Posts Tagged ‘Vermont’

Let the Season Begin!

It is finally spring here in Vermont! The weather has been cooperating and I am officially off my trainer and biking out in the Green Mountains of Vermont! The picture above is my friend Angie and I biking up Appalachian Gap. It’s only the beginning of May, so I thought it would be ok to take a little break and get a quick photo!! This is one of my favorite rides in Vermont. Starting from my house, it’s a little under 2 hours to the base. The first section of App Gap begins gradually and is referred to as “Baby App.” There is a slight 100 M descent which leads you into the steep section with tight switchbacks and grades peaking at 18% towards the top. The first climb of the year up App Gap is always tough and I had to make a mental note to myself to put on a 27 now that I am on 700c wheels again! From the top you can view Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks. To make it a good 5 hour ride, I usually descend the other side of the mountain, spin out the legs for a few minutes and refuel at the country store. On chilly spring days like yesterday, I often opt for hot coffee rather than sport drink! I just pour it right in my water bottle and drink it while I’m climbing. One of the things I hate most in life is being cold! With coffee on board, I head back up the mountain. This side is about a 40-45 min climb from the base also peaking at about 18% towards the top. Many people do not know this but Vermont does have some pretty incredible cycling. App gap is my favorite climb, but there are 5 other mountain passes in this area. Lincoln gap is the steepest, peaking at 22% grade! 18 is just fine for me!

Training this past month has gone really well and I am excited to kick off my race season. After a bumpy spring, I decided to skip Wildflower. This was such a hard decision for me as it is one of my favorite races. My training this past spring was so inconsistent, that I felt like I need to go back and repeat a few weeks of base training. Wildflower is a brutal race. I knew if I raced, I would loose 2 weeks of training; 1 to taper and 1 week just to recover! I had to look at the big picture and keep my eye on the prize. My main goal right now is to do well at Ironman Lake Placid and with it being only 9 weeks away, I needed to get a solid base and feel strong again. I believe that races are great fitness boosters, but you can’t race your way into Ironman fitness, no way. I am really excited about my race schedule this year and feel my coach Lance and I have come up with a great plan.

I have just started my rest week leading into FL 70.3 As usual the pro women’s race will be stacked, but it will be a good test of my fitness as I start to gear up for Lake Placid. The rest of my Lake Placid prep will include Eagleman 70.3 and the New Balance Half Ironman. Let the season begin!

Spring Update

Hello! Well, I know it’s been a long time since my last update. The truth is, I am one of those people who believe if you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say it at all! That’s the thing I don’t like about blogging. I feel like everyone is trying way too hard to be positive and inspirational. We’re all humans and we have bad days or bad stretches and sometimes and need time to sulk a little, face our feelings, then overcome and bounce back. Well , this is what I went through the past month. I went to Noosa to swim with fast Aussies and improve my swim handicap. I can’t tell you how many races I loose in the water. My first few weeks in Noosa went really well. Vermont was in their typical arctic freeze and I was so excited to spend 6 weeks of winter in summer! After the first week and a half, I tweaked my bad shoulder while getting totally tumbled by a huge wave (see previous post!). That was it. My rotator cuff was badly strained and I had to miss 5 weeks of swim training. I tried to spend the next 2 weeks focusing on my cycling and running, but I was also struggling with posterior tibilais tendinitis. I was so excited to be in the warm weather and so fired up after a disappointing race at Kona, that I went too hard and too long, too early. I’ve been home now for almost 3 weeks and I am feeling much better.

Last weekend, Kelly and I went to Dallas to race the Play Tri Half Ironman. I wasn’t sure if I should go because I have not been able to run or swim for some time now. The trip was all paid for and we were really looking forward to spending the weekend together, so we decided to go and blow the cobwebs out!! Kelly and I finished 2 and 4^th and found out we have a lot of work to do!! We had a great weekend together and laughed nonstop. We also decided that it probably isn’t a good idea for us to race together. We goof off way too much!