Comments on Readability?

Just curious on how the new blog is shaping up.... can everyone see the new formatting? Terrible to read, or fine? prefer this , or the older layout?

Poll added to the right...

Thanks for your comments

2009 Race Schedule

Since it seems to be the thing to do this week, I thought I'd update my previous post regarding my upcoming race season.

• Myrtle Beach Half Marathon - February 14, 2009: Not really a "race" for me... More like, I entered the full prior to eating pavement, and was only able to reduce down to the half. I'm going down to have a good time, and support my teammates racing in the Mary. Goals: 2:45? No real goals here.. I've run twice since November. Ooo- Goal - don't get injured.
  

• Backyard Burn Series - March 8, 2009: I'll probably register for the 5 miler, just for a fun trail run... It should give me a good idea how my run has progressed since, well, no running? Goals: average a faster pace than I did at the MB Half. Should NOT be hard to do..
  

• Scope It Out 5K - March 29, 2009: Our team volunteers as "polyps" (the race is to raise colon cancer awareness). Goals: Given that the IM'ers will most likely have a 10 mile run prior to the race, I'm shooting for a sub 28. Goal 2 - get a picture in the giant inflatable colon. :)

• Cherry Blossom 10 Miler - April 5, 2009: Only if I can get a transfer bib number. Goals: Break 1:30.
  
• Backyard Burn Series 10 Miler - April 4, 2009: If I can't get a bib transfer, I'll do this local trail run instead.
  

• Rumpass in the Bumpass - April 18, 2009: Olympic distance triathlon down at Lake Anna. Serves as a good triathlon kick off, and will get me ready to race Kinetic Half in a month. Goals: A race for the 3's - Top 3 in age group, at or below 3 hours, or top 33% of age group.
  

• Colonial Zones 1 Mile Swim - April 24, 2009: Just a 1 mile time trial. It's held at the George Mason aquatics center... a nice 50m pool. Goals: Hardware. Shouldn't be to hard to obtain at this one.
  

• Kinetic Half Iron – May 9, 2009: My very first Half Iron triathlon. I haven't decided whether I will go all out on this one, or save my absolute peak for Mooseman. Both races are qualifies for the HalfMax National Championships. I'm leaning on this to be my A+ (yes, I'm making up a system as I go..) half race over Moosey, which will be an A- race. I suppose some of my deciding factors include how I feel race day, and what my field is like. Being in the 20-24 AG, there aren't too many entrants. Goals: A goal: Top 3 in age group, qualify for HalfMax. B goal: Sub 6:15 C goal: survive.
  

• Kinetic Sprint Tri – May 10, 2009: I wanted to do a back to back weekend last year, but had a pretty shady season due to injury. Goals: Actually wake up and attend the event. Not out to race or place, just to complete.
  

• Mooseman Half Iron – June 7, 2009: This will be my final prep before Ironman Lake Placid. Set in Bristol, NH, the bike and run routes supposedly are a great mix to finalize all IMLP nutrition plans. As mentioned above, this is also a qualifier for the HalfMax National Championship. Goals: Shave some amount of time off the Kinetic Half final time. Nail nutrition, and feel ready for Placid.
  

• Tour De Cure - June 14, 2009: I'm riding the metric century with a co-worker and his fiance. Nothing exciting here, no goals, other than the joy of raising funds (aww).
  

• =PRR= Twilight 4-miler - June 27, 2009: Again, a race with no real goals. Just out to support a local run shop.
  

• Ironman USA – July 26, 2009: This will be my very first Ironman. Looking forward to the challenge Placid will be. Also, hoping for no rain, unlike last year's torrential downpours. Goals: A Goal: finish around 11:45, hopefully qualifying for Kona. B Goal: Finish while its still light out. C Goal: Survive.
  

• Nation’s Triathlon – September 13, 2009: 80% sure I will register for this one prior to Feb 13th (price increases again!). The first year I did this race was my first Oly race. I didn't end up training, and thought I could just poof, go out and do it. around 4 hours later, I realized you really DO need to train more than riding your bike twice in 4 months, and run more than 3 times. Second year, I became a victim of the Potomac Plague. I have never had such an awful race. Despite better training, I still finished around the 4 hour mark. For an olympic distance. TERRIBLE.FAIL. The course has been redesigned again this year, and I think they finally got things right. Goals: Kick this course in the ass, as it has done to me the prior two years.
  

No real plans are set in stone after Placid. For all I know, I may never want to compete in the sport again after Ironman. Or, I may qualify for something. TBD races include:

• The TBD Races, in order of importance:
  
  • Kona – Ironman World Championships – October 10th, 2009: As Ray stated - Simple enough – either I qualify…or I don’t.
  • HalfMax 2009 National Championships - September 19, 2009: Again, straight forward. Race in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
  
  
• If I fail to qualify for either of the above, I'm undecided between:
  

  • Savageman - September 19, 2009: Not sure, either Oly or relay the half. Or, if I'm super adventurous, race the half. Goals: 1) not wreck like it seemed half our team did during training rides. 2) If I race the half... take a shot of liquor at the top of Miller Hill. 3) If I relay again...drink up on Miller Hill with Es again.
    
  • Ironman 70.3 Augusta, GA - September 27, 2009: Might as well do a race my birthday weekend... right? This race is new to the IM circuit, though it looks flat and fast. Goals: attempt to qualify for Clearwater?
  • ChesapeakeMan Aquavelo - September 26, 2009: Again, a race on my B'day. Might be interesting to see my times for the AquaVelo.
  • Bassman Triathlon - October 4, 2009: Options include a half or a sprint. Team Z is racing.. final tuneup for our Ironman Florida peeps. Goals: Finish the season with a podium finish?
    
  • End of the season marathon? Akron Roadrunner Marathon (hometown.. though this year they are ALLOWING headphones? sounds like there's going to be no one to talk to...), Marine Corps Marathon, The Richmond Marathon, Goals: improve my marathon time from IMLP.
    

I also have to fit in some time to lay out by the pool to erase the inevitable tan lines that are going to come with biking so much... My sister's wedding is August 15th, and a close friend's wedding is at the end of October. Ha, maybe I'll ride in a strapless top.


Wow. I just realized how much I'm trying to pack in this year. Cheers to being young, recovering quickly, and ::knock on wood:: injury free.

My Secret...

I felt slightly less than adequate today, considering at this point, I *should* have been running 20 miles with the rest of the ironman hopefuls. Obviously, due to the whole face injury... my training is sharply less. Post-brunch, I went out for a 6.5 mile run... first run over a few miles since the accident. Aside from the throbbing in my mouth, it felt good.

Tonight I'm going out... and wearing heals. To help stave off crazy calf soreness tomorrow, I put my compression tights on under my jeans.

I secretly feel like a superhero when I wear any compression clothing under my street clothes.

You call this music to your ears?

Today I went in for what I thought was just going to be pictures and xrays to start submitting to my medical insurance. Doc looks around, checks some things out, says "here, put this in your mouth for a few minutes". So, I stick a cotton swab with some brown goop on it back by the severely fractured teeth. No biggie (please note, I've NEVER even had a cavity, no dental work done aside from having a few teeth chipped by a basketball when I was little.. but they put me out for the bonding. Read: Naive). So they take a bunch of xrays, and the doc comes back in and lays the chair back. I tend to close my eyes because, well, deep down I'm terrified of dentists and all of their tools. So, I'm laying there, doing my best to become some deep spiritual/meditative person and completely remove myself from the element. Apparently the first instrument he used was actually a needle filled with Novocaine.

I realized this instantly when I heard "bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz" what the!? yep, BAM root canal. As he was grinding away at various parts of my teeth, telling me what he's doing the whole time..
me: I don't know how you handle that noise.
doc: what noise?
me: umm.. the horrific sound of grinding someones teeth off?
doc: ::chuckles:: how dare you call it noise! It's music to my ears.
me: Freak.

Luckily, he's actually a really awesome guy. I feel 100% confident in everything that he's doing, which is a first from any dentist I've ever worked with (well, him and my jaw surgeon). We'll finish up the crown next Friday (there were some issues with my gum growing into the cracks in the teeth post accident). I had to give him a bunch of pictures of before the accident, and he took some in their current state to submit for pre-authorization from my medical insurance. The manager of the office came in and talked to me, which was thoroughly impressive. They're pushing for 100% coverage, and in the meantime, I just pay $20 a visit. Not too bad.

Current timeline: next week, finish up work on my back 2 molars on the upper left, put the post in for the implant. Following appointment, work on the bottom left 2 molars for partial crowns, repair the cracked tooth on the right. Next appointment following: start work for 6 veneers on the top, 4 on the bottom.


Oh, as a side note, doc ended up using one of my senior pictures and this picture for the insurance company:

Addicted

I'm completely addicted to the Republic of Tea's "Get Heart". No, I don't believe that this is in any way improving my cardiovascular health in the least.. but it's so incredibly good tasting. A medium intensity red tea with blackberry, raspberry, and blueberry flavors, with an ever so small hint of something like cloves.


I seriously drink 3-4 cups a day.


Thank goodness my teeth are being replaced, or I'd be worried about surface staining.

And this is why I should post more often.

I end up with extremely long posts. My life goes from dull to action packed in 2.2 seconds, apparently.


Highlights from Friday:
I'm planning on doing some, if not all of the Backyard Burn series this spring. In doing so, I wanted to pick up a pair of trail runners, as I tend to be accident prone and would most likely fall without the additional traction. I was looking for a pair of heels at Off Broadway shoes, and of course, wandered back to the running shoes. Normally I buy my running shoes through either =PRR= or Metro Run and Walk (since it was across the street from my apt). To my surprised, I found a pair of Asics Gel Kahana's on sale for $39, marked down from the usual $75. I love end of season/color changes/whatever sparked them to reduce these particular shoes.
Now the next task, after containing my excitement on cheap shoes. To find a pair of 5's. Yes, I have miniature feet. I can wear a size 3.5 in kids. And, often, if I need a cheap pair of kicks that I won't be training in or will be destroyed, I'll buy kids.. They're like $29. It sounds glorious.. but try finding a size 36 bike shoe. Nearly impossible. I digress. I did find a pair of 5's though, and now I'm a happy camper than can run better on trails. Oh, and I didn't find heels, but that's okay, I had a pair I could use anyway.

Saturday
A friend of mine hooked me up with tickets to this club in DC that had been rented out by some top notch celebs. I'm far from a Hollywood chaser, but it was pretty cool to see how some of them acted when cameras weren't around (everyone had to check cameras at the door). I don't drink much at all anymore, but top shelf liquor was flowing, and free, so of course I partook in the festivities. Lots of fun.

Sunday
I was supposed to be a sag vehicle for my team ride in the morning. Being a recovery week, cold, and a 4 day weekend for most, a whole 7 people from the team showed up to ride. Needless to say, Ed told me I didn't need to sag, and I went around the corner to Providence Rec Center to get some exercise in. I looked at the packed treadmills, and decided to head to the pool. Only a few swimmers in the public swim lanes, and a few classes. Side note - why is it, that old, larger women doing water aerobics wear what appears to be shorts and a sweatshirt into the pool? Do they honestly believe that the additional fabric clinging to their body is more flattering than a swimsuit? And, its not like the water was even cold. Anyway, so I suit up and snag my own lane in the deep end. I brought along my Zoomers to continue strengthening my ankles. For those of you that don't know, I have abnormally flexible ankles (think Gumby), and it causes problems because my ankle (tendons, ligaments, etc) moves around too much, occasionally causing some minor, but annoying and painful issues.
3 hours later, I stopped swimming when I realized I had been in the water for 3 hours.
I initially started with a few sets of 200 drills, then worked on my flipturns which have suffered immensely when I stopped doing them in Masters. around the 1 hour mark, I just started swimming... and swimming.. and swimming.. After looking at a few averages time wise, and knowing my own swimming abilities, I estimate I swam just over 5 miles on Sunday. AND IT FELT GREAT. Not sore in the least Sunday evening/Monday.

Monday
I was a waste of life, actually. I put together my desk, unpacked some more stuff, took a nap, made a really tasty dinner, and watched a movie. Lame, right?

Tuesday
Inauguration.
Also, I had an appointment with my cosmetic dentist. We went over everything that is going to have to be done... 3 crowns upper left, 1 implant, bottom left, 2 partial crowns, possible root canal. Top right, 2 partial crowns. Bottom right, good to go. Front, top and bottom, veneers as needed, most likely 5-8 (read: most likely all but maybe 1). I have to go on Friday for some imaging, as well as bring along some pictures from my past that show my teeth, so they can file the claim with medical that they are restoring my teeth, that its not purely aesthetic. I had my mom scan and send me a few of my closeup B&W shots from my senior pictures. Awww.. I look so young. Not the best scans, they kinda washed out a bit:





Also, I jammed in an interview on Tuesday as well for a side job, and am now the marketing director at a design firm, meaning I'm responding to RFP's essentially. Sounds pretty easy, and I used to be very involved in graphic/web design and programming, so I have a good idea of how it all works. I ended up with this off of SlowTwitch, a triathlon forum I occasionally visit. I had to laugh though.. its interesting to meet people in person - you'd be surprised at the demeanor and general presence of the person when they're not trying to get a rise out of people online.


Now that you're all caught up... I'll give your eyes a rest before I make my next post regarding RoadID.

Accountability

What happened to my request of NOT letting me fall off the blog bandwagon? 1 post in 14 days isn't too spectacular. I blame you, readers. Kidding.

My wires were removed on Friday! Woohoo! One step closer to being DONE with the broken jaw series. My teammate Mere took me in for surgery, and didn't make fun of me for any ramblings post-surgery. Its amazing how that works... one second you're breathing in the nitrous as deeply as you can, and then next thing you know, you're sitting in a chair beside your teammate. No recollection of walking and sitting in said chair either. Its kind of scary, actually. I go back this Friday to get (hopefully) a final count of what needs to be fixed. I should be able to start scheduling appointments with a cosmetic surgeon at this point. It will be nice to be done. Mainly, so I can bite food again vice tear off small pieces to eat. Also, I've grown quite self conscious about the state of my teeth. Looking at me, you wouldn't know I had been in an accident 2 months ago. It just looks like I have really bad teeth. I never knew how vain I was, but really.. I miss having perfect teeth. I get very nervous speaking with people now and showing my teeth. At least I'm almost done. Training is back on hold due to throbbing as soon as I get my HR up. I am doing some core and strength training though.

That thing, that I was excited about a month ago? Its surfacing again tomorrow.. so keep your fingers crossed. :)

I've been busy cleaning lately. I just moved (yet again.. ), and am still in the process of unpacking. My living room, den, kitchen, and bathroom are unpacked... its just the closet in my bedroom that needs immense amounts of attention. I'll have to post pictures of the place later. I love it, and its nice to have a place that finally feels like "home", and I plan on being there for a few years. Moving every 6-8 months has been exhausting. That said, it makes me a little queezy to know that I'm not moving anytime soon.

New Beginnings

Cheers to a new year. With the rough watered year of 2008 in the past, I look forward to 2009 and whatever it may hold. It has started out far better than 2008 did already, as I've yet to drop a chef's knife through my toe. Horray!

Since 2008 was a bust, I decided to wait until 2009 to resume training, for fear of another strike of whatever bad omen I had looming over me. Saturday I planned to head out on a 4 mile run, following a 7 week running haitus. Terrible, I know. Sadly, it ended around 3 miles, when I could no longer take the pain and throbbing in my teeth. You shouldnt feel teeth... and I could feel 158 beats every minute in at least 12 teeth. So, scratch the outdoor running, and back to the elliptical which, in the warmer rooms, doesn't phase my teeth nearly as much.

Sunday, I decided to go for it... time to get back on my still unnamed beautiful bike. I met up with the team for a flat ride out in Nokesville, VA for a 30 miler. Semi-fail. I was relieved that I had nearly zero fear getting back on the bike. My only fear was that someone in front of me would crash, and I'd have no choice but to hit them and go over as well. I guess this just means I need to lead the pack. Unfortunately, about 14 miles into the ride, I was having the same throbbing issues, in addition to a general soreness from holding my jaw open against the force of the rubberbands to breathe (my nose was taking charge of the running I've been missing). Luckily we had someone SAGging, and they took me back to my car. I came home and did the trainer for an hour. I must say, its a whole new ballgame on riding when you're instantly 25 pounds lighter. Unfortunately, some of that was muscle mass.. but its crazy how quick you feel. Not to mention, spandex looks better (a relative term... spandex doesn't look great on anyone).

I took Monday off to do some errands, and got back in the pool this morning. I was looking forward to being able to breathe in the water without the restriction of the jaw being wired shut. It was much easier to breathe, and I felt like I was gliding through the water. That is, until my jaw started throbbing from the vibration caused by exhaling. Sonofa.. So, I resorted to a few hundred meters of kick drills on my back. *sigh*.

Even with the past 3 workouts not going to plan, I'm still very pleased. I'm out there and working on getting better, and thats all I can ask for right now. The remainder of the wires come out on FRIDAY(!!!), and I'll start the dental work to once and for all end this saga. As soon as the teeth are capped/crowned/implanted, I won't have to deal with the throbbing/exposed nerves that I'm dealing with currently.


I don't make new years resolutions, but I do keep an ongoing list of goals. I have some on an "easily obtainable, so just do", "really, really want", and "not really important" list. I've joked around about going to Kona, being that there are only 6 people in my age group at Placid. It's just been a 'wouldn't that be funny/cool if I qualified'? I've decided to elevate the idea of Kona off of the "not really important" list. I've decided that my new goal is to be able to look back after Lake Placid if I DONT qualify, and be able to honestly say that there was absolutely nothing I wished I would have done up to 7/25/2009 to improve my chances. If someone is just flat out better than me, than they are.. but its not because I didn't train, and because I didn't push myself to do as much as I possibly could to be my best.

Kona, here's to you.


Cheers.