, veteran of many marathons.

Well, considering I somehow missed my last "real" long run, today's run of ten miles had to fulfill my anxiety about distance and time on my feet.  I really couldn't consider anything longer for today, and I have no intention of stressing myself beyond what I did this morning in between now and the 29th.  as we say, I know better.  So it's behind be, what became perhaps the most whimsical, pleasant ten miles I've ever run, well, really jogged.  I couldn't go out the door without my camera, so I strapped my camera plus four fluid bottles onto my hip, and walked out the door at a downright luxuriant 8:45 AM!  Not only was I late leaving the house, but I was reminded of my tardy activity because I ran into my friend and running buddy, Kris, who of course was finishing up her 7 mile run AND delivering trash that she had found on the road into the proper receptacle.  She is one of my great inspirations, and a fabulous athlete and dear friend.

river view, mile one

the river never looks the same. 

So with the camera on my hip, I took a few shots in favorite places.  By the time I got to Driftwood Shores, I wanted to take more pictures of the ocean, but the fog was thick and so I decided to get a little live action.  This is five miles into my run, and the spirit of stopping and taking video on the beach really broke the mood for me.  This is supposed to be fun, afterall.  Plus, I know by now that no speed records are going to be broken on the 29th.  If I can walk away from this month happy and healthy, well, that's a good enough thing.

Here I am at Kris' heartbreak hill, at about mile 9.

If only this were a half ironman!

Pacific Ocean, to the right.

I got out this morning for a lovely 45 miles.  I threw the race wheels on and well, that sort of made me feel fast, although I wasn't working very hard.  Somewhere between,  *oh, I don't care and gee, I should be working a lot harder*.  Probably a good thing for taper, all things considered.

Tagaderm!!!!!

road rash? what road rash?

it's not cheap, so if you're smart you'll barter w/someone in the med. profession!

Steve, thank you Steve! It's all about the tagaderm! Next time you have an intimate exchange with pavement, by all means this is what you need to medicate with!!!!

16 days left

What Will I wear?????

You know you've started to taper when you start to clean the car, thoroughly and seriously wonder, what shoes will I wear? Seriously, there has been a lot of stress this year, particularly around cycling shoes. I just got some new inserts for the sidis, but i may have to go with the old sidi T1 to prevent any unnecessary numbness and pain in my feet.