Speedster

Exciting News Item #1:

I (finally) bought a bike! It's shiny and super light (especially compared with my hybrid) and it's going to change my life. Or at least my enthusiasm for bike training. Here it is:

Isn't it pretty? It’s a Scott Speedster. The 2010 model, so I got a good deal. Special thanks to Gregory at Speedy Reedy in Seattle, who patiently answered all of my questions, replaced various parts and made adjustments for shrimp-rider comfort, and did not once talk to me like I was a dumb-ass. The other staff there seem nice too. A stellar customer service experience.

It will be at least a few days before I'm riding on the road, because of...

Exciting News Item #2: Snowstorm!!

We woke to snow Wednesday morning, and it stuck around until Saturday. So my first bike ride was on the bike trainer Wiley got me a few Christmases ago. Just as well, since this is my first clipless pedal experience, and I can tell it's going to take some getting used to. "Everyone falls over at first," Gregory told me. I'm sure I will. Several times, I predict.

Snow presents some training challenges, but also some opportunities for fun cross-training experiences. Strength training:

Neighborhood Tour:

Still, I'm excited to get out on a “real” ride on my new bike. That’s a pretty big deal for me to be excited about bicycles and bike riding. I’ve always been uninspired to ride and intimidated at the thought of riding around on a machine that could break at any moment and leave me scraped up and stranded. But my ability to ride my bike is perhaps the best representation of my return to health after my illness and surgeries. After my most recent surgery (2004), in which, among other things, my tailbone was removed, I could not ride a bike for about a year. I need to keep in mind the feeling I had when I first got back on my bike: exhilarated.

I’d also like to take this opportunity of spending lots of time on my bike to learn how to take care of my bike. I’ll admit, Wiley does all of my bike maintenance for me. I theoretically know how to change a tire, but I need to practice doing that. Perhaps a little bike maintenance class is in order. Just as soon as I master my clipless pedals…

Exciting News Item #3:

As of this writing, I’ve raised $4,925!! Wow! The minimum I’m required to raise to go to Hawaii is $5300, so I’m nearly there. And over halfway to my goal of $8000. You all are awesome supporters, whether you’ve donated money, asked me how my training is going, or even just read to the end of this blog post. Thank you to my most recent donors: Charlotte Morganti, Stephanie Hammer, Laura Parsons & Mikael Brostrom, Ann & Marvin Collier, Penny Brandt & Dan Dobbins, Dan Cheever and Sue Stasiowski, Tita McCall, Michael Peterman, Mary Ellen Serino, Tom & Marilyn Olsen, Dan Love & Amy Sedestrom, Allie Eilers, Gregory & Emily Malley, Marsh & Susan McCall, Bill & Janislee Wiese, Andrea Re, Joe & Dana Doucette, Leah Sherman, John Smith & Chloe Bracis, Lisa Koblenz, Linda Wiley, Leslie Sensenig, Patsy Heasly. Go Team!

Going Swimmingly

A few weeks ago, I needed to go for a swim on a Sunday. I intended to do it during the day, but suddenly it was 4PM and I hadn’t gone. I made a plan with Wiley to go after dinner. Then I stalled. I put Helen to bed, and made the mistake of lying down with her. Evening exercise death sentence. In the ten minutes of back rubbing in a dark room with fake rain sounds emanating from the white noise machine, I nearly fell asleep myself. It was 7:30. As I lay there I tried to talk myself into going to the gym. Often on the team we talk about how what we go through in our training is nothing compared to what cancer patients go through. Usually this works at motivating me. Chemo, Janet, I thought to myself. Beth went through chemo. Nothing doing. I had plans to go to the gym the very next morning, to attend a spinning class. Wouldn’t that suffice? Did I have to go there now too?

Then I thought of many years ago, when Beth and Kevin were members of the same gym I still belong to. We used to go workout in the evenings together. At least once, Beth and I drove there in a winter downpour, couldn’t find parking, and drove home without working out. I was more motivated than that now, wasn’t I?

In the end, two things got me out of Helen’s bed and into my car, then the cold pool. The first was that I thought about you, my three readers. Do I really want to write about how I wimped out? I thought. Or how I triumphed over my own laziness? The second thing was that I remembered something nice about the pool at my gym: There’s a hot tub there.

So I swam, and I soaked. Both felt great. As I could have predicted, I did not regret going to the gym. I never do.

Another good part of the evening happened on the way home. I needed to stop for milk and cereal for the morning. Fearing that our local beer-and-milk store, Durn Good Grocery, would be closed, I stopped at J’s Mart (not to be confused with K’s Mart further down the street, or, more out of the way, the Hop-In or Plaid Pantry. I love the names of the 7-11 alternatives in Seattle.) The man behind the counter directed me to the one milk option, quarts of Dairigold. I flashed on a memory of a friend from my first library job, Ahmed. Ahmed immigrated to Seattle from Somalia a year or two before I met him. Ahmed has a perpetual full-face grin every time I see him, and a delight in the aspects of American culture that many of us who grew up here find mundane.

Once Ahmed came to visit me when I worked at the Skyway Library. We went to 7-11 during my break, and he got a cup of coffee. He inquired about getting a splash of milk for his coffee, and the cashier handed him an open container of Dairigold. You’d have thought he’d been handed the Hope Diamond.

"Dairigold, Janet!” he said, holding it aloft. “Local cows, working hard!” This last was a reference to an ad campaign featuring DairiGold cows performing tasks such as snowboarding and waterskiing.

The swim would have been worth it just for that memory alone.

As the cashier at J’s Mart was ringing me up, he sighed and looked at the clock. 9:50.

“Ten more minutes and I get to go home.” I asked him where home was and he said “Marysville.” That’s a good forty-five minutes from Seattle. “And when do you have to be back?” I asked.

“Tomorrow morning at 6:00.”

And I was complaining about having to make back-to-back trips to my gym to workout? Don’t let me do that again, three readers.

[Yeah, a lot of that was only tangentially related to training. But you guys don’t mind, right?]

I’ve been meaning to have a weekly “thank you” section for donors. I hope the fact that I’ve neglected to do that until now doesn’t imply a lack of gratitude on my part. I’m hugely thankful for every donation, large or small, that I receive. Even though the money goes, not to me but to LLS, I take it personally, and feel an emotional jolt of energy each time I get a donation or even just a word of encouragement from a friend. It feels like everyone is cheering me on.

There’s Clem, the owner of a B&B on the Big Island where we spent 4 days in 2007, who has given me $100 both times I’ve done Team in Training events. There’s Beth and Kevin’s families, who have lost too many family members to cancer, and have been very supportive both financially and emotionally. There’s my cousin Bob who included a note with his check that simply said “Good luck, Janet. Kick Ass.” (I’m keeping that note on my desk even after my race is finished, Bob.) Beth and I shared the same dentists, a husband-and-wife team. Last week they sent me a $250 check. Yes, I got $250 from my dentist. I could go on. It’s all overwhelming, in the best way. Thank you all.

And specifically, thank you to my donors thus far: Mom & Dad Buttenwieser, Ann & Larry Buttenwieser, Sheila Scott, Virginia & Bird Anderson, Clem Classen, Kara Knox, Stan Peterman, Laura Vadman, Cathy Lu, Mike Wiley, Stephanie Lile, Teri Hein, Sarah Selden Bush, Andy Sieple, Bob Dowling, Kristin Meyer, Bob & Cynthia Lawrence, Dennis & Marilyn Wiley, Erika Brumett, Jay Gardner, Warren Dibble & Allie Burke, Grier Jewell, Laura Konen & Dominic Lee, Annabel Laramee, Emily Seda, Stephanie Cristalli, Damon Agnos, Catherine Frum, Joe Ponepinto, Mariya Triesman, Lexy Relph. You guys rock!

Find Your Rhythm

I'm not a big fan of classes at the gym. If you'd been in the room with me when I tried step aerobics, or kickboxing, you'd understand why. Having my lack of coordination displayed for me in floor-to-ceiling mirrors while house music pulses around me and the instructor shouts "use your glutes!" and other encouragements I cannot hear...well, that is not my idea of having fun while exercising. Actually, going to the gym in the first place is not my idea of fun exercise. But sometimes, when it's cold/dark/rainy, it's the best place to go.

And, I'm pleased to report that I've found a class at the gym that I like: studio cycling, aka spinning. It's a great workout, and a good activity for those of us who lack grace. You sit on your bike and pedal. I even have a favorite instructor: Chad. Chad makes the workout like a bike ride. Chad plays good music. When Chad speaks through his headset, I can understand what he says. What's more, I like what he says. He's kind of like a yoga instructor disguised as a cycling guy. He says encouraging things like "you are strong!" and reminds us that this is our time, our workout. He admires us for taking the time to come to class. He also says "find your rhythm" over and over. He's talking about cadence, finding a pedal stroke speed and sticking with it. But, of course, it applies to all of my training, my exercise attempts, my life. It can be a tough thing to find. And great when I do.

I think Chad might need to come to Hawaii to cheer us on.

I've also found, as I get further along in my training, with longer runs, that I need to find new rhythms in terms of what I listen to on my ipod. A good set of music can really make a difference in terms of how I feel when I'm running. Please leave any good exercise music suggestions (artists and/or specific songs) in the comments.

With the new year comes a new training schedule. We are stepping it up in terms of length of workouts. I'm also resolving to actually do the core and strength training when my schedule tells me to. (i.e., ever). Time to dig my weights out of the closet and start doing some sit-ups. My least favorite part of training, but important to do. And not so bad, if set to the right soundtrack.

Happy Birthday, Beautiful Beth

Today is Beth's birthday. She is on my mind often when I'm training, and especially much today while I went for my bike ride, then for a walk in Schmitz Park not far from Beth and Kevin's house. It was a beautiful, clear afternoon, a day Beth would have enjoyed spending outside, especially because it wasn't too cold. Beth was a non-fan of cold weather, and always chilly, wearing turtlenecks and scarves in May.

I was always amused by the fact that someone could be born on the winter solstice and dislike the cold so much. Apparently, though, it was not always this way. When she was a little girl living in Chicago, she was always the last one to come in from playing in the snow. She loved the cold and snow so much that her family nicknamed her "Bear," a name that stuck throughout her life.

I miss Beth a lot today, and it's also nice to pause from the holiday frenzy and soak up some nice memories of my friend. Here she is on a camping trip:


Now there's someone who knows how to eat in style while camping!

I'll be back soon with more training updates (note that I went for a bike ride today. Free wheel hub replaced and all is well with my bike.) Today, though, let's all (and by all, I mean the three people who read this blog) drink a toast to Beth. Happy winter solstice to you all. I'll take whatever Mama Nature has to dish out this winter -- bike rides in the sleet, runs in the snow, dark and windy and soggy. Bring it. I can take it. I've got a bear by my side.

Training Fail

One of the biggest perks of doing an event with Team in Training is, well, the training. In exchange for my fundraising efforts, I get coaching in all three sports, and have the opportunity to workout with the team three days a week. We have access to one of Seattle's public pools on Monday evenings, after the pool is closed to the general public, and also to a high school track for the run workouts.

Although I do like to exercise by myself, I will also admit that I workout harder when I'm in a group, and it's always easier to get myself up and out the door if I know there's a group of people assembling to exercise. It's a little tricky, though, to get to the team practices regularly, as they are all evenings/weekends, when I'm busy with the kids. Wiley is very generous about giving me time to go, but for this training season I'm trying to keep the group workouts I attend to the swims, and do most of the other workouts on my own.

When I can get away for a Saturday practice, though, I try to take advantage of it. So last Saturday, when Wiley's brother Mike was visiting, I decided to attend the bike practice. I have bike issues when it comes to triathlons (see previous post(s) below for details). So it's good for me to go to bike practice when I can. Mike drove me to the starting point, the LLS offices, just as the sun was coming up. It was a cloudy morning, but not raining yet and not too cold. I'd recently had a broken spoke on my wheel repaired. My tires were full of air and I had even managed to locate my bike bag in our disorganized basement and load it with bike tools. I was ready. I was even a little excited. I've been to some spinning classes, but this would be my first road ride in a few months.

We assembled in the parking lot, went over the route, did the team cheer. And we were off. I coasted down the hill, rounded the corner, and started peddling. And then I stopped going forward. I stopped and checked that the chain had not come off. Nope. I tried peddling some more and shifting, but I just kept falling over. Some people from my team stopped and offered to help. One of our teammates, Alfonso, was planning to give a bike repair clinic after the ride, so I walked my bike back to the LLS offices and asked him to look at it. He lifted the back end of my bike off the ground and cranked the pedals.

"Wow," he said. "I've read about this online, but I've never seen it before." Then he turned to look at me, and, like a doctor delivering news of a bad diagnosis, said "I'm sorry to tell you this, Janet, but your bike is 100% broken." The freewheel inside the cassette seems to have gotten damaged. (Now that i've attended Alfonso's bike clinic, I understand what that sentence means). When you turn the pedals of my bike, the rear wheel doesn't move. So, no bike practice for me.

Luckily, I was pretty much dressed for running, so I could still get a workout in while everyone was on their ride. So I went for a run on the Burke-Gilman trail, which was fine until the end, when a creepy guy followed me and yelled something threatening. So I ran away from him. When I got back to the office and told folks there what happened, Alfonso seemed ready to go down to the trail and find the guy. Don't mess with Team in Training people, buddy.

Matt, Mike, and the kids went to a play that afternoon, so to undo the rattling experience of the morning, I went for a swim and then did a little window shopping for a new bike (which I've been planning to get for awhile.) Got some good advice on bikes from Michael at Montlake Bicycle Shop, who was very nice and not the least bit creepy. And then the adults in the house wrapped up the day by watching the Ironman World Championships on TV. For Lavaman, we race on part of the Ironman bike course, so it was cool to see what a race there looks like. One of the racers was a Gulf War vet with two prosthetic legs, another was a woman in her sixties with Stage Four colon cancer, who did her training while she was getting radiation and chemo. Good to keep those people in my head any time I feel like complaining about doing a quarter of the distance with my healthy body.

This blog post is already too long, but I want to add the thing that's been the biggest boost this week: I sent my fundraising email out on Thursday at 10:00pm. Less than 12 hours later, I'd raised $500. Now, (five days post-email) I have over $1,000 raised. Thank you all so much. It really does give me lots of emotional energy every time I get a donation. You all rock.

Swim, Bike, Run...And Bike Some More!

Well, I did it! On September 12, 2009, I swam 2K, biked 40K, ran 10K. Overall, I had a great race and I feel very satisfied to have completed this goal I’ve been working toward for so long. (As many of you know, I started training for Lavaman last October – so that’s almost a year of training! Phew!)

Race day weather was not as picturesque as the days preceding. We woke up to a thick fog bank (typical Sept. in Northern CA morning) which never really went away. There was a light mist for most of the morning, and the temperature was in the low sixties. This was great for the bike and the run, but made for a tougher-than-usual swim. Our team went down to Monterey a few days early, and we had a few swims in calm, turquoise waters. (We’d heard of people seeing cool fish and even seals during the race in past years).

On race day, there were big swells, and all you could see was the kelp (LOTS of thick kelp to swim through). Despite the challenges, the swim was my favorite part. I felt really calm the whole time and paced myself well enough that I was able to pass a bunch of people near the finish of the swim, which was a new and fun experience! Two of my Team in Training teammates were in my swim group, and I was the first of the three out of the water. I had a 41:00 swim, faster than I expected.

The bike ride was 4 laps on a mostly flat road right on the coast. Even though it was foggy and drizzly it was still really pretty. There were a lot of Team in Training people in the race, and it was fun to see so many purple shirts on the bike course and get so many supportive “Go Team!” cheers. I pinned Beth’s photograph to the back of my Camelback, and lots of people said nice things about it/her as they rode past.

If you’ve read earlier entries of this blog you’ll know that I have been trying (not very successfully) not to worry about how long it would take me to complete the race. “My goal is just to finish” I kept telling myself, “it doesn’t matter how long it takes.” When we got the race info the week before the race I noticed that they listed course closures. The “regular” people went first, then there was a break, and then they would close the course for the elite athletes’ competition. If I were in a later start group (“wave”), I would likely still be on the bike course when it closed. We got our start times the day before the race and, indeed, I was in the very last group. I asked several people about this, including someone working at the race’s registration booth, and they all said the same thing: “Don’t worry about it.”

The bike course consisted of four laps. I got to do three, and then they closed the course and wouldn’t let me do my fourth lap. So, I spent the first part of the run feeling angry and incredibly let down that I didn’t get to do the whole bike ride.

I tried to brush it off so that I could meet my goal of enjoying myself. On my first lap a man ran smack into me – it turned out to be the elite athlete who won the whole race! (I should’ve yelled “I got off the bike course for you, and now you’re trying to run me over!) But I felt better for the rest of the run, after I came up with my plan.

After I crossed the finish line and got my finisher’s medal, I got back on my bike and rode that last six miles. I’m so glad I did that last lap for myself! Instead of being focused on “don’t crash, don’t get a flat, go faster!” I could just let my mind wander, digest how the race had gone, pat myself on the back, think about Beth.

Now that I’ve had a bit of time to reflect, I am still very glad I did the race. The part where the course closed was disappointing, but oh well. It’s just another example of how things don’t always turn out as planned. And it hasn’t dampened my interest in doing another triathlon someday, (when sleep and free time are at a little less of a premium!)

Doing the race with Team in Training was a great experience – all of the coaching and support during the training season was great. We traveled to California together and had lots of celebrations with all of the Team in Training folks from all over the country. I was the top fundraiser for my team and in the top ten for all 250 participants. They announced my name at the “inspiration dinner” the night before the race, which was a fun surprise.

I have so many people to thank for all of their support and encouragement. So a HUGE thank you to:

• Wiley, above all, for giving me the time and space to train for A YEAR, even when a newborn entered our lives in the middle of it all;
• Caleb and Helen, for being a great support team (and good ballast in the jogging stroller!) I especially enjoyed a recent moment when Caleb and I were headed out of the house to go to the park. I put the hat on that I always wear running and Caleb declared “Let’s go running!”
• The many, many people who made financial contributions (between this race and Lavaman, you all contributed over 13,000 dollars! Wow!!)
• My friend Laura for hooking me on the idea in the first place, (and for encouragement and equipment loans!)
• Everyone else who supported my training efforts in various ways:
• Rachel for our five-mile San Diego beach run
• Amy for being game to do a 20-mile bike ride on her vacation
• Claire for providing transportation and entertainment for my swim in Penn Cove
• My Team in Training coaches for all of their advice and support (thanks, Ande, for waiting while I rode my special “Janet lap”);
• My teammates: Austin for riding (sloooowly) with me on Mercer Island, Blake and Ian for being friendly swim lane partners, Jen and Louisa for being good “wave start” buddies and sharing the wisdom of their experience; Frank and his wife for cheering me on for all 3 laps of my run, and all of my other teammates, many of whom waited at the finish line to cheer the last of us on.

THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU for supporting me to do this race!

Our Dear Beth

Here's what it says on my website now:

"In Loving Memory

On June 24, 2009, surrounded by family, my dear friend Beth lost her battle with brain cancer. Beth was first diagnosed in 2003. She weathered surgery and rehab and went on to live five adventure-filled years. In August of 2008 the cancer returned. More surgery, rehab, and chemo filled the following months. Beth continued to have adventures and a heroic attitude, taking a dream trip to Europe just three weeks before she died.

Beth and her husband Kevin were among our first friends in Seattle and have seen us through all of our good and bad times over the past thirteen years. They are both heroes in my eyes. We miss Beth terribly, and I am heartbroken to do this race in her memory instead of in her honor. At the same time, Beth's incredible strength, wit, and grace in the face of adversity compels me to fulfill my own dream of doing an Olympic-distance triathlon. I will think of her every mile that I train."

Not much to add to that. Even though it's been 3 weeks and we've had the memorial service, in some ways it still doesn't seem real. I think of Beth constantly, especially while I'm training. Peaceful rest to you, Beth.