It was a beautiful day in Sonoma County today. It was the second of two days off, which is a first in about 3 or 4 weeks. We spent yesterday recuperating from the work week. Claire and I went out on the tandem this morning and did a 36 mile loop out to Duncans Mills. We stopped at the Gold Coast Coffee Company and had a couple of mochas and a couple of slices of pizza. When we got back, I put on my new Pearlizumi running shoes and went out for a 7.5 mile run.

We have been working 6 days a week for the last 3 weeks. It is hard to fit in a lot of training. Today is our one day off, and we are trying our best to relax and recuperate from the week. I went out and ran for about an hour early this morning. My hamstring was tight as a drum, and didn’t want to loosen up. The run was not as enjoyable as I had hoped it would be. Claire and I then went out for a 20 mile loop from our house. It is our favorite loop. We are now going to have a homemade mocha and sit by the pool.

I went for a great run last night in Annadel State Park. I ran for a total of 1 hour and 20 minutes. I am planning on participating in the Humboldt Redwood Marathon which will take place on October 21. I haven’t set any goals for myself yet. Many, many years ago I ran 3:05 in the Drake Marathon back in Iowa. I didn’t train at all for it, but I was only 19, and was coming off a swimming season where I had been swimming about 5 hours a day. It would be great to break that 3 hour mark, but I don’t know if my legs have that many 7 minute miles in them. I really have fallen in love with running, so I am looking forward to the training. The run was definitely my weakest event during the Vineman, but part of that can be attributed to my lack of food and water.

I will just say for now that I made it. It went well overall. I finished in 12 hours and 22 minutes. The run really kicked my butt. I got out of the water in around 56 minutes, which was a pleasant surprise for me. I felt GREAT during the swim. Claire figures that I was 2nd out of the water in my age group. My bike ride ended up taking 5 hours and 54 minutes, which brought me into the run transition in exactly 7 hours. That was exactly where I wanted to be. The first half of the bike ride went great, and I was drinking plenty of water and actually had to stop twice to pee. I hadn’t anticipated any problems with food, but I was surprised that there was so little of it at the aid stations. I think I am used to bicycling events where there is plenty to eat. I had brought along three packages of Cliff Bloks, but I went through those pretty fast. I was able to grab a couple of banana halfs and a Cliff Bar, but I knew that I wasn’t getting the calories that I needed. At the end of the bike leg, I was feeling worse than I had hoped, and I wasn’t too hopeful for the coming marathon. The run consisted of three “out and back” loops, each a bit under 9 miles. As I set out on the run, I was pleasantly surprised at how good I felt. I kept telling myself to take it easy, but I was clicking out 8:30 miles with no problems, or at least I thought there were no problems. I was still having trouble getting water and food into my system. I was again surprised that some of the aid stations just had junk to eat like oreo cookies or fig newtons. So, at the 6 mile mark, I forced down a little coca-cola, some water, and finally a cliff shot. I was excited that I got something down, and I was still feeling light on my feet. Then at the 8 mile mark, I lost everything I had just drank and eaten, if you catch my jist. It was not a pretty sight, but I did at least move off to the side of the road. Anyway, I felt great after that, but knew that there was trouble to come. At the 10 mile mark, the trouble hit. And basically, the rest of the run was spent hobbling along with cramps in both legs and not feeling to good. My first lap took me 1 hour and 15 minutes, my second lap took me 1 hour and 55 minutes, and my last lap took me 2 hours and 10 minutes. I know where I can make up some time next year. I did manage to lose over 15 pounds in the course of the day. That is a lot of water.
Claire, William and Carrie were waiting for me at the finish line. They all said that it took them some time to recognize me when I was running towards them. Claire ran down and took a picture as I crossed the finish line. We then went out to dinner at The Bear Republic in Healdsburg, but I couldn’t eat anything, and was only able to drink some Sprite. I did wake up the next day feeling great, and was able to work at the shop with Claire and Nelson.

Tomorrow is the event. Claire and I stayed home from work today. I have been resting for the most part. We rode our bikes to Windsor to pick up my race packet and to drop off my running stuff at that transition. It was about a 20 mile loop, nice and easy. It looks like I will be getting lucky with the weather tomorrow since it is only supposed to get up to about 80. I’m sure all the athletes will appreciate that. Maybe not the aquabike people since they would be done before it would be getting too hot. I’ve got the bike in the bus ready to go along with my wetsuit and stuff. Now I will be getting my prerace, good luck, haircut from Claire. Next time I write, it will all be over with.

Well, I just went out for a twenty minute run and felt awful. I haven’t run since Friday, and I expected to feel great. Claire pointed out that twenty minutes isn’t even long enough to get warmed up properly. The shop has been very busy, and I have been on my feet in the work area for at least 9 hours for the last couple of days, so that is taking a toll on my legs. We will be doing the same tomorrow, but I will be taking Friday off and try to stay off my feet as much as possible. I also got my new Pearlizumi running shoes one size to small. They are actually the perfect fit, but you want running shoes to be one size bigger for your toes. I think my feet have gotten bigger this last year since my cycling shoes are too small and my running shoes are too small. I will make sure I wear my thinnest socks on Saturday. I also have an old pair of running shoes that are a little worn out, but are the right size, so I can change into those if I need to. The run leg of the race goes through the transition area twice during the run, so I can change my shoes if things get bad. I did decide to wear my full wetsuit after swimming the other night. It felt great. I figured out that it is over 18 years old.